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FROM JOHN TO INNOCENT
To my lord, the most reverend and divinely beloved Bishop Innocent,
John sends greeting in the Lord.
1. I suppose that even before receiving our letter your Piety has
heard of the iniquity which has been perpetrated here. For the
magnitude of our distress has left scarcely a single portion of the
world uninformed of this grievous tragedy: for report carrying the
tidings of what has happened to the very extremities of the earth, has
everywhere caused great mourning and lamentation. But inasmuch as we
ought not to mourn, but to restore order, and to see by what means
this most grievous storm of the Church may be stayed, we have deemed
it necessary to persuade my lords, the most honoured and pious bishops
Demetrius, Pansophius, Pappus and Eugenius to leave their own
churches, and venture on this great sea voyage, and set out on a long
journey from home, and hasten to your Charity, and, after informing
you clearly of everything, to take measures for redressing the evils as
speedily as possible. And with them we have sent the most honoured and
beloved of our Deacons, Paulus and Cyriacus, but we also
ourselves, in the form of a letter, will briefly instruct your
Charity concerning the things which have come to pass. For
Theophilus, who has been entrusted with the presidency of the Church
in Alexandria, having been commanded to repair alone to
Constantinople, certain men having brought an accusation against him
to the most devout Emperor, arrived bringing with him no small
multitude of Egyptian Bishops, as if wishing to show from the
outset, that he came for war and antagonism; moreover when he set foot
in the great and divinely beloved Constantinople he did not enter the
Church according to the custom and the law which has prevailed from
ancient time, he held no intercourse with us, and admitted us to no
share in his conversation, his prayers, or his society: but as soon
as he disembarked, having hurried past the vestibule of the Church,
he departed and lodged somewhere outside the city, and although we
earnestly entreated him, and those who had come with him, to be our
guests (for everything had been made ready, and lodgings provided,
and whatever was suitable) neither they, nor he consented. We seeing
this, were in great perplexity, not being able to discover the cause
of this unjust hostility; nevertheless we discharged our part, doing
what became us, and continually beseeching him to meet us and to say
for what cause he hazarded so great a contest at the outset, and threw
the city into such confusion. But as he did not choose to state the
reason, and those who accused him were urgent, our most devout
Emperor summoned us and commanded us to go outside the walls to the
place where Theophilus was sojourning, and hear the argument against
him. For they accused him of assault, and slaughter and countless
other crimes; but knowing as we did the laws of the fathers, and
paying respect and deference to the man, and having also his own
letters which prove that lawsuits ought not to be taken beyond the
border, but that the affairs of the several provinces should be treated
within the limits of the province, we would not accept the office of
judge, but deprecated it with great earnestness. But he, as if
striving to aggravate the former insults, having summoned my arch
deacon, by a stretch of arbitrary power, as if the Church were
already widowed, and had no bishop, by means of this man seduced all
the clergy to his own side; and the Churches became destitute, as the
clergy in each were gradually withdrawn, and instructed to hand in
petitions against us, and trained to prepare accusations. And having
done this he sent and summoned us to trial, although he had not yet
cleared himself of the charges brought against him, a proceeding
directly contrary to the canons and to all the laws.
2. But we being aware that we were not cited to a trial (for
otherwise we would have presented ourselves any number of times) but to
the presence of an enemy and an adversary, as was clearly proved by all
which occurred both before and after, despatched certain bishops to
him, Demetrius of Pesinus, Eulysius of Apamea, Lupicinus of
Appiaria, and the presbyters Germanus and Severus, who replied with
the moderation which became us, and said, that we did not decline to
be judged, but to appear before an open enemy, and manifest
adversary. For how could one who had not yet received any bills of
indictment against me, and had acted from the outset in the manner
described, and severed himself from the Church, from communion, and
from prayer, and was training accusers, and seducing the clergy, and
desolating the Church, how, I say, could he with justice mount the
throne of the judge which was not in any sense befitting him? For it
is not suitable that one who belongs to Egypt should act as judge of
those who are in Thrace, and this a man who is himself under an
accusation, and an enemy and adversary. Nevertheless he, in no way
abashed, but hurrying on to the completion of his design, although we
had declared our readiness to clear ourselves of the charges in the
presence of a hundred yea or a thousand bishops, and to prove ourselves
innocent as indeed we are, would not consent: but in our absence,
when we were appealing to a synod, and demanding a trial, and not
shrinking from a hearing of our cause, but only from open enmity, he
both received our accusers and absolved those who had been
excommunicated by me, and from them, who had not yet cleared
themselves of the offences laid to their charge, he received complaints
against me, and had minutes made of the proceedings, all which things
are contrary to law, and the order of the canons. But what need is
there of a long story? He did not cease doing and contriving
everything until, with all possible display of arbitrary power and
authority, he ejected us from the city and the church, when the
evening was far advanced and all the people were streaming after us.
Being drawn by the public informer through the midst of the city, and
dragged along by force I was taken down to the sea, and thrust on
board ship, and made a night voyage, because I appealed to a synod
for a just hearing of my cause. Who could hear these things without
tears, even if he had a heart of stone?
But seeing, as I said before, that we ought not merely to lament the
evils which have been done, but also to amend them, I beseech your
Charity to rouse yourself and have compassion, and do everything so as
to put a stop to the mischief at this point. For even after what I
have mentioned he did not desist from his deeds of iniquity, but sought
to renew the former attack. For when the most devout Emperor had
turned out those who shamelessly rushed into the Church, and many of
the Bishops present seeing their iniquity had retreated into their own
dioceses, flying from the incursion of these men as from a fire
devouring all things, we were again invited to the city, and to the
Church, from which we had been unjustly expelled, more than thirty
bishops introducing us, and our most pious Emperor sending a notary
for this purpose, while Theophilus immediately took to flight. For
what purpose, and from what cause? When we entered the city we
besought our most pious Emperor to convene a synod for prosecuting the
offenders in the late transactions. Being conscious therefore of what
he had done, and dreading conviction, the imperial letters having been
sent in every direction, convoking all men froth all quarters,
Theophilus secretly at midnight flung himself into a boat, and so made
his escape, taking all his company with him.
3. But even then we did not desist, supported as we were by a clear
conscience, from making the same supplication again to the most devout
Emperor: and he, acting as became his piety, sent to Theophilus
again, summoning him from Egypt, and his associates, in order to
give an account of the late proceedings, and informing him that he was
not to suppose that the one-sided deeds which he had so unjustly
perpetrated in our absence, and in violation of so many canons, would
suffice for his defence. He did not however submit to the royal
mandate, but remained at home, alleging an insurrection of the people
in excuse, and the unseasonable zeal of cer tain persons who were
attached to him, as he pretended: and yet before the arrival of the
imperial letters this same people had deluged him with abuse. But we
do not make much of these matters now, but have said what we have said
as wishing to prove the fact that he was arrested in his mischievous
course. Yet even after these things we did not rest, but were urgent
in our demand that a tribunal should be formed for the purpose of
enquiry and defence: for we said that we were ready to prove that we
ourselves were guiltless, but that they had flagrantly transgressed.
For there were some Syrians amongst those present with him at that
time, who were left behind here; and we accosted them expressing our
readiness to plead our cause, and frequently importuned them on this
behalf, demanding that the minutes (of the late transactions) should
be given up to us, or that the formal bills of indictment, or the
nature of the charges, or the accusers themselves, should be made
known; and yet we did not obtain any of these things, but were again
expelled from the Church. How am I to relate the events which
followed, transcending as they do every kind of tragedy? What
language will set forth these events? what kind of ear will receive
them without shuddering? For when we were urging these things, as I
said before, a dense troop of soldiers, on the great Sabbath itself,
as the day was hastening towards eventide, having broken into the
Churches violently drove out all the clergy who were with us, and
surrounded the sanctuary with arms. And women from the oratories who
had stripped themselves for baptism just at that time, fled unclothed,
from terror at this grievous assault, not being permitted to put on the
modest apparel which befits women; indeed many received wounds before
they were expelled, and the baptismal pools were filled with blood,
and the sacred water reddened by it. Nor did the distress cease even
at this point; but the soldiers, some of whom as we understand were
unbaptized, having entered the place where the sacred vessels were
stored, saw all the things which were inside it, and the most holy
blood of Christ, is might happen in the midst of such confusion, was
spill upon the garments of the soldiers aforesaid: and every kind of
outrage was committed as in a barbarian siege. And the common people
were driven to the wilderness, and all the people tarried outside the
city, and the Churches became empty in the midst of this great
Festival, and more than forty bishops who associated with us were
vainly and causelessly expelled together with the people and clergy.
And there were shrieks and lamentations, and torrents of tears were
shed everywhere, in the market places, in the houses, in the desert
places, and every part of the city was filled with these calamities;
for owing to the immoderate extent of the outrage not only the
sufferers, but also they who did not undergo anything of the kind
sympathized with us, not only those who held the same opinions as
ours. but also heretics, and Jews, and Greeks, and all places were
in a state of tumult and confusion, and lamentation, as if the city
had been captured by force. And these things were perpetrated contrary
to the intention of our most pious Emperor, under cover of night, the
Bishops contriving them, and in many places conducting the attack,
nor were they ashamed to have sergeants instead of deacons marching in
front of them. And when day dawned all the city was migrating outside
the walls under trees and groves, celebrating the festival, like
scattered sheep.
4. All which happened afterwards I leave you to imagine; for as I
said before it is not possible to describe each separate incident. The
worst of it is that these evils, great and serious as they are, have
not even now been suppressed nor is there any hope of their
suppression; on the contrary the mischief is extending itself every
day, and we have become a laughing stock to the multitude, or rather
I should say, no one laughs even if he is infinitely lawless, but all
men mourn, as I was saying, this new kind of lawlessness, the
finishing stroke of all our ills. What is one to say to the disorders
in the other Churches? For the evil did not stop even here, but made
its way to the east. For as when some evil humor is discharged from
the head, all the other parts are corrupted, so now also these evils,
having originated in this great city as from a fountain, confusion has
spread in every direction, and clergy have everywhere made insurrection
against bishops, there has been schism between bishop and bishop,
people and people, and will be yet more; every place is suffering from
the throes of calamity, and the subversion of the whole civilized
world. Having been informed then of all these things, my lords, most
honourable and devout, exhibit the courage and zeal which becomes you,
so as to put a stop to this great assault of lawlessness which has been
made upon the Churches. For if this custom were to prevail, and it
became lawful for any persons who desired it to enter strange dioceses,
so widely separated, and expel those whom one wished to remove, and do
whatever they pleased according to their own arbitrary power, be
assured that all things will go to ruin, and an implacable kind of war
will overrun the whole world, all men attacking others, and being in
turn attacked. Therefore to prevent such confusion overtaking the
whole earth yield to our entreaties that ye will signify by writing that
these lawless transactions executed in our absence, and after hearing
one side only, although we did not decline a trial, are invalid, as
indeed they are by the very nature of the case, and that those who are
convicted of having committed such iniquities must be subjected to the
penalty of the ecclesiastical laws; and for ourselves, who have not
been detected or convicted, or proved liable to punishment may we
continue to have the benefit of your correspondence, and your love,
and all other things which we have enjoyed aforetime. But if even now
those who have committed such lawless acts are willing to disclose the
charges on the strength of which they have unjustly expelled us,
neither memoranda, nor formal bills of indictment being given, nor the
accusers having appeared: yet if an impartial tribunal is formed, we
will submit to be tried, and will make our defence, and prove
ourselves guiltless of the things laid to our charge, as indeed we
are: for the things which they have done are outside the bounds of
every kind of order and every kind of ecclesiastical law and canon And
why do I say ecclesiastical canon? Not even in the heathen courts
would such audacious deeds ever have been committed, or rather not even
in a barbarian court, neither Scythians, nor Sarmatians would ever
have judged a cause in this fashion, deciding it after hearing one side
only, in the absence of the accused, who only deprecated enmity, not
a trial of his case, who was ready to call any number of judges,
asserting himself to be innocent and able to clear himself of the
charges in the face of the world, and prove himself guiltless in every
respect.
Having considered therefore all these things, and having been clearly
informed of all particulars by my lords, our most devout brethren the
bishops, may you be induced to exert your zeal on our behalf; for in
so doing ye will confer a favour not upon ourselves alone but also upon
the Church at large, and ye will receive your reward from God who
does all things for the peace of the Churches. Fare thee well
always, and pray for me, most honoured and holy master.
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