children should be educated for the church, and instructed in learning, but especially Athanasius; and having afterwards ordained him deacon on his becoming of adult age, he brought him to Nice to assist him in the disputations there when the Synod was convened. Rufinus in his writings has given this account of Athanasius; nor is it improbable that it took place, for many transactions of this kind have often occurred.

CHAPTER XVI.

THE EMPEROR CONSTANTINE HAVING ENLARGED THE ANCIENT BYZANTIUM, CALLS IT CONSTANTINOPLE.

AFTER the Synod the emperor spent some time in recreation, and after the public celebration of his Vicennalia (i. e. the completion of the twentieth year of his reign), he immediately devoted himself to the reparation of the churches. This he carried into effect in other cities as well as in the city named after him, which being previously called Byzantium, he enlarged, surrounded with massive walls, and adorned with various edifices; and having rendered it equal to imperial Rome, he named it Constantinople, establishing by law that it should be designated New Rome. This law was engraven on a pillar of stone erected in public view in the Strategium, near the emperor's equestrian statue. He built also in the same city two churches, one of which he named Irene, and the other The Apostles. Nor did he only improve the affairs of the Christians, as I have said, but he also destroyed

* A public edifice for the two principal magistrates.

The city was solemnly dedicated as the seat of empire in 330.
Eipnrny, peace.

the superstitions of the heathens; for he brought forth their images into public view to ornament the city of Constantinople, and set up the Delphic tripods publicly in the Hippodrome. It seems now indeed superfluous to mention these things, since they are seen before they are heard of. But at that time the Christian cause received its greatest augmentation; for Divine Providence reserved this among other things for the times of the emperor Constantine. Eusebius Pamphilus has in magnificent terms recorded the praises of the emperor;t and I considered it would not be ill-timed to advert thus to them as concisely as possible.

CHAPTER XVII.

THE EMPEROR'S MOTHER HELEN HAVING ARRIVED AT JERUSALEM, FINDS THE CROSS OF CHRIST WHICH SHE HAD LONG SOUGHT, AND BUILDS A CHURCH.

HELEN the emperor's mother (from whose name Drepanum once a village, having been made a city by the emperor was called Helenopolis), being divinely directed by dreams went to Jerusalem. Finding that which was once Jerusalem, desolate as a Preserve for autumnal fruits, according to the prophet, she sought carefully the sepulchre of Christ, from which he arose after his burial; and after much difficulty, by God's help she discovered it. What the cause of the * Ἑλλήνων.

See the Life of Constantine, by Eusebius, recently translated: a Volume of this Series.

† Οπωροφυλάκιον, to which ἐν σικυηράτῳ is added in LXX., which in our version is " a lodge in a garden of cucumbers," according to the Hebrew.

difficulty was I will explain in few words. Those who embraced the Christian faith, after the period of his passion, greatly venerated this tomb; but those who hated Christianity, having covered the spot with a mound of earth, erected on it a temple to Venus, and set up her image* there, endeavouring to abolish the recollection of the place. This succeeded for a long time; but it at length became known to the emperor's mother, who having caused the statuet to be thrown down, the earth to be removed, and the ground entirely cleared, found three crosses in the sepulchre one of these was that blessed cross on which Christ had hung, the other two were those on which the two thieves that were crucified with him had died. With these was also found the tablet of Pilate, on which he had inscribed in various characters, that the Christ who was crucified was king of the Jews. Since however it was doubtful which was the cross they were in search of, the emperor's mother was not a little distressed; but from this trouble she was shortly relieved by Macarius bishop of Jerusalem, whose faith solved the doubt, for he sought a sign from God and obtained it. The sign was this:—a certain woman of the neighbourhood, who had been long afflicted with disease, was now just at the point of death; the bishop therefore ordered that each of the crosses should be applied to the dying woman, believing that she would be healed on being touched by the precious cross. Nor was he disappointed in his expectation: for the two crosses having been applied which were not the Lord's, the woman still continued in a dying state; but when the third, which was the

"Αγαλμα.

+ Ξόανον (from ξεω, to polish). † Σανίς.

true cross, touched her, she was immediately healed, and recovered her former strength. In this manner then was the genuine cross discovered. The emperor's mother erected over the place of the sepulchre a magnificent church,* and named it New Jerusalem, having built it opposite to that old and deserted city. There she left a portion of the cross, enclosed in a silver case, as a memorial to those who might wish to see it the other part she sent to the emperor, who being persuaded that the city would be perfectly secure where that relic should be preserved, privately enclosed it in his own Statue, which stands on a large column of porphyry in the forum called Constantine's at Constantinople. I have written this from report indeed; but almost all the inhabitants of Constantinople affirm that it is true. Moreover Constantine caused the nails with which Christ's hands were fastened to the cross (for his mother having found these also in the sepulchre had sent them) to be converted into bridle-bits and a helmet, which he used in his military expeditions. The emperor supplied all materials for the construction of the churches, and wrote to Macarius the bishop to expedite these edifices. When the emperor's mother had completed the New Jerusalem, she reared another church not at all inferior, over the cave at Bethlehem where Christ was born according to the flesh nor did she stop here, but built a third on the mount of his Ascension. So devoutly was she affected in these matters, that she would pray in the company of women; and inviting the virgins enrolled in the register of the churches to a repast, serving * Οἶκον εὐκτήριον. † Μνημόσυνον. † Ανδριάντι. § Κανόνι.

them herself, she brought the dishes to table. She was also very munificent to the churches and to the poor; and having completed a life of piety, she died when about eighty years old. Her remains were conveyed to New Rome, and deposited in the imperial sepulchres.

CHAPTER XVIII.

THE EMPEROR CONSTANTINE ABOLISHES PAGANISM AND ERECTS MANY CHURCHES IN DIFFERENT PLACES.

AFTER this the emperor became increasingly attentive to the interests of Christianity, and turned with disgust from the heathen superstitions. He abolished the combats of the gladiators, and set up his own statues in the temples. And as the heathens affirmed that it was Serapis who brought up the Nile for the purpose of irrigating Egypt, because a cubit was usually carried into his temple, he directed Alexander to transfer the cubit to the church. It was then asserted that the Nile would not overflow because of the displeasure of Serapis; nevertheless there was an inundation in the following year, and has been every subsequent one: thus it was proved by fact that the rising of the Nile was not in consequence of their superstition, but by reason of the decrees of Providence. About the same time those barbarians the Sarmatians and Goths made incursions on the Roman territory; yet the emperor's earnestness respecting the churches was by no means abated, but he made suitable provision for both these matters. Placing