Λεόντιος

[Leontios,] bishop of Tripolis in Lydia↗;¹ in origin a Mysian of those who live by the Ister, whom Homer calls hand-to-hand fighters.² The heretical Philostorgius associates this Leontios with himself in his book as following his Arian heresy. [Leontios] had one son. When he saw that the child was not giving indications of good hope for virtue, by prayer (so they say) he caused him to die while still a boy, as he judged that it was best to end his life before anything shameful [happened], taking him out of the perils and risks of life. They used to call him a measuring-rod of the Church. He was equally independent towards all in his thinking and spoke freely [to all]. Once when a council was held, and Eusebia the wife of Constantius was puffed up by a swelling of self-esteem and treated with reverence by the bishops, he alone stayed at home treating her with indifference. But she feeling overheated in her passions and inflamed in her sentiment, sent to him, begging and flattering him with promises, [saying] "I will build a very great church for you and will spend a lot of money on it, if you come to me". But he replied, "If you wish to accomplish any of this, o empress, know that you will not benefit me more than your own soul. But if you wish me to come to you, so that the respect due to bishops may be preserved, let me come to you, but do you descend at once from your lofty throne and meet me and offer your head to my hands, asking for my blessing. And then let me sit down, but do you stand respectfully, and sit only when I bid you, when I give the signal. If you accept this, I would come to you; but in any other way, you cannot give so much nor be capable of such great deeds that we, neglecting the honor due to the bishops, would do violence to the divine order of priesthood". When this message was reported to her, she swelled up in her soul, not considering it endurable to accept such words from Leontios. Swelling with great anger and filled with emotion and making many threats from a woman's passionate and shallow disposition and describing [the situation] to her husband, she urged him to vengeance. But he instead praised the independence of [Leontios’] judgment and rebuked his wife for her anger and sent her away to the women's quarters. And then as the emperor Constantius sat in the midst of the bishops and wished to rule even over the churches, most [of the bishops] applauded and marveled as whatever he said, declaring that it was very well stated; but [Leontios] kept silent. And when the emperor asked him, "Of all [these men], why do you alone keep silent?" he said "I am amazed that when ordered to manage other things, you put your hand to other things, being in charge of military and political matters, but you give orders to the bishops concerning those matters which belong only to bishops". And the emperor was ashamed and ceased from commanding them in such matters. So independent was Leontios.