By the Lord providing for His Church, and inspiring for the salvation of the whole people the heart of lord Remigius, who everywhere was destroying the altars of idols and, with a multitude of signs, was powerfully spreading the true faith, it came about that many bishops were gathered together, the king not opposing, to see whether it might be brought to pass that the Arians, who were rending the Christian religion, could be brought back to unity. And that this might be done the better, and might seem to have happened not by design but by occasion, lord Stephen wrote to many bishops and invited them to the festival of St. Justus, which was near at hand, at which, because of the frequency of miracles, there took place a very great concourse of the peoples. There came therefore from Vienne, Avitus; from Arles, Aeonius; from Valence, [N.]; from Marseilles, [N.];
[N.]ius, and many others, all of catholic profession and of praiseworthy life in the Lord. All these, together with lord Stephen, set out to greet the king at Sarbiniacum, where he then was. There were present there certain of the more powerful Arians with him, who, had they been able, would have prevented the approach of our men to the king; but by the Lord's cooperation they accomplished nothing. After the greeting had been made, lord Avitus—to whom, although he was not the elder either in dignity or in age, very great deference was nonetheless shown—said to the king: If your excellency were willing to procure peace for the Church, we are prepared to demonstrate so clearly that our faith is according to the Gospel and the Apostles, that it will be doubtful to none that the faith which you hold is not according to God and the Church.
You have here men of your own who are instructed in all branches of knowledge: command that they confer with us and see whether they can answer our arguments, even as we are prepared safely to answer theirs. To which the king replied: If your faith is true, why do your bishops not restrain the king of the Franks, who has declared war on me and has allied himself with my enemies to destroy me? For there is no faith where there is coveting of another's goods and thirst for the blood of peoples: let him show his faith by his works. Then lord Avitus humbly replied, having a countenance angelic as also his speech: We do not know, O king, by what counsel and for what cause the king of the Franks does what you say;
but Scripture teaches us that on account of the forsaking of the law of God kingdoms are often overthrown, and enemies are stirred up on every side against those who set themselves as enemies against God. But return, with your people, to the law of God, and He Himself will grant peace within your borders; for if you have peace with Him, you will have it also with the rest, and your enemies will not prevail. To whom the king: Do I not profess the law of God? But because I will not have three Gods, you say that I do not profess the law of God. In Holy Scripture I have not read that there are many Gods, but one. To which lord Avitus: Far be it, O king, that we should worship many Gods: The Lord your God is one, O Israel (Deut. 6:4; Mark 12:29); but that one God, one in essence, is three in Persons;
and the Son and the Holy Spirit are not other Gods, but one God, whose first Person is the Father, the second the Son, the third the Holy Spirit; for the Father has no other substance than the Son, and the Holy Spirit no other than the Father and the Son; and that God who of old spoke through the prophets, most recently has spoken in the Son, and still speaks daily in the Holy Spirit. And although of old through the prophets, presently through the Son, now through the Spirit, it is one and the same God who speaks; but it is so said for the distinction of the Persons, when in truth they are coeternal and consubstantial. This we profess, and are prepared to demonstrate. And when he saw the king listening peaceably, he prolonged his discourse and said:
O if your sagacity were willing to recognize how well founded is our faith, how much good would thereby come to you and your people: for both heavenly glory would not be lacking to you, and peace and abundance in your towers (Ps. 122:7). But your own men, since they are enemies of Christ, kindle wrath from above upon your kingdom as upon the people; which, as we hope, would not be, if you were willing to hear our admonitions, and to command that your priests confer with us about these matters in the presence of your sublimity and your people: that you may know that the Lord Jesus is the eternal Son of the eternal Father, and coeternal with both is the Holy Spirit, one God blessed unto the ages, and together before all times and without any beginning.
When he had said these things he fell down at the feet of the king, and embracing them he wept bitterly; all the bishops also fell prostrate with him: whereat the king was greatly moved, and bending himself down to them, he raised up lord Avitus with the rest, to whom he said in a friendly manner that he would give them a reply concerning their petitions. And this was done on the following day: for the king, having returned to the city by way of the Saône, sent to lords Stephen and Avitus that they should come to him. And when they had come, the king said to them: You have what you ask, for my priests are prepared to show you that none can be coeternal and consubstantial with God. But I do not wish this to take place before all the people, lest the crowds be stirred up;
but only before my senators and others whom I shall choose, just as you shall choose from among yours whomever you will; but not in a great number, and it will take place on the morrow in this place. When this was said, the bishops, having greeted the king, departed, and returned to make everything known to the other bishops. Now it was the vigil of the solemnity of St. Justus. And although they had wished that this should take place on the day following the solemnity, they nevertheless were unwilling, on account of so great a good, to procrastinate any longer. But with one accord they resolved to pass the night at the tomb of St. Justus, that by his intercession they might obtain from the Lord the petitions of their heart. Now it happened that on that night, when the reader according to custom began the lesson from Moses, he fell upon those words of the Lord:
But I will harden his heart and will multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt, and he will not hearken to you (Exod. 7:3-4). Then, when after the psalms had been sung he read from the prophets, there came the words of the Lord to Isaiah, saying: Go, and you shall say to this people: Hear indeed, but do not understand; and see the vision, but do not perceive. Blind the heart of this people, and make its ears heavy, and shut its eyes, lest perhaps it see with its eyes, and hear with its ears, and understand with its heart, and be converted, and I heal it (Isa. 6:9-10). And when yet more psalms had been sung, and he read from the Gospel, he fell upon the words by which the Savior reproaches the Jews for their unbelief: Woe to you, Chorazin; woe to you, Bethsaida!
for if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon which have been done in you, they would long ago have repented in sackcloth and ashes (Matt. 11:21). Finally, when the lesson was made from the Apostle, those words were pronounced: Or do you despise the riches of His goodness and forbearance and long-suffering? Do you not know that the patience of God leads you to repentance? But according to your hardness and impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath (Rom. 2:4-5). When this had been observed by all the bishops, they recognized that those lessons had so come up by the Lord's will, that they might know the king's heart had been hardened, and that God was leaving him in his impenitence, to display the riches of His justice;
whereupon, being made very sad, they passed the night in tears. Yet they did not cease to assert the truth of our religion against the Arians. Therefore, at the time the king had appointed, all the bishops assembled, and together went to the palace with many priests and deacons and certain of the catholics, among whom were Placidus and Lucanus, who were of the chief men of the king's soldiery. The Arians also came with their own. When therefore they had sat down before the king, lord Avitus for the catholics, and Boniface for the Arians, undertook the discourse.
But after lord Avitus had set forth our faith with the testimonies of Holy Scripture—for he was another Cicero, and the Lord was inspiring grace into all that he said—so great a consternation fell upon the Arians, that Boniface, who had given audience in a rather friendly manner, could answer absolutely nothing to the arguments of lord Avitus, but only propounded difficult questions, by which he seemed to wish to weary the king. But when he was pressed by Avitus to answer to the aforesaid things, promising that he would indeed also answer to those which he had propounded, he could not answer to a single one of the arguments which had been set forth by lord Avitus, nor allege anything in defense of his own party;
but he only opened his mouth in insults, and said that the catholics were sorcerers, and that they worshiped a multitude of gods. When he said only this, and the king saw the confusion of his sect, the king rose from his seat, saying that Boniface should answer on the morrow. All the bishops therefore departed; and because the day was not yet declining, they went together with the other catholics to the basilica of lord Justus, confessing the Lord because He is good, and praising Him who had given them such a victory over their enemies. But on the following day they set out again to the palace with those who had been present on the preceding day; and as they were entering, they found Aredius, who wished to persuade them to turn back;
for he said that such quarrels exasperated the minds of the multitude, and that no good could come of them. But lord Stephen, who knew that this man favored the Arians in order to obtain the king's favor, although he professed our faith, answered him that it was not to be feared that quarrels should arise from the inquiry into truth and the love of the salvation of their brethren; nay rather, that nothing was more useful for joining minds in holy friendship than to know with whom the truth lay; because wherever it is, it is lovable, and renders those who profess it lovable. He added moreover that all had come here according to the king's command, against which reply Aredius did not dare to draw back any further. They entered therefore;
and when the king had seen them, he rose to meet them, and standing between lord Stephen and lord Avitus, he yet again said something against the king of the Franks, whom he said was inciting his own brother against him. But when the aforesaid bishops replied that there was no better way of entering upon peace than to be in concord in the faith, and promised their own labor, if he found it acceptable, toward reconciling so holy a treaty, he said nothing more, but each one took the place he had held on the preceding day. And when they had thus sat down, lord Avitus so lucidly proved that the catholics did not adore many gods, that both catholics and adversaries marveled at his wisdom with astonishment.
He did this in order to answer the insults which Boniface had cast against our faith. When therefore he had fallen silent, so as to give place to Boniface's replies, the latter could say nothing other than what he had done on the preceding day; and, adding insults to insults, he shouted with such vehemence that, because of hoarseness, he could speak no more and was, as it were, choked. When the king had seen this, and had waited long enough, he rose up, showing a countenance of indignation against Boniface. Then lord Avitus said to the king: If your sublimity would command that these men answer our propositions, so that you might judge which faith is to be held. But the king said nothing, nor did the other Arians who were with him;
so stupefied were they at the doctrine and wisdom of lord Avitus. When he saw their silence, he added: If your men cannot answer our arguments, what hinders that we should not all together come into the same faith? Then, as they murmured, secure in the Lord concerning his own faith, he added: If our arguments cannot convince them, I do not doubt that God will confirm our faith by a miracle: let your sublimity command that both they and we go to the tomb of the man of God, Justus, and let us question him concerning our faith; and Boniface likewise concerning his: and the Lord will pronounce through the mouth of His servant in which faith He is well pleased. The king, astonished, seemed to assent;
but the Arians began to cry out, and to say that they would not, for the manifesting of their faith, do as Saul had done, and for that reason had been accursed; nor have recourse to incantations and unlawful things; that it was enough for them to have the Scripture, which is stronger than all sorceries; and, repeating these things again and again, and bellowing rather than crying out, the king, who had already risen, taking lord Stephen and lord Avitus by the hands, led them into his own bedchamber; and when he had entered, he embraced them, saying that they should pray for him. They indeed recognized the perplexity and anguish of his heart, but because the Father had not drawn him (John 6:44), he could not come to the Son, so that the truth might be fulfilled:
It is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy (Rom. 9:16). And from that day very many of the Arians came to repentance, and after some days were baptized, and the Lord magnified our faith through the intercession of lord Justus in the sight of all.