Constantiusappointsa Council to meet atNicomedia;
Constantius, having thus gained over to the Heterodox Party the celebrated Bishop ofCordoua, and sent those into Exile, whom he apprehended most capable of traversing his Design, resolved to assemble a Council, not doubting but he should be able, by some means or other, to prevail upon the Members, that composed it, to approve and embrace the Doctrine, which he was labouring with indefatigable Pains to establish. Accordingly he writ to the chief Bishops of eachProvince, injoining them to meet in the Name of the rest, at an appointed Time, in the City ofNicomedia[863].|which City is destroyed by an Earthquake.|In Compliance with his Orders the Bishops immediately set out; but, while they were on the Road, they were stopped by the News that was brought them of the utter Destruction of the City ofNicomediaby a sudden and most dreadful Earthquake. This public Calamity happened on the 24th ofAugust358[864]. and theArians, in the Account which they transmitted of it to Court, assured the Emperor, that several Bishops, who were forConsubstantiality, had been buried under the Ruins of the great Church[865]. It was probably, by this Account, thatPhilostorgiuswas deceived and misled, when he writ, that Fifteen Bishops, who were all Defenders ofConsubstantiality, were crushed to Pieces by the Fall of the Church, together withCecropsBishop of the City[866]. ButSozomenassures us, that, when the Church fell, there was not a single Person in it; and that Two Bishops only perished in the Earthquake,viz.Cecrops, who was anArian, and a Bishop ofBosporus[867].|The Council ap-pointed to meet atNice.|This Misfortune obliged the Emperor to change the Place of the Council; and accordingly Letters were immediately dispatched to all the Bishops, ordering them to repair toNice, which City was suggested to him byBasilius, theSemi-ArianBishop ofAncyra, with a Design, saysTheodoret[868], to eclipse the Glory and Authority of the First Council by the Confusion of Two. Be that as it will, the Bishops were ordered to meet there early in the Summer of the Year 359. Such as were not in a Condition to undertake such a Journey, on account of their Age or Infirmities, were to send Priests or Deacons, as their Deputies, to vote and act in their Name; and the Council was strictly injoined to transmit to the Emperor such Decrees as they should enact, that he might examine them, and see whether they were agreeable to Scripture: for this Purpose Ten Deputies were to be appointed by the Bishops of the East, and the like Number by those of the West[869].|Two Councilsappointed to meetinstead of one.|But while the World was expecting to see a second Oecumenical Council assembled atNice, the Emperor all on a sudden changed his Mind, and instead of one, resolved to convene Two, the one in the East, and the other in the West[870]. This Change was owing to the Intrigues of theAnomeans, orPure Arians, who, finding the far greater Part of the Bishops either for the OrthodoxFaith ofNice, or, theSemi-Arian, as established in a Council atAntioch, concluded, that there would be no Means to divert them, when assembled together, from condemning their Doctrine; whereas if they were divided, they did not despair of being able to manage both Assemblies, or at least one of the Two[871]. This Design of dividing the Council they privately imparted to the EunuchEusebius, their great Friend, and the Emperor’s chief Favourite, who, highly applauding the Scheme, took upon him to get it approved byConstantius.|The Occasion of thisChange.|And this he easily effected, by representing, that a General Council would put the Bishops to greater Trouble and Inconveniences than most of them could well bear, and, at the same time, the Treasury to an immense Charge; for on such Occasions their Expences were defrayed by the Emperor[872]. He therefore advised him to assemble Two Councils at the same time, one in the East, and the other in the West, which, he said, would be less troublesome to the Bishops, and less expensive to the Exchequer. To these ReasonsConstantiusacquiesced; but, as he was a zealousSemi-Arian,Eusebiuskept him in the Dark, as to the true Motive of such a Change. Thus wasConstantius, and thus have many Princes been, since his Time, led, as it were, hoodwinked, by some in whom they reposed an intire Confidence, into Measures tending to promote Designs quite opposite to their own.
Riminichosen for theWestern Bishops;
This Point being settled, to the great Satisfaction of theAnomeans,Ariminum, nowRimini, on theAdriaticSea, was thought the most proper Place for the Western Bishops to meet at. But the City ofNice, where the General Council was to assemble, having suffered much by the late Earthquake, the Emperor desired the Eastern Bishops might not meet there, but in whatever other Place they should agree among themselves to be the most proper and convenient[873]. ThisTheodoretascribes to a particular Providence, that would not suffer the great Council ofNiceto be ever confounded with a Conventicle of Heretics[874].|andSeleuciainIsauriafor those ofthe East.|As the Bishops could not agree about the Place, and it was not at all probable they should, the Emperor, by the Advice of a few, who were then with him atSirmium, named the City ofSeleuciainIsauria[875]. And now that the Place was settled for both Councils,Constantiusissued an Order, injoining not only the chief Bishops of each Province, as he had done the Year before, but all,without Exception, to repair to one of the Two[876]; nay, he dispatched Officers into the Provinces, with a strict Charge to see his Order punctually obeyed, and put in Execution[877]. The Bishops therefore set out from all Parts; the public Carriages, Roads, and Houses, were every-where crouded with them; which gave great Offence to the Catechumens, and no small Diversion to the Pagans, who thought it equally strange and ridiculous, that Men, who had been brought up from their Infancy in the Christian Religion, and whose Business it was to instruct others in that Belief, should be constantly hurrying, in their old Age, from one Place to another, to know what they themselves should believe[878].Ammianus Marcellinuscomplains, that the necessary Funds for the Maintenance of the public Carriages were quite drained and exhausted, by the roaming about of the Christian Bishops[879]. Their Charges were defrayed by the Emperor, as I have observed above; but the Bishops ofGaulandBritain, that they might be the more independent, insisted upon travelling at their own Expence; only Three of the latter, not having wherewithal to support themselves, chose rather to be obliged to the Emperor than burdensome to their Collegues, who generously offered to contribute to their Maintenance, every one according to his Ability[880].
The Western Bishops, that is, those ofIllyricum,Italy,Africa,Spain,Gaul, andBritain, being assembled atRimini, in all 400 and upwards[881], the Emperor writ toTaurus, thePræfectus PrætorioofItaly, charging him to be present at all the Debates, and not to suffer the Bishops to separate, till, in Points of Faith, they had all agreed: if he succeeded therein, he was to be rewarded with the Consular Dignity[882].|The Emperor’s Letterto the WesternBishops.|At the same time he writ to the Bishops, injoining them to treat only of such Matters as related to the Faith, Unity, and Order of the Church, and forbidding them to meddle, on any Pretence whatsoever, with what concerned the Eastern Bishops, who, he said, would take care to settle their own Affairs, since they were met for that Purpose[883]. This was to prevent their entering upon the Cause ofAthanasius, whom he well knew the Western Bishops would have declared innocent. The Emperor’s Letter is dated the 27th of May 359[884]. At this CouncilRestitutusBishopofCarthageis supposed to have presided, as he was, both for Piety and Learning, the most conspicuous in the Assembly.|TheAriansproposea new Confessiondrawn up atSirmium;|At their first Meeting, the TwoArianBishops,UrsaciusandValens, appeared with a Paper in their Hands, containing a new Confession of Faith, composed lately atSirmiumby the Emperor, by a small Number ofArianandSemi-ArianBishops, and several Presbyters and Deacons, who, after a Debate, which lasted the whole Day, had at length agreed to suppress the WordConsubstantial; and introduce the Wordlikein its room; so that the Son was no more to be saidconsubstantial, butlike to the Father in all Things; the Three last WordsConstantiusadded, and, by obliging all who were present to sign them, defeated, say theSemi-Arians, the wicked Designs of the Heretics, meaning thePure Arians[885]. However, excepting those Words, the whole Confession was thought to favour their Doctrine[886]; whence theSemi-Ariansheld out till Night, when the Emperor, well satisfied with the Wordslike in all things, obliged them to sign it. This Confession of Faith was drawn up, and signed, on the Eve ofPentecost[887], that is, on the 22d or 23d ofMay359[888].Easterhaving fallen that Year on the 4th ofApril[889][N17].UrsaciusandValensreadit to the Council, adding, when they had done, that it had been approved of by the Emperor, and therefore that they ought all to be satisfied with it, without recurring to any other Councils or Creeds, without demanding any other Confession of the Heretics, or inquiring too narrowly into their Doctrine and Opinions, which would be attended with much Trouble, endless Disputes, and eternal Divisions; that the Catholic Truths, which all Men were bound to believe, ought not to be darkened with Metaphysical Terms, but expressed by Words, which all Men understood; and, lastly, that it was quite idle to quarrel and make so much Noise about a Word (meaning the Wordconsubstantial) which none of the inspired Writers had thought fit to make use of in explaining the Mysteries of our holy Religion[890]. What Answer the Council returned, I can find no-where recorded. But a Motion being made soon after to condemn and anathematize theArianand all other Heresies,Ursaciusand his Party opposed it; which alarmed the Orthodox Bishops, concluding from thence, that whatever Expressions they made use of, their Belief was different from that of the Catholic Church.|which is rejected;|They therefore resolved to hearken to them no longer; and accordingly, without the least Regard to their Remonstrances and Protestations, they condemned, with one Consent, all Heresies in general, and that ofAriusin particular; declared heretical the Confession of Faith presented byUrsaciusandValens; confirmed that ofNice, and ordered the Wordconsubstantialto be retained, since the true Meaning of it might be sufficiently gathered from several Passages in Scripture[891].|and they condemnedand deposed.|They did not stop here; but, transported with Zeal on theAriansattempting to impose upon them by a Second Confession of Faith, they declared them all, and their LeadersUrsacius,Valens,Germinius, andCaius, by Name, ignorant and deceitful Men, Impostors, Heretics, deposed them in the Council, and signed all to a Man this Declaration on the 21st ofJulyof the present Year 359[892].
N17. It was signed by the few Bishops, who were present, and by a good Number of Presbyters and Deacons. The Bishops wereMarcusofArethusa,George, who had been intruded into the See ofAlexandria,BasiliusofAncyra,GerminiusofSirmium,HypatianusofHeraclea,Valens,Ursacius, andPancratiusofPelusium[1].Valens, in signing it, added to his Name these Words;I believe the Son to be like to the Father. He was unwilling to acknowlege the Son like to the Fatherin all things, agreeably to the Confession, which he was to sign, and therefore suppressed these Words. But the Emperor insisting upon his adding them, he took his Will for the Rule of his Faith, and added them accordingly.BasiliusofAncyra, suspecting some Meaning contrary to the Doctrine which he held, to lie concealed and disguised under those Words, declared, that he understood by them a Likeness inSubstance, inExistence, and inEssence; and that he signed in this, and no other Sense, the present Symbol. Not satisfied with this Declaration, he writ, some time after, an Exposition of the Faith that was professed by him, and the otherSemi-ArianBishops. This Exposition is, byEpiphanius, styled a Letter, and was placed by him after the circular Letter of the Council ofAncyra. The present Confession ofSirmiumis commonly styled the Third, but was, properly speaking, the Fourth: For before this, Three different Symbols had been composed atSirmium;viz.one intirely Orthodox, in 351. another altogetherArian, in 357. a ThirdSemi-Arian, in 358. and the present in 359. The SecondLiberiussigned atBerœa, and the Third atSirmium, upon his Arrival in that City.1. Athan. de syn. p. 873. Epi. 73. c. 22. Socr. l. 2. c. 29.
N17. It was signed by the few Bishops, who were present, and by a good Number of Presbyters and Deacons. The Bishops wereMarcusofArethusa,George, who had been intruded into the See ofAlexandria,BasiliusofAncyra,GerminiusofSirmium,HypatianusofHeraclea,Valens,Ursacius, andPancratiusofPelusium[1].Valens, in signing it, added to his Name these Words;I believe the Son to be like to the Father. He was unwilling to acknowlege the Son like to the Fatherin all things, agreeably to the Confession, which he was to sign, and therefore suppressed these Words. But the Emperor insisting upon his adding them, he took his Will for the Rule of his Faith, and added them accordingly.BasiliusofAncyra, suspecting some Meaning contrary to the Doctrine which he held, to lie concealed and disguised under those Words, declared, that he understood by them a Likeness inSubstance, inExistence, and inEssence; and that he signed in this, and no other Sense, the present Symbol. Not satisfied with this Declaration, he writ, some time after, an Exposition of the Faith that was professed by him, and the otherSemi-ArianBishops. This Exposition is, byEpiphanius, styled a Letter, and was placed by him after the circular Letter of the Council ofAncyra. The present Confession ofSirmiumis commonly styled the Third, but was, properly speaking, the Fourth: For before this, Three different Symbols had been composed atSirmium;viz.one intirely Orthodox, in 351. another altogetherArian, in 357. a ThirdSemi-Arian, in 358. and the present in 359. The SecondLiberiussigned atBerœa, and the Third atSirmium, upon his Arrival in that City.
N17. It was signed by the few Bishops, who were present, and by a good Number of Presbyters and Deacons. The Bishops wereMarcusofArethusa,George, who had been intruded into the See ofAlexandria,BasiliusofAncyra,GerminiusofSirmium,HypatianusofHeraclea,Valens,Ursacius, andPancratiusofPelusium[1].Valens, in signing it, added to his Name these Words;I believe the Son to be like to the Father. He was unwilling to acknowlege the Son like to the Fatherin all things, agreeably to the Confession, which he was to sign, and therefore suppressed these Words. But the Emperor insisting upon his adding them, he took his Will for the Rule of his Faith, and added them accordingly.BasiliusofAncyra, suspecting some Meaning contrary to the Doctrine which he held, to lie concealed and disguised under those Words, declared, that he understood by them a Likeness inSubstance, inExistence, and inEssence; and that he signed in this, and no other Sense, the present Symbol. Not satisfied with this Declaration, he writ, some time after, an Exposition of the Faith that was professed by him, and the otherSemi-ArianBishops. This Exposition is, byEpiphanius, styled a Letter, and was placed by him after the circular Letter of the Council ofAncyra. The present Confession ofSirmiumis commonly styled the Third, but was, properly speaking, the Fourth: For before this, Three different Symbols had been composed atSirmium;viz.one intirely Orthodox, in 351. another altogetherArian, in 357. a ThirdSemi-Arian, in 358. and the present in 359. The SecondLiberiussigned atBerœa, and the Third atSirmium, upon his Arrival in that City.
1. Athan. de syn. p. 873. Epi. 73. c. 22. Socr. l. 2. c. 29.
1. Athan. de syn. p. 873. Epi. 73. c. 22. Socr. l. 2. c. 29.
Deputies sent by theCouncil to theEmperor;
With this Act they put an End to the Sessions, and immediately dispatched Ten Deputies to acquaint the Emperor with what had passed, pursuant to his express Command. The like Number was sent by theArians, who had assisted at the Council. These, traveling with great Expedition, arrived atConstantinople, where the Court then was, some time before the others; and, being immediately admitted to theEmperor, they prejudiced him to such a Degree against the Orthodox Party, that he would not so much as see their Deputies, pretending to be wholly taken up with the Affairs of the State. They were therefore obliged to deliver the Letter, which the Council had written on this Occasion, to one of his Ministers[893]. They expected every Day to be admitted to an Audience, or, at least, to receive an Answer, and be dismissed.|who leavesConstantinoplewithout seeing them.|But, after they had been thus kept for some time in Expectation, the Emperor all on a sudden leftConstantinople, in order to head his Army against theBarbarians, who had broken into the Empire. He was no sooner gone than one of the Ministers came to acquaint them, that it was the Emperor’s Pleasure they should repair forthwith toAdrianople, and there wait his Return[894]. However, before he set out, he writ to the Council, giving them notice of his sudden Departure fromConstantinople; and alleging, by way of Excuse for not having seen or heard their Deputies, the present Situation of public Affairs, which had engrossed his whole Attention, whereas, the discussing and settling of spiritual Affairs required a Mind quite free and disengaged from all worldly Cares.|He endeavours to tiretheir Patience withDelays.|He concluded his short Letter with intreating them not to think of separating till he was at Leisure to settle, in Conjunction with them, Matters of so great Importance to the Church, and the whole Christian World[895]. The Design of the most wickedConstantius, asAthanasiusstyles him[896], was to tire out the Bishops with such Delays, hoping they would, in the End, chuse rather to sign the lastSirmianConfession, which he was bent upon establishing in the room of theNicene, than to be long kept, as it were, in Exile, at a Distance from their Sees[897]. But this he could not compass for the present, the Bishops declaring, in their Answer to his Letter, that they could not, and hoped they never should, upon any Consideration whatsoever, depart from what they had so unanimously settled and decreed[898].Socrateswrites, that the Bishops, after having waited some time in vain for the Emperor’s Answer to their Letter, leftRimini, and retired to their respective Sees[899]. And here he ends his Account of that Council. It were greatly to be wished, that nothing else could be said of it; but several contemporary and unexceptionable Writers, andHilariusamong the rest[900], assure us, thatConstantiuschanged at last the Faith of the Western Bishops into Impiety. Of this deplorable Change they give us the following Account.
Their Deputies orderedtoNiceinThrace;
TheArians, taking Occasion from the last Letter of the Bishops atRiminito incenseConstantiusagainst them, prevailed upon him to order their Deputies to a City inThrace, known at that Time by the Name ofNice, but formerly calledOstudizus, and placed bySansona few Leagues to the East ofAdrianople. This Place they chose, that the Symbol, which they designed to impose upon them, might be confounded by the ignorant People with that of the great Council ofNiceinBithynia[901]. The Deputies no sooner arrived there, than a Confession of Faith was proposed to them intirely agreeable to the last made atSirmium, except that in this new Creed the Son was declaredlike to the Father, without the Addition of the Wordsin all Things. This they rejected at first with great Resolution and Intrepidity; but theArianswere no less resolute, and therefore left nothing unattempted they could think of to carry their Point[902]. But finding Hope and Fear, Threats and Promises, equally ineffectual, they proceeded at last to open Force and Violence[903]. What Kind of Violence was employed against them, the Author does not tell us; butMarcellinusandFaustinusascribe their retracting what they had declared to be holy, and approving what they had condemned as impious, to the Love of their Sees, and the Dread they were in of being driven from them[904].|where they sign theSirmianConfession.|Be that as it will, it is certain, that they yielded at last; that they accepted and signed, without the least Limitation or Restriction, the above-mentioned Confession of Faith; consented to the Suppression of the WordConsubstantial; declared void and null all the Acts and Proceedings of the Council ofRimini; anathematized, as heretical, all Opinions contrary to the Doctrine contained in the said Confession; and, finally, admitted to their CommunionUrsacius,Valens,Germinius, andCaius, whom they had not long before deposed as Heretics[905].Restitutus, Bishop ofCarthage, and one of the most eminent Prelates at that Time in the Church, signed the first, and the other Deputies after him, according to the Dignity of their Sees. The Emperor, transported with Joy at the News of their Compliance, which he looked upon as a signal Victory, gave them immediately Leave to return toRimini. At the same time he wrote toTaurus, charging him anew not to suffer the Bishops to depart tillthey had all signed the same Confession of Faith, and impowering him to send into Exile such as by their Obstinacy should distinguish themselves above the rest, provided they were not above Fifteen in Number[906].|Constantiusordersthe Bishops atRiminito suppress the WordsSubstanceandConsubstantial.|He likewise writ to the Bishops, commanding them, on Pain of incurring his Indignation, to suppress for ever the WordsSubstanceandConsubstantial, severely reprimanding them for presuming to deposeUrsaciusand his Collegues, and assuring them, that they should not be allowed to return to their Sees, till they had intitled themselves to his Favour by an intire and unreserved Compliance with his Will[907]. To this Letter theArians, who had assisted at the Council, to the Number of Eighty, returned a most submissive Answer, and even thanked the Emperor for the great Pains he took to establish the true Doctrine[908]. However,Taurusdeclared that he could by no means suffer them to depart till the rest had agreed with them, and the whole Assembly was of one Mind. The orthodox Bishops shewed at first some Resolution, and even refused to communicate with their own Deputies. But this Resolution soon vanished; they were eager to return to their Sees; the Emperor was inflexible;Taurustook care to render the Place both inconvenient and disagreeable to them.|The greater Partyield.|Some therefore fell off, others followed their Example, the rest began to waver, and, being so far got the better of, yielded soon after, and went over to theArianParty in such Crouds, that in a very short time the Number of the orthodox Bishops, who continued steady, was reduced to 20[909]. At the Head of these wasPhœbadius, the celebrated Bishop ofAgen, who seemed invincible; but nevertheless was overcome in the End, not by the Menaces of the Emperor, or his Prefect, but by the Craft and Subtilty ofUrsaciusandValens, who, finding they could by no other Means prevail upon him to accept theSirmianConfession, declared, that to put an End to the unhappy Divisions that had so long rent the Church, they had at last resolved to agree to such Alterations and Additions as should be judged proper and necessary by him and his Collegues. This Declaration was received by all with great Joy:Phœbadiustriumphed, thinking he had carried his Point, and saved the Reputation of the Council.|The others imposedupon by theArians.|To the Symbol were immediately added several Anathemas against theArianHeresy, and an Article declaringthe Son equal to the Father, without Beginning,and before all Time. When this Article was read,Valensdesired, that, in order to leave no room for new Disputes or Chicanery, they would add, thatthe Son was not a Creature like other Creatures[910]. This was evidently supposing the Son to be a Creature only exalted above all other Creatures; so that by admitting such an Article they condemned the Doctrine which they designed to establish, and established that which they designed to condemn. And yet of this neither wasPhœbadiusaware, nor any of his Party, as they afterwards solemnly declared[911]. A most unaccountable Oversight, and hardly credible! ButTheodoret[912],Ambrose[913],Sulpitius Severus[914], andFulgentius[915], took it upon their Word, and so must we. Neither Party could brag of the Victory; for theArianshad anathematized the Heresy ofArius; and on the other hand the orthodox Bishops had deliberately agreed to the suppressing of the WordsSubstanceandConsubstantial, and inadvertently acknowleged the Son to be a Creature; which was all theAriansaimed at, or could desire. The Council being thus ended, new Deputies were sent to acquaint the Emperor with what had passed, who being highly pleased with the Report made byUrsaciusandValens(for they were at the Head of the Deputation) immediately granted the Bishops Leave to return to their respective Sees, after they had been about Four Months atRimini.
The Council no sooner broke up than theAriansbegan to proclaim aloud the Victory they had gained, bragging, that it had not been defined in the Council ofRimini, that the Son was not a Creature, but only that he was not like other Creatures; and declaring it was, and had always been their Opinion, that the Son was no more like the Father, than a Piece of Glass was like an Emerald[916].|They discover theirMistake.|Phœbadius, and the other Bishops who had adhered to him, were returned to their Sees with great Joy, flattering themselves that they had sufficiently established the Catholic Doctrine, and prevented all future Disputes: but, finding that theArianspretended their Tenets had been confirmed by this very Council, and seriously reflecting on the Articles, which they themselves had agreed to, they discovered at last how grosly they had been imposed upon, and publicly retracted all they had said, done, or signed, repugnant to the Truths of the Catholic Church[917]. However,GregoryBishop ofElvirarefused to communicate with any of theBishops who had assisted at the Council ofRimini, and was on that account commended byEusebiusofVercelli[918].|Are judged Guilty bythe exiled Bishops.|The exiled Bishops, and those who lay concealed, agreed among themselves by Letters, to declare them for ever incapable of performing any Episcopal or Sacerdotal Functions, and to admit them to the Communion of the Church only in the Capacity of Laymen[919]. When Peace was restored to the Church by the Death ofConstantiusin 361. most of the orthodox Bishops were for deposing all those of the Council ofRimini, and placing others in their room. But this Sentence the People would not suffer to be put in Execution, rising every-where in Defence of their Pastors, and in some Places insulting, beating, and even killing, those who came to depose them[920].
Great Disagreementin the Council ofSeleucia.
As for the Council ofSeleucia, it met on the 27th ofSeptember359. and consisted only of One hundred and Sixty Bishops, allArians, orSemi-Arians, except Twelve or Thirteen orthodox Bishops fromEgypt[921]. This AssemblyGregory Nazianzencalls theTowerofCalane, orBabel, the Council ofCaiaphas[922]. And indeed with a great deal of Reason; for nothing was there seen but Tumult, Confusion, and Disorder. TheAnomeansandSemi-Ariansappeared so irreconcilably incensed against each other, and carried on their Debates with so much Animosity and Bitterness, that the QuæstorLeonas, whom the Emperor had appointed to assist at the Council, thinking it impossible they should ever agree in any one Point, rose up at their Fourth Meeting, while they were in the Heat of the Dispute, and, withdrawing abruptly, put an End to that Session, nay, and to the Council; for, being invited the next Day, the First ofOctober, to the Assembly, he refused to go, saying, that he did not conceive his Presence to be at all necessary, since they might quarrel and scold as much as they pleased without him[923]. This he did, saysSozomen, to favour theAnomeans, who thence took Occasion to absent themselves from the Council, which, as it was chiefly composed ofSemi-Arians, seemed determined to condemn their Doctrine[924].|TheSemi-Arianscondemn and deposetheArians.|However, theSemi-Ariansmet by themselves; and, finding they could by no means prevail upon theAnomeansto return to the Council, they condemned their Doctrine as heretical and blasphemous, excommunicated and deposed the leading Men of their Party, appointed others in their room,and gave Notice thereof to their respective Churches[925]. Before they broke up, they dispatched Ten Deputies to acquaint the Emperor with the Transactions of the Council. But the Bishops whom they had deposed, arriving at Court before them, and being by their Friends there immediately introduced toConstantius, they prejudiced him against the Council ofSeleuciato such a Degree, that it was some time before he could prevail upon himself to hear the Deputies.|They sign the lastConfession ofSirmium.|However, he heard them at last, and, by threatening them with Exile if they did not comply, obliged them to sign the last Confession ofSirmium, which had been rejected by the Council asArian[926]. In this he spent the whole Day, and great Part of the Night, preceding the First ofJanuary, though he was obliged to make the necessary Preparations for entering on that Day his Tenth Consulate with the usual Pomp and Solemnity[927].
TheArians,in theirTurn, condemn anddepose theSemi-Arians,and also sign the last Confession ofSirmium.
In the Beginning of the Year 360. theAnomeansassembling by themselves atConstantinopleas theSemi-Arianshad done atSeleucia, in order to ingratiate themselves with the Emperor, not only received the lastSirmianConfession, but condemned all other Confessions or Symbols that had been made till then, or should be made for the future. They then declared all the Acts of the Council ofSeleuciavoid and null; and, to be even with theSemi-Arians, deposed, under various Pretences, such of their Party as had most contributed to the deposing of them, and even prevailed upon the Emperor to send them into Exile[928].
An Order from theEmperor injoining allBishops to sign theSirmianConfession.
They did not stop here, but obtained ofConstantiusan Order, which was published throughout the Empire, commanding all Bishops to sign theSirmianConfession, on pain of forfeiting their Dignity, and being sent into Exile[929][N18]. This Order was executed with the utmostRigour in all the Provinces of the Empire, and very few were found, who did not sign with their Hands what they condemned in their Hearts[930]. Many, who till then had been thought invincible, were overcome, and complied with the Times; and such as did not, were driven, without Distinction, from their Sees, into Exile, and others appointed in their room, the signing of that Confession being a Qualification indispensably requisite both for obtaining and keeping the Episcopal Dignity[931]. Thus were all the Sees throughout the Empire filled withArians, insomuch that in the whole East not one orthodox Bishop was left, and in the West but one,viz.GregoryBishop ofElvirainAndalusia, and he, in all Likelihood, obliged to absent himself from his Flock, and lie concealed, as were probably PopeLiberius, andVincentiusofCapua, if whatTheodoretrelates of them be true,viz.that they never consented to the Decrees ofRimini[932], and thereby retrieved the Reputation they had lost, the former by signing theSirmianConfession of the Year 357. and the other by communicating with theAriansin 353. as I have related above.|It was probablysigned byLiberius.|But whatTheodoretwrites may be justly called in question; for it is not at all probable, that the Emperor, and theArianParty, so warmly bent on establishing that Confession throughout the Empire, would have suffered the Bishop of the Imperial City, of the first See, to reject it, without deposing him, as they had done the Bishops of all the other great Sees, and appointing another more compliant in his room. This could not be prevented by his concealing himself in the Caverns and Cœmeteries aboutRome, as he is said to have done in his Acts quoted byBaronius[933], though he might by that means have escaped being sent into Exile. Besides, had he, instead of complying with the Emperor’s express Command, withdrawn and absconded, I cannot think that his AntagonistFelix, who was still alive, and had done nothing we know of to disoblige the Emperor, and theArianParty,by whom he had been formerly raised to that See, would have neglected so favourable an Opportunity of recovering his antient Dignity. If whatTheodoretsays be true,Gregory Nazianzenis highly to blame for not exceptingLiberius; when he writ, that the Bishops either all complied, or were driven into Exile, excepting a few, who were too insignificant to be taken notice of by the Emperor, or his Ministers[934].|Arianismuniversallyobtains.|Be that as it will, it is certain, that at this time theArianDoctrine universally obtained; that the Face of the Church appeared quite deformed and disfigured[935], that the whole World saw itself, with Astonishment, all on a sudden becomeArian[936]; that the Boat of St.Peter, to use St.Jerom’s Expression, tossed by furious Winds, by violent Storms, was upon the Point of sinking, and no Hopes of Safety seemed to be left[937].
N18. This Confession is called sometimes theConfession ofNiceinThrace, and sometimes theConfession ofRimini; but it differed from both. By the Confession ofNice, the Son was acknowleged to be like to the Father, without the Addition of the Wordsin all Things, which were an essential Part of the last Confession ofSirmium. In that ofRiminithe Son was saidnot to be a Creature like other Creatures, and there were no such Words in the Confession ofSirmium. But by all Three the WordConsubstantialwas rejected, and no other would satisfy the Orthodox, acknowleging the Son to beof the same Substance with the Father. Both theAriansandSemi-Ariansallowed the Son to be like to the Father: but that Likeness was by them very differently understood and interpreted. TheAriansheld him to belikerather by Grace than by Nature, and as like as a Creature could be to the Creator[1]. TheSemi-Ariansconfessed him to be like inNature, inExistence, inEssence, inSubstance, and inevery thing else. But the Orthodox maintained him to be of thesame Substancewith the Father, and consequently of thesame Existence,Essence, &c. and, to express thisSamenessorIdentity, they chose the WordConsubstantial.1. Ruff. l. 1. c. 25.
N18. This Confession is called sometimes theConfession ofNiceinThrace, and sometimes theConfession ofRimini; but it differed from both. By the Confession ofNice, the Son was acknowleged to be like to the Father, without the Addition of the Wordsin all Things, which were an essential Part of the last Confession ofSirmium. In that ofRiminithe Son was saidnot to be a Creature like other Creatures, and there were no such Words in the Confession ofSirmium. But by all Three the WordConsubstantialwas rejected, and no other would satisfy the Orthodox, acknowleging the Son to beof the same Substance with the Father. Both theAriansandSemi-Ariansallowed the Son to be like to the Father: but that Likeness was by them very differently understood and interpreted. TheAriansheld him to belikerather by Grace than by Nature, and as like as a Creature could be to the Creator[1]. TheSemi-Ariansconfessed him to be like inNature, inExistence, inEssence, inSubstance, and inevery thing else. But the Orthodox maintained him to be of thesame Substancewith the Father, and consequently of thesame Existence,Essence, &c. and, to express thisSamenessorIdentity, they chose the WordConsubstantial.
N18. This Confession is called sometimes theConfession ofNiceinThrace, and sometimes theConfession ofRimini; but it differed from both. By the Confession ofNice, the Son was acknowleged to be like to the Father, without the Addition of the Wordsin all Things, which were an essential Part of the last Confession ofSirmium. In that ofRiminithe Son was saidnot to be a Creature like other Creatures, and there were no such Words in the Confession ofSirmium. But by all Three the WordConsubstantialwas rejected, and no other would satisfy the Orthodox, acknowleging the Son to beof the same Substance with the Father. Both theAriansandSemi-Ariansallowed the Son to be like to the Father: but that Likeness was by them very differently understood and interpreted. TheAriansheld him to belikerather by Grace than by Nature, and as like as a Creature could be to the Creator[1]. TheSemi-Ariansconfessed him to be like inNature, inExistence, inEssence, inSubstance, and inevery thing else. But the Orthodox maintained him to be of thesame Substancewith the Father, and consequently of thesame Existence,Essence, &c. and, to express thisSamenessorIdentity, they chose the WordConsubstantial.
1. Ruff. l. 1. c. 25.
1. Ruff. l. 1. c. 25.
The following Year 361. theAnomeans, not fully satisfied with the Confession of Faith, which, at their Suggestion, the Emperor had taken so much Pains to establish throughout the Empire, assembled, with his Leave, atAntioch, and there drew up a new Symbol, or Creed, wherein it was expresly said, thatthe Son was in every thing unlike to the Father, and thatHe was made out of nothing.|Constantiusdesignsto establish theDoctrine of thePureArians;|Constantiushad formerly expressed the greatest Abhorrence to this Doctrine, and had even banished those who held, and refused to anathematize, suchimpious Blasphemies, as he then styled them[938]. But, having lately changed his Opinion, which was chiefly owing to the great Influence the EunuchEusebiushad over him, he was now no less sanguine for theUnlikenessof the Son to the Father, than he had been hitherto for theLikeness[939]. In order therefore to abolish the antient, and establish this new Creed in its room, he appointed a Council to meet atNiceinBithynia[940], which, without all Doubt, he would have treated in the same manner as he had done that ofRimini.|but is prevented byDeath.|But, as the Bishops were preparing to set out for the appointed Place, they were stopped by the sudden and unexpected News of the Emperor’s Death, which put an End to all his Councils, and was heard with equal Joy by those of theOrthodoxandSemi-ArianParty. He was succeeded byJulian, surnamed theApostate, who immediately recalled all those who had been banished byConstantiuson account of their Religion[941].|The exiled Bishopsrecalled byJulian.|Whatever was his Motive, theChurch reaped great Advantages from the Return of so many eminent Prelates, who, in the worst of Times, had, with an invincible Firmness and Constancy, stood up in her Defence. Among the rest returned, on this Occasion, the famousMeletiusBishop ofAntioch,EusebiusofVercelli,LuciferofCagliari, who had been all Three confined to the most distant Parts ofThebaisinEgypt,CyrilofJerusalem,PelagiusofLaodiceainPhœnicia, and, to the inexpressible Joy of the Orthodox Party, their great ChampionAthanasiusBishop ofAlexandria[942], who immediately resumed, undisturbed, his Episcopal Function;George, the Usurper of his See, having been assassinated a little while before by the Pagans ofAlexandria, on account of his Avarice and Cruelty[943]. In other Places the Orthodox Bishops, finding theAriansin Possession of their Sees, contented themselves with being acknowleged by those of their Communion, without attempting to drive out their Antagonists, which would have created great Confusion, and endless Disturbances in the Church.Julianrefused to interpose his Authority in favour of either Party, saying, that as he was not so well acquainted with the Nature of their Disputes as a just and impartial Judge ought to be, he hoped they would excuse him, lest he should be guilty of some Injustice, and settle Matters of such Importance among themselves.AthanasiusenteredAlexandriain a kind of Triumph, which is described in a lively manner byGregory Nazianzen, who seems to have pleased himself with displaying, in that Description, all the Eloquence he was Master of[944].