And when the sexton had accepted their offer, and promised them his help, and they now felt confident of success, and every thing was ready, the news got abroad that they were about to consecrate some one or other by stratagem: and information being given to the patriarch 21 of the city, he immediately sent orders |303 for their arrest. They surrounded the house therefore, in which they were, and having effected an entrance, seized upon three monks, but Damianus and his bishops and some others managed to descend into the latrina, and thence scrambled out by a window at the back, and so made good their escape, but with both their persons and their dress all covered with filth and ordure. The names of those who escaped in this distressing manner were Damianus himself, and Sergius the single-browed 22, and George Sarcabinus, and the bishops who were to have joined in the consecration, and Severus, the intended patriarch: and they were more ashamed at having had to encounter this uncleanness than at the failure of their deep-laid plans. As for the monks who were arrested, they brought them to the patriarch, and he had them hung up and bitterly tortured, until they acknowledged every thing they had been about to do. Having confessed therefore about Damianus, and his party, orders were sent everywhere for their arrest, but they succeeded in making their escape. They confessed also about the sexton, and he was brought, and acknowledged his guilt, and was tortured even worse than the monks were, and his goods pillaged. Damianus, on his escape, made his way in disguise to Constantinople, just before the meeting was held for the |304 establishment of unity; and by the zealous services of certain who were anxious for peace, he was introduced by night to the illustrious Mondir, and they conversed with one another, and he promised that he would do his best to bring about a reconciliation, and assent to it himself. And after holding interviews with a few persons, he withdrew secretly, and arrived at Alexandria: it was said, however, that he had made bishops even at the capital.
[IV. 42.] The Alexandrian clergy who had been present at this meeting were at Constantinople under arrest, together with many laymen of note, and Mondir now offered his intercessions in their behalf with the merciful king Tiberius, and he let them go; and not content with this, Mondir made them handsome presents because they had consented to a reconciliation, and they left with joy, and went on board, and returned to their city. And subsequently the illustrious Mondir begged that he might himself be permitted to leave, having first interceded with Tiberius also for the peace of the church, and begged that all persecution of Christians might cease. And he further promised on oath, that if Tiberius would cease from all military proceedings, he would immediately make peace. And upon this promise Tiberius dismissed him with great honours, and kingly presents of gold and silver, and magnificent dresses, and saddles, and bridles of gold, and armour. And besides all this, he also gave him a royal crown, the right of wearing which |305 had never hitherto been conceded to any of the chiefs of the Arabs, but only leave to put on their heads a simple circlet. And thus then he was sent away, and departed with great pomp and joyfulness. And on his arrival at Antioch, he was similarly received there; and supported by the express wishes of the king, and his promises and oaths for the union of the church; and by his orders that the persecution should cease, he gave notice thereof to the patriarch and other officers of the city: and the patriarch immediately gave orders, and letters were written to the provinces, enjoining that no one should venture upon persecuting others; for that the king had commanded and wished peace to be made. And so for a short time the persecution was stilled. But when news of this reached the Dyophysites at the capital, they were very angry with Mondir, and went and accused him harshly before the king, but he would not listen to them. Now while Mondir was on his road, those hostile Arab tribes who were subject to the Persians, having imagined that his detention at the capital would be indefinitely prolonged, gathered themselves together, and supposing him to be far away, marched in company with the Persians into his territories to attack his sons and brothers, hoping to fall upon them and slay and take them captive. But at the very moment when they were drawn up in hostile array, Mondir suddenly arrived, and at once, without their expecting it, he gave orders for the attack, and |306 fell upon them and slew them until they were consumed, and very few escaped from his sword. And so his return was a joyful one, and he brought with him great spoil, and was extolled by every body, and his name magnificently praised.
[IV 43] The pacification, however, which he had wrought in the church was but of short duration: for no sooner had the Syrian, Damianus, returned to his see at Alexandria, than, being blamed for making peace with Paul, like one more desirous of pleasing men than God, and indifferent to the peace of the church, he violated his word and proved false to the promises he had made to the illustrious Mondir, and to the rest of the believers of both parties who had interceded with him, and turned round and opposed Paul, and wrote anathemas against him, and reproaches and contumelies of the harshest kind. And not content with this, he even penned a circular letter to the same effect, and sent it to Syria, and to all other places both in his diocese and elsewhere. And these letters were chiefly given to those men of turbulent and savage temper, who are Satan's yokefellows, and labourers with him, and who instead of gathering with Christ scatter abroad. And being thus encouraged, they stirred up schisms everywhere and disputes and quarrels and all the evils in which the devil delights, more vehemently even than before. And in thus acting, Damianus was guilty of deeds worthy of himself, or even |307 perhaps one may not unfitly say, of Satan. And the clergy also who were present at the meeting held in the capital for the purpose of bringing about a reconciliation, imitated his example in lying against the Holy Ghost, and proved false to their word, though they had been set at liberty and escaped from their troubles by the earnest intercession of Mondir in their behalf. And he had thus exerted himself because in his presence, and before a numerous assembly, they had promised to be reconciled and join in union, and had signed their names to a paper to that effect: and thereby had obtained their freedom, and escaped from confinement and from prison; and yet afterwards they turned round, and were 'faithless like their fathers,' [Psalm lxxviii.8] that is, like their father Damianus, who was as bad as they were, and they equally bad with him. When therefore king Mondir returned from battle with his enemies, and learnt their perfidy, and how they had changed from truth unto endless falsehood, he was very sorrowful: and surprised, moreover, and astonished, especially at Damianus' circular letters, which approached as near as possible to utter wickedness. Nor did he even decline the trouble of writing to each one of them by name, to admonish and reprove them for their falsehood against God and himself and the whole church. And they, from shame and mortification, would not receive his letters, nor would they write an answer. And he thereby was greatly offended, |308 because these letters lit up a flaming furnace of anger throughout the church of the believers, and multiplied the strife already existing, and made their quarrels blaze up more hotly than ever without restraint or fear of God's just judgment.
[IV. 44] For immediately that these letters were received in the east, they stirred men up to the irregular proceeding of creating a second patriarch, as far as the name went, of Antioch, while the first had never been publicly condemned as the canons direct; and this gave the mockers an opportunity of saying in sport and derision, 'A second patriarch, we suppose, was wanted to be nominated for Antioch, because there are three 23 at Alexandria, to say nothing of him of the synodites, and they cannot make game of one another.' So disorderly and confused was all that was done among the believers, because their incessant quarrels turned every thing upside down.
[IV. 45] They even endeavoured to draw John himself into the quarrel, by writing to him at the capital, and requesting him to communicate with their |309 new patriarch. For in the year 892 24 (A. D. 581), the bishops and abbots and clergy of the blessed Jacob, after his death, formed the plan of appointing as their patriarch a layman named Peter, son of Paul of the city of Callinicus; a man whom the blessed Jacob twice while he lived had endeavoured to raise to that office; and now again, after the death of the saint, they were desirous of consecrating him, but he would not consent, nor permit it; for he said, 'I can never agree to be set over a man who has not been cited canonically, and condemned and deposed according to law. ' When, however, they proceeded to excommunicate him and eject him from the church, he was compelled to give way, and went, as was said, to Alexandria, and was there elected by Damianus and the rest, and named patriarch of Alexandria in addition to Paul, while he still lived, and had never been condemned by a synod and deposed: so great was the corruption and confusion in the church of the believers by the instigation and to the delight of the devil. And the next scheme they formed was for all the abbots who had consented to this proceeding to meet together, and draw up letters signed by their own hands to John bishop of Ephesus, who was dwelling at the capital, to invite him to union and communion with them and their patriarch, without, however, telling |310 him openly the name of him whom they had elected. And John at this time, because he stood neutral between the two parties, was equally the object of blame to both sides, while all he could do was to grieve and mourn at the disruption occasioned by the envy and rancour of the Alexandrians, and the schisms throughout the whole church of the believers; and to admonish them and protest against their doings, and entirely refuse to take part with either one side or the other, or join in the conflict. And when he received these letters, he gave way to tears and bitter lamentation at this fresh ruin and confusion of the church; and could he have done as he pleased, he would not have answered them; but because a year before they had addressed other letters to him, and invited him to join them, and oppose the other side; and he had refused even to send them a reply, and they had mentioned this reproachfully in their present epistles, he was obliged to write an answer, though it was one of strong reproof, for having violated all canonical order in what they had done, and invited him to union and communion with them. And it is only their length that prevents him from inserting here both their letters to him and the answer which he sent. [IV. 46.
] Now let this be known for certain by both sides, who are thus embittered against one another by the instigation of the spirit of opposition, and to all men besides, that in whatsoever has been attempted or done by our unworthy |311 selves, and in our narrative of the proceedings of both parties, we have had no other object than the truth's sake, in blaming and condemning both sides alike; nor have we written with the view of wounding individuals, nor for factious purposes; for, as may be seen, we have directed our reproofs and admonitions now against one party, and at another time against their opponents, and have exposed the factiousness and irregularity and illegal nature of their several proceedings. And this we have done, with our own mind full of grief and sorrow, and our eyes running down with tears, at the mischief and ruin and schism and quarrel and division and enmity and scorn and reproach stirred up between them, to the delight of the enemy of mankind. At the sight of these evils, we were constrained in sorrow of heart to blame them, because, being members and children of the same faith, they allowed themselves, for insufficient reasons, to rush without thought and without restraint into these unworthy deeds. And to this same effect we wrote at the very commencement of the quarrel, to the leading men personally, and especially to the laborious old man Jacob, and repeatedly urged our intercession to the very day of his death, in words like these: 'I, though but of inferior rank, keeping to the laws of the church, and not perceiving any errors in matters of faith, will neither abandon thy communion, nor that of Paul, because you are at variance with one another on canonical grounds, |312 which may be true or may be false. And as to the other things which, without order or propriety, and contrary to the regulations of the church, have been or are now being done between you, I warn you, that if you anathematize the adherents of Paul, or depose him uncanonically; or if Paul so treats you, or the Alexandrians; or the Alexandrians so treat you or Paul; for these illegal acts you shall never have part or communion with me, until all these things have been examined and inquired into in a legal and canonical investigation before a synod, and it is decided whose actions are in accordance with and maintain the laws of the church, and whose are at variance with order and propriety. ' Ten times in separate letters we wrote to this effect in person to the blessed Jacob, while he was yet alive, and similarly to the rest; and on this account, while I was full of grief and incessant sadness of heart, the accusation was brought against me by both parties, of nourishing opposition against them; but I call Him to witness, Who tries the reins and heart, that I take no part either with one side or the other, but remain strictly neutral up to this day, in grief and sighs and sorrow, at all the evils wrought by his instigation, who has asked to sift us as wheat.
[IV. 47.] As for Paul, the patriarch of evil days, on finding that the enmity of the other side was so inveterate against him, he withdrew in secret, and dwelt, as was said, in a cavern in the lofty |313 mountains of Isauria25, where he has continued for a period of four years, even unto this day, without being seen by any one, except the few who make answer for him: for he himself neither writes to any one nor receives their letters. And this has led to complaint and blame against him on the part of many, because of his withdrawing himself, and standing apart from the struggle maintained in every province on his behalf: and especially because even when his violent opponents consecrated another in his stead in Syria, yet even so he neither shewed himself, nor spake a single word, but still remained at this present moment in concealment and silence.
[IV.48] Meanwhile Theodore, whom we have mentioned above as having been consecrated patriarch of Alexandria by Longinus and the rest, continued to dwell openly in Alexandria itself, observing the customs of his order; for he had previously been a monk, and the head of a monastery, and in it he still calmly resided, and many gathered themselves round him. And because of his humility and peaceableness, no man troubled him, or drove him from the city, although Damianus, the successor of Peter, was against him; but they let him alone, knowing the sweetness of his temper, and that he said, |314 'My only care is, that there be no schism or disturbance in the church on my account.' In process, however, of time, he was grieved in mind at the conduct of Paul and Longinus; for Paul had hid himself, and paid no attention to any thing that was done; and Longinus had travelled still further onward, beyond the people of the Nobadae, to whom he had some time before returned, to another powerful tribe many score leagues beyond them, whom the Greeks call Alodaei, and who are supposed to be Aethiopians: but God had helped them, and spoken to their king and his princes, and to all the tribes under his rule, as we will in due time relate in order. But to return now to our former subject about Theodore; for by wishing to shew what were the fortunes of Paul and Longinus, our narrative has wandered away to a different subject. Being, as we said, vexed and annoyed at them both; 'for after coming,' said he, 'and exposing me to trouble, and getting me away from the desert, they have now left me, and neglect me, and do not even inquire whether I am alive or dead;' he wrote several letters expressive of his indignation, both to Syria and also to myself, and to others at the capital, filled with complaints and vexation. And these he sent by the hands of a blessed man, a Stylite 26, who had been |315 with him in the desert, a person of great worth, and who came accompanied by a priest named George. And when we had received them, and the letters which they brought, and had comforted them much, and had also written a reproof on this account to the partisans of Paul, a violent persecution overtook us, and we were hurried away and removed from the city, and never saw them again. And subsequently he wrote to us again repeating the same complaint, upon the same grounds, but we think it best not to record it, but pass it over in silence for peace sake.
[IV.49] For far more pleasing is the subject to which we alluded above, namely, the conversion of the people whom the Greeks call Alodaei, but whom we believe to be Aethiopians, to the Christian faith. For to repeat some part of our previous narrative, it was by the zeal of the late queen Theodora that the blessed Julian was originally sent to the powerful people called Nobadae, and taught both the king and his princes, and most of the tribes in his dominions, for a period of two years. And on his departure thence, he intrusted all that people to a certain Theodore, a very old man, and bishop of the city called Philae, situated in the further part of the Thebais, on their |316 borders, who went to them, and visited them, and gave them counsel, and returned to his own city; and so they continued for a period of eighteen years, more or less And then it was that Longinus escaped in disguise, and went to them, and taught and instructed them afresh, and baptized such of them as had never partaken of this rite, and continued with them six years: and ambassadors moreover were sent by them to the king, and arrived at the capital, and we were repeatedly in their company, and heard them praising and extolling Longinus in the highest terms. And when the people of the Alodaei heard of the conversion of the Nobadae, their king sent to the king of the Nobadae, requesting him to permit the bishop who had taught and baptized them, to come and instruct them in like manner. But Longinus had just then received the letters from Alexandria, and hastily departed into the Roman territories, and fell into all the troubles one after another, which we have mentioned above. Subsequently, however, the king, with great labour and trouble and difficulty, managed to send ambassadors to him, who prevailed upon him to return with them to their territories And the people of Alexandria, in their Satanic envy, wishing to set the king and his people against him, and turn them away from receiving him, drew up a formal act of deposition, iniquitously and against all canonical right, and sent it to the king; but he and his people would not look at it, or have anything to do with them, |317 saying, 'We will not receive any one but our spiritual father, who begot us again by a spiritual birth; and all that is said against him by his enemies we regard as falsehoods.' And so they sent the bearers away, and would have nothing to do with them.
[IV.50] Nevertheless, in spite of this failure, when the Alexandrians learnt that the king of the Alodaei had despatched a second embassy to the king of the Nobadae, requesting him to let them have the same Longinus who had taught him, in envy, and not in zeal, they sent to that people, in the hope of setting them against Longinus, and of teaching them the same corruption and lawlessness of which they were themselves guilty. Accordingly, they hurriedly drew up a letter to them against Longinus, without fear of God, or regard for justice, being drunk, as it were, with envy, and the hatred that was in their hearts, and not reflecting that it was a wrong thing to send to a people in the error of heathenism, and who now were asking to be converted unto Christianity, and to learn the fear of God, only confusion and offence, and the revilings of Christians against Christians, instead of those things which were useful for their edification. But, as Scripture says, 'their mind was darkened, and their reason blinded, that they could not understand,' [Eph.iv.18] and therefore they were eager, even under these circumstances, to implant hatred and a cause of offence among this heathen people, instead of instruction in the fear of God; and with this view they sent letters |318 to them against Longinus, the bearers of which were two of those bishops, whom, with many others, they had consecrated in opposition to church laws. And the letters were to this effect: 'Inasmuch as we have learnt that ye have requested permission for Longinus, who is in Nubia, to come unto you, to baptize you,we have sent you two bishops, and other persons, to give you instruction, that ye may not be baptized by him, for he is a heretic, and has been deposed, nor can he perform any of the functions of the priesthood, or baptize any one.' And much besides they wrote, to corrupt them, rather than admonish and instruct them. 'But the Lord turned back the recompense of Nabal upon his own head;' [1 Sam xxv.39] and, as it is written, 'the heathen, who knew not the law of righteousness, attained to the law of righteousness, and were a law to their own selves; but Israel, which ran after righteousness, did not attain to it:' [Rom. ix.30] and this text was fulfilled here: for they were rebuked and put to shame by a heathen people, who would not receive them, and sent them back abashed and ashamed; for they said, 'We know not who you are, nor can we receive you, or be baptized by you: but we will receive him who baptized the Nobadae, and by him will we be baptized. And as for what you say of him, we do not listen to it: for we see that you are his enemies, and speak thus of him from envy. Depart, therefore, from our land, that ye die not miserably.' And thus they had to retire, having neither been received themselves, nor |319 their words; for God so ordered it, who saw their crooked devices, and the perverse spirit which had aroused their zeal.
Depart, therefore, from our land, that ye die not miserably. ' And thus they had to retire, having neither been received themselves, nor |319 their words; for God so ordered it, who saw their crooked devices, and the perverse spirit which had aroused their zeal.
[IV.51] Meanwhile the king of the Alodaei had, as we have mentioned, sent a second embassy to the king of the Nobadae, requesting that the bishop Longinus might be sent to teach and baptize both him and his people: and it was plainly visible that the conversion of that kingdom was the good purpose of the grace of God. The Lord therefore stirred up the spirit of Longinus to go to them; and though the Nubians were grieved at being separated from him, they nevertheless sent with him nobles and princes and men well acquainted with the desert. Upon the journey, however, he became ill, as also did his companions: and so great were their privations, and the intensity of the heat, that, as he mentions in a letter, he lost in the desert no less than seventeen camels out of the baggage animals which accompanied him. Nor was this their only or chief danger; for between the Nobadae and the Alodaei is a country inhabited by another people, called the Makoritae 27; and when their king heard that Longinus had started on his journey, Satan in his envy stirred him up to set watchers in all the passes of his kingdom on all the roads, both in the mountains and in the plains, as far as the sea of weeds 28, in hopes of arresting Longinus, and so hindering the salvation |320 of the powerful people of the Alodaei. But God preserved him, and blinded the eyes of those who wanted to seize him; and he passed through them, and went on his way, and they saw him not. And on his arrival at the borders of the kingdom to which he was travelling, the king, as he tells us in his letters, on hearing of it, sent one of his nobles to meet him, named Aitekia 29, who received him honourably, and made him pass over into their land with great pomp: and on approaching nearer, the king went out in person to meet him, and received him with great joy. And immediately upon his arrival, he spake unto the king and to all his nobles the word of God, and they opened their understandings, and listened with joy to what he said; and after a few days' instruction, both the king himself was baptized and all his nobles; and subsequently, in process of time, his people also. And so the king, being glad and joyful, wrote a letter of thanks to the king of the Nobadae, as follows:
Letter of the King of Alodia to the King of the Nubians.
And so the king, being glad and joyful, wrote a letter of thanks to the king of the Nobadae, as follows:
Letter of the King of Alodia to the King of the Nubians.
[IV.52] 'Thy love is remembered by us, my lord, our brother Orfiulo 30, because thou hast now shown thyself my true kinsman, and that not only in the body, but also in the spirit, in having sent me hither our common spiritual father, who has shown me the way of truth, and of the true |321 light of Christ our God, and has baptized me, and my nobles, and all my family. And in every thing the work of Christ is multiplied, and I have hope in the holy God, and am desirous moreover of doing thy pleasure, and driving thy enemies from thy land. For he is not thy enemy alone, but also mine: for thy land is my land, and thy people my people. Let not thy courage therefore fail, but be manful and take courage: for it is impossible for me to be careless of thee and thy land, especially now that I have become a Christian, by the help of my father, the holy father Longinus. As we have need, however, of church furniture, get some ready for us: for I feel certain that thou wilt send me these things with carefulness, and I will make thee an answer: but on the day on which I was keeping festival, I did not wish to write, lest my letters should fail. Be not anxious then, but encourage thyself, and play the man: for Christ is with us.' Such then was the letter which this new confessor, the king of the Alodaei, wrote to the king of the Nobadae. And next we will also give a short extract from a letter of the blessed Longinus, which he wrote from that land, and sent to the king of the Nobadae, with a request that he would forward it to Alexandria: which also he did; and it is as follows:
[IV.53.] ' . . . Not then to trouble you with our annoyances, and make the letter tedious, I have omitted all such matters, and will tell you, |322 secondly, that which will rejoice all who are real Christians, and strict members of the orthodox communion: and I do rejoice with you all, and will rejoice, and ye in like manner must rejoice with me. And, moreover, rejoice with me in this, that He Who willeth that every man should be saved, and desireth not the death of a sinner, such as I am, but forgetteth all my sins, hath remembered His mercy and grace towards me, and opened for me the door of His mercy, and delivered me from those who were hunting after my life, and led me safely through them, and blinded their eyes that they saw me not. Nor were we unvisited by His lovingkindness in chastening us, in that all of us, with my unworthy self, fell ill, from the greatest even to the least; and I was the first to suffer: for it was but right that I should be chastened first, because I am guilty of many sins, and many are the offences into which I have fallen. And not only did we become ill ourselves, and despaired of our safety, but also the animals that were with us died, not being able to bear the heat, and the thirst in the mountains, and the unwholesomeness of the water, so that we lost no less than seventeen camels. And when the king of the Alodaei heard that I had determined to come to him, he sent one of his princes, named Itika 31, who led me with great pomp into their land. |323 And on our arrival at the river's bank, we went on board a vessel; and the king hearing of our coming rejoiced, and came out in person to meet us, and received us with great joy. And by the grace of God we taught him, and have baptized him and his nobles and all his family; and the work of God grows daily. But inasmuch as there are certain Abyssinians, who have fallen into the malady of the fancy of Julianus 32, and say, that Christ suffered in a body not capable of pain, or of death, we have told them what is the correct belief, and have required them to anathematize this heresy in writing, and have received these persons upon their presenting their recantation ..... And again, after some things which we have omitted, he thus proceeds; . . . And let all your rulers and people, on learning these things, offer up with spiritual joy their praises and thanksgivings to our merciful God, for all these His innumerable gifts; and let the fathers take care that there be sent down hither bishops, who will be able to labour and minister in this divine work, which is pleasing both to God and men, and in the reality of which they may feel confident, and that it is going on prosperously. For there are a thousand thousand here who are hastening to salvation, to the glory of Him Who is the Saviour of us all, even Christ. |324
And believe what I say, that a short time ago a sort of purpose suggested by the weakness of human nature came to me, not to write to any one: but when I considered the danger which those incur who are negligent in their use of spiritual gifts, I have addressed this short letter to your spiritual love. For I desire neither silver, nor gold, nor dresses, as God is my witness, Who trieth the hearts of men, and Who knoweth all I do, and that I have not bread for my daily use, and am even glad to see with my eyes food of vegetables only. And thus far then let it suffice me to have told you.' This then was written by the holy Longinus himself, being extracts from the letter he sent from the land of the Alodaei to the king of the Nobadae, with a request that he would forward it to Alexandria, which he accordingly did, to Theodore, whom Longinus had himself appointed as patriarch: and at the same time the king himself sent him a letter to inform him of Longinus' arrival among them, and his subsequent departure, and the trials and difficulties which stood in his way, and the gracious aid which God in His goodness gave him, and so forth; writing in admiration of him, to the following effect:
Letter of the king of the Nobadae to Theodore of Alexandria.
' This then was written by the holy Longinus himself, being extracts from the letter he sent from the land of the Alodaei to the king of the Nobadae, with a request that he would forward it to Alexandria, which he accordingly did, to Theodore, whom Longinus had himself appointed as patriarch: and at the same time the king himself sent him a letter to inform him of Longinus' arrival among them, and his subsequent departure, and the trials and difficulties which stood in his way, and the gracious aid which God in His goodness gave him, and so forth; writing in admiration of him, to the following effect:
Letter of the king of the Nobadae to Theodore of Alexandria.
'Before all things I especially desire your health in Christ, my blessed father; and next, my purpose is that you should know, that seven |325 months ago the king of the powerful people of the Alodaei in Ethiopia, sent hither, to obtain from me, my holy father, the bishop Longinus, to baptize him. And it was done according to all that the holy king my father wrote unto me. For when I had mentioned the matter to my father, he at once readily and with good will assented thereto, and in his kindness promised to visit them. And every day he urged me on, saying, We must not neglect this business, for it is of God. But because of the wicked devices of him who dwells between us, I mean the king of the Makoritae, I sent my saintly father to the king of the Blemyes, that he might conduct him thither by routes farther inland; but the Makorite heard also of this, and set people on the look out in all the passes of his kingdom, both in the mountains and in the plains, and as far as the sea of weeds, wishing to lay hands on my father, and put a stop to the good work of God, as my father has written hither to tell me. And great was the wearisomeness and the bitter trials of soul and body which he endured in the land of the Blemyes, together with extreme privation and want. And yet even so the wicked devices of his enemy could not hinder the readiness of my saintly father in doing the work of God; and the Lord our God directed his ways and ordered his paths so that he travelled safely over long tracks of country, and escaped the strong garrisons set in his way, although he lost his retinue of camels and the other beasts of |326 burden with him. But God helped him, and delivered him, and he arrived at the land, and was joyfully received by the king and all the people; and he taught and baptized them, as we learn from the letter which he has sent hither. And this further you must know, how God the Lord of all has been with my father, and accompanied him, that ye may wonder greatly at what he has done unto him. For when the king, my uncle, and his royal ancestors used to send an embassy to that kingdom, the ambassador generally took eight or ten years in going and returning. But when my holy father went thither, within two hundred days he sent an embassy to us from the king, whereas many of my former ambassadors had never returned hither at all. And not to make my account too long, my father has sent me hither letters which I was to forward to you; and see, I have sent them by his ambassador; and in them he has given us an account of all that has happened to him, and all that he has done. And the news which his messenger has brought us, you must make known; for it would not be right in your excellency to conceal and neglect all these matters: rather your holiness ought to aid my saintly father by your pious prayers.
' Now this portion of the letter of the king of the Nobadae we insert here in confirmation of our narrative, because he bears witness to the whole of this providential history; and he wrote two others to the same effect, which we have not been able to insert for fear of making |327 our story too long. And inasmuch as the main purport of this divine transaction is made known to every one, and declared by means of these two letters of the bishop and the king, we have determined not to lengthen the narrative by adding anything of our own, except to apply to these things, in token of our praise and admiration, the word of our Saviour, which says,'Verily, I say unto you, that this good news of the kingdom shall be preached unto all the nations, and then shall the end be. ' [Matt. xxiv. 14] And these things then, which are now recorded by us, were done by the help of God in the year 891 (A. D. 580).
[IV.54] But to return now to the thread of our former narrative, when above we mentioned the flight and concealment of Paul the patriarch, we said, as we believed ourselves, and as men generally supposed to be the case, that he had hid himself in a cave in the mountains of Isauria. But, as the fact finally proves, according to the assertion of those who find pleasure in investigating any thing thoroughly, during the four years in which he was out of sight, and was supposed to be hid in the mountains of Isauria, he really was concealed in the mountains near the capital. And though we were dwelling there, we were entirely unacquainted with the fact of his being so near us, nor did any one disclose it to us until his death. And those who were in his confidence imagined that even this was kept secret from us, and from men generally, and that three persons |328 alone knew of his burial; but in so supposing they forgot the word of the Lord, which says, that 'there is nothing secret which shall not be revealed.' [Matt. 26]
And those who were in his confidence imagined that even this was kept secret from us, and from men generally, and that three persons |328 alone knew of his burial; but in so supposing they forgot the word of the Lord, which says, that 'there is nothing secret which shall not be revealed. ' [Matt. 26]
[IV. 55] Paul's continued silence had been a source of great grief to Theodore; for during these four years he had never received an answer from him, though he had often written. And Longinus too, who had consecrated him, had gone far away unto those tribes who had been christianized by him in further Aethiopia, and so Theodore was left without consolation on all sides. He determined, therefore, upon writing a circular letter to all the partisans of Paul, complaining and lamenting that he so neglected and despised him. And this he sent by two of his priests, who came to the capital; and on their arrival, their complaints and murmurs made the fact of Paul's concealment more generally known. And many were annoyed, and blamed Paul, and wrote wherever they thought he was, but he could not be found. And with much excuse and consolation, the priests were next sent to the island of Cyprus, because there were some of Paul's bishops there; and finally they returned to Theodore without having gained any thing by their journey. And he was still more distressed, and finally started for Cyprus himself in person. [IV. 56] For when pope Theodore saw that he got no answer, either by letters or by the persons whom he sent, he determined to embark on board a vessel, and sail himself to the island of Cyprus. |329
But he did not find Paul, but only some of his bishops, and though much discussion took place between them, still he could not discover where Paul was: two of the bishops, however, accompanied him back to Alexandria. And so he returned disappointed and vexed; for he did not believe what they said, that Paul was neither there nor in Cilicia, and that he could not see him. But, as was subsequently proved, during all this period of four years, in which no one saw him, and they had spread abroad the report that he lay hid in a cave in the mountains of Cilicia and Isauria, he really was dwelling in concealment in the capital, and but very few were privy to his secret. And there his end overtook him, of which we will now give a more particular account.
[IV. 57] For while, as men thought, Paul was in the regions of the East, he really spent these four years in concealment in a mountain near the capital, as every one became aware at his death, though even then those who took care of him did their best to conceal it, and would not even have had it known that he was mortal. For after, as was said and proved, he had come to this city with the privity of a few members of his party, and had lain concealed with certain of them during all these years, suddenly he fell into a serious illness, and after a short time died. And great alarm and extreme terror fell upon them, lest if those in power should hear that he had been hid either in their houses or with their knowledge, they |330 should get into danger on his account; and therefore they fetched three individuals only of those presbyters who were in communion with him, and exacted of them a solemn oath, that they would not tell any one that it was the remains of the patriarch Paul, but bade them say, if the truth were suspected, that an aged stranger, named Christopher, had come to the city, and died there. And this the three presbyters did, and took him up by night, with his face covered, and carried him for burial to a certain convent. And when the nuns heard their request to bury him, they were terrified, saying, 'We cannot receive a corpse at night, in the dark, without knowing who it is, or whether it may not be some person who has been murdered; for we shall get into trouble. ' And when they earnestly besought them, saying, 'It is a great and righteous man, and a foreigner; be not afraid:' they were at length prevailed upon to admit him. And they brought him in, with a covering over his face, and began in great haste and hurry to let him down into the catacombs: but the nuns were angry, and said, 'If it is as ye affirm, and your words are true, that he is a great and righteous man, let us celebrate over him the proper service for the dead, and uncover his face, that we may see him, and bury him, and be blessed by him: and then ye shall let him down into the grave. ' But they hastily wound him up in the graveclothes, and buried him, saying, 'Let us let him down at once, and go; for we are in haste. ' |331 And so they buried him with the burial of an ass 33, without any regard to decency, and went their way. And the nuns, who were more than a hundred and fifty in number, fell into many conjectures, and spread abroad various stories; and many different opinions were held, not only in the capital and in Syria, but also at Alexandria and everywhere else; but it was the general belief that it was Paul who was dead, though the three presbyters still stoutly affirmed and swore that it was another who had died, and not my lord Paul our patriarch.
But all the orthodox at the capital, who acknowledged him as patriarch, were very indignant and angry that the secret of his death had been revealed to three of them, and kept secret from the rest; and many finally ceased to mention even Paul himself with love, and especially when they learnt that his arrival and residence in the capital, and death, had been concealed from them, and confided to three only of their number. But those who were privy to the secret still swore by a lying artifice that Paul was not dead, but alive; imagining that by so doing his opponents would not be able to rejoice. And for a whole year this dispute continued, and his name, as though he were alive, was proclaimed in the diptychs of the living, in the vain idea that his death would not be known as a certain fact, whereas really everybody did know it. |332
[IV. 58.] And here our historian feels himself bound to make some solemn reflections upon the troubled deaths, one after another, of these two saints, Jacob and Paul, whose quarrel had led to so widespread a schism, and so bitter a dissension in the persecuted church of the believers. For no one, he says, can help wondering and clapping his hands, who considers how strikingly and suddenly and ignominiously they were taken from this present life, and made their exit from this world. For, first of all, the blessed Jacob, in the very heat of their quarrel and dispute, taking two other bishops with him and a number of monks, hurriedly hastened to Alexandria: but what was the purpose of his journey was kept a secret, and men held various opinions about it, some this and some that. But He Whose providence watches over the good of His creatures, saw perchance and knew that it was neither for his own good nor that of the church, and therefore hindered and prevented and forbade his arrival. Now a report, which some have spread abroad of him and his company, is, that when they had reached the sea, and begun their voyage, a violent storm arose, and their ship sunk, and all perished in the sea, and their corpses were never found. But evidently none can ever know whether this be true. And others, who zealously defend his memory, say, that even if the storm really happened, their ship did not sink, but they were thrown on land, and arrived at the borders of Egypt, and reached a monastery in the desert, |333 called by the name of Cassian. And within three days after their arrival there, the two bishops first died, and then my lord Jacob, and then one of his deacons, all four together, one after another. And which of these stories is true, God knows; but we cannot say for certain. After then an interval of two or three years, the burial of Paul took place, in the confusion and absence of all right order, which we have briefly described in the previous chapter, and in secret, as those thought, who were the doers of it. And of these things what ought we to think and write, except to lament unto God with the prophet in sorrow and with sighs, and say, 'If our sins testify against us, Lord have mercy for Thy name sake: for great is Thy goodness, and we have sinned against thee.' [Jer. xiv.7]
And of these things what ought we to think and write, except to lament unto God with the prophet in sorrow and with sighs, and say, 'If our sins testify against us, Lord have mercy for Thy name sake: for great is Thy goodness, and we have sinned against thee. ' [Jer. xiv. 7]
[IV.59] The death of the two leaders led to various attempts at healing the schism in the church: for on both sides men arose, and spake to one another about a reconciliation, but not in an upright manner, and with due regard to humility and the fear of God, but proudly and haughtily, each side thinking that it was the head, and that its neighbour was the tail; and that it was high and exalted, and pure and free from blame, while it sought to keep the other down, and make it take an inferior place. And each side threw upon the other the blame of causing all these evils and schisms and divisions, and each vaunted itself over the other, and swelled with pride, as though it was to receive |334 the other as a penitent, and upon submission; for they had yielded themselves up to the teaching and malignity of the devil, who embittered them, and set them against one other, and so their path never led them to success. [IV. 60.] Peter alone, who had been made against his will patriarch of Syria, in Paul's place, endeavoured, with something like sincerity, to bring about a reconciliation: for even while Paul lived, being reproved by his own conscience, and by many also of his contemporaries, for having uncanonically occupied the throne of another while he was yet alive in the body, when finally the two parties began speaking to one another of a reconciliation; and those on Paul's side unanimously rebuked Peter, because, in Paul's lifetime, he had set himself above him, Peter, 'whether in pretence or in truth,' [Phil. i.18] or by cunning artifice, I know not, but certainly he began to say; 'Let there be no quarrel on my account: I will withdraw, and dwell in retirement: be ye then reconciled one side with the other: and appoint whomsoever ye shall in concert choose in my place, and so let there be union between you.' And when what he said pleased many, as bearing the appearance of humility and gentleness, others rebuked him even to his face, and called out reproachfully, 'Thou sayest this deceitfully, and in craft, and not honestly out of a pure heart: for thou knowest that those on thy side who set thee up, will never abandon thee: and besides, thou wilt make an excuse of Alexandria.' |335 And when he heard this, and much besides, from many of them, to shew that he really was desirous of union, he arose, and took with him some of his partisans, and went to Alexandria, to urge them also, and Damianus, whom they had set over them as their head, to union. And after many matters had been mooted and discussed between them, it seemed, according to the word of the apostle quoted above, 'whether in pretence or in truth,' that while he had spoken and argued much for union, they had resisted him, and would not listen to what he said: and so, as it seemed, he went away in vexation. But some thought that this was done artfully, and by cunning: but God, Who trieth the mind and heart, knoweth what is the real truth in these things. Because, however, they parted in peace with one another, therefore some concluded, that he had gone thither and back under a false pretence: especially because afterwards he stood firm in the quarrel, and said, 'I shall do nothing without the Alexandrians.'
But some thought that this was done artfully, and by cunning: but God, Who trieth the mind and heart, knoweth what is the real truth in these things. Because, however, they parted in peace with one another, therefore some concluded, that he had gone thither and back under a false pretence: especially because afterwards he stood firm in the quarrel, and said, 'I shall do nothing without the Alexandrians. '
[IV.61] Subsequently, for the space of a whole year more or less, meetings on both sides of bishops and monks and others were held, in which they debated with one another, assembling now in one place, and now in another, and going to and fro, and sending messages, and exacting heavy and severe stipulations of one another, and treating one another, as we mentioned above, haughtily and despotically, and not in a friendly manner, |336 and with brotherly love. And these stipulations they exacted first of all by messengers, who went to and fro, but subsequently in a more formal manner in writings, which they drew up to bind one another. But no sooner had a meeting risen and broken up, than there were found quarrelsome and litigious men, both of their number who had been present at the meeting, and others as well, who hindered peace, and put fresh causes of quarrel between the two parties; and giving themselves up to the spirit of opposition, they tore to pieces even the written conditions which they had mutually adopted, and circulated written attacks on one another, both to the capital, and the East and West, each one thinking his own the victorious side, and reviling the other, and accusing it, and often falsely, of every thing that would lead to the idea that it was in the wrong. And these mutual slanders they have often sent to me and others in the capital in the form of official deeds, and have not only refused to be the ambassadors of peace to one another, but have persisted in this division and schism and quarrel and opposition to one another, even to this day, and lived in a tempest of passion, such as gives pleasure to Satan, who asks for us, 'that he may sift us as wheat:' and by the false and disorderly dealing of both sides alike, who have refused to approach one another in the wish to examine dispassionately, in the fear of God, into the points in dispute, he has |337 gained his end, and now dances with joy, in company with all his herds and hosts of devils, and rejoices in their mutual deeds.
Of these events then, we have, briefly recorded the sum, not entering into all particulars, because of their too great length, from their commencement down to the present year, 896, (A.D. 585).
End of Book the Fourth; in which are contained sixty-one chapters.
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1. a Procopius de bello Persico, i. 19, tells us that the Nobatae dwelt beyond Elephantine, on the banks of the Nile, but the Blemyes inland : and he adds, that Diocletian had greatly increased their territories, and given them an annual subsidy on condition that they should protect the Roman borders from marauders.
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[Footnotes given numbers and moved to the end]
1. a Procopius de bello Persico, i. 19, tells us that the Nobatae dwelt beyond Elephantine, on the banks of the Nile, but the Blemyes inland : and he adds, that Diocletian had greatly increased their territories, and given them an annual subsidy on condition that they should protect the Roman borders from marauders.
2. b Bar-hebraeus says that at this time Theodosius was dwelling at Constantinople. Cf. Assem. Bib. Or. ii. 330.
3. c Curiously enough, traces remain of bishop Theodore of Phyle in some inscriptions discovered by M. Gau, and which are given in the Appendix.
4. d This was Timothy III, pope of Alexandria from A. D. 518 to 535. Like most of the clergy and people of Egypt, he was a Monophysite.
5. e This is possibly the person mentioned in Ass. B. O. ii. 63.
6. f It may not be without its use to compare the full account of Paul as related by our historian with the compendium given by Asseman, as we thus learn how different a complexion is given to history by the filling up of the outlines. His narrative, B. O. ii. 331, is as follows: 'Paul of Alexandria, after putting on the monkish dress, was for some time with Theodosius, the patriarch there: but after the death of Sergius, being ordained patriarch of Antioch by Jacob Burdoho and two others, he was driven away from Egypt by Athanasius, Theodora's grandson, for endeavouring to obtain the patriarchate of Alexandria, and fled to Harith, king of the Arabs. Thence having gone to Byzantium, he was prevailed upon by the Emperor's services to embrace the council of Chalcedon. But on his return to Syria, he sent in a petition to Jacob Burdoho, begging to be received back into the Mono-physite communion; and his request being supported by the prayer of Mondir, the son of Harith, Jacob admitted him on ejuring the true religion.' The nature of the Emperor's good services we have seen before, and it is a proof of the strictness of discipline then enforced that so much difficulty should have been experienced by Paul in obtaining readmission to his own party, after a submission extorted by such violent means: and it also explains the patience with which men like Stephan of Cyprus, after being flogged into communion with the church, abode by the step they had taken.
7. g In Quatremère's Mémoires sur l'Égypte, i. 489, a description is given of the church of St. Minas, taken from an Arabic MS., which well illustrates the magnificence to which the hermits in the Nitrian desert had attained. According to this account, the church of St. Minas was a vast building decorated with statues and paintings of great beauty: wax tapers burnt therein clay and night without interruption. At one end was a massive tomb, with two camels sculptured in marble, on which a man stood upright, with his feet resting upon the camels' backs. He held one hand open, and one closed. This figure, which was also of marble, represented, they said, St. Minas. In the same church were the statues of John, Zacharias, and of Jesus, placed inside a vast colonnade of marble, situated on the right-hand side of the entrance: and in front of them was a gate kept constantly closed. There were also the statues of the prophets, and of the Virgin Mary, concealed from view by two curtains. On the exterior of the edifice were statues representing all sorts of animals, and men of all professions: among them a slave-merchant, with a purse in his hand with the bottom out. In the centre of the church was a dome, underneath which were eight statues, representing, if what they said is true, the angels. The land round the church was planted with a multitude of fruit trees, especially almonds and carob trees, the fruit of which being sweet and sugary, was used in making sirops. There were also numerous vines, the grapes and wine from which were exported into Egypt. The author subsequently adds, that the town of Fostat every year sent a thousand dinars to maintain the church.
In this desert, called also Scetis, and Scete, the monkish population was so dense, that seventy thousand, with their staves in their hands, are said to have met Amrou-ben-el-as, on his return from Alexandria, to beg him to take them under his protection: which he did, and granted them moreover a yearly allowance of five thousand ardebs of corn levied on Lower Egypt.
On the mountain of Nitria itself, in the early ages of Christianity, there were nearly fifty monasteries, besides fifteen hundred hermits, subject to the authority of a superior. They did not, however, all follow the same mode of life, but might either dwell absolutely alone, or in pairs, or even in greater numbers. Seven bakeries were constantly employed in supplying the hermits with bread; there were also physicians, pastrycooks, and places where wine was sold. At the chief church on the mountain there were eight priests, the first of whom alone had the right to celebrate mass, to preach, and judge in cases of quarrel. Every Saturday and Sunday the hermits came to church. Just by was a hospice where they received strangers, and maintained them as long as they chose to stay, even if it was for two or three years but after the first week, they expected them to undertake some kind of employment. (Ibid. p. 485.)
8. h Probably in the lost chapters at the beginning of this book, as no mention is made of him in any of the extant parts. A word occurs just before [Syriac] which I am unable to translate. It does not belong to the Syriac language, and as nothing suggests itself in Greek, I have omitted the sentence: the construction apparently requires that it should be the name of some class of people, or order in the church, as it says that Andronicus belonged to them.
9. i This chapter must have been written therefore A. D. 585, in the second year of the reign of Maurice.
10. k This phrase was applied in the early church, not merely as in the present case, to a bishop elected to a see already filled by another, but even to one who deserted the bishopric to which he was first appointed, even though it was for a patriarchate. Thus when Epiphanius, patriarch of Constantinople, died in 535, and Anthimus, bishop of Trapezus, was translated to the see, Agapetus, pope of Home, 'Constantinopolim de Roma adveniens, Anthimum ecclesia pellit, dicens eum contra regulam adulterum qui sua ecclesia dimissa, ambierat alienam.' Com. Marcellinus in Chronico, Indict. xiv.
11. l I imagine that [Syriac] is the Greek word sugkri/tai, which occurs in the life of S. Theophylact, bishop of Nicomedia: 'coming to Constantinople, he was slave first of all to the most holy Tarasius, who held the office of prw~toj sugkri/thj first vicar or assessor in the patriarch's court.'
' Com. Marcellinus in Chronico, Indict. xiv. 11. l I imagine that [Syriac] is the Greek word sugkri/tai, which occurs in the life of S. Theophylact, bishop of Nicomedia: 'coming to Constantinople, he was slave first of all to the most holy Tarasius, who held the office of prw~toj sugkri/thj first vicar or assessor in the patriarch's court. '
12. m On the death of Timothy, patriarch of Alexandria in A. D. 518, a double election took place, two persons, Gaianus and Theodosius, being chosen by the people, both opposed to the synod of Chalcedon, but differing upon a question, greatly agitated at that time in the church, Gaianus holding that the body of our Lord was incapable of corruption, whereas Theodosius maintained that though it did not actually see corruption, yet that it was capable of it. The scenes which followed are strongly indicative of the state of the church in the sixth century. On the death of a patriarch of Alexandria, the custom was for his successor to perform the funeral rites over his remains, during which he placed the hand of the dead man upon his own head, and after burying him, assumed the 'pall of St. Mark,' and so mounted the throne. As Theodosius was the court candidate, he succeeded in so far getting the start as to perform some of these ceremonies, but before the funeral was over, and the throne mounted, the monks and populace who sided with Gaianus drove him away. Gaianus now filled the see for three months, until Justinian sent the famous eunuch Narses to reinstate Theodosius; and when the citizens drove him out of the town by force, the very women throwing missiles from the roofs of the houses, Narses set fire to the city, and having burnt down most of it, obliged them in this manner to receive their bishop. The arguments of Severus of Antioch against Julian of Halicarnassus, the chief defender of the tenets of Gaianus and his party, (and which are still extant in MS. in the British Museum,) seem to have gradually brought over the better educated portion of the inhabitants of Alexandria to Theodosius' side, but as the mob there continued its resistance, he was at length deprived of his see by Justinian, and retired to Constantinople, where, as I have mentioned, he was supported by Theodora's influence, and still recognised by the Monophysites as the true patriarch of Alexandria. Cf. Le Quien, Oriens Chr. ii. 430.
The reason alleged by Renaudot for his being deprived of his see is, that really his restoration was brought about by Theodora, and Justinian vexed at seeing so great power in the hands of a man opposed to his theological tenets, wrote to him and required him to receive Leo's letter, and use his exertions to bring about its general acceptance in his diocese; in which case he promised to make him the temporal as well as spiritual governor of Egypt, and subject all the bishops of Africa to his authority, whereas should he refuse, he was immediately to quit his see. On receiving this letter, Theodosius told the prefect and the messengers, that the devil once took our Lord into a mountain and shewed him the kingdoms of the world and its glory, and said, 'All this will I give thee, if thou wilt worship me.' And so now the emperor offered him what would be the ruin of his soul, if it led him to desert Christ his King. Then raising his voice, he said in the presence of the multitude, 'I anathematize Leo's letter, and the council of Chalcedon; and all who approve of its articles of faith, be they accursed now and for ever.' Then turning to the prefect, he continued, 'The emperor has power over my body, but not over my soul. Jesus Christ the true emperor has power over both. I am ready, therefore, to follow the example of my predecessors, Athanasius and Cyril and Dioscorus and Timothy, and suffer as they have done for the faith.' He then went out, exhorting all who loved God to follow him; for naked he had left his mother's womb, and naked he must return to it: and that whosoever lost his life for the faith's sake, would save it. At night he was taken into custody, and sent into the Thebais, where he exhorted the monks to constancy; but the emperor, fearing lest his example should encourage the people to remain firm in their creed, commanded him to come to Constantinople. There his modesty and humility won for him the emperor's respect, who treated him kindly, and tried to win him over to his views; but finding all his efforts unsuccessful, he finally banished him to a place a few miles from the city. Ren. Pat. Alex. 239.
13. n The word [Syriac], used in the original, signifies, 1. 'a bow;' 2. 'chaff.' As, however, I find that the root has the meaning of 'collegit,' cf. Ges. Thes. sub [Syriac] I have translated it in this sense.
Ren. Pat. Alex. 239. 13. n The word [Syriac], used in the original, signifies, 1. 'a bow;' 2. 'chaff. ' As, however, I find that the root has the meaning of 'collegit,' cf. Ges. Thes. sub [Syriac] I have translated it in this sense.
14. o This is now the third time that John has applied to the Alexandrians the remarkable epithet [Syriac], taken from Psalm cxiv. i, the only other place where it occurs. Bar Bahlul explains the verb as Aegyptiace locutus est: but plainly John intends by it 'savage,' 'barbarous.' The people of Alexandria do not seem to have borne a very good character in ancient times, if we may judge from Dio Cassius, who calls them (lib. 4. 24), [Greek], the greatest braggarts, and the most utter cowards in the world.
15. p Asseman, in his account of the Monophysites, mentions a monastery of Mar Ananias in Mesopotamia,, famous as being the residence of their patriarchs, from A.D. 1166 to the present day. But from his description, it is apparently a different place from the monastery in the desert mentioned here.
16. q The word in the original, [Syriac], is very uncertain: a point over the initial letter seems to require the vowel to be a, in which case it may be a Syriac plural for pate/rej, abbots; but I am rather inclined to read it petrei=oi, and refer it to the three Alexandrian bishops, sent to represent pope Peter.
17. r The Syriac is [Syriac] which signifies, 'I have a king;' but as this is nonsense, I imagine the right reading to be [Syriac].
18. s The Arabic authorities, quoted by Renaudot, Pat. Alex 144, agree in assigning two years to Peter in the see of Alexandria; but it is evident from our author, that the Canon Chronologicus is right, which fixes his death in the tenth month after his election Damianus, the next patriarch, had previously been Peter's syncellus, having been appointed to this office from the great reputation he had acquired as an ascetic in a monastery on mount Thabor, where he devoted his time to sermon writing, and to disputations with heretics I may mention, that the Chronology of Renaudot is hopelessly confused in this part of his work, from his not being aware that many years elapsed between the death of Theodosius and the election of Peter.
19. t Cartamin was a very ancient monastery of the Monophysites, situated near Marde, in Mesopotamia. An account of it is given by Asseman, in his Essay on the Monophysites, prefixed to the second volume of his Bibliotheca Orientalis.
20. u John, the synodite, or as we should say, the catholic patriarch of Alexandria, occupied the throne about eleven years from A. D. 568 to 579.
21. x By the patriarch is probably meant not Paul, but the synodite patriarch, as Paul would not have had power sufficient for the purpose In the next chapter it is certainly the synodite patriarch who is described in similar terms
20. u John, the synodite, or as we should say, the catholic patriarch of Alexandria, occupied the throne about eleven years from A. D. 568 to 579. 21. x By the patriarch is probably meant not Paul, but the synodite patriarch, as Paul would not have had power sufficient for the purpose In the next chapter it is certainly the synodite patriarch who is described in similar terms
22. y He is called 'Sergius Anophitor, that is, [Syriac] one whose eyebrows meet: whether Anophitor is the corruption of some Greek word, formed perhaps from a0nofrua&zomai, I must leave to others to settle.
23. z By referring to page 77, it will be seen that besides John, the catholic patriarch of Alexandria, and Damianus, the Monophysite, there was also one created by the followers of Gaianus, or Julianists, as they were indifferently called, because of the services of Julianus of Halicarnassus in defending their tenet of the incorruptibility of our Lord's body. His name was Dorotheus and Le Quien incorrectly supposes that the Theodosians concurred in his election Oriens Christ ii. 438
24. a The text has 882, but the previous dates show that it was not till A. D. 581 that Peter Callinicus was consecrated.
25. b It will be found afterwards that this report was untrue: Paul was actually concealed at Constantinople, where he was much more likely to remain undiscovered, than in the mountains.
26. c After the example of Simeon Stylites, or the pillar-man, who spent most of his life standing on a pillar, which every year was raised higher and higher, numerous monks and hermits adopted the same method of attaining to distinction: and naturally, for Simeon on his pillar became more powerful than any patriarch in the East, and all difficult matters, in church and state, were referred to his decision, which was received with undoubting faith and obedience as something infallible and inspired.
27. d A district of Nubia still retains their name in its modern title of 'Maqorrah.'
28. e The sea of weeds is the constant appellation given by all Syriac writers to the Red Sea.
29. f This word, [Syriac], Aitekia, is probably a corruption of the Greek name Eutychius.
30. g Orfiulo, [Syriac], is. also a corruption of a Greek name, Eurypylus.
31. h The carelessness with which John of Ephesus spells is extreme: in this case I have in each place given the name as he writes it.
32. i This is the Julianus of Halicarnassus, repeatedly referred to above, as the chief writer in defence of a heresy commonly held in the fifth century, of the body of our Lord being incorruptible.
33. k That is, without any religious service being performed over his remains.
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