Vita Constantini

Therefore the emperor, by means of a wax painting, displayed to all the dragon pierced by a dart through the middle of its body and cast into the depths of the sea, lying beneath the feet of himself and his children, thus hinting at the invisible enemy of the human race, and indicating that by the power of the saving trophy placed above his head, it had gone down into the abyss of destruction. But these things were hinted at by the colors of the painting; I, however, was seized with wonder at the emperor's magnanimity, how he fashioned these things by divine inspiration, which the voices of the prophets somewhere cried out concerning this beast, saying that God would bring the great and terrible sword against the dragon, the crooked serpent, against the dragon, the fleeing serpent, and would slay the dragon in the sea. The emperor indeed fashioned images of these things, truly placing imitations in the painting. These things, then, were accomplished to his satisfaction; but the evil of envious malice, terribly disturbing the churches of God in Alexandria and the schismatic evil of the Thebans and Egyptians, moved him not a little, as bishops clashed with bishops in every city, and peoples rose up against peoples, all but cutting each other to pieces with clashing rocks, so that the desperate, in a frenzy, dared to commit unholy acts and to insult the emperor's images, yet not so as to rouse the emperor to anger, but rather to distress of soul, as he grieved deeply over the madness of the deranged.

There was also, it seems, another most grievous disease which had long been troubling the churches, even before these, namely the disagreement concerning the festival of salvation, some asserting that it was necessary to follow the custom of the Jews, others that it was proper to observe the exact season of the time and not to follow, in their error, those alien to the grace of the Gospel. In this matter, therefore, the peoples everywhere had long been at variance, and the divine ordinances were being confounded, so that at one and the same festival the deviation of the time caused the greatest division among those celebrating the feast, some practicing fasts and austerities, others devoting the leisure to relaxation. No one among men was able to find a remedy for the evil, the strife being equally balanced between the opposing parties; but it was easy for the all-powerful God alone to heal these things also, and Constantine alone among those on earth appeared to be his good servant. When he learned of the report of the matters mentioned and saw that the letter sent by him to those in Alexandria was ineffectual, then, stirring up his own mind, he said that another war must be waged, this one against the invisible enemy who was disturbing the church. Then, as if marching against him, he assembled a phalanx of God, an ecumenical council, summoning the bishops from everywhere by honorific letters, urging them to hasten. The command was not simple, but he also cooperated

to the emperor's will in this very action, granting to some the authority of public travel, and to others an abundance of services of beast-carriers. And a city was designated befitting the council, named after victory, Nicaea in the nation of the Bithynians. So when the summons went everywhere, as if from a starting line, all hastened with the utmost eagerness. For hope of good things drew them, both the prospect of peace and the sight of the wondrous spectacle of the great emperor's countenance. When all had assembled, what was being done was already seen as a work of God. For those who were separated not only in soul but also in body, in regions, places, and nations far distant from one another, were gathered together, and one city received them all. So one could behold a great crown of priests, as if variegated with beautiful flowers. For from all the churches that filled all Europe, Libya, and Asia, the choicest of the ministers of God had assembled together, and one house of prayer, as if widened by God, contained within itself at the same time Syrians and Cilicians, Phoenicians and Arabians and Palestinians, and in addition to these Egyptians, Thebans, Libyans, and those from the region of the rivers; and already a Persian bishop was present at the council, nor was a Scythian absent from the gathering; Pontus and Galatia, Cappadocia and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia provided their chosen ones; but also Thracians and Macedonians, Achaeans and Epirotes, and those dwelling even farther than these were present, and the much-celebrated one from Spain himself was sitting together with the many.

But the president of the imperial city was absent due to old age, and presbyters from his see were present to fill his rank. Thus alone from eternity one emperor Constantine, having bound a crown to Christ with a bond of peace, was offering to his own savior a godly thank-offering for victory over enemies and foes, having constituted this assembly as an image of the apostolic chorus. For it is said that in those times there were gathered from every nation under heaven men of piety, among whom were Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and those inhabiting Mesopotamia, Judaea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia, Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, and the parts of Libya around Cyrene, as well as resident Romans, Jews, and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs—except that those lacked the fact that all were not constituted by divine ministers. But in the present assembly there was a multitude of bishops exceeding the number of two hundred and fifty, and following them presbyters, deacons, and very many other attendants, of whom there was no number to be grasped. Among the divine ministers, some excelled in wisdom of speech, others in firmness of life and endurance of perseverance, and others were adorned by a moderate manner. Among these, some were honored by length of time, others shone with youth and vigor of soul, and others had just entered upon the course of ministry. For all these the emperor arranged that rations be provided abundantly each day.

When the appointed day for the council arrived, on which it was necessary to impose a resolution on the disputed matters, each one was present, celebrating this day. In the very central hall of the palace, which seemed to surpass all others in size, with many seats arranged in order on both sides of the hall, those summoned entered and all took their appropriate seats. But when the entire council was seated with fitting decorum, silence held all in expectation of the emperor's entrance. Then first one, then a second, and a third of those around the emperor entered. Others also followed, not the usual soldiers and bodyguards, but only trusted friends. When all rose at a signal that indicated the emperor's entrance, he himself then passed through the middle like some heavenly angel of God, his bright robe flashing as if with gleams of light, blazing with fiery rays of purple, and adorned with the translucent gleam of gold and precious stones. These things pertained to his body. But his soul was manifestly adorned with fear of God and reverence. This was also indicated by his eyes looking downward, the blush of his face, the movement of his gait, and his other appearance, his stature surpassing all around him, with the beauty of his prime and the magnificence of his bodily comeliness, and with invincible strength of vigor, which, blended with the gentleness of his character and the mildness of his imperial clemency, made the extraordinary quality of his mind appear greater than any description.

When he had passed to the first rank of the orders and stood in the middle, a small seat made of gold material having been set before him, he did not sit down until the bishops nodded assent. And all did the same with the emperor. The chief bishop of the right order, rising, delivered a measured speech, addressing the emperor and making a hymn of thanksgiving to the almighty God on his behalf. When he too had sat down, silence fell, all gazing intently at the emperor, who, looking at everyone with serene and cheerful eyes, and then gathering his thoughts to himself, spoke in a calm and gentle voice as follows: "It was my prayer, O friends, to enjoy your assembly, and having obtained this, I acknowledge gratitude to the sovereign of all, because in addition to everything else, he has granted me to see this, better than any good—I mean to have you all gathered together and to behold one common and unanimous opinion of all. Let no envious enemy, then, mar our blessings, nor, now that the tyranny of the enemies of God has been removed by the power of God the Savior, let the mischief-loving demon in another way surround the divine law with blasphemies. For to me, civil strife within the church of God is considered more terrible than any war and fierce battle, and these things appear more grievous than those from without. When, indeed, I gained victories over enemies by the will and cooperation of the Almighty, I thought nothing was lacking except to acknowledge gratitude to God and to rejoice with those who had been freed by him through us.

When he learned of your division, contrary to all expectation, I did not disregard the report, but prayed that this too might be healed through my service, and I summoned all of you without delay. And I rejoice to see your assembly, but I consider that I will then especially act according to my prayers when I see you all united in spirit and one common peaceful harmony prevailing among all, which it would be fitting for you, who are consecrated to God, to advocate also to others. Do not delay, then, O friends, ministers of God and good servants of our common master and savior, but begin now to bring forward the causes of your division into the open, and resolve every bond of controversy by the laws of peace. For in this way you would have done what is pleasing to the God over all, and you would give me, your fellow servant, an exceeding grace. After he had said these things in the Roman tongue, with another interpreting, he gave the word to the presidents of the council. Then some began to accuse their neighbors, while others defended themselves and made counter-accusations. When many points were advanced by each side and much controversy first arose, the emperor listened patiently to all and received the proposals with sustained leisure, and partly by taking up what was said by each side, he gently brought together those who were obstinately contentious.

He conducted his conversations with each one gently, speaking in Greek as well, since he was not ignorant of that language, and he was charming and pleasant, persuading some, shaming others with his argument, praising those who spoke well, and driving all toward concord, until he made them unanimous and of one mind on all the disputed points, so that a unanimous faith prevailed and the same time for the saving feast was agreed upon by all. And what had been decided in common was already being confirmed in writing by the subscription of each. When these things had been accomplished, the emperor, declaring that he had thus won a second victory over the enemy of the Church, celebrated a victory festival to God. At the same time, the twentieth year of his reign was completed. For this, public festivals were held among the other nations, but for the ministers of God the emperor himself led the feasting, banqueting with those who had been reconciled, and offering this as a kind of sacrifice befitting God through them; and not one of the bishops was absent from the imperial banquet. What took place was beyond any description: for bodyguards and armed men with naked sword-points guarded the entrances of the palace in a circle, but in the midst of them the men of God passed without fear and proceeded to the innermost part of the royal chambers. Then some reclined with him, while others rested on the couches on either side. One would have thought he was imagining an image of the kingdom of Christ, and that what was happening was a dream and not reality.

When the feast was proceeding splendidly, the emperor, showing favor to those present, added this as well, generously honoring each one with gifts from himself according to their proper rank. He also entrusted the memory of this gathering to those not present through his own letter, which I will attach to this account of him as if on a stele, having the following form. Constantine Augustus to the churches. Having experienced from the good order of public affairs how great is the grace of the divine power, I have judged that this, above all, should be my aim: that among the most blessed multitudes of the catholic church, one faith, sincere love, and unanimous piety toward the almighty God be preserved. But since this could not receive a steadfast and firm order unless, with all or at least most of the bishops assembled together, a decision were made on each matter pertaining to the most holy religion, for this reason, after very many had been gathered (and I myself was present as if I were one of you—for I would not deny, in which I especially rejoice, that I am by nature your fellow servant), everything has received the proper examination up to the point where the judgment pleasing to the all-seeing God was brought to light for the harmony of unity, so that nothing further remains for discord or dispute over faith. There, when inquiry was also made concerning the most holy day of Pascha, it seemed good by common consent that all everywhere should celebrate it on one day.

For what could be more excellent or more reverent for us than that this feast, from which we have received the hope of immortality, be preserved unerringly among all in a single order and clear reasoning? And first, it seemed unworthy to observe that most holy feast by following the custom of the Jews, who, having defiled their hands with a lawless transgression, are naturally blinded in their souls, the polluted ones. For it is possible, once that nation has been rejected, to follow a truer order, which we have observed from the first day of the Passion until the present, and to extend the completion of this observance to future ages. Therefore, let there be nothing in common between you and the most hostile multitude of the Jews. For we have received from the Savior another path; a course lies before our most sacred religion, both lawful and fitting. Taking hold of this in harmony, let us tear ourselves away from that shameful conscience, most honored brothers. For it is truly most absurd that they boast that without their teaching we are incapable of observing these things. And what right thinking will those be able to have, who after that slaying of the Lord and parricide, having been driven out of their minds, are led not by any reason but by an uncontrollable impulse, wherever their innate instinct leads them?

madness; therefore, in this matter as well, they do not see the truth, since for the most part they are always in error, and instead of the proper correction, they celebrate Passover a second time in the same year. For what reason, then, do we follow those who are acknowledged to suffer from a terrible error? For we will never tolerate celebrating Passover twice in one year. But even if these considerations were not at hand, your sagacity ought always to have as a matter of zeal and prayer that the purity of your soul should never appear to share in any likeness with the customs of utterly wicked men. Moreover, it is also possible to observe that in such an important matter and in such a religious festival, it is unlawful for there to be disagreement. For our Savior handed down to us one day of our freedom, that is, the day of the most holy Passion, and he willed that his catholic church be one, which, even though its parts are divided into many and various places, is nevertheless warmed by one spirit, that is, by the divine will. Let the sagacity of your holiness consider how terrible and unseemly it is that on the same days some devote themselves to fasts while others hold banquets, and after the days of Passover some are found in feasts and relaxations while others are given over to prescribed fasts. For this reason, then, divine providence wishes this matter to receive the proper correction and to be brought to a single arrangement, as I think everyone sees.

Therefore, since it was proper to correct this in such a way that there be nothing in common with that nation of parricides and theicides, there is a seemly order which all the churches of the western, southern, and northern parts of the inhabited world, and some of the places in the east, observe; for this reason all have judged it good for the present, and I myself have promised that it will please your sagacity, so that whatever is observed by one and the same judgment in the city of Rome, all Italy, Africa, Egypt, Spain, Gaul, Britain, Libya, all Greece, the diocese of Asia, Pontus, and Cilicia, this your intelligence may gladly accept, considering that not only is the number of churches in the aforementioned places greater, but also that it is most holy for all to wish in common what precise reason seems to demand and to have no communion with the perjury of the Jews. And to speak summarily of the most essential point, it pleased the common judgment of all that the most holy feast of Pascha be celebrated on one and the same day. For it is not fitting that there be any difference in such great holiness, and it is better to follow this judgment, in which there will be no admixture of alien error and sin. These things being so, gladly receive the heavenly grace and truly divine commandment; for whatever is done in the holy councils of the bishops has reference to the divine will.

Therefore, having made known to all our beloved brothers what has been written above, you ought now to receive and arrange both the aforementioned discourse and the observance of the most holy day, so that when I come to the long-desired sight of your disposition, I may be able to celebrate the holy feast with you on one and the same day, and I shall rejoice with you in every respect, seeing that diabolical savagery has been destroyed by divine power through our actions, while our faith, peace, and concord flourish everywhere. May God preserve you, beloved brothers. The king sent a copy of this letter equivalent in force to each province, providing those who encounter it with a reflection of the utmost purity of his piety toward the divine. Since the council was about to disband, he gave a valedictory address to the bishops, having gathered them all together on a single day, and in their presence he urged them to make peace with one another a matter of utmost zeal, to shun contentious quarrels, not to envy anyone who appeared distinguished among the bishops for wisdom in speech, to consider the good of one person's virtue as common, and not to let the better ones exalt themselves over the more moderate, for the judgment of those who are truly better belongs to God, and that the weaker ought to yield out of a spirit of forbearance, since perfection is rare everywhere.

Therefore, it is necessary to grant forgiveness to one another for small transgressions, to show favor and to concede whatever is human, while the harmonious agreement of all is held in high esteem, so that, by not quarreling among ourselves, no cause for mockery is given to those who are prepared to blaspheme the divine law, for whom it is especially necessary to care in every respect, since they can be saved if our conduct appears to them worthy of emulation. And one must not be ignorant of this, that the benefit from words does not avail for all. For some take pleasure in being helped with food, others are accustomed to seek patronage, others welcome those who are treated with kindness, and still others love being honored with hospitality, but few are lovers of true words, and rare indeed is the friend of truth. Therefore, it is necessary to adapt to all, like a physician providing to each what is beneficial for salvation, so that the saving teaching may be glorified among all. Such were the exhortations he gave at first, and in conclusion he added that they should earnestly make supplications to God on his behalf. Having thus taken leave, he allowed all to return to their own homes; and they returned with joy, and thereafter a single opinion prevailed among all, agreed upon with the emperor himself, as those long divided were joined together as under one body. The emperor, rejoicing at this success, bestowed a flourishing fruit through letters upon those who had not been present at the council, and he ordered that abundant distributions of money be made to all the peoples, both in the countryside and in the cities, thus honoring the festival of his twentieth year of reign.

But while all others were at peace, only the Egyptians had an irreconcilable contentiousness toward one another, so as again to trouble the emperor, though not to rouse him to anger. Indeed, treating them as fathers or rather as prophets of God with every honor, he summoned them a second time and again mediated patiently with the same ones, honored them again with gifts, set forth their manner of life by letter, and confirmed and sealed the decrees of the council, and exhorted them to maintain harmony and not to rend and cut apart the church, but to keep in mind the memory of God's judgment. And these things the emperor communicated through his own writing. And he wrote many other things akin to these, composing very many letters, partly prescribing what was fitting for the bishops concerning the churches of God, and also addressing the congregations themselves, calling the peoples of the church brothers and fellow servants of himself, the thrice-blessed one. But it would require a separate treatise to collect these, so as not to interrupt the body of the present history. While these matters stood thus, the God-beloved emperor accomplished another very great thing worthy of memory among the nation of the Palestinians. What was this? He deemed it necessary to make the most blessed place of the saving resurrection in Jerusalem manifest and venerable to all. Immediately, therefore, he ordered a house of prayer to be constructed, not having conceived this in his mind without divine influence, but being stirred in spirit by the Savior himself.

For there were once impious men—or rather, through them, the whole race of demons—who made it their business to consign to darkness and oblivion that divine monument of immortality, at which the angel descending from heaven, flashing with light, rolled away the stone from those whose minds had been turned to stone and who still supposed the living one to be among the dead, proclaiming the good news to the women and removing the stone of disbelief from their minds for the glory of the life of the one they sought. This saving cave, then, some godless and impious men had planned to make invisible to men, thinking by a foolish calculation to hide the truth in this way. And indeed, after much labor, they brought in earth from somewhere outside and covered the entire place, then raised it to a height and paved it with stone, hiding the divine cave somewhere below under a great mound. Then, as if nothing were lacking, they built above ground a truly dreadful tomb of souls, a dark chamber for the licentious demon of Aphrodite, and there they performed foul sacrifices on profane and abominable altars; for they thought that only in this way and no other could they accomplish their purpose, if by such abominable pollutions they could conceal the saving cave. For the wretches were unable to understand that it was not in the nature of the one who had won the prize over death to leave his achievement hidden, nor could the sun, having risen above the earth and traversing his own course in the sky, escape the notice of the whole inhabited world of men.

For the saving power of the light's own radiance filled the whole world, illuminating the souls of men rather than their bodies more excellently. Yet the machinations of the impious and godless men against the truth were prolonged over long ages, and no one ever—neither governors, nor generals, nor even emperors themselves—was found suitable for the demolition of what had been dared, except only one, the friend of the all-ruling God. Possessed, then, by a divine spirit, he did not overlook that very place, which had been concealed by the foul plots of enemies with all manner of unclean materials and consigned to oblivion and ignorance; nor did he yield to the wickedness of those responsible, but invoking God as his fellow worker, he ordered it to be purified, thinking that especially that part defiled by the enemies ought to enjoy the beneficent power of the all-good through him. And at the command, the instruments of deceit were cast down from above to the ground from a height, and the buildings of error were dissolved and demolished together with their statues and demons. Nor did his zeal stop there, but the emperor again ordered that the material of the demolished things, in stones and wood, be taken up and cast far away from the land. And this command was followed by action. But it did not suffice to proceed only to this point; again, inspired by God, the emperor ordered that the very ground, after digging up a great depth of the site, be carried away with the soil itself, polluted as it was with blood and demonic filth, far away and to the outermost region. And this too was accomplished immediately.

as another element in place of the first, the place deep beneath the earth was revealed, and then the venerable and most holy martyrion of the saving resurrection appeared beyond all hope, and the holy of holies cave received the same image of the savior's revival. Therefore, after its descent into darkness, it again came forth into the light and provided those who came to see it with a clear view of the history of the miracles performed there, bearing witness to the savior's resurrection by deeds more eloquent than any voice. When these things were thus accomplished, the emperor immediately ordered, by pious laws and abundant provisions, that a godly house of prayer be built around the saving cave with rich and imperial magnificence, as if he had long intended this and foreseen what would come with superior foresight. He commanded the rulers of the nations in the East to make the work extraordinary, great, and rich with generous and lavish provisions, and to the bishop of the church then presiding in Jerusalem he sent the following letter, through which he set forth the love of God in his soul and the purity of his faith in the saving word with clear words, writing in this manner: Victor Constantinus, Greatest Augustus, to Macarius. So great is the savior's

The grace is ours, so that no provision of words seems worthy of the present wonder; for the sign of that most holy passion, long hidden beneath the earth and concealed through so many cycles of years, until it was destined to shine forth for his own servants, freed by the removal of the common enemy of all, truly surpasses all astonishment. For if all those who are considered wise throughout the whole world were to come together into one and the same place and wish to say something worthy of the matter, they would not be able to contend even for the briefest moment. To such an extent does the faith of this wonder surpass every nature capable of human reasoning, as heavenly things are established to be more powerful than human ones. For this reason, therefore, this has always been my first and only aim, that just as the faith of truth displays itself daily with ever newer wonders, so also the souls of all of us concerning the holy law become more zealous with all sobriety and unanimous eagerness. But what I think is evident to all, I especially wish you to be persuaded of this, that I care more than anyone that that sacred place, which by God's command I relieved of the most shameful addition of an idol, as if of some imposed burden, having been made holy from the beginning by God's judgment, but declared holier since it brought the faith of the saving passion to light, we should adorn with the beauty of buildings.

It is fitting, therefore, that your sagacity should so arrange and take forethought for each of the necessary matters, that not only the imperial buildings everywhere be better, but also that other such things be done, so that all the finest works in each city be surpassed by this foundation. And concerning the raising and beautification of the walls, know that the care has been entrusted by us to Dracontius, our friend, who administers the affairs of the most illustrious prefects, and to the governor of the province. For it has been ordered by my piety that craftsmen and laborers and everything necessary for the building, as they might learn from your sagacity, be sent immediately through their forethought. But concerning the columns or marbles, whatever you might deem more precious and useful, after a survey has been made, hasten to write to us, so that we may learn from your letter what and how many are needed, and that these may be brought from everywhere; for it is right that the most wonderful place in the world be adorned worthily. And as for the roof of the basilica, whether it should be a coffered ceiling or some other kind of work, I wish to learn from you. For if it is to be a coffered ceiling, it can also be embellished with gold. The remainder: that your holiness may make known as quickly as possible to the aforementioned judges how many laborers and craftsmen and how much expenditure is needed, and hasten to report to me immediately not only about the marbles and columns, but also about the coffered ceilings, if indeed you judge this to be better.

May God preserve you, beloved brother. Thus the emperor wrote; and at the same time as the word, the commands were carried out in deeds, and indeed the new Jerusalem was being built at the very site of the saving martyrion, facing the ancient celebrated city, which after the Lord-slaying pollution was reduced to utter desolation and paid the penalty for its impious inhabitants. Opposite this, then, the emperor raised up the saving victory over death with rich and lavish munificence, this being perhaps that new and fresh Jerusalem proclaimed by prophetic oracles, concerning which long discourses inspired by the divine spirit hymn countless things; and indeed, as a kind of head of the whole, he first adorned the sacred cave: it was a monument full of eternal memory, containing the trophies of the great savior over death, a wondrous monument, at which an angel once flashing light announced to all the regeneration manifested through the savior. This, then, first as the head of the whole, the emperor's munificence embellished with exceptional columns and abundant ornament, brightening the venerable cave with every kind of adornment. Next, it extended to a very great space open to the clear air, which a bright stone pavement adorned on the ground, surrounded by long porticoes on three sides. For on the side of the cave opposite, which looked toward the rising sun, the imperial temple was attached, an extraordinary work raised to an infinite height and extended to the greatest length and breadth.

The interior of the building was covered with slabs of various marbles, while the exterior face of the walls, bright with polished stone joined in close-fitting courses, presented a beauty no less than that of the marble facing. Above, on the roofs themselves, the outer surfaces were protected by a covering of lead, a secure defence against winter rains, while the inner ceiling, finished with carved coffers and spreading like a great sea over the whole of the royal house in continuous interweavings with one another, and covered throughout with translucent gold, caused the entire temple to flash with gleams of light. On either side, double porticoes, both upper and lower, extended along the length of the temple, their roofs also adorned with gold; these were supported on the front of the building by very large columns, while those within were raised on piers behind the front ones, which were themselves adorned with much external ornament. Three gates, well placed facing the rising sun, received the multitudes entering within. Opposite these was the chief part of the whole, the hemisphere placed at the far end of the royal house, which twelve columns crowned, equal in number to the apostles of the Saviour, their capitals adorned with very large bowls made of silver, which the emperor himself offered as a most beautiful gift to his God. And proceeding from there to the entrances lying before the temple, another open court intervened.

Exedrae were there on either side, and a first court, and porticoes upon this, and at the end the outer gates, after which, in the middle of the broad agora, the propylaea of the whole, elaborately wrought, provided for those making their way outside a stunning view of what was seen within. This temple, then, of the saving resurrection, the emperor erected as a clear testimony, adorning the whole with rich and royal construction, and he embellished it with indescribable beauties of very many votive offerings, of gold and silver and costly stones in varying materials, the detailed workmanship of which, artistically executed in size and number and variety, there is now no leisure for the account to go through. Having taken up here other spaces honored with two mystic caves, he adorned these also with rich munificence: to the cave of the first theophany of the savior, where indeed he underwent the events of his incarnation, assigning the appropriate honors, and to that of the ascension into heaven, exalting the memory on the summit. And these he honored with fine work, perpetuating the memory of his mother, who had ministered so great a good to the life of mankind. For since she had made it her work to pay the debt of pious disposition to the almighty God, and deemed it necessary to fulfill the thank-offerings through prayers for so great a son as emperor and for his sons, the most God-beloved Caesars, her own descendants, the aged woman hastened with youthful eagerness, with surpassing prudence, to visit the admirable land and the eastern nations and peoples and populations alike, to observe them with royal foresight.

As he was rendering the appropriate veneration to the saving bema, he accordingly, in accordance with the prophetic word which says, "Let us worship in the place where his feet stood," immediately left behind the fruit of his own piety also for those who came after.

Straightway, then, he consecrated two temples to the God who had been worshipped, one at the cave of the nativity, the other on the mount of the ascension. For the God who is with us endured to undergo birth for our sake, and the place of his incarnation was proclaimed by name among the Hebrews as Bethlehem. Therefore the most pious empress adorned the conception of the Mother of God with wonderful monuments, in every way making bright the sacred cave there, while the emperor a little later honored this also with royal offerings, augmenting his mother's love of beauty with treasures of silver and gold and various hangings. Again, the emperor's mother raised up the memory of the journey to heaven of the savior of all on the Mount of Olives with elevated buildings, erecting a sacred house of the church high up near the summit of the whole mountain, and establishing there also a temple and a house of prayer for the savior who chose to spend his time there, since true account holds that there in that cave the savior of all initiated his own disciples into the secret rites. And the emperor here also honored the great king with all kinds of offerings and adornments.

And indeed, these two venerable and beautiful dedications, worthy of eternal memory, were established by the empress Helena at two mystic caves for God her savior—the pious mother of a pious emperor, evidence of her devout disposition, with her son granting her the right of royal authority. The aged woman did not long delay in reaping a fitting reward, having passed her entire lifetime in good works even at the threshold of old age, and having produced flourishing shoots of the saving commandments in both words and deeds. Then, having completed a tranquil and painless life in both body and soul with a resolute mind, she found a fitting end of piety and a good recompense from God even in this present life. For, having traversed the entire East with the magnificence of royal authority, she bestowed countless gifts at once upon the city populations and individually upon each of those who approached her, and she distributed countless gifts with a magnificent hand to the military ranks, and gave very many things to the naked and destitute poor, making distributions of money to some, abundantly supplying others with the means for bodily covering, freeing others from bonds and from those suffering in the hardship of mines, liberating those who were oppressed, and recalling still others from exile. Adorned with such deeds, she did not neglect the other duty toward God, but presented herself as constantly attending the church of God, and adorned the houses of prayer with splendid treasures, not overlooking even the churches in the smallest cities.

One could see the wondrous woman, in a dignified and well-ordered appearance, mingling with the multitude and displaying piety toward the divine through every god-loving action. When, after completing a life of self-sufficiency, she was called to the better portion, having endured to nearly eighty years of age, at the very end she arranged and disposed her affairs, determining her final will for her only son, the emperor, monarch, and world-ruler, and for his children, the Caesars, her own grandchildren, distributing to each of her descendants whatever of her personal property existed throughout the whole world. Having made her disposition in this manner, she then ended her life, with her son present and standing by, serving her and touching her hands, so that the thrice-blessed woman seems rightly to those of sound mind not to have died, but to have undergone a change and translation, in true account, from earthly life to the heavenly. Her soul was thus reorganized into the incorruptible and angelic essence, being taken up to her savior. And the body of the blessed one was deemed worthy of no ordinary care; it was conveyed with great escort to the imperial city, and there

She was laid to rest in royal tombs. Thus the emperor’s mother completed her life, worthy of unforgettable memory both for her own god-loving deeds and for the extraordinary and marvelous offspring born from her, whom it is fitting to bless for his piety toward his mother in addition to all else, since he made her god-fearing, which she was not before, so that she seemed to have been a disciple of the common Savior from the first, and honored her with royal rank, so that among all nations and among the military orders themselves she was proclaimed Augusta and Empress, and her image was stamped on gold coins. He also gave her authority over the imperial treasuries, so that she might use and administer them according to her own choice and judgment, as she wished and as seemed good to her in each matter, the son having made her distinguished and enviable in these things as well. Hence these matters also have been appropriately included by us among those recorded for his memory, since through an excess of piety he fulfilled the divine laws concerning the honor of parents, which prescribe what is fitting. Now the emperor established the aforementioned beautifications for the nation of the Palestinians in this manner, and in all the provinces he repaired the newly built churches, making them far more honorable than the earlier ones. And honoring his namesake city with exceptional distinction, he adorned it with more numerous places of prayer and with very great and most renowned martyria, some situated before the city and others within it, through which he both honored the memorials of the martyrs and consecrated his own city to the God of the martyrs.

He was wholly inspired by the wisdom of God, by which he judged it right to make his own city bear his name, and he deemed it necessary that it be purified of all idolatry, so that nowhere in it should there appear statues of the so-called gods worshipped in temples, nor altars defiled with the gore of blood, nor sacrifices burnt whole with fire, nor demonic festivals, nor any other of the things customary among the superstitious. You could see, in the middle of the marketplaces, at the fountains that stood there, the symbols of the Good Shepherd, recognizable to those versed in the divine oracles, and Daniel with the lions, molded in bronze and gleaming with plates of gold. So great a divine love had seized the emperor’s soul that, in the very palace of the imperial residence, in the most eminent chamber of all, beneath the gilded coffered ceiling, at the very center, a great panel was spread, and fixed in its middle was the symbol of the saving passion, composed of various precious stones set in much gold. This seems to have been made as a safeguard for his empire by the God-loving emperor. With these things, then, he adorned his own city. He likewise honored the capital of Bithynia with the dedication of a very great and extraordinary church, from his own treasuries, raising there also victory monuments against enemies and God-fighters for his Savior. And of the remaining nations, he caused the most prominent cities to be distinguished by the beauty of their houses of prayer, as indeed also the metropolis of the East, which bears the name of Antiochus.

Upon which, as the head of the nations there, he consecrated a unique work of a church, remarkable for its size and beauty, encompassing the entire temple with long outer precincts, and raising the house of prayer within to an ineffable height, composed in an octagonal shape, surrounded on all sides by upper and lower chambers, which he crowned with an abundance of gold, bronze, and the rest of costly material. These, then, were the most outstanding of the emperor's dedications. But learning that the same savior, who had recently appeared in the world, had also made theophanies long ago to god-loving men in Palestine near the so-called oak of Mamre, he ordered a house of prayer to be erected there as well to the god who had appeared. To the rulers of the nations, then, royal authority came through letters sent to each, commanding them to bring the order to completion, while to us who write this history he sent a more rational instruction, of which it seems to me fitting to attach the same letter to the present account for an accurate understanding of the god-loving man's care. Having reproached us, then, for what he learned was being done there, he wrote these things verbatim: "Victor Constantine, Greatest Augustus, to Macarius and the other bishops of Palestine.

This also is the greatest benefaction of my most pious mother-in-law to us, that she made known to us through her letters the madness of impious men, which until now had escaped your notice, so that the error which had been overlooked might, though late, yet necessarily receive through us the appropriate correction and remedy. For it is indeed a very great impiety that the holy places should be defiled by the pollutions of the unholy. What then is it, most beloved brethren, which has escaped your sagacity, but which the aforementioned woman, through her reverence for the divine, has not been able to pass over in silence? The place called after the oak of Mamre, where we learn that Abraham had his hearth, is, she says, being defiled in every way by certain superstitious persons; for images worthy of utter destruction have been set up beside it, and an altar, she declared, stands near, and impure sacrifices are continually performed. Since this appears both alien to our times and unworthy of the sanctity of the place, I wish your reverence to know that a letter has been sent by us to Acacius, the most distinguished count and our friend, so that without any delay both the images, whatever may be found in the aforesaid place, may be consigned to fire, and the altar razed from its foundations, and, in a word, that after all such things have been utterly obliterated from there, he may take care to purify the whole surrounding area with all zeal and by every means, and thereafter, as you yourselves may prescribe, cause a basilica worthy of the catholic and apostolic church to be built on the same site.

It will then be a matter of your wisdom and piety, when you have learned that all those abominable things have been completely removed from there, to come together in the same place with the bishops from Phoenicia, whom you will be able to summon by the authority of this letter, and to design a royal structure worthy of my munificence, so that, in accordance with the instructions, with all speed the splendor of the work may be accomplished, in keeping with the antiquity and dignity of the place, through the care of our aforementioned count. But I wish you to guard above all against this, that none of those polluted and abominable men should dare to approach the place in the future; for it is truly unbearable to us and worthy of punishment for all who dare, after our command, to commit any impiety in such a place, which we have ordered to be adorned with a pure royal building, so that it may be shown to be a worthy assembly of holy men. And if anything should happen contrary to the order, it must be made known to our clemency without any delay through your letters, so that we may order the one caught as a transgressor to undergo the severest punishment. For you are not unaware that there the Lord God of all first appeared and conversed with Abraham.

There, then, religion according to the holy law first took its beginning; there the Saviour himself, together with the two angels, first bestowed his own manifestation upon Abraham; there God began to appear to men; there he foretold to Abraham concerning the seed that would come from him, and immediately fulfilled the promise; there he proclaimed that he would be the father of very many nations. Since these things are so, it is fitting, as it seems to me, that through our care this place be kept pure from every defilement and be recalled to its ancient sanctity, so that nothing else be done upon it except the worship befitting the Almighty, our Saviour, and the Lord of all, God, be performed; which it is proper for you to guard with the requisite care, if indeed your reverence wishes to fulfill what is especially dear to me concerning piety, as I am persuaded. May God preserve you, beloved brothers. Now the emperor accomplished all these things for the glory of the saving power. And while he continued thus to honor his Saviour God, he also refuted the superstitious error of the nations by every means.

Hence it naturally came about that the propylaea of the temples in the cities were stripped bare, their doors becoming empty by the emperor's decree; while the roofs of others were destroyed as their coverings were removed; and the venerable bronze works, on which the ancient deception had prided itself for long ages, were exposed to all in every marketplace of the emperor's city, so as to lie in shameful view for the beholders: here the Pythian, there the Sminthean, and in the hippodrome itself the tripods from Delphi, and the Heliconian Muses in the palace. And the whole of the emperor's eponymous city was filled throughout with the artful bronze beauties dedicated from every nation, to which, under the name of gods, they had vainly offered countless hecatombs and whole burnt sacrifices for long ages, those sick with error learning at last to think, when the emperor used these very playthings for the laughter and amusement of the beholders. As for the golden statues, they were taken elsewhere. For when he perceived that the multitudes, like foolish children, vainly feared the bugbears of error fashioned from gold and silver material, he thought it necessary to remove these also out of the way, like stones stumbling before the feet of those walking in darkness, and to open up a smooth and level royal path for all thereafter. Having thus resolved, he did not think it necessary to employ an army of hoplites and a host of a military camp for the refutation of these things, but one or two of his acquaintances sufficed for the service, whom he dispatched with a single nod to every nation.

Those who took courage from the emperor's piety and from their own reverence for the divine, passing through all cities and countries in the midst of multitudes of peoples and nations, made a discovery of long-standing error. They commanded the priests themselves, with much laughter and shame, to bring their gods out of dark corners into the light, and then, stripping the phantom bare, they displayed to everyone's eyes the ugliness within the painted form. Then, scraping off what seemed useful of the material, testing it by smelting and fire, they kept in safety whatever profit they considered necessary for themselves, while the rest, superfluous and useless, they left as a memorial of shame for the superstitious. And what a wonderful thing the emperor did! For when the precious material of the dead idols had been stripped away in the manner described, the remaining images made of bronze were dealt with. These gods of myths, bound and wrapped in the fabric of aged hair, were led away. Upon this, the emperor, as if kindling a great torch, surveyed with his royal eye lest some hidden remnant of error escape notice. And just as a most sharp-sighted eagle, falling from the sky, might see from on high the most distant things spread out on the earth, so he, attending to the royal hearth of his beautiful city, perceived from a distance a terrible snare for souls hidden among the Phoenician people.

This was a grove and a sacred precinct, not in the midst of cities nor in marketplaces and public squares, such as are commonly lavished on cities for the sake of adornment, but it was situated outside the beaten path, away from crossroads and highways, in a part of the mountain range of Lebanon at Aphaka, dedicated to the shameful daimon Aphrodite. It was a veritable school of evil-doing for all the licentious, who had corrupted their bodies with great ease. Certain effeminate men—not men, having denied the dignity of their nature—propitiated the daimon with a female malady, and likewise unlawful unions of women, adulterous corruptions, and unspeakable and accursed deeds were attempted in this temple as in a lawless and unprotected place. And there was no one to detect these doings, because no respectable man dared to go there. But not even the great emperor was unaware of what was done there; having seen these things for himself, with imperial foresight he judged that such a temple was not worthy of the rays of the sun, and he ordered the whole thing, together with its votive offerings, to be razed from its foundations. Immediately, at the imperial command, the contrivances of licentious error were dissolved, and a military hand served to purify the place, and the licentious learned to be temperate through the emperor's threat, just as also the superstitious among the self-styled wise Greeks learned by experience the vanity of their own folly.

Since the deception of the would-be wise men concerning the Cilician demon was great, with countless people excited over him as if over a savior and healer—at one time appearing to those who slept in his precinct, at another healing the diseases of those who suffered in body (though he was outright a destroyer of souls, drawing them away from the true savior and dragging those easily led into deception into godless error)—the emperor, acting fittingly, having set before himself the true savior, a jealous God, commanded that this temple be razed to the ground. At a single nod, the much-vaunted wonder of the noble philosophers was laid low to the earth, cast down by a military hand, and the being that dwelt there was neither a demon nor a god, but a deceiver of souls who had led them astray over long and countless ages. Then, the one who claimed to deliver others from evils and to ward off calamities found no remedy for himself to ward off attack, any more than when he is fabled to have been struck by a thunderbolt. But the achievements of our emperor, pleasing to God, were not matters of myth; through the manifest power of the same savior, this temple too was uprooted and overturned, so that not even a trace of the former madness remained there. And all those who had previously been superstitious, seeing with their own eyes the refutation of their error and beholding in fact the desolation of the temples and shrines everywhere, some took refuge in the saving word, while others, even if they did not do this, at least condemned the vanity of their ancestral ways and laughed, and mocked the gods they had once believed in. And how could they not think thus, when they saw the utmost foulness hidden within the external appearance of the statues?

either there were dry bones and skulls of dead bodies, prepared by the contrivances of sorcerers, or foul rags full of abominable filth, or a heap of hay and reeds. When they saw these things piled up inside the lifeless objects, they reproached themselves and their fathers for great folly of reason, especially when they realized that there was, after all, no inhabitant in their innermost sanctuaries nor in the statues themselves—no demon, no oracle-giver, no god, no seer, such as they had previously supposed, nor even any faint or shadowy phantom. Hence, every dark cave and every secret recess was readily accessible to those sent by the emperor; the innermost parts of temples, previously inaccessible and unenterable, were trodden by the steps of soldiers, so that from these things the blindness of mind that had prevailed over all the nations for so long a time became manifest and evident to all. And one might reasonably attribute these things also to the emperor's achievements, just as indeed the measures he ordained individually for each nation. For example, in the Phoenician city of Heliopolis, where previously those who honored licentious pleasure under the name of Aphrodite allowed men to prostitute their wives and daughters without restraint, a new and chaste law now came from the emperor, forbidding any of the old customs to be dared; and to these he also appended written teachings, as if he had been advanced by God for this very purpose, that all

men with the laws of temperance. Therefore he did not deem it unworthy to converse with them also through his own letter, and he urged them to hasten to the knowledge of the better. And here too he added to his words deeds that were akin, laying the foundation for them of a very great house of prayer of a church, so that what had never in all time been known even by hearsay now for the first time came to be realized, and the city of the superstitious was deemed worthy of a church of God, of presbyters and deacons, and a bishop consecrated to the God over all was to preside there. And the emperor, taking thought here also how more might approach the word, provided full means for the relief of the poor, and by this means urging them to hasten to the saving teaching, he himself almost said, as it were, in like manner: "Whether by pretext or in truth, let Christ be proclaimed." But while all were passing their life in joy over these things, and the church of God was being exalted everywhere in every way and among all nations, envy, which lies in wait for good things, was again provoked by the prosperity of such great blessings, hoping that perhaps even the emperor himself would become different toward us, vexing us with our own disturbances and disorders.

Having kindled the greatest torch, he involved the church of Antioch in tragic calamities, so that the entire city was nearly overturned from its foundations, as the people of the church were divided into two factions, and the common people of the city, together with its rulers and soldiers, were stirred up as if against enemies, so that they were on the verge of taking up swords, had not some divine oversight and the fear inspired by the emperor restrained the impulses of the multitude. And again, the emperor's forbearance, like that of a savior and physician of souls, applied verbal remedies to those who were sick. He sent a most gentle embassy to the people, dispatching the most faithful of the men esteemed by him and honored with the rank of comes, and he exhorted them through successive letters to think peaceably, and he taught them to act in a manner befitting piety, and he both persuaded and defended himself in what he wrote to them, as if he himself had heard the cause of the sedition. And I would have inserted these letters of his, full of no ordinary learning and benefit, at the present point, had they not brought accusation against those who were accused. Therefore I will set these aside, judging that the memory of evils should not be renewed, and I will attach to the account only those which he wrote with a cheerful mind for the unity and peace of the others, through which he exhorted them not to wish in any way to claim a foreign bishop, on whose account they had made peace, but to choose as shepherd of the church by ecclesiastical law the one whom the common savior of all had designated. And he writes separately to the people themselves and to the bishops the following. Victor Constantinus, Greatest Augustus, to the people of Antioch.

As is pleasing to the understanding and wisdom of the world, your concord, and I myself, brothers, have come to know you as loving an immortal friendship, summoned by your law, your life, and your zeal. This, then, is truly to reap the good rightly: to employ a right and sound mind. For what would so suit you? Therefore, I would be amazed if I were to declare the truth a cause of salvation for you rather than of hatred. Among brothers, whom one and the same disposition of right and just journeying promises to enroll in a pure and holy hearth for God, what could be more honorable than to agree with good fortune on all that is good, especially where your purpose, through instruction from the law, leads to a better correction, and we desire our judgment to be confirmed by good doctrines? This perhaps seems wonderful to you, what my preface intends. I will not, then, decline nor deny to state the reason. For I confess to have read the records in which you have brought splendid praises and testimonies to Eusebius, who is already bishop of Caesarea, whom I myself, in education and

For the sake of fairness, I have long known well that I saw you earnestly striving to appropriate him. What then do you suppose I have conceived in my haste for an exact inquiry into what is proper, and what care have I taken from your zeal? O holy faith, which through the word and mind of our Savior gives us an image of life, as it were, how hardly would you yourself resist sins, if you did not refuse service for gain? And it seems to me that he who rather pursues peace prevails over victory itself; for where what is fitting is present, no one would be found who is not delighted. I therefore ask, brothers: why do we judge in such a way as to inflict insult on others through what we choose? Why do we incur these things that will destroy the trust in our reputation? I for my part praise the man who is deemed worthy of honor and disposition by you, yet it must not be that what ought to remain authoritative and secure among each is so weakened that each is not content with his own judgments and all do not enjoy their own, and in a competitive examination for the comparison of this man, not one alone but several are brought forward. Hence nothing of astonishment or harshness will disturb, if the honors concerning the church happen to be alike and equally beloved through all.

For it is not reasonable to make the examination of these matters a means of advantage for some, when the minds of all, whether they seem to be lesser or greater, equally receive and guard the divine doctrines, so that in no respect are some inferior to others with regard to the common law. If, then, we declare the truth plainly for the remainder, that one would say that what will happen to the man is not retention but rather removal, and that the outcome will be works of violence, not of justice, whether the multitudes think this way or that—as I for my part declare plainly and boldly that this invites a charge that provokes a disturbance, not of the ordinary kind. For even sheep indicate the nature and power of their teeth when, deprived of the shepherd’s customary care and tending, they are cut off from their former way of life for the worse. If, then, these things are so and we are not mistaken, consider this first, brothers (for many and great things will meet you from the very beginning): first of all, whether the genuineness and disposition toward one another will perceive any diminution; then, that the one who has come for right counsel reaps the reward of divine judgment, having received no ordinary grace, in that you have brought such a verdict of fairness concerning him. In addition to these things, as is your custom, with good intention apply the appropriate zeal to the search for the man you need, shutting out every factious and disorderly clamor; for such clamor is always unjust, and from the collision of differences sparks and flames arise.

Thus may I please God and you according to your prayers, and live as I love you and the haven of your gentleness; from which, having cast off that filth, you have brought in harmony with good character, having set a firm sign, and having run a heavenly course into the light, with rudders, as one might say, of iron. For this reason you also consider the incorruptible cargo; for everything that harms the ship is consumed as from the bilge. Therefore now take care that the enjoyment of all these things is such that we may not seem, by a second thoughtless and unprofitable zeal, either to fix anything at all or to attempt from the beginning something not beneficial. May God preserve you, beloved brothers. Victor Constantinus Maximus Augustus to Eusebius. I have read with great pleasure the letter which your wisdom composed, and I have observed the rule of ecclesiastical knowledge preserved with accuracy; you abide, then, by these things which appear pleasing to God and in harmony with the apostolic tradition. Consider yourself blessed even in this very thing, that you, as the whole world, as it were,

You were judged worthy of testimony that you are bishop of the whole Church; for if all desire you to be among them, they will unquestionably augment this happiness for you. But your prudence, which has resolved to keep the commandments of God, the apostolic canon, and that of the Church, has made you superior by declining the episcopate of the Church at Antioch, and striving to remain in that which you first received the episcopate by God's will. Concerning this matter I have written a letter to the people, and also to your other fellow ministers, who themselves had written to me about these things, which your purity will easily recognize upon reading, since justice echoes them. At the prompting of the divine I wrote to them, and by their counsel it will be necessary for your prudence to be present, so that this may be established for the Church of the Antiochenes which would be deemed most fitting both to God Himself and to the Church. May God preserve you, beloved brother. Victor Constantinus Maximus Augustus to Theodotus, Theodorus, Narcissus, Aetius, Alpheius, and the other bishops who are in Antioch.

I read what was written by your prudence, and I approved the wise intention of Eusebius, who is a priest together with you. Having learned of all that was done—partly from your letters, partly from those of Acacius and Strategius, the most illustrious counts—and after making the necessary consideration, I wrote to the people of Antioch what was pleasing to God and fitting for the Church. I ordered a copy of that letter to be appended to these letters, so that you yourselves might know what I, prompted by the principle of justice, chose to write to the people, since this was contained in your letters: that, in accordance with the people's and your own choice, prudence, and will, Eusebius, the most holy bishop of the church of Caesarea, should preside over the church of Antioch and undertake its care. As for the letters of Eusebius, which seemed especially to preserve the ordinance of the Church, they suggested the opposite opinion—that he should by no means abandon the church entrusted to him by God. Therefore, it seemed better to make that just intention, which must be preserved by all of you, authoritative, and not to tear him away from his own church. It was necessary, however, that my opinion also become clear to your prudence. For Euphronius, the presbyter who is a citizen of Caesarea in Cappadocia, and George, likewise a presbyter of Arethusa, whom Alexander appointed to this rank in Alexandria, have come to me, being men of the most approved faith.

It was well, therefore, for your prudence to indicate both those who had been chosen and others whom you might deem worthy of the dignity of the episcopate, and to define these things in accordance with the tradition of the apostles. For when such matters have been set in order, your prudence will be able, according to the canon of the Church and the apostolic tradition, to regulate the ordination in such a way as the reason of ecclesiastical science dictates. May God preserve you, beloved brethren. With such instructions to the rulers of the churches, the emperor urged them to do everything for the honor of the divine word. And when he had removed the divisions and established the Church of God in harmonious unity, he then turned to another kind of godless men, whom he thought it necessary to remove from human life as a kind of poison. These were certain pests, who under a respectable guise corrupted the cities. A saving voice somewhere calls them false prophets or rapacious wolves: "Beware of false prophets, who will come to you in sheep's clothing, but within they are rapacious wolves; you will know them by their fruits." A certain decree was sent to the governors of each nation, driving out the whole tribe of such men, and in addition to the law, a life-giving teaching was

the person of each, urging the men to hasten to repentance; for the church of God would be a haven of salvation for them. But hear how he also addressed them through his letter to them. Victor Constantinus Maximus Augustus to the heretics. Now learn through this legislation, O Novatians, Valentinians, Marcionites, Paulians, those called Phrygians, and all, to speak simply, who fill the heresies with your own systems, with how many falsehoods your vanity is entangled, and how your teaching is held together by venomous poisons, so that through you the healthy are led to sickness and the living to perpetual death. O enemies of truth, foes of life, and counselors of destruction! Everything among you is contrary to truth, consonant with shameful wickednesses, useful for absurdities and dramas, through which you fabricate falsehoods, oppress the innocent, and deny the light to believers. At any rate, under the pretense of divinity you always transgress and defile everything, you wound innocent and pure consciences with deadly blows, and you all but snatch away the very day of human eyes. And what need is there to speak of each thing, when to speak worthily of your evils is a matter neither of brief time nor of our own preoccupations? For so long and immeasurable are the absurdities among you, so repulsive and full of all harshness, that not even an entire day would suffice for their expression.

Moreover, it is fitting to turn away one's ears from such things and to avert one's eyes, lest the sincere and pure zeal of our faith be stained by the detailed narration of each. What then shall we endure further of such evils? But long-continued desire, like a pestilential disease, defiles even the healthy. For what reason, then, do we not, as quickly as possible, cut out the roots, so to speak, of such great wickedness through public correction? Therefore, since it is no longer possible to bear this destruction of your ruin, we proclaim by this law that none of you shall henceforth dare to assemble. For this reason we have ordered that all your houses, in which you hold these assemblies, be taken away, to such an extent has this concern proceeded, so that not only in public, but not even in a private house or in any private places, may the gatherings of your superstitious folly convene. However, what is better, all who care for the true and pure religion, come to the catholic church and partake of its sanctity, through which you will be able to attain the truth. And let the deception of your perverted mind, I mean the abominable and ruinous discord of heretics and schismatics, be completely separated from the good fortune of our times. For it befits our blessedness, which we enjoy with God, to lead those who live in good hopes from every disorderly error to the straight path, from darkness to light, from vanity to truth, from death to salvation.

Furthermore, to ensure that the force of this remedy be necessary, we have decreed, as previously stated, that all your assemblies of superstition—I mean all the prayer-houses of the heretics, if indeed it is fitting to call them prayer-houses—be taken away without dispute and handed over to the catholic church without any delay, and that the remaining places be assigned to the public domain, and that no facility for gathering be left to you hereafter, so that from the present day, in no place, whether public or private, shall your unlawful gatherings dare to assemble. Let this be posted. Thus the hiding-places of the heterodox were dissolved by imperial decree, and the beasts who were the leaders of their impiety were driven out. Of those deceived by them, some, with a spurious mindset and fear of the imperial threat, slipped into the church, dissembling for the moment, since the law also prescribed that the books of these men be searched, and they were caught practicing forbidden evil arts, for which reason they did everything by irony to procure their safety; while others, perhaps with true reasoning, deserted to the hope of the better. The presidents of the churches, making this distinction with precision, kept far from the flock of God those who attempted to approach feignedly, like wolves hidden in sheep's clothing, while those who did this with a pure soul, after testing them for a sufficient time, they enrolled among the multitude of the initiated. These things, then, were done concerning the infamous heterodox.

those who bore nothing impious in their teaching of doctrines, but were separated from the common assembly of men by the cause of schismatics, they received without delay. And they, returning in droves as if from a colony, regained their own fatherland and recognized their mother, the Church, from which they had long been led astray; with joy and gladness they made their return to her. The members of the common body were united and joined together in a single harmony, and the one Catholic Church of God, gathered into herself, shone forth, with no heretical or schismatic system remaining anywhere on earth. And for this great achievement alone, the emperor, who was beloved of God, was credited as the sole cause among all who had ever lived.

Book 4. While the emperor was doing so much for the building up and good repute of the church of God, and accomplishing everything for the favorable hearing of the Savior's teaching, he did not neglect external affairs either. In these matters as well he continued to provide all kinds of benefactions, one after another and continuous, to all who dwelt in each nation, here showing common paternal care to all, there honoring each of those known to him with different offices, and bestowing everything on all with a magnanimous spirit. Nor was it possible to miss the mark for anyone asking a favor from the emperor, nor did anyone who hoped to obtain good things fail to receive what was expected. But some obtained money, others property, others provincial governorships, others the honor of the senate, others the consulship, and many became governors; of the counts, some were deemed worthy of the first rank, others of the second, others of the third; and likewise of the most illustrious and very many other offices, countless others partook. For the emperor devised different dignities in order to honor more people. And how he also provided for the common good cheer of mankind, one might observe from a single example beneficial to life, which passed through all and is still known even now. Having removed the fourth part of the annual contributions made for the land, he granted this to the owners of the fields, so that, for one who calculates, the annual deduction results in the owners of the fields being free from taxes every four years.

which, having been ratified by law, prevailed and for subsequent time provided the emperor's grace, unforgettable and everlasting, not only to those then present but also to their children and their successors. But when others found fault with the land surveys of previous rulers, complaining that their territory was burdened, he again, by a decree of justice, sent out equalizers who would provide indemnity to those in need. And when the emperor had judged other cases, so that the party that had lost before him might depart no less joyful than the victor, he would give from his own resources to the defeated, sometimes estates, sometimes money, making the loser rejoice equally with the winner, as if deemed worthy of his sight; for it was not possible for anyone who had stood before so great an emperor to depart downcast and sorrowful. Thus both would leave the judgment with cheerful and smiling faces. And wonder seized everyone at the emperor's magnanimity. But why should I make a digression of my account, that the barbarian

he subjected the nations to the Roman dominion, such as the tribes of the Scythians and Sauromatians, which had never before learned to serve, he himself first brought under the yoke, compelling them, even unwilling, to acknowledge the Romans as masters. For the previous rulers paid tribute to the Scythians, and the Romans were enslaved to barbarians with annual payments. But this was not tolerable for the emperor, nor did the victor consider it honorable to offer the same as his predecessors; relying on his savior, he raised the victorious trophy against them as well, and in a short time subdued them all, sometimes disciplining the rebellious with military force, sometimes taming the rest with diplomatic embassies, transforming them from a lawless and beastly life to a rational and lawful one. Thus the Scythians at last learned to serve the Romans. And God himself drove the Sauromatians under the feet of Constantine, subduing the men who were puffed up with barbarian pride in this way: when the Scythians rose against them, the masters armed their slaves for defense against the enemies. But when the slaves prevailed, they took up arms against their masters and drove them all from their homeland. The latter found no other haven of safety than Constantine alone, and he, knowing how to save, received them all into Roman territory, enrolled the suitable ones in his own armies, and for the rest distributed lands for farming for the sake of livelihood, so that they acknowledged that the misfortune had turned out well for them, as they enjoyed Roman freedom instead of barbarian savagery.

Thus God granted him victories over all nations, so that even various barbarian tribes willingly submitted to him. Indeed, from all sides there were continuous embassies bearing their most precious gifts, so that we ourselves once happened to be present and saw, before the outer gate of the palace, barbarians standing in order in conspicuous array, whose dress was extraordinary, their bearing varied, their hair and beard greatly differing, with fierce and terrifying barbarian countenances, and bodies of surpassing size. Some had red faces, others were whiter than snow, others blacker than ebony or pitch, while others were of a mixed complexion, for even the tribes of the Blemmyes, Indians, and Ethiopians, who are divided into two and are the farthest of men, were seen in the aforementioned spectacle. Each of these, as in a painted picture, brought to the king what was precious among them: some golden crowns, others diadems of precious stones, others fair-haired boys, others barbarian garments woven with gold and flowers, others horses, others shields, long spears, arrows, and bows, indicating their readiness to provide service and alliance to the king should he wish it. Receiving and recording these gifts from those who brought them, the king gave back so much in return that at one time he made the recipients exceedingly wealthy, and he also honored the more distinguished among them with Roman offices, so that many already preferred to remain there, having forgotten their return home.

Since the king of the Persians also deemed it worthy to be known to Constantine through embassies and sent gifts and symbols of friendly treaties, the emperor acted on this as well, surpassing the one who had initiated the honor with lavish generosity in his counter-gifts. For when he learned that in the Persian nation the churches of God were multiplying and that multitudes of men were gathered in the flocks of Christ, rejoicing at this report, like a common guardian of all everywhere, he again made provision for the whole. He himself will set this forth in his own words through the letter he sent to the king of the Persians, commending the men to him with all propriety and earnestness. This autograph letter of the emperor is preserved among us in the Latin tongue, but when translated into the Greek language it would be more familiar to readers, and it runs as follows:

"Preserving the divine faith, I partake of the light of truth. Guided by the light of truth, I recognize the divine faith. Therefore, as the facts confirm, I acknowledge the most holy religion. I confess that I hold this worship as the teacher of the knowledge of the most holy God. Having the power of this God as my ally, beginning from the boundaries of the Ocean, I have roused the whole world in succession with firm hopes of salvation, so that all that had been enslaved by so many tyrants and had become extinct, yielding to daily misfortunes, these, having received the vindication of the common good, were revived as if by some healing.

This god I worship, whose sign my army, dedicated to God, bears upon its shoulders, and is directed wherever the word of justice summons; from those very trophies, manifest, I immediately receive the grace in return. This god I confess to honor with immortal memory, this god I exalt as existing in the highest with a pure and clean mind; I invoke him, bending the knee, shunning every abominable blood and foul and abhorrent odors, and avoiding all earthly splendor, with which the lawless and unspeakable error, staining itself, has cast down many of the nations and entire races, consigning them to the lowest regions. For what the God of all has brought forth into the open for the benefit of men, through his own philanthropy for the sake of need, he by no means allows to be drawn according to each one's desire, but demands only a pure mind and an unblemished soul from men, weighing the deeds of virtue and piety in these. For he is pleased with works of gentleness and mildness, loving the meek, hating the turbulent, cherishing faith, punishing faithlessness, shattering every dominion accompanied by arrogance, avenging the insolence of the proud, destroying from their foundations those who are lifted up by pride, and distributing to the humble and patient what is fitting. Thus, also esteeming a just kingdom highly, he strengthens it with his own aids, and preserves royal wisdom in the serenity of peace.

I do not think I am mistaken, my brother, in confessing this one God as the leader and father of all, whom many of those who have reigned here, led astray by mad delusions, have attempted to deny. But a penal end of such a kind consumed all those men, so that the whole race of men after them set the calamities of those men, instead of another example, before those who emulate similar things among these people. I consider that one of these was the man whom, like a thunderbolt, divine wrath drove from here and delivered to your regions, making the trophy among you, much talked about for the shame upon him, notorious. But it seems to have turned out well that the punishment of such men was shown conspicuously even in our own age. For I myself have seen the ends of those who recently disturbed the people devoted to God with lawless edicts. Hence also great thanks to God, that by perfect providence the whole human race that serves the divine law, with peace restored to them, rejoices and exults. From this I am also persuaded that for us ourselves everything is in the best and most secure state, since through their pure and approved religion he deigns to gather all into harmony concerning the divine. Of this class of men, I mean the Christians (my whole speech is about them), how do you think I rejoice to hear that even the best parts of Persia are for the most part adorned, as I wish? So may the best things be for you as well as for them, because they are for you and they for them. For thus you will have the master of all things gentle, propitious, and benevolent.

These, then, since you are so great, I entrust to you, handing over these same ones, because you are also distinguished in piety; love them in a manner befitting your own philanthropy. For through faith you will give to yourself and to us an unbounded grace. Thus, then, with the nations everywhere throughout the inhabited world being guided as if by a single helmsman and embracing the polity under the servant of God, with no one any longer troubling the Roman empire, all passed their life in a stable and undisturbed existence. And the emperor, judging that the prayers of the godly contributed greatly to the preservation of the whole, necessarily procured these, himself becoming a suppliant of God and urging the presidents of the churches to make litanies on his behalf. How great a power of divine faith was established in his soul one might learn also from this consideration: that on the gold coinage he had his own image engraved in such a way that he seemed to look upward, raised toward God in the manner of one praying. Now, impressions of this ran throughout the whole Roman world. And in the imperial palaces in certain cities, in the images set up in the high places of the propylaea, he was depicted standing upright, looking upward to heaven, with his hands extended in the posture of one praying. Thus, then, he set himself up even in paintings as praying. And by law he forbade the dedication of his images in temples of idols, so that not even by a sketch might the painting be defiled by the error of forbidden things.

One might consider the more solemn aspects of these matters, discerning how in the palace itself he arranged a church of God, himself taking the lead in the devotions of those gathered within. For he would take the books in his hands and apply his mind to the contemplation of the divinely inspired oracles, and then offer lawful prayers together with those who filled the royal house. And he established the day truly and indeed first, the Lord's day and day of salvation, as the suitable day for leading prayers. Deacons and servants consecrated to God, men decorous in the seriousness of their life and in every virtue, were appointed guardians of the entire house, and faithful bodyguards, armed with the ways of loyal goodwill, acknowledged the king as a teacher of pious practices, honoring no less themselves the saving and Lord's day and offering on it the prayers dear to the king. The blessed one also gently induced all men to do the same, as if he had made this his prayer, to render all men reverent toward God. Therefore he legislated that all who lived under Roman rule should keep holiday on the days named after the Savior, and likewise to honor the days before the Sabbath, it seems to me for the sake of memory of what is recorded as having been done on these days for the common Savior.

The saving day, which is also named after light and the sun, he taught all the military to honor with zeal, granting to those who shared in the inspired faith the freedom to attend the church of God without hindrance, so that they might complete their prayers with no one obstructing them. To those who had not yet partaken of the divine word, he commanded by a second law that on the Lord's days they should go forth into the suburbs onto a clear plain and there, at a single signal, all together send up a studied prayer to God. For they should not place their hopes in spears, nor in full armor, nor in bodily strength, but should know the God over all, the giver of every good and indeed of victory itself, to whom it is fitting to offer lawful prayers, raising their hands aloft to heaven and directing the eyes of their mind upward to the heavenly king, invoking him in their prayers as giver of victory, savior, guardian, and helper. And he himself was the teacher of the prayer to all the soldiers, having commanded them all to say the following in the Roman tongue: We know only you as God, we acknowledge you as king, we call upon you as helper, from you we have obtained victories, through you we have become mightier than our enemies, we acknowledge to you the gratitude for the good things that have come before, we hope in you as the giver of future blessings, we all become your suppliants, for our emperor Constantine.

that his God-beloved children might be preserved for us safe and victorious for the longest span of life." Such were the ordinances he commanded the military ranks to observe on the day of light, and such were the utterances he taught them to make in their prayers to God. And already he caused the symbol of the saving trophy to be marked even on their weapons, and that of the armed army nothing should go before them, as had been their former custom, but only the saving trophy. He himself, like an initiate of sacred mysteries, would shut himself away in his own imperial chambers at set times each day, alone with his God, and with suppliant prayers on bended knee would entreat for what he sought to obtain, and on the days of the saving feast he intensified his discipline, with all strength of soul and body performing the divine hierophanties, here wholly devoted to purity of life, there leading all in the festival. He transformed the sacred vigil into daylight, with very tall columns of wax set alight throughout the whole city by those appointed for this purpose, and torches of fire illuminated every place, so that the mystic vigil was made more brilliant than bright day. When dawn came, imitating the saving benefactions, he extended his beneficent right hand to all nations, peoples, and communities, bestowing abundant gifts upon all. Thus he himself served his God. And universally, for all peoples and military forces under Roman rule, every gate of idolatry was closed, and every form of sacrifice was forbidden.

And similarly, he made it law for the rulers of each nation to honor the Lord's day. By the emperor's command, they also honored the days of the martyrs and celebrated the seasons of feasts in the churches, and all such things were done to the emperor's satisfaction. Hence, once, while hosting bishops at a banquet, he fittingly let fall a remark, that he too was a bishop, speaking to them in these words, which I heard with my own ears: "You are bishops of those within the Church, but I am perhaps a bishop appointed by God of those outside." And thinking in accordance with this word, he oversaw all his subjects and exhorted them, as far as his power allowed, to pursue the pious life. Hence, fittingly, with successive laws and ordinances, he commanded all not to sacrifice to idols, not to meddle with oracles, not to erect statues, not to perform secret rites, not to defile cities with the bloodshed of gladiators. And to those in Egypt, especially Alexandria, who had the custom of propitiating their river with effeminate men, another law was sent, that the whole race of androgynoi, as something counterfeit, should vanish from life, and that those afflicted with this licentiousness should not be seen anywhere. But when the superstitious supposed that the river would no longer flow for them as usual, God, cooperating with the emperor's law, brought about the very opposite of what they expected.

For they were no longer the ones polluting the cities with their abomination, but he, as if the land had been purified for him, bore himself as never before, and advanced with a rich stream, flooding all the fields, teaching by deed that foolish men must shun foul men, and ascribe the cause of good things to the giver of all good alone. But indeed, countless such deeds were done by the emperor in each province, and there would be great ease for those ambitious to write them, just as also the laws which he renewed, changing them from ancient times to something more holy. And of these too, it is easy to set forth the manner in brief. The ancient laws punished the childless with deprivation of succession from their relatives, and this was a harsh law against the childless, as if punishing them with a penalty for having transgressed. But he, having dissolved it, allowed relatives to inherit. The emperor adapted this to piety, saying that those who transgress in intention ought to be disciplined with the appropriate penalty. The childless, then,

Nature has brought forth many who, while praying to be blessed with many children, were deprived of offspring by physical weakness; others have remained childless not from a rejection of succession through children, but from a turning away from female intercourse, which they chose out of a most intense love of philosophy. And women consecrated to the priesthood of God have pursued chastity and complete virginity, dedicating themselves in a pure and all-holy life of soul and body. What then—ought this to be considered worthy of punishment, or of wonder and acceptance? For the zeal is of great worth, and the achievement is beyond nature. Therefore, those deprived of the desire for children by physical weakness ought to be pitied, not punished, while the lover of the better is worthy of extraordinary admiration, not of chastisement. Thus the king reshaped the law with right reason. Next, concerning those who depart from life, the ancient laws prescribed that at the very last breath one must be precise in the wording of the wills being drawn up, specifying what forms and what phrases ought to be employed, and many abuses arose from these, to the circumscription of the intention of the deceased. Perceiving this, the king also altered this law, declaring that the dying person ought to arrange matters according to his will with simple phrases and ordinary words, and to set forth his opinion in any ordinary writing, or even if he wishes without writing, provided he does this before trustworthy witnesses, who are able to preserve the trust with truth. Moreover, he legislated that no Christian should be a slave to Jews.

It is not lawful, after all, that those who have been redeemed by the Savior should be subjected to the yoke of slavery by prophet-slayers and lord-slayers; and if any such person should be found, the one is to be set free, while the other is to be punished by a fine of money. And he also confirmed the decrees of the bishops pronounced in synods, so that it was not permitted for the rulers of the nations to dissolve what had been decided; for the priests of God are to be considered more worthy than any judge. He established countless similar regulations for those under his rule, which would require a separate treatise to convey accurately the royal wisdom evident even in these matters. Why should I now recount how, having united himself with the God over all, he considered from east to west what good he might do for people, and how he was equal and common to all in beneficence? But to the churches of God he provided an exceptional abundance, here granting lands, there distributions of grain for the support of poor men, orphaned children, and pitiable women. Already with great care he also provided many coverings for the naked and unclothed. He deemed especially worthy of greater honor those who had devoted their own life to philosophy according to God. Indeed, he continued almost to revere the chorus of the all-holy perpetual virgins of God, persuaded that the God to whom they had consecrated themselves dwelt in the souls of such persons.

And indeed, increasing his own understanding with inspired words, he spent the wakeful hours of the night, and in his leisure he continually occupied himself with writing, considering it fitting for himself to rule over his subjects by an educative word and to establish the entire kingdom as a rational one. Therefore, he himself would summon them, and countless multitudes would hasten to hear the philosophizing emperor. And if ever an opportunity for speaking on theology presented itself to him, standing upright with a composed countenance and a restrained voice, he would seem to initiate those present with all reverence into the divine teaching; then, when the listeners responded with favorable acclamations, he would gesture to look up to the heavens and to marvel at and honor with reverent praises the one king over all. Dividing his subjects, he would at one time set forth refutations of polytheistic error, demonstrating that the superstition of the nations is a deception and a pretext for atheism; at another time he would teach the recognition of the sole ruling divinity, and would then proceed in order to the discourse concerning providence, both universal and particular. From there he would go on to the

the saving economy, and showing that this had necessarily come to pass according to the appropriate reason. Then, moving from this, he stirred up teaching concerning the divine judgment. There he especially struck his hearers most sharply, refuting the rapacious and covetous, and those who had given themselves over to insatiable love of money. Striking and scourging, as it were, with his word, he caused some of the bystanders who were his acquaintances to bow their heads, their consciences smitten. To these he declared with clear voices, distinguishing, that they would give an account to God for their undertakings; for to him the God over all had granted the empire on earth, and he, in imitation of the superior, had entrusted to them the particular administrations of the rule, and that all would render to the great king in due time the reckoning of their deeds. He continually testified to these things, he reminded them of these things, he was the teacher of these things. But while he, emboldened by genuine faith, thought and declared such things, they were hard of learning and deaf to what was good, applauding his words with tongue and favorable shouts, but neglecting them in their deeds through insatiability, so that once, taking hold of one of those around him, he said:

and how far, O man, do we extend our insatiability?" Then, having marked on the ground with the spear he happened to be holding the measure of a man's stature, he said, "Even if you were to acquire the whole wealth of life and the entire element of the earth, you would carry away nothing more than this little patch of ground that has been drawn, if indeed you should obtain even that." But the blessed one, saying and doing these things, did not stop anyone; rather, the facts themselves clearly convinced them that the emperor's decrees resembled divine oracles, not mere words. Since there was no fear of death restraining the wicked from their depravity—the whole emperor being devoted to philanthropy, and the rulers of each nation in no way whatsoever punishing any of the offenders—this very thing provided no ordinary cause for blame to the universal administration, whether reasonably or not, as each may judge; but let it be permitted to me to write the truth. Now the emperor provided the composition of his speeches in the Latin tongue. Translators changed this into the Greek language, whose task it was to do so; and as a sample of the translated speeches, after the present subject I will next append that one which he himself entitled "To the Assembly of the Saints," dedicating the writing to the Church of God, so that no one might think our testimony about what was said to be boastful. And that which the wonderful man accomplished in our own time also seems to me not to be unworthy of mention.

For once, relying on his reverence for the divine, we requested to present a discourse concerning the salvific monument in his hearing. He most willingly lent his ears, and while a crowd of listeners stood around within the palace itself, he stood upright and listened along with the rest. When we begged him to rest upon the adjacent royal throne, he would not comply at all, but with concentrated reasoning he weighed what was said, and bore witness to the truth of the doctrinal theologies. Since the time was long and the discourse was prolonged, we intended to stop, but he did not desist, urging us to finish to the end. When we begged him to sit, he countered with entreaties, sometimes saying that it was not lawful to listen carelessly to doctrines concerning God being discussed, sometimes that this was beneficial and advantageous for him—for it was holy to listen to divine matters while standing. When these matters also reached their conclusion, we returned home and resumed our customary pursuits, but he, having provided for the churches of God, set about composing a letter concerning the construction of inspired scriptures addressed to our person. He joined to it another concerning the most holy feast of Pascha. For when we had addressed to him a mystical revelation of the rationale of the feast, how he requited us

he would respond in reply, as one might learn by encountering this very document. Victor Constantinus Maximus Augustus to Eusebius. The undertaking is greatest and beyond all power of speech—to speak worthily of Christ's mysteries and the controversy and generation of Pascha, a beneficial and laborious accomplishment, to interpret in the fitting manner; for the divine is impossible for humans to express worthily, even for those capable of understanding. Nevertheless, having greatly admired your love of learning and ambition, I myself have gladly read the book, and I have ordered it to be published for the majority, who genuinely attend to the worship of the divine, as you wished. Therefore, perceiving with how much delight we receive such gifts from your sagacity, be eager to gladden us with more continuous discourses, in which you confess yourself to have been nurtured; (for we urge you, as the saying goes, running toward your customary pursuits), especially since you have found one who translates your labors into the Roman tongue not unworthy of your writings—such great confidence in your compositions shows this, even though such interpretation is utterly unable to sustain the beauty of the words worthily. May God preserve you, beloved brother. So much for this letter; the one concerning the preparation of the divine readings runs as follows. Victor Constantinus Maximus Augustus to Eusebius.

In our eponymous city, with the providence of the savior God co-operating, a very great multitude of people has dedicated itself to the most holy church, so that, since everything there is receiving great increase, it appears very fitting that more churches be built in it. Therefore, receive most willingly what has seemed good to our purpose. For it appeared proper to make this known to your intelligence, so that you might order fifty copies, in prepared parchments, easily readable and convenient for use, to be written by skilled calligraphers who accurately know their craft, of the divine scriptures, of which you know that both their preparation and use are necessary for the word of the church. A letter has been sent from our clemency to the catholicus of the diocese, so that he might take care to provide everything suitable for their preparation. For it will be the work of your diligence that the written copies be prepared as quickly as possible. And indeed, it is fitting for you to receive authority for two public carriages for transport from the authority of this our letter. For thus will the well-written copies be most easily conveyed even to our eyes, one of the deacons from your church fulfilling this, who, when he arrives to us, will experience our philanthropy. May God preserve you, beloved brother. Thus the emperor commanded.

Immediately, action followed the word, as we sent three and four copies in costly prepared volumes. This too another reply of the emperor will demonstrate, through which, learning that our city Constantia, formerly a place of men extraordinarily superstitious, had by a zeal for piety changed from its previous idolatrous error, he indicated his joy and approved the deed. Already, then, among the nation of the Palestinians, Constantia, having inscribed the saving piety, was deemed worthy of greater honor both from God himself and from the emperor, being declared a city, which it was not before, and having changed its name to the better appellation of the pious sister of the emperor. The same was done by many other regions, as for example the city named after the emperor himself among the nation of the Phoenicians, whose citizens, after consigning countless statues of idols to the fire, exchanged them for the saving law. And in other provinces, multitudes, coming over of their own accord to the saving knowledge, in country and city alike, considered their former so-called sacred objects, consisting of all kinds of wooden images, as nothing.

They demolished, and their temples and precincts raised to a height they tore down with no one commanding, and they built churches from the foundations, exchanging the former error. But to write in detail all the deeds of the God-beloved would be more fitting for those deemed worthy to have been with him throughout his entire time than for us; we, having set down in this writing what we have determined in brief, will proceed to the final period of his life. For him, the cycles of thirty years of his reign were being fulfilled; and he had three sons, most illustrious Caesars, who were proclaimed partners in the kingdom at different times: the first, Constantine, bearing his father's name, first received the honor around his father's decennial; the second, Constantius, adorned with his grandfather's name, was proclaimed around the vicennial celebration; the third, Constans, signifying the present and the steadfast in the appellation of his name, was advanced around the third decade. Thus, having acquired a threefold offspring of God-beloved children in the manner of a triad, and having honored them with the adoption into the kingdom at each decennial period, he considered the time of his own tricennalia a suitable occasion for thanksgiving to the universal sovereign of all, and he judged it fitting to make the dedication of the martyry in Jerusalem, which had been completed by him with all zealous care. But malice, hating the good even in this, like a dark cloud meeting the brightest rays of the sun, attempted to disturb the brightness of the festival, again troubling the churches in Egypt with its cavils.

But the one who cared for God, having again armed a full assembly of bishops like an army of God, arrayed himself against the envious demon, commanding them to hasten from all Egypt and Libya, Asia and Europe, first to the resolution of the dispute, and from there to perform the dedication of the aforementioned temple. As a bywork of the journey, he ordered that the quarrels be resolved at the metropolis of the Phoenicians; for it was not permitted for those divided in opinion to be present for the worship of God, the divine law declaring that those in disagreement should not offer gifts before they have made peace and settled their relations with each other amicably. The king, kindling these saving precepts in his own mind, indicated through a letter of the following content that they should proceed with all concord and harmony in the matters at hand: "Victor Constantinus Maximus Augustus to the holy synod at Tyre. It was perhaps fitting and especially appropriate to the opportunity of the times that the catholic church be free from discord and that the servants of Christ now be rid of all reproach.

Since some, driven by the sting of unhealthy contentiousness (for I would not say living worthily of themselves), attempt to throw everything into confusion—which seems to me to have gone beyond every calamity—for this reason I urge you, as the saying goes, to hasten and run together without any delay, to fill the synod, to aid those in need of assistance, to heal the brothers in danger, to lead back into harmony the divided members, to correct the transgressions while time permits, so that you may restore to so many provinces the fitting concord, which, alas for the absurdity, the contempt of a very few men has destroyed. That this is pleasing to the master of all, God, and is superior to every prayer for us, and for yourselves, if you recall peace, the cause of no ordinary good repute, I consider all men to agree. Therefore delay no longer, but from now on straining the zeal, hasten to impose the fitting limit on the matters at hand, coming together with all sincerity and faith, which that savior whom we serve, almost crying out everywhere, demands especially from you. Nothing of what pertains to my reverence for you

It will be lacking. I have done everything that you indicated in your letter. I have written to those bishops whom you wished, so that they may come and share in your deliberations. I have sent Dionysius, the former consular, who will remind those who ought to attend the synod to come with you, and he will be present as an overseer of the proceedings, especially of good order. For if anyone, as I do not think, should now attempt to evade our command and be unwilling to come, a person will be sent from us who, by imperial decree, will expel him, teaching him that it is not fitting to oppose the emperor's rulings issued for the truth. It will then be the task of your holiness, by unanimous judgment, neither from enmity nor from favor, but in accordance with the ecclesiastical and apostolic canon, to devise the appropriate remedy for the offenses committed, whether through error or accident, so that you may free the church from all blasphemy, lighten my cares, and, by restoring the grace of peace to those now in strife, procure the greatest renown for yourselves. May God preserve you, beloved brothers. And since the orders were being carried out in action, another imperial man arrived, hastening the synod with an imperial letter, urging them to proceed to Jerusalem without delay or postponement.

So all of them, setting out from the nation of the Phoenicians, traveled by public roads toward their destination. At that time, every place there was filled with a great assembly of God, as the most distinguished bishops from every province were gathered together in Jerusalem. For the Macedonians sent the bishop of their metropolis; the Pannonians and Mysians sent the flourishing beauties of God's youth from among them; and there was also a sacred treasure from the bishops of Persia, a man who had thoroughly studied the divine oracles. The Bithynians and Thracians adorned the fullness of the council. Nor were the eminent Cilicians absent, and the foremost Cappadocians, distinguished in learning and eloquence, shone among all. All Syria and Mesopotamia, Phoenicia and Arabia together with Palestine itself, Egypt and Libya, and those inhabiting the Thebaid region—all together filled the great assembly of God, and an innumerable multitude from all the provinces followed them. There was also present a kind of imperial service for all these, and men of repute from the imperial court itself were sent to adorn the feast with the emperor's provisions. Moreover, there was a man set over all these, a man close to the emperor, distinguished in faith, piety, and the practice of divine learning, who, having been glorified for his confessions on behalf of piety during the time of the tyrants, was naturally entrusted with the arrangement of these matters.

And indeed this man, serving the emperor’s nod with all sincerity, honored the council with a gracious welcome, with splendid banquets and festive feasts, and to the naked poor, to countless multitudes of needy men and women lacking food and other necessities, he made lavish distributions of money and clothing, and already he was also adorning the entire temple with rich and imperial offerings. But while he was fulfilling this service, the ministers of God adorned the feast with prayers and discourses: some hymning the pious emperor’s devotion to the savior of all, and recounting in speech the great works concerning the martyrion; others, with panegyric theologies from the divine doctrines, providing a banquet of spiritual food to the ears of all; still others made interpretations of the divine readings, revealing the hidden contemplations; and those who were not able to proceed through these things propitiated the divinity with bloodless sacrifices and mystic liturgies, offering up supplicatory prayers to God for the common peace, for the church of God, for the emperor himself, the cause of such great things, and for his God-loving children. There indeed we also, beyond our

men deemed worthy of good things, we honored the feast with varied public discourses, at one time interpreting the philosophical compositions of the emperor in writing, at another making timely interpretations of prophetic visions in accordance with the symbols at hand. Thus the feast of the dedication was celebrated with rejoicing in the very year of the emperor's thirtieth anniversary. As for what the Savior's temple was like, what the salvific cave was like, and what the emperor's artistic embellishments and the multitude of offerings made of gold, silver, and precious stones were like, we have, to the best of our ability, presented them in a separate treatise and addressed it to the emperor himself. This discourse we will publish in due course after the present subject of writing, together with the thirty-year oration, which we delivered shortly afterward, having made the journey to the city named after the emperor, in the hearing of the emperor himself, for the second time glorifying in the imperial palace the God who is king over all, at which the friend of God, listening, seemed delighted. This he revealed after the hearing, while feasting with the bishops present and treating them with every honor. This was the greatest council we know, the second that the emperor convened in Jerusalem after that first one, which he had famously held in the city of the Bithynians.

But that was a victory celebration, fulfilling at Nicaea itself the prayer against enemies and foes during the twentieth year of his reign, while the other adorned the period of the third decade, as the emperor dedicated to the giver of all good things, God, a martyr’s shrine as a peace-offering at the Savior’s tomb. And while these things were being accomplished by the emperor, and his virtue according to God was on everyone’s lips, one of the ministers of God ventured to declare him blessed to his face, because he had been deemed worthy of imperial rule over all in the present life and would in the future reign together with the Son of God. But the emperor, hearing the utterance with displeasure, exhorted him not to dare say such things, but rather to pray that he might be found worthy of the service of God both in the present and in the future. And when the thirtieth year of his reign was completed, he celebrated the marriage of his second son, having long before done the same for the elder. Feasts and banquets were held, the emperor himself acting as bridal attendant for his son, entertaining splendidly and feasting with companies of men here and with separate choirs of women elsewhere, and lavish distributions of gifts were bestowed upon both the populace and the cities.

At this time also ambassadors from the Indians who dwell towards the rising sun met him, bringing gifts, and there were all kinds of things, flashing with costly stones, and animals differing in nature from those known among us, which they presented to the emperor, indicating by this his dominion over the Ocean itself, and that the rulers of the Indian country, honouring him with images and statues and dedicatory offerings, acknowledged him as emperor and king. Now at the beginning of his reign the Britons in the Ocean towards the setting sun were the first to submit to him, but now the Indians who inhabit the region towards the rising sun. Since, then, he held sway over both extremities of the whole inhabited world, he divided the entire empire among his three sons, as if bequeathing some paternal property to his dearest ones. To the eldest he assigned the portion of his grandfather, to the second the rule of the East, and to the third the region between them. And providing for them a good lot and salvation of soul, he instilled in them the seeds of piety, introducing them to divine teachings, appointing as teachers men approved for piety, and for external studies he set over them other instructors who had reached the height of learning; others taught them military subjects, others made them conversant with political affairs, and still others rendered them expert in the laws.

They were at work. A royal retinue had been assigned to each of the sons: hoplites, spearmen, bodyguards, and all kinds of military formations, and over these, commanders, company leaders, generals, and brigade commanders, whose skill in warfare and goodwill toward him the father had already tested. While the Caesars were still of tender age, their assistants necessarily worked with them and administered public affairs; but as they advanced to manhood, the father alone sufficed for their instruction, at one time, when they were present, urging them on with private exhortations and teaching them to become emulators and imitators of his own piety, and at another, when they were absent, he would address them in royal discourses, writing out precepts, the greatest and most important of which was that knowledge of and piety toward the God who is king of all should be honored before all wealth and before kingship itself. He also gave them authority to do what was beneficial for the common good through their own agency, and he exhorted them to care for the church of God as a first priority, and he explicitly commanded them to be Christians. So the father advanced his sons, and they, not as from a command but with self-determined zeal, surpassed their father's exhortations, directing their minds toward holiness toward God and fulfilling the ordinances of the church within their own palaces together with all their households. And this too was a work of the father's foresight, that he handed over to his sons all their cohabitants as pious men, and of the first ranks, those who had undertaken the care of public affairs were of such a kind.

He fortified himself with men faithful to God as with secure ramparts. When these matters were also in good order for the thrice-blessed one, God, the steward of every good, as if judging that his universal affairs were well arranged, considered that the opportune time had come for the reception of better things and brought on the debt of nature. He was completing thirty-two years of reign, with a few months and days remaining, and about twice that length of life. During this time his body remained unaffected and untroubled, pure from every stain and more vigorous than any young man, beautiful to behold, and strong enough to accomplish whatever was necessary by force, so that he could exercise, ride, travel, engage in wars, raise trophies against enemies, and win his customary bloodless victories over opponents. His soul likewise advanced to the utmost perfection attainable among men, excelling in all good qualities, but especially in philanthropy, which was even considered blameworthy by many because of the baseness of wicked men who attributed the cause of their own evil to the emperor's forbearance. For indeed we ourselves observed these two grievous things during this period: the destructive license of insatiable and wicked men who ruin all life, and the unspeakable hypocrisy of those who infiltrated the church and falsely assumed the name of Christians.

His philanthropy and love of good, the sincerity of his faith, and the truthfulness of his character led him to trust in the guise of those who were considered Christians, who pretended to preserve genuine goodwill toward him with a feigned soul. By entrusting himself to such men, he might sometimes have engaged even in improper actions, envy bringing this stain upon his good deeds. But divine justice soon overtook them. The emperor himself, however, had so advanced his soul in rational understanding that, until his very end, he was accustomed to writing discourses, to holding audiences, to providing godly teachings to his hearers, and to legislating, at times for civil affairs, at times for military, and to devising everything suitably for human life. It is also worth recalling that, when he was near the end of his life, he delivered a funeral oration in his customary auditorium, and, extending it at length, he discoursed on the immortality of the soul, on those who had piously completed their present life, and on the goods stored up by God for the godly; and with lengthy proofs he also made clear what end the opposite class would meet, consigning the destruction of the godless to writing. And while solemnly testifying to this, he seemed to rebuke those around him, so that one of the would-be wise asked him how the statements appeared to him; and he bore witness to the truth of the words, and, though unwilling, strongly praised the teachings against the polytheists.

After speaking such things to his intimates before his death, he seemed to be preparing for himself a smooth and even journey to the better. And this too is worthy of remembrance: when around the indicated time a movement of the barbarians in the East was reported, he declared that this victory over them still remained for him, and he set out to campaign against the Persians. Having decided this, he moved the military divisions, and indeed communicated with the bishops around him about the journey, taking thought that some of those necessary in piety should accompany him. They said that they were very eager to follow him, that they did not wish to withdraw, but to campaign with him and to fight alongside him with their supplications to God. Greatly pleased by their promises, he arranged the journey with them. *** *** He himself raised the entire temple to an ineffable height, making it flash with variegations of all kinds of stones, paving it from floor to roof, and dividing the ceiling with fine panels, he covered the whole with gold. Above this, at the very roof, bronze instead of tiles provided protection for the work against rain; and much gold gleamed around this, so that it sent forth flashes to those looking from afar, reflected by the sun's rays. Latticework in relief, wrought in bronze and gold, encircled the roof. And the temple was thus deemed worthy of great zeal on the part of the emperor.

Around this area there was a very large open-air court, open to the pure air, and porticoes ran around this four-sided space, enclosing the open area in the middle like a temple, and royal chambers extended alongside the porticoes, along with baths and refectories, and many other lodgings suitably built for the guards of the place. All these the king consecrated, perpetuating forever the memory of all the apostles of our savior. He was also building something else with a purpose in mind, which at first escaped notice but became evident to all at the end. For he himself reserved for himself the place here for the appropriate time of his own death, planning with extraordinary zeal of faith that his own body after death should share in the title of the apostles, so that even after death he might be deemed worthy of the prayers that would be offered here in honor of the apostles. Therefore he also ordered that services be held here, having set up an altar in the middle. He erected twelve repositories there like sacred pillars in honor and memory of the choir of the apostles, and placed his own coffin in the middle, with six of the apostles on either side of it. And this, as I said, he planned with prudent reasoning, where his body, when he had ended his life, might fittingly be laid to rest. But he, having long before and far in advance formed these plans in his mind, consecrated the temple to the apostles, believing that making their memory beneficial for his soul would be advantageous, and God did not deem him unworthy of what he had hoped for in his prayers.

As he completed the first observances of the feast of Pascha and passed the salvific day in splendor and joy, brightening the festival for himself and for all, and as he was finishing his life in this manner up to the end and was in these things with God, with whom he accomplished them, at the opportune moment of the divine transition to the better, God deemed him worthy. Now a certain first disorder of the body occurs to him, or rather a debility follows upon this, and then he proceeds from his own city to the baths of hot waters, and from there he arrives at the city named after his mother. And there, having spent time in the martyrs' oratory, he sent up supplicatory prayers and litanies to God. But when he came to the thought of the end of his life, he considered this to be the time for purification from all his past transgressions, whatever errors a mortal might commit, and he trusted to wash these away from his soul by the power of secret words and the salvific bath. Having conceived this, he became a suppliant of God on his knees on the ground, confessing in that very martyrium, where indeed he was first deemed worthy of the prayers through the laying on of hands. Then, moving from there, he arrives at a suburb of the city of the Nicomedians, and there, having summoned the bishops, he spoke to them somewhat as follows: "This is the very time I have long hoped for, when, thirsting and praying, I might obtain salvation in God. It is time for us also to partake of the life-giving seal, time for the salvific sealing, which I once thought to receive at the streams of the Jordan River, where the Savior is remembered to have partaken of the bath for our pattern.

But God, knowing what is beneficial, already from this point deems us worthy of these things. Let there be no doubt, then. For if the Lord of life and death should wish us to live here again, it is also ordained that I should henceforth be gathered with the people of God and, joining in the prayers with all, share in the church assembly; I will already arrange for myself a manner of life befitting God. So he spoke these words, while those performing the sacred rites fulfilled the divine ordinances and imparted the mysteries, having first made the necessary preliminary instructions. And indeed, Constantine alone among the emperors from all time, being reborn through the mysteries of Christ, was perfected, and being deemed worthy of the divine seal, he rejoiced in spirit, was renewed, and was filled with divine light, rejoicing in his soul through the excess of his faith, while marveling at the manifest power of the divine. When the necessary rites were completed, he was clothed in bright and imperial garments like rays of light, and rested on a very white couch, no longer wishing to touch the purple. Then, raising his voice, he sent up a prayer of thanksgiving to God, after which he added, saying: "Now in truth I know myself blessed, now I have been deemed worthy of immortal life, now I have partaken of the divine light." He also called wretched and miserable those who were deprived of these goods. And when the tribunes and commanders of the armies entered and lamented, bewailing that they would be left bereft, and prayed for a longer life for him, he replied to them, saying that now he had been deemed worthy of true life, and that he alone knew the goods of which he had partaken.

Therefore he urged that his journey to his God be not delayed or postponed. Then, after these matters, he gave the appropriate instructions, honoring the Romans who inhabited the imperial city with annual gifts, and to his sons he bequeathed the inheritance of the empire like a paternal estate, having arranged everything that was dear to him. Each of these things was accomplished at the greatest feast, the most sacred and holy Pentecost, honored by seven weeks and sealed by the unit, on which, according to divine accounts, the ascension of our common Savior into heaven and the descent of the Holy Spirit to humanity occurred. On this very feast, the emperor, deemed worthy of these things, on the last of all days, which one would not err in calling the feast of feasts, around the midday hours of the sun, was taken up to his God, having consigned to mortals what is akin to them, while he himself, as much of his soul as was intellectual and God-loving, was united with his God. This was the end of Constantine's life. But let us proceed to what follows. Immediately, the bodyguards and the entire class of guards, tearing their garments and throwing themselves on the ground, beat their heads, with wailing, lamentations, and cries

releasing, they called upon the master, the lord, the king, not as a master but as a father, like legitimate children. The tribunes and centurions lamented the savior, the guardian, the benefactor, and the rest of the soldiers, with fitting decorum, as flocks long for their good shepherd. The populace likewise went about the entire city, making manifest the inward grief of their soul with shouts and cries, while others seemed downcast and dismayed, each making the grief his own and beating himself, as if the common good of all had been taken from their life. The soldiers then lifted the body and placed it in a golden casket, covered it with a royal purple robe, and conveyed it to the city named after the emperor; and there, in the foremost part of the imperial palace, they set it on a high base, and kindling lights around on golden vessels, they provided a wondrous spectacle to beholders, such as had never been seen under the sun's rays from the first foundation of the world on earth. For within the palace itself, in the very center of the imperial quarters, the emperor's body lay on a high golden casket, honored with royal ornaments, purple, and a diadem, while many stood guard around it, keeping watch day and night. And the leaders of the entire army, the counts, and the whole order of magistrates, to whom it had formerly been the custom to reverence the emperor, altering not at all their usual manner, entered at the proper times and saluted the emperor on the casket, as if living, even after death, with genuflections.

After the first ones had done this, as they passed by, all those from the senate itself and those holding offices did the same, after whom crowds of every people, together with women and children, came to the spectacle. These things were accomplished over a long time, the military having decided that the body should remain there and be guarded until his sons should arrive and honor their father by conveying him themselves. And the blessed one reigned even after death, alone among mortals, and the customary rites were performed as if he were still alive, this being granted to him alone from eternity by God. At any rate, alone as no other emperor had done, having honored the universal king God and his Christ with every kind of action, he alone fittingly obtained these things, and the God over all deemed it right that his mortal body should reign among men, thus displaying the ageless and endless kingdom of the soul to those whose minds are not petrified. But these things were being accomplished in this way, while the tribunes sent chosen men from the military ranks, known to the emperor for their loyalty and goodwill, to the Caesars, making the events clear. And while these were doing this, as if by a higher inspiration, all the armies everywhere, upon learning of the emperor's death, were of one mind, as if the great emperor were still alive, recognizing no other than his sons alone as Roman emperors. And not long after, they deemed it right that they should be called not Caesars but from then on Augusti, which would be the first and greatest symbol of the highest imperial office.

Some did these things, communicating their own votes and voices to one another in writing, and in a single moment the harmony of the armies became known to all everywhere. But the inhabitants of the imperial city, together with the senate and the Roman people, when they learned of the emperor's death, considered the report terrible and beyond any calamity, and made an uncontrollable mourning. Baths were closed, and marketplaces, public spectacles, and everything that was customarily done for the ease of life by those in good spirits. Those who had formerly been luxurious went about dejected, and all together acclaimed the blessed one, the God-beloved, the one truly worthy of the empire. And they did not only voice these things with shouts, but proceeding to deeds, they honored him with images and dedications as if both living and dead,

fashioning a shape of heaven in painted colors, and depicting him resting above the heavenly arches in an ethereal abode in the painting. And they called his sons alone, and no others, emperors and Augusti, and used suppliant cries, beseeching that the body of their own emperor be brought to them and deposited in the imperial city. But these also honored him who was honored by God. The second of the sons, having arrived at the city, brought forward his father's body, himself leading the procession. The military ranks led in companies, and a multitude of ten thousand followed, and spearmen and heavy-armed soldiers attended the emperor's body. When they arrived at the church of the Savior's apostles, they rested the coffin there.

And the new emperor Constantius was there, honoring his father by his presence and by performing the duties of proper piety toward him. But when he withdrew with the military ranks, the ministers of God passed in their midst, together with the multitudes of the people devoted to piety, and they performed the rites of divine worship through prayers. There the blessed one, lying above on a high bier, was glorified, and the whole multitude, together with those consecrated to God, not without tears but with greater lamentation, offered prayers to God for the emperor’s soul, fulfilling what was pleasing to the God-loving one. And in this, God showed his favor toward his servant, in that he granted the empire to his beloved and legitimate sons as successors at his end, and that the place he had eagerly sought was deemed worthy of remembrance together with the apostles, as can still be seen even now: the body of the thrice-blessed soul is glorified together with the name of the apostles and gathered with the people of God, deemed worthy of divine ordinances and mystic liturgy, and enjoying the communion of holy prayers, while he himself, even after death, has taken hold of the empire. So, as if governing the entire dominion from a renewed life, he holds the Roman hegemony under the title Victor Maximus Augustus.

not after the manner of the Egyptian bird, which they say is unique in nature, dying on spices and performing its own funeral rites, then coming to life again from its own ashes and flying up to become such as it was before, but after the manner of his own Savior, who, like the sowing of wheat, from one multiplies many, and with the blessing of God provides the ear and fills the whole world with his fruits. In like manner, the thrice-blessed one became multiplied through the succession of his children, so that he was honored among all nations together with his sons by the erection of images, and his own name of Constantine was taken up even after the end of his life. Already, too, types were engraved on coins, on one side depicting the blessed one with his head veiled in a certain form, and on the other side being taken up on a four-horse chariot in the manner of a charioteer, with a right hand reaching down from above to receive him.

These things the God over all showed to our own eyes in the case of Constantine alone, who was manifestly proved to be a Christian beyond any before him, and thus he set forth how great was the difference between those deemed worthy to worship him and his Christ and those who chose the opposite, who, having set out to war against his Church, made him their enemy and adversary, the end of life in each case providing clear proof of their hostility to God, just as the end of Constantine made manifest to all the surety of his love of God, since he alone of the Roman emperors honored the universal King God with an excess of piety, he alone openly proclaimed the word of Christ to all, he alone, so to speak, glorified his Church as no other from the beginning of time had done, he alone destroyed all polytheistic error and refuted every form of idolatry, and indeed he alone was deemed worthy of such things both in life and after death as no one else could be.

receiving such a one as could be described neither among Greeks nor among barbarians, nor even among the Romans themselves of the highest rank, since no such person is recorded as having come down to us from all eternity.