Lactantius
Sign in to saveLucius Caecilius Firmianus Lactantius () was an early Christian author who became an advisor to Roman emperor Constantine I, guiding his Christian religious policy in its initial stages of emergence, and a tutor to his son Crispus. His most important work is the Institutiones Divinae ("The Divine Institutes"), an apologetic treatise intended to establish the reasonableness and truth of Christianity to pagan critics.
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Lactantius was an early Christian writer who served as a religious advisor to the Roman emperor Constantine I and tutor to his son, influencing the empire's initial Christian policies during a pivotal historical moment. His major work, the *Divine Institutes*, was a defense of Christianity aimed at convincing educated pagan readers of its rationality and truth.
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Person · Open Library
- Born
- ca. 240
- Died
- ca. 320.
- Works
- 103
Top works
- L. Coelii Lactantii Firmiani Divinarvm institvtionvm libri septem proxime castigati, et avcti
- L. Coelii Lactantii Firmiani Divinarum institutionum lib. VII
- Le divine istituzioni
- L. Coelii Lanctantii [sic] Firmiani Diuinarum institutionum libri VII ...
- Habes i hoc volumine lector optime diuina Lactantii Firmiani opera nuper per Janũ Parrhasiũ accuratissime castigata: graeco ĩtegro adiũcto: quod in aliis cũ mancũ. tũ corruptũ inuenit̃
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Listeners · Last.fm
- Listeners
- 1
- Total plays
- 1
<a href="https://www.last.fm/music/Lactantius">Read more on Last.fm</a>
Recent publications · Crossref
5 total works indexed
Works in European collections
36 objects attributed to Lactantius, held across European museums, libraries & archives · via Europeana
Article
10 sectionsContents
- Biography
- Works
- Prophetic exegesis
- Apologetics
- Other works
- Later heritage
- See also
- References
- Sources
- External links
Lucius Caecilius Firmianus Lactantius () was an early Christian author who became an advisor to Roman emperor Constantine I, guiding his Christian religious policy in its initial stages of emergence, and a tutor to his son Crispus. His most important work is the Institutiones Divinae ("The Divine Institutes"), an apologetic treatise intended to establish the reasonableness and truth of Christianity to pagan critics.
He is best known for his apologetic works, widely read during the Renaissance by humanists, who called Lactantius the "Christian Cicero". Also often attributed to Lactantius is the poem The Phoenix, which is based on the myth of the phoenix from Egypt and Arabia. Though the poem is not clearly Christian in its motifs, modern scholars have found some literary evidence in the text to suggest the author had a Christian interpretation of the eastern myth as a symbol of resurrection.
