Εὑαγγελικὴ Προπαρασκευή commonly known by its Latin title Praeparatio evangelica, was a work of Christian apologetics

Apologetics

Apologetics is the discipline of defending a position through the systematic use of reason. Early Christian writers Apologetics (from Greek ἀπολογία, "speaking in defense") is the discipline of defending a position (often religious) through the systematic use of reason. Early Christian writers...

 written by Eusebius in the early part of the fourth century AD. It was begun about the year 313, and attempts to prove the excellence of Christianity over pagan religions and philosophies.

Contents

The Praeparatio consists of fifteen books which have been completely preserved. Eusebius considered it an introduction to Christianity for pagans. But its value for many later readers is more because Eusebius added information from historians and philosophers which was not recorded elsewhere. Namely:

• Here alone is preserved a summary of the writings of the Phoenicia
  Phoenicia
  Phoenicia , was an ancient civilization in Canaan which covered most of the western, coastal part of the Fertile Crescent. Several major Phoenician cities were built on the coastline of the Mediterranean. It was an enterprising maritime trading culture that spread across the Mediterranean from 1550...
  
  n priest Sanchuniathon
  Sanchuniathon
  Sanchuniathon is the purported Phoenician author of three lost works originally in the Phoenician language, surviving only in partial paraphrase and summary of a Greek translation by Philo of Byblos, according to the Christian bishop Eusebius of Caesarea...
  
  , of which the accuracy has been shown by the mythological accounts found on the Ugaritic tables.
• Here alone is the account from Diodorus Siculus
  Diodorus Siculus
  Diodorus Siculus was a Greek historian who flourished between 60 and 30 BC. According to Diodorus' own work, he was born at Agyrium in Sicily . With one exception, antiquity affords no further information about Diodorus' life and doings beyond what is to be found in his own work, Bibliotheca...
  
  's sixth book of Euhemerus
  Euhemerus
  Euhemerus was a Greek mythographer at the court of Cassander, the king of Macedon. Euhemerus' birthplace is disputed, with Messina in Sicily as the most probable location, while others champion Chios, or Tegea.-Life:...
  
  's wondrous voyage to the island of Panchaea
  Panchaea
  Panchaea is a fictional island, first mentioned by ancient Greek philosopher Euhemerus in the late 4th century BC. Euhemerus describes the island and his trip there in his major work Sacred History, only fragments of which survive....
  
   where Euhemerus purports to have found his true history of the gods.
• Here almost alone are preserved writings of the Platonist philosopher Atticus along with much else.
• Here primarily are preserved important works of Porphyry
  Porphyry
  Porphyry may refer to:* Porphyry , an igneous rock with large crystals in a fine-grained matrix, or associated mineral deposit** Porphyry copper deposit, a primary ore deposit of copper, consisting of porphyry rocks...
  
  , the Neoplatonist critic of Christianity (the On Images, Philosophy from Oracles, the Letter to Anebo, the Against the Christians, the Against Boethus, the Philological Lecture).

Influence

This work was used by Giovanni Pico della Mirandola

Giovanni Pico della Mirandola

Count Giovanni Pico della Mirandola was an Italian Renaissance philosopher. He is famed for the events of 1486, when at the age of 23, he proposed to defend 900 theses on religion, philosophy, natural philosophy and magic against all comers, for which he wrote the famous Oration on the Dignity of...

(1463–1494) as a resource for his well-known oration A Speech by Giovanni Pico della Mirandola, Prince of Concord.

Praeparatio evangelica

The term also denotes a early church doctrine, praeparatio evangelica, meaning a preparation of the gospel among cultures yet to hear of the message of Christ. In this view, God has already sown the older cultures with ideas and themes that would grow to fruition through interpretation in a fully Christian context.
It should be noted that Eusebius' own Praeparatio Evangelica does not adopt the common notion (which occurs at least as early as Clement of Alexandria) of Greek philosophy as a "preparation for the Gospel." Eusebius instead offers a lengthy argument for the wisdom of the ancient Hebrews becoming a preparation for Greek philosophy (at least Platonic philosophy, see Praep.ev. 11-13). For Eusebius, the Greeks stole any truths they possessed from the more ancient Hebrews.

External links

• Introduction and English text, translated by E. H. Gifford (1903)
• Praeparatio Evangelica (English text), translated by E. H. Gifford (1903)