A native of Sardinia and friend of Pope Liberius, Eusebius of Vercelli was a champion of Nicene doctrine. In 355, he suffered exile for his refusal to subscribe to the Arian creed proposed by the Council of Milan. Not until Julian the Apostate freed exiled Christian bishops in 362 was Eusebius able to return. In the same year, he consulted with Athanasius at the Council of Alexandria and carried the decisions of this council back to the West. In the following years, Eusebius worked with Hilary of Poitiers and Liberius, bishop of Rome, to restore Nicene doctrine in the churches of Italy. Eusebius died between 370 and 371.

Three letters written by Eusebius have been preserved: the first to Constantius concerning the Council of Milan, the second to his congregation in Italy during his exile, and the third to Bishop Gregory of Elvira, considered by some to be inauthentic. In addition, a number of letters addressed to Eusebius by Pope Liberius and others have survived. Eusebius has often been credited with the first seven books of De trinitate, though there is increasing doubt about his authorship of this work [Lienhard, Moreschini and Norelli, Quasten]. Eusebius also produced a now-lost Latin translation of Eusebius of Caesarea’s Commentary on the Psalms.

Below is a table of Eusebius’ writing and correspondence. An asterisk (*) indicates that Eusebius’s authorship is in doubt. Letters listed in italics include a translation. The table presents the the works in an approximate chronology. Much of the correspondence, however, relates to the Council of Milan and was written in close succession. The exact chronology, therefore, is uncertain.

The Writings and Correspondence of Eusebius of Vercelli

Date

Title

CPL Number
345-347 *On the Trinity 105
354 Letter to Eusebius from Pope Liberius “Me, frater carissime…” 111a
354 Letter to Eusebius from Pope Liberius “Remeante filio…” 111b
354 Letter to Eusebius from Pope Liberius “Sciebam, domine…” 111c
354 Letter from Eusebius to Constantius “Ego, clementissime…” 106
355 Letter to Eusebius from Lucifer et al.,”Calcato capite…” 110
355 Letter to Eusebius from the Council of Milan, “Non ignorat…” 109
355 Letter to Eusebius from Constantius “Metiri facile…” 111
355 Letter to Eusebius from Pope Liberius “Quamuis sub imagine…” 111d
355-362 Letter from Eusebius to the faithful of Vercelli “Licet nos multis…” 107
360 *Letter from Eusebius to Bishop Gregory of Elvira “Litteras sinceritatis…” 108
The Epitaph of Eusebius 111e

Bibliography

Lienhard, Joseph T. “Eusebius of Vercelli,” in The Encyclopedia of Early Christianity, 2nd ed, p. 328.

Moreschini Claudio and Enrico Norelli. Early Christian Greek and Latin Literature, vol. 2, pp. 250.

Quasten, Johannes. Patrology, vol. iv., pp. 62-64.

Williams, Daniel H. Ambrose of Milan and the End of the Nicene-Arian Conflicts, pp. 49-68.

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