Constantine’s Letter to Macarius about the Church of the Savior

“Constantine the Victor, Greatest Augustus, to Macarius. [a]

“So great is our Savior’s grace that no power of language seems equal to describing the wonderful event I am about to speak of. For the monument of his most holy Passion, buried beneath the ground so long ago, remained unknown for so long a span of years, until it reappeared to his servants, now set free by the removal of the one who was the common enemy of all. That is a fact truly beyond all wonder. For if all who are counted wise throughout the world were to join their efforts to say something worthy of this event, they could not achieve their aim in the slightest degree. Indeed, the nature of this miracle goes as far beyond the reach of human reason as heavenly things are above human affairs. For this reason it is always my first, and indeed my only, aim that, as the authority of the truth shows itself every day by new wonders, so all our souls may become more zealous, with all soberness and earnest agreement, for the honor of the divine law. I want you above all, therefore, to be convinced of what I suppose is plain to everyone else: that I have no greater concern than how best to adorn with a splendid building that sacred spot which, under God’s direction, I have freed, as it were, from the heavy weight of foul idol worship. It is a spot that has been counted holy in God’s judgment from the beginning, but it now appears holier still, since it has brought to light a clear assurance of our Savior’s Passion. [b]