Page "Eusebius" Paragraph 7

Eusebius ' Preparation for the Gospel bears witness to the literary tastes of Origen: Eusebius quotes no comedy, tragedy, or lyric poetry, but makes reference to all the works of Plato and to an extensive range of later philosophic works, largely from Middle Platonists from Philo to the late 2nd century.

Whatever its secular contents, the primary aim of Origen and Pamphilus ' school was to promote sacred learning.

The library's biblical and theological contents were more impressive: Origen's Hexapla and Tetrapla, a copy of the original Hebrew Version of the Gospel of MattitYahu, and many of Origen's own writings.

Marginal comments in extant manuscripts note that Pamphilus and his friends and pupils, including Eusebius, corrected and revised much of the biblical text in their library.

Their efforts made the hexaplaric Septuagint text increasingly popular in Syria and Palestine.

Soon after joining Pamphilus ' school, Eusebius started helping his master expand the library's collections and broaden access to its resources.

At about this time Eusebius compiled a Collection of Ancient Martyrdoms, presumably for use as a general reference tool.