Written between the mid-fourth and late sixth centuries to commemorate and glorify the achievements of early Christian saints, these six biographies depict men who devoted themselves to solitude, poverty and prayer. Athanasius records Antony's extreme seclusion in the Egyptian desert, despite temptation by the devil and visits from his followers. Jerome also shows those who fled persecution or withdrew from society to pursue lives of chastity and asceticism in his accounts of Paul of Thebes, Hilarion and Malchus. In his Life of Martin, Sulpicius Severus describes the achievements of a...

Christian Latin poetry from the fourth to sixth centuries was hugely influential on English and French medieval literature. In this, the first substantial overview of this poetry, Carolinne White sets the works in their literary and historical context, including translations of over thirty poems and excerpts, many never translated into English before.

Christian Latin poetry from the fourth to sixth centuries was hugely influential on English and French medieval literature. In this, the first substantial overview of this poetry, Carolinne White sets the works in their literary and historical context, including translations of over thirty poems and excerpts, many never translated into English before.

Greek text and facing-page translation of a selection of Gregory of Nazianzus's poems.

This study presents the evidence, derived from letters and theological works, for theories of Christian friendship as they were developed by the leading fourth-century Church Fathers, both in East and West. The author attempts to find out how consistent and positive is the picture of friendship between Christians at the time, and considers friendship in the context of the relation between pagan theory and Christian ideas. All of the writers considered had a profound influence on later ages as well as on their own period.

This study presents the evidence, derived from letters and theological works, for theories of Christian friendship as they were developed by the leading fourth-century Church Fathers, both in East and West. The author attempts to find out how consistent and positive is the picture of friendship between Christians at the time, and considers friendship in the context of the relation between pagan theory and Christian ideas. All of the writers considered had a profound influence on later ages as well as on their own period.

Between 1515 and 1533 Erasmus wrote commentaries on eleven psalms, his only treatment of texts from the Old Testament. His principal aim was, as in his Paraphrases, to contribute, through the exposition of the Bible, to the renewal of preaching and devotional literature. This second of three volumes of the Expositions of the Psalms in the Collected Works of Erasmus, continues the chronological sequence of composition, containing commentaries on psalms 85, 22, 28 (the De bello Turcico), and 33.

Erasmus wrote these expositions between August 1528 and February...

'Perpetua shouted out with joy as the sword pierced her, for she wanted to taste some of the pain and she even guided the hesitant hand of the trainee gladiator towards her own throat'
Lives of Roman Christian Women is a unique collection of letters and documents from the third to the fifth centuries, celebrating Christian women from across the Roman Empire. During a crucial period in which Christianity transformed from a persecuted faith to the official religion of the Empire, these writings reveal the women who chose to dedicate their lives to Christ, by embracing martyrdom or...

Latin continued to be used across Europe long after the end of the Roman Empire. This collection considers key issues arising from the use of Latin in Britain from the 6th to the 16th centuries. Latin in this period was not the native language of its users but was nevertheless used extensively for a wide variety of functions from religion, literature, and philosophy to record-keeping and correspondence. It existed alongside a number of everyday native spoken languages, including English, French, and Welsh. The chapters in this collection consider Latin with regard to the various contexts in...