Synesius was born about 375 A.D. In many particulars he was an outstanding man. His pedigree is said to have extended through seventeen centuries, and to have included the names of the most illustrious. Not only was he of noble lineage, he was also a man of high character and brilliant attainments. He was versed in the Neo-Platonic philosophy, and his Christianity has been called in question by no less an authority than Mosheim; but how anyone can read his [163]odes and doubt the reality of his Christianity, even in the fullest sense of the term as including belief in the Divinity of Christ and in His Resurrection, is difficult to understand. He certainly was a good man, and knew Christ, and loved Him. His writings prove that; and in 410, though reluctantly, he became Bishop of Ptolemais. Very little of his poetry has come down to us, but that little is of the highest order. His hymns are not found in the Greek Offices. He died 430 A.D.