Possessor

POSIDONIUS

he was called upon by the Scythian monks with regard to the orthodoxy of the doctrine of *free will and *grace that *Faustus of Riez had proposed in his treatise De gratia (CSEL 21, 3-98).

crali con graffiti di Aquileia: Archeologia Classica 25-26 (1973– 1974) 280-296; G.C. Menis, I ritratti nei mosaici pavimentali di Aquileia: AAAd 8 (1975) 73-92; M. Andaloro, Pittura romana e pittura a Roma da Leone Magno a Giovanni VII, in Committenti e produzione artistico-letteraria nell’alto medioevo occidentale, II, Settimane di Studio del Centro italiano di Studi sull’alto Medioevo 39, Spoleto 1992, 569-579; A.M. Ramieri, Ritratti femminili nella catacomba di Priscilla: RivAC 69 (1993) 47-61; F. Bisconti, La pittura paleocristiana, in A. Donati (ed.), “Romana Pictura.” La pittura romana dalle origini all’età bizantina, Milan 1998, 3356; M. Andaloro, Effigi di Pietro e Siricio, in Pietro e Paolo. La storia, il culto, la memoria nei primi secoli, Milan 2000, 230-231, nn. 104-105; M. Giannitrapani, s.v. Ritratto: TIP, 270-274.

CPL 1620, 1622, 1683; CPG 9192; Relatio Possessoris episcopi afri, in Collectio Avellana, CSEL 35/2, 697-700; F. Di Capua, Il ritmo prosaico nelle lettere dei Papi e nei documenti della Cancelleria Romana dal IV al XIV secolo, III, Rome 1946, 191-204; PCBE I, 889; M. Simonetti, Il “De gratia” di Fausto di Riez: SSR 1 (1977) 125-145; A. Quacquarelli, Papa Ormisda al vescovo Possessore, VetChr 30 (1993) 5-15.

D. Mazzoleni

P. Marone

PORTUGAL. See *SPAIN and PORTUGAL POSIDONIUS (d. after 430). A deacon of *Alexandria, who on behalf of *Cyril of Alexandria bore news to Pope *Celestine (ACO 1, 1, 5, p. 10) concerning the case of *Nestorius of Constantinople. He took with him a piece of paper containing instructions (ACO 1, 1, 7, p. 171-172), i.e., an outline containing a more detailed oral explanation of Nestorius’s case to give to the pope and influential individuals at *Rome. When he was to return to Alexandria, Pope Celestine gave him a letter (dated 10 August 430) for Cyril, accompanied with a verdict against Nestorius, and a letter for Nestorius as well, whom Cyril was asked to bring into agreement with the verdict. In addition, the pope gave Posidonius letters for various Eastern recipients, thereby informing them of the decisions of the Holy Roman See: a letter to the presbyters, deacons, clerics and the people of *Constantinople, accompanied by a copy of the judgment and the same letter as well as more copies to be delivered to *John of Antioch, *Juvenal of Jerusalem, *Rufus of Thessalonica and *Flavian of Philippi. E. Amann, L’affaire de Nestorius vue de: RSR 24 (1950) 28-52, 235-265; L.I. Scipioni, Nestorio e il Concilio di Efeso, Milan 1974, 156-157, 168-171; Ch. Pietri, Roma christiana, Rome 1976, 1347-1397.

M. Palmieri POSSESSOR. Catholic African bishop of *Mauritania in 484 (Notitia provinciarum et civitatum Africae 40: CSEL 7, 133). He went to *Constantinople, where he promoted the doctrinal visions of the Council of *Chalcedon (451), he contributed to the healing of the *Acacian schism (Hormisdas, Ep. 131, in Collectio Avellana, CSEL 35/2, 552-553) and, as one sees from the letter that he sent to Pope *Hormisdas in 520 (Relatio Possessoris episcopi afri, ibid., 697-700),

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POSSIDIUS (d. after 437). The Vita Augustini, *Augustine’s corpus of letters and *Prosper’s Chronicon are among the primary sources for knowledge of Possidius’s life. From 391 onward, he lived in the monastic community directed by Augustine at *Hippo; shortly after 397, Possidius became bishop of Calama in *Numidia. In such a role, he participated in the anti-*Donatist councils of *Carthage of 403 and 407; he exerted a noteworthy role in the Conference of Carthage (411) and took part in the anti*Pelagian councils of Milevis (416) and Carthage (419). He completed two official missions in *Italy (in 409 and 410) to the emperor’s court to request the reintroduction of laws against *pagans and *heretics. Once Calama had been abandoned, having been invaded by the *Vandals in 428, Possidius fled to Hippo with other bishops, where he remained alongside Augustine until the city was taken. He aided Augustine during his last illness. Upon returning to Calama, he was expelled by the *Arian leader *Genseric. After this date, we no longer have information on him. Between 432 (the death of *Boniface) and 437 (the exile of *Catholic bishops), Possidius composed the Vita Augustini, to which he adjoined a complete list of his writings (Indiculum: CPL 359), for fear that during the violence of the invasions the bishop and his works would spin into oblivion. The Vita is inserted into the template of the ancient Suetoniusstyle biographical tradition. The material after the prologue is not divided into four parts (Weiskotten, Diesner), but three (Pellegrino): (1) the Vita, i.e., the chronological account of the events and actions accomplished by Augustine beginning from his conversion (2–18). In fact, to not compete with the Confessions, he devotes only one chapter to his life before his conversion; (2) the mores (customs, behavior and habits), understood as an exposition of the hero’s conduct in daily, public and private life (19–27,5); (3) the final events, sickness and death (27,6–31). In