COMMEMORATED ON MAY 21
The Church calls St Constantine (306-337) "the Steady of the Apostles," and historians respectability him "the Powerful." He was the son o the Caesar Constantius Chlorus (305-306), who governed the lands of Gaul and Britain. His mother was St Helen, a Christian of submissive origins.At this time the enormous Roman Empire was pronged at home Western and Eastern halves, governed by two self-ruling emperors and their corulers called "Caesars." Constantius Chlorus was Caesar in the Western Roman Empire. St Constantine was uneducated in 274, credibly at Nish in Serbia. In 294, Constantius divorced Helen in order to extra his following instinct by marrying a insect of delightful cubicle. At the rear he became emperor, Constantine showed his mother stanch style and cost, acknowledgment her the pompous fame "Augusta."
Constantine, the chance ruler of all the whole Roman Empire, was raised to cost Christianity. His jerk did not dictate Christians in the lands he governed. This was at a time in the past Christians were offended from end to end the Roman Empire by the emperors Diocletian (284-305) and his corulers Maximian Galerius (305-311) in the East, and the emperor Maximian Hercules (284-305) in the West.
At the rear the death of Constantius Chlorus in 306, Constantine was much-admired by the army at York as emperor of Gaul and Britain. The initial act of the new emperor was to grant the freedom to practice Christianity in the lands page to him. The pagan Maximian Galerius in the East and the dedicated tyrant Maxentius in the West despicable Constantine and they plotted to throw out and massacre him, but Constantine defeated them in a series of battles, defeating his opponents with the help of God. He prayed to God to feature him a sign which would encouragement his army to clash valiantly, and the Peer of the realm showed him a shining Feeling of the Crotchety in the tell with the script "In this Feeling, lease."
At the rear Constantine became the secluded ruler of the Western Roman Empire, he issued the Order of Milan in 313 which guaranteed accounting tolerant for Christians. St Helen, who was a Christian, may surround converted him in this gift. In 323, in the past he became the secluded ruler of the exclusive Roman Empire, he prolonged the foodstuff of the Order of Milan to the Eastern partly of the Empire. At the rear three hundred vivacity of irritation, Christians may possibly last of all practice their anticipate fading angst.
Renouncing paganism, the Sovereign did not let his assets fib in ancient Rome, the history root of the pagan realm. He transferred his assets to the East, to the town of Byzantium, which was renamed Constantinople, the town of Constantine (May 11). Constantine was greatly several that on your own Christianity may possibly fuse the enormous Roman Empire with its miscellaneous peoples. He supported the Church in every way. He recalled Christian confessors from expulsion, he built churches, and he showed grip for the clergy.
The emperor greatly impressive the victory-bearing Feeling of the Crotchety of the Peer of the realm, and furthermore comfortable to find the actual Crotchety upon which our Peer of the realm Jesus Christ was crucified. For this wear and tear he sent his own mother, the holy Empress Helen, to Jerusalem, acknowledgment her both power and money. Patriarch Macarius of Jerusalem and St Helen began the delve, and principal the chi of God, the Life-Creating Crotchety was incredibly open in 326. (The enumeration of the way of thinking of the Crotchety of the Peer of the realm is found under the Festival of the Admiration of the Crotchety, September 14). The Orthodox Church commemorates the Uncovering of the Luxuriant Crotchety and the Luxuriant Nails by the Deified Empress Helen on Protest rally 6.
Spell in Palestine, the holy empress did noticeably of assistance for the Church. She fixed that all seats connected with the mortal life of the Peer of the realm and His All-Pure Blood relation, should be droopy of all traces of paganism, and she commanded that churches should be built at these seats.
The emperor Constantine fixed a moving church in style of Christ's Renaissance to be built all over again His burial chamber. St Helen gave the Life-Creating Crotchety to the Patriarch for safe-keeping, and took part of the Crotchety with her for the emperor. At the rear distributing passable alms at Jerusalem and feeding the broke (at era she even served them herself), the holy Empress Helen returned to Constantinople, everywhere she died in the appointment 327.
For instance of her stanch services to the Church and her hard work in way of thinking the Life-Creating Crotchety, the empress Helen is called "the Steady of the Apostles."
The composed comment of the Christian Church was tense by quarrels, dissensions and heresies which had appeared within the Church. In advance at the beginning of St Constantine's canon the heresies of the Donatists and the Novatians had arisen in the West. They demanded a close launch for individuals who lapsed clothed in the persecutions in opposition to Christians. These heresies, repudiated by two national Church councils, were last of all condemned at the Convention of Milan in 316.
Really shoddy for the Church was the benevolently of the Arian heresy in the East, which denied the Foretell Construction of the Son of God, and taught that Jesus Christ was a tarn creature. By order of the emperor, the Foundational Ecumenical Convention was convened in the town of Nicea in 325.
318 bishops attended this Convention. In the midst of its participants were confessor-bishops from the casement of the persecutions and several other luminaries of the Church, relating whom was St Nicholas of Myra in Lycia. (The enumeration about the Convention is found under May 29). The emperor was bequeath at the sessions of the Convention. The heresy of Arius was condemned and a Crest of Wish (Belief) in concert, in which was included the give a buzz "consubstantial with the Set up," confirming the truth of the deity of Jesus Christ, Who assumed whatsoever person for the redemption of all the whatsoever crash.
One may perhaps credibly be overwhelmed by St Constantine's grab of theological issues clothed in the negotiations at the Convention. The give a buzz "consubstantial" was included in the Crest of Wish at his steadfastness.
At the rear the Convention of Nicea, St Constantine continued with his animated qualities in the happiness of the Church. He conceded holy Baptism on his deathbed, having appropriate for it all his whole life. St Constantine died on the day of Pentecost in the appointment 337 and was implied in the church of the Deified Apostles, in a bound he had appropriate for himself.
TROPARION - Basic 8
Having seen the trait of the Crotchety in the tell,and for example Paul not having acknowledged his respectability from men, O Peer of the realm, Your apostle relating rulers, the Sovereign Constantine, has been set by Your hand as ruler all over again the Affirm Metropolis that he preserved in settlement for several vivacity, principal the prayers of the Theotokos, O on your own devotee of mankind.
KONTAKION - Basic 3
At the present time Constantine and his mother Helenreveal the significant Crotchety,the puncture of the faithfulagainst their enemies.For our sakes, it has been outmoded to be a stanch sign, and fearsome in deed.
