A new history of ecclesiastical writers containing an account of the authors of the several books of the Old and New Testament, of the lives and writings of the primitive fathers, an abridgement and catalogue of their works ... also a compendious history of the councils, with chronological tables of the whole / written in French by Lewis Ellies du Pin.

Of the COUNCIL of Seleucia.

WHile these things were doing in the West, the Eastern Bishops assembled at Seleucia, and * 1.1 there raised Disputes which they maintained with extream Heats. There came to this Synod 160 Bishops of two different Parties altogether opposite to one another. One of them were pure Arians who maintained, That the Son of God was not at all like in Substance to his Father. There were about 40 of this Party. The others call'd Semi-Arians, made profession of believing the Son of God to be like in Substance, and rejected the Errours of Arius and A••tius; those of this Party were 105: The other Bishops were probably Catholicks, Defenders of the Consubstantiality. There was an Officer from the Emperour's Court, call'd Leonas, present at the Council for hindering any Tumult. The First Assembly was held on the 23d. of September in the Year 359. Leonas required the Bishops to propose what they were to treat o••. The Semi-Arians, whereof the chief were George of Laodicea, Eleusius of Cyzicum, Sophronius of Pompeiopolis, Silvanus of Tarsus, Macedonius of Constantinople, Basil of Ancyra, Eustathius of Sebastea, and St. Cyril of Jerusalem, maintain'd, That Personal Causes should be first examin'd before they handled Matters of Faith. On the contrary, the Arians, whereof the Heads were Acacius of Caesarea, George of Alexandria, Uranius of Tyre, E••∣doxius of Antioch, maintain'd, That they should first begin with Matters of Faith; and they carried it against the others. They propos'd that the Nicene Creed should be rejected, and a New one should be made: But the Bishops of the other Party said, That they received the Council of Nice, and found nothing to be blam'd in it, but only the Word Consubstantial. Hereupon there arose a great Dispute which lasted till Night. To put an end to it, Sylvanus of Tarsus said with a loud Voice, That it was needless to make a New Creed, that they had nothing to do, but Sign that which was made at Antioch, by the Synod held there for the Dedication of the Church. The Acacians seeing that this Proposition was approv'd, withdrew, and the next Day the other Bishops being shut up in the Church, caused the Creed of Antioch to be Signed by all the Bishops. On the Third Day, Leonas re-assembled the Bishops of both Parties. The Acacians desired that the Bishops who were divided from them and depos'd, should withdraw; they complained that they were not suffer'd to speak freely in the First Assembly; and they propos'd a Confession of Faith wherein they declare, That they did not refuse to approve the Creed made at Antioch, but that they were obliged to reject more ex∣presly the Terms, Consubstantial and like in Substance, which troubled the Church; That they did also condemn those who said that the Son of God was not like the Father, and that they made Pro∣fession of believing with the Apostl•• that he was the Image and Resemblance of the Father. They add, That the Creed of Sirmium was perfectly like their's. This Confession of Faith is related by St. Epiphanius with the Subscriptions of 39 Bishops of this Party. Sr. Hilary observes, That the greatest Part of those who Signed it being Anomaeans, were forc'd to explain the Profession which they then made, by saying, That the Son was like his Father as he was his Father, but he was not like him as he was God. The Fourth Meeting was spent in Disputes which came to no end. Where∣fore Leonas seeing that there was no means left to reconcile them, declared that he would put an end to the Council, and that he would not be present the next Day at the Assembly of the Bishops. The Acacians took occasion from thence to appear no more. The other Bishops, after a Citation of them, depos'd Acacius, George of Alexandria, Uranius of Tyre, and Six other Bishops of their Party, and excommunicated Nine of them. They restor'd Cyril of Jerusalem, and ordained one named Anianus Bishop of An••ioch, in the room of Eudoxius; but this Anianus was immediately sent i••to banishment.

The Success of what was done both by the one and the other Party in this Council, depended upon the Will of the Emperour; the business was; who should first engage him. The Deputies of the Aca∣cians came first to Constantinople; and they were quickly followed thither by those of the Semi-Arians, whereof the chief were Eustathius of Sebastea, Basil of Ancyra, Sylvanus of Tarsus, and Eleu∣sius of Cyzicum; they were assisted by St. Basil who was as yet but a Deacon. The Emperour would have the Cause of the Faith discuss'd in his own presence. 'Tis said that Aëtius entred upon a Conference with Basil of Ancyra, and was convicted of Heresy. However this be, Theodoret says, that Eustathius of S••bastea presented to the Emperour a Confession of Faith, wherein it was said that the Son of God was not like his Father, and accus'd Eudoxius of maintaining it; that the Em∣perour having given it to this Bishop he denied it, and said that it was Aetius's, and that Aetius, having acknowledged it for his, was driven out of the Palace. While these things are doing, the Nicene Creed, which was Sign'd at Ariminum, was * 1.2 brought to Constantinople, and the Emperour having propos'd it, it was Sign'd by all the Bishops of both Parties.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Of Seleu∣cia, 359.
• * 1.2

  [That made in Nicé a City of Thrace.]