another in the course of one year, took place not only without the intervention, but even without the knowledge, of the Bishop of Rome. But this is not all; a far stronger case remains to be told. On the death of Meletius, Paulinus now remained sole Bishop of Antioch; he was strongly supported by the authority of Rome, and his acceptance by the Eastern Bishops would at once have closed the schism. But the Fathers of Constantinople, after deliberation, refused to accept Paulinus, and proceeded to elect and consecrate Flavianus as successor to Meletius in the See of Antioch. Pope Damasus refused to recognise Flavianus, and continued in communion with Paulinus, as also did Timothy of Alexandria. But the Eastern Bishops considered this a matter of their jurisdiction, they adhered to Flavianus as the true Bishop of Antioch. After the death of Paulinus, and a long enmity of seventeen years, Pope Innocent consented to recognise Flavianus, as also did Theophilus of Alexandria, and peace was restored to the Church.

Some Canons of discipline were passed by this Council, from which we select two, as bearing. upon the matter in hand.

Canon 2. "The Bishops who are outside a Diocese, must not invade the Churches which are across the borders, nor bring confusion into the Churches; but, according to the Canons, the

Bishop of Alexandria must have the sole administration of the affairs of Egypt, and the Bishops of the East must administer the East only, the privileges which were assigned to the Church of Antioch by the Canons made at Nicæa being preserved; and the Bishop of the Asian diocese must administer the affairs of the Asian only, and those of the Pontic diocese the affairs of the Pontic only, and those of Thrace the affairs of Thrace only. Moreover, Bishops may not, without being called, go beyond the bounds of their Diocese for the purpose of ordaining, or any other ecclesiastical function. The above-written rule respecting the Dioceses being observed, it is plain that the Synod of each Province must administer the affairs of the province, according to what was decreed at Nicæa, But the Churches of God which are among the Barbarians, must be all administered according to the customs of the Fathers which have prevailed."

Canon 3. "The Bishop of Constantinople shall have the primacy of honour after the Bishop of Rome, because Constantinople is new Rome."

In the former of these Canons, the whole dis

iA Diocese, at this time, was a civil division of the Roman Empire, made up of several Provinces. The Dioceses mentioned in this Canon are those of Egypt, the East, Asia, Pontus, Thrace. There were, besides these, the Dioceses of Macedonia, Dacia, Italy, Illyricum, Africa, Spain, Gaul, Britain. Vide Routh's Opuscula, vol. i. p. 419.

cipline and government of the Eastern Church is set forth and confirmed.

Fleury says, "This Canon, which gives to the Councils of particular places full authority in Ecclesiastical matters, seems to take away the power of appealing to the Pope granted by the Council of Sardica, and to restore the ancient right."

May we not rather say, that it could hardly take away what had never existed? for the Council of Sardica resulted in being only a Western Council, whose Canons were not then received in the East, nor even, as we shall see presently, by the African Bishops in St. Augustine's time".

De Marca1 says, "This Canon assigns to the complete synod of each Diocese the supreme authority to rule and administer all Ecclesiastical matters of the provinces contained in that Diocese, under the direction however of the Primate or Exarch of the Diocese."

Elsewhere he says, that the three latter Dioceses, "the Pontic, Asian, and Thracian, which obeyed their own Exarchs, were assigned to the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Constantinople, to constitute the Council of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, according to the 28th Canon of

j Fleury, 18. §. 7. Oxf. trans. 1 De Concord. lib. 6. c. 16. 3.

kAllies, ii. §. 2. p.

m Lib. 6. 20. 1.

99.

the Council of Chalcedon. And so when these Diocesan Synods were subject each to their own Patriarch, their authority must have been entirely supreme, nor could it be that they depended on any other jurisdiction whatever."

The latter of these Canons gives precedence to the Bishop of Constantinople before those of Alexandria and Antioch, and again implies, as the Canon of Nicæa before, that the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome is a Primacy of honour. At the Council of Chalcedon, when appeal was made to this third Canon, Pope S. Leo declared, that it had never been notified to Rome. As however in the mean time it had taken effect throughout the East, this fact may serve to put in a strong point of view the independence and self-government of the Eastern Churches.

Let us now briefly sum up the leading points of this Council to which we have alluded.

1. A Council is convoked by the Emperor Theodosius, neither called nor acceded to by the Pope, and at which he is not present either in person or by legate.

2. This Council is accepted as Ecumenical both in East and West, and of its own authority adds some important Articles in elucidation of the Nicene Creed; and its Creed becomes, and is now, the Creed of the whole Church.

3. This Council deposes the Bishop of Con

stantinople, and elects his successor without any consultation with Rome, and proceeds to elect another Bishop of Antioch in direct contradiction to Rome, and in opposition to the Bishop whom she recognised.

4. This Council passes Canons of discipline, giving the Bishop of Constantinople the second place in the Church, and asserting and confirming the independence of the Eastern Churches. And that we may place no strained or unfair interpretation on these Canons, we have taken that of Fleury and Archbishop de Marca.

Now put side by side with these facts that other fact, that for some hundred years the conduct of the Roman Church rests upon the idea, that the Pope is the source of jurisdiction to all Bishops, their common Father, and the root of their authority, the sole Vicegerent of our Lord and Saviour, and that the Roman Church is the Mother and Mistress of all Churches.

We know not what facts could prove the Eastern self-government, or what facts could disprove the present Roman Supremacy, so far as regards the authority of the fourth century, if these do not".

From the second we pass on to the third General Council.

Allies, p. 103.