The Finding of the Cross (possibly by another Alexander)

^A to set before your eyes, having a special care for the truth. Those things in which we have failed, do you kindly correct, and, such is your piety, intercede for us through your prayers.

On the Invention of the Holy Cross

^B We shall make the beginning of our discourse He who is the principle before every principle, the only-begotten Son of God, who, existing in the bosom of the Father, as the life-giving Word from the living Father, proceeded; who from every principle was with God eternally; who is the "splendor of glory and the character of the substance" (Heb. 1, 3) of the eternal Father; the indeficient principle from the principle without source; He who is life from that perpetual life, that is not to be terminated at any end; the fountain of immortality from His vital source; the express and certain effigy of the invisible God; the incommutable image of the Father who begat Him; the ineffable light of the incomprehensible light; the vivifying latex of the life-bearing fountain; He who is of the same substance, the same glory, the same majesty, the same empire, the same power, and the same goodness with the Father who begat Him; having everything that the Father has, except for being unbegotten; who, together with the Father and the Holy Spirit (who proceeds eternally from the Father) ^C and by Himself, produced all things from non-existence into existence. For there was nothing except the holy, consubstantial Trinity, existing always in its own proper subsistences, that is, persons; the uncreated nature; the indeficient Godhead; the sovereign dignity; the perpetual exultation; the simple, incomposite, and unfigured essence, always being and holding the same way, neither having begun nor ever to cease.

This living, efficacious, and omnipotent Word of God, therefore, by the will of the Father and the cooperation of the Holy Spirit, brought forth every creature, visible and invisible, into existence in due time, when it did not exist before, knowing by divine foreknowledge the when, the where, the how, and the how many things were to come to pass. For ^D infinite are the ages, so that...

I might say, ages passed during which there was nothing except for God alone, who is glorified in the Trinity. For the three are one, in which is the Divinity. For God did not produce existing things out of any necessity (for God is in need of nothing), but out of his infinite goodness, so that there might be many who could participate in his grace. Having therefore produced and adorned all things with a fitting order, at the very last he fashioned man, molding the body from the earth that already existed beforehand, and from himself infusing into him a rational and intellectual soul, which is ^B created at the same time, not pre-existing, nor being a part of God, as that mad and demented Origen blasphemously dared to invent with his polluted mouth, foolishly and impiously introducing some sort of essential pre-existence of souls and the monstrous restoration that follows from it. For what is mentioned in the holy and divine Scripture, that "God breathed into his face the breath of life, and man became a living soul," does not in any way confirm any pre-existence of a soul; not even if it had been said, "And man received a living soul." But neither was that breath the soul of man, but it was shown as in a riddle, that the all-holy Spirit is not alien to the creative power, according to the Prophet who says, "By the word of the Lord the heavens were established, and by the spirit of his mouth all their power," and again, "The Spirit of God that made me, and the breath of the Almighty that teaches me." ^C Therefore, having fashioned all things most magnificently, the Word of God revealed them with the least part of his power. And why do I say with the least part of his power, since he created all things by a nod alone, and even now

^A creates, possessing power and might over all things according to his will, whence the Prophet says: “All things whatsoever the Lord willed, he did.” But the senseless Origen dared to say that the power of God was limited, and pouring out ten thousand other blasphemies, and recording certain intolerable and unspeakable things in his treatises, he filled the world with boundless folly; and he worthily carried away from a synod the condemnation for his audacity. But let us return to the matter at hand. ^B

When God had therefore created man after his own image and likeness, he placed him in paradise, as the Scripture says, to work not indeed the food that perishes, but that which abides unto eternal life, while also guarding, clearly, the life-giving commandment enjoined upon him by the Creator of all. But let no one blame us for making the introduction so long; for it is not done heedlessly or in vain. But since it was our purpose to make mention of the cross, I wished to show the glory of the life-giving cross shining from above, and from the very beginning, in all creation. And consider if it is not so; for it is possible ^C to see with all precision that God made every creature, visible and invisible, in the form of a cross; for by making the breadth, and the length, and the height, and the depth, he clearly outlined in mystery the type of the cross, and in these four things the whole consists. And this, I think, is what the most wise Paul said; for he says: “For this cause I bow my knees to the Father,” and so forth, “that you may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the height and depth, and breadth and length.” ^D

Moreover, whatever things are honorable in all this universe were brought into being by the Creator with a higher wisdom in the likeness of a cross. For the four-formed living creatures doubtlessly signify the type of the cross through their form. For the divine prophet says: “I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne high and lifted up,” and so forth, “and Seraphim stood round about him; and their legs were straight, and six wings to one, and six wings to the other; and with two wings they covered their faces, and with two their feet, and with two they flew.” Mystically, through those highest powers, the glory of the life-giving cross is shown. But the luminaries also shed their light in the form of a cross, and man himself was fashioned in the form of a cross. For everyone standing erect and extending his hands indubitably fashions the figure of a cross by this gesture. Furthermore, paradise also has the symbol of the cross, that is to say, the tree of life, from which the originator of evil

because of his immense envy toward us, persuaded man to eat, so that by his deceptive arts he might quickly cast him out of paradise for obeying divine precepts, and by this wicked craft deliver him to sin, and through sin precipitate him into most bitter death. For sin has encroached from this most fearful beginning through all generations of generations, until it finally reached ^A the very abyss of evils, since out of an excess of envy he allowed 17 man to suffer.

Yet the divine Word did not even then turn away from his own creature, nor did he abandon him whom he had created in his own image, nor indeed did he cast off the man miserably oppressed by the tyranny and malice of the devil, ^B but in every age he ceased not to visit him and to call back the man who had been led astray, symbolically—as in a riddle—by means of the life-giving cross. For God, being good, did not desire that the one created 18 for incorruption and being an image of his own nature should, on account of the devil’s wicked malice, perish and be destroyed forever. But when the whole world was perishing on account of nefariously absurd unions and was condemned to be utterly wiped out, then the just Noah, with his entire house, was saved by a very small piece of wood, for the renewal of the world from that universal flood. Similarly, Abraham the great patriarch received the promises of God with an oath, when he was sent to the high land to sacrifice his beloved son; whose manner of obedience God embraced, showing him a ram 19 caught by its horns in the thicket of Sabec, which is translated "remission," clearly prefiguring the future remission of the sins of the whole world by the affixing of the intelligible Lamb to the wood; and the high land chosen for this sacrifice was, according to the tradition of the ancients, the holy mount at Golgotha.

What then does it mean that Jacob worshipped the end of his staff 11, if not that the prophet, moved by the prophetic Spirit, demonstrated that the life-giving cross must be worshipped and venerated by all who believe in Christ? Whatever signs and wonders Moses performed by divine command in the land of Egypt 20, and in the desert, ^D

^A he accomplished for forty years, that supreme legislator pointing out, as by an unmistakable sign, that all things are possible to those who believe in him who was crucified. And what need is there to speak of all the prophets, who openly proclaimed the venerable and glorious cross, through which salvation was to come to the world? For what can be stated more clearly than the words: “In the cypress, and the pine, and the cedar, he shall glorify my holy place”? Since the holy and consubstantial Trinity, in one of its own hypostases, ordained the salvation of mankind through the cross, it is with good reason that this weapon of our salvation was fitted together from three kinds of wood. For the holy place is the holy, universal Church, in which all the faithful, bearing the life-giving cross, celebrate in joy and exultation the glorification of the Trinity.

Thus, from Adam down to Christ, justice was bestowed upon all who were to be saved, symbolically, through the venerable cross. And when the fullness of the ^B time of the glorious appearance of the divine Word in the flesh arrived, then, indeed, He revealed all the riches of His innate love for us—not because of our works, but because of the goodness befitting Him, the Benefactor. For He did not wish, through the outpouring of His mercy and the same love for mankind, that man should be tormented by the malice of the devil unto the end; but by the will of the Father and the good pleasure of the Holy Spirit, He who is always present and circumscribed by no place, for our sake and for our salvation, bowed the heavens and descended, not being separated from the heavens, and dwelt in the womb of the holy, glorious, and ever-virgin Mary, whose soul and members had been purified beforehand by the Holy Spirit. “The Word became flesh, and dwelt among us,” not changing His divinity into humanity—for the Word of God is unchangeable and immutable—but uniting to Himself, ^C in hypostasis, from the bowels of the Theotokos, flesh possessed of a rational and intellectual soul, without confusion, without change, without division, without separation. And it is said “in hypostasis” because the Word of God was not joined to a man fashioned separately, but the Word Himself, being perfect in His own hypostasis, assumed perfect humanity, being always one Christ and Son and Lord and King of all. He is born, therefore, from the Bride who knew no wedlock, ^D

^A not in appearance but in truth, being true God. With the assumption [of humanity], and for this reason, the holy Virgin is properly and in truth to be called Theotokos, who thus gave birth to Him, just as she had conceived Him. For she conceived without corruption, and brought forth in a manner befitting God. For it was God who had taken flesh from her, and He did not in any way require doors for His entry or His departure. But He who was born of her in truth is Emmanuel, being perfect ^B in humanity, one and the same existing in both natures, preserving in Himself always the distinction or property of the converging natures into one and the same Person or hypostasis.

Our Lord Jesus Christ was therefore born according to the flesh in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king. For the princes from Judah had already failed, according to the prophecy, having lasted until a certain Aristobulus, a high priest, who had even placed a royal diadem upon himself. But after Pompey, the general of the Roman army, had pressed him with a sharp siege, he sent him in chains with his children to Rome, and imposing taxes on the Jews, he declared Hyrcanus, the brother of Aristobulus, high priest. This Hyrcanus entered into friendship ^C with a certain Antipater of Ascalon, a worshipper of idols, the father of Herod, whom he appointed curator of Palestine. Herod, his son, was capable in managing affairs, and suppressed many leaders of robbers by his own valor. But after Hyrcanus was taken captive by the Parthians, and Antipater was murdered by treachery, and there was no one left to take charge of affairs, Herod seized the kingdom, having bestowed a great sum of money upon the Romans, and having become their ally.

When Augustus Caesar crossed into Egypt with a very large army ^D to wage war against Cleopatra, to whom the kingdom of Egypt had then fallen (since she was of the lineage of the Ptolemies), Herod assisted him, providing no trivial service by aiding him with both soldiers and money. But God delivered Cleopatra into the hands of Caesar, and thus the dynasty in Egypt ceased in the twelfth year of the reign of Augustus Caesar. Returning to Rome, [he treated] Herod, as one whom he had found faithful and friendly to himself,

king of Judea by decree of the senate, and placed a diadem upon him. But when he arrived in Jerusalem, and the Jews were unwilling to receive him, as he was a foreigner, he immediately slaughtered many of them, plundered the city and the Temple, and, abusing his power wickedly, he burned all the registrations of their tribes and clans, which had been preserved since the times of Ezra, so that the Jews might no longer know from what family they were, from what tribe, and who the natives were, and who were the so-called proselytes (29). He also placed the priestly vestment under his own seal, and henceforth dared to sell the high priesthood to certain undistinguished men for a great price.

In the forty-second year of Caesar Augustus, a decree went out from him that the whole world should be enrolled. This was the first registration that took place, as the holy history of the Gospels testifies. This registration, or census, the Caesar entrusted to Cyrenius, a man most benevolent and greatest among the senate, whom he had appointed governor of Syria, that is, of Judea, in the thirteenth consulship ^B of Augustus and Silvanus, in which consulship our Lord Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem of Judea, according to the prophecy, in the thirty-third year of the reign of Herod the son of Antipater, on the eighth day before the Kalends of January. But Epiphanius the Great (31), the holy bishop of Cyprus, struggles contentiously, asserting that the true birth of our Lord Jesus Christ from the holy Theotokos and ever-virgin Mary took place on the eighth day before the Ides of January. But all the other God-bearing (32) teachers of the holy, catholic, and apostolic Church, as if out of one mouth, determined that the birthday of Christ was on the eighth day before the Kalends of January.

But to bring forward the citations of all writers at the present time, I consider tedious; for our discourse is not currently about this. But bringing forward one ^C prominent teacher, whom even the divine Epiphanius himself cites as a witness to support his own opinion, I will leave it to the readers to choose which they prefer as the better. Therefore, Ephrem the Syrian, who is not just any teacher among ^D

^A the pious, says the following in his sermon on the victory of the light: “In the bright month of Xanticus, the conception of the joyous fruit and light took place; then the swiftly running darkness could not obscure His luminous conception.” And after other things: “In the cave the birth of the Light occurred, which dissipated our darkness. And in the month in which the darkness fails, the intelligible and motile Light rose for us. The month of His conception interpreted for you the type which Moses indicated through his writings, and the month of His birth likewise declared to us the mystery of that same thing.”

Our Lord Jesus Christ is born, therefore, in Bethlehem of Judea in the forty-second year of the reign of Augustus Caesar, in the aforementioned consulship, and in the thirty-third year of Herod [son] of Antipater, and in the thirtieth year of the subjugation of Egypt, on the eighth day before the Kalends of January, according to the tradition of the Fathers, when the Magi also arrived at Jerusalem, seeking the King who had already been born, whose star from the East had shown them the way as far as Judea. ^B And when they had entered the royal city and had lost the guide of their journey, they were anxious, and asked the inhabitants about the newborn child, at the same time mentioning the heavenly guide of their journey to them. King Herod, being shrewd and cunning, understood these things and immediately perceived that this sign was by no means human. For, he said, although many kings had been born in Jerusalem, a star had never appeared in the East for any of them.

Having therefore questioned the Scribes most diligently, he learns from the prophecy that Christ had to be born in Bethlehem; and having secretly summoned the Magi, he ascertained from them the time of the star’s appearance ^C and sent them away by a ruse, promising them, as was appropriate, very great gifts, so that when they had found the child, they might report it to him. But as soon as that former guide of their journey appeared to them again, they followed its leading with great joy as far as Bethlehem, and having found the longed-for King, and having worshiped Him with gifts, they were warned by an angel, and withdrew to their own country by another way.

Then Joseph also, according to the divine command, flees into Egypt with the child and His mother, and remained there until the death of Herod. ^D Now two years are accounted from the arrival of the Magi and the deception of Herod until their return to their own region. Then Herod, kindled with rage, undertook the slaughter of the infants in the thirty-fifth year of his reign. But immediately divine indignation fell upon him, and being tormented by many and most grievous maladies of disease, he departed from life, after having held the reins of his kingdom for thirty-eight years. He left behind four sons as heirs to his kingdom and his wickedness. Then, indeed, by the command

of the Lord, Joseph returned from Egypt with the child and his mother, for he was four years old, and he dwelt in Nazareth, with Archelaus exercising the tetrarchy of Judea. For thus were the sons of Herod called—this Archelaus, and Herod, and Philip, and Lysanias—because each of them held a fourth part ^A of the kingdom. In the eighth year of the reign of Archelaus, the Lord began to teach in the temple, having come into the midst of the doctors, at twelve years of age according to bodily stature. Having returned with his guardians by grace to Nazareth, not long after, Joseph departed from this life, being supposed by all to be the father of the Lord.

Archelaus, after having survived for one more year, also departed from the living, leaving no heir. Augustus, the Caesar, having completed fifty-six and a half years, died, handing over the kingdom to his son Tiberius. The Lord was then fifteen years of age. And Tiberius Caesar, having a sincere friend in Pilate, sent him to govern Judea, and he remained there until the death of the Caesar. In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, according to the voice of the Gospel, John came by revelation of God, preaching a baptism of repentance in all Judea, and the Lord was baptized by him, being thirty years of age, and began the work according to the Gospel.

At that time, Herod had cast out his own wife, who was the daughter of Aretas, the king of Arabia, of whom ^B Paul made mention in the Epistle to the Corinthians, and had taken Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip, while he was still living. But John the Baptist, the herald of truth, not bearing such impropriety, vehemently assailed Herod with rebukes. And he, seized by uncontrollable rage, and to gratify the adulteress, beheaded the prophet; but he did not for long escape retribution for the things he had dared. For his wife, having been dishonorably driven out, went to Aretas, her father, and lamented the violence done to her. And he, as though his daughter had been insulted, having gathered all his people, marched against him for war, and cut to pieces all his army, and, having given his land over to the fire, took it captive. But not even thus did Herod cease from his wickedness.

In the eighteenth year of Tiberius Caesar, and the twentieth of Herod, with Pontius Pilate presiding ^C over Judea, the saving passion took place on the thirteenth day before the Kalends of April. And our Lord ^D Jesus Christ suffered for our sake voluntarily, being true God and man, having in himself two

natures that admit of no partition or division. ^A For in the cross and in the tomb, the economy of the two natures remained indivisible, in which the one and only Lord our Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son and Word of the living God, is recognized. And since the cross had become glorious in the universe, and all things had been established in the likeness of the cross, as the discourse has previously demonstrated, the Lord rightly willed to endure death on the cross, so that by his own blood he might sanctify all things, and redeem us from the curse of the law, and deliver us from the power of the devil, ^B and set us free from his tyranny and from all corruption. Therefore, the Lord truly, and not in mere appearance, died for us, having been put upon the cross under Pontius Pilate the governor; and he was buried, and rose on the third day according to the Scriptures, truly, on the eleventh day before the Kalends of April, at the time of the vernal equinox—not, however, with his divinity falling into passions or death (far be it! let such a thought be absent from every Christian, for whatever is divine and immortal is devoid of passion)—but rather, he was present to the flesh that was united to him according to subsistence, which is consubstantial with us and subject to the same sufferings and afflictions; and adopting as his own the things of the flesh by an economy, he bestowed upon us, through the mystical eating of the true body and blood of the rational Lamb, Christ our God, the forgiveness of sins and life eternal.

Having therefore completed the mystery of the cross and the resurrection, ^C the Jews, the slayers of the Lord, contrived among themselves how they might conceal the miracle, even to their own destruction. They burdened Pilate with a great sum of money and persuaded him to seal the tomb and command that it be guarded by a detachment of soldiers. But God permitted them to do all these things, so that by the very means they used for evil, he might the more confirm the truth. For if they had not guarded the tomb, they might perhaps have been able to say, however falsely and mendaciously, that he had been stolen away by his disciples; but now, having sat watch over the tomb with such security, the resurrection was rendered indubitable, with the soldiers

^A everywhere proclaiming the miracle, even though they had received no small sum of money from the chief priests so that they would hold their peace. After the Lord had been taken up into heaven, and most great miracles were being performed in His name by the holy apostles, the chief priests were again torn within themselves, saying: "What shall we do? For it is perfectly clear to all that great signs and wonders are being performed in the name of Jesus by His disciples, and we cannot deny it; but let us, so that this may not be spread further to future generations, come and conceal the place of His burial. For if the people see the tomb empty, all will believe in Him." Then they ordered the tomb and the place of the Skull, in which the most holy cross had lain, to be covered over, contending to consign these signs of salvation to oblivion. And this was the worst counsel of the lawless Jews. But God permitted them to do all this, prudently ordering things to come in the interim. For since the city was about to be laid waste and given over to the fire, God permitted the life-giving wood and the glorious resurrection to be hidden for a short time, so that in the great confusion of such events these places might not be delivered to the fire by either Jews or Gentiles; for He knew that at the proper time they would be revealed with great glory.

Now Pilate ^B had reported to Caesar all that had happened concerning the cross, and that Jesus, who is called Christ, having been crucified, had risen on the third day, and that great and wondrous miracles were being performed by His disciples in His name. Tiberius, hearing these things and wondering at them, believed in the Lord and desired that He be immediately declared a god by imperial decree. But he was opposed by his own senate, who deemed the doctrine of the cross a folly. The Caesar, however, kept his conviction fixed in his heart, and threatened death to any who dared to assail the Christians with any calumny. And having learned that Herod also had ^C consented to the death of Christ, and that because of his unlawful adultery with Herodias very many evils had come upon that region, and that he had slain John the Baptist—a just man—on account of his rebuke of his lawlessness, he was moved to vehement anger against him. He ordered him to be brought in chains to Rome with the adulteress, and stripping him of his power and confiscating his goods, he sent him, along with Herodias, into exile to the Spains, where he ended his life in ^D extreme misery. As for the girl who had danced so wickedly and nefariously, the earth swallowed her up, while still living, that viper who had given her birth.

Tiberius also died, having reigned twenty-two years, and Gaius reigned in his stead for four years. He was a man...

^A of four years, an austere and most proud man; before him Pilate was accused and came to Rome to plead his case, and he came to such a state of misery that he became the murderer of himself. The Jews indeed were daily swept into greater disturbances and confusion, so that countless numbers of them were destroyed by the Romans. But Caesar declared another Herod, son of Aristobulus, named Agrippa, to be king of Judea, conferring upon him all the tetrarchies. This man, being cruel, did evil to the disciples of Christ. He killed James, the brother of the Lord, with the sword, according to the testimony of the Acts of the Apostles, and he attempted to remove Peter from the midst as well, had he not, beyond the expectation of all, been snatched from his hands by a holy angel. Nor did the aforementioned proud and savage Herod cease from his wicked attempts until he experienced the divine wrath against himself, and, consumed by worms, he expired.

^B At this same time, James, who was called the Just and the brother of the Lord, had been the first appointed, by divine ordination, as bishop of the holy Church of Jerusalem. But as the Jews were acting in a disorderly manner against the disciples of the Lord, they experienced many evils. And indeed, a great multitude was slaughtered by the Romans. There was another Agrippa who received the kingdom of Judea, the one concerning whom the holy Paul speaks. Gaius died, and Claudius reigned after him for fourteen years. In his time a great famine occurred over the whole inhabited world, just as Agabus had previously prophesied. Then the Jews, turning to madness, fell into mutual slaughters through deceit over the market of goods, for which the Caesar, being moved, sent to the princes of the nations that they should spare no one of the Jews, by which it came to pass that a vast multitude of them was killed, and their houses and children became prey, and they were also cast out from Italy and Rome with many torments and penalties, all of which befell them for their wicked outrages against Christ.

^C Meanwhile Claudius died, after whom Nero assumed the empire, holding it for fourteen years. This man was wicked above all, and effeminate, if any other was; he was the first to stir up persecution against the Christians. He slew Peter and Paul, the leaders of the apostles of Christ, and he destroyed many of his own lineage, along with ^D countless other leaders of the senate. Then Festus the governor, still holding the prefecture of Judea, departed from this life. The Jews, however, seizing the opportunity to cast off the yoke of Roman servitude from themselves, stirred up far greater and more absurd uprisings than before, and they killed the brother of the Lord, James, while the remaining disciples, having been beaten with rods, were driven from their city; they, having been taught by divine revelation, withdrew to the region near the Jordan and dwelt there, because of the evils that God had predicted to them would hang over the city.

^A At that very time, the whole nation began its defection from the Romans. Agrippa, having fled, departed for Rome. Then Nero, incensed with anger and fury, wrote to the commander of the East (Vespasian was he at that time), ordering him to assemble all the army under him, to invade the land of the Jews, and to utterly destroy it. The most powerful among the Jews, having heard of this, seized Jerusalem, as it was the most fortified city, protected by walls and very great towers, to serve as their protection and bulwark. The commander, having taken the region, ravaged all the cities of Judea and destroyed them with fire. And having set upon Jerusalem and besieged it for one year, and having constructed many engines, he was able to accomplish nothing because of the city's strength; nay, the people of the city even made sudden sallies and struck down many of the Romans. ^B Vespasian therefore descended into Caesarea and allowed the army to rest. Meanwhile, at Rome, Nero was killed, and Galba reigned for seven months. He too was killed, and Otho reigned for three, and after him Vitellius reigned for three months. Therefore, with affairs in great danger and confusion, and some barbarians encroaching upon the Roman domain (43), the army in the East crowned the reluctant Vespasian as emperor, by the consent and will of all the commanders in the East. Setting out for Rome in the winter season, he proclaimed his sons, Titus and Domitian, Caesars; he left Titus to besiege Jerusalem, and sent Domitian on a campaign against the barbarians. When he was already approaching Rome, the army there, along with the senate, having removed the usurper, met him with great festivity and applause. ^C Once he had taken his seat on the throne, he slaughtered all the disorderly ones, and suddenly the affairs of the Romans were restored again, through Domitian having wiped out the rising barbarians.

As Jerusalem was besieged for two years, all who were in it were consumed by famine, having eaten their own children during the siege. The Caesar, having taken the city and slaughtered the people within it, and having plundered everything belonging to the people (44), consigned it to fire. Then was fulfilled the word of the Lord, "There shall not be left one stone upon another in it." Some report the number of the slain to have been three million. ^D After the destruction of the city, the faithful returned to holy Sion and chose as the second bishop of Jerusalem Simeon, son of Cleopas, of whom mention is made in the Gospels, who had himself seen and heard the Lord, and who was the Lord's cousin. Cleopas was the brother of the one who was the father of the Lord according to grace.

Indeed, forty years are reckoned from the Passion of the Savior until the devastation of Jerusalem.

^A Vespasian, having attained power, ruled for ten years and yielded to fate. After him, Titus his son ruled for three years and died. Then Domitian, his brother, took up the reins of empire and again stirred up a great persecution against the Jews, searching for those of the royal lineage; for it had been reported to him concerning Christ, that He was descended from the stock of David, that He possessed a great and noble house, and that certain persons were professing His sect, proclaiming Jesus Christ as an eternal King who would dissolve all powers under heaven and would reign alone. The emperor, inflamed with anger at this, gave orders that no Christians should be allowed to live; and having sent to Jerusalem, he ordered the grandsons of Jude, the brother of the Lord, to be brought in chains to Rome, and questioned them about Christ and His kingdom. They replied that His kingdom was not earthly, but heavenly, and that in the consummation of the ages He would come with glory to judge the living and the dead, and to render to each according to his works. Having heard this, Caesar, struck with fear, released them from their bonds and repressed the persecution against the Christians. ^B

After he had held the empire for fifteen years, he died and departed. In his place, Nerva reigned for only one year and also died, and after him Trajan ruled for twenty years. Having stirred up a great persecution against the Christians, he put many to death by martyrdom, to such an extent that the governors of the provinces, exhausted by the multitude of those who were undergoing martyrdom, reported the matter to Caesar, bearing this testimony to the liberty of the Christians: that they did all things according to the requirements of the laws, save that they confessed Christ alone as God. Having heard this, the emperor put an end to the persecution. ^C Under his reign, Ignatius, the bishop of Antioch, suffered martyrdom in Rome, and Simeon the son of Cleophas, the bishop in Jerusalem, was crucified, being one hundred and twenty years of age, under a certain Atticus, a man of consular rank. At that time, the Jews, returning to their accustomed madness, dared to set up a king for themselves. Moved by this, the emperor sent violent prefects against them, who, having captured the tyrant, thereafter pursued the Jews throughout the whole world and slaughtered an innumerable multitude of them.

^D Upon the death of Trajan, Aelius Hadrian succeeded him and ruled for twenty-one years. Being in ill health of body, he traversed the whole world seeking a remedy for his infirmity. Having come to the holy city and seen it completely devastated, with only the church of the Christians standing there, he ordered the whole city to be rebuilt, except for the temple. When the Jews heard this, they flocked together from every nation, and in a short time it was built, and very rapidly. But again, the

evil demon, stirring them to frenzy, did not allow them to remain quiet, but revolting from the Roman authority, they set up for themselves a certain sedition-monger named Barchochebas. ^A When the Caesar heard this, he sent very many armies against them, and for a long time they besieged the city, until the entire populace therein was destroyed by famine and thirst.

This was the final devastation of the Jewish nation. For having slaughtered all the Jews and reduced the city to complete desolation, he ordered the Greeks to occupy it, having written a law dogmatically commanding that the Jews should no longer be permitted to see the soil of their ancestral land with their eyes. The inhabitants of Jerusalem, being from other nations, erected a column to the emperor in the very temple beside the Beautiful Gate, and changing the name of the city, they called it Aelia after the name of the ruler. ^B Now the holy Church in Jerusalem, which had existed in previous times from among the Hebrews, did not admit an uncircumcised bishop. Your holiness will forgive me if, being at a loss, I do not signify their times, for one could not easily find them at any time. But their names are these: first, James the brother of the Lord; then Simeon the son of Cleophas, Justus, Zacchaeus, Tobias, Benjamin, John, Matthias, Philip, Seneca, Justus, Levi, Ephres, Joseph, Judas. All these were of the circumcision, fifteen in number. And they are calculated from the destruction of Jerusalem until the final siege and the complete expulsion ^C of the Jews as fifty-eight years.

The holy Church established at Aelia, being from the Gentiles, first appoints as bishop from the Gentiles Marcus, a man most holy in all respects. Now the faithful, having learned from the tradition of the elders of the place of the holy Golgotha, which was still hidden and unknown, coming daily, worshiped it with reverence; seeing which, the idolaters, with the devil inciting them, built there a temple to the statue of the most unclean demon, Venus. The multitude of Christians being hindered from approaching that place, ^D the holy sites began at last to be unknown to the many.

Adrian died, and Antoninus Pius reigned in his stead for twenty-two years. After him, Marcus Aurelius Verus, to whom also Antoninus his son, together with Lucius his brother, succeeded for fourteen years. A persecution having been stirred up, many became martyrs, dying willingly for Christ. Great signs were wrought, so that the emperor Marcus himself, being brought into the greatest danger with his entire army due to a shortage of water,

to be saved by the prayer of the Christians, God having sent them rain in waterless places. Verus having died, Commodus succeeds him in the empire for twelve years. After him Pertinax reigned for six months, after him Severus for eighteen years; under whom, a great persecution having been stirred up, many in every place were crowned with the martyr’s laurel. ^B

This one having been extinguished, Antoninus Caracalla reigned for seven years, and Macrinus, succeeding him, reigned for one year. And after him another Antoninus for fourteen years. After him Alexander reigned for thirteen years. Now they who, from the reign of Hadrian, were raised to the height of the episcopate in the city of Aelia, were the following: Marcus, Cassianus, Publius, Maximus, Julianus, Caius, another Julianus, Capito, Valens, Dolichianus, Narcissus (49). This Narcissus, being illumined by apostolic gifts and loving silence and solitude, deserted the episcopate and fled to unknown places. Having been long sought by the people and the bishops of the province and not being found, Dius is appointed bishop in his place, and after him Germanion. Gordias succeeds him. Under him, Narcissus appears again as if from a sanctuary, and he was with the chosen bishop, being extremely advanced in age, so as to be the thirtieth in the order of bishops from the Savior's Passion. ^C But the bishop with whom he had resided having died, and Narcissus having reached extreme old age (for he had exceeded one hundred and sixteen years), they establish as bishop of Jerusalem, by divine revelation, a certain Alexander, an bishop who had come from another province for the sake of religion to visit the holy places, urging him to this with many exhortations; who is also later brought to perfection by martyrdom. And at those times the Church of God enjoyed deep peace, because the mother of the emperor, Mamaea, was a very pious worshiper of God.

Alexander having departed from the empire, Maximinus assumed it for three years. He, having inveighed bitterly against the house of Alexander, revived the persecution against the Christians and ordered the leaders of the Churches to be removed, as the authors of blasphemies against his gods. He having died, Pupienus and with him Balbinus assumed the Roman empire for three months. To them succeeds Gordianus for six years; after him, the emperor Philip reigned for seven years; this man truly believed in Christ. But Decius, the minister of the devil, having slain him, held the empire for two years. Under him, while the most bitter persecution had broken out, countless numbers were martyred in every place. ^D He also having been slain together with his children, Gallus and Volusianus succeed to the empire for three years, after whom Valerian and Galienus…

succeed for fifteen years. He raised a great persecution against the Christians. But when he was captured by the barbarians, his son put an end to the persecution.

Meanwhile, Alexander in Aelia, having suffered martyrdom, left Marzabanen as his successor in the ministry, whom Hymenæus then succeeded. After Galienus, Claudius reigned for two years. And his successor became Aurelian for six years. After him, Tacitus and Florianus held power for nine months. Probus was his successor for six years, and upon his death, Carus assumed the empire with his sons Carinus and Numerian for two years. After them, Diocletian and Maximian seized the empire for twenty-one years. Under them, the gravest and longest persecution of the Christians occurred, in which countless myriads, known only to the Lord, were martyred. In Aelia, Hymenæus, having finished his ministry, left Zaudas as his successor; and upon his death, Hermon held the episcopal throne of Jerusalem.

Those around Diocletian and Maximian, surnamed Herculius, after killing many myriads of the saints, as if sated with their crimes, and being lifted up by the excess of their madness, under the pretext of piety, became private citizens, and by mutual agreement laid aside the imperial power and settled into private life. ^B Maximian, who was also called Galerius, and Maxentius, the son of Herculius, held the Roman government for nine years. Maximian dwelt in the parts of the East, while Maxentius made his imperial residence in the great city of Rome itself—savage beasts these were, and practitioners of every kind of wickedness, and raging furiously against the Christians.

Co-reigning with them in Britain was Constantius the Great, the father of the great Constantine—a man most serene and gentle in all things, embracing piety, loathing idols, and holding Christians dear above all others. ^C Constantine, while still a boy, was being educated at the court of the tyrant of the East, being instructed in Greek learning; whence it happened that, when he was in Palestine and saw the sufferings of the servants of Christ, his soul was stung, for he was an hater of wickedness from his youth.

A heaven-sent wrath overtook Diocletian as he was living in Dalmatia; his body swelled and burst into many parts, his blasphemous tongue rotting in his throat and breeding a multitude of worms. Thus he gave up the ghost. Herculius ended his life at Tarsus in Cilicia. ^D Galerius Maximian, as if seizing an opportunity, abused his tyranny with impiety and inhumanity. For when he became lustful, struggles

^A his subjects strove with all care and zeal to find a place where they might hide their wives and daughters from the tyrant’s sight. He had reached such a pitch of madness, through the deceit of the demons who led him astray, that he dared not taste anything without consulting the oracles; and he ordered the total destruction of the Christians, not only because of his impiety, but also to plunder their fortunes.

And when he saw Constantine growing in age from day to day and being remarkably adorned with prudence, he suspected—or rather, having consulted the lots, he surmised—that he would eventually be the destroyer of his tyranny, and he attempted to kill him by treachery. But the young man, knowing the treachery beforehand by divine providence, sought safety in flight, following the example of David. ^B But the tyrant, already having entered into the height of wickedness and contriving the most grievous things against the Christians, divine justice checked him, sending a scourge of chastisement upon him. For a most terrible ulcer arose in his private parts, which had served his lust, proving stronger than any human skill. As corruption and the most grievous stench seized those parts, and a multitude of worms erupted—for the wretch was also very obese—he finally fell into despair and presented a spectacle pitiable to all who looked upon him.

^C Then a thought came to his mind, that perhaps this had happened to him by divine justice because of the unjust slaughter of the Christians. Therefore, he immediately sent out decrees through every city that the Christians should be set free, that they should carry on their affairs fearlessly according to their custom, that they should be held in honor and esteem by all, and that they should intercede with God in their prayers for the health of the emperor. When these things were done, divine benevolence was immediately shown. He who had already been in his last breaths was once again healthy and robust, that most debilitating ulcer having been miraculously healed by the prayers of the Christians. ^D Yet, before the wound had fully healed, the tyrant, stirred to a greater madness by the devil working within him, wrote impious decrees and laws full of cruelty, in which he ordered that Christians should neither live nor hold public office, nor dwell in any part of the inhabited world, nor in the deserts. For, he says, we cannot live and prosper in peace unless the race of the Christians is utterly destroyed. And thus the state of the Christians was by all considered desperate. But God did not forget His own creation. For then it was possible to see Christians being dragged in herds from all sides with their children and wives toward death. But divine justice soon scattered the counsel of the wicked: for from every place enemies, the assaults of barbarians, famines, droughts of the earth, most grievous pestilences, and untimely deaths suddenly arose, beyond expectation, so that the living were not sufficient to bury the dead; lightning and terrors were sent, so that each man was anxious only for himself, and

the tyrant’s commands remained unfulfilled. ^A Constantine, however, who was in all things humane and benevolent, was kept safe with his father. And he, receiving him safe and sound, and having offered many thanks to God, not long after surrendered the empire to him and departed this life. Constantine the Great was proclaimed emperor in the first year of the two hundred and seventy-first Olympiad, on the twenty-fifth of July. Now Maxentius, having become the most wicked of all who were before him, oppressed the inhabitants of Rome, and most especially the Christians. Having therefore murdered many of the leading men, and having exiled others, he plundered their properties. ^B Indulging in the same intemperance as Galerius, he defiled many free women, and practicing ten thousand other unholy deeds and unspeakable acts, he became intolerable to all, being desperately addicted to the impostures of magical arts. But as the great Constantine had subdued the northern and western regions as far as the Ocean itself, there was great peace and joy and stability throughout the whole, world under his rule.

The citizens of Rome, amidst these events, sent a supplication unto him, beseeching him not to despise the city which had been the mother of emperors, and which was now nearly perishing at the hands of a most wicked tyrant, or rather a flesh-eating beast. ^C Hearing this, the great Constantine, being moved with compassion for them, took thought to deliver them from their servitude, yet he feared this on account of the magic and wicked sorceries of the man. For he knew how he had slaughtered many children under the pretext of his forbidden divination. Being therefore in great anxiety and thought, there appeared to him, as he was traveling in a field with his soldiers about midday, a cross shaped like a pillar, fashioned of light, ^D upon which was inscribed: "In this, conquer." The emperor, having become terrified, asked those with him if they too had seen anything. They acknowledged that they had seen the same vision, and then the emperor, being strengthened in his judgment, was filled with courage and eagerness. On the following night, the Lord stood by and said to him: "Use the sign that appeared to you, and you shall be conquering all your enemies." When day came, having without delay fashioned a cross, which is preserved in the palace to this day, he ordered it to be carried before him into the war. But the impious tyrant, trusting in his demons, and having bridged the river flowing past with a great quantity of ships, went forth to battle.

^A Once the engagement had begun, the enemies were crushed by the power of the Cross, and most of them were killed. The rest, fleeing with the tyrant toward the city, were drowned in the river—the bridge having broken under the great weight—suffocated in their entire army just like the tyrant Pharaoh. And it was possible to see the whole river filled with horses along with their riders. The citizens of Rome, crowning Constantine, received him with great joy and acclamations, calling the Cross the creator of victory and the emperor the protector of their salvation. Then the emperor ordered the relics of the holy martyrs to be gathered together and committed to an honorable burial, and that their property be restored to those who had been wronged. They celebrated a festival of the victory obtained for seven continuous days, praising the Cross of Christ with the highest honors. And these things occurred in the seventh year of the reign of Constantine.

Having learned of this, Galerius Maximianus moved forward and sought the same fortune of war, and had refrained for a short time from the persecution against the Christians. But the great Constantine, placing all his hope in the invincible arms of the Cross, marched against him. He also had Licinius with him, fighting as his ally against the tyrants, who pretended to be pleased with Christian doctrines. The tyrant, however, relying upon his magical deceptions, moved out into the field against the godly emperor, ^B conspicuous for his infinite numbers of troops. When the battle lines were joined and the venerable sign of the Cross appeared, the shield-bearers of the tyrant, unable to withstand the assault of our men, were turned to flight. Some fled with haste, while others pursued with strength, and many thousands of the enemy were struck down. The rest, abandoning the tyrant, went over to the emperor.

The impious man, casting aside his diadem, of which he was unworthy, so that he might not be recognized in his flight, acted as if he were a common soldier, passing from village to village and hiding himself; he escaped naked, with difficulty, along with a few of his most loyal companions. Having gathered together the priests of his so-called gods, and the prophets, and the seers, and those reputed to be famous for divination—whom he once loved and honored—he butchered them as impostors, deceivers, and plotters against his own safety. ^C But when he was about to fall alive into the hands of the emperor (for the war against him still persisted), the divine wrath, anticipating this, so afflicted him that he lay prostrate on the ground, begging for help but receiving it from no one. A flame, kindled from the depths of his inward parts and marrow, caused unbearable pains for him as he gasped for air, turning himself now this way and now that, such that both his eyes leapt out upon the ground, leaving him blind. ^D As that internal flame flared up infinitely every day, his flesh went rotten and separated from his bones, such that he invited death upon himself. In this manner, being completely consumed by rot, he finally yielded up his soul.

^A When the tyrants had been cleared from the way, and the great Constantine had become sole emperor, the world enjoyed profound peace and leisure. The affairs of the Christians increased daily to a great height, and in all nations the cross of Christ was glorified. Now, Constantine had given his sister in marriage to Licinius, as he had been his ally in the destruction of the tyrants. Having marked out for him a sufficient portion of the Roman lands, he declared him king, but only after having first exacted from him a pact and condition that he would do nothing against the faith of the Christians. However, Licinius, having obtained power, did not bear his good fortune well; instead, as if having forgotten the things that had befallen those tyrants who came before him, he lapsed into idolatry. He emulated the life of those whose bitter destruction he had witnessed, becoming crazed with women, and acting unjustly and murdering Christians.

Having learned of this, the servant of God, the Emperor Constantine, was seized with grief and wrote to him, urging him to desist from his madness against the Churches of Christ. But Licinius, despising these words, practiced persecution even more madly; eventually, he devised secret plots against his benefactor, and later even waged open war against him, though the emperor was guarded by divine power. When a battle took place in the regions of Bithynia, and the venerable cross went before them, the wretch fell into the hands of the emperor and was taken alive. ^B Being most mild in all things, the emperor treated the adversary humanely and ordered him to live quietly in Thessalonica. Having kept quiet for a little while, he was discovered to have hired certain barbarians to fight again. Upon learning of this, Constantine ordered him to suffer the penalty of beheading. Only then did conditions fully enjoy peace and serenity, by the invincible power of the cross, and because the wickedness of the tyrants had been cast away.

At that time, Macarius, whose name he bore well—being blessed—succeeded Hermon as bishop of Aelia. When the great Constantine had become sole emperor, he turned all his concern toward divine matters, building churches and generously endowing them from the public funds with money, expenses, and all sorts of treasures. ^C He wrote a first law that those things which were accustomed to be offered to idols should be given to the Church of the Christians, and that those who henceforth dared to worship idols should be subjected to capital punishment. He wrote a second law that it was permitted only for Christians to serve in the military, and that they alone were to have command over nations and armies. He wrote a third law that no work should be done during the week of the saving Passion, nor during the week of the Resurrection. From then on there was deep peace and joy throughout the world, with all nations [rushing] to divine baptism. ^D

and with their own hands ^A breaking their ancestral gods.

But these things were not supportable to the author of all evil, the devil; but again he set to work by himself, [plotting] how he might cut off such great joy from the Christians, and though he wished to make men deify the creation, he was no longer able. For his deceit was detected. He attempted to persuade the weak in faith to rank the Creator with the creatures, and there was no small tumult in the churches of God, as a certain Arius the Alexandrian was stirring things up from top to bottom and agitating the world. A few bishops, small in number, were led astray along with him, of whom the first was Eusebius of Nicomedia, and Eusebius of Pamphilus, ^B and others with him. Seeing this great contention, the great Constantine conceived the most bitter grief in his soul, and at first he attempted to dissolve the strife of both parties by means of exhortatory words and letters. But when he perceived that the evil was beyond all medicine, he ordered an oecumenical synod to be held in the city of Nicaea, and three hundred and eighteen bishops assembled there, of whom the greater part were confessors, and who carried about the stigmata of Jesus in their bodies, with whom ^C

NOTES By this name is signified among us the whole first week of the festival of the Resurrection of our Savior. See the Catalog of the Augustan library, edited by Hoeschel. Secondly, I prove the same from the *Typicon* of St. Sabas, printed at Venice in the year of our Lord 1545, in which chapter the following title is prefixed:

Form of the holy and great Sunday of Pascha and of the week of Renewal.

Wrongly, therefore, the Calvinist scholiast Junius, in his notes on Curopalates' *On the Offices of the Constantinopolitan Court*, interprets it as the week of Rogations. He also wrongly gives the reason for the name, saying it is dedicated to "exinanition" (emptying), because during that time they empty their bodies and emaciate them, intending to pray to God for the prosperity of the year. First, it should not be written as "exinanition," but as the-copies of Alexander, the Ritual books of the Greeks, and the manuscript codex of the Augustan library, in which are contained the Gospels accustomed to be read on sacred days, have it; the beginning of which is: "Wherefore it is called the week of Renewal, as if it were the week of renovation, since with Christ rising, all things were renewed and restored." Secondly, it is so far from the truth that this week derived its name from "exinanition" and the fasting of those who abstain from food, that during that whole week it is the custom to break the fast: Balsamon is witness in can. [Apost.], who, when he had recounted the days on which one must fast, excepts the fourth days and the Parascevae, that is, the Fridays, which are either before [the Carnival] or before [the Cheese-fare]; and those which are before the week of Renewal. For in these we break our fast, says Balsamon, because the Armenians fast on account of the Ninevites. In that which is before the Carnival, and in that which is before the Cheese-fare, the heretical Tetradites observe a Great Fast. The week of Renewal, however, is reckoned as the great Lord's day (Pascha) itself. The same is taught by Anastasius, Bishop of Caesarea in Palestine, in his tract

On the Artziburion

^A And with them was present the great Constantine, most worthy of all praise; and when the matter began to be handled, they issued a written exposition of the faith which is now duly proclaimed throughout the entire Church. Those, however, who persisted in the perverse opinion of Arius they excommunicated and banished, and others were ordained in their stead. The emperor, having bestowed great honors upon the bishops and embraced them, dismissed them with peace to their own dioceses, rejoicing exceedingly over the unanimous consensus of the Churches.

He commanded Macarius, the bishop of Aelia who was present at the synod and had fought valiantly for the apostolic dogmas, to exercise every diligence in searching for the life-giving cross, the divine sepulcher, and all the other holy places. He also exhorted the other bishops to ask for whatever each perceived to be necessary for the perfection of his own Church. It was the nineteenth year of his reign when the Council of Nicaea took place. ^B After this, the emperor sent his mother Helena, a woman adorned with every kind of praise, with letters and a great quantity of money to Macarius, bishop of Jerusalem, for the purpose of searching for the life-giving wood and adorning the holy places with buildings, as the empress herself had requested, asserting that a divine vision had been granted to her, which had commanded her to betake herself to Jerusalem and bring to light the holy places that had been buried by the impious and had remained hidden from the knowledge of men for so long a time. ^C When the bishop learned that the empress had arrived, he went with the provincial bishops to meet her. He immediately enjoined the bishops to give themselves over to the search for the desired wood. As all were in doubt regarding the place, and some were recounting different things out of mere conjecture, the bishop of the city exhorted everyone to remain calm and to offer more fervent prayers to God on this behalf.

When this was done, the place was immediately revealed by God to the bishop, in which the temple and statue of the impure demon had been erected. Then the empress, using her imperial authority, brought together a multitude of many craftsmen and laborers and commanded that the temple of the demon be razed from its very foundations. ^D When this was done, the divine sepulcher appeared, and the place of the Skull, and not far from there, three crosses buried in the earth; and having searched more diligently, they also found the nails. But here another concern seized the empress: she inquired which of the three was truly the Lord’s cross; a doubt which the bishop resolved through faith. For when a certain lady of the first nobility, known to all, was suffering from a grave and dangerous illness—she was even on the point of breathing her last—he brought forward each of the crosses, and found that which was sought:

^A for as soon as the shadow of the lifegiving cross touched the dying woman, she who was breathless and motionless immediately leaped up by divine power, glorifying God with a loud voice. The empress, receiving the lifegiving cross with great joy and fear, carried off a portion of it along with the nails to her son; the rest, having placed it in a golden reliquary, she handed over to the bishop of the city for a memorial to all generations. And having commanded that a church be built at the lifegiving tomb and on holy Golgotha, and in Bethlehem, where the Lord was born according to the flesh, and on the Mount of Olives, where the Lord, after blessing the disciples, was taken up, and having performed many other good works, she returned to her son.

^B He, receiving her with joy, deposited the portion of the honored cross in a gold casket and gave it to the bishop to be kept, prescribing that the finding of the cross be celebrated with annual festivals. As for the nails, some he had forged into his own helmet, and some he mixed into his horse’s bridle, so that what was said by the Lord through the prophet might be fulfilled, saying: “On that day, that which is upon the bridle of the horse shall be holy to the Lord Almighty.” The emperor then wrote to Bishop Macarius to hasten the building of the temple, and sent a master builder for the work with a large sum of money, having given him instructions to diligently adorn the holy places with buildings, so that there would be nothing equal to their magnificence in the whole world. He also wrote to the governors of the province to promote the work ^C as much as they could with public funds, both regarding money and expenditures and materials. The emperor was then celebrating the festival of his twentieth year of rule with splendor, giving thanks to God for all the benefits conferred upon him during the time of his reign. There are gathered from the coming of Christ in the flesh to the time of the finding of the honored cross three hundred and fifty-two years, and from Adam to the time when Christ appeared in the flesh, five thousand four hundred and seventy-five years.

In the city of Aelia, Maximinus succeeded Macarius as bishop; he was a very gentle and honorable man, for he had endured many tortures during the persecution, and had been released after his right eye had been gouged out. At the same time, the blessed Helena died, in the eightieth year of her age, having given many instructions to her son regarding piety toward Christ. ^D When the emperor learned that the construction of the building, which is called the New Jerusalem, was finished, he ordered the bishop to go there and to convene a synod of many bishops and to dedicate the holy places. This bishop was Eusebius of Nicomedia, who held to the Arian dogmas.

^A Having been anathematized at the Council of Nicaea, together with his fellow-throne-holders, and having been sent into exile, after a time, they secured imperial kindness as a means of support and brought a royal document to the emperor, swearing that they subscribed to the exposition of the faith and in all things followed the holy Fathers. Persuaded by these, the emperor recalled them from exile and deemed them worthy of the very greatest honor. When the throne of Constantinople was vacant, Eusebius, by the use of his customary tricks, tyrannically usurped the throne of the royal city; and having obtained greater power, he promoted men of his own sect to the ministries of the Church, driving out those who were legitimately exercising them.

^B When this had come about, they thereafter sought to occupy themselves against Athanasius of Alexandria, fabricating many wicked schemes against him. The emperor, however, thought it just to summon Athanasius also to the dedication of the holy places. He ordered, therefore, that the synod should first gather in Tyre and deliberate on the matters concerning Athanasius, and that thus, without any dissension, everyone should set off for the feast. He also sent his own cousin, Dalmatius, to be an observer of the synod. When the bishops had gathered in Tyre, there was present with them also the bishop of Aelia, Maximus, who was entirely ignorant of the charges being piled up on all sides against Athanasius. But when Athanasius entered the assembly, the accusers stood around him, bringing great and heavy charges against him, which had been suggested to them by the judges who were present—Eusebius of Nicomedia and those with him. But they were unable to prove anything, as Athanasius defended himself and, like a spider’s web, tore apart the things brought forward by them. ^C Then the accusers, turning to madness because they were caught lying, threw the whole assembly into confusion, crying out, "Take away the sorcerer, for by some sorcery he has silenced everyone." And Athanasius would have been killed, had not the emperor’s cousin taken him out from their hands by means of soldiers.

There is a story prevailing that Athanasius, fleeing from that place, went up to the holy city and, having offered prayer and having anointed and consecrated the houses of prayer with the holy myrrh before the arrival of the other bishops, forestalled them at the emperor’s court, exposing to him all the crimes that had been alleged against him. ^D Hearing this and marveling at the wickedness of his adversaries, the emperor deemed him worthy of the greatest honor and sent him back to Alexandria with royal letters. When the bishops had arrived in Jerusalem, they celebrated the feast of the dedication quite joyfully, the emperor having sent treasures and all kinds of gold and silver things, adorned with precious stones, and varied and costly hangings, and sufficient money for the distribution to the poor and for the honor of all those who were coming to the feast. As…

the Christ-loving emperor heard of the dedication of the holy places, he gave great thanks to God and was even more attached to the Christian religion. ^A

This was the thirtieth year of his reign. He immediately wrote a law in the imperial style, so that Jews were not allowed to appear within six miles of Jerusalem. He rejoiced at the grace of God, seeing even the barbarian nations running to the doctrine of the truth and gladly submitting to the emperor. 70 Having lived for one year and a few months longer, he fell into an illness in which, having been baptized in Nicomedia, he died. For he had postponed this until this present time, desiring to be deemed worthy of it in the river Jordan. ^B

Being of a more upright mind, he disposed of his affairs piously, leaving his three sons as heirs of both his empire and his piety. He appointed the eldest, who was his namesake, Constantine, as ruler of the Western parts. The second, named after his grandfather Constantius, he ordained emperor of the East, and the youngest of Europe. But none of them was present at his passing. The most celebrated Emperor Constantine died at the age of sixty-five; he reigned piously and in a manner pleasing to God for thirty-two years, and leaving behind the earthly kingdom, he received the heavenly. Soldiers placed his venerable remains in a golden urn and raised a great lamentation over him, mourning as if they were bereft of a most beloved parent, not ^C just of a sovereign king. Constantius, the emperor of the East, having received his father's corpse and having performed the imperial funeral rites, laid him to rest in a prominent place in Constantinople, in the Church of the Apostles, where his mother Helena had been buried. For it was for this purpose that the blessed Constantine had built that church, that emperors and priests might be buried there, so that they would not be far from the apostolic relics. He died on the twenty-first day of May, the eleventh day before the Kalends of June, under the consulship of Felicianus and Tatianus.

Now, as Constantius had just newly entered into the empire, the leaders of the Arian madness approached him ^D and urged him to remove that addition, the *homoousios*, from the Symbol of the faith, arguing that it was from this little word.

that all the division of the Churches had arisen. Once it was removed, they claimed, there would no longer be any controversy regarding dogmas. Relying on the levity of his mind, he accepted their words undisputedly and agreed to do this, and once again there was no small turmoil throughout the whole world.

^B Circa the same time, a wonderful event occurred in Jerusalem that surpasses all description. For since there was a rupture among those newly coming to the faith due to the rivalry over dogmas and the scandal caused by the disagreement of the clergy, God, who works wonders, showed from heaven that the word of our faith was not the cause of the scandals, but rather the perversity of the unworthy priests and the incontinence of their most wicked judgment. Therefore, suddenly there appeared above the holy Golgotha, in the middle of the day, a huge cross made of light, obscuring the brightness of our sun by the excess of its light, in the sight of all who dwelt in the city, both small and great, believers and unbelievers. Cyril was then the bishop of Jerusalem, having succeeded the confessor Maximus. There are preserved eighteen of his Catecheses, written in a praiseworthy manner, in which, while explaining the holy Symbol, he made no mention of the word *consubstantial* (homoousios), foreseeing the traps that were being laid by those who were then in power. Yet he remained one with the holy Fathers, defending the Church orally, though not in writing. He wrote to the Emperor Constantius concerning the sign that had occurred. But the bishop’s own letters, which follow, will explain these matters more clearly:

^C ‘In the time of your blessed and renowned father, the saving wood of the life-giving cross was found; but in your time, most pious emperor, as you restore the ancestral piety, it is fitting that signs should be shown not from the earth, but from heaven. For during these holy days of Pentecost, on the Nones of May, about the third hour, a huge cross made of light appeared in the sky, extending from above the holy Golgotha to the holy Mount of Olives; it was not seen by just one or two, but was most clearly shown to the entire multitude of the city. Nor was it, as one might perhaps suppose, something passing quickly like an apparition, but it was seen clearly above the earth for many hours, surpassing the rays of the sun by its splendor. For it would certainly have been overcome and hidden by them, had it not provided to those who saw it rays ^D more brilliant than the sun itself: so much so that the whole multitude of the city immediately ran to the holy Church, terrified by the fear of this divine prodigy sent from heaven.’ Thus far the bishop.

From this marvelous occurrence, many thousands were added to the faith. Let this be what is said concerning the finding of the life-giving cross, and the whole history; and as it appears, against those who appoint Quiriacus, or Cyriacus—formerly called Judas—as bishop of Jerusalem, and say the cross was found under his auspices.

^A And let no one deceive himself by telling useless, mythical stories and introducing strange names into the subject. For there was never any other bishop besides those written down, nor any other Roman emperor, nor was the venerable cross proclaimed and made known in any other way. For from the Emperor Augustus, under whom Christ was born according to the flesh, until the great Constantine, thirty-five emperors passed; likewise, from James, the brother of the Lord, until that same reign, there were thirty-five bishops of Jerusalem. The holy Fathers, by imperial command, determined that the venerable day of the exaltation of the honored cross and the dedication of the temple be celebrated every year on the fourteenth day of the month of September, which is the eighteenth day before the Kalends of October, to the glory of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Since, ^B however, by the grace of God we have proceeded in our discourse to the auspicious day of our feast, which is the showing of the life-giving cross, come, as much as in us lies, let us follow the cross with certain brief salutations, and thus bring our sermon to an end. Hail, therefore, precious cross; hail, for in you our Lord Jesus Christ was exalted, in whom are all the treasures of joy and grace. Precious cross, for through you eternal joy is prepared in heaven and on earth at the same time. Hail, precious cross; hail, because long ago, and indeed from the very beginning, the Creator of all things had depicted your image ^C in the universal creation. Hail, glorious cross, because all the powers of the heavens offer ineffable hymns to God upon your exaltation. Hail, cross, for through you the Churches of the orthodox have received their foundations in cities, and in islands, and in every nation. Hail, cross, for through you every mouth of the faithful is unloosed into discourses about God. Hail, blessed cross; for through you angels dancing with men on earth hymn Christ. Hail, cross; for through you men in the heavens stand similarly with angels before God, glorifying the Creator with ineffable joy. Hail, cross; for through you Adam was liberated from the curse, leaping and exulting as he returned to paradise, having recovered his own dignity. Hail, cross; for through you every diabolical power has been prostrated ^D and every operation of the demon trampled down. Hail, holy cross, for through you the holy and consubstantial Trinity is believed, sung, celebrated, glorified, and known in every place. Hail, cross, for through you every soul that believes in Christ is saved. Hail, cross, for through you goods that can never be taken away are conferred upon men. And what, finally, shall we say?

NOTE. ...to such as hold [the tradition], though in a manner entirely different from that which is confirmed by the common consent of the Fathers and historians. We read such a narrative, full of apocryphal fables, concerning the Invention of the cross in a manuscript Greek codex of the Augustan library, in which some Lives of the saints are contained, which we published in the Garden of the holy cross, and now we insert it into this second volume, so that if anything of this sort delights anyone, he may have material with which to amuse himself. [The annotator] of Ferrata notes that many more praises are contained in that codex than are in the copy of Schott, or even in the Bavarian [codex], which agrees almost everywhere with the codex of Schott. Would that he had noted the praises of the cross, just as he did other things! He would have rendered a service welcome to the pious and honorable to the cross.

or what shall we omit? How shall we hymn the power of the ^A Master’s Cross? O name of the Cross, in which the great things of the mysteries of Christ are hidden, revered by angels and venerated by men! For what is more lovable than the name of the Cross, more sweet to Christians? And what is more efficacious than this for performing miracles? The Cross is the foundation of the Church. The Cross is the sign of divine power. The Cross is the joy of angels and the grief of demons. The Cross is the destroyer of demons. The Cross is the ever-shining and all-radiant lamp of the whole world. The Cross is the unshakable wall, the unbreakable and unconquerable fortress of the entire inhabited world. The Cross is the glory and strength of priests. The Cross is the armor of armies. The Cross is the bulwark of the city. The Cross is the utter destruction of the devil. The Cross is the joy of peoples. The Cross is the hope of Christians. The Cross is the physician of the infirm. The Cross is the firmest health of the sound. ^B The Cross is the harbor of the shipwrecked. The Cross is the peace of those at war. The Cross is the boast of boasts for the orthodox. The Cross is the dissolution of idolatry and the restoration of piety. The Cross is the teacher of virginity and the guardian of temperance. The Cross is the safe defense of the just and the repentance of sinners. The Cross is the ornament of monks and the glory of those living piously.

The Cross is the protector of infants, the prudence of the young, and the staff of the aged. The Cross is the inexhaustible wealth of the poor, the unerring guide of those who wander. The Cross is rest in daily toils. The Cross is the discipline of nations and the serenity of all the world. And what shall I say, or what shall I omit? Or how shall I hymn you, most holy Cross? For the King chose you alone out of all creation and showed you to be an unconquerable weapon ^C against the devil and death. Wherefore blessed are all who were deemed worthy to behold your manifestation. You are the proclamation of the prophets; for rejoicing, they cry out daily concerning you to God, saying: "You have given a sign to those who fear you, that they may flee from before the bow" (Ps. LIX, 6). You are the boast of the apostles; for they cry out unceasingly through one of their number, the sacred herald: "But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of the Lord" (Gal. vi, 14). You are the crown of the martyrs. You are the boast of those who, in mountains and caves and holes of the earth, have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. O the ineffable joy of the Master’s Cross! O the incomprehensible mysteries in it, and that I may utter the words of the Apostle: "O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments!" (Rom. xI, 33). For being dead through the tree, ^D through the tree of condemnation we have been made alive again. O the immense grace of the Lord who has saved us!

It is right, therefore, that we should establish this most solemn feast in the "condensed places" (Ps. cxvII, 27), even to the horns of the altar. Now "condensed places," as those skilled in these matters say, are things which, by neglect or age, are covered or adorned.