fent fituation was too flattering, not to raise the envy of their ever-watchful and implacable enemy the devil. "He," to use the words of St. Cyprian, "feeing his idols fallen into disrepute, and his temples deferted, on account of the number of converts to Chriftianity, invented a new artifice, to deceive the unwary under the difguife of the Chriftian name itself this was herefy and fchifm, which he employed as his inftruments to fubvert faith, corrupt truth, and diffolve unity. Thofe that he could not keep in the old dark road of idolatry, he deceived by leading them into the by-path of error." Lib. de. Unit. Eccl. Arius, a turbulent ambitious prieft of Alexandria in Egypt, afpired to that fee; but finding himself disappointed by the election of St. Alexander, his jealoufy and refentment ftimulated him to decry the doctrine of this holy prelate, which was true and orthodox, and to oppofe to it a new fyftem of doctrine of his own invention. He began to teach that Chrift was not God, but a created being, formed indeed before all other creatures, but not from eternity. Arius had a graceful mein, and a modeft deportment: He was old, and had a mortified countenance: these qualities gave him credit, and contributed to gain him profelytes.

The holy bishop, Alexander, at firft endeavoured to reclaim him by mild remonftrances and entreaties: but these not availing, and his pernicious doctrine gaining ground, Alexander affembled a fynod of the bishops of Egypt and Lybia, in which Arius and his abettors were condemned and cut off from the communion of the faithful, in the year 320. Of this proceeding St. Alexander gave account by a circular letter to all the bishops of the Church. Arius fled from Alexandria into Palestine; there he procured protection from fome bishops: from thence he proceeded to Nicomedia, where he met with a favourable reception from its bifhop, Eufebius, who be

came a warm friend to him, and his principal patron. But the herefiarch was not content with having gained over to his party fome of the bishops, he invented a fcheme to propagate his tenets among the vulgar clafs of people. He composed fongs, which he taught them to fing, and in them he mixed the poifon of his doctrine, which by that eafy means they unwarily fucked in.

Conftantine the emperor, in order to put a stop to the unhappy disputes that divided the Church, wrote letters to Alexander, bifhop of Alexandria, and to Arius, exhorting them to be reconciled. But this expedient proving ineffectual, and the divifions increafing, at the folicitation of the bishops he willingly concurred in procuring a general council of the Church to be held. The place pitched upon for it was Nice in Bithynia, and the emperor generoufly defrayed the whole charges of the clergy, who reforted thither from all parts of the world to the number of 318, in the year 325. St. Sylvefter, pope, not being able to go himself to the council, commiffioned Ofus, bishop of Corduba in Spain, to prefide there in his name, and fent him two priefts, Vitus and Vincentius, for affiftants. Arius was there prefent, and had two and twenty bishops of his party. Conftantine made a fhort fpeech to the fathers, in which, among other things, he faid: "Let us take care, that after having crushed, by the help of God, our Saviour, the tyranny of those who waged war against him, the devil by his jealoufy does not expofe the gospel to the flander and malevolence of the wicked by this inteftine war which I fee rise up in the Church." The fathers then called upon Arius to explain his doctrine, which shocked them very much. He and his partifans were foon confounded, and in the debate St. Athanafius diftinguished himself by force of argument in defence of the Catholic faith. In fine, the Arian doctrine was

profcribed, and Jefus Chrift declared to be truly God, confubftantial or having the fame eternal fubftance with the Father, and that the Father is in him, and he in the Father. In confequence of this determination they drew up a profeffion of the Catholic faith, which is called the Nicene Creed, to which all fubfcribed except a few Arian bifhops. Thefe with Arius and his other adherents were anathematized by the council, and banished by Conftantine.

In this manner the Catholic faith was afcertained, and triumphed over its enemies: but the fpirit of herefy, which is always reftlefs, could not be quelled. The Arians, though every way confounded, inftead of yielding, employed themselves in raifing fresh troubles. They wrote to the emperor, and by pretending to admit the Nicene faith, they got themselves recalled from banishment; they then fet themselves to poison the emperor's mind by different arts, by flanders, and calumnies against the Catholic bishops, and prevailed upon him to banish fome of them, among whom was St. Athanafius, bishop of Alexandria. But not ftopping there, they concerted a scheme to get Arius received into the Church, even in the imperial city of Conftantinople, and in presence of the emperor who then refided there, in 336. For that purpose they infinuated to Conftantine, that Arius was become orthodox in his doctrine, and they requested he night be called to Conftantinople. This being granted, and Arius arrived in the city, the emperor fent for him, and asked him if he received the Nicene faith: the herefiarch answered in the affirmative, and presented to the emperor a written profeffion of faith, in appearance not different from that of Nice, but conceived in artful and ambiguous terms. The emperor, fuppofing him fincere, defired Alexander, bishop of Conftantinople, to receive him into the

1

Catholic Communion. The holy prelate remon ftrated pathetically against such a dangerous and uncanonical step, but Arius's friends were clamorous, and infifted on the emperor's defire being complied with. The bishop retired immediately into the Church, proftrated himself before the altar, and in his fervent prayer thus addreffed Almighty God: "Lord, if Arius must be received into the Church, be pleased to take me out of the world; but if you have compaffion on your Church, as I know you have, permit not your inheritance to become an object of contempt." Next morning Arius's friends affembled, and refolved to conduct him to Church in spite of the bishop. They were leading him, as in triumph, through the ftreets, when on a fudden finding himself preffed by a neceffity of nature, he retired into a back-place to eafe himself; but there with his excrements he voided his bowels, and was found dead. Thus was the hand of God vifible upon Arius.

This ambitious apoftate and proud herefiarch had taken peace from the earth, had difturbed the Church of Chrift, and created a fatal divifion among the Chriftians. "The Church was in a flourishing condition," fays the hiftorian, Eufebius, fpeaking of the rife of Arianifm, " and the faithful employed themselves in all kinds of holy exercifes with comfort and joy; nor was there the leaft danger to be feared from any foreign enemy. But a fecret jealoufy unhappily crept in. It firft infinuated itself into the minds of the people, then found its way into the affemblies of the bishops, whom it animated against one another, by raising disputes and altercations among them concerning the Christian doctrine. This fmall beginning gave rife to a great flame, which first broke out at Alexandria," having been kindled there by Arius. De vita Conft, lib. 2. c. 61.

Conftantine the Great, dying in 337, left three fons, who divided the empire according to their father's directions. Conftantine, the eldeft, had Spain, Gaul, and all the provinces on this fide of the Alps. Conftantius, the fecond fon, had Thrace, Afia, Egypt, and the eaftern countries: And Conftans, the youngest, had Italy, Sicily, Africa, except Egypt, Greece, and Illyricum. Conftantius was foon gained over by the Arians, and his family was chiefly compofed of them. From his palace the infection diffused itself, firft into private families, and by degrees was propagated into the towns and even diftant provinces under his dominion. Many bishops imbibed the contagion, and communicated it to their flocks. This great acceffion of number increased the Arian power, which they did not fail to exert in perfecuting the orthodox Chriftians. They gave great trouble to St. Athanafius by the calumnies they invented against him, and they intruded into his fee of Alexandria, by force of arms, a bishop of their own party in his place. When St. Alexander, bishop of Conftantinople, died in 340, Paul, a true Catholic, was chofen his fucceffor, but the Arian faction depofed him with the agreement of the em. peror Conftantius, and fubftituted in his room the arch-Arian, Eufebius of Nicomedia. From that date the Arians were mafters in Conftantinople for forty years. They carried on every thing by violence in the eaft relying on the protection of the emperor Conftantius, they arrogated the power of depofing at their pleasure the orthodox prelates, and filling their places with Arians.

By all thefe different means Arianifm had very much diffused itself through the eaft, while the west was but little tainted with it. This produced great difunion in the Church; which occafioned a council to be held at Sardica in Illyricum in 347. It was compofed of about 250 bishops convened from both