Inventio crucis (epitome prioris libelli)

OF ALEXANDER THE MONK, HISTORIOGRAPHER, A HISTORICAL ENCOMIUM CONCERNING THE FINDING OF THE PRECIOUS AND LIFE-GIVING CROSS.

4077At that time the bishop of Aelia was Macarius, the well-named, having succeeded Hermonas. And Constantine the Great, having become sole ruler, transferred all his care to divine things. Rebuilding the churches, since he was generously enriching [them] from the public treasury, with money and expenses, and with all kinds of treasures. And he wrote a first law that the temples of the idols be given over to those dedicated to Christ, and that those still worshipping idols be punished with capital penalties. He wrote a second law, that only orthodox Christians should serve in the army, and that they should command both peoples and armies. He wrote a third law, that there be no business during the two paschal weeks, one before, and one after. And so there was deep peace, and joy in the whole world, as all the nations daily ran to the faith, and were baptized, and smashed their ancestral gods with their own hands. But these things were not bearable for the avenging demon, but again he plotted within himself, how he might cut off such great joy of men. And indeed to persuade men to deify creation he was no longer able; for his deceit had been exposed. But he attempted to persuade the unstable to rank the Creator with the creatures. And there was again no small disturbance in the Churches of God, with a certain Arius of Alexandria running up and down, and disturbing the world. And there were gathered with him some bishops, few in number, of whom the first was Eusebius of Nicomedia, and Eusebius son of Pamphilus, and others with them. And seeing the great contention, Constantine the Great was vexed in his soul; and first he tried through exhortatory letters to quench the strife of both parties. But when he saw the evil becoming incurable, he ordered an ecumenical synod to be held in the city of Nicaea, and three hundred and eighteen bishops came together. Of whom the most were confessors, bearing the marks of Jesus in their body. And with them was also the all-praised Constantine, and indeed when the matter was moved, they brought forth a written exposition of faith, the one now recited throughout every Church of the orthodox. And they denounced Arius and Eusebius of Nicomedia who persisted in their evil doctrine, and they were exiled, and others were ordained in their place. And the emperor, having honored the bishops, and having embraced them, dismissed them in peace to their own dioceses, rejoicing at the concord of the Churches. And he exhorted Macarius the bishop of Aelia, who was present at the synod and was a champion of the apostolic dogmas, to search for the life-giving cross, and the God-receiving tomb, and all the holy places, and he likewise 4080 urged the other bishops to ask for whatever each one saw was for the completion of his own Church.

It was the nineteenth year of his reign, when the synod at Nicaea took place. After these things the emperor sent his own mother Helena, the praiseworthy and God-loving, to Jerusalem, with letters and an abundance of money, to the well-named Macarius, the bishop of Aelia, for the search for the life-giving wood of the glorious cross and for the building of the holy places; the empress herself having requested this, saying that she had seen a certain divine vision commanding her to go to Jerusalem, and to bring to light the holy places which had been buried by

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Inventio crucis (epitome prioris libelli)

ΑΛΕΞΑΝ∆ΡΟΥ ΜΟΝΑΧΟΥ ΙΣΤΟΡΙΟΓΡΑΦΟΥ ΙΣΤΟΡΙΚΟΝ ΕΓΚΩΜΙΟΝ ΠΕΡΙ ΤΗΣ ΕΥΡΕΣΕΩΣ ΤΟΥ ΤΙΜΙΟΥ ΚΑΙ ΖΩΟΠΟΙΟΥ ΣΤΑΥΡΟΥ.

4077Κατ' ἐκεῖνον τὸν χρόνον ὁ τῆς Αἰλίας ἐπίσκοποςΜακάριος ὁ φερώνυμος

ἦν Ἑρμονᾶν διαδεξάμενος. Ὁ δὲ Μέγας Κωνσταντῖνος μονοκράτωρ γενόμενος πᾶσαν τὴν φροντίδα εἰς τὰ θεῖα μετήνεγκεν. Ἀνοικο ομῶν τὰς ἐκκλησίας, ἐπεὶ φιλοτίμως πλουτῶν [ἦν] ἐκ τοῦ δημοσίου λόγου, ἔν τε χρήμασι καὶ ἀναλώμασι, καὶ παντοίοις κειμηλίοις. Καὶ πρῶτον νόμον ἔγρα ψεν ἀποδίδοσθαι τοὺς τῶν εἰδώλων ναοὺς τοῖς τῷΧριστῷ ἀφιερωμένοις, καὶ τοὺς ἕτι εἰδωλολατροῦν τας, κεφαλικαῖς ἐπιτιμᾶσθαι τιμωρίαις. ∆εύτερον νόμον ἔγραψεν, Χριστιανοὺς μόνους ὀρθοδοξοῦντας στρατεύεσθαι, ἐθνῶν τε καὶ στρατοπέδων τούτους ἄρχειν. Τρίτον νόμον ἔγραψεν, ἀπράκτους εἶναι τὰς πασχαλίας ἑβδομάδας δύο, μίαν πρὸ, καὶ μίαν μετά. Καὶ ἦν λοιπὸν εἰρήνη βαθεῖα, καὶ χαρὰ ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ οἰκουμένῃ, πάντων τῶν ἐθνῶν ὁσημέραι προστρε χόντων τῇ πίστει, καὶ βαπτιζομένων, καὶ ἰδίαις χερσὶ τοὺς πατρῴους θεοὺς συντριβόντων.Ἀλλὰ ταῦτα οὐκ ἦν φορητὰ τῷ ἀλάστορι δαίμονι, ἀλλὰ πάλιν εἰς ἑαυτὸν ἐδραματούργει, πῶς ἂν ἐκκό ψει τὴν τοσαύτην τῶν ἀνθρώπων χαρμονήν. Καὶ πεῖσαι μὲν τοὺς ἀνθρώπους θεοποιεῖσθαι τὴν κτίσιν οὐκέτι οἷός τε ἦν· ἐφωράθη γὰρ ἡ ἀπάτη αὐτοῦ. Τὸν δὲ Κτίστην συντάξαι τοῖς κτίσμασι παραπεῖσαι ἐπει ράθη τοὺς ἀστηρίκτους. Καὶ ἦν πάλιν τάραχος οὐκ ὀλίγος ἐν ταῖς Ἐκκλησίαις τοῦ Θεοῦ, Ἀρείου τινὸς Ἀλεξανδρέως ἄνω καὶ κάτω κυκλοῦντος, καὶ τὴν οἰκουμένην ταράττοντος. Συναπήχθησαν δὲ αὐτῷ ἐπίσκοποί τινες ὀλίγοι τὸν ἀριθμὸν, ὧν πρῶτος Εὐ σέβιος ὁ Νικομηδείας, καὶ Εὐσέβιος ὁ Παμφίλου, καὶ ἕτεροι σὺν αὐτοῖς. Θεωρῶν δὲ τὴν μεγάλην φιλο νεικίαν ὁ Μέγας Κωνσταντῖνος, ἠνιᾶτο τὴν ψυχήν· καὶ πρῶτον μὲν ἐπειρᾶτο διὰ παραινετικῶν γραμμά των τῶν ἑκατέρων μερῶν κατασβέσαι τὴν ἔριν. Ὡς δὲ ἴδεν ἀνήκεστον γινόμενον τὸ κακὸν, προσέταξε γενέσθαι οἰκουμενικὴν σύνοδον ἐν τῇ Νικαέων πόλει, καὶ συνῆλθον ἐπίσκοποι τὸν ἀριθμὸν τριακόσιοι δέκα καὶ ὀκτώ. Ὧν οἱ πλεῖστοι ἦσαν ὁμολογηταὶ, τὰ στί γματα τοῦ Ἰησοῦ ἐν τῷ σώματι βαστάζοντες. Ἦν δὲ σὺν αὐτοῖς καὶ ὁ πανεύφημος Κωνσταντῖνος, καὶ δὴ τῆς ὑποθέσεως κινηθείσης, ἔκθεσιν πίστεως ἔγ γραφον ἐξήνεγκαν, τὴν κατὰ πᾶσαν Ἐκκλησίαν ὀρθοδόξων νῦν ἀπαγγελλομένην. Τοὺς δὲ περὶ Ἄρειον καὶ Εὐσέβιον τὸν Νικομηδέα ἐπιμένοντας τῇ κακοδοξίᾳ ἀνεκήρυξαν, καὶ ἐξωρίσθησαν, καὶ ἐχειροτονήθησαν ἕτεροι ἀντ' αὐτῶν. Φιλοτιμησάμενος δὲ ὁ βασιλεὺς τοὺς ἐπισκόπους, καὶ ἀσπασάμενος ἀπέλυσε μετ' εἰρήνης εἰς τὰς ἰδίας παροικίας, χαί ρων ἐπὶ τῇ συμφωνίᾳ τῶν Ἐκκλησιῶν.Παρεκελεύσατο δὲ τῷ τῆς Αἰλίας ἐπισκόπῳ Μα καρίῳ παρόντι ἐν τῇ συνόδῳ, καὶ τῶν ἀποστολικῶν δογμάτων ὑπερμαχοῦντι ἀναζητῆσαι τὸν ζωοποιὸν σταυρόν, καὶ τὸ θεοδόχον μνῆμα, καὶ πάντας τοὺς ἁγίους τόπους, καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους δὲ ἐπισκόπους ὁμοίως 4080 προετρέψατο, αἰτήσασθαι, εἴ τι συνορᾷ εἰς ἀπαρτι σμὸν ἔκαστος τῆς ἰδίας Ἐκκλησίας.

Ἦν δὲ ἐννεακαιδέκατον ἔτος τῆς βασιλείας αὐτοῦ, ὅτε ἐγένετο κατὰ Νίκαιαν σύνοδος.Μετὰ ταῦτα ἀπέστειλεν ὁ βασιλεὺς τὴν ἑαυτοῦ μητέρα Ἑλένην, τὴν ἀξιέπαινον καὶ θεοφιλῆ, εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα, μετὰ γραμμάτων καὶ χρημάτων ἀφθονίας, πρὸς τὸν φερώνυμον Μακάριον τῆς Αἰλίας ἐπίσκοπον ἐπὶ ἀναζητήσει τοῦ ζωοποιοῦ ξύλου τοῦ ἐνδόξου σταυροῦ καὶ οἰκοδομῇ τῶν ἁγίων τόπων· αὐτῆς τοῦτο αἰτησάσης τῆς βασιλίδος, φασκούσης ὀπτασίαν τινὰ θείαν ἑωρακέναι κελεύουσαν αὐτῇ τὰ Ἱεροσόλυμα καταλαβεῖν, καὶ τοὺς ἁγίους τόπους εἰς φῶς ἀγαγεῖν χωσθέντας ὑπὸ

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