Page:Historical Works of Venerable Bede vol. 2.djvu/359

The Sixth Age

catholic faith; wherefore, he was graciously received as the pontiff of a royal city. But when Pope Theodore heard that on his return to his home,returns to his errors, and is excommunicated.he had also returned to his domestic error, he summoned all the priests and clergy to the church of the blessed Peter, the first of the Apostles, and pronounced on him the sentence of excommunication.

A.M. 4594 [643].

Constantius, son of Heraclius, reigned 6 months. Paul succeeded Pyrrhus not only in his outrageous doctrine, like his predecessors,Paul, Bishop of Constantinople, persecutes the Romanists but even openly persecuted the Catholics, and threw the nuncios of the holy Roman Church who were sent for his correction, into fetters, or banished, or scourged them. Moreover he overthrew an altar of the Catholics which had been consecrated in an oratory in the house of Placidia, and forbad the performance of divine service there. Wherefore, like his predecessors, the just sentence of deposition was pronounced on him by the Catholic see.

A.M. 4622 [671].

Constantine, son of Constantine, reigned 28 years. He was deceived by Paul, as his grandfather, Heraclius, had been by Sergius, bishop of the same royal city, and put forth an edict against the catholic faith, declaring that neither one nor two wills or operations should be confessed to be in Christ, as it were a doctrine of faith that Christ neither willed nor operated at all. Wherefore Pope Martin assembled a council of 105 bishops at Rome, and anathematized the aforesaid Cyrus, Sergius, Pyrrhus, and Paul as heretics. After this the Emperor sent the Exarch Theodore, who took Pope Martin from the church of Constantine, and brought him to Constantinople;Pope Martin banished to Chersonesus. after which he was banished to the Chersonese, Pope Martin where he ended his days, eminent even to this day for the many miracles which he wrought there. The afore-