Canon III.
If
any of the city or country
clergy have been inhibited by Nestorius or his followers from the
exercise of the priesthood, on account of their orthodoxy, we have
declared it just that these should be restored to their proper
rank. And in general we forbid all the clergy who adhere to the
Orthodox and Ecumenical Synod in any way to submit to the bishops who
have already apostatized or shall hereafter apostatize.
Notes.
Ancient Epitome of Canon
III.
To whom Nestorius forbids the priesthood, he is most
worthy; but whom he approves is profane.
It would seem from this canon that any bishop who had
become a member of the Conciliabulum of John, was considered as
eo
ipso
having lost all jurisdiction. Also it would seem that
the clergy were to disregard the inhibition of Nestorian prelates or at
least these inhibitions were by some one to be removed. This
principle, if generally applied, would seem to be somewhat
revolutionary.
Lightfoot.
(
Apos. Fath
. Ign.
Ad Rom
. i., Vol. II.,
Sec. I., p. 191.)
The words
χῶρος
(“place”),
χώρα
(“country”), and
χωρίον
(“district”), may be distinguished as implying
locality
,
extension
, and
limitation
,
respectively. The last word commonly denotes either “an
estate, a farm,” or “a fastness, a stronghold,” or
(as a mathematical term) “an area.” Here, as not
unfrequently in later writers, it is “a region, a
district,” but the same fundamental idea is presumed. The
relation of
χῶρος
to
χωρίον
is the same
as that of
ἄργυρος, χρυσός
to
ἀργύριον, χρυσίον
, the
former being the metals
themselves, the latter the metals worked up into bullion or coins
or plate or trinkets or images,
e.g.
Macar. Magn.
Apocr
. iii. 42 (p. 147).