Church History 2.17.5

Summary: Philo says they gave up their property and withdrew outside the cities to live apart.

Greek text · Dindorf 4:65

ὅμως δʼ οὖν ἐν πρώτοις τὴν ἀπόταξιν αὐτοῖς τῆς οὐσίας μαρτυρεῖ, φάσκων ἀρχομένους φιλοσοφεῖν ἐξίστασθαι τοῖς προσήκουσι τῶν ὑπαρχόντων, ἔπειτα πάσαις ἀποταξαμένους ταῖς τοῦ βίου φροντίσιν, ἔξω τειχῶν προελθόντας, ἐν μοναγρίοις καὶ κήποις τὰς διατριβὰς ποιεῖσθαι, τὰς ἐκ τῶν ἀνομοίων ἐπιμιξίας ἀλυσιτελεῖς καὶ βλαβερὰς εὖ εἰδότας, τῶν κατʼ ἐκεῖνο καιροῦ τοῦθʼ ὡς εἰκὸς ἐπιτελούντων ἐκθύμῳ καὶ θερμοτάτῃ πίστει, τὸν προφητικὸν ζηλοῦν ἀσκούντων βίον.

English · Claude translation

In any case, he testifies first of all to their renunciation of property, saying that those who begin to pursue philosophy give up their possessions to their relatives, and then, having renounced all the cares of life, go out beyond the walls and make their abodes in lonely fields and gardens, knowing well that association with people unlike themselves is unprofitable and harmful; those of that time did this, as is likely, with eager and most fervent faith, practising the life of the prophets in emulation.

About this passage

Source

Dindorf 4:65 · Wilhelm Dindorf, ed., Eusebii Caesariensis Opera, vol. 4: Historiae ecclesiasticae libri I–X (Leipzig: Teubner, 1871) · Greek text: W. Dindorf, Eusebii Caesariensis Opera 4 (Leipzig: Teubner, 1871), digitized by the First Thousand Years of Greek project (Open Greek and Latin), CC BY-SA 4.0

Text

As printed in Dindorf, Eusebii Opera 4. Manuscript variants and the editor's apparatus are not reproduced; no textual problem is noted in this passage.

Translation

Claude translation (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 · Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Dindorf, Eusebii Caesariensis Opera 4 (Teubner, 1871); made independently of existing English translations.

Compare

Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 1 (1890) (an older public-domain English translation, whole volume at CCEL; checked against ours only after ours was made)

Extrabiblical texts

Philo, Contempl. 13–20 (Philo of Alexandria (works)) · allusion, high confidence

Topics

Ethics

Cite this passage

Eusebius, Hist. eccl. 2.17.5 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-historia/2/17/5/).

Plain text

Eusebius, Hist. eccl. 2.17.5 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-historia/2/17/5/).

Greek text · Dindorf 4:65

English · Claude translation

About this passage

Notes

Translation notes

Cite this passage