Theophilestati

Theophilestati (θεοφιλέστατοι, most dear to God), a title of respect given to bishops in the early Church. This title frequently occurs in the emperor's rescript in the civil law, and was of such common use in those times that Socrates (Proem. ad lib. vi) thinks himself obliged to make some apology for not giving it to the bishops that were then living. See Bingham, Christ. Antiq. bk. 2, oh. 10:§ 6.