A note about Boethius.
Earlier I presented a philosopher's response to the appearant problem of the compatibility of God's foreknowledge and man's free will, his name was Boethius. I later thought that it might be interesting and somewhat beneficial to give a brief explanation of who he is. His full name is Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius, born in about A.D. 480. Boethius was a member of the aristocracy in Rome and he is often called the last of the classic philosophers. In 510 he was elected to office of Consul, and he became the trusted political advisor of Theodoric, the Ostrogoth.
Later he became involved (innocently) in a conspiracy and was imprisoned and executed at Ravenna (he was executed in a form common in that day: his head was slowly crushed by an iron band that wrapped tighter and tighter around his skull). His historical importance is immense. If not for Boethius, Aristotle's work would be virtually unkown to the Western world, for Boethius translated much of Aristotle's work and those translations were later used by Alfred the Great, which lead to their vast use. Boethius was converted to Christianity through his family who were strong in the faith, and much of his writings centered on glorifying God through philosophical inquiry. He was executed in 524.