Heliodorus’ Aethiopica: A New Patristic Context

Abstract

This article argues that reading Heliodorus’ Aethiopica alongside post-Nicene Patristic texts sheds new light on its place within the multifaceted religious world of Late Antiquity. Through an analysis of three discrete test cases, this article brings to light the complexities of the Aethiopica’s incorporation of ideas which are prominent in contemporary Christian thought.  In so doing, it presents new evidence for the fourth-century context in which Heliodorus produced his work.