Jerome Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! == Early life == Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus was born at [[Stridon]] around 342–347 AD.{{sfn|Williams|2006|p=}} He was of [[Illyrians|Illyrian]] ancestry.{{sfn|Pevarello|2013|p=1}} He was not [[baptism|baptized]] until about 360–369 in Rome, where he had gone with his friend [[Bonosus of Sardica]] to pursue [[rhetoric]]al and philosophical studies. (This Bonosus may or may not have been the same Bonosus whom Jerome identifies as his friend who went to live as a hermit on an island in the Adriatic.) Jerome studied under the [[Philologist|grammarian]] [[Aelius Donatus]]. There he learned [[Latin]] and at least some [[Greek language|Greek]],{{sfn|Walsh|1992|p=307}} though he probably did not yet acquire the familiarity with Greek literature that he later claimed to have acquired as a schoolboy.{{sfn|Kelly|1975|pp=13–14}} As a student, Jerome engaged in the superficial escapades and sexual experimentation of students in Rome; he indulged himself quite casually but he suffered terrible bouts of guilt afterwards.{{sfn|Payne|1951|pp=90–92}} To appease his [[conscience]], on Sundays he visited the [[Catacombs of Rome|sepulchers]] of the [[martyr]]s and the [[Apostles in the New Testament|Apostles]] in the catacombs. This experience reminded him of the terrors of [[Hell]]: <blockquote>Often I would find myself entering those crypts, deep dug in the earth, with their walls on either side lined with the bodies of the dead, where everything was so dark that almost it seemed as though the Psalmist's words were fulfilled, Let them go down quick into Hell.<ref>{{bibleverse|Psalm |55:15}}</ref> Here and there the light, not entering in through windows, but filtering down from above through shafts, relieved the horror of the darkness. But again, as soon as you found yourself cautiously moving forward, the black night closed around and there came to my mind the line of Virgil, "Horror ubique animos, simul ipsa silentia terrent".<ref>{{Citation |last=Jerome |title=Commentarius in Ezzechielem |at=c. 40, v. 5}}</ref>{{efn|name=PL}}</blockquote> [[File:Domenico Ghirlandaio - St Jerome in his study.jpg|thumb|left|upright|''[[St Jerome in His Study (Ghirlandaio)|St. Jerome in His Study]]'' (1480), by [[Domenico Ghirlandaio]]]] His quote from [[Virgil]] reads: "On all sides round horror spread wide; the very silence breathed a terror on my soul".<ref>[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0054%3Abook%3D2%3Acard%3D752 P. Vergilius Maro, Aeneid Theodore C. Williams, Ed. Perseus Project] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131111105830/http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0054%3Abook%3D2%3Acard%3D752 |date=11 November 2013 }} (retrieved 23 August 2013)</ref> === Conversion to Christianity === [[File:Nuremberg chronicles f 135r 1.jpg|thumb|St Jerome in the ''[[Nuremberg Chronicle]]'' ]] Although at first afraid of Christianity, he eventually [[religious conversion|converted]].{{sfn|Payne|1951|p=91}} [[File:Giovanni Bellini St Jerome Reading in the Countryside.jpg|thumb|upright|''[[St. Jerome in the Desert (Bellini, Washington)|St. Jerome in the Desert]]'', by [[Giovanni Bellini]] (1505)]] Seized with a desire for a life of [[ascetic]] [[Penance (Catholic Church)|penance]], Jerome went for a time to the desert of [[Chalcis, Syria|Chalcis]], to the southeast of [[Antioch]], known as the "Syrian [[Thebaid]]" from the number of [[eremites]] inhabiting it. During this period, he seems to have found time for studying and writing. He made his first attempt to learn [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] under the guidance of a converted [[Jew]]; and he seems to have been in correspondence with [[Jewish Christians]] in Antioch. Around this time he had copied for him a Hebrew Gospel, of which fragments are preserved in his notes. It is known today as the [[Gospel of the Hebrews]] which the [[Nazarene (sect)|Nazarenes]] considered to be the true [[Gospel of Matthew]].{{sfn|Rebenich|2002|p=211|ps=: Further, he began to study Hebrew: 'I betook myself to a brother who before his conversion had been a Hebrew and...'}} Jerome translated parts of this Hebrew Gospel into Greek.<ref>{{Citation |first=Ray |last=Pritz |title=Nazarene Jewish Christianity: from the end of the New Testament |year=1988 |page=50 |quote=In his accounts of his desert sojourn, Jerome never mentions leaving Chalcis, and there is no pressing reason to think...}}</ref> === Ministry in Rome === As protégé of [[Pope Damasus I]], Jerome was given duties in Rome, and he undertook a revision of the ''[[Vetus Latina]]'' Gospels based on [[Greek language|Greek]] manuscripts. He also updated the Psalter containing the Book of Psalms then in use in Rome, based on the [[Septuagint]]. [[File:Antonio da Fabriano II - Saint Jerome in His Study - Walters 37439.jpg|left|thumb|upright|''Saint Jerome in His Study'', 1451, by Antonio da Fabriano II, shows writing implements, scrolls, and manuscripts testifying to Jerome's scholarly pursuits.<ref>{{cite web |publisher=[[The Walters Art Museum]] |url=http://art.thewalters.org/detail/27087 |title=Saint Jerome in His Study |access-date=18 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130516145200/http://art.thewalters.org/detail/27087 |archive-date=16 May 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The Walters Art Museum.]] Throughout his epistles he shows himself to be surrounded by women and united with close ties; it is estimated that 40% of his epistles were addressed to someone of the female sex and,<ref>D. Ruiz Bueno. (1962). Cartas de S. Jerónimo, 2 vols. Madrid.</ref> at the time, he was criticized for it.<ref>Epistle 45,2-3; 54,2; 65,1; 127,5.</ref> Even in his time, Jerome noted [[Porphyry (philosopher)|Porphyry's]] accusation that the Christian communities were run by women and that the favor of the ladies decided who could accede to the dignity of the priesthood.<ref>Gigon, O. (1966). Die antike Kultur und das Christentum. pp. 120.</ref><ref>Deschner, Karlheinz (1986). [[Kriminalgeschichte des Christentums|Christianity's Criminal History. Volume 1.]] pp. 164-170.</ref> In Rome, Jerome was surrounded by a circle of well-born and well-educated women, including some from the noblest [[Patrician (ancient Rome)|patrician]] families. Among these women were such as the widows [[Saint Lea|Lea]], [[Saint Marcella|Marcella]], and [[Saint Paula|Paula]], and Paula's daughters [[Blaesilla]] and [[Eustochium]]. The resulting inclination of these women towards the monastic life, away from the indulgent lasciviousness in Rome, and his unsparing criticism of the [[secular clergy]] of Rome, brought a growing hostility against him among the Roman clergy and their supporters. Soon after the death of his patron Pope Damasus I on 10 December 384, Jerome was forced to leave his position at Rome after an inquiry was brought up by the Roman clergy into allegations that he had an improper relationship with the widow Paula. Still, his writings were highly regarded by women who were attempting to maintain vows of becoming [[consecrated virgin|consecrated virgins.]] His letters were widely read and distributed throughout the Christian empire and it is clear through his writing that he knew these virgin women were not his only audience.{{sfn|Williams|2006|p=}} Additionally, Jerome's condemnation of Blaesilla's hedonistic lifestyle in Rome had led her to adopt ascetic practices, but it affected her health and worsened her physical weakness to the point that she died just four months after starting to follow his instructions; much of the Roman populace were outraged at Jerome for causing the premature death of such a lively young woman. Additionally, his insistence to Paula that Blaesilla should not be mourned and complaints that her grief was excessive were seen as heartless, which further polarized Roman opinion against him.{{sfn | Salisbury | Lefkowitz | 2001 | pp=32-33}} [[File:Colantonio, Jerome in his Study.jpg|thumb|''[[Saint Jerome in His Study (Colantonio)|Saint Jerome in His Study]]'', by [[Niccolò Antonio Colantonio]] {{c.|1445|lk=no}}–46, depicts Jerome's removal of a thorn from a lion's paw.]] Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page