History of the Church of England are known to have been present at the Council of Arles (314). Others attended the Council of Serdica in 347 and that of Ariminum in 360. A number of references to the church in Roman Britain are also found in the writings of 4th century Christian fathers. Britain was the home of Pelagius, who opposed Augustine of Hippo's doctrine of original sin. The first recorded Christian martyr in Britain, St Alban, is thought to have lived in the early 4th century, and his prominence in English hagiography is reflected in the number of parish churches of which he is patron.
Arethas (martyr) Arethas (martyr) Arethas or Aretas ( "al-Haarith") was the leader of the Christian community of Najran in the early 6th century, was executed during the persecution of Christians by the Jewish king Dhu Nuwas in 523. He is known from the "Acta S. Arethae" (also called "Martyrium sancti Arethae" or "Martyrium Arethae") which exists in two recensions: the earlier and more authentic, which was found by Michel Le Quien ("Oriens Christianus", ii. 428) and was subsequently dated as no later than the 7th century; the later, revised by Simeon Metaphrastes, dates from the 10th century. The Ge'ez and Arabic versions