ARLES. - A city in south-eastern France, in the department of Bouches-du-Rhône, with a population of about 29,000, Arles was once the seat of an archbishopric, which was suppressed by the Napoleonic Concordat of 1801. Although its origins remain obscure, the existence of a Christian community there is attested as early as the 3rd century. Local tradition, which dates back to the 4th century, holds that the founder of the see of Arles was St Trophimus, presented in the letters of Pope Zosimus as the first bishop of Arles and the first apostle of the Gauls. Historically attested is Marcianus, against whom St Cyprian petitioned (254) for his deposition because he was a supporter of the schism of Novatian. A favoured residence of Constantine, Arles in 314 became the seat of a council to settle the disputes between Caecilian of Carthage and the Donatists. Under the Emperor Constantius, a leading figure in the Arian party, who at the Synod of Arles (353) condemned St Hilary of Poitiers, was Saturninus, who a decade later, during the orthodox reaction, was deposed from the episcopate.
Although the city’s importance as a commercial centre was considerable, throughout the 4th century Arles remained a secondary city in administrative and political terms, and it was only towards the end (c. 392), when the prefect of the Gauls took refuge there and established the seat of government, that it acquired a political notoriety hitherto unknown. It was perhaps on this occasion that the local bishop arrogated to himself, by imitation of civil powers, certain prerogatives over the other bishops of the region, in opposition to the metropolitan of Vienne. Indeed, at the Council of Turin (401) the question was debated, though not resolved, as to which of the two sees—Vienne or Arles—should enjoy the rights of an ecclesiastical metropolis.
1. METROPOLIS AND ECCLESIASTICAL PROVINCE
In 417, with the intention of binding more closely to the Roman See the episcopate of the Gauls, Pope Zosimus was persuaded by Patroclus, who had succeeded Heros in 412, to elevate Arles to the status of a metropolitan see, not only of the province of Viennensis, to which the see belonged, but also of the provinces of Narbonensis I and II. Going further, the Pope made Patroclus a kind of intermediary between the episcopate of the Gauls and the Holy See. From then on no bishop could be admitted before the Pope without the testimonial letters of the bishop of Arles, and all ecclesiastical affairs of the Gauls had to be referred to him. This accumulation of privileges made him, in addition to being a metropolitan, a vicar of the Pope.This primacy was soon curtailed, however, for the successor of Zosimus, St Boniface, took a different path, which was followed by his successors. St Leo the Great, in 445, insisting on the personal nature of the privileges granted to Patroclus, judged them to be an abuse and stripped the bishop St Hilary of all jurisdiction not only over the neighbouring provinces but even over Viennensis itself. Shortly afterwards (450), when Ravennus was bishop, the Pope received an address signed by 19 bishops of Gaul in favour of the metropolitan privileges of Arles as defined by Pope Zosimus. St Leo replied by setting out the complaints of the bishop of Vienne and decided that the whole of Viennensis should be divided into two metropolitan provinces: Vienne and Arles. To the former were assigned as suffragans: Valence, Geneva, Grenoble and Tarentaise. To the latter: Marseilles, Toulon, Orange, St-Paul-Trois-Châteaux, Avignon, Aix, Vaison, Cavaillon and Carpentras. The primacy of Arles ceased to be a matter of discussion when the Visigothic invasions forced the transfer of the great Roman administrations to Italy. They returned after the fall of the Visigothic kingdom (507). Pope Symmachus once again attempted to revive the primacy, appointing St Caesarius (q.v.) as his representative in the Gauls and in Spain (514). At the death of Caesarius (542) Gaul, except for Septimania, was entirely Frankish, and Arles acknowledged the authority of King Childebert. Every link was practically severed between it and Spain, including the province of Narbonensis I, and the successors of St Caesarius—Ausanius, Aurelian and Sapaudus, although recognised by Rome as vicars, no longer exercised any effective power. Under the Frankish regime, the archbishops of Arles appear in national councils as ordinary metropolitans, and by the end of the 6th century the question of the vicariate was no longer raised. With the advent of the Merovingians, the primacy passed to Lyons. But the metropolitan circumscription continued to be a matter of dispute, and at the Council of Frankfurt (794) the sentence of 450 was confirmed, assigning 9 suffragan sees to Arles and 4 to Vienne. In 828, with the elevation of Aix to metropolitan status, Arles was left with 8 suffragan sees; this situation remained unchanged until 1475, when Avignon was created a metropolitan see with the suffragans of Vaison, Cavaillon and Carpentras.
2. ARCHBISHOPRIC
Successor of Patroclus, who was killed in 426, was St Honoratus (d. 429), founder of the celebrated abbey of Lérins, where some of his successors in the episcopate were trained: St Hilary (429-49), St Caesarius (502-542), St Aurelian (546-551); the last two were zealous promoters of the religious life introduced by St Honoratus, and founders of monasteries with stable legislation. Notable was the activity of Lérins during the 5th and 6th centuries in the development of parochial life in the area, which was later hindered by political events that, under Frankish rule, led to the dismemberment of the metropolitan territory, and even more by the disorders caused in Provence by the invasions of the Saracens.In the 10th century, with the establishment of a new comital dynasty, there was a local religious revival and the restoration of ecclesiastical discipline, but this was the work of monasticism: especially of Lérins, of St Victor of Marseilles and above all of the abbey of Montmajour, founded in 974 and destined for great prosperity. As for the bishops, who had become powerful feudal lords, they were victims of the system against which the Gregorian reform would later rise. Their temporal power, which had been asserted during the anarchy of the 9th and 10th centuries, was recognised by the kings of Burgundy, with the concession of the rights of regalia, and was consolidated under the emperors of the Salian house. Frederick Barbarossa in 1164 described Arles as ‘caput provinciae et principalis sedes imperii’ and in 1178 received the crown of Burgundy from the archbishop Raymond. In the first half of the 13th century Arles felt the effects of the political-religious disorders caused by the Albigensian heresy, until in 1251 it passed under the rule of Charles of Anjou, with which French influence triumphed.
The sojourn of the Popes in Avignon was not without its effect on the see of Arles. Several of its incumbents belonged to the papal court, which also exercised control over the neighbouring bishoprics. After the Western Schism, the archbishops of Arles played a notable part in the Councils of Constance and Basle, where Cardinal L. Aleman (q.v.) was the promoter of the election of the antipope Felix V against Eugenius IV. Under the influence of the Pragmatic Sanction, the chapter of Arles sought to regain its right of electing the archbishop; but by the Concordat of 1516 this passed into the hands of the king of France. The last archbishop was G. M. du Lau, who was killed during the Revolution (1792) and was beatified by Pius XI on 17 October 1926. By the Concordat of 1801 the see was suppressed and the archbishop of Aix was united in his title with those of Arles and Embrun.
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3. **Archaeology.** – The ancient basilicas of A. – the basilica Constantia, of the blessed and first martyr Stephen, of the blessed Genesius, etc. – present difficult problems to the archaeologist because of later reconstructions. But more eloquent is the memory of primitive Christianity in the inscriptions and sarcophagi from the Christian necropolises, now gathered in a precious collection in the museum of Christian art. Of the two necropolises, that of the Aliscamps and that of Trinquantella, the former is still a very evocative site with its rows of stone sarcophagi and medieval monuments, among which the church of S. Onorato stands out; it was built on the remains of the ancient basilica of S. Genesius (existing in the 5th century) and rebuilt several times (6th-7th and 12th-13th centuries).
Two other monuments within the walls arouse the greatest interest: the church of Notre-Dame-la-Majeure, where the Council of 451 was held, but which was rebuilt in the 12th century, and the primatial church of S. Trophimus. The latter, originally dedicated to S. Stephen, was built over the remains of a Roman building of difficult identification, and was also rebuilt between 1152 and 1180. The choir is an addition from the 15th century. Its portal (c. 1175) and its cloister, half Romanesque and half Gothic, are two jewels of medieval art.
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Luciano De Bruyne
**ARLES** – Christ teaching among the Apostles. Sarcophagus of Bishop Concordius (A.D. 380).
4. THE COUNCILS OF A. – A. holds great importance in the history of the early centuries of the Church, especially for the numerous councils held there. The most famous is that of 314. Constantine summoned the bishops of his empire to the Council of A. in the Gauls for 10 August 314, to address the case of Caecilianus, the new bishop of Carthage, whose election was contested by the Donatists. Various bishops from the Western provinces were present, and the council opened on the day set by the emperor. The number of six hundred bishops present is exaggerated and should be reduced by several hundred. In the synodal letter sent to Pope Sylvester, thirty-three bishops are mentioned; nonetheless, it can be said that the majority of Western Christendom was represented. In the East, the Donatist controversy was almost entirely unknown.
In the aforementioned letter to Pope Sylvester, the Fathers of the council declared that their joy would have been complete if the Pope had come in person to preside over the sessions. Indeed, the Pope was represented by legates, who signed after the bishops. Unfortunately, we do not possess the complete acts of the synod; we do know, however, that the case of Caecilianus was examined carefully. The Donatists renewed their accusations but without providing evidence; thus, they were either condemned or dismissed.
After the judgment on Caecilianus, the Fathers formulated several canons, which they sent to the Pope for confirmation. These concerned the Paschal controversy, the question of the rebaptism of heretics, and certain disciplinary matters.
The best edition of the twenty-two canons of the synod is still that of the Maurists, published in 1789. The first canon establishes that the feast of Easter should be celebrated everywhere on the same day and that the Pope, as usual, should inform the bishops accordingly. According to Hefele-Lecercq, the primary aim was to ensure uniformity through the sending of letters from Rome, without directly proposing the abolition of the Alexandrian computus. The second canon imposes on the clergy the obligation to remain united to the church for which they were ordained.
The third canon decrees excommunication for those who lay down their arms in peacetime. How is this canon to be explained? It was intended to urge the faithful to fulfill their military service: the Church condemned deserters. The following two canons considered as unworthy of communion with the faithful those who made a profession of entertaining the people with various spectacles in the circus, arena, theatre, and stadium.
From the seventh canon, it appears that the council scarcely admitted the use of the Sacraments for magistrates in office. In the new political atmosphere, the Christian magistrate was no longer obliged, as in the past, to abstain from attending church, but the bishop was to exercise particular care over him so that he might not commit injustices.
The eighth canon deals with the rebaptism of heretics. It must be said that the Council of A. places the matter in its true light when it declares valid the Baptism conferred according to the form prescribed by the Gospel and practiced by the Church. It makes no distinction regarding the orthodoxy or morality of the minister. Heretics were to be questioned about the Creed: had they been baptized according to the Trinitarian formula or not? If not, they were rebaptized; if so, they were simply imposed hands «ut accipiant Spiritum Sanctum». This imposition was made *ad poenitentiam* or *ad confirmationem*. In the thirteenth canon, it is ordered that those who delivered the Holy Scriptures or sacred vessels, or the names of brethren, be removed from the clergy; however, ordinations performed by a "traitor" bishop remain valid. It is known that, by the edict of 303, Diocletian had decreed the prohibition of Christian assemblies, the destruction of churches, sacred books, and liturgical furnishings.
The fifteenth canon declares abusive the right claimed by some deacons to offer the divine sacrifice on the pretext that they governed parishes.
These are the principal canons of the first Council of A., "the most illustrious that had been seen in the Church up to that time."
The second Council of A. was held in 443 and is commonly called "Arelatense II," since that of 353 is not counted, being tainted by Arianism.
In 455, Ravennius, bishop of A., presided over an assembly to settle the dispute between the bishop of Fréjus and the abbot of Lérins.
A few years earlier, in 451, a meeting of bishops in A. solemnly approved the dogmatic Epistle of St. Leo, read at the Council of Chalcedon.
The occasion of the Council of 475 was a priest, Lucidus, who held certain errors regarding predestination and grace. In agreement with the Fathers, Faustus of Riez undertook to bring the heretic back to the truth and for this purpose wrote two works that are themselves tainted with semi-Pelagianism.
In 524, under the presidency of St. Caesarius, an important council was celebrated, in some collections called "Arelatense III." It was convened on the occasion of the consecration of the basilica of St. Mary and issued four disciplinary canons reflecting ancient ordinances revived anew.
Toward the end of his reign, Charlemagne imposed
The celebration of reforming councils; thus, in August 813, an assembly met in A. for this purpose under the presidency of the city’s archbishop and that of Narbonne. Twenty-five canons were promulgated to correct abuses and restore ecclesiastical discipline.
In 1211 a synod was still convened in A. against Raymond, Count of Toulouse, who persisted in devastating the Midi of France and in favouring heretics. He was ordered to lay down his arms and disband his auxiliary troops. Raymond refused to comply, but the legates declared him an enemy of the Church and promised his possessions to whoever would conquer them. Innocent III confirmed the sentence.
The three Synods of 1234, 1236 and 1246 issued disciplinary regulations. Among the 24 canons proposed in 1234 is one that obliges Jews to wear distinctive signs on their garments. The fifteenth canon prescribes that in every synod and on all Sundays and feast days notorious usurers, adulterers, diviners and those who consult them be excommunicated.
Noteworthy is the Synod of 1275, held in the church of St Trophimus, at which twenty-two chapters were published, renewing ancient ordinances.
At the Synod of 1303 the Fathers condemned the false doctrine of Joachim (v.) of Fiore, Cistercian abbot. To the condemnation of Joachim and his followers the Lord added sixteen canons. — See Plate CXXXIV.