Part 29 (1/2)

4. L. 3, de Sacerd. c. 14, p. 390.

5. L. 3, de Sacerd. c. 14.

6. Hom. 72 (ol. 73) and 69 (ol. 69,) in Matt. Hom. 14, in 1 Tim. t. 11, pp. 628, 630, {}3, contra vitup. vita Mon. c. 14.

7. Lib. de Compunct. p. {1}32.

8. Lib. 1, de Compunct. &c.

9. Flavian I. was a native of Antioch, of honorable extraction, and possessed of a plentiful estate, which he employed in the service of the church and relief of the poor. He was remarkably grave and serious, and began early to subdue his flesh by austerities and abstinence, in which he remitted nothing even in his old age. Thus was his heart prepared to receive and cherish the seeds of divine grace, the daily increase of which rendered him so conspicuous in the world, and of such advantage to the church. The Arians being at that time masters of the church of Antioch, Flavian and his a.s.sociate Diodorus, afterwards bishop of Tarsus, equally distinguished by their birth, fortune, learning, and virtue, were the great supports of the flock St. Eustathius had been forced to abandon. In 348, they undertook the defence of the Catholic faith against Leontius, the Arian bishop, who made use of all his craft and authority to establish Arianism to that city; one of whose chief expedients was to promote none to holy orders but Arians. The scarcity of Catholic pastors, on this account called for all their zeal and charity in behalf of the abandoned flock. The Arians being in possession of the churches to the city, these two zealous laymen a.s.sembled them without the walls, at the tombs of the martyrs, for the exercise of religious duties. They introduced among them the manner of singing psalms alternately, and of concluding each psalm with _Glory be to the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost; as it was,_ &c., which pious custom was soon after spread over all the eastern and western churches. Theodoret (l. 2, c. 19) says, that Flavian and Diodorus were the first who directed the psalms to be sung in this manner by two choirs: though Socrates (l. 6, c. 8) attributes its inst.i.tution to St. Ignatius the martyr: who having, as he there relates, heard angels in a vision singing the divine praises alternately, inst.i.tuted that manner of singing in the church of Antioch; but this might have been disused. Pliny's famous letter to Trajan shows, that singing was then in use among the Christians In Bithynia; and it appears from Philo, that the Therapeuts did the same before that time. Leontius stood so much in awe of Flavian and Diodorus while they were only laymen, that in compliance with their demands he deposed Aetius that most impious and barefaced blasphemer of all the Arians, from the rank of deacon.

St. Meletius, on his being promoted to the see of Antioch, about the year 361, raised these both to the priesthood, and they took care of that church, as his delegates, during his banishment by Constantius.

Thus they continued together their zealous labors till Diodorus was made bishop of Tarsus. In 381, St. Meletius took Flavian with him to the general council which was a.s.sembled at Constantinople; but dying in that capital, Flavian was chosen to succeed him. His life was a perfect copy of the eminent episcopal virtues, and especially of the meekness, the candor, and affability of his worthy predecessor.

Unhappily the schism, which for a long time had divided the church of Antioch, was not yet extinguished. The occasion was this: after the death of St. Eustathius, they could not agree in the choice of his successor; those who were most attached to this holy prelate, with St. Athanasius and the West, followed Paulinus: the Apollinarists declared for Vitalis: and the greatest body of the orthodox of Antioch, with Flavian, Diodorus, and all the East, adhered to St. Meletius, who, as we have seen already, was succeeded by Flavian. Paulinus, bishop of that part of the Catholics called Eustathians, from their attachment to that prelate, though long since dead, still disputed that see with Flavian; but dying in 383, the schism of Antioch must have ended, had not his abettors kept open the breach by choosing Evagrius in his room; though it does not appear that he had one bishop in communion with him, Egypt and the West being now neuter, and the East all holding communion with Flavian. Evagrius dying in 395, the Eustathians, though now without a pastor, still continued their separate meetings, and kept up the schism several years longer. St. Chrysostom being raised to the see of Constantinople, in 398, labored hourly to abolish this fatal schism, which was brought about soon after by commissioners const.i.tuted for this purpose by the West, Egypt, and all the other parties concerned, and the Eustathians received Flavian as their bishop. In the year 404, when St. Chrysostom was banished, Flavian testified his indignation against so unjust a proceeding, and wrote upon that subject to the clergy of Constantinople. But he did not live to be witness of all the sufferings his dear friend was to meet with, dying about three years before him, in 404. The general council of Chalcedon calls him blessed, (Conc. t. 4, p. 840,) and Theodoret (l. 5, c. 232) gives him the t.i.tles of the great, the admirable saint. St. Chrysostom is lavish in his praises of him.

Flavian's sermons and other writings are all lost except his discourse to Theodosius, preserved by St. Chrysostom. No church or Martyrology, whether among the Greeks or Latins, ever placed Falvius I. of Antioch in the catalogue of the saints. Whence Chatelain, in his notes, speaking of St. Meletius, February the 12th, p. 630; and on St. Flavian of Constantinople, February the 17th, p. 685, expresses his surprise at the boldness of Baillet and some others, who, without regard to the decrees of Urban VIII., presumed to do it of their own private authority, and without any reason, have a.s.signed for his feast the 21st of February. Chatelain, in his additions to his Universal Martyrology, p. 711, names him with the epithet of venerable only, on the 26th of September. He is only spoken of here, to answer our design of giving in the notes some account of the most eminent fathers of the church who have never been ranked among the saints. On St. Flavian II. of Antioch, banished by the emperor Anastasius with St. Elias of Jerusalem, for their zeal in defending the council of Chalcedon against the Eutychians, see July {} 4th, on which these two confessors are commemorated in the Roman Martyrology.

10. St. Chrys. Hom. 21, ad Pap. Antioch. seu de Statius. t. 2.

11. Sozom. l. 8, c. 2, &c.

12. Socrat. c. 2. See Stilting, --35, p. 511.

13. St. Chrys. l. Quod regulares foeminae, t. 1, p. 250.

14. Stilting, --41, p. 526.

15. Phot. Cod. 59. Socr. l. 6, c. 21. Stilting, --40, p. 523.

16. [Greek: Kai sunegores elambanomen]. Chrys. Serm. contra ludos et spect. t. 6, p. 272. Ed. Ben. [Greek: Andreas Paulon kai Timotheon].

17. Mich. vi. 3. Jer. ii. 5.

18. Hom. 13, in Ephes. t. 11, p. 95 19. Pallad in Vit. Chrysost. Item S. Chrysost. Hom. in 1 Tim. v. 5, l.

3, de Sacerd. c. 8, and l. ad V{}oior. Stilting, --67, p. 603.

20. [Greek: Ioannes hu tes eleemosunes]. Pallad. c. 12.

21. Hom. 2, & 25, in Acta. Hom. 14, in Hebr. Pallad. in Vit. S. Chrys.

22. S. Procl. Or. 22. p. 581.

23. L. 2, Ep. 294, p. 266.

24. L. 3, de Sacerd.

25. Stilting, --43, p. 530, et seq.

26. About this time the poet Claudian wrote his two books against Eutropius, as he had done before against Rufinus.

27. Pallad. Dial. {} 127. Stilting, --47, p. 542.

28. T. 3, p. 411.

29. S. Joan. Damasc. Orat. 3, de Imaginibus, p. 480, {} Billii. See F.

Sollier in Hist. Chronol. Patriarch Alexand. in Theophilo, p. 52.

30. See Stilting, --54, 55, 5{}, p. 567.

31. T. 3, p. 415.

32. Socrates and Sozomen say that he preached another sermon against the empress, beginning with these words: Herodias is again became furious. But Montfaucon refutes this slander, trumped up by his enemies. The sermon extant under that t.i.tle is a manifest forgery, t. {}n spuriis, p. 1. See Montfaucon, and Stilting, --63, p. 503.

33. {}p t. 3, p. 515. Pallad. Dial. Stilting, --58, p. 578.

34. S. Nilus, l. 2, ep. 265.

35. L. 3, ep. 279.

36. T. 3, p. 525.

37. Ep. 8.

38. Ep. 8, p. 589.

39. Ibid. 3, p. 552.

40. Ibid. 4, p. 570.