MELITO

MELITO, Bishop of Sardis, St. (?-ca. 190). Aside from one surviving sermon, the Homily on Easter, his works are known only through other writers, such as Eusebius of Caesarea (q.v.). Of his life we know only that he was a prolific writer and he made a pilgrimage (q.v.) to the holy places of Palestine. The poetic homily, possibly a hymn, which was discovered in 1940, provides a glimpse into a theology and exegesis similar to those of Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, and Tertullian (qq.v.): the history of salvation centers on Christ, described as “by nature God and man,” as the pivot between the old covenant and the new. Thus, Melito applied a thoroughly typological reading to the texts of the Old Testament.