DOXOPATRES, NEILOS

Called Nilus the Archimandrite, Byzantine theologian of the first half of the 12th century. Neilos began his career as notary to the patriarch of Constantinople and subsequently became a high ecclesiastical official and head of the law school of the Eastern Roman Empire. In 1141 he was summoned by Roger II (1130–54) of Sicily to serve at his court. During his stay in Sicily (1142–43) he wrote at the request of Roger II a geographicalstatistical survey of the succession of patriarchs of Constantinople, preceded by an epitome that constitutes a historical treatment of the origin and development of the five patriarchates, written entirely from the Eastern and anti-Roman point of view. He is believed to be identical with Joannes Doxopatres, author of a voluminous work on divine providence (economia ), of which only two books have been preserved. The first deals with creation, anthropology, Paradise, and original sin; and the second with the Incarnation and Christology. He demonstrates a good knowledge of the early Greek Fathers and has left marginal glosses on the writings of St. Athanasius.

Bibliography: g. parthey, ed., Hieroclis synecdemus et notitiae graecae episcopatuum (Berlin 1866) 266–308; h. g. beck, Kirche und theologische Literatur im byzantinischen Reich (Munich 1959) 619–621. s. vailhÉ, Dictionnaire de théologie catholique, ed. a. vacant et al. (Paris 1903–50) 4.2:1820. a. michel, Lexikon für Theologie und Kirche, ed. m. buchberger (Freiburg 1930–38) 3:433. g. mercati, Per la storia dei manoscritti greci di Genova (Studi e Testi 68; 1935) 75–79. v. laurent, Échos d'Orient 36 (1937) 5–30.

[g. luznycky]