123

of like stones had collapsed in many places, and the greatest earthquakes had caused extreme damage both to other cities and to Nicaea of Bithynia, the emperor Valens and the bishop Eudoxius did not cease persecuting the Christians who thought differently from them. And with respect to those who held the same opinion as those who had assembled at Nicaea, it seemed to them that their effort had been successful; 6.10.3 for in the greater part of the area ruled by Valens, and especially throughout both Thrace and Bithynia and the Hellespont, and even further than these, they had neither churches nor priests. But against those who held the opinions of Macedonius, who were many times more numerous than them in this region, they were angry, and turning against them, they persecuted them immoderately. But they, in fear of the impending evils, sending embassies to one another from city to city, decided it was better to flee to Valentinian and the bishop of the Romans and to be in communion of the faith with them rather than with Eudoxius and Valens 6.10.4 and their followers. And when this seemed good, they chose for this purpose three from among themselves, Eustathius the bishop of Sebasteia, Silvanus of Tarsus, and Theophilus of Castabala, and sent them to the emperor Valentinian, having written to Liberius the bishop of the Romans and to the priests throughout the west, that since they hold the approved and firm faith from the apostles and ought to care for religion before others, they should support their ambassadors with all their strength and deliberate with them about what should be done and, as they might see fit, set right the affairs of the church. 6.10.5 And they, having arrived in Italy, learned that the emperor was staying in Gaul, fighting the barbarians situated there. But when the road to Gaul appeared impassable to them because of the war, they gave the letters to Liberius. 6.10.6 And having conferred about the purpose of their embassy, they condemn Arius and those who think and teach like him; and they renounce every heresy opposing the faith of the synod at Nicaea, and they accept the name "homoousios" 6.10.7 as signifying the same things as "homoiousios." And when Liberius received their written confession of these things, he entered into communion with them, and wrote to the bishops throughout the east, praising their unanimity and their agreement concerning the dogma, and he reported what had been transacted with the ambassadors. The confession of Eustathius and his companions was as follows: 6.11.1 "To our lord, brother, and fellow minister Liberius, Eustathius, Silvanus, Theophilus, greeting in the Lord. On account of the frantic suspicions of the heretics, who do not cease to sow scandals in the catholic churches, for this reason, removing every pretext of theirs, we acknowledge the synod which was held at Lampsacus and Smyrna 6.11.2 and in other various places by the orthodox bishops, as ambassadors of which synod we bring letters to your goodness and to all the Italian and western bishops, that we hold and keep the catholic faith, which at the holy synod of Nicaea in the time of the blessed Constantine, having been confirmed by three hundred and eighteen bishops, remains in a pure and unshaken state until now and forever, in which the "homoousios" is holily and piously established contrary to the perversion of Arius; 6.11.3 likewise we also with the aforementioned have held and do hold the same faith and will keep it until the end, we confess with our own hand, condemning Arius and his impious teaching together with his disciples and every heresy of Sabellius and the Patropassians, of Marcion, of Photinus, of Marcellus, and of Paul of Samosata, and their teaching and all who hold their opinions; and we anathematize all heresies opposed to the aforementioned holy faith, which was piously and catholically set forth by the holy fathers at Nicaea, anathematizing especially

123

ἐμφεροῦς λίθοις ἐν πολλοῖς τόποις καταρραγείσης καὶ μεγίστων σεισμῶν ἄλλαις τε πόλεσι καὶ Νικαίᾳ τῇ Βιθυνῶν εἰσάγαν λυμηναμένων, οὐκ ἐπαύσαντο Οὐάλης τε ὁ βασιλεὺς καὶ Εὐδόξιος ὁ ἐπίσκοπος τοὺς ἑτέρως αὐτοῖς δοξάζοντας Χριστιανοὺς ἐκδιώκοντες. καὶ πρὸς μὲν τοὺς ὁμοδόξους τοῖς ἐν Νικαίᾳ συνελθοῦσιν ἐδόκει πως αὐτοῖς κατωρθῶσθαι τὸ σπουδασθέν· ἐν γὰρ τῷ πλείονι τῆς ὑπὸ Οὐάλεντος ἀρχομένης καὶ μάλιστα ἀνά τε Θρᾴκην καὶ Βιθυνίαν καὶ ῾Ελλήσποντον καὶ ἔτι τούτων προσωτέρω οὔτε ἐκκλησίας 6.10.3 οὔτε ἱερέας εἶχον. πρὸς δὲ τοὺς τὰ Μακεδονίου φρονοῦντας, πολυπλασίους αὐτῶν ὄντας κατὰ τόδε τὸ κλίμα, ἐχαλέπαινον, καὶ τραπέντες ἐπ' αὐτοὺς οὐ μετρίως ἐδίωκον. οἱ δὲ δέει τῶν ἐπικειμένων κακῶν διαπρεσβευόμενοι πρὸς ἀλλήλους κατὰ πόλεις ἄμεινον ἐδοκίμασαν ἐπὶ Οὐαλεντινιανὸν καὶ τὸν ῾Ρωμαίων ἐπίσκοπον καταφυγεῖν κἀκείνοις μᾶλλον ἢ Εὐδοξίῳ καὶ Οὐάλεντι 6.10.4 καὶ τοῖς ἀμφ' αὐτοὺς κοινωνεῖν τῆς πίστεως. καὶ ἐπεὶ τάδε καλῶς ἔχειν ἔδοξεν, αἱροῦνται ἐπὶ τούτοις τρεῖς ἐξ αὐτῶν, Εὐστάθιόν τε τὸν ἐκ Σεβαστείας ἐπίσκοπον καὶ Σιλβανὸν τὸν Ταρσοῦ καὶ Θεόφιλον τὸν Κασταβάλων, καὶ πρὸς Οὐαλεντινιανὸν τὸν βασιλέα πέμπουσι γράψαντες Λιβερίῳ τῷ ῾Ρωμαίων ἐπισκόπῳ καὶ τοῖς ἀνὰ τὴν δύσιν ἱερεῦσιν, οἷα δὴ πίστιν δόκιμον καὶ βεβαίαν ἀπὸ τῶν ἀποστόλων ἔχουσι καὶ πρὸ τῶν ἄλλων προνοεῖν τῆς θρησκείας ὀφείλουσι, παντὶ σθένει συλλαβέσθαι τοῖς αὐτῶν πρέσβεσι καὶ σὺν αὐτοῖς περὶ τῶν πρακτέων βουλεύσασθαι καὶ ὡς ἂν δοκιμάσωσι διορθῶσαι τὰ τῆς ἐκκλησίας πράγματα. 6.10.5 Καὶ οἱ μὲν εἰς ᾿Ιταλίαν ἀφικόμενοι ἔγνωσαν τὸν βασιλέα ἐν Γαλατίᾳ διάγειν τοῖς τῇδε παρακειμένοις βαρβάροις μαχόμενον. ἀπόρου δὲ φανείσης αὐτοῖς τῆς ἐπὶ Γαλάτας ὁδοῦ διὰ τὸν πόλεμον ἔδωκαν Λιβερίῳ τὰ γράμματα. 6.10.6 κοινωσάμενοί τε περὶ ὧν ἐπρεσβεύοντο, καταγινώσκουσιν ᾿Αρείου καὶ τῶν ὁμοίως αὐτῷ φρονούντων καὶ διδασκόντων· ἀποκηρύττουσι δὲ καὶ πᾶσαν αἵρεσιν ἐναντιουμένην τῇ πίστει τῆς ἐν Νικαίᾳ συνόδου, καὶ τὸ ὁμοούσιον 6.10.7 ὄνομα δέχονται ὡς τῷ ὁμοίῳ κατ' οὐσίαν τὰ αὐτὰ σημαῖνον. ὡς δὲ τούτων ἔγγραφον αὐτῶν ὁμολογίαν ἔλαβεν ὁ Λιβέριος, ἐκοινώνησεν αὐτοῖς, καὶ τοῖς ἀνὰ τὴν ἕω ἐπισκόποις ἔγραψε τῆς ὁμονοίας καὶ τῆς περὶ τὸ δόγμα συμφωνίας ἐπαινῶν, καὶ τὰ πρὸς τοὺς πρέσβεις πεπραγμένα ἐμήνυσεν. ἦν δὲ τῶν ἀμφὶ τὸν Εὐστάθιον ἡ ὁμολογία ἥδε· 6.11.1 «Κυρίῳ ἀδελφῷ καὶ συλλειτουργῷ Λιβερίῳ Εὐστάθιος, Σιλβανός, Θεό"7φιλος ἐν κυρίῳ χαίρειν. "7∆ιὰ τὰς τῶν αἱρετικῶν μανιώδεις ὑπονοίας, οἳ οὐ παύονται ταῖς καθολι"7καῖς ἐκκλησίαις σκάνδαλα ἐπισπείρειν, τούτου χάριν πᾶσαν ἀφορμὴν αὐτῶν "7ἀναιροῦντες ὁμολογοῦμεν τὴν σύνοδον τὴν γενομένην ἐν Λαμψάκῳ καὶ Σμύρνῃ 6.11.2 "7καὶ ἐν ἑτέροις διαφόροις τόποις τῶν ὀρθοδόξων ἐπισκόπων, ἧς συνόδου "7πρεσβείαν ποιούμενοι πρὸς τὴν χρηστότητά σου καὶ πάντας τοὺς ᾿Ιταλούς "7τε καὶ δυτικοὺς ἐπισκόπους γράμματα κομίζομεν, τὴν πίστιν τὴν καθολικὴν "7κρατεῖν καὶ φυλάσσειν, ἥτις ἐν τῇ ἁγίᾳ Νικαέων συνόδῳ ἐπὶ τοῦ μακαρίου "7Κωνσταντίνου ὑπὸ τριακοσίων δέκα καὶ ὀκτὼ ἐπισκόπων βεβαιωθεῖσα "7ἀκεραίᾳ καὶ ἀσαλεύτῳ καταστάσει ἕως νῦν καὶ διηνεκῶς διαμένει, ἐν ᾗ "7τὸ ὁμοούσιον ἁγίως καὶ εὐσεβῶς κεῖται ὑπεναντίως τῆς ᾿Αρείου διαστροφῆς· 6.11.3 "7ὁμοίως καὶ ἡμᾶς μετὰ τῶν προειρημένων τὴν αὐτὴν πίστιν κεκρατηκέναι "7τε καὶ κρατεῖν καὶ ἄχρι τέλους φυλάσσειν ἰδίᾳ χειρὶ ὁμολογοῦμεν, κατα"7κρίνοντες ῎Αρειον καὶ τὴν ἀσεβῆ διδαχὴν αὐτοῦ σὺν τοῖς μαθηταῖς αὐτοῦ "7καὶ πᾶσαν αἵρεσιν Σαβελλίου καὶ Πατροπασσιανοῦ, Μαρκίωνος, Φωτεινοῦ, "7Μαρκέλλου καὶ Παύλου τοῦ Σαμοσατέως, καὶ τούτων τὴν διδαχὴν καὶ "7πάντας τοὺς ὁμόφρονας αὐτῶν· καὶ πάσας δὲ τὰς αἱρέσεις τὰς ἐναντιου"7μένας τῇ προειρημένῃ ἁγίᾳ πίστει, ἥτις εὐσεβῶς καὶ καθολικῶς ὑπὸ τῶν "7ἁγίων ἐξετέθη πατέρων ἐν Νικαίᾳ, ἀναθεματίζομεν, ἀναθεματίζοντες ἐξαι"7ρέτως