Melantius (Spanish: ''Melancio''; died c.324) was a Romano-Hispanic

Bishop of Toledo The Archdiocese of Toledo () is a Latin Church archdiocese of the Catholic Church located in Spain.

3rd Century The 3rd century was the period from AD 201 (represented by the Roman numerals CCI) to AD 300 (CCC) in accordance with the Julian calendar. In this century, the Roman Empire saw a crisis, starting with the assassination of the Roman Emperor ...

to the beginning of the

4th century The 4th century was the time period from 301 CE (represented by the Roman numerals Roman numerals are a numeral system that originated in ancient Rome and remained the usual way of writing numbers throughout Europe well into the Late Mid ...

, whose name only appears in the minutes of the

Synod of Elvira The Synod of Elvira (, ) was an ecclesiastical synod held at Elvira in the Roman province of Hispania Baetica, now Granada in southern Spain.. Its date has not been exactly determined but is believed to be in the first quarter of the fourth centu ...

in contemporary sources.

Biography

Melantius was the bishop of Toledo during the Synod of Elvira, which occurred sometime between 300-324. Because of this, he does not appear in the some episcopal lists like the one from the '' Glosas Emilianenses''. J.F. Rivera believed that he was

Pelagius Pelagius (; c. 354–418) was a British (Celtic Britons, Brittonic) theologian known for promoting a system of doctrines (termed Pelagianism by his opponents) which emphasized human choice in salvation and denied original sin. Pelagius was accus ...

, the first bishop to appear in the ''Glosas''. Conversely,

Enrique Flórez Enrique or Henrique Flórez de Setién y Huidobro (July 21, 1702August 20, 1773) was a Spanish historian. Biography Flórez was born in Villadiego. At 15 years old, he entered the order of St Augustine. He subsequently became professor of theol ...

believes that Melantius is the evidence that Pelagius may have had other predecessors, he also based this on his belief in the legendary St. Eugenius the Martyr who is often listed at the first bishop of Toledo. Flórez indicates that Melantius must have been bishop for a number of years and was consecrated towards the end of the 3rd Century (the inscriptions in the acts suggest that Melantius was old in comparison to the other bishops) in a troublesome period, during the Diocletianic Persecution and the martyrdom of St. Leocadia, which caused the omission in the ''Glosas'' were written much later under the

Visigothic Kingdom The Visigothic Kingdom, Visigothic Spain or Kingdom of the Goths () was a Barbarian kingdoms, barbarian kingdom that occupied what is now southwestern France and the Iberian Peninsula from the 5th to the 8th centuries. One of the Germanic people ...

References

Bibliography

* * , width="30%" , Predecessor:

Eugene of Toledo (possibly legendary) , width="30%" , Successor:

/
Patruinus (disputed) 4th-century bishops in Hispania Archbishops of Toledo Diocletianic Persecution {{EarlyChurch-bishop-stub