abiectio

The noun abiectio, used only in prose works, is first attested in Cic. Pis. 88, where it refers to a state of dejection. Starting with Tertullian, Christian authors generally use this word to evoke the idea of humilitas, already suggested by the occurrence of abiectio in psalm. 21,7, which was subjected to a careful exegesis. Among the loci discussed in the entry, we find Ambr. extra coll. 5,6 (an extract from the letter written on behalf of the Council of Aquileia, held in 381, asking the emperors for the abiectio of Ursinus, rival of Pope Damasus), Querol. 76,1 (where the slave Pantomalus describes as sordidior the abiectio resulting from the conclusion of prestigious assignments) and Salu. gub. 5,44 (a famous passage denouncing the severity of tax burdens on the citizens of the Empire).