Diet, of Gr. and Rom. Geogr. s. v. ; Conj'beare and How- son, St. Paul, ii, 214 sq. ; Tschihatscheff, L'A sie Mineure (Par. 1853), i, 252 sq.; Rawlinson, Herod, i, 218 sq.
Mileum, a city of Numidia, in the northern part of Africa, is celebrated in Church history as a place where, at the beginning of the 5th centurj', two synods were held. The first of them, which is of little importance, convened Aug. 27, 402. Aurelius of Carthage presided. The canons of Hippo and Carthage were confirmed, and five canons of discipline published, which are contained in the African Code (comp. Codex Canon. Ecd. Afric. p. 85-90). It was decided that the younger bishops should give place to those of older standing, excepting the pri- mates of Numidia and Mauritania, who always took precedence of all other primates of whatever standing (Cone, ii, 1323). The second synod, which was held to- wards the autumn of A.D. 416, is known as the Con- cilium Milevitanum. This was a provincial council of Numidia, and ^vas attended by sixty-one bishops of the province. It was chiefiy owing to Augustine's (q. v.) influence, and to the happy issue of the synod at Dios- polis (q. v.), that the African bishops assembled in a synodicai meeting. Having learned the proceedings of the Council of Car- thage of the same year, they wrote a synodalletter to pope Innocent I (q.v.),in which, after enlarg- ing upon the enor- mity of the Pelagian heresy, which denied the necessity of jMT/?/- er in adults and of baptism for chil- dren,and,after show- ing how worthy it was of the notice and censure of the Church, they en- treated him, since the salvation of Pe- lagius (q. V.) and Coelestius (q. v.) could not be secured, that he would at least provide for that of others by condemning their heresies. They did not ask the excommunication of Pelagius and Coelestius, as has sometimes been stated, but that they should be commanded to renounce their heresies, and that only the heresies themselves should be condemned. " Hoc gestum," they concluded, " Do- mino frater, sanctre caritati tuas intimandum ducimus, ut statutis nostrre mediocritatis etiam apostolice sedis adhibeatur auctoritas." Among the names attached to this letter are those of Silvanus, primate of the prov- ince of Numidia, Alypius, St. Augustine, Severus of Mileum, Fortunatus of Citha, and Possidius, Another and more confidential letter was addressed to Innocent by five North African bishops, of whom Augustine was one (see Mansi, iv, 321 sq.). Pelagius also sent him a letter and a confession of faith, which, however, were not received in due time. Innocent understood both the controversy and the interests of the Roman see. In his reply, which is to be found in August. Epist. p. 182, he commended the Africans for having addressed them^ selves to the Church of St. Peter, before which it was seemly that all the affairs of Christendom should be brought. He praised the zeal and pastoral care of the African bishops, briefly established the true doctrine of grace, and condemned Pelagius and Coelestius, with their followers, tleclaring them to be separated from the Catholic Church. "Non solum enim," he says, "qui faciunt sed etiam qui consentiunt facientibus, digni sunt morto; quia non raultum interesse arbitror inter com- mittentis animum et consentientis favorem." He re- frained, however, from giving judgment respecting the Synod of Diospolis. He also replied to the letters which Augustine and the four bishops — Aurehus, Alypius,
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Evodius, and Possidius — had addressed to him. These letters of Innocent were written in a council held at Kome upon the subject in January, 417, and are to be found in Mansi (iii, 1071 sq.). See Schulstratcn, Antiq. Eccks. Afric. Diss. vol. iii; Xorris, Jlist. rdaij. i, 10; Hefelc, Concilienf/eschichte, ii, 100; Gieseler, Eccks. Jlist. i, 330 sq. ; Schaff, Church Hist, iii, 797 ; Milman, Hist, of Chrktiiinity, p. 380, 4U sq.
Milicz VON KuK.MSiKK {Kromesize), John, was one of the njost eminent precursors of the Bohemian Kefor- mation. Of his early years little is known. The fact that in his mature years he first engaged in the study of the German language, would indicate that his edu- cation must have been acquired elsewliere than in a German university ; possibly in Italy or at Paris, or in Lis own country, Moravia. Commencing his public ca- reer as a priest about the year 1350, he soon attracted the notice of the emjjeror Charles IV, who was also king of Bohemia, and became his secretary. At the same time, as canon of the cathedral at Prague, and arch- deacon, he occupied a conspicuous ecclesiastical position. Resigning, however, all his prospects of promotion, not- withstanding the entreaties of the bishop, he chose a lot of poverty and hardsliip, that he miglit more fully imitate the example of Christ. For six months he preached to the people at Bishop-teinit/. ; but fearing lest his position there was too tempting, in a worldly point of view, he returned to Prague, lirst officiating in the church of St. Nicholas, in the Kleine Seito, and afterwards in that of St. /Egidius, in the old city. At first his hearers were few. Perhaps his ^loravian dia- lect was not attractive. His reproof of sin, and his ear- nest words, however, soon attracted notice. Multitudes thronged to hear him. He preached daily, and often three, and sometimes five sermons. To be more exten- sively useful, he applied himself to the study of Ger- man, that he might address himself to the Germans of Prague. The evils and corruptions of the times doubt- less led him to select his themes of discourse largely from the Apocalypse, and the prophets of the Old Tes- tament, and ere long tlie coming of Antichrist became the burden of his pulpit discourses. He fixed the date of his coming at A.D. 13G5-67, nor did he fear to ex- pose the ini(iuities which, to his view, seemed to her- alil it. Priests, bishops, and magistrates, and even the emperor himself, were not sj)arcd. It is to the credit of Ills reputation for sincerity that, notwithstanding the hostility which he provoked in some quarters, he was sustained and befriended by the highest powers in Church and State.