Canon LII. (Greek
lvi.)
Of visiting provinces.
Honoratus
and Urban, the
bishops, said: This was commanded to us in word, that because it
had been decreed in the Council of Hippo that each province should be
visited in the time of the council, that ye also deign that this year
or next, according to the order ye have drawn up, you should visit the
province of Mauritania.
Aurelius, the bishop, said: Of the province of
Mauritania because it is situated in the confines of Africa, we have
made no decree, for they are neighbours of the barbarians; but God
grant (not however that I make any rash promise of doing so), we may be
able to come to your province. For ye should consider, brethren,
that this same thing our brethren of Tripoli and of the Arzuges
region
454
could demand also, if occasion
offered.
Notes.
Ancient Epitome of Canon
LII.
As the Synod at Hippo decreed, every province should be
visited in an annual Synod.
This canon is the last part of canon iv. of the Council
of Carthage, August 28th,
a.d.
397.
Johnson.
The manner of visiting provinces, and that annually; and
the persons by whom this visitation was performed, can scarce now be
discovered; only it appears, by the words of Aurelius, that the Bishop
of Carthage was one, if not the only visitor; but it was impossible
that he could visit all the provinces in Africa personally every year,
he must use delegates.
454
Vide Corripus
(Partsch’s ed.)
Johannid
in
Mon. Germ
.
Hist
.
(in the Series
Auctores Antiquissimi
), Proem, p. xiv. It
seems from Orosius that the same province was called Tripolitana and
Regio Arzugum, and that
Arzuges
was a race name of wider
application.