St. BASIL, G. C. He addresses a heretic: “ What is it you say? Shall we not allow more to antiquity? Does not the multitude of Christians claim respect, who now are, as well as those who went before us? These abounded in every grace, and must we disregard them, against whom you have lately brought out your impious discoveries ? Must we shut our eyes, and suppressing all recollection of every holy man, submit our understandings to your deceits and idle sophistries? Truly, your influence must be great, if, what the devil could not effect by his wiles, we should concede to your dictation; that is, persuaded by you, we should prefer your inventions to that tradition of belief, which, in all former times, prevailed under the direction of so many holy men.” L. 1. Adv. Eunom. T. 1. p. 210.
St. EPHREM, G. C. “ Heretics, willing to give strength to their error, endeavour to extract passages from the Scriptures, by which to pervert the minds of those who may listen to them. Of them Irenæus has well said: Such being their positions, which the prophets never preached, &c. As page 105.” De Virtute c. 8. T.1, p. 224. Edit Quirini.
Rufinus[1] relates of SS. Basil and Gregory Nazianzen, that, “ during the thirteen years they spent at Athens, laying aside all profane words, they applied solely to the sacred writings, explaining them, not from their own presumption, but by the authority of those ancient Fathers," who, it was plain, had received the rule of interpretation, from apostolical succession.” Hist. Eccles. L.ll. c.9. p. 256. Ed. Basil. 1562.
St. CYRIL OF JERUSALEM, G. C.-“If thou learnest the
- ↑ A priest of Aquileia, who flourished from the year 372 to about 410. He translated, or rather paraphrased, several of the works of Origen, and the history of Eusebius, adding two books, and bringing the history of the Church down to the death of Theodosius.
