Faustus of Riez, «great priest, who hymned by indign lyre»

Author(s):  E.V. Litovchenko, candidate of Sciences, no, Belgorod National Research University, Belgorod, Russia, Litovchenko@bsu.edu.ru

V.N. Parfenov, Dr., Saratov State Technical University named Yu.A. Gagarin, Saratov, Russia

Issue:  Volume 45, № 4

Rubric:  Topical issues of political science

Annotation:  The author of the study focuses on the figure of one of the Gallo-Roman epistolographs of the 5th century, Faustus, the abbot of the Lerin monastery, later Bishop of Riez in the Southern Gaul, which considered in the context of the Late Antique transition period. Faustus’ life and his works were studied most often in the context of the Church history and, first of all, from the point of view of his theological views. Using the microhistorical approach, the author analyzes the personality of Faustus in his relations with surrounding people, the reasons for his influence on the formation of the Christian worldview. The article contains biographical witting, information about Faustus’ addressees, which were such representatives of the Late Antique nobility and the Christian clergy as Sidonius Apollinaris and Ruricius of Limoges. The author comes to the conclusion that this Latin author was the spokesman of those type of Late intellectual elite, who, like Paulinus of Nola, devoted themselves to serving God not for career or political reasons, but by voice of their hearts. Studying the inheritance of Faustus of Riez is useful for forming a holistic view of the Late Antique man mentality.

Keywords:  Late Antiquity, Faustus of Riez, Gallo-Roman elite, Christian bishop.

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