The Nicene Age · AD 313–400
Audius of Mesopotamia
d. c. AD 370 (among the Goths) · Ascetic reformer · Founder of the Audian schism · Mesopotamia → Scythia
The Nicene Age
Who Audius of Mesopotamia was
A Mesopotamian layman of severe life who rebuked worldly clergy to their faces once too often, was beaten, ordained bishop by an exile like himself, and led his rigorists out of the church — carrying a literal reading of God's 'image' (God shaped like a man) and the old Quartodeciman Easter with them. Banished by Constantius to Scythia, he turned exile into mission and made monks and clergy deep in Gothia. Epiphanius, cataloguing him among the heresies, cannot quite hide his respect for the man.
Also listed in desert fathers & mothers.
Common questions
When did Audius die?
Audius of Mesopotamia is dated d. c. AD 370 (among the Goths) in the archive, which places Audius in the Nicene Age (AD 313–400). The dating is traditional and approximate; the archive marks it as uncertain rather than fixing a year the sources do not give.
Which early sources mention Audius?
Audius of Mesopotamia is named in 2 primary-source passages catalogued here, drawn from Epiphanius of Salamis and Theodoret of Cyrrhus. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Audius from?
The archive associates Audius of Mesopotamia with Mesopotamia, Scythia. The sources record more than one location, so the places are listed in the order the record moves through them.
Who were Audius’ contemporaries?
The archive links Audius of Mesopotamia to 1 other figure, including Athanasius of Alexandria. Each connection is drawn from a source that places them together, not from inference.
Primary-source mentions (2)
Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Panarion 70
c. AD 377Audius reproved the bishops and clergy openly for their manner of life… thrust out and exiled to Scythia, he went in among the Goths, and there made monasteries, and bishops, and Christians.Epiphanius of Salamis · 70 · source text
Compendium of Heretical Fables IV.10 (the Audians)
c. AD 453Connected in the archive
People
Events in this lifetime
- AD 301 · Hripsime and her company, AD 301
- AD 303 · The Great Persecution begins, AD 303
- AD 303 · The search of the church at Cirta, AD 303
- AD 306 · The Council of Elvira, AD 306
- AD 311 · Galerius’ edict of Serdica, AD 311
- AD 313 · The Edict of Milan, AD 313
- AD 314 · The Council of Arles, AD 314
- AD 320 · Silvanus tried before Zenophilus, AD 320
- AD 325 · The Council of Nicaea, AD 325
- AD 339 · The persecution of Shapur II, AD 339
- AD 343 · The Council of Serdica, AD 343
- AD 361 · Julian’s pagan restoration, AD 361
- AD 366 · Damasus and the catacomb epigrams, AD 366
- AD 367 · Athanasius lists the 27 NT books, AD 367
Place
Places served
The 2 places the sources put Audius, in the order the record moves through them. This is what the sources attest, not a reconstructed route.
- 1Mesopotamiaprovince only
- 2Scythiaprovince only