The Apostolic Fathers · AD 70–130
Dionysius the Areopagite
d. c. 95 (trad., martyred under Domitian) · Judge of the Areopagus · Convert of Paul · Athens
The Apostolic Fathers
Who Dionysius the Areopagite was
A member of Athens’ venerable homicide-and-morals court who heard Paul on the Unknown God and “clave unto him, and believed.” Dionysius of Corinth (c. 170) records him as first bishop of Athens; the tradition of martyrdom under Domitian follows. Four centuries later a Syrian mystic published under his name the corpus — Celestial Hierarchy, Divine Names, Mystical Theology — that medieval Christendom received as apostolic-age theology; the archive lists that corpus under its own late authorship, and keeps for the historical Dionysius what belongs to him: a hearing, a conversion, a see.
Common questions
When did Dionysius die?
Dionysius the Areopagite is dated d. c. 95 (trad., martyred under Domitian) in the archive, which places Dionysius in the Apostolic Fathers (AD 70–130). 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 Dionysius?
Dionysius the Areopagite is named in 3 primary-source passages catalogued here, drawn from Luke, Dionysius of Corinth and The Constitutions' compiler. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Dionysius from?
The archive associates Dionysius the Areopagite with Athens.
Who were Dionysius’ contemporaries?
The archive links Dionysius the Areopagite to 4 other figures, including Damaris of Athens, Paul of Tarsus, Publius of Athens and Quadratus of Athens. Each connection is drawn from a source that places them together, not from inference.
Scripture record
Primary-source mentions (3)
Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Acts 17:34
c. AD 85Howbeit certain men clave unto him, and believed: among the which was Dionysius the Areopagite…Luke · read ↗
Dionysius of Corinth, via Eusebius IV.23
c. AD 170…Dionysius the Areopagite, who was converted to the faith by the apostle Paul, according to the account in the Acts, first obtained the episcopate of the church at Athens.Dionysius of Corinth · IV.23 · source text
Apostolic Constitutions VII.46 (bishop of Athens)
c. AD 380Of Athens, Dionysius.The Constitutions' compiler · Apostolic Constitutions VII.46 · source text
Connected in the archive
People
Events in this lifetime
- AD 30 · Crucifixion, Resurrection and Pentecost, AD 30–33
- AD 44 · Persecution under Herod Agrippa I, AD 44
- AD 49 · The Council of Jerusalem, AD 49
- AD 57 · Paul writes Romans, AD 57
- AD 62 · James the Just stoned, AD 62
- AD 64 · The Great Fire and Nero’s persecution, AD 64
- AD 70 · The fall of Jerusalem, AD 70
- AD 95 · Domitian’s reprisals, AD 95
Place
Places served
The one place the sources put Dionysius.