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Why did St. Jerome write De viris illustribus?
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St. Jerome
Saint Jerome, oil on canvas by JosĆ© de Ribera (Jusepe de Ribera, Lo Spagnoletto), c. 1638ā40; in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.
St. Jerome wrote his catalog of Christian authors, De viris illustribus ("Concerning Illustrious Men"), in 392/393 CE specifically to counter pagan pride in classical culture. By documenting the lives and works of prominent Christian writers, he sought to demonstrate the intellectual and literary depth of the Christian tradition in response to those who viewed it as inferior to pagan achievements.1
The work was modeled after the classic biographical style of the 2nd-century Latin historian Suetonius. It served as a foundational text that was later continued by other writers, such as Gennadius of Marseilles, who expanded upon Jerome's initial effort to preserve the history of early Christian scholarship.2