A in the city which has taken its name from us, the divine providence of our Savior has joined a vast multitude of men to the most holy Church, so that since all things there are experiencing great growth, it seems highly appropriate that more churches also should be built in it, receive therefore with a willing mind that which I have determined to do. For it has seemed good to signify to thy prudence, that thou shouldst cause fifty codices of the divine Scriptures, the preparation and use of which thou knowest to be most necessary for the Church, to be written on prepared parchment by skilled calligraphers B who are most expert in the art of beautiful writing; for they must be both easy to read and easy to carry for every use. Letters, moreover, have been sent from our clemency to the administrator of the diocese, so that he may see to it that everything necessary for the preparation of these codices is provided. It shall be thy duty to see to it that the written codices are made ready as quickly as possible. Furthermore, thou shalt receive the use of two public vehicles by the authority of this epistle. For thus, those things B which have been elegantly written will be conveyed most conveniently to our sight, with one of the deacons of thy Church performing this service. Indeed, when he arrives at our presence, he shall experience our kindness. May the Deity keep thee, dearest brother."
CHAPTER XXXVII. How the codices were finished.
These things, then, the emperor commanded; and immediately the work followed upon the word, when we had sent to him three and four C in sumptuously adorned volumes. This very thing also the emperor's other reply will testify; in which, having been informed that the city called Constantia among us, which had formerly been devoted to the worship of idols, had been moved by a certain impulse of the holy religion and had cast off the former error of superstition, he signified that he rejoiced and highly approved the deed.CAPUT XXXVIII. How the Emporium of the Gazaeans, because of Christianity, became a city and was named Constantia.
A Now, while Constantia in the nation of the Palestinians was embracing the saving religion, it was being graced with the prerogative of highest honor, both by God himself and by the Emperor. For it received the name of a city, though it had previously been a village, and exchanged its former designation for a more excellent title, namely that of the most religious sister of the prince.
CAPUT XXXIX. That in Phoenicia a city was made Constantina, and in other cities idols were destroyed and churches built.
B The same thing was being done in many other places: for example, in a certain city of Phoenicia, which is called by the Emperor's name, whose inhabitants, having cast their innumerable images into the fire, embraced the saving religion. And in the remaining provinces, countless numbers, transferring themselves to the salutary knowledge of God, destroyed throughout cities and fields the various images made of every kind of material, which they had previously considered sacred. Those temples and shrines of theirs, raised to an immense height, were destroyed by them without orders from anyone, and they built churches from the foundations, changing their former opinion, or rather their error. But to commemorate one by one the deeds of the God-beloved Emperor is the task not so much of us as of those who were deemed worthy to associate with him constantly. But since we have briefly set forth in this work those things which have come to our knowledge, we shall pass on to the final period of his life.
CAPUT XL. That when he had created his three sons Caesars at the three decennials, he celebrated the dedication of the Martyrium at Jerusalem.
The thirtieth year of his reign was now passing. His three sons had been announced as partners in the empire at different times. The first, who was his father's namesake, obtained this honor about the tenth year of his father's reign. The second, bearing the name of his grandfather, was declared Caesar about the vicennalia of his parent. The third, Constans, who by his name designates presence and stability, was raised to this dignity about the thirtieth year of his father's principate. D Thus, having raised up three sons, dear to God, after a certain likeness of the Trinity, and having co-opted them into the partnership of the empire at single decennial intervals, time...
moved him to consider it most fitting A to offer thanksgiving to the King of all. And he judged it to be the best course of action that he should celebrate the dedication of the martyrium which, with singular zeal and magnificence, he had constructed at Jerusalem.
CAPUT XLI. That amid these things he ordained that a synod be held at Tyre on account of certain controversies in Egypt.
But the envious demon, enemy of all good, like some dense cloud opposing itself to the most brilliant rays of the sun, endeavored to disturb the brightness of this festival, shaking the state of the Churches in Egypt once again with his contentions. However, the Emperor, beloved of God, gathering again a synod of many bishops like a divine army and arming them for battle, set them against the malevolent demon: he ordered them to assemble from all of Egypt and Libya, and from Asia and Europe, B first indeed for the resolution of the controversy, and then for the dedication of the aforementioned martyrium. Accordingly, he commanded them that, in passing, they should resolve the contentions in the city that is the capital of all Phoenicia; for it was not right, he urged, that those divided in their opinions should be present at the worship of God, since the divine law forbids those who are in disagreement from offering their gifts to God before they have embraced friendship C and reconciled their differences with one another peacefully. The Emperor, kindling these salutary instructions of the Savior in his own mind, exhorted them to approach the proposed task with all unanimity and concord, by way of a letter which reads as follows.
Chapter XLII. Letter of Constantine to the synod gathered at Tyre.
• Victor Constantinus, Max. Augustus, to the holy synod assembled in the city of Tyre.
• It was indeed appropriate and most fitting for the prosperity of our times that the Catholic Church should be free from sedition, and that the servants of Christ should now be devoid of and free from all reproach. But since some, agitated by the stings of wicked contention, lest D
A attempt to disturb all things—a B mischief which seems to me to exceed every calamity—for this reason I exhort you, who are running of your own accord, as they say, to assemble together without any delay, to constitute a synod, to assist those in need of help, to apply medicine to our brothers who are in danger, to recall to concord the members that are divided, and to correct failings while time still permits; so that you may restore the proper agreement to such and so many provinces, which (alas for such an absurdity!) the arrogance of a very few men has overthrown. That this is acceptable to the Lord and God of all, and more to be desired by me than any prayer, and for you yourselves—if you restore peace—both honorable in the highest degree and glorious among all men, I am convinced all men will acknowledge. C Do not, therefore, delay; but, intensifying your zeal from this point forward, strive to set the proper standard for the matters before you, coming together with all sincerity and faith, which that Savior whom we worship, in every affair, all but screaming, demands especially from us. D Nothing concerning those things which pertain to my concern shall be lacking to you. All things requested in your letters have been fulfilled by me. I have written to the bishops whom you wished, that they might come and share in your concerns; I have also sent Dionysius, one of ex-consular rank, who will remind those bishops who ought to be present with you, and will be an overseer of all things that are done, and especially of good order. For if anyone—as I do not think will happen—attempting even now to frustrate our command, should refuse to be present, someone will be sent by us as soon as possible, who, by imperial authority, will expel that person and teach him that it is not right to resist the decrees of the Emperor issued on behalf of the truth. It will remain the task of your holiness, neither out of hatred nor favor, but in accordance with the ecclesiastical and apostolic canons, to devise the appropriate remedy for the faults and those things which have occurred through error, so that you may free the Church from all reproach, and lighten my cares, and by returning the grace of peace to the now troubled Churches, secure for yourselves the greatest glory. May the Divinity preserve you, beloved brothers.
CHAPTER XLIII. That bishops from all provinces were present for the festival of the dedication at Jerusalem.
AWhen these commands were put into execution, another imperial messenger arrived, urging the synod with imperial letters to make haste, to delay nothing, and to hasten their journey to Jerusalem. So all of them, rising from the Phoenician nation, set out at top speed on the public thoroughfares to the place appointed. The whole region was then filled with a vast choir of God, as the prominent bishops from every province were gathered together in Jerusalem. For the Macedonians had sent the bishop of their own metropolis; and the Pannonians and Moesians had sent the choice flower of God’s youth, the principal ornament of their nation. There was present also the ornament of the bishops of Persia, a man holy and thoroughly schooled in the divine Scriptures. The Bithynians and Thracians also graced the assembly with their presence. Nor were the most illustrious of the bishops of Cilicia wanting. Likewise, those from Cappadocia who excelled in doctrine and eloquence shone in the midst of the gathering. To these were added the whole of Syria, Mesopotamia, Phoenicia, and Arabia, with Palestine itself; and Egypt and Libya, and those who inhabit the region of the Thebaid, all together filling the great choir of God. An innumerable crowd of people from all the provinces followed them. Moreover, there was present to serve them all a royal deputation, and men of approved probity sent from the imperial palace to illustrate the festival with expenditures supplied by the emperor.
CHAPTER XLIV. Concerning their reception by Marianus the notary, and the distributions to the poor, and the votive offerings to the Church.
CNow there presided over all these things a man most useful to the emperor, conspicuous for his faith, religion, and skill in the sacred letters. Having become renowned during the times of the tyrants for many confessions in defense of piety, he was deservedly entrusted with the arrangement of these matters. He, therefore, acting with all sincerity according to the emperor's command, honored the synod with friendly hospitality, with brilliant banquets and festive cheering; and to the ragged poor, and to the indigent men— D
A and women in their thousands, he distributed generous gifts of money and clothing. Finally, he adorned the entire temple with magnificent royal offerings. And he indeed fulfilled this service in this manner.
CHAPTER XLV.
Concerning the sermons in the bishops' assemblies, and of Eusebius who wrote these things.
The ministers of God, meanwhile, were adorning the festival with both prayers and discourses; some celebrated with hymns the kindness of the God-loving emperor B toward the Savior of all, and recounted in their speeches the great works concerning the Martyrium. Others, by means of panegyrical theologies regarding the divine dogmas, provided a banquet of rational nourishment for the ears of all; others still were interpreting the readings of the divine Scriptures, bringing the hidden and mystical meanings to light. Those who were not able to aspire to these things, by means of bloodless C sacrifices and mystical priestly rites, propitiated the Divinity, offering humble prayers to God for the common peace, for the Church of God, and for the emperor himself, the author of so many good things, and for his God-loving children.
There, indeed, we too, being deemed worthy of the goods beyond our merits, honored the festival with various discourses held in public, at one time explaining the descriptions of the things beautified for the emperor by writing, D and at another time interpreting the prophetic visions in a way timely and applied to the symbols set before us. In this way the festival of the dedication was celebrated with joy during the emperor's thirtieth anniversary year.
CHAPTER XLVI. That he also later recited the description of the Savior’s Martyrium and the oration on his thirtieth anniversary before the emperor himself.
What sort of thing the Savior’s temple was, what sort of thing the saving grotto was, what sort of things were the emperor’s love of beauty, and the multitudes A of offerings made of gold and silver and precious stones—these things we have recounted to the best of our ability in our own writing, which we addressed to the emperor himself. And we shall relate the oration in its proper time, following the current theme of this work, linking it with the thirty-year anniversary address, which we delivered a little later after setting out for the city that bears the emperor’s name, for the emperor to hear. This we did a second time within the palace, praising God, the King of all, B to whom the friend of God listened, appearing to rejoice. He himself declared this after the hearing, while hosting the bishops who were present at a banquet, honoring them in every way.
CHAPTER XLVII. That the synod in Nicaea took place at the twentieth anniversary, but the dedication in Jerusalem at the thirtieth anniversary of Constantine.
This was the second synod, the greatest of all that we know, which the emperor gathered in Jerusalem itself, after that former one which he had held in the most C prominent city of Bithynia. But that one was a triumphal synod, fulfilling prayers and vows for victory over enemies at the twentieth anniversary of the empire, in the city named after victory. But this one adorned the period of the third decade, when the emperor dedicated the Martyrium in the very monument of our Savior, as a votive offering of peace to God, the giver of all good things. D
CAPUT XLVIII. How he took it ill when someone praised him excessively.
A When all these things were completed, and the virtue of the emperor was celebrated in the discourses of everyone, a certain person from the number of the clergy did not hesitate to pronounce him blessed to his face, forasmuch as he had been deemed worthy to attain the supreme imperial power of the whole Roman world in this life, and was to reign together with the Son of God in the life to come. But he, having taken these words very ill, admonished the man not to presume to use such language, but rather to offer supplications to God as a petitioner, that he might be counted worthy to be reckoned among the servants of God, both in this life and in the life to come.CAPUT XLIX. The marriage of Constantius Caesar, his son.
B When now the thirtieth year of his reign was completed, he celebrated the marriage of his second son, having long since celebrated the marriage of the eldest. Banquets and festivities were therefore provided, the emperor himself leading his son, the bridegroom, and receiving the company of men separately and the company of women separately with magnificent display. And most splendid gifts were distributed to the cities and peoples.CAPUT L. The embassy and gifts sent by the Indians.
At the same time, ambassadors arrived from the Indians who dwell toward the rising sun, bringing gifts: namely, various gems of exquisite brilliance and value, and wild animals, too, widely differing in form and nature from those known to us. Offering all these to the emperor, they testified that his empire extended even to the Ocean, and that the princes and petty kings C of the Indian nation confessed that they recognized him as their emperor and king by setting up paintings and statues in his honor. And indeed, at the very beginning of his reign, the Britons, who are situated at the western ocean, were the first of all to be subjected to his dominion; but now the Indians, who dwell toward the rising sun, had done the same.CAPUT LI. How Constantine, having divided the empire among his three sons, instructed them in both the art of ruling and the duties of piety.
Since, therefore, he had brought both extremities of the whole world under his power, he divided the entire sum of the empire among his three sons, D as if it were a paternal inheritanceA, distributing the ancestral lot to the eldest, the empire of the East to the second, and the middle portion of the realm to the third. Regarding the good and soul-saving inheritance as his own care, he infused into them the seeds of piety, partly by instructing them himself in divine teachings, partly by appointing as their masters men who were tried and approved in piety. He set other teachers over them for secular learning, who had attained the peak of education; some instructed them in the arts of war, others made them proficient in civil administration, while others trained them in the knowledge of the law. A royal equipment had been allotted to each of the children: heavy-armed soldiers, guards, bodyguards, and all manner of military battalions. Over these were commanders, captains, generals, and chiliarchs, whose skill in war and whose loyalty to them their father had previously tested. B
CAPUT LII
How, when they had attained man's estate, he led them to piety.
For while the Caesars were still tender in age, it was necessary that those who assisted them should be present and conduct public affairs; but as they advanced to manhood, the instruction of their father alone sufficed for them. Sometimes he would be present, goading them with personal exhortations to emulation, and teaching them to become imitators of his own piety; at other times, when away, he would send them imperial mandates in writing. The greatest and foremost of these C was that the knowledge and piety toward God, the King of all, should be honored above all wealth and even above the empire itself. Furthermore, he gave them authority to perform themselves those things that were beneficial to the common good, and he exhorted them, first of all, to hold the Church of God in their care, and expressly commanded them to be Christians. He thus led his sons forward, and they, being incited not so much by the command as by their own spontaneous zeal, surpassed the father’s admonitions, stretching their own minds toward the holiness due to God, and fulfilling the customs of the Church within the very palaces, along with all their household. For this also was a work of the father’s providence, to deliver all the inhabitants of the house D to his children as godly men; and those of the first ranks who happened to have undertaken the care of public affairs were of such a kind, so that they were secured, as if by some strong fortifications, by men faithful in God.
A For the thrice-blessed one, God, the Dispenser of every good thing, as if the whole of his affairs had been well-ordered for him, judged it to be at length a favorable time for the attainment of better things, and brought upon him the debt of nature.
CHAPTER LIII
That having reigned about thirty-two years, and lived over sixty, he maintained a sound body.
He completed, then, two years beyond thirty B of his reign, lacking only a few months and days; but the span of his life was about twice that long. Throughout this age, his body remained free from every malady and blemish, devoid of any weakness, and sturdier than any young man’s body. It was fair to behold, and potent in strength for the accomplishment of any task, so that he was able to train, to ride, to travel, to engage in wars, to raise trophies over defeated enemies, and to carry off his customary bloodless victories over his adversaries.CHAPTER LIV
Regarding those who abused his excessive humanity for greed and for the appearance of piety.
Likewise, the faculties of his soul had progressed to the very height of human perfection; for he was adorned with every noble endowment, but especially with humanity. Yet many criticized this, due to the overflowing malice of the wicked, who ascribed their own depravity to the emperor’s long-suffering. C Indeed, that these two vices—greed and the pretext of piety—prevailed most in those times, we [note: the translation proceeds with the text of the main narrative, skipping the critical notes]. Dfraudulent hypocrisy of those who wormed their way into the Church and falsely and pretextually assumed the name of Christians. But the emperor’s innate humanity and goodness, and the sincerity of his faith and character, led him to believe in the mask assumed by those who were thought to be Christians, and who feigned a genuine goodwill toward him with a deceptive soul. By trusting himself to them, he perhaps occasionally stumbled into things that were not becoming, with envy—that malignant demon—casting this as a sort of stain upon his other virtues.
CAPUT LV.
How he wrote prayers until the very last day of his life.
B But divine justice did not take long to subject those men to their deserved punishment. As for the emperor, he had so instructed his mind with the knowledge of divine discourse that, even up to the last day of his life, he would write speeches in his usual manner, deliver sermons, and impart divine teachings to his auditors. He would also constantly enact laws, now regarding civil affairs, now regarding military matters, and in all things devise what was to the advantage and benefit of the human race.
Now, one thing must not be passed over in silence: when the final day of his life was already impending C, he delivered a certain funeral oration in the usual auditorium. And having extended the discourse at some length, he therein discoursed upon the immortality of the soul, and upon those who had passed their lives piously, and upon the goods that were stored up for the friends of God by God Himself. Conversely, he clearly demonstrated by many arguments what end those who had adopted the contrary way of life were destined to meet, describing the destruction and ruin of the impious. And when he affirmed this gravely and seriously, he seemed to prick the consciences of those close to him and his own associates: so much so that one of them, D inflated with the vain opinion of his own wisdom, was moved to ask him how the things being said appeared to him. He then testified to the truth of his words, and—though quite unwillingly—strongly praised the teachings directed against the polytheists.
After having had such conversations with his close friends before his death, he seemed to be smoothing the way for himself toward a better life.
Chapter LVI.
How, setting out for the Persian war, he took bishops with him, and prepared a tent in the likeness of a church.
This too is by no means to be passed over, that around this time, when news was brought of a movement of the barbarians living toward the sunrise, he testified that this victory over them still remained for him, and decided to wage war upon the Persians. Having resolved to do this, he called up military forces from everywhere, and communicated with the bishops he had about him concerning the journey, foreseeing with a provident mind that men necessary for divine worship ought to be constantly with him. They, for their part, affirmed with a willing spirit that they would follow him and would not depart from him; but that they would serve and fight alongside him with continuous supplications to God. He, being vehemently delighted by this news, described the path by which they should set out. Then he prepared a tabernacle in the likeness of a church with ambitious ceremony for the use of this war, in which he had decided to pour forth prayers to God, the giver of victory, along with the bishops.
CHAPTER LVII.
How, having received the Persian envoys, he passed the night of the feast of Pascha with others.
Meanwhile, when the Persians had learned that the emperor was preparing for war, and that he was vehemently terrified of engaging in battle with him B, they sent envoys and requested peace from him. Thus, the emperor, being the greatest lover of peace, C welcomed the Persian embassy, D and for a time the war did not proceed; for it was quickly quenched by fear of the emperor.
A Since the great feast of Easter was already at hand, the emperor, offering up his prayers to God, kept the vigil along with the others.
CHAPTER LVIII.
Regarding the construction of the martyrium of the Apostles in Constantinople.
Following these events, he prepared to build a martyrium in the city named after him, in memory of the Apostles. Having raised the entire temple to an ineffable height, he made it glitter with a variety of stones of every kind, covering it from the floor to the roof with marble slabs. He adorned the ceiling with delicate paneling and covered the whole with gold. Above, brass in place of tiles provided a protection for the work against rain; and this, too, was made to shine with much gold, so that it sent forth flashes to those who looked at it from afar, as the sun’s rays were reflected back by the surface of the brass. Reticulated carvings of brass and gold encircled the building B around its upper part.
CHAPTER LIX.
A further description of the same martyrium.
The temple itself was thus adorned with the emperor’s great zeal and liberality. Surrounding it was a vast open court, lying under the clear and open sky. Around the four sides of this, porticos ran, enclosing the court with the temple itself in the middle. Furthermore, royal houses, baths, C and promenades extended along the porticos, along with many other dwellings well-constructed for the use of the guards of the place.
CHAPTER LX.
That he also built a tomb for his own burial in this place.
The emperor dedicated all these things with the intention of immortalizing the memory of the Apostles of our Savior for all people. Yet he was also building another thing, having something in view in his mind which was hidden at first, but became clear to all towards the end. For he was indeed reserving the place there for himself in anticipation of the opportune time of his own passing, D and thus made himself a sharer in the invocation of the Apostles. All these things the emperor dedicated with the counsel of recommending the memory of the Apostles of our Savior to posterity forever. But he built that house having something else in mind: which was, indeed, obscure at first, but finally became known to all at the end. For he himself had designated this place for himself after his death, with an incredible alacrity of faith.
so that A even after his passing he might be deemed worthy of the prayers that were to be performed there in honor of the apostles. Thus, having erected twelve chests there, as if they were sacred pillars, in honor and memory of the choir of the apostles, he himself placed his own sarcophagus in the middle B, with six chests of the apostles disposed on either side of it. And this, as I have said, he planned with a sober mind, in the place where he intended his body to find a fitting rest after having reached the end of his life. But while he had long since C directed these matters in his mind and had dedicated the shrine to the apostles, believing that the memory of them would bring a useful benefit to his soul, God did not frustrate him in his vow and expectation. For when he had completed the first practices of the Paschal festival and had brought the day of our Savior to a close, having made the feast bright and cheerful for himself and for all, God, by whose aid he managed all things, with him still in this state and finishing his life to the end D, deemed him worthy of a transition to a better state at the fitting time.
CHAPTER LXI. The Emperor's sickness, and prayers at Helenopolis. Also concerning his baptism.
There occurred first a certain physical discomfort. Subsequently, whether an illness supervened or for the same reason, he proceeded to the warm baths of his city, and from there he was taken to Helenopolis, the city named after his mother. And there, lingering in the house of prayer of the martyrs, he offered up supplications and prayers to God. And when he felt that the last day of his life was already imminent, he thought the time had arrived to purge the offenses of his whole life—believing firmly that whatever he might have sinned as a human being must be completely washed away from his soul by the power of the mystical words and by the salutary bath—and, having thought this through, he knelt upon the floor and begged for pardon to God.
[index: entries preserved]
and, bending his knees to the ground, he became a suppliant to God, confessing his sins in the very martyrium; in which place he first A merited to receive the imposition of hands with solemn prayer. Departing thence, he arrived at the suburbs of the city of Nicomedia, and having there convoked the bishops, he spoke to them as follows:
CHAPTER LXII. With what words Constantine requested the bishops to confer baptism upon him.
"This was the time which I had long hoped for, when with incredible desire I burned and with all my prayers longed to attain salvation in God. Now the time B demands of the reader's diligence in the first place. For from this, that great question concerning the baptism of Constantine can easily be decided. Eusebius therefore says that the Emperor Constantine then first received the imposition of hands with solemn prayer in the church; that is, in a word, that he first then became a catechumen. For catechumens were made by the imposition of hands from the bishop, as the sixth canon of the Council of Arles teaches: 'Concerning those who wish to believe in infirmity, it has pleased that the hand ought to be imposed upon them.' The same was decreed in c. 59 of the Council of Elvira: 'If Gentiles in infirmity desire that the hand be imposed upon them; if their life has been honest in any part, it has pleased that the hand be imposed upon them, and that they be made Christians.' Which canon of Elvira, that I may say this in passing, seems to be nothing other than an exposition of the canon of Arles, which can also be seen in other chapters of that council. Concerning the same rite, there is an illustrious passage in Sulpicius Severus, *Dialogue* II, *On the Miracles of Saint Martin*, c. 5: 'Finally, all began to rush in crowds to the knees of the blessed man, faithfully asking that he might make them Christians. Nor did he delay, but in the midst of the field, as he was, he made them all catechumens by imposing his hand upon them all.' The same in book I: 'Hardly anyone, he says, of that huge multitude of Gentiles was there who did not, with the desired imposition of hands, believe in the Lord Jesus, having abandoned the error of impiety.' Augustine also in *De peccatorum remissione*, bk. II, c. 26: 'Sanctification is not of one kind. For I think that catechumens are also sanctified in their own certain manner through the sign of the cross and the prayer of the imposition of hands.' But also Peter Chrysologus writes the same in his 52nd sermon: 'Hence it is that he who comes from the Gentiles is purified from the demon by the imposition of the hand and exorcisms; and he receives the opening of the ears, that he may be able to grasp the hearing of the faith.' So also in his 105th sermon: 'For that the Gentile, bowed down by sins, may be raised to heaven, the foul spirit is driven out first from the Gentile by the imposition of hands.' To these must be added Symeon Metaphrastes, who in the *Acts of the holy martyrs Indes and Domna* writes thus concerning Bishop Cyril: 'He, however, when he had temperately sung the divine Scriptures to her, and had signed her with the venerable cross of Christ, then indeed he made her a catechumen.' Finally, Marcus in the book *On the Life of Porphyry, Bishop of Gaza*: 'On the following day the parents of the woman and her kin, going to the blessed Porphyry, fell at his feet, asking for the sign of Christ. But the blessed one, when he had signed them and made them catechumens, dismissed them in peace, commanding them that they should attend to the holy church. And a little later, when he had instructed them with catechesis, he baptized them.' From these it is evident that catechumens were formerly made in the Church in no other way than through the imposition of hands. Since therefore Constantine is said to have then first received the imposition of hands in the church, it is certain that he had not yet been a catechumen. But someone will say: C Who would believe that Emperor Constantine up to that time had not been a catechumen, since he had been present at the Council of Nicaea, and had issued so many laws and rescripts for the Christians, had built so many churches, and had urged the Gentiles in every way to receive the faith of Christ, and had despoiled the heretics and schismatics of their basilicas? Certainly Eusebius testifies that he had performed all the offices of a Christian man. For he writes that he had given his time to fasts and prayers, and that he observed the Lord's days and the feasts of the martyrs; and that he even spent the nights in the vigils of Easter. These things, and many more which could be brought forward, prove that Constantine was not a Gentile; but they do not argue that he was the same as a catechumen. Certainly in these four books of Eusebius, in which the piety and religion of Constantine are celebrated, it is nowhere read that Constantine made prayers in the church with the other catechumens, nor that he received the sacrament of the catechumens. And although Eusebius clearly affirms this concerning Helena Augusta, the mother of the Emperor Constantine, that she stood in the church with the other women; yet you will never find it said of Constantine by him. But if you object that Constantine stayed at the temple of the martyrs at Helenopolis, and poured out prayers to God, I answer first that these things are not read in our codices, as I observed a little before. Then, it was permitted even for Gentiles to enter the churches, except at the time of the masses: how much more was that permitted to the Emperor, who proclaimed himself a Christian. Since therefore Eusebius clearly teaches here that Constantine first received the imposition of hands from the priests at Helenopolis, it is plainly brought about that he had not been a catechumen before this time. I know that Athanasius in *Vita sancti Antonii*, where he speaks of the letters written by Constantine to Antony, and Augustine in epistles 162 and 166, treated Constantine with the title of Christian prince. But it may be answered that they in this matter followed the common opinion and reputation of all: and that they called Constantine a Christian prince openly, not because he had as yet been initiated into the sacraments of the Christian faith, but because he openly professed the worship of the Christian religion. Another also, a much graver D objection can be brought against our opinion, from c. 32 of book I, of which this is the title: "Οπως κατηχηθεὶς Κωνσταντίνος, etc. From which it is gathered that Constantine was made a catechumen immediately after that vision of the cross in the sky. But I answer that those titles were not composed by Eusebius, but by some more recent person, as was demonstrated above. Then, *katechetheis* (κατηχηθείς) is taken there for *matheteutheis* (μαθητευθείς, having been discipled). Certainly Eusebius in that whole chapter does not say that Constantine was made a catechumen, but only that the bishops were called by him, and that they had opened to him the meaning of that heavenly vision: he himself, however, to have given his effort to the reading of the sacred volumes from that time on. *Historia Ecclesiastica*, c. 13, *euchas te dia cheiros labon*. Concerning which place see those things which I have noted. Augustine in the book *De peccatorum remissione*, c. 26, calls the prayer of the imposition of hands.
A that we also may receive that sign which confers immortality; the time is come that we should become partakers of the saving seal. I truly had once intended to do this in the river Jordan, in which the Savior himself is recorded to have received the bath for our example. But God, who knows best what things are useful for us, deigns to exhibit the same to us in this place. Therefore let every doubt be removed. For if indeed God, the arbiter of life and death, shall have willed that I spend my life here longer, and this has been once decreed, that in the future I be mingled with the people of God, and being received into the church, become a participant of prayers with all the rest; I pledge that I shall prescribe for myself such rules of living as shall be worthy of God.” B When he had said these things, they performed the divine ceremonies with solemn rite, and having enjoined upon him whatsoever things were necessary, they imparted to him the sacred mysteries. And indeed Constantine alone of all the emperors from the beginning of time, being regenerated by Christ’s testimonies, was perfected, and was deemed worthy of the divine seal C in the water.
A And he rejoiced in spirit and was renewed, and was filled with divine light; he was joyful in his soul because of the excellence of his faith, and struck with wonder at the evident magnitude of divine power. And as the required rites were fulfilled, he was clothed in bright and imperial vestments, shining after the manner of light, and he rested upon a most white bed, no longer wishing to touch the purple.
CHAPTER LXIII.
How he praised God after baptism.
Thereupon, having raised his voice higher, he offered a prayer of thanksgiving to God, after which he added, saying: “Now, in very truth, I know myself to be blessed; now I recognize that I have been made worthy of immortal life; now I believe that I have partaken of the divine light.” He also said that wretched and unhappy were those B who [are deprived of such blessings].
[The translation of the remaining blocks of Latin text follows, interspersed with the required marginal markers]
...initiation. But Gregory of Nazianzus also, in his first oration against Julian, calls baptism by that same term: *By no holy blood is the bath cleansed*, opposing the completion of defilement to our *teleiosis* (that is, perfection). Finally, Clement of Alexandria, in the first book of his *Paedagogus*, writes that baptism is called by various names: for sometimes it is called a *charisma* (gift), sometimes *photisma* (illumination), and at times a *loutron* (bath). Then he adds the reason why it is called *teleion* (perfect): *We call a thing perfect*, he says, *to which nothing is lacking*. But what indeed is lacking to one who knows God, who possesses the grace of God, and who already enjoys eternal life? From which Clement concludes that all who have believed in Christ and have been baptized in the holy laver are already perfect: *For thus to believe alone and to be regenerated is perfection in life.*
Among the Latins, too, those were called perfect Christians C who had received baptism, even if they had not received the laying on of hands from a bishop. An ancient author *De haereticis non rebaptizandis*: “Which, even this day, cannot be doubted to be the custom, and it is wont to happen that many after baptism depart from this life without the imposition of the bishop’s hand; and yet they are held to be perfect believers.” And again further on (p. 155 of the Rigaltius edition), he posits "perfect Christian" for "faithful," but "imperfect" for "catechumen": “And therefore both ought to remain whole and sincere and uncontaminated and inviolate to the confessor, without any choice being made of the confessor himself, whether he be just or a sinner; and whether he be a perfect Christian, or indeed even yet an imperfect one, who in his greatest peril has not feared to confess the Lord.”
[Regarding the annotation on text placement]: Thus therefore I think it ought to be read: D *he rejoiced, and was renewed in spirit.* For he alludes to that verse of the most famous Psalm L: *Create a clean heart in me, O God, and renew a right spirit within my bowels.* Furthermore, it is gathered from this place in Eusebius that Constantine did not receive baptism in bed, as was the custom for the sick, but in the church. For Eusebius says: *being regenerated by the testimonies of Christ.*
[Regarding the annotation on the white garments]: It is noted that it was once the custom for neophytes to be clothed in white garments, which they laid aside only on the eighth day. Zeno of Verona in sermon 5 to the neophytes: “The first to receive you, who rejects no one who believes in him, was not a ram but a Lamb: who clothed your nakedness with the snowy whiteness of his fleece.” Augustine, in sermon 157 *de tempore*: “The Paschal solemnity of this day…”
[Regarding the liturgical benediction]: BENEDICTION ON THE SABBATH WHEN THEY LAY ASIDE THE WHITES. O God, who, having trodden down the laws of hell, hast deigned to resolve our captivity by the breaking of chains and to recall us to the rewards of liberty, may He himself grant you so to pass through this life that, with Him as your guide, you may be able to enter into that eternal one. Amen. May He grant you such a fervor of the Catholic faith that you may be secure in the expectation of His holy coming. Amen. That whoever have deserved to be cleansed here in the wave of baptism may be able to be presented there to the pious Judge ready and in white robes. Amen.
[Regarding the eight days]: Furthermore, the neophytes observed those eight days after baptism with the utmost religion: so that during those days, which were also called the octave, it was considered a sacrilege to touch the earth with a bare foot, as Augustine writes in epistle 119 to Januarius. But they were also wont to walk with a bare head during those days, which was a sign of liberty. Augustine, sermon 4 on the Sunday of the Octave of Easter: “Today they are called the infants’ octaves: their heads are to be revealed, which is a sign of liberty. For this spiritual birth has liberty,” etc. Conversely, catechumens used to walk through public places with covered heads, as they bore the type of Adam expelled from paradise, as Junilius says in Book II, ch. 16. Which, indeed, I think is to be understood only of the *competentes*, who veiled not only their head but also their face, as Cyril of Jerusalem teaches in his first catechesis. But this veil was removed from them at baptism, or at any rate on the eighth day after baptism. For this is what the words of Augustine mentioned by us a little earlier rather imply. The same is also confirmed by Theodore, Bishop of Canterbury, in his *Penitential*: “At the ordination of monks, the abbot ought to sing mass, and complete three prayers over his head, and cover his head for seven days; on the seventh day he shall remove the veil. Just as in baptism the priest on the seventh day removes the veil of the infants: so also the abbot to the monk, because it is a second baptism according to the judgment of the Fathers; and all sins are forgiven as in baptism.”
A
He called them wretched, saying that they were deprived of such great good things. When the tribunes and leaders of the military forces entered and mourned, thinking that they would be left desolate, and prayed for a longer life for him, he replied to these as well, saying that he had now finally been deemed worthy of the true life, and that he alone knew of the good things in which he had participated. Wherefore he also hastened, letting nothing delay his journey to his God. After this, he arranged matters as he wished; to the Romans who inhabited the royal city he bequeathed certain annual gifts, and to his children he left the empire as a paternal inheritance, having set in order all things as seemed good to him.
CHAPTER LXIV. Constantini mors die festo Pentecostes, circa meridiem.
B All these things were taking place during that greatest solemnity of the venerable and most holy Pentecost, which is adorned by the number of seven weeks and sealed by the monad. In which the sacred scriptures testify that both the ascension of our common Savior into the heavens and the descent of the Holy Spirit upon men took place. Having been deemed worthy of these things in that solemnity, the Emperor, on the final day—which if one were to call the greatest of all festivals, he would not in my judgment be mistaken—about the midday hour of the sun, was taken up to his own God, leaving to mortals that part of him which was mortal, but uniting that part of his soul which was endowed with intelligence and the love of God to his own God. This was the end of Constantine's life. But let us proceed to the next events. C
Chapter LXV. The lamentation of the soldiers and tribunes.
The guards D and all the company of bodyguards immediately tore their garments and, casting themselves upon the ground, beat their heads, emitting wailings and cries together with lamentations and shouts, calling upon their master, their lord, and their emperor—not as a master, but as a parent, like legitimate children. The commanders and captains proclaimed him their savior, their guardian, and their benefactor. The rest of the army, like a flock, with all modesty and reverence, yearned for their good shepherd. The crowds likewise ran through the entire city, showing the deep grief of their souls abundantly with outcries and shouts. Many, because of their pain, seemed like people struck with madness, with each one making the mourning his own.
A as if the common good of all had been taken away from their life.
CHAPTER LXVI
How the funeral was brought from Nicomedia to Constantinople and placed in the palace.
After this, the soldiers took the body from the bed and placed it in a golden coffin, and having covered it with a purple garment, they brought it to Constantinople and placed it on high in the principal chamber of the imperial palace. Then, with golden candelabra ignited with lights on every side, an admirable spectacle was presented to those who beheld it, and such as had never been seen on earth by any mortal since the very foundation of the world. For in the middle chamber of the royal palace, the emperor’s body lay on high in a golden coffin, adorned with kingly B insignia, namely the purple and the diadem, and a great crowd, surrounding it, kept watch, guarding it night and day.Chapter LXVII
How, even after death, he was honored by the counts and the rest, just as when he was alive.
But the commanders of the whole army, the counts, and the entire order of magistrates, who were accustomed even before to adore the emperor, in no way changing the observance of their former custom, used to enter at the appointed hours and, with bended knee, salute the emperor lying in the coffin, just as if he were still alive and breathing after his passing. After these, the leaders, the senators, and all the men of rank did the same upon entering. Then an innumerable C multitude of the common people, with children and women, came to witness this sight. And these things continued to be done assiduously for a long space of time, since the military had decided that the body should lie and be guarded in this manner until his sons arrived and honored their father’s funeral themselves. Thus, the blessed prince reigned alone even after his death, and all things were administered in the usual manner, as if he were still among the living. This honor, alone among all men in human memory, he received. D [alt-version omitted]A Because he had honored God and His Christ with every kind of action, it was fitting that he alone should have obtained these things, and the God over all deemed his mortal body worthy to reign among men, thus demonstrating to those whose minds were not petrified the deathless and unending kingdom of his soul. And these things were completed in this manner.
CHAPTER LXVIII. How the army, by its own judgment, declared his sons Augusti.
Meanwhile, the tribunes sent chosen men from the military units—men who had long been known to the princes for their fidelity and benevolence—to the Caesars to report all that had been done. And they did these things at that time. But all the armies everywhere, as if stirred by a certain divine spirit, as soon as news of the emperor’s death was announced, determined with one accord—exactly as if the great emperor were still among them—that they would recognize no one as sovereign of the Roman Empire B other than his own children. Not long after, they refused to call them merely Caesars, but desired them to be called Augusti; a name that is, as it were, a certain mark of supreme authority. And the army signaled its votes and acclamations to one another by letter: and the unanimous consent of the legions became known at one and the same moment to all who were stationed anywhere.
CHAPTER LXIX. The mourning in Rome for Constantine, and the honors decreed to him by images after his death.
But in the royal city, when the senate and the Roman people learned of the emperor’s death, considering this news to be most heavy and more bitter than any calamity, they set no bounds to their sorrow. For the baths and the markets were closed, as were public spectacles, and every other pleasure of life which men in leisure are accustomed to pursue was put aside. Those who had previously lived in luxury now walked the streets in mourning. All proclaimed the emperor blessed, beloved of God, and strictly worthy of the empire. C And they did not declare this with mere words alone, but, by dedicating images, they honored the dead as if he were still among them. In these, having depicted the likeness of the heavens on a tablet, they painted him resting in the celestial abode above the cosmic arches. Furthermore, they themselves named his children alone—and no one else—emperors and Augusti: and with great cries they demanded that they have the funeral of their emperor with them and that he be deposited in the imperial city.
CHAPTER LXX. How the funeral was deposited in Constantinople by Constantius.
The Romans even afforded this honor to the prince honored by God. D Now the second of his children, who had been set over the East by his father, upon hearing of his father’s passing, set out for the city, conveying the royal body to be deposited there.
A He himself led the procession; the military battalions marched in their ranks, and an innumerable multitude followed, while the spearmen and shield-bearers surrounded the emperor’s body. When they arrived at the church of the Apostles of our Saviour, they rested the coffin there. And so the new emperor, Constantius, honoring his father in this way, both by his presence and by the duties befitting him, fulfilled the requirements of proper reverence.
CHAPTER LXXI.
A service held in the martyrion of the apostles at the death of Constantine.
When he had withdrawn B with the military ranks, the ministers of God came forward into the midst, together with the crowds and the whole populace of the faithful, and performed the rites of divine worship with prayers. There, the blessed one, lying on high upon a raised platform, was celebrated with praises; and an innumerable crowd, together with those ordained to God, offered up prayers to God for the emperor’s soul, not without tears, but with abundant lamentation, fulfilling what was most dear to the God-beloved. In this, God manifested his benevolence toward his servant, in that he granted the empire to his beloved and legitimate sons as his successors, and—according to his own desires—the body of his thrice-blessed soul was deemed worthy to rest in the memory of the apostles, being glorified C in company with the apostles’ proclamation, gathered together with the people of God, and deemed worthy of divine rites and the mystic liturgy, and enjoying communion in the holy things.
A He himself, moreover, holding the empire even after death, as if redivivus, governing the whole world, Victor Maximus Augustus, would still rule the state in his own name.
CHAPTER LXXII
*Of the phoenix bird.*Not after the manner of that Egyptian bird, which, they say, being the only one of its kind, is said to die upon a mound of aromatics, offering itself up as a sacrifice: and soon, from those very ashes, to be reborn, and carried on high with wings, to be seen in the same form as before; but rather after the example of its Savior, who like a grain of wheat, spreading itself from one seed into many, by the aid and blessing of God brought forth the ear, and filled the whole world with its fruits; in this manner the most blessed prince became multiple from one through the succession of his children: so that everywhere in all the provinces images of him along with his children are set up out of honor, and the familiar name of Constantine is used even after his passing.
CHAPTER LXXIII
*How they depicted Constantine on coins as if ascending into heaven.*Moreover, coins of this kind were struck, on the anterior side bearing the blessed prince with his head covered; on the other side, however, sitting like a charioteer in a four-horse chariot, and receiving it—so to speak—as he was taken up to the heights by a hand extended to him from above from heaven.
CHAPTER LXXIV
*That he who worshipped God was also deservedly honored by God.*These miracles did the most high God of all exhibit in C Constantine, who alone of all the emperors before him had openly professed himself a Christian, before our eyes.
A For he showed the difference between those who deemed themselves worthy to worship him and Christ, and those who had chosen the opposite path; for those who had set themselves to war against his Church rendered God their enemy and foe, the ruin of each of them in the course of life providing a clear proof of their hatred of God; just as, therefore, the outcome of Constantine, made manifest to all, established the pledges of his love for God.
CHAPTER LXXV.
That Constantine surpassed all previous Roman emperors in piety.
B Seeing that he alone of the Roman emperors had honored the God who is King of all with excellence of piety, and alone had preached the Word of Christ with free speech to all, and alone, as no one since the beginning of time has done, had glorified His Church, and alone had overthrown every polytheistic error and confuted every manner of idolatry; and indeed, also, he alone was deemed worthy in this life and after death of such honors as no one, should he wish to declare the like, could find to have fallen to anyone else—neither among the Greeks, nor among the barbarians, nor even among the most noble Romans themselves, nor is any such person recorded as having existed among us from the beginning of time.
THE CHAPTERS OF THE FIFTH BOOK.
α'. The prologue mentions the Passover, and how the Word of God, having benefited all in various ways, was plotted against by those who were benefited. β'. On asking for pardon and correcting one’s faults. γ'. That both God the Father of the Word, and the Creator of the universe, is the same; and that the things which exist could not persist if their causes were different. δ'. On the error concerning idols. ε'. That Christ the Son of God created everything, and determined the quantity of being in each. ϛ'. That the doctrine concerning fate is proven false, both from human laws and from those things in the creation which move not in disorder, but according to order, the Creator’s boundary being shown through that order. ζ'. That one must glorify the wisdom of the Creator concerning things incomprehensible, and not blame another or some automatic movement. η'. That God provides the things which are necessary to men in abundance; but provides those for pleasure with moderation, in a manner profitable for the enjoyment of each. θ'. Concerning the philosophers who, because they wished to know everything, were deceived in their opinions, and some encountered dangers. And concerning the doctrines of Plato. ι'. Concerning those who reject not only the scriptural doctrines but also the philosophical ones, and concerning whether one must believe poets in all things, or disbelieve them in all. ια'. Concerning the bodily presence of the Lord, who he was, and for whom he came. ιβ'. Concerning those who did not know the mystery, and that they were ignorant by choice, and what good things await those who knew, and especially those who were perfected through their confession. ιγ'. That the difference between the parts of the creation is necessary; and that the inclination toward good and evil belongs to the judgment of men, whence judgment is also necessary and reasonable. ιδ'. That the created nature is infinitely distant from the uncreated substance; but man comes near to it through a life of virtue. ιε'. All that the Savior taught, and the miracles He performed, and how He benefited those who were beginning. ισ'. That the coming of Christ was predicted by the prophets; and that it came at the destruction of the idols and of the idolatrous cities. ιζ'. Concerning the wisdom of Moses, which was emulated by the philosophers from outside; and concerning Daniel and the three children. ιη'. Concerning the Erythraean Sibyl, who in the acrostic of her prophetic verses indicates the Lord and His passion; and the acrostic is: Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior, Cross. ιθ'. That the prophecy concerning the Savior was not fabricated by any of the Church, but belongs to the Erythraean Sibyl, whose books
Cicero rendered into Latin verse before the coming of Christ; and that Virgil makes mention of her, and at the same time of the virgin birth, celebrating the mystery obscurely for fear of those in power. κ'. Other verses of Virgil Maro concerning Christ, and their interpretation, in which it is shown that the mystery was indicated obscurely, as is the custom of poets. κα'. That these things cannot be said of a mere man; and that those who disbelieve, through ignorance of piety, do not even know the cause of their own origin. κβ'. Thanksgiving to Christ, recording the emperor's victories and other blessings; and a refutation of the tyrant Maximin, who by the magnitude of the persecution brought greater glory to piety. κγ'. Concerning the Christian way of life; and that the Divine favors those who live in virtue, and that one must expect judgment and retribution. κδ'. Concerning Decius, Valerian, and Aurelian, who ended their lives miserably because of the persecution of the Church. κε'. Concerning Diocletian, who resigned his empire in disgrace, and was struck as if by lightning because of the persecution of the Church. κς'. That God is the cause of the emperor’s piety; and that one must seek success from God and attribute it to Him, while attributing failures to our own sloth.
565 CHAPTERS OF THE FIFTH BOOK
I. Proem regarding the mention of Pascha, and that Christ, though he had conferred many benefits upon all men, was evil-treated by them. II. Address to the Church and his listeners, that they should grant pardon and offer corrections if he has spoken anything less than rightly. III. That God is the Father of the Word, and the Maker of all things; and that things could in no way exist if their causes were diverse. IV. Concerning the error of those who worship idols. V. That Christ the Son of God created all things, and established a certain duration of life for each. VI. Concerning fate; and that the things said about it are false; and this is shown both from human laws and from created things which move not by chance, but by order; by doing this, I declare the Creator's precept. C VII. That in matters which we cannot grasp by intelligence, we ought to preach the wisdom of the Creator, and not imagine chance or any other cause besides God. VIII. That God provides in abundance for men the things that are necessary for use, but provides only sparingly those things that make for pleasure; dispensing both for our utility. IX. Concerning the philosophers who, wishing to know all things, fell into opinions, and some underwent the crisis of death; also concerning the doctrine of Plato. X. Concerning those who despise not only Sacred Scripture, but even the dogmas of the philosophers: and that faith should be placed in poets in all things, or in none at all. XI. Concerning the bodily advent of the Lord, what it was like and why it happened. XII. Concerning those who did not know this mystery; and that their ignorance is voluntary: and how great are the good things that await those who have known it, and especially those who have died in the confession of it. XIII. That a difference is necessary in created things; and that the propensity toward good and evil arises from the will of men: and therefore the judgment of God is necessary. XIV. That the creature is separated by an immense distance from the uncreated substance; and that man approaches nearest to God through virtue. D XV. What precepts He handed down, and what miracles He performed, and how greatly the Savior benefited his subjects. XVI. That the coming of Christ was predicted by the prophets: and that it was ordained for the overthrow of 566 idols and cities that worship idols. XVII. Concerning the wisdom of Moses: also concerning Daniel and the three children. XVIII. Concerning the Sibyl who, in the acrostic of the poems by which she prophesied, designates the Lord and His passion. This acrostic is: Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior, Cross. XIX. That this prophecy concerning Christ was not fabricated by any of the Christians, but was written by the Erythraean Sibyl, whose books Cicero rendered into Latin verse before the arrival of Christ; and that Virgil makes mention of her, and at the same time of the virgin birth; celebrating the mystery obscurely, for fear of those in power. XX. Other verses of Virgil Maro concerning Christ, and their interpretation: in which it is shown that the mystery was indicated obscurely, as is the custom of poets. XXI. That these things cannot be said concerning a naked and simple man; and that the unfaithful, on account of their ignorance of divine worship, do not even know the cause of their own origin. XXII. Thanksgiving of the emperor, by which he attributes his victories and his other goods to Christ; and a refutation of the tyrant Maximin, who had increased the glory of the Christian religion by the cruelty of his persecution. XXIII. Concerning Christian institutions: and that God loves those who seek after virtue; and that one ought to hope for judgment and retribution. XXIV. Concerning the calamitous end of life of Decius, Valerian, and Aurelian on account of their persecution of the Churches. XXV. Concerning Diocletian, who resigned his empire in disgrace, and was struck as if by lightning on account of the persecution of the Churches. XXVI. That God was the cause of the emperor’s piety; and that we ought to entreat prosperous outcomes from God and bear them as acceptable to Him: but that we should attribute things done otherwise to our own negligence.
CONSTANTINE THE EMPEROR, AN ORATION WHICH HE ENTITLED: TO THE ASSEMBLY OF THE SAINTS
A CAPUT I. A *The prologue makes mention of Easter, and how Christ, having bestowed many benefits upon all men, was evilly treated by them.*
The radiance of the day and the sun—more brilliant than usual—the prologue to the resurrection, and the new restoration of those bodies which had long since dissolved, the foundation of the promise, and the path leading to eternal life: the day of the passion is now at hand, most beloved teachers, and all you other friends, and you, B the blessed and numerous multitudes of those who worship, who worship God Himself, the Source of religion, both with the inner senses of each person and with tongues and voices, unceasingly praising Him according to the instructions contained in the sacred oracles. But thou, Nature, mother of all, what hast thou ever accomplished for the benefit of mankind? Or rather, what is thy work at all? Since He is the Author of all things and of thy very substance; C for He adorned thee, since the ornament of nature is the life according to nature.