Very little is known about the life and personality of this apologist. Blzh. Jerome calls him “one of the most eloquent Athenian philosophers” (On Famous Men. 20), Eusebius - “a firm follower of our faith” (CI. IV, 3, 3). Eusebius also reports that Aristides submitted his Apology to Emperor Hadrian, and in the Chronicle he also specifies the year - 125. According to Eusebius, then this work “was preserved by many.” The martyrologies of the martyr Aristides are well known. The memory is celebrated by the Church on August 31 (September 13). Aristide's apology was considered lost for a long time. However, in 1878, in a manuscript from the 10th century. An excerpt in Armenian from this work was discovered. Following this, in 1889, Rendell Harris (J.R. Harris) found St. Catherine at Sinai, Syriac text of the complete edition of the Apology of Aristides. Finally Robinson (A. Robinson) made the discovery that the text of the Apology is included in the famous work of the 7th century “The Lives of Barlaam and Joasaph”, as the speech of the hermit Nahor to King Abner.

“Aristides, the faithful confessor of our piety, gave Adrian a protective word and left it to us. This work has survived to this day and is in the possession of many,” says Eusebius of Caesarea [3]; therefore, the apology of Aristides existed in the 4th century: Blessed Jerome also mentions it in the same century [4]. That's all we knew so far about Aristide's defense speech. It is impossible to determine when it was completely lost. For now, we can say one thing affirmatively: the 5th century still possessed it and read it in the original, and this was precisely in Armenia, which is proven by the recently discovered Armenian translation of it, by all indications relating to this era. This valuable discovery was made by tireless workers of science, the Venetian Mekhitarists. This is not the first time that ancient Armenian writing gives the Western scientific world the treasures of ancient Christian literature preserved in it in translations exclusively from the 5th century. Scientists are not unaware of: the chronicle of Eusebius, Interpretation of the Gospels of St. Ephraim the Syrian, the works of Severian of Gavalsk, the Alexandrian philosopher of the Jew Philo and others, published during the current century by the same Mekhitarists with a translation into Latin. Aristide’s apology will probably not include a number of discoveries made so far by Armenian scientists [5]. — In addition to the above-mentioned works of the best era of Byzantium, Armenian literature hides an untouched department of apocrypha, a rich remarkable works of this kind, the Greek and Syriac originals of which have long been lost. The Orthodox Review has introduced some of them to its readers in recent years. This time we offer Russian scientists an excerpt from the apology of Aristides, the Athenian philosopher, in the confidence that it will give them the same pleasure that we felt listening to the voice of the defender of the followers of the new religion, reaching us from the depths of the 2nd century. The apology mentioned by Eusebius and Jerome was presented to the emperor in 125 AD. Adrian. In our passage, Aristides informs the last and, perhaps, the society of that time, first of all, the concept of God the Father, Spirit and Son. Let us note in passing that the appeal to the emperor both by Aristides and by his contemporary Codratus was a pure formality, in especially during the reign of Hadrian and Marcus Aurelius, who can rather be considered allies of Christians rather than their persecutors. To be convinced of this, it is enough to recall the letter of the first to Minucius Fundayau [6] and an excerpt from the apology of Codratus, cited by Eusebius [7], about which Jerome categorically says that if persecution was raging during the presentation of his apology by Codratus, then from there was no order from the emperor [8]. This means that the apologist who wrote a defensive speech had in mind the people and public opinion - this source of local cruelties from which Christians suffered. The fanatical crowd, at every unrest or national disaster, demanded the torture and execution of Christians; The judges themselves saw them as conspirators dangerous to the state. It was natural therefore for the apologist take care of calming and convincing both [9]. Aristide appears in our passage of the apology in exactly the same light in which Jerome presents him. This is a philosopher who theologizes in the most sublime sense of the word. Reading his speech, you are mentally transported to the times of Christianity that immediately followed those times and involuntarily stop at Gregory the Theologian and his 41 Homily on Holy Pentecost: it seems that our apology was not unknown to the great theologian and that it was inspired by the expressions in which he lists attributes of the Holy Spirit. Based on the instructions of Jerome and the new creation of the Athenian apologist, we can say with confidence that he was the first to have the idea of reconciling ancient pagan philosophy with the Christian religion. Subsequent apologists, starting from St. Justina, for a long time, willingly carried out this idea in their defensive speeches, with which Christians became so close that in the Middle Ages some churches found it natural to look at Socrates, Virgil, Seneca and others as Christians... But let’s stop here and say a few words about the Armenian translation of Aristide's apology. It was published in the past 1878. The Venetian publishers of this monument found it in a parchment manuscript written in the year 430 of the Armenian era, i.e. 981. They dedicated it, in the Latin translation, to the Orléans Archbishop, the famous Dupanlo, who was still alive at that time. Let us note by the way that the publishers, along with the apology, published another work of the same Aristides, also with a Latin translation, which they discovered in a manuscript of the 12th century, namely “The Word to the robber’s appeal and to Rapyatago’s answer.” About my translation I will say that it is literal.