VITAE PATRUM. - A Latin collection of legends of the saints, in 10 books, formed in the 6th century, edited by H. Rosweyde, Antwerp 1615 (reproduced in PL 73-74; BHL, nos. 6524-47).

The collection contains writings of St. Jerome, Rufinus, Sulpicius Severus, Cassian, etc. The most important texts are contained in books III, V, VI, VII of this collection and contain the: Verba seniorum, that is, a Latin translation of a recension of the Apophthegmata patrum (v.) in Greek. The translation of book III has been wrongly attributed to Rufinus. Book V was translated by the deacon Romanus Pelagius, later known as Pope Pelagius I (555-61); his work was continued by the Roman subdeacon John, and was known to Photius, who says that it was an extract from a larger collection ("the great Meadow"). Paschasius of Dumium, a disciple of Martin of Dumium, better known under the name of Martin of Braga (v.), also translated the Sententiae patrum Aegyptiorum. The old Apophthegmata patrum (PG 65, 71-440) are an anonymous collection of sayings and deeds of the monks of the Egyptian desert; they were gathered in the 5th century and circulated in various recensions and translations throughout the Christian world. They are of the greatest importance for the reconstruction of the primitive spirituality of asceticism in Egypt. The history of the influence of these writings on the formation of spirituality in the following centuries has not yet been written. Quotations from the Vitae patrum and Verba seniorum are often found in the Rule of St. Benedict.

Bibliography6 works

BIBL.: A. H. Salonian, Vitae patrum: kritische Untersuch. über Text, Syntax u. Wortschatz der spätlateinischen V. P., Lund 1920; A. Siegmund, Die Überlieferung der griech. christl. Liter. in der latein. Kirche, Munich 1939, p. 136 ff. The text of the Sententiae patrum Aegyptiorum of Martin is found, now, in Martini episcopi Braccarensi opera omnia, ed. C. W. Barlow, New Haven 1950, p. 11 ff. For the Apophthegmata patrum, cf. A. Wilmart, Le recueil latin des Apophthegmes, in Rev. bénéd., 34 (1922), pp. 185-198; id., Les Ordres du Christ, in Rev. des sciences reliq., 3 (1923), pp. 305-27; W. Bousset, Apophthegmata-Studien, Tübingen 1923; Karl Heuss, Der Ursprung des Mönchtums, ibid. 1936, pp. 132-286; M. Viller - K. Mahner, Askese und Mystik in der Väterzeit, Freiburg 1939, p. 115 ff. The influence of the Vitae patrum on ancient English literature has been treated by C. L. Rosenthal, The V. P. in Old and Middle Engl. Liter., University of Pennsylvania 1936.

Erik Peterson

@incollection{ec12_vitae_patrum, author = {Peterson, Erik}, title = {Vitae Patrum}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {XII}, pages = {1516--1517}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1954}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/vitae-patrum} }

One of some 20,000 entries brought back from the twelve printed volumes (1948–54). Spotted something? Help us improve it.

About this entry