ler undertook willingly the Impreffion of it; and has been fo fuccessful, that it may be faid he fhares in fome Measure with the Editor, the Glory that may arife from a Project fo well executed.

i

In order to fhew, that this Edition is above all thofe, that have been published hitherto, we need only give an Account of what we find about it in the Editor's Preface. What he fays, runs upon Two Heads. 1. Upon the different Tranflations and Editions of St. John Damafcen: 2. Upon thofe Things, wherein this new Edition differs from all others.

I. The firft Piece of St. John Damafcen, that was' tranflated into Latin, is his Treatife de Fide Orthodoxa, which may be accounted the beft. A Man, called Burgundio, born at Pifa, and Officer of the Emperor Barbaroffa, undertook that Tranflation, under the Pontificate of Eugenius III. And we are told, it difcovers the Barbaroufnefs and Ignorance that prevailed at that Time. From whence Father Lequien is apt to believe, that the Tranflation of fome other Pieces of St. John Damafcen, which he found in a Manufcript in the King's Library, and which was published by Henry Gravius in his Collections, might have been made by the fame Burgundio. However it be, Peter Lombard, Thomas Aquinas, and the other Schoolmen of the XIIIth and XIVth Centuries, knew not the Writings of that Father of the Church, but by that imperfect Tranflation. There was no other Verfion of St. John Damafcen, till the beginning of the XVIth Century, when Faber Stapulenfis tranflated into Latin the fame Book, concerning the Orthodox Faith, and had it printed by Henry Stephens, in 1507. in 4to. It was Reprinted in 1512. and then in 1519. with the Notes of Jodocus Clichtovæus.

At laft it came out in Greek the first Time in 1531. and was published by Donatus of Verona, who added to it the Sermon concerning those who died in the Faith, and dedicated both to Pope Clement VII. New Editions were printed in feveral Places, two at Bafil,

and

and one at Cologne'; and by Degrees feveral new Pieces of that Father, never before published, were added to them. The Cologne Edition, being the lar geft, was reprinted at Bafil in 1548. and then in 1559. by Matthew Hopper, who inferted the Greek with the Latin, only in the two Books above-mentioned. But in 1575. the fame Hopper put out a third Edition very much enlarged, in which the greatest Part of the Tracts were attended with the Greek Text. Much about the fame Time, Billius being little fatisfied with the Latin Verfion, which was unin-telligible in many Places, by Reason of its barbarous Style, undertook to revife it; and to compare the Text with fome Manuscripts. That new Tranflation of Billius was printed at Paris in 1577, and then in 1603, and 1619. with some new Pieces added to it by Fa-. ther Fronton le Duc (Fronto Ducæus.)

But because the Original Text was wanting in all those Editions, the Clergy, of France, in the Affembly of the Year 1635 and 1636. charged John Aubert, Doctor of the Sorbonne, to put out a Greek and Latin Edition of the Works of St. John Damafcen, as he had lately published the Works of St. Cyril of Alexandria. Aubert, being taken up with that new Edition, and also with that of St. Ephrem, which he was preparing, to publish it firft, finished neither of them. Which moved fome Prelates to appoint in his Room Father Combefis a Dominican, who was earneftly follicited by feveral Learned Men, especially by the famous Allatius, to apply himself wholly to that Work. Father Combefis wanted neither a good Will, nor the neceffary Qualifications for it but because he could not get from Aubert fome Tracts, which Allatius had fent him from Rome, and which the new Editor wanted, he gave over that Undertaking, and applied himfelf to fome other Study. In the mean Time Father. Labbe published in 1652, A Project of a new Edition of St. John Damafcen, wherein he defigned to divide the Works of that Father into Four Tomes ; but be cause he did not take a fufficient View of them, his Divifion was not fo just as it fhould have been. That

Learned.

Learned Jefuit went no farther than the Project, as Father Combefis and Aubert did before him: The Execution was reserved to Father Lequien.

II. We proceed to give an Account of his La bour, which concerns the Greek Text; the Latin Tranflation; the Order of the feveral Tracts; the Notes; and the Prolegomena.

1. Father Lequien has corrected the Text with all poffible Exactnefs, by collating it with the best Manufcripts, lodged in the King's Library, and in thofe of M. Colbert, Chancellor Seguier, and the Jefuits, in the Library of the Vatican, in that of St. Germain des Prez, and in the Libraries of Eng land. The Author does not forget to make an ho nourable mention of those, who helped him to the Ufe of those Manufcripts. Those of the Abbot Renaudot and of the Abbot Longuerue enabled him to tranflate or revise fome Pieces of St. John Damafcen, that are only to be found in Arabick, the Greek Original being loft. Father Bernard de Mount faucon, and Father Anfelm Banduri, who have contributed to the perfecting of the Work, by affording fome Explications, or new Pieces never before Printed, have a Share in the Editor's Thanks and Encomiums.

2. As for what concerns the Latin Tranflation, it was made by Three feveral Hands. Billius compofed the greatest Part of it: Father Combefis tranЛlated the Dialectick, the Book of Herefies, that of the Orthodox Faith, part of the Dialogue against the Manichees, the Tract concerning the mending of Manners, the Treatife of the Two Wills of Jefus Chrift, and feveral Homilies.

Father Lequien has not only tranflated into Latin all the Tracts never before Publifhed, but also revifed the Tranflations of others, and made confiderable Alterations in them. He obferves after Father

Com

Combefis, that tho' Billius may be looked upon as one of the beft Tranflators of the Greek Fathers, his Verfion of St. John Damafcen is not free from Miftakes, and that being in fome measure his First Effay, it could not be expected that it fhould be perfect. He blames him particularly for his frequent Pariphrafes, whereby the Greek Words lofe their Force; and for his Affectation of departing from the Style commonly used by Divines, even in thofe Expreffions wherein it is not inconfiftent with the Purity of the Latin.

3. As for the Order of the feveral Tracts written by St. John Damafcen, or afcribed to him, the Editor has divided them into Three Claffes. The First contains all the Works, both Genuine and Suppofititious, relating to the Chriftian Doctrines: They make up the First Volume of this New Edition. He has placed under the Second Clafs the Tracts, Collections, and Difcourfes of that Holy Doctor upon fevefal Pious Subjects, and filled the Second Volume with them. He defigns to publifh a Third Volume; wherein he will infert the other Suppofititious Pieces, fome Afcetick Difcourfes, truly written by St. John Damafcen, which he has lately found in a Manufcript belonging to the Library of Chancellor Seguier; fome Tracts of different Authors, never before Printed, which deferve to be made Publick; laftly, the Works of Leontius Byzantinus, many of which were never published in Greek, and perhaps for want of room in the Third Volume, will be printed by themfelves. From whence it appears, that Father Lequien has hitherto performed but one Half of his Work: The Learned muft needs wifh he may go through the whole.

4. All the Notes, inferted at the Bottom of the Pages, have been made by the Editor, except fome few of Father Combefis, who began to write down his Remarks upon the Dialectick of St. John Damafcen, and the First Chapters of his Book De Fide Orthodoxa.

But

But because the Defign of those Obfervations was rather to mend Billius's Tranflation, than to clear the Doctrine, the Opinions, and Expreffions of the Fa thers of the Greek Church, Father Lequien thought the Learned would not be very much pleafed with fuch Remarks; and therefore he made it his Business to explain the Opinions of the Ancient Doctors of the Church, and to that End confulted, not only Printed Books, but Manufcripts, out of which he has fometimes inferted long Fragments, that may give fome Light to the Doctrine and Hiftory of the Ea ftern Church. Befides, he undertakes to find out, ac cording to the Rules of a found Critick, the true Authors of fome Pieces, which St. John Damafcen quotes as being the Works, of fome Fathers; where in he was miftaken for Want of a due Examination, or impofed upon by thofe Hereticks who compofed them.

5. The Prolegomena, prefixed to this Edition, are very large. We call by that Name all the Pieces Printed next to the Preface, and before the Dialectick, or the firft Work of the holy Doctor. The Readers will find, in the firft Place, the chief Prefaces and Epiftles Dedicatory that are in the other Editions; and then a long Differtation of Allatius, upon St. John Damafcen and his Writings, extracted from a Manufcript Copy of the fame Allatius concerning the Apocryphal Books. In the next Place, the Author has inferted Seven Differtations, wherein he thought fit to clear feveral Things that could not be thoroughly difcuffed in marginal Notes. Thofe Differtations are entitled,

1. Of the Proceffion of the Holy Ghost.

2. Of fome Authorities, on which Eutyches and his Followers grounded their Herefy. The Author treats at large what concerns the fuppofititious Books of Di. onyfius the Areopagite.