EVAGRIO SCOLASTICO. – Ecclesiastical writer, born at Epiphany in Syria in 536–37, died at Antioch toward the end of the century. He practised law (hence the epithet “scholasticus”) in Antioch, then held important offices; in 588 he accompanied the patriarch Gregory to Constantinople, where the latter had been summoned to clear himself, and defended him before the Emperor and the Synod.
He mentions (Hist. eccl., VI, 24) a lost work of his own, which contained reports, letters, decisions, speeches, and dialogues. What has come down to us, however, is the Ecclesiastical History in 6 books, in which, proposing to continue those of Sozomen, Theodoret, and Socrates, he covers the period 431–594. He makes no mention of Theodore the Reader, and expresses reservations, inspired by strict orthodoxy, about Eusebius’ doctrinal positions. He deals only with the East, also extending his treatment to secular events, such as the war between the Romans and the Persians (I, VI); but his principal interest lies in the history of dogma, and he is especially important for the Nestorian and Eutychian controversies and for the subsequent developments of Monophysitism. Although he is at times excessively credulous and fond of the marvelous, he is impartial. He draws, especially for the history of Eutychianism, on Zachariah Rhetor; for secular events, on the chronicle of his compatriot Eustathius, as well as on Procopius of Caesarea, Menander Protector, John of Epiphany, and John Malalas. His style, deliberately archaizing and modeled on Thucydides, is prolix but accurate, continuing the literary tradition of Greek historiography.