Church History 1 part 22/28

But the emperor, moved to anger and indignant, as if his child had been insulted, because he had not been deemed worthy of like honor, ordered that the old man be cast out with abuse.

But he, turning back with a jest, said:

'Even so, O Emperor, believe that the heavenly Father too is indignant with those who do not honor the Son equally, and who dare to call him inferior to the One who begot him.' And the emperor, struck with admiration at what had been said, called the priest back, asked his pardon, and acknowledged that he had spoken truly.

And having become more firmly settled in his conviction, he no longer admitted those who held opinions contrary to this.

He forbade disputes and assemblies in the marketplace, and made it perilous to discourse in the same manner about the nature or essence of God, by establishing a law concerning this and appointing a penalty.

And soon he convened a council of bishops who shared his belief, both for the confirmation of what had been decreed at Nicaea and for the ordination of the one who was to hold episcopal oversight of the see of Constantinople.

And supposing that he could unite to the Catholic Church those called Macedonians, on the grounds that they did not differ greatly in the inquiry concerning doctrine, he convened these as well.

There assembled, then, about a hundred and fifty of those who held the Trinity to be of one substance, and thirty-six of those belonging to the heresy of Macedonius, most of whom happened to be from the cities around the Hellespont.

These were led by Eleusius of Cyzicus and Marcian of Lampsacus; while of the others, Timothy, who held the see of the Alexandrians, having succeeded his brother Peter who had died not long before, and Meletius, bishop of Antioch, who had already come to Constantinople earlier for the installation of Gregory, and Cyril of Jerusalem, who had now repented of formerly holding the opinion of Macedonius.

All these, being approvers of the document confirmed at Nicaea, begged those around Eleusius to become of one mind with them, reminding them of the embassy they had sent to Liberius and of what they had professed through Eustathius, Silvanus, and Theophilus, as has been related.

But they openly declared that they would never hold the Son to be consubstantial with the Father, even though this meant contradicting the confessions made to Liberius, and they departed, and wrote to those in the cities who shared their views not to agree with what had been decreed at Nicaea.

But those who remained in Constantinople took counsel as to whom they should entrust the see there.

For it is said that the emperor, admiring the life and the discourses of Gregory, voted him worthy of this bishopric, and that most of the council also assented, out of reverence for his virtue;

and that he at first chose to preside over the church of Constantinople, but upon perceiving that some, and especially those from Egypt, would oppose it, he declined.

And it seems to me that this most wise man ought to be admired for all things, and not least for the present matter;

for neither was he filled with conceit on account of his eloquence, nor did he come, through empty glory, to desire to preside over the church which he had taken over when it was no longer in danger.

But when the bishops demanded it, he gave back the trust committed to him, without complaining of the many labors, or the dangers he had endured in struggling against the heresies;

and yet there was nothing troublesome to prevent him from remaining bishop of Constantinople, there being nothing in the way—

for indeed another had already been ordained for Nazianzus as well.

But nevertheless the council, safeguarding the ancestral laws and ecclesiastical order, took back what it had given, since he was willing, showing no reverence at all for

the man's merits.

In order to make a careful examination, so that the one to whom the high-priesthood of the greatest and imperial city should be entrusted might be found to be as good and excellent as possible, the council was not of one mind, but each group sought to have someone suitable to themselves ordained.

Meanwhile, a certain Nectarius of Tarsus in Cilicia, of the most illustrious order of the senate, was residing in Constantinople.

And upon seeing him, he thought Nectarius worthy of the bishopric, and immediately became inclined toward him in his mind, considering the man's gray hair, his priestly appearance, and the gentleness of his manners.

And bringing him, as though for some other purpose, to the bishop of Antioch, he praised him and urged him to be zealous on his behalf.

Nevertheless, calling Nectarius to himself, he bade him wait a short while.

And the emperor, having read through the list of those who had been entered, stopped at Nectarius.

And falling into thought, he deliberated at leisure with himself, having placed his finger on the last name written.

And running back again to the beginning, he went through them all once more, and chose Nectarius.

This became a matter of amazement to all, and they inquired who this Nectarius was, and of what occupation, and from where.

But when they learned that the man had not even yet partaken of the mysteries, they were struck with even greater astonishment at the extraordinary nature of the emperor's judgment.

For he would not have dared, had he known, to give his vote of priesthood to one still unbaptized; but, as was reasonable, he supposed that, being gray-haired, he had already long since been baptized.

But these things did not come to pass without God.

Since even the emperor, upon learning that he was unbaptized, remained of the same opinion, though many priests objected.

And when all had yielded and agreed with the ruler's vote, he was baptized.

And while he was still wearing the mystic (baptismal) robe, he was proclaimed bishop of Constantinople by the common vote of the council.

And it is believed by many that these things came to pass in this way because God gave an oracle to the emperor.

But I cannot be certain whether this is true or not.

I am persuaded, however, that the event did not come to pass apart from divine influence, both when I consider the strangeness of the ordination and when I look to what followed afterward — how God brought this priesthood to rest upon so gentle, good, and virtuous a man.

Such then, as I have learned, was the manner of Nectarius's ordination.

After this, Nectarius himself and the other bishops assembled together and decreed that the faith of the Council of Nicaea should remain authoritative and that every heresy should be publicly denounced; that the churches everywhere should be administered according to the ancient canons; that bishops should remain in their own churches and not rashly intrude into territories beyond their own, nor, uninvited, thrust themselves into ordinations that in no way concerned them — as had often happened before, when, as chance would have it, the universal Church was being persecuted.

But whatever matters arise within each province, the synod of that nation should administer and manage, in whatever way might seem best.

And that after the bishop of Rome, the bishop of Constantinople should hold the primacy of honor, as one presiding over the see of New Rome.

...that he neither had been nor was a [true] bishop, nor were the clerics ordained by him [true] clerics;

and they decreed that whatever had been done concerning him or by him was null and void.

For this man, an Alexandrian by birth and a Cynic philosopher by profession, though zealous for the doctrine of the Council of Nicaea, was made bishop of Constantinople by those who had then come together from Egypt, who procured the ordination by stealth.

Such, then, were the decisions reached by this council.

And the emperor ratified these decisions and enacted a law that the faith of those who had assembled at Nicaea should be authoritative, and that the churches everywhere should be handed over to those who confess one and the same Godhead in three hypostases, equal in honor and equal in power — of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

For the emperor himself, having seen these men and conversed with them, praised them, and a good reputation prevailed concerning them, as men who governed the churches piously.

When these things had taken place and the council had come to an end, the rest returned each to his own home.

Nectarius, meanwhile, learned the priestly order under the instruction of Cyriacus, bishop of Adana.

He also induced many other Cilicians to associate with him, including Martyrius, whom, since he found him a competent physician and one privy to the sins he had committed in his youth, he intended to ordain as a deacon.

Martyrius, however, would not consent, insisting that he was unworthy of divine ministry, and calling upon Nectarius himself to bear witness concerning the life he had led.

And Nectarius said, "Am I not, who am now a priest, the one who led a life before this far more careless than yours, as you yourself have often testified, having many times ministered to my numerous excesses?" But he replied, "But you, blessed one," he said, "having recently been baptized, have been cleansed, and on that account have been deemed worthy of the priesthood; for God has ordained both as purifications from sin."

"and it seems to me that you are no different from a newborn infant;"

"whereas I, having partaken of divine baptism long ago, have continued to live the very same life." And having spoken thus, he did not submit to the ordination.

I, for my part, commend the man for his refusal, and for this reason I have made him a part of this narrative.

The emperor, upon learning what had happened to Paul, who had been bishop of Constantinople, had his body brought back and buried it in the church which Macedonius, the man who had plotted against him, had built.

And even to this day this church, being the greatest and most renowned, is named after him.

This also causes many who do not know the truth to suppose that Paul the Apostle lies buried there, especially the women and the majority of the common people.

About this same time, the remains of Meletius were also conveyed to Antioch and buried beside the tomb of the martyr Babylas.

It is said that, along the whole highway, by the emperor's command, it was received within the walls of the cities — contrary to Roman custom — and, being honored in each place in turn with the singing of psalms, was thus conveyed all the way to Antioch.

Thus Meletius was deemed worthy of such a burial.

And Flavian was ordained in his place, contrary to the oaths that had been given;

for Paulinus was still alive.

As a result of this, a very great disturbance again seized the church of Antioch, and very many separated themselves from communion with Flavian and held their own assemblies apart under Paulinus.

The Egyptians, Arabians, and Cypriots were indignant, on the ground that Paulinus had been wronged; but the Syrians, Palestinians, and Phoenicians, and the majority of the Armenians, Cappadocians, Galatians, and those near Pontus, favored the cause of Flavian.

In order to determine these matters, both they themselves and the emperor Gratian wrote letters, summoning the bishops of the East to the West.

During this same period, as those of the universal Church were taking possession of the houses of prayer, very many disturbances occurred throughout the empire, as those of the Arian heresy resisted them.

The emperor Theodosius, after allowing a short interval to pass following the previous council, again convened the leaders of the heresies then flourishing, so that they might either be persuaded or persuade others concerning the matters on which they differed.

For he supposed that he would bring all of them to the same belief, if he set before them a joint discussion concerning the disputed points of doctrine.

When they had assembled — this was the year in which Merobaudes, for the second time, and Saturninus were consuls, at the very time when he proclaimed his son Arcadius as co-emperor with himself — he summoned Nectarius and conferred with him concerning the council that was to be held, and commanded that the question which was giving rise to the heresies be brought into open discussion, so that there might come to be one Church of those who believe in Christ, and one doctrine, in harmony, according to which they ought to worship.

Nectarius, being anxious within himself over this matter, made known the emperor's intention to Agelius, the leader of the Novatian church, as to one who was of the same mind concerning the faith.

But Agelius, displaying the virtue of his life through his deeds, though unpracticed in the elegance and cleverness of rhetoric, put forward in his own stead — to consider what should be done and, if it should prove necessary, to conduct the discussion — a man among the readers then under him, named Sisinnius (who was later entrusted with this same bishopric), one capable both of understanding and of expressing himself, who knew accurately the interpretations of the sacred books, and who was learned in the writings of those who had philosophized both among the Greeks and within the Church.

He, indeed, being at that time thought to speak best, advised that discussions with the heterodox be avoided, as being a cause of strife and contention, but that they should instead be asked whether they accepted the leaders and teachers of the sacred writings who had lived before the division of the Church;

"For if," he said, "they reject the testimony of these men, they will be driven out even by their own followers;"

"but if they consider them sufficient for the proof of the disputed points, then their books must be produced." For he knew well that the ancients, having found the Son to be coeternal with the Father, did not dare to say that he had his origin from some beginning.

When this course also seemed good to Nectarius, and the emperor, upon learning of it, approved the plan, he sounded out those of the other heresies as to what opinion they held concerning the interpretations of the earlier fathers.

As they were greatly astonished, he openly declared whether, on the basis of what these fathers had said, they would put an end to their disputes and consider them trustworthy witnesses to the doctrine.

But since disagreement arose among the leaders of the heresies even on this point (for each held different opinions concerning the books of the earlier fathers), the emperor perceived that, trusting only in disputations of their own private arguments, they were declining the proposal; and, reproaching them for this attitude, he commanded each heresy to give him in writing the doctrine of its own sect.

Having received the written statement of each, he approved only the one that set forth the consubstantial Trinity, and tore up the others as being contrary to it.

And for the Novatians, nothing resulted from this contrary to their expectation;

for they held the same opinions concerning God as the universal Church.

But the others became angry with their own priests, on the ground that they had ignorantly set themselves in opposition in the presence of the sovereign, and many, condemning their own position, went over to the faith that had been approved.

And the emperor, enacting laws, ordered that the heterodox should neither hold church assemblies, nor teach concerning the faith, nor ordain bishops or others; and that some should be driven out of the cities and the countryside, while others should be deprived of honor and not share in the same civic rights as the rest.

And he inscribed severe penalties into the laws.

For he was not eager to punish, but to instill fear in his subjects, so that they might come to be of one mind with him concerning divine matters;

since indeed he praised those who changed their allegiance of their own free will.

About this time, while Gratian was occupied with the war against the Alamanni, Maximus rose up in Britain and endeavored to bring the Roman empire under his own power.

At that time, Valentinian, who was still young, was residing in Italy;

and the administration of affairs there had been entrusted to Probus, prefect and a man of consular rank;

it was at this time that Justina, the emperor's mother, who held Arian views, caused trouble for Ambrose, bishop of Milan, and disturbed the churches, attempting to introduce innovations against what had been decided at Nicaea, and being greatly concerned to establish the faith of those who had assembled at Ariminum.

But since Ambrose was striving for the opposite, she, being enraged, slandered him to her son, as one who had been insulted.

Valentinian, supposing the accusations to be true, and as if avenging his mother, sent a great number of soldiers against the church.

They, attacking the church, forced the doors by violence and got inside, and dragged Ambrose off at once, intending to lead him into exile.

But the multitude of the church, gathering around him, resisted the soldiers, and resolved rather to die than to abandon their bishop.

As a result of this, Justina was inflamed to even greater anger, and resolved to secure her undertaking by law.

She therefore summoned Benivolus, who at that time was appointed over the secretaries of the imperial decrees, and ordered him to draft, with all speed, a law confirming the faith that had been read out at Ariminum.

But as he tried to excuse himself from the task (for he belonged to the universal Church), she urged him on, enticing him with promises of greater honor, but did not persuade him;

Benivolus, taking off his belt of office, threw it down before the empress's feet, declaring that he would lay claim neither to his present honor nor to a greater one, if it were to be the wages of impiety.

Since, then, he stood firm in his refusal ever to carry this out, others were employed to serve in the framing of such a law.

It enjoined that those who held the same beliefs as those who had assembled at Ariminum, and afterward at Constantinople, should assemble without fear, but that those who obstructed them, or who petitioned against the emperor's law, should be punished with death.

While the emperor's mother was thus zealously pressing to put this law into effect, word came that Gratian had been killed through the treachery of Andragathius, who was a general of Maximus.

For he concealed himself, riding in a royal carriage, and it was announced to those leading the way that it was the emperor's wife who was within.

Gratian, having recently married and being young and passionately devoted to his wife, incautiously crossed the river there, and, in his eagerness to see her, foreseeing nothing, fell into the hands of Andragathius.

And having been seized, he was put to death not long after, being about twenty-four years of age, and having reigned fifteen years.

When so great a calamity had befallen, Justina ceased from her wrath against Ambrose.

as though he would tolerate some innovation being made concerning the ancestral faith and the order of the church, but in truth clearing himself of the reputation of a tyrant, and looking to the empire, contriving, if by any means he might be thought to have secured the rule of the Romans for himself by law and not by violence.

But Valentinian, constrained by circumstances, accepted the tokens of his sovereignty.

But fearing lest he should suffer some harm, he fled from Italy and came to Thessalonica, and with him also his mother and Probus the prefect.

Meanwhile, while Theodosius was making preparation for the war against Maximus, a son, Honorius, was born to him.

And when the arrangements concerning the army had been made ready for him, leaving his son Arcadius reigning in Constantinople, he came upon Valentinian in Thessalonica.

And the envoys sent by Maximus he neither openly sent away nor received, but taking up his soldiers he advanced upon Italy.

About this time, Agelius, the bishop of the Novatians in Constantinople, being about to die, chose in his place Sisinnius, a presbyter under him.

But when the multitude found fault that he had not chosen Marcian, a man notable for piety, thinking it easier, he ordained Marcian, and addressed the people in the church, saying, "After me," he said, "you shall have Marcian, and after him Sisinnius."

And he who said this died not long after, having presided honorably over his own sect for forty years;

There are some who also maintain that this man became a confessor in the times of the pagans.

Not long after, when Timothy and Cyril had departed this life, Theophilus succeeded to the see of Alexandria, and John to that of Jerusalem.

Meanwhile, when Theodosius arrived in Italy, rumors concerning the war prevailed, each according to what seemed likely to him; and among the Arians it was said that, many having fallen in the battle, the emperor had come under the power of the tyrant.

And as though the things they were rumoring had already come to pass, they took courage, and rushing upon the house of Nectarius the bishop, they set it on fire, being enraged that he held control of the churches.

But for the emperor, matters concerning the war turned out according to his wish.

For the soldiers under Maximus, either through fear of the preparation made against them or through treachery, seized the tyrant and brought him to him in bonds.

But Andragathius, who had killed Gratian, when he learned of this, leapt with his very armor into a river flowing nearby, and perished.

The war having thus been resolved, when he had exacted fitting vengeance for Gratian, he came to Rome, and celebrated a triumphal procession together with Valentinian, and set in good order the affairs of the church in Italy.

For it also happened that Justina died.

At that time, when Paulinus had died in Antioch, those who worshiped under him continued to turn away from Flavian, regarding him as one who had transgressed the oaths given concerning Meletius, although they differed in nothing concerning doctrine;

and Evagrius was established as their bishop.

But he having survived only a short time, no other filled this succession, since Flavian opposed it;

and those who refused communion with him continued to worship separately.

For he had obtained this as a gift, having asked it of the emperor.

And when the images there were being torn down and the inner sanctuaries uncovered, being eager deliberately to insult the Greek mysteries, he paraded these things about publicly, and phalluses, and whatever else hidden in the sanctuaries was or appeared ridiculous, he brought forth into public display.

They endured it for a time, but having exhorted one another, they rushed upon the Christians.

And having killed some, and wounded others, they seized the Serapeum;

and this temple was most conspicuous in beauty and size, situated upon a hill.

From there, coming suddenly as from some citadel, they seized many of the Christians, and by torturing them compelled them to sacrifice.

And when they refused, some they impaled, of others they broke the legs, and others they killed in various other ways.

And when the uprising had prevailed for a long time, the magistrates, coming to them, reminded them of the laws, and exhorted them to cease from the fighting and to abandon the Serapeum.

At that time Romanus commanded the military units in Egypt, and Evagrius governed as prefect of Alexandria.

But since they accomplished nothing, they reported to the emperor what had happened.

What made those in the Serapeum more resolute was their awareness of what they had dared to do; and further, a certain Olympius, associating with them in the guise of a philosopher, was persuading them that they ought not neglect their ancestral customs, but, if need be, die on their behalf.

And seeing them disheartened when the images were being torn down, he counseled them not to abandon their religion, saying that the statues were corruptible matter and mere likenesses, and for this reason underwent destruction, but that certain powers had dwelt in them and had flown away to the heavens.

And he, propounding such things, and having a multitude of pagans around him, remained in the Serapeum.

But the emperor, when what had happened was reported to him, pronounced the slain Christians blessed, as having partaken of the honors of martyrdom and having risked their lives beforehand on behalf of the doctrine; and he ordered that those who had killed them should obtain pardon, so that they might most readily be converted to Christianity out of reverence for the benefaction; and that the temples in Alexandria should be torn down as being the cause of sedition among the people.

It is said that, when the emperor's letter concerning this matter was read out publicly, the Christians cried out loudly, because right from its opening it laid the blame upon the pagans.

Thereupon, those guarding the Serapeum, falling into fear, turned to flight;

and the Christians, having seized the place, held it from that time on.

But Olympius, as I have learned, not long before—at an unseasonable hour of the night after which, when day came, these events took place—heard someone in the Serapeum chanting "Alleluia."

But since, the doors being shut and all being silent, he saw no one, and heard only a voice singing the same psalm, he understood the sign.

And unnoticed by all, he departed from the Serapeum, and having found a ship, set sail for Italy.

They say that, when this temple was then being torn down, some of the so-called hieroglyphic characters, resembling the sign of the cross, were found engraved upon the stones;

and being interpreted by those learned in such matters, this writing was said to signify "life to come."

And this became for many of the pagans an occasion for conversion to Christianity, since other writings also indicated that this temple would come to its sacred end whenever this character should appear.

Thus, then, was the Serapeum captured, and not long after it was converted into a church named after the emperor Arcadius.

But still in certain cities the pagans zealously fought in defense of their temples: among the Arabians, the people of Petra and Areopolis; among the Palestinians, the people of Rapha and Gaza; among the Phoenicians, those who inhabited Heliopolis; and among the Syrians especially those of the district of Apamea on the river Axius;

and I have learned that these, for the protection of their temples, often made use of the aid of men from Galilee and from the villages around Lebanon, and finally proceeded to such a degree of boldness as even to kill Marcellus, the bishop there.

For reckoning that it would not otherwise be easy to turn them away from their former religion, he destroyed the temples throughout the city and the villages;

and taking gladiators with him, he proceeded to this task.

And having come near, he waited outside the range of missiles;

for he was afflicted with gout, and was able neither to fight nor to pursue or flee.

But while the soldiers and gladiators were occupied with taking the temple, some of the pagans, learning that he had been left alone, went out on that side of the ground which was free from fighting;

and suddenly coming upon him, they seized him and, casting him onto a pyre, killed him.

But when in time they were discovered, the sons of Marcellus were eager to avenge their father; but the synod throughout the province prevented this, not deeming it just to exact vengeance for such a death, for which it was rather fitting that he who had died in this way, and his family and friends, should give thanks, since he had been deemed worthy to die for God's sake.

At this time, Nectarius, who administered the church of Constantinople, was the first no longer to permit that there be a presbyter appointed over those doing penance;

and nearly all the bishops everywhere followed his example.

But as to what this office actually was, or whence it began, or for what reason it ceased, different people perhaps give different accounts;

but I shall relate it as I think it to be.

For since not to sin at all required a nature more divine than that of man, but God commanded that pardon be granted to those who repent yet sin often, and since in seeking pardon it was necessary to confess the sin together with it, it seemed burdensome, as was natural, to the priests from the beginning that sins should be proclaimed as if in a theater, with the multitude of the church as witness;

they therefore appointed for this purpose a presbyter from among those who lived most excellently, one discreet and prudent.

To him, then, those who had sinned would come and confess what they had done;

and he, imposing upon each sin whatever penance it was necessary to perform or pay, would dismiss them to exact the penalty from themselves.

But for the Novatians, among whom there is no doctrine of repentance, none of this was needed;

but among the other sects this still prevails even now, and it is carefully observed also in the churches throughout the West, and especially in that of the Romans.

For there the place of those undergoing penance is clearly marked out;

and they stand downcast, as though mourning, and when the divine liturgy has already been completed, not partaking of what is lawful for the initiated, with groaning and lamentation they cast themselves prostrate upon the ground;

and the bishop, facing them, in tears, running forward, likewise falls upon the ground.

And with a wailing cry the whole congregation of the church is filled with tears.

After this the bishop first rises up and raises up those who are lying prostrate, and having prayed as is fitting on behalf of those who have sinned and repented, he dismisses them.

And each one, voluntarily afflicting himself either by fasting, or by abstaining from bathing, or by abstinence from certain foods, or by other things enjoined upon him, waits out the time for as long as the bishop has appointed for him;