Historia Ecclesiastica

VII. Copy of an Imperial Letter, in which he gives orders that presidents of the chursches be released from all public offices.

‘‘Greeting, Anulinus, our most honoured Sir. Since from many facts it appears that the setting at [*](had under his control a still larger administrative area. Patricius as Vicar οf Africa was in the jurisdiction οf the Prefect οf Italy. His title vicarius praefectorum (pl.) is a relic of more ancient days, when the Prefects were regarded as associated together in office. )

naught of divine worship, by which the highest reverence for the most holy and heavenly [Power] is preserved, has brought great dangers upon public affairs, and that its lawful restoration and preservation have bestowed the greatest good fortune on the Roman name and singular prosperity on all the affairs of mankind (for it is the Divine Providence which bestows these blessings): it has seemed good that those men who, with due holiness and constant observance of this law, bestow their services on the performance of divine worship, should receive the rewards of their own labours, most honoured Anulinus. Wherefore it is my wish that those persons who within the province committed to thee, in the Catholic Church over which Caecilian presides, bestow their service on this holy worship—those whom they accustomed to call clerics—should onee for aIl be kept absolutely free from all the public offices, that they be not drawn away by any error or sacrilegious fault from the worship which they owe to the Divinity, but rather without any hindrance serve to the utmost their own law. For when they render supreme service to the Deity, it seems that they confer incalculable benefit on the affairs of the State. Fare thee well, Anulinus, our most honoured and esteemed Sir.’

VIII. Such then were the gifts that the divine and heavenly grace of our Saviour bestowed upon us by Ηis appearing, and such was the abundance of good things that the peace which came to us procured for all mankind. Αnd thus Our happy state was celebrated with rejoicings and festive assemblies. Nevertheless

theless the envy that hates the good, even the demon who loves the evil, could not endure the sight οf hat he beheld; as indeed that which had happened the above-mentioned tyrants 1 was not ven for Licinius, to bring him to sound reason. e who had been deemed worthy οf the princite in a state οf prosperity, of second rank after e great Emperor Constantine, of a connexion by marriage and the most exalted kinship with him, ed from the following of good men and zealaffected the evil manners and wickedness the impious tyrants; and he preferred to follow e judgement of those whose end he had seen with his very eyes, rather than continue on terms friendship and love with his superior. Filled, fact, with envy of the common benefactor, he aged an impious and most terrible war against him, either giving respect to the laws of nature nor bewing a thought on sworn treaties or ties of blood or eements. For Constantine, all-gracious Emperor t he was furnished him with the tokens of genuine will, did not grudge him kinship with himself, and did not refuse him the enjoyment of an illustrious union in the person of his sister. Nay further, he eemed him worthy to partake of his ancertral obility and his imperial blood and origin, and bestowed on him, as a brother-in-law and the right to a share in the supreme government 2: for οf his bounty he gave him the ruling and administration οf no inferior part of the peoples under the Ṛoṃan ay. But Licinius pursued an exactly opposite line of conduct: he was daily contriving all kinds of devices against his superior, and inventing all manner of plans to reward his benefactor with evil. Αt first, indeed, he attempted to conceal the intrigue, and feigned friendliness, hoping that frequent recourse to guile and deceit would most easily secure his expectationS. But God proved to be Constantine's Friend and Protector and Guardian, who brought to light the plots that were devised secretly and in darkness, and confounded them. such power is there in the great weapon of godliness to ward off the enemy and to preserve its own in safety. Fenced verily with this, our Emperor, most dear to God, escaped the plots of this ill-famed master of intrigue. Αnd he, when he saw that his covert design as by no means going according to his wish (for God disclosed every guile and wickeness to the Emperor whom Ηe loved), since he was no longer able to conceal himself, raised an οpen warfare. Αnd, to be sure, in his decision to make war at close quarteb upon Constantine, he was already hastening to battle also against the God of the universe, whom, as he knew, Constantine worshipped; and so he designed an attack, quietly and silently at first upon his godly subjects, who had never at any time done any harm at all to his rule. Αnd this he did, because his innate wickeness had perforee brought upon him terrible blindness. Thus he neither kept before his eyes the memory of those who had persecuted Christians before him, nor of those whom he himself destroyed and punished for the evil deeds they had pursued. But he turned aside from the path of sound reason, and becoming altogether mad, decided to make war on God Himself, as the Protector of Constantine, instead of on him who was being protected.

First, he drove away every Christian from his palace; thus by his own aet depriving himself, wretched man, of the prayeis to God on his behalf, which after the eustom of their fathers they are taught to make for all men. Then he gave orders that the soldiers in cities were to be singled out and deprived of honourable rank, unless they chose to sacrifce to demons.

And, moreover, these were but small matters when judged by comparison with graver measures. What need is there to mention singly and successively the things done by this hater of God: how, to wit, this most lawless οf men invented lawless laws? In fact, with regard to those who were suffering under imprisonment, he laid down a law that no one should treat them humanely by distributing food, or have pity on those who were perishing of hunger in bonds ; and that no one should be kindly at all, or do any kindly action, even When they were moved by mere natural feeling to sympathize with their neighbours. Αnd of his laws this one at least was quite openly shameless and the harshert οf all, in its putting aside of every civilized, natural feeling, by which also it was enacted as a punishment that those who showed pity should suffer the same as those whom they pitied, and that those who humanely ministered should endure the same punishment as those who were undergoing it, and be consigned to bonds and imprisonment. such were the ordinances of Lincinius. Why should one recount his innovations with regard to marriage, οr his revolutionary changes in respect of those who were departing this life, wherein he dared to annul the aneient laws of the Romans well and wisely laid down, and in their stead brought in certain that were

reckoning of an evil conscience—but had been that we did everything and supplicated God on behalf of the Emperor whom Ηe loved. Hence he hastened to vent his wrath on us. Αnd in truth the sycophants among the governors, persuaded that they were doing what pleased the impious man, plied some οf the bishops with penalties suitable for malefactors, and those who had done no wrong were led away and punished, without a pretext, like murderers. Αnd some endured at that time a more novel form of death: their bodies were cut with a sword into many pieces, and after this cruel and most fearful sight they were cast into the depths of the sea as food for fishes. Thereupon the men of God began again to flee, and οnce more the fields, οnce more the deserts, glens and mountains received the servants of Christ. Αnd when the impious man was thus suceessful in these measures also, he then conceived the idea of stirring up anew the persecution against all. Ηe had power to accomplish his purpose, and there was nothing to hinder him carrying it into effect, had not God, the Champion of the souls that are His own, foreseeing with all speed what would come to pass, caused to shine forth all at once, as it were οut of deep darkness and most murky night, a great luminary and sariour of them all, leading thither with a lofty arm his servant Constantine. IX. To him, then, as the worthy fruit οf piety did God vouchsafe from heaven above the trophies of victory over the wieked men; as for the guilty one, Ηe laid him low, with all his counscellors and friends, prone beneath the feet οf Constantine.

For when Licinius had carried his madness to the

urtennost, the Εmperor, the friend οf God, reckoning that he was no longer to be endured, summoned his sound powers of reason, and tempering the stern qualities of justice with humanity determined to succour those Who were being evil intreated under the tyrant's power; and hastened, by putting a few spoilers out of the way, to reseue the greater part of the human race. For hitherto, when he employed humanity alone and showed mercy to him who was undeserving of sympathy, there was no improvement in Licinius: he did not give over his wickedness, but rather increased his mad fury against his subject peoples; while as for those who were ill-treated, no hope of salvation was left for them, ground down as they were by a terrible wild beast. Wherefore, mingling a hatred of evil with a love of goodness, the defender of the good went forth, with that most humane Εmperor, his son Crispus, stretching out the right hand of salvation to all who were perishing. Then, inasmuch as they had God the universal King and son of God, the Saviour of all, as their Ouide and Αlly, the father and son both together divided their battle-array against the haters of God on all sides and easily Won the victory; 1 for everything in the encounter was made smooth for them by God according to His purpose. Tea verily, all at once and in less time than it takes to say it, those Who the other day were breathing death and threatening were no more, nor was even so much as their name remembered; their pictures and honours received a welldeserved disgrace; and the things that Licinius had seen with his own eyes happen to the impious tyrants [*](September 18 οr 20, 324. Shortly afterwards, Constantine had him put to death.) of days gone by, these he himself also likewise suffered; for neither did he receive correction nor did he learn wisdom from the strokes that fell upon his neighbours, but pursued the same path of iniquity as they did, and justly reeled over the same precipice.

Thus was licinius cast down prostrate. But Constantine the most mighty Victor, resplendent with every virtue that godliness bestows, together with his son Crispus, an Emperor most dear to God and in all respects like unto his father, recovered the Εast that belonged to them, and formed the Roman Εmpire, as in the days of old, into a single united whole, bringing under their peaceful rule all of it, from the rising sun round about in the two directions, north as well as south, even to the uttermost limits of the declining day. So then, there was taken away from men all fear of those who formerly oppressed them; they celebrated brilliant festivals; all things were filled with light, and men, formerly downcast, looked at each other with smiling countenanees and beaming eyes; with daneing and hymns in city and country alike they gave honour first of all to God the universal King, for this they had been instrueted to do, and, then to the pious Emperor with his sons beloved of God; old ills were forgotten and oblivion cast on every deed of impiety; present good things were enjoyed, with the further hope of those which were yet for to come. Αnd, in short, there ẁ̀ere promulgated in every plaee ordinances of the victorious Emperor full of love for humanity, and las that betokened munificence and true piety. Thus verily, when all tyranny had been purged away, the kingdom that belonged to them was preserved stedfast and undisputed for Constantine and his sons alone;