Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 16.djvu/45

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COPTIC


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COPTIC


discourse by Proclus of Cyzicus. (5) Feasts of Patriarchs and Prophets: Isaac (Mesori 24 = 17 Aug.), dormilio: Joseph (without date), his history by Ephrem the Anchorite; Jeremias (without date), Paralipomena.

(6) Feasts of Saints of the Gospels and Acts: St. John the Baptist (Thoth 2=30 Aug.), discourse by Theodore, Archbishop of Alexandria; Sts. Peter and Paul (Epiphi 5=29 June), discourse by Severi- anus of Gabala; the Twelve Apostles, St. Mark, and St. Luke (same day), Eulogy of the Twelve Apostles and Life of St. Mark (acephalous; author unknown. In Cairo) ; St. Stephen [no date in the Lectionary (see above)], Stoning of St. Stephen (Thoth 15 = 12 Sept.), Life {iroXireia). (7) Feasts of Martyrs: ShnMe and Brothers (Phaophi 7=4 Oct.), Acts of martyrdom; Cyprian [and Justina] (Phaophi 20 = 17 Oct.), Conversion of Cyprian, his Acts of martjT- dom; Menas (.\thyr 10 = Nov.), Acts of martyr- dom, eulogy by John, Archbishop of Alexandria, miracles; Cosmas and Damianus (Athyr 22 = 18 Nov.), Acts of martyrdom (acephalous); Mercurius (Athyr 25=21 Nov.), Acts of martjTdom, two eulo- gies by Acacius of Neo-Ciesarea and St. Basil of Cffisarea; Paese and Thecla (Choiac 8=4 Dec), Acts of martjTdom; Pteleme (Choiac 11=7 Dec), Acts of martyrdom; Psote (Choiac 27=23 Dec), Acts of martyrdom; Leonitius the Arab and Publius (Tybi 1 = 27 Dec), Acts of martyrdom; Theodore the Ana- tolian, Leonitius the .\rab and Panegvris (Tybi 12 =

7 Jan.), Acts of martyrdom; Philotheus (Tybi 16 = 11 Jan.), Acts of martyrdom; Apa loule and PtelemS (Tybi 21=16 Jan.), Acts of martjTdom; Apa EUa (Pharmouthi 16 = 11 April), Acts of martyrdom, eulogy by Stephen of Hues (both in Cairo); Victor, son of Romanes (Pharmouthi 27=22 April), eulogy by Theopemptos, .\rchbishop of Antioch; Coluthus (Pachon 24 = 19 May), Acts of martyrdom, eulogy by Isaac, Bishop of Antinoou ; Phoibamon (Payni 1 = 26 May), Acts of martyrdom, miracles; Claudius (Payni 11=5 June), Acts of martj-rdom, eulogy by Severus of Antioch, two eulogies by Constantine of Siout; Epiana (Epiphi 8=2 July), Acts; Nabra (same date). Acts (in Cairo); Theodore Stratelates (Epiphi 20 = 14 Jul)'), Acts of martjTdom, narrative by Anas- tatius. Bishop of Euchaitos; The Seven Sleepers (Mesdri 20 = 13 Aug.), Acts of martyrdom, Isidorus, his mother Sophia, and his sister Euphemia (no date legible). Acts of martjTdom (Cairo). (8) Feasts of Anchorites and Cenobites: Phib (Phaophi 20 = 17 Oct.), life bv Papohe; Samuel of Kalomon (Choiac

8 = 4 Dec), life; Archellites (Tybi 13=8 Jan.), life by Eusebius "the historiographer of Rome"; Maxi- mus and Dometius (Tybi 14 and 17=9 and 12 Jan.), lives bv Pohoi; Hilaria (Tybi 21=16 Jan.), hfe by Pambo; St. Anthony (Tybi 22=7 Jan.), life by St. Athanasius, eulogy by John, Bishop of Ashmdnein; Longinus and Lucius (Mechior 2=27 Jan.), lives, eulogy by Basil, Bishop of Pemje; Pachomius (Pach6n 14=9 May), Hfe (acephalous); Onuphrius (Payni 16 = 10 June), life; Apollo (Payni 20 = 14 June), eulogy by Stephen, Bishop of Hues.

(9) Feasts of Bishops: Macarius of Tkoou (no date, Phaophi 21 =18 Oct.. more probably, however, on the same day a-s Dioscorus of Alexandria, Thoth 7=4 Sept.), eulogy by Dioscorus, .Vrchbishop of Alexandria (when in exile at Gangra) ; St. Athanasius of Alexandria (Pachon 7=2 May), two eulogies by Constantine, Bishop of Siout. (10) Miscellaneous. It has as yet been impossible to assign the following treatises to any special flays of the liturgical year, but it is very likely that they, too, were once part of the SjTiaxary; some of them may have been read on ordinary Sundays: from St. John Chrysostom, homily on the sinning woman who repented (Luke, vii, 34 sqq.); from St. Athanasius, two homilies, one on the parable of the man who borrowed three loaves


from his friend (Luke, xi, 5 sqq.) and another on the resurrection of Lazarus; from St. Cyril of Alexandria, homily on some passages of the Apocalypse from John, Archbishop of Alexandria, answers on various questions of theology, put to him by one of his priests, Theodore by name; from Shenute, a volume on indif- ference in church-going. It is needless to say here that almost every one of the treatises under sections 1 to 6 of the Synaxarj' is either downright apocryphal or at least based on apocryphal literature.

An official and detailed catalogue of this rich collec- tion is in course of preparation and there is every prospect that the editing and translating of these venerable relics will begin without unavoidable delay.

The British Museum's Recent Acquisitions. — The British Museum acquired of late a number of valuable Sahidic manuscripts. Three of these. Or. 5000, Or. 5001 (both found together in a ruined mon- astery of Upper Egypt), and Or. 7594 (bought from a native antiquarian at Ghizer, Cairo) are on papyrus, and bear the appearance of high antiquity, especially Or. 7594, which the authorities of the British Mu- seum date in the middle of the fourth century. The others. Or. 6780-6784, 6799-6804, 6806, 7021-7030, are on parchment, excepting a few on paper, and their dates of writing, so far as they are given, vary from A. D. 979 to 1053. These probably all come from the Monastery of St. Mercurius in the desert west of Edfil (Upper Egypt). The following is a summary of contents of the twenty-five manuscripts:

Bible. (1) Old Testament. — Deuteronomy (except- ing ii, 20-iv, 48; viii, 3-ix, 6; xiii, 17-xiv, 17; xviii, 11-xix, 1 ; XX, 6-xxii, 2; xxvi, ll-xx\'ii, 26, and a num- ber of smaller lacunae); Jonas (complete). Or. 7594; The Psalter (complete, including the uncanonical Ps. cli. Or. 5000, assigned to beginning of the seventh century). (2) New Testament. — The Acts of the Apostles (excepting xxiv, 16-xxvi, 31), and a number of verses lacunous or entirely missing [Or. 7594]; The Apocalypse of St. John (excepting i, 1-8; xxii, 15-21), Or. 6803, paper, eleventh or twelfth century.

Liturgy. — Lections and antiphons for the feasts of St. Miciiael [Or. 6781], St. Mercurius [6801], and St. Aaron, cenobite [7029].

Synaxary. — (I) Our Lord: discourse of Demetrius, Archbishop of Antioch, on the Nativity of Our Lord [Or. 7027], an account of the Descent of Our Lord to Hell, by the Apostle Bartholomew [*Or. 6804], dis- course of St. Cyril of Jerusalem on the Cross [Or. 6799]; (2) The Blessed Virgin Mary: discourse of Theophilus of Alexandria on the Blessed Virgin Mary [Or. 6780], discourse of St. Cyril of Alexandria on the same [Or. 6782), twenty-first exegesis of St. CjTil of Jerusalem on the same [Or. 6784]. (3) An-, gels: discourse of Theodosius, Archbishop of Alex- andria, on St. Michael [Or. 6781 and Or. 7021], an- other discourse on the same subject by Timothy of Alexandria [Or. 7029], discourse of Celestine of Rome on St. Gabriel [Isegins Or. 7028, continues on a frag- ment in the collection of Mr. Freer of Detroit, ends on Or. 6780], discourse by St. John Chrysostom on St. Raphael [Or. 7023], the investiture of' Raph.ael, a discourse by Severus of Antioch [Or. 7028, two folios only), discourse by Timothy of Alexandria on Ab- baton, the angel of death (Or. 7025). (4) Apocalyptic: Apocalyi)se (? acephalous) "written by Timothy and Mark at the re(|urst of St. Paul" (Or. 7023). (5) Saints in Gospel and .\cts: discourse of St. John Chrv.sostom on St. John the Baptist [Or. 7024), death of St. John the Apostle [* Or. 6782], the Mysteries of John the Apostle learned by him in Heaven [Or. 7026). (6) MartjTs : m.art yrdom of Eusta- thius and Placidus [* Or. 6783], martvrdom of Mer- curius (Or. 6801], fragments of the same [* Or. 6802], miracles by St. Mercurius (ibid.), eulogj' of the same by Acacius of Ca'.area [ibid.], eulogy of Theodore, Archbishop of Antioch [Or. 7030]. (7) Anchorites