90 Jesus, Prophet of Islam
lowers of Alexander who called themselves Catholic and followed
the Pauline version of Christianity.
After the death of Meletius, Alexander forbade his followers to
hold their assemblies of worship. In opposition to this order, they
sent a deputation to Constantine.It was only with the help of Euse
bius of Nicomedia that they were allowed to see the Emperor. Their
presence in his court was yet another factor which led to his call
ing the Council of Nicea. Eusebius was a friend of Arius, and it
was through this meeting that contact was made between the Ar
ian and Meletian movements.
e e e e c
The movement led by Arius took place against the background of
these two separate yet similar Churches of Martyrs. Anything writ
ten in favour of Arius or any independent assessment of his move
ment has virtually been destroyed. Nearly all the books referring
to Arius which still exist have been written by his enemies. It is,
therefore, impossible to give a full account of his life. Connecting
the pieces of information which still exist, the following picture
emerges:
Peter, the Bishop of Alexandria, ordained Arius as a deacon but
then later excornmunicated him. Achillas, Peter's successor, again
ordained him a priest. Arius became so popular that whenAchillas
died, he had every chance of taking his place. However, Arius had
no desire to beinvolvedin anykindof election, and so itwasAlex
ander who was chosen to sit on the episcopal throne. A complaint
was made against Arius because of what he preached. His rival
became his judge, and eventually Arius was again excornmuni
cated.
Up to this point, there had been a great latitude in the beliefs of
the Christians. The beliefs which are inherent in the doctrine of
Trinity were now accepted by many of those who called themselves
Christians,even though no one was very sure about what they
actually meant. Sorne blindly affirmed them; others, like Meletius
and Donatus, strongly rejected them, and those who fell between
these two poles were at liberty to explain the new doctrines in
whatever way they thought best. After more than two centuries of
discussion, no one hadbeen able to surnmarise these beliefs in terms
which were free from equivocation. Arius stood up and challenged
anyone to clearly define them.
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