The auncient ecclesiasticall histories of the first six hundred yeares after Christ, wrytten in the Greeke tongue by three learned historiographers, Eusebius, Socrates, and Euagrius. Eusebius Pamphilus Bishop of Cæsarea in Palæstina vvrote 10 bookes. Socrates Scholasticus of Constantinople vvrote 7 bookes. Euagrius Scholasticus of Antioch vvrote 6 bookes. VVhereunto is annexed Dorotheus Bishop of Tyrus, of the liues of the prophetes, apostles and 70 disciples. All which authors are faithfully translated out of the Greeke tongue by Meredith Hanmer, Maister of Arte and student in diuinitie. Last of all herein is contayned a profitable chronographie collected by the sayd translator, the title whereof is to be seene in the ende of this volume, with a copious index of the principall matters throughout all the histories

CAP. XV.* 1.1

A forme of faith layde downe by the byshops of the East, contayning many longe and large circumstances.

THree yeares after, the bishops of the Easterne churches, summone agayne an other coun∣cell, they frame an other forme of faith, and sende it to the bishops of Italie, by Eudoxius bishop of Germanicia, Martyrius, and Macedonius bishop of Mopsiestia a citie in Cilicia. This faith sett forth at large, contayneth many additions and glosses, besides such as heretofore were published in other creedes. it beginneth thus: VVe beleue in one God the father almigh∣tie,* 1.2 creator and maker of all things, of vvhome all fatherhoode in heauen and in ••arth is called:

and in his onely begotten sonne Iesus Christ our Lorde, begotten of the Father before all worlds: God of God, lyght of lyght, by vvhome all thinges vvere made, both in heauen and in earth, be they visible or inuisible: who is the word, the wisdome, the power, the life & true light: who in the later dayes was incarnate for our sakes, was borne of the holy virgine, was crucified, dead and buryed: who rose againe the third day from the dead, ascended into heauen, & sitteth at the ryght hand of the father: who shall come in the end of the world, to iudge the quicke and the dead, to reward euery man according vnto his works whose kingdome shall haue no ende, but shall continevve for euer. For he shall sitte at the ryght hande of the Father, not onely vvhyle this vvorlde lasteth, but also in the lyfe to come. VVe beleeue also in the holye Ghost, that is in the Comforter, vvhome Christ promised to sende his Apostles after his ascention into heauen, vvhome also he sent for to teache, and leade them in all thynges, by vvhose meanes, the soules of them vvhich faithfully beleeue in him, are sanctified. vvho∣soeuer therefore dare presume to affirme: that the sonne had his beginninge of nothinge: or of any other substance then the Fathers: or that there vvas a tyme, or a vvorlde, vvhen he vvas not: these the holie and Catholicke churche doth holde for accursed. In like maner such as saye that there are three gods: or that Christ vvas not God from the beginninge: or that he is neyther Christ, neyther the sonne of God: or that there is neyther Father, neyther Sonne, neyther holie Ghost: or that the sonne is vnbegotten: or that the Father begatt not the sonne of his ovvne vvyll and purpose: these the holie and Catholicke church doth holde for accursed. Neyther can it be vttered vvithout blasphemie, that the sonne had his beynge of nothinge, in so much there can no such thinge be founde of him in ho∣lie scripture. Neyther doe vve learne that he had his beynge of any other preexistent sub∣stance, besydes the fathers, but that he vvas truely begotten of God the father alone. The holie scripture teacheth vs that the father of Christ is and vvas one vnbegotten, and vvithout beginning. Neyther may vve safely affirme vvithout testimonie of the sacred scripture, that there vvas a tyme vvhen he vvas not, as though vve shoulde imagine or forethinke in him, any temporall space: but vve haue to conceaue and comprehende in our mindes, God alone, vvhith begatt him vvithout tyme. For tymes and vvorldes vvere made by him. Neither can ere other, the father or the sonne properly be sayde, ioyntly to be vvithout beginninge, and ioynt∣ly vvithout begettinge: but as vve knovve the father alone to be vvithout beginninge, incom∣prehensble, and to haue begotten the sonne, after an incomprehensible, and an intelligible maner: so vve vnderstande the forme, to haue bene begotten before all vvorldes, and not to be vnbegotten after the same maner vvith the father, but to haue had a beginninge, the father* 1.3 vvhich begatt him, for the hea•••••• of Christ, is God. VVhen vve confesse three thinges, and three persons accordinge vnto the scriptures, to vvete: of the father▪ of the sonne, and of the holie Ghost, vve doe not therein allovve of three gods. For vve acknovvledge one onely God, perfect and absolute of him selfe, vnbegotten, vvithout beginninge, inuisible, the father of the onely begotten sonne, vvho alone of him selfe hath his beynge, vvho also alone ministreth aboundantly vnto all other things their beyng. And vvhen as vve affirme one God the father of our Lorde Iesus Christ, to be onely vnbegotten, vve doe not therefore deny Christ to haue bene God from euerlastinge, as the follovvers of Paulus Samosatenus dyd, vvhich affirmed that* 1.4 by nature he vvas but onely and bare man, after his in••••mation by profiting•• and forvvardnes to haue bene made God. VVe knovve though ••e be subiect to the father and to God, that he is God of God begotten accordinge vnto nature, that he is both a perfect and true God, and not made God aftervvardes of 〈…〉〈…〉: but that accordinge vnto the vvyll of God the father he vvas incarnate for our sakes, neuer aftervvardes lo••inge his di••••niti••. Moreouer vve detest and* 1.5 abhorre, and holde them for accursed, vvhich affirme that the sonne of God is the onely and naked vvorde of God, vvithout substance, but after a fayned and imaginatiue sort in an other: and one vvhyle doe terme him the vvorde as vttered by the mouth an other vvhyle as inclosed in the minde of some one or other: For they confesse not that euen Christ, vvho is Lorde, the sonne of God, the mediator, the image of God vvas before all vvorldes: but that he vvas Christ and the sonne of God from that tyme, since vvhich (novve full foure hundred yeares agoe) he tooke our fleshe of the Virgine. They vvyll haue the kingdome of Christ, from that tyme to haue his beginninge: and after the consummation of the vvorlde, and the dread∣full daye of iudgement, to haue his endinge. The authors of this abhominable heresie are

the Marcellians, Photinians, Ancyrogalatians, vvho therefore disproue the essence and di∣uinitie* 1.6 of Christ, vvhich hath bene before all vvorldes, and likevvise his kingdome vvhich hath no ende: because they pretende the establishinge of a monarchie. But vve knovve him, not for a simple vttered vvorde, or as it vvere inclosed in the minde of God the father: but for the liuing word, God, subsistinge of him selfe, the sonne of God and Christ: and not to haue bene with his father before the vvorlds by onely prescience, to haue bene conuersant and ministred vnto him for the framing and finishing of euery vvorke of visible or inuisible things: but to haue bene the vvorde in deede, together vvith the father, and God of God▪ for this is he vnto vvhome the fa∣ther* 1.7 sayde: Let vs make man after our ovvne image and similitude: vvho appeared in his pro∣per person vnto the fathers of olde: gaue them the lawe: spake by the prophets: laste of all be∣came man: made manifest his father vnto all men, and raygneth vvorlde vvithout ende. Ney∣ther doe vve beleue that Christ receaued his diuinitie of late, but that he vvas perfect from all aeternitie, and like vnto the father in all things. Such as confounde the father, the sonne, and the* 1.8 holie Ghost. and impiously imagine three names in one thinge, and in one person, not vvithout iust cause vve forbidde them the church, because they appoynt the father, vvho is incomprehen∣sble, and impatible, by incarnation to be both comprehensible, and patible. Of which heresie are the Patropassians, so called of the Romaines, but of vs Sabellians. VVe know of certainty the* 1.9 father, vvhich sent his sonne to haue continewed in the proper nature of his immutable diuini∣tie: the sonne vvhich vvas sent to haue accomplished the disposed order of his incarnation. In like maner such as say impiously and blaspheniously, that Christ vvas begotten neyther by the counsell, neyther by the vvill of the father, attributinge to God the father a counsell tyed to ne∣cessitie, and an essence intangled vvith the vvant of free vvill, so that he begatt the sonne of cō∣pulsion: them first of all we hold for accursed creatures, and farre estraynged from the trueth in Christ: because they presume to publishe such doctrine of him, both contrary to the common notions & vnderstanding vve haue of God, and also repugnant vvith the sense and meaning of the sacred scripture inspired from aboue. VVe knowe that God is of his owne power, & that he enioyeth his free will, and we beleue godly and reuerently that he begat the sonne of his owne accord, & free will. VVe beleue & that godly, which is spoken of him: The Lorde made me the* 1.10 beginning of his wayes, for the accōplishing of his works, yet we vnderstand no•• that he was so made as other creatures & other things were framed. For that is impious & farr•• frō the faith of the catholicke church, to liken the creator vnto the creatures which he shaped: or to thinke that he had the like maner of begetting with other thinges of different nature. The holy scriptures do informe vs, onely of one onely begotten sonne, vnfainedly and truely begotten. Moreouer when as we say that the sonne hath his being of him selfe, that he liueth & subsisteth in like sort with the father: for all that, vve seuer him not from the father, neither do we imagine corporall vvise, certaine spaces, and distance betvvene their coherencie. For vve beleeue that they ioyne together vvithout pause or distance put betvvene, and that they can not be seuered asunder: so that the father compriseth, as it vvere in his bosome, the vvhole sonne: and the sonne is ioyned and fastened to the vvhole father, and resteth continevvally, onely in his fathers lappe. VVe be∣leeue furthermore in the absolute, perfect, & most blessed Trinitie: and vvhen vve call the father God, & the sonne God, in so doing we say not, there be two gods, but one God, of equall pow∣er & diuinitie, and one perfect coniunction of raygne: and euen as the father beareth rule & ex∣erciseth authoritie ouer all things, & ouer the sonne: sovve say that the sonne is subiect vnto the father, and that he gouerneth besides him, immediatly and next after him all thinges vvhich he made: and that the saincts, by the vvill of the father, receaue the grace of the holy Ghost aboun∣dantly poured vpon them. Thus the holy scriptures haue instructed vs, to direct our talke of the monarchie in Christ. After the aforesayd briefe & cōpendious forme of faith, vve haue bene cō∣strained to explicate & discourse of these thinges at large: not that vve are disposed vainely and arrogantly to contend: but to remoue out of the mindes of such men as knovve vs not, all fonde suspicion & surmise cōceaued of our censure & opinion, othervvise then trueth is: & that more∣ouer all the bishops of the VVest, may easily perceaue not only the sclaunders of such as main∣tayne the contrary opinion, but also the ecclesiasticall and Christian faith of the byshops inha∣bitinge* 1.11 the East, confirmed out of the manifest and vnvvrested testimonies of holie scripture, the vvhich the aduersaries are vvont lewdly to interpret. The bishops of the west churches affir∣med, they would in no wise receaue these thinges, partly for that they were written in a straunge

tonge, & therfore could not vnderstand them: they sayd moreouer that the creede or forme of faith, layd downe by the Nicene councell was sufficient, and that it was not for them curiously to search further.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Cap. 19. after ••he Greeke.
• * 1.2

  The bishops ••f the East summone a councell, and sende abrode this theyr Creede, with long exposi∣tions therof.
• * 1.3

  1. Corinth. 11.
• * 1.4

  The heresie of Paulus Sa∣mosatenus.
• * 1.5

  The word of God is no vocal or mē¦tall worde.
• * 1.6

  Marcellians. Photinians. Ancyrogala∣tians.
• * 1.7

  Gen. 1. 2. Gen. 12. 18. Exod. 19. 20. Hebr. 1.
• * 1.8

  Sabellians.
• * 1.9

  Patropassiās.
• * 1.10

  Prouerb. 8.
• * 1.11

  The bishops ••f the VVest ••hurches ••ere stayed •• religion.