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| To Domnus, Bishop of Antioch.
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CXII. To Domnus, Bishop
of Antioch.1868
| 1868 Garnerius points out that the indications of the date of this
letter are clear. It mentions the imperial summons to the Latrocinium,
and contains Theodoret’s advice to Domnus as to what companions
he should take with him. It must therefore be placed between the
arrival of the summons at Antioch and the departure of Domnus for
Ephesus. The summons is dated the 30th of March, and appointed the 1st
of August for the meeting. Antioch is a clear thirty days’
journey from Ephesus and Domnus had not yet chosen his companions. We
may therefore date the letter in the May of 449. |
When news was brought to me that
the pettiness of the victorious emperor had been put an end to, a
reconciliation effected between him and the very godly bishop,1869
| 1869 Presumably Irenæus of Tyre. | the summons to the council cancelled,
and the peace of the churches restored, I hoped that our troubles were
a thing of the past. But I am deeply distressed at what I hear from
your holiness. It is impossible to hope for any good from this
notorious council, unless the merciful Master with His wonted
providence shall undo the riotous demons’ devices. Even in the
great synod, I mean that of Nicæa, the Arian party voted with the
orthodox and set their hands to the apostolic exposition. But they did
not cease to war against the truth till they had torn asunder the body
of the Church. For thirty years the supporters of the apostolic
doctrines and they who were infected with the Arian blasphemy continued
in communion with one another. But at Antioch,1870
| 1870 i.e., in 361. For Theodoret’s account of the circumstances
vide pp. 92, 93. | when the latest council was finished,
when they had seated the man of God, the great Meletius, on the
apostolic throne, and then after a few days ejected him by the imperial
authority, Euzoius who was affected with the undoubted plague of Arius
was put forward, and straightway the champions of apostolic doctrines
seceded and thereafter the division continued.
As I look back on what happened
then, and
look forward to similar events in the future, my wretched spirit sighs
and wails, for I see no prospect of good. The men of the other dioceses
do not know the poison which lies in the Twelve Chapters;1871
| 1871 Cyril wrote his IIIrd letter to Nestorius probably on Nov. 3, 430.
“To the end of the letter were appended twelve
‘articles’ or ‘chapters,’ couched in the form
of anathematisms against the various points of the Nestorian
theory.” “These propositions were not well calculated to
reclaim Nestorius; nor were they indeed so worded throughout as to
approve themselves to all who essentially agreed with Cyril as to the
personal Deity of Christ. On the contrary the abruptness of their tone,
and a certain one-sidedness…made some of them open, prima
facie, to serious criticism from persons who, without being
Nestorians, felt that in the attack on Nestorianism the truth of
Christ’s real and permanent manhood might be in danger of losing
its due prominence.” Canon Bright, Dict. Christ. Biog. i.
766. | having regard to the celebrity of the
writer of them, they suspect no mischief, and his successor in the
see1872
| 1872 Dioscorus succeeded Cyril at Midsummer, 444. | is I think adopting every means to
confirm them in a second synod. For supposing he who lately wrote them
at command, and anathematized all who did not wish to abide by them,
were presiding over an œcumenical council, what could he not
effect? And be well assured, my lord, that no one who knows the heresy
they contain will brook to accept them, though twice as many men of
this sort decree them. Before now, though a larger number have rashly
confirmed them, I resisted at Ephesus, and refused to communicate with
the writer of them till he had agreed to the points laid down by me,
and had harmonized his teaching with them, without making any mention
of the Chapters. This your holiness can ascertain without any
difficulty if you order the acts of the synod to be investigated; for
they are preserved as is customary with the synodical signatures, and
there are extant more than fifty synodic acts shewing the accusation of
the Twelve Chapters. For before the journey to Ephesus the blessed
John1873
had written to the very godly bishops
Eutherius of Tyana, Firmus of Cæsarea, and Theodotus of Ancyra,
denouncing these Chapters as Apollinarian.1874
| 1874 Eutherius of Tyana (Kiliss Hissar in Karamania) was a strong
Nestorian, and signed the appeal of Nestorius after his deposition in
431. On July 17th John and his adherents were deposed. Firmus of the
Cappadocian Cæsarea (still “Kasaria”) himself a
graceful letter writer, was an anti-Nestorian. Theodotus of Ancyra also
sided with Cyril. | And at Ephesus the exposition and
confirmation of these Chapters was the cause of our deposition of the
Alexandrian and of the Ephesian.1875
| 1875 i.e. Cyril and Memnon. “No sooner had John reached Ephesus,
than before he had washed and dressed after his journey, in the inn
itself, late at night, in secret session, by the connivance of the
Count Candidianus, a sentence was passed on Cyril and Memnon—on
Cyril on the accusation of Theodoret.” Cf. Garnerius Hist.
Theod., and Cyril. Ep. ad Cœlest. Labbe iii. 663. | Moreover
at Ephesus many synodic letters were written both to the victorious
emperor, and to the great officers, about these Chapters; and in like
manner to the laity at Constantinople and to the reverend clergy.
Moreover when we were summoned to Constantinople we had five
discussions in the imperial presence, and afterwards sent the emperor
three protestations. And to the very godly bishops of the West, of
Milan I mean, of Aquileia, and of Ravenna, we wrote on the same
subject, protesting that the Chapters were full of the Apollinarian
novelty. Furthermore their writer received a letter from the blessed
John by the hands of the blessed Paul,1876
| 1876 John of Antioch sent Paul of Emesa to confer with Cyril on terms
of peace in 432. | openly blaming them; and in like
manner from Acacius of blessed memory. And to give your holiness
concise information on the subject I have sent you both the letter of
the blessed Acacius, as well as that of the blessed John to the blessed
Cyril, in order that you may perceive that though they were writing to
him on the subject of agreement they blamed these Chapters. And the
blessed Cyril himself, in his letter to the blessed Acacius plainly
indicated the drift of these Chapters in the words “I have
written this against his innovations and when peace is made they will
be made manifest.” The very defence proves the accusation. I have
sent you the copy of what he wrote at the time of the agreement, that
you may see, my lord, that he made no mention of them, and that those
who attend the Council are under an obligation to bring forward what
was written at the time of the agreement, and to state plainly what had
caused the difference and on what terms the sundered parts were atoned.
For they who are summoned to fight for the truth must flinch from no
toil, and must invoke the divine aid, that we may preserve unimpaired
the heritage bequeathed us by our forefathers.
Your holiness must look out for
men of like mind among the godly bishops and make them companions of
your journey; and likewise of the reverend clergy those who are zealous
for the truth, lest betrayed even by them of our own side we are either
driven to do something displeasing to the God of all, or, in our
abandonment, fall an easy prey to our foes.
It is faith in which we have our
hopes of salvation, and we must leave no means untried to prevent aught
spurious being brought into it, and the apostolic teaching from being
corrupted.
I write you these words from far
away, with sighs and with groans, and I beseech our common Master to
scatter this dark cloud and bestow on us once more the boon of the
bright sunshine. E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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