Nestorius Becomes Bishop of Constantinople

After the death of Sisinnius, because of the spirit of ambitious rivalry the clergy of Constantinople had shown, the emperors decided that none of that church should fill the vacant office of bishop. This was in spite of the fact that many were eager to have Philip ordained, and no fewer were in favor of electing Proclus. So they sent for an outsider from Antioch whose name was Nestorius. He was a native of Germanicia, and was known for his fine voice and his fluency in speaking, qualities they judged important for instructing the people. So after three months had passed, Nestorius was brought from Antioch. Some praised him highly for his self-control; but what sort of disposition he had in other respects, those with any discernment could see from his first sermon. He was ordained on the tenth of April, in the consulship of Felix and Taurus, and at once, in front of all the people, he addressed the emperor with these famous words: “Give me, my prince, the earth cleansed of heretics, and I will give you heaven in return. Help me destroy the heretics, and I will help you defeat the Persians.” [a]

These words were very pleasing to some of the crowd, who had a senseless hatred of the very name of heretic. But those who, as I have said, were skilled at judging a man’s character from what he says did not fail to see his shallowness of mind and his violent and vainglorious temper. For he had burst out with such vehemence without being able to restrain himself for even the shortest time, and, to use the proverb, “before he had tasted the water of the city,” he showed himself a furious persecutor. So on the fifth day after his ordination, he set out to tear down a chapel in which the Arians used to hold their services privately, and he drove these people to desperation. When they saw the work of destruction going forward in their chapel, they threw fire into it, and the fire spread on every side and burned many of the neighboring buildings to ashes as well. A riot broke out over this throughout the city, and the Arians, burning for revenge, made preparations for it. But God, the guardian of the city, did not allow the harm to come to a head. From that time, however, they branded Nestorius an “arsonist,” and it was not only the heretics who did this but also those of his own faith. For he could not rest. He sought every means of harassing those who did not share his views, and he kept disturbing the public peace.

He troubled the Novatians too, stirred to jealousy because Paul, their bishop, was respected everywhere for his piety; but the emperor checked his fury with warnings. What disasters he brought on the Quartodecimans throughout Asia, Lydia, and Caria, and how many people died in the riots he caused at Miletus and Sardis, I think it right to pass over in silence. What punishment he suffered for all these outrages, and for the unbridled license he gave his tongue, I will tell a little later.