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