Address to Emperor Constantine

Name: Address to Emperor Constantine
Author: Eustathius of Antioch

Allocutio ad imperatorem Constantinum

Eustathius of Antioch (fl. c. 320–337 AD) · written c. 325 AD · PG 18

Eustathius of Antioch (fl. c. 320–337) wrote this address to Emperor Constantine.

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Contents4 passages

1Thanksgiving for the end of idolatry and the proclamation of the consubstantial Trinity
2Guard the Faith as a Wall
3Arius the namesake of madness
4Persuade or expel Arius

Author

Eustathius of Antioch (fl. c. 320–337 AD) — Bishop of Antioch at the Council of Nicaea in 325 and a firm opponent of Arius. He was deposed a few years later and died in exile.

All works by Eustathius of Antioch

About this text

An address thanking Constantine and urging the Council of Nicaea against Arius, credited to Eustathius of Antioch but printed among works not by him.

Eustathius praises God for giving Constantine earthly rule and for abolishing idolatry through him, so that the world is now illumined by the knowledge of God and the consubstantial Trinity is proclaimed.

He asks Constantine either to persuade Arius to abandon his errors or, if he persists, to remove him from the Church so that his sophistry cannot ensnare simpler souls. The fragment contains no direct biblical citations.

Printed text used

Translated from PG 18 (Greek)

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Thanksgiving for the end of idolatry and the proclamation of the consubstantial Trinity§1

Eustathius opens his address by thanking God before the emperor for abolishing idolatry through him and for the freedom now given to the faithful.

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1We give thanks to God, most mighty emperor, for he steers for you the earthly kingdom. Through you he abolished the error of idols, and he established the cheerful confidence of the faithful in boldness. The savor of demons has ceased. The objects of worship of Greek polytheism have been destroyed. The darkness of ignorance is driven away. The whole world is illumined by the light of the knowledge of God. The Father is glorified. The Son is worshiped together with him. The Holy Spirit is proclaimed. The consubstantial Trinity is preached: one Godhead in three persons and subsistences.

Greek · §1

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Guard the Faith as a Wall§2

Eustathius is addressing Emperor Constantine directly, urging him to protect the orthodox faith of the Trinity from heretics.

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2By this, emperor, the power of your true faith is walled about; keep it inviolable for us. Let no heretic slip under the Church and take away one of the Trinity, leaving what remains dishonored.

Greek · §2

The Greek is on each section page: §2

Arius the namesake of madness§3

Eustathius is addressing Emperor Constantine and has just urged him to keep the faith walled about and let no heretic dishonor any person of the Trinity; now he names Arius as the source of the present disturbance.

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3Arius is the one responsible for this word and this gathering—the namesake of the madness. Somehow, without our knowing how, he was enrolled in the presbytery of the Church of the Alexandrians, and he escaped our notice, though he was a stranger to the teaching of the thrice-blessed prophets and apostles. He is not ashamed to rob the only-begotten Son and Word of the Father of his consubstantiality with the Father, and this worshiper of what is created is eager to number the Creator together with creation.

Greek · §3

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Persuade or expel Arius§4

Eustathius, having accused Arius of denying the Son's consubstantiality and numbering the Creator with creation, now addresses the emperor directly with a two-part request.

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4You could persuade him, Emperor, to change his mind and stop opposing the apostolic teachings. Or, if he remains fixed in the impious acts of false teaching in which he has been caught, may you remove him utterly from the Church, the fold of Christ and of us, so that his muddy sophistry may not make prey of simpler souls.

Greek · §4

The Greek is on each section page: §4

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