HELIODORUS (Gk. Hēliódōros "Gift of the Sun"). - Prime minister of Seleucus IV, king of Syria (187-175 B.C.). Son of Aeschylus, of a noble Antiochene family, he was educated together with Seleucus, who honored him particularly. In two inscriptions found at Delos, E. is called "kinsman of the king" and "superintendent of royal affairs" (cf. II Macc. 3:7). This explains the reception given him at Jerusalem, when, disguising a visit to Syria and Phoenicia, he was sent by the king to confiscate the treasures deposited in the Temple.

E. revealed his mission to the pious Onias III, the high priest, and, despite the latter's calm but firm protests and the general mourning of the priests and the citizenry, he entered the Temple to carry it out. But the Lord inter-

(by courtesy of Dr. B. Degenhart)
ELIGIO, saint - St. E. in his workshop. Dignity of Taddeo Gaddi (1st half of the 14th century) - Paris, Spitidon collection.

vened: a horse mounted by a splendid horseman struck him in the chest with its forehooves, while two other angels scourged him, so that he fell to the ground. Carried away by his men, unconscious, he was saved by the intercession of Onias, and having returned to Antioch he reported his failure to the king, mocking Seleucus's insistence on a new attempt (II Macc. 3:7-40). E. killed Seleucus and his young heir, in the vain attempt to seize the throne, which passed to Antiochus IV (cf. Appian, Syria, 45).

The evocative scene of E. driven from the Temple inspired several works of art; famous is Raphael's fresco in the Vatican Stanze. - See plate XIX.

Plate XIX (ed. Indiretta) HELIODORUS DRIVEN FROM THE TEMPLE Fresco by Raphael (1514) - Vatican Rooms.

Bibliography3 works

BIBL.: E. J. Bickermann, Héliodore au Temple de Jérusalem, in Annuaire de l'Institut de philologie et d'histoire orientales et slaves, 7 (1939-44), pp. 5-40; A. Vaccari, La S. Bibbia, III, Florence 1948, pp. 437-40; F.-M. Abel, Les livres des Marchobées, Paris 1949, pp. 319-28.

Francesco Spadafora

@incollection{ec5_eliodoro_eliodaros_dono_dei_so, author = {Spadafora, Francesco}, title = {Eliodoro ('ΗΛΙΌΔΑΡΟΣ «Dono dei Sole»)}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {V}, pages = {242}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1950}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/eliodoro-eliodaros-dono-dei-sole} }

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Heliodorus (Gk. Hēliódōros "Gift of the Sun")

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