Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers: Series II/Volume II/Sozomen/Book IV/Chapter 30

by Philip Schaff et al.

Chapter XXX.—George, Bishop of Antioch, and the Chief-Priests of Jerusalem. Three Chief-Priests successively succeed Cyril; Restoration of Cyril to the See of Jerusalem.

During this period,^[1]

Athanasius was obliged to remain in concealment, and George returned to Alexandria, and commenced a cruel persecution against the pagans, and against the Christians who differed from him in opinion. He compelled both parties to offer worship in the mode he indicated, and where opposition was made, he enforced obedience by compulsion. He was hated by the rulers because he scorned them and was giving orders to the officers; and the multitude detested him on account of his tyranny, for his power was greater than all the rest. The pagans regarded him with even greater aversion than the Christians, because he prohibited them from offering sacrifices, and from celebrating their ancestral festivals; and because he had on one occasion, introduced the governor of Egypt^[2]

and armed soldiery into the city, and despoiled their images, votives and temple ornaments. This was, in fact, the cause of his death, on which I will dwell.

On the deposition of Cyril, Erennius obtained the church of Jerusalem;^[3]

he was succeeded by Heraclius, and to Heraclius succeeded Hilarius; for we have gathered from tradition that in that period these persons administered the church there, until the reign of Theodosius, when Cyril was once more restored to his own see.

Footnotes

1. Soc. ii. 45. Soz. has some order, but varying points.
2. Namely, Artemius, who was afterwards martyred under Julian. Am. Marcel. xxii. 11. 3–8.
3. Soc. iv. 25. Epiphanius (adv. Hæres, ii. 3, 10; Hæres, lxvi.), places another Cyril after Herennius. Soc. calls Erennius, Arrenius.