The Ecclesiastical History of Evagrius Scholasticus - Coptic ...

ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY: BOOK IV 205
again itsu¡ered from earthquakes 30 months later.Then indeed the cityof
Antiochus was called city of God, Theopolis, and obtained other support
from the emperor. 16
7 But since we have mentioned the said misfortunes, come and let us add
to the present work some other memorable events, which have been
conveyed to us by those who have narrated them. 17 There was a man
Zosimas, a Phoenician by birth from the part called Maritime, who had
been allotted as his fatherland the village of Sinde, which is not twenty
stades distant from the city of the Tyrians. He was a contender in the solitary
life, and had to such an extent brought God into his person through
his abstinence from and partaking of food, 18 and by the other virtues of
his life that not only was he able to foresee future events but also had the
gift of complete serenity. [157] He was in the company of one of the notables
of the city of Caesar, which is the chief city of one of the Palestines.
This man indeed was Arcesilaus, a man of good birth and famous, who
was well provided with distinctions and the other things which decorate
the life of man. 19 This Zosimas, at the very moment of the collapse of
the city of Antiochus, suddenly put on a gloomy appearance, and
lamented and groaned inwardly, pouring forth so many tears that he
actually soaked the earth; he requested a censer, and after censing the
whole place where they stood, 20 he threw himself onto the ground and
16 The quake of May 526 had been followed by aftershocks which persisted for 18
months, though the survivors had taken heart from the appearance of a Cross in the sky
over the northern part of the city (Malalas 421:9^12). The next major earthquake struck
on 29 November 528, exactly 30 months after the shock of 526; Evagrius, however, antedated
the 526 quake by one year (cf. n. 12 above), and so would probably have located this
second quake in the same year as Justinian’s accession, i.e. 527 (iv.9), which may account for
his willingness to insert the notice at this point. Casualties were much lower (4,870 according
to Theophanes 177:31^2), but the repair work of the previous two years was nulli¢ed.
Malalas 443:16^22 states that the change of name was suggested by Symeon (Stylites the
Younger), and refers to prophecies of the loss of the old name. The northern part of the
mountain overlooking the city had been named Staurin to commemorate the apparition of
the Cross (stauro¤ s) in 526.
17 The logic of the narrative sequence is clear, since the ¢rst of Zosimas’ miracles concerns
the Antioch earthquake, after which Evagrius moves on to other wonders.
18 For the importance of knowing when to eat as well as when to fast, cf. the description
of Symeon the Fool at iv.34, p. 183:2^3; also Theodoret, HR 3.12^13.
19 I.e. Caesarea, metropolis of First Palestine; Arcesilaus is otherwise unknown.
20 Festugie' re (368 n. 15) interprets this as an act of devotion following a divine visitation,
but also one with apotropaic overtones.