Sancimus igitur vicem legum obtinere, quae a quatuor
Sanctis Conciliis . . . expositae sunt aut firmatae.
Praedictarum enim quatuor synodorum dogmata sicut sanctas
Scripturas et regulas sicut leges observamus. Justinian,
Novell. cxxxi.
Beveridge (ad Pandect. proleg. p. 2) remarks that the emperors never made new laws in ecclesiastical matters; and Giannone observes, in a very different spirit, that they gave a legal sanction to the canons of councils. Istoria Civile di Napoli, tom. i. p. 136.