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PELAGIUS the Second. * 1.1
I Do not reckon in the number of Ecclesiastical Writers, the Popes John the Third, nor Benedict the First altho to each of them there is attributed a Letter; one concerning the Suffragans, and the other concerning the Trinity, because all the Criticks are agreed that these two Pieces are the Works of Isidorus. I proceed therefore to Pelagius the Second, who was promoted to the See of the Church of Rome in 577, and fill'd it till the beginning of the Year 590: For altho the first, se∣cond, eighth and ninth Letters ascribed to the same Pope, are also the Work of the same Impostor, yet the same cannot be said of the others.
The third is taken out of the Life of St. Gregory, written by John the Deacon; It is address'd to St. Gregory, who was then also Deacon, and was at Constantinople, to put him in mind to sollicite the Emperor to send Succors into Italy against the Lombards. This Letter is dated October the 4th, 584.
In the fourth to Aunacarius Bishop of Auxerra, he praises the Piety of the Kings of France: He declares to him, that he hopes they were so far from joyning with the Lombards, that they would send Relief to Italy and the Romans: He prays Aunacarius to exhort them to do it, and sends him some Reliques. He had written a former Letter to this Bishop, wherein he congratulates him up∣on the state of the Church of France: This Letter is the last, altho it precede that which we have now spoken of: For it is dated in the fith Year of the Empire of Tiberius, which is 582, and the o∣ther is dated October the 5th, in the seventh Year of Tiberius, which is 584.
The fifth Letter is address'd to Elias Bishop of Aquileia, and to the Bishops of Istria, who had separated from the Church of Rome about the Affair of the three Chapters. 1. In it he recommends to them the Authority of the Holy See. 2. He declares that he holds the Faith and Doctrine de∣creed by the four General Councils, and contain'd in the Letter of St. Leo. 3. He reproves Elias and his Adherents for separating from the Church. 4. He proves to them by passages of Scripture the necessity of being united to the Church, and of living in peace with their Brethren. 5. He ex∣horts them earnestly to re-unite themselves to the other Churches.
The sixth Letter of Pelagius, address'd to the same Persons, is written upon the same Subject. He presses them yet more earnestly to reconcile themselves to the Church; But because they chiefly grounded themselves upon what the Council of Chalcedon, which was approv'd by St. Leo, had done, therefore he proves to them, that this Pope did not approve what the Council had decreed about the Faith, and that he was perswaded, that what concern'd the Persons ought to be re-examin'd. He alledges to them passages out of St. Austin and St. Cyprian, to convince them, that their Separation from the Church put them out of the way of Salvation. In fine, he exhorts them to send Deputies to Rome, to explain themselves, and treat of a Re-union, or to assemble at Ravenna, to enter upon a Conference there.
These Letters not prevailing with the Bishop of Aquileia, and his Brethren, to return to the Church, Pelagius sent to them a third Letter larger then the former: It was written by St. Gregory, who was yet but a Deacon. There he represents to these Bishops the Evils which cause the Schism and Division; and afterwards resutes the Reasons which induc'd them to believe that Justinian had violated the Authority of the Council of Chalcedon, by causing the three Chapters to be condemn'd. He maintains that St. Leo did only approve the Articles of Faith defin'd by this Council, and that perhaps he was deceiv'd as to Matter of Fact. He answers to the Opposition that was made by Vigilius of the Occidentalists, That it was no wonder, if the Latins, who did not perfectly under∣stand Greek, found it difficult to know the Errors of those Authors who were thought worthy of Condemnation. But distrusting this Answer, he brings the Example of St. Peter to excuse the Conduct of Vigilius; and says. That if this Holy Apostle chang'd his Opinion and Behaviour about the Observation of the Jewish Ceremonies, it was not so much to be blam'd in Vigilius, that he had chang'd his Judgment and Conduct in the Affair of the three Chapters. This Comparison is of lit∣tle force, but that which follows has yet less,—Do we not read, says he, that God himself changes his Designs? He uses afterwards the Testimony of St. Austin, to show that the Dead may be anathema∣tiz'd. After this, he proceeds to the Examination of the three Chapters: He relates the passages of Theodorus of Mopsuesta, which appear most agreeable to the Error of Nestorius, and the Testimonies of the Holy Fathers who condemn it. He shows, That the Letter of Ibas, reproaches St. Cyril and the Council of Ephesus, and that it favours the Error of Nestorius. He adds, That the Bishops of the Council of Chalcedon did not approve it; and that tho they had done it, yet the Matters of Faith ending in the sixth Action of this Council, what was done afterwards had not the same Autho∣rity. Lastly, he says, about the third Chapter, That all the Writings of Theodoret, are not con∣demn'd, but only those which are compos'd against St. Cyril. In fine, in answer to the favourable Testimonies which John of Antioch may have given to Theodorus, he observes, That the Fathers of∣tentimes praise Hereticks, and quotes particularly those who commend Origen. He concludes with exhorting the Bishops of Istria, to reconcile themselves to the other Orthodox Bishops, and prays God to inspire them with the desire and love of Peace, to which he exhorts them.