How the Council of Ariminum Ended

But these, the fewer they became, the stronger they showed themselves. The most steadfast among them were our friend Phoebadius and Servatius, bishop of the Tungri. Since they had not yielded to threats and terrors, Taurus attacked them with entreaties, and begged them with tears to adopt a milder course. He argued that the bishops were now in the seventh month since they had been shut up in one city; that they saw no hope of going home, worn out as they were by the harshness of winter and by real want; and what, then, would be the end of it? He urged them to follow the example of the majority, and at least to take authority for doing so from the numbers who had gone before them. For Phoebadius declared openly that he was ready for exile and for any kind of punishment that might be laid on him, but would not accept the confession of faith the Arians had drawn up. So several days passed in this kind of argument. [a]

When they made little progress toward a settlement, Phoebadius little by little began to yield, and at last he was won over by a proposal made to him. For Valens and Ursacius declared that the present confession of faith had been drawn up along the lines of catholic teaching, and since the Easterners had put it forward at the emperor’s urging, it could not be rejected without impiety. And what end of the strife could there be, if a confession that satisfied the Easterners were rejected by those of the West? Finally, they said, if anything in the present confession seemed less fully stated than was desirable, our people themselves should add whatever they thought ought to be added, and they for their part would agree to whatever was added. This friendly offer was received with goodwill by all. Nor did our people dare to resist any longer, since they wanted somehow or other to bring the business to an end.

Then confessions drawn up by Phoebadius and Servatius began to be published. In these, first of all, Arius and his whole faithless scheme were condemned, and the Son of God was also declared equal to the Father, and without beginning, that is, without any starting point in time. Then Valens, as if he were helping our side, added the statement that the Son of God was not a creature like the other creatures; and a secret trick lay hidden in it. The deceit in this statement escaped the notice of those who heard it. For in these words, in which the Son was denied to be like the other creatures, he was nevertheless declared to be a creature, only superior to the rest. So neither party could consider that it had wholly won or wholly lost, since the confession itself favored the Arians, while the statements added afterward favored our side. The one exception was the statement Valens had added, which was not understood at the time, and was grasped at last only when it was too late. In this way, at any rate, the council was brought to an end: a council that had a good beginning and a disgraceful end.