entius lib. 10. cap. 119. et chron. Henr. de Erfordia.

MarginaliaPeregrinus sent to Fraunce & martyred at Rome.
Ex Platina in vita Sixti.This Peregrinus aboue mentioned had ben sent before by Xistus Byshoppe of Rome, into the partyes of Fraunce, to supply ther the roume of a byshop and teacher, by reason that for the continuall and horrible persecutions there, aboue touched, those places wer left desolate and destitute of Ministers and instructors, where after he had occupied himselfe with much fruit emonge the flocke of Christ, and had stablished the congregation there, returnynge home againe to Rome, there finished at last (as it is sayd) his Martyrdom.

Nowe remaineth likewyse to speake of Iulius, which Iulius being, as is afore described, a Senator of Rome and nowe won by the preaching of these blessed men, to the faith of Christ, dyd eftsones inuite thē and broughte them home to his house, where being by them more fully instructed in Christian religiō: beleued in the Gospel. MarginaliaIulius with hys family baptised & after martyred.And sending for one Ruffinus a priest, was with all hys familye by him Baptized, whoe (not as the cōmon sorte was wont to do) kept close & secret hys fayth: but incenced with a marueilous and sincere zeale opēly professed the same: altogether wyshing and praying to be geuen to him by God, not onely to beleue in Christ, but also to hasard his life for him. Which thing the Emperour hearyng, how that Iulius had forsaken hys olde religion, and became a Christian, forthwith sent for him to come before him, vnto whom he spake on thys wise: O Iuly, what madnes hath possessed thee, that thus thou dost fal frō the old and comō religion of thy forefathers, who acknowledged and worshiped Iupiter and Hercules their gods, and nowe doest embrace a new and fond kind of religion of the Christiās? At which time Iulius hauiuge good occasion to shew and open his faith, gaue straight waye accompt therof to him, and affirmed that Hercules & Iupiter wer false gods: and how the woorshippers of them shoulde peryshe with eternall damnation & punishments. Which the Emperour hearing, how that he condemned and dispised his gods, being then inflamed with great wrath, as he was by nature very coloricke, cōmitted him forthwith to Vitellus, the maister of hys soldiours, a very cruel & fierce mā, to se Iulius either to sacrifice to mighty Hercules, or refusing þ^e same to slay him. Vitellus (as he was cōmaunded) exhorted Iulius to obey the Emperours cōmaundemēt, & to worship his gods. Aledging how that þ^e whole empire of Rome was not onely constituted, but also preserued and maintayned by them. Which Iulius denied vtterly to do, admoshing sharply in like manner Vitellus, to acknowledge the true God, and obey hys commaundements, least he with his maister should die some greuous death. Wherat Vitellus being moued, caused Iulius with cougels to be beaten vnto death.

MarginaliaXistus Byshoppe of Rome.These thinges thus being brieflye recited touchyng such holy Martyrs, as hetherto haue suffered, nowe remayneth that we returne agayne to the order of the Romayne bishops, such as followed next after Alexander, at whom we left, pag. 63. whose succeeder next was Xistus or Sixtus, the first bishop coūted after Peter, and gouerned that ministerye the space of. x. yeares, as Damasus and other do write. Vrspergensis maketh menciō but of. ix. yeares. Platina recordeth that he dyed a martyr, and was buried at Vaticane. But Eusebius speaking of hys decease, maketh no word mencion of anye martyrdome. In the tomes of the Councles. 2. certaine epistles be attributed to him, wherof Eusebius, Damasus, Hierome, and other old autors, as they make no relation, so seeme they to haue no intelligence nor knowledge of any such matter. In these counterfet epistles, & in Platina apeareth, þ^t Xistus was the first autor of these ordinances: First that the holy misteries and holye vessels should not be touched, but onely of persons holye & consecrated, especially of no woman. Item, that the corMarginaliaThe trifling ordinances of Xistus.poras clothe shoulde be made of no other clothe, but of fine lynnen. Item, that bishops suche as were called vp to the Apostolicke sea, returning home agayne, shoulde not be receaued at their returne, vnles they brought w^t them letters from the bishop of Rome, saluting the people. Item, at the celebration he ordained to be song this verse: Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus, Dominus deus Sabaoth. Wher moreouer is to be noted, that the sayde Platina in the life of this Xistus, doth testifie, MarginaliaS Peter celebrated the Lordes supper onelye wyth the lords prayer, Platina in vita Sixti.that Peter ministred the celebration of the Communion onelye wyth the Lordes prayer. MarginaliaThe ordinaunces of Xistus suspected.These trifling ordinances of Xistus, who is so rude that seeth not, or may easelye coniecture to be falsely fathered of Xistus, or of any father of that time, first by the vniforme rudenes and stile of al those decretal letters, nothing sauering of that age, but rather of the latter dunsticall times that folowed. Also by the matter and argument in those letters contayned, nothing agreeing with the state of those troublesome daies. Neither againe is it to be supposed, that any such recourse of bishops was then to the Apostolicall sea of Rome, that it was not lawful to returne without theyr letters: when as the persecution against the Christians was then so hoate, in the daies of Hadrian, that the byshops of Rome them selues were more glad to flee oute of the citie, then other bishops were to come to them vnto Rome. And if Xistus added þ^e Sanctus vnto the Masse canon, what peece thē of the canon went before it, whē they which put to the other patches, came after Xistus? And if they came after Xistus that added the rest, why did they set their peeces, before his, seing they that begā the first peece of the canon, came after him?

MarginaliaTelesphorus bishop of Rom and Martyr.The same likewise is to be iudged of the epistle and ordinaunces of Telesphorus, who succeded next vnto Xistus, and being bishop of that cōgregation the terme of a. xi. yeares, in the first yeare of the raigne of Antoninus Pius, died Martyr, about the yeare of our Lord. 138. His epistle like vnto the rest, contayning in it no great matter of doctrine, hath these ordinances: MarginaliaThe ordināces of TelesphorusFirst he commaundeth all that were of the Clergye to fast and abstayne from flesh eating. vij. wekes before Easter. That three Masses should be sayd vpon the Natiuitie daye of the Lord. That no lay man should accuse eyther bishop or priest. He ordayned moreouer Gloria in excelsis to be added to the Masse. &c.but these thinges falsly to be fained vpō him may easely be cōiectured. MarginaliaLent fast & the original therof examined.For as touching the. vij. weekes fast, neither doth it agree wyth the olde Romane terme commonly receaued, calling it Quadragesima, that is, the. xl. daies fast: neither with the example of our sauiour, who fasted not. vij. weekes, but onely. xl. daies. Moreouer, as concerning this. xl. daies fast, we reade of the same in the epistles of Ignatius, which was long before Telesphorus: wherby it may appeare that this Telesphorus was not the first inuentor therof. And if it be true, that is lately come out in the name of Abdias (but vntruly, as by manye coniectures maye be proued) there is red, that in the dayes of S. Mathewe this lent fast of. xl. daies was obserued long before Telesphorus, by these wordes that followe: In the dayes, sayde he, eyther of Lent, or in the time of other lawfull fastings, he that abstaineth not as wel from the eating meate, as also from the mixture of bodies, doth incurre in so doing not onely pollutiō, but also committeth offence, which must be washed awaye with the teares of repentaunce. MarginaliaMontanus first brought in the lawes of fastīg
Ex Euseb. lib 5. cap. 18.Agayne, Apollonius affirmeth, that Montanus the hereticke, was the first deuiser and brynger in of these lawes of fasting into þ^e church, whych before was vsed to be free. Euseb. lib. 5. cap. 18. but especiallye by Socrates, writer of the ecclesiasticall storye, who lyued after the dayes of Theodosius, maye bee argued, that this. viij. weekes fast is falsely imputed to Telesphorus. For Socrates in his first booke, speaking of hys tyme, hath these wordes: Romani namq; tres ante pascha septi-  

Latin/Greek Translations     Close

Remainder of the Fourth persecution: Citation from Socrat. Eccles. Iust. Lib. 5. cap. 20.

Foxe text Latin

Romani namq; tres ante pascha septi manas præter Sabbatum et Dominicam continuas ieiunant,

Foxe text translation

the Romaynes (sayth he) do fast. 3. weekes continual before Easter, beside the Sabbot and the sunday.

Comment

[Cattley-Pratt 1877, vol. i. p. 150 has Ecc. Hist.]