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to be deprived of a sacred house, in which 1.8.11 it was necessary to hymn and pray to God and to partake of the mysteries. For priests and deacons also followed, attending to the tent, who according to the law of the church fulfilled the order concerning these things. From that time also the Roman battalions, which they now call *numeri*, each constructed its own tent and had priests and deacons assigned to it. He enacted as law that on the day called the Lord’s day, which the Hebrews name the first, and the Greeks dedicate to the sun, and on the day before the seventh, all should abstain from the law courts and other business and should serve the Deity with prayers and supplications. 1.8.12 He honored the Lord's day because on it Christ rose from the dead, and the other day because on it he was crucified; for he had a very great reverence for the divine cross, both from the victories which had accrued to him by its influence in the battles against his enemies, and from the divine sign which had appeared to him concerning it. 1.8.13 Indeed, by law he abolished from the use of the courts the punishment of the cross, which was formerly in use among the Romans; and he commanded that this divine symbol should always be inscribed and impressed upon coins when they were minted and on portraits when they were painted. And images of him existing in this form testify to this even now. And in all things indeed, but especially in legislating, he was zealous to serve the 1.8.14 Deity. At any rate, he is seen to have corrected licentious and effeminate unions, which were not forbidden before this, as it is possible to perceive from the laws laid down concerning these things, if anyone happens to care about this. For now it does not seem to me to be a suitable time to labor over this conclusion. But it is necessary to go through the laws enacted for the honor and establishment of religion in addition to what has been said, being a part of ecclesiastical history. I will begin from here. 1..1 There was an old Roman law from twenty-five years ago forbidding the unmarried to be deemed worthy of the same rights as those who were not such, concerning many other things and that they should gain nothing from a will unless they were the closest of kin, 1..2 and fining the childless half of what was left to them. The ancient Romans established this, thinking that Rome and its subject territory would become populous, since not long before the law they happened to have lost their lives 1..3 in civil wars. The emperor, therefore, seeing that on this account those who practice virginity and childlessness for the sake of God fared worse, considered it foolish that the race of these people could be increased by the care and zeal of men, since nature always accepts decay and growth according to the measure from above. And he addressed a law to the people, so that the unmarried and childless should enjoy all the same rights equally; but he even legislated that those living in continence and virginity should have more, giving them permission, both males and females, even while under age, to make a will contrary to the common practice prevailing in the Ro1..4man state. For he thought that they deliberate well concerning all things, whose task it is always to serve the Deity and to practice philosophy; since for this reason the ancient Romans also legislated that the Vestal virgins could make wills without fear, even when they were six years old. And that is a very great proof of the emperor’s reverence concerning religion. 1..5 For by the enactment of a law he released the clergy everywhere from taxation, and he permitted those on trial to appeal to the judgment of the bishops, if they wished to decline the civil magistrates; and that their vote should be valid and superior to that of other judges as if it had been pronounced by the emperor, and that the magistrates and the soldiers under them should carry the judgments into effect; and that the decrees of the synods should be unalterable. 1..6 And having come to this point, it is worthy of writing not to omit the laws enacted for the benefit of those being manumitted in the churches. For since, by the strictness of the laws and even against the will of the owners, there was much difficulty concerning the acquisition of the better freedom, which they call Roman citizenship, he established three

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ἱεροῦ οἴκου ἀμοιρεῖν, ἐν ᾧ 1.8.11 δέοι τὸν θεὸν ὑμνεῖν καὶ προσεύχεσθαι καὶ μυστηρίων μετέχειν. συνείποντο γὰρ καὶ ἱερεῖς καὶ διάκονοι τῇ σκηνῇ προσεδρεύοντες, οἳ κατὰ τὸν νόμον τῆς ἐκκλησίας τὴν περὶ ταῦτα τάξιν ἐπλήρουν. ἐξ ἐκείνου δὲ καὶ τὰ ῾Ρωμαίων τάγματα, ἃ νῦν ἀριθμοὺς καλοῦσιν, ἕκαστον ἰδίαν σκηνὴν κατεσκευάσατο καὶ ἱερέας καὶ διακόνους ἀπονενεμημένους εἶχε. τὴν δὲ κυριακὴν καλουμένην ἡμέραν, ἣν ῾Εβραῖοι πρώτην ὀνομάζουσιν, ῞Ελληνες δὲ ἡλίῳ ἀνατιθέασι, καὶ τὴν πρὸ τῆς ἑβδόμης ἐνομοθέτησε δικαστηρίων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων πραγμάτων σχολὴν ἄγειν πάντας καὶ εὐχαῖς καὶ λιταῖς τὸ θεῖον 1.8.12 θεραπεύειν. ἐτίμα δὲ τὴν κυριακὴν ὡς ἐν ταύτῃ τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἀναστάντος ἐκ νεκρῶν, τὴν δὲ ἑτέραν ὡς ἐν αὐτῇ σταυρωθέντος· πάνυ γὰρ πολὺ σέβας εἶχε τοῦ θείου σταυροῦ ἔκ τε τῶν ὑπαρξάντων αὐτῷ τῇ ἐνθένδε ῥοπῇ ἐν ταῖς κατὰ τῶν ἐναντίων μάχαις καὶ ἐκ τῆς συμβάσης αὐτῷ περὶ τούτου 1.8.13 θεοσημείας. ἀμέλει τοι πρότερον νενομισμένην ῾Ρωμαίοις τὴν τοῦ σταυροῦ τιμωρίαν νόμῳ ἀνεῖλε τῆς χρήσεως τῶν δικαστηρίων· πλαττομένῳ τε ἐν νομίσμασι καὶ ἐν εἰκόσι γραφομένῳ ἐκέλευσεν ἀεὶ συγγράφεσθαι καὶ συντυποῦσθαι τοῦτο τὸ θεῖον σύμβολον. καὶ μαρτυροῦσιν εἰσέτι νῦν εἰκόνες αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τούτου οὖσαι τοῦ σχήματος. Καὶ ἐν ἅπασι μέν, νομοθετῶν δὲ μάλιστα, ἐσπούδαζε θεραπεύειν τὸ 1.8.14 θεῖον. φαίνεται γοῦν τὰς ἀκολάστους καὶ κατεβλακευμένας μίξεις, πρὸ τούτου μὴ κωλυομένας, ἐπανορθώσας, ὡς ἐξ αὐτῶν συνιδεῖν ἔστι τῶν περὶ τούτων κειμένων νόμων, εἴ τῳ τοῦτο ἐπιμελὲς τυγχάνει. νυνὶ γὰρ περὶ τὸ τέλος τοῦτο πονεῖν οὐκ εὔκαιρον εἶναί μοι δοκεῖ. τὰ δὲ ἐπὶ τιμῇ καὶ συστάσει τῆς θρησκείας νενομοθετημένα πρὸς τοῖς εἰρημένοις διεξελθεῖν ἀναγκαῖον μέρος ὄντα τῆς ἐκκλησιαστικῆς ἱστορίας. ἄρξομαι δὲ ἐντεῦθεν. 1..1 Νόμος ἦν ῾Ρωμαίοις παλαιὸς ἀπὸ εἴκοσι καὶ πέντε ἐτῶν τῶν ἴσων ἀξιοῦσθαι κωλύων τοὺς ἀγάμους τοῖς μὴ τοιούτοις, περὶ ἄλλα τε πολλὰ καὶ τὸ μηδὲν κερδαίνειν ἐκ διαθήκης τοὺς μὴ γένει ἐγγυτάτω προσήκοντας, 1..2 τοὺς δὲ ἄπαιδας ζημιῶν τὸ ἥμισυ τῶν καταλελειμμένων. ἔθεντο δὲ τοῦτον οἱ πάλαι ῾Ρωμαῖοι, πολυάνθρωπον ἔσεσθαι τὴν ῾Ρώμην καὶ τὴν ὑπήκοον οἰόμενοι, καθότι οὐ πρὸ πολλοῦ τοῦ νόμου ἔτυχον ἀποβαλόντες τὰ σώματα 1..3 ἐν ἐμφυλίοις πολέμοις. ὁρῶν οὖν ὁ βασιλεὺς παρὰ τοῦτο χεῖρον πράττοντας τοὺς παρθενίαν καὶ ἀπαιδίαν διὰ θεὸν ἀσκοῦντας εὔηθες ἐνόμισεν ἐξ ἐπιμελείας καὶ σπουδῆς ἀνθρώπων δύνασθαι τὸ τούτων γένος αὔξειν, τῆς φύσεως ἀεὶ κατὰ τὴν ἄνωθεν ἐπιμέτρησιν φθορὰν καὶ αὔξησιν δεχομένης. καὶ νόμον τῷ δήμῳ προσεφώνησεν, ὥστε ἐπίσης πάντων τῶν ὁμοίων ἀπολαύειν τοὺς ἀγάμους καὶ ἄπαιδας· οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ καὶ πλέον ἔχειν ἐνομοθέτησε τοὺς <ἐν> ἐγκρατείᾳ καὶ παρθενίᾳ βιοῦντας, ἄδειαν αὐτοῖς δοὺς ἄρρεσί τε καὶ θηλείαις καὶ ἀνήβοις οὖσι διατίθεσθαι παρὰ τὸ κοινῇ κρατοῦν ἐν τῇ ῾Ρω1..4 μαίων πολιτείᾳ. περὶ πάντων γὰρ εὖ βουλεύεσθαι ᾠήθη, οἷς ἔργον ἀεὶ τὸ θεῖον θεραπεύειν καὶ φιλοσοφίαν ἀσκεῖν· ἐπεὶ τούτου χάριν καὶ οἱ πάλαι ῾Ρωμαῖοι ἀδεῶς διατίθεσθαι τὰς ῾Εστιάδας παρθένους καὶ ἑξαετεῖς οὔσας ἐνομοθέτησαν. Τεκμήριον δὲ κἀκεῖνο μέγιστον τῆς τοῦ βασιλέως περὶ τὴν θρησκείαν 1..5 αἰδοῦς. τοὺς μὲν γὰρ πανταχῇ κληρικοὺς θέσει νόμου ἀτελεῖς ἀνῆκε, τῶν δὲ ἐπισκόπων ἐπικαλεῖσθαι τὴν κρίσιν ἐπέτρεψε τοῖς δικαζομένοις, ἢν βούλωνται τοὺς πολιτικοὺς ἄρχοντας παραιτεῖσθαι· κυρίαν δὲ εἶναι τὴν αὐτῶν ψῆφον καὶ κρείττω τῆς τῶν ἄλλων δικαστῶν ὡσανεὶ παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως ἐξενεχθεῖσαν, εἰς ἔργον δὲ τὰ κρινόμενα ἄγειν τοὺς ἄρχοντας καὶ τοὺς διακονουμένους αὐτοῖς στρατιώτας· ἀμετατρέπτους τε εἶναι τῶν συνόδων τοὺς ὅρους. 1..6 Εἰς τοῦτο δέ με προελθόντα γραφῆς ἄξιον μὴ παραλιπεῖν τὰ νενομοθετημένα ἐπ' ὠφελείᾳ τῶν ἐν ταῖς ἐκκλησίαις ἐλευθερουμένων. ὑπὸ γὰρ ἀκριβείας νόμων καὶ ἀκόντων τῶν κεκτημένων πολλῆς δυσχερείας οὔσης περὶ τὴν κτῆσιν τῆς ἀμείνονος ἐλευθερίας, ἣν πολιτείαν ῾Ρωμαίων καλοῦσι, τρεῖς ἔθετο