ACE (A.D. 329)

"Laurentius was born into eternity in his twentieth year. He
sleeps in peace."

See also note on iii. 205.

XI

1 Virgil's Fourth Eclogue known as the "Pollio" has undoubtedly
influenced the thought and style of this poem: the more noticeable
parallels will be pointed out as they occur. In Milton's ode _On
the Morning of Christ's Nativity_ there are several passages which
recall Prudentius' treatment of the theme in this and the succeeding
hymn; but curiously enough, the Puritan poet in alluding to the
season of the Nativity takes an opposite line of thought, and
regards the diminished sunshine of winter as a veiling of an inferior
flame before the light of "a greater Sun." Prudentius proclaims the
increase of the sun's light, which begins after the winter solstice,
as symbolic of the ever-widening influence of the True Light. The
idea is given in a terse form by St. Peter Chrysologus, _Serm._ 159:
_Crescere dies coepit, quia verus dies illuxit_. "The day begins to
lengthen out, inasmuch as the true Day hath shone forth."

18 For the somewhat obscure phrase _verbo editus_, see note on iii. 2.

20 For "Sophia" or the Divine Creative Wisdom, see Prov. iii. 19, 20,
and especially viii. 27-31, where the language "has been of signal
importance in the history of thought, helping, as it does, to make
a bridge between Eastern and Greek ideas, and to prepare the way
for the Incarnation" (Davison, _Wisdom-Literature of the O. T._, pp.
5, 6). In Alexandrian theology the conception of God's transcendence
gave rise to the doctrine of an intermediate power or _logos_, by
which creation was effected. In the Prologue of the fourth Gospel
the idea was set forth in its purely Christian form. See 1, 3, where
the Logos or the pre-incarnate Christ is described as the maker of
all things--an idea which is also illustrated by the language of St.
Paul in such passages as Col. i. 6.

59 Cf. for the conception of a golden age, Virg., _Ecl._, iv. 5
_et seq._: _Magnus ab integro saeclorum nascitur ordo_, etc.

65 Reminiscences of ancient prophecy appear to be embodied in this
and following lines. Cf. Joel iii. 18: "And it shall come to pass
in that day that the mountains shall drop down sweet wine and the
hill