Church-history of the government of bishops and their councils abbreviated including the chief part…

The rest is well worth the Reading, as to the common case of Theological Controversies, though it seems that Constantine made too light of the Arian error. But I dare not be so injurious to Eusebius as to question whether he faithfully recited the Epistle, when Binnius himself backs his doubt with a dicere non auderem: And if we give away the credit of that one Historian, it will leave much of Church-History under doubt, that now goeth for certain: Perhaps Peters being ever at Rome, &c.

The rest is well worth the Reading, as to the common case of Theological Controversies, though it seems that Constantine made too light of the Arian errour. But I dare not be so injurious to Eusebius as to question whether he faithfully recited the Epistle, when Binnius himself backs his doubt with a dicere non auderem: And if we give away the credit of that one Historian, it will leave much of Church-History under doubt, that now goeth for certain: Perhaps Peters being ever at Rome, &c.

§. 49. XXIX. The next mentioned is the Council of Laodicea in Phrygia Paccat, (not Syria) of 32 Bishops, gathered by Nunechius a Bishop of Phrygia. They were so few that without contention they made divers good Canons: The 46 Canon requireth that the baptized should learn the Creed, and on the Friday of the last week repeat it to the Bishop or Presbyters. (By which you may conjecture how large a Bishopric then was.) And Can. 56. The Presbyters were not to go into the Church before the Bishop, but with him. (For then every Church had a Bishop, though some Chapels far off had Presbyters only.) And Can. 57. It is ordered, that Bishops should not be Ordained in small Villages and Hamlets, but Visitors should be appointed them. But such (Bishops) as had been heretofore there Ordained, should do nothing without the Conscience of the City-Bishop. Which showeth that before Bishops were made in Villages; as Socrates saith then they were in Arabia, and the Phrygian Novatian•, &c. The last Can. reciteth ⟨p. 43⟩the same Canonical Scriptures that we receive, save the Apocalypse▪ which is left out.