The Council of Antioch Writes to Jovian

The leaders of the churches now took up the stirring of questions and disputes about doctrine again. During the reign of Julian, when Christianity itself was in danger, they had kept quiet and with one mind had offered up their prayers for the mercy of God. This is how people behave: when they are attacked by enemies from outside, they stay in agreement among themselves, but when the outside trouble is gone, quarrels creep in among them. This, however, is not the place to cite the many examples of this in governments and nations that history supplies.

At this time Basil, bishop of Ancyra, Silvanus, bishop of Tarsus, Sophronius, bishop of Pompeiopolis, and others of their party, who loathed the heresy of the so-called Anomoeans and accepted the term “of like substance” in place of the term “of one substance,” wrote a petition to the emperor. After giving thanks to God for his coming to the throne, they begged him to confirm the decrees issued at Ariminum and Seleucia, and to cancel what had been set up merely by the zeal and power of certain individuals. [a] They also asked that, if division over the councils should still prevail in the churches, the bishops from every region might be called together by themselves in some place the emperor would name, and not be allowed to meet elsewhere and issue decrees that contradicted one another, as had happened in the reign of Constantius. They added that they had not gone to visit him at his camp because they were afraid of being a burden to him; but if he wished to see them, they would gladly come to him and pay all the costs of the journey themselves. Such was the document written to the emperor Jovian.

At this point a council met at Antioch in Syria. It confirmed the form of belief established by the Council of Nicaea, and decided that the Son is beyond dispute of one substance with the Father. Meletius, who then governed the church of Antioch; Eusebius, bishop of Samosata; Pelagius, bishop of Laodicea in Syria; Acacius, bishop of Caesarea in Palestine; Irenius, bishop of Gaza; and Athanasius, bishop of Ancyra, took part in this council. [c] When the council was over, they informed the emperor of what had been done by sending him the following letter:

“To the most religious and God-beloved Augustus, our sovereign Jovian, the Conqueror, from the bishops gathered at Antioch from various regions. “We know, emperor beloved of God, that your piety is wholly set on keeping peace and harmony in the church. Nor are we unaware that you have taken firmly to heart the chief point of such unity, namely, the true and orthodox faith. “So, that we may not be counted among those who attack these doctrines of the truth, we declare to your piety that we accept and hold the form of belief that was set out long ago by the holy Council of Nicaea. Now, although the term ‘of one substance’ seems strange to some people, it was safely interpreted by the Fathers, and it means that the Son was begotten of the substance of the Father. “This term does not convey the idea of unbroken generation, nor does it agree with the use the Greeks make of the word ‘substance.’ Rather, it serves to stand against the ungodly and reckless claim of Arius that the Son came from what had not existed before. The Anomoeans, who have just sprung up, have the shameless boldness to uphold this claim, to the grief of the church’s harmony. We attach to this letter a copy of the formula of faith adopted by the bishops gathered at Nicaea, which we also cherish.” [d] Such were the decisions of the priests who met at Antioch, and they attached to their letter a copy of the Nicene formula of faith. [e]