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the existing ancient churches, that “catholic church,” but those of Meletius “church of the martyrs.” Therefore also in Eleutheropolis and in Gaza and in Aelia, the same Meletius, having passed through, ordained many in this way. And it came to pass that he spent time in the aforementioned mines; but in the meantime the confessors are released from the mines, both those of the party of Peter—for there were still many—and those of Meletius. For not even in the mines did they have communion with one another or pray together. And it happens that Meletius spent yet more time in the world, so that he was a contemporary also of Alexander, the successor of Peter, and had a friendly relationship with him; and he was concerned about matters of the church and faith. For I have often said that he had nothing different. 3.144 4. For this same Meletius, having been in Alexandria and spending time there, holding his own assembly with his own people, detected Arius, having brought it up to Alexander, how he had been informed that Arius, in his expositions, had stepped outside the established faith. For he was a presbyter in the church in Baucalis, so-called, in Alexandria. For to each one a presbyter is assigned—for there were many churches, but now there are more—and the church was entrusted to him, even if another was with him; for which reason, when we come to the place, we will speak in detail, when there is need concerning this. Since, therefore, Alexander diligently detected Arius, having called together the bishops and held a synod, he inquired, demanding concerning the faith and requiring from Arius an account concerning the ruin of heresy that had been implanted in him. But Arius did not deny it, but even with a hardened face, he answered as he was; and Alexander expels him from the church, and a great multitude is expelled with him, those stained by him, of virgins and other clerics. But Arius, having fled, makes his way to Palestine, and having gone up to Nicomedia and from there written letters to Alexander, did not depart from the mad mindset of his heresy. But after a short time, when the same Alexander, the holy bishop of Alexandria, took care of it and moved the blessed Constantine, he convened a synod in the city of Nicaea. And the heresy of Arius is anathematized; but after he died *. For at first he denied it to the face of the blessed emperor Constantine and through oaths feigned with irony the words of orthodoxy. But when the emperor said to him that if indeed 3.145 you swear most justly, may your oath be confirmed, and you will be innocent; but if deceitfully, may God, by whom you swore, bring about vengeance upon you. Which not long after happened to him, as we will later say. Therefore, this Arius, cooperating with Eusebius, the bishop of Nicomedia, who thought the same things as he, was brought before the same emperor as if denying and anathematizing his own heresy. Wherefore he orders and permits Eusebius to assemble him in Constantinople in the time of Bishop Alexander, the namesake of the bishop in Alexandria, being the bishop of Constantinople. 5. But now the blessed Alexander in Alexandria, after the death of the aforementioned confessor Meletius, having taken up zeal against the schism of the church, seemed in every way to trouble and restrain and compel those who assembled privately, who had been left behind by Meletius, so that they might not break away from the one church. But those not willing were troubled and caused disturbances. Because of this, being pressured and restrained by the blessed Alexander, some of them who were reckless and held the first rank both in piety and in life attempt and are sent to the court for the sake of a petition, to petition and be permitted to assemble privately and not be hindered. And there was a certain Paphnutius, a great man, a hermit, he himself being the son of a confessor, having himself also touched upon it somewhat

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τὰς οὔσας ἀρχαίας ἐκκλησίας, ὅτι «ἐκκλησία καθολική», οἱ δὲ ἀπὸ Μελιτίου «ἐκκλησία μαρτύρων». ὅθεν καὶ ἐν Ἐλευθεροπόλει καὶ ἐν Γάζῃ καὶ ἐν Αἰλίᾳ παρελθὼν ὁ αὐτὸς Μελίτιος πολλοὺς οὕτως ἐχειροτόνησε. καὶ γέγονεν αὐτὸν χρονοτριβῆσαι ἐν τοῖς προειρημένοις μετάλλοις· ἀλλὰ μεταξὺ ἀπολύονται τῶν μετάλλων οἱ ὁμολογηταί, οἵ τε τοῦ μέρους Πέτρου ἦσαν γὰρ ἔτι πολλοί καὶ οἱ τοῦ Μελιτίου. οὔτε γὰρ ἐν τοῖς μετάλλοις ἀλλήλοις ἐκοινώνουν ἢ συνηύχοντο. γίνεται δὲ τὸν Μελίτιον ἔτι διατρῖψαι ἐν κόσμῳ χρόνον, ὥστε συνακμάσαι καὶ Ἀλεξάνδρῳ τῷ τοῦ Πέτρου διαδόχῳ, τὰ φίλα τε ἔχειν πρὸς αὐτόν· ἐμερίμνα τε τὰ περὶ τῆς ἐκκλησίας καὶ πίστεως. ἔφην γὰρ πολλάκις ὅτι οὐδὲν εἶχεν παρηλλαγμένον. 3.144 4. Αὐτὸς γὰρ οὗτος ὁ Μελίτιος ἐν Ἀλεξανδρείᾳ γενόμενος κἀκεῖσε διατρίβων χρόνον, ἔχων ἰδίαν τὴν σύναξιν σὺν τοῖς ἰδίοις, τὸν Ἄρειον ἐφώρασεν, ἀνενέγκας ἐπὶ τὸν Ἀλέξανδρον, ὡς ἐνηχήθη δὲ τὸν Ἄρειον ἐν ταῖς αὐτοῦ ἐξηγήσεσιν ἔξω τοῦ προκειμένου τῆς πίστεως βεβηκότα. ἦν γὰρ οὗτος ἐν Βαυκάλει τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ οὕτω καλουμένῃ Ἀλεξανδρείας πρεσβύτερος. καθ' ἑκάστην γὰρ εἷς πρεσβύτερός ἐστιν ἀποτεταγμένος ἦσαν γὰρ πολλαὶ ἐκκλησίαι, νῦν δὲ πλείους καὶ αὐτῷ ἡ ἐκκλησία ἐγκεχείριστο, κἄν τε ἄλλος σὺν αὐτῷ ἦν· ὧν ἕνεκα γενόμενοι ἐν τῷ τόπῳ λέξομεν κατὰ λεπτότητα, ὅτε χρεία περὶ τούτου ἔσται. ἐπεὶ οὖν ἐφώρασε τὸν Ἄρειον σπουδαίως Ἀλέξανδρος, συγκαλέσας ἐπισκόπους καὶ ποιήσας σύνοδον ἐζήτει ἀξιῶν περὶ πίστεως καὶ ἀπαιτῶν τὸν Ἄρειον λόγον περὶ τῆς ἐν αὐτῷ ἐγκισσηθείσης λύμης τῆς κακοδοξίας. ὁ δὲ Ἄρειος οὐ μὴν ἠρνήσατο, ἀλλὰ καὶ μετὰ τετριμμένου προσώπου ὡς εἶχεν οὕτως ἀπεκρίνατο· καὶ ἐξεοῖ μὲν Ἀλέξανδρος αὐτὸν τῆς ἐκκλησίας, ἐξεοῦται δὲ ἅμα αὐτῷ πλῆθος πολύ, οἱ ἀπ' αὐτοῦ κεχραμμένοι παρθενευουσῶν καὶ ἄλλων κληρικῶν. ὁ δὲ Ἄρειος ἀποδράσας ἐπὶ τὴν Παλαιστινῶν στέλλεται τὴν πορείαν, ἐν Νικομηδείᾳ τε ἀνελθὼν κἀκεῖθεν γράψας ἐπιστολὰς Ἀλεξάνδρῳ, οὐχ ὑπερέβαινε τῆς αὐτοῦ κακοδοξίας τὴν μανιώδη διάνοιαν. ἀλλὰ μεταξὺ ὀλίγου τοῦ χρόνου, τοῦ αὐτοῦ Ἀλεξάνδρου τοῦ ἁγίου ἐπισκόπου Ἀλεξανδρείας ἐπιμελησαμένου καὶ κινήσαντος τὸν μακάριον Κωνσταντῖνον, συνεκρότησε σύνοδον ἐν τῇ Νικαίᾳ τῇ πόλει. καὶ ἀναθεματίζεται μὲν ἡ Ἀρείου αἵρεσις· μετὰ δὲ τὸ ἀποθανεῖν αὐτὸν *. τὸ πρῶτον μὲν γὰρ ἠρνεῖτο εἰς πρόσωπον τοῦ μακαρίου βασιλέως Κωνσταντίνου καὶ δι' ὅρκων προσεποιεῖτο εἰρωνείᾳ τὰ τῆς ὀρθοδοξίας ῥήματα. φήσαντος δὲ τοῦ βασιλέως πρὸς αὐτὸν ὅτι εἰ μὲν 3.145 δικαιότατα ἀπόμνυσαι, πιστωθείη ὁ σὸς ὅρκος, καὶ ἀθῷος ἔσῃ· εἰ δὲ δολίως, ὁ θεός, καθ' οὗ ὤμοσας, ποιήσαι τὴν κατὰ σοῦ ἐκδικίαν. ὅπερ οὐκ εἰς μακρὰν αὐτῷ γέγονεν, ὡς ὕστερον ἐροῦμεν. συμπράττων τοίνυν οὗτος ὁ Ἄρειος Εὐσεβίῳ τῷ ἐπισκόπῳ Νικομηδείας τὰ αὐτὰ αὐτῷ φρονοῦντι προσηνέχθη τῷ αὐτῷ βασιλεῖ ὡς δῆθεν ἀρνούμενος καὶ ἀναθεματίζων τὴν αὐτοῦ αἵρεσιν. ὅθεν κελεύει καὶ ἐπιτρέπει Εὐσεβίῳ τὸν αὐτὸν συνάξαι ἐν Κωνσταντινουπόλει ἐπὶ Ἀλεξάνδρου ἐπισκόπου, ὁμωνύμου τοῦ ἐν Ἀλεξανδρείᾳ ἐπισκόπου, ὄντος δὲ ἐπισκόπου Κωνσταντινουπόλεως. 5. Ἤδη δὲ ὁ μακαρίτης Ἀλέξανδρος ὁ ἐν Ἀλεξανδρείᾳ μετὰ τὴντελευτὴν Μελιτίου τοῦ προειρημένου ὁμολογητοῦ ζῆλον ἀνειληφὼς κατὰ τοῦ σχίσματος τῆς ἐκκλησίας πάντῃ τοὺς ἰδίᾳ συνάγοντας ὑπὸ δὲ Μελιτίου καταλειφθέντας ἐδόκει ταράσσειν τε καὶ συνέχειν βιάζεσθαί τε ὅπως μὴ ἀφηνιάσωσι τῆς μιᾶς ἐκκλησίας. οἱ δὲ μὴ βουλόμενοι ἐτάραττον καὶ ταραχὰς ἐνήργουν. ἐκ τούτου πιεζόμενοι καὶ συνεχόμενοι ὑπὸ τοῦ μακαρίου Ἀλεξάνδρου ἐπιχειροῦσί τινες ἐξ αὐτῶν ἀκραίμονες καὶ τὰ πρωτεῖα ἀποφερόμενοι ἔν τε εὐσεβείᾳ καὶ ἐν βίῳ καὶ στέλλονται ἐπὶ τὸ κομητάτον ἐντυχίας ἕνεκα, τοῦ ἐντυχεῖν καὶ ἀνεθῆναι τοῦ συνάγειν ἰδίᾳ καὶ μὴ κωλύεσθαι. ἦν δὲ Παφνούτιός τις μέγας ἀνὴρ ἀναχωρητὴς καὶ αὐτὸς υἱὸς ὁμολογητρίας τυγχάνων παραψάμενός τε καὶ αὐτὸς ποσῶς