Procopius, The Secret History — Appendices
“ The popular dissensions, founded on the most serious interest, or holy pretence, have scarcely equalled the obstinacy of this wanton discord, which invaded the peace of families, divided friends and brothers, and tempted the female sex, though seldom seen in the circus, to espouse the inclinations of their lovers or to contradict the wishes of their husbands. ”
Procopius, The Secret History — Appendices
“ The widow devoted to the memory of the husband, good or bad, who, surmounting grave difficulties, accomplishes his burial, is an appealing character of various legends and tales of every region; one of the many is that of the famous matron of Ephesus, narrated by Petronius. Procopius, who had noticed the remarkable similarity of the features of Domitian and those of Justinian, recounts the tale of that single surviving statue of Domitian without taking the trouble to investigate whether the account was history or legend. ”
Procopius, The Secret History — Appendices
“ Other groups at variance with the state religion were the Manichaeans, devotees of an independent religion, though often regarded as a perversion of Christianity, the Samaritans, whose creed was older than that of Christianity, and the Polytheists, who seem to have included, for Procopius, the adherents of the ancient religions of Greece and of Rome.As to doctrine, the Arians maintained that the three Persons of the Trinity are not of the same substance: that the Son is indeed like the Father, but not identical in essence. ”
