Salvianus

Salvianus, an elegant ecclesiastical writer of the 5th century, was born in the neighborhood of Treves. Whether reared as a Christian is uncertain; but shortly after his marriage with Palladia, a pagan lady of Cologne, they both appear as earnest Christians. After the birth of a daughter, he joined his wife in making a vow of monkish chastity. He now removed to the south of France, and acted as presbyter of the Church at Marseilles. Here he stood in close relations with bishop Eucherius of Lyons, to whose sons he gave instruction. The period of his death is uncertain, but he lived at least until 490, for Gennadius wrote of him in 490-495, "Vivit usque hodie senectute bona." Salvianus was a prolific author. Besides various treatises which have perished, the following are still extant: Adversus Avaritiam Libri IV ad Ecclesiam Catholicam (about 440 [it was printed by Sichardus, at Basle, in 1528; its object was to induce the laity to greater luberality to the Church]): De gubernatione Dei et de Justo Proesentique Judicio (451- 455 [it was printed by Frobenius, Basle, 1530; it was written at the time of the ravages of the Northern barbarians, and was designed, like the Civitas Dei of Augustine, to remove the doubts against the providence of God to which those calamities had given rise]): — Epistoce IX, which had been addressed to friends on various familiar topics. These letters were first printed, with the author's collective works, in 1580. The collective works of Salvianus were printed by P. Pithoeus (Paris, 1580, 8vo), by Rittershusius (Altdorf, 1611), and by Balusius (ibid. 1663-69-84). See Heyne, Opuscula Academica, vol. 6; Smith, Dict. of Biog. and Myth. 3, 700, 701; Herzog, Real-Encykl. 13, 342, 343. (J.P.L.)