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CAECILIANUS

CAECILIANTJS

of compromise; but his advances were rejected,and the cry of injustice raised. It was wrong,the rigorists pleaded, that the opinion of twentyshould overrule that of seventy; and they de-manded first that imperial commissioners shouldinvestigate matters at Carthage itself, and thatthen a council should be summoned to examinetheir report, and base their decision upon its in-formation. Constantine met their wish. Juristswent to Carthage, collected documents, tabu-lated the statements of witnesses, and laid theirreport before the bishops assembled (a.d. 314)at Arles. This council, presided over by Ma-rinus, bishop of the see, and composed of about200 persons, was the most important ecclesi-astical assembly the Christian world had yetseen; and its decisions have been of permanentvalue to the church. As regarded Caecilianpersonally, the validity of his ordination wasconfirmed, the charge raised against his conse-crator, Felix, being proved baseless; and asregarded the general questions debated—suchas traditorship, its proof or disproof; ordinationby traditors, when valid or not; baptism andre-baptism—canons of extreme importance werepassed (see 4 Arles, Synod of/ Dictionary OFChristian Antiquities).

The temper displayed by the victors was notcalculated . to soothe the conquered; and anappeal was at once made from the council to theemperor himself. Constantine was irritated ;but, after some delay, ordered the discussion ofthe question before himself personally. Thisoccurred at Milan (a.d. 316). The emperorconfirmed the previous decisions of Rome andArles, and followed up his judgment by lawsand edicts confiscating the goods of the party ofMajorinus, depriving them of their churches, andthreatening to punish their rebellion with death.

From this time the schism in the North-African church lost whatever purely personalquestions, as between Caecilian and Majorinus,had been imported into it, and became astern religious contest on questions of discipline(see Donatism). Whether or not Majorinuswas alive at the time of the council ofArles seems doubtful: some writers put hisdeath in A.D. 313, others in A.D. 315; buthe was succeeded by Donatus—called 44 thegreat,” to distinguish him from Donatus ofCasae Nigrae—who gave his name to the party;and with him compromise was impossible. Cae-cilian lived to about a.d. 345, probably occupiedin practising towards his opponents and theirfanatical offshoots, the Circumcellions, Agonis-tici, etc., the toleration which the letters of hisimperial master inculcated, and which his ownChristian feeling dictated. (For authorities,etc., see Donatists.) [J. M. F.j

CAECILIANUS (3), ALFIUS. Duumvirof Aptunga at the time of the alleged traditio ,and cited to give evidence in the cause. Con-stantine, ap. Aug. Ep. 88 (68), vol. ii. 304.

[E. B. B.]

( 4 ) Martyr with others at Caesaraugusta, under

Datianus the praeses o f tSpain. His natalis wasApril 16 (Usuard. Mart.) [Martyrs of Sara-gossa.] [C. H.]

( 5 ) Martyr at Carthage with Dativus in 304.

CAECILIANUS (6) Prefect of the prae-torians a.d. 359 (Cod, Theod. vi. tit. 23, law 47),not to be confounded with the following :—

(7) Vicarius under Honorius a.d. 404, in the4th law in the code of Justinian on assessors.Prefect of the Praetorians at Rome A.d. 409(Cod. Theod. i. ii. 8, ix. 2,5, etc.). Zosimus (v. 44)tells us that he was one of the legates sentby the senate to Honorius at Ravenna to deplcrethe miserable state of things in Rome, whereAlaric did not fulfil his engagements, in a.d. 409.The embassy was fruitless, but Caecilianus wasappointed to succeed Theodorus in the chiefoffice of the prefects. Niebuhr thinks this meansin the praetorian prefecture.

Symmachus writes to Ambrose (Sym. Ep. iii.36) begging him not to admit to his episcopalcourt or favour a suit of one Pirata against thisCaecilianus, who was then praefectus annome.He writes to Caecilianus himself (ix. Ep. 49 or50), and addresses him as a friend and as a judgewhose decision was final.

Augustine writes to him, Ep. 86 (60), begginghim to extend to Hippo the measures that hewas enforcing against the Donatists in otherparts of Africa. Godofredus says that it is bymistake that Augustine here calls him “praeses.”Tillemont thinks that the letter was writtenin A.D. 405, and that he was then vicarius ofAfrica (xiii. 428). Perhaps his office as prae-fectus annonae gave him power in the greatcorn-bearing province. There was indeed a44 Praefectus annonae Carthagini,” v. Godofred.ad Cod. Theod . xi. 1, 13 (vol. iv. p. 22), Walter,Geschichte des Romischen Rechts , p. 374. Butthis office seems to have been subordinate to thevicarius.

We find Caecilianus in A.D. 414 commissionedwith Flavianus, the ex-praefect of the city, theson of his old friend Symmachus, to go toAfrica and inquire into the complaints of theprovincials there, and also into the corn-taxfor the support of the soldiers quartered inAfrica.

But he had been at Carthage in A.D. 413, asappears from the other epistle which Augustinewrote to him, as Tillemont supposes (xiii. 1005),when he reached Africa on this mission. Aug.Ep. 151 (259). Tillemont thinks that thisletter refers to the death of Marcellinus, whohad been put to death on the charge of beinginvolved in the revolt of Heraelianus, butreally, as the Catholics believed, because hehad made himself obnoxious to the Donatists.Augustine mentions no names, but the executionof Marcellinus and his brother, by order ofMarinus, the count who was sent to suppress therevolt, seems to be meant. (Tillem. xiii. 612 ff.)Now the revolt of Heraelianus took place inA.D. 413, in the spring, and Marinus was inAfrica to execute justice on his accomplicesin the autumn of that year. Orosius tells usthat Marcellinus was put to death by Marinus.Caecilianus had once received a somewhat sharpanswer from Marcellinus, and a very graveinjury from his brother. The persecutor on theother hand was an old friend of his, and he waswith him when the order was given for theirarrest, and frequently closeted with him duringthe course of the trial. It was a reign of terror,and false witnesses were to be had in plenty,and one false witness was enrmcrh to condemn a