Gela'sius
2. Bishop of CAESAREIA, in Palestine.
He was sister's son to Cyril of Jerusalem, by whose influence or authority he was appointed to his see, apparently before A. D. 367. [CYRILLUS of JERUSALEM.] It was at Cyril's desire that Gelasius undertook to compose an ecclesiastical history, as Photius says he had read in the
Γροοίμιον εἰς τὰ μετὰ τὴν ἐκκλησιαστικὴν ἱστορίαν Εὐσεβίου τοῦ Παμφίλου,
Preface to the Continuation of the Ecclesiastical History of Eusebius Pamphili, written by Gelasius himself.
It may be observed that Photius does not seem to have read the whole work, but only the preface.
It is probable that the work is referred to by Gelasius of Cyzicus in his History of the Council of Nice (1.7), in the passage
Ὅγε μὴν Ῥουφῖνος ἢ γοῦν Γελάσιος ταῦτα λέγει ἇδε: from which passage probably arose the statement mentioned by Photius, but refuted by a reference to dates, that Cyril and his nephew Gelasius had translated the Ecclesiastical History of Rufinus into Greek. Fabricius confounds this
Continuation of Eusebius with the
History of the Nicene Council, by Gelasius of Cyzicus; but against all evidence. for Photius expressly distinguishes between the two works, and between their respective writers, comparing the style of one with that of the other. And the
pretace to the Continuation quoted by Photitis distinctly asserts the author to have been the nephew of Cyril. The
Continuation is not extant. Fabricius, without giving his authority, places the death of Gelasius in A. D. 394.
The following writings of a Gelasius of Caesareia are mentioned; but it is not clear to which of the Gelasii they belong.
Works
1.
An Exposition of the Creed
Cited by Leontius,
Adv. Nestorium, lib. i., not far from the end.
Twice cited by Theodoret (
Eranist. Dial. i. iii.), who classes the writer among " the ancients of Palestine."
A work of which Labbe has cited a fragment in his
Conspectus Operum Damasceni ; and which is described as
Practica στοιχείωσις secundum Ecclesiam.
Further Information
Phot.
Bibl. Codd. 88, 89; Theodoret.
Opera, vol. iv. pp. 46, 251, ed. Schulze; Leontius,
Adv. Nest. apud
Bibl. Patrum, vol. ix. p. 684, ed Lyon. 1677; Fabric.
Bibl. Gr. vol. ix. p. 290, &c.
