diff options
| -rw-r--r-- | .gitattributes | 3 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 16700-8.txt | 25163 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 16700-8.zip | bin | 0 -> 516137 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 16700.txt | 25163 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 16700.zip | bin | 0 -> 515962 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | LICENSE.txt | 11 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | README.md | 2 |
7 files changed, 50342 insertions, 0 deletions
diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/16700-8.txt b/16700-8.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..1236b4e --- /dev/null +++ b/16700-8.txt @@ -0,0 +1,25163 @@ +Project Gutenberg's The Ancient Church, by W.D. [William Dool] Killen + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The Ancient Church + Its History, Doctrine, Worship, and Constitution + +Author: W.D. [William Dool] Killen + +Release Date: September 24, 2005 [EBook #16700] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE ANCIENT CHURCH *** + + + + +Produced by PG Distributed Proofreaders + + + + + + +THE ANCIENT CHURCH: + +Its History, Doctrine, Worship, and Constitution, +Traced for the First Three Hundred Years. + + + +BY + +W.D. KILLEN, D.D. + +Professor of Ecclesiastical History and Pastoral Theology to the +General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. + + + +"Glorious things are spoken of thee, O city of God." + PSALM lxxxvii. 3. + + + + +NEW YORK: +MDCCC.LIX. + + + + + +PREFATORY NOTE. + + +I cannot permit this Edition of "The Ancient Church" to appear before +the citizens of the United States without acknowledging my obligations +to Mr Charles Scribner of New York. Mr Scribner was the first gentleman +connected with the noble profession to which he belongs, either in the +Old or in the New World, from whom I received encouragement in this +undertaking; and his prompt and generous offers aided me materially in +making arrangements for the publication of the work in Great Britain. +Every line of the present impression has been corrected by myself, and +should my life be spared, any future Edition which Mr Scribner may +publish is to appear under the same supervision. I trust that the Trade +throughout the Union will recognize the debt of gratitude which I owe to +my American friend. There is a higher law than the law of international +copyright, and I feel confident that no Publisher of honour and +integrity in the Great Republic will repudiate its claims. + +W.D. KILLEN. + +17 University Square, Belfast, Ireland, +_July_ 1859. + + + + + +PREFACE. + + +The appearance of another history of the early Church requires some +explanation. As the progress of the Christian commonwealth for the first +three hundred years has been recently described by British, German, and +American writers of eminent ability, it may, perhaps, be thought that +the subject is now exhausted. No competent judge will pronounce such an +opinion. During the last quarter of a century, various questions +relating to the ancient Church, which are almost, if not altogether, +ignored in existing histories, have been earnestly discussed; whilst +several documents, lately discovered, have thrown fresh light on its +transactions. There are, besides, points of view, disclosing unexplored +fields for thought, from which the ecclesiastical landscape has never +yet been contemplated. The following work is an attempt to exhibit some +of its features as seen from a new position. + +The importance of this portion of the history of the Church can scarcely +be over-estimated. Our attention is here directed to the life of Christ, +to the labours of the apostles and evangelists, to the doctrines which +they taught, to the form of worship which they sanctioned, to the +organization of the community which they founded, and to the indomitable +constancy with which its members suffered persecution. The practical +bearing of the topics thus brought under review must be sufficiently +obvious. + +In the interval between the days of the apostles and the conversion of +Constantine, the Christian commonwealth changed its aspect. The Bishop +of Rome--a personage unknown to the writers of the New Testament-- +meanwhile rose into prominence, and at length took precedence of +all other churchmen. Rites and ceremonies, of which neither Paul nor +Peter ever heard, crept silently into use, and then claimed the rank of +divine institutions. Officers, for whom the primitive disciples could +have found no place, and titles, which to them would have been +altogether unintelligible, began to challenge attention, and to be named +apostolic. It is the duty of the historian to endeavour to point out the +origin, and to trace the progress of these innovations. A satisfactory +account of them must go far to settle more than one of our present +controversies. An attempt is here made to lay bare the causes which +produced these changes, and to mark the stages of the ecclesiastical +revolution. When treating of the rise and growth of the hierarchy, +several remarkable facts and testimonies which have escaped the notice +of preceding historians are particularly noticed. + +Some may, perhaps, consider that, in a work such as this, undue +prominence has been given to the discussion of the question of the +Ignatian epistles. Those who have carefully examined the subject will +scarcely think so. If we accredit these documents, the history of the +early Church is thrown into a state of hopeless confusion; and men, +taught and honoured by the apostles themselves, must have inculcated the +most dangerous errors. But if their claims vanish, when touched by the +wand of truthful criticism, many clouds which have hitherto darkened the +ecclesiastical atmosphere disappear; and the progress of corruption can +be traced on scientific principles. The special attention of all +interested in the Ignatian controversy is invited to the two chapters of +this work in which the subject is investigated. Evidence is there +produced to prove that these Ignatian letters, even as edited by the +very learned and laborious Doctor Cureton, are utterly spurious, and +that they should be swept away from among the genuine remains of early +Church literature with the besom of scorn. + +Throughout the work very decided views are expressed on a variety of +topics; but it must surely be unnecessary to tender an apology for the +free utterance of these sentiments; for, when recording the progress of +a revolution affecting the highest interests of man, the narrator cannot +be expected to divest himself of his cherished convictions; and very few +will venture to maintain that a writer, who feels no personal interest +in the great principles brought to light by the gospel, is, on that +account, more competent to describe the faith, the struggles, and the +triumphs of the primitive Christians. I am not aware that mere prejudice +has ever been permitted to influence my narrative, or that any statement +has been made which does not rest upon solid evidence. Some of the views +here presented may not have been suggested by any previous investigator, +and they may be exceedingly damaging to certain popular theories; but +they should not, therefore, be summarily condemned. Surely every honest +effort to explain and reconcile the memorials of antiquity is entitled +to a candid criticism. Nor, from those whose opinion is really worthy of +respect, do I despair of a kindly reception for this volume. One of the +most hopeful signs of the times is the increasing charity of evangelical +Christians. There is a growing disposition to discountenance the spirit +of religious partisanship, and to bow to the supremacy of TRUTH. I trust +that those who are in quest of the old paths trodden by the apostles and +the martyrs will find some light to guide them in the following pages. + + + + + +CONTENTS. + + + * * * * * + + PERIOD I + + FROM THE BIRTH OF CHRIST TO THE + DEATH OF THE APOSTLE JOHN, A.D. 100. + + * * * * * + + + SECTION I. + + HISTORY OF THE PLANTING AND GROWTH OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE ROMAN EMPIRE AT THE TIME OF THE BIRTH OF CHRIST. + PAGE +The boundaries of the Empire, 3 +Its population, strength, and grandeur, ib. +Its orators, poets, and philosophers, 5 +The influence of Rome upon the provinces, ib. +The languages most extensively spoken, 6 +The moral condition of the Empire, ib. +The influence of the philosophical sects--the Epicureans, the + Stoics, the Academics, and Plato, 7 +The influence of the current Polytheism, 9 +The state of the Jews--the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the Essenes, ib. +Preparations for a great Deliverer, and expectation of His appearance, 11 + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE LIFE OF CHRIST. + +The date of the Birth of Christ, 14 +The place of His Birth, ib. +The visit of the angel to the shepherds, 15 +The visit of the Magi--the flight into Egypt--and the murder of + the infants at Bethlehem, ib. +The presentation in the Temple, 16 +The infancy and boyhood of Jesus, 17 +His baptism and entrance upon His public ministry, 18 +His mysterious movements, 19 +The remarkable blanks in the accounts given of Him in the Gospels, 20 +His moral purity, 21 +His doctrine and His mode of teaching, 22 +His miracles, 23 +The independence of His proceedings as a reformer, 25 +The length of His ministry, 26 +The Sanhedrim and Pontius Pilate, 27 +The Death of Christ, and its significance, 28 +His Resurrection, and His appearance afterwards only to His own + followers, 29 +His Ascension, 30 +His extraordinary character, 31 +SUPPLEMENTARY NOTE on the year of the Birth of Christ, 32 + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE TWELVE AND THE SEVENTY. + +Our Lord during His short ministry trained eighty-two preachers--the + Twelve and the Seventy, 36 +Various names of some of the Twelve, 37 +Relationship of some of the parties, 39 +Original condition of the Twelve, ib. +Various characteristics of the Twelve, 40 +Twelve, why called _Apostles_, 42 +Typical meaning of the appointment of the Twelve and the Seventy, 43 +In what sense the Apostles founded the Church, 45 +Why so little notice of the Seventy in the New Testament, 46 +No account of ordinations of pastors or elders by the Twelve or + the Seventy, 47 +No succession from the Twelve or Seventy can be traced, 48 +In what sense the Twelve and Seventy have no successors, and in + what sense they have, 50 + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE PROGRESS OF THE GOSPEL FROM THE DEATH OF CHRIST TO THE DEATH +OF THE APOSTLE JAMES, THE BROTHER OF JOHN.--A.D. 31 TO A.D. 44. + +The successful preaching of the Apostles in Jerusalem, 52 +The disciples have all things common, ib. +The appointment of the deacons, 54 +The Apostles refuse to obey the rulers of the Jews, 55 +The date of the martyrdom of Stephen, ib. +The gospel preached in Samaria, 56 +The baptism of the Ethiopian eunuch, and of Cornelius the centurion, 57 +The conversion of Saul, his character, position, and sufferings, 59 +His visit to Jerusalem, and vision, 62 +His ministry in Syria and Cilicia, 63 +His appearance at Antioch, ib. +Why the disciples were called Christians, 64 +Paul and Barnabas sent from Antioch with relief to the poor saints + in Judea, 65 +The Apostles leave Jerusalem--why no successor appointed on + the death of James the brother of John, 66 +Why Paul taken up to Paradise, 68 + + +CHAPTER V. + +THE ORDINATION OF PAUL AND BARNABAS; THEIR MISSIONARY TOUR IN +ASIA MINOR; AND THE COUNCIL OF JERUSALEM.--A.D. 44 TO A.D. 51. + +Previous position of Paul and Barnabas, 70 +Why now ordained, 71 +Import of ordination, 73 +By whom Paul and Barnabas were ordained, 74 +They visit Cyprus, Perga, Antioch in Pisidia, Iconium, and other + places, 75 +Ordain elders in every Church, 76 +Opposition of the Jews, and dangers of the missionaries, 77 +Some insist on the circumcision of the Gentile converts, and are + resisted by Paul, 79 +Why he objected to the proposal, ib. +Deputation to Jerusalem about this question, 81 +Constituent members of the Council of Jerusalem, ib. +Date of the meeting, 82 +Not a popular assembly, 83 +In what capacity the Apostles here acted, 85 +Why the Council said "It seemed good to the Holy Ghost and to us," 86 +The decision, 87 +Why the converts were required to abstain from blood and + things strangled, 88 +Importance of the decision, 89 + + +CHAPTER VI. + +THE INTRODUCTION OF THE GOSPEL INTO EUROPE, AND THE MINISTRY OF +PAUL AT PHILIPPI.-A.D. 52. + +Date of Paul's first appearance in Europe, 90 +History of Philippi, ib. +Jewish Oratory there, 91 +Conversion of Lydia, ib. +The damsel with the spirit of divination, 92 +Paul and Silas before the magistrates, 93 +Causes of early persecutions, ib. +Paul and Silas in prison, 94 +Earthquake and alarm of the jailer, 95 +Remarkable conversion of the jailer, 96 +Alarm of the magistrates, 98 +Liberality of the Philippians, 99 + + +CHAPTER VII. + +THE MINISTRY OF PAUL IN THESSALONICA, BEREA, ATHENS, AND CORINTH. +--A.D. 52 TO A.D. 54. + +Thessalonica and its rulers, 100 +The more noble Bereans, 101 +Athens and its ancient glory, ib. +Paul's appearance among the philosophers, 102 +His speech on Mars' Hill 104 +Altar to the unknown God, ib. +The Epicureans and Stoics, 105 +The resurrection of the body, a strange doctrine, 106 +Conversion of Dionysius the Areopagite, 107 +Corinth in the first century, ib. +Paul's success here, 109 +Works at the trade of a tent-maker, 110 +Corinth a centre of missionary operation, 111 +The Corinthian Church, and its character, 112 +Opposition of Jews, and conduct of the Proconsul Gallio, ib. +Paul writes the First and Second Epistles to the Thessalonians, 113 + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +THE CONVERSION OF APOLLOS; HIS CHARACTER; AND THE MINISTRY OF +PAUL IN EPHESUS.--A.D. 54 TO A.D. 57. + +Paul's first visit to Ephesus; 115 +Aquila and Priscilla instruct Apollos, 116 +Position of the Jews in Alexandria, ib. +Gifts of Apollos, 117 +Ministry of Apollos in Corinth, ib. +Paul returns to Ephesus, and disputes in the school of Tyrannus, 118 +The Epistle to the Galatians, 119 +Paul's visit to Crete, and perils in the sea, 120 +Churches founded at Colosse and elsewhere, 121 +Temple of Diana at Ephesus, and the Ephesian letters, ib. +Apollonius of Tyana, and Paul's miracles, 122 +First Epistle to the Corinthians, 123 +Demetrius and the craftsmen, 124 +The Asiarchs and the town-clerk, 125 +Progress of the gospel in Ephesus, 127 + + +CHAPTER IX. + +PAUL'S EPISTLES; HIS COLLECTION FOR THE POOR SAINTS AT JERUSALEM; +HIS IMPRISONMENT THERE, AND AT CAESAREA AND ROME.--A.D. 57 TO A.D. 63. + +Paul preaches in Macedonia and Illyricum, 128 +Writes the First Epistle to Timothy, and the Second Epistle to + the Corinthians, 129 +Arrives in Corinth, and writes the Epistle to the Romans, 130 +Sets out on his return to Jerusalem; and, when at Miletus, sends + to Ephesus for the elders of the Church, 131 +The collection for the poor saints of Jerusalem carried by + seven commissioners, 132 +Riot when Paul appeared in the Temple at Jerusalem, 134 +Paul rescued by the chief captain and made a prisoner, ib. +Paul before the Sanhedrim, 136 +Removed to Caesarea, ib. +Paul before Felix and Festus, 137 +Appeals to Caesar, 138 +His defence before Agrippa, 139 +His voyage to Rome, and shipwreck, 142 +His arrival in Italy, 145 +Greatness and luxury of Rome, ib. +Paul preaches in his own hired house, 148 +His zeal, labours, and success, 149 +Writes to Philemon, to the Colossians, the Ephesians, and the + Philippians, 150 + + +CHAPTER X. + +PAUL'S SECOND IMPRISONMENT, AND MARTYRDOM; PETER, HIS EPISTLES, +HIS MARTYRDOM, AND THE ROMAN CHURCH. + +Evidences of Paul's release from his first Roman imprisonment, 152 +His visit to Spain, 153 +Writes the Epistle to the Hebrews, 154 +Revisits Jerusalem, and returns to Rome, 155 +His second Roman imprisonment, ib. +Writes Second Epistle to Timothy, ib. +Date of his martyrdom, 156 +Peter's arrival in Rome, ib. +His First Epistle written from Rome, 157 +Why Rome called Babylon, 158 +Peter writes his Second Epistle, ib. +His testimony to the inspiration of Paul, 159 +His martyrdom, 160 +Circumstances which, at an early period, gave prominence to the + Church of Rome, ib. +Its remarkable history, 162 + + +CHAPTER XI. + +THE PERSECUTIONS OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH, AND ITS CONDITION AT THE +TERMINATION OF THE FIRST CENTURY. + +The Jews at first the chief persecutors of the Church, 163 +Their banishment from Rome by Claudius, 164 +Martyrdom of James the Just, 165 +Why Christians so much persecuted, 166 +Persecution of Nero, ib. +A general persecution, 167 +Effect of the fall of Jerusalem, 168 +Persecution of Domitian, 169 +The grandchildren of Jude, ib. +Flavius Clemens and Flavia Domitilla, 170 +John banished to Patmos, 171 +His last days, and death, 172 +State of the Christian interest towards the close of the first + century, ib. +Spread of the gospel, 173 +Practical power of Christianity, 174 + + + + SECTION II. + + THE LITERATURE AND THEOLOGY OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE NEW TESTAMENT, ITS HISTORY, AND THE AUTHORITY OF ITS VARIOUS PARTS.-- +THE EPISTLE OF CLEMENT OF ROME. + +Why our Lord wrote nothing Himself, 176 +The order in which the Gospels appeared, 177 +Internal marks of truthfulness and originality in the writings of + the Evangelists, 178 +The Acts of the Apostles treat chiefly of the acts of Peter and Paul, 179 +On what principle the Epistles of Paul arranged in the New Testament, 180 +The titles of the sacred books not appended by the Apostles or + Evangelists, and the postscripts of the Epistles of Paul not + added by himself, and often not trustworthy, 181 +The dates of the Catholic Epistles, 182 +The authenticity of the various parts of the New Testament, ib. +Doubts respecting the Epistle to the Hebrews, and some of the + smaller Epistles, and the Apocalypse, 183 +Division of the New Testament into chapters and verses, 184 +All, in primitive times, were invited and required to study the + Scriptures, ib. +The autographs of the sacred penmen not necessary to prove the + inspiration of their writings, 185 +The Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians, 186 +The truth of the New Testament established by all the proper tests + which can be applied, 187 + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE DOCTRINE OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + +Same system of doctrine in Old and New Testaments, 188 +The New Testament the complement of the Old, ib. +The views of the Apostles at first obscure, 189 +New light received after the resurrection, 190 +In the New Testament a full statement of apostolic doctrine, ib. +Sufficiency and plenary inspiration of Scripture, 191 +State of man by nature, 192 +Faith and the Word, ib. +All the doctrines of the Bible form one system, 193 +The Deity of Christ 194 +The Incarnation and Atonement, 195 +Predestination, 197 +The Trinity, ib. +Creeds, 198 +Practical tendency of apostolic doctrine, ib. + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE HERESIES OF THE APOSTOLIC AGE. + +Original meaning of the word Heresy, 200 +How the word came to signify something wrong, 201 +The Judaizers the earliest errorists, ib. +Views of the Gnostics respecting the present world, the body of + Christ, and the resurrection of the body, 202 +Simon Magus and other heretics mentioned in the New Testament, 205 +Carpocrates, Cerinthus, and Ebion, 206 +The Nicolaitanes, ib. +Peculiarities of Jewish, sectarianism, 207 +Unity of apostolic Church not much affected by the heretics, 208 +Heresy convicted by its practical results, ib. + + + + SECTION III. + + THE WORSHIP AND CONSTITUTION OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE LORD'S DAY; THE WORSHIP OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH; ITS +SYMBOLIC ORDINANCES, AND ITS DISCIPLINE. + +Christians assembled for worship on the first day of the week, 210 +Our Lord recognized the permanent obligation of the + Fourth Commandment, 211 +Worship of the Church resembled, not that of the Temple, but + that of the Synagogue, 214 +No Liturgies in the apostolic Church, 215 +No instrumental music, 216 +Scriptures read publicly, 217 +Worship in the vulgar tongue, ib. +Ministers had no official dress, 218 +Baptism administered to infants, 219 +Mode of Baptism, 220 +The Lord's Supper frequently administered, 221 +The elements not believed to be transubstantiated, 222 +Profane excluded from the Eucharist, ib. +Cases of discipline decided by Church rulers, 223 +Case of the Corinthian fornicator, ib. +Share of the people in Church discipline, 226 +Significance of excommunication in the apostolic Church, 228 +Perversion of excommunication by the Church of Rome, 229 + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE EXTRAORDINARY TEACHERS OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH; AND ITS +ORDINARY OFFICE-BEARERS, THEIR APPOINTMENT, AND ORDINATION. + +Enumeration of ecclesiastical functionaries in Ephesians iv. 11, 12, + and 1 Corinthians xii. 28, 230 +Ordinary Church officers, teachers, rulers, and deacons, 232 +Elders, or bishops, the same as pastors and teachers, ib. +Different duties of elders and deacons, 233 +All the primitive elders did not preach, 234 +The office of the teaching elder most honourable, 236 +Even the Apostles considered preaching their highest function, 237 +Timothy and Titus not diocesan bishops of Ephesus and Crete, 238 +The Pastoral Epistles inculcate all the duties of ministers of the + Word, 241 +Ministers of the Word should exercise no lordship over each other, 243 +The members of the apostolic Churches elected all their own + office-bearers, 244 +Church officers ordained by the presbytery, 245 +The office of deaconess, ib. +All the members of the apostolic Churches taught to contribute + to each other's edification, 246 + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE ORGANIZATION OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + +Unity of the Church of Israel, 248 +Christian Church also made up of associated congregations, 249 +The Apostles act upon the principle of ecclesiastical confederation, 250 +Polity of the Christian Church borrowed from the institutions of + the Israelites, 251 +Account of the Sanhedrim and inferior Jewish courts, ib. +Evidences of similar arrangements in the Christian Church, 253 +How the meeting mentioned in the 15th chapter of the Acts differed + in its construction from the Sanhedrim, 254 +Why we have not a more particular account of the government + of the Christian Church in the New Testament, 255 +No higher and lower houses of convocation in the apostolic Church, ib. +James not bishop of Jerusalem, 256 +Origin of the story, ib. +Jerusalem for some time the stated place of meeting of the highest + court of the Christian Church, 257 +Traces of provincial organization in Proconsular Asia, Galatia, and + other districts, among the apostolic Churches, 258 +Intercourse between apostolic Churches, by letters and deputations, 260 +How there were preachers in the apostolic Church of whom the + Apostles disapproved, 261 +The unity of the apostolic Church--in what it consisted, to + what it may be compared, 262 + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE ANGELS OF THE SEVEN CHURCHES. + +The mysterious symbols of the Apocalypse, 263 +The seven stars seven angels, 264 +These angels not angelic beings, and not corporate bodies, + but individuals, 265 +The name angel probably not taken from that of an officer of the + synagogue, ib. +The angel of the synagogue a congregational officer, 266 +The angels of the Churches not diocesan bishops, 267 +The stars, not attached to the candlesticks, but in the hand of + Christ, 268 +The angels of the Churches were their messengers sent to visit + John in Patmos, ib. +Why only seven angels named, 271 + + + + * * * * * + + PERIOD II. + + FROM THE DEATH OF THE APOSTLE JOHN + TO THE CONVERSION OF CONSTANTINE.-- + A.D. 100 TO AD. 312. + + * * * * * + + + + SECTION I. + + THE HISTORY OF THE CHURCH. + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE GROWTH OF THE CHURCH. + +Prospects of the Church in the beginning of the second century, 275 +Christianity recommended by its good fruits, 276 +Diffusion of Scriptures and preparation of versions in + other languages, 277 +Doubtful character of the miracles attributed to this period, 278 +Remarkable progress of the gospel, 280 +Christianity propagated in Africa, France, Thrace, and Scotland, ib. +Testimonies to its success, 281 +Gains ground rapidly towards the close of the third century, 282 +Its progress, how to be tested, 283 + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE PERSECUTIONS OF THE CHURCH. + +Spectators impressed by the sufferings of the Christians, 284 +The blood of the martyrs the seed of the Church, 285 +Persecution promoted the purity of the Church, ib. +Christian graces gloriously displayed in times of persecution, ib. +Private sufferings of the Christians, 286 +How far the Romans acted on a principle of toleration, 288 +Christianity opposed as a "new religion," 288 +Correspondence between Pliny and Trajan, 289 +Law of Trajan, ib. +Martyrdom of Simeon of Jerusalem, 290 +Sufferings of Christians under Hadrian, 291 +Hadrian's rescript, ib. +Marcus Aurelius a persecutor, 292 +Justin and Polycarp martyred, 293 +Persecution at Lyons and Vienne, 294 +Absurd passion for martyrdom, 296 +Treatment of the Christians by Septimius Severus, 297 +The Libellatici and Thurificati, 298 +Perpetua and Felicitas martyred, ib. +Alexander Severus and Philip the Arabian favourable to the Christians, 299 +Persecution under Decius, 300 +Persecution under Valerian, 302 +Gallienus issues an edict of toleration, 303 +State of the Church during the last forty years of the third century, ib. +Diocletian persecution, 304 +The Traditors, 305 +Cruelties now practised, 306 +Not ten general persecutions, 307 +Deaths of the persecutors, 308 +Causes of the persecutions, 309 +The sufferings of the Christians did not teach them toleration, 310 + + +CHAPTER III. + +FALSE BRETHREN AND FALSE PRINCIPLES IN THE CHURCH; SPIRIT AND +CHARACTER OF THE CHRISTIANS. + +Piety of the early Christians not superior to that of all + succeeding ages, 312 +Covetous and immoral pastors in the ancient Church, 313 +Asceticism and its pagan origin, 314 +The unmarried clergy and the virgins, 315 +Paul and Antony the first hermits, ib. +Origin of the use of the sign of the cross, 316 +Opposition of the Christians to image-worship, 319 +Image-makers condemned, 320 +Objections of the Christians to the theatre, the gladiatorial shows, + and other public spectacles, 321 +Superior morality of the mass of the early Christians, 322 +How they treated the question of polygamy, ib. +Condemned intermarriages with heathens, 323 +How they dealt with the question of slavery, 324 +Influence of Christianity on the condition of the slave, 325 +Brotherly love of the Christians, 326 +Their kindness to distressed heathens, 327 +Christianity fitted for all mankind, 328 + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE CHURCH OF ROME IN THE SECOND CENTURY. + +Weak historical foundation of Romanism, 329 +Church of Rome not founded by either Paul or Peter, ib. +Its probable origin, 330 +Little known of its primitive condition, ib. +Its early episcopal succession a riddle, 331 +Martyrdom of Telesphorus, 332 +Heresiarchs in Rome, ib. +Its presiding presbyter called bishop, and invested with additional + power, ib. +Beginning of the Catholic system, ib. +Changes in the ecclesiastical constitution not accomplished without + opposition, 333 +Visit of Polycarp to Rome, 334 +Why so much deference so soon paid to the Roman Church, ib. +Wealth and influence of its members, 335 +Remarkable testimony of Irenaeus respecting it, 337 +Under what circumstances given, 338 +Victor's excommunication of the Asiatic Christians, 339 +Extent of Victor's jurisdiction, 340 +Explanation of his arrogance, 341 +First-fruits of the Catholic system, 342 + + +CHAPTER V. + +THE CHURCH OF ROME IN THE THIRD CENTURY. + +Genuine letters of the early bishops of Rome and false Decretal + epistles, 343 +Discovery of the statue of Hippolytus and of his "Philosophumena," 344 +The Roman bishops Zephyrinus and Callistus, 345 +Heresy of Zephyrinus, 346 +Extraordinary career and heresy of Callistus, ib. +The bishop of Rome not a metropolitan in the time of Hippolytus, 348 +Bishops of Rome chosen by the votes of clergy and people, 349 +Remarkable election of Fabian, ib. +Discovery of the catacombs, 350 +Origin of the catacombs, and how used by the Christians of Rome, ib. +The testimony of their inscriptions, 351 +The ancient Roman clergy married, 353 +Severity of persecution at Rome about the middle of the third + century, 354 +Four Roman bishops martyred, 355 +Statistics of the Roman Church about this period, ib. +Schism of Novatian, 356 +Controversy respecting rebaptism of heretics, and rashness of + Stephen, bishop of Rome, ib. +Misinterpretation of Matt. xvi. 18, 357 +Increasing power of Roman bishop, 359 +The bishop of Rome becomes a metropolitan, and is recognized by + the Emperor Aurelian, 360 +Early Roman bishops spoke and wrote in Greek, ib. +Obscurity of their early annals, ib. +Advancement of their power during the second and third centuries, 361 +Causes of their remarkable progress, ib. + + + + SECTION II. + + THE LITERATURE AND THEOLOGY OF THE CHURCH. + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE ECCLESIASTICAL WRITERS. + +The amount of their extant writings, 364 +The Epistle of Polycarp, 365 +Justin Martyr, his history and his works, ib. +The Epistle to Diognetus, 367 +Tatian, Athenagoras, Theophilus, and Hermas, ib. +The Epistle of Barnabas and the Shepherd of Hermas, ib. +Papias and Hegesippus, ib. +Irenaeus and his Works, 368 +Tertullian, his character and writings, 370 +Clement of Alexandria, 373 +Hippolytus, 374 +Minucius Felix, 375 +Origen--his early history and remarkable career--his great learning-- + his speculative spirit--his treatise against Celsus and his + "Hexapla"--his theological peculiarities, ib. +Cyprian--his training, character, and writings, 381 +Gregory Thaumaturgus, 383 +The value of the Fathers as ecclesiastical authorities, 384 +Their erroneous and absurd expositions, 385 +The excellency of Scripture, 387 + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE IGNATIAN EPISTLES AND THEIR CLAIMS--THE EXTERNAL EVIDENCE. + +The journeys undertaken in search of the Ignatian Epistles, and + the amount of literature to which they have given birth, 389 +Why these letters have awakened such interest, 390 +The story of Ignatius and its difficulties, ib. +The Seven Epistles known to Eusebius and those which appeared + afterwards, 394 +The different recensions of the Seven Letters known to Eusebius, 395 +The discovery of the Syriac version, ib. +Diminished size of the Curetonian Letters, 397 +The testimony of Eusebius considered, 398 +The testimony of Origen, 399 +The Ignatian Epistles not recognised by Irenaeus or Polycarp, 400 +These letters not known to Tertullian, Hippolytus, and other early + writers, 408 +The date of their fabrication. Their multiplication accounted for, 409 +Remarkable that spurious works are often found in more than one + edition, 411 + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE IGNATIAN EPISTLES AND THEIR CLAIMS--THE INTERNAL EVIDENCE. + +The history of these Epistles like the story of the Sibylline books, 413 +The three Curetonian Letters as objectionable as those formerly + published, 414 +The style suspicious, challenged by Ussher, 415 +The Word of God strangely ignored in these letters, ib. +Their chronological blunders betray their forgery, 417 +Various words in them have a meaning which they did not acquire + until after the time of Ignatius, 419 +Their puerilities, vapouring, and mysticism betray their + spuriousness, 422 +The anxiety for martyrdom displayed in them attests their forgery, 423 +The internal evidence confirms the view already taken of the date + of their fabrication, 425 +Strange attachment of Episcopalians to these letters, 426 +The sagacity of Calvin, 427 + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE GNOSTICS, THE MONTANISTS, AND THE MANICHAEANS. +The early heresies numerous, 429 +The systems with which Christianity had to struggle, 430 +The leading peculiarities of Gnosticism, ib. +The Aeons, the Demiurge, and the Saviour, 431 +Saturninus, Basilides, and Valentine, 433 +Marcion and Carpocrates, ib. +Causes of the popularity of Gnosticism, and its defects, 434 +Montanus and his system, 436 +His success and condemnation, 437 +Mani and his doctrine of the Two Principles, 438 +The Elect and Hearers of the Manichaeans, 439 +Martyrdom of Mani, 440 +Peculiarities of the heretics gradually adopted by the + Catholic Church, 441 +Doctrine of Venial and Mortal Sins, ib. +Doctrine of Purgatory, 442 +Celibacy and Asceticism, 443 + + +CHAPTER V. + +THE DOCTRINE OF THE CHURCH + +Leading doctrines of the gospel still acknowledged, 445 +Meaning of theological terms not yet exactly defined, ib. +Scripture venerated and studied, 446 +Extraordinary scriptural acquirements of some of the + early Christians, 447 +Doctrine of Plenary Inspiration of Scripture taught, 448 +The canon of the New Testament, ib. +Spurious scriptures and tradition, 449 +Human Depravity and Regeneration, 450 +Christ worshipped by the early Christians, 451 +Christ God and man, 452 +The Ebionites, Theodotus, Artemon, and Paul of Samosata, 453 +Doctrine of the Trinity, 454 +Praxeas, Noetus, and Sabellius, 455 +Doctrine of the Trinity not borrowed from Platonism, 457 +The Atonement and Justification by Faith, 458 +Grace and Predestination, ib. +Theological errors, 459 +Our knowledge of the gospel does not depend on our proximity to + the days of the Apostles, 461 + + + + SECTION III. + + THE WORSHIP AND CONSTITUTION OF THE CHURCH. + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE WORSHIP OF THE CHURCH. + +Splendour of the Pagan and Jewish worship--simplicity of Christian + worship, 462 +The places of worship of the early Christians, 463 +Psalmody of the Church, 464 +No instrumental music, 465 +No forms of prayer used by the early pastors, 466 +Congregation stood at prayer, 466 +Worship, how conducted, 467 +Scriptures read in public worship, 468 +The manner of preaching, 469 +Deportment of the congregation, 469 +Dress of ministers, 470 +Great change between this and the sixteenth century, 470 + + +CHAPTER II. + +BAPTISM. + +Polycarp probably baptized in infancy, 472 +Testimony of Justin Martyr and Irenaeus for Infant Baptism, 473 +Testimony of Origen, 474 +Objections of Tertullian examined, 475 +Sponsors in Baptism, who they were, ib. +The Baptism of Blood, 477 +Infant Baptism universal in Africa in the days of Cyprian, 478 +The mode of Baptism not considered essential, 479 +Errors respecting Baptism, and new rites added to the original + institution, 480 +The Baptismal Service the germ of a Church Liturgy, 481 +Evils connected with the corruption of the baptismal institute, ib. + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE LORD'S SUPPER. + +Danger of changing any part of a typical ordinance, 483 +How the Holy Supper was administered in Rome in the second century, 484 +The posture of the communicants--sitting and standing, 485 +The bread not unleavened, ib. +Wine mixed with water, ib. +Bread not put into the mouth by the minister, 486 +Infant communion, ib. +How often the Lord's Supper celebrated, ib. +The words _Sacrament_ and _Transubstantiation_, 487 +Bread and wine types or symbols, ib. +How Christ is present in the Eucharist, 488 +Growth of superstition in regard to the Eucharist, 489 +Danger of using language not warranted by Scripture, ib. + + +CHAPTER IV. + +CONFESSION AND PENANCE. + +Confession often made at Baptism by disciples of John the Baptist, + and of Christ, 491 +The early converts forthwith baptized, 492 +In the second century fasting preceded Baptism, 492 +The exomologesis of penitents, 493 +Influence of the mind on the body, and of the body on the mind, ib. +Fasting not an ordinary duty, 494 +Fasts of the ancient Church, ib. +Fasting soon made a test of repentance, 495 +The ancient penitential discipline, ib. +Establishment of a Penitentiary, 496 +Different classes of penitents, ib. +Auricular confession now unknown, 497 +Increasing spiritual darkness leads to confusion of terms, ib. + + +CHAPTER V. + +THE CONSTITUTION OF THE CHURCH IN THE SECOND CENTURY. + +Statement of Justin Martyr, 499 +Great obscurity resting on the subject, 500 +Illustrated by the Epistles of Clement and Polycarp, ib. +Circumstances which led to the writing of Clement's Epistle, 501 +Churches of Corinth and Borne then governed by presbyters, 503 +Churches of Smyrna and Philippi governed by presbyters, 504 +The presbyters had a chairman or president, ib. +Traces of this in the apostolic age, 505 +Early catalogues of bishops--their origin and contradictions, ib. +The senior presbyter the ancient president, 506 +Testimony of Hilary confirmed by various proofs, 507 +Ancient names of the president of the presbytery, 508 +Great age of ancient bishops, 509 +Great number of ancient bishops in a given period, ib. +Remarkable case of the Church of Jerusalem, 510 +No parallel to it in more recent times, 511 +Argument against heretics from the episcopal succession illustrated, 513 +The claims of seniority long respected in various ways, 515 +The power of the presiding presbyter limited, for the Church was + still governed by the common council of the presbyters, 516 +Change of the law of seniority, 518 +Change made about the end of the second century, ib. +Singular that many episcopal lists stop at the end of the second + century, 519 +Before that date only one bishop in Egypt, 520 +In some places another system set up earlier, 521 + + +CHAPTER VI. + +THE RISE OF THE HIERARCHY CONNECTED WITH THE SPREAD OF HERESIES. + +Eusebius. The defects of his Ecclesiastical History, 522 +Superior erudition of Jerome, 523 +His account of the origin of Prelacy, 524 +Prelacy originated after the apostolic age, 527 +Suggested by the distractions of the Church, 529 +Formidable and vexatious character of the early heresies, 530 +Mode of appointing the president of the eldership changed. + Popular election of bishops, how introduced, 532 +The various statements of Jerome consistent, 533 +The primitive moderator and the bishop contrasted, 535 +How the decree relative to a change in the ecclesiastical + constitution adopted throughout the whole world, ib. + + +CHAPTER VII. + +PRELACY BEGINS IN ROME. + +Comparative length of the lives of the early bishops of Rome, 537 +Observations relative to a change in the organization of the + Roman Church in the time of Hyginus, 538 + 1. The statement of Hilary will account for the increased average + in the length of episcopal life, 539 + 2. The testimony of Jerome cannot otherwise be explained, 540 + 3. Hilary indicates that the constitution of the Church was + changed about this period, 541 + 4. At this time such an arrangement must naturally have suggested + itself to the Roman Christians, 542 + 5. The violent death of Telesphorus fitted to prepare the way + for it, 543 + 6. The influence of Rome would recommend its adoption, 544 + 7. A vacancy which occurred after the death of Hyginus accords + with this view. Valentine a candidate for the Roman bishopric, 545 + 8. The letters of Pius to Justus corroborate this view, 547 + 9. It is sustained by the fact that the word _bishop_ now + began to be applied to the presiding elder, 550 + 10. The Pontifical Book remarkably confirms it--Not strange that + history speaks so little of this change, 552 +Little alteration at first apparent in the general aspect of the + Church in consequence of the adoption of the new principle, 554 +Facility with which the change could be accomplished, 565 +Polycarp probably dissatisfied with the new arrangements, 556 +Change, in all likelihood, not much opposed, 558 +Many presbyters, as well as the people, would be favourable to it, ib. +The new system gradually spread, 559 + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +THE CATHOLIC SYSTEM. + +History of the word Catholic, 561 +Circumstances in which the system originated, ib. +The bishop the centre of unity for his district, 562 +Principal or apostolic Churches--their position, 564 +The Church of Rome more potentially principal, 566 +How communion maintained among the Churches, 567 +Early jealousy towards the bishop of Rome, 568 +The Catholic system identified with Rome, 569 +Why the Apostle Peter everywhere so highly exalted, 570 +Roman bishops sought to work out the idea of unity, 571 +Theory of the Catholic system fallacious, 572 +How Rome the antitype of Babylon, 573 + + +CHAPTER IX. + +PRIMITIVE EPISCOPACY AND PRESBYTERIAN ORDINATION. + +Where Christians formed only a single congregation Episcopacy + made little change, 575 +The bishop the parish minister, ib. +Every one who could might preach if the bishops permitted, 576 +Bishops thickly planted--all of equal rank--the greatest had very + limited jurisdiction, 577 +Ecclesiastics often engaged in secular pursuits, 578 +The Alexandrian presbyters made their bishops, 580 +When this practice ceased, 581 +Alexandrian bishops not originally ordained by imposition of + hands, 582 +Roman presbyters and others made their bishops, 583 +The bishop the presiding elder--early Roman bishops so called, 584 +Bishops of the order of the presbytery, 585 +All Christian ministers originally ordained by presbyters, ib. +A bishop ordained by a bishop and a presbyter, 586 +Difference between ancient and modern bishops, 587 + + +CHAPTER X. + +THE PROGRESS OF PRELACY. + +Power of the president of a court, 589 +Power of the ecclesiastical president increased when elected by the + people, 590 +The superior wealth of the bishop added to his influence, ib. +Appointment of lectors, sub-deacons, acolyths, exorcists, + and janitors, 592 +These new offices first appeared in Rome, ib. +Bishops began to appoint church officers without consulting the + people, 593 +New canons relative to ordination, 594 +Presbyters ceased to inaugurate bishops, 595 +Presbyters continued to ordain presbyters and deacons, 596 +Country bishops deprived of the right to ordain, 597 +Account of their degradation, 598 +Rise of metropolitans, 599 +Circumstances which added to the power of the city bishops, ib. +One bishop in each province at the head of the rest, 601 +Jealousies and contentions of city bishops, 602 +Great change in the Church, in two centuries, 603 +Reasons why the establishment of metropolitans so much opposed, 604 + + +CHAPTER XI. + +SYNODS--THEIR HISTORY AND CONSTITUTION. + +Apostles sought, first, the conversion of sinners, and then the + edification of their converts, 605 +No general union of Churches originally, 606 +But intercourse in various ways maintained, ib. +Synods did not commence about the middle of the second century, 607 +A part of the original constitution of the Church, ib. +At first held on a limited scale, 609 +Reason why we have no account of early Synods, ib. +First notice of Synods, 610 +Synods held respecting the Paschal controversy, 611 +Found in operation everywhere before the end of the second century, ib. +Tertullian does not say that Synods commenced in Greece, 612 +Why he notices the Greek Synods, 613 +Amphictyonic Council did not suggest the establishment of Synods, 615 +Synods originally met only once a-year, ib. +Began to meet in fixed places in Greece and Asia Minor, 616 +Met twice a-year in the beginning of the fourth century, ib. +Synods in third century respecting re-baptism, 617 +Synods at Antioch respecting Paul of Samosata, 618 +Early Synods composed of bishops and elders, 619 +Deacons and laymen had no right of voting, ib. +Churches not originally independent, 620 +Utility of Synods, 621 +Circumstances which led to a change in their constitution, ib. +Decline of primitive polity, 622 + + +CHAPTER XII. + +THE CEREMONIES AND DISCIPLINE OF THE CHURCH, AS ILLUSTRATED BY +CURRENT CONTROVERSIES AND DIVISIONS. + +The rise of the Nazarenes, 623 +Lessons taught by their history, 624 +The Paschal controversy and Victor's excommunication, 625 +Danger of depending on tradition, 628 +Institution of Easter unnecessary, 629 +The tickets of peace and the schism of Felicissimus, ib. +Schism of Novatian, 631 +Controversy respecting the baptism of heretics, and Stephen's + excommunication, 632 +Uniformity in discipline and ceremonies not to be found in the + ancient Church, 633 +Increasing intolerance of the dominant party in this Church, 634 + + +CHAPTER XIII. + +THE THEORY OF THE CHURCH, AND THE HISTORY OF ITS PERVERSION-- +CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS. + +The Church invisible and its attributes, 636 +The visible Church and its defects, 637 +The holy Catholic Church--what it meant, 639 +Church visible and Church invisible confounded, 640 +Evils of the Catholic system, 642 +Establishment of an odious ecclesiastical monopoly, ib. +Pastors began to be called priests, 644 +Arrogant assumptions of bishops, 646 +The Catholic system encouraged bigotry, 647 +Its ungenerous spirit, ib. +The claims of the Word of God not properly recognized, 648 +Many corruptions already in the Church, 650 +The establishment of the hierarchy a grand mistake, 652 +Only promoted outward, not real unity, 653 +Sad state of the Church when Catholicism was fully developed, 655 +Evangelical unity--in what it consists, 656 + + + + + + * * * * * + + PERIOD I. + + FROM THE BIRTH OF CHRIST TO THE DEATH + OF THE APOSTLE JOHN, A.D. 100. + + * * * * * + + + + + + SECTION I. + + HISTORY OF THE PLANTING AND GROWTH OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE ROMAN EMPIRE AT THE TIME OF THE BIRTH OF CHRIST. + + +Upwards of a quarter of a century before the Birth of Christ, the +grandnephew of Julius Caesar had become sole master of the Roman world. +Never, perhaps, at any former period, had so many human beings +acknowledged the authority of a single potentate. Some of the most +powerful monarchies at present in Europe extend over only a fraction of +the territory which Augustus governed: the Atlantic on the west, the +Euphrates on the east, the Danube and the Rhine on the north, and the +deserts of Africa on the south, were the boundaries of his empire. + +We do not adequately estimate the rank of Augustus among contemporary +sovereigns, when we consider merely the superficial extent of the +countries placed within the range of his jurisdiction. His subjects +probably formed more than one-third of the entire population of the +globe, and amounted to about one hundred millions of souls.[Endnote 3:1] +His empire embraced within its immense circumference the best cultivated +and the most civilised portions of the earth. The remains of its +populous cities, its great fortresses, its extensive aqueducts, and its +stately temples, may still be pointed out as the memorials of its +grandeur. The capital was connected with the most distant provinces by +carefully constructed roads, along which the legions could march with +ease and promptitude, either to quell an internal insurrection, or to +encounter an invading enemy. And the military resources at the command +of Augustus were abundantly sufficient to maintain obedience among the +myriads whom he governed. After the victory of Actium he was at the head +of upwards of forty veteran legions; and though some of these had been +decimated by war, yet, when recruited, and furnished with their full +complement of auxiliaries, they constituted a force of little less than +half a million of soldiers. + +The arts of peace now nourished under the sunshine of imperial +patronage. Augustus could boast, towards the end of his reign, that he +had converted Rome from a city of brick huts into a city of marble +palaces. The wealth of the nobility was enormous; and, excited by the +example of the Emperor and his friend Agrippa, they erected and +decorated mansions in a style of regal magnificence. The taste cherished +in the capital was soon widely diffused; and, in a comparatively short +period, many new and gorgeous temples and cities appeared throughout the +empire. Herod the Great expended vast sums on architectural +improvements. The Temple of Jerusalem, rebuilt under his administration, +was one of the wonders of the world. + +The century terminating with the death of Augustus claims an undisputed +pre-eminence in the history of Roman eloquence and literature. Cicero, +the prince of Latin orators, now delivered those addresses which +perpetuate his fame; Sallust and Livy produced works which are still +regarded as models of historic composition; Horace, Virgil, and others, +acquired celebrity as gifted and accomplished poets. Among the subjects +fitted to exercise and expand the intellect, religion was not +overlooked. In the great cities of the empire many were to be found who +devoted themselves to metaphysical and ethical studies; and questions, +bearing upon the highest interests of man, were discussed in the schools +of the philosophers. + +The barbarous nations under the dominion of Augustus derived many +advantages from their connexion with the Roman empire. They had, no +doubt, often reason to complain of the injustice and rapacity of +provincial governors; but, on the whole, they had a larger share of +social comfort than they could have enjoyed had they preserved their +independence; for their domestic feuds were repressed by the presence of +their powerful rulers, and the imperial armies were at hand to protect +them against foreign aggression. By means of the constant intercourse +kept up with all its dependencies, the skill and information of the +metropolis of Italy were gradually imparted to the rude tribes under its +sway, and thus the conquest of a savage country by the Romans was an +important step towards its civilisation. The union of so many nations in +a great state was otherwise beneficial to society. A Roman citizen might +travel without hindrance from Armenia to the British Channel; and as all +the countries washed by the Mediterranean were subject to the empire, +their inhabitants could carry on a regular and prosperous traffic by +availing themselves of the facilities of navigation. + +The conquests of Rome modified the vernacular dialects of not a few of +its subjugated provinces, and greatly promoted the diffusion of Latin. +That language, which had gradually spread throughout Italy and the west +of Europe, was at length understood by persons of rank and education in +most parts of the empire. But in the time of Augustus, Greek was spoken +still more extensively. Several centuries before, it had been planted in +all the countries conquered by Alexander the Great, and it was now, not +only the most general, but also the most fashionable medium of +communication. Even Rome swarmed with learned Greeks, who employed their +native tongue when giving instruction in the higher branches of +education. Greece itself, however, was considered the head-quarters of +intellectual cultivation, and the wealthier Romans were wont to send +their sons to its celebrated seats of learning, to improve their +acquaintance with philosophy and literature. + +The Roman Empire in the time of Augustus presents to the eye of +contemplation a most interesting spectacle, whether we survey its +territorial magnitude, its political power, or its intellectual +activity. But when we look more minutely at its condition, we may +discover many other strongly marked and less inviting features. That +stern patriotism, which imparted so much dignity to the old Roman +character, had now disappeared, and its place was occupied by ambition +or covetousness. Venality reigned throughout every department of the +public administration. Those domestic virtues, which are at once the +ornaments and the strength of the community, were comparatively rare; +and the prevalence of luxury and licentiousness proclaimed the unsafe +state of the social fabric. There was a growing disposition to evade the +responsibilities of marriage, and a large portion of the citizens of +Rome deliberately preferred the system of concubinage to the state of +wedlock. The civil wars, which had created such confusion and involved +such bloodshed, had passed away; but the peace which followed was, +rather the quietude of exhaustion, than the repose of contentment. + +The state of the Roman Empire about the time of the birth of Christ +abundantly proves that there is no necessary connexion between +intellectual refinement and social regeneration. The cultivation of the +arts and sciences in the reign of Augustus may have been beneficial to a +few, by diverting them from the pursuit of vulgar pleasures, and opening +up to them sources of more rational enjoyment; but it is a most +humiliating fact that, during the brightest period in the history of +Roman literature, vice in every form was fast gaining ground among +almost all classes of the population. The Greeks, though occupying a +higher position as to mental accomplishments, were still more dissolute +than the Latins. Among them literature and sensuality appeared in +revolting combination, for their courtesans were their only females who +attended to the culture of the intellect. [7:1] + +Nor is it strange that the Roman Empire at this period exhibited such a +scene of moral pollution. There was nothing in either the philosophy or +the religion of heathenism sufficient to counteract the influence of +man's native depravity. In many instances the speculations of the pagan +sages had a tendency, rather to weaken, than to sustain, the authority +of conscience. After unsettling the foundations of the ancient +superstition, the mind was left in doubt and bewilderment; for the +votaries of what was called wisdom entertained widely different views +even of its elementary principles. The Epicureans, who formed a large +section of the intellectual aristocracy, denied the doctrine of +Providence, and pronounced pleasure to be the ultimate end of man. The +Academics encouraged a spirit of disputatious scepticism; and the +Stoics, who taught that the practice of, what they rather vaguely +designated, virtue, involves its own reward, discarded the idea of a +future retribution. Plato had still a goodly number of disciples; and +though his doctrines, containing not a few elements of sublimity and +beauty, exercised a better influence, it must be admitted, after all, +that they constituted a most unsatisfactory system of cold and barren +mysticism. The ancient philosophers delivered many excellent moral +precepts; but, as they wanted the light of revelation, their arguments +in support of duty were essentially defective, and the lessons which +they taught had often very little influence either on themselves or +others. [8:1] Their own conduct seldom marked them out as greatly +superior to those around them, so that neither their instructions nor +their example contributed efficiently to elevate the character of their +generation. + +Though the philosophers fostered a spirit of inquiry, yet, as they made +little progress in the discovery of truth, they were not qualified to +act with the skill and energy of enlightened reformers; and, whatever +may have been the amount of their convictions, they made no open and +resolute attack on the popular mythology. A very superficial examination +was, indeed, enough to shake the credit of the heathen worship. The +reflecting subjects of the Roman Empire might have remarked the very +awkward contrast between the multiplicity of their deities, and the +unity of their political government. It was the common belief that every +nation had its own divine guardians, and that the religious rites of one +country might be fully acknowledged without impugning the claims of +those of another; but still a thinking pagan might have been staggered +by the consideration that a human being had apparently more extensive +authority than some of his celestial overseers, and that the +jurisdiction of the Roman emperor was established over a more ample +territory than that which was assigned to many of the immortal gods. + +But the multitude of its divinities was by no means the most offensive +feature of heathenism. The gods of antiquity, more particularly those of +Greece, were of an infamous character. Whilst they were represented by +their votaries as excelling in beauty and activity, strength and +intelligence, they were at the same time described as envious and +gluttonous, base, lustful, and revengeful. Jupiter, the king of the +gods, was deceitful and licentious; Juno, the queen of heaven, was cruel +and tyrannical. What could be expected from those who honoured such +deities? Some of the wiser heathens, such as Plato, [9:1] condemned +their mythology as immoral, for the conduct of one or other of the gods +might have been quoted in vindication of every species of transgression; +and had the Gentiles but followed the example of their own heavenly +hierarchy, they might have felt themselves warranted in pursuing a +course either of the most diabolical oppression, or of the most +abominable profligacy. [9:2] + +At the time of the birth of our Lord even the Jews had sunk into a state +of the grossest degeneracy. They were now divided into sects, two of +which, the Pharisees and the Sadducees, are frequently mentioned in the +New Testament. The Pharisees were the leading denomination, being by far +the most numerous and powerful. By adding to the written law a mass of +absurd or frivolous traditions, which, as they foolishly alleged, were +handed down from Moses, they completely subverted the authority of the +sacred record, and changed the religion of the patriarchs and prophets +into a wearisome parade of superstitious observances. The Sadducees were +comparatively few, but as a large proportion of them were persons of +rank and wealth, they possessed a much greater amount of influence than +their mere numbers would have enabled them to command. It has been said +that they admitted the divine authority only of the Pentateuch, [10:1] +and though it may be doubted whether they openly ventured to deny the +claims of all the other books of the Old Testament, it is certain that +they discarded the doctrine of the immortality of the soul, [10:2] and +that they were disposed to self-indulgence and to scepticism. There was +another still smaller Jewish sect, that of the Essenes, of which there +is no direct mention in the New Testament. The members of this community +resided chiefly in the neighbourhood of the Dead Sea, and as our Lord +seldom visited that quarter of the country, it would appear that, during +the course of His public ministry, He rarely or never came in contact +with these religionists. Some of them were married, but the greater +number lived in celibacy, and spent much of their time in contemplation. +They are said to have had a common-stock purse, and their course of life +closely resembled that of the monks of after-times. + +Though the Jews, as a nation, were now sunk in sensuality or +superstition, there were still some among them, such as Simeon and Anna, +noticed in the Gospel of Luke, [10:3] who were taught of God, and who +exhibited a spirit of vital piety. "The law of the Lord is perfect +converting the soul," and as the books of the Old Testament were +committed to the keeping of the posterity of Abraham, there were "hidden +ones" here and there who discovered the way to heaven by the perusal of +these "lively oracles." We have reason to believe that the Jews were +faithful conservators of the inspired volume, as Christ uniformly takes +for granted the accuracy of their "Scriptures." [11:1] It is an +important fact that they did not admit into their canon the writings now +known under the designation of the _Apocrypha_. [11:2] Nearly three +hundred years before the appearance of our Lord, the Old Testament had +been translated into the Greek language, and thus, at this period, the +educated portion of the population of the Roman Empire had all an +opportunity of becoming acquainted with the religion of the chosen +people. The Jews were now scattered over the earth, and as they erected +synagogues in the cities where they settled, the Gentile world had ample +means of information in reference to their faith and worship. + +Whilst the dispersion of the Jews disseminated a knowledge of their +religion, it likewise suggested the approaching dissolution of the +Mosaic economy, as it was apparent that their present circumstances +absolutely required another ritual. It could not be expected that +individuals dwelling in distant countries could meet three times in the +year at Jerusalem to celebrate the great festivals. The Israelites +themselves had a presentiment of coming changes, and anxiously awaited +the appearance of a Messiah. They were actuated by an extraordinary zeal +for proselytism, [11:3] and though their scrupulous adherence to a stern +code of ceremonies often exposed them to much obloquy, they succeeded, +notwithstanding, in making many converts in most of the places where they +resided. [12:1] A prominent article of their creed was adopted in a +quarter where their theology otherwise found no favour, for the Unity of +the Great First Cause was now distinctly acknowledged in the schools of +the philosophers. [12:2] + +From the preceding statements we may sec the peculiar significance of +the announcement that God sent forth His Son into the world "_when the +fulness of the time was come_." [12:3] Various predictions [12:4] +pointed out this age as the period of the Messiah's Advent, and +Gentiles, as well as Jews, seem by some means to have caught up the +expectation that an extraordinary personage was now about to appear on +the theatre of human existence. [12:5] Providence had obviously prepared +the way for the labours of a religious reformer. The civil wars which +had convulsed the state were now almost forgotten, and though the +hostile movements of the Germans, and other barbarous tribes on the +confines of the empire, occasionally created uneasiness or alarm, the +public mind was generally unoccupied by any great topic of absorbing +interest. In the populous cities the multitude languished for +excitement, and sought to dissipate the time in the forum, the circus, +or the amphitheatre. At such a crisis the heralds of the most gracious +message that ever greeted the ears of men might hope for a patient +hearing. Even the consolidation of so many nations under one government +tended to "the furtherance of the gospel," for the gigantic roads, which +radiated from Rome to the distant regions of the east and of the west, +facilitated intercourse; and the messengers of the Prince of Peace could +travel from country to country without suspicion and without passports. +And well might the Son of God be called "The desire of all nations." +[13:1] Though the wisest of the pagan sages could not have described the +renovation which the human family required, and though, when the +Redeemer actually appeared, He was despised and rejected of men, there +was, withal, a wide spread conviction that a Saviour was required, and +there was a longing for deliverance from the evils which oppressed +society. The ancient superstitions were rapidly losing their hold on the +affection and confidence of the people, and whilst the light of +philosophy was sufficient to discover the absurdities of the prevailing +polytheism, it failed to reveal any more excellent way of purity and +comfort. The ordinances of Judaism, which were "waxing old" and "ready +to vanish away," were types which were still unfulfilled; and though +they pointed out the path to glory, they required an interpreter to +expound their import. This Great Teacher now appeared. He was born in +very humble circumstances, and yet He was the heir of an empire beyond +comparison more illustrious than that of the Caesars. "There was given +him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and +languages, should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, +which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be +destroyed." [13:2] + + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE LIFE OF CHRIST. + + +Nearly three years before the commencement of our era, [14:1] Jesus +Christ was born. The Holy Child was introduced into the world under +circumstances extremely humiliating. A decree had gone forth from Caesar +Augustus that all the Roman Empire should be taxed, and the Jews, as a +conquered people, were obliged to submit to an arrangement which +proclaimed their national degradation. The reputed parents of Jesus +resided at Nazareth, a town of Galilee; but, as they were "of the house +and lineage of David," they were obliged to repair to Bethlehem, a +village about six miles south of Jerusalem, to be entered in their +proper place in the imperial registry. "And so it was, that, while they +were there, the days were accomplished that Mary should be delivered, +and she brought forth her first-born son, and wrapped him in swaddling +clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in +the inn." [14:2] + +This child of poverty and of a despised race, born in the stable of the +lodging-house of an insignificant town belonging to a conquered +province, did not enter upon life surrounded by associations which +betokened a career of earthly prosperity. But intimations were not +wanting that the Son of Mary was regarded with the deepest interest by +the inhabitants of heaven. An angel had appeared to announce the +conception of the individual who was to be the herald of his ministry; +[15:1] and another angel had been sent to give notice of the incarnation +of this Great Deliverer. [15:2] When He was born, the angel of the Lord +communicated the tidings to shepherds in the plains of Bethlehem; "and +suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host +praising God and saying--Glory to God in the highest, and on earth +peace, good will toward men." [15:3] Inanimate nature called attention +to the advent of the illustrious babe, for a wonderful star made known +to wise men from the east the incarnation of the King of Israel; and +when they came to Jerusalem "the star, which they saw in the east, went +before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was." +[15:4] The history of these eastern sages cannot now be explored, and we +know not on what grounds they regarded the star as the sign of the +Messiah; but they rightly interpreted the appearance, and the narrative +warrants us to infer that they acted under the guidance of divine +illumination. As they were "warned of God in a dream" [15:5] to return +to their own country another way, we may presume that they were +originally directed by some similar communication to undertake the +journey. It is probable that they did not belong to the stock of +Abraham; and if so, their visit to the babe at Bethlehem may be +recognised as the harbinger of the union of Jews and Gentiles under the +new economy. The presence of these Orientals in Jerusalem attracted the +notice of the watchful and jealous tyrant who then occupied the throne +of Judea. Their story filled him with alarm; and his subjects +anticipated some tremendous outbreak of his suspicions and savage +temper. "When the king had heard these things he was troubled, and all +Jerusalem with him." [15:6] His rage soon vented itself in a terrible +explosion. Having ascertained from the chief priests and scribes of the +people where Christ was to be born, he "sent forth and slew all the +children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two +years old and under." [16:1] + +Joseph and Mary, in accordance with a message from heaven, had meanwhile +fled towards the border of Egypt, and thus the holy infant escaped this +carnage. The wise men, on the occasion of their visit, had "opened their +treasures," and had "presented unto him gifts, _gold_, and frankincense, +and myrrh," [16:2] so that the poor travellers had providentially +obtained means for defraying the expenses of their journey. The +slaughter of the babes of Bethlehem was one of the last acts of the +bloody reign of Herod; and, on his demise, the exiles were divinely +instructed to return, and the child was presented in the temple. This +ceremony evoked new testimonies to His high mission. On His appearance +in His Father's house, the aged Simeon, moved by the Spirit from on +high, embraced Him as the promised Shiloh; and Anna, the prophetess, +likewise gave thanks to God, and "spake of him to all them that looked +for redemption in Jerusalem." [16:3] Thus, whilst the Old Testament +predictions pointed to Jesus as the Christ, living prophets appeared to +interpret these sacred oracles, and to bear witness to the claims of the +new-born Saviour. + +Though the Son of Mary was beyond all comparison the most extraordinary +personage that ever appeared on earth, it is remarkable that the sacred +writers enter into scarcely any details respecting the history of His +infancy, His youth, or His early manhood. They tell us that "the child +grew and waxed strong in spirit," [17:1] and that He "increased in +wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man;" [17:2] but they do +not minutely trace the progress of His mental development, neither do +they gratify any feeling of mere curiosity by giving us His infantile +biography. In what is omitted by the penmen of the New Testament, as +well as in what is written we must acknowledge the guidance of +inspiration; and though we might have perused with avidity a description +of the pursuits of Jesus when a child, such a record has not been deemed +necessary for the illustration of the work of redemption. It would +appear that He spent about thirty years on earth almost unnoticed and +unknown; and He seems to have been meanwhile trained to the occupation +of a carpenter. [17:3] The obscurity of His early career must doubtless +be regarded as one part of His humiliation. But the circumstances in +which He was placed enabled Him to exhibit more clearly the divinity of +His origin. He did not receive a liberal education, so that when He came +forward as a public teacher "the Jews marvelled, saying--How knoweth +this man letters _having never learned?_" [17:4] When He was only twelve +years old, He was "found in the temple sitting in the midst of the +doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions; and all that +heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers." [18:1] As +He grew up, He was distinguished by His diligent attendance in the house +of God; and it seems not improbable that He was in the habit of +officiating at public worship by assisting in the reading of the law and +the prophets; for we are told that, shortly after the commencement of +His ministry, "He came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and, +as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath-day, and +_stood up for to read_." [18:2] + +When He was about thirty years of age, and immediately before His public +appearance as a prophet, our Lord was baptized of John in Jordan. [18:3] +The Baptist did not, perhaps, preach longer than six months, [18:4] but +it is probable that during his imprisonment of considerably upwards of a +year, he still contributed to prepare the way of Christ; for, in the +fortress of Machaerus in which he was incarcerated, [18:5] he was not +kept in utter ignorance of passing occurrences, and when permitted to +hold intercourse with his friends, he would doubtless direct their +special attention to the proceedings of the Great Prophet. The claims of +John, as a teacher sent from God, were extensively acknowledged; and +therefore his recognition of our Lord as the promised Messiah, must have +made a deep impression upon the minds of the Israelites. The miracles of +our Saviour corroborated the testimony of His forerunner, and created a +deep sensation. He healed "all manner of sickness, and all manner of +disease." [19:1] It was, consequently, not strange that "His fame went +throughout all Syria," and that "there followed him great multitudes of +people, from Galilee, and from Decapolis, and from Jerusalem, and from +Judea, and from beyond Jordan." [19:2] + +Even when the Most High reveals himself there is something mysterious in +the manifestation, so that, whilst we acknowledge the tokens of His +presence, we may well exclaim--"Verily thou art a God that hidest +thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour." [19:3] When He displayed His +glory in the temple of old, He filled it with thick darkness; [19:4] +when He delivered the sure word of prophecy, He employed strange and +misty language; when He announced the Gospel itself, He uttered some +things hard to be understood. It might have been said, too, of the Son +of God, when He appeared on earth, that His "footsteps were not known." +In early life He does not seem to have arrested the attention of His own +townsmen; and when He came forward to assert His claims as the Messiah, +He did not overawe or dazzle his countrymen by any sustained +demonstration of tremendous power or of overwhelming splendour. To-day +the multitude beheld His miracles with wonder, but to-morrow they could +not tell where to meet with Him; [19:5] ever and anon He appeared and +disappeared; and occasionally His own disciples found it difficult to +discover the place of His retirement. When He arrived in a district, +thousands often hastily gathered around Him; [19:6] but He never +encouraged the attendance of vast assemblages by giving general notice +that, in a specified place and on an appointed day, He would deliver a +public address, or perform a new and unprecedented miracle. We may here +see the wisdom of Him who "doeth all things well." Whilst the secresy +with which He conducted His movements baffled any premature attempts on +the part of His enemies, to effect His capture or condemnation, it also +checked that intense popular excitement which a ministry so +extraordinary might have been expected to awaken. + +Four inspired writers have given separate accounts of the life of +Christ--all repeat many of His wonderful sayings--all dwell with marked +minuteness on the circumstances of His death--and all attest the fact of +His resurrection. Each mentions some things which the others have +omitted; and each apparently observes the order of time in the details +of his narrative. But when we combine and arrange their various +statements, so as to form the whole into one regular and comprehensive +testimony, we discover that there are not a few periods of His life +still left utterly blank in point of incidents; and that there is no +reference whatever to topics which we might have expected to find +particularly noticed in the biography of so eminent a personage. After +His appearance as a public teacher, He seems, not only to have made +sudden transitions from place to place, but otherwise to have often +courted the shade; and, instead of unfolding the circumstances of His +private history, the evangelists dwell chiefly on His Discourses and His +Miracles. During His ministry, Capernaum was His headquarters; [20:1] +but we cannot positively tell with whom He lodged in that place; nor +whether the twelve sojourned there under the same roof with Him; nor how +much time He spent in it at any particular period. We cannot point out +the precise route which He pursued on any occasion when itinerating +throughout Galilee or Judea; neither are we sure that He always +journeyed on foot, or that He adhered to a uniform mode of travelling. +It is most singular that the inspired writers throw out no hint on which +an artist might seize as the groundwork of a painting of Jesus. As if to +teach us more emphatically that we should beware of a sensuous +superstition, and that we should direct our thoughts to the spiritual +features of His character, the New Testament never mentions either the +colour of His hair, or the height of His stature, or the cast of His +countenance. How wonderful that even "the beloved disciple," who was +permitted to lean on the bosom of the Son of man, and who had seen him +in the most trying circumstances of His earthly history, never speaks of +the tones of His voice, or of the expression of His eye, or of any +striking peculiarity pertaining to His personal appearance! The silence +of all the evangelists respecting matters of which at least some of them +must have retained a very vivid remembrance, and of which ordinary +biographers would not have failed to preserve a record, supplies an +indirect and yet a most powerful proof of the Divine origin of the +Gospels. + +But whilst the sacred writers enter so sparingly into personal details, +they leave no doubt as to the perfect integrity which marked every part +of our Lord's proceedings. He was born in a degenerate age, and brought +up in a city of Galilee which had a character so infamous that no good +thing was expected to proceed from it; [21:1] and yet, like a ray of +purest light shining into some den of uncleanness, He contracted no +defilement from the scenes of pollution which He was obliged to witness. +Even in boyhood, He must have uniformly acted with supreme discretion; +for though His enemies from time to time gave vent to their malignity in +various accusations, we do not read that they ever sought to cast so +much as a solitary stain upon His youthful reputation. The most +malicious of the Jews failed to fasten upon Him in after life any charge +of immorality. Among those constantly admitted to His familiar +intercourse, a traitor was to be found; and had Judas been able to +detect anything in His private deportment inconsistent with His public +profession, he would doubtless have proclaimed it as an apology for his +perfidy; but the keen eye of that close observer could not discover a +single blemish in the character of his Master; and, when prompted by +covetousness, he betrayed Him to the chief priests, the thought of +having been accessory to the death of one so kind and so holy, continued +to torment him, until it drove him to despair and to self-destruction. + +The doctrine inculcated by our Lord commended itself by the light of its +own evidence. It was nothing more than a lucid and comprehensive +exposition of the theology of the Old Testament; and yet it, presented +such a new view of the faith of patriarchs and of prophets, that it had +all the freshness and interest of an original revelation. It discovered +a most intimate acquaintance with the mental constitution of man--it +appealed with mighty power to the conscience--and it was felt to be +exactly adapted to the moral state and to the spiritual wants of the +human family. The disciples of Jesus did not require to be told that He +had "the key of knowledge," for they were delighted and edified as "He +opened" to them the Scriptures. [22:1] He taught the multitude "as one +having authority;" [22:2] and they were "astonished at His doctrine." +The discourses of the Scribes, their most learned instructors, were +meagre and vapid--they were not calculated to enlarge the mind or to +move the affections--they consisted frequently of doubtful disputations +relating to the ceremonials of their worship--and the very air with +which they were delivered betrayed the insignificance of the topics of +discussion. But Jesus spake with a dignity which commanded respect, and +with the deep seriousness of a great Teacher delivering to perishing +sinners tidings of unutterable consequence. + +There was something singularly beautiful and attractive, as well as +majestic and impressive, in the teaching of our Lord. The Sermon on the +Mount is a most pleasing specimen of His method of conveying +instruction. Whilst He gives utterance to sentiments of exalted wisdom, +He employs language so simple, and imagery so chaste and natural, that +even a child takes a pleasure in perusing His address. There is reason +to think that He did not begin to speak in parables until a considerable +time after He had entered upon His ministry. [23:1] By these symbolical +discourses He at once blinded the eyes of His enemies, and furnished +materials for profitable meditation to His genuine disciples. The +parables, like the light of prophecy, are, to this very day, a beacon to +the Church, and a stumbling-block to unbelievers. + +The claims of Jesus as the Christ were decisively established by the +Divine power which He manifested. It had been foretold that certain +extraordinary recoveries from disease and infirmity would be witnessed +in the days of the Messiah; and these predictions were now literally +fulfilled. The eyes of the blind were opened, and the ears of the deaf +were unstopped; the lame man leaped as an hart, and the tongue of the +dumb sang. [23:2] Not a few of the cures of our Saviour were wrought on +individuals to whom He was personally unknown; [23:3] and many of His +works of wonder were performed in the presence of friends and foes. +[23:4] Whilst His miracles exceeded in number all those recorded in the +Old Testament, they were still more remarkable for their variety and +their excellence. By His touch, or His word, he healed the most +inveterate maladies; He fed the multitude by thousands out of a store of +provisions which a little boy could carry; [24:1] He walked upon the +waves of the sea, when it was agitated by a tempest; [24:2] He made the +storm a calm, so that the wind at once ceased to blow, and the surface +of the deep reposed, at the same moment, in glassy smoothness; [24:3] He +cast out devils; and He restored life to the dead. Well might the +Pharisees be perplexed by the inquiry--"How can a man that is a sinner +do such miracles?" [23:4] It is quite possible that false prophets, by +the help of Satan, may accomplish feats fitted to excite astonishment; +and yet, in such cases, the agents of the Wicked One may be expected to +exhibit some symptoms of his spirit and character. But nothing +diabolical, or of an evil tendency, appeared in the miracles of our +Lord. With the one exception of the cursing of the barren fig-tree +[24:5]--a malediction which created no pain, and involved no substantial +loss--all his displays of power were indicative of His goodness and His +mercy. No other than a true prophet would have been enabled so often to +control the course of nature, in the production of results of such +utility, such benignity, and such grandeur. + +The miracles of Christ illustrated, as well as confirmed, His doctrines. +When, for instance, He converted the water into wine at the marriage in +Cana of Galilee. [24:6] He taught, not only that he approved of wedlock, +but also that, within proper limits, He was disposed to patronise the +exercise of a generous hospitality, in some cases He required faith in +the individuals whom He vouchsafed to cure, [24:7] thus distinctly +suggesting the way of a sinner's salvation. Many of His miracles were +obviously of a typical character. When He acted as the physician of the +body, He indirectly gave evidence of His efficiency as the physician of +the soul; when He restored sight to the blind, He indicated that He +could turn men from darkness to light; when He raised the dead, He +virtually demonstrated His ability to quicken such as are dead in +trespasses and sins. Those who witnessed the visible exhibitions of His +power were prepared to listen with the deepest interest to His words +when He declared--"I am the light of the world; he that followeth me +shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the _light of life_." [25:1] + +Though our Lord's conduct, as a public teacher, fully sustained His +claims as the Messiah, it must have been a complete enigma to all +classes of politicians. He did not seek to obtain power by courting the +favour of the great, neither did He attempt to gain popularity by +flattering the prejudices of the multitude. He wounded the national +pride by hinting at the destruction of the temple; He gave much offence +by holding intercourse with the odious publicans; and with many, He +forfeited all credit, as a patriot, by refusing to affirm the +unlawfulness of paying tribute to the Roman emperor. The greatest human +characters have been occasionally swayed by personal predilections or +antipathies, but, in the life of Christ, we can discover no memorial of +any such infirmity. Like a sage among children, He did not permit +Himself to be influenced by the petty partialities, whims, or +superstitions of His countrymen. He inculcated a theological system for +which He could not expect the support of any of the existing classes of +religionists. He differed from the Essenes, as He did not adopt their +ascetic habits; He displeased the Sadducees, by asserting the doctrine +of the resurrection; He provoked the Pharisees, by declaring that they +worshipped God in vain, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men; +and He incurred the hostility of the whole tribe of Jewish zealots, by +maintaining His right to supersede the arrangements of the Mosaic +economy. By pursuing this independent course He vindicated His title to +the character of a Divine lawgiver, but at the same time He forfeited a +vast amount of sympathy and aid upon which He might otherwise have +calculated. + +There has been considerable diversity of opinion regarding the length of +our Saviour's ministry. [26:1] We could approximate very closely to a +correct estimate could we tell the number of passovers from its +commencement to its close, but this point cannot be determined with +absolute certainty. Four are apparently mentioned [26:2] by the +evangelist John; and if, as is probable, they amounted to no more, it +would seem that our Lord's career, as a public teacher, was of about +three years' duration. [26:3] The greater part of this period was spent +in Galilee; and the sacred writers intimate that He made several +circuits, as a missionary, among the cities and villages of that +populous district. [26:4] Matthew, Mark, and Luke dwell chiefly upon +this portion of His history. Towards the termination of His course, +Judea was the principal scene of His ministrations. Jerusalem was the +centre of Jewish power and prejudice, and He had hitherto chiefly +laboured in remote districts of the land, that He might escape the +malignity of the scribes and Pharisees; but, as His end approached, He +acted with greater publicity, and often taught openly in the very courts +of the temple. John supplements the narratives of the other evangelists +by recording our Lord's proceedings in Judea. + +A few members of the Sanhedrim, such as Nicodemus, [27:1] believed Jesus +to be "a teacher come from God," but by far the majority regarded Him +with extreme aversion. They could not imagine that the son of a +carpenter was to be the Saviour of their country, for they expected the +Messiah to appear surrounded with all the splendour of secular +magnificence. They were hypocritical and selfish; they had been +repeatedly rebuked by Christ for their impiety; and, as they marked His +increasing favour with the multitude, their envy and indignation became +ungovernable. They accordingly seized Him at the time of the Passover, +and, on the charge that He said He was the Son of God, He was condemned +as a blasphemer. [27:2] He suffered crucifixion--an ignominious form of +capital punishment from which the laws of the empire exempted every +Roman citizen--and, to add to His disgrace, He was put to death between +two thieves. [27:3] But even Pontius Pilate, who was then Procurator of +Judea, and who, in that capacity, endorsed the sentence, was constrained +to acknowledge that He was a "just person" in whom He could find "no +fault." [27:4] Pilate was a truckling time-server, and he acquiesced in +the decision, simply because he was afraid to exasperate the Jews by +rescuing from their grasp an innocent man whom they persecuted with +unrelenting hatred. [27:5] + +The death of Christ, of which all the evangelists treat so particularly, +is the most awful and the most momentous event in the history of the +world. He, no doubt, fell a victim to the malice of the rulers of the +Jews; but He was delivered into their hands "by the determinate counsel +and foreknowledge of God;" [28:1] and if we discard the idea that He was +offered up as a vicarious sacrifice, we must find it impossible to give +anything like a satisfactory account of what occurred in Gethsemane and +at Calvary. The amount of physical suffering He sustained from man did +not exceed that endured by either of the malefactors with whom He was +associated; and such was His magnanimity and fortitude, that, had He +been an ordinary martyr, the prospect of crucifixion would not have been +sufficient to make Him "exceeding sorrowful" and "sore amazed." [28:2] +His holy soul must have been wrung with no common agony, when "His sweat +was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground," [28:3] +and when He was forced to cry out--"My God, my God, why hast thou +forsaken me?" [28:4] In that hour of "the power of darkness" He was +"smitten of God and afflicted," and there was never sorrow like unto His +sorrow, for upon Him were laid "the iniquities of us all." + +The incidents which accompanied the death of Jesus were even more +impressive than those which signalised His birth. When He was in the +garden of Gethsemane there appeared unto Him an angel from Heaven +strengthening Him. [28:5] During the three concluding hours of His +intense anguish on the cross, there was darkness overall the land, +[28:6] as if nature mourned along with the illustrious sufferer. When He +bowed His head on Calvary and gave up the ghost, the event was marked by +notifications such as never announced the demise of any of this world's +great potentates, for "the veil of the temple was rent in twain," and +the rocks were cleft asunder, and the graves were opened, and the earth +trembled. [29:1] "The centurion and they that were with him," in +attendance at the execution, seem to have been Gentiles; and though, +doubtless, they had heard that Jesus claimed to be the Messiah of the +Jews, they perhaps very imperfectly comprehended the import of the +designation; but they were forthwith overwhelmed with the conviction, +that He, whose death they had just witnessed, must have given a true +account of His mission and His dignity, for "when they saw the +earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, +saying--Truly this was _the Son of God_" [29:2] + +The body of our Lord was committed to the grave on the evening of +Friday, and, early on the morning of the following Sunday, He issued +from the tomb. An ordinary individual has no control over the duration +of his existence, but Jesus demonstrated that He had power to lay down +His life, and that He had power to take it again. [29:3] Had He been a +deceiver His delusions must have terminated with His death, so that His +resurrection must be regarded as His crowning miracle, or rather, as the +affixing of the broad seal of heaven to the truth of His mission as the +Messiah. It was, besides, the fulfilment of an ancient prophecy; [29:4] +a proof of His fore-knowledge; [29:5] and a pledge of the resurrection +of His disciples. [29:6] Hence, in the New Testament, [29:7] it is so +often mentioned with marked emphasis. + +There is no fact connected with the life of Christ better attested than +that of His resurrection. He was put to death by His enemies; and His +body was not removed from the cross until they were fully satisfied that +the vital spark had fled. [29:8] His tomb was scooped out of a solid +rock; [29:9] the stone which blocked up the entrance was sealed with all +care; and a military guard kept constant watch to prevent its violation. +[30:1] But in due time an earthquake shook the cemetery--"The angel of +the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from +the door and sat upon it ... and for fear of him the keepers did shake, +and became as dead men." [30:2] Our Lord meanwhile came forth from the +grave, and the sentinels, in consternation, hastened to the chief +priests and communicated the astounding intelligence. [30:3] But these +infatuated men, instead of yielding to the force of this overwhelming +evidence, endeavoured to conceal their infamy by the base arts of +bribery and falsehood. "They gave large money unto the soldiers, +saying--Say ye--His disciples came by night and stole him away while we +slept...so they took the money, and did as they were taught." [30:4] + +Jesus, as the first-born of Mary, was presented in the temple forty days +after His birth; and, as "the first-begotten of the dead," [30:5] He +presented Himself before His Father, in the temple above, forty days +after He had opened the womb of the grave. During the interval he +appeared only to His own followers. [30:6] Those who had so long and so +wilfully rejected the testimony of His teaching and His miracles, had +certainly no reason to expect any additional proofs of His Divine +mission. But the Lord manifests Himself to His Church, "and not unto the +world," [30:7] and to such as fear His name He is continually supplying +new and interesting illustrations of His presence, His power, His +wisdom, and His mercy. Whilst He is a pillar of darkness to His foes, He +is a pillar of light to His people. Though Jesus was now invisible to +the Scribes and Pharisees, He admitted His disciples to high and holy +fellowship. Now their hearts burned within them as He spake to them "of +the things pertaining to the kingdom of God," [31:1] and as "He +expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning +Himself." [31:2] Now He doubtless pointed out to them how He was +symbolised in the types, how He was exhibited in the promises, and how +He was described in the prophecies. Now He explained to them more fully +the arrangements of His Church, and now He commanded His apostles to go +and "teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of +the Son, and of the Holy Ghost." [31:3] Having assured the twelve of His +presence with His true servants even unto the end of the world, and +having led them out as far as Bethany, a village a few furlongs from +Jerusalem, "he lifted up his hands and blessed them. And it came to +pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up +into heaven." [31:4] + +Thus closed the earthly career of Him who is both the Son of man and the +Son of God. Though He was sorely tried by the privations of poverty, +though He was exposed to the most brutal and degrading insults, and +though at last He was forsaken by His friends and consigned to a death +of lingering agony, He never performed a single act or uttered a single +word unworthy of His exalted and blessed mission. The narratives of the +evangelists supply clear internal evidence that, when they described the +history of Jesus, they must have copied from a living original; for +otherwise, no four individuals, certainly no four Jews, could have each +furnished such a portrait of so great and so singular a personage. +Combining the highest respect for the institutions of Moses with a +spirit eminently catholic, He was at once a devout Israelite and a +large-hearted citizen of the world. Rising far superior to the +prejudices of His countrymen, He visited Samaria, and conversed freely +with its population; and, whilst declaring that He was sent specially to +the seed of Abraham, He was ready to extend His sympathy to their +bitterest enemies. Though He took upon Him the form of a servant, there +was nothing mean or servile in His behaviour; for, when He humbled +Himself, there was ever about Him an air of condescending majesty. +Whether He administers comfort to the mourner, or walks upon the waves +of the sea, or replies to the cavils of the Pharisees, He is still the +same calm, holy, and gracious Saviour. When His passion was immediately +in view, He was as kind and as considerate as ever, for, on the very +night in which He was betrayed, He was employed in the institution of an +ordinance which was to serve as a sign and a seal of His grace +throughout all generations. His character is as sublime as it is +original. It has no parallel in the history of the human family. The +impostor is cunning, the demagogue is turbulent, and the fanatic is +absurd; but the conduct of Jesus Christ is uniformly gentle and serene, +candid, courteous, and consistent. Well, indeed, may His name be called +Wonderful. "He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the +world know him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. +But an many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of +God, even to them that believe on his name." [32:1] + + + + +SUPPLEMENTARY NOTE TO CHAPTER II. + +THE YEAR OF CHRIST'S BIRTH. + +The Christian era commences on the 1st of January of the year 754 of the +city of Rome. That our Lord was born about the time stated in the text +may appear from the following considerations-- + +_The visit of the wise men to Bethlehem must have taken place a very few +days after the birth of Jesus, and before His presentation in the +temple._ Bethlehem was not the stated residence of Joseph and Mary, +either before or after the birth of the child (Luke i. 26, ii. 4, 39; +Matt. ii. 2). They were obliged to repair to the place on account of the +taxing, and immediately after the presentation in the temple, they +returned to Nazareth and dwelt there (Luke ii. 39). Had the visit of the +wise men occurred, as some think, six, or twelve, or eighteen months +after the birth, the question of Herod to "the chief priests and scribes +of the people" where "Christ _should be born_"--would have been quite +vain, as the infant might have been removed long before to another part +of the country. The wise men manifestly expected to see a _newly born_ +infant, and hence they asked--"where is he that _is born_ King of the +Jews?" (Matt. ii. 2.) The evangelist also states expressly that they came +to Jerusalem "_when Jesus was born_" (Matt. ii. 1). At a subsequent +period they would have found the Holy Child, not at Bethlehem, but at +Nazareth. + +The only plausible objection to this view of the matter is derived from +the statement that Herod "sent forth and slew all the children that were +in Bethlehem and in all the coasts thereof, _from two years old and +under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the +wise men"_ (Matt. ii. 16). The king had ascertained from these sages +"what time the star appeared" (Matt. ii. 7), and they seem to have +informed him that it had been visible a year before. A Jewish child was +said to be two years old _when it had entered on its second year_ (see +Greswell's "Dissertations," vol. ii. 136); and, to make sure of his +prey, Herod murdered all the infants in Bethlehem and the neighbourhood +under the age of thirteen months. The wise men had not told him that the +child was a year old--it was obvious that they thought very +differently--but the tyrant butchered all who came, within the range of +suspicion. It is highly probable that the star announced the appearance +of the Messiah twelve months before he was born. Such an intimation was +given of the birth of Isaac, who was a remarkable type of Christ (Gen. +xvii. 21). See also 2 Kings iv. 16, and Dan. iv. 29, 33. + +The presentation of the infant in the temple occurred _after the death +of Herod_. This follows as a corollary from what has been already +advanced, for if the wise men visited Bethlehem immediately after the +birth, and if the child was then hurried away to Egypt, the presentation +could not have taken place earlier. The ceremony was performed _forty +days after the birth_ (Luke ii. 22, and Lev. xii. 2, 3, 4), and as the +flight and the return might both have been accomplished in eight or ten +days, there was ample time for a sojourn of at least two or three weeks +in that part of Egypt which was nearest to Palestine. Herod died during +this brief exile, and yet his demise happened so soon before the +departure of the holy family on their way home, that the intelligence +had not meanwhile reached Joseph by the voice of ordinary fame; and +until his arrival in the land of Israel, he did not even know that +Archelaus reigned in Judea (Matt. ii. 22). He seems to have inferred +from the dream that the dynasty of the Herodian family had been +completely subverted, so that when he heard of the succession of +Archelaus "he was afraid" to enter his territory; but, at this juncture, +being "counselled of God" in another dream, he took courage, proceeded +on his journey, and, after the presentation in the temple, "returned +into the parts of Galilee." + +That the presentation in the temple took place after the death of Herod +is further manifest from the fact that the babe remained uninjured, +though his appearance in the sacred courts awakened uncommon interest, +and though Anna "spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in +Jerusalem" (Luke ii. 38). Herod had his spies in all quarters, and had +he been yet living, the intelligence of the presentation and of its +extraordinary accompaniments, would have soon reached his ears, and he +would have made some fresh attempt upon the life of the infant. But when +the babe was actually brought to the temple, the tyrant was no more. +Jerusalem was in a state of great political excitement, and Archelaus +had, perhaps, already set sail for Rome to secure from the emperor the +confirmation of his title to the kingdom (see Josephus' Antiq. xvii. c. +9), so that it is not strange if the declarations of Simeon and Anna did +not attract any notice on the part of the existing rulers. + +Assuming, then, that Christ was born a very short time before the death +of Herod, we have now to ascertain the date of the demise of that +monarch. Josephus states (Antiq. xiv. 14, § 5) that Herod was made king +by the Roman Senate in the 184th Olympiad, when Calvinus and Pollio were +consuls, that is, in the year of Rome 714; and that he reigned +thirty-seven years (Antiq. xvii. 8, § 1). We may infer, therefore, that +his reign terminated in the year 751 of the city of Rome. He died +shortly before the passover; his disease seems to have been of a very +lingering character; and he appears to have languished under it upwards +of a year (Josephus' Antiq. xvii. 6, § 4, 5, and xvii. 9, § 2, 3). The +passover of 751 fell on the 31st of March (see Greswell's +"Dissertations," vol. i. p. 331), and as our Lord was in all likelihood +born early in the month, the Jewish king probably ended his days a week +or two afterwards, or about the time of the vernal equinox. According to +this computation the _conception_ took place exactly at the feast of +Pentecost, which fell, in 750, on the 31st of May. + +This view is corroborated by Luke iii. 1, where it is said that the word +of God came to John the Baptist "in the _fifteenth year_ of the reign of +Tiberius Caesar." John's ministry had continued only a short time when +he was imprisoned, and then Jesus "began to be _about thirty_ years of +age" (Luke iii. 23). Augustus died in August 767, and this year 767, +according to a mode of reckoning then in use (see Hales' "Chronology," +i. 49, 171, and Luke xxiv. 21), was the _first year_ of his successor +Tiberius. The _fifteenth year_ of Tiberius, according to the same mode +of calculation, commenced on the 1st of January 781 of the city of Rome, +and terminated on the 1st of January 782. If then our Lord was born +about the 1st of March 751 of Rome, and if the Baptist was imprisoned +early in 781, it could be said with perfect propriety that Jesus then +"began to be about thirty years of age." This view is further confirmed +by the fact that Quirinius, or Cyrenius, mentioned Luke ii. 2, was +_first_ governor of Syria from the _close_ of the year 750 of Rome to +753. (See Merivale, iv. p. 457, note.) Our Lord was born under his +administration, and according to the date we have assigned to the +nativity, the "taxing" at Bethlehem must have taken place a few months +after Cyrenius entered into office. + +This view of the date of the birth of Christ, which differs somewhat +from that of any writer with whom I am acquainted, appears to meet all +the difficulties connected with this much-disputed question. It is based +partly upon the principle, so ingeniously advocated by Whiston in his +"Chronology," that the flight into Egypt took place before the +presentation in the temple. I have never yet met with any antagonist of +that hypothesis who was able to give a satisfactory explanation of the +text on which it rests. Some other dates assigned for the birth of +Christ are quite inadmissible. In Judea shepherds could not have been +found "abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night" +(Luke ii. 8) in November, December, January, or, perhaps, February; but +in March, and especially in a mild season, such a thing appears to have +been quite common. (See Greswell's "Dissertations," vol. i. p. 391, and +Robinson's "Biblical Researches," vol ii. p. 97, 98.) Hippolytus, one of +the earliest Christian writers who touches on the subject, indicates +that our Lord was born about the time of the passover. (See Greswell, i. +461, 462.) + + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE TWELVE AND THE SEVENTY. + + +It has often been remarked that the personal preaching of our Lord was +comparatively barren. There can be no doubt that the effects produced +did not at all correspond to what might have been expected from so +wonderful a ministry; but it had been predicted that the Messiah would +be "despised and _rejected_ of men," [36:1] and the unbelief of the Jews +was one of the humiliating trials He was ordained to suffer during His +abode on earth. "The Holy Ghost was not yet given, because that Jesus +was not yet glorified." [36:2] We have, certainly, no evidence that any +of His discourses made such an impression as that which accompanied the +address of Peter on the day of Pentecost. Immediately after the +outpouring of the Spirit at that period an abundant blessing followed +the proclamation of the gospel. But though Jesus often mourned over the +obduracy of His countrymen, and though the truth, preached by His +disciples, was often more effective than when uttered by Himself, it +cannot with propriety be said that His own evangelical labours were +unfruitful. The one hundred and twenty, who met in an upper room during +the interval between His Ascension and the day of Pentecost [36:3] were +but a portion of His followers. The fierce and watchful opposition of +the Sanhedrim had kept Him generally at a distance from Jerusalem; it +was there specially dangerous to profess an attachment to His cause; and +we may thus, perhaps, partially account for the paucity of His adherents +in the Jewish metropolis. His converts were more numerous in Galilee; +and it was, probably, in that district He appeared to the company of +upwards of five hundred brethren who saw Him after His resurrection. +[37:1] He had itinerated extensively as a missionary; and, from some +statements incidentally occurring in the gospels, we may infer, that +there were individuals who had imbibed His doctrines in the cities and +villages of almost all parts of Palestine. [37:2] But the most signal +and decisive proof of the power of His ministry is presented in the fact +that, during the three years of its duration, He enlisted and sent forth +no less than eighty-two preachers. Part of these have since been known +as "The Twelve," and the rest as "The Seventy." + +The Twelve are frequently mentioned in the New Testament, and yet the +information we possess respecting them is exceedingly scanty. Of some we +know little more than their names. It has been supposed that a town +called Kerioth, [37:3] or Karioth, belonging to the tribe of Judah, was +the birthplace of Judas, the traitor; [37:4] but it is probable that all +his colleagues were natives of Galilee. [37:5] Some of them had various +names; and the consequent diversity which the sacred catalogues present +has frequently perplexed the reader of the evangelical narratives. +Matthew was also called Levi; [37:6] Nathanael was designated +Bartholomew; [36:7] and Jude had the two other names of Lebbaeus and +Thaddaeus. [38:1] Thomas was called Didymus, [38:2] or the twin, in +reference, we may presume, to the circumstances of his birth; James the +son of Alphaeus was styled, perhaps by way of distinction, James "the +Less" [38:3]--in allusion, it would seem, to the inferiority of his +stature; the other James and John were surnamed Boanerges, [38:4] or the +sons of thunder--a title probably indicative of the peculiar solemnity +and power of their ministrations; and Simon stands at the head of all +the lists, and is expressly said to be "first" of the Twelve, [38:5] +because, as we have reason to believe, whilst his advanced age might +have warranted him to claim precedence, his superior energy and +promptitude enabled him to occupy the most prominent position. The same +individual was called Cephas, or Peter, or _Stone_, [38:6] apparently on +account of the firmness of his character. His namesake, the other Simon, +was termed the Canaanite, and also Zelotes, [38:7] or the zealot--a +title expressive, in all likelihood, of the zeal and earnestness with +which he was wont to carry out his principles. We are informed that our +Lord sent forth the Twelve "by two and two," [38:8] but we cannot tell +whether He observed any general rule in the arrangement of those who +were to travel in company. The relationship of the parties to each other +might, at least in three instances, have suggested a classification; as +Peter and Andrew, James and John, James the Less and Jude, were, +respectively, brothers. James the Less is described as "the Lord's +brother," [39:1] and Jude is called "the brother of James," [39:2] so +that these two disciples must have been in some way related to our +Saviour; but the exact degree of affinity or consanguinity cannot now, +perhaps, be positively ascertained. [39:3] Some of the disciples, such +as Andrew, [39:4] and probably John, [39:5] had previously been +disciples of the Baptist, but their separation from their former master +and adherence to Jesus did not lead to any estrangement between our Lord +and His pious forerunner. As the Baptist contemplated the more permanent +and important character of the Messiah's mission, he could cheerfully +say--"He must increase, but I must decrease." [39:6] + +All the Twelve, when enlisted as disciples of Christ, appear to have +moved in the humbler walks of life; and yet we are scarcely warranted in +asserting that they were extremely indigent. Peter, the fisherman, +pretty plainly indicates that, in regard to worldly circumstances, he +had been, to some extent, a loser by obeying the call of Jesus. [39:7] +Though James and John were likewise fishermen, the family had at least +one little vessel of their own, and they could afford to pay "hired +servants" to assist them in their business. [40:1] Matthew acted, in a +subordinate capacity, as a collector of imperial tribute; but though the +Jews cordially hated a functionary who brought so painfully to their +recollection their condition as a conquered people, it is pretty clear +that the publican was engaged in a lucrative employment. Zacchaeus, said +to have been a "chief among the publicans," [40:2] is represented as a +rich man; [40:3] and Matthew, though probably in an inferior station, +was able to give an entertainment in his own house to a numerous +company. [40:4] Still, however, the Twelve, as a body, were qualified, +neither by their education nor their habits, for acting as popular +instructors; and had the gospel been a device of human wisdom, it could +not have been promoted by their advocacy. Individuals who had hitherto +been occupied in tilling the land, in fishing, and in mending nets, or +in sitting at the receipt of custom, could not have been expected to +make any great impression as ecclesiastical reformers. Their position in +society gave them no influence; their natural talents were not +particularly brilliant; and even their dialect betokened their connexion +with a district from which nothing good or great was anticipated. [40:5] +But God exalted these men of low degree, and made them the spiritual +illuminators of the world. + +Though the New Testament enters very sparingly into the details of their +personal history, it is plain that the Twelve presented a considerable +variety of character. Thomas, though obstinate, was warm-hearted and +manly. Once when, as he imagined, his Master was going forward to +certain death, he chivalrously proposed to his brethren that they should +all perish along with Him; [40:6] and though at first he doggedly +refused to credit the account of the resurrection, [41:6] yet, when his +doubts were removed, he gave vent to his feelings in one of the most +impressive testimonies [41:2] to the power and godhead of the Messiah to +be found in the whole book of revelation. James, the son of Alphaeus, +was noted for his prudence and practical wisdom; [41:3] and Nathanael +was frank and candid--"an Israelite indeed, in whom was no guile." +[41:4] Our Lord bestowed on Peter and the two sons of Zebedee peculiar +proofs of confidence and favour, for they alone were permitted to +witness some of the most remarkable scenes in the history of the Man of +Sorrows. [41:5] Though these three brethren displayed such a +congeniality of disposition, it does not appear that they possessed +minds of the same mould, but each had excellencies of his own which +threw a charm around his character. Peter yielded to the impulse of the +moment and acted with promptitude and vigour; James became the first of +the apostolic martyrs, probably because by his ability and boldness, as +a preacher, he had provoked the special enmity of Herod and the Jews; +[41:6] whilst the benevolent John delighted to meditate on the "deep +things of God," and listened with profound emotion to his Master as He +discoursed of the mystery of His Person, and of the peace of believers +abiding in His love. It has been conjectured that there was some family +relationship between the sons of Zebedee and Jesus; but of this there is +no satisfactory evidence. [41:7] It was simply, perhaps, the marked +attention of our Saviour to James and John which awakened the ambition +of their mother, and induced her to bespeak their promotion in the +kingdom of the Son of Man. [42:1] + +Though none of the Twelve had received a liberal education, [42:2] it +cannot be said that they were literally "novices" when invested with the +ministerial commission. It is probable that, before they were invited to +follow Jesus, they had all seriously turned their attention to the +subject of religion; some of them had been previously instructed by the +Baptist; and all, prior to their selection, appear to have been about a +year under the tuition of our Lord himself. From that time until the end +of His ministry they lived with Him on terms of the most intimate +familiarity. From earlier acquaintance, as well as from closer and more +confidential companionship, they had a better opportunity of knowing His +character and doctrines than any of the rest of His disciples. When, +perhaps about six or eight months [42:3] after their appointment, they +were sent forth as missionaries, they were commanded neither to walk in +"the way of the Gentiles," nor to enter "into any city of the +Samaritans," but rather to go "to the lost sheep of the house of +Israel." [42:4] Their number _Twelve_ corresponded to the number of the +tribes, and they were called _apostles_ probably in allusion to a class +of Jewish functionaries who were so designated. It is said that the High +Priest was wont to send forth from Jerusalem into foreign countries +certain accredited agents, or messengers, styled apostles, on +ecclesiastical errands. [42:5] + +During the personal ministry of our Lord the Twelve seem to have been +employed by Him on only one missionary excursion. About twelve months +after that event [43:1] He "appointed other seventy also" to preach His +Gospel. Luke is the only evangelist who mentions the designation of +these additional missionaries; and though we have no reason to believe +that their duties terminated with the first tour in which they were +engaged, [43:2] they are never subsequently noticed in the New +Testament. Many of the actions of our Lord had a typical meaning, and it +is highly probable that He designed to inculcate an important truth by +the appointment of these Seventy new apostles. According to the ideas of +the Jews of that age there were _seventy_ heathen nations; [43:3] and it +is rather singular that, omitting Peleg the progenitor of the +Israelites, the names of the posterity of Shem, Ham, and Japheth, +recorded in the 10th chapter of Genesis, amount exactly to seventy. +"These," says the historian, "are the families of the sons of Noah, +_after their generations, in their nations; and by these were the +nations divided_ in the earth after the flood." [43:4] Every one who +looks into the narrative will perceive that the sacred writer does not +propose to furnish a complete catalogue of the descendants of Noah, for +he passes over in entire silence the posterity of the greater number of +the patriarch's grandchildren; he apparently intends to name only those +who were _the founders of nations_; and thus it happens that whilst, in +a variety of instances, he does not trace the line of succession, he +takes care, in others, to mention the father and many of his sons. +[44:1] The Jewish notion current in the time of our Lord as to the +existence of seventy heathen nations, seems, therefore, to have rested +on a sound historical basis, inasmuch as, according to the Mosaic +statement, there were, beside Peleg, precisely seventy individuals by +whom "the nations were divided in the earth after the flood." We may +thus infer that our Lord meant to convey a great moral lesson by the +appointment alike of the Twelve and of the Seventy. In the ordination of +the Twelve He evinced His regard for all the tribes of Israel; in the +ordination of the Seventy He intimated that His Gospel was designed for +all the nations of the earth. When the Twelve were about to enter on +their first mission He required them to go only to the Jews, but He sent +forth the Seventy "two and two before His face _into every city and +place whither He himself would come_." [45:1] Towards the commencement +of His public career, He had induced many of the Samaritans to believe +on Him, [45:2] whilst at a subsequent period His ministry had been +blessed to Gentiles in the coasts of Tyre and Sidon; [45:3] and there is +no evidence that in the missionary journey which He contemplated when He +appointed the Seventy as His pioneers, He intended to confine His +labours to His kinsmen of the seed of Abraham. It is highly probable +that the Seventy were actually sent forth _from Samaria_, [45:4] and the +instructions given them apparently suggest that, in the circuit now +assigned to them, they were to visit certain districts lying north of +Galilee of the Gentiles. [45:5] The personal ministry of our Lord had +respect primarily and specially to the lost sheep of the house of +Israel, [45:6] but His conduct in this case symbolically indicated the +catholic character of His religion. He evinced His regard for the Jews +by sending no less than twelve apostles to that one nation, but He did +not Himself refuse to minister either to Samaritans or Gentiles; and to +shew that He was disposed to make provision for the general diffusion of +His word, He "appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two +before His face into every city and place whither He himself would +come." + +It is very clear that our Lord committed, in the first instance, to the +Twelve the organisation of the ecclesiastical commonwealth. The most +ancient Christian Church, that of the metropolis of Palestine, was +modelled under their superintendence; and the earliest converts gathered +into it, after His ascension, were the fruits of their ministry. Hence, +in the Apocalypse, the wall of the "holy Jerusalem" is said to have +"twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the +Lamb." [46:1] But it does not follow that others had no share in +founding the spiritual structure. The Seventy also received a commission +from Christ, and we have every reason to believe that, after the death +of their Master, they pursued their missionary labours with renovated +ardour. That they were called apostles as well as the Twelve, cannot, +perhaps, be established by distinct testimony; [46:2] but it is certain, +that they were furnished with supernatural endowments; [46:3] and it is +scarcely probable that they are overlooked in the description of the +sacred writer when He represents the New Testament Church as "built upon +the foundation of the _apostles and prophets_, Jesus Christ himself +being the chief corner stone." [46:4] + +The appointment of the Seventy, like that of the Twelve, was a typical +act; and it is not, therefore, extraordinary that they are only once +noticed in the sacred volume. Our Lord never intended to constitute two +permanent corporations, limited, respectively, to twelve and seventy +members, and empowered to transmit their authority to successors from +generation to generation. In a short time after His death the symbolical +meaning of the mission of the Seventy was explained, as it very soon +appeared that the gospel was to be transmitted to all the ends of the +earth; and thus it was no longer necessary to refer to these +representatives of the ministry of the universal Church. When the Twelve +turned to the Gentiles, their number lost its significance, and from +that date they accordingly ceased to fill up vacancies occurring in +their society; and, as the Church assumed a settled form, the apostles +were disposed to insist less and less on any special powers with which +they had been originally furnished, and rather to place themselves on a +level with the ordinary rulers of the ecclesiastical community. Hence we +find them sitting in church courts with these brethren, [47:1] and +desirous to be known not as apostles, but as elders. [47:2] We possess +little information respecting either their official or their personal +history. A very equivocal, and sometimes contradictory, tradition [47:3] +is the only guide which even professes to point out to us where the +greater number of them laboured; and the same witness is the only +voucher for the statements which describe how most of them finished +their career. It is an instructive fact that no proof can be given, from +the sacred record, of the ordination either by the Twelve or by the +Seventy, of even one presbyter or pastor. With the exception of the +laying on of hands upon the seven deacons, [47:4] no inspired writer +mentions any act of the kind in which the Twelve ever engaged. The +deacons were not _rulers_ in the Church, and therefore could not by +ordination confer ecclesiastical power on others. + +There is much meaning in the silence of the sacred writers respecting +the official proceedings and the personal career of the Twelve and the +Seventy. It thus becomes impossible for any one to make out a title to +the ministry by tracing his ecclesiastical descent; for no contemporary +records enable us to prove a connexion between the inspired founders of +our religion, and those who were subsequently entrusted with the +government of the Church. At the critical point where, had it been +deemed necessary, we might have had the light of inspiration, we are +left to wander in total darkness. We are thus shut up to the conclusion +that the claims of those who profess to be heralds of the gospel are to +be tested by some other criterion than their ecclesiastical lineage. It +is written--"_By their fruits_ ye shall know them." [48:1] God alone can +make a true minister; [48:2] and he who attempts to establish his right +to feed the flock of Christ by appealing to his official genealogy +miserably mistakes the source of the pastoral commission. It would, +indeed, avail nothing though a minister could prove his relationship to +the Twelve or the Seventy by an unbroken line of ordinations, for some +who at the time may have been able to deduce their descent from the +apostles were amongst the most dangerous of the early heretics. [48:3] +True religion is sustained, not by any human agency, but by that Eternal +Spirit who quickens all the children of God, and who has preserved for +them a pure gospel in the writings of the apostles and evangelists. The +perpetuity of the Church no more depends on the uninterrupted succession +of its ministers than does the perpetuity of a nation depend on the +continuance of the dynasty which may happen at a particular date to +occupy the throne. As plants possess powers of reproduction enabling +them, when a part decays, to throw it off, and to supply its place by a +new and vigorous vegetation, so it is with the Church--the spiritual +vine which the Lord has planted. Its government may degenerate into a +corrupt tyranny by which its most precious liberties may be invaded or +destroyed, but the freemen of the Lord are not bound to submit to any +such domination. Were even all the ecclesiastical rulers to become +traitors to the King of Zion, the Church would not therefore perish. The +living members of the body of Christ would be then required to repudiate +the authority of overseers by whom they were betrayed, and to choose +amongst themselves such faithful men as were found most competent to +teach and to guide the spiritual community. The Divine Statute-book +clearly warrants the adoption of such an alternative. "Beloved," says +the Apostle John, "believe not every spirit, but _try the spirits_ +whether they are of God. .... We are of God, _he that knoweth God +heareth us_, he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the +spirit of truth and the spirit of error." [49:1] "If there come _any_ +unto you, and _bring not this doctrine_, receive him not into your +house, neither bid him God-speed; for he that biddeth him God-speed is +partaker of his evil deeds." [49:2] Paul declares, still more +emphatically--"Though WE, or AN ANGEL FROM HEAVEN, preach any other +gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, _let him be +accursed_. As we said before, so say I now again, If _any man_ preach +any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, _let him be +accursed_." [49:3] + +In one sense neither the Twelve nor the Seventy had successors. All of +them were called to preach the gospel by the living voice of Christ +himself; all had "companied" with Him during the period of His ministry; +all had listened to His sermons; all had been spectators of His works of +wonder; all were empowered to perform miracles; all seem to have +conversed with Him after His resurrection; and all appear to have +possessed the gift of inspired utterance. [50:1] But in another sense +every "good minister of Jesus Christ" is a successor of these primitive +preachers; for every true pastor is taught of God, and is moved by the +Spirit to undertake the service in which he is engaged, and is warranted +to expect a blessing on the truth which he disseminates. As of old the +descent from heaven of fire upon the altar testified the Divine +acceptance of the sacrifices, so now the descent of the Spirit, as +manifested in the conversion of souls to God, is a sure token that the +labours of the minister have the seal of the Divine approbation. The +great Apostle of the Gentiles did not hesitate to rely on such a proof +of his commission from heaven. "Need we," says he to the Corinthians, +"epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you? +Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men; +forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ +ministered by us, written, not with ink, but with the Spirit of the +living God, not in tables of stone, but in the fleshy tables of the +heart." [50:2] No true pastor will be left entirely destitute of such +encouragement, and neither the Twelve nor the Seventy could produce +credentials more trustworthy or more intelligible. + + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE PROGRESS OF THE GOSPEL FROM THE DEATH OF CHRIST TO THE DEATH OF +THE APOSTLE JAMES, THE BROTHER OF JOHN. + +A.D. 31 TO A.D. 44. + + +When our Lord bowed His head on the cross and "gave up the ghost," the +work of atonement was completed. The ceremonial law virtually expired +when He explained, by His death, its awful significance; and the crisis +of His passion was the birthday of the Christian economy. At this date +the history of the New Testament Church properly commences. + +After His resurrection Jesus remained forty days on earth, [51:1] and, +during this interval, He often took occasion to point out to His +disciples the meaning of His wonderful career. He is represented as +saying to them--"Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to +suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and +remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations, +_beginning at Jerusalem_." [51:2] The inspired narratives of the +teaching and miracles of our Lord are emphatically corroborated by the +fact, that a large Christian Church was established, almost immediately +after His decease, in the metropolis of Palestine. The Sanhedrim and the +Roman governor had concurred in His condemnation; and, on the night of +His trial, even the intrepid Peter had been so intimidated that he had +been tempted to curse and to swear as he averred that he knew not "The +Man." It might have been expected that the death of Jesus would have +been followed by a reign of terror, and that no attempt would have been +made, at least in the place where the civil and ecclesiastical +authorities resided, to assert the Divine mission of Him whom they had +crucified as a malefactor. But perfect love casteth out fear. In the +very city where He had suffered, and a few days after His passion, His +disciples ventured in the most public manner to declare His innocence +and to proclaim Him as the Messiah. The result of their appeal is as +wonderful as its boldness. Though the imminent peril of confessing +Christ was well known, such was the strength of their convictions that +multitudes resolved, at all hazards, to enrol themselves among His +followers. The success which accompanied the preaching of the apostolic +missionaries at the feast of Pentecost was a sign and a pledge of their +future triumphs, for "the same day there were added unto them about +three thousand souls." [52:1] + +The disinterested behaviour of the converts betokened their intense +earnestness. "All that believed were together and had all things common, +and sold their possessions and goods and parted them to all men, as +every man had need." [52:2] These early disciples were not, indeed, +required, as a term of communion, to deposit their property in a common +stock-purse; but, in the overflowings of their first love, they +spontaneously adopted the arrangement. On the part of the more opulent +members of the community residing in a place which was the stronghold of +Jewish prejudice and influence, this course was, perhaps, as prudent as +it was generous. By joining a proscribed sect they put their lives, as +well as their wealth, into jeopardy; but, by the sale of their effects, +they displayed a spirit of self-sacrifice which must have astonished and +confounded their adversaries. They thus anticipated all attempts at +spoliation, and gave a proof of their readiness to submit to any +suffering for the cause which they had espoused. An inheritance, when +turned into money, could not be easily sequestered; and those who were +in want could obtain assistance out of the secreted treasure. Still, +even at this period, the principle of a community of goods was not +carried out into universal operation; for the foreign Jews who were now +converted to the faith, and who were "possessors of lands or houses" +[53:1] in distant countries, could neither have found purchasers, nor +negotiated transfers, in the holy city. The first sales must obviously +have been confined to those members of the Church who were owners of +property in Jerusalem and its neighbourhood. + +The system of having all things common was suggested in a crisis of +apparently extreme peril, so that it was only a temporary expedient; and +it is evident that it was soon given up altogether, as unsuited to the +ordinary circumstances of the Christian Church. But though, in a short +time, the disciples in general were left to depend on their own +resources, the community continued to provide a fund for the help of the +infirm and the destitute. At an early period complaints were made +respecting the distribution of this charity, and we are told that "there +arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews because their +widows were neglected in the daily ministration." [53:2] The _Grecians_, +or those converts from Judaism who used the Greek language, were +generally of foreign birth; and as the _Hebrews_, or the brethren who +spoke the vernacular tongue of Palestine, were natives of the country, +there were, perhaps, suspicions that local influence secured for their +poor an undue share of the public bounty. The expedient employed for the +removal of this "root of bitterness" seems to have been completely +successful. "The twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them +and said, It is not reason that we should leave the word of God and +serve tables. Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of +honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint +over this business." [54:1] + +Had the apostles been anxious for power they would themselves have +nominated the deacons. They might have urged, too, a very plausible +apology for here venturing upon an exercise of patronage. They might +have pleaded that the disciples were dissatisfied with each other--that +the excitement of a popular election was fitted to increase this feeling +of alienation--and that, under such circumstances, prudence required +them to take upon themselves the responsibility of the appointment. But +they were guided by a higher wisdom; and their conduct is a model for +the imitation of ecclesiastical rulers in all succeeding generations. It +was the will of the Great Lawgiver that His Church should possess a free +constitution; and accordingly, at the very outset, its members were +intrusted with the privilege of self-government. The community had +already been invited to choose an apostle in the room of Judas, [54:2] +and they were now required to name office-bearers for the management of +their money transactions. But, whilst the Twelve, on this occasion, +appealed to the suffrages of the Brotherhood, they reserved to +themselves the right of confirming the election; and they might, by +withholding ordination, have refused to fiat an improper appointment. +Happily no such difficulty occurred. In compliance with the instructions +addressed to them, the multitude chose seven of their number "whom they +set before the apostles, and, when they had prayed, they laid their +hands on them." [54:3] + +Prior to the election of the deacons, Peter and John had been +incarcerated. The Sanhedrim wished to extort from them a pledge that +they would "not speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus," [55:1] but +the prisoners nobly refused to consent to any such compromise. They +"answered and said unto them--Whether it be right in the sight of God to +hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye." [55:2] The apostles here +disclaimed the doctrine of passive obedience, and asserted principles +which lie at the foundation of the true theory of religious freedom. +They maintained that "God alone is Lord of the conscience"--that His +command overrides all human regulations--and that, no matter what may be +the penalties which earthly rulers may annex to the breach of the +enactments of their statute-book, the Christian is not bound to obey, +when the civil law would compel him to violate his enlightened +convictions. But the Sanhedrim obviously despised such considerations. +For a time they were obliged to remain quiescent, as public feeling ran +strongly in favour of the new preachers; but, soon after the election of +the deacons, they resumed the work of persecution. The tide of +popularity now began to turn; and Stephen, one of the Seven, +particularly distinguished by his zeal, fell a victim to their +intolerance. + +The martyrdom of Stephen appears to have occurred about three years and +a half after the death of our Lord. [55:3] Daniel had foretold that the +Messiah would "confirm the covenant with many _for one week_" [55:4]--an +announcement which has been understood to indicate that, at the time of +his manifestation, the gospel would be preached with much success among +his countrymen _for seven years_--and if the prophetic week commenced +with the ministry of John the Baptist, it probably terminated with this +bloody tragedy. [56:1] The Christian cause had hitherto prospered in +Jerusalem, and there are good grounds for believing that, mean while, it +had also made considerable progress throughout all Palestine; but, at +this date, it is suddenly arrested in its career of advancement. The +Jewish multitude begin to regard it with aversion; and the Roman +governor discovers that he may, at any time, obtain the tribute of their +applause by oppressing its ablest and most fearless advocates. + +After His resurrection our Lord commanded the apostles to go and "teach +_all nations_" [56:2] and yet years rolled away before they turned their +thoughts towards the evangelisation of the Gentiles. The Jewish mind was +slow to apprehend such an idea, for the posterity of Abraham had been +long accustomed to regard themselves as the exclusive heirs of divine +privileges; but the remarkable development of the kingdom of God +gradually led them to entertain more enlarged and more liberal +sentiments. The progress of the gospel in Samaria, immediately after the +death of Stephen, demonstrated that the blessings of the new +dispensation were not to be confined to God's ancient people. Though +many of the Samaritans acknowledged the divine authority of the writings +of Moses, they did not belong to the Church of Israel; and between them +and the Jews a bitter antipathy had hitherto existed. When Philip +appeared among them, and preached Jesus as the promised Messiah, they +listened most attentively to his appeals, and not a few of them gladly +received Christian baptism. [57:1] It could now no longer be said that +the Jews had "no dealings with the Samaritans," [57:2] for the gospel +gathered both into the fold of a common Saviour, and taught them to keep +"the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." + +When the disciples were scattered abroad by the persecution which arose +after the martyrdom of Stephen, the apostles still kept their post in +the Jewish capital; [57:3] for Christ had instructed them to begin their +ministry in that place: [57:4] and they perhaps conceived that, until +authorised by some further intimation, they were bound to remain at +Jerusalem. But the conversion of the Samaritans must have reminded them +that the sphere of their labours was more extensive. Our Lord had said +to them--"Ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all +Judea, and in Samaria, and _unto the uttermost part of the earth,_" +[57:5] and events, which were now passing before their view, were +continually throwing additional light upon the meaning of this +announcement. The baptism of the Ethiopian eunuch, [57:6] about this +period, was calculated to enlarge their ideas; and the baptism of +Cornelius pointed out, still more distinctly, the wide range of their +evangelical commission. The minuteness with which the case of the devout +centurion is described is a proof of its importance as connected with +this transition-stage in the history of the Church. He had before known +nothing of Peter; and, when they met at Caesarea, each could testify +that he had been prepared for the interview by a special revelation from +heaven. [57:7] Cornelius was "a centurion of the band called the Italian +band" [57:8]--he was a representative of that military power which then +ruled the world--and, in his baptism, we see the Roman Empire +presenting, on the altar of Christianity, the first-fruits of the +Gentiles. + +It was not, however, very obvious, from any of the cases already +enumerated, that the salvation of Christ was designed for all classes +and conditions of the human family. The Samaritans did not, indeed, +worship at Jerusalem, but they claimed some interest in "the promises +made unto the fathers;" and they conformed to many of the rites of +Judaism. It does not appear that the Ethiopian eunuch was of the seed of +Abraham; but he acknowledged the inspiration of the Old Testament, and +he was disposed, at least to a certain extent, to observe its +institutions. Even the Roman centurion was what has been called a +_proselyte of the gate_, that is, he professed the Jewish theology--"he +feared God with all his house" [58:1]--though he had not received +circumcision, and had not been admitted into the congregation of Israel. +But the time was approaching when the Church was to burst forth beyond +the barriers within which it had been hitherto inclosed, and an +individual now appeared upon the scene who was to be the leader of this +new movement. He is "a citizen of no mean city" [58:2]--a native of +Tarsus in Cilicia, a place famous for its educational institutes +[58:3]--and he is known, by way of distinction, as "an apostle of _the +nations_." [58:4] + +The apostles were at first sent only to their own countrymen; [58:5] and +we have seen that, for some time after our Lord's death, they do not +appear to have contemplated any more comprehensive mission. When Peter +called on the disciples to appoint a successor to Judas, he seems to +have acted under the conviction that the company of the Twelve must +still be maintained in its integrity, and that its numbers must still +exactly correspond to the number of the tribes of Israel. But the Jews, +after the death of Stephen, evinced an increasing aversion to the +gospel; and as the apostles were eventually induced to direct their +views elsewhere, they were, of course, also led to abandon an +arrangement which had a special reference to the sectional divisions of +the chosen people. Meanwhile, too, the management of ecclesiastical +affairs had partially fallen into other hands; new missions, in which +the Twelve had no share, had been undertaken; and Paul henceforth +becomes most conspicuous and successful in extending and organising the +Church. + +Paul describes himself as "one born out of due time." [59:1] He was +converted to Christianity when his countrymen seemed about to be +consigned to judicial blindness; and he was "called to be an apostle" +[59:2] when others had been labouring for years in the same vocation. +But he possessed peculiar qualifications for the office. He was ardent, +energetic, and conscientious, as well as acute and eloquent. In his +native city Tarsus he had probably received a good elementary education, +and afterwards, "at the feet of Gamaliel," [59:3] in Jerusalem, he +enjoyed the tuition of a Rabbi of unrivalled celebrity. The apostle of +the Gentiles had much the same religious experience as the father of the +German Reformation; for as Luther, before he understood the doctrine of +a free salvation, attempted to earn a title to heaven by the austerities +of monastic discipline, so Paul in early life was "taught according to +the perfect manner of the law of the fathers," [59:4] and "after the +strictest sect of his religion lived a Pharisee." [59:5] His zeal led +him to become a persecutor; and when Stephen was stoned, the witnesses, +who were required to take part in the execution, prepared themselves for +the work of death, by laying down their upper garments at the feet of +the "young man" Saul. [59:6] He had established himself in the +confidence of the Sanhedrim, and he appears to have been a member of +that influential judicatory, for he tells us that he "shut up many of +the saints in prison," and that, when they were put to death, "he gave +his voice, or his _vote_, [60:1] against them"--a statement implying +that he belonged to the court which pronounced the sentence of +condemnation. As he was travelling to Damascus armed with authority to +seize any of the disciples whom he discovered in that city, and to +convey them bound to Jerusalem, [60:2] the Lord appeared to him in the +way, and he was suddenly converted. [60:3] After reaching the end of his +journey, and boldly proclaiming his attachment to the party he had been +so recently endeavouring to exterminate, he retired into Arabia, [60:4] +where he appears to have spent three years in the devout study of the +Christian theology. He then returned to Damascus, and entered, about +A.D. 37, [60:5] on those missionary labours which he prosecuted with so +much efficiency and perseverance for upwards of a quarter of a century. + +Paul declares that he derived a knowledge of the gospel immediately from +Christ; [60:6] and though, for many years, he had very little +intercourse with the Twelve, he avers that he was "not a whit behind the +very chiefest apostles." [60:7] Throughout life he was associated, not +with them, but with others as his fellow-labourers; and he obviously +occupied a distinct and independent position. When he was baptized, the +ordinance was administered by an individual who is not previously +mentioned in the New Testament, [61:1] and when he was separated to the +work to which the Lord had called him, [61:2] the ordainers were +"prophets and teachers," respecting whose own call to the ministry the +inspired historian supplies us with no information. But it may fairly be +presumed that they were regularly introduced into the places which they +are represented as occupying; they are all described by the evangelist +as receiving the same special instructions from heaven; and the +tradition that, at least some of them, were of the number of the +Seventy, [61:3] is exceedingly probable. And if, as has already been +suggested, the mission of the Seventy indicated the design of our +Saviour to diffuse the gospel all over the world, we can see a peculiar +propriety in the arrangement that Paul was ushered into the Church under +the auspices of these ministers. [61:4] It was most fitting that he who +was to be, by way of eminence, the apostle of the Gentiles, was baptized +and ordained by men whose own appointment was intended to symbolise the +catholic spirit of Christianity. + +In the treatment of Paul by his unbelieving countrymen we have a most +melancholy illustration of the recklessness of religious bigotry. These +Jews must have known that, in as far as secular considerations were +concerned, he had everything to lose by turning into "the way which they +called heresy;" they were bound to acknowledge that, by connecting +himself with an odious sect, he at least demonstrated his sincerity and +self-denial; but they were so exasperated by his zeal that they "took +counsel to kill him." [62:1] When, after his sojourn in Arabia, he +returned to Damascus that city was in the hands of Aretas, the king of +Arabia Petraea; [62:2] who seems to have contrived to gain possession of +it during the confusion which immediately followed the death of the +Emperor Tiberius. This petty sovereign courted the favour of the Jewish +portion of the population by permitting them to persecute the disciples; +[62:3] and the apostle, at this crisis, would have fallen a victim to +their malignity had not his friends let him down "through a window, in a +basket, by the wall," [62:4] and thus enabled him to escape a premature +martyrdom. He now repaired to Jerusalem, where the brethren do not +appear to have heard of his conversion, and where they at first refused +to acknowledge him as a member of their society; [62:5] for he had been +obliged to leave Damascus with so much precipitation that he had brought +with him no commendatory letters; but Barnabas, who is said to have been +his school-fellow, [62:6] and who had in some way obtained information +respecting his subsequent career, made the leaders of the Mother Church +acquainted with the wonderful change which had taken place in his +sentiments and character, and induced them to admit him to fellowship. +During this visit to the holy city, while he prayed in the temple, he +was more fully instructed respecting his future destination. In a +trance, he saw Jesus, who said to him--"Depart, for I will send thee +_far hence unto the Gentiles_." [62:7] Even had he not received this +intimation, the murderous hostility of the Jews would have obliged him +to retire. "When he spake boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus, and +disputed against the Grecians, they went about to slay him--which, when +the brethren knew, they brought him down to Caesarea, and sent him forth +to Tarsus." [63:1] + +The apostle now laboured for some years as a missionary in "the regions +of Syria and Cilicia." [63:2] His native city and its neighbourhood +probably enjoyed a large share of his ministrations, and his exertions +seem to have been attended with much success, for, soon afterwards, the +converts in these districts attract particular notice. [63:3] Meanwhile +the gospel was making rapid progress in the Syrian capital, and as Saul +was considered eminently qualified for conducting the mission in that +place, he was induced to proceed thither. "Then," says the sacred +historian, "Barnabas departed to Tarsus to seek Saul, and when he had +found him he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass that a whole +year they assembled themselves with the Church, and taught much people; +and the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch." [63:4] + +The establishment of a Church in this city formed a new era in the +development of Christianity. Antioch was a great commercial mart with a +large Jewish, as well as Gentile, population; it was virtually the +capital of the Roman Empire in the East--being the residence of the +president, or governor, of Syria; its climate was delightful; and its +citizens, enriched by trade, were noted for their gaiety and +voluptuousness. In this flourishing metropolis many proselytes from +heathenism were to be found in the synagogues of the Greek-speaking +Jews, and the gospel soon made rapid progress among these Hellenists. +"Some of them (which were scattered abroad upon the persecution that +arose about Stephen) were men of Cyprus and Cyrene, which when they were +come to Antioch, spake unto the Grecians, [64:1] preaching the Lord +Jesus. And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number +believed and turned unto the Lord." [64:2] The followers of Jesus at +this time received a new designation. They had hitherto called +themselves "brethren" or "disciples" or "believers," but now they "were +called Christians" by some of the inhabitants of the Syrian capital. As +the unconverted Jews did not admit that Jesus was the Christ they were +obviously not the authors of this appellation, and, in contempt, they +probably styled the party Nazarenes or Galileans; but it is easy to +understand how the name was suggested to the Pagans as most descriptive +and appropriate. No one could be long in company with the new +religionists without perceiving that Christ was "the end of their +conversation." They delighted to tell of His mighty miracles, of His +holy life, of the extraordinary circumstances which accompanied His +death, of His resurrection and ascension. Out of the fulness of their +hearts they discoursed of His condescension and His meekness, of His +wonderful wisdom, of His sublime theology, and of His unutterable love +to a world lying in wickedness. When they prayed, they prayed to Christ; +when they sang, they sang praise to Christ; when they preached, they +preached Christ. Well then might the heathen multitude agree with one +voice to call them _Christians_. The inventor of the title may have +meant it as a nickname, but if so, He who overruled the waywardness of +Pilate so that he wrote on the cross a faithful inscription, [65:1] also +caused this mocker of His servants to stumble on a most truthful and +complimentary designation. + +From his first appearance in Antioch Paul seems to have occupied a very +influential position among his brethren. In that refined and opulent +city his learning, his dialectic skill, his prudence, and his pious +ardour were all calculated to make his ministry most effective. About a +year after his arrival there, he was deputed, in company with a friend, +to visit Palestine on an errand of love. "In those days came prophets +from Jerusalem unto Antioch. And there stood up one of them, named +Agabus, and signified by the Spirit that there should be great dearth +throughout all the world; which came to pass in the days of Claudius +Caesar. Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, +determined to send relief to the brethren which dwelt in Judea. Which +also they did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and +Saul." [65:2] + +This narrative attests that the principle of a community of goods was +not recognised in the Church of Antioch, for the aid administered was +supplied, not out of a general fund, but by "every man according to his +ability." There was here no "murmuring of the Grecians against the +Hebrews," as, in the spirit of true brotherhood, the wealthy Hellenists +of Antioch cheerfully contributed to the relief of the poor Hebrews of +their fatherland. It does not appear that "the elders" in whose hands +the money was deposited, were all office-bearers connected with the +Church of Jerusalem. These would, of course, receive no small share of +the donations, but as the assistance was designed for the "brethren +which dwelt _in Judea_," and not merely for the disciples in the holy +city, we may infer that it was distributed among the elders of all the +Churches now scattered over the southern part of Palestine. [66:1] +Neither would Barnabas and Paul require to make a tour throughout the +district to visit these various communities. All the elders of Judea +still continued to observe the Mosaic law, and as the deputies from +Antioch were in Jerusalem at the time of the Passover, [66:2] they would +find their brethren in attendance upon the festival. + +It is reported by several ancient writers that the apostles were +instructed to remain at Jerusalem for twelve years after the crucifixion +of our Lord, [66:3] and if the tradition is correct, the holy city +continued to be their stated residence until shortly before the period +of the arrival of these deputies from the Syrian capital. The time of +this visit can be pretty accurately ascertained, and there is perhaps no +point connected with the history of the book of the Acts respecting +which there is such a close approximation to unanimity amongst +chronologists; for, as Josephus notices [66:4] both the sudden death of +Herod Agrippa, grandson of Herod the Great, which now occurred, [66:5] +and the famine against which this contribution was intended to provide, +it is apparent from the date which he assigns to them, that Barnabas and +Saul must have reached Jerusalem about A.D. 44. [66:6] At this juncture +at least two of the apostles, James the brother of John, and Peter, were +in the Jewish capital; and it is probable that all the rest had not yet +finally taken their departure. The Twelve, it would seem, did not set +out on distant missions until they were thoroughly convinced that they +had ceased to make progress in the conversion of their countrymen in the +land of their fathers. And it is no trivial evidence, at once of the +strength of their convictions, and of the truth of the evangelical +history, that they continued so long and so efficiently to proclaim the +gospel in the chief city of Palestine. Had they not acted under an +overwhelming sense of duty, they would not have remained in a place +where their lives were in perpetual jeopardy; and had they not been +faithful witnesses, they could not have induced so many, of all classes +of society, to believe statements which, if unfounded, could have been +easily contradicted on the spot. The apostles must have been known to +many in Jerusalem as the companions of our Lord; for, during His public +ministry, they had often been seen with Him in the city and the temple; +and it was to be, therefore, expected, that peculiar importance would be +attached to their testimony respecting His doctrines and His miracles. +Their preaching in the head-quarters of Judaism was fitted to exert an +immense influence, as that metropolis itself contained a vast +population, and as it was, besides, the resort of strangers from all +parts of the world. And so long as the apostles ministered in Jerusalem +or in Palestine only to the house of Israel, it was expedient that their +number, which was an index of the Divine regard for the whole of the +twelve tribes, should be maintained in its integrity. But when, after +preaching twelve years among their countrymen at home, they found their +labours becoming comparatively barren; and when, driven by persecution +from Judea, they proceeded on distant missions, their position was quite +altered. Their number had now at least partially [67:1] lost its +original significance; and hence, when an apostle died, the survivors no +longer deemed it necessary to take steps for the appointment of a +successor. We find accordingly that when Herod "killed James, the +brother of John, with the sword," [68:1] no other individual was +selected to occupy the vacant apostleship. + +It has been already stated that when Paul appeared in Jerusalem for the +first time after his conversion, he received, when praying in the +temple, a divine communication informing him of his mission to the +heathen. [68:2] It would seem that, during his present visit, as the +bearer of the contributions from Antioch, he was favoured with another +revelation. In his Second Epistle to the Corinthians he apparently +refers to this most comfortable, yet mysterious, manifestation. "I +know," [68:3] says he, "a man in Christ fourteen years ago [68:4] +(whether in the body, I cannot tell, or whether out of the body, I +cannot tell; God knoweth) such an one caught up to the third heaven. And +I know such a man (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot +tell; God knoweth) that he was caught up into paradise, and heard +unspeakable words which it is not lawful for man to utter." [68:5] The +present position of the apostle explains the design of this sublime and +delightful vision. As Moses was encouraged to undertake the deliverance +of his countrymen when God appeared to him in the burning bush, [68:6] +and as Isaiah was emboldened to go forth, as the messenger of the Lord +of hosts, when he saw Jehovah sitting upon His throne attended by the +seraphim, [68:7] so Paul was stirred up by an equally impressive +revelation to gird himself for the labours of a new appointment. He was +about to commence a more extensive missionary career, and before +entering upon so great and so perilous an undertaking, the King of kings +condescended to encourage him by admitting him to a gracious audience, +and by permitting him to enjoy some glimpses of the glory of those +realms of light where "they that be wise shall shine as the brightness +of the firmament, and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars +for ever and ever." + + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +THE ORDINATION OF PAUL AND BARNABAS; THEIR MISSIONARY TOUR +IN ASIA MINOR; AND THE COUNCIL OF JERUSALEM. + +A.D. 44 TO A.D. 51. + + +Soon after returning from Jerusalem to Antioch, Paul was formally +invested with his new commission. His fellow-deputy, Barnabas, was +appointed, as his coadjutor, in this important service. "Now," says the +evangelist, "there were in the church that was at Antioch certain +prophets and teachers, as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, +and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod +the tetrarch, and Saul. As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the +Holy Ghost said--Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I +have called them. And when they had fasted, and prayed, and laid their +hands on them, they sent them away." [70:1] + +Ten years had now elapsed since the conversion of Paul; and during the +greater part of this period, he had been busily engaged in the +dissemination of the gospel. In the days of his Judaism the learned +Pharisee had, no doubt, been accustomed to act as a teacher in the +synagogues, and, when he became obedient to the faith, he was permitted, +as a matter of course, to expound his new theology in the Christian +assemblies. Barnabas, his companion, was a Levite; [70:2] and as his +tribe was specially charged with the duty of public instruction, [71:1] +he too had probably been a preacher before his conversion. Both these +men had been called of God to labour as evangelists, and the Head of the +Church had already abundantly honoured their ministrations; but hitherto +neither of them seems to have been clothed with pastoral authority by +any regular ordination. Their constant presence in Antioch was now no +longer necessary, so that they were thus left at liberty to prosecute +their missionary operations in the great field of heathendom; and at +this juncture it was deemed necessary to designate them, in due form, to +their "ministry and apostleship." "The Holy Ghost said--Separate me +Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them." When we +consider the present circumstances of these two brethren, we may see, +not only why these instructions were given, but also why their +observance has been so distinctly registered. + +It is apparent that Barnabas and Saul were now called to a position of +higher responsibility than that which they had previously occupied. They +had heretofore acted simply as preachers of the Christian doctrine. +Prompted by love to their common Master, and by a sense of individual +obligation, they had endeavoured to diffuse all around them a knowledge +of the Redeemer. They taught in the name of Jesus, just because they +possessed the gifts and the graces required for such a service; and, as +their labours were acknowledged of God, they were encouraged to +persevere. But they were now to go forth as a solemn deputation, under +the sanction of the Church, and not only to proclaim the truth, but also +to baptize converts, to organise Christian congregations, and to ordain +Christian ministers. It was, therefore, proper, that, on this occasion, +they should be regularly invested with the ecclesiastical commission. + +On other grounds it was desirable that the mission of Barnabas and Paul +should be thus inaugurated. Though the apostles had been lately driven +from Jerusalem, and though the Jews were exhibiting increasing aversion +to the gospel, the Church was, notwithstanding, about to expand with +extraordinary vigour by the ingathering of the Gentiles. In reference to +these new members Paul and Barnabas pursued a bold and independent +course, advocating views which many regarded as dangerous, +latitudinarian, and profane; for they maintained that the ceremonial law +was not binding on the converts from heathenism. Their adoption of this +principle exposed them to much suspicion and obloquy; and because of the +tenacity with which they persisted in its vindication, not a few were +disposed to question their credentials as expositors of the Christian +faith. It was, therefore, expedient that their right to perform all the +apostolic functions should be placed above challenge. In some way, which +is not particularly described, their appointment by the Spirit of God +was accordingly made known to the Church at Antioch, and thus all the +remaining prophets and teachers, who officiated there, were warranted to +testify that these two brethren had received a call from heaven to +engage in the work to which they were now designated. Their ordination, +in obedience to this divine communication, was a decisive recognition of +their spiritual authority. The Holy Ghost had attested their commission, +and the ministers of Antioch, by the laying on of hands, set their seal +to the truth of the oracle. Their title to act as founders of the Church +was thus authenticated by evidence which could not be legitimately +disputed. Paul himself obviously attached considerable importance to +this transaction, and he afterwards refers to it in language of marked +emphasis, when, in the beginning of the Epistle to the Romans, he +introduces himself as "a servant of Jesus Christ, _called_ to be an +apostle, _separated unto the gospel of God_." [71:1] + +In the circumstantial record of this proceeding, to be found in the Acts +of the Apostles, we have a proof of the wisdom of the Author of +Revelation. He foresaw that the rite of "the laying on of hands" would +be sadly abused; that it would be represented as possessing something +like a magic potency; and that it would be at length converted, by a +small class of ministers, into an ecclesiastical monopoly. He has, +therefore, supplied us with an antidote against delusion by permitting +us, in this simple narrative, to scan its exact import. And what was the +virtue of the ordination here described? Did it furnish Paul and +Barnabas with a title to the ministry? Not at all. God himself had +already called them to the work, and they could receive no higher +authorisation. Did it necessarily add anything to the eloquence, or the +prudence, or the knowledge, or the piety, of the missionaries? No +results of the kind could be produced by any such ceremony. What then +was its meaning? The evangelist himself furnishes an answer. The Holy +Ghost required that Barnabas and Saul should be _separated_ to the work +to which the Lord had called them, and the laying on of hands was the +_mode_, or _form_, in which they were set apart, or designated, to the +office. This rite, to an Israelite, suggested grave and hallowed +associations. When a Jewish father invoked a benediction on any of his +family, he laid his hand upon the head of the child; [73:1] when a +Jewish priest devoted an animal in sacrifice, he laid his hand upon the +head of the victim; [73:2] and when a Jewish ruler invested another with +office, he laid his hand upon the head of the new functionary. [73:3] +The ordination of these brethren possessed all this significance. By the +laying on of hands the ministers of Antioch implored a blessing on +Barnabas and Saul, and announced their separation, or dedication, to the +work of the gospel, and intimated their investiture with ecclesiastical +authority. + +It is worthy of note that the parties who acted as ordainers were not +dignitaries, planted here and there throughout the Church, and selected +for this service on account of their official pre-eminence. They were +all, at the time, connected with the Christian community assembling in +the city which was the scene of the inauguration. It does not appear +that any individual amongst them claimed the precedence; all engaged on +equal terms in the performance of this interesting ceremony. We cannot +mistake the official standing of these brethren if we only mark the +nature of the duties in which they were ordinarily occupied. They were +"prophets and teachers;" they were sound scriptural expositors; some of +them, perhaps, were endowed with the gift of prophetic interpretation; +and they were all employed in imparting theological instruction. Though +the name is not here expressly given to them, they were, at least +virtually, "the elders who laboured in the word and doctrine." [74:1] +Paul, therefore, was ordained by the laying on of the hands of the +_Presbytery_ of Antioch. [74:2] + +If the narrative of Luke was designed to illustrate the question of +ministerial ordination, it plainly suggests that the power of Church +rulers is very circumscribed. They have no right to refuse the laying on +of hands to those whom God has called to the work of the gospel, and +who, by their gifts and graces, give credible evidences of their holy +vocation; and they are not at liberty to admit the irreligious or +incompetent to ecclesiastical offices. In the sight of the Most High the +ordination to the pastorate of an individual morally and mentally +disqualified is invalid and impious. + +Immediately after their ordination Paul and Barnabas entered on their +apostolic mission. Leaving Antioch they quickly reached Seleucia +[75:1]--a city distant about twelve miles--and from thence passed on to +Cyprus, [75:2] the native country of Barnabas. [75:3] They probably +spent a considerable time in that large island. It contained several +towns of note; it was the residence of great numbers of Jews; and the +degraded state of its heathen inhabitants may be inferred from the fact +that Venus was their tutelary goddess. The preaching of the apostles in +this place appears to have created an immense sensation; their fame at +length attracted the attention of persons of the highest distinction; +and the heart of Paul was cheered by the accession of no less +illustrious a convert than Sergius Paulus, [75:4] the Roman proconsul. +Departing from Cyprus, Paul and Barnabas now set sail for Asia Minor, +where they landed at Perga in Pamphylia. Here John Mark, the nephew of +Barnabas, by whom they had been hitherto accompanied, refused to proceed +further. He seems to have been intimidated by the prospect of +accumulating difficulties. From many, on religious grounds, they had +reason to anticipate a most discouraging reception; and the land journey +now before them was otherwise beset with dangers. Whilst engaged in it, +Paul seems to have experienced those "perils of waters," or of "rivers," +[75:5] and "perils of robbers," which he afterwards mentions; for the +highlands of Asia Minor were infested with banditti, and the mountain +streams often rose with frightful rapidity, and swept away the unwary +stranger. John Mark now returned to Jerusalem, and, at a subsequent +period, we find Paul refusing, in consequence, to receive him as a +travelling companion. [76:1] But though Barnabas was then dissatisfied +because the apostle continued to be distrustful of his relative, and +though "the contention was so sharp" between these two eminent heralds +of the cross that "they departed asunder one from the other," [76:2] the +return of this young minister from Perga appears to have led to no +change in their present arrangements. Continuing their journey into the +interior of the country, they now preached in Antioch of Pisidia, in +Iconium, in "Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia," and in "the region +that lieth round about." [76:3] When they had proceeded thus far, they +began to retrace their steps, and again visited the places where they +had previously succeeded in collecting congregations. They now supplied +their converts with a settled ministry. When they had presided in every +church at an appointment of elders, [76:4] in which the choice was +determined by popular suffrage, [76:5] and when they had prayed with +fasting, they laid their hands on the elected office-bearers, and in +this form "commended them to the Lord on whom they believed." Having +thus planted the gospel in many districts which had never before been +trodden by the feet of a Christian missionary, they returned to Antioch +in Syria to rehearse "all that God had done with them, and how he had +opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles." [76:6] + +Paul and Barnabas spent about six years in this first tour; [76:7] and, +occasionally, when their ministrations were likely to exert a wide and +permanent influence, remained long in particular localities. The account +of their designation, and of their labours in Cyprus, Pamphylia, +Lycaonia, and the surrounding regions, occupies two whole chapters of +the Acts of the Apostles. The importance of their mission may be +estimated from this lengthened notice. Christianity now greatly extended +its base of operations, and shook paganism in some of its strongholds. +In every place which they visited, the apostles observed a uniform plan +of procedure. In the first instance, they made their appeal to the seed +of Abraham; as they were themselves learned Israelites, they were +generally permitted, on their arrival in a town, to set forth the claims +of Jesus of Nazareth in the synagogue; and it was not until the Jews had +exhibited a spirit of unbelief, that they turned to the heathen +population. In the end, by far the majority of their converts were +reclaimed idolaters. "The Gentiles were glad, and glorified the word of +the Lord, and as many as were ordained to eternal life, believed." +[77:1] Astonished at the mighty miracles exhibited by the two +missionaries, the pagans imagined that "the gods" had come down to them +"in the likeness of men;" and at Lystra the priest of Jupiter "brought +oxen and garlands unto the gates, and would have done sacrifice with the +people;" [77:2] but the Jews looked on in sullen incredulity, and kept +alive an active and implacable opposition. At Cyprus, the apostles had +to contend against the craft of a Jewish conjuror; [77:3] at Antioch, +"the Jews stirred up the devout and honourable women, and the chief men +of the city, and raised persecution" against them, "and expelled them +out of their coasts;" [77:4] at Iconium, the Jews again "stirred up the +Gentiles, and made their minds evil affected against the brethren;" +[77:5] and at Lystra, the same parties "persuaded the people, and having +stoned Paul, drew him out of the city, supposing he had been dead" +[78:1] The trials through which he now passed seem to have made an +indelible impression on the mind of the great apostle, and in the last +of his epistles, written many years afterwards, he refers to them as +among the most formidable he encountered in his perilous career. +Timothy, who at this time must have been a mere boy, appears to have +witnessed some of these ebullitions of Jewish malignity, and to have +marked with admiration the heroic spirit of the heralds of the Cross. +Paul, when about to be decapitated by the sword of Nero, could, +therefore, appeal to the evangelist, and could fearlessly declare that, +twenty years before, when his life was often at stake, he had not +quailed before the terrors of martyrdom. "Thou," says he, "hast fully +known my long-suffering, charity, patience, persecutions, afflictions, +which came unto me at _Antioch_, at _Iconium_, at _Lystra_, what +persecutions I endured, but, out of them all, the Lord delivered me." +[78:2] + +The hostile efforts of the Jews did not arrest the gospel in its +triumphant career. The truth prevailed mightily among the Gentiles, and +the great influx of converts began to impart an entirely new aspect to +the Christian community. At first the Church consisted exclusively of +Israelites by birth, and all who entered it still continued to observe +the institutions of Moses. But it was now evident that the number of its +Gentile adherents would soon very much preponderate, and that, ere long, +the keeping of the typical law would become the peculiarity of a small +minority of its members. Many of the converted Jews were by no means +prepared for such an alternative. They prided themselves upon their +divinely-instituted worship; and, misled by the fallacy that whatever is +appointed by God can never become obsolete, they conceived that the +spread of Christianity must be connected with the extension of their +national ceremonies. They accordingly asserted that the commandment +relative to the initiatory ordinance of Judaism was binding upon all +admitted to Christian fellowship. "Certain men which came down from +Judea" to Antioch, "taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be +circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved." [79:1] + +Paul was eminently qualified to deal with such errorists. There was a +time when he had valued himself upon his Pharisaic strictness, but when +God revealed to him His glory in the face of Jesus Christ, he was taught +to distinguish between a living faith, and a dead formalism. He still +maintained his social status, as one of the "chosen people," by the +keeping of the law; but he knew that it merely prefigured the great +redemption, and that its types and shadows must quickly disappear before +the light of the gospel. He saw, too, that the arguments urged for +circumcision could also be employed in behalf of all the Levitical +arrangements, [79:2] and that the tendency of the teaching of these "men +which came down from Judea" was to encumber the disciples with the +weight of a superannuated ritual. Nor was this all. The apostle was well +aware that the spirit which animated those Judaising zealots was a +spirit of self-righteousness. When they "taught the brethren and said, +Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, _ye cannot be +saved_" they subverted the doctrine of justification by faith alone. +[79:3] A sinner is saved as soon as he believes on the Lord Jesus +Christ, [79:4] and he requires neither circumcision, nor any other +ordinance, to complete his pardon. Baptism is, indeed, the sign by which +believers solemnly declare their acceptance of the gospel, and the seal +by which God is graciously pleased to recognise them as heirs of the +righteousness of faith; and yet even baptism is not essential to +salvation, for the penitent thief, though unbaptized, was admitted into +paradise. [80:1] But circumcision is no part of Christianity at all; it +does not so much as indicate that the individual who submits to it is a +believer in Jesus. Faith in the Saviour is the only and the perfect way +of justification. "Blessed are all they that put their trust in him," +[80:2] for Christ will, without fail, conduct to glory all who commit +themselves to His guidance and protection. Those who trust in Him cannot +but love Him, and those who love Him cannot but delight to do His will; +and as faith is the root of holiness and happiness, so unbelief is the +fountain of sin and misery. But though the way of salvation by faith can +only be spiritually discerned, many seek to make it palpable by +connecting it with certain visible institutions. Faith looks to Jesus as +the only way to heaven; superstition looks to some outward observance, +such as baptism or circumcision, (which is only a finger-post on the +way,) and confounds it with the way itself. Faith is satisfied with a +very simple ritual; superstition wearies itself with the multiplicity of +its minute observances. Faith holds communion with the Saviour in all +His appointments, and rejoices in Him with joy unspeakable; superstition +leans on forms and ceremonies, and is in bondage to these beggarly +elements. No wonder then that the attempt to impose on the converted +Gentiles the rites of both Christianity and Judaism encountered such +resolute opposition. Paul and Barnabas at once withstood its abettors, +and had "no small dissension and disputation with them." [80:3] It was +felt, however, that a matter of such grave importance merited the +consideration of the collective wisdom of the Church, and it was +accordingly agreed to send these two brethren, "and certain other of +them" "to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question." +[81:1] + +It is not stated that the Judaising teachers confined their interference +to Antioch, and the subsequent narrative apparently indicates that the +deputation to Jerusalem acted on behalf of all the Churches in Syria and +Cilicia. [81:2] The Christian societies scattered throughout Pamphylia, +Lycaonia, and some other districts of Asia Minor, do not seem to have +been directly concerned in sending forward the commissioners; but as +these communities had been collected and organised by Paul and Barnabas, +they doubtless considered that they were represented by their founders, +and they at once acceded to the decision of the assembly which met in +the Jewish metropolis. [81:3] That assembly approached, perhaps, more +closely than any ecclesiastical convention that has ever since been +held, to the character of a general council. It is pretty clear that its +deliberations must have taken place at the time of one of the great +annual festivals, for, seven or eight years before, the apostles had +commenced their travels as missionaries, and except about the season of +the Passover or of Pentecost, the Syrian deputation could have scarcely +reckoned on finding them in the holy city. It is not said that the +officials who were to be consulted belonged exclusively to Jerusalem. +[81:4] They, not improbably, included the elders throughout Palestine +who usually repaired to the capital to celebrate the national +solemnities. This meeting, therefore, seems to have been constructed on +a broader basis than what a superficial reading of the narrative might +suggest. Amongst its members were the older apostles, as well as +Barnabas and Paul, so that it contained the principal founders of the +Jewish and Gentile Churches: there were also present the elders of +Jerusalem, and deputies from Antioch, that is, the representatives of +the two most extensive and influential Christian societies in existence: +whilst commissioners from the Churches of Syria and Cilicia, and elders +from various districts of the holy land, were, perhaps, likewise in +attendance. The Universal Church was thus fairly represented in this +memorable Synod. + +The meeting was held A.D. 51, and Paul, exactly fourteen years before, +[82:1] had visited Jerusalem for the first time after his conversion. +[82:2] So little was then known of his remarkable history, even in the +chief city of Judea, that when he "assayed to join himself to the +disciples, they were all afraid of him, and believed not that he was a +disciple;" [82:3] but now his position was completely changed, and he +was felt to be one of the most influential personages who took part in +the proceedings of this important convention. Some have maintained that +the whole multitude of believers in the Jewish capital deliberated and +voted on the question in dispute, but there is certainly nothing in the +statement of the evangelist to warrant such an inference. It is very +evident that the disciples in the holy city were not prepared to approve +_unanimously_ of the decision which was actually adopted, for we are +told that, long afterwards, they were "all zealous of the law," [83:1] +and that they looked with extreme suspicion on Paul himself, because of +the lax principles, in reference to its obligation, which he was +understood to patronise. [83:2] When he arrived in Jerusalem on this +mission he found there a party determined to insist on the circumcision +of the converts from heathenism; [83:3] he complains of the opposition +he now encountered from these "false brethren unawares brought in;" +[83:4] and, when he returned to Antioch, he was followed by emissaries +from the same bigoted and persevering faction. [83:5] It is quite clear, +then, that the finding of the meeting, mentioned in the fifteenth +chapter of the Acts, _did not please_ all the members of the church of +the metropolis. The apostle says expressly that he communicated +"privately" on the subject with "them which were of reputation," [83:6] +and in the present state of feeling, especially in the head-quarters of +Judaism, Paul would have recoiled from the discussion of a question of +such delicacy before a promiscuous congregation. The resolution now +agreed upon, when subsequently mentioned, is set forth as the act, not +of the whole body of the disciples, but of "the apostles and elders," +[83:7] and as they were the arbiters to whom the appeal was made, they +were obviously the only parties competent to pronounce a deliverance. + +Two or three expressions of doubtful import, which occur in connexion +with the history of the meeting, have induced some to infer that all the +members of the Church of Jerusalem were consulted on this occasion. It +is said that "all the _multitude_ kept silence and gave audience to +Barnabas and Paul"; [84:1] that it "pleased the apostles and elders with +the _whole church_ to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch:" +[84:2] and, according to our current text, that the epistle, intrusted +to the care of these commissioners, proceeded from "the apostles and +elders _and brethren_." [84:3] But "the whole church," and "all the +multitude," merely signify _the whole assembly present_, and do not +necessarily imply even a very numerous congregation. [84:4] Some, at +least, of the "certain other" deputies [84:5] sent with Paul and +Barnabas to Jerusalem, were, in all likelihood, disposed to doubt or +dispute their views; as it is not probable that a distracted +constituency would have consented to the appointment of commissioners, +all of whom were already committed to the same sentiments. When, +therefore, the evangelist reports that the proposal made by James +"pleased the apostles and elders _with the whole Church_," he thus +designs to intimate that it met the universal approval of the meeting, +including the deputies on both sides. There were prophets, and others +possessed of extraordinary endowments, in the early Church, [84:6] and, +as some of these were, no doubt, at this time in Jerusalem, [84:7] we +can scarcely suppose that they were not permitted to be present in this +deliberative assembly. If we adopt the received reading of the +superscription of the circular letter, [84:8] the "brethren," who are +there distinguished from "the apostles and elders," were, in all +likelihood, these gifted members. [84:9] But, according to the testimony +of the best and most ancient manuscripts, the true reading of the +commencement of this encyclical epistle is, "The apostles _and elders +brethren_." [85:1] As the Syrian deputies were commissioned to consult, +not the general body of Christians at Jerusalem, but the apostles and +elders, this reading, now recognised as genuine by the highest critical +authorities, is sustained by the whole tenor of the narrative. The same +parties who "came together to consider of this matter" also framed the +decree. The apostles and elders brethren were the only individuals +officially concerned in this important transaction. [85:2] + +In this council the apostles acted, not as men oracularly pronouncing +the will of the Eternal, but, as ordinary church rulers, proceeding, +after careful inquiry, to adopt the suggestions of an enlightened +judgment. One passage of the Synodical epistle has been supposed to +countenance a different conclusion, for those assembled "to consider of +this matter" are represented as saying to the Syrian and Cilician +Churches--"_It seemed good to the Holy Ghost and to us_ to lay upon you +no greater burden" [85:3] than the restrictions which are presently +enumerated. But it is to be observed that this is the language of "the +elders brethren," as well as of the apostles, so that it must have been +used by many who made no pretensions to inspiration; and it is apparent +from the context that the council here merely reproduces an argument +against the Judaizers which had been always felt to be irresistible. The +Gentiles had received the Spirit "by the hearing of faith," [86:1] and +not by the ordinance of circumcision; and hence it was contended that +the Holy Ghost himself had decided the question. Peter, therefore, says +to the meeting held at Jerusalem--"God, which knoweth the hearts, bare +them witness, _giving them the Holy Ghost_, even as he did unto us; and +put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith. +Now, therefore, _why tempt ye God_, to put a yoke upon the neck of the +disciples, which neither our fathers, nor we, were able to bear?" [86:2] +He had employed the same reasoning long before, in defence of the +baptism of Cornelius and his friends. "The Holy Ghost," said he, "fell +on them.... Forasmuch, then, as God gave them the like gift as he did +unto us, who believed on the Lord Jesus Christ,--_what was I that I +could withstand God?_" [86:3] When, then, the members of the council +here declared, "It seemed good to the Holy Ghost and to us," [86:4] they +thus simply intimated that they were shut up to the arrangement which +they now announced--that God himself, by imparting His Spirit to those +who had not received the rite of circumcision, had already settled the +controversy--and that, as it had seemed good to the Holy Ghost not to +impose the ceremonial law upon the Gentiles, so it also seemed good to +"the apostles and elders brethren." + +But whilst the abundant outpouring of the Spirit on the Gentiles +demonstrated that they could be sanctified and saved without +circumcision, and whilst the Most High had thus proclaimed their freedom +from the yoke of the Jewish ritual, it is plain that, in regard to this +point, as well as other matters noticed in the letter, the writers speak +as the accredited _interpreters_ of the will of Jehovah. They state that +it seemed good to the Holy Ghost and to them to require the converts +from paganism "to abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, +and from things strangled, and from fornication." [87:1] And yet, +without any special revelation, they might have felt themselves +warranted to give such instructions in such language, for surely they +were at liberty to say that the Holy Ghost had interdicted fornication; +and, as the expounders of the doctrine of Christian expediency, [87:2] +their views may have been so clear that they could speak with equal +confidence as to the duty of the disciples under present circumstances +to abstain from blood, and from things strangled, and from meats offered +to idols. If they possessed "the full assurance of understanding" as to +the course to be pursued, they doubtless deemed it right to signify to +their correspondents that the decision which they now promulgated was, +not any arbitrary or hasty deliverance, but the very "mind of the +Spirit" either expressly communicated in the Word, or deduced from it by +good and necessary inference. In this way they aimed to reach the +conscience, and they knew that they thus furnished the most potential +argument for submission. + +It may at first sight appear strange that whilst the apostles, and those +who acted with them at this meeting, condemned the doctrine of the +Judaizers, and affirmed that circumcision was not obligatory on the +Gentiles, they, at the same time, required the converts from paganism to +observe a part of the Hebrew ritual; and it may seem quite as +extraordinary that, in a letter which was the fruit of so much +deliberation, they placed an immoral act, and a number of merely +ceremonial usages, in the same catalogue. But, on mature reflection, we +may recognise their tact and Christian prudence in these features of +their communication. Fornication was one of the crying sins of +Gentilism, and, except when it interfered with social arrangements, the +heathen did not even acknowledge its criminality. When, therefore, the +new converts were furnished with the welcome intelligence that they were +not obliged to submit to the painful rite of circumcision, it was well, +at the same time, to remind them that there were lusts of the flesh +which they were bound to mortify; and it was expedient that, whilst a +vice so prevalent as fornication should be specified, they should be +distinctly warned to beware of its pollutions. For another reason they +were directed to abstain from "meats offered to idols." It often +happened that what had been presented at the shrine of a false god was +afterwards exposed for sale, and the council cautioned the disciples +against partaking of such food, as they might thus appear to give a +species of sanction to idolatry, as well as tempt weak brethren to go a +step further, and directly countenance the superstitions of the heathen +worship. [88:1] The meeting also instructed the faithful in Syria and +Cilicia to abstain from "blood and from things strangled," because the +Jewish converts had been accustomed from infancy to regard aliment of +this description with abhorrence, and they could scarcely be expected to +sit at meat with parties who partook of such dishes. Though the use of +them was lawful, it was, at least for the present, not expedient; and on +the same principle that, whether we eat, or drink, or whatever we do, we +should do all to the glory of God, the Gentile converts were admonished +to remove them from their tables, that no barrier might be raised up in +the way of social or ecclesiastical communion with their brethren of the +seed of Abraham. + +It was high time for the authoritative settlement of a question at once +so perplexing and so delicate. It already threatened to create a schism +in the Church; and the agitation, which had commenced before the meeting +of the council, was not immediately quieted. When Peter visited Antioch +shortly afterwards, he at first triumphed so far over his prejudices as +to sit at meat with the converts from paganism; but when certain +sticklers for the law arrived from Jerusalem, "he withdrew, and +separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision." [89:1] +The "decree" of the apostles and elders undoubtedly implied the +lawfulness of eating with the Gentiles, but it contained no express +injunction on the subject, and Peter, who was now about to "go unto the +circumcision," [89:2] and who was, therefore, most anxious to conciliate +the Jews, may have pleaded this technical objection in defence of his +inconsistency. It is said that others, from whom better things might +have been expected, followed his example, "insomuch that Barnabas also +was carried away with their dissimulation." [89:3] But, on this critical +occasion, Paul stood firm; and his bold and energetic remonstrances +appear to have had the effect of preventing a division which must have +been most detrimental to the interests of infant Christianity. + + + + + +CHAPTER VI. + +THE INTRODUCTION OF THE GOSPEL INTO EUROPE, AND THE MINISTRY OF PAUL AT +PHILIPPI. + +A.D. 52. + + +After the Council of Jerusalem, the gospel continued its prosperous +career. When Paul had remained for some time at Antioch, where he +returned with the deputation, he set out to visit the Churches of Syria +and Cilicia; and then travelled through Lycaonia, Galatia, and some +other portions of Asia Minor. He was now directed, by a vision, [90:1] +to pass over into Greece; and about the spring of A.D. 52, or twenty-one +years after the crucifixion, Europe was entered, for the first time, by +the Apostle of the Gentiles. Paul commenced his ministry in this new +sphere of labour by announcing the great salvation to the inhabitants of +Philippi, a city of Macedonia, and a Roman colony. [90:2] + +Nearly a century before, two powerful factions, contending for the +government of the Roman world, had converted the district now visited +into a theatre of war; immense armies had been here drawn out in hostile +array; and two famous battles, which issued in the overthrow of the +Republic, had been fought in this very neighbourhood. The victor had +rewarded some of his veterans by giving them possessions at Philippi. +The Christian missionary entered, as it were, the suburbs of the great +metropolis of the West, when he made his appearance in this military +colony; for, it had the same privileges as the towns of Italy, [91:1] +and its inhabitants enjoyed the status of Roman citizens. Here he now +originated a spiritual revolution which eventually changed the face of +Europe. The Jews had no synagogue in Philippi; but, in places such as +this, where their numbers were few, they were wont, on the Sabbath, to +meet for worship by the side of some river in which they could +conveniently perform their ablutions; and Paul accordingly repaired to +the banks of the Gangitas, [91:2] where he expected to find them +assembled for devotional exercises. A small oratory, or house of prayer, +seems to have been erected on the spot; but the little society connected +with it must have been particularly apathetic, as the apostle found only +a few females in attendance. One of these was, however, the first-fruits +of his mission to the Western continent. Lydia, a native of Thyatira, +and a seller of purple,--a species of dye for which her birthplace had +acquired celebrity,--was the name of the convert; and though the gospel +may already have made some progress in Rome, it must be admitted that, +in as far as direct historical testimony is concerned, this woman has +the best claim to be recognised as the mother of European Christianity. +It is said that she "worshipped God," [91:3] that is, though a Gentile, +she had been proselyted to the Jewish faith; and the history of her +conversion is given by the evangelist with remarkable clearness and +simplicity. "The Lord _opened her heart_ that she attended unto the +things that were spoken of Paul." [91:4] When she and her family were +baptized, she entreated the missionaries to "come into her house and +abide there" during their sojourn in the place; and, after some +hesitation, they accepted the proffered hospitality. + +Another female acts a conspicuous part in connexion with this apostolic +visit. "It came to pass," says Luke, "as we went to prayer, a certain +damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her +masters much gain by soothsaying: the same followed Paul and us, and +cried, saying, These men are the servants of the Most High God, which +shew unto us the way of salvation. And this did she many days." [92:1] +It is quite possible that even daemons have the power of discerning +certain classes of future events with the quickness of intuition; [92:2] +and if, as the Scriptures testify, they have sometimes entered into +human bodies, we can well understand how the individuals thus possessed +have obtained credit for divination. In this way the damsel mentioned by +the evangelist may have acquired her celebrity. We cannot explain how +disembodied spirits maintain intercourse; but it is certain that they +possess means of mutual recognition, and that they can be impressed by +the presence of higher and holier intelligences. And as the approach of +a mighty conqueror spreads dismay throughout the territory he invades, +so when the Son of God appeared on earth, the devils were troubled at +His presence, and, in the agony of their terror, proclaimed His dignity. +[92:3] It would appear that some influence of an analogous character +operated on this Pythoness. The arrival of the missionaries in Philippi +alarmed the powers of darkness, and the damsel, under the pressure of an +impulse which she found it impossible to resist, told their commission. +But neither the apostles, nor our Lord, cared for credentials of such +equivocal value. As this female followed the strangers through the +streets, and in a loud voice announced their errand to the city, "Paul, +being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee, in the +name of Jesus Christ, to come out of her, and he came out the same +hour." [93:1] + +The unbelieving Jews had hitherto been the great persecutors of the +Church; but now, for the first time, the apostles encountered opposition +from another quarter; and the expulsion of the spirit from the damsel +evoked the hostility of this new adversary. When the masters of the +Pythoness "saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul +and Silas, and drew them into the marketplace unto the rulers." [93:2] +We here discover one great cause of our Lord under the government of the +pagan emperors. The Jews were prompted by mere bigotry to display hatred +to the gospel--but the Gentiles were generally guided by the still more +ignoble principle of selfishness. Many of the heathen multitude cared +little for their idolatrous worship; but all who depended for +subsistence on the prevalence of superstition, such as the image-makers, +the jugglers, the fortune-tellers, and a considerable number of the +priests, [93:3] were dismayed and driven to desperation by the progress +of Christianity. They saw that, with its success, "the hope of their +gains was gone;" and, under pretence of zeal for the public interest, +and for the maintenance of the "lawful" ceremonies, they laboured to +intimidate and oppress the adherents of the new doctrine. + +The appearance of the missionaries at Philippi must have created a +profound sensation, as otherwise it is impossible to account for the +tumult which now occurred. The "masters" of the damsel possessed of the +"spirit of divination," no doubt, took the initiatory step in the +movement; but had not the public mind been in some degree prepared for +their appeals, they could not have induced all classes of their +fellow-citizens so soon to join in the persecution. "The multitude rose +up together" at their call; the duumviri, or magistrates, rent off the +clothes of the apostles with their own hands, and commanded them to be +scourged; the lictors "laid many stripes upon them;" they wore ordered +to be kept in close confinement; and the jailer exceeded the exact +letter of his instructions by thrusting them "into the inner prison," +and by making "their feet fast in the stocks." [94:1] The power of +Imperial Rome arrayed itself against the preachers of the gospel, and +now distinctly gave note of warning of the approach of that long night +of affliction throughout which the church was yet to struggle. + +If the proceedings of the missionaries, before their committal to +prison, produced such a ferment, it is clear that the circumstances +attending their incarceration were not calculated to abate the +excitement. It soon appeared that they had sources of enjoyment which no +human authority could either destroy or disturb; for as they lay in the +pitchy darkness of their dungeon with their feet compressed in the +stocks, their hearts overflowed with divine comfort. "At midnight Paul +and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard +them." [94:2] What must have been the wonder of the other inmates of the +jail, as these sounds fell upon their ears! Instead of a cry of distress +issuing from "the inner prison," there was the cheerful voice of +thanksgiving! The apostles rejoiced that they were counted worthy to +suffer in the service of Christ. The King of the Church sympathised with +His oppressed saints, and speedily vouchsafed to them most wonderful +tokens of encouragement. Scarcely had they finished their song of praise +when it was answered by a very significant response, proclaiming that +they were supported by a power which could crush the might of Rome. +"Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the +prison were shaken, and immediately all the doors were opened, and every +one's bands were loosed." [95:1] + +It is not improbable that the mind of the jailer had already been ill at +ease. He must have heard of the extraordinary history of the damsel with +the spirit of divination who announced that his prisoners were the +servants of the Most High God, and that they shewed unto men the way of +salvation. Rumour had, perhaps, supplied him with some information in +reference to their doctrines; and during even his short intercourse with +Paul and Silas in the jail, he may have been impressed by much that he +noticed in their spirit and deportment. But he had meanwhile gone to +rest, and he remained asleep until roused by the noise and tremor of the +earthquake. When he awoke and saw "the prison doors open," he was in a +paroxysm of alarm; and concluding that the prisoners had escaped, and +that he might expect to be punished, perhaps capitally, for neglect of +duty, he resolved to anticipate such a fate, and snatched his sword to +commit suicide. At this moment, a voice issuing from the dungeon where +the missionaries were confined, at once dispelled his fears as to the +prisoners, and arrested him almost in the very act of self-murder. "Paul +cried with a loud voice, saying--Do thyself no harm, for we are all +here." [95:2] These words operated on the unhappy man like a shock of +electricity. They instantaneously directed his thoughts into another +channel, and imparted intensity to feelings which, had hitherto been +comparatively dormant. The conviction flashed upon his conscience that +the men whom he had so recently thrust into the inner prison were no +impostors; that they had, as they alleged, authority to treat of matters +infinitely more important than any of the passing interests of time; +that they had, verily, a commission from heaven to teach the way of +eternal salvation; and that he and others, who had taken part in their +imprisonment, had acted most iniquitously. For what now could be more +evident than that the apostles were the servants of the Most High God? +When everything around them was enveloped in the gloom of midnight, they +seemed able to tell what was passing all over the prison. How strange +that, when the jailer was about to kill himself, a voice should issue +from a different apartment saying--Do thyself no harm! How strange that +the very man whose feet, a few hours before, had boon made fast in the +stocks, should now be the giver of this friendly counsel! How remarkable +that, when all the doors were opened, no one attempted to escape! And +how extraordinary that, during the very night on which the apostles were +imprisoned, the bands of all the inmates were loosed, and that the +building was made to rock to its foundations! Did not the earthquake +indicate that He, whom the apostles served, was able to save and to +destroy? Did it not proclaim, trumpet-tongued, that He would surely +punish their persecutors? When the jailer thought on these things, well +might he be paralysed with fear, and believing that the apostles alone +could tell him how he was Lo obtain relief from the anxiety which +oppressed his spirit, it is not strange that "he called for a light, and +sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, and +brought them out, and said--Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" [96:1] + +The missionaries were prepared with a decisive reply to this earnest +inquiry, and it is probable that their answer took the jailer by +surprise. He expected, perhaps, to be called upon to do something, +either to propitiate the apostles themselves, or to turn away the wrath +of the God of the apostles. It is obvious, from the spirit which he +manifested, that, to obtain peace of conscience, he was ready to go very +far in the way of self-sacrifice. He may have been willing to part with +his property, or to imperil his life, or to give "the fruit of his body +for the sin of his soul." What, then, must have been his astonishment +when he found that the divine mercy so far transcended anything he could +have possibly anticipated! With what satisfaction must he have listened +to the assurance that an atonement had already been made, and that the +sinner is safe as soon as he lays the hand of faith on the head of the +great Sacrifice! What delight must he have experienced when informed +that unbelief alone could shut him out from heaven; that the Son of God +had died the just for the unjust; and that this almighty Saviour now +waited to be gracious to-himself! How must the words of the apostles +have thrilled through his soul, as he heard them repeating the +invitation-"Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, +and thy house." [97:1] + +The jailer joyfully accepted the proffered Deliverer; and felt that, +resting on this Rock of Salvation, he was at peace. Though well aware +that, by openly embracing the gospel, he exposed himself to considerable +danger, he did not shrink from the position of a confessor. The love of +Christ had obtained full possession of his soul, and he was quite +prepared to suffer in the service of his Divine Master. He took Paul and +Silas "the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes, and was +baptized, he and all his, straightway; and when he had brought them into +his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with +all his house." [98:1] + +It is highly probable that the shock of the earthquake was felt beyond +the precincts of the jail, and that the events which had occurred there +had soon been communicated to the city authorities. We can thus best +account for the fact that "when it was day, the magistrates sent the +serjeants saying, Let those men go." [98:2] As it is not stated that the +apostles had previously entered into any vindication of their +conduct, it has been thought singular that they now declined to leave +the prison without receiving an apology for the violation of their +privileges as Roman citizens. But this matter presents no real +difficulty. The magistrates had yielded to the clamour of an infuriated +mob; and, instead of giving Paul and Silas a fair opportunity of defence +or explanation, had summarily consigned them to the custody of the +jailer. These functionaries now seemed prepared to listen to +remonstrance; and Paid deemed it due to himself, and to the interests of +the Christian Church, to complain of the illegal character of the +proceedings from which he had suffered. He had been punished, without a +trial, and scourged, though a Roman citizen. [98:3] Hence, when informed +that the duumviri had given orders for the liberation of himself and his +companion, the apostle exclaimed--"They have beaten us openly +uncondemned, being Romans, and have cast us into prison, and now do they +thrust us out privily? Nay, verily, but let them come themselves, and +fetch us out." [98:4] These words, which were immediately reported by the +serjeants, or lictors, inspired the magistrates with apprehension, and +suggested to them the expediency of conciliation. "And they came" to the +prison to the apostles, "and _besought them_, and brought them out, and +desired them to depart out of the city." [99:1] The missionaries did +not, however, leave Philippi until they had another opportunity of +meeting with their converts. "They went out of the prison, and entered +into the house of Lydia, and when they had seen the brethren, they +comforted them and departed." [99:2] + +On the whole Paul and Silas had reason to thank God and take courage, +when they reviewed their progress in the first European city which they +visited. Though they had met with much opposition, their ministry had +been greatly blessed; and, in the end, the magistrates, who had treated +them with much severity, had felt it necessary to apologise. The +extraordinary circumstances accompanying their imprisonment must have +made their case known to the whole body of the citizens, and thus +secured a degree of attention to their preaching which could not have +been otherwise expected. The Church, now established at Philippi, +contained a number of most generous members, and Paul afterwards +gratefully acknowledged the assistance he received from them. "Ye have +well done," said he, "that ye did communicate with my affliction. Now, +ye Philippians, know also, that in the beginning of the gospel, when I +departed from Macedonia, no church communicated with me, as concerning +giving and receiving, but ye only. For, even in Thessalonica, ye sent +once and again unto my necessity." [99:3] + + + + + +CHAPTER VII. + +THE MINISTRY OF PAUL IN THESSALONICA, BEREA, ATHENS, +AND CORINTH. + +A.D. 52 TO A.D. 54. + + +After leaving Philippi, and passing through Amphipolis and Apollonia, +Paul made his way to Thessalonica. In this city there was a Jewish +synagogue where he was permitted, for three successive Sabbaths, to +address the congregation. His discourses produced a powerful impression; +as some of the seed of Abraham believed, "and, of the devout Greeks, a +great multitude, and of the chief women, not a few." [100:1] The +unbelieving Jews attempted to create annoyance by representing the +missionaries as acting "contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying--that +there is another king, one Jesus;" [100:2] but though they contrived to +trouble "the rulers" [100:3] and to "set all the city in an uproar," +they could not succeed in preventing the formation of a flourishing +Christian community. Paul appeared next in Berea, and, when reporting +his success here, the sacred historian bears a remarkable testimony to +the right of the laity to judge for themselves as to the meaning of the +Book of Inspiration; for he states that the Jews of this place "were +_more noble_ than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word +with all readiness of mind, and _searched the scriptures daily"_ [101:1] +to ascertain the truth of the apostolic doctrine. Paul now proceeded "to +go as it were to the sea," and soon afterwards arrived at Athens. + +The ancient capital of Attica had long been the literary metropolis of +heathendom. Its citizens could boast that they were sprung from a race +of heroes, as their forefathers had nobly struggled for freedom on many +a bloody battlefield, and, by prodigies of valour, had maintained their +independence against all the might of Persia. Minerva, the goddess of +wisdom, was their tutelary deity. The Athenians, from time immemorial, +had been noted for their intellectual elevation; and a brilliant array +of poets, legislators, historians, philosophers, and orators, had +crowned their community with immortal fame. Every spot connected with +their city was classic ground. Here it was that Socrates had discoursed +so sagely; and that Plato had illustrated, with so much felicity and +genius, the precepts of his great master; and that Demosthenes, by +addresses of unrivalled eloquence, had roused and agitated the +assemblies of his countrymen. As the stranger passed through Athens, +artistic productions of superior excellence everywhere met his eye. Its +statues, its public monuments, and its temples, were models alike of +tasteful design and of beautiful workmanship. But there may be much +intellectual culture where there is no spiritual enlightenment, and +Athens, though so far advanced in civilisation and refinement, was one +of the high places of pagan superstition. Amidst the splendour of its +architectural decorations, as well as surrounded with proofs of its +scientific and literary eminence, the apostle mourned over its religious +destitution, and "his spirit was stirred in him, when he saw the city +wholly given to idolatry." [102:1] + +On this new scene Paul exhibited his usual activity and earnestness. "He +disputed in the synagogue with the Jews, and with the devout persons, +and in the market daily with them that met with him." [102:2] The +Christian preacher, doubtless, soon became an object of no little +curiosity. He was of diminutive stature; [102:3] he seems to have +laboured under the disadvantages of imperfect vision; [102:4] and his +Palestinian Greek must have sounded harshly in the ears of those who +were accustomed to speak their mother tongue in its Attic purity. But, +though his "bodily presence was weak," [102:5] he speedily convinced +those who came in contact with him, that the frail earthly tabernacle +was the habitation of a master mind; and though mere connoisseurs in +idioms and pronunciation might designate "his speech contemptible," +[102:6] he riveted the attention of his hearers by the force and +impressiveness of his oratory. The presence of this extraordinary +stranger could not remain long unknown to the Athenian literati; but, +when they entered into conversation with him, some of them were disposed +to ridicule him as an idle talker, whilst others seemed inclined to +denounce him as a dangerous innovator. "Certain philosophers of the +Epicureans and of the Stoics encountered him; and some said--What will +this babbler say? other some--He seemeth to be a setter forth of strange +gods, because he preached unto them Jesus and the resurrection." [102:7] +Upwards of four hundred years before, Socrates had been condemned to +death by the Athenians as "a setter forth of strange gods," [103:1] and +it may be that some of these philosophers hoped to intimidate the +apostle by hinting that he was now open to the same indictment. But it +is very improbable that they seriously contemplated a prosecution; as +they had themselves no faith in the pagan mythology. They were quite +ready to employ their wit to turn the heathen worship into scorn; and +yet they could point out no "more excellent way" of religious service. +In Athens, philosophy had demonstrated its utter impotence to do +anything effective for the reformation of the popular theology; and its +professors had settled down into the conviction that, as the current +superstition exercised an immense influence over the minds of the +multitude it was inexpedient for wise men to withhold from it the +tribute of outward reverence. The discourses of Paul were very far from +complimentary to parties who valued themselves so highly on their +intellectual advancement; for he quietly ignored all their speculations +as so much folly; and, whilst he propounded his own system with the +utmost confidence, he, at the same time, supported it by arguments which +they were determined to reject, but unable to overturn. It is pretty +clear that they were to some extent under the influence of pique and +irritation when they noticed his deviations from the established faith, +and applied to him the epithet of "babbler;" but Paul was not the man to +be put down either by irony or insult; and at length it was found +necessary to allow him a fair opportunity of explaining his principles. +It is accordingly stated that "they took him and brought him unto Mars +Hill saying--May we know what this new doctrine, whereof thou speakest, +is, for thou bringest certain strange things to our ears--we would know, +therefore, what these things mean." [103:2] + +The speech delivered by Paul on this memorable occasion has been often +admired for its tact, vigour, depth, and fidelity. Whilst giving the +Athenians full credit for their devotional feeling, and avoiding any +pointed and sarcastic attack on the absurdities of their religious +ritual, he contrives to present such an outline of the prominent +features of the Christian revelation, as might have convinced any candid +and intelligent auditor of its incomparable superiority, as well to the +doctrines of the philosophers, as to the fables of heathenism. In the +very commencement of his observations he displays no little address. "Ye +men of Athens," said he, "I perceive that, in every point of view, ye +are carrying your religious reverence very far; for, as I passed by, and +observed the objects of your worship, I found an altar with this +inscription--To the unknown God--whom, therefore, ye worship, though ye +know him not, him declare I unto you." [104:1] The existence in this +city of inscriptions, such as that here given, is attested by several +other ancient witnesses [104:2] as well as Paul, and the altars thus +distinguished appear to have been erected when the place was afflicted +by certain strange and unprecedented calamities which the deities, +already recognised, were supposed to be unable to remove. The auditors +of the apostle could not well be dissatisfied with the statement that +they carried their "religious reverence very far;" and yet, perhaps, +they were scarcely prepared for the reference to this altar by which the +observation was illustrated; for the inscription which he quoted +contained a most humiliating confession of their ignorance, and +furnished him with an excellent apology for proposing to act as their +theological instructor. + +His discourse, which treats of the Being and Attributes of God, must +have been heard with no ordinary interest by the polite and intelligent +Athenians. Its reasoning is plain, pertinent, and powerful; and whilst +adopting a didactic tone, and avoiding the language and spirit of +controversy, the apostle, in every sentence, comes into direct +collision, either with the errors of polytheism, or the dogmas of the +Grecian philosophy. The Stoics were Pantheists, and held the doctrine of +the eternity of matter; [105:1] whilst the Epicureans maintained that +the universe arose out of a fortuitous concurrence of atoms; [105:2] and +therefore Paul announced his opposition to both these sects when he +declared that "God made the world and all things therein." [105:3] The +Athenians boasted that they were of nobler descent than the rest of +their countrymen; [105:4] and the heathen generally believed that each +nation belonged to a distinct stock and was under the guardianship of +its own peculiar deities; but the apostle affirmed that "God hath made +_of one blood_ all nations of men to dwell on all the face of the +earth." [105:5] The Epicureans asserted that the gods did not interfere +in the concerns of the human family, and that they were destitute of +foreknowledge; but Paul here assured them that the great Creator "giveth +to all life and breath and all things," and "hath determined the times +before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation." [105:6] The +heathen imagined that the gods inhabited their images; but whilst Paul +was ready to acknowledge the excellence, as works of art, of the statues +which he saw all around him, he at the same time distinctly intimated +that these dead pieces of material mechanism could never even faintly +represent the glory of the invisible First Cause, and that they were +unworthy the homage of living and intellectual beings. "As we are the +offspring of God," said he, "we ought not to think that the Godhead is +like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device." +[106:1] After having thus borne testimony to the spirituality of the I +am that I am, and asserted His authority as the Maker and Preserver of +the world, Paul proceeded to point out his claims as its righteous +Governor. "He hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world +in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained, whereof he hath +given assurance unto all men in that he hath raised him from the dead." +[106:2] The pleasure-loving Epicureans refused to believe in a future +state of rewards and punishments; and concurred with the Stoics in +denying the immortality of the soul. [106:3] Both these parties were, of +course, prepared to reject the doctrine of a general judgment. The idea +of the resurrection of the body was quite novel to almost all classes of +the Gentiles; and, when at first propounded to the Athenians, was +received, by many, with doubt, and by some, with ridicule. "When they +heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked, and others said, We +will hear thee again of this matter. So Paul departed from among them." +[106:4] + +The frivolous spirit cherished by the citizens of the ancient capital of +Attica was exceedingly unfavourable to the progress of the earnest faith +of Christianity. "All the Athenians, and strangers which were there, +spent their time in nothing else but either to tell or to hear some new +thing." [106:5] Though they had acquired a world-wide reputation for +literary culture, it is an instructive fact that their city continued +for several centuries afterwards to be one of the strongholds of Gentile +superstition. But the labours of Paul at this time were not entirely +unproductive. "Certain men clave unto him and believed, among the which +was Dionysius, the Areopagite, and a woman, named Damaris, and others +with them." [107:1] The court of Areopagus, long the highest judicial +tribunal in the place, had not even yet entirely lost its celebrity; and +the circumstance that Dionysius was connected with it, is a proof that +this Christian convert must have been a respectable and influential +citizen. He appears to have occupied a very high place among the +primitive disciples; and the number of spurious writings ascribed to him +[107:2] shew that his name was deemed a tower of strength to the cause +with which it was associated. He seems to have been long at the head of +the Athenian presbytery; and to have survived his conversion about forty +years, or until the time of the Domitian persecution. [107:3] + +From Athens Paul directed his steps to Corinth, where he appears to have +arrived in the autumn of A.D. 52. Nearly two hundred years before, this +city had been completely destroyed; but, after a century of desolation, +it had been rebuilt; and having since rapidly increased, it was now +flourishing and populous. As a place of trade, its position, near an +isthmus of the same name, gave it immense advantages; for it had a +harbour on each side, so that it was the central depôt of the commerce +of the East and West. Its inhabitants valued themselves much upon their +attainments in philosophy and general literature; but, whilst, by +traffic, they had succeeded in acquiring wealth, they had given way to +the temptations of luxury and licentiousness. Corinth was, in fact, at +this time one of the most dissolute cities of the Empire. It was the +capital of the large province of Achaia, and the residence of the Roman +proconsul. + +When Paul was at Athens he was led to adapt his style of instruction to +the character of his auditors, and he was thus obliged to occupy much of +his time in discussing the principles of natural religion. He +endeavoured to gain over the citizens by shewing them that their views +of the Godhead could not stand the test of a vigorous and discriminating +logic, and that Christianity alone rested on a sound philosophical +foundation. But the exposition of a pure system of theism had +comparatively little influence on the hearts and consciences of these +system-builders. Considering the time and skill devoted to its culture, +Athens had yielded perhaps less spiritual fruit than any field of labour +on which he had yet operated. When he arrived in Corinth he resolved, +therefore, to avoid, as much as possible, mere metaphysical +argumentation, and he sought rather to stir up sinners to flee from the +wrath to come by pressing home upon them earnestly the peculiar +doctrines of revelation. In the first epistle, addressed subsequently to +the Church now established in this place, he thus describes the spirit +in which he conducted his apostolical ministrations. "And I, brethren," +says he, "when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of +wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God--for I determined not to +know anything among you save _Jesus Christ and Him crucified_; and my +speech and my preaching was, not with enticing words of man's wisdom, +but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power--that your faith should +not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God." [108:1] + +The result demonstrated that the apostle thus pursued the most effective +mode of advancing the Christian cause. It might, indeed, have been +thought that Corinth was a very ungenial soil for the gospel, as Venus +was the favourite deity of the place; and a thousand priestesses, or, in +other words, a thousand prostitutes, were employed in the celebration of +her orgies. [109:1] The inhabitants generally were sunk in the very +depths of moral pollution. But the preaching of the Cross produced a +powerful impression even in this hotbed of iniquity. Notwithstanding the +enmity of the Jews, who "opposed themselves and blasphemed," [109:2] +Paul succeeded in collecting here a large and prosperous congregation. +"Many of the Corinthians hearing, believed, and were baptized." [109:3] +Most of the converts were in very humble circumstances, and hence the +apostle says to them in his first epistle--"Ye see your calling, +brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, +not many noble are called;" [109:4] but still a few persons of +distinction united themselves to the despised community. Thus, it +appears [109:5] that Erastus, the chamberlain, or treasurer, of the +city, was among the disciples. It may be that this civic functionary +joined the Church at a somewhat later date; but, even now, Paul was +encouraged by the accession of some remarkable converts. Of these, +perhaps, the most conspicuous was Crispus, "the chief ruler of the +synagogue," who, "with all his house," submitted to baptism. [109:6] +About the same time Gaius, who seems to have been an opulent citizen, +and who rendered good service to the common cause by his Christian +hospitality, [109:7] openly embraced the gospel. Two other converts, who +are often honourably mentioned in the New Testament, were now likewise +added to the infant Church. These were Aquila and Priscilla. [109:8] +Some have, indeed, supposed that this couple had been already baptized; +but, on the arrival of Paul in Corinth, Aquila is represented as _a Jew_ +[110:1]--a designation which would not have been descriptive of his +position had he been previously a believer--and we must therefore infer +that the conversion of himself and his excellent partner occurred at +this period. + +In this city, as well as in many other places, the apostle supported +himself by the labour of his own hands. It was now customary, even for +Israelites in easy circumstances, to train up their children to some +mechanical employment, so that should they sink into penury, they could +still, by manual industry, procure a livelihood. [110:2] Paul had been +taught the trade of a tent-maker, or manufacturer of awnings of +hair-cloth--articles much used in the East as a protection against the +rays of the sun, by travellers and mariners; It was in connexion with +this occupation that lie became acquainted with Aquila and Priscilla. +"Because he was of the same craft, he abode with them, and wrought." +[110:3] The Jew and his wife had probably a large manufactory, and thus +they could furnish the apostle with remunerative employment. Whilst +under their roof, he did not neglect the opportunities he enjoyed of +presenting the gospel to their attention, and both soon became his +ardent and energetic coadjutors in missionary service. + +The conduct of Paul in working with his own hands, whilst engaged in the +dissemination of the gospel, is a noble example of Christian +self-denial. He could, it appears, expect little assistance from the +mother church of Antioch; and had he, in the first instance, demanded +support from those to whom he now ministered, he would have exposed +himself and his cause to the utmost suspicion. In a commercial city, +such as Corinth, he would have been regarded by many as a mere +adventurer who had resorted to a new species of speculation in the hope +of obtaining a maintenance. His disinterested behaviour placed him at +once beyond the reach of this imputation; and his intense love to Christ +prepared him to make the sacrifice, which the course he thus adopted, +required. And what a proof of the humility of Paul that he cheerfully +laboured for his daily bread at the trade of a tent-maker! The Rabbi who +was once admired for his genius and his learning by the most +distinguished of his countrymen--who had once sat among the members of +the great Sanhedrim--and who might have legitimately aspired to be the +son-in-law of the High Priest of Israel [111:1]--was now content to toil +"night and day" at a menial occupation sitting among the workmen of +Aquila and Priscilla! How like to Him, who, though He was rich, yet, for +our sakes, became poor, that we, through His poverty, might be rich! + +Paul was well aware of the importance of Corinth as a centre of +missionary influence. Strangers from the East passed through it on their +way to Rome, and travellers from the Western metropolis stopped here on +their way to Asia Minor, Palestine, or Syria, so that it was one of the +greatest thoroughfares in the Empire; and, as a commercial mart, it was +second to very few cities in the world. The apostle therefore saw that +if a Church could be firmly planted in this busy capital, it could +scatter the seeds of truth to all the ends of the earth. We may thus +understand why he remained in Corinth so much longer than in any other +place he had yet visited since his departure from Antioch. "He continued +there a year and six months teaching the Word of God among them." +[111:2] He was, too, encouraged by a special communication from Heaven +to prosecute his labours with zeal and diligence. "The Lord spake to +Paul in the night by a vision--Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not +thy peace--for I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt +thee, for I have much people in this city." [112:1] Though the ministry +of the apostle was now attended with such remarkable success, his +converts did not all continue to walk worthy of their profession. But if +in the Church of this flourishing mercantile metropolis there were +greater disorders than in perhaps any other of the early Christian +communities, [112:2] the explanation is obvious. Even in a degenerate +age Corinth was notorious for its profligacy; and it would have been +indeed marvellous if excesses had not been occasionally committed by +some of the members of a religious society composed, to a considerable +extent, of reclaimed libertines. [112:3] + +The success of the gospel in Corinth roused the unbelieving Jews to +opposition; and here, as elsewhere, they endeavoured to avail themselves +of the aid of the civil power; but, in this instance, their appeal to +the Roman magistrate was signally unsuccessful. Gallio, brother of the +celebrated Seneca the philosopher, was now "the deputy of Achaia;" +[112:4] and when the bigoted and incensed Israelites "made insurrection +with one accord against Paul, and brought him to the judgment-seat, +saying--This fellow persuaded men to worship God _contrary to the +law,_" [112:5] the proconsul turned a deaf ear to the accusation. When +the apostle was about to enter on his defence, Gallio intimated that +such a proceeding was quite unnecessary, as the affair did not come +within the range of his jurisdiction. "If," said he, "it were a matter +of wrong, or wicked lewdness, O ye Jews, reason would that I should bear +with you; but if it be a question of words and names and of _your law,_ +look ye to it, for I will be no judge of such matters. And he drive them +from the judgment-seat." [113:1] On this occasion, for the first time +since the arrival of Paul and his brethren in Europe, the mob was on the +side of the missionaries, and under the very eye of the proconsul, and +without any effort on his part to interfere and arrest their violence, +the most prominent of the plaintiffs was somewhat roughly handled. "Then +all the Greeks took Smoothens, the chief ruler of the synagogue, and +beat him before the judgment-seat. And Gallio cared for none of these +things." [113:2] + +When Paul was at Corinth, and probably in A.D. 53, he wrote his two +earliest letters, that is, the First and Second Epistles to the +Thessalonians. These communications must, therefore, have been drawn up +about twelve months after the original formation of the religious +community to which they are addressed. The Thessalonian Church was +already fully organised, as the apostle here points out to the disciples +their duties to those who laboured among them and who were over them in +the Lord. [113:3] In the meantime several errors had gained currency; +and a letter, announcing that the day of Christ was at hand, and +purporting to have been penned by Paul himself, had thrown the brethren +into great consternation. [113:4] The apostle accordingly deemed it +necessary to interpose, and to point out the dangerous character of the +doctrines which had been so industriously promulgated. He now, too, +delivered his famous prophecy announcing the revelation of the "Man of +Sin" before the second coming of the Redeemer. [113:5] Almost all the +members of the Thessalonian Church were probably converted Gentiles, +[113:6] who must still have been but little acquainted with the Jewish +Scriptures; and this is perhaps the reason why there is no quotation +from the Old Testament in either of these letters. Even the Gospels do +not seem to have been yet written, and hence Paul exhorts the brethren +"to hold fast the traditions," or rather "ordinances," [114:1] which +they had been taught, "whether by word or his epistle." [114:2] + + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +THE CONVERSION OF APOLLOS, HIS CHARACTER, AND THE +MINISTRY OF PAUL IN EPHESUS. + +A.D. 54 TO A.D. 57. + + +The Apostle "took his leave" [115:1] of the Corinthian brethren in the +spring of A.D. 54, and embarking at the port of Cenchrea, about eight or +nine miles distant, set sail for Ephesus. The navigation among the +islands of the Greek Archipelago was somewhat intricate; and the voyage +appears to have not unfrequently occupied from ten to fifteen days. +[115:2] At Ephesus Paul "entered into the synagogue, and reasoned with +the Jews." [115:3] His statements produced a favourable impression, and +he was solicited to prolong his visit; but as he was on his way to +Jerusalem, where he was anxious to be present at the approaching feast +of Pentecost, he could only assure them of his intention to return, and +then bid them farewell. He left behind him, however, in this great city +his two Corinthian converts, Aquila and Priscilla, who carried on with +industry and success the work which he had commenced so auspiciously. +Among the first fruits of their pious care for the spread of +Christianity was the famous Apollos, an Alexandrian Jew, who now arrived +in the metropolis of the Proconsular Asia. + +The seed of Abraham in the birthplace of Apollos spoke the Greek +language, and were in somewhat peculiar circumstances. They were free +from some of the prejudices of the Jews in Palestine; and, though living +in the midst of a heathen population, had advantages which were enjoyed +by very few of their brethren scattered elsewhere among the Gentiles. At +Alexandria their sumptuous synagogues were unequivocal evidences of +their wealth; they constituted a large and influential section of the +inhabitants; they had much political power; and, whilst their study of +the Greek philosophy had modified their habits of thought, they had +acquired a taste for the cultivation of eloquence and literature. +Apollos, the Jew "born at Alexandria," [116:1] who now became acquainted +with Aquila and Priscilla, was an educated and accomplished man. It is +said that "he was instructed in the way of the Lord, and being fervent +in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, +knowing only the baptism of John." [116:2] The influence of the +preaching of the Baptist may be estimated from this incidental notice; +for though the forerunner of our Saviour had now finished his career +about a quarter of a century, the Alexandrian Jew was only one of many +still living witnesses to testify that he had not ministered in vain. In +this case John had indeed "prepared the way" of his Master, as, under +the tuition of Aquila and Priscilla, Apollos was led without difficulty +to embrace the Christian doctrine. It is said of this pious couple that +"they took him unto them, and expounded unto him the way of God more +perfectly." [116:3] Priscilla was no less distinguished than her husband +[116:4] for intelligence and zeal; and though she was prevented, as +much, perhaps, by her native modesty, as by the constitution of the +Church, [116:5] from officiating as a public instructor, she was, no +doubt, "apt to teach;" and there must have been something most +interesting and impressive in her private conversation. It is a +remarkable fact that one of the ablest preachers of the apostolic age +was largely indebted to a female for his acquaintance with Christian +theology. + +The accession, at this juncture, of such a convert as Apollos was of +great importance to the evangelical cause. The Church of Corinth, in the +absence of Paul, much required the services of a minister of superior +ability; and the learned Alexandrian was eminently qualified to promote +its edification. He was "an eloquent man, and mighty in the Scriptures." +[117:1] After sojourning some time at Ephesus, it seems to have occurred +to him that he would have a more extensive sphere of usefulness at +Corinth; and "when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren +wrote exhorting the disciples to receive him." [117:2] It soon appeared +that his friends in Asia had formed no exaggerated idea of his gifts and +acquirements. When he reached the Greek capital, he "helped them much +which had believed through grace; for he mightily convinced the Jews, +and that publicly, shewing by the Scriptures that Jesus was Christ." +[117:3] His surpassing rhetorical ability soon proved a snare to some of +the hypercritical Corinthians, and tempted them to institute invidious +comparisons between him and their great apostle. Hence in the first +epistle addressed to them, the writer finds it necessary to rebuke them +for their folly and fastidiousness. "While one saith, I am of Paul, and +another, I am of Apollos, are ye," says he, "not carnal? Who then is +Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the +Lord gave to every man? I have planted, Apollos watered, but God gave +the increase." [117:4] + +When Aquila and Priscilla were at Ephesus expounding "the way of God +more perfectly" to the Jew of Alexandria, Paul was travelling to +Jerusalem. Three years before, he had been there to confer with the +apostles and elders concerning the circumcision of the Gentiles; and he +had not since visited the holy city. His present stay seems to have been +short--apparently not extending beyond a few days at the time of the +feast of Pentecost,--and giving him a very brief opportunity of +intercourse with his brethren of the Jewish capital. He then "went down +to Antioch" [118:1]--a place with which from the commencement of his +missionary career he had been more intimately associated. "After he had +spent some time there, he departed and went over all the country of +Galatia and Phrygia in order, strengthening all the disciples." [118:2] +On a former occasion, after he had passed through the same districts, he +had been "forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in (the +Proconsular) Asia;" [118:3] but, at this time, the restriction was +removed, and in accordance with the promise made to the Jews at Ephesus +in the preceding spring, he now resumed his evangelical labours in that +far-famed metropolis. There must have been a strong disposition on the +part of many of the seed of Abraham in the place to attend to his +instructions, as he was permitted "for the space of _three months_" to +occupy the synagogue, "disputing and persuading the things concerning +the kingdom of God." [118:4] At length, however, he began to meet with +so much opposition that he found it expedient to discontinue his +addresses in the Jewish meeting-house. "When divers were hardened and +believed not, but spake evil of that way before the multitude, he +departed from them, and separated the disciples, disputing daily in the +school of one Tyrannus." [118:5] This Tyrannus was, in all probability, +a Gentile convert, and a teacher of rhetoric--a department of education +very much cultivated at that period by all youths anxious to attain +social distinction. What is here called his "school," appears to have +been a spacious lecture-room sufficient to accommodate a numerous +auditory. + +About this time the Epistle to the Galatians was, in all likelihood, +written. The Galatians, as their name indicated, were the descendants of +a colony of Gaols settled in Asia Minor several centuries before; and, +like the French of the present day, seem to have been distinguished by +their lively and mercurial temperament. Paul had recently visited their +country for the second time, [119:1] and had been received by them with +the warmest demonstrations of regard; but meanwhile Humanizing zealots +had appeared among them, and had been only too successful in their +efforts to induce them to observe the Mosaic ceremonies. The apostle, at +Antioch, and at the synod of Jerusalem, had already protested against +these attempts; and subsequent reflection had only more thoroughly +convinced him of their danger. Hence he here addresses the Galatians in +terms of unusual severity. "I marvel," he exclaims, "that ye are so soon +removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another +gospel"--"O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you that ye should not +obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set +forth, crucified among you!" [119:2] At the same time he proves that the +sinner is saved by faith alone; that the Mosaic institutions were +designed merely for the childhood of the Church; and that the disciples +of Jesus should refuse to be "entangled" with any such "yoke of +bondage." [120:1] His epistle throughout is a most emphatic testimony to +the doctrine of a free justification. + +Some time after Paul reached Ephesus, on his return from Jerusalem, he +appears to have made a short visit to Corinth. [120:2] There is no doubt +that he encountered a variety of dangers of which no record is to be +found in the Acts of the Apostles; [120:3] and it is most probable that +many of these disasters were experienced about this period. Thus, not +long after this date, he says--"Thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and +a day I have been in the deep." [120:4] There are good grounds for +believing that he now visited Crete, as well as Corinth; and it would +seem that these voyages exposed him to the "perils in the sea" which he +enumerates among his trials. [120:5] On his departure from Crete he left +Titus behind him to "set in order the things that were wanting, and to +ordain elders in every city;" [120:6] and in the spring of A.D. 57 he +wrote to the evangelist that brief epistle in which he points out, with +so much fidelity and wisdom, the duties of the pastoral office. [120:7] +The silence of Luke respecting this visit to Crete is the less +remarkable, as the name of Titus does not once occur in the book of the +Acts, though there is distinct evidence that he was deeply interested in +some of the most important transactions which are there narrated. +[120:8] + +Paul, about two years before, had been prevented, as has been stated, by +a divine intimation, from preaching in the district called Asia; but +when he now commenced his ministrations in Ephesus, its capital, he +continued in that city and its neighbourhood longer than in any other +place he had yet visited. After withdrawing from the synagogue and +resuming his labours in the school of Tyrannus, he remained there "by +the space of _two years_; so that all they which dwelt in Asia heard the +word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks." [121:1] Meanwhile the +churches of Laodicea, Colosse, and Hierapolis appear to have been +founded. [121:2] The importance of Ephesus gave it a special claim to +the attention which it now received. It was the metropolis of the +district, and the greatest commercial city in the whole of Asia Minor. +Whilst it was connected by convenient roads with all parts of the +interior, it was visited by trading vessels from the various harbours of +the Mediterranean. But, in another point of view, it was a peculiarly +interesting field of missionary labour; for it was, perhaps, the most +celebrated of all the high places of Eastern superstition. Its temple of +Artemis, or Diana, was one of the wonders of the world. This gorgeous +structure, covering an area of upwards of two acres, [121:3] was +ornamented with columns one hundred and twenty-seven in number, each +sixty feet high, and each the gift of a king. [121:4] It was nearly all +open to the sky, but that part of it which was covered, was roofed with +cedar. The image of the goddess occupied a comparatively small apartment +within the magnificent enclosure. This image, which was said to have +fallen down from Jupiter, [121:5] was not like one of those pieces of +beautiful sculpture which adorned the Acropolis of Athens, but rather +resembled an Indian idol, being an unsightly female form with many +breasts, made of wood, and terminating below in a shapeless block. +[122:1] On several parts of it were engraved mysterious symbols, called +"Ephesian letters." [122:2] These letters, when _pronounced_, were +believed to operate as charms, and, when _written_, were carried about +as amulets. To those who sought an acquaintance with the Ephesian magic, +they constituted an elaborate study, and many books were composed to +expound their significance, and point out their application. + +About this time the famous Apollonius of Tyana [122:3] was attracting +uncommon attention by his tricks as a conjuror; and it has been thought +not improbable that he now met Paul in Ephesus. If so, we can assign at +least one reason why the apostle was prevented from making his +appearance at an earlier date in the Asiatic metropolis. Men had thus an +opportunity of comparing the wonders of the greatest of magicians with +the miracles of the gospel; and of marking the contrast between the +vainglory of an impostor, and the humility of a servant of Jesus. The +attentive reader of Scripture may observe that some of the most +extraordinary of the mighty works recorded in the New Testament were +performed at this period; and it is not unreasonable to conclude that, +in a city so much given to jugglery and superstition, these genuine +displays of the power of Omnipotence were exhibited for the express +purpose of demonstrating the incomparable superiority of the Author of +Christianity. It is said that "God wrought _special miracles_ by the +hands of Paul, so that from his body were brought unto the sick +handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the +evil spirits went out of them." [123:1] The disastrous consequences of +an attempt, on the part of the sons of a Jewish priest, to heal the +afflicted by using the name of the Lord Jesus as a charm, alarmed the +entire tribe of exorcists and magicians. "The man, in whom the evil +spirit was, leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against +them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. And this +was known to all the Jews and Greeks also dwelling at Ephesus, and _fear +fell on them all_, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified." +[123:2] The visit of Paul told upon the whole population, and tended +greatly to discourage the study of the "Ephesian letters". "Many of them +also which used curious arts brought their books together and burned +them before all men; and they counted the price of them, and found it +fifty thousand pieces of silver. [123:3] So mightily grew the word of +God and prevailed." [123:4] + +Some time before the departure of Paul from Ephesus, he wrote the First +Epistle to the Corinthians. The letter contains internal evidence that +it was dictated in the spring of A.D. 57. [123:5] The circumstances of +the Corinthian disciples at this juncture imperatively required the +interference of the apostle. Divisions had sprung up in their community; +[123:6] the flagrant conduct of one member had brought dishonour on the +whole Christian name; [123:7] and various forms of error had been making +their appearance. [123:8] Paul therefore felt it right to address to +them a lengthened and energetic remonstrance. This letter is more +diversified in its contents than any of his other epistles; and presents +us with a most interesting view of the daily life of the primitive +Christians in a great commercial city. It furnishes conclusive evidence +that the Apostolic Church of Corinth was not the paragon of excellence +which the ardent and unreflecting have often pictured in their +imaginations, but a community compassed with infirmities, and certainly +not elevated, in point of spiritual worth, above some of the more +healthy Christian congregations of the nineteenth century. + +Shortly after this letter was transmitted to its destination, Ephesus +was thrown into a ferment by the riotous proceedings of certain parties +who had an interest in the maintenance of the pagan superstition. Among +those who derived a subsistence from the idolatry of its celebrated +temple were a class of workmen who "made silver shrines for Diana," +[124:1] that is, who manufactured little models of the sanctuary and of +the image which it contained. These models were carried about by the +devotees of the goddess in processions, and set up, in private +dwellings, as household deities. [124:2] The impression produced by the +Christian missionaries in the Asiatic metropolis had affected the +traffic in such articles, and those who were engaged in it began to +apprehend that their trade would be ultimately ruined. An individual, +named Demetrius, who appears to have been a master-manufacturer, did not +find it difficult, under these circumstances, to collect a mob, and to +disturb the peace of the city. Calling together the operatives of his +own establishment, "with the workmen of like occupation," [124:3] he +said to them--"Sirs, ye know, that by this craft we have our wealth. +Moreover, ye see and know, that not alone at Ephesus, but almost +throughout all Asia, this Paul hath persuaded and turned away much +people, saying that they be no gods which are made with hands--so that +not only this our craft is in danger to be set at nought, but also that +the temple of the great goddess Diana should be despised, and her +magnificence should be destroyed, whom all Asia and the world +worshipped." [125:1] This address did not fail to produce the effect +contemplated. A strong current of indignation was turned against the +missionaries; and the craftsmen were convinced that they were bound to +support the credit of their tutelary guardian. They were "full of wrath, +and cried out saying--Great is Diana of the Ephesians." [125:2] This +proceeding seems to have taken place in the month of May, and at a time +when public games were celebrated in honour of the Ephesian goddess, +[125:3] so that a large concourse of strangers now thronged the +metropolis. An immense crowd rapidly collected; the whole city was +filled with confusion; and it soon appeared that the lives of the +Christian preachers were in danger; for the mob caught "Gaius and +Aristech's, men of Macedonia, Paul's companions in travel," and "rushed +with one accord into the theatre." [125:4] This edifice, the largest of +the kind in Asia Minor, is said to have been capable of containing +thirty thousand persons. [125:5] As it was sufficiently capacious to +accommodate the multitudinous assemblage, and as it was also the +building in which public meetings of the citizens were usually convened, +it was now quickly occupied. Paul was at first prompted to enter it, and +to plead his cause before the excited throng; but some of the +magistrates, or, as they are called by the evangelist, "certain of the +_chief of Asia_, which were his friends, sent unto him, desiring him +that he would not adventure himself" into so perilous a position. +[125:6] These _Asiarchs_ were persons of exalted rank who presided at +the celebration of the public spectacles. The apostle was now in very +humble circumstances, for even in Ephesus he continued to work at the +occupation of a tent-maker; [126:1] and it is no mean testimony to his +worth that he had secured the esteem of such high functionaries. It was +quickly manifest that any attempt to appease the crowd would have been +utterly in vain. A Jew, named Alexander, who seems to have been one of +the craftsmen, and who was, perhaps, the same who is elsewhere +distinguished as "the coppersmith," [126:2] made an effort to address +them, probably with the view of shewing that his co-religionists were +not identified with Paul; but when the mob perceived that he was one of +the seed of Abraham, they took it for granted that he was no friend to +the manufacture of their silver shrines; and his appearance was the +signal for increased uproar. "When they knew that he was a Jew, all with +one voice, _about the space of two hours_, cried out--Great is Diana of +the Ephesians." [126:3] At length the town-clerk, or recorder, of +Ephesus, contrived to obtain a hearing; and, by his prudence and +address, succeeded in putting an end to this scene of confusion. He told +his fellow-townsmen that, if Paul and his companions had transgressed +the law, they could be made amenable to punishment; but that, as their +own attachment to the worship of Diana could not be disputed, their +present tumultuary proceedings could only injure their reputation as +orderly and loyal citizens. "We are in danger," said he, "to be called +in question for this day's uproar, there being no cause whereby we may +give an account of this concourse." [127:1] The authority of the speaker +imparted additional weight to his suggestions, the multitude quietly +dispersed, and the missionaries escaped unscathed. + +Even this tumult supplies evidence that the Christian preachers had +already produced an immense impression in this great metropolis. No more +decisive test of their success could be adduced than that here furnished +by Demetrius and his craftsmen; for a lucrative trade connected with the +established superstition was beginning to languish. The silversmiths, +and the other operatives whose interests were concerned, were obviously +the instigators of all the uproar; and it does not appear that they +could reckon upon the undivided sympathy even of the crowd they had +congregated. "Some cried one thing, and some another, for the assembly +was confused, and the _more part_ knew not wherefore they were come +together." [127:2] A number of the Asiarchs were decidedly favourable to +the apostle and his brethren; and when the town-clerk referred to their +proceedings his tone was apologetic and exculpatory. "Ye have," said he, +"brought hither these men who are neither profaners of temples, [127:3] +nor yet blasphemers of your goddess." [127:4] But here we see the real +cause of much of that bitter persecution which the Christians endured +for the greater part of three centuries. The craft of the imagemakers +was in danger; the income of the pagan priests was at stake; the secular +interests of many other parties were more or less affected; and hence +the new religion encountered such a cruel and obstinate opposition. + + + + + +CHAPTER IX. + +PAUL'S EPISTLES; HIS COLLECTION FOR THE POOR SAINTS AT JERUSALEM; +HIS IMPRISONMENT THERE, AND AT CAESAREA AND ROME. + +A.D. 57 TO A.D. 63. + + +Paul had already determined to leave Ephesus at Pentecost, [128:1] and +as the secular games, at which the Asiarchs presided, took place during +the month of May, the disorderly proceedings of Demetrius and the +craftsmen, which occurred at the same period, do not seem to have +greatly accelerated his removal. Soon afterwards, however, he "called +unto him the disciples, and embraced them, and departed to go into +Macedonia." [128:2] When he reached that district, he was induced to +enter on new scenes of missionary enterprise; and now, "round about unto +Illyricum," he "fully preached the gospel of Christ." [128:3] Shortly +before, Timothy had returned from Greece to Ephesus, [128:4] and when +the apostle took leave of his friends in that metropolis, he left the +evangelist behind him to protect the infant Church against the +seductions of false teachers. [128:5] He now addressed the first epistle +to his "own son in the faith," [128:6] and thus also supplied to the +ministers of all succeeding generations the most precious instructions +on the subject of pastoral theology. [129:1] Soon afterwards he wrote +the Second Epistle to the Corinthians. This letter throws much light on +the private character of Paul, and enables us to understand how he +contrived to maintain such a firm hold on the affections of those among +whom he ministered. Though he uniformly acted with great decision, he +was singularly amiable and gentle, as well as generous and warm-hearted. +No one could doubt his sincerity; no one could question his +disinterestedness; no one could fairly complain that he was harsh or +unkind. In his First Epistle to the Corinthians he had been obliged to +employ strong language when rebuking them for their irregularities; but +now they exhibited evidences of repentance, and he is obviously most +willing to forget and forgive. In his Second Epistle to them he enters +into many details of his personal history unnoticed elsewhere in the New +Testament, [130:1] and throughout displays a most loving and +conciliatory spirit. He states that, when he dictated his former letter, +it was far from his intention to wound their feelings, and that it was +with the utmost pain he had sent them such a communication. "Out of much +affliction, and anguish of heart," said he, "I wrote unto you with many +tears, not that ye should be grieved, but that ye might know the love +which I have more abundantly unto you." [130:2] The Corinthians could +not have well resented an advice from such a correspondent. + +When Paul had itinerated throughout Macedonia and Illyricum "he came +into Greece, [130:3] and there abode three months." [130:4] He now +visited Corinth for the third time; and, during his stay in that city, +dictated the Epistle to the Romans. [130:5] At this date, a Church +"spoken of throughout the whole world" [130:6] had been formed in the +great metropolis; some of its members were the relatives of the apostle; +[130:7] and others, such as Priscilla and Aquila, [130:8] had been +converted under his ministry. As he himself contemplated an early visit +to the far-famed city, [130:9] he sent this letter before him, to +announce his intentions, and to supply the place of his personal +instructions. The Epistle to the Romans is a precious epitome of +Christian theology. It is more systematic in its structure than, +perhaps, any other of the writings of Paul; and being a very lucid +exposition of the leading truths taught by the inspired heralds of the +gospel, it remains an emphatic testimony to the doctrinal defections of +the religious community now bearing the name of the Church to which it +was originally addressed. + +The apostle had been recently making arrangements for another visit to +Jerusalem; and he accordingly left Greece in the spring of A.D. 58; but +the malignity of his enemies appears to have obliged him to change his +plan of travelling. "When the Jews laid wait for him as he was about to +sail" from Cenchrea, the port of Corinth, "into Syria," he found it +expedient "to return through Macedonia." [131:1] Proceeding, therefore, +to Philippi, [131:2] the city in which he had commenced his European +ministry, he passed over to Troas; [131:3] and then continued his +journey along the coast of Asia Minor. On his arrival at Miletus "he +sent to Ephesus, and called the elders of the Church; and, when they +were come to him," he delivered to them a very pathetic pastoral +address, and bade them farewell. [131:4] At the conclusion, "he kneeled +down and prayed with them all, and they all wept sore, and fell on +Paul's neck, and kissed him, sorrowing most of all for the words which +he spake that they should see his face no more: and they accompanied him +unto the ship." [131:5] He now pursued his course to Jerusalem, and +after various delays, arrived at Caesarea. There, says Luke, "we entered +into the house of Philip, the evangelist, which was one of the seven, +and abode with him." [131:6] In Caesarea, as in other cities through +which he had already passed, he was told that bonds and afflictions +awaited him in the place of his destination; [131:7] but he was not thus +deterred from pursuing his journey. "When he would not be persuaded," +says the sacred historian, "we ceased, saying, The will of the Lord be +done, and after those days, having packed up, [131:8] we went up to +Jerusalem." [131:9] The apostle and his companions reached the holy city +about the time of the feast of Pentecost. + +Paul was well aware that there were not a few, even among the Christians +of Palestine, by whom he was regarded with jealousy or dislike; and he +had reason to believe that the agitation for the observance of the +ceremonial law, which had disturbed the Churches of Galatia, had been +promoted by the zealots of the Hebrew metropolis. But he had a strong +attachment to the land of his fathers; and he felt deeply interested in +the well-being of his brethren in Judea. They were generally in indigent +circumstances; for, after the crucifixion, when the Spirit was poured +out on the day of Pentecost, those of them who had property "sold their +possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had +need;" [132:1] and, ever since, they had been harassed and persecuted by +their unbelieving countrymen. "The poor saints" that were in Jerusalem +[132:2] had, therefore, peculiar claims on the kind consideration of the +disciples in other lands; and Paul had been making collections for their +benefit among their richer co-religionists in Greece and Asia Minor. A +considerable sum had been thus provided; and that there might be no +misgivings as to its right appropriation, individuals chosen by the +contributors had been appointed to travel with the apostle, and to +convey it to Jerusalem. [132:3] The number of the deputies appears to +have been seven, namely, "Sopater of Berea; and of the Thessalonians, +Aristech's and Secundus; and Gaius of Derbe, and Timotheus; and of +Asia, Tychicus and Trophimus." [132:4] The apostle knew that he had +enemies waiting for his halting; and as they would willingly have seized +upon any apology for accusing him of tampering with this collection, he, +no doubt, deemed it prudent to put it into other hands, and thus place +himself above challenge. But he appears to have had a farther reason for +suggesting the appointment of these commissioners. He was, in all +likelihood, desirous that his brethren in Judea should have a favourable +specimen of the men who constituted "the first fruits of the Gentiles;" +and as all the deputies selected to accompany him to Jerusalem seem to +have been persons of an excellent spirit, he probably reckoned that +their wise and winning behaviour would do much to disarm the hostility +of those who had hitherto contended so strenuously for the observance of +the Mosaic ceremonies. Solomon has said that "a man's gift maketh room +for him;" [133:1] and if Gentile converts could ever expect a welcome +reception from those who were zealous for the law, it was surely when +they appeared as the bearers of the liberality of the Gentile Churches. + +When the apostle and his companions reached the Jewish capital, "the +brethren received them gladly." [133:2] Paul was, however, given to +understand that, as he was charged with encouraging the neglect of the +Mosaic ceremonies, he must be prepared to meet a large amount of +prejudice; and he was accordingly recommended to endeavour to pacify the +multitude by giving some public proof that he himself "walked orderly +and kept the law." [133:3] Acting on this advice, he joined with four +men who had on them a Nazaritic vow; [133:4] and, "purifying himself +with them, entered into the temple." [133:5] When there, he was observed +by certain Jews from Asia Minor, who had probably become acquainted with +his personal appearance during his residence in Ephesus; and as they had +before seen him in the city with Trophimus, one of the seven deputies +and a convert from paganism, whom they seem also to have known, [134:1] +they immediately concluded that he had now some Gentile companions along +with him, and that he was encouraging the uncircumcised to pollute with +their presence the sacred court of the Israelites. A tumult forthwith +ensued; the report of the defilement of the holy place quickly +circulated through the crowd; "all the city was moved;" [134:2] the +people ran together; and Paul was seized and dragged out of the temple. +[134:3] The apostle would have fallen a victim to popular fury had it +not been for the prompt interference of the officer who had the command +of the Roman garrison in the tower of Antonia. This stronghold +overlooked the courts of the sanctuary; and, no doubt, some of the +sentinels on duty immediately gave notice of the commotion. The chief +captain, whose name was Claudius Lysias, [134:4] at once "took soldiers +and centurions," and running down to the rioters, arrived in time to +prevent a fatal termination of the affray; for, as soon as the military +made their appearance, the assailants "left beating of Paul." [134:5] +"Then the chief captain came near, and took him, and commanded him to be +bound with two chains, and demanded who he was, and what he had done. +And some cried one thing, some another, among the multitude, and when he +could not know the certainty for the tumult, he commanded him to be +carried into the castle." [134:6] In proceeding thus, the commanding +officer acted illegally; for, as Paul was a Roman citizen, he should +not, without a trial, have been deprived of his liberty, and put in +irons. But Lysias, in the hurry and confusion of the moment, had been +deceived by false information; as he had been led to believe that his +prisoner was an Egyptian, a notorious outlaw, who, "before these days," +had created much alarm by leading "out into the wilderness four thousand +men that were murderers." [135:1] He was quite astonished to find that +the individual whom he had rescued from such imminent danger was a +citizen of Tarsus in Cilicia who could speak Greek; and as it was now +evident that there existed much misapprehension, the apostle was +permitted to stand on the stairs of the fortress, and address the +multitude. When they saw him preparing to make some statement, the noise +subsided; and, "when they heard that he spake to them in the Hebrew +tongue," that is, in the Aramaic, the current language of the country, +"they kept the more silence." [135:2] Paul accordingly proceeded to give +an account of his early life, of the remarkable circumstances of his +conversion, and of his subsequent career; but, when he mentioned his +mission to the Gentiles, it was at once apparent that the topic was most +unpopular, for his auditors lost all patience. "They gave him audience +unto this word, and then lifted up their voices and said, Away with such +a fellow from the earth, for it is not fit that he should live. And as +they cried out, and cast off their clothes, and threw dust into the air, +the chief captain commanded him to be brought into the castle." [135:3] + +The confinement of Paul, which now commenced at the feast of Pentecost +in A.D. 58, continued about five years. It may be enough to notice the +mere outline of his history during this tedious bondage. In the first +place, for the purpose of ascertaining the exact nature of the charge +against him, he was confronted with the Sanhedrim; but when he informed +them that "of the hope and resurrection of the dead" he was called in +question, [136:1] there "arose a dissension between the Pharisees and +the Sadducees" [136:2] constituting the council; and the chief captain, +fearing lest his prisoner "should have been pulled in pieces of them, +commanded the soldiers to go down, and to take him by force from among +them, and to bring him into the castle." [136:3] Certain of the Jews, +about forty in number, now entered into a conspiracy binding themselves +"under a curse, saying, that they would neither eat nor drink till they +had killed Paul;" [136:4] and it was arranged that the bloody vow should +be executed when, under pretence of a new examination, he should be +brought again before the Sanhedrim; but their proceedings meanwhile +became known to the apostle's nephew; the chief captain received timely +information; and the scheme thus miscarried. [136:5] Paul, protected by +a strong military escort, was now sent away by night to Caesarea; and, +when there, was repeatedly examined before Felix, the Roman magistrate +who at this time, under the title of Procurator, had the government of +Judea. The historian Tacitus says of this imperial functionary that "in +the practice of all kinds of cruelty and lust, he exercised the power of +a king with the mind of a slave;" [136:6] and it is a remarkable proof, +as well of the intrepid faithfulness, as of the eloquence of the +apostle, that he succeeded in arresting the attention, and in alarming +the fears of this worthless profligate. Drusilla, his wife, a woman who +had deserted her former husband, [136:7] was a Jewess; and, as she +appears to have been desirous to see and hear the great Christian +preacher who had been labouring with so much zeal to propagate his +principles throughout the Empire, Paul, to satisfy her curiosity, was +brought into her presence. But an interview, which seems to have been +designed merely for the amusement of the Procurator and his partner, +soon assumed an appearance of the deepest solemnity. As the grave and +earnest orator went on to expound the faith of the gospel, and "as he +reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix +trembled." [137:1] His apprehensions, however, soon passed away, and +though he was fully convinced that Paul had not incurred any legal +penalty, he continued to keep him in confinement, basely expecting to +obtain a bribe for his liberation. When disappointed in this hope, he +still perversely refused to set him at liberty. Thus, "after two years," +when "Porcius Festus came into Felix' room," the ex-Procurator, "willing +to shew the Jews a pleasure, left Paul bound." [137:2] + +The apostle was soon required to appear before the new Governor. Festus +has left behind him the reputation of an equitable judge; [137:3] and +though he was obviously most desirous to secure the good opinion of the +Jews, he could not be induced by them to act with palpable injustice. +After he had brought them down to Caesarea, and listened to their +complaints against the prisoner, he perceived that they could convict +him of no violation of the law; but he proposed to gratify them so far +as to have the case reheard in the holy city. Paul, however, well knew +that they only sought such an opportunity to compass his assassination, +and therefore peremptorily refused to consent to the arrangement. "I +stand," said he, "at Caesar's judgment-seat, where I ought to be judged. +To the Jews have I done no wrong, as thou very well knowest. For if I be +an offender, or have committed anything worthy of death, I refuse not to +die; but if there be none of these things whereof these accuse me, no +man may deliver me unto them. _I appeal unto Caesar._" [138:1] + +The right of appeal from the decision of an inferior tribunal to the +Emperor himself was one of the great privileges of a Roman citizen; and +no magistrate could refuse to recognise it without exposing himself to +condign punishment. There were, indeed, a few exceptional cases of a +flagrant character in which such an appeal could not be received; and +Festus here consulted with his assessors to ascertain in what light the +law contemplated that of the apostle. It appeared, however, that he was +at perfect liberty to demand a hearing before the tribunal of Nero. +"Then," says the evangelist, "when Festus had conferred with the +council, he answered, Hast thou appealed unto Caesar? Unto Caesar shalt +thou go." [138:2] + +The Procurator was now placed in a somewhat awkward position; for, when +sending Paul to Rome, he was required at the same time to report the +crimes imputed to the prisoner; but the charges were so novel, and +apparently so frivolous, that he did not well know how to embody them in +an intelligible document. Meanwhile King Agrippa and his sister Bernice +came to Caesarea "to salute Festus," [138:3] that is, to congratulate +the new Governor on his arrival in the country; and the royal party +expressed a desire to hear what the apostle had to say in his +vindication. Agrippa was great-grandson of that Herod who reigned in +Judea when Jesus was born in Bethlehem, and the son of the monarch of +the same name whose sudden and awful death is recorded in the twelfth +chapter of the Acts. On the demise of his father in A.D. 44, he was only +seventeen years of age; and Judea, which was then reduced into the form +a Roman province with Caesarea for its capital, had remained ever since +under the government of Procurators. But though Agrippa had not been +permitted to succeed to the dominions of his father, he had received +various proofs of imperial favour; for he had obtained the government, +first of the principality of Chalcis, and then of several other +districts; and he had been honoured with the title of King. [139:1] The +Gentile Procurators could not be expected to be very minutely acquainted +with the ritual and polity of Israel; but as Agrippa was a Jew, and +consequently familiar with the customs and sentiments of the native +population, he had been entrusted with the care of the temple and its +treasures, as well as with the appointment of the high priest. Festus, +no doubt, felt that in a case such as that of Paul, the advice of this +visitor should be solicited; and hoped that Agrippa would be able to +supply some suggestion to relieve him out of his present perplexity. It +was accordingly arranged that the apostle should be permitted to plead +his cause in the hearing of the Jewish monarch. The affair seems to have +created unusual interest; the public appear to have been partially +admitted on the occasion; and seldom, or, perhaps, never before, had +Paul enjoyed an opportunity of addressing such an influential and +brilliant auditory. "Agrippa came, and Bernice, _with great pomp_, and +entered into the place of hearing, with the chief captains, and +principal men of the city." [139:2] Paul, still in bonds, made his +appearance before this courtly throng; and though it might have been +expected that a two years' confinement would have broken the spirit of +the prisoner, he displayed powers of argument and eloquence which +astonished and confounded his judges. The Procurator was quite +bewildered by his reasoning, for he appealed to "the promise made unto +the fathers," [139:3] and to things which "Moses and the prophets did +say should come;" [140:1] and as Festus could not appreciate the lofty +enthusiasm of the Christian orator (for he had never, when at Rome, been +accustomed to hear the advocates of heathenism plead so earnestly in its +defence), he "said with a loud voice--Paul, thou art beside thyself; +much learning doth make thee mad." [140:2] But the apostle's +self-possession was in nowise shaken by this blunt charge. "I am not +mad, most noble Festus," he replied, "but speak forth the words of truth +and soberness;" and then, turning to the royal stranger, vigorously +pressed home his argument. "King Agrippa," he exclaimed, "believest thou +the prophets? I know that thou believest." [140:3] The King, thus +challenged, was a libertine; and at this very time was believed to be +living in incestuous intercourse with his sister Bernice; and yet he +seems to have been staggered by Paul's solemn and pointed interrogatory. +"Almost," said he, "thou persuadest me to be a Christian." [140:4] It +has been thought by some that these words were uttered with a sneer; but +whatever may have been the frivolity of the Jewish King, they elicited +from the apostle one of the noblest rejoinders that ever issued from +human lips, "And Paul said, I would to God that not only thou, but also +all that hear me this day, were both almost and altogether such as I am, +except these bonds." [140:5] + +The singularly able defence now made by the apostle convinced his judges +of the futility of the charges preferred against him by the Sanhedrim. +But at this stage of the proceedings it was no longer practicable to +quash the prosecution. When Paul concluded his address "the king rose +up, and the governor, and Bernice, and they that sat with them. And when +they were gone aside, they talked between themselves, saying--This man +doeth nothing worthy of death or of bonds. Then said Agrippa unto +Festus--This man might have been set at liberty, if he had not appealed +unto Caesar." [141:1] + +At first sight it may appear extraordinary that so eminent a missionary +in the meridian of his usefulness was subjected to so long an +imprisonment. But "God's ways are not as our ways, nor His thoughts as +our thoughts." When thus, to a great extent, laid aside from official +duty, he had ample time to commune with his own heart, and to trace out, +with adoring wonder, the glorious grace and the manifold wisdom of the +work of redemption. Having himself partaken largely of affliction, and +experienced the sustaining power of the gospel so abundantly, he was the +better prepared to comfort the distressed; and hence his letters, +written at this period, are so full of consolation. [141:2] And apart +from other considerations, we may here recognise the fulfilment of a +prophetic announcement. When Paul was converted, the Lord said to +Ananias--"He is a chosen vessel unto me to bear my name before the +Gentiles, and _kings_, and the children of Israel, for I will shew him +_how great things he must suffer_ for my name's sake." [141:3] During +his protracted confinement he exhibited alike to Jew and Gentile an +illustrious specimen of faith and constancy; and called attention to the +truth in many quarters where otherwise it might have remained unknown. +Though he was chained to a soldier, he was not kept in very rigorous +custody, so that he had frequent opportunities of proclaiming the great +salvation. He was peculiarly fitted by his education and his genius for +expounding Christianity to persons moving in the upper circles of +society; and had he remained at liberty he could have expected to gain +access very rarely to such auditors. But already, as a prisoner, he had +pleaded the claims of the gospel before no inconsiderable portion of the +aristocracy of Palestine. He had been heard by the chief captain in +command of the garrison in the castle of Antonia, by the Sanhedrim, by +Felix and Drusilla, by Festus, by King Agrippa and his sister Bernice, +and probably by "the principal men" of both Caesarea and Jerusalem. In +criminal cases the appeals of Roman citizens were heard by the Emperor +himself, so that the apostle was about to appear as an ambassador for +Christ in the presence of the greatest of earth's potentates. Who can +tell but that some of that splendid assembly of senators and nobles who +surrounded Nero, when Paul was brought before his judgment-seat, will +have reason throughout all eternity to remember the occasion as the +birth-day of their blessedness! + +The apostle and "certain other prisoners" embarked for Rome in the +autumn of A.D. 60. The compass was then unknown; in weather, "when +neither sun nor stars in many days appeared," [142:1] the mariner was +without a guide; and, late in the season, navigation was peculiarly +dangerous. The voyage proved disastrous; after passing into a second +vessel at Myra, [142:2] a city of Lycia, Paul and his companions were +wrecked on the coast of the island of Malta; [142:3] when they had +remained there three months, they set sail once more in a corn ship of +Alexandria, the Castor and Pollux; [142:4] and at length in the early +part of A.D. 61, reached the harbour of Puteoli, [143:1] then the great +shipping port of Italy. + +The account of the voyage from Caesarea to Puteoli, as given in the Acts +of the Apostles, is one of the most curious passages to be found in the +whole of the sacred volume. Some may think it strange that the inspired +historian enters so much into details, and the nautical terms which he +employs may puzzle not a few readers; but these features of his +narrative attest its authenticity and genuineness. No one, who had not +himself shared the perils of the scene, could have been expected to +describe with so much accuracy the circumstances of the shipwreck. It +has been remarked that, after the lapse of eighteen hundred years, the +references of the evangelist to prevailing winds and currents, to the +indentations of the coast, to islands, bays, and harbours, may still be +exactly verified. Recent investigators have demonstrated that the +sailors, in the midst of danger, displayed no little ability, and that +their conduct in "undergirding the ship," [143:2] and in casting "four +anchors out of the stern," [143:3] evidenced their skilful seamanship. +Luke states that, after a long period of anxiety and abstinence, "about +midnight the shipmen deemed that they drew near to some country." +[143:4] The headland they were approaching is very low, and in a stormy +night is said to be invisible even at the distance of a quarter of a +mile; [143:5] but the sailors could detect the shore by other +indications. Even in a storm _the roar of breakers_ can be distinguished +from other sounds by the practised ear of a mariner; [144:1] and it can +be shewn that, with such a gale as was then blowing, the sea still +dashes with amazing violence against the very same point of land off +which Paul and his companions were that night labouring. In the depth of +the water at the place there is another most remarkable coincidence. We +are told that the sailors "sounded and found it _twenty fathoms_, and +when they had gone a little farther, they sounded, and found it _fifteen +fathoms_." [144:2] "But what," observes a modern writer, "are the +soundings at this point? They are now _twenty fathoms_. If we proceed a +little farther we find _fifteen fathoms_. It may be said that this, in +itself is nothing remarkable. But if we add that the fifteen-fathom +depth is _in the direction of the vessel's drift_ (W. by N.) from the +twenty-fathom depth, the coincidence is startling." [144:3] It may be +stated also that the "creek with a shore" [144:4] or sandy beach, and +the "place where two seas met," [144:5] and where "they ran the ship +aground" may still be recognised in what is now called St Paul's Bay at +Malta. [144:6] Even in the nature of the submarine strata we have a most +striking confirmation of the truth of the inspired history. It appears +that the four anchors cast out of the stern retained their hold, and it +is well known that the ground in St Paul's Bay is remarkably firm; for +in our English sailing directions it is mentioned that "while the cables +hold, there is no danger, as the anchors will never start." [144:7] Luke +reports that when the ship ran aground, "the fore-part stuck fast and +remained unmoveable" [144:8]--a statement which is corroborated by the +fact that "the bottom is mud graduating into tenacious clay" +[145:1]--exactly the species of deposit from which such a result might +be anticipated. + +When Paul landed at Puteoli, he must have contemplated with deep emotion +the prospect of his arrival in Rome. The city to which he now approached +contained, perhaps, upwards of a million of human beings. [145:2] But +the amount of its inhabitants was one of the least remarkable of its +extraordinary distinctions. It was the capital of the mightiest empire +that had ever yet existed; one hundred races speaking one hundred +languages were under its dominion; [145:3] and the sceptre which ruled +so many subject provinces was wielded by an absolute potentate. This +great autocrat was the high priest of heathenism--thus combining the +grandeur of temporal majesty with the sacredness of religious elevation. +Senators and generals, petty kings and provincial governors, were all +obliged to bow obsequiously to his mandates. In this vast metropolis +might be found natives of almost every clime; some engaged in its trade; +some who had travelled to it from distant countries to solicit the +imperial favour; some, like Paul, conveyed to it as prisoners; some +stimulated to visit it by curiosity; and some attracted to it by the +vague hope of bettering their condition. The city of the Caesars might +well be described as "sitting upon many waters;" [145:4] for, though +fourteen or fifteen miles from the mouth of the Tiber, the mistress of +the world was placed on a peninsula stretching out into the middle of a +great inland sea over which she reigned without a rival. In the summer +months almost every port of every country along the shores of the +Mediterranean sent forth vessels freighted with cargoes for the +merchants of Rome. [146:1] The fleet from Alexandria laden with wheat +for the supply of the city was treated with peculiar honour; for its +ships alone were permitted to hoist their topsails as they approached +the shore; a deputation of senators awaited its arrival; and, as soon as +it appeared, the whole surrounding population streamed to the pier, and +observed the day as a season of general jubilee. But an endless supply +of other articles in which the poor were less interested found their way +to Rome. The mines of Spain furnished the great capital with gold and +silver, whilst its sheep yielded wool of superior excellence; and, in +those times of Roman conquest, slaves were often transported from the +shores of Britain. The horses and chariots and fine linen of Egypt, the +gums and spices and silk and ivory and pearls of India, the Chian and +the Lesbian wines, and the beautiful marble of Greece and Asia Minor, +all met with purchasers in the mighty metropolis. [146:2] As John +surveyed in vision the fall of Rome, and as he thought of the almost +countless commodities which ministered to her insatiable luxury, well +might he represent the world's traffic as destroyed by the catastrophe; +and well might he speak of the merchants of the earth as weeping and +mourning over her, because "no man buyeth their merchandise any more." +[146:3] + +Paul had often desired to prosecute his ministry in the imperial city; +for he knew that if Christianity could obtain a firm footing in that +great centre of civilisation and of power, its influence would soon be +transmitted to the ends of the earth: but he now appeared there under +circumstances equally painful and discouraging. And yet even in this +embarrassing position he was not overwhelmed with despondency. At +Puteoli he "found brethren," [146:4] and through the indulgence of +Julius, the centurion to whose care he was committed, he was courteously +allowed to spend a week [147:1] with the little Church of which they +were members. He now set out on his way to the metropolis; but the +intelligence of his arrival had travelled before him, and after crossing +the Pomptine marshes, he was, no doubt, delighted to find a number of +Christian friends from Rome assembled at Appii Forum to tender to him +the assurances of their sympathy and affection. The place was +twenty-seven miles from the capital; and yet, at a time when travelling +was so tedious and so irksome, they had undertaken this lengthened +journey to visit the poor, weather-beaten, and tempest-tossed prisoner. +At the Three Taverns, ten miles nearer to the city, he met another party +of disciples [147:2] anxious to testify their attachment to so +distinguished a servant of their Divine Master. These tokens of respect +and love made a deep impression upon the susceptible mind of the +apostle; and it is accordingly stated that, when he saw the brethren, +"he thanked God and took courage." [147:3] + +The important services he had been able to render on the voyage gave him +a claim to particular indulgence; and accordingly, when he reached Rome, +and when the centurion delivered the prisoners to the Praetorian +Prefect, or the commander-in-chief of the Praetorian guards, [147:4] +"Paul was suffered to dwell by himself with a soldier that kept him." +[147:5] But though he enjoyed this comparative liberty, he was chained +to his military care-taker, so that his position must still have been +very far from comfortable. And yet even thus he continued his ministry +with as much ardour as if he had been without restraint, and as if he +had been cheered on by the applause of his generation. Three days after +his arrival in the city he "called the chief of the Jews together," +[148:1] and gave them an account of the circumstances of his committal, +and of his appeal to the imperial tribunal. They informed him that his +case had not been reported to them by their brethren in Judea; and then +expressed a desire to hear from him a statement of the claims of +Christianity. "And when they had appointed him a day, there came many to +him into his lodging; to whom he expounded and testified the kingdom of +God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses and +out of the prophets from morning till evening." [148:2] His appeals +produced a favourable impression upon only a part of his audience. "Some +believed the things which were spoken, and some believed not." [148:3] + +Several years prior to this date a Christian Church existed in the +Western metropolis, and at this time there were probably several +ministers in the city; but the apostle, in all likelihood, now entered +upon some field of labour which had not hitherto been occupied. He +"dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that +came in unto him--preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those +things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence, no man +forbidding him." [148:4] All this time Paul's right hand was chained to +the left hand of a soldier, who was responsible for the safe keeping of +his prisoner. The soldiers relieved each other in this duty. [148:5] It +would appear that Paul's chain might be relaxed at meal-times, and +perhaps he was occasionally granted some little additional indulgence; +but day and night he and his care-taker must have remained in close +proximity, as the life of the soldier was forfeited should his ward +escape. We can well conceive that the very appearance of the preacher at +this period invited special attention to his ministrations. He was now +"Paul the aged;" [149:1] he had perhaps passed the verge of threescore +years; and though his detractors had formerly objected that "his bodily +presence was weak," [149:2] all would at this time have, probably, +admitted, that his aspect was venerable. His life had been a career of +unabated exertion; and now, though worn down by toils, and hardships, +and imprisonments, his zeal burned with unquenched ardour. As the +soldier who kept him belonged to the Praetorian guards, it has been +thought that the apostle spent much of his time in the neighbourhood of +their quarters on the Palatine hill, [149:3] and that as he was now so +much conversant with military sights and sounds, we may in this way +account for some of the allusions to be found in his epistles written +during his present confinement. Thus, he speaks of Archippus and +Epaphroditus as his "fellow-soldiers;" [149:4] and he exhorts his +brethren to "put on the whole armour of God," including "the breastplate +of righteousness, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the +sword of the Spirit." [149:5] As the indefatigable old man, with the +soldier who had charge of him, passed from house to house inviting +attendance on his services, the very appearance of such "yoke-fellows" +[149:6] must have created some interest; and, when the congregation +assembled, who could remain unmoved as the apostle stretched forth his +chained hand, [149:7] and proceeded to expound his message! He seems +himself to have thought that the very position which he occupied, as +"the prisoner of the Lord," [149:8] imparted somewhat to the power of +his testimony. Hence we find him saying--"I would ye should understand, +brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather +unto _the furtherance of the gospel_, so that my bonds in Christ are +manifest in all the Praetorium, [150:1] and in all other places; and +many of the brethren in the Lord waxing confident by my bonds are much +more bold to speak the word without fear." [150:2] + +During this imprisonment at Rome, Paul dictated a number of his +epistles. Of these, the letter to Philemon, a Christian of Colosse, +seems to have been first written. The bearer of this communication was +Onesimus, who had at one time been a slave in the service of the +individual to whom it is addressed; and who, as it appears, after +robbing his master, had left the country. The thief made his way to +Rome, where he was converted under the ministry of the apostle; and +where he had since greatly recommended himself as a zealous and +trustworthy disciple. He was now sent back to Colosse with this Epistle +to Philemon, in which the writer undertakes to be accountable for the +property that had been pilfered, [150:3] and entreats his correspondent +to give a kindly reception to the penitent fugitive. Onesimus, when +conveying the letter to his old master, was accompanied by Tychicus, +whom the apostle describes as "a beloved brother and a faithful minister +and fellow-servant in the Lord" [150:4] who was entrusted with the +Epistle to the Colossians. Error, in the form of false philosophy and +Judaizing superstition, had been creeping into the Colossian Church, +[150:5] and the apostle in this letter exhorts his brethren to beware of +its encroachments. About the same time Paul wrote the Epistle to the +Ephesians; and Tychicus was also the bearer of this communication. +[150:6] Unlike most of the other epistles, it has no salutations at the +close; it is addressed, not only "to the saints which are at Ephesus" in +particular, but also "to the faithful in Christ Jesus" [151:1] in +general; and as its very superscription thus bears evidence that it was +originally intended to be a circular letter, it is probably "the epistle +from Laodicea" mentioned in the Epistle to the Colossians. [151:2] The +first division of it is eminently distinguished by the profound and +comprehensive views of the Christian system it exhibits; whilst the +latter portion is no less remarkable for the variety, pertinency, and +wisdom, of its practical admonitions. The Epistle to the Philippians was +likewise written about this period. Paul always took a deep interest in +the well-being of his earliest European converts, and here he speaks in +most hopeful terms of their spiritual condition. [151:3] They were less +disturbed by divisions and heresies than perhaps any other of the +Apostolic Churches. + + + + + +CHAPTER X. + +PAUL'S SECOND IMPRISONMENT, AND MARTYRDOM; PETER, HIS EPISTLES, HIS +MARTYRDOM, AND THE ROMAN CHURCH. + + +The Book of the Acts terminates abruptly; and the subsequent history of +Paul is involved in much obscurity. Some have contended that the apostle +was never released from his first imprisonment at Rome, and accordingly +consider that he was one of the earliest Christian martyrs who suffered +under the Emperor Nero. But this theory is encumbered with insuperable +difficulties. In his letters written after his first appearance in Rome, +Paul evidently anticipates his liberation; [152:1] and in some of them +he apparently speaks prophetically. Thus, he says to the Philippians--"I +am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart and to be with +Christ, which is far better--nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more +needful for you--and having this confidence _I know that I shall abide +and continue_ with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith." +[152:2] The apostle had long cherished a desire to visit Spain; [152:3] +and there is evidence that he actually preached the gospel in that +country; for Clemens Romanus, who was his contemporary and +fellow-labourer, positively affirms that he travelled "to the extremity +of the west." [153:1] Clemens appears to have been himself a native of +the great metropolis; [153:2] and as he makes the statement just quoted +in a letter written from Rome, it cannot be supposed that, under such +circumstances, he would have described Italy as the boundary of the +earth. The Second Epistle to Timothy, which is generally admitted to +have been written immediately before Paul's death, contains several +passages which obviously indicate that the author had been very recently +at liberty. Thus, he says-"The cloak [153:3] (or, as some render it, +_the case_) [153:4] that I left at Troas, with Carpus, when thou comest +bring with thee, and the books, but especially the parchments." [153:5] +These words suggest that the apostle had lately visited Troas on the +coast of Asia Minor. Again, he remarks--"Erastus abode at Corinth, but +Trophimus have I left at Miletum sick." [153:6] Any ordinary reader +would at once infer from this observation that the writer had just +arrived from Miletum. [153:7] The language of the concluding verses of +the Acts warrants the impression that Paul's confinement had ended some +time before the book was completed; for had the apostle been still in +bondage, it would scarcely have been said that, when a prisoner, he +dwelt for two whole years in his own hired house--thereby implying that +the period of his residence, at least in that abode, had terminated. And +if Paul was released at the expiration of these two years, we can well +understand why the sacred historian may have deemed it inexpedient to +give an account of his liberation. The subjects of Rome at that time +were literally living under a reign of terror; and it would perhaps have +been most unwise to have proceeded farther with the narrative. Paul, as +Peter once before, [154:1] may have been miraculously delivered; and +prudence may have required the concealment of his subsequent movements. +Or, the history of his release may have been so mixed up with the freaks +of the tyrant who then oppressed the Roman world, that its publication +might have brought down the imperial vengeance on the head of the +evangelist. + +We have seen that Paul arrived in Rome as a prisoner in the beginning of +A.D. 61; and if at this time his confinement continued only two years, +he must have been liberated in the early part of A.D. 63. Nero had not +then commenced his memorable persecution of the Church; for the burning +of the city took place in the summer of A.D. 64; and, until that date, +the disciples do not appear to have been singled out as the special +objects of his cruelty. It is probable that Paul, after his release, +accomplished his intention of visiting the Spanish Peninsula; and, on +his return to Italy, he appears to have written the Epistle to the +Hebrews. [154:2] The destruction of Jerusalem was at this time +approaching; and, as the apostle demonstrates in this letter that the +law was fulfilled in Christ, he thus prepares the Jewish Christians for +the extinction of the Mosaic ritual. In all likelihood he now once more +visited Jerusalem, travelling by Corinth, [155:1] Philippi, [155:2] and +Troas, [155:3] where he left for the use of Carpus the case with the +books and parchments which he mentions in his Second Epistle to Timothy. +Passing on then to Colosse, [155:4] he may have visited Antioch in +Pisidia and other cities of Asia Minor, the scenes of his early +ministrations; and reached Jerusalem [155:5] by way of Antioch in Syria. +He perhaps returned from Palestine to Rome by sea, leaving Trophimus +sick [155:6] at Miletum in Crete. The journey did not probably occupy +much time; and, on his return to Italy, he seems to have been +immediately incarcerated. His condition was now very different from what +it had been during his former confinement; for he was deserted by his +friends, and treated as a malefactor. [155:7] When he wrote to Timothy +he had already been brought before the judgment-seat, and had narrowly +escaped martyrdom. "At my first answer," says he, "no man stood with me, +but all men forsook me. I pray God that it may not be laid to their +charge. Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, that +by me the preaching might be fully known, and that all the Gentiles +might hear; [155:8] and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion." +[155:9] The prospect, however, still continued gloomy; and he had no +hope of ultimate escape. In the anticipation of his condemnation, he +wrote those words so full of Christian faith and heroism, "I am now +ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have +fought a good fight--I have finished my course--I have kept the faith. +Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the +Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give me in that day, and not to me +only, but unto all them also that love his appearing." [156:1] + +Paul was martyred perhaps about A.D. 66. Tradition reports that he was +beheaded; [156:2] and as he was a Roman citizen, it is not probable that +he suffered any more ignominious fate. About the third or fourth +century, a statement appeared to the effect that he and Peter were put +to death at Rome on the same day; [156:3] but all the early documentary +evidence we possess is quite opposed to such a representation. If Peter +really finished his career in the Western metropolis, it would seem that +he did not arrive there until very shortly before the decapitation of +the Apostle of the Gentiles; for Paul makes no reference, in any of his +writings, to the presence of such a fellow-labourer in the capital of +the Empire. In the Epistle to the Romans, containing so many salutations +to the brethren in the great city, the name of Peter is not found; and +in none of the letters written _from_ Rome is he ever mentioned. In the +last of his Epistles--the Second to Timothy--the writer says--"_only +Luke_ is with me" [156:4]--and had Peter then been in the place, Paul +would not have thus ignored the existence of the apostle of the +circumcision. + +But still there is a very ancient and apparently a well authenticated +tradition that Peter suffered martyrdom at Rome; [156:5] and if, as is +not improbable, Paul met him in Jerusalem, during his visit to that city +after his release from his first imprisonment, it may be that he was +then encouraged to undertake a journey to the West. [156:6] It is not +improbable that he was recommended, at the same time, to visit the +Churches of Asia Minor for the purpose of using his influence to defeat +the efforts of the Judaizing zealots; and if, after passing through +Galatia, Bithynia, and other districts, he continued his course to Home, +we can well understand why, on reaching the seat of Empire, he addressed +his first epistle to the Christians with whom he had so recently held +intercourse. The tradition that the "Babylon" from which this letter was +written, [157:1] is no other than Rome, or the mystical Babylon of the +Apocalypse, [157:2] is unquestionably of great antiquity; [157:3] and +some of the announcements it contains are certainly quite in unison with +such an interpretation. Thus, Peter tells his brethren of "the fiery +trial" which was "to try" them, [157:4] alluding, in all likelihood, to +the extension of the Neronian persecution to the provinces; and it may +be presumed that, in the capital, and in communication with some of +"Caesar's household," he had means of information in reference to such +matters, to which elsewhere he could have had no access, Mark, who +probably arrived in Rome about the time of the death of Paul, [157:5] +was with Peter when this letter was written; [157:6] and we have thus +additional evidence that the apostle of the circumcision was now in the +Western capital. It is also worthy of remark that this epistle was +transmitted to its destination by Silas, or Silvanus, [157:7] apparently +the same individual who had so frequently accompanied the Apostle Paul +on his missionary journeys. [157:8] Silvanus had been for many years +acquainted with the brethren to whom the letter is addressed, and +therefore was well suited to be its bearer. But though he had long +occupied a prominent position in the Church, he seems to have been very +little known to Peter; and hence the somewhat singular manner in which +he is noticed towards the close of this epistle--"By Silvanus, a +faithful brother unto you, as I suppose, I have written briefly, +exhorting, and testifying that this is the true grace of God wherein ye +stand." [158:1] + +If this letter was written from Rome about the time of the death of +Paul, it is not strange that Peter deemed it prudent to conceal his +place of residence under the designation of Babylon. Nero was then +seeking the extermination of the Christians in the capital; and they had +enemies in all quarters who would have rejoiced to point out to him such +a distinguished victim as the aged apostle. And how could Peter more +appropriately describe the seat of Empire than by naming it _Babylon?_ +Nebuchadnezzar, who reigned so gloriously in the great Eastern capital, +had destroyed the temple of God; and now Nero, who ruled in the Western +metropolis, was seeking to ruin the Church of God. Nebuchadnezzar had +led the Jews into captivity; but Rome now enthralled both Jews and +Gentiles. If Nebuchadnezzar had an antitype in Nero, assuredly Babylon +had an antitype in Rome. [158:2] + +The Second Epistle of Peter was written soon after the first, and was +addressed to the same Churches. [158:3] The author now contemplated the +near approach of death, so that the advices he here gives may be +regarded as his dying instructions. "I think it meet," says he, "_as +long as I am in this tabernacle_, [158:4] to stir you up by putting you +in remembrance--knowing that _shortly_ I must put off this my +tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me." [159:1] If +then Peter was martyred at Rome, we may infer that this letter must have +been written somewhere in the same neighbourhood, and probably in the +same city. We have thus a corroborative proof that the Babylon of the +first letter is no other than the great metropolis. + +It deserves notice that in this second epistle, Peter bears emphatic +testimony to the character and inspiration of Paul. The Judaizing party, +as there is reason to think, were in the habit of pleading that they +were supported by the authority of the apostle of the circumcision; and +as many of these zealots were to be found in the Churches of Asia Minor, +[159:2] such a recognition of the claims of the Apostle of the Gentiles +was calculated to exert a most salutary influence. "The strangers +scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia," +[159:3] were thus given to understand that all the true heralds of the +gospel had but "one faith;" and that any attempt to create divisions in +the Church, by representing the doctrine of one inspired teacher as +opposed to the doctrine of another, was most unwarrantable. The +reference to Paul, to be found in the Second Epistle of Peter, is +favourable to the supposition that the Apostle of the Gentiles was now +dead; as, had he been still living to correct such misinterpretations, +it would scarcely have been said that in all his epistles were things +"hard to be understood" which "the unlearned and unstable" wrested +"unto their own destruction." [159:4] It would seem, too, that Peter +here alludes particularly to the Epistle to the Hebrews--a letter, as we +have seen, addressed to Jewish Christians, and written after Paul's +liberation from his first Roman imprisonment. It must be admitted that +this letter contains passages [159:5] which have often proved perplexing +to interpreters; but, notwithstanding, it bears the impress of a divine +original; and Peter, who maintains that all the writings of Paul were +dictated by unerring wisdom, places them upon a level with "the _other +Scriptures_" [160:1] either of the evangelists or of the Old Testament. + +According to a current tradition, Peter suffered death at Rome by +crucifixion. [160:2] He was not a Roman citizen; and was, therefore, +like our Lord himself, consigned to a mode of punishment inflicted on +slaves and the lowest class of malefactors. The story that, at his own +request, he was crucified with his head downwards as more painful and +ignominious than the doom of his Master, [160:3] is apparently the +invention of an age when the pure light of evangelical religion was +greatly obscured; for the apostle was too well acquainted with the truth +to believe that he was at liberty to inflict upon himself any +unnecessary suffering. The tradition that he died on the same day of the +same month as Paul, but exactly a year afterwards, [160:4] is not +destitute of probability. According to this statement he suffered A.D. +67; and he may have been about a year in Rome before his martyrdom. + +In the New Testament it is impossible to find a trace of either the +primacy of Peter or the supremacy of the Pope; but the facts already +stated throw some light on the history of that great spiritual despotism +whose seat of government has been so long established in the city of the +Caesars. It is obvious that at a very early period various circumstances +contributed to give prominence to the Church of Rome. The epistle +addressed to it contains a more complete exhibition of Christian +doctrine than any other of the apostolical letters; and, in that +remarkable communication, Paul expresses an earnest desire to visit a +community already celebrated all over the world. Five or six of his +letters, now forming part of the inspired canon, were dictated in the +capital of the Empire. The two epistles of the apostle of the +circumcision appear to have emanated from the same metropolis. There is +every reason to believe that the book of the Acts was written at Rome; +and it is highly probable that the great city was also the birthplace of +the Gospels of Mark and Luke. Thus, a large portion of the New Testament +issued from the seat of Empire. Rome could also boast that it was for +some time the residence of two of the most eminent of the apostles. Paul +was there for at least two years as a prisoner; and Peter may have +resided for twelve months within its walls. Some of the most illustrious +of the early converts were members of the Church of Rome; for in the +days of the Apostle of the Gentiles there were disciples in "Caesar's +household." [161:1] And when Nero signalised himself as the first +Imperial persecutor of the Christians, the Church of Rome suffered +terribly from his insane and savage cruelty. Even the historian Tacitus +acknowledges that the tortures to which its adherents were exposed +excited the commiseration of the heathen multitude. Paul and Peter were +cut off in his reign; and the soil of Rome absorbed the blood of these +apostolic martyrs. [161:2] It was not strange, therefore, that the Roman +Church was soon regarded with peculiar respect by all the disciples +throughout the Empire. As time passed on, it increased rapidly in +numbers and in affluence; and circumstances, which properly possessed +nothing more than an historic interest, began to be urged as arguments +in favour of its claims to pre-eminence. At first these claims assumed +no very definite form; and, at the termination of a century after the +days of Paul and Peter, they amounted simply to the recognition of +something like an honorary precedence. At that period it was, perhaps, +deemed equally imprudent and ungracious to quarrel with its pretensions, +more especially as the community by which they were advanced was +distributing its bounty all around, and was itself nobly sustaining the +brunt of almost every persecution. In the course of time, the Church of +Rome proceeded to challenge a substantial supremacy; and then the facts +of its early history were mis-stated and exaggerated in accommodation to +the demands of its growing ambition. It was said at first that "its +faith was spoken of throughout the whole world;" it was at length +alleged that its creed should be universally adopted. It was admitted at +an early period that, as it had enjoyed the ministrations of Peter and +Paul, it should be considered an apostolic church; it was at length +asserted that, as an apostle was entitled to deference from ordinary +pastors, a church instructed by two of the most eminent apostles had a +claim to the obedience of other churches. In process of time it was +discovered that Paul was rather an inconvenient companion for the +apostle of the circumcision; and Peter alone then began to be spoken of +as the founder and first bishop of the Church of Rome. Strange to say, a +system founded on a fiction has since sustained the shocks of so many +centuries. One of the greatest marvels of this "mystery of iniquity" is +its tenacity of life; and did not the sure word of prophecy announce +that the time would come when it would be able to boast of its +antiquity, and did we not know that paganism can plead a more remote +original, we might be perplexed by its longevity. But "the vision is yet +for an appointed time--at the end it shall speak and not lie. Though it +tarry, wait for it, because it will surely come, it will not tarry." +[162:1] + + + + + +CHAPTER XI. + +THE PERSECUTIONS OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH, AND ITS CONDITION AT THE +TERMINATION OF THE FIRST CENTURY. + + +Jesus Christ was a Jew, and it might have been expected that the advent +of the most illustrious of His race, in the character of the Prophet +announced by Moses, would have been hailed with enthusiasm by His +countrymen. But the result was far otherwise. "He came unto his own, and +his own received him not." [163:1] The Jews cried "Away with him, away +with him, crucify him;" [163:2] and He suffered the fate of the vilest +criminal. The enmity of the posterity of Abraham to our Lord did not +terminate with His death; they long maintained the bad pre-eminence of +being the most inveterate of the persecutors of His early followers. +Whilst the awful portents of the Passion, and the marvels of the day of +Pentecost were still fresh in public recollection, their chief priests +and elders threw the apostles into prison; [163:3] and soon afterwards +the pious and intrepid Stephen fell a victim to their malignity. Their +infatuation was extreme; and yet it was not unaccountable. They looked, +not for a crucified, but for a conquering Messiah. They imagined that +the Saviour would release them from the thraldom of the Roman yoke; that +He would make Jerusalem the capital of a prosperous and powerful empire; +and that all the ends of the earth would celebrate the glory of the +chosen people. Their vexation, therefore, was intense when they +discovered that so many of the seed of Jacob acknowledged the son of a +carpenter as the Christ, and made light of the distinction between Jew +and Gentile. In their case the natural aversion of the heart to a pure +and spiritual religion was inflamed by national pride combined with +mortified bigotry; and the fiendish spirit which they so frequently +exhibited in their attempts to exterminate the infant Church may thus +admit of the most satisfactory explanation. + +Many instances of their antipathy to the new sect have already been +noticed. In almost every town where the missionaries of the cross +appeared, the Jews "opposed themselves and blasphemed;" and magistrates +speedily discovered that in no way could they more easily gain the +favour of the populace than by inflicting sufferings on the Christians. +Hence, as we have seen, about the time of Paul's second visit to +Jerusalem after his conversion, Herod, the grandson of Herod the Great, +"killed James, the brother of John, with the sword; and because he saw +_it pleased the Jews,_ he proceeded further to take Peter also." [164:1] +The apostle of the circumcision was delivered by a miracle from his +grasp; but it is probable that other individuals of less note felt the +effects of his severity. Even in countries far remote from their native +land, the posterity of Abraham were the most bitter opponents of +Christianity. [164:2] As there was much intercourse between Palestine +and Italy, the gospel soon found its way to the seat of government; and +it has been conjectured that some civic disturbance created in the great +metropolis by the adherents of the synagogue, and intended to annoy and +intimidate the new sect, prompted the Emperor Claudius, about A.D. 53, +to interfere in the manner described by Luke, and to command "all Jews +to depart from Rome." [165:1] But the hostility of the Israelites was +most formidable in their own country; and for this, as well as other +reasons, "the brethren which dwelt in Judea" specially required the +sympathy of their fellow-believers throughout the Empire. When Paul +appeared in the temple at the feast of Pentecost in A.D. 58, the Jews, +as already related, made an attempt upon his life; and when the apostle +was rescued by the Roman soldiers, a conspiracy was formed for his +assassination. Four years afterwards, or about A.D. 62, [165:2] another +apostle, James surnamed the Just, who seems to have resided chiefly in +Jerusalem, finished his career by martyrdom. Having proclaimed Jesus to +be the true Messiah on a great public occasion, his fellow-citizens were +so indignant that they threw him from a pinnacle of the temple. As he +was still alive when he reached the ground, he was forthwith assailed +with a shower of stones, and beaten to pieces with the club of a fuller. +[165:3] + +As the Christians were at first confounded with the Jews, the +administrators of the Roman law, for upwards of thirty years after our +Lord's death, conceded to them the religious toleration enjoyed by the +seed of Abraham. But, from the beginning, "the sect of the Nazarenes" +enjoyed very little of the favour of the heathen multitude. Paganism had +set its mark upon all the relations of life, and had erected an idol +wherever the eye could turn. It had a god of War, and a god of Peace; a +god of the Sea, and a god of the Wind; a god of the River, and a god of +the Fountain; a god of the Field, and a god of the Barn Floor; a god of +the Hearth, a god of the Threshold, a god of the Door, and a god of the +Hinges. [166:1] When we consider its power and prevalence in the +apostolic age, we need not wonder at the declaration of Paul--"All that +will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution." [166:2] +Whether the believer entered into any social circle, or made his +appearance in any place of public concourse, he was constrained in some +way to protest against dominant errors; and almost exactly in proportion +to his consistency and conscientiousness, he was sure to incur the +dislike of the more zealous votaries of idolatry. Hence it was that the +members of the Church were so soon regarded by the pagans as a morose +generation instinct with hatred to the human race. In A.D. 64, when +Nero, in a fit of recklessness, set fire to his capital, he soon +discovered that he had, to a dangerous extent, provoked the wrath of the +Roman citizens; and he attempted, in consequence, to divert the torrent +of public indignation from himself, by imputing the mischief to the +Christians. They were already odious as the propagators of what was +considered "a pernicious superstition," and the tyrant, no doubt, +reckoned that the mob of the metropolis were prepared to believe any +report to the discredit of these sectaries. But even the pagan historian +who records the commencement of this first imperial persecution, and who +was deeply prejudiced against the disciples of our Lord, bears testimony +to the falsehood of the accusation. Nero, says Tacitus, "found wretches +who were induced to confess themselves guilty; and, on their evidence, a +great multitude of Christians were convicted, not indeed on clear proof +of their having set the city on fire, but rather on account of their +hatred of the human race. [167:1] They were put to death amidst insults +and derision. Some were covered with the skins of wild beasts, and left +to be torn to pieces by dogs; others were nailed to the cross; and some, +covered over with inflammable matter, were lighted up, when the day +declined, to serve as torches during the night. The Emperor lent his own +gardens for the exhibition. He added the sports of the circus, and +assisted in person, sometimes driving a curricle, and occasionally +mixing with the rubble in his coachman's dress. At length these +proceedings excited a feeling of compassion, as it was evident that the +Christians were destroyed, not for the public good, but as a sacrifice +to the cruelty of a single individual." [167:2] Some writers have +maintained that the persecution under Nero was confined to Rome; but +various testimonies concur to prove that it extended to the provinces. +Paul seems to contemplate its spread throughout the Empire when he tells +the Hebrews that they had "_not yet_ resisted _unto blood_ striving +against sin," [167:3] and when he exhorts them not to forsake the +assembling of themselves together as they "see _the day approaching_." +[167:4] Peter also, as has been stated in a preceding chapter, +apparently refers to the same circumstance in his letter to the brethren +"scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia," +when he announces "the fiery trial" which was "to try" them, [168:1] and +when he tells them of "judgment" beginning "at the house of God." +[168:2] If Nero enacted that the profession of Christianity was a +capital offence, his law must have been in force throughout the Roman +world; and an early ecclesiastical writer positively affirms that he was +the author of such sanguinary legislation. [168:3] The horror with which +his name was so long regarded by members of the Church in all parts of +the Empire [168:4] strongly corroborates the statement that the attack +on the disciples in the capital was only the signal for the commencement +of a general persecution. + +Nero died A.D. 68, and the war which involved the destruction of +Jerusalem and of upwards of a million of the Jews, was already in +progress. The holy city fell A.D. 70; and the Mosaic economy, which had +been virtually abolished by the death of Christ, now reached its +practical termination. At the same period the prophecy of Daniel was +literally fulfilled; for "the sacrifice and the oblation" were made to +cease, [168:5] as the demolition of the temple and the dispersion of the +priests put an end to the celebration of the Levitical worship. The +overthrow of the metropolis of Palestine contributed in various ways to +the advancement of the Christian cause. Judaism, no longer able to +provide for the maintenance of its ritual, was exhibited to the world as +a defunct system; its institutions, now more narrowly examined by the +spiritual eye, were discovered to be but types of the blessings of a +more glorious dispensation; and many believers, who had hitherto adhered +to the ceremonial law, discontinued its observances. Christ, forty years +before, had predicted the siege and desolation of Jerusalem; [169:1] and +the remarkable verification of a prophecy, delivered at a time when the +catastrophe was exceedingly improbable, appears to have induced not a +few to think more favourably of the credentials of the gospel. In +another point of view the ruin of the ancient capital of Judea proved +advantageous to the Church. In the subversion of their chief city the +power of the Jews sustained a shock from which it has never since +recovered; and the disciples were partially delivered from the attacks +of their most restless and implacable persecutors. + +Much obscurity rests upon the history of the period which immediately +follows the destruction of Jerusalem. Though Philip and John, [169:2] +and perhaps one or two more of the apostles, still survived, we know +almost nothing of their proceedings. After the death of Nero the Church +enjoyed a season of repose, but when Domitian, in A.D. 81, succeeded to +the government, the work of persecution recommenced. The new sovereign, +who was of a gloomy and suspicious temper, encouraged a system of +espionage; and as he seems to have imagined that the Christians fostered +dangerous political designs, he treated them with the greater harshness. +The Jewish calumny, that they aimed at temporal dominion, and that they +sought to set up "another king one Jesus," [169:3] had obviously +produced an impression upon his mind; and he accordingly sought out the +nearest kinsmen of the Messiah, that he might remove these heirs of the +rival dynasty. But when the two grandchildren of Jude, [169:4] called +the brother of our Lord, [169:5] were conducted to Rome, and brought to +his tribunal, he discovered the groundlessness of his apprehensions. The +individuals who had inspired the Emperor with such anxiety, were the +joint-proprietors of a small farm in Palestine which they cultivated +with their own hands; and the jealous monarch at once saw that, when his +fears had been excited by reports of the treasonable designs of such +simple and illiterate husbandmen, he had been miserably befooled. After +a single interview, these poor peasants met with no farther molestation +from Domitian. + +Had all the disciples been in such circumstances as the grandchildren of +Jude, the gospel might have been identified with poverty and ignorance; +and it might have been said that it was fitted to make way only among +the dregs of the population. But it was never fairly open to this +objection. From the very first it reckoned amongst its adherents at +least a sprinkling of the wealthy, the influential, and the educated. +Joseph of Arimathea, one of the primitive followers of our Lord, was "a +rich man" and an "honourable counsellor;" [170:1] Paul himself, as a +scholar, stood high among his countrymen, for he had been brought up at +the feet of Gamaliel; and Sergius Paulus, one of the first fruits of the +mission to the Gentiles, was a Roman Proconsul. [170:2] In the reign of +Nero the Church could boast of some illustrious converts; and the saints +of "Caesar's household" are found addressing their Christian salutations +to their brethren at Philippi. [170:3] In the reign of Domitian the +gospel still continued to have friends among the Roman nobility. Flavius +Clemens, a person of consular dignity, and the cousin of the Emperor, +was now put to death for his attachment to the cause of Christ; [170:4] +and his near relative Flavia Domitilla, for the same reason, was +banished with many others to Pontia, [170:5] a small island off the +coast of Italy used for the confinement of state prisoners. + +Domitian governed the Empire fifteen years, but his persecution of the +Christians appears to have been limited to the latter part of his reign. +About this time the Apostle John, "for the word of God and for the +testimony of Jesus Christ," [171:1] was sent as an exile into Patmos, a +small rocky island in the Aegaean Sea not far from the coast of Asia +Minor. It is said that he had previously issued unhurt from a cauldron +of boiling oil into which he had been plunged in Rome by order of the +Emperor; but this story, for which a writer who flourished about a +century afterwards is the earliest voucher, [171:2] has been challenged +as of doubtful authority. [171:3] We have no means of ascertaining the +length of time during which he remained in banishment; [171:4] and all +we know of this portion of his life is, that he had now those sublime +and mysterious visions to be found in the Apocalypse. After the fall of +Jerusalem, as well as after he was permitted to leave Patmos, he appears +to have resided chiefly in the metropolis of the Proconsular Asia; and +hence some ancient writers, who flourished after the establishment of +the episcopal system, have designated him the "Bishop of Ephesus." +[172:1] But the apostle, when advanced in life, chose to be known simply +by the title of "the elder;" [172:2] and though he was certainly by far +the most influential minister of the district where he sojourned, there +is every reason to believe that he admitted his brethren to a share in +the government of the Christian community. Like Peter and Paul before +him, he acknowledged the other elders as his "fellow-presbyters," +[172:3] and, as became his age and apostolic character, he doubtless +exhorted them to take heed unto themselves and to all the flock over the +which the Holy Ghost had made them overseers. [172:4] + +John seems to have been the last survivor of the apostles. He is said to +have reached the advanced age of one hundred years, and to have died +about the close of the first century. He was a "Son of Thunder," [172:5] +and he appears to have long maintained the reputation of a powerful and +impressive preacher; but when his strength began to give way beneath the +pressure of increasing infirmities, he ceased to deliver lengthened +addresses. When he appeared before the congregation in extreme old age, +he is reported to have simply repeated the exhortation "Children, love +one another;" and when asked, why he always confined himself to the same +brief admonition, he replied that "no more was necessary." [172:6] Such +a narrative is certainly quite in harmony with the character of the +beloved disciple, for he knew that love is the "bond of perfectness" and +"the fulfilling of the law." + +It has been thought that, towards the close of the first century, the +Christian interest was in a somewhat languishing condition; [172:7] and +the tone of the letters addressed to the Seven Churches in Asia is +calculated to confirm this impression. The Church of Laodicea is said to +be "neither cold nor hot;" [173:1] the Church of Sardis is admonished to +"strengthen the things which remain that are ready to die;" [173:2] and +the Church of Ephesus is exhorted to "remember from whence she has +fallen, and repent, and do the first works." [173:3] When it was known +that Christianity was under the ban of a legal proscription, it was not +strange that "the love of many" waxed cold; and the persecutions of Nero +and Domitian must have had a most discouraging influence. But though the +Church had to encounter the withering blasts of popular odium and +imperial intolerance, it struggled through an ungenial spring; and, in +almost every part of the Roman Empire, it had taken root and was +beginning to exhibit tokens of a steady and vigorous growth as early as +the close of the first century. The Acts and the apostolical epistles +speak of the preaching of the gospel in Palestine, Syria, Cyprus, Asia +Minor, Greece, Illyricum, and Italy; and, according to traditions which +we have no reason to discredit, the way of salvation was proclaimed, +before the death of John, in various other countries. It is highly +probable that Paul himself assisted in laying the foundations of the +Church in Spain; at an early date there were disciples in Gaul; and +there is good evidence that, before the close of the first century, the +new faith had been planted even on the distant shores of Britain. +[173:4] It is generally admitted that Mark laboured successfully as an +evangelist in Alexandria, the metropolis of Egypt; [173:5] and it has +been conjectured that Christians were soon to be found in "the parts of +Libya about Cyrene," [173:6] for if Jews from that district were +converted at Jerusalem by Peter's famous sermon on the day of Pentecost, +they would not fail, on their return home, to disseminate the precious +truths by which they had been quickened and comforted. On the same +grounds it may be inferred that the gospel soon found its way into +Parthia, Media, Persia, Arabia, and Mesopotamia. [174:1] Various +traditions [174:2] attest that several of the apostles travelled +eastwards, after their departure from the capital of Palestine. + +Whilst Christianity, in the face of much obloquy, was gradually +attracting more and more attention, it was at the same time nobly +demonstrating its power as the great regenerator of society. The +religion of pagan Rome could not satisfy the wants of the soul; it could +neither improve the heart nor invigorate the intellect; and it was now +rapidly losing its hold on the consciences of the multitude. The high +places of idolatrous worship often exercised a most demoralising +influence, as their rites were not unfrequently a wretched mixture of +brutality, levity, imposture, and prostitution. Philosophy had +completely failed to ameliorate the condition of man. The vices of some +of its most distinguished professors were notorious; its votaries were +pretty generally regarded as a class of scheming speculators; and they +enjoyed neither the confidence nor the respect of the mass of the +people. But, even under the most unpromising circumstances, it soon +appeared that Christianity could accomplish social and spiritual changes +of a very extraordinary character. The Church of Corinth was perhaps one +of the least exemplary of the early Christian communities, and yet it +stood upon a moral eminence far above the surrounding population; and, +from the roll of its own membership, it could produce cases of +conversion to which nothing parallel could, be found in the whole +history of heathendom. Paul could say to it--"Neither fornicators, nor +idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves +with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, +nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God, _and such were some +of you_ but ye are washed, but ye _are sanctified_, but ye are justified +in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God." [175:1] +Nor was this all. The gospel proved itself sufficient to meet the +highest aspirations of man. It revealed to him a Friend in heaven who +"sticketh closer than a brother;" [175:2] and, as it assured him of +eternal happiness in the enjoyment of fellowship with God, it imparted +to him a "peace that passeth all understanding." The Roman people +witnessed a new spectacle when they saw the primitive followers of +Christ expiring in the fires of martyrdom. The pagans did not so value +their superstitions; but here was a religion which was accounted "better +than life." Well then might the flames which illuminated the gardens of +Nero supply some spiritual light to the crowds who were present at the +sad scene; and, in the indomitable spirit of the first sufferers, well +might the thoughtful citizen have recognised a system which was destined +yet to subdue the world. + + + + + + SECTION II. + + THE LITERATURE AND THEOLOGY OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + + + + +CHAPTER I + +THE NEW TESTAMENT, ITS HISTORY, AND THE AUTHORITY OF ITS VARIOUS PARTS. +THE EPISTLE OF CLEMENT OF ROME. + + +The conduct of our Lord, as a religious teacher, betokened that He was +something more than man. Mohammed dictated the Koran, and left it behind +him as a sacred book for the guidance of his followers; many others, who +have established sects, have also founded a literature for their +disciples; but Jesus Christ wrote nothing. The Son of God was not +obliged to condescend to become His own biographer, and thus to testify +of Himself. He had at His disposal the hearts and the pens of others; +and He knew that His words and actions would be accurately reported to +the latest generations. During His personal ministry, even His apostles +were only imperfectly acquainted with His theology; but, shortly before +His death, He gave them an assurance that, in due time, He would +disclose to them more fully the nature and extent of the great +salvation. He said to them--"The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, +whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and +bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. +[177:1].... He will guide you into all truth." [177:2] + +The resurrection poured a flood of light into the minds of the apostles, +and they forthwith commenced with unwonted boldness to proclaim the +truth in all its purity and power; but, perhaps, no part of the +evangelical history was written until upwards of twenty years after the +death of our Saviour. [177:3] According to tradition, the Gospels of +Matthew, Mark, and Luke, then appeared in the order in which they are +now presented in our authorised version. [177:4] It is certain that all +these narratives were published several years before the tall of +Jerusalem in A.D. 70; and as each contains our Lord's announcement of +its speedy catastrophe, there is much probability in the report, that +the exact fulfilment of so remarkable a prophecy, led many to +acknowledge the divine origin of the Christian religion. The Gospel of +John is of a much later date, and seems to have been written towards the +conclusion of the century. + +Two of the evangelists, Matthew and John, were apostles; and the other +two, Mark and Luke, appear to have been of the number of the Seventy. +[177:5] All were, therefore, fully competent to bear testimony to the +facts which they record, for the Seventy had "companied" with the Twelve +"all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among" them, [178:1] +and all "were from the beginning eye-witnesses and ministers of the +word." [178:2] These writers mention many miracles performed by Christ, +and at least three of the Gospels were in general circulation whilst +multitudes were still alive who are described in them as either the +spectators or the subjects of His works of wonder; and yet, though the +evangelists often enter most minutely into details, so that their +statements, if capable of contradiction, might have been at once +challenged and exposed, we do not find that any attempt was meanwhile +made to impeach their accuracy. Their manner of recording the acts of +the Great Teacher is characterised by remarkable simplicity, and the +most acute reader in vain seeks to detect in it the slightest trace of +concealment or exaggeration. Matthew artlessly confesses that he +belonged to the odious class of publicans; [178:3] Mark tells how Peter, +his friend and companion, "began to curse and to swear," and to declare +that he knew not the Man; [178:4] Luke, who was probably one of the two +brethren who journeyed to Emmaus, informs us how Jesus drew near to them +on the way and upbraided them as "fools and slow of heart to believe all +that the prophets had spoken;" [178:5] and John honestly repudiates the +pretended prediction setting forth that he himself was not to die. +[178:6] Each evangelist mentions incidents unnoticed by the others, and +thus supplies proof that he is entitled to the credit of an original and +independent witness. Matthew alone gives the formula of baptism "in the +name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost;" [178:7] Mark +alone speaks of the great amazement of the people as they beheld the +face of Christ on His descent from the Mount of Transfiguration; [179:1] +Luke alone announces the appointment of the Seventy; [179:2] and John +alone records some of those sublime discourses in which our Lord treats +of the doctrine of His Sonship, of the mission of the Comforter, and of +the mysterious union between Himself and His people. [179:3] All the +evangelists direct our special attention to the scene of the +crucifixion. As they proceed to describe it, they obviously feel that +they are dealing with a transaction of awful import; and they +accordingly become more impressive and circumstantial. Their statements, +when combined, furnish a complete and consistent narrative of the sore +travail, the deep humiliation, and the dying utterances of the +illustrious sufferer. + +If the appointment of the Seventy indicated our Lord's intention of +sending the glad tidings of salvation to the ends of the earth, there +was a peculiar propriety in the selection of an individual of their +number as the historian of the earliest missionary triumphs. Whilst Luke +records the wonderful success of Christianity amongst the Gentiles, he +takes care to point out the peculiar features of the new economy; and +thus it is that his narrative abounds with passages in which the +doctrine, polity, and worship of the primitive disciples are illustrated +or explained. It is well known that the titles of the several parts of +the New Testament were prefixed to them, not by their authors, but at a +subsequent period by parties who had no claim to inspiration; [179:4] +and it is obvious that the book called--"The Acts of the Apostles" has +not been very correctly designated. It is confined almost exclusively to +the acts of Peter and Paul, and it sketches only a portion of their +proceedings. As its narrative terminates at the end of Paul's second +year's imprisonment at Rome, it was probably written about that period. +Superficial readers may object to its information as curt and +fragmentary; but the careful investigator will discover that it marks +with great distinctness the most important stages in the early +development of the Church. [180:1] It shews how Christianity spread +rapidly among the Jews from the day of Pentecost to the martyrdom of +Stephen; it points out how it then took root among the Gentiles; and it +continues to trace its dissemination from Judea westwards, until it was +firmly planted by the apostle of the uncircumcision in the metropolis of +the Empire. + +It is highly probable that some of the fourteen epistles of Paul were +written before any other portion of the New Testament, for we have +already seen [180:2] that the greater number of them were transmitted to +the parties to whom they are addressed during the time over which the +Acts of the Apostles extend; but though Luke makes no mention of these +letters, his account of the travels of their author throws considerable +light on the question of their chronology. Guided by statements which he +supplies, and by evidence contained in the documents themselves, we have +endeavoured to point out the order of their composition. It thus appears +that they are not placed chronologically in the New Testament. The +present arrangement is, however, of great antiquity, as it can be traced +up to the beginning of the fourth century; [180:3] and it is made upon +the principle that the Churches addressed should be classed according to +their relative importance. The Church of Rome at an early period was +recognised as the most influential in existence, and hence the Epistle +to the Romans stands at the head of the collection. The Church of +Corinth seems to have ranked next, and accordingly the Epistles to the +Corinthians occupy the second place. The letters to the Churches are +followed by those to individuals, that is, to Timothy, Titus, and +Philemon; and it has been conjectured that the Epistle to the Hebrews is +put last, because it is anonymous. Some have contended that this letter +was composed by Barnabas; others have ascribed it to Clement, or Luke, +or Silas, or Apollos; but, though Paul has not announced his name, the +external and internal evidences concur to prove that he was its author. +[181:1] + +"Every word of God is pure," [181:2] but the word of man is often +deceitful; and nowhere do his fallibility and ignorance appear more +conspicuously than in his appendages to Scripture. Even the titles +prefixed to the writings of the apostles and evangelists are redolent of +superstition, for no satisfactory reason can be given why the +designation of _saint_, [181:3] has been bestowed on Matthew, Mark, +Luke, and John, whilst it is withheld, not only from Moses and Isaiah, +but also from such eminently holy ministers as Timothy and Titus. The +postscripts to the epistles of Paul have been added by transcribers, and +are also calculated to mislead. Thus, the Epistle to the Galatians is +said to have been "written from Rome," though it is now generally +acknowledged that Paul was not in the capital of the Empire until long +after that letter was dictated. The first Epistle to Timothy is dated +"from Laodicea, which is the chiefest city of Phrygia Pacatiana;" but it +is well known that Phrygia was not divided into Phrygia Prima, or +Pacatiana, and Phrygia Secunda until the fourth century. [181:4] It is +stated at the end of another epistle that it was "written to Titus +ordained the first Bishop of the Church of the Cretians;" but, as the +letter itself demonstrates, Paul did not intend that Titus should remain +permanently in Crete, [182:1] and it can be shewn that, for centuries +afterwards, such a dignitary as "the Bishop of the Church of the +Cretians" was utterly unknown. + +The seven letters written by James, Peter, Jude, and John, are called +General or Catholic epistles. The Epistle of James was addressed "to the +twelve tribes scattered abroad" probably in A.D. 61, and its author +survived its publication perhaps little more than twelve months. [182:2] +Peter, as we have seen, appears to have written his two epistles only a +short time before his martyrdom. [182:3] The Epistle of Jude is the +production of a later period, as it contains quotations from the Second +Epistle of Peter. [182:4] The exact dates of the Epistles of John cannot +now be discovered, but they supply internal proof that they must have +been written towards the close of the first century. [182:5] + +According to some, the Apocalypse, or Revelation of John, was drawn up +before the destruction of Jerusalem, and in the time of the Emperor +Nero; but the arguments in support of so early an origin are very +unsatisfactory. Ancient writers [182:6] attest that it was written in +the reign of Domitian towards the close of the first century, and the +truth of this statement is established by various collateral evidences. + +The divine authority of the four Gospels and of the Acts of the Apostles +was, from their first appearance, universally acknowledged in the +ancient Church. [182:7] These books were publicly read in the religious +assemblies of the primitive Christians, and were placed on a level with +the Old Testament Scriptures. [182:8] The epistles of Paul occupied an +equally honourable position. [182:9] In the second and third centuries +the Epistle to the Hebrews was not, indeed, received among the sacred +books by the Church of Rome; [183:1] but at an earlier period its +inspiration was acknowledged by the Christians of the great city, for it +is quoted as the genuine work of the Apostle Paul by an eminent Roman +pastor who flourished in the first century. [183:2] The authority of two +of the most considerable of the Catholic epistles--the First Epistle of +Peter and the First Epistle of John--was never questioned; [183:3] but, +for a time, there were churches which doubted the claims of the five +others to be ranked amongst "the Scriptures." [183:4] The multitude of +spurious writings which were then abroad suggested to the disciples the +necessity of caution, and hence suspicions arose in certain cases where +they were destitute of foundation. But these suspicions, which never +seem to have been entertained by more than a minority of the churches, +gradually passed away; and at length, towards the close of the fourth +century, the whole of what are now called the Catholic epistles were +received, by unanimous consent, as inspired documents. [183:5] The +Apocalypse was acknowledged to be a divine revelation as soon as it +appeared; and its credit remained unimpeached until the question of the +Millennium began to create discussion. Its authenticity was then +challenged by some of the parties who took an interest in the +controversy; but it still continued to be regarded as a part of Holy +Scripture by the majority of Christians, and there is no book of the New +Testament in behalf of which a title to a divine original can be +established by more conclusive and ample evidence. [184:1] + +It thus appears that, with the exception of a few short epistles which +some hesitated to accredit, the New Testament, in the first century, was +acknowledged as the Word of God by all the Apostolical Churches. Its +various parts were not then included in a single volume; and as a +considerable time must have elapsed before copies of every one of them +were universally disseminated, it is not to be thought extraordinary if +the appearance of a letter, several years after it was written, and in +quarters where it had been previously unknown, awakened suspicion or +scepticism. But the slender objections, advanced under such +circumstances, gradually vanished before the light of additional +evidence; and it may safely be asserted that the whole of the documents, +now known as the Scriptures of the New Testament, were received, as +parts of a divine revelation, by an overwhelming majority of the early +Christians. The present division into chapters and verses was introduced +at a period comparatively recent; [184:2] but there is reason to believe +that stated portions of the writings of the apostles and evangelists +were read by the primitive disciples at their religious meetings, and +that, for the direction of the reader, as well as for the facility of +reference, the arrangement was soon notified in the manuscripts by +certain marks of distinction. [184:3] It is well known that in the +ancient Churches persons of all classes and conditions were encouraged +and required to apply themselves to the study of the sacred records; +that even children were made acquainted with the Scriptures; [185:1] and +that the private perusal of the inspired testimonies was considered an +important means of individual edification. All were invited and +stimulated by special promises to meditate upon the mysterious, as well +as the plain, passages of the book of Revelation. "Blessed," says the +Apostle John, "is he that readeth, and _they that hear the words of this +prophecy_, and keep those things which are written therein." [185:2] + +The original manuscripts of the New Testament, which must from the first +have been accessible to comparatively few, have all long since +disappeared; and it is now impossible to tell whether they were worn +away by the corroding tooth of time, or destroyed in seasons of +persecution. Copies of them were rapidly multiplied; and though heathen +adversaries displayed no small amount of malice and activity, it was +soon found impossible to effect their annihilation. It was not necessary +that the apostolic autographs [185:3] should be preserved for ever, as +the records, when transcribed, still retained the best and clearest +proofs of their inspiration. They did not require even the imprimatur of +the Church, for they exhibited in every page the stamp of divinity; and +as soon as they were published, they commended themselves by the +internal tokens of their heavenly lineage to the acceptance of the +faithful. "The Word of God is quick and powerful," and every one who +peruses the New Testament in a right spirit must feel that it has +emanated from the Searcher of hearts. It speaks to the conscience; it +has all the simplicity and majesty of a divine communication; it +enlightens the understanding; and it converts the soul. No mere man +could have invented such a character as the Saviour it reveals; no mere +man could have contrived such a system of mercy as that which it +announces. The New Testament is always on the side of whatsoever is +just, and honest, and lovely, and of good report; it glorifies God; it +alarms the sinner; it comforts the saint. "The words of the Lord are +pure words, as silver tried in a furnace of earth purified seven +times." [186:1] + +The excellence of the New Testament is displayed to singular advantage +when contrasted with those uninspired productions of nearly the same +date which emanated from the companions of the apostles. The only +genuine document of this nature which has come down to us, and which +appeared in the first century,[186:2] is an epistle to the Corinthians. +It was prepared immediately after the Domitian persecution, or about +A.D. 96,[186:3] with a view to heal certain divisions which had sprung +up in the religious community to which it is addressed; and, though +written in the name of the Church of Rome, there is no reason to doubt +that it is the composition of Clement, who was then at the head of the +Roman presbytery. The advice which it administers is most judicious; and +the whole letter breathes the peaceful spirit of a devoted Christian +pastor. But it contains passages which furnish conclusive evidence that +it has no claims whatever to inspiration; and its illustration of the +doctrine of the resurrection is in itself more than sufficient to +demonstrate that it could not have been dictated under any supernatural +guidance. "There is," says Clement,[186:4] "a certain bird called the +phoenix. Of this there is never but one at a time, and that lives five +hundred years: and when the time of its dissolution draws near that it +must die, it makes itself a nest of frankincense, and myrrh, and other +spices, into which, when its time is fulfilled, it enters and dies. But +its flesh putrefying breeds a certain worm which, being nourished with +the juice of the dead bird, brings forth feathers; and when it is grown +to a perfect state, it takes up the nest in which the bones of its +parent are, and carries it from Arabia into Egypt to a city called +Heliopolis; and flying in open day, in the sight of all men, lays it +upon the altar of the Sun, and so returns from whence it came. The +priests then search into the records of the time, and find that it +returned precisely at the end of five hundred years." [187:1] + +In point of education the authors of the New Testament did not generally +enjoy higher advantages than Clement; and yet, writing "as they were +moved by the Holy Ghost," they were prevented from giving currency, even +in a single instance, to such a story as this fable of the phoenix. All +their statements will be found to be true, whether tried by the standard +of mental or of moral science, of geography, or of natural history. The +theology which they teach is at once sound and genial; and those by whom +it is appreciated can testify that whilst it invigorates and elevates +the intellect, it also pacifies the conscience and purifies the heart. + + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE DOCTRINE OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH + + +The same system of doctrine is inculcated throughout the whole of the +sacred volume. Though upwards of fifteen hundred years elapsed between +the commencement and the completion of the canon of Scripture; though +its authors were variously educated; though they were distinguished, as +well by their tastes, as by their temperaments; and though they lived in +different countries and in different ages; all the parts of the volume +called the Bible exhibit the clearest indications of unity of design. +Each writer testifies to the "one faith," and each contributes something +to its illustration. Thus it is that, even at the present day, every +book in the canon is "good to the use of edifying." The announcements +made to our first parents will continue to impart spiritual refreshment +to their posterity of the latest generations; and the believer can now +give utterance to his devotional feelings in the language of the Psalms, +as appropriately as could the worshipper of old, when surrounded by all +the types and shadows of the Levitical ceremonial. + +The Old Testament is related to the New as the dawn to the day, or the +prophecy to its accomplishment. Jesus appeared merely to consummate the +Redemption which "the promises made to the fathers" had announced. +"Think not," said he, "that I am come to destroy the law or the +prophets, I am not come to destroy but to fulfil." [189:1] The mission +of our Lord explained many things which had long remained mysterious; +and, in allusion to the great amount of fresh information thus +communicated, He is said to have "brought life and immortality to light +through the gospel." [189:2] + +When the apostles first became disciples of the Son of Mary, their views +were certainly very indefinite and circumscribed. Acting under the +influence of strong attachment to the Wonderful Personage who exhibited +such wisdom and performed so many mighty works, they promptly obeyed the +invitation to come and follow Him; and yet when required to tell who was +this Great Teacher to whom they were attached by the charm of such a +holy yet mysterious fascination, they could do little more than declare +their conviction that Jesus was THE CHRIST. [189:3] They knew, indeed, +that the Messiah, or the Great Prophet, was to be a redeemer, and a +King; [189:4] but they did not understand how their lowly Master was to +establish His title to such high offices. [189:5] Though they "looked +for redemption," and "waited for the kingdom of God," [189:6] there was +much that was vague, as well as much that was visionary, in their +notions of the Redemption and the Kingdom. We may well suppose that the +views of the multitude were still less correct and perspicuous. Some, +perhaps, expected that Christ, as a prophet, would decide the +ecclesiastical controversies of the age; [189:7] others, probably, +anticipated that, as a Redeemer, he would deliver His countrymen from +Roman domination; [189:8] whilst others again cherished the hope that, +as a King, he would erect in Judea a mighty monarchy. [189:9] The +expectation that he would assert the possession of temporal dominion was +long entertained even by those who had been taught to regard Him as a +spiritual Saviour. [190:1] + +During the interval between the resurrection and ascension, the apostles +profited greatly by the teaching of our Lord. "Then opened He their +understanding that they might understand the Scriptures," [190:2] +shewing that all things were "fulfilled which were written in the law of +Moses, and in the Prophets, and in the Psalms" [190:3] concerning Him. +The true nature of Christ's Kingdom was now fully disclosed to them; +they saw that the history of Jesus was embodied in the ancient +predictions; and thus their ideas were brought into harmony with the +revelations of the Old Testament. On the day of Pentecost they, +doubtless, received additional illumination; and thus, maturely +qualified for the duties of their apostleship, they began to publish the +great salvation. Even afterwards, their knowledge continued to expand; +for they had yet to be taught that the Gentiles also were heirs of the +Kingdom of Heaven; [190:4] that uncircumcised believers were to be +admitted to all the privileges of ecclesiastical fellowship; [190:5] and +that the ceremonial law had ceased to be obligatory. [190:6] + +We do not require, however, to trace the progress of enlightenment in +the minds of the original heralds of the gospel, that we may ascertain +the doctrine of the Apostolic Church; for in the New Testament we have a +complete and unerring exposition of the faith delivered to the saints. +We have seen that, with a few comparatively trivial exceptions, all the +documents dictated by the apostles and evangelists were at once +recognised as inspired, [190:7] so that in them, combined with the +Jewish Scriptures, we have a perfect ecclesiastical statute-book. The +doctrine set forth in the New Testament was cordially embraced in the +first century by all genuine believers. And it cannot be too +emphatically inculcated that _the written Word_ was of paramount +authority among the primitive Christians. The Israelites had traditions +which they professed to have received from Moses; but our Lord +repudiated these fables, and asserted the supremacy of the book of +inspiration. [191:1] In His own discourses He honoured the Scriptures by +continually quoting from them; [191:2] and He commanded the Jews to +refer to them as the only sure arbiters of his pretensions. [191:3] The +apostles followed His example. More than one-half of the sermon preached +by Peter on the day of Pentecost consisted of passages selected from the +Old Testament. [191:4] The Scriptures, too, inculcate, not only their +claims as standards of ultimate appeal, but also their sufficiency to +meet all the wants of the faithful; for they are said to be "able to +make wise unto salvation," [191:5] and to be "profitable for doctrine, +for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the +man of God may be _perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works_." +[191:6] The sacred records teach, with equal clearness, their own +plenary inspiration. Each writer has his peculiarities of style, and yet +each uses language which the Holy Spirit dictates. In the New Testament +a single word is more than once made the basis of an argument; [191:7] +and doctrines are repeatedly established by a critical examination of +particular forms of expression, [191:8] When statements advanced by +Moses, or David, or Isaiah, are adduced, they are often prefaced with +the intimation that thus "the Holy Ghost saith," [191:9] or thus "it is +spoken of the Lord." [191:10] The apostles plainly aver that they employ +language of infallible authority. "We speak," says Paul, "_in the +words_ which the Holy Ghost teacheth," [192:1] "All Scripture is given +by inspiration of God." [192:2] + +It is of unutterable importance that the Scriptures are the very word of +the Lord, for they relate to our highest interests, and were they of +less authority, they could not command our entire confidence. The +momentous truths which they reveal are in every way worthy to be +recorded in memorials given by inspiration of God. Under the ancient +economy the sinner was assured of a Redeemer; [192:3] and intimations +were not wanting that his deliverance would be wrought out in a way +which would excite the wonder of the whole intelligent creation; [192:4] +but the New Testament uplifts the veil, and sheds a glorious radiance +over the revelation of mercy. According to the doctrine of the Apostolic +Church the human race are at once "guilty before God," [192:5] and "dead +in trespasses and sins;" [192:6] and as Christ in the days of His flesh +called forth Lazarus from the tomb, and made him a monument of His +wonder-working power, so by His word He still awakens dead sinners and +calls them with an holy calling, that they may be trophies of His grace +throughout all eternity. And as the restoration of hearing is an +evidence of the restoration of life, so the reception of the word by +faith is a sure token of spiritual vitality. "_He that heareth my +word_," said Christ, "and believeth on Him that sent me, hath +everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation, but _is passed +from death unto life_." [192:7] + +Faith is to the soul of the believer what the living organs are to his +body. It is the ear, the eye, the hand, and the palate of the spiritual +man. By faith he hears the voice of the Son of God; [192:8] by faith he +sees Him who is invisible; [192:9] by faith he looks unto Jesus; [193:1] +by faith he lays hold upon the Hope set before him; [193:2] and by faith +he tastes that the Lord is gracious. [193:3] All the promises are +addressed to faith; and by faith they are appropriated and enjoyed. By +faith the believer is pardoned, [193:4] sanctified, [193:5] sustained, +[193:6] and comforted. [193:7] Faith is the substance of things hoped +for, the evidence of things not seen; [193:8] for it enables us to +anticipate the happiness of heaven, and to realize the truth of God. + +The word of the Lord is to the faith of the Christian what the material +world is to his bodily senses. As the eye gazes with delight on the +magnificent scenery of creation, the eye of faith contemplates with joy +unspeakable the exceedingly great and precious promises. And as the eye +can look with pleasure only on those objects which it sees, faith can +rest with satisfaction only on those things which are written in the +book of God's testimony. It has been "written that we might believe that +Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing we might have +life through his name." [193:9] + +The Scriptures are not to be regarded as a storehouse of facts, +promises, and precepts, without relation or dependency; but a volume in +which may be found a collection of glorious truths, all forming one +great and well-balanced system. Every part of revelation refers to the +Redeemer; and His earthly history is the key by means of which its +various announcements may be illustrated and harmonized. In the theology +of the New Testament Christ is indeed the "All in all." In addition to +many other illustrious titles which He bears, He is represented as "the +Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world," [193:10] "the End +of the Law for righteousness to every one that believeth," [193:11] "the +Head of the Church," [194:1] the "King of kings," [194:2] and "the Hope +of glory." [194:3] During His public ministry He performed miracles such +as had been previously understood to mark the peculiar energy of +Omnipotence; for He opened the eyes of the blind; [194:4] He walked upon +the waves of the sea; [194:5] He made the storm a calm; [194:6] and He +declared to man what was his thought. [194:7] In His capacity of Saviour +He exercises attributes which are essentially divine; as He redeems from +all iniquity, [194:8] and pardons sin, [194:9] and sanctifies the +Church, [194:10] and opens the heart, [194:11] and searches the reins. +[194:12] Had Jesus of Nazareth failed to assert His divine dignity, the +credentials of His mission would have been incomplete, for the Messiah +of the Old Testament is no other than the Monarch of the universe. +Nothing can be more obvious than that the ancient prophets invest Him +with the various titles and attributes of Deity. He is called "the +Lord," [194:13] "Jehovah," [194:14] and "God;" [194:15] He is +represented as the object of worship; [194:16] He is set forth as the +King's Son who shall daily be praised; [194:17] and He is exhibited as +an Almighty and Eternal Friend in whom all that put their trust are +blessed. [194:18] + +During the public ministry of our Lord the Twelve do not seem to have +been altogether ignorant of His exalted dignity; [194:19] and yet the +most decisive attestations to His Godhead do not occur until after His +resurrection. [194:20] When the apostles surveyed the humble individual +with whom they were in daily intercourse, it is not extraordinary that +their faith faltered, and that their powers of apprehension failed, as +they pondered the prophecies relating to His advent. When they attempted +closely to grapple with the amazing truths there presented to their +contemplation, and thought of "the Word made flesh," well might they be +overwhelmed with a feeling of giddy and dubious wonder. Even after the +resurrection had illustrated so marvellously the announcements of the +Old Testament, the disciples still continued to regard them with a +species of bewilderment; and our Saviour himself found it necessary to +point out in detail their meaning and their fulfilment. "Beginning at +Moses and all the prophets he expounded to them in all the Scriptures +the things concerning himself." [195:1] The whole truth as to the glory +of His person now flashed upon their minds, and henceforth they do not +scruple to apply to Him all the lofty titles bestowed of old on the +Messiah. The writers of the New Testament say expressly that "Jesus is +the Lord," [195:2] and "God blessed for ever;" [195:3] they describe +believers as trusting in Him, [195:4] as serving Him, [195:5] and as +calling upon His name; [195:6] and they tell of saints and angels, +uniting in the celebration of His praise. [195:7] Such testimonies leave +no doubt as to their ideas of His dignity. Divine incarnations were +recognised in the heathen mythology, so that the Gentiles could not well +object to the doctrine of the assumption of our nature by the Son of +God; but Christianity asserts its immense superiority to paganism in its +account of the design of the union of humanity and Deity in the person +of the Redeemer. According to the poets of Greece and Rome, the gods +often adopted material forms for the vilest of purposes; but the Lord of +glory was made partaker of our flesh and blood, [196:1] that He might +satisfy the claims of eternal justice, and purchase for us a happy and +immortal inheritance. In the cross of Christ sin appears "exceedingly +sinful," and the divine law has been more signally honoured by His +sufferings than if all men of all generations had for ever groaned under +its chastisements. The Jewish ritual must have made the apostles +perfectly familiar with the doctrine of atonement; but they were "slow +of heart to believe" that their Master was Himself the Mighty Sacrifice +represented in the types of the Mosaic ceremonial [196:2] The evangelist +informs us that He expounded this subject after His resurrection, +shewing them that "thus it behoved Christ to suffer." [196:3] Still, the +crucifixion of the Saviour was to multitudes a "rock of offence." The +ambitious Israelite, who expected that the Messiah would go forth +conquering and to conquer, and that He would make Palestine the seat of +universal empire, could not brook the thought that the Great Deliverer +was to die; and the learned Greek, who looked upon all religion with no +little scepticism, was prepared to ridicule the idea of the burial of +the Son of God; but the very circumstance which awakened such +prejudices, suggested to those possessed of spiritual discernment +discoveries of stupendous grandeur. Justice demands the punishment of +transgressors; mercy pleads for their forgiveness: holiness requires the +execution of God's threatenings; goodness insists on the fulfilment of +His promises: and all these attributes are harmonized in the doctrine of +a Saviour sacrificed. God is "just, and the justifier of him which, +believeth in Jesus." [196:4] The Son of Man "by his own blood obtained +eternal redemption" [197:1] for His Church; "mercy and truth meet +together" in His expiation; and His death is thus the central point to +which the eye of faith is now directed. Hence Paul says--"We preach +Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling-block, and unto the Greeks +foolishness; but unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, +Christ, the power of God, and the wisdom of God." [197:2] + +The doctrine of the Apostolic Church is simple and consistent, as well +as spiritual and sublime. The way of redemption it discloses is not an +extempore provision of Supreme benevolence called forth by an unforeseen +contingency, but a plan devised from eternity, and fitted to display all +the divine perfections in most impressive combination. Whilst it +recognises the voluntary agency of man, it upholds the sovereignty of +God. Jehovah graciously secures the salvation of every heir of the +promises by both contriving and carrying out all the arrangements of the +"well ordered covenant." His Spirit quickens the dead soul, and works in +us "to will and to do of His good pleasure." [197:3] "The Father hath +chosen us in Christ before the foundation of the world, that we should +be holy and without blame before him in love; having predestinated us +unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to +the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of the glory of his grace, +wherein he hath made us accepted in the Beloved." [197:4] + +The theological term Trinity was not in use in the days of the apostles, +but it does not follow that the doctrine now so designated was then +unknown; for the New Testament clearly indicates that the Father, the +Son, and the Holy Ghost exist in the unity of the Godhead. [197:5] +Neither can it be inferred from the absence of any fixed formula of +doctrine that the early followers of our Lord did not all profess the +same sentiments, for they had "one Lord, one faith, one baptism." +[198:1] The document commonly called "the Apostles' Creed" is certainly +of very great antiquity, but no part of it proceeded from those to whom +it is attributed by its title; [198:2] and its rather bald and dry +detail of facts and principles obviously betokens a decline from the +simple and earnest spirit of primitive Christianity. Though the early +converts, before baptism, made a declaration of their faith, [198:3] +there is in the sacred volume no authorised summary of doctrinal belief; +and in this fact we have a proof of the far-seeing wisdom by which the +New Testament was dictated; as heresy is ever changing its features, and +a test of orthodoxy, suited to the wants of one age, would not exclude +the errorists of another. It has been left to the existing rulers of the +Church to frame such ecclesiastical symbols as circumstances require; +and it is a striking evidence of the perfection of the Bible that it has +been found capable of furnishing an antidote to every form of heterodoxy +which has ever appeared. + +It may be added that the doctrine of the Apostolic Church is eminently +practical. The great object of the mission of Jesus was to "save His +people from their sins;" [198:4] and the tendency of all the teachings +of the New Testament is to promote sanctification. But the holiness of +the gospel is not a shy asceticism which sits in a cloister in moody +melancholy, so that its light never shines before men; but a generous +consecration of the heart to God, which leads us to confess Christ in +the presence of gainsayers, and which prompts us to delight in works of +benevolence. The true Christian should be happy as well as holy; for the +knowledge of the highest truth is connected with the purest enjoyment. +This "wisdom is better than rubies, and all the things that may be +desired are not to be compared to it." [199:1] The Apostle Paul, when a +prisoner at Rome, had comforts to which Nero was an utter stranger. Even +then he could say--"I have learned in whatsoever state I am therewith to +be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound; +everywhere and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be +hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through +Christ which strengtheneth me." [199:2] When all around the believer may +be dark and discouraging, there may be sunshine in his soul. There are +no joys comparable to the joys of a Christian. They are the gifts of the +Spirit of God, and the first-fruits of eternal blessedness; they are +serene and heavenly, solid and satisfying. + + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE HERESIES OF THE APOSTOLIC AGE. + + +The Greek word translated _heresy_ [200:1] in our authorised version of +the New Testament, did not primarily convey an unfavourable idea. It +simply denoted a _choice_ or _preference_. It was often employed to +indicate the adoption of a particular class of philosophical sentiments; +and thus it came to signify a _sect_ or _denomination_. Hence we find +ancient writers speaking of the _heresy_ of the Stoics, the _heresy_ +of +the Epicureans, and the _heresy_ of the Academics. The Jews who used the +Greek language did not consider that the word necessarily reflected on +the party it was intended to describe; and Josephus, who was himself a +Pharisee, accordingly discourses of the three heresies of the Pharisees, +the Sadducees, and the Essenes. [200:2] The Apostle Paul, when speaking +of his own history prior to his conversion, says, that "after the +strictest heresy" of his religion he lived a Pharisee. [200:3] We learn, +too, from the book of the Acts, that the early Christians were known as +"the heresy of the Nazarenes." [200:4] But very soon the word began to +be employed to denote something which the gospel could not sanction; and +accordingly, in the Epistle to the Galatians, heresies are enumerated +among the works of the flesh. [200:5] It is not difficult to explain why +Christian writers at an early date were led to attach such a meaning to +a term which had hitherto been understood to imply nothing +reprehensible. The New Testament teaches us to regard an erroneous +theology as sinful, and traces every deviation from "the one faith" of +the gospel to the corruption of a darkened intellect. [201:1] It +declares--"He that believeth not is _condemned already_, because he hath +not believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God; and this is +the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved +darkness rather than light, _because their deeds were evil_." [201:2] +Thus it was that the most ancient ecclesiastical authors described all +classes of unbelievers, sceptics, and innovators, under the general name +of heretics. Persons who in matters of religion made a _false choice_, +of whatever kind, were viewed as "vainly puffed up by a fleshly mind," +or as under the influence of some species of mental depravity. + +It thus appears that heresy, in the first century, denoted every +deviation from the Christian faith. Pagans and Jews, as well as +professors of apocryphal forms of the gospel, were called heretics. +[201:3] But in the New Testament our attention is directed chiefly to +errorists who in some way disturbed the Church, and adulterated the +doctrine taught by our Lord and His apostles. Paul refers to such +characters when he says--"A man that is an heretic, after the first and +second admonition, reject;" [201:4] and Peter also alludes to them when +he speaks of false teachers who were to appear and "privily bring in +damnable heresies." [201:5] + +The earliest corrupters of the gospel were unquestionably those who +endeavoured to impose the observance of the Mosaic law on the converted +Gentiles. Their proceedings were condemned in the Council of Jerusalem, +mentioned in the fifteenth chapter of the Acts of the Apostles; and +Paul, in his letter to the Galatians, subsequently exposed their +infatuation. But evangelical truth had, perhaps, more to fear from +dilution with the speculations of the Jewish and pagan literati. [202:1] +The apostle had this evil in view when he said to the Colossians-- +"Beware lest any man spoil you through _philosophy_ and vain +deceit, after the tradition of men, after the _rudiments of the world_, +and not after Christ." [202:2] He likewise emphatically attested the +danger to be apprehended from it when he addressed to his own son in the +faith the impassioned admonition--"O Timothy, keep that which is +committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and +_oppositions of science_ falsely so called." [202:3] + +There is no reason to doubt that the "science" or "philosophy" of which +Paul was so anxious that the disciples should beware, was the same which +was afterwards so well known by the designation of _Gnosticism_. The +second century was the period of its most vigorous development, and it +then, for a time, almost engrossed the attention of the Church; but it +was already beginning to exert a pernicious influence, and it is +therefore noticed by the vigilant apostle. Whilst it acknowledged, to a +certain extent, the authority of the Christian revelation, it also +borrowed largely from Platonism; and, in a spirit of accommodation to +the system of the Athenian sage, it rejected some of the leading +doctrines of the gospel. Plato never seems to have entertained the +sublime conception of the creation of all things out of nothing by the +word of the Most High. He held that matter is essentially evil, and that +it existed from eternity. [202:4] The false teachers who disturbed the +Church in the apostolic age adopted both these views; and the errors +which they propagated and of which the New Testament takes notice, +flowed from their unsound philosophy by direct and necessary +consequence. As a right understanding of certain passages of Scripture +depends on an acquaintance with their system, it may here be expedient +to advert somewhat more particularly to a few of its peculiar features. + +The Gnostics alleged that the present world owes neither its origin nor +its arrangement to the Supreme God. They maintained that its constituent +parts have been always in existence; and that, as the great Father of +Lights would have been contaminated by contact with corrupt matter, the +visible frame of things was fashioned, without His knowledge, by an +inferior Intelligence. These principles obviously derogated from the +glory of Jehovah. By ascribing to matter an independent and eternal +existence, they impugned the doctrine of God's Omnipotent Sovereignty; +and by representing it as regulated without His sanction by a spiritual +agent of a lower rank, they denied His Universal Providence. The +apostle, therefore, felt it necessary to enter his protest against all +such cosmogonies. He declared that Jehovah alone, as Father, Son, and +Holy Ghost, existed from eternity; and that all things spiritual and +material arose out of nothing in obedience to the word of the second +person of the Godhead. "By Him," says he, "were all things _created_, +that are in heaven and that are in earth, _visible and invisible_, +whether they be thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all +things were created by Him and for Him, and He is _before all things_, +and by Him _all things consist_." [203:1] + +The philosophical system of the Gnostics also led them to adopt false +views respecting the _body of Christ_. As, according to their theory, +the Messiah appeared to deliver men from the bondage of evil matter, +they could not consistently acknowledge that He himself inhabited an +earthly tabernacle. They refused to admit that our Lord was born of a +human parent; and, as they asserted that He had a body only in +appearance, or that His visible form as man was in reality a phantom, +they were at length known by the title of Docetae. [204:1] The Apostle +John repeatedly attests the folly and the danger of such speculations. +"The Word," says he, "was _made flesh_ and dwelt among us. [204:2] ... +Every spirit that _confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the +flesh_ is not of God. [204:3] ... That which was from the beginning, +which we have _heard_, which we have _seen_ with our eyes, which we have +_looked upon_, and _our hands have handled_ of the Word of Life ... +declare we unto you. [204:4] ... _Many deceivers_ are entered into the +world who confess not that _Jesus Christ is come in the flesh_." [204:5] + +Reasoning from the principle that evil is inherent in matter, the +Gnostics believed the union of the soul and the body to be a calamity. +According to their views the spiritual being can never attain the +perfection of which he is susceptible so long as he remains connected +with his present corporeal organization. Hence they rejected the +doctrine of the resurrection of the body. When Paul asks the +Corinthians--"How say some among you that there is no resurrection of +the dead?" [204:6]--he alludes to the Gnostic denial of this article of +the Christian theology. He also refers to the same circumstance when he +denounces the "profane and vain babblings" of those who "concerning the +truth" had erred, "saying that the resurrection is past already." +[204:7] These heretics, it would appear, maintained that an introduction +to their _Gnosis_, or knowledge, was the only genuine deliverance from +the dominion of death; and argued accordingly that, in the case of those +who had been initiated into the mysteries of their system, the +resurrection was "past already." + +The ancient Christian writers concur in stating that Simon, mentioned in +the Acts of the Apostles, [205:1] and commonly called Simon Magus, was +the father of the sects of the Gnostics. [205:2] He was a Samaritan by +birth, and after the rebuke he received from Peter, [205:3] he is +reported to have withdrawn from the Church, and to have concocted a +theology of his own, into which he imported some elements borrowed from +Christianity. At a subsequent period he travelled to Rome, where he +attracted attention by the novelty of his creed, and the boldness of his +pretensions. We are told that, prior to his baptism by Philip, he "had +used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that +himself was some great one;" [205:4] and subsequently he seems to have +pursued a similar career. According to a very early authority, nearly +all the inhabitants of his native country, and a few persons in other +districts, worshipped him as the first or supreme God. [205:5] There is, +probably, some exaggeration in this statement; but there seems no reason +to doubt that he laid claim to extraordinary powers, maintaining that +the same spirit which had been imparted to Jesus, had descended on +himself. He is also said to have denied that our Lord had a real body. +Some, who did not enrol themselves under his standard, soon partially +adopted his principles; and there is cause to think that Hymenaeus, +Philetus, Alexander, Phygellus, and Hermogenes, mentioned in the New +Testament, [205:6] were all more or less tinctured with the spirit of +Gnosticism. Other heresiarchs, not named in the sacred record, are known +to have flourished towards the close of the first century. Of these the +most famous were Carpocrates, Cerinthus, and Ebion. [206:1] There is a +tradition that John, "the beloved disciple," came in contact with +Cerinthus, when going into a bath at Ephesus, and retired abruptly from +the place, that he might not compromise himself by remaining in the same +building with such an enemy of the Christian revelation. [206:2] It is +also stated that the same apostle's testimony to the dignity of the +Word, in the beginning of his Gospel, was designed as an antidote to the +errors of this heresiarch. [206:3] + +When the gospel exerts its proper influence on the character it produces +an enlightened, genial, and consistent piety; but a false faith is apt +to lead, in practice, to one of two extremes, either the asceticism of +the Essene, or the sensualism of the Sadducee. Gnosticism developed +itself in both these directions. Some of its advocates maintained that, +as matter is essentially evil, the corrupt propensities of the body +should be kept in constant subjection by a life of rigorous +mortification; others held that, as the principle of evil is inherent in +the corporeal frame, the malady is beyond the reach of cure, and that, +therefore, the animal nature should be permitted freely to indulge its +peculiar appetites. To the latter party, as some think, belonged the +Nicolaitanes noticed by John in the Apocalypse. [206:4] They are said to +have derived their name from Nicolas, one of the seven deacons ordained +by the apostles; [206:5] and to have been a class of Gnostics noted for +their licentiousness. The origin of the designation may, perhaps, admit +of some dispute; but it is certain that those to whom it was applied +were alike lax in principle and dissolute in practice, for the Spirit of +God has declared His abhorrence as well of the "_doctrine_," as of "the +_deeds_ of the Nicolaitanes." [207:1] + +Though the Jews, at the time of the appearance of our Lord, were so much +divided in sentiment, and though the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the +Essenes, had each their theological peculiarities, their sectarianism +did not involve any complete severance or separation. Notwithstanding +their differences of creed, the Pharisees and Sadducees sat together in +the Sanhedrim, [207:2] and worshipped together in the temple. All the +seed of Abraham constituted one Church, and congregated in the same +sacred courts to celebrate the great festivals. In the Christian Church, +in the days of the apostles, there was something approaching to the same +outward unity. Though, for instance, there were so many parties among +the Corinthians--though one said, I am of Paul, and another I am of +Apollos, and another I am of Cephas, and another I am of Christ--all +assembled in the same place to join in the same worship, and to partake +of the same Eucharist. Those who withdrew from the disciples with whom +they had been previously associated, appear generally to have +relinquished altogether the profession of Christianity. [207:3] Some, at +least, of the Gnostics acted very differently. When danger appeared they +were inclined to temporize, and to discontinue their attendance on the +worship of the Church; but they were desirous to remain still nominally +connected with the great body of believers. [207:4] Any form of alliance +with such dangerous errorists was, however, considered a cause of +scandal; and the inspired teachers of the gospel insisted on their +exclusion from ecclesiastical fellowship. Hence Paul declares that he +had delivered Hymenaeus and Alexander "unto Satan" that they might learn +"not to blaspheme;" [208:1] and John upbraids the Church in Pergamos +because it retained in its communion "them that held the doctrine of the +Nicolaitanes." [208:2] During the first century the Gnostics seem to +have been unable to create anything like a schism among those who had +embraced Christianity. Whilst the apostles lived the "science falsely so +called" could not pretend to a divine sanction; and though here and +there they displayed considerable activity in the dissemination of their +principles, they were sternly and effectually discountenanced. It is +accordingly stated by one of the earliest ecclesiastical writers that, +in the time of Simeon of Jerusalem, who finished his career in the +beginning of the second century, "they called the Church as yet a +virgin, inasmuch as it was not yet corrupted by vain discourses." +[208:3] Other writers concur in bearing testimony to the fact that, +whilst the apostles were on earth, false teachers failed "to divide the +unity" of the Christian commonwealth, "by the introduction of corrupt +doctrines." [208:4] + +The gospel affords scope for the healthful and vigorous exercise of the +human understanding, and it is itself the highest and the purest wisdom. +It likewise supplies a test for ascertaining the state of the heart. +Those who receive it with faith unfeigned will delight to meditate on +its wonderful discoveries; but those who are unrenewed in the spirit of +their minds will render to it only a doubtful submission, and will +pervert its plainest announcements. The apostle therefore says--"There +must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be +made manifest among you." [208:5] The heretic is made manifest alike by +his deviations from the doctrines and the precepts of revelation. His +creed does not exhibit the consistency of truth, and his life fails to +display the beauty of holiness. Bible Christianity is neither +superstitious nor sceptical, neither austere nor sensual. "The wisdom +that is from above is _first pure,_ then peaceable, gentle, and easy to +be intreated, _full of mercy and good fruits_, without partiality and +without hypocrisy." [209:1] + + + + + + SECTION III. + + THE WORSHIP AND CONSTITUTION OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE LORD'S DAY--THE WORSHIP OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH--ITS SYMBOLIC +ORDINANCES AND ITS DISCIPLINE. + + +To the primitive disciples the day on which our Lord rose from the grave +was a crisis of intense excitement. The crucifixion had cast a dismal +cloud over their prospects; for, immediately before, when He entered +Jerusalem amidst the hosannahs of the multitude, they had probably +anticipated that He was about to assert His sovereignty as the Messiah: +yet, when His body was committed to the tomb, they did not at once sink +into despair; and, though filled with anxiety, they ventured to indulge +a hope that the third day after His demise would be signalised by some +new revelation. [210:1] The report of those who were early at the +sepulchre at first inspired the residue of the disciples with wonder and +perplexity; [210:2] but, as the proofs of His resurrection multiplied, +they became confident and joyful. Ever afterwards the first day of the +week was observed by them as the season of holy convocation. [211:1] +Those members of the Apostolic Church who had been originally Jews, +continued for some time to meet together also on the Saturday; but, what +was called "The Lord's Day," [211:2] was regarded by all as sacred to +Christ. + +It has often been asserted that, during His own ministry, our Saviour +encouraged His disciples to violate the Sabbath, and thus prepared the +way for its abolition. But this theory is as destitute of foundation as +it is dangerous to morality. Even the ceremonial law continued to be +binding until Jesus expired upon the cross; and meanwhile He no doubt +felt it to be His duty to attend to every jot and tittle of its +appointments. [211:3] Thus, it became Him "to fulfil all righteousness." +[211:4] He is at pains to shew that the acts of which the Pharisees +complained as breaches of the Sabbath could be vindicated by Old +Testament authority; [211:5] and that these formalists "condemned _the +guiltless,"_ [211:6] when they denounced the disciples as doing that +which was unlawful. Jesus never transgressed either the letter or the +spirit of any commandment pertaining to the holy rest; but superstition +had added to the written law a multitude of minute observances; and +every Israelite was at perfect liberty to neglect any or all of these +frivolous regulations. + +The Great Teacher never intimated that the Sabbath was a ceremonial +ordinance which was to cease with the Mosaic ritual. It was instituted +when our first parents were in Paradise; [211:7] and the precept +enjoining its remembrance, being a portion of the Decalogue, [212:1] is +of perpetual obligation. Hence, instead of regarding it as a merely +Jewish institution, Christ declares that it "was made for MAN," [212:2] +or, in other words, that it was designed for the benefit of the whole +human family. Instead of anticipating its extinction along with the +ceremonial law, He speaks of its existence after the downfal of +Jerusalem. When He announces the calamities connected with the ruin of +the holy city, He instructs His followers to pray that the urgency of +the catastrophe may not deprive them of the comfort of the ordinances of +the sacred rest. "Pray ye," said he, "that your flight be not in the +winter, _neither on the Sabbath-day_." [212:3] And the prophet Isaiah, +when describing the ingathering of the Gentiles and the glory of the +Church in the times of the gospel, mentions the keeping of the Sabbath +as characteristic of the children of God. "The sons of the stranger," +says he, "that join themselves to the Lord to serve him, and to love the +name of the Lord, to be his servants, every one _that keepeth the +Sabbath from polluting it,_ and taketh hold of my covenant--even them I +will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of +prayer; their burnt-offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted +upon mine altar: [212:4] for mine house shall be called an house of +prayer _for all people._" [212:5] + +But when Jesus declared that "the Son of Man is Lord also of the +Sabbath," [212:6] He unquestionably asserted His right to alter the +circumstantials of its observance. He accordingly abolished its +ceremonial worship, gave it a new name, and changed the day of its +celebration. He signalised the first day of the week by then appearing +once and again to His disciples after His resurrection, [212:7] and by +that Pentecostal outpouring of the Spirit [213:1] which marks the +commencement of a new era in the history of redemption. As the Lord's +day was consecrated to the Lord's service, [213:2] the disciples did not +now neglect the assembling of themselves together; [213:3] and the +apostle commanded them at this holy season to set apart a portion of +their gains for religious purposes. [213:4] It was most fitting that the +first day of the week should be thus distinguished under the new +economy; for the deliverance of the Church is a more illustrious +achievement than the formation of the world; [213:5] and as the primeval +Sabbath commemorated the rest of the Creator, the Christian Sabbath +reminds us of the completion of the work of the Redeemer. "There +remaineth, therefore, the keeping of a Sabbath [213:6] to the people of +God, for he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his +own works, as God did from his." [213:7] + +As many of the converts from Judaism urged the circumcision of their +Gentile brethren, they were likewise disposed to insist on their +observance of the Hebrew festivals. The apostles, at least for a +considerable time, did not deem it expedient positively to forbid the +keeping of such days; but they required that, in matters of this nature, +every one should be left to his own discretion. "One man," says Paul, +"esteemeth one day above another; another esteemeth every day alike. Let +every man be fully persuaded in his own mind." [213:8] It is obvious +that the Lord's day is not included in this compromise; for from the +morning of the resurrection there appears to have been no dispute as to +its claims, and its very title attests the general recognition of its +authority. The apostle can refer only to days which were typical and +ceremonial. Hence he says elsewhere--"Let no man judge you in meat, or +in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the +Sabbath days--_which are a shadow of things to come, but the body is of +Christ_." [214:1] + +Though the New Testament furnishes no full and circumstantial +description of the worship of the Christian Church, it makes such +incidental allusions to its various parts, as enable us to form a pretty +accurate idea of its general character. Like the worship of the +synagogue [214:2] it consisted of prayer, singing, reading the +Scriptures, and expounding or preaching. Those who joined the Church, +for several years after it was first organized, were almost exclusively +converts from Judaism, and when they embraced the Christian faith, they +retained the order of religious service to which they had been hitherto +accustomed; but by the recognition of Jesus Christ as the Messiah of +whom the law and the prophets testified, their old forms were inspired +with new life and significance. At first the heathen did not challenge +the distinction between the worship of the synagogue and the Church; and +thus it was, as has already been intimated, that for a considerable +portion of the first century, the Christians and the Jews were +frequently confounded. + +It has often been asserted, that the Jews had a liturgy when our Lord +ministered in their synagogues; but the proof adduced in support of this +statement is far from satisfactory; and their prayers which are still +extant, and which are said to have been then in use, must obviously have +been written after the destruction of Jerusalem. [215:1] It is, however, +certain that the Christians in the apostolic age were not restricted to +any particular forms of devotion. The liturgies ascribed to Mark, James, +and others, are unquestionably the fabrications of later times; [215:2] +and had any of the inspired teachers of the gospel composed a book of +common prayer, it would, of course, have been received into the canon of +the New Testament. Our Lord taught His disciples to pray, and supplied +them with a model to guide them in their devotional exercises; [215:3] +but there is no evidence whatever that, in their stated services, they +constantly employed the language of that beautiful and comprehensive +formulary. The very idea of a liturgy was altogether alien to the spirit +of the primitive believers. They were commanded to give thanks "in +everything," [215:4] to pray "always _with all prayer and supplication_ +in the spirit," [215:5] and to watch thereunto "with all perseverance +and supplication _for all saints_;" [215:6] and had they been limited to +a form, they would have found it impossible to comply with these +admonitions. Their prayers were dictated by the occasion, and varied +according to passing circumstances. Some of them which have been +recorded, [215:7] had a special reference to the occurrences of the day, +and could not have well admitted of repetition. In the apostolic age, +when the Spirit was poured out in such rich effusion on the Church, the +gift, as well as the grace, of prayer was imparted abundantly, so that a +liturgy would have been deemed superfluous, if not directly calculated +to freeze the genial current of devotion. + +Singing, in which none but Levites were permitted to unite, [216:1] and +which was accompanied by instrumental music, constituted a prominent +part of the temple service. The singers occupied an elevated platform +adjoining the court of the priests; [216:2] and it is somewhat doubtful +whether, in that position, they were distinctly heard by the majority of +the worshippers within the sacred precincts. [216:3] As the sacrifices, +offerings, and other observances of the temple, as well as the priests, +the vestments, and even the building itself, had an emblematic meaning, +[216:4] it would appear that the singing, intermingled with the music of +various instruments of sound, was also typical and ceremonial. It seems +to have indicated that the tongue of man cannot sufficiently express the +praise of the King Eternal, and that all things, animate and inanimate, +owe Him a revenue of glory. The worship of the synagogue was more +simple. Its officers had, indeed, trumpets and cornets, with which they +published their sentences of excommunication, and announced the new +year, the fasts, and the Sabbath; [216:5] but they did not introduce +instrumental music into their congregational services. The early +Christians followed the example of the synagogue; and when they +celebrated the praises of God "in psalms, and hymns, and spiritual +songs," [216:6] their melody was "the fruit of the lips." [216:7] For +many centuries after this period, the use of instrumental music was +unknown in the Church. [217:1] + +The Jews divided the Pentateuch and the writings of the Prophets into +sections, one of which was read every Sabbath in the synagogue; [217:2] +and thus, in the place set apart to the service of the God of Israel, +His own will was constantly proclaimed. The Christians bestowed equal +honour on the holy oracles; for in their solemn assemblies, the reading +of the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament formed a part of their +stated worship. [217:3] At the close of this exercise, one or more of +the elders edified the congregation, either by giving a general +exposition of the passage read, or by insisting particularly on some +point of doctrine or duty which it obviously inculcated. If a prophet +was present, he, too, had now an opportunity of addressing the auditory. +[217:4] + +As apostolic Christianity aimed to impart light to the understanding, +its worship was uniformly conducted in the language of the people. It, +indeed, attested its divine origin by miracles, and it accordingly +enabled some to speak in tongues in which they had never been +instructed; but it permitted such individuals to exercise their gifts in +the church only when interpreters were present to translate their +communications. [217:5] Whilst the gift of tongues, possessed by so many +of the primitive disciples, must have attracted the attention of the +Gentile as well as of the Jewish literati, it must also have made a +powerful impression on the popular mind, more especially in large +cities; for in such places there were always foreigners to whom these +strange utterances would be perfectly intelligible, and for whom a +discourse delivered in the speech of their native country would have +peculiar charms. But in the worship of the primitive Christians there +was no attempt, in the way of embellishment or decoration, to captivate +the senses. The Church had no gorgeous temples, no fragrant incense, +[218:1] no splendid vestments. For probably the whole of the first +century, she celebrated her religious ordinances in private houses, +[218:2] and her ministers officiated in their ordinary costume. John, +the forerunner of our Saviour, "had his raiment of camel's hair, and a +leathern girdle about his loins;" [218:3] but perhaps few of the early +Christian preachers were arrayed in such coarse canonicals. + +The Founder of the Christian religion instituted only two symbolic +ordinances--Baptism and the Lord's Supper. [218:4] It is universally +admitted that, in the apostolic age, baptism was dispensed to all who +embraced the gospel; but it has been much disputed whether it was also +administered to the infant children of the converts. The testimony of +Scripture on the subject is not very explicit; for, as the ordinance was +in common use amongst the Jews, [218:5] a minute description of its mode +and subjects was, perhaps, deemed unnecessary by the apostles and +evangelists. When an adult heathen was received into the Church of +Israel, it is well known that the little children of the proselyte were +admitted along with him; [219:1] and as the Christian Scriptures _no +where forbid_ the dispensation of the rite to infants, it may be +presumed that the same practice was observed by the primitive ministers +of the gospel. This inference is emphatically corroborated by the fact +that, of the comparatively small number of passages in the New Testament +which treat of its administration, no less than _five_ refer to the +baptism of whole households. [219:2] It is also worthy of remark that +these five cases are not mentioned as rare or peculiar, but as ordinary +specimens of the method of apostolic procedure. It is not, indeed, +absolutely certain that there was an infant in any of these five +households; but it is, unquestionably, much more probable that they +contained a fair proportion of little children, than that every +individual in each of them had arrived at years of maturity, and that +all these adults, without exception, at once participated in the faith +of the head of the family, and became candidates for baptism. + +In the New Testament faith is represented as the grand qualification for +baptism; [219:3] but this principle obviously applies only to all who +are capable of believing; for in the Word of God faith is also +represented as necessary to salvation, [219:4] and yet it is generally +conceded that little children may be saved. Under the Jewish +dispensation infants were circumcised, and were thus recognised as +interested in the divine favour, so that, if they be excluded from the +rite of baptism, it follows that they occupy a worse position under a +milder and more glorious economy. But the New Testament forbids us to +adopt such an inference. It declares that infants should be "suffered to +come" to the Saviour; [219:5] it indicates that baptism supplies the +place of circumcision, for it connects the gospel institution with "the +circumcision of Christ;" [220:1] it speaks of children as "saints" and +as "in the Lord," [220:2] and, of course, as having received some +visible token of Church membership; and it assures them that their sins +are forgiven them "for His name's sake." [220:3] The New Testament does +not record a single case in which the offspring of Christian parents +were admitted to baptism on arriving at years of intelligence; but it +tells of the apostles exhorting the men of Judea to repent and to submit +to the ordinance, inasmuch as it was a privilege proffered to them and +_to their children_. [220:4] Nay more, Paul plainly teaches that the +seed of the righteous are entitled to the recognition of saintship; and +that, even when only one of the parents is a Christian, the offspring do +not on that account forfeit their ecclesiastical inheritance. "The +unbelieving husband," says he, "is sanctified by the wife, and the +unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband, else were your _children_ +unclean, but _now are they holy_." [220:5] This passage demonstrates +that the Apostolic Church recognised the holiness of infants, or in +other words, that it admitted them to baptism. + +The Scriptures furnish no very specific instructions as to the mode of +baptism; and it is probable that, in its administration, the primitive +heralds of the gospel did not adhere to a system of rigid uniformity. +[220:6] Some have asserted that the Greek word translated _baptize_, +[220:7] in our authorised version, always signifies _immerse_, but it +has been clearly shewn [221:1] that this statement is inaccurate, and +that baptism does not necessarily imply _dipping_. In ancient times, and +in the lands where the apostles laboured, bathing was perhaps as +frequently performed by _affusion_ as immersion; [221:2] and it may be +that the apostles varied their method of baptizing according to +circumstances. [221:3] The ordinance was intended to convey the idea of +_washing_ or purifying; and it is obvious that water may be applied, in +many ways, as the means of ablution. In the sacred volume _sprinkling_ +is often spoken of as equivalent to washing. [221:4] + +As baptism was designed to supersede the Jewish circumcision, the Lord's +Supper was intended to occupy the place of the Jewish Passover. [221:5] +The Paschal lamb could be sacrificed nowhere except in the temple of +Jerusalem, and the Passover was kept only once a year; but the Eucharist +could be dispensed wherever a Christian congregation was collected; and +at this period it seems to have been observed every first day of the +week, at least by the more zealous and devout worshippers. [221:6] The +wine, as well as the other element, was given to all who joined in its +celebration; and the title of the "Breaking of _Bread_," [221:7] one of +the names by which the ordinance was originally distinguished, supplies +evidence that the doctrine of transubstantiation was then utterly +unknown. The word _Sacrament_, as applied to Baptism and the Holy +Supper, was not in use in the days of the apostles, and the subsequent +introduction of this nomenclature, [222:1] probably contributed to throw +an air of mystery around these institutions. The primitive disciples +considered the elements employed in them simply as signs and seals of +spiritual blessings; and they had no more idea of regarding the bread in +the Eucharist as the real body of our Saviour, than they had of +believing that the water of baptism is the very blood in which He washed +His people from their sins. They knew that they enjoyed the light of His +countenance in prayer, in meditation, and in the hearing of His Word; +and that He was not otherwise present in these symbolic ordinances. + +Whilst, in the Lord's Supper, believers hold fellowship with Christ, +they also maintain and exhibit their communion with each other. "We, +being many," says Paul, "are one bread and one body, for we are all +partakers of that one bread." [222:2] Those who joined together in the +observance of this holy institution were thereby pledged to mutual love; +but every one who acted in such a way as to bring reproach upon the +Christian name, was no longer admitted to the sacred table. Paul, +doubtless, refers to exclusion from this ordinance, as well as from +intimate civil intercourse, when he says to the Corinthians--"I have +written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a +brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a +drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat." [222:3] + +In the synagogue all cases of discipline were decided by the bench of +elders; [222:4] and it is plain, from the New Testament, that those who +occupied a corresponding position in the Christian Church, also +exercised similar authority. They are described as having the oversight +of the flock, [222:5] as bearing rule, [223:1] as watching for souls, +[223:2] and as taking care of the Church of God. [223:3] They are +instructed how to deal with offenders, [223:4] and they are said to be +entitled to obedience. [223:5] Such representations obviously imply that +they were intrusted with the administration of ecclesiastical +discipline. + +This account of the functions of the spiritual rulers has been supposed +by some to be inconsistent with several statements in the apostolic +epistles. It has been alleged that, according to these letters, the +administration of discipline was vested in the whole body of the people; +and that originally the members of the Church, in their collective +capacity, exercised the right of excommunication. The language of Paul, +in reference to a case of scandal which had occurred among the +Christians of Corinth, has been often quoted in proof of the democratic +character of their ecclesiastical constitution. "It is reported +commonly," says the apostle, "that there is fornication, among you, and +such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one +should have his father's wife..... Therefore _put away from among +yourselves that wicked person_." [223:6] The admonition was obeyed, and +the application of discipline seems to have produced a most salutary +impression upon the mind of the offender. In his next letter the apostle +accordingly alludes to this circumstance, and observes--"Sufficient to +such a man is this punishment, which was _inflicted of many_." [223:7] +These words have been frequently adduced to shew that the government of +the Corinthian Church was administered by the whole body of the +communicants. + +The various statements of Scripture, if rightly understood, must exactly +harmonize, and a closer investigation of the case of this transgressor +is all that is required to prove that he was not tried and condemned by +a tribunal composed of the whole mass of the members of the Church of +Corinth. His true history reveals facts of a very different character. +For reasons which it would, perhaps, be now in vain to hope fully to +explore, he seems to have been a favourite among his fellow-disciples; +many of them, prior to their conversion, had been grossly licentious; +and, it may be, that they continued to regard certain lusts of the flesh +with an eye of comparative indulgence. [224:1] Some of them probably +considered the conduct of this offender as only a legitimate exercise of +his Christian liberty; and they appear to have manifested a strong +inclination to shield him from ecclesiastical censure. Paul, therefore, +felt it necessary to address them in the language of indignant +expostulation. "_Ye are puffed up_," says he, "and have not rather +mourned that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among +you....._Your glorying is not good_. Know ye not that a little leaven +leaveneth the whole lump." [224:2] At the same time, as an apostle bound +to vindicate the reputation of the Church, and to enforce the rules of +ecclesiastical discipline, he solemnly announces his determination to +have the offender excommunicated. "I verily," says he, "as absent in +body, but present in spirit, _have judged_ already as though I were +present, concerning him that hath so done this deed, in the name of our +Lord Jesus Christ, _when ye are gathered together_, and my spirit, with +the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, _to deliver such an one unto Satan_ +for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the +day of the Lord Jesus." [224:3] To deliver any one to Satan is to expel +him from the Church, for whoever is not in the Church is in the world, +and "the whole world lieth in the wicked one." [224:4] This discipline +was designed to teach the fornicator to mortify his lusts, and it thus +aimed at the promotion of his highest interests; or, as the apostle +expresses it, he was to be excommunicated "for the destruction of the +flesh, [225:1] that the spirit might be saved in the day of the Lord +Jesus." It is obvious that the Church of Corinth was now in a state of +great disorder. A partisan spirit had crept in amongst its members; +[225:2] and it seems probable that those elders [225:3] who were anxious +to maintain wholesome discipline were opposed and overborne. The +fornicator had in some way contrived to make himself so popular that an +attempt at his expulsion would, it was feared, throw the whole society +into hopeless confusion. Under these circumstances Paul felt it +necessary to interpose, to assert his apostolic authority, and to insist +upon the maintenance of ecclesiastical order. Instead, however, of +consulting the people as to the course to be pursued, he peremptorily +delivers his _judgment_, and requires them to hold a solemn +assembly that they may listen to the public announcement [225:4] of a +sentence of excommunication. He, of course, expected that their rulers +would concur with him in this decision, and that one of them would +officially publish it when they were "gathered together." + +When the case is thus stated, it is easy to understand why the apostle +required all the disciples to "put away" from among themselves "that +wicked person." Had they continued to cherish the spirit which they had +recently displayed, they might either have encouraged the fornicator to +refuse submission to the sentence, or they might have rendered it +comparatively powerless. He therefore reminds them that they too should +seek to promote the purity of ecclesiastical fellowship; and that they +were bound to cooperate in carrying out a righteous discipline. They +were to cease to recognize this fallen disciple as a servant of Christ; +they were to withdraw themselves from his society; they were to decline +to meet him on the same terms, as heretofore, in social intercourse; and +they were not even to eat in his company. Thus would the reputation of +the Church be vindicated; for in this way it would be immediately known +to all who were without that he was no longer considered a member of the +brotherhood. + +The Corinthians were awakened to a sense of duty by this apostolic +letter, and acted up to its instructions. The result was most +satisfactory. When the offender, saw that he was cut off from the +Church, and that its members avoided his society, he was completely +humbled. The sentence of the apostle, or the eldership, if opposed or +neglected by the people, might have produced little impression; but "the +punishment which was inflicted of many"--the immediate and entire +abandonment of all connexion with him by the disciples at +Corinth--overwhelmed him with shame and terror. He felt as a man smitten +by the judgment of God; he renounced his sin; and he exhibited the most +unequivocal tokens of genuine contrition. In due time he was restored to +Church fellowship; and the apostle then exhorted his brethren to readmit +him to intercourse, and to treat him with kindness and confidence. "Ye +ought," says he, "rather to forgive him and comfort him, lest perhaps +such an one should be swallowed up with overmuch sorrow. Wherefore I +beseech you that ye would confirm your love toward him." [227:1] + +This case of the Corinthian fornicator has been recorded for the +admonition and guidance of believers in all generations. It teaches that +every member of a Christian Church is bound to use his best endeavours +to promote a pure communion; and that he is not guiltless if, prompted +by mistaken charity or considerations of selfishness, he is not prepared +to co-operate in the exclusion of false brethren. Many an immoral +minister has maintained his position, and has thus continued to bring +discredit on the gospel, simply because those who had witnessed his +misconduct were induced to suppress their testimony; and many a church +court has been prevented from enforcing discipline by the clamours or +intimidation of an ignorant and excited congregation. The command--"Put +away from among yourselves that wicked person," is addressed to the +people, as well as to the ministry; and all Christ's disciples should +feel that, in vindicating the honour of His name, they have a common +interest, and share a common responsibility. Every one cannot be a +member of a church court; but every one can aid in the preservation of +church discipline. He may supply information, or give evidence, or +encourage a healthy tone of public sentiment, or assist, by petition or +remonstrance, in quickening the zeal of lukewarm judicatories. And +discipline is never so influential as when it is known to be sustained +by the approving verdict of a pious and intelligent community. The +punishment "inflicted of many"--the withdrawal of the confidence and +countenance of a whole church--is a most impressive admonition to a +proud sinner. + +In the apostolic age the sentence of excommunication had a very +different significance from that which was attached to it at a +subsequent period. Our Lord pointed out its import with equal precision +and brevity when he said--"If thy brother....neglect to hear the church, +[228:1] let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican." [228:2] +The Israelites could have no religious fellowship with heathens, or the +worshippers of false gods; and they could have no personal respect for +publicans, or Roman tax-gatherers, who were regarded as odious +representatives of the oppressors of their country. To be "unto them as +an heathen" was to be excluded from the privileges of their church; and +to be "unto them as a publican" was to be shut out from their society in +the way of domestic intercourse. When the apostle says--"Now we command +you, brethren, that _ye withdraw yourselves_ from every brother that +walketh disorderly and not after the ordinance [228:3] which he received +of us," [228:4] he doubtless designed to intimate that those who were +excommunicated should be admitted neither to the intimacy of private +friendship nor to the sealing ordinances of the gospel. But it did not +follow that the disciples were to treat such persons with insolence or +inhumanity. They were not at liberty to act thus towards heathens and +publicans; for they were to love even their enemies, and they were to +imitate the example of their Father in heaven who "maketh his sun to +rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on +the unjust." [228:5] It is obvious from the address of the apostle to +the Thessalonians that the members of the Church were not forbidden to +speak to those who were separated from communion; and that they were not +required to refuse them the ordinary charities of life. They were simply +to avoid such an intercourse as implied a community of faith, of +feeling, and of interest. "If any man," says he, "obey not our word by +this epistle, note that man, and _have no company with him_, that he may +be ashamed. Yet _count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a +brother_." [229:1] + +How different was this discipline from that which was established, +several centuries afterwards, in the Latin Church! The spirit and usages +of paganism then supplanted the regulations of the New Testament, and +the excommunication of Christianity was converted into the +excommunication of Druidism. [229:2] Our Lord taught that "whoever would +not hear the church" should be treated as a heathen man and a publican; +but the time came when he who forfeited his status as a member of the +Christian commonwealth was denounced as a monster or a fiend. Paul +declared that the person excommunicated, instead of being counted as an +enemy, should be admonished as a brother; but the Latin Church, in a +long list of horrid imprecations, [229:3] invoked a curse upon every +member of the body of the offender, and commanded every one to refuse to +him the civility of the coldest salutation! The early Church acted as a +faithful monitor, anxious to reclaim the sinner from the error of his +ways: the Latin Church, like a tyrant, refuses to the transgressor even +that which is his due, and seeks either to reduce him to slavery, or to +drive him to despair. + + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE EXTRAORDINARY TEACHERS OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH; AND ITS ORDINARY +OFFICE-BEARERS, THEIR APPOINTMENT, AND ORDINATION. + + +Paul declares that Christ "gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and +some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of +the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body +of Christ." [230:1] In another place the same writer, when speaking of +those occupying positions of prominence in the ecclesiastical community, +makes a somewhat similar enumeration. "God," says he, "hath set some in +the church, first, apostles; secondarily, prophets; thirdly, teachers; +after that, miracles; then, gifts of healings, helps, governments, +diversities of tongues." [230:2] + +These two passages, presenting something like catalogues of the most +prominent characters connected with the Apostolic Church, throw light +upon each other. They mention the ordinary, as well as the +extraordinary, ecclesiastical functionaries. Under the class of ordinary +office-bearers must be placed those described as "pastors and teachers," +"helps," and "governments." The evangelists, such as Timothy, [230:3] +Titus, and Philip, [230:4] seem to have had a special commission to +assist in organizing the infant Church; [230:5] and, as they were +furnished with supernatural endowments, [231:1] they may be considered +extraordinary functionaries. The apostles themselves clearly belong to +the same denomination. They all possessed the gift of inspiration +[231:2] they all received their authority immediately from Christ; +[231:3] they all "went in and out with Him" during His personal +ministry; and, as they all saw Him after He rose from the dead, they +could all attest His resurrection. [231:4] It is plain, too, that the +ministrations of "the prophets," as well as of those who wrought +"miracles," who possessed "gifts of healings," and who had "diversities +of tongues," must also be designated extraordinary. + +It is probable that by the "helps," of whom Paul here speaks, he +understands _the deacons_, [231:5] who were originally appointed to +relieve the apostles of a portion of labour which they felt to be +inconvenient and burdensome. [231:6] The duties of the deacons were not +strictly of a spiritual character; these ministers held only a +subordinate station among the office-bearers of the Church; and, even in +dealing with its temporalities, they acted under the advice and +direction of those who were properly entrusted with its government. +Hence, perhaps, they were called "helps" or attendants. [231:7] + +When these helps and the extraordinary functionaries are left out of the +apostolic catalogues, it is rather singular that, in the passage +addressed to the Ephesians, we have nothing remaining but "PASTORS AND +TEACHERS;" and, in that to the Corinthians, nothing but "TEACHERS" AND +"GOVERNMENTS." There are good grounds for believing that these two +residuary elements are identical,--the "pastors," mentioned +before[232:1] the teachers in one text, being equivalent to the +"governments" mentioned after them in the other.[232:2] Nor is it +strange that those entrusted with the ecclesiastical government should +be styled pastors or shepherds; for they are the guardians and rulers of +"the flock of God." [232:3] Thus, it appears that the ordinary +office-bearers of the Apostolic Church were pastors, teachers, and +helps; or, teachers, rulers, and deacons. + +In the apostolic age we read likewise of elders and bishops; and in the +New Testament these names are often used interchangeably.[232:4] The +elders or bishops, were the same as the pastors and teachers; for they +had the charge of the instruction and government of the Church.[232:5] +Hence elders are required to act as faithful pastors under Christ, the +Chief Shepherd.[232:6] It appears, too, that whilst some of the elders +were only pastors, or rulers, others were also teachers. The apostle +says accordingly--"Let the elders that _rule_ well, be counted worthy of +double honour, especially those that _labour in the word and +doctrine_".[232:7] We may thus see that the teachers, governments, and +helps, mentioned by Paul when writing to the Corinthians, are the same +as the "bishops and deacons" of whom he speaks elsewhere. [233:1] + +In primitive times there were, generally, a plurality of elders, as well +as a plurality of deacons, in every church or congregation; [233:2] and +each functionary was expected to apply himself to that particular +department of his office which he could manage most efficiently. Some +elders possessed a peculiar talent for expounding the gospel in the way +of preaching, or, as it was occasionally called, prophesying; [233:3] +others excelled in delivering hortatory addresses to the people; others +displayed great tact and sagacity in conducting ecclesiastical business, +or in dealing personally with offenders, or with penitents; whilst +others again were singularly successful in imparting private instruction +to catechumens. Some deacons were frequently commissioned to administer +to the wants of the sick; and others, who were remarkable for their +shrewdness and discrimination, were employed to distribute alms to the +indigent. In one of his epistles Paul pointedly refers to the multiform +duties of these ecclesiastical office-bearers-"Having then," says he," +gifts, differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether +prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; or +ministry (of the deacon), let us wait on our ministering; or he that +teacheth, on teaching; or he that exhorteth, on exhortation; he that +giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; +he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness." [233:4] It has been supposed +by some that all the primitive elders, or bishops, were preachers; but +the records of apostolic times warrant no such conclusion. These elders +were appointed simply to "take care of the Church of God;" [233:5] and +it was not necessary that each individual should perform all the +functions of the pastoral office. Even at the present day a single +preacher is generally sufficient to minister to a single congregation. +When Paul requires that the elders who rule well, though they may not +"labour in the word and doctrine," shall be counted worthy of double +honour, [234:1] is language distinctly indicates that there were then +persons designated elders who did not preach, and who, notwithstanding, +were entitled to respect as exemplary and efficient functionaries. It is +remarkable that when the apostle enumerates the qualifications of a +bishop, or elder, [234:2] he scarcely refers to oratorical endowments. +He states that the ruler of the Church should be grave, sober, prudent, +and benevolent; but, as to his ability to propagate his principles, he +employs only one word--rendered in our version "apt to teach." [234:3] +This does not imply that he must be qualified to _preach_, for +_teaching_ and _preaching_ are repeatedly distinguished in the New +Testament; [234:4] neither does it signify that he must become a +professional tutor, for, as has already been intimated, all elders are +not expected to labour in the word and doctrine; it merely denotes that +he should be able and willing, as often as an opportunity occurred, to +communicate a knowledge of divine truth. All believers are required to +"exhort one another daily," [235:1] "_teaching_ and admonishing one +another," [235:2] being "ready always to give an answer to every man +that asketh them a reason of the hope that is in them;" [235:3] and +those who "watch for souls" should be specially zealous in performing +these duties of their Christian vocation. The word which has been +supposed to indicate that every elder should be a public instructor +occurs in only one other instance in the New Testament; and in that case +it is used in a connexion which serves to illustrate its meaning. Paul +there states that whilst such as minister to the Lord should avoid a +controversial spirit, they should at the same time be willing to supply +explanations to objectors, and to furnish them with information. "The +servant of the Lord," says he, "must not strive, but be gentle unto all +men, _apt to teach_, patient, in meekness _instructing_ those that +oppose themselves, if God peradventure will give them repentance to the +acknowledging of the truth." [235:4] Here the _aptness to teach_ refers +apparently to a talent for winning over gainsayers by means of +instruction communicated in private conversation. [235:5] + +But still preaching is the grand ordinance of God, as well for the +edification of saints as for the conversion of sinners; and it was, +therefore, necessary that at least some of the session or eldership +connected with each flock should be competent to conduct the +congregational worship. As spiritual gifts were more abundant in the +apostolic times than afterwards, it is probable that at first several of +the elders [236:1] were found ready to take part in its celebration. By +degrees, however, nearly the whole service devolved on one individual; +and this preaching elder was very properly treated with peculiar +deference. [236:2] He was accordingly soon recognized as the stated +president of the presbytery, or eldership. + +It thus appears that the preaching elder held the most honourable +position amongst the ordinary functionaries of the Apostolic Church. +Whilst his office required the highest order of gifts and +accomplishments, and exacted the largest amount of mental and even +physical exertion, the prosperity of the whole ecclesiastical community +depended mainly on his acceptance and efficiency. The people are +accordingly frequently reminded that they are bound to respect and +sustain their spiritual instructors. "Let him that is taught in the +word," says Paul, "communicate unto him that teacheth in all good +things." [236:3] "The Scripture saith--Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that +treadeth out the corn; and, The labourer is worthy of his reward." +[236:4] "So hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel +should live of the gospel." [236:5] + +The apostles held a position which no ministers after them could occupy, +for they were sip pointed by our Lord himself to organize the Church. As +they were to carry out instructions which they had received from His own +lips, and as they were armed with the power of working miracles, [236:6] +they possessed an extraordinary share of personal authority. Aware that +their circumstances were peculiar, and that their services would be +available until the end of time, [236:7] they left the ecclesiastical +government, as they passed away one after another, to the care of the +elders who had meanwhile shared in its administration. [237:1] As soon +as the Church began to assume a settled form, they mingled with these +elders on terms of equality; and, as at the Council of Jerusalem, +[237:2] sat with them in the same deliberative assemblies. When Paul +addressed the elders of Ephesus for the last time, and took his solemn +farewell of them, [237:3] he commended the Church to their charge, and +emphatically pressed upon them the importance of fidelity and vigilance. +[237:4] In his Second Epistle to Timothy, written in the prospect of his +martyrdom, he makes no allusion to the expediency of selecting another +individual to fill his place. The apostles had fully executed their +commission when, as wise master-builders, they laid the foundation of +the Church and fairly exhibited the divine model of the glorious +structure; and as no other parties could produce the same credentials, +no others could pretend to the same authority. But even the apostles +repeatedly testified that they regarded the preaching of the Word as the +highest department of their office. It was, not as church rulers, but as +church teachers, that they were specially distinguished. "We will give +ourselves," said they, "continually to prayer, and _to the ministry of +the Word_." [237:5] "Christ sent me," said Paul, "not to baptize, but to +preach the gospel." [238:1] "Unto me, who am less than the least of all +saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the +unsearchable riches of Christ." [238:2] + +But though, according to the New Testament, the business of ruling +originally formed only a subordinate part of the duty of the church +teacher, some have maintained that ecclesiastical government pertains to +a higher function than ecclesiastical instruction; and that the apostles +instituted a class of spiritual overseers to whose jurisdiction all +other preachers are amenable. They imagine that, in the Pastoral +Epistles, they find proofs of the existence of such functionaries; +[238:3] and they contend that Timothy and Titus were diocesan bishops, +respectively of Ephesus and Crete. But the arguments by which they +endeavour to sustain these views are quite inconclusive. Paul says to +Timothy--"I besought thee to abide still at Ephesus, when I went into +Macedonia, that _thou mightest charge_ some that _they teach no other +doctrine_;" [239:1] and it has hence been inferred that the evangelist +was the only minister in the capital of the Proconsular Asia who was +sufficiently authorized to oppose heresiarchs. It happens, however, that +in this epistle the writer says also to his correspondent--"_Charge them +that are rich_ in this world that they be not high-minded, nor trust in +uncertain riches;" [239:2] so that, according to the same method of +interpretation, it would follow that Timothy was the only preacher in +the place who was at liberty to admonish the opulent. When Paul +subsequently stood face to face with the elders of Ephesus [239:3] he +told them that it was their common duty to discountenance and resist +false teachers; [239:4] and he had therefore now no idea of entrusting +that responsibility to any solitary individual. The reason why the +service was pressed specially on Timothy is sufficiently apparent. He +had been trained up by Paul himself; he was a young minister remarkable +for intelligence, ability, and circumspection; and he was accordingly +deemed eminently qualified to deal with the errorists. Hence at this +juncture his presence at Ephesus was considered of importance; and the +apostle besought him to remain there whilst he himself was absent on +another mission. + +The argument founded on the instructions addressed to Titus is equally +unsatisfactory. Paul says to him--"For this cause left I thee in Crete, +that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain +[240:1] elders in every city as I had appointed thee;" [240:2] and from +these words the inference has been drawn that to Titus alone was +committed the ecclesiastical oversight of all the churches of the +island. But the words of the apostle warrant no such sweeping +conclusion. Apollos, [240:3] and probably other ministers equal in +authority to the evangelist, were now in Crete, and were, no doubt, +ready to co-operate with him in the business of church organization. +Titus, besides, had no right to act without the concurrence of the +people; for, in all cases, even when the apostles were officiating, the +church members were consulted in ecclesiastical appointments. [240:4] It +is probable that the evangelist had much administrative ability, and +this seems to have been the great reason why he was left behind Paul in +Crete. The apostle expected that, with his peculiar energy and tact, he +would stimulate the zeal of the people, as well as of the other +preachers; and thus complete, as speedily as possible, the needful +ecclesiastical arrangements. + +When Paul once said to the high priest of Israel--"_Sittest thou to +judge me_ after the law, and commandest me to be smitten contrary to the +law" [240:5]--he had no intention of declaring that the dignitary he +addressed was the only member of the Jewish council who had the right of +adjudication. [240:6] The court consisted of at least seventy +individuals, every one of whom had a vote as effective as that of the +personage with whom he thus remonstrated. It is said that the high +priest at this period was not even the president of the Sanhedrim. +[241:1] Paul was perfectly aware of the constitution of the tribunal to +which Ananias belonged; and he merely meant to remind his oppressor that +the circumstances in which he was placed added greatly to the iniquity +of his present procedure. Though only one of the members of a large +judicatory he was not the less accountable. Thus too, when Jesus said to +Paul himself--"I send _thee_" to the Gentiles, "to open their eyes, and +to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto +God" [241:2]--it was certainly not understood that the apostle was to be +the only labourer in the wide field of heathendom. The address simply +intimated that he was individually commissioned to undertake the +service. And though there were other ministers at Ephesus and Crete, +Paul reminds Timothy and Titus that he had left them there to perform +specific duties, and thus urges upon them the consideration of their +personal responsibility. Though surrounded by so many apostles and +evangelists, he tells us that there rested on himself daily "the care of +all the churches;" [241:3] for he believed that the whole commonwealth +of the saints had a claim on his prayers, his sympathy, and his +services; and he desired to cherish in the hearts of his young brethren +the same feeling of individual obligation. Hence, in these Pastoral +Epistles, he gives his correspondents minute instructions respecting all +the departments of the ministerial office, and reminds them how much +depends on their personal faithfulness. Hence he here points out to them +how they are to deport themselves in public and in private; [241:4] as +preachers of the Word, and as members of church judicatories; [241:5] +towards the rich and the poor, masters and slaves, young men and widows. +[242:1] But there is not a single advice addressed to Timothy and Titus +in any of these three epistles which may not be appropriately given to +any ordinary minister of the gospel, or which necessarily implies that +either of these evangelists exercised exclusive ecclesiastical authority +in Ephesus or Crete. [242:2] + +The legend that Timothy and Titus were the bishops respectively of +Ephesus and Crete appears to have been invented about the beginning of +the fourth century, and at a time when the original constitution of the +Church had been completely, though silently, revolutionized. [242:3] It +is obvious that, when the Pastoral Epistles were written, these +ministers were not permanently located in the places with which their +names have been thus associated. [242:4] The apostle John resided +principally at Ephesus during the last thirty years of the first +century; [242:5] so that, according to this tale, the beloved disciple +must have been nearly all this time under the ecclesiastical supervision +of Timothy! The story otherwise exhibits internal marks of absurdity and +fabrication. It would lead us to infer that Paul must have distributed +most unequally the burden of official labour; for whilst Timothy is said +to have presided over the Christians of a single city, Titus is +represented as invested with the care of a whole island celebrated in +ancient times for its _hundred cities_. [243:1] It is well known that +long after this period, and when the distinction between the president +of the presbytery and his elders was fully established, a bishop had the +charge of only one church, so that the account of the episcopate of +Titus over all Crete must be rejected as a monstrous fiction. + +On the occasion of an ambitious request from James and John, our Lord +expounded to His apostles one of the great principles of His +ecclesiastical polity. "Jesus called them to him, and saith unto +them--Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles +exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority +upon them. _But so shall it not be among you_, but whosoever will be +great among you, shall be your minister, and whosoever of you will be +chiefest, shall be servant of all. For even the Son of man came not to +be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for +many." [243:2] The teaching elder holds the most honourable position in +the Church, simply because his office is the most laborious, the most +responsible, and the most useful. And no minister of the Word is +warranted to exercise lordship over his brethren, for all are equally +the servants of the same Divine Master. He is the greatest who is most +willing to humble himself, to spend, and to be spent, that Christ may be +exalted. Even the Son of man came, not to be ministered unto, but to +minister; it was His meat and His drink to do the will of His Father in +heaven; He was ready to give instruction to many or to few; at the sea +or by the wayside; in the house, the synagogue, or the corn-field; on +the mountain or in the desert; when sitting in the company of publicans, +or when He had not where to lay His head. He who exhibits most of the +spirit and character of the Great Teacher is the most illustrious of +Christ's ministers. + +The primitive Church was pre-eminently a free society; and, with a view +to united action, its members were taught to consult together respecting +all matters of common interest. Whilst the elders were required to +beware of attempting to domineer over each other, they were also warned +against deporting themselves as "lords over God's heritage." [244:1] All +were instructed to be courteous, forbearing, and conciliatory; and each +individual was made to understand that he possessed some importance. +Though the apostles, as inspired rulers of the Christian commonwealth, +might have done many things on their own authority, yet, even in +concerns comparatively trivial, as well as in affairs of the greatest +consequence, they were guided by the wishes of the people. When an +apostle was to be chosen in the place of Judas, the multitude were +consulted. [244:2] When deputies were required to accompany Paul in a +journey to be undertaken for the public service, the apostle did not +himself select his fellow-travellers, but the churches concerned, +proceeded, by a regular vote, to make the appointment. [244:3] When +deacons A or elders were to be nominated, the choice rested with the +congregation. [244:4] The records of the apostolic age do not mention +any ordinary church functionary who was not called to his office by +popular suffrage. [244:5] + +But though, in apostolic times, the communicants were thus freely +entrusted with the elective franchise, the constitution of the primitive +Church was not purely democratic; for while its office-bearers were +elected for life, and whilst its elders or bishops formed a species of +spiritual aristocracy, the powers of the people and the rulers were so +balanced as to check each other's aberrations, and to promote the +healthful action of all parts of the ecclesiastical body. When a deacon +or a bishop was elected, he was not permitted, without farther ceremony, +to enter upon the duties of his vocation. He was bound to submit himself +to the presbytery, that they might ratify the choice by ordination; and +this court, by refusing the imposition of hands, could protect the +Church against the intrusion of incompetent or unworthy candidates. +[245:1] + +Among the Jews every ordained elder was considered qualified to join in +the ordination of others. [245:2] The same principle was acknowledged in +the early Christian Church; and when any functionary was elected, he was +introduced to his office by the presbytery of the city or district with +which he was connected. There is no instance in the apostolic age in +which ordination was conferred by a single individual, Paul and Barnabas +were separated to the work to which the Lord had called them by the +ministers of Antioch; [245:3] the first elders of the Christian Churches +of Asia Minor were set apart by Paul and Barnabas; [245:4] Timothy was +invested with ecclesiastical authority by "the laying on of the hands of +the presbytery;" [245:5] and even the seven deacons were ordained by the +twelve apostles acting, for the time, as the presbytery of Jerusalem. +[245:6] + +Towards the conclusion of the Epistle to the Romans, [245:7] Paul +mentions Phoebe, "a servant [245:8] of the Church which is at Cenchrea;" +and from this passage some have inferred that the apostles instituted an +order of _deaconesses_. It is scarcely safe to build such an hypothesis +on the foundation of a solitary text of doubtful significance. It may be +that Phoebe was one of the poor widows supported by the Church; [246:1] +and that, as such, she was employed by the elders in various little +services of a confidential or benevolent character. It is probable that, +at one period, she had been in more comfortable circumstances, and that +she had then distinguished herself by her humane and obliging +disposition; for Paul refers apparently to this portion of her history +when he says, "she hath been a succourer of many, and of myself also." +[246:2] + +In the primitive age all the members of the same Church were closely +associated. As brethren and sisters in the faith, they took a deep +interest in each other's prosperity; and they regarded the afflictions +of any single disciple as a calamity which had befallen the whole +society. Each individual was expected in some way to contribute to the +well-being of all. Even humble Phoebe could be the bearer of an +apostolic letter to the Romans; and, on her return to Cenchrea, could +exert a healthful influence among the younger portion of the female +disciples, by her advice, her example, and her prayers. The industrious +scribe could benefit the brotherhood by writing out copies of the +gospels or epistles; and the pleasant singer, as he joined in the holy +psalm, could thrill the hearts of the faithful by his notes of grave +sweet melody. By establishing a plurality of both elders and deacons in +every worshipping society, the apostles provided more efficiently, as +well for its temporal, as for its spiritual interests; and the most +useful members of the congregation were thus put into positions in which +their various graces and endowments were better exhibited and exercised. +One deacon attested his fitness for his office by his delicate +attentions to the sick; another, by his considerate kindness to the +poor; and another, by his judicious treatment of the indolent, the +insincere, and the improvident. One elder excelled as an awakening +preacher; another, as a sound expositor; and another, as a sagacious +counsellor: whilst another still, who never ventured to address the +congregation, and whose voice was seldom heard at the meetings of the +eldership, could go to the house of mourning, or the chamber of disease, +and there pour forth the fulness of his heart in most appropriate and +impressive supplications. Every one was taught to appreciate the talents +of his neighbour, and to feel that he was, to some extent, dependent on +others for his own edification. The preaching elder could not say to the +ruling elders, "I have no need of you;" neither could the elders say to +the deacons, "We have no need of you." When the sweet singer was absent, +every one admitted that the congregational music was less interesting; +when the skilful penman removed to another district, the Church soon +began to complain of a scarcity of copies of the sacred manuscripts; and +even when the pious widow died in a good old age, the blank was visible, +and the loss of a faithful servant of the Church was acknowledged and +deplored. "As the body is one, and hath many members, and all the +members of that one body, being many, are one body; so also is Christ. +And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again +the head to the feet, I have no need of you. And whether one member +suffer, all the members suffer with it, or one member be honoured, all +the members rejoice with it." [247:1] + + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE ORGANIZATION OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + + +The Israelites were emphatically "a peculiar people." Though amounting, +in the days of our Lord, to several millions of individuals, they were +all the lineal descendants of Abraham; and though two thousand years had +passed away since the time of their great progenitor; they had not +meanwhile intermingled, to any considerable extent, with the rest of the +human family. The bulk of the nation still occupied the land which had +been granted by promise to the "father of the faithful;" the same farms +had been held by the same families from age to age; and probably some of +the proprietors could boast that their ancestors, fifteen hundred years +before, had taken possession of the very fields which they now +cultivated. They had all one form of worship, one high priest, and one +place of sacrifice. At stated seasons every year all the males of a +certain age were required to meet together at Jerusalem; and thus a full +representation of the whole race was frequently collected in one great +congregation. + +The written law of Moses was the sacred bond which united so closely the +Church of Israel. The ritual observances of the Hebrews, which had all a +typical meaning, are described by the inspired lawgiver with singular +minuteness; and any deviation from them was forbidden, not only because +it involved an impeachment either of the authority or the wisdom of +Jehovah, but also because it was calculated to mar their significance. +Under the Mosaic economy the posterity of Abraham were taught to regard +each other as members of the same family, interested, as joint heirs, in +the blessings promised to their distinguished ancestor. The Israelites +were knit together by innumerable ties, as well secular as religious; +and when they appeared in one multitudinous assemblage on occasions of +peculiar solemnity, [249:1] they presented a specimen of ecclesiastical +unity such as the world has never since contemplated. + +Some, however, have contended that the Christian community was +originally constructed upon very different principles. According to them +the word _church_ [249:2] in the New Testament is always used in one of +two senses--either as denoting a single worshipping society, or the +whole commonwealth of the faithful; and from this they infer that, in +primitive times, every Christian congregation was independent of every +other. But such allegations, which are exceedingly improbable in +themselves, are found, when carefully investigated, to be totally +destitute of foundation. The Church of Jerusalem, [249:3] with the tens +of thousands of individuals belonging to it, [249:4] must have consisted +of several congregations; [249:5] the Church of Antioch, to which so +many prophets and teachers ministered, [249:6] was probably in a similar +position; and the Church of Palestine [249:7] obviously comprehended a +large number of associated churches. When our Saviour prayed that all +His people "may be one," [250:1] He evidently indicated that the unity +of the Church, so strikingly exhibited in the nation of Israel, should +still be studied and maintained; and when Paul describes the household +of faith, he speaks of it, not as a loose mass of independent +congregations, but as a "body fitly _joined together and compacted_ by +that which every _joint_ supplieth." [250:2] The apostle here refers to +the vital union of believers by the indwelling of the Holy Ghost; but he +apparently alludes also to those "bands" of outward ordinances, and +"joints" [250:3] of visible confederation, by which their communion is +upheld; for, were the Church split up into an indefinite number of +insulated congregations, even the unity of the spirit could neither be +distinctly ascertained nor properly cultivated. When oiled by the spirit +of Divine love, the machinery of the Church moves with admirable +harmony, and accomplishes the most astonishing results; but, when +pervaded by another spirit, it is strained and dislocated, and in danger +of dashing itself to pieces. + +Those who hold that every congregation, however small, is a complete +church in itself, are quite unable to explain why the system of +ecclesiastical organization should be thus circumscribed. The New +Testament inculcates the unity of all the faithful, as well as the unity +of particular societies; and the same principle of Christian brotherhood +which prompts a number of individuals to meet together for religious +fellowship, should also lead a number of congregations in the same +locality to fraternize. The twelve may be regarded as the +representatives of the doctrine of ecclesiastical confederation; for +though they were commanded to go into all the world and to preach the +gospel to every creature, yet, as long as circumstances permitted, they +continued to co-operate. "When the apostles which were at Jerusalem +heard that Samaria had received the word of God, _they sent_ unto them +Peter and John;" [251:1] and, at a subsequent period, they concurred in +_sending "forth_ Barnabas, that he should go as far as Antioch." [251:2] +These facts distinctly prove that they had a common interest in +everything pertaining to the well-being of the whole Christian +commonwealth; and that, like Paul, they were entrusted with "the care of +all the churches." Nor did the early Christian congregations act +independently. They believed that union is strength, and they were "knit +together" in ecclesiastical relationship. Hence, we read of the brother +who was "chosen of the churches" [251:3] to travel with the Apostle +Paul. It is now impossible to determine in what way this choice was +made--whether at a general meeting of deputies from different +congregations, or by a separate vote in each particular society--but, in +whatever way the election was accomplished, the appointment of one +representative for several churches was itself a recognition of their +ecclesiastical unity. + +We have seen that the worship of the Church was much the same as the +worship of the synagogue, [251:4] and it would seem that its polity also +was borrowed from the institutions of the chosen people. [251:5] Every +Jewish congregation was governed by a bench of elders; and in every city +there was a smaller sanhedrim, or presbytery, consisting of twenty-three +members, [251:6] to which the neighbouring synagogues were subject. +Jerusalem is said to have had two of these smaller sanhedrims, as it was +found that the multitudes of cases arising among so vast a population +were more than sufficient to occupy the time of any one judicatory. +Appeals lay from all these tribunals to the Great Sanhedrim, or +"Council," so frequently mentioned in the New Testament. [252:1] This +court consisted of seventy or seventy-two members, made up, perhaps, in +equal portions, of chief priests, scribes, and elders of the people, +[252:2] The chief priests were probably twenty-four in number--each of +the twenty-four courses, into which the sacerdotal order was divided, +[252:3] thus furnishing one representative. The scribes were the men of +learning, like Gamaliel, [252:4] who had devoted themselves to the study +of the Jewish law, and who possessed recondite, as well as extensive +information. The elders were laymen of reputed wisdom and experience, +who, in practical matters, might be expected to give sound advice. +[252:5] It was not strange that the Jews had so profound a regard for +their Great Sanhedrim. In the days of our Lord and His apostles it had, +indeed, miserably degenerated; but, at an earlier period, its members +must have been eminently entitled to respect, as in point of +intelligence, prudence, piety, and patriotism, they held the very +highest place among their countrymen. + +The details of the ecclesiastical polity of the ancient Israelites are +now involved in much obscurity; but the preceding statements may be +received as a pretty accurate description of its chief outlines. Our +Lord himself, in the sermon on the mount, is understood to refer to the +great council and its subordinate judicatories; [252:6] and in the Old +Testament appeals from inferior tribunals to the authorities in the holy +city are explicitly enjoined. [253:1] All the synagogues, not only in +Palestine but in foreign countries, obeyed the orders of the Sanhedrim +at Jerusalem; [253:2] and it constituted a court of review to which all +other ecclesiastical arbiters yielded submission. + +In the government of the Apostolic Church we may trace a resemblance to +these arrangements. Every Christian congregation, like every synagogue, +had its elders; and every city had its presbytery, consisting of the +spiritual rulers of the district. In the introductory chapters of the +book of the Acts we discover the germ of this ecclesiastical +constitution; for we there find the apostles ministering to thousands of +converts, and, as the presbytery of Jerusalem, ordaining deacons, +exercising discipline, and sending out missionaries. [253:3] The +prophets and teachers of Antioch obviously performed the same functions; +[253:4] Titus was instructed to have elders established, or a presbytery +constituted, in every city of Crete; [253:5] and Timothy was ordained by +such a judicatory. [253:6] For the first thirty years after the death of +our Lord a large proportion of the ministers of the gospel were Jews by +birth, and as they were in the habit of going up to Jerusalem to +celebrate the great festivals, they appear to have taken advantage of +the opportunity, and to have held meetings in the holy city for +consultation respecting the affairs of the Christian commonwealth. +Prudence and convenience conspired to dictate this course, as they could +then reckon upon finding there a considerable number of able and +experienced elders, and as their presence in the Jewish metropolis on +such occasions was fitted to awaken no suspicion. [253:7] + +We may thus see that the transaction mentioned in the 15th chapter of +the Acts admits of a simple and satisfactory explanation. When the +question respecting the circumcision of the Gentile converts began to be +discussed at Antioch, there were individuals in that city quite as well +qualified as any in Jerusalem to pronounce upon its merits; for the +Church there enjoyed the ministry of prophets; and Paul, its most +distinguished teacher, was "not a whit behind the very chiefest +apostles." But the parties proceeded in the matter in much the same way +as Israelites were accustomed to act under similar circumstances. Had a +controversy relative to any Mosaic ceremony divided the Jewish +population of Antioch, they would have appealed for a decision to their +Great Sanhedrim; and now, when this dispute distracted the Christians of +the capital of Syria, they had recourse to another tribunal at Jerusalem +which they considered competent to pronounce a deliverance. [254:1] This +tribunal consisted virtually of the rulers of the universal Church; for +the apostles, who had a commission to all the world, and elders from +almost every place where a Christian congregation existed, were in the +habit of repairing to the capital of Palestine. In one respect this +judicatory differed from the Jewish council, for it was not limited to +seventy members. In accordance with the free spirit of the gospel +dispensation, it appears to have consisted of as many ecclesiastical +rulers as could conveniently attend its meetings. But the times were +somewhat perilous; and it is probable that the ministers of the early +Christian Church did not deem it expedient to congregate in very large +numbers. + +A single Scripture precedent for the regulation of the Church is as +decisive as a multitude; and though the New Testament distinctly records +only one instance in which a question of difficulty was referred by a +lower to a higher ecclesiastical tribunal, this case sufficiently +illustrates the character of the primitive polity. A very substantial +reason can be given why Scripture takes so little notice of the meetings +of Christian judicatories. The different portions of the New Testament +were put into circulation as soon as written; and though it was most +important that the heathen should be made acquainted with the doctrines +of the Church, it was not by any means expedient that their attention +should be particularly directed to the machinery by which it was +regulated. An accurate knowledge of its constitution would only have +exposed it more fearfully to the attacks of persecuting Emperors. Every +effort would have been made to discover the times and places of the +meetings of pastors and teachers, and to inflict a deadly wound on the +Church by the destruction of its office-bearers. Hence, in general, its +courts appear to have assembled in profound secrecy; and thus it is +that, for the first three centuries, so little is known of the +proceedings of these conventions. + +It is to be observed that, in the first century, when the rulers of the +Church met for consultation, they all sat in the same assembly. When the +ecclesiastical constitution was fairly settled, even the Twelve were +disposed to waive their personal claims to precedence, and to assume the +status of ordinary ministers. We find accordingly that there were then +no higher and lower houses of convocation; for "the apostles and elders +came together." [255:1] Some, who suppose that James was the first +bishop of the holy city, imagine that in his manner of giving the advice +adopted at the Synod of Jerusalem, they can detect marks of his prelatic +influence. [255:2] But the sacred narrative, when candidly interpreted, +merely shews that he acted on the occasion as a judicious counsellor. He +was, assuredly, not entitled to dictate to Paul or Peter. The reasoning +of those who maintain that, as a matter of right, he expected the +meeting to yield to the weight of his official authority, would go to +prove, not that he was bishop of the Jewish capital, but that he was the +prince of the apostles. + +The New Testament history speaks frequently of James, and extends over +the whole period of his public career; but it never once hints that he +was bishop of Jerusalem, he himself has left behind him an epistle +addressed "to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad," in which he +makes no allusion to his possession of any such office. Paul, who was +well acquainted with him, and who often visited the mother Church during +the time of his alleged episcopate, is equally silent upon the subject. +But it is easy to understand how the story originated. The command of +our Lord to the apostles, "Go ye unto all the world and preach the +gospel to every creature," [256:1] did not imply that their countrymen +at home were not to enjoy a portion of their ministrations; and it was +probably considered expedient that one of their number should reside in +the Jewish capital. This field of exertion seems to have been assigned +to James. His colleagues meanwhile travelled to distant countries to +disseminate the truth; and as he was the only individual of the +apostolic company who could ordinarily be consulted in the holy city, he +soon became the ruling spirit among the Christians of that crowded +metropolis. In all cases of importance and of difficulty his advice +would be sought and appreciated; and his age, experience, and rank as +one of the Twelve, would suggest the propriety of his appointment as +president of any ecclesiastical meeting he would attend. The precedence +thus so generally conceded to him would be remembered in after-times +when the hierarchical spirit began to dominate; and would afford a basis +for the legend that he was the first bishop of Jerusalem. And as he, +perhaps, commonly occupied the chair when the rulers of the Church +assembled there at the annual festivals, we can see too why he is also +called "bishop of bishops" in documents of high antiquity. [257:1] + +During a considerable part of the first century Jerusalem probably +contained a much greater number of disciples than any other city in the +Roman Empire; and until shortly before its destruction by Titus in A.D. +70, it continued to be the centre of Christian influence. There is every +reason to believe that, for some time, all matters in dispute throughout +the Church, which could not be settled by inferior judicatories, were +decided by the apostles and elders there convened. But the rapid +propagation of Christianity, the rise of persecution, and the progress +of political events, soon rendered such procedure inconvenient, if not +impracticable. Persons of Gentile extraction who lived in distant lands, +and who were in humble circumstances, could not be expected to travel +for redress of their ecclesiastical grievances to the ancient capital of +Palestine; and, when the temple was destroyed, the myriads who had +formerly repaired to it to celebrate the sacred feasts, of course +discontinued their attendance. The Christian communities throughout the +Empire about this period began to assume that form which they present in +the following century, the congregations of each province associating +together for their better government and discipline. There are not +wanting evidences, as we shall now endeavour to show, that the apostles +themselves suggested the arrangement. + +It has been taken for granted by many that when Paul, on his arrival at +Miletus, "sent to Ephesus and called the elders of the Church," [258:1] +he convoked a meeting only of the ecclesiastical rulers of the chief +city of the Proconsular Asia. But a more attentive examination, of the +passage in which the transaction is described may lead us to doubt the +correctness of such an interpretation. It is probable that, when the +apostle sent to Ephesus, the Christian elders of the surrounding +district, as well as of the capital, were requested to meet him at +Miletus. Such a conclusion is sustained by the reason assigned for his +mode of proceeding at this juncture. Ephesus was a seaport about thirty +miles from Miletus, and it is said he did not touch at it on his voyage +"because _he would not spend the time in Asia_, for he hasted, if it +were possible for him, to be at Jerusalem the day of Pentecost." [258:2] +But, had he merely wished to see the elders of this provincial +metropolis, his visit to it need have created no delay, for he might +have gone to it as quickly as the messenger who was the bearer of his +communication. He seems, however, to have felt that, had he appeared +there, he would have given offence had he not also favoured the +Christian communities in its neighbourhood with his presence; and as he +could not afford to spend so much time in Asia as would thus have been +required, he adopted the expedient of inviting all the elders of the +district to repair to him in the place where he now sojourned. [258:3] +From Ephesus, the capital, his invitation could be readily transmitted +to other provincial cities. The address which he delivered to the +assembled elders certainly conveys the impression that they did not all +belong to the metropolis, and its very first sentence suggests such an +inference. "When they were come to him, he said unto them, Ye know from +the first day that I came _into Asia_ after what manner I have been +_with you_ at all seasons." [259:1] The evangelist informs us that he +had spent only two years and three months at Ephesus, [259:2] and yet he +here tells his audience that "by the space of _three years_" he had not +ceased to warn every one night and day with tears. [259:3] He says also +"I know that _ye all among whom I have gone_ preaching the kingdom of +God, shall see my face no more," [259:4]--thereby intimating that his +auditors were not resident in one locality. We have also distinct +evidence that when Paul formerly ministered at Ephesus, there were +Christian societies throughout the province, for in his First Epistle to +the Corinthians written from that city, [259:5] he sends his +correspondents the salutations of "the Churches of Asia." [259:6] These +Churches must obviously have been united by the ties of Christian +fellowship; and the apostle must have been in close communication with +them when he was thus employed as the medium of conveyance for the +expression of their evangelical attachment. + +In other parts of the New Testament we may discern traces of +consociation among the primitive Churches. Thus, Paul, their founder, +sends to "the Churches of Galatia" [259:7] a common letter in which he +requires them to "serve one another," [259:8] and to "bear one another's +burdens." [259:9] Without some species of united action, the Galatians +could not well have obeyed such admonitions. Peter also, when writing to +the disciples "scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, +and Bithynia," [259:10] represents them as an associated body. "The +elders," says he, "which are among you I exhort, who am also an +elder....feed _the flock of God_ which is among you taking the oversight +thereof." [260:1] This "flock of God," which was evidently equivalent to +the "Church of God," [260:2] was spread over a large territory; and yet +the apostle suggests that the elders were conjointly charged with its +supervision. Had the Churches scattered throughout so many provinces +been a multitude of independent congregations, Peter would not have +described them as one "flock" of which these rulers had the oversight. + +But, though the elders of congregations in adjoining provinces could +maintain ecclesiastical intercourse, and meet together at least +occasionally or by delegates, it was otherwise with Churches in +different countries. Even these, however, cultivated the communion of +saints; for there are evidences that they corresponded with each other +by letters or deputations. The attentive reader of the inspired epistles +must have observed how the apostles contrived to keep open a door of +access to their converts by means of itinerating preachers; [260:3] and +the same agency seems to have been continued in succeeding generations. +Disciples travelling into strange lands were furnished with "epistles of +commendation" [260:4] to the foreign Churches; and Christian teachers, +who had these credentials, were permitted freely to officiate in the +congregations which they visited. It is an extraordinary fact that, +during the lives of the apostles, there were preachers, in whom they had +no confidence, who were yet in full standing, and who went from place to +place addressing apostolic Churches. Having found their way into the +ministry in a particular locality, they set out to other regions +provided with their "letters of commendation;" and, on the strength of +these testimonials, they were readily recognised as heralds of the +cross. The apostles deemed it prudent to advise their correspondents not +to rest satisfied with the certificates of these itinerant evangelists, +but to try them by a more certain standard. "If there come any unto +you," says John, "and _bring not this doctrine_, receive him not into +your house, neither bid him God speed." [261:1]--"Beloved, believe not +every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God, because many +false prophets are gone out into the world." [261:2] Strange as it may +now appear, even some of the apostles had personal enemies among the +primitive preachers, and yet when these proclaimed the truth, they were +suffered to proceed without interruption. "Some indeed," says Paul, +"preach Christ even of envy and strife; and some also of good will. The +one preach Christ of contention, not sincerely, _supposing to add +affliction to my bonds_; but the other of love, knowing that I am set +for the defence of the gospel. What then? notwithstanding, every way, +whether in pretence or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do +rejoice, yea, and will rejoice." [261:3] + +The preceding statements may enable us to appreciate the unity of the +Apostolic Church. This unity was not perfect; for there were false +brethren who stirred up strife, and false teachers who fomented +divisions. But these elements of discord no more disturbed the general +unity of the Church than the presence of a few empty or blasted ears of +corn affects the productiveness of an abundant harvest. As a body, the +disciples of Christ were never so united as in the first century. Heresy +had yet made little impression; schism was scarcely known; and charity, +exerting her gentle influence with the brotherhood, found it +comparatively easy to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. +The members of the Church had "one Lord, one faith, one baptism." But +their unity was very different from uniformity. They had no canonical +hours, no clerical costume, no liturgies. The prayers of ministers and +people varied according to circumstances, and were dictated by their +hopes and fears, their wants and sympathies. When they met for worship, +the devotional exercises were conducted in a language intelligible to +all; when the Scriptures were read in their assemblies, every one heard +in his own tongue the wonderful works of God. The unity of the Apostolic +Church did not consist in its subordination to any one visible head or +supreme pontiff; for neither Peter nor Paul, James nor John pretended to +be the governor of the household of faith. Its unity was not like the +unity of a jail where all the prisoners must wear the same dress, and +receive the same rations, and dwell in cells of the same construction, +and submit to the orders of the same keeper; but like the unity of a +cluster of stalks of corn, all springing from one prolific grain, and +all rich with a golden produce. Or it may be likened to the unity of the +ocean, where all the parts are not of the same depth, or the same +colour, or the same temperature; but where all, pervaded by the same +saline preservative, ebb and flow according to the same heavenly laws, +and concur in bearing to the ends of the earth the blessings of +civilisation and of happiness. + + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE ANGELS OF THE SEVEN CHURCHES. + + +The Apocalypse is a book of symbols. The light which we obtain from it +may well remind us of the instruction communicated to the Israelites by +the ceremonies of the law. The Mosaic institutions imparted to a Jew the +knowledge of an atonement and a Saviour; but he could scarcely have +undertaken to explain, with accuracy and precision, their individual +significance, as their meaning was not fully developed until the times +of the Messiah. So is it with "the Revelation of Jesus Christ which God +gave unto him to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come +to pass," and which "he sent and signified by his angel unto his servant +John." [263:1] The Church here sees, as "through a glass darkly," the +transactions of her future history; and she can here distinctly discern +the ultimate triumph of her principles, so that, in days of adversity, +she is encouraged and sustained; but she cannot speak with confidence of +the import of much of this mysterious record; and it would seem as if +the actual occurrence of the events foretold were to supply the only +safe key for the interpretation of some of its strange imagery. + +In the beginning of this book we have an account of a glorious vision +presented to the beloved disciple. He was instructed to write down what +he saw, and to send it to the Seven Churches in Asia, "unto Ephesus, and +unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and +unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea." [264:1] A vision so extraordinary +as that which he describes, must have left upon his mind a permanent and +most vivid impression. "I saw," says he, "_seven golden candlesticks_, +and in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of Man +clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a +golden girdle. His head and his hair were white like wool, as white as +snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; and his feet like unto fine +brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of +many waters--and _he had in his rigid hand seven stars_, and out of his +mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and his countenance was as the sun +shineth in his strength." [264:2] + +In the foreground of this picture the Son of God stands conspicuous. His +dress corresponds to that of the Jewish high priest, and the whole +description of His person has obviously a reference, either to His own +divine perfections, or to His offices as the Saviour of sinners. He +himself is the expositor of two of the most remarkable of the symbols. +"The seven stars," says He, "are the angels of the Seven Churches, and +the seven candlesticks which thou sawest, are the Seven Churches." +[264:3] + +But though the symbol of the stars has been thus interpreted by Christ, +the interpretation itself has been the subject of considerable +discussion. Much difficulty has been experienced in identifying the +angels of the Seven Churches; and there have been various conjectures as +to the station which they occupied, and the duties which they performed. +According to some they were literally angelic beings who had the special +charge of the Seven Churches. [264:4] According to others, the angel of +a Church betokens the collective body of ministers connected with the +society. But such explanations are very far from satisfactory. The +Scriptures nowhere teach that each Christian community is under the care +of its own angelic guardian; neither is it to be supposed that an angel +represents the ministry of a Church, for one symbol would not be +interpreted by another symbol of dubious signification. It seems clear +that the angel of the Church is a single individual, and that he must +have been a personage well known to the body with which he was connected +at the time when the Apocalypse was written. + +It has often been asserted that the title "The angel of the Church" is +borrowed from the designation of one of the ministers of the synagogue. +[265:1] This point, however, has never been fairly demonstrated. In +later times there was, no doubt, in the synagogue an individual known by +the name of the _legate_, or the _angel_; but there is no decisive +evidence that an official with such a designation existed in the first +century. In the New Testament we have repeated references to the +office-bearers of the synagogue; we are told of the rulers [265:2] or +elders, the reader, [265:3] and the minister [265:4] or deacon; but the +angel is never mentioned. Philo and Josephus are equally silent upon the +subject. It is, therefore, extremely doubtful whether a minister with +this title was known among the Jews in the days of the apostles. Even +granting, what is so very problematical, that there were in the +synagogues in the first century individuals distinguished by the +designation of angels, it is still exceedingly doubtful whether the +angels of the Seven Churches borrowed their names from these +functionaries. If so, the angel of the Church must have occupied the +same position as the angel of the synagogue, for the adoption of the +same title indicated the possession of the same office. But it was the +duty of the angel of the synagogue to offer up the prayers of the +assembly; [266:1] and as, in all the synagogues, there was worship at +the same hour, [266:2] he could, of course, be the minister of only one +congregation. If then the angel of the Church discharged the same +functions as the angel of the synagogue, it would follow that, towards +the termination of the first century, there was only one Christian +congregation in each of the seven cities of Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, +Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. It may, however, be fairly +questioned whether the number of disciples in every one of these places +was then so limited as such an inference would suggest. In Laodicea, and +perhaps in one or two of the other cities, [266:3] there may have been +only a single congregation; but it is scarcely probable that all the +brethren in Ephesus still met together in one assembly. About forty +years before, the Word of God "grew mightily and prevailed" [266:4] in +that great metropolis; and, among its inhabitants, Paul had persuaded +"much people" [266:5] to become disciples of Christ. But if the angel of +the Church derived his title from the angel of the synagogue, and if the +position of these two functionaries was the same, we are shut up to the +conclusion that there was now only one congregation in the capital of +the Proconsular Asia. The angel could not be in two places at the same +time; and, as it was his duty to offer up the prayers of the assembled +worshippers, it was impossible for him to minister to two congregations. + +These considerations abundantly attest the futility of the imagination +that the angel of the Church was a diocesan bishop. The office of the +angel of the synagogue had, in fact, no resemblance whatever to that of +a prelate. The rank of the ancient Jewish functionary seems to have been +similar to that of a precentor in some of our Protestant churches; and +when set forms of prayer were introduced among the Israelites, it was +his duty to read them aloud in the congregation. The angel was not the +chief ruler of the synagogue; he occupied a subordinate position; and +was amenable to the authority of the bench of elders. [267:1] It is in +vain then to attempt to recognise the predecessors of our modern +diocesans in the angels of the Seven Churches. Had bishops been +originally called angels, they never would have parted with so +complimentary a designation. Had the Spirit of God in the Apocalypse +bestowed upon them such a title, it never would have been laid aside. +When, about a century after this period, we begin to discover distinct +traces of a hierarchy, an extreme anxiety is discernible to find for it +something like a footing in the days of the apostles; but, strange to +say, the earliest prelates of whom we read are not known by the name of +angels. [267:2] If such a nomenclature existed in the time of the +Apostle John, it must have passed away at once and for ever! No trace of +it can be detected even in the second century. It is thus apparent that, +whatever the angels of the Seven Churches may have been, they certainly +were _not_ diocesan bishops. + +The place where these angels are to be found in the apocalyptic scene +also suggests the fallacy of the interpretation that they are the chief +pastors of the Seven Churches. The stars are seen, not distributed over +the seven candlesticks, but collected together in the hand of Christ. +Though the angels seem to be in someway related to the Churches, the +relation is such that they may be separated without inconvenience. What, +then, can these angels be? How do they happen to possess the name they +bear? Why are they gathered into the right hand of the Son of Man? All +these questions admit of a very plain and satisfactory solution. + +An angel literally signifies a _messenger_, and these angels were simply +the messengers of the Seven Churches. John had long resided at Ephesus; +and now that he was banished to the Isle of Patmos "for the word of God +and for the testimony of Jesus Christ," it would appear that the +Christian communities among which he had ministered so many years, sent +trusty deputies to visit him, to assure him of their sympathy, and to +tender to him their friendly offices. In primitive times such angels +were often sent to the brethren in confinement or in exile. Thus, Paul, +when in imprisonment at Rome, says to the Philippians--"Ye have well +done that ye did communicate with my affliction ... I am full, having +received of Epaphroditus the things which were sent from you." [268:1] +Here, Epaphroditus is presented to us as the angel of the Church of +Philippi. This minister seems, indeed, to have now spent no small +portion of his time in travelling between Rome and Macedonia. Hence Paul +observes--"I supposed it necessary _to send to you_ Epaphroditus, my +brother and companion in labour and fellow-soldier, but _your messenger_ +and _he that ministered_ _to my wants_." [269:1] In like manner, the +individuals selected to convey, to the poor saints in Jerusalem, the +contributions of the Gentile converts in Greece and Asia Minor, are +called "the _messengers_ of the Churches." [269:2] The practice of +sending messengers to visit and comfort the saints in poverty, in +confinement, or in exile, may be traced for centuries in the history of +the Church. It also deserves notice that, in other parts of the New +Testament as well as in the Apocalypse, an individual sent on a special +errand is repeatedly called an angel. Thus, John the Baptist, who was +commissioned to announce the approach of the Messiah, is styled God's +angel, [269:3] or messenger, and the spies, sent to view the land of +Canaan, are distinguished by the same designation. [269:4] + +Towards the close of the first century the Apostle John must have been +regarded with extraordinary veneration by his Christian brethren. He was +the last survivor of a band of men who had laid the foundations of the +New Testament Church; and he was himself one of the most honoured +members of the little fraternity, for he had enjoyed peculiarly intimate +fellowship with his Divine Master. Our Lord, "in the days of His flesh," +had permitted him to lean upon His bosom; and he has been described by +the pen of inspiration as "_the_ disciple whom Jesus loved." [269:5] All +accounts concur in representing him as most amiable and warm-hearted; +and as he had now far outlived the ordinary term of human existence, the +snows of age must have imparted additional interest to a personage +otherwise exceedingly attractive. It is not to be supposed that such a +man was permitted in apostolic times to pine away unheeded in solitary +exile. The small island which was the place of his banishment was not +far from the Asiatic metropolis, and the other six cities named in the +Apocalypse were all in the same district as Ephesus. It was, therefore, +by no means extraordinary that seven messengers from seven neighbouring +Churches, to all of which he was well known, are found together in +Patmos on a visit to the venerable confessor. + +This explanation satisfies all the conditions required by the laws of +interpretation. Whilst it reveals a concern for the welfare of John +quite in keeping with the benevolent spirit of apostolic times, it is +also simple and sufficient. In prophetic language a _star_ usually +signifies a _ruler_, and it is probable that the angels sent to Patmos +were selected from among the elders, or rulers, of the Churches with +which they were respectively connected; for, it is well known that, at +an early period, elders, or presbyters, were frequently appointed to act +as messengers or commissioners. [270:1] We may thus perceive, too, why +the letters are addressed to the angels, for in this case they were the +official organs of communication between the apostle and the religious +societies which they had been deputed to represent. It is obvious that +the instructions contained in the epistles were designed, not merely for +the angels individually, but for the communities of which they were +members; and hence the exhortation with which each of them +concludes--"He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto +_the Churches_." [270:2] When the apostle was honoured with the vision, +he was directed to write out an account of what he saw, and to "_send +it_ unto the Seven Churches which are in Asia;" [270:3] and this +interpretation explains how he transmitted the communication; for, as +Christ is said to have "_sent_ and signified" His Revelation "by his +angel unto his servant John," [271:1] so John, in his turn, conveyed it +by the _seven angels_ to the Seven Churches. It was, no doubt, thought +that the messengers undertook a most perilous errand when they engaged +to visit a distinguished Christian minister who had been driven into +banishment by a jealous tyrant; but they are taught by the vision that +they are under the special care of Him who is "the Prince of the kings +of the earth;" for the Saviour appears holding them in His right hand as +He walks in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks. When bearing +consolation to the aged minister, each one of them could enjoy the +comfort of the promise--"Can a woman forget her sucking child that she +should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, +yet will not I forget thee. _Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms +of my hands_." [271:2] + +It has often been thought singular that only _seven_ Churches of the +Proconsular Asia are here addressed, as it is well known that, at this +period, there were several other Christian societies in the same +province. Thus, in the immediate neighbourhood of Laodicea were the +Churches of Colosse and Hierapolis; [271:3] and in the vicinity of +Ephesus, perhaps the Churches of Tralles and Magnesia. But the seven +angels mentioned by John may have been the only ecclesiastical +messengers in Patmos at the time of the vision; and they may have been +the organs of communication with a greater number of Churches than those +which they directly represented. Seven was regarded by the Jews as the +symbol of perfection; and it is somewhat remarkable that, on another +occasion noticed in the New Testament, [271:4] we find exactly seven +messengers deputed by the Churches of Greece and Asia Minor to convey +their contributions to the indigent disciples in Jerusalem. There are, +too, grounds for believing that these seven religious societies, in +their varied character and prospects, are emblems of the Church +universal. The instructions addressed to the disciples in these seven +cities of Asia were designed for the benefit of "THE CHURCHES" of all +countries as well as of all succeeding generations; and the whole +imagery indicates that the vision is to be thus interpreted. The Son of +Man does not confine His care to the Seven Churches of Asia, for He who +appears walking in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks is the +same who said of old to the nation of Israel--"I will set up my +tabernacle among you, and my soul shall not abhor you, and _I will walk +among you_, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people." [272:1] In +the vision, the "countenance" of the Saviour is said to have been "as +the sun shineth in his strength;" [272:2] and the prayer of the Church +catholic is--"God be merciful unto us, and bless us, and _cause his face +to shine upon us_, that that thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving +health among all nations." [272:3] + +The preceding statements demonstrate the folly of attempting to +construct a system of ecclesiastical polity from such a +highly-figurative portion of Scripture as the Apocalypse. In the angel +of the Church some have believed they have discovered the moderator of a +presbytery; others, the bishop of a diocese; and others, the minister of +an Irvingite congregation. But the basis on which all such theories are +founded is a mere blunder as to the significance of an ecclesiastical +title. The angels of the Seven Churches were neither moderators, nor +diocesans, nor precentors, but messengers sent on an errand of love to +an apostle in tribulation. + + + + + + * * * * * + + PERIOD II. + + FROM THE DEATH OF THE APOSTLE JOHN + TO THE CONVERSION OF CONSTANTINE, + A.D. 100 TO A.D. 312. + + * * * * * + + + + + + SECTION I. + + THE HISTORY OF THE CHURCH. + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE GROWTH OF THE CHURCH. + + +The dawn of the second century was full of promise to the Church. On the +death of Domitian in A.D. 96, the Roman Empire enjoyed for a short time +[275:1] the administration of the mild and equitable Nerva. This prince +repealed the sanguinary laws of his predecessor, and the disciples had a +respite from persecution. Trajan, who succeeded him, [275:2] and who now +occupied the throne, seemed not unwilling to imitate his policy, so +that, in the beginning of his reign, the Christians had no reason to +complain of imperial oppression. All accounts concur in stating that +their affairs, at this period, presented a most hopeful aspect. They yet +displayed a united front, for they had hitherto been almost entirely +free from the evils of sectarianism; and now, that they were relieved +from the terrible incubus of a ruthless tyranny, their spirits were as +buoyant as ever; for though intolerance had thinned their ranks, it had +also exhibited their constancy and stimulated their enthusiasm. Their +intense attachment to the evangelical cause stood out in strange and +impressive contrast with the apathy of polytheism. A heathen repeated, +not without scepticism, the tales of his mythology, and readily passed +over from one form of superstition to another; but the Christian felt +himself strong in the truth, and was prepared to peril all that was dear +to him on earth rather than abandon his cherished principles. Well might +serious pagans be led to think favourably of a creed which fostered such +decision and magnanimity. + +The wonderful improvement produced by the gospel on the lives of +multitudes by whom it was embraced, was, however, its most striking and +cogent recommendation. The Christian authors who now published works in +its defence, to many of which they gave the designation of _apologies_, +and who sought, by means of these productions, either to correct the +misrepresentations of its enemies, or to check the violence of +persecution, always appeal with special confidence to this weighty +testimonial. A veteran profligate converted into a sober and exemplary +citizen was a witness for the truth whose evidence it was difficult +either to discard or to depreciate. Nor were such vouchers rare either +in the second or third century. A learned minister of the Church could +now venture to affirm that Christian communities were to be found +composed of men "_reclaimed from ten thousand vices,_" [276:1] and that +these societies, compared with others around them, were "as lights in +the world." [276:2] The practical excellence of the new faith is +attested, still more circumstantially, by another of its advocates who +wrote about half a century after the age of the apostles. "We," says he, +"who formerly delighted in vicious excesses are now temperate and +chaste; we, who once practised magical arts, have consecrated ourselves +to the good and unbegotten God; we, who once prized gain above all +things, give even what we have to the common use, and share it with such +as are in need; we, who once hated and murdered one another, who, on +account of difference of customs, would have no common hearth with +strangers, now, since the appearance of Christ, live together with them; +we pray for our enemies; we seek to persuade those who hate us without +cause to live conformably to the goodly precepts of Christ, that they +may become partakers with us, of the joyful hope of blessings from God, +the Lord of all." [277:1] When we consider that all the old +superstitions had now become nearly effete, we cannot be surprised at +the signal triumphs of a system which could furnish such noble +credentials. + +Whilst Christianity demonstrated its divine virtue by the good fruits +which it produced, it, at the same time, invited all men to study its +doctrines and to judge for themselves. Those who were disposed to +examine its internal evidences were supplied with facilities for +pursuing the investigation, as the Scriptures of the New Testament were +publicly read in the assemblies of the faithful, and copies of them were +diligently multiplied, so that these divine guides could be readily +consulted by every one who really wished for information. The importance +of the writings of the apostles and evangelists suggested the propriety +of making them available for the instruction of those who were ignorant +of Greek; and versions in the Latin, the Syriac, and other languages +[277:2] soon made their appearance. Some compositions are stripped of +their charms when exhibited in translations, as they owe their +attractiveness to the mere embellishments of style or expression; but +the Word of God, like all the works of the High and the Holy One, speaks +with equal power to every kindred and tongue and people. When correctly +rendered into another language, it is still full of grace and truth, of +majesty and beauty. In whatever dialect it may be clothed, it continues +to awaken the conscience and to convert the soul. Its dissemination at +this period either in the original or in translations, contributed +greatly to the extension of the Church; and the gospel, issuing from +this pure fountain, at once revealed its superiority to all the +miserable dilutions of superstition and absurdity presented in the +systems of heathenism. + +When accounting for the rapid diffusion of the new faith in the second +and third centuries, many have laid much stress on the miraculous powers +of the disciples; but the aid derived from this quarter seems to have +been greatly over-estimated. The days of Christ and His apostles were +properly the times of "wonders and mighty deeds;" and though the lives +of some, on whom extraordinary endowments were conferred, probably +extended far into the second century, it is remarkable that the earliest +ecclesiastical writers are almost, if not altogether, silent upon the +subject of contemporary miracles. [278:1] Supernatural gifts perhaps +ceased with those on whom they were bestowed by the inspired founders of +the Church; [278:2] but many imagined that their continuance was +necessary to the credit of the Christian cause, and were, therefore, +slow to admit that these tokens of the divine recognition had completely +disappeared. It must be acknowledged that the prodigies attributed to +this period are very indifferently authenticated as compared with those +reported by the pen of inspiration. [278:3] In some cases they are +described in ambiguous or general terms, such as the narrators might +have been expected to employ when detailing vague and uncertain rumours; +and not a few of the cures now dignified with the title of miracles are +of a commonplace character, such as could have been accomplished without +any supernatural interference, and which Jewish and heathen quacks +frequently performed. [279:1] No writer of this period asserts that he +himself possessed the power either of speaking with tongues, [279:2] or +of healing the sick, or of raising the dead. [279:3] Legend now began to +supply food for popular credulity; and it is a suspicious circumstance +that the greater number of the miracles which are said to have happened +in the second and third centuries are recorded for the first time about +a hundred years after the alleged date of their occurrence. [279:4] But +Christianity derived no substantial advantage from these fictitious +wonders. Some of them were so frivolous as to excite contempt, and +others so ridiculous as to afford matter for merriment to the more +intelligent pagans. [279:5] + +The gospel had better claims than any furnished by equivocal miracles; +and, though it still encountered opposition, it now moved forward in a +triumphant career. In some districts it produced such an impression that +it threatened the speedy extinction of the established worship. In +Bithynia, early in the second century, the temples of the gods were +well-nigh deserted, and the sacrificial victims found very few +purchasers. [280:1] The pagan priests now took the alarm; the power of +the magistrate interposed to prevent the spread of the new doctrine; and +spies were found willing to dog the steps and to discover the +meeting-places of the converts. Many quailed before the prospect of +death, and purchased immunity from persecution by again repairing to the +altars of idolatry. But, notwithstanding all the arts of intimidation +and chicanery, the good cause continued to prosper. In Rome, in Antioch, +in Alexandria, and in other great cities, the truth steadily gained +ground; and, towards the end of the second century, it had acquired such +strength even in Carthage--a place far removed from the scene of its +original proclamation--that, according to the statement of one of its +advocates, its adherents amounted to a _tenth_ of the inhabitants. +[280:2] About the same period Churches were to be found in various parts +of the north of Africa between Egypt and Carthage; and, in the East, +Christianity soon acquired a permanent footing in the little state of +Edessa, [280:3] in Arabia, in Parthia, and in India. In the West, it +continued to extend itself throughout Greece and Italy, as well as in +Spain and France. In the latter country the Churches of Lyons and Vienne +attract attention in the second century; and in the third, seven eminent +missionaries are said to have formed congregations in Paris, Tours, +Arles, Narbonne, Toulouse, Limoges, and Clermont. [281:1] Meanwhile the +light of divine truth penetrated into Germany; and, as the third century +advanced, even the rude Goths inhabiting Moesia and Thrace were +partially brought under its influence. The circumstances which led to +the conversion of these barbarians are somewhat remarkable. On the +occasion of one of their predatory incursions into the Empire, they +carried away captive some Christian presbyters; but the parties thus +unexpectedly reduced to bondage did not neglect the duties of their +spiritual calling, and commended their cause so successfully to those by +whom they had been enslaved, that the whole nation eventually embraced +the gospel. [281:2] Even the barriers of the ocean did not arrest the +progress of the victorious faith. Before the end of the second century +the religion of the cross seems to have reached Scotland; for though +Tertullian certainly speaks rhetorically when he says that "the places +of Britain inaccessible to the Romans were subject to Christ," [281:3] +his language at least implies that the message of salvation had already +been proclaimed with some measure of encouragement in Caledonia. + +Though no contemporary writer has furnished us with anything like an +ecclesiastical history of this period, it is very clear, from occasional +hints thrown out by the early apologists and controversialists, that the +progress of the Church must have been both extensive and rapid. A +Christian author, who flourished about the middle of the second century, +asserts that there was then "no race of men, whether of barbarians or of +Greeks, or bearing any other name, either because they lived in waggons +without fixed habitations, or in tents leading a pastoral life, among +whom prayers and thanksgivings were not offered up to the Father and +Maker of all things through the name of the crucified Jesus." [282:1] +Another father, who wrote shortly afterwards, observes that, "as in the +sea there are certain habitable and fertile islands, with wholesome +springs, provided with roadsteads and harbours, in which those who are +overtaken by tempests may find refuge--in like manner has God placed in +a world tossed by the billows and storms of sin, congregations or holy +churches, in which, as in insular harbours, the doctrines of truth are +sheltered, and to which those who desire to be saved, who love the +truth, and who wish to escape the judgment of God, may repair." [282:2] +These statements indicate that the gospel must soon have been very +widely disseminated. Within less than a hundred years after the +apostolic age places of Christian worship were to be seen in the chief +cities of the Empire; and early in the third century a decision of the +imperial tribunal awarded to the faithful in the great Western +metropolis a plot of ground for the erection of one of their religious +edifices. [282:3] At length about A.D. 260 the Emperor Gallienus issued +an edict of toleration in their favour; and, during the forty years +which followed, their numbers so increased that the ecclesiastical +buildings in which they had hitherto assembled were no longer sufficient +for their accommodation. New and spacious churches now supplanted the +old meeting-houses, and these more fashionable structures were soon +filled to overflowing. [282:4] But the spirit of the world now began to +be largely infused into the Christian communities; the Church was +distracted by its ministers struggling with each other for pre-eminence; +and even the terrible persecution of Diocletian which succeeded, could +neither quench the ambition, nor arrest the violence of contending +pastors. + +If we stand, only for a moment, on the beach, we may find it impossible +to decide whether the tide is ebbing or flowing. But if we remain there +for a few hours, the question will not remain unsettled. The sea will +meanwhile either retire into its depths, or compel us to retreat before +its advancing waters. So it is with the Church. At a given date we may +be unable to determine whether it is aggressive, stationary, or +retrograde. But when we compare its circumstances at distant intervals, +we may easily form a judgment. From the first to the fourth century, +Christianity moved forward like the flowing tide; and yet, perhaps, its +advance, during any one year, was not very perceptible. When, however, +we contrast its weakness at the death of the Apostle John with its +strength immediately before the commencement of the last imperial +persecution, we cannot but acknowledge its amazing progress. At the +termination of the first century, its adherents were a little flock, +thinly scattered over the empire. In the reign of Diocletian, such was +even their numerical importance that no prudent statesman would have +thought it safe to overlook them in the business of legislation. They +held military appointments of high responsibility; they were to be found +in some of the most honourable civil offices; they were admitted to the +court of the sovereign; and in not a few cities they constituted a most +influential section of the population. The wife of Diocletian, and his +daughter Valeria, are said to have been Christians. The gospel had now +passed over the boundaries of the empire, and had made conquests among +savages, some of whom had, perhaps, scarcely ever heard of the majesty +of Rome. But it did not establish its dominion unopposed, and, in +tracing its annals, we must not neglect to notice the history of its +persecutions. + + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE PERSECUTIONS OF THE CHURCH. + + +The persecutions of the early Church form an important and deeply +interesting portion of its history. When its Great Author died on the +accursed tree, Christianity was baptized in blood; and for several +centuries its annals consist largely of details of proscription and of +suffering. God might have introduced the gospel amongst men amidst the +shouts of applauding nations, but "He doeth all things well;" and He +doubtless saw that the way in which its reign was actually inaugurated, +was better fitted to exhibit His glory, and to attest its excellence. +Multitudes, who might otherwise have trifled with the great salvation, +were led to think of it more seriously, when they saw that it prompted +its professors to encounter such tremendous sacrifices. As the heathen +bystanders gazed on the martyrdom of a husband and a master, and as they +observed the unflinching fortitude with which he endured his anguish, +they often became deeply pensive. They would exclaim--"The man has +children, we believe--a wife he has, unquestionably--and yet he is not +unnerved by these ties of kindred: he is not turned from his purpose by +these claims of affection. We must look into the affair--we must get at +the bottom of it. Be it what it may, it can be no trifle which makes one +ready to suffer and willing to die for it." [284:1] The effects produced +on spectators by the heroism of the Christians cannot have escaped the +notice of the heathen magistrates. The Church herself was well aware of +the credit she derived from these displays of the constancy of her +children; and hence, in an address to the persecutors which appeared +about the beginning of the third century, the ardent writer boldly +invites them to proceed with the work of butchery. "Go on," says he +tauntingly, "ye good governors, so much better in the eyes of the people +if ye sacrifice the Christians to them--rack, torture, condemn, grind us +to powder--our numbers increase in proportion as you mow us down. The +blood of Christians is their harvest seed--that very obstinacy with +which you upbraid us, is a teacher. For who is not incited by the +contemplation of it to inquire what there is in the core of the matter? +and who, that has inquired, does not join us? and who, that joins us, +does not long to suffer?" [285:1] + +In another point of view the perils connected with a profession of the +gospel exercised a wholesome influence. Comparatively few undecided +characters joined the communion of the Church; and thus its members, as +a body, displayed much consistency and steadfastness. The purity of the +Christian morality was never seen to more advantage than in those days +of persecution, as every one who joined the hated sect was understood to +possess the spirit of a martyr. And never did the graces of the religion +of the cross appear in more attractive lustre than when its disciples +were groaning under the inflictions of imperial tyranny. As some plants +yield their choicest odours only under the influence of pressure, it +would seem as if the gospel reserved its richest supplies of patience, +strength, and consolation, for times of trouble and alarm. Piety never +more decisively asserts its celestial birth than when it stands +unblenched under the frown of the persecutor, or calmly awaits the shock +of death. In the second and third centuries an unbelieving world often +looked on with wonder as the Christians submitted to torment rather than +renounce their faith. Nor were spectators more impressed by the _amount_ +of suffering sustained by the confessors and the martyrs, than by the +_spirit_ with which they endured their trials. They approached their +tortures in no temper of dogged obstinacy or sullen defiance. They +rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer in so good a cause. +They manifested a self-possession, a meekness of wisdom, a gentleness, +and a cheerfulness, at which the multitude were amazed. Nor were these +proofs of Christian magnanimity confined to any one class of the +sufferers. Children and delicate females, illiterate artisans and poor +slaves, sometimes evinced as much intrepidity and decision as +hoary-headed pastors. It thus appeared that the victims of intolerance +were upheld by a power which was divine, and of which philosophy could +give no explanation. + +We form a most inadequate estimate of the trials of the early +Christians, if we take into account only those sufferings they endured +from the hands of the pagan magistrates. Circumstances which seldom came +under the eye of public observation not unfrequently kept them for life +in a state of disquietude. Idolatry was so interwoven with the very +texture of society that the adoption of the new faith sometimes abruptly +deprived an individual of the means of subsistence. If he was a +statuary, he could no longer employ himself in carving images of the +gods; if he was a painter, he could no more expend his skill in +decorating the high places of superstition. To earn a livelihood, he +must either seek out a new sphere for the exercise of his art, or betake +himself to some new occupation. If the Christian was a merchant, he was, +to a great extent, at the mercy of those with whom he transacted +business. When his property was in the hands of dishonest heathens, he +was often unable to recover it, as the pagan oaths administered in the +courts of justice prevented him from appealing for redress to the laws +of the empire. [287:1] Were he placed in circumstances which enabled him +to surmount this difficulty, he could not afford to exasperate his +debtors; as they could have so easily retaliated by accusing him of +Christianity. The wealthy disciple could not accept the office of a +magistrate, for he would have thus only betrayed his creed; neither +could he venture to aspire to any of the honours of the state, as his +promotion would most certainly have aggravated the perils of his +position. Our Saviour had said--"I am come to set a man at variance +against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the +daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man's foes shall be +they of his own household." [287:2] These words were now verified with +such woeful accuracy that the distrust pervading the domestic circle +often imbittered the whole life of the believer. The slave informed +against his Christian master; the husband divorced his Christian wife; +and children who embraced the gospel were sometimes disinherited by +their enraged parents. [287:3] As the followers of the cross +contemplated the hardships which beset them on every side, well might +they have exclaimed in the words of the apostle--"If in this life only +we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable." [287:4] + +In the first century the very helplessness of the Church served +partially to protect it from persecution. Its adherents were then almost +all in very humble circumstances; and their numbers were not such as to +inspire the sovereign with any political anxiety. When they were +harassed by the unbelieving Jews, the civil magistrate sometimes +interposed, and spread over them the shield of toleration; and though +Nero and Domitian were their persecutors, the treatment they experienced +from two princes so generally abhorred for cruelty elicited a measure of +public sympathy. [288:1] At length, however, the Roman government, even +when administered by sovereigns noted for their political virtues, began +to assume an attitude of decided opposition; and, for many generations, +the disciples were constantly exposed to the hostility of their pagan +rulers. + +The Romans acted so far upon the principle of toleration as to permit +the various nations reduced under their dominion to adhere to whatever +religion they had previously professed. They were, no doubt, led to +pursue this policy by the combined dictates of expediency and +superstition; for whilst they were aware that they could more easily +preserve their conquests by granting indulgence to the vanquished, they +believed that each country had its own tutelary guardians. But they +looked with the utmost suspicion upon all new systems of religion. Such +novelties, they conceived, might be connected with designs against the +state; and should, therefore, be sternly discountenanced. Hence it was +that Christianity so soon met with opposition from the imperial +government. For a time it was confounded with Judaism, and, as such, was +regarded as entitled to the protection of the laws; but when its true +character was ascertained, the disciples were involved in all the +penalties attached to the adherents of an unlicensed worship. + +Very early in the second century the power of the State was turned +against the gospel. About A.D. 107, the far-famed Ignatius, the pastor +of Antioch, is said to have suffered martyrdom. Soon afterwards our +attention is directed to the unhappy condition of the Church by a +correspondence between the celebrated Pliny, and the Emperor Trajan. It +would seem that in Bithynia, of which Pliny was governor, the new faith +was rapidly spreading; and that those who derived their subsistence from +the maintenance of superstition, had taken the alarm. The proconsul had, +therefore, been importuned to commence a persecution; and as existing +statutes supplied him with no very definite instructions respecting the +method of procedure, he deemed it necessary to seek directions from his +Imperial master. He stated, at the same time, the course which he had +hitherto pursued. If individuals arraigned before his judgment-seat, and +accused of Christianity, refused to repudiate the obnoxious creed, they +were condemned to death; but if they abjured the gospel, they were +permitted to escape unscathed. Trajan approved of this policy, and it +now became the law of the Empire. + +In his letter to his sovereign [289:1] Pliny has given a very favourable +account of the Christian morality, and has virtually admitted that the +new religion was admirably fitted to promote the good of the community, +he mentions that the members of the Church were bound by solemn +obligations to abstain from theft, robbery, and adultery; to keep their +promises, and to avoid every form of wickedness. When such was their +acknowledged character, it may appear extraordinary that a sagacious +prince and a magistrate of highly cultivated mind concurred in thinking +that they should be treated with extreme rigour. We have here, however, +a striking example of the military spirit of Roman legislation. The laws +of the Empire made no proper provision for the rights of conscience; and +they were based throughout upon the principle that implicit obedience is +the first duty of a subject. Neither Pliny nor Trajan could understand +why a Christian should not renounce his creed at the bidding of the +civil governor. In their estimation, "inflexible obstinacy" in +confessing the Saviour was a crime which deserved no less a penalty than +death. + +Though the rescript of Trajan awarded capital punishment to the man who +persisted in acknowledging himself a Christian, it also required that +the disciples should not be inquisitively sought after. The zeal of many +of the enemies of the Church was, no doubt, checked by this provision; +as those who attempted to hunt down the faithful expressly violated the +spirit of the imperial enactment. But still, some Christians now +suffered the penalty of a good confession. Pliny himself admits that +individuals who were brought before his own tribunal, and who could not +be induced to recant, were capitally punished; and elsewhere the law was +not permitted to remain in abeyance. About the close of the reign of +Trajan, Simeon, the senior minister of Jerusalem, now in the hundred and +twentieth year of his age, fell a victim to its severity. This martyr +was, probably, the second son of Mary, the mother of our Lord. He is, +perhaps, the same who is enumerated in the Gospels [290:1] among the +brethren of Christ; and the chronology accords with the supposition that +he was a year younger than our Saviour. [290:2] His relationship to +Jesus, his great age, and his personal excellence secured for him a most +influential position in the mother Church of Christendom; and hence, by +writers who flourished afterwards, and who expressed themselves in the +language of their generation, he has been called the second bishop of +Jerusalem. + +Though the rescript of Trajan served for a time to restrain the violence +of persecution, it pronounced the profession of Christianity illegal; so +that doubts, which had hitherto existed as to the interpretation of the +law, could no longer be entertained. The heathen priests, and others +interested in the support of idolatry, did not neglect to proclaim a +fact so discouraging to the friends of the gospel. The law, indeed, +still presented difficulties, for an accuser who failed to substantiate +his charge was liable to punishment; but the wily adversaries of the +Church soon contrived to evade this obstacle. When the people met +together on great public occasions, as at the celebration of their +games, or festivals, and when the interest in the sports began to flag, +attempts were often made to provide them with a new and more exciting +pastime by raising the cry of "The Christians to the Lions;" and as, at +such times, the magistrates had been long accustomed to yield to the +wishes of the multitude, many of the faithful were sacrificed to their +clamours. Here, no one was obliged to step forward and hold himself +responsible for the truth of an indictment; and thus, without incurring +any danger, personal malice and blind bigotry had free scope for their +indulgence. In the reign of Hadrian, the successor of Trajan, the +Christians were sadly harassed by these popular ebullitions; and at +length Quadratus and Aristides, two eminent members of the Church at +Athens, presented apologies to the Emperor in which they vividly +depicted the hardships of their position. Serenius Granianus, the +Proconsul of Asia, also complained to Hadrian of the proceedings of the +mob; and, in consequence, that Prince issued a rescript requiring that +the magistrates should in future refuse to give way to the extempore +clamours of public meetings. + +Antoninus Pius, who inherited the throne on the demise of Hadrian, was a +mild Sovereign; and under him the faithful enjoyed comparative +tranquillity; but his successor Marcus Aurelius, surnamed the +Philosopher, pursued a very different policy. Marcus is commonly reputed +one of the best of the Roman Emperors; at a very early period of life he +gave promise of uncommon excellence; and throughout his reign he +distinguished himself as an able and accomplished monarch. But he was +proud, pedantic, and self-sufficient; and, like every other individual +destitute of spiritual enlightenment, his character presented the most +glaring inconsistencies; for he was at once a professed Stoic, and a +devout Pagan. This Prince could not brook the contempt with which the +Christians treated his philosophy; neither could he tolerate the idea +that they should be permitted to think for themselves. He could conceive +how an individual, yielding to the stern law of fate, could meet death +with unconcern; but he did not understand how the Christians could glory +in tribulation, and hail even martyrdom with a song of triumph. Had he +calmly reflected on the spirit displayed by the witnesses for the truth, +he might have seen that they were partakers of a higher wisdom than his +own; but the tenacity with which they adhered to their principles, only +mortified his self-conceit, and roused his indignation. It is remarkable +that this philosophic Emperor was the most systematic and heartless of +all the persecutors who had ever yet oppressed the Church. When Nero +lighted up his gardens with the flames which issued from the bodies of +the dying Christians, he wished to transfer to them the odium of the +burning of Rome, and he acted only with the caprice and cunning of a +tyrant; and when Domitian promulgated his cruel edicts, he was haunted +with the dread that the proscribed sect would raise up a rival +Sovereign; but Marcus Aurelius could not plead even such miserable +apologies. He hated the Christians with the cool acerbity of a Stoic; +and he took measures for their extirpation which betrayed at once his +folly and his malevolence. Disregarding the law of Trajan which required +that they should not be officiously sought after, he encouraged spies +and informers to harass them with accusations. He caused them to be +dragged before the tribunals of the magistrates; and, under pain of +death, to be compelled to conform to the rites of idolatry. With a +refinement of cruelty unknown to his predecessors, he employed torture +for the purpose of forcing them to recant. If, in their agony, they gave +way, and consented to sacrifice to the gods, they were released; if they +remained firm, they were permitted to die in torment. In his reign we +read of new and hideous forms of punishment--evidently instituted for +the purpose of aggravating pain and terror. The Christians were +stretched upon the rack, and their joints were dislocated; their bodies, +when lacerated with scourges, were laid on rough sea-shells, or on other +most uncomfortable supports; they were torn to pieces by wild beasts; or +they were roasted alive on heated iron chairs. Ingenuity was called to +the ignoble office of inventing new modes and new instruments of +torture. + +One of the most distinguished sufferers of this reign was Justin, +surnamed the Martyr. [293:1] He was a native of Samaria; but he had +travelled into various countries, and had studied various systems of +philosophy, with a view, if possible, to discover the truth. His +attention had at length been directed to the Scriptures, and in them he +had found that satisfaction which he could not obtain elsewhere. When in +Rome about A.D. 165, he came into collision with Crescens, a Cynic +philosopher, whom he foiled in a theological discussion. His +unscrupulous antagonist, annoyed by this discomfiture, turned informer; +and Justin, with some others, was put to death. Shortly afterwards +Polycarp, the aged pastor of Smyrna, was committed to the flames. +[293:2] This venerable man, who had been acquainted in his youth with +the Apostle John, had long occupied a high position as a prudent, +exemplary, and devoted minister. Informations were now laid against him, +and orders were given for his apprehension. At first he endeavoured to +elude his pursuers; but when he saw that escape was impossible, he +surrendered himself a prisoner. After all, he would have been permitted +to remain unharmed had he consented to renounce the gospel. In the sight +of an immense throng who gloated over the prospect of his execution, the +good old man remained unmoved. When called on to curse Christ he +returned the memorable answer--"Eighty and six years have I served Him, +and He has done me nothing but good; and how could I curse Him my Lord +and Saviour?" "I will cast you to the wild beasts," said the Proconsul, +"if you do not change your mind." "Bring the wild beasts hither," +replied Polycarp, "for change my mind from the better to the worse I +will not." "Despise you the wild beasts?" exclaimed the magistrate--"I +will subdue your spirit by the flames." "The flames which you menace +endure but for a time and are soon extinguished," calmly rejoined the +prisoner, "but there is a fire reserved for the wicked, whereof you know +not; the fire of a judgment to come and of punishment everlasting." +These answers put an end to all hope of pardon; a pile of faggots was +speedily collected; and Polycarp was burned alive. + +Towards the end of the reign of Marcus Aurelius, or about A.D. 177, the +Churches of Lyons and Vienne [294:1] in France endured one of the most +horrible persecutions recorded in the annals of Christian martyrdom. A +dreadful pestilence, some years before, had desolated the Empire; and +the pagans seem to have been impressed with the conviction that the new +religion had provoked the visitation. The mob in various cities became, +in consequence, exasperated; and demanded, with loud cries, the +extirpation of the hated sectaries. In the south of France a +considerable time appears to have elapsed before the ill-will of the +multitude broke out into open violence. At first the disciples in Lyons +and Vienne were insulted in places of public concourse; they were then +pelted with stones and forced to shut themselves up in their own houses; +they were subsequently seized and thrown into prison; and afterwards +their slaves were put to the torture, and compelled to accuse them of +crimes of which they were innocent. Pothinus, the pastor of Lyons, now +upwards of ninety years of age, was brought before the governor, and so +roughly handled by the populace that he died two days after he was +thrown into confinement. The other prisoners were plied with hunger and +thirst, and then put to death with wanton and studied cruelty. Two of +the sufferers, Blandina, a female, and Ponticus, a lad of fifteen, +displayed singular calmness and intrepidity. For several days they were +obliged to witness the tortures inflicted on their fellow-disciples, +that they might, if possible, be intimidated by the appalling spectacle. +After passing through this ordeal, the torture was applied to +themselves. Ponticus soon sunk under his sufferings; but Blandina still +survived. When she had sustained the agony of the heated iron chair, she +was put into a net and thrown to a wild bull that she might be trampled +and torn by him; and she continued to breathe long after she had been +sadly mangled by the infuriated animal. While subjected to these +terrible inflictions, she exhibited the utmost patience; no boasts +escaped her lips; no murmurs were uttered by her; and even in the +paroxysms of her anguish she was seen to be full of faith and courage. +But such touching exhibitions of the spirit of the gospel failed to +repress the fury of the excited populace. Their hatred of the gospel was +so intense that they resolved to deprive the disciples who survived this +reign of terror of the melancholy satisfaction of paying the last +tribute of respect to the remains of their martyred brethren. They, +accordingly, burned the dead bodies, and then cast the ashes into the +Rhone. "Now," said they, "we will see whether they will rise again, and +whether God can help them, and deliver them out of our hands." [296:1] + +Under the brutal and bloody Commodus, the son and heir of Marcus +Aurelius, the Christians had some repose. Marcia, his favourite +concubine, was a member of the Church; [296:2] and her influence was +successfully exerted in protecting her co-religionists. But the penal +statutes were still in force, and they were not everywhere permitted to +remain a dead letter. In this reign [296:3] we meet with some of the +earliest indications of that zeal for martyrdom which was properly the +spawn of the fanaticism of the Montanists. In a certain district of +Asia, a multitude of persons, actuated by this absurd passion, presented +themselves in a body before the proconsul Arrius Antoninus; and +proclaimed themselves Christians. The sight of such a crowd of victims +appalled the magistrate; and, after passing judgment on a few, he is +said to have driven the remainder from his tribunal, exclaiming-- +"Miserable men, if you wish to kill yourselves, you have ropes or +precipices." + +The reigns of Pertinax and Julian, the Emperors next in succession after +Commodus, amounted together only to a few months; and the faithful had +meanwhile to struggle with many discouragements; [296:4] but these +short-lived sovereigns were so much occupied with other matters, that +they could not afford time for legislation on the subject of religion. +Septimius Severus, who now obtained the Imperial dignity, was at first +not unfriendly to the Church; and a cure performed on him by Proculus, a +Christian slave, [297:1] has been assigned as the cause of his +forbearance; but, as his reign advanced, he assumed an offensive +attitude; and it cannot be denied that the disciples suffered +considerably under his administration. As the Christians were still +obliged to meet at night to celebrate their worship, they were accused +of committing unnatural crimes in their nocturnal assemblies; and though +these heartless calumnies had been triumphantly refuted fifty or sixty +years before, they were now revived and circulated with fresh industry. +[297:2] About this period, Leonides, the father of the learned Origen, +was put to death. By a law, promulgated probably in A.D. 202, the +Emperor interdicted conversions to Christianity; and at a time when the +Church was making vigorous encroachments on heathenism, this enactment +created much embarrassment and anxiety. Some of the governors of +provinces, as soon as they ascertained the disposition of the Imperial +court, commenced forthwith a persecution; and there were magistrates who +proceeded to enforce the laws for the base purpose of extorting money +from the parties obnoxious to their severity. Sometimes individuals, and +sometimes whole congregations purchased immunity from suffering by +entering into pecuniary contracts with corrupt and avaricious rulers; +and by the payment of a certain sum obtained certificates [297:3] which +protected them from all farther inquisition. [297:4] The purport of +these documents has been the subject of much discussion. According to +some they contained a distinct statement to the effect that those named +in them had sacrificed to the gods, and had thus satisfied the law; +whilst others allege that, though they guaranteed protection, they +neither directly stated an untruth, nor compromised the religious +consistency of their possessors. But it is beyond all controversy that +the more scrupulous and zealous Christians uniformly condemned the use +of such certificates. Their owners were known by the suspicious +designation of "Libellatici," or "the Certified;" and were considered +only less criminal than the "Thurificati," or those who had actually +apostatised by offering incense on the altars of paganism. [298:1] + +About this time the enforcement of the penal laws in a part of North +Africa, probably in Carthage, led to a most impressive display of some +of the noblest features of the Christian character. Five catechumens, or +candidates for baptism, among whom were Perpetua and Felicitas, [298:2] +had been put under arrest. Perpetua, who was only two and twenty years +of age, was a lady of rank and of singularly prepossessing appearance. +Accustomed to all the comforts which wealth could procure, she was ill +fitted, with a child at the breast, to sustain the rigours of +confinement--more especially as she was thrown into a crowded dungeon +during the oppressive heat of an African summer. But, with her infant in +her arms, she cheerfully submitted to her privations; and the thought +that she was persecuted for Christ's sake, converted her prison into a +palace. Her aged father, who was a pagan, was overwhelmed with distress +because, as he conceived, she was bringing deep and lasting disgrace +upon her family by her attachment to a proscribed sect; and as she was +his favourite child, he employed every expedient which paternal +tenderness and anxiety could dictate to lead her to a recantation. When +she was conducted to the judgment-seat with the other prisoners, the old +gentleman appeared there, to try the effect of another appeal to her; +and the presiding magistrate, touched with pity, entreated her to listen +to his arguments, and to change her resolution. But, though deeply moved +by the anguish of her aged parent, all these attempts to shake her +constancy were in vain. At the place of execution she sung a psalm of +victory, and, before she expired, she exhorted her brother and another +catechumen, named Rusticus, to continue in the faith, to love each +other, and to be neither affrighted nor offended by her sufferings. Her +companion Felicitas exhibited quite as illustrious a specimen of +Christian heroism. When arrested, she was far advanced in pregnancy, and +during her imprisonment, the pains of labour came upon her. Her cries +arrested the attention of the jailer, who said to her--"If your present +sufferings are so great, what will you do when you are thrown to the +wild beasts? You did not consider this when you refused to sacrifice." +With undaunted spirit Felicitas replied--"It is _I_ that suffer _now_, +but _then_ there will be Another with me, who will suffer for me, +because I shall suffer for His sake." The prisoners were condemned to be +torn by wild beasts on the occasion of an approaching festival; and when +they had passed through this terrible ordeal, they were despatched with +the sword. + +After the death of Septimius Severus, the Christians experienced some +abatement of their sufferings. Caracalla and Elagabalus permitted them +to remain almost undisturbed; and Alexander Severus has been supposed by +some to have been himself a believer. Among the images in his private +chapel was a representation of Christ, and he was obviously convinced +that Jesus possessed divine endowments; but there is no proof that he +ever accepted unreservedly the New Testament revelation. He was simply +an eclectic philosopher who held that a portion of truth was to be found +in each of the current systems of religion; and who undertook to analyse +them, and extract the spiritual treasure. The Emperor Maximin was less +friendly to the Church; and yet his enmity was confined chiefly to those +Christian ministers who had been favourites with his predecessor; so +that he cannot be said to have promoted any general persecution. Under +Gordian the disciples were free from molestation; and his successor, +Philip the Arabian, was so well affected to their cause that he has been +sometimes, though erroneously, represented as the first Christian +Emperor. [300:1] The death of this monarch in A.D. 249 was, however, +soon followed by the fiercest and the most extensive persecution under +which the faithful had yet groaned. The more zealous of the pagans, who +had been long witnessing with impatience the growth of Christianity, had +become convinced that, if the old religion were to be upheld, a mighty +effort must very soon be made to strangle its rival. Various expedients +were meanwhile employed to prejudice the multitude against the gospel. +Every disaster which occurred throughout the Empire was attributed to +its evil influence; the defeat of a general, the failure of a harvest, +the overflowing of the Tiber, the desolations of a hurricane, and the +appearance of a pestilence, were all ascribed to its most inauspicious +advancement. The public mind was thus gradually prepared for measures of +extreme severity; and Decius, who now became emperor, aimed at the utter +extirpation of Christianity. All persons suspected of attachment to the +gospel were summoned before the civil authorities; and if, regardless of +intimidation, they refused to sacrifice, attempts were made to overcome +their constancy by torture, by imprisonment, and by starvation. When all +such expedients failed, the punishment of death was inflicted. Those who +fled before the day appointed for their appearance in presence of the +magistrates, forfeited their property; and were forbidden, under the +penalty of death, to return to the district. The Church in many places +had now enjoyed peace for thirty years, and meanwhile the tone of +Christian principle had been considerably lowered. It was not strange, +therefore, that, in these perilous days, many apostatised. [301:1] The +conduct of not a few of the more opulent Christians of Alexandria has +been graphically described by a contemporary. "As they were severally +called by name, they approached the unholy offering; some, pale and +trembling, as if they were going, not to sacrifice, but to be sacrificed +to the gods; so that they were jeered by the mob who thronged around +them, as it was plain to all that they were equally afraid to sacrifice +and to die. Others advanced more briskly, carrying their effrontery so +far as to avow that they never had been Christians." [301:2] Multitudes +now withdrew into deserts or mountains, and there perished with cold and +hunger. The prisons were everywhere crowded with Christians; and the +magistrates were occupied with the odious task of oppressing and +destroying the most meritorious of their fellow-citizens. The disciples +were sent to labour in the mines, branded on the forehead, subjected to +mutilation, and reduced to the lowest depth of misery. In this +persecution the pastors were treated with marked severity, and during +its continuance many of them suffered martyrdom. Among the most +distinguished victims were Fabian bishop of Rome, Babylas bishop of +Antioch, and Alexander bishop of Jerusalem. [302:1] + +The reign of Decius was short; [302:2] but the hardships of the Church +did not cease with its termination, as Gallus adopted the policy of his +predecessor. Though Valerian, the successor of Gallus, for a time +displayed much moderation, he eventually relinquished this pacific +course; and, instigated by his favourite Macrianus, an Egyptian +soothsayer, began about A.D. 257 to repeat the bloody tragedy which, in +the days of Decius, had filled the Empire with such terror and distress. +At first the pastors were driven into banishment, and the disciples +forbidden to meet for worship. But more stringent measures were soon +adopted. An edict appeared announcing that bishops, presbyters, and +deacons were to be put to death; that senators and knights, who were +Christians, were to forfeit their rank and property; and that, if they +still refused to repudiate their principles, they were to be capitally +punished; whilst those members of the Church who were in the service of +the palace, were to be put in chains, and sent to labour on the imperial +estates. [302:3] In this persecution, Sixtus bishop of Rome, and Cyprian +bishop of Carthage, [302:4] were martyred. + +On the accession of Gallienus in A.D. 260, the Church was once more +restored to peace. Gallienus, though a person of worthless character, +was the first Emperor who protected the Christians by a formal edict of +toleration. He commanded that they should not only be permitted to +profess their religion unmolested, but that they should again be put in +possession of their cemeteries [303:1] and of all other property, either +in houses or lands, of which they had been deprived during the reign of +his predecessor. This decree was nearly as ample in its provisions as +that which was issued in their favour by the great Constantine upwards +of half a century afterwards. + +But, notwithstanding the advantages secured by this imperial law, the +Church still suffered occasionally in particular districts. Hostile +magistrates might plead that certain edicts had not been definitely +repealed; and, calculating on the connivance of the higher +functionaries, might perpetrate acts of cruelty and oppression. The +Emperor Aurelian had even resolved to resume the barbarous policy of +Decius and Valerian; and, in A.D. 275, had actually prepared a +sanguinary edict; but, before it could be executed, death stepped in to +arrest his violence, and to prevent the persecution. Thus, as has +already been intimated, for the last forty years of the third century +the Christians enjoyed, almost uninterruptedly, the blessings of +toleration. Spacious edifices, frequented by crowds of worshippers, and +some of them furnished with sacramental vessels of silver or gold, +[303:2] were to be seen in all the great cities of the Empire. But, +about the beginning of the fourth century, the prospect changed. The +pagan party beheld with dismay the rapid extension of the Church, and +resolved to make a tremendous effort for its destruction. This faction, +pledged to the maintenance of idolatry, now caused its influence to be +felt in all political transactions; and the treatment of the Christians +once more became a question on which statesmen were divided. Diocletian, +who was made Emperor in A.D. 285, continued for many years afterwards to +act upon the principle of toleration; but at length he was induced, +partly by the suggestions of his own superstitious and jealous temper, +and partly by the importunities of his son-in-law Galerius, to enter +upon another course. The persecution commenced in the army, where all +soldiers refusing to sacrifice forfeited their rank, and were dismissed +the service. [304:1] But other hostile demonstrations soon followed. In +the month of February A.D. 303, the great church of Nicomedia, the city +in which the Emperor then resided, was broken open; the copies of the +Scriptures to be found in it were committed to the flames; and the +edifice itself was demolished. The next day an edict appeared +interdicting the religious assemblies of the faithful; commanding the +destruction of their places of worship; ordering all their sacred books +to be burned; requiring those who held offices of honour and emolument +to renounce their principles on pain of the forfeiture of their +appointments; declaring that disciples in the humbler walks of life, who +remained steadfast, should be divested of their rights as citizens and +free-men; and providing that even slaves, so long as they continued +Christians, should be incapable of manumission. [304:2] Some time +afterwards another edict was promulgated directing that all +ecclesiastics should be seized and put in chains. When the jails were +thus filled with Christian ministers, another edict made its appearance, +commanding that the prisoners should by all means be compelled to +sacrifice. At length a fourth edict, of a still more sweeping character +and extending to the whole body of Christians, was published. In +accordance with this decree proclamation was made throughout the streets +of the cities, and men, women, and children, were enjoined to repair to +the heathen temples. The city gates were guarded that none might escape; +and, from lists previously prepared, every individual was summoned by +name to present himself, and join in the performance of the rites of +paganism. [305:1] At a subsequent period all provisions sold in the +markets, in some parts of the empire, were sprinkled with the water or +the wine employed in idolatrous worship, that the Christians might +either be compelled to abstinence, or led to defile themselves by the +use of polluted viands. [305:2] + +Throughout almost the whole Church the latter part of the third century +was a period of spiritual decay; and many returned to heathenism during +the sifting time which now followed. Not a few incurred the reproach of +their more consistent and courageous brethren by surrendering the +Scriptures in their possession; and those who thus purchased their +safety were stigmatised with the odious name of _traditors_. Had the +persecutors succeeded in burning all the copies of the Word of God, they +would, without the intervention of a miracle, have effectually secured +the ruin of the Church; but their efforts to destroy the sacred volume +proved abortive; for the faithful seized the earliest opportunity of +replacing the consumed manuscripts. The holy book was prized by them +more highly than ever, and Bible burning only gave a stimulus to Bible +transcription. Still, however, sacred literature sustained a loss of no +ordinary magnitude in this wholesale destruction of the inspired +writings, and there is not at present in existence a single codex of the +New Testament of higher antiquity than the Diocletian persecution. +[305:3] + +It has been computed that a greater number of Christians perished under +Decius than in all the attacks which had previously been made upon them; +but their sufferings under Diocletian were still more formidable and +disastrous. Paganism felt that it was now engaged in a death struggle; +and this, its last effort to maintain its ascendency, was its most +protracted and desperate conflict. It has been frequently stated that +the Diocletian persecution was of ten years' duration; and, reckoning +from the first indications of hostility to the promulgation of an edict +of toleration, it may certainly be thus estimated; but all this time the +whole Church was not groaning under the pressure of the infliction. The +Christians of the west of Europe suffered comparatively little; as there +the Emperor Constantius Chlorus, and afterwards his son Constantine, to +a great extent, preserved them from molestation. In the East they passed +through terrific scenes of suffering; for Galerius and Maximin, the two +stern tyrants who governed that part of the empire on the abdication of +Diocletian, endeavoured to overcome their steadfastness by all the +expedients which despotic cruelty could suggest. A contemporary, who had +access to the best sources of information, has given a faithful account +of the torments they endured. Vinegar mixed with salt was poured on the +lacerated bodies of the dying; some were roasted on huge gridirons; +some, suspended aloft by one hand, were then left to perish in +excruciating agony; and some, bound to parts of different trees which +had been brought together by machinery, were torn limb from limb by the +sudden revulsion of the liberated branches. [306:1] But, even in the +East, this attempt to overwhelm Christianity was not prosecuted from its +commencement to its close with unabated severity. Sometimes the +sufferers obtained a respite; and again, the work of blood was resumed +with fresh vigour. Though many were tempted for a season to make a +hollow profession of paganism, multitudes met every effort to seduce +them in a spirit of indomitable resolution. At length tyranny became +weary of its barren office, and the Church obtained peace. In A.D. 311, +Galerius, languishing under a loathsome disease, and perhaps hoping that +he might be relieved by the God of the Christians, granted them +toleration. Maximin subsequently renewed the attacks upon them; but at +his death, which occurred in A.D. 313, the edict in favour of the +Church, which Constantine and his colleague Licinius had already +published, became law throughout the empire. + +It is often alleged that the Church, before the conversion of +Constantine, passed through ten persecutions; but the statement gives a +very incorrect idea of its actual suffering. It would be more accurate +to say that, for between two and three hundred years, the faithful were +under the ban of imperial proscription. During all this period they were +liable to be pounced upon at any moment by bigoted, domineering, or +greedy magistrates. There were not, indeed, ten persecutions conducted +with the systematic and sanguinary violence exhibited in the times of +Diocletian or of Decius; but there were perhaps provinces of the empire +where almost every year for upwards of two centuries some Christians +suffered for the faith. [307:1] The friends of the confessors and the +martyrs were not slow to acknowledge the hand of Providence, as they +traced the history of the emperors by whom the Church was favoured or +oppressed. It was remarked that the disciples were not worn out by the +barbarities of a continuous line of persecutors; for an unscrupulous +tyrant was often succeeded on the throne by an equitable or an indulgent +sovereign. Thus, the Christians had every now and then a breathing-time +during which their hopes were revived and their numbers recruited. It +was observed, too, that the princes, of whose cruelty they had reason to +complain, generally ended their career under very distressing +circumstances. An ecclesiastical writer who is supposed to have +flourished towards the commencement of the fourth century has discussed +this subject in a special treatise, in which he has left behind him a +very striking account of "The Deaths of the Persecutors." [308:1] Their +history certainly furnishes a most significant commentary on the Divine +announcement that "the Lord is known by the judgment which he +executeth." [308:2] Nero, the first hostile emperor, perished +ignominiously by his own hand. Domitian, the next persecutor, was +assassinated. Marcus Aurelius died a natural death; but, during his +reign, the Empire suffered dreadfully from pestilence and famine; and +war raged, almost incessantly, from its commencement to its close. The +people of Lyons, who now signalised themselves by their cruelty to the +Christians, did not escape a righteous retribution; for about twenty +years after the martyrdom of Pothinus and his brethren, the city was +pillaged and burned. [308:3] Septimius Severus narrowly escaped murder +by the hand of one of his own children. Decius, whose name is associated +with an age of martyrdom, perished in the Gothic war. Valerian, another +oppressor, ended his days in Persia in degrading captivity. The Emperor +Aurelian was assassinated. Diocletian languished for years the victim of +various maladies, and is said to have abruptly terminated his life by +suicide. Galerius, his son-in-law, died of a most horrible distemper; +and Maximin took away his own life by poison. [308:4] The interpretation +of providences is not to be rashly undertaken; but the record of the +fate of persecutors forms a most extraordinary chapter in the history of +man; and the melancholy circumstances under which so many of the enemies +of religion have finished their career, have sometimes impressed those +who have been otherwise slow to acknowledge the finger of the Almighty. + +The persecutions of the early Church originated partly in selfishness +and superstition. Idolatry afforded employment to tens of thousands of +artists and artisans--all of whom had thus a direct pecuniary interest +in its conservation; whilst the ignorant rabble, taught to associate +Christianity with misfortune, were prompted to clamour for its +overthrow. Mistaken policy had also some share in the sufferings of the +Christians; for statesmen, fearing that the disciples in their secret +meetings might be hatching treason, viewed them with suspicion and +treated them with severity. But another element of at least equal +strength contributed to promote persecution. The pure and spiritual +religion of the New Testament was distasteful to the human heart, and +its denunciations of wickedness in every form stirred up the malignity +of the licentious and unprincipled. The faithful complained that they +suffered for neglecting the worship of the gods, whilst philosophers, +who derided the services of the established ritual, escaped with +impunity. [309:1] But the sophists were not likely ever to wage an +effective warfare against immorality and superstition. Many of +themselves were persons of worthless character, and their speculations +were of no practical value. It was otherwise with the gospel. Its +advocates were felt to be in earnest; and it was quickly perceived that, +if permitted to make way, it would revolutionize society. Hence the +bitter opposition which it so soon awakened. + +It might have been expected that the sore oppression which the Church +endured for so many generations would have indelibly imprinted on the +hearts of her children the doctrine of liberty of conscience. As the +early Christians expostulated with their pagan rulers, they often +described most eloquently the folly of persecution. "How unjust is it," +said they, "that freemen should be driven to sacrifice to the gods, when +in all other instances a willing mind is required as an indispensable +qualification for any office of religion?" [310:1] "It appertains to +man's proper right and natural privilege that each should worship that +which he thinks to be God....Neither is it the part of religion to +compel men to religion, which ought to be adopted voluntarily, not of +compulsion, seeing that sacrifices are required of a willing mind. Thus, +even if you compel us to sacrifice, you shall render no sacrifice +thereby to your gods, for they will not desire sacrifices from unwilling +givers, unless they are contentious; but God is not contentious." +[310:2] When, however, the Church obtained possession of the throne of +the empire, she soon ignored these lessons of toleration; and, snatching +the weapons of her tormentors, she attempted, in her turn, to subjugate +the soul by the dungeon, the sword, and the faggot. For at least +thirteen centuries after the establishment of Christianity by +Constantine, it was taken for granted almost everywhere that those +branded with the odious name of heretics were unworthy the protection of +the laws; and that, though good and loyal citizens, they ought to be +punished by the civil magistrate. This doctrine, so alien to the spirit +of the New Testament, has often spread desolation and terror throughout +whole provinces; and has led to the deliberate murder of a hundredfold +more Christians than were destroyed by pagan Rome. Even the fathers of +the Reformation did not escape from the influence of an intolerant +training; but that Bible which they brought forth from obscurity has +been gradually imparting a milder tone to earthly legislation; and +various providences have been illustrating the true meaning of the +proposition that Christ's kingdom is "not of this world." [311:1] In all +free countries it is now generally admitted that the weapons of the +Church are not carnal, and that the jurisdiction of the magistrate is +not spiritual. "God alone is Lord of the conscience;" and it is only by +the illumination of His Word that the monitor within can be led to +recognise His will, and submit to His authority. + + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +FALSE BRETHREN AND FALSE PRINCIPLES IN THE CHURCH: SPIRIT AND CHARACTER +OF THE CHRISTIANS. + + +Some have an idea that the saintship of the early Christians was of a +type altogether unique and transcendental. In primitive times the Spirit +was, no doubt, poured out in rich effusion, and the subjects of His +grace, when contrasted with the heathen around them, often exhibited +most attractively the beauty of holiness; but the same Spirit still +dwells in the hearts of the faithful, and He is now as able, as He ever +was, to enlighten and to save. As man, wherever he exists, possesses +substantially the same organic conformation, so the true children of +God, to whatever generation they belong, have the same divine +lineaments. The age of miracles has passed away, but the reign of grace +continues, and, at the present day, there may, perhaps, be found amongst +the members of the Church as noble examples of vital godliness as in the +first or second century. + +There was a traitor among the Twelve, and it is apparent from the New +Testament that, in the Apostolic Church, there were not a few unworthy +members. "_Many_ walk," says Paul, "of whom I have told you often, and +now tell you, even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of +Christ, whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose +glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things." [312:1] In the second +and third centuries the number of such false brethren did not diminish. +To those who are ignorant of its saving power, Christianity may commend +itself, by its external evidences, as a revelation from God; and many, +who are not prepared to submit to its authority, may seek admission to +its privileges. The superficial character of much of the evangelism now +current appeared in times of persecution; for, on the first appearance +of danger, multitudes abjured the gospel, and returned to the heathen +superstitions. It is, besides, a fact which cannot be disputed that, in +the third century, the more zealous champions of the faith felt it +necessary to denounce the secularity of many of the ministers of the +Church. Before the Decian persecution not a few of the bishops were mere +worldlings, and such was their zeal for money-making, that they left +their parishes neglected, and travelled to remote districts where, at +certain seasons of the year, they might carry on a profitable traffic +[313:1]. If we are to believe the testimony of the most distinguished +ecclesiastics of the period, crimes were then perpetrated to which it +would be difficult to find anything like parallels in the darkest pages +of the history of modern Christianity. The chief pastor of the largest +Church in the Proconsular Africa tells, for instance, of one of his own +presbyters who robbed orphans and defrauded widows, who permitted his +father to die of hunger and treated his pregnant wife with horrid +brutality. [313:2] Another ecclesiastic, of still higher position, +speaks of three bishops in his neighbourhood who engaged, when +intoxicated, in the solemn rite of ordination. [313:3] Such excesses +were indignantly condemned by all right-hearted disciples, but the fact, +that those to whom they were imputed were not destitute of partisans, +supplies clear yet melancholy proof that neither the Christian people +nor the Christian ministry, even in the third century, possessed an +unsullied reputation. + +Meanwhile the introduction of a false standard of piety created much +mischief. It had long been received as a maxim, among certain classes of +philosophers, that bodily abstinence is necessary to those who would +attain more exalted wisdom; and the Gentile theology, especially in +Egypt and the East, had endorsed the principle. It was not without +advocates among the Jews, as is apparent from the discipline of the +Essenes and the Therapeutae. At an early period its influence was felt +within the pale of the Church, and before the termination of the second +century, individual members here and there were to be found who eschewed +certain kinds of food and abstained from marriage. [314:1] The pagan +literati, who now joined the disciples in considerable numbers, did much +to promote the credit of this adulterated Christianity. Its votaries, +who were designated _ascetics_ and _philosophers_ [314:2] did not +withdraw themselves from the world, but, whilst adhering to their own +regimen, still remained mindful of their social obligations. Their +self-imposed mortification soon found admirers, and an opinion gradually +gained ground that these abstinent disciples cultivated a higher form of +piety. The adherents of the new discipline silently increased, and by +the middle of the third century, a class of females who led a single +life, and who, by way of distinction, were called virgins, were in some +places regarded by the other Church members with special veneration. +[314:3] Among the clergy also celibacy was now considered a mark of +superior holiness. [314:4] But, in various places, pietism about this +time assumed a form which disgusted all persons of sober judgment and +ordinary discretion. The unmarried clergy and the virgins deemed it +right to cultivate the communion of saints after a new fashion, alleging +that, in each other's society, they enjoyed peculiar advantages for +spiritual improvement. It was not, therefore, uncommon to find a single +ecclesiastic and one of the sisterhood of virgins dwelling in the same +house and sharing the same bed! [315:1] All the while the parties +repudiated the imputation of any improper intercourse, but in some cases +the proofs of profligacy were too plain to be concealed, and common +sense refused to credit the pretensions of such an absurd and suspicious +spiritualism. The ecclesiastical authorities felt it necessary to +interfere, and compel the professed virgins and the single clergy to +abstain from a degree of intimacy which was unquestionably not free from +the appearance of evil. + +About the time that the advocates of "whatsoever things are of good +report" were protesting against the improprieties of these spiritual +brethren and sisters, Paul and Antony, the fathers and founders of +Monachism, commenced to live as hermits. Paul was a native of Egypt, and +the heir of a considerable fortune; but, driven at first by persecution +from the abodes of men, he ultimately adopted the desert as the place of +his chosen residence. Antony, in another part of the same country, +guided by a mistaken spirit of self-renunciation, divested himself of +all his property; and also retired into a wilderness. The biographies of +these two well-meaning but weak-minded visionaries, which have been +written by two of the most eminent divines of the fourth century, +[316:1] are very humiliating memorials of folly and fanaticism. These +solitaries spent each a long life in a cave, macerating the body with +fasting, and occupying the mind with the reveries of a morbid +imagination. In an age of growing superstition their dreamy pietism was +mistaken by many for sanctity of uncommon excellence; and the admiration +bestowed on them, tempted others, in the beginning of the following +century, to imitate their example. Soon afterwards, societies of these +sons of the desert were established; and, in the course of a few years, +a taste for the monastic life spread, like wild-fire, over the whole +Church. + +It is a curious fact that the figure of the instrument of torture on +which our Lord was put to death, occupied a prominent place among the +symbols of the ancient heathen worship. From the most remote antiquity +the cross was venerated in Egypt and Syria; it was held in equal honour +by the Buddhists of the East, [316:2] and, what is still more +extraordinary, when the Spaniards first visited America, the well-known +sign was found among the objects of worship in the idol temples of +Anahuac. [316:3] It is also remarkable that, about the commencement of +our era, the pagans were wont to make the sign of a cross upon the +forehead in the celebration of some of their sacred mysteries. [317:1] A +satisfactory explanation of the origin of such peculiarities in the +ritual of idolatry can now scarcely be expected; but it certainly need +not excite surprise if the early Christians were impressed by them, and +if they viewed them as so many unintentional testimonies to the truth of +their religion. The disciples displayed, indeed, no little ingenuity in +their attempts to discover the figure of a cross in almost every object +around them. They could recognise it in the trees and the flowers, in +the fishes and the fowls, in the sails of a ship and the structure of +the human body; [317:2] and if they borrowed from their heathen +neighbours the custom of making a cross upon the forehead, they would of +course be ready to maintain that they thus only redeemed the holy sign +from profanation. Some of them were, perhaps, prepared, on prudential +grounds, to plead for its introduction. Heathenism was, to a +considerable extent, a religion of bowings and genuflexions; its +votaries were, ever and anon, attending to some little rite or form; +and, because of the multitude of these diminutive acts of outward +devotion, its ceremonial was at once frivolous and burdensome. When the +pagan passed into the Church, he, no doubt, often felt, for a time, the +awkwardness of the change; and was frequently on the point of repeating, +as it were automatically, the gestures of his old superstition. It may, +therefore, have been deemed expedient to supersede more objectionable +forms by something of a Christian complexion; and the use of the sign of +the cross here probably presented itself as an observance equally +familiar and convenient. [318:1] But the disciples would have acted more +wisely had they boldly discarded all the puerilities of paganism; for +credulity soon began to ascribe supernatural virtue to this vestige of +the repudiated worship. As early as the beginning of the third century, +it was believed to operate like a charm; and it was accordingly employed +on almost all occasions by many of the Christians. "In all our travels +and movements," says a writer of this period, "as often as we come in or +go out, when we put on our clothes or our shoes, when we enter the bath +or sit down at table, when we light our candles, when we go to bed, or +recline upon a couch, or whatever may be our employment, we mark our +forehead with the sign of the cross." [318:2] + +But whilst not a few of the Christians were beginning to adopt some of +the trivial rites of paganism, they continued firmly to protest against +its more flagrant corruptions. They did not hesitate to assail its gross +idolatry with bold and biting sarcasms. "Stone, or wood, or silver," +said they, "becomes a god when man chooses that it should, and dedicates +it to that end. With how much more truth do dumb animals, such as mice, +swallows, and kites, judge of your gods? They know that your gods feel +nothing; they gnaw them, they trample and sit on them; and if you did +not drive them away, they would make their nests in the very mouth of +your deity." [319:1] The Church of the first three centuries rejected +the use of images in worship, and no pictorial representations of the +Saviour were to be found even in the dwellings of the Christians. They +conceived that such visible memorials could convey no idea whatever of +the ineffable glory of the Son of God; and they held that it is the duty +of His servants to foster a spirit of devotion, not by the contemplation +of His material form, but by meditating on His holy and divine +attributes as they are exhibited in creation, providence, and +redemption. So anxious were they to avoid even the appearance of +anything like image-worship, that when they wished to mark articles of +dress or furniture with an index of their religious profession, they +employed the likeness of an anchor, or a dove, or a lamb, or a cross, or +some other object of an emblematical character. [319:2] "We must not," +said they, "cling to the sensuous but rise to the spiritual. The +familiarity of daily sight lowers the dignity of the divine, and to +pretend to worship a spiritual essence through earthly matter, is to +degrade that essence to the world of sense." [319:3] Even so late as the +beginning of the fourth century the practice of displaying paintings in +places of worship was prohibited by ecclesiastical authority. A canon +which bears upon this subject, and which was enacted by the Council of +Elvira held about A.D. 305, is more creditable to the pious zeal than to +the literary ability of the assembled fathers. "We must not," said they, +"have pictures in the church, lest that which is worshipped and adored +be painted on the walls." [320:1] + +It has been objected to the Great Reformation of the sixteenth century +that it exercised a prejudicial influence on the arts of painting and +statuary. The same argument might have been urged against the gospel +itself in the days of its original promulgation. Whilst the early Church +entirely discarded the use of images in worship, its more zealous +members looked with suspicion upon all who assisted in the fabrication +of these objects of the heathen idolatry. [320:2] The excuse that the +artists were labouring for subsistence, and that they had themselves no +idea of bowing down to the works of their own hands, did not by any +means satisfy the scruples of their more consistent and conscientious +brethren. "Assuredly," they exclaimed, "you are a worshipper of idols +when you help to promote their worship. It is true you bring to them no +outward victim, but you sacrifice to them, your mind. Your sweat is +their drink-offering. You kindle for them the light of your skill." +[320:3] By denouncing image-worship the early Church, no doubt, to some +extent interfered with the profits of the painter and the sculptor; but, +in another way, it did much to purify and elevate the taste of the +public. In the second and third centuries the playhouse in every large +town was a centre of attraction; and whilst the actors were generally +persons of very loose morals, their dramatic performances were +perpetually pandering to the depraved appetites of the age. It is not, +therefore, wonderful that all true Christians viewed the theatre with +disgust. Its frivolity was offensive to their grave temperament; they +recoiled from its obscenity; and its constant appeals to the gods and +goddesses of heathenism outraged their religious convictions. [321:1] In +their estimation, the talent devoted to its maintenance was miserably +prostituted; and whilst every actor was deemed unworthy of +ecclesiastical fellowship, every church member was prohibited, by +attendance or otherwise, from giving any encouragement to the stage. The +early Christians were also forbidden to frequent the public shows, as +they were considered scenes of temptation and pollution. Every one at +his baptism was required to renounce "the devil, his pomp, and his +angels" [321:2]--a declaration which implied that he was henceforth to +absent himself from the heathen spectacles. At this time, statesmen, +poets, and philosophers were not ashamed to appear among the crowds who +assembled to witness the combats of the gladiators, though, on such +occasions, human life was recklessly sacrificed. But here the Church, +composed chiefly of the poor of this world, was continually giving +lessons in humanity to heathen legislators and literati. It protested +against cruelty, as well to the brute creation as to man; and condemned +the taste which could derive gratification from the shedding of the +blood either of lions or of gladiators. All who sanctioned by their +presence the sanguinary sports of the amphitheatre incurred a sentence +of excommunication. [322:1] + +At this time, though an increasing taste for inactivity and solitude +betokened the growth of a bastard Christianity, and though various other +circumstances were indicative of tendencies to adulterate religion, +either by reducing it to a system of formalism, or by sublimating it +into a life of empty contemplation, there were still abundant proofs of +the existence of a large amount of healthy and vigorous piety. The +members of the Church, as a body, were distinguished by their exemplary +morals; and about the beginning of the third century, one of their +advocates, when pleading for their toleration, could venture to assert +that, among the numberless culprits brought under the notice of the +magistrates, none were Christians. [322:2] Wherever the gospel spread, +its social influence was most salutary. Its first teachers applied +themselves discreetly to the redress of prevalent abuses; and time +gradually demonstrated the effectiveness of their plans of reformation. +When they appeared, polygamy was common; [322:3] and had they assailed +it in terms of unmeasured severity, they would have defeated their own +object by rousing up a most formidable and exasperated opposition. It +would have been argued by the Jews that they were reflecting on the +patriarchs; and it would have been said by the Roman governors that they +were interfering with matters which belonged to the province of the +civil magistrate. They were obliged, therefore, to proceed with extreme +caution. In the first place, they laid it down as a principle that every +bishop and deacon must be "the husband of one wife," [323:1] or, in +other words, that no polygamist could hold office in their society. They +thus, in the most pointed way, inculcated sound views respecting the +institution of marriage; for they intimated that whoever was the husband +of more than one wife was not, in every respect, "a pattern of good +works," and was consequently unfit for ecclesiastical promotion. In the +second place, in all their discourses they proceeded on the assumption +that the union of one man and one woman is the divine arrangement. +[323:2] Throughout the whole of the New Testament, wherever marriage is +mentioned, no other idea is entertained. It is easy to see what must +have been the effect of this method of procedure. It soon came to be +understood that no good Christian could have at one time more than one +wife; and at length the polygamist was excluded from communion by a +positive enactment. [323:3] + +Every disciple who married a heathen was cut off from Church privileges. +The apostles had condemned such an alliance, [323:4] and it still +continued to be spoken of in terms of the strongest reprobation. +Nothing, it was said, but discomfort and danger could be anticipated +from the union; as parties related so closely, and yet differing so +widely on the all-important subject of religion, could not permanently +hold cordial intercourse. A writer of this period has given a vivid +description of the trials of the female who made such an ill-assorted +match. Whilst she is about to be engaged in spiritual exercises, her +husband will probably contrive some scheme for her annoyance; and her +zeal may be expected to awaken his jealousy, and provoke his opposition. +"If there be a prayer-meeting, the husband will devote this day to the +use of the bath; if a fast is to be observed, the husband has a feast at +which he entertains his friends; if a religious ceremony is to be +attended, never does household business fall more upon her hands. And +who would allow his wife, for the sake of visiting the brethren, to go +from street to street the round of strange and especially of the poorer +class of cottages? ... If a stranger brother come to her, what lodging +in an alien's house? If a present is to be made to any, the barn, the +storehouse are closed against her." [324:1] + +The primitive heralds of the gospel acted with remarkable prudence in +reference to the question of slavery. According to some high +authorities, bondsmen constituted one-half [324:2] of the entire +population of the Roman Empire; and as the new religion was designed to +promote the spiritual good of man, rather than the improvement of his +civil or political condition, the apostles did not deem it expedient, in +the first instance, to attempt to break up established relations. They +did not refuse to receive any one as a member of the Church because he +happened to be a slave-owner; neither did they reject any applicant for +admission because he was a slave. The social position of the individual +did not at all affect his ecclesiastical standing; for bond and free are +"all one in Christ Jesus." [324:3] In the Church the master and the +servant were upon a footing of equality; they joined in the same +prayers; they sat down, side by side, at the same communion table; and +they saluted each other with the kiss of Christian recognition. A +slave-owner might belong to a congregation of which his slave was the +teacher; and thus, whilst in the household, the servant was bound to +obey his master according to the flesh, in the Church the master was +required to remember that his minister was "worthy of double honour." +[325:1] + +The spirit of the gospel is pre-eminently a spirit of freedom; but the +inspired founders of our religion did not fail to remember that we may +be partakers of the glorious liberty of the children of God, whilst we +are under the yoke of temporal bondage. Whilst, therefore, they did not +hesitate to speak of emancipation as a blessing, and whilst they said to +the slave--"If thou mayest be made free, use it rather;" [325:2] they at +the same time declared it to be his duty to submit cheerfully to the +restraints of his present condition. "Let every man," said they, "abide +in the same calling wherein he was called; for he that is called in the +Lord, being a servant, is the Lord's freeman." [325:3] They were most +careful to teach converted slaves that they were not to presume upon +their church membership; and that they were not to be less respectful +and obedient when those to whom they were in bondage were their brethren +in the Lord. "Let as many servants as are under the yoke," says the +apostle, "count their own masters worthy of all honour, that the name of +God and his doctrine be not blasphemed. And they that have believing +masters, let them not despise them, because they are brethren, but +rather do them service, because they are faithful and beloved, partakers +of the benefit." [325:4] + +The influence of Christianity on the condition of the slave was soon +felt. The believing master was more humane than his pagan neighbour; +[325:5] his bearing was more gentle, conciliatory, and considerate; and +the domestics under his care were more comfortable. [325:6] There was a +disposition among pious slave-owners to let the oppressed go free, and +when they performed such an act of mercy, and both parties were in +communion with the Church, the congregation was assembled to witness the +consummation of the happy deliverance. [326:1] Thus, multitudes of +bondsmen in all parts of the Roman Empire were soon taught to regard the +gospel as their best benefactor. + +Whilst Christianity, in the spirit of its Great Founder, was labouring +to improve the tone of public sentiment, and to undo heavy burdens, it +exhibited other most attractive characteristics. Wherever a disciple +travelled, if a church existed in the district, he felt himself at home. +The ecclesiastical certificate which he carried along with him, at once +introduced him to the meetings of his co-religionists, and secured for +him all the advantage of membership. The heathen were astonished at the +cordiality with which the believers among whom they resided greeted a +Christian stranger. He was saluted with the kiss of peace; ushered into +their assembly; and invited to share the hospitality of the domestic +board. If he was sick, they visited him; if he was in want, they made +provision for his necessities. The poor widows were supported at the +expense of the Church; and if any of the brethren were carried captive +by predatory bands of the barbarians who hovered upon the borders of the +Empire, contributions were made to purchase their liberation from +servitude. [326:2] To those who were without the Church, its members +appeared as one large and affectionate family. The pagan could not +comprehend what it was that so closely cemented their brotherhood; for +he did not understand how they could be attracted to each other by love +to a common Saviour. He was almost induced to believe that they held +intercourse by certain mysterious signs, and that they were affiliated +by something like the bond of freemasonry. Even statesmen observed with +uneasiness the spirit of fraternity which reigned among the Christians; +and, though the disciples could never be convicted of any political +designs, suspicions were often entertained that, after all, they might +form a secret association, on an extensive scale, which might one day +prove dangerous to the established government. + +But Christianity, like the sun, shines on the evil and the good; and +opportunities occurred for shewing that its charities were not confined +within the limits of its own denomination. There were occasions on which +its very enemies could not well refuse to admit its excellence; for in +seasons of public distress, its adherents often signalised themselves as +by far the most energetic, benevolent, and useful citizens. At such +times its genial philanthropy appeared to singular advantage when +contrasted with the cold and selfish spirit of polytheism. Thus, in the +reign of the Emperor Gallus, when a pestilence spread dismay throughout +North Africa, [327:1] and when the pagans shamefully deserted their +nearest relatives in the hour of their extremity, the Christians stepped +forward, and ministered to the wants of the sick and dying without +distinction. [327:2] Some years afterwards, when the plague appeared in +Alexandria, and when the Gentile inhabitants left the dead unburied and +cast out the dying into the streets, the disciples vied with each other +in their efforts to alleviate the general suffering. [327:3] The most +worthless men can scarcely forget acts of kindness performed under such +circumstances. Forty years afterwards, when the Church in the capital of +Egypt was overtaken by the Diocletian persecution, their pagan +neighbours concealed the Christians in their houses, and submitted to +fines and imprisonment rather than betray the refugees. [328:1] + +The fact that the heathen were now ready to shelter the persecuted +members of the Church is itself of importance as a sign of the times. +When the disciples first began to rise into notice in the great towns, +they were commonly regarded with aversion; and, when the citizens were +assembled in thousands at the national spectacles, no cry was more +vociferously repeated than that of "The Christians to the lions." But +this bigoted and intolerant spirit was fast passing away; and when the +state now set on foot a persecution, it could not reckon so extensively +on the support of popular antipathy. The Church had attained such a +position that the calumnies once repeated to its prejudice could no +longer obtain credence; the superior excellence of its system of morals +was visible to all; and it could point on every side to proofs of the +blessings it communicated. It could demonstrate, by a reference to its +history, that it produced kind masters and dutiful servants, +affectionate parents and obedient children, faithful friends and +benevolent citizens. On all classes, whether rich or poor, learned or +unlearned, its effects were beneficial. It elevated the character of the +working classes, it vastly improved the position of the wife, it +comforted the afflicted, and it taught even senators wisdom. Its +doctrines, whether preached to the half-naked Picts or the polished +Athenians, to the fierce tribes of Germany or the literary coteries of +Alexandria, exerted the same holy and happy influence. It promulgated a +religion obviously fitted for all mankind. There had long since been a +prediction that its dominion should extend "from sea to sea and from the +river unto the ends of the earth;" and its progress already indicated +that the promise would receive a glorious accomplishment. + + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE CHURCH OF ROME IN THE SECOND CENTURY. + + +The great doctrines of Christianity are built upon _the facts_ of the +life of our Lord. These facts are related by the four evangelists with +singular precision, and yet with a variety of statement, as to details, +which proves that each writer delivered an independent testimony. The +witnesses all agree when describing the wonderful history of the Captain +of our Salvation; and they dwell upon the narrative with a minuteness +apparently corresponding to the importance of the _doctrine_ which the +facts establish or illustrate. Hence it is that, whilst they scarcely +notice, or altogether omit, several items of our Saviour's biography, +they speak particularly of His birth and of His miracles, of His death +and of His resurrection. Thus, all the great facts of the gospel are +most amply authenticated. + +It is not so with the system of Romanism; as nothing can be weaker than +the historical basis on which it rests. The New Testament demonstrates +that Peter was _not_ the Prince of the Apostles; for it records the +rebuke which our Lord delivered to the Twelve when they strove among +themselves "which of them should be accounted the greatest." [329:1] It +also supplies evidence that neither Peter nor Paul founded the Church of +Rome; as, before that Church had been visited by the Apostle of the +Gentiles, its faith was "spoken of throughout the whole world;" [329:2] +and the apostle of the circumcision was meanwhile labouring in another +part of the Empire. [330:1] When writing to the Romans in A.D. 57, Paul +greets many members of the Church, and mentions the names of a great +variety of individuals; [330:2] but, throughout his long epistle, Peter +is not once noticed. Had he been connected with that Christian +community, he would, beyond doubt, have been prominently recognised. + +There is, indeed, a sense in which Peter may, perhaps, be said to have +founded the great Church of the West; for it is possible that some of +the "strangers of Rome," [330:3] who heard his celebrated sermon on the +day of Pentecost, were then converted by his ministry; and it may be +that these converts, on their return home, proceeded to disseminate the +truth, and to organize a Christian society, in the chief city of the +Empire. This, however, is mere matter of conjecture; and it is now +useless to speculate upon the subject; as, in the absence of historical +materials to furnish us with information, the question must remain +involved in impenetrable mystery. It is certain that the Roman Church +was established long before it was visited by an apostle; and it is +equally clear that its members were distinguished, at an early period, +by their Christian excellence. When Paul was prisoner for the first time +in the great city, he was freely permitted to exercise his ministry; +but, subsequently, when there during the Neronian persecution, he was, +according to the current tradition, seized and put to death. [330:4] +Peter's martyrdom took place, as we have seen, [330:5] perhaps about a +year afterwards; but the legend describing it contains very improbable +details, and the facts have obviously been distorted and exaggerated. + +For at least seventy years after the death of the apostle of the +circumcision, nothing whatever is known of the history of the Roman +Church, except the names of some of its leading ministers. It was +originally governed, like other Christian communities, by the common +council of the presbyters, who, as a matter of order, must have had a +chairman; but though, about a hundred years after the martyrdom of +Peter, when the presidents began to be designated _bishops_, an attempt +was made to settle their order of succession, [331:1] the result was by +no means satisfactory. Some of the earliest writers who touch +incidentally upon the question are inconsistent with themselves; [331:2] +whilst they flatly contradict each other. [331:3] In fact, to this day, +what is called the episcopal succession in the ancient Church of Rome is +an historical riddle. At first no one individual seems to have acted for +life as the president, or moderator, of the presbytery; but as it was +well known that, at an early date, several eminent pastors had belonged +to it, the most distinguished names found their way into the catalogues, +and each writer appears to have consulted his own taste or judgment in +regulating the order of succession. Thus, it has probably occurred that +their lists are utterly irreconcileable. All such genealogies are, +indeed, of exceedingly dubious credit, and those who deem them of +importance must always be perplexed by the candid acknowledgment of the +father of ecclesiastical history. "How many," says he, "and who, +prompted by a kindred spirit, were judged fit to feed the churches +established by the apostles, it _is not easy to say, any farther than +may be gathered from the statements of Paul_." [331:4] + +About A.D. 139, Telesphorus, who was then at the head of the Roman +presbytery, is said to have been put to death for his profession of the +gospel; but the earliest authority for this fact is a Christian +controversialist who wrote upwards of forty years afterwards; [332:1] +and we are totally ignorant of all the circumstances connected with the +martyrdom. The Church of the capital, which had hitherto enjoyed +internal tranquillity, began in the time of Hyginus, who succeeded +Telesphorus, to be disturbed by false teachers. Valentine, Cerdo, and +other famous heresiarchs, now appeared in Rome; [332:2] and laboured +with great assiduity to disseminate their principles. The distractions +created by these errorists seem to have suggested the propriety of +placing additional power in the hands of the _presiding presbyter_. +[332:3] Until this period every teaching elder had been accustomed to +baptize and administer the Eucharist on his own responsibility; but it +appears to have been now arranged that henceforth none should act +without the sanction of the president, who was thus constituted the +centre of ecclesiastical unity. According to the previous system, some +of the presbyters, who were themselves, perhaps, secretly tainted with +unsound doctrine, might have continued to hold communion with the +heretics; and it might have been exceedingly difficult to convict them +of any direct breach of ecclesiastical law; but now their power was +curtailed; and a broad line of demarcation was established between true +and false churchmen. Thus, Rome was the city in which what has been +called the Catholic system was first organized. Every one who was in +communion with the president, or bishop, was a catholic; [332:4] every +one who allied himself to any other professed teacher of the Christian +faith was a sectary, a schismatic, or a heretic. [333:1] + +The study of the best forms of government was peculiarly congenial to +the Roman mind; and the peace enjoyed under the Empire, as contrasted +with the miseries of the civil wars in the last days of the Republic, +pleaded, no doubt, strongly in favour of a change in the ecclesiastical +constitution. But though this portion of the history of the Church is +involved in much obscurity, there are indications that the transference +of power from the presbyters to their president was not accomplished +without a struggle. Until this period the Roman elders appear to have +generally succeeded each other as moderators of presbytery in the order +of their seniority; [333:2] but it was now deemed necessary to adopt +another method of appointment; and it is not improbable that, at this +time, a division of sentiment as to the best mode of filling up the +presidential chair, was the cause of an unusually long vacancy. +According to some, no less than four years [333:3] passed away between +the death of Hyginus and the choice of his successor Pius; and even +those who object to this view of the chronology admit that there was an +interval of a twelvemonth. [333:4] The plan now adopted seems to have +been to choose the bishop by lot out of a leet of selected candidates. +[333:5] Thus, to use the phraseology current towards the end of the +second century, the new chief pastor "obtained _the lot_ of the +episcopacy." [334:1] + +The changes introduced at Rome were probably far from agreeable to many +of the other Churches throughout the Empire; and Polycarp, the venerable +pastor of Smyrna, who was afterwards martyred, and who was now nearly +eighty years of age, appears to have been sent to the imperial city on a +mission of remonstrance. The design of this remarkable visit is still +enveloped in much mystery, for with the exception of an allusion to a +question confessedly of secondary consequence, [334:2] ecclesiastical +writers have passed over the whole subject in suspicious silence; but +there is every reason to believe that Polycarp was deputed to complain +of the incipient assumptions of Roman prelacy. [334:3] Anicetus, who +then presided over the Church of the capital, prudently bestowed very +flattering attentions on the good old Asiatic pastor; and, though there +is no evidence that his scruples were removed, he felt it to be his duty +to assist in opposing the corrupt teachers who were seeking to propagate +their errors among the Roman disciples. The testimony to primitive truth +delivered by so aged and eminent a minister produced a deep impression, +and gave a decided check to the progress of heresy in the metropolis of +the Empire. [334:4] + +But though the modified prelacy now established encountered opposition, +the innovation thus inaugurated in the great city was sure to exert a +most extensive influence. Rome was then, not only the capital, but the +mistress of a large portion of the world. She kept up a constant +communication with every part of her dominions in Asia, Africa, and +Europe; strangers from almost every clime were to be found among her +teeming population; and intelligence of whatever occurred within her +walls soon found its way to distant cities and provinces. The Christians +in other countries would be slow to believe that their brethren at +head-quarters had consented to any unwarrantable distribution of Church +power, for they had hitherto displayed their zeal for the faith by most +decisive and illustrious testimonies. Since the days of Nero they had +sustained the first shock of every persecution, and nobly led the van of +the army of martyrs. Telesphorus, the chairman of the presbytery, had +recently paid for his position with his life; their presiding pastor was +always specially obnoxious to the spirit of intolerance; and if they +were anxious to strengthen his hands, who could complain? The Roman +Church had the credit of having enjoyed the tuition of Peter and Paul; +its members had long been distinguished for intelligence and piety; and +it was not to be supposed that its ministers would sanction any step +which they did not consider perfectly capable of vindication. There were +other weighty reasons why Christian societies in Italy, as well as +elsewhere, should regard the acts of the Church of the imperial city +with peculiar indulgence. It was the sentinel at the seat of government +to give them notice of the approach of danger, [335:1] and the kind +friend to aid them in times of difficulty. The wealth of Rome was +prodigious; and though as yet "not many mighty" and "not many noble" had +joined the proscribed sect, it had been making way among the middle +classes; and there is cause to think that at this time a considerable +number of the rich merchants of the capital belonged to its communion. +It was known early in the second century as a liberal benefactor; and, +from a letter addressed to it about A.D. 170, it would appear that even +the Church of Corinth was then indebted to its munificence. "It has ever +been your habit," says the writer, "to confer benefits in various ways, +and to send assistance to the Churches in every city. You have relieved +the wants of the poor, and afforded help to the brethren condemned to +the mines. By a succession of these gifts, Romans, you preserve the +customs of your Roman ancestors." [336:1] + +The influence of the Roman Church throughout the West soon became +conspicuous. Here, as in many other instances, commerce was the pioneer +of religion; and as the merchants of the capital traded with all the +ports of their great inland sea, it is not improbable that their sailors +had a share in achieving some of the early triumphs of the gospel. +Carthage, now one of the most populous cities in the Empire, is said to +have been indebted for Christianity to Rome; [336:2] and by means of the +constant intercourse kept up between these two commercial marts, the +mother Church contrived to maintain an ascendancy over her African +daughter. Thus it was that certain Romish practices and pretensions so +soon found advocates among the Carthaginian clergy. [336:3] In other +quarters we discover early indications of the extraordinary deference +paid to the Church of the city "sitting upon many waters." Towards the +close of the second century, Irenaeus, a disciple of Polycarp, was +pastor of Lyons; and from this some have rather abruptly drawn the +inference that the Christian congregations then existing in the south of +France were established by missionaries from the East; but it is at +least equally probable that the young minister from Asia Minor was in +Rome before he passed to the more distant Gaul; and it is certain that +he is the first father who speaks of the superior importance of the +Church of the Italian metropolis. His testimony to the position which it +occupied about eighty years after the death of the Apostle John shews +clearly that it stood already at the head of the Western Churches. The +Church of Rome, says he, is "very great and very ancient, and known to +all, founded and established by the two most glorious Apostles Peter and +Paul." [337:1] "To this Church in which Catholics [337:2] have always +preserved apostolic tradition, every Catholic Church should, because it +is more potentially apostolical, [337:3] repair." [337:4] + +The term _Catholic_, which occurs for the first time in a document +written about this period, [337:5] was probably coined at Rome, and +implied, as already intimated, that the individual so designated was in +communion with the bishop. The presiding pastors in the great city began +now, in token of fraternity and recognition, to send the Eucharist to +their brethren elsewhere by trusty messengers, [337:6] and thus the name +was soon extended to all who maintained ecclesiastical relations with +these leading ministers. Sectaries were almost always the minority; and +in many places, where Christianity was planted, they were utterly +unknown. The orthodox might, therefore, not inappropriately be styled +members of the _Catholic_ or _general_ Church, inasmuch as they formed +the bulk of the Christian population, and were to be found wherever the +new religion had made converts. And though the heretics pleaded +tradition in support of their peculiar dogmas, it was clear that their +statements could not stand the test of examination. Irenaeus, in the +work from which the words just quoted are extracted, very fairly argues +that no such traditions as those propagated by the sectaries were to be +found in the most ancient and respectable Churches. No Christian +community in Western Europe could claim higher antiquity than that of +Rome; and as it had been taught by Paul and Peter, none could be +supposed to be better acquainted with the original gospel. Because of +its extent it already required a larger staff of ministers than perhaps +any other Church; and thus there were a greater number of individuals to +quicken and correct each other's recollections. It might be accordingly +inferred that the traditions of surrounding Christian societies, if +true, should correspond to those of Rome; as the great metropolitan +Church might, for various reasons, be said to be more potentially +primitive or apostolical, and as its traditions might be expected to be +particularly accurate. The doctrines of the heretics, which were +completely opposed to the testimony of this important witness, should be +discarded as entirely destitute of authority. + +We can only conjecture the route by which Irenaeus travelled to the +south of France when he first set out from Asia Minor; but we have +direct evidence that he had paid a visit to the capital shortly before +he wrote this memorable eulogium on the Roman Church. About the close of +the dreadful persecution endured in A.D. 177 by the Christians of Lyons +and Vienne, he had been commissioned to repair to Italy with a view to a +settlement of the disputes created by the appearance of the Montanists. +As he was furnished with very complimentary credentials, [339:1] we may +presume that he was handsomely treated by his friends in the metropolis; +and if he returned home laden with presents to disciples whose +sufferings had recently so deeply moved the sympathy of their brethren, +it is not strange that he gracefully seized an opportunity of extolling +the Church to which he owed such obligations. His account of its +greatness is obviously the inflated language of a panegyrist; but in due +time its hyperbolic statements received a still more extravagant +interpretation; and, on the authority of this ancient father, the Church +of Rome was pompously announced as the mistress and the mother of all +Churches. + +It has been mentioned in a former chapter [339:2] that the celebrated +Marcia who, until shortly before his death, possessed almost absolute +control over the Emperor Commodus, made a profession of the faith. Her +example, no doubt, encouraged other personages of distinction to connect +themselves with the Roman Church; and, through the medium of these +members of his flock, the bishop Eleutherius must have had an influence +such as none of his predecessors possessed. It is beyond doubt that +Marcia, after consulting with Victor, the successor of Eleutherius, +induced the Emperor to perform acts of kindness to some of her +co-religionists. [339:3] The favour of the court seems to have puffed up +the spirit of this naturally haughty churchman; and though, as we have +seen, there is cause to suspect that certain ecclesiastical movements in +the chief city had long before excited much ill-suppressed +dissatisfaction, the Christian commonwealth was now startled for the +first time by a very flagrant exhibition of the arrogance of a Roman +prelate. [340:1] Because the Churches of Asia Minor celebrated the +Paschal feast in a way different from that observed in the metropolis, +[340:2] Victor cut them off from his communion. But this attempt of the +bishop of the great city to act as lord over God's heritage was +premature. Other churches condemned the rashness of his procedure; his +refusal to hold fellowship with the Asiatic Christians threatened only +to isolate himself; and he seems to have soon found it expedient to +cultivate more pacific councils. + +At this time the jurisdiction of Victor did not properly extend beyond +the few ministers and congregations to be found in the imperial city. A +quarter of a century afterwards even the bishop of Portus, a seaport +town at the mouth of the Tiber about fifteen miles distant from the +capital, acknowledged no allegiance to the Roman prelate. [340:3] The +boldness of Victor in pronouncing so many foreign brethren unworthy of +Catholic communion may at first, therefore, appear unaccountable. But it +is probable that he acted, in this instance, in conjunction with many +other pastors. Among the Churches of Gentile origin there was a deep +prejudice against what was considered the judaizing of the Asiatic +Christians in relation to the Paschal festival, and a strong impression +that the character of the Church was compromised by any very marked +diversity in its religious observances. There is, however, little reason +to doubt that Victor was to some extent prompted by motives of a +different complexion. Fifty years before, the remarkable words addressed +to the apostle of the circumcision--"Thou art Peter, and upon this Rock +I will build my Church" [341:1]--were interpreted at Rome in the way in +which they are now understood commonly by Protestants; for the brother +of the Roman bishop Pius, [341:2] writing about A.D. 150, teaches that +the Rock on which the Church is built is the Son of God; [341:3] but +ingenuity was already beginning to discover another exposition, and the +growing importance of the Roman bishopric suggested the startling +thought that the Church was built on Peter! [341:4] The name of the +Galilean fisherman was already connected with the see of Victor; and it +was thus easy for ambition or flattery to draw the inference that Victor +himself was in some way the heir and representative of the great +apostle. The doctrine that the bishop was necessary as the centre of +Catholic unity had already gained currency; and if a centre of unity for +the whole Church was also indispensable, who had a better claim to the +pre-eminence than the successor of Peter? When Victor fulminated his +sentence of excommunication against the Asiatic Christians he probably +acted under the partial inspiration of this novel theory. He made an +abortive attempt to speak in the name of the whole Church--to assert a +position as the representative or president of all the bishops of the +Catholic world [342:1]--and to carry out a new system of ecclesiastical +unity. The experiment was a failure, simply because the idea looming in +the imagination of the Roman bishop had not yet obtained full possession +of the mind of Christendom. + +Prelacy had been employed as the cure for Church divisions, but the +remedy had proved worse than the disease. Sects meanwhile continued to +multiply; and they were, perhaps, nowhere so abundant as in the very +city where the new machinery had been first set up for their +suppression. Towards the close of the second century their multitude was +one of the standing reproaches of Christianity. What was called the +Catholic Church was now on the brink of a great schism; and the very +man, who aspired to be the centre of Catholic unity, threatened to be +the cause of the disruption. It was becoming more and more apparent +that, when the presbyters consented to surrender any portion of their +privileges to the bishop, they betrayed the cause of ecclesiastical +freedom; and even now indications were not wanting that the Catholic +system was likely to degenerate into a spiritual despotism. + + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +THE CHURCH OF ROME IN THE THIRD CENTURY. + + +Though very few of the genuine productions of the ministers of the +ancient Church of Rome are still extant, [343:1] multitudes of spurious +epistles attributed to its early bishops have been carefully preserved. +It is easy to account for this apparent anomaly. The documents now known +as the false Decretals, [343:2] and ascribed to the Popes of the first +and immediately succeeding centuries, were suited to the taste of times +of ignorance, and were then peculiarly grateful to the occupants of the +Roman see. As evidences of its original superiority they were +accordingly transmitted to posterity, and ostentatiously exhibited among +the papal title-deeds. But the real compositions of the primitive +pastors of the great city supplied little food for superstition; and +must have contained startling and humiliating revelations which laid +bare the absurdity of claims subsequently advanced. These unwelcome +witnesses were, therefore, quietly permitted to pass into oblivion. + +It has been said, however, that Truth is the daughter of Time, and the +discovery of monuments long since forgotten, or of writings supposed to +have been lost, has often wonderfully verified and illustrated the +apologue. The reappearance, within the last three hundred years, of +various ancient records and memorials, has shed a new light upon the +history of antiquity. Other testimonies equally valuable will, no doubt, +yet be forthcoming for the settlement of existing controversies. + +In A.D. 1551, as some workmen in the neighbourhood of Rome were employed +in clearing away the ruins of a dilapidated chapel, they found a broken +mass of sculptured marble among the rubbish. The fragments, when put +together, proved to be a statue representing a person of venerable +aspect sitting in a chair, on the back of which were the names of +various publications. It was ascertained, on more minute examination, +that, some time after the establishment of Christianity by Constantine, +[344:1] this monument had been erected in honour of Hippolytus--a +learned writer and able controversialist, who bad been bishop of Portus +in the early part of the third century, and who had finished his career +by martyrdom, about A.D. 236, during the persecution under the Emperor +Maximin. Hippolytus is commemorated as a saint in the Romish Breviary; +[344:2] and the resurrection of his statue, after it had been buried for +perhaps a thousand years, created quite a sensation among his papal +admirers. Experienced sculptors, under the auspices of the Pontiff, Pius +IV., restored the fragments to nearly their previous condition; and the +renovated statue was then duly honoured with a place in the Library of +the Vatican. + +Nearly three hundred years afterwards, or in 1842, a manuscript which +had been found in a Greek monastery at Mount Athos, was deposited in the +Royal Library at Paris. This work, which has been since published, +[345:1] and which is entitled "Philosophumena, or a Refutation of all +Heresies," has been identified as the production of Hippolytus. It does +not appear in the list of his writings mentioned on the back of the +marble chair; but any one who inspects its contents can satisfactorily +account for its exclusion from that catalogue. It reflects strongly on +the character and principles of some of the early Roman bishops; and as +the Papal see was fast rising into power when the statue was erected, it +was obviously deemed prudent to omit an invidious publication. The +writer of the "Philosophumena" declares that he is the author of one of +the books named on that piece of ancient sculpture, and various other +facts amply corroborate his testimony. There is, therefore, no good +reason to doubt that a Christian bishop who lived about fifteen miles +from Rome, and who flourished little more than one hundred years after +the death of the Apostle John, composed the newly discovered Treatise. +[345:2] + +In accordance with the title of his work, Hippolytus here reviews all +the heresies which had been broached up till the date of its +publication. Long prior to the reappearance of this production, it was +known that one of the early Roman bishops had been induced to +countenance the errors of the Montanists; [345:3] and it would seem that +Victor was the individual who was thus deceived; [345:4] but it had not +been before suspected that Zephyrinus and Callistus, the two bishops +next to him in succession, [345:5] held unsound views respecting the +doctrine of the Trinity. Such, however, is the testimony of their +neighbour and contemporary, the bishop of Portus. The witness may, +indeed, be somewhat fastidious, as he was himself both erudite and +eloquent; but had there not been some glaring deficiency in both the +creed and the character of the chief pastor of Rome, Hippolytus would +scarcely have described Zephyrinus as "an illiterate and covetous man," +[346:1] "unskilled in ecclesiastical science," [346:2] and a +disseminator of heretical doctrine. According to the statement of his +accuser, he confounded the First and Second Persons of the Godhead, +maintaining the identity of the Father and the Son. [346:3] + +Callistus, who was made bishop on the death of Zephyrinus, must have +possessed a far more vigorous intellect than his predecessor. Though +regarded by the orthodox Hippolytus with no friendly eye, it is plain +that he was endowed with an extraordinary share of energy and +perseverance. He had been originally a slave, and he must have won the +confidence of his wealthy Christian master Carpophores, for he had been +intrusted by him with the care of a savings bank. The establishment +became insolvent, in consequence, as Hippolytus alleges, of the +mismanagement of its conductor; and many widows and others who had +committed their money to his keeping, lost their deposits. When +Carpophorus, by whom he was now suspected of embezzlement, determined to +call him to account, Callistus fled to Portus--in the hope of escaping +by sea to some other country. He was, however, overtaken, and, after an +ineffectual attempt to drown himself, was arrested, and thrown into +prison. His master, who was placable and kind-hearted, speedily +consented to release him from confinement; but he was no sooner at +large, than, under pretence of collecting debts due to the savings bank, +he went into a Jewish synagogue during the time of public worship, and +caused such disturbance that he was seized and dragged before the city +prefect. The magistrate ordered him first to be scourged, and then to be +transported to the mines of Sardinia. He does not appear to have +remained long in exile; for, about this time, Marcia procured from the +Emperor Commodus an order for the release of the Christians who had been +banished to that unhealthy island; and Callistus, though not included in +the act of grace, contrived to prevail upon the governor to set him at +liberty along with the other prisoners. He now returned to Rome, where +he appears to have acquired the reputation of a changed character. In +due time he procured an appointment to one of the lower ecclesiastical +offices; and as he possessed much talent, he did not find it difficult +to obtain promotion. When Zephyrinus was advanced to the episcopate, +Callistus, who was his special favourite, became one of the leading +ministers of the Roman Church; and exercised an almost unbounded sway +over the mind of the superficial and time-serving bishop. The Christians +of the chief city were now split up into parties, some advocating the +orthodox doctrine of the Trinity, and others abetting a different +theory. Callistus appears to have dexterously availed himself of their +divisions; and, by inducing each faction to believe that he espoused its +cause, managed, on the death of Zephyrinus, to secure his election to +the vacant dignity. + +When Callistus had attained the object of his ambition, he tried to +restore peace to the Church by endeavouring to persuade the advocates of +the antagonistic principles to make mutual concessions. Laying aside the +reserve which he had hitherto maintained, he now took up an intermediate +position, in the hope that both parties would accept his own theory of +the Godhead. "He invented," says Hippolytus, "such a heresy as follows. +He said that the Word is the Son and is also the Father, being called by +different names, but being one indivisible spirit; and that the Father +is not one and the Son another (person), but that they both are one and +the same.... The Father, having taken human flesh, deified it by uniting +it to Himself,... and so he said that the Father had suffered with the +Son." [348:1] + +Though Callistus, as well as Hippolytus, is recognised as a saint in the +Romish Breviary, [348:2] it is thus certain that the bishop of Portus +regarded the bishop of Rome as a schemer and a heretic. It is equally +clear that, at this period, all bishops were on a level of equality, for +Hippolytus, though the pastor of a town in the neighbourhood of the +chief city, did not acknowledge Callistus as his metropolitan. The +bishop of Portus describes himself as one of those who are "successors +of the apostles, partakers with them of the same grace both of principal +priesthood and doctorship, and reckoned among the guardians of the +Church." [348:3] Hippolytus testifies that Callistus was afraid of him, +[348:4] and if both were members of the same synod, [348:5] well might +the heterodox prelate stand in awe of a minister who possessed +co-ordinate authority, with greater honesty and superior erudition. But +still, it is abundantly plain, from the admissions of the +"Philosophumena," that the bishop of Rome, in the time of the author of +this treatise, was beginning to presume upon his position. Hippolytus +complains of his irregularity in receiving into his communion some who +had been "cast out of the Church" of Portus "after judicial sentence." +[348:6] Had the bishop of the harbour of Rome been subject to the bishop +of the capital, he would neither have expressed himself in such a style, +nor preferred such an accusation. + +Various circumstances indicate, as has already been suggested, that the +bishop of Rome, in the time of the Antonines, was chosen by lot; but we +may infer from the "Philosophumena" that, early in the third century, +another mode of appointment had been adopted. [349:1] It is obvious that +he now owed his advancement to the suffrages of the Church members, for +Hippolytus hints very broadly that Callistus pursued a particular course +with a view to promote his popularity and secure his election. It is +beyond doubt that, about A.D. 236, Fabian was chosen bishop of Rome by +the votes of the whole brotherhood, and there is on record a minute +account of certain extraordinary circumstances which signalised the +occasion. "When all the brethren had assembled in the church for the +purpose of choosing their future bishop, and when the names of many +worthy and distinguished men had suggested themselves to the +consideration of the multitude, no one so much as thought of Fabian who +was then present. They relate, however, that a dove gliding down from +the roof, straightway settled on his head, as when the Holy Spirit, like +a dove, rested upon the head of our Saviour. On this, the whole people, +as if animated by one divine impulse, with great eagerness, and with the +utmost unanimity, exclaimed that he was worthy; and, taking hold of him, +placed him forthwith on the bishop's chair." [349:2] + +Some time after the resurrection of the statue of Hippolytus, another +revelation was made in the neighbourhood of Rome which has thrown much +light upon its early ecclesiastical history. In the latter part of the +sixteenth century, the unusual appearance of some apertures in the +ground, not far from the Papal capital, awakened curiosity, and led to +the discovery of dark subterranean passages of immense extent filled +with monuments and inscriptions. These dismal regions, after having been +shut up for about eight hundred years, were then again re-opened and +re-explored. + +The soil for miles around Rome is undermined, and the long labyrinths +thus created are called catacombs. [350:1] The galleries are often found +in stories two or three deep, communicating with each other by stairs; +and it has been thought that formerly some of them were partially +lighted from above. They were originally gravel-pits or stone-quarries, +and were commenced long before the reign of Augustus. [350:2] The +enlargement of the city, and the growing demand for building materials, +led then to new and most extensive excavations. In the preparation of +these vast caverns, we may trace the presiding care of Providence. As +America, discovered a few years before the Reformation, furnished a +place of refuge to the Protestants who fled from ecclesiastical +intolerance, so the catacombs, re-opened shortly before the birth of our +Lord, supplied shelter to the Christians in Rome during the frequent +proscriptions of the second and third centuries. When the gospel was +first propagated in the imperial city, its adherents belonged chiefly to +the lower classes; and, for reasons of which it is now impossible to +speak with certainty, [350:3] it seems to have been soon very generally +embraced by the quarrymen and sand-diggers. [350:4] Thus it was that +when persecution raged in the capital, the Christian felt himself +comparatively safe in the catacombs. The parties in charge of them were +his friends; they could give him seasonable intimation of the approach +of danger; and among these "dens and caves of the earth," with countless +places of ingress and egress, the officers of government must have +attempted in vain to overtake a fugitive. + +At present their appearance is most uncomfortable; they contain no +chamber sufficient for the accommodation of any large number of +worshippers; and it has even been questioned whether human life could be +long supported in such gloomy habitations. But we have the best +authority for believing that some of the early Christians remained for a +considerable time in these asylums. [351:1] Wells of water have been +found in their obscure recesses; fonts for baptism have also been +discovered; and it is beyond doubt that the disciples met here for +religious exercises. As early as the second century these vaults became +the great cemetery of the Church. Many of the memorials of the dead +which they contained have long since been transferred to the Lapidarian +Gallery in the Vatican; and there, in the palace of the Pope, the +venerable tombstones testify, to all who will consult them, how much +modern Romanism differs from ancient Christianity. + +Though many of these sepulchral monuments were erected in the fourth and +fifth centuries, they indicate a remarkable freedom from superstitions +with which the religion of the New Testament has been since defiled. +These witnesses to the faith of the early Church of Rome altogether +repudiate the worship of the Virgin Mary, for the inscriptions of the +Lapidarian Gallery, all arranged under the papal supervision, contain no +addresses to the mother of our Lord. [352:1] They point only to Jesus as +the great Mediator, Redeemer, and Friend. It is also worthy of note that +the tone of these voices from the grave is eminently cheerful. Instead +of speaking of masses for the repose of souls, or representing departed +believers as still doomed to pass through purgatory, they describe the +deceased as having entered immediately into the abodes of eternal rest. +"Alexander," says one of them, "is not dead, but lives beyond the stars, +and his body rests in this tomb." "Here," says another, "lies Paulina, +in the place of the blessed." "Gemella," says a third, "sleeps in +peace." "Aselus," says a fourth, "sleeps in Christ." [352:2] + +We learn from the testimony of Hippolytus that, during the episcopate of +Zephyrinus, Callistus was "set over the cemetery." [352:3] This was +probably considered a highly important trust, as, in those perilous +times, the safety of the Christians very much depended on the prudence, +activity, and courage of the individual who had the charge of their +subterranean refuge. [352:4] The new curator seems to have signalised +himself by the ability with which he discharged the duties of his +appointment; he probably embellished and enlarged some of these dreary +caves; and hence a portion of the catacombs was designated "The Cemetery +of Callistus." Hippolytus, led astray by the ascetic spirit beginning so +strongly to prevail in the commencement of the third century, was +opposed to all second marriages, so that he was sadly scandalized by the +exceedingly liberal views of his Roman brother on the subject of +matrimony; and he was so ill-informed as to pronounce them novel. "In +his time," says he indignantly, "bishops, presbyters, and deacons, +though they had been twice or three times married, began to be +recognised as God's ministers; and if any one of the clergy married, it +was determined that such a person should remain among the clergy, as not +having sinned." [353:1] We cannot tell how many of the ancient bishops +of the great city were husbands; [353:2] we have certainly no distinct +evidence that even Callistus took to himself a wife; but we have the +clearest proof that the primitive Church of Rome did not impose celibacy +on her ministers; and, in support of this fact, we can produce the +unimpeachable testimony of her own catacombs. There is, for instance, a +monument "To Basilus the Presbyter, and Felicitas his wife;" and, on +another tombstone, erected about A.D. 472, or only four years before the +fall of the Western Empire, there is the following singular +record--"Petronia, a deacon's wife, the type of modesty. In this place I +lay my bones: spare your tears, dear husband and daughters, and believe +that it is forbidden to weep for one who lives in God." [353:3] "Here," +says another epitaph, "Susanna, the happy daughter of the late Presbyter +Gabinus, lies in peace along with her father." [353:4] In the Lapidarian +Gallery of the papal palace, the curious visitor may still read other +epitaphs of the married ministers of Rome. + +Though the gospel continued to make great progress in the metropolis, +there was perhaps no city of the Empire in which it encountered, from +the very first, such steady and powerful opposition. The Sovereign, +being himself the Supreme Pontiff of Paganism, might be expected to +resent, as a personal indignity, any attempt to weaken its influence; +and the other great functionaries of idolatry, who all resided in the +capital, were of course bound by the ties of office to resist the +advancement of Christianity. The old aristocracy disliked everything in +the shape of religious innovation, for they believed that the glory of +their country was inseparably connected with an adherence to the worship +of the gods of their ancestors. Thus it was that the intolerance of the +state was always felt with peculiar severity at the seat of government. +Exactly in the middle of the third century a persecution of unusual +violence burst upon the Roman Church. Fabian, whose appointment to the +bishopric took place, as already related, under such extraordinary +circumstances, soon fell a victim to the storm. After his martyrdom, the +whole community over which he presided seems to have been paralysed with +terror; and sixteen months passed away before any successor was elected; +for Decius, the tyrant who now ruled the Roman world, had proclaimed, +his determination rather to suffer a competitor for his throne than a +bishop for his chief city. [354:1] A veritable rival was quickly +forthcoming to prove the falsehood of his gasconade; for when Julius +Valens appeared to dispute his title to the Empire, Decius was obliged, +by the pressure of weightier cares, to withdraw his attention from the +concerns of the Roman Christians. During the lull in the storm of +persecution, Cornelius was chosen bishop; but after an official life of +little more than a year, he was thrown into confinement. His death in +prison was, no doubt, occasioned by harsh treatment. The episcopate of +his successor Lucius was even shorter than his own, for he was martyred +about six months after his election. [355:1] Stephen, who was now +promoted to the vacant chair, did not long retain possession of it; for +though we have no reliable information as to the manner of his death, it +is certain that he occupied the bishopric only between four and five +years. His successor Xystus in less than twelve months finished his +course by martyrdom. [355:2] Thus, in a period of eight years, Rome lost +no less than five bishops, at least four of whom were cut down by +persecution: of these Cornelius and Stephen, by far the most +distinguished, were interred in the cemetery of Callistus. + +There is still extant the fragment of a letter written by Cornelius +furnishing a curious statistical account of the strength of the Roman +Church at this period. [355:3] According to this excellent authority it +contained forty-six presbyters, seven deacons, seven sub-deacons, +forty-two acolyths, fifty-two others who were either exorcists, readers, +or door-keepers, and upwards of fifteen hundred besides, who were in +indigent circumstances, and of whom widows constituted a large +proportion. All these poor persons were maintained by the liberality of +their fellow-worshippers. Rome, as we have seen, was the birthplace of +prelacy; and other ecclesiastical organisms unknown to the New Testament +may also be traced to the same locality, for here we read for the first +time of such officials as the acolyths. [355:4] We may infer from the +details supplied by the letter of Cornelius, that there were now +fourteen congregations [355:5] of the faithful in the great city; and +its Christian population has been estimated at about fifty thousand. No +wonder that the chief pastor of such a multitude of zealous disciples +all residing in his capital, awakened the jealousy of a suspicious +Emperor. + +A schism, which continued for generations to exert an unhappy influence, +commenced in the metropolis during the short episcopate of Cornelius. +The leader of this secession was Novatian, a man of blameless character, +[356:1] and a presbyter of the Roman Church. In the Decian persecution +many had been terrified into temporary conformity to paganism; and this +austere ecclesiastic maintained, that persons who had so sadly +compromised themselves, should, on no account whatever, be re-admitted +to communion. When he found that he could not prevail upon his brethren +to adopt this unrelenting discipline, he permitted himself to be +ordained bishop in opposition to Cornelius; and became the founder of a +separate society, known as the sect of the Novatians. As he denied the +validity of the ordinance previously administered, he rebaptized his +converts, and exhibited otherwise a miserably contracted spirit; but +many sympathised with him in his views, and Novatian bishops were soon +established in various parts of the Empire. + +Immediately after the rise of this sect, a controversy relative to the +propriety of rebaptizing heretics brought the Church of Rome into +collision with many Christian communities in Africa and Asia Minor. The +discussion, which did not eventuate in any fresh schism, is chiefly +remarkable for the firm stand now made against the assumptions of the +great Bishop of the West. When Stephen, who was opposed to rebaptism, +discovered that he could not induce the Asiatics and Africans to come +over to his sentiments, he rashly tried to overbear them by declaring +that he would shut them out from his communion; but his antagonists +treated the threat merely as an empty display of insolence. "What strife +and contention hast thou awakened in the Churches of the whole world, O +Stephen," said one of his opponents, "and how great sin hast thou +accumulated when thou didst cut thyself off from so many flocks! Deceive +not thyself, for he is truly the schismatic who has made himself an +apostate from the communion of the unity of the Church. For whilst thou +thinkest that all may be excommunicated by thee, thou hast +excommunicated thyself alone from all." [357:1] + +When the apostle of the circumcision said to his Master--"Thou art the +Christ, the Son of the living God," Jesus replied--"_Blessed_ art thou, +Simon Bar-jona, _for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but +my Father which is in heaven_." To this emphatic acknowledgment of the +faith of His disciple, our Lord added the memorable words--"And I say +also unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my +church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." [357:2] As +the word Peter signifies a _stone_, [357:3] this address admits of a +very obvious and satisfactory exposition. "Thou art," said Christ to the +apostle, "a lively stone [357:4] of the spiritual structure I erect; and +upon this rock on which thy faith is established, as witnessed by thy +good confession, I will build my Church; and though the rains of +affliction may descend, and the floods of danger may come, and the winds +of temptation may blow, and beat upon this house, it shall remain +immoveable, [358:1] because it rests upon an impregnable foundation." +But a different interpretation was already gaining wide currency; for +though Peter had been led to deny Christ with oaths and imprecations, +the rapid growth and preponderating wealth of the Roman bishopric, of +which the apostle was supposed to be the founder, had now induced many +to believe that he was the Rock of Salvation, the enduring basis on +which the living temple of God was to be reared! Tertullian and Cyprian, +in the third century the two most eminent fathers of the West, +countenanced the exposition; [358:2] and though both these writers were +lamentably deficient in critical sagacity, men of inferior standing were +slow to impugn the verdict of such champions of the faith. Thus it was +that a false gloss of Scripture was already enthralling the mind of +Christendom; and Stephen boldly renewed the attempt at domination +commenced by his predecessor Victor. His opponents deserved far greater +credit for the sturdy independence with which they upheld their +individual rights than for the scriptural skill with which they unmasked +the sophistry of a delusive theory; for all their reasonings were +enervated and vitiated by their stupid admission of the claims of the +chair of Peter as the rock on which the Church was supposed to rest. +[358:3] This second effort of Rome to establish her ascendancy was, +indeed, a failure; but the misinterpretation of Holy Writ, by which it +was encouraged, was not effectively corrected and exposed; and thus the +great Western prelate was left at liberty, at another more favourable +opportunity, to wrest the Scriptures for the destruction of the Church. + +From the middle of the third century, the authority of the Roman bishops +advanced apace. The magnanimity with which so many of them then +encountered martyrdom elicited general admiration; and the divisions +caused by the schism of Novatian supplied them with a specious apology +for enlarging their jurisdiction. The argument from the necessity of +unity, which was urged so successfully for the creation of a bishop +upwards of a hundred years before, could now be adduced with equal +plausibility for the erection of a metropolitan; and, from this date, +these prelates undoubtedly exercised archiepiscopal power. Seventy years +afterwards, or at the Council of Nice, [359:1] the ecclesiastical rule +of the Primate of Rome was recognised by the bishops of the ten +suburbicarian provinces, including no small portion of Italy. [359:2] + +For the last forty years of the third century the Church was free from +persecution, and, during this long period of repose, the great Western +see enjoyed an unwonted measure of outward prosperity. Its religious +services were now conducted with increasing splendour, and distressed +brethren in very distant countries shared the fruits of its munificence. +In the reign of Gallienus, when the Goths burst into the Empire and +devastated Asia Minor, the bishop of Rome transmitted a large sum of +money for the release of the Christians who had fallen into the hands of +the barbarians. [359:3] A few years afterwards, when Paul of Samosata +was deposed for heresy, and when, on his refusal to surrender the +property of the Church of Antioch, an application was made to the +Emperor Aurelian for his interference, that prince submitted the matter +in dispute to the decision of Dionysius of Rome and the other bishops of +Italy. [360:1] This reference, in which the position of the Roman +prelate was publicly recognised, perhaps for the first time, by a Roman +Emperor, was calculated to add vastly to the importance of the +metropolitan see in public estimation. When Christianity was established +about fifty years afterwards by Constantine, the bishop of the chief +city was thus, to a great extent, prepared for the high position to +which he was suddenly promoted. + +None of the early bishops of Rome were distinguished for their mental +accomplishments; and though they are commonly reputed the founders of +the Latin Church, it would appear that, for nearly two hundred years, +they all wrote and spoke the Greek language. The name _Pope_, which they +have since appropriated, was now common to all pastors. [360:2] For the +first three centuries almost every question relating to them is involved +in much mystery; and, as we approach the close of this period, the +difficulty of unravelling their perplexed traditions rather increases +than diminishes. Even the existence of some who are said to have now +flourished has been considered doubtful. [360:3] It is alleged that the +see was vacant for upwards of three years and a half during the +Diocletian persecution in the beginning of the fourth century; [360:4] +but even this point has not been very clearly ascertained. The Roman +bishopric was by far the most important in the Church; and the obscurity +which overhangs its early history, cannot but be embarrassing to those +who seek to establish a title to the ministry by attempting to trace it +up through such dark annals. + +On looking back over the first three centuries, we may remark how much +the chairman of the Roman eldership, about the time of the death of the +Apostle John, differed from the prelate who filled his place two hundred +years afterwards. The former was the servant of the presbyters, and +appointed to carry out their decisions; the latter was their master, and +entitled to require their submission. The former presided over the +ministers of, perhaps, three or four comparatively poor congregations +dispirited by recent persecution; the latter had the charge of at least +five-and-twenty flourishing city churches, [361:1] together with all the +bishops in all the surrounding territory. In eventful times an +individual of transcendent talent, such as Pepin or Napoleon, has +adroitly bolted into a throne; but the bishop of Rome was indebted for +his gradual elevation and his ultimate ascendancy neither to +extraordinary genius nor superior erudition, but to a combination of +circumstances of unprecedented rarity. His position furnished him with +peculiar facilities for acquiring influence. Whilst the city in which he +was located was the largest in the world, it was also the most opulent +and the most powerful. He was continually coming in contact with men of +note in the Church from all parts of the Empire; and he had frequent +opportunities of obliging these strangers by various offices of +kindness. He thus, too, possessed means of ascertaining the state of the +Christian interest in every land, and of diffusing his own sentiments +under singularly propitious circumstances. When he was fast rising into +power, it was alleged that he was constituted chief pastor of the Church +by Christ himself; and a text of Scripture was quoted which was supposed +to endorse his title. For a time no one cared to challenge its +application; for meanwhile his precedence was but nominal, and those, +who might have been competent to point out the delusion, had no wish to +give offence, by attacking the fond conceit of a friendly and prosperous +prelate. But when the scene changed, and when the Empire found another +capital, the acumen of the bishop of the rival metropolis soon +discovered a sounder exposition; and Chrysostom of Constantinople, at +once the greatest preacher and the best commentator of antiquity, +ignored the folly of Tertullian and of Cyprian. "Upon the rock," says +he, "that is, upon the faith of the apostle's confession," [362:1] the +Church is built. "Christ said that he would build His Church on Peter's +confession." [362:2] Soon afterwards, the greatest divine connected with +the Western Church, and the most profound theologian among the fathers, +pointed out, still more distinctly, the true meaning of the passage. +"Our Lord declares," says Augustine, "On this rock I will found my +Church, because Peter had said: Thou art the Christ, the Son of the +living God. On _this rock, which thou hast confessed_, He declares I +will build my Church, for Christ was the rock on whose foundation Peter +himself was built; for other foundation hath no man laid than that which +is laid, which is Christ Jesus." [362:3] In the Italian capital, the +words on which the power of the Papacy is understood to rest are +exhibited in gigantic letters within the dome of St Peter's; but their +exhibition only proves that the Church of Rome has lost the key of +knowledge; for, though she would fain appeal to Scripture, she shews +that she does not understand the meaning of its testimony; and, closing +her eyes against the light supplied by the best and wisest of the +fathers, she persists in adhering to a false interpretation. + + + + + + SECTION II. + + THE LITERATURE AND THEOLOGY OF THE CHURCH. + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE ECCLESIASTICAL WRITERS. + + +By "the Fathers" we understand the writers of the ancient Christian +Church. The name is, however, of rather vague application, for though +generally employed to designate only the ecclesiastical authors of the +first six centuries, it is extended, occasionally, to distinguished +theologians who flourished in the middle ages. + +The fathers of the second and third centuries have a strong claim on our +attention. Living on the verge of apostolic times, they were acquainted +with the state of the Church when it had recently passed from under the +care of its inspired founders; and, as witnesses to its early +traditions, their testimony is of peculiar value. But the period before +us produced comparatively few authors, and a considerable portion of its +literature has perished. There have been modern divines, such as Calvin +and Baxter, who have each left behind a more voluminous array of +publications than now survives from all the fathers of these two hundred +years. Origen was by far the most prolific of the writers who flourished +during this interval, but the greater number of his productions have +been lost; and yet those which remain, if translated into English, would +amount to nearly triple the bulk of our authorised version of the Bible. +His extant works are, however, more extensive than all the other +memorials of this most interesting section of the history of the Church. + +Among the earliest ecclesiastical writers after the close of the first +century is Polycarp of Smyrna. He is said to have been a disciple of the +Apostle John, and hence he is known as one of the _Apostolic Fathers_. +[365:1] An epistle of his addressed to the Philippians, and designed to +correct certain vices and errors which had been making their appearance, +is still preserved. It seems to have been written towards the middle of +the second century; [365:2] its style is simple; and its general tone +worthy of a man who had enjoyed apostolic tuition. Its venerable author +suffered martyrdom about A.D. 167, [365:3] at the advanced age of +eighty-six. [365:4] + +_Justin Martyr_ was contemporary with Polycarp. He was a native of +Samaria, and a Gentile by birth; he had travelled much; he possessed a +well-cultivated mind; and he had made himself acquainted with the +various systems of philosophy which were then current. He could derive +no satisfaction from the wisdom of the pagan theorists; but, one day, as +he walked, somewhat sad and pensive, near the sea shore, a casual +meeting with an aged stranger led him to turn his thoughts to the +Christian revelation. The individual, with whom he had this solitary and +important interview, was a member and, perhaps, a minister of the +Church. After pointing out to Justin the folly of mere theorising, and +recommending him to study the Old Testament Scriptures, as well on +account of their great antiquity as their intrinsic worth, he proceeded +to expatiate on the nature and excellence of the gospel. [366:1] The +impression now made upon the mind of the young student was never +afterwards effaced; he became a decided Christian; and, about A.D. 165, +finished his career by martyrdom. + +Justin is the first writer whose contributions to ecclesiastical +literature are of considerable extent. Some of the works ascribed to him +are unquestionably the productions of others; but there is no reason to +doubt the genuineness of his Dialogue with Trypho the Jew, and of the +two Apologies addressed to the Emperors, [366:2] Though the meeting with +Trypho is said to have occurred at Ephesus, it is now perhaps impossible +to determine whether it ever actually took place, or whether the +Dialogue is only the report of an imaginary discussion. It serves, +however, to illustrate the mode of argument then adopted in the +controversy between the Jews and the disciples, and throws much light +upon the state of Christian theology. Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius +appear to have been the Emperors to whom the Apologies are addressed. In +these appeals to Imperial justice the calumnies against the Christians +are refuted, whilst the simplicity of their worship and the purity of +their morality are impressively described. + +Justin, even after his conversion, still wore the philosopher's cloak, +and continued to cherish an undue regard for the wisdom of the pagan +sages. His mind never was completely emancipated from the influence of a +system of false metaphysics; and thus it was that, whilst his views of +various doctrines of the gospel remained confused, his allusions to them +are equivocal, if not contradictory. But it has been well remarked that +_conscience_, rather than _science_, guided many of the fathers; and the +case of Justin demonstrates the truth of the observation. He possessed +an extensive knowledge of the Scriptures; and though his theological +views were not so exact or so perspicuous as they might have been, had +he been trained up from infancy in the Christian faith, or had he +studied the controversies which subsequently arose, it is beyond doubt +that his creed was substantially evangelical. He had received the truth +"in the love of it," and he counted not his life dear in the service of +his Divine Master. + +The _Epistle to Diognetus_, frequently included amongst the works of +Justin, is apparently the production of an earlier writer. Its author, +who styles himself "a disciple of apostles," designed by it to promote +the conversion of a friend; his own views of divine truth are +comparatively correct and clear; and in no uninspired memorial of +antiquity are the peculiar doctrines of the gospel exhibited with +greater propriety and beauty. Appended also to the common editions of +the works of Justin are the remains of a few somewhat later writers, +namely, Tatian, Athenagoras, Theophilus, and Hernias. Tatian was a +disciple of Justin; [367:1] Athenagoras was a learned man of Athens; +Theophilus is said to have been one of the pastors of Antioch; and of +Hermas nothing whatever is known. The tracts of these authors relate +almost entirely to the controversy between Christianity and Paganism. +Whilst they point out the folly and falsehood of the accusations so +frequently preferred against the brethren, they press the gospel upon +the acceptance of the Gentiles with much earnestness, and support its +claims by a great variety of arguments. + +The tract known as the _Epistle of Barnabas_ was probably composed in +A.D.135. [367:2] It is the production apparently of a convert from +Judaism who took special pleasure in allegorical interpretations of +Scripture. Hermas, the author of the little work called _Pastor_, or The +Shepherd, is a writer of much the same character. He was, in all +likelihood, the brother of Pius, [368:1] who flourished about the middle +of the second century, and who was, perhaps, the first or second +individual who was officially designated Bishop of Rome. The writings of +Papias, said to have been pastor of Hierapolis in the time of Polycarp, +are no longer extant. [368:2] The works of Hegesippus, of a somewhat +later date, and treating of the subject of ecclesiastical history, have +also disappeared. [368:3] + +_Irenaeus_ of Lyons is the next writer who claims our special notice. He +was originally connected with Asia Minor; and in his youth he is said to +have enjoyed the tuition of Polycarp of Smyrna. We cannot tell when he +left his native country, or what circumstances led him to settle on the +banks of the Rhone; but we know that, towards the termination of the +reign of Marcus Aurelius, he was appointed by the Gallic Christians to +visit the Roman Church on a mission of importance. The Celtic language, +still preserved in the Gaelic or Irish, was then spoken in France, +[368:4] and Irenaeus found it necessary to qualify himself for the +duties of a preacher among the heathen by studying the barbarous +dialect. His zeal, energy, and talent were duly appreciated; soon after +the death of the aged Pothinus he became the chief pastor of Lyons; and +for many years he exercised considerable influence throughout the whole +of the Western Church. When the Paschal controversy created such +excitement, and when Victor of Rome threatened to rend the Christian +commonwealth by his impetuous and haughty bearing, Irenaeus interposed, +and to some extent succeeded in moderating the violence of the Italian +prelate. He was the author of several works, [369:1] but his only extant +production is a treatise "Against Heresies." It is divided into five +books, four of which exist only in a Latin version; [369:2] and it +contains a lengthened refutation of the Valentinians and other Gnostics. + +Irenaeus is commonly called the disciple of Polycarp; but it is reported +that he was also under the tuition of a less intelligent preceptor, +Papias of Hierapolis. [369:3] This teacher, who has been already +mentioned, and who was the author of a work now lost, entitled, "The +Explanations of the Discourses of the Lord," is noted as the earliest +ecclesiastical writer who held the doctrine of the personal reign of +Christ at Jerusalem during the millennium. "These views," says Eusebius, +"he appears to have adopted in consequence of having misunderstood the +apostolic narratives.... For he was a man of very slender intellect, as +is evident from his discourses." [369:4] His pupil Irenaeus possessed a +much superior capacity; but even his writings are not destitute of +puerilities; and it is not improbable that he derived some of the errors +to be found in them from his weak-minded teacher. [369:5] + +Irenaeus is supposed to have died in the beginning of the third century; +and, shortly before that date, by far the most vigorous and acute writer +who had yet appeared among the fathers, began to attract attention. This +was the celebrated TERTULLIAN. He was originally a heathen, [370:1] and +he appears in early life to have been engaged in the profession of a +lawyer. At that time, as afterwards, there was constant intercourse +between Rome and Carthage; [370:2] Tertullian seems to have been well +acquainted with both these great cities; and he had probably resided for +several years in the capital of the Empire. [370:3] But most of his +public life was, perhaps, spent in Carthage, the place of his birth. In +the beginning of the third century clerical celibacy was beginning to be +fashionable; and yet Tertullian, though a presbyter, [370:4] was +married; for two of his tracts are addressed _To his Wife_; and it is +apparent from his works that then no law of the Church prohibited +ecclesiastics from entering into wedlock. + +The extant productions of this writer are numerous; and, if rendered +into our language, would form a very portly volume. But though several +parts of them have found translators, the whole have never yet appeared +in English; and, of some pieces, the most accomplished scholar would +scarcely undertake to furnish at once a literal and an intelligible +version. [370:5] His style is harsh, his transitions are abrupt, and his +inuendos and allusions most perplexing. He must have been a man of very +bilious temperament, who could scarcely distinguish a theological +opponent from a personal enemy; for he pours forth upon those who differ +from him whole torrents of sarcasm and invective. [371:1] His strong +passion, acting upon a fervid imagination, completely overpowered his +judgment; and hence he deals so largely in exaggeration, that, as to +many matters of fact, we cannot safely depend upon his testimony. His +tone is dictatorial and dogmatic; and, though we cannot doubt his piety, +we must feel that his spirit is somewhat repulsive and ungenial. Whilst +he was sadly deficient in sagacity, he was very much the creature of +impulse; and thus it was that he was so superstitious, so bigoted, and +so choleric. But he was, beyond question, possessed of erudition and of +genius; and when he advocates a right principle, he can expound, defend, +and illustrate it with great ability and eloquence. + +Tertullian is commonly known as the earliest of the Latin fathers. +[371:2] The writer who first attempted to supply the rulers of the world +with a Christian literature in their own tongue encountered a task of +much difficulty. It was no easy matter to conduct theological +controversies in a language which was not remarkable for flexibility, +and which had never before been employed in such discussions; and +Tertullian seems to have often found it necessary to coin unwonted forms +of expression, or rather to invent an ecclesiastical nomenclature. The +ponderous Latin, hitherto accustomed to speak only of Jupiter and the +gods, engages somewhat awkwardly in its new vocation; and yet contrives +to proclaim, with wonderful power, the great thoughts for which it must +now find utterance. Several years after his appearance as an author, +Tertullian lapsed into Montanism--a species of heresy peculiarly +attractive to a man of his rugged and austere character. Some of his +works bear clear traces of this change of sentiment; but others furnish +no internal evidences warranting us to pronounce decisively respecting +the date of their composition. It is remarkable that though he +identified himself with a party under the ban of ecclesiastical +proscription, his works still continued to be held in high repute, and +to be perused with avidity by those who valued themselves on their zeal +for orthodoxy. It is recorded of one of the most influential of the +Catholic bishops of the third century that he read a portion of them +daily; and, when calling for his favourite author, he is reported to +have said--"Give me _the Master_." [372:1] + +Tertullian flourished at a period when ecclesiastical usurpation was +beginning to produce some of its bitter fruits, and when religion was +rapidly degenerating from its primitive purity. [372:2] His works, which +treat of a great variety of topics interesting to the Christian student, +throw immense light on the state of the Church in his generation. His +best known production is his _Apology_, in which he pleads the cause of +the persecuted disciples with consummate talent, and urges upon the +state the equity and the wisdom of toleration. He expounds the doctrine +of the Trinity more lucidly than any preceding writer; he treats of +Prayer, of Repentance, and of Baptism; he takes up the controversy with +the Jews; [372:3] and he assails the Valentinians and other heretics. +But the way of salvation by faith seems to have been very indistinctly +apprehended by him, so that he cannot be safely trusted as a theologian. +He had evidently no clear conception of the place which works ought to +occupy according to the scheme of the gospel; and hence he sometimes +speaks as if pardon could be purchased by penance, by fasting, or by +martyrdom. + +_Clement of Alexandria_ was contemporary with Tertullian. Like him, he +was a Gentile by birth; but we know nothing of the circumstances +connected with his conversion. In early times Alexandria was one of the +great marts of literature and science; its citizens were noted for their +intellectual culture; and, when a Church was formed there, learned men +began to pass over to the new religion in considerable numbers. It was, +in consequence, deemed expedient to establish an institute where +catechumens of this class, before admission to baptism, could be +instructed in the faith by some well qualified teacher. The plan of the +seminary seems to have been gradually enlarged; and it soon supplied +education to candidates for the ministry. Towards the close of the +second century, Pantaenus, a distinguished scholar, had the charge of +it; and Clement, who had been his pupil, became his successor as its +president. Some of the works of this writer have perished, and his only +extant productions are a discourse entitled "What rich man shall be +saved?" his Address to the Greeks or Gentiles, his Paedagogue, and his +Stromata. The hortatory Address is designed to win over the pagans from +idolatry; the Paedagogue directs to Jesus, or the Word, as the great +Teacher, and supplies converts with practical precepts for their +guidance; whilst in the Stromata, or Miscellanies, we have a description +of what he calls the Gnostic or perfect Christian. He here takes +occasion to attack those who, in his estimation, were improperly +designated Gnostics, such as Basilides, Valentine, Marcion, and others. + +Clement, as is apparent from his writings, was extensively acquainted +with profane literature. But he formed quite too high an estimate of the +value of the heathen philosophy, whilst he allegorized Scripture in a +way as dangerous as it was absurd. By the serpent which deceived Eve, +according to Clement, "_pleasure_, an earthly vice which creeps upon the +belly, is allegorically represented." [374:1] Moses, speaking +allegorically, if we may believe this writer, called the Divine Wisdom +_the tree of life_ planted in paradise; by which paradise we may +understand the world, in which all the works of creation were called +into being. [374:2] He even interprets the ten commandments +allegorically. Thus, by _adultery_, he understands a departure from the +true knowledge of the Most High, and by _murder_, a violation of the +truth respecting God and His eternal existence. [374:3] It is easy to +see how Scripture, by such a system of interpretation, might be tortured +into a witness for any extravagance. + +In the early part of the third century _Hippolytus_ of Portus exerted +much influence by his writings. It was long believed that, with the +exception of some fragments and a few tracts of little consequence, the +works of this father had ceased to exist; but, as stated in a preceding +chapter, [374:4] one of his most important publications, the +"Philosophumena, or Refutation of all Heresies," has been recently +recovered. The re-appearance of this production after so many centuries +of oblivion is an extraordinary fact; and its testimony relative to +historical transactions of deep interest connected with the early Church +of Rome, has created quite a sensation among the students of +ecclesiastical literature. + +Hippolytus was the disciple of Irenaeus, and one of the soundest +theologians of his generation. His works, which are written in Greek, +illustrate his learning, his acuteness, and his eloquence. His views on +some matters of ecclesiastical discipline were, indeed, too rigid; and, +by a writer of the fifth century, [375:1] he has been described as an +abettor of Novatianism; but his zeal and piety are universally admitted. +He is said to have lost his life in the cause of Christianity; and +though he attests the heretical teaching of two of her chief pastors, +the Church of Rome still honours him as a saint and a martyr. + +Minucius Felix was the contemporary of Hippolytus. He was a Roman +lawyer, and a convert from paganism. In his Dialogue, entitled +"Octavius," the respective merits of Christianity and heathenism are +discussed with much vivacity. In point of style this little work is +surpassed by none of the ecclesiastical writings of the period. + +Another and a still more distinguished author, contemporary with +Hippolytus, was ORIGEN. He was born at Alexandria about A.D. 185; his +father Leonides, who was a teacher of rhetoric, was a member of the +Church; and his son enjoyed the advantages of an excellent elementary +education. Origen, when very young, was required daily to commit +prescribed portions of the Word of God to memory; and the child soon +became intensely interested in the study of the sacred oracles. The +questions which he proposed to his father, as he repeated his appointed +tasks, displayed singular precocity of intellect; and Leonides rejoiced +exceedingly as he observed from time to time the growing indications of +his extraordinary genius. But, before Origen reached maturity, his good +parent fell a victim to the intolerance of the imperial laws. In the +persecution under Septimius Severus, when the young scholar was about +seventeen years of age, Leonides was put into confinement, and then +beheaded. He had a wife and seven children who were likely to be left +destitute by his death; but Origen, who was his first born, afraid lest +his constancy should be overcome by the prospect of a beggared family, +wrote a letter to him when he was in prison to encourage him to +martyrdom. "Stand steadfast, father," said the ardent youth, "and take +care not to desert your principles on our account." At this crisis he +would have exposed himself to martyrdom, had not his mother hid his +clothes, and thus prevented him from appearing in public. + +When Leonides was put to death his property was confiscated, and his +family reduced to poverty. But Origen now attracted the notice of a rich +and noble lady of Alexandria, who received him into her house, and +became his patron. He did not, however, remain long under her roof; as +he was soon able to earn a maintenance by teaching. He continued, +meanwhile, to apply himself with amazing industry to the acquisition of +knowledge; and at length he began to be regarded as one of the most +learned of the Christians. So great was his celebrity as a divine that, +more than once during his life, whole synods of foreign bishops +solicited his advice and interference in the settlement of theological +controversies. + +Whilst Origen, by intense study, was constantly adding to his +intellectual treasures, he also improved his mind by travelling. When +about twenty-six years of age he made a journey to Rome; and he +subsequently visited Arabia, Palestine, Syria, Asia Minor, and Greece. +As he passed through Palestine in A.D. 228, when he was in the +forty-third year of his age, he was ordained a presbyter by some of the +bishops of that country. He was now teacher of the catechetical school +of Alexandria--an office in which he had succeeded Clement--and his +ordination by the foreign pastors gave great offence to Demetrius, his +own bishop. It has been said that this haughty churchman was galled by +the superior reputation of the great scholar; and Origen, on his return +to Egypt, was exposed to an ecclesiastical persecution. An indiscreet +act of his youth was now converted into a formidable accusation, [377:1] +whilst some incautious speculations in which he had indulged were urged +as evidences of his unsoundness in the faith. His ordination was +pronounced invalid; he was deprived of his appointment as president of +the catechetical school; and he was excommunicated as a heretic. He now +retired to Caesarea, where he appears to have spent the greater portion +of the remainder of his life. The sentence of excommunication was +announced by Demetrius to the Churches abroad; but though it was +approved at Rome and elsewhere, it was not recognised in Palestine, +Phoenice, Arabia, and Achaia. At Caesarea, Origen established a +theological seminary such as that over which he had so long presided at +Alexandria; and, in this institute, some of the most eminent pastors of +the third century received their education. + +This great man throughout life practised extraordinary self-denial. His +clothing was scarcely sufficient to protect him from the cold; he slept +on the ground; he confined himself to the simplest fare; and for years +he persisted in going barefoot. [377:2] But his austerities did not +prevent him from acquiring a world-wide reputation. Pagan philosophers +attended his lectures, and persons of the highest distinction sought his +society. When Julia Mammaea, the mother of Alexander Severus, invited +him to visit her, and when, in compliance with this summons, he +proceeded to Antioch [377:3] escorted by a military guard, he must have +been an object of no little curiosity to the Imperial courtiers. It +could now no longer be said that the Christians were an illiterate +generation; as, in all that brilliant throng surrounding the throne of +the Master of the Roman world, there was not, perhaps, one to be +compared, with the poor catechist of Alexandria for varied and profound +scholarship. But his theological taste was sadly vitiated by his study +of the pagan philosophy. Clement, his early instructor, led him to +entertain far too high an opinion of its excellence; and a subsequent +teacher, Ammonius Saccas, the father of New Platonism, thoroughly imbued +his mind with many of his own dangerous principles. According to +Ammonius all systems of religion and philosophy contain the elements of +truth; and it is the duty of the wise man to trace out and exhibit their +harmony. The doctrines of Plato formed the basis of his creed, and it +required no little ingenuity, to shew how all other theories quadrated +with the speculations of the Athenian sage. To establish his views, he +was obliged to draw much on his imagination, and to adopt modes of +exegesis the most extravagant and unwarrantable. The philosophy of +Ammonius exerted a very pernicious influence upon Origen, and seduced +him into not a few of those errors which have contributed so greatly to +lower his repute as a theologian. + +Origen was a most prolific author; and, if all his works were still +extant, they would be far more voluminous than those of any other of the +fathers. But most of his writings have been lost; and, in not a few +instances, those which remain have reached us either in a very mutilated +form, or in a garbled Latin version. His treatise "Against Celsus," +which was composed when he was advanced in life, and which is by far the +most valuable of his existing works, has come down to us in a more +perfect state than, perhaps, any of his other productions. It is a +defence of Christianity in reply to the publication of a witty heathen +philosopher who wrote against it in the time of the Antonines. [378:1] +Of his celebrated "Hexapla," to which he is said to have devoted much of +his time for eight and twenty years, only some fragments have been +preserved. This great work appears to have been undertaken to meet the +cavils of the Jews against the Septuagint--the Greek translation of the +Old Testament in current use in the days of the apostles, and still most +appreciated by the Christians. The unbelieving Israelites now pronounced +it a corrupt version; and, that all might have an opportunity of judging +for themselves, Origen exhibited the text in six consecutive +columns--the first, containing the original Hebrew--the second, the same +in Greek letters--and the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth, four of the +most famous of the Greek translations, including the Septuagint. [379:1] +The labour employed in the collation of manuscripts, when preparing this +work, was truly prodigious. The expense, which must also have been +great, is said to have been defrayed by Ambrosius, a wealthy Christian +friend, who placed at the disposal of the editor the constant services +of seven amanuenses. By his "Hexapla" Origen did much to preserve the +purity of the sacred text, and he may be said to have thus laid the +foundations of the science of Scripture criticism. + +This learned writer cannot be trusted as an interpreter of the inspired +oracles. Like the Jewish Cabbalists, of whom Philo, whose works he had +diligently studied, [379:2] is a remarkable specimen, he neglects the +literal sense of the Word, and betakes himself to mystical expositions. +[379:3] In this way the divine record may be made to support any +crotchet which happens to please the fancy of the commentator. Origen +may, in fact, be regarded as the father of Christian mysticism; and, in +after-ages, to a certain class of visionaries, especially amongst the +monks, his writings long continued to present peculiar attractions. + +On doctrinal points his statements are not always consistent, so that it +is extremely difficult to form anything like a correct idea of his +theological sentiments. Thus, on the subject of the Trinity, he +sometimes speaks most distinctly in the language of orthodoxy, whilst +again he employs phraseology which rather savours of the creed of +Sabellius or of Arius. In his attempts to reconcile the gospel and his +philosophy, he miserably compromised some of the most important truths +of Scripture. The fall of man seems to be not unfrequently repudiated in +his religious system; and yet, occasionally, it is distinctly +recognized. [380:1] He maintained the pre-existence of human souls; he +held that the stars are animated beings; he taught that all men shall +ultimately attain happiness; and he believed that the devils themselves +shall eventually be saved. [380:2] It is abundantly clear that Origen +was a man of true piety. His whole life illustrates his self-denial, his +single-mindedness, his delight in the Word of God, and his zeal for the +advancement of the kingdom of Christ. In the Decian persecution he +suffered nobly as a confessor; and the torture which he then endured +seems to have hastened his demise. But with all his learning he was +obviously deficient in practical sagacity; and though both his genius +and his eloquence were of a high order, he possessed scarcely even an +average share of prudence and common sense. His writings diffused, not +the genial light of the Sun of Righteousness, but the mist and darkness +of a Platonized Christianity. Though he induced many philosophers to +become members of the Church, the value of these accessions was greatly +deteriorated by the daring spirit of speculation which they were still +encouraged to cultivate. Of his Christian courage, his industry, and his +invincible perseverance, there can be no doubt. He closed a most +laborious career at Tyre, A.D. 254, in the seventieth year of his age. + +About the time of the death of Origen, a Latin author, whose writings +are still perused with interest, was beginning to attract much notice. +CYPRIAN of Carthage, before his conversion to Christianity, was a +professor of rhetoric and a gentleman of property. When he renounced +heathenism, he is supposed to have reached the mature age of forty-five +or forty-six; and as he possessed rank, talent, and popular eloquence, +he was deemed no ordinary acquisition to the Church. About two years +after his baptism, the chief pastor of the metropolis of the Proconsular +Africa was removed by death; and Cyprian, by the acclamations of the +Christian people, was called to the vacant office. At that time there +seem to have been only eight presbyters, [381:1] or elders, connected +with the bishopric of Carthage; but the city contained probably some +hundreds of thousands of a population; and, though the episcopal dignity +was not without its perils, it did not want the attractions of wealth +and influence. The advancement of Cyprian gave great offence to the +other elders, who appear to have conceived that one of themselves, on +the ground of greater experience and more lengthened services, had a +better title to promotion. Though the new bishop was sustained by the +enthusiastic support of the multitude, the presbytery contrived, +notwithstanding, to give him considerable annoyance. Five of them, +constituting a majority, formed themselves into a regular opposition; +and for several years the Carthaginian Church was distracted by the +struggles between the bishop and his eldership. + +The pastorate of Cyprian extended over a period of about ten years; but +meanwhile persecution raged, and the bishop was obliged to spend nearly +the one-third of his episcopal life in retirement and in exile. From his +retreat he kept up a communication by letters with his flock. [382:1] +The worship and constitution of the Church about the middle of the third +century may be ascertained pretty clearly from the Cyprianic +correspondence. Some of the letters addressed to the Carthaginian +bishop, as well as those dictated by him, are still extant; and as he +maintained an epistolary intercourse with Rome, Cappadocia, and other +places, the documents known as the Cyprianic writings, [382:2] are +amongst the most important of the ancient ecclesiastical memorials. This +eminent pastor has also left behind him several short treatises on +topics which were then attracting public attention. Among these may be +mentioned his tracts on "The Unity of the Church," "The Lord's Prayer," +"The Vanity of Idols," "The Grace of God," "The Dress of Virgins," and +"The Benefit of Patience." + +The writings of Cyprian have long been noted for their orthodoxy; and +yet it must be admitted that his hierarchical prejudices stunted his +charity and obscured his intellectual vision. Tertullian was his +favourite author; and it is evident that he possessed much of the +contracted spirit and of the stiff formalism of the great Carthaginian +presbyter. He speaks in more exalted terms of the authority of bishops +than any preceding writer. It is not improbable that the attempts of his +discontented elders to curb his power inflamed his old aristocratic +hauteur, and thus led to a reaction; and that, supported by the popular +voice, he was tempted absurdly to magnify his office, and to stretch his +prerogative beyond the bounds of its legitimate exercise. His name +carried with it great influence, and from his time episcopal pretensions +advanced apace. + +Cyprian was martyred about A.D. 258 in the Valerian persecution. As he +was a man of rank, and perhaps personally related to some of the +imperial officers at Carthage, he seems to have been treated, when a +prisoner, with unusual respect and indulgence. On the evening before his +death an elegant supper was provided for him, and he was permitted to +enjoy the society of a numerous party of his friends. When he reached +the spot where he was to suffer, he was subjected to no lingering +torments; for his head was severed from his body by a single stroke of +the executioner. [383:1] + +The only other writer of note who flourished after Cyprian, in the third +century, [383:2] was _Gregory_, surnamed _Thaumaturgus_, or _The +Wonder-Worker_. He belonged to a pagan family of distinction; and, when +a youth, was intended for the profession of the law; but, becoming +acquainted with Origen at Caesarea in Palestine, he was induced to +embrace the Christian faith, and relinquish flattering prospects of +secular promotion. He became subsequently the bishop of Neo-Caesarea in +Pontus. When he entered on his charge he is said to have had a +congregation of only seventeen individuals; but his ministry must have +been singularly successful; for, according to tradition, all the +inhabitants of the city, with seventeen exceptions, were, at the time of +his death, members of the Church. The reports respecting him are +obviously exaggerated, and no credit can be attached to the narrative of +his miracles. [384:1] He wrote several works, of which his "Panegyric on +Origen," and his "Paraphrase on Ecclesiastes," are still extant. The +genuineness of some other tracts ascribed to him may be fairly +challenged. + +The preceding account of the fathers of the second and third centuries +may enable us to form some idea of the value of these writers as +ecclesiastical authorities. Most of them had reached maturity before +they embraced the faith of the gospel, so that, with a few exceptions, +they wanted the advantages of an early Christian education. Some of +them, before their conversion, had bestowed much time and attention on +the barren speculations of the pagan philosophers; and, after their +reception into the bosom of the Church, they still continued to pursue +the same unprofitable studies. Cyprian, one of the most eloquent of +these fathers, had been baptized only about two years before he was +elected bishop of Carthage; and, during his comparatively short +episcopate, he was generally in a turmoil of excitement, and had, +consequently, little leisure for reading or mental cultivation. Such a +writer is not entitled to command confidence as an expositor of the +faith once delivered to the saints. Even in our own day, with all the +facilities supplied by printing for the rapid accumulation of knowledge, +no one would expect much spiritual instruction from an author who would +undertake the office of an interpreter of Scripture two years after his +conversion from heathenism. The fathers of the second and third +centuries were not regarded as safe guides even by their Christian +contemporaries. Tatian was the founder of a sect of extreme +Teetotallers. [383:1] Tertullian, who, in point of learning, vigour, and +genius, stands at the head of the Latin writers of this period, was +connected with a party of gloomy fanatics. Origen, the most voluminous +and erudite of the Greek fathers, was excommunicated as a heretic. If we +estimate these authors, as they were appreciated by the early Church of +Rome, we must pronounce their writings of little value. Tertullian, as a +Montanist, was under the ban of the Roman bishop. Hippolytus could not +have been a favourite with either Zephyrinus or Callistus, for he +denounced both as heretics. Origen was treated by the Roman Church as a +man under sentence of excommunication. Stephen deemed even Cyprian +unworthy of his ecclesiastical fellowship, because the Carthaginian +prelate maintained the propriety of rebaptizing heretics. + +Nothing can be more unsatisfactory, or rather childish, than the +explanations of Holy Writ sometimes given by these ancient expositors. +According to Tertullian, the two sparrows mentioned in the New Testament +[383:2] signify the soul and the body; [383:3] and Clemens Alexandrinus +gravely pleads for marriage [383:4] from the promise-"Where two or three +are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them." +[383:5] Cyprian produces, as an argument in support of the doctrine of +the Trinity, that the Jews observed "the third, sixth, and ninth hours" +as their "fixed and lawful seasons for prayer." [383:6] Origen +represents the heavenly bodies as literally engaged in acts of devotion. +[386:1] If these authorities are to be credited, the Gihon, one of the +rivers of Paradise, was no other than the Nile. [386:2] Very few of the +fathers of this period were acquainted with Hebrew, so that, as a class, +they were miserably qualified for the interpretation of the Scriptures. +Even Origen himself must have had a very imperfect knowledge of the +language of the Old Testament. [386:3] In consequence of their literary +deficiencies, the fathers of the second and third centuries occasionally +commit the most ridiculous blunders. Thus, Irenaeus tells us that the +name Jesus in Hebrew consists of two letters and a half, and describes +it as signifying "that Lord who contains heaven and earth!" [386:4] This +father asserts also that the Hebrew word _Adonai_, or the Lord, denotes +"utterable and wonderful." [386:5] Clemens Alexandrinus is not more +successful as an interpreter of the sacred tongue of the chosen people; +for he asserts that Jacob was called _Israel_ "because he had seen the +Lord God," [386:6] and he avers that _Abraham_ means "the elect father +of a sound!" [386:7] Justin Martyr errs egregiously in his references to +the Old Testament; as he cites Isaiah for Jeremiah, [386:8] Zechariah +for Malachi, [386:9] Zephaniah for Zechariah, [386:10] and Jeremiah for +Daniel. [386:11] Irenaeus repeats, as an apostolic tradition, that when +our Lord acted as a public teacher He was between forty and fifty years +of age; [387:1] and Tertullian affirms that He was about thirty years of +age at the time of His crucifixion. [387:2] The opinion of this same +writer in reference to angels is still more extraordinary. He maintains +that some of these beings, captivated by the beauty of the daughters of +men, came down from heaven and married them; and that, out of +complaisance to their brides, they communicated to them the arts of +polishing and setting precious stones, of preparing cosmetics, and of +using other appliances which minister to female vanity. [387:3] His +ideas upon topics of a different character are equally singular. Thus, +he affirms that the soul is corporeal, having length, breadth, height, +and figure. [387:4] He even goes so far as to say that there is no +substance which is not corporeal, and that God himself is a body. +[387:5] + +It would seem as if the Great Head of the Church permitted these early +writers to commit the grossest mistakes, and to propound the most +foolish theories, for the express purpose of teaching us that we are not +implicitly to follow their guidance. It might have been thought that +authors, who flourished on the borders of apostolic times, knew more of +the mind of the Spirit than others who appeared in succeeding ages; but +the truths of Scripture, like the phenomena of the visible creation, are +equally intelligible to all generations. If we possess spiritual +discernment, the trees and the flowers will display the wisdom and the +goodness of God as distinctly to us as they did to our first parents; +and, if we have the "unction from the Holy One," we may enter into the +meaning of the Scriptures as fully as did Justin Martyr or Irenaeus. To +assist us in the interpretation of the New Testament, we have at command +a critical apparatus of which they were unable to avail themselves. +Jehovah is jealous of the honour of His Word, and He has inscribed in +letters of light over the labours of its most ancient interpreters-- +"CEASE YE FROM MAN." The "opening of the Scriptures," so as to exhibit +their beauty, their consistency, their purity, their wisdom, and their +power, is the clearest proof that the commentator is possessed of "the +key of knowledge." When tried by this test, Thomas Scott or Matthew +Henry is better entitled to confidence than either Origen or Gregory +Thaumaturgus. The Bible is its own safest expositor. "The law of the +Lord is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, +making wise the simple." + + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE IGNATIAN EPISTLES AND THEIR CLAIMS. THE EXTERNAL EVIDENCE. + + +The Epistles attributed to Ignatius have attracted greater notice, and +have created more discussion, than any other uninspired writings of the +same extent in existence. The productions ascribed to this author, and +now reputed genuine by the most learned of their recent editors, might +all be printed on the one-fourth of a page of an ordinary newspaper; and +yet, the fatigue of travelling thousands of miles has been encountered, +[389:1] for the special purpose of searching after correct copies of +these highly-prized memorials. Large volumes have been written, either +to establish their authority, or to prove that they are forgeries; and, +if collected together, the books in various languages to which they have +given birth, would themselves form a considerable library. Recent +discoveries have thrown new light on their pretensions, but though the +controversy has now continued upwards of three hundred years, it has not +hitherto reached a satisfactory termination. [390:1] + +The Ignatian letters owe almost all their importance to the circumstance +that they are alleged to have been written on the confines of the +apostolic age. As very few records remain to illustrate the +ecclesiastical history of that period, it is not strange that epistles, +purporting to have emanated from one of the most distinguished ministers +who then flourished, should have excited uncommon attention. But doubts +regarding their genuineness have always been entertained by candid and +competent scholars. The spirit of sectarianism has entered largely into +the discussion of their claims; and, whilst certain distinct references +to the subject of Church polity, which they contain, have greatly +enhanced their value in the estimation of one party, the same passages +have been quoted, by those who repudiate their authority, as so many +decisive proofs of their fabrication. The annals of literature furnish, +perhaps, scarcely any other case in which ecclesiastical prejudices have +been so much mixed up with a question of mere criticism. + +The history of the individual to whom these letters have been ascribed, +has been so metamorphosed by fables, that it is now, perhaps, impossible +to ascertain its true outlines. There is a tradition that he was the +child whom our Saviour set in the midst of His disciples as a pattern of +humility; [390:2] and as our Lord, on the occasion, took up the little +personage in His arms, it has been asserted that Ignatius was therefore +surnamed _Theophorus_, that is, _borne or carried by God_. [390:3] +Whatever may be thought as to the truth of this story, it probably gives +a not very inaccurate view of the date of his birth; for he was, in all +likelihood, far advanced in life [391:1] at the period when he is +supposed to have written these celebrated letters. According to the +current accounts, he was the second bishop of Antioch at the time of his +martyrdom; and as his age would lead us to infer that he was then the +senior member of the presbytery, [391:2] the tradition may have thus +originated. It is alleged that when Trajan visited the capital of Syria +in the ninth year of his reign, or A.D. 107, Ignatius voluntarily +presented himself before the imperial tribunal, and avowed his +Christianity. It is added, that he was in consequence condemned to be +carried a prisoner to Rome, there to be consigned to the wild beasts for +the entertainment of the populace. On his way to the Western metropolis, +he is said to have stopped at Smyrna. The legend represents Polycarp as +then the chief pastor of that city; and, when there, Ignatius is +described as having received deputations from the neighbouring churches, +and as having addressed to them several letters. From Smyrna he is +reported to have proceeded to Troas; where he dictated some additional +epistles, including one to Polycarp. The claims of these letters to be +considered his genuine productions have led to the controversy which we +are now to notice. + +The story of Ignatius exhibits many marks of error and exaggeration; and +yet it is no easy matter to determine how much of it should be +pronounced fictitious. Few, perhaps, will venture to assert that the +account of his martyrdom is to be rejected as altogether apocryphal; and +still fewer will go so far as to maintain that he is a purely imaginary +character. There is every reason to believe that, very early in the +second century, he was connected with the Church of Antioch; and that, +about the same period, he suffered unto death in the cause of +Christianity. Pliny, who was then Proconsul of Bithynia, mentions that, +as he did not well know, in the beginning of his administration, how to +deal with the accused Christians, he sent those of them who were Roman +citizens to the Emperor, that he might himself pronounce judgment. +[392:1] It is possible that the chief magistrate of Syria pursued the +same course; and that thus Ignatius was transmitted as a prisoner into +Italy. But, upon some such substratum of facts, a mass of incongruous +fictions has been erected. The "Acts of his Martyrdom," still extant, +and written probably upwards of a hundred years after his demise, cannot +stand the test of chronological investigation; and have evidently been +compiled by some very superstitious and credulous author. According to +these Acts, Ignatius was condemned by Trajan at Antioch in the _ninth_ +[392:2] year of his reign; but it has been contended that, not until +long afterwards, was the Emperor in the Syrian capital. [392:3] In the +"Acts," Ignatius is described as presenting himself before his sovereign +_of his own accord_, to proclaim his Christianity--a piece of +foolhardiness for which it is difficult to discover any reasonable +apology. The report of the interview between Ignatius and Trajan, as +given in this document, would, if believed, abundantly warrant the +conclusion that the martyr must have entirely lost the humility for +which he is said to have obtained credit when a child; as his conduct, +in the presence of the Emperor, betrays no small amount of boastfulness +and presumption. The account of his transmission to Rome, that he might +be thrown to wild beasts, presents difficulties with which even the most +zealous defenders of his legendary history have found it impossible to +grapple. He was sent away, say they, to the Italian metropolis that the +sight of so distinguished a victim passing through so many cities on his +way to a cruel death might strike terror into the hearts of the +Christian inhabitants. But we are told that he was conveyed from Syria +to Smyrna _by water_, [393:1] so that the explanation is quite +unsatisfactory; and, had the journey been accomplished by land, it would +still be insufficient, as the disciples of that age were unhappily only +too familiar with spectacles of Christian martyrdom. Our perplexity +increases as we proceed more minutely to investigate the circumstances +under which the epistles are reported to have been composed. Whilst +Ignatius is said to have been hurried with great violence and barbarity +from the East to the West, he is at the same time represented, with +strange inconsistency, as remaining for many days together in the same +place, [393:2] as receiving visitors from the churches all around, and +as writing magniloquent epistles. What is still more remarkable, though +he was pressed by the soldiers to hasten forward, and though a +prosperous gale speedily carried his vessel into Italy, [394:1] one of +these letters is supposed to outstrip the rapidity of his own progress, +and to reach Rome before himself and his impatient escort! + +Early in the fourth century at least seven epistles attributed to +Ignatius were in circulation, for Eusebius of Caesarea, who then +flourished, distinctly mentions so many, and states to whom they were +addressed. From Smyrna the martyr is said to have written four +letters--one to the Ephesians, another to the Magnesians, a third to the +Trallians, and a fourth to the Romans. From Troas he is reported to have +written three additional letters--one to Polycarp, a second to the +Smyrnaeans, and a third to the Philadelphians. [394:2] At a subsequent +period eight more epistles made their appearance, including two to the +Apostle John, one to the Virgin Mary, one to Maria Cassobolita, one to +the Tarsians, one to the Philippians, one to the Antiochians, and one to +Hero the deacon. Thus, no less than fifteen epistles claim Ignatius of +Antioch as their author. + +It is unnecessary to discuss the merits of the eight letters unknown to +Eusebius. They were probably all fabricated after the time of that +historian; and critics have long since concurred in rejecting them as +spurious. Until recently, those engaged in the Ignatian controversy were +occupied chiefly with the examination of the claims of the documents +mentioned by the bishop of Caesarea. Here, however, the strange +variations in the copies tended greatly to complicate the discussion. +The letters of different manuscripts, when compared together, disclosed +extraordinary discrepancies; for, whilst all the codices contained much +of the same matter, a letter in one edition was, in some cases, about +double the length of the corresponding letter in another. Some writers +contended for the genuineness of the shorter epistles, and represented +the larger as made up of the true text extended by interpolations; +whilst others pronounced the larger letters the originals, and condemned +the shorter as unsatisfactory abridgments. [395:1] But, though both +editions found most erudite and zealous advocates, many critics of +eminent ability continued to look with distrust upon the text, as well +of the shorter, as of the larger letters; whilst not a few were disposed +to suspect that Ignatius had no share whatever in the composition of any +of these documents. + +In the year 1845 a new turn was given to this controversy by the +publication of a Syriac version of three of the Ignatian letters. They +were printed from a manuscript deposited in 1843 in the British Museum, +and obtained, shortly before, from a monastery in the desert of Nitria +in Egypt. The work was dedicated by permission to the Archbishop of +Canterbury, and the views propounded in it were understood to have the +sanction of the English metropolitan. [395:2] Dr Cureton, the editor, +has since entered more fully into the discussion of the subject in his +"Corpus Ignatianum" [395:3]--a volume dedicated to His Royal Highness +the Prince Albert, in which the various texts of all the epistles are +exhibited, and in which the claims of the three recently discovered +letters, as the only genuine productions of Ignatius, are ingeniously +maintained. In the Syriac copies, [396:1] these letters are styled "_The +Three_ Epistles of Ignatius, Bishop, and Martyr," and thus the inference +is suggested that, at one time, they were _the only three_ epistles in +existence. Dr Cureton's statements have obviously made a great +impression upon the mind of the literary public, and there seems at +present to be a pretty general disposition in certain quarters [396:2] +to discard all the other epistles as forgeries, and to accept those +preserved in the Syriac version as the veritable compositions of the +pastor of Antioch. + +It must be obvious from the foregoing explanations that increasing light +has wonderfully diminished the amount of literature which once obtained +credit under the name of the venerable Ignatius. In the sixteenth +century he was reputed by many as the author of fifteen letters: it was +subsequently discovered that eight of them must be set aside as +apocryphal: farther investigation convinced critics that considerable +portions of the remaining seven must be rejected: and when the short +text of these epistles was published, [396:3] about the middle of the +seventeenth century, candid scholars confessed that it still betrayed +unequivocal indications of corruption. [396:4] But even some Protestant +writers of the highest rank stoutly upheld their claims, and the learned +Pearson devoted years to the preparation of a defence of their +authority. [397:1] His "Vindiciae Ignatianae" has long been considered +by a certain party as unanswerable; and, though the publication has been +read by very few, [397:2] the advocates of what are called "High-Church +principles" have been reposing for nearly two centuries under the shadow +of its reputation. The critical labours of Dr Cureton have somewhat +disturbed their dream of security, as that distinguished scholar has +adduced very good evidence to shew that about three-fourths of the +matter [397:3] which the Bishop of Chester spent a considerable portion +of his mature age in attempting to prove genuine, is the work of an +impostor. It is now admitted by the highest authorities that _four_ of +the seven short letters must be given up as spurious; and the remaining +three, which are addressed respectively to Polycarp, to the Ephesians, +and to the Romans, and which are found in the Syriac version, are much +shorter even than the short epistles which had already appeared under +the same designations. The Epistle to Polycarp, the shortest of the +seven letters in preceding editions, is here presented in a still more +abbreviated form; the Epistle to the Romans wants fully the one-third of +its previous matter; and the Epistle to the Ephesians has lost nearly +three-fourths of its contents. Nor is this all. In the Syriac version a +large fragment of one of the four recently rejected letters reappears; +as the new edition of the Epistle to the Romans contains two entire +paragraphs to be found in the discarded letter to the Trallians. + +It is only due to Dr Cureton to acknowledge that his publications have +thrown immense light on this tedious and keenly agitated controversy. +But, unquestionably, he has not exhausted the discussion. Instead of +abruptly adopting the conclusion that the three letters of the Syriac +version are to be received as genuine, we conceive he would have argued +more logically had he inferred that they reveal one of the earliest +forms of a gross imposture. We are persuaded that the epistles he has +edited, as well as all the others previously published, are fictitious; +and we shall endeavour to demonstrate, in the sequel of this chapter, +that the external evidence in their favour is most unsatisfactory. + +When discussing the testimonies from the writers of antiquity in their +support, it is not necessary to examine any later witness than Eusebius. +The weight of his literary character influenced all succeeding fathers, +some of whom, who appear never to have seen these documents, refer to +them on the strength of his authority. [398:1] In his "Ecclesiastical +History," which was published as some think about A.D. 325, he asserts +that Ignatius wrote seven letters, and from these he makes a few +quotations. [398:2] But his admission of the genuineness of a +correspondence, bearing date upwards of two hundred years before his own +appearance as an author, is an attestation of very doubtful value. He +often makes mistakes respecting the character of ecclesiastical +memorials; and in one memorable case, of far more consequence than that +now under consideration, he has blundered most egregiously; for he has +published, as genuine, the spurious correspondence between Abgarus and +our Saviour. [399:1] He was under strong temptations to form an unduly +favourable judgment of the letters attributed to Ignatius, inasmuch as, +to use the words of Dr Cureton, "they seemed to afford evidence to the +apostolic succession in several churches, an account of which he +professes to be one of the chief objects of his history." [399:2] His +reference to them is decisive as to the fact of their _existence_ in the +early part of the fourth century; but those who adopt the views +propounded in the "Corpus Ignatianum," are not prepared to bow to his +critical decision; for, on this very occasion, he has given his sanction +to four letters which they pronounce apocryphal. + +The only father who notices these letters before the fourth century, is +Origen. He quotes from them twice; [399:3] the citations which he gives +are to be found in the Syriac version of the three epistles; [399:4] and +it would appear from his writings that he was not acquainted with the +seven letters current in the days of Eusebius. [399:5] Those to which he +refers were, perhaps, brought under his notice when he went to Antioch +on the invitation of Julia Mammaea, the mother of the Emperor; as, for +reasons subsequently to be stated, it is probable that they were +manufactured in that neighbourhood not long before his visit. If +presented to him at that time by parties interested in the recognition +of their claims, they were, under the circumstances, exactly such +documents as were likely to impose upon him; for the student of Philo, +and the author of the "Exhortation to Martyrdom," could not but admire +the spirit of mysticism by which they are pervaded, and the anxiety to +die under persecution which they proclaim. Whilst, therefore, his +quotation of these letters attests their existence in his time, it is of +very little additional value. Again and again in his writings we meet +with notices of apocryphal works unaccompanied by any intimations of +their spuriousness. [400:1] He asserts that Barnabas, the author of the +epistle still extant under his name, [400:2] was the individual +mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles as the companion of Paul; and he +frequently quotes the "Pastor" of Hermas [400:3] as a book given by +inspiration of God. [400:4] Such facts abundantly prove that his +recognition of the Ignatian epistles is a very equivocal criterion of +their genuineness. + +Attempts have been made to shew that two other writers, earlier than +Origen, have noticed the Ignatian correspondence; and Eusebius himself +has quoted Polycarp and Irenaeus as if bearing witness in its favour. +Polycarp in early life was contemporary with the pastor of Antioch; and +Irenaeus is said to have been the disciple of Polycarp; and, could it be +demonstrated that either of these fathers vouched for its genuineness, +the testimony would be of peculiar importance. But, when their evidence +is examined, it is found to be nothing to the purpose. In the Treatise +against Heresies, Irenaeus speaks, in the following terms, of the +heroism of a Christian martyr--"One of our people said, when condemned +to the beasts on account of his testimony towards God--As I am the wheat +of God, I am also ground by the teeth of beasts, that I may be found the +pure bread of God." [400:5] These words of the martyr are found in the +Syriac Epistle to the Romans, and hence it has been inferred that they +are a quotation from that letter. But it is far more probable that the +words of the letter were copied out of Irenaeus, and quietly +appropriated, by a forger, to the use of his Ignatius, with a view to +obtain credit for a false document. The individual who uttered them is +not named by the pastor of Lyons; and, after the death of that writer, a +fabricator might put them into the mouth of whomsoever he pleased +without any special danger of detection. The Treatise against Heresies +obtained extensive circulation; and as it animadverted on errors which +had been promulgated in Antioch, [401:1] it, no doubt, soon found its +way into the Syrian capital. [401:2] But who can believe that Irenaeus +describes Ignatius, when he speaks of "_one of our people_?" The martyr +was not such an insignificant personage that he could be thus ignored. +He was one of the most eminent Christians of his age--the companion of +apostles--and the presiding minister of one of the most influential +Churches in the world. Irenaeus is obviously alluding to some disciple +who occupied a very different position. He is speaking, not of what the +martyr _wrote_, but of what he _said_--not of his letters, but of his +words. Any reader who considers the situation of Irenaeus a few years +before he published this treatise, can have no difficulty in +understanding the reference. He had witnessed at Lyons one of the most +terrible persecutions the disciples ever had endured; and, in the letter +to the Churches of Asia and Phrygia, he had graphically described its +horrors. [401:3] He there tells how his brethren had been condemned to +be thrown to wild beasts, and he records with simplicity and pathos the +constancy with which they suffered. But in such an epistle he could not +notice every case which had come under his observation, and he here +mentions a new instance of the Christian courage of some believer +unknown to fame, when he states--"one of our people when condemned to +the beasts, said, 'As I am the wheat of God, I am also ground by the +teeth of beasts, that I may be found the pure bread of God.'" + +The Treatise against Heresies supplies the clearest evidence that +Irenaeus was quite ignorant of the existence of the Ignatian epistles. +These letters contain pointed references to the errorists of the early +Church, and had they been known to the pastor of Lyons, he could have +brought them to bear with most damaging effect against the heretics he +assailed. Ignatius was no ordinary witness, for he had heard the truth +from the lips of the apostles; he had spent a long life in the society +of the primitive disciples; and he filled one of the most responsible +stations that a Christian minister could occupy. The heretics boldly +affirmed that they had tradition on their side, [402:1] and therefore +the testimony of Ignatius, as of an individual who had received +tradition at the fountain-head, would have been regarded by Irenaeus as +all-important. And the author of the Treatise against Heresies was not +slow to employ such evidence when it was in any way available. He plies +his antagonists with the testimony of Clement of Rome, [402:2] of +Polycarp [402:3] of Papias, [402:4] and of Justin Martyr. [402:5] But +throughout the five books of his discussion he never adduces any of the +words of the pastor of Antioch. He never throws out any hint from which +we can infer that he was aware of the existence of his Epistles. [402:6] +He never even mentions his name. Could we desire more convincing proof +that he had never heard of the Ignatian correspondence? + +The only other witness now remaining to be examined is Polycarp. It has +often been affirmed that he distinctly acknowledges the authority of +these letters; and yet, when honestly interrogated, he will be found to +deliver quite a different deposition. But, before proceeding to consider +his testimony, let us inquire his _age_ when his epistle was written. It +bears the following superscription:--"Polycarp, _and the elders who are +with him_, to the Church of God which is at Philippi." At this time, +therefore, though the early Christians paid respect to hoary hairs, and +were not willing to permit persons without experience to take precedence +of their seniors, Polycarp must have been at the head of the presbytery. +But, at the death of Ignatius, when according to the current theory he +dictated this letter, he was a young man of six and twenty. [403:1] Such +a supposition is very much out of keeping with the tone of the document. +In it he admonishes the widows to be sober; [403:2] he gives advice to +the elders and deacons; [403:3] he expresses his great concern for +Valens, an erring brother, who had once been a presbyter among them; +[403:4] and he intimates that the epistle was written at the urgent +request of the Philippians themselves. [403:5] Is it at all probable +that Polycarp, at the age of six and twenty, was in a position to +warrant him to use such a style of address? Are we to believe he was +already so well known and so highly venerated that a Christian community +on the other side of the Aegean Sea, and the oldest Church in all +Greece, would apply to him for advice and direction? We must be prepared +to admit all this, before we can acknowledge that his epistle refers to +Ignatius of Antioch. + +Let us attend now to that passage in the letter to the Philippians where +he is supposed to speak of the Syrian pastor. "I exhort all of you that +ye obey the word of righteousness, and exercise all patience, which ye +have seen set forth before your eyes, _not only in the blessed Ignatius, +and Zosimus, and Rufus, but also in others of you_." [404:1] These words +would suggest to an ordinary reader that Polycarp is here speaking, not +of Ignatius of Antioch, but of an Ignatius of Philippi. If this Ignatius +did not belong to the Philippian Church, why, when addressing its +members, does he speak of Ignatius, Zosimus, Rufus, and "others of you?" +Ignatius of Antioch could not have been thus described. But who, it may +be asked, were Zosimus and Rufus here mentioned as fellow-sufferers with +Ignatius? They were exactly in the position which the words of Polycarp +literally indicate; they were men _of Philippi_; and, as such, they are +commemorated in the "Martyrologies." [404:2] It is impossible, +therefore, to avoid the conclusion that the Ignatius of Polycarp was +also a Philippian. + +It appears, then, that this testimony of the pastor of Smyrna has been +strangely misunderstood. Ignatius, as is well known, was not a very +uncommon name; and it would seem that several martyrs of the ancient +Church bore this designation. Cyprian, for example, tells us of an +Ignatius in Africa who was put to death for the profession of +Christianity in the former part of the third century. [405:1] It is +apparent from the words of Polycarp that there was also an Ignatius of +Philippi, as well as an Ignatius of Antioch. + +It may, however, be objected that the conclusion of this letter clearly +points to Ignatius of Antioch, inasmuch as Polycarp there speaks +apparently of _Syria_, and of some one interested about Ignatius who +might shortly visit that country. [405:2] Some critics of high name have +maintained that this portion of the epistle is destitute of authority, +and that it has been added by a later hand to countenance the Ignatian +forgery. [405:3] But every candid and discriminating reader may see that +the charge is destitute of foundation. An Ignatian interpolator would +not have so mismanaged his business. He would not have framed an +appendix which, as we shall presently shew, testifies against himself. +The passage to which such exception has been taken is unquestionably the +true postscript of the letter, for it bears internal marks of +genuineness. + +In this postscript Polycarp says--"What you know certainly both of +Ignatius himself, and of those _who are with him_, communicate." [405:4] +Here is another proof that the Ignatius of Polycarp is not Ignatius of +Antioch. The Syrian pastor is said to have been hurried with the utmost +expedition to Rome that he might be thrown to the beasts before the +approaching termination of the public spectacles; and it is reported +that when he reached the great city, he was forthwith consigned to +martyrdom. [406:1] But, though letters had been meanwhile passing +between Philippi and Smyrna, this Ignatius is understood to be still +alive. It would appear, too, that Zosimus and Rufus, previously named as +his partners in tribulation, continued to be his companions. Polycarp, +therefore, must be speaking of the "patience" of confessors who were yet +"in bonds," [406:2] and not of a man who had already been devoured by +the lions. + +Other parts of this postscript are equally embarrassing to those who +contend for the authority of the Ignatian Epistles. Thus, Polycarp +says--"The Epistles of Ignatius _which were sent to you by him_, and +whatever others we have by us, we have sent to you." [406:3] If these +words apply to Ignatius of Antioch, it follows that he must have written +_several_ letters to the _Philippians_; and yet it in now almost +universally admitted that even the one extant epistle addressed to them +in his name is an impudent fabrication. Again, Polycarp states--"Ye have +written to me, both ye and Ignatius, that when any one goes to Syria, he +can carry my letters to you." [406:4] But no such suggestion is to be +found, either in the Syriac version of the Three Epistles, or in the +larger edition known to Eusebius. Could we desire clearer proof that +Polycarp must here be speaking of another Ignatius, and another +correspondence? + +The words which we have last quoted deserve an attentive consideration. +Were a citizen of New York, in the postscript of a letter to a citizen +of London, to suggest that his correspondent should take an opportunity +of writing to him, when any common friend went to Jerusalem, the +Englishman might well feel perplexed by such a communication. Why should +a letter from London to New York travel round by Palestine? Such an +arrangement would not, however, be a whit more absurd than that +seemingly pointed out in this postscript. Philippi and Smyrna were not +far distant, and there was considerable intercourse between them; but +Syria was in another quarter of the Empire, and Polycarp could have +rarely found an individual passing to Antioch from "the chief city" of a +"part of Macedonia," and travelling to and fro by Smyrna. This +difficulty admits, however, of a very simple and satisfactory solution. +We have no entire copy of the epistle in the original Greek, [407:1] and +the text of the old Latin version in this place is so corrupt that it is +partially unintelligible; [407:2] but as the context often guides us in +the interpretation of a manuscript where it is blotted or torn, so here +it may enable us to spell out the meaning. The insertion of one letter +and the change of another in a single word [407:3] will render the +passage intelligible. If we read _Smyrna_ for Syria, the obscurity +vanishes. Polycarp then says to the Philippians--"Ye have written to me, +both ye and Ignatius, that, when any one goes to Smyrna, he can carry my +letters to you." The postscript, thus understood, refers to the desire +of his correspondents, that he should write frequently, and that, when a +friend went from Philippi to Smyrna, he should not be permitted to +return without letters. + +As it can be thus shewn that the letter of Polycarp, when tested by +impartial criticism, refuses to accredit the Epistles ascribed to +Ignatius of Antioch, it follows that, with the single exception of +Origen, no father of the first three centuries has noticed this +correspondence. Had these letters, at the alleged date of their +appearance, attracted such attention as they would themselves lead us to +believe, is it possible that no writer for upwards of a century after +the demise of their reputed author, would have bestowed upon them even a +passing recognition? They convey the impression that, when Ignatius was +on his way to Rome, all Asia Minor was moved at his presence--that +Greece caught the infection of excitement--and that the Western capital +itself awaited, with something like breathless anxiety, the arrival of +the illustrious martyr. Strange, indeed, then that even his letter to +the Romans is mentioned by no Western father until between two and three +hundred years after the time of its assumed publication! Nor were +Western writers wanting who would have sympathised with its spirit. It +would have been quite to the taste of Tertullian, and he could have +quoted it to shew that some of the peculiar principles of Montanism had +been held by a man of the apostolic era. Nor can it be said that had the +letter then been in existence, it was likely to have escaped his +observation. He had lived for years in Rome, and we have good reason to +believe that he was a presbyter of the Church of the Imperial city. A +man of his inquiring spirit, and literary habits, must have been well +acquainted with the Epistle had it obtained currency in Italy. But in +not one of his numerous treatises does he ever speak of it, or even name +its alleged author. [409:1] Hippolytus of Portus is another writer who +might have been expected to know something of this production. He lived +within a few miles of Rome, and he was conversant with the history of +its Church and with its ecclesiastical memorials. He, as well as +Tertullian, could have sympathised with the rugged and ascetic spirit +pervading the Ignatian correspondence. But, even in his treatise against +all heresies, he has not fortified his arguments by any testimony from +these letters. He had evidently never heard, of the now far famed +documents. [409:2] + +The conclusion to be drawn from these facts must be sufficiently +obvious. The Ignatian Epistles began to be fabricated in the time of +Origen; and the first edition of them appeared, not at Troas or Smyrna, +but in Syria or Palestine. At an early period festivals were kept in +honour of the martyrs; and on his natal day, [409:3] why should not the +Church of Antioch have something to tell of her great Ignatius? The Acts +of his Martyrdom were probably written in the former part of the third +century--a time when the work of ecclesiastical forgery was rife +[409:4]--and the Epistle to the Romans, which is inserted in these Acts, +is in all likelihood of earlier date than any of the other letters. The +Epistle to the Ephesians, perhaps, next made its appearance, and then +followed the Epistle to Polycarp. These letters gradually crept into +circulation as "The Three Epistles of Ignatius, Bishop, and Martyr." +There is every reason to believe that, as edited by Dr Cureton, they are +now presented to the public in their original _language_, as well as in +their original form. Copies of these short letters are not known to be +extant in any manuscript either Greek or Latin. Dr Cureton has not +attempted any explanation of this emphatic fact. If the Epistle to the +Romans, in its newly discovered form, is genuine, how does it happen +that there are no previous traces of its existence in the Western +Church? How are we to account for the extraordinary circumstance that +the Church of Rome can produce no copy of it in either Greek or Latin? +She had every reason to preserve such a document had it ever come into +her possession; for, even considered as a pious fraud of the third +century, the address "_to her who sitteth at the head_ in the place of +the country of the Romans," [410:1] is one of the most ancient +testimonies to her early pre-eminence to be found in the whole range of +ecclesiastical literature. Why should she have permitted it to be +supplanted by an interpolated document? Can any man, who adopts the +views of Dr Cureton, fairly answer such an inquiry? + +It is plain that the mistake or corruption of a word in the postscript +of the Epistle of Polycarp has had much to do with this Ignatian +imposture. In some worn or badly written manuscript, Syria was perhaps +read instead of Smyrna, and the false reading probably led to the +incubation of the whole brood of Ignatian letters. The error, whether of +accident or design, was adopted by Eusebius, [411:1] and from him passed +into general currency. We may thus best account for the strange +multiplication of these Ignatian epistles. It was clear that the +Ignatius spoken of by Polycarp had written more letters than what first +appeared, [411:2] and thus the epistles to the Smyrnaeans, the +Magnesians, the Trallians, and the Philadelphians, in due time emerged +into notice. At a subsequent date the letters to the Philippians, the +Antiochians, the Virgin Mary, and others, were forthcoming. + +The variety of forms assumed by this Ignatian fraud is not the least +remarkable circumstance connected with its mysterious history. All the +seven Epistles mentioned by Eusebius exist in a Longer and a Shorter +Recension; whilst the Syriac version exhibits three of them in a reduced +size, and a third edition. It is a curious fact that other spurious +productions display similar transformations. "_A great number_ of +spurious or interpolated works of the early ages of Christianity," says +Dr Cureton, "are found in two Recensions, a Shorter and a Longer, as in +the instance of the Ignatian Epistles. Thus, we find the two Recensions +of the Clementines, the two Recensions of the Acts of St Andrew, ..... +the Acts of St Thomas, the Journeying of St John, the Letter of Pilate +to Tiberius." [411:3] It is still more suspicious that some of these +spurious writings present a striking similarity _in point of style_ to +the Ignatian Epistles. [412:1] The standard coin of the realm is seldom +put into the crucible, but articles of pewter or of lead are freely +melted down and recast according to the will of the modeller. We cannot +add a single leaf to a genuine flower, but an artificial rose may be +exhibited in quite another form by a fresh process of manipulation. +Such, too, has been the history of ancient ecclesiastical records. The +genuine works of the fathers have come down to us in a state of +wonderful preservation; and comparatively few attempts have been made, +by interpolation or otherwise, to interfere with their integrity; +[412:2] but spurious productions seem to have been considered legitimate +subjects for the exercise of the art of the fabricator; and hence the +strange discrepancies in their text which have so often puzzled their +editors. + + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE IGNATIAN EPISTLES AND THEIR CLAIMS. +THE INTERNAL EVIDENCE. + + +The history of the Ignatian Epistles may well remind us of the story of +the Sibylline Books. A female in strange attire is said to have appeared +before Tarquin of Rome, offering to sell nine manuscripts which she had +in her possession; but the king, discouraged by the price, declined the +application. The woman withdrew; destroyed the one-third of her literary +treasures; and, returning again into the royal presence, demanded the +same price for what were left. The monarch once more refused to come up +to her terms; and the mysterious visitor retired again, and burnt the +one-half of her remaining store. Her extraordinary conduct excited much +astonishment; and, on consulting with his augurs, Tarquin was informed +that the documents which she had at her disposal were most valuable, and +that he should by all means endeavour to secure such a prize. The king +now willingly paid for the three books, not yet committed to the flames, +the full price originally demanded for all the manuscripts. The Ignatian +Epistles have experienced something like the fate of those Sibylline +oracles. In the sixteenth century, fifteen letters were brought out from +beneath the mantle of a hoary antiquity, and offered to the world as the +productions of the pastor of Antioch. Scholars refused to receive them +on the terms required, and forthwith eight of them were admitted to be +forgeries. In the seventeenth century, the seven remaining letters, in a +somewhat altered form, again came forth from obscurity, and claimed to +be the works of Ignatius. Again, discerning critics refused to +acknowledge their pretensions; but curiosity was roused by this second +apparition, and many expressed an earnest desire to obtain a sight of +the real epistles. Greece, Syria, Palestine, and Egypt were ransacked in +search of them, and at length three letters are found. The discovery +creates general gratulation; it is confessed that four of the Epistles, +so lately asserted to be genuine, are apocryphal; and it is boldly said +that the three now forthcoming are above challenge. [414:1] But Truth +still refuses to be compromised, and sternly disowns these claimants for +her approbation. The internal evidence of these three epistles +abundantly attests that, like the last three books of the Sibyl, they +are only the last shifts of a grave imposture. [414:2] + +The candid investigator, who compares the Curetonian version of the +letters with that previously in circulation, must acknowledge that +Ignatius, in his new dress, has lost nothing of his absurdity and +extravagance. The passages of the Epistles, which were formerly felt to +be so objectionable, are yet to be found here in all their unmitigated +folly. Ignatius is still the same anti-evangelical formalist, the same +puerile boaster, the same dreaming mystic, and the same crazy fanatic. +These are weighty charges, and yet they can be substantiated. But we +must enter into details, that we may fairly exhibit the spirit, and +expose the falsehood of these letters. + +I. The style of the Epistles is certainly not above suspicion. On the +ground of style alone, it is, unquestionably, somewhat hazardous to +pronounce a decisive judgment upon any document; but, if such an element +is ever to be taken into consideration, it cannot, in this case, be +overlooked. It is well known that, of the seven epistles mentioned by +Eusebius, there was one which scholars of the highest reputation always +regarded with extreme dubiety. In style it appeared to them so different +from the rest of the letters, and so unlike what might have been +expected from an apostolic minister, that some who were prepared to +admit the genuineness of the other documents, did not hesitate to +declare it a forgery. We allude to the Epistle to Polycarp. Even +Archbishop Ussher and Cardinal Bona [415:1] concurred in its +condemnation. It so happens, however, that it is one of the three +letters recently re-edited; and it appears that, of the three, _it has +been the least altered_. If then such a man as Ussher be considered a +safe and sufficient judge of the value of an ancient ecclesiastical +memorial, the Epistle to Polycarp, published by Dr Cureton, must be +pronounced spurious. Their editor urges that the letters to the +Ephesians and Romans, as expurgated in the Syriac version, now closely +resemble the Epistle to Polycarp in style; and if so, may we not fairly +infer that, had they been presented, in their new form, to the learned +Primate of Armagh, consistency would have bound him to denounce them as +also forgeries? + +II. The way in which the Word of God is ignored in these Epistles argues +strongly for their spuriousness. Every one acquainted with the early +fathers must have observed their frequent use of the sacred records. A +considerable portion of a chapter is sometimes introduced in a +quotation. [416:1] Hence it has been remarked that were all the copies +of the Bible lost and the writings of these fathers preserved, a large +share of the Holy Volume might thus be recovered. But Ignatius would +contribute nothing to the work of restoration; as, in the whole of the +three letters, not a single verse of Scripture is given at length. They, +no doubt, occasionally use Bible phraseology, as without it an +ecclesiastical document could not well be written; but not one promise +is quoted, and not one testimony from the Word is repeated for the +edification of the faithful. [416:2] An apostolical pastor on his way to +martyrdom would have written very differently. He would have reminded +his brethren of the "lively oracles," and he would have mentioned some +of those precious assurances which now contributed to his own spiritual +refreshment. He would have told them to have "no confidence in the +flesh;" [416:3] to take unto themselves "the sword of the Spirit which +is the Word of God;" [416:4] and to lay aside every weight and the sin +which did so easily beset them, "_looking unto Jesus_." [416:5] But, +instead of adopting such a course, this Ignatius addresses them in the +style of a starched and straitlaced churchman. "Let your treasures," +says he, "be your good works. Let your baptism be to you as armory." +"_Look to the bishop_ that God also may look upon you. I will be instead +of the souls of those who are subject to the bishop, and the presbyters +and the deacons." [416:6] What intelligent Christian can believe that a +minister, instructed by Paul or Peter, and filling one of the most +important stations in the apostolic Church, was verily such an ignorant +driveller? + +III. The chronological blunders in these Epistles betray their forgery. +In the "Acts of the Martyrdom of Ignatius," he and Polycarp are +represented as "fellow-scholars" of the Apostle John, [417:1] and the +pastor of Smyrna is supposed to be, in point of age, at least as +venerable a personage as the pastor of Antioch. The letter to Polycarp +is evidently written under the same impression. Ignatius there says to +him--"I praise God that I have been deemed _worthy of thy countenance_, +which in God I long after." When these words are supposed to have been +penned, Polycarp was only about six and twenty years of age; [417:2] and +the Church of Smyrna, with which he was connected, did not occupy a very +prominent place in the Christian commonwealth. Is it probable that a man +of the mature faith and large experience of Ignatius would have thus +addressed so youthful a minister? It also seems passing strange that the +aged martyr should commit all the widows of the community to his special +guardianship, and should think it necessary to add--"It is becoming to +men and women who marry, that they marry _by the counsel of the +bishop_." Was an individual, who was himself not much advanced beyond +boyhood, the most fitting person to give advice as to these matrimonial +engagements? A similar mistake as to age is made in the case of +Onesimus, who is supposed to be bishop of Ephesus. This minister, who is +understood to be mentioned in the New Testament. [417:3] is said at an +early date to have been pastor of the Church of the metropolis of the +Proconsular Asia; and the Ignatian forger obviously imagined that he was +still alive when his hero passed through Smyrna on his way to the +Western capital. But Onesimus perished in the Domitian persecution, +[418:1] so that Ignatius is made to write to a Christian brother who had +been long in his grave. [418:2] The fabricator proceeds more cautiously +in his letter to the Romans. How marvellous that this old gentleman, who +is willing to pledge his soul for every one who would submit to the +bishop, does not find it convenient to _name_ the bishop of Rome! The +experiment might have been somewhat hazardous. The early history of the +Roman Church was better known than that of any other in the world, and, +had he here made a mistake, the whole cheat might have been at once +detected. Though his erudition was so great that he could tell "the +places of angels," [418:3] he evidently did not dare to commit himself +by giving us a piece of earthly information, and by telling us who was +at the head of the Church of the Great City in the ninth year of the +reign of Trajan. But the same prudence does not prevail throughout the +Epistle. He here obviously speaks of the Church of Rome, not as she +existed a few years after the death of Clement, but of the same Church +as she was known after the death of Victor. In the beginning of the +second century the Church of the Syrian capital would not have +acknowledged the precedence of her Western sister. On the fall of +Jerusalem, the Church of Antioch was herself the first Christian +community in the Empire. She had a higher antiquity, a more +distinguished prestige, and perhaps a more numerous membership than any +other Church in existence. In the Syrian metropolis the disciples had +first been called Christians; there, Barnabas and Paul had been +separated to the work to which the Lord had called them; there, Peter +had preached; and there, prophets had laboured. But a century had +brought about a wonderful change. The Church of Rome had meanwhile +obtained the first place among Christian societies; and, before the +middle of the third century, "the See of Peter" was honoured as the +centre of catholic unity. Towards the close of the second century, many +persons of rank and power joined her communion, [419:1] and her +political influence was soon felt to be so formidable that even the +Roman Emperor began to be jealous of the Roman bishop. [419:2] But the +Ignatian forger did not take into account this ecclesiastical +revolution. Hence he here incautiously speaks in the language of his own +age, and writing "to her _who sitteth at the head_ in the place of the +country of the Romans," he says to her with all due humility--"I am not +commanding you like Peter and Paul" [419:3]--"Ye have taught +others"--"It is easy for you to do whatsoever you please." + +IV. Various words in these Epistles have a meaning which they did not +acquire until long after the time of Ignatius. Thus, the term employed +in the days of the Apostles to denote _purity_, or _chastity_, here +signifies _celibacy_. [419:4] Even in the commencement of the third +century those who led a single life were beginning to be considered +Christians of a superior type, as contrasted with those who were +married; and clerical celibacy was becoming very fashionable. [420:1] +The Ignatian fabricator writes under the influence of the popular +sentiment. "The house of the Church" at Antioch, of which Paul of +Samosata kept possession after his deposition about A.D. 269, [420:2] +seems to have been a dwelling appropriated to the use of the +ecclesiastical functionaries, [420:3] and the schemer who wrote the +first draft of these letters evidently believed that the ministers of +Christ should be a brotherhood of bachelors. Hence Ignatius is made thus +to address Polycarp and his clergy--"Labour together one with another; +make the struggle together one with another; run together one with +another; suffer together one with another; _sleep together one with +another; rise together one with another_." Polycarp and others of the +elders of Smyrna were probably married; [420:4] so that some +inconvenience might have attended this arrangement. + +The word _bishop_ is another term found in these Epistles, and employed +in a sense which it did not possess at the alleged date of their +publication. Every one knows that, in the New Testament, it does not +signify the chief pastor of a Church; but, about the middle of the +second century, as will subsequently appear, [421:1] it began to have +this acceptation. Clement of Rome, writing a few years before the time +of the martyrdom of Ignatius, uses the words bishop and presbyter +interchangeably. [421:2] Polycarp, in his own Epistle, dictated, +perhaps, forty years after the death of the Syrian pastor, still adheres +to the same phraseology. In the Peshito version of the New Testament, +executed probably in the former half of the second century, [421:3] the +same terminology prevails. [421:4] Ignatius, however, is far in advance +of his generation. When new terms are introduced, or when new meanings +are attached to designations already current, it seldom happens that an +old man changes his style of speaking. He is apt to persevere, in spite +of fashion, in the use of the phraseology to which he has been +accustomed from his childhood. But Ignatius is an exception to all such +experience, for he repeats the new nomenclature with as much flippancy +as if he had never heard any other. [421:5] Surely this minister of +Antioch must be worthy of all the celebrity he has attained, for he can +not only carry on a written correspondence with the dead, but also +anticipate by half a century even the progress of language! + +V. The puerilities, vapouring, and mysticism of these letters proclaim +their forgery. We would expect an aged apostolic minister, on his way to +martyrdom, to speak as a man in earnest, to express himself with some +degree of dignity, and to eschew trivial and ridiculous comparisons. +But, when treating of a grave subject, what can be more silly or +indecorous than such language as the following--"Ye are raised on high +by the engine of Jesus Christ, which is the cross, and ye are drawn by +the rope, which is the Holy Ghost, and your pulley is your faith." +[422:1] Well may the Christian reader exclaim, with indignation, as he +peruses these words, Is the Holy Ghost then a mere rope? Is that +glorious Being who worketh in us to will and to do according to His own +good pleasure, a mere piece of tackling pertaining to the ecclesiastical +machinery, to be moved and managed according to the dictation of Bishop +Ignatius? [422:2] But the frivolity of this impostor is equalled by his +gasconade. He thus tantalises the Romans with an account of his +attainments--"I am able to write to you heavenly things, _but I fear +lest I should do you an injury_." ..... + +"I am able to know heavenly things, and the places of angels, and the +station of powers that are visible and invisible." Where did he gather +all this recondite lore? Certainly not from the Old or New Testament. +May we not safely pronounce this man to be one who seeks to be wise +above what is written, "intruding into those things which he hath not +seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind?" [422:3] He seems, indeed, +to have himself had some suspicion that such was his character, for he +says, again, to his brethren of the Western metropolis--"I know many +things in God, but I moderate myself that I may not _perish through +boasting_; for now it is becoming to me that I should fear the more +abundantly, and should not look to _those that puff me up_." Let us now +hear a specimen of the mysticism of this dotard. "There was hidden from +the Ruler of this world the virginity of Mary, and the birth of our +Lord, and the three mysteries of the shout, which were done in the +quietness of God by means of the star, and here by the manifestation of +the Son magic began to be dissolved." [423:1] Who can undertake to +expound such jargon? What are we to understand by "the quietness of +God?" Who can tell how "the three mysteries of the shout" were "done by +means of the star?" + +VI. The unhallowed and insane anxiety for martyrdom which appears +throughout these letters is another decisive proof of their fabrication. +He who was, in the highest sense, the Faithful Witness betrayed no +fanatic impatience for the horrid tragedy of crucifixion; and, true to +the promptings of his human nature, he prayed, in the very crisis of His +agony--"O my Father, _if it be possible, let this cup pass from me_." +[423:2] The Scriptures represent the most exalted saints as shrinking +instinctively from suffering. In the prophecy announcing the violent +death of Peter, it is intimated that even the intrepid apostle of the +circumcision would feel disposed to recoil from the bloody ordeal. "When +thou shalt be old," said our Lord to him, "thou shalt stretch forth thy +hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee _whither thou +wouldest not_." [423:3] Paul mentions with thankfulness how, on a +critical occasion, the Lord stood with him, and "_delivered_" him "out +of the mouth of the lion." [423:4] Long after the apostolic age, the +same spirit continued to be cherished, and hence we are told of Polycarp +that, even when bowed down by the weight of years, he felt it right to +retire out of the way of those who sought his destruction. The +disciples, whom he had so long taught, took the same view of Christian +duty; and accordingly, in the Epistle of the Church of Smyrna, which +records his martyrdom, the conduct of those who "present themselves _of +their own accord_ to the trial" is emphatically condemned. [424:1] "We +do not," say the believers of Smyrna, "commend those who offer +themselves to persecution, _seeing the gospel teaches no such thing_." +[424:2] But a man who is supposed to have enjoyed far higher advantages +than Polycarp--a minister who is said to have been contemporary with all +the apostles--a ruler of the Church who is understood to have occupied a +far more prominent and influential position than the pastor of +Smyrna--is exhibited in the legend of his martyrdom as appearing "of his +own free will" [424:3] at the judgment-seat of the Emperor, and as +manifesting the utmost anxiety to be delivered into the mouth of the +lion. In the commencement of the second century the Churches of Rome and +Ephesus doubtless possessed as much spiritual enlightenment as any other +Churches in the world, and it is a libel upon their Christianity to +suppose that they could have listened with any measure of complacency to +the senseless ravings to be found even in the recent edition of the +Ignatian Letters. [424:4] The writer is made to assure the believers in +these great cities that he has an unquenchable desire to be eaten alive, +and he beseeches them to pray that he may enjoy this singular +gratification. "I hope," says he, "_through your prayers_ that I shall +be devoured by the beasts in Rome." [425:1] ... "I beg of you, be not +with me in the love that is not in its season. Leave me, that I may be +for the beasts, that by means of them I may be worthy of God.... With +provoking _provoke ye the beasts_ that they may be a grave for me, and +may leave nothing of my body, that not even when I am fallen asleep may +I be a burden upon any man.... I rejoice in the beasts which are +prepared for me, and _I pray that they may be quickly found for me_, and +I will provoke them that they may quickly devour me." [425:2] Every man +jealous for the honour of primitive Christianity should be slow to +believe that an apostolic preacher addressed such outrageous folly to +apostolic Churches. + +When reviewing the external evidence in support of these Epistles, we +have had occasion to shew that they were probably fabricated in the +former part of the third century. The internal evidence corroborates the +same conclusion. Ecclesiastical history attests that during the fifty +years preceding the death of Cyprian, [425:3] the principles here put +forward were fast gaining the ascendency. As early as the days of +Tertullian, ritualism was rapidly supplanting the freedom of evangelical +worship; baptism was beginning to be viewed as an "armour" of marvellous +potency; [425:4] the tradition that the great Church of the West had +been founded by Peter and Paul was now extensively propagated; and there +was an increasing disposition throughout the Empire to recognise the +precedence of "her who sitteth at the head in the place of the country +of the Romans." It is apparent from the writings of Cyprian that in some +quarters the "church system" was already matured. The language ascribed +to Ignatius--"Be careful for unanimity, than _which there is nothing +more_ excellent" [426:1]--then expressed a prevailing sentiment. To +maintain unity was considered a higher duty than to uphold truth, and to +be subject to the bishop was deemed one of the greatest of evangelical +virtues. Celibacy was then confounded with chastity, and mysticism was +extensively occupying the place of scriptural knowledge and intelligent +conviction. And the admiration of martyrdom which presents itself in +such a startling form in these Epistles was one of the characteristics +of the period. Paul taught that a man may give his body to be burned and +yet want the spirit of the gospel; [426:2] but Origen does not scruple +to describe martyrdom as "the cup of salvation," the baptism which +cleanses the sufferer, the act which makes his blood precious in God's +sight to the redemption of others. [426:3] Do not all these +circumstances combined supply abundant proof that these Epistles were +written in the time of this Alexandrian father? [426:4] + +It is truly wonderful that men, such as Dr Cureton, have permitted +themselves to be befooled by these Syriac manuscripts. It is still more +extraordinary that writers, such as the pious and amiable Milner, +[426:5] have published, with all gravity, the rhapsodies of Ignatius for +the edification of their readers. It would almost appear as if the name +_Bishop_ has such a magic influence on some honest and enlightened +Episcopalians, that when the interests of their denomination are +supposed to be concerned, they can be induced to close their eyes +against the plainest dictates of common sense and the clearest light of +historical demonstration. In deciding upon matters of fact the spirit of +party should never be permitted to interfere. Truth is the common +property of the catholic Church; and no good and holy cause can require +the support of an apocryphal correspondence. + +It is no mean proof of the sagacity of the great Calvin, that, upwards +of three hundred years ago, he passed a sweeping sentence of +condemnation on these Ignatian Epistles. At the time, many were startled +by the boldness of his language, and it was thought that he was somewhat +precipitate in pronouncing such a decisive judgment. But he saw +distinctly, and he therefore spoke fearlessly. There is a far more +intimate connexion than many are disposed to believe between sound +theology and sound criticism, for a right knowledge of the Word of God +strengthens the intellectual vision, and assists in the detection of +error wherever it may reveal itself. Had Pearson enjoyed the same clear +views of gospel truth as the Reformer of Geneva, he would not have +wasted so many precious years in writing a learned vindication of the +nonsense attributed to Ignatius. Calvin knew that an apostolic man must +have been acquainted with apostolic doctrine, and he saw that these +letters must have been the productions of an age when the pure light of +Christianity was greatly obscured. Hence he denounced them so +emphatically: and time has verified his deliverance. His language +respecting them has been often quoted, but we feel we cannot more +appropriately close our observations on this subject than by another +repetition of it. "There is nothing more abominable than that trash +which is in circulation under the name of Ignatius." [428:1] + + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE GNOSTICS, THE MONTANISTS, AND THE MANICHAEANS. + + +When Christianity made its appearance in the world, it produced a +profound sensation. It spread on all sides with great rapidity; it was +at once felt to be a religion for the common people; and some +individuals of highly cultivated minds soon acknowledged its authority. +For a time its progress was impeded by the persecutions of Nero and +Domitian; but, about the beginning of the second century, it started +upon a new career of prosperous advancement, and quickly acquired such a +position that the most distinguished scholars and philosophers could no +longer overlook its pretensions. In the reigns of Trajan and Hadrian, a +considerable number of men of learning were already in its ranks; but it +would appear that, on the whole, it derived very equivocal aid from the +presence of these new adherents. Not a few of the literati who joined +its standard attempted to corrupt it; and one hundred and twenty years +after the death of the Apostle John, the champions of orthodoxy had to +contend against no less than thirty-two heresies. [429:1] + +Of those who now adulterated the gospel, the Gnostics were by far the +most subtle, the most active, and the most formidable. The leaders of +the party were all men of education; and as they were to be found +chiefly in the large cities, the Church in these centres of influence +was in no small degree embarrassed and endangered by their speculations. +Some of the peculiarities of Gnosticism have been already noticed; +[430:1] but as the second century was the period when it made most +progress and awakened most anxiety, we must here advert more distinctly +to its outlines. The three great antagonists of the gospel were the +Grecian philosophy, the heathen mythology, and a degenerate Judaism; and +Gnosticism may be described as an attempt to effect a compromise between +Christianity and these rivals. As might have been expected, the attempt +met with much encouragement; for many, who hesitated to accept the new +religion unconditionally, were constrained to acknowledge that it +exhibited many indications of truth and divinity; and they were, +therefore, prepared to look on it with favour when presented to them in +an altered shape and furnished with certain favourite appendages. The +Gnostics called themselves believers; and their most celebrated teachers +would willingly have remained in the bosom of the Church; but it soon +appeared that their principles were subversive of the New Testament +revelation; and they were accordingly excluded from ecclesiastical +fellowship. + +Gnosticism assumed a variety of forms, and almost every one of its +teachers had his own distinctive creed; but, as a system, it was always +known by certain remarkable features. It uniformly ignored the doctrine +that God made all things out of nothing; [430:2] and, taking for granted +the eternity of matter, it tried to account, on philosophical +principles, for the moral and spiritual phenomena of the world which we +inhabit. The _Gnosis_, [430:3] or knowledge, which it supplied, and from +which it derived its designation, was a strange congeries of wild +speculations. The Scriptures describe the Most High as humbling Himself +to behold the things that are on earth, [431:1] as exercising a constant +providence over all His creatures, as decking the lilies of the valley, +and as numbering the very hairs of our heads; but Gnosticism exhibited +the Supreme God as separated by an immeasurable interval from matter, +and as having no direct communication with anything thus contaminated. +The theory by means of which many of its adherents endeavoured to solve +the problem of the origin of evil, [431:2] and to trace the connexion +between the finite and the infinite, was not without ingenuity. They +maintained that a series of Aeons, or divine beings, emanated from the +Primal Essence; but, as sound issuing from a given point gradually +becomes fainter until it is finally lost in silence, each generation of +Aeons, as it receded from the great Fountain of Spiritual Existence, +lost somewhat of the vigour of divinity; and at length an Aeon was +produced without power sufficient to maintain its place in the Pleroma, +or habitation of the Godhead. This scheme of a series of Aeons of +gradually decreasing excellence was apparently designed to shew how, +from an Almighty and Perfect Intelligence, a weak and erring being might +be generated. There were Gnostics who carried the principle of +attenuation so far as to teach that the inhabitants of the celestial +world were distributed into no less than three hundred and sixty-five +heavens, [431:3] each somewhat inferior to the other. According to some +of these systems, an Aeon removed by many emanations from the source of +Deity, and, in consequence, possessed of comparatively little strength, +passed over the bounds of the Pleroma, and imparted life to matter. +Another Power, called the _Demiurge_, was now produced, who, out of the +materials already in existence, fashioned the present world. The human +race, ushered, under such circumstances, upon the stage of time, are +ignorant of the true God, and in bondage to corrupt matter. But all men +are not in a state of equal degradation. Some possess a spiritual +nature; some, a physical or animal nature; and some, only a corporeal or +carnal nature. Jesus now appeared, and, at His baptism in the Jordan, +Christ, a powerful Aeon, joined Him, that He might be fitted for +redeeming souls from the ignorance and slavery in which they are +entangled. This Saviour taught the human family the knowledge of the +true God. Jesus was seized and led to crucifixion, and the Aeon Christ +now departed from Him; but, as His body was composed of the finest +ethereal elements, and was, in fact, a phantom, He did not really suffer +on the accursed tree. Many of the Gnostics taught that there are two +spheres of future enjoyment. They held that, whilst the spiritual +natures shall be restored to the Pleroma, the physical or animal natures +shall be admitted to an inferior state of happiness; and that such souls +as are found to be incapable of purification shall be consigned to +perdition or annihilation. + +Whilst, according to all the Gnostics, the Demiurge, or maker of this +world, is far inferior to the Supreme Deity, these system-builders were +by no means agreed as to his position and his functions. Some of them +regarded him as an Aeon of inferior intelligence who acted in obedience +to the will of the Great God; others conceived that he was no other than +the God of the Jews, who, in their estimation, was a Being of somewhat +rugged and intractable character; whilst others contended that he was an +Evil Power at open war with the righteous Sovereign of the universe. The +Gnostics also differed in their views respecting matter. Those of them +who were Egyptians, and who had been addicted to the study of the +Platonic philosophy, held matter to be inert until impregnated with +life; but the Syrians, who borrowed much from the Oriental theology, +taught that it was eternally subject to a Lord, or Ruler, who had been +perpetually at variance with the Great God of the Pleroma. + +Two of the most distinguished Gnostic teachers who flourished in the +early part of the second century were Saturninus of Antioch and +Basilides of Alexandria. [433:1] Valentine, who appeared somewhat later, +and who is supposed to have first excited attention at Rome about A.D. +140, was still more celebrated. He taught that in the Pleroma there are +fifteen male and fifteen female Aeons, whom he professed to distinguish +by their names; and he even proceeded to point out how they are +distributed into married pairs. Some have supposed that certain deep +philosophical truths were here concealed by him under the veil of +allegory. As he, like others of the same class, conveyed parts of his +Gnosis only into the ears of the initiated, it may be that the +explanation of its symbols was reserved for those who were thus made +acquainted with its secret wisdom. It has been alleged that he +personified the attributes of God, and that the Aeons, whom he names and +joins together, are simply those divine perfections which, when +combined, are fitted to produce the most remarkable results. Thus, he +associated _Profundity_ and _Thought, Intelligence_ and _Truth_, +_Reason_ and _Life_. [433:2] His system seems to have had many +attractions for his age, as his disciples, in considerable numbers, were +soon to be found both in the East and in the West. + +When Valentine was at Rome, Marcion, another heresiarch of the same +class, was also in the great metropolis. [433:3] This man is said to +have been born in Pontus, and though some of the fathers have attempted +to fix a stain upon his early reputation, his subsequent character seems +to have been irreproachable. [434:1] There is reason to think that he +was one of the most upright and amiable of the Gnostics. These errorists +were charged by their orthodox antagonists with gross immorality; and +there was often, perhaps, too much ground for the accusation; for some +of them, such as Carpocrates, [434:2] avowed and encouraged the most +shameless licentiousness; but others, such as Marcion, were noted for +their ascetic strictness. All the more respectable Gnostics appear to +have recommended themselves to public confidence by the austerity of +their discipline. They enjoined rigorous fasting, and inculcated +abstinence from wine, flesh-meat, and marriage. The Oriental theology, +as well as the Platonic philosophy, sanctioned such a mode of living; +and, therefore, those by whom it was practised were in a favourable +position for gaining the public ear when they came forward as +theological instructors. + +Gnosticism may appear to us a most fantastic system; but, in the second +century, it was dreaded as a very formidable adversary by the Church; +and the extent to which it spread attests that it possessed not a few of +the elements of popularity. Its doctrine of Aeons, or Divine Emanations, +was quite in accordance with theories which had then gained extensive +currency; and its account of the formation of the present world was +countenanced by established modes of thinking. Many who cherished a +hereditary prejudice against Judaism were gratified by the announcement +that the Demiurge was no other than the God of the Israelites; and many +more were flattered by the statement that some souls are essentially +purer and better than others. [435:1] The age was sunk in sensuality; +and, as it was the great boast of the heresiarchs that their _Gnosis_ +secured freedom from the dominion of the flesh, multitudes, who secretly +sighed for deliverance, were thus induced to test its efficacy. But +Gnosticism, in whatever form it presented itself, was a miserable +perversion of the gospel. Some of its teachers entirely rejected the Old +Testament; others reduced its history to a myth; whilst all mutilated +and misinterpreted the writings of the apostles and evangelists. Like +the Jewish Cabbalists, who made void the law of God by expositions which +fancy suggested and tradition embalmed, the Gnostics by their +far-fetched and unnatural comments, threw an air of obscurity over the +plainest passages of the New Testament. Some of them, aware that they +could derive no support from the inspired records, actually fabricated +Gospels, and affixed to them the names of apostles or evangelists, in +the hope of thus obtaining credit for the spurious documents. [435:2] +Whilst Gnosticism in this way set aside the authority of the Word of +God, it also lowered the dignity of the Saviour; and even when Christ +was most favourably represented by it, He was but an Aeon removed at the +distance of several intermediate generations from the Supreme Ruler of +the universe. The propagators of this system altogether misconceived the +scope of the gospel dispensation. They substituted salvation by carnal +ordinances for salvation by faith; they represented man in his natural +state rather as an ignoramus than a sinner; and, whilst they absurdly +magnified their own Gnosis, they entirely discarded the doctrine of a +vicarious atonement. + +Shortly after the middle of the second century the Church began to be +troubled by a heresy in some respects very different from Gnosticism. At +that time the persecuting spirit displayed by Marcus Aurelius filled the +Christians throughout the Empire with alarm, and those of them who were +given to despondency began to entertain the most gloomy anticipations. +An individual, named Montanus, who laid claim to prophetic endowments, +now appeared in a village on the borders of Phrygia; and though he seems +to have possessed a rather mean capacity, his discipline was so suited +to the taste of many, and the predictions which he uttered so accorded +with prevailing apprehensions, that he soon created a deep impression. +When he first came forward in the character of a Divine Instructor he +had been recently converted to Christianity; and he seems to have +strangely misapprehended the nature of the gospel. When he delivered his +pretended communications from heaven, he is said to have wrought himself +up into a state of frenzied excitement. His countrymen, who had been +accustomed to witness the ecstasies of the priests of Bacchus and +Cybele, saw proofs of a divine impulse in his bodily contortions; and +some of them at once acknowledged his extraordinary mission. By means of +two wealthy female associates, named Priscilla and Maximilla, who also +professed to utter prophecies, Montanus was enabled rapidly to extend +his influence. His fame spread abroad on all sides; and, in a few years, +he had followers in Europe and in Africa, as well as in Asia. + +It cannot be said that this heresiarch attempted to overturn the creed +of the Church. He was neither a profound thinker nor a logical reasoner; +and he certainly had not maturely studied the science of theology. But +he possessed an ardent temperament, and he seems to have mistaken the +suggestions of his own fanaticism for the dictates of inspiration. The +doctrine of the personal reign of Christ during the millennium appears +to have formed a prominent topic in his ministrations. [437:1] He +maintained that the discipline of the Church had been left incomplete by +the apostles, and that he was empowered to supply a better code of +regulations. According to some he proclaimed himself the _Paraclete_; +but, if so, he most grievously belied his assumed name, for his system +was far better fitted to induce despondency than to inspire comfort. All +his precepts were conceived in the sour and contracted spirit of mere +ritualism. He insisted upon long fasts; he condemned second marriages; +[437:2] he inveighed against all who endeavoured to save themselves by +flight in times of persecution; and he asserted that such as had once +been guilty of any heinous transgression should never again be admitted +to ecclesiastical fellowship. Whilst he promulgated this stern +discipline, he at the same time delivered the most dismal predictions, +announcing, among other things, the speedy catastrophe of the Roman +Empire. He also gave out that the Phrygian village where he ministered +was to become the New Jerusalem of renovated Christianity. + +But the Church was still too strongly impregnated with the free spirit +of the gospel to submit to such a prophet as Montanus. He had, however, +powerful advocates, and even a Roman bishop at one time gave him +countenance. [437:3] Though his discipline commended itself to the +morose and pharisaical, it was rejected by those who rightly understood +the mystery of godliness. Several councils were held to discuss its +merits, and it was emphatically condemned. [438:1] The signal failure of +some of the Montanist predictions had greatly lowered the credit of the +party; Montanus was pronounced a false prophet; and though the sect was +supported by Tertullian, the most vigorous writer of the age, it +gradually ceased to attract notice. [438:2] + +About a century after the appearance of Montanus, another individual, in +a more remote part of Asia, acquired great notoriety as a heresiarch. +The doctrine of two First Principles, a good deity and an evil deity, +had been long current in the East. Even in the days of Isaiah we may +trace its existence, for there is a most significant allusion to it in +one of his prophecies, in which Jehovah is represented as saying--"I am +the Lord, and there is _none else_, there is no God beside me.... _I +form the light, and create darkness; I make peace, and create evil:_ I +the Lord do all these things." [438:3] About the fifth century before +Christ, the Persian theology had been reformed by Zoroaster, and the +subordination of the two Principles to one God, the author of both, had +been acknowledged as an article of the established creed. In the early +part of the third century of the Christian era, there was a struggle +between the adherents of the old and the new faith of Parsism; and the +supporters of the views of Zoroaster had been again successful. But a +considerable party still refused to relinquish the doctrine of the +independence of the two Principles; and some of these probably joined +themselves to Mani, a Persian by birth, who, in the latter half of the +third century, became distinguished as the propagator of a species of +mongrel Christianity. This man, who was born about A.D. 240, possessed +genius of a high order. Though he finished his career when he was only +thirty-seven years of age, he had already risen to eminence among his +countrymen, and attracted the notice of several successive sovereigns. +He is said to have been a skilful physician, an accomplished painter, +and an excellent astronomer, as well as an acute metaphysician. Like +Montanus, he laid claim to a divine commission, and alleged that he was +the Paraclete who was promised to guide into all truth. He maintained +that there are two First Principles of all things, light and darkness: +God, in the kingdom of light, and the devil, in the kingdom of darkness, +have existed from eternity. Mani thus accounted for the phenomena of the +world around us--"Over the kingdom of light," said this heresiarch, +"ruled God the Father, eternal in His sacred race, glorious in His +might, the truth by His very essence.... But the Father himself, +glorious in His majesty; incomprehensible in His greatness, has united +with Himself blessed and glorious Aeons, in number and greatness +surpassing estimation." [439:1] He taught that Christ appeared to +liberate the light from the darkness, and that he himself was now +deputed to reveal the mysteries of the universe, and to assist men in +recovering their freedom. He rejected a great portion of the canon of +Scripture, and substituted certain writings of his own, which his +followers were to receive as of divine authority. His disciples, called +Manichees or Manichaeans, assumed the name of a _Church_, and were +divided into two classes, the _Elect_ and the _Hearers_. The Elect, +who were comparatively few, were the sacred order. They alone were made +acquainted with the mysteries, or more recondite doctrines, of the sect; +they practised extreme abstinence; they subsisted chiefly upon olives; +[439:2] and they lived in celibacy. They were not to kill, or even +wound, an animal; neither were they to pull up a vegetable, or pluck a +flower. The Hearers were permitted to share in the business and +pleasures of the world, but they were taught only the elements of the +system. After death, according to Mani, souls do not pass immediately +into the world of light. They must first undergo a two-fold +purification; one, by _water_ in the moon; another, by _fire_ +in the sun. + +Mani had provoked the enmity of the Magians; and, at their instigation, +he was consigned, about A.D. 277, by order of the Persian monarch, to a +cruel and ignominious death. But the sect which he had organized did not +die along with him. His system was well fitted to please the Oriental +fancy; its promise of a higher wisdom to those who obtained admission +into the class of the Elect encouraged the credulity of the auditors; +and, to such as had not carefully studied the Christian revelation, its +hypothesis of a Good and of an Evil Deity accounted rather plausibly for +the mingled good and evil of our present existence. The Manichaeans were +exposed to much suffering in the country where they first appeared; and, +as a sect of Persian origin, they were oppressed by the Roman +government; but they were not extinguished by persecution, and, far down +in the middle ages, they still occasionally figure in the drama of +history. + +Synods and councils may pass resolutions condemnatory of false doctrine, +but it is somewhat more difficult to counteract the seduction of the +principles from which heresies derive their influence. The Gnostics, the +Montanists, and the Manichaeans, owed much of their strength to +fallacies and superstitions with which the Christian teachers of the age +were not fully prepared to grapple; and hence it was that, whilst the +errorists themselves were denounced by ecclesiastical authority, a large +portion of their peculiar leaven found its way into the Church, and +gradually produced an immense change in its doctrine and discipline. A +notice of the more important of the false sentiments and dangerous +practices which the heretics propagated and the catholics adopted, may +enable us to estimate the amount of the damage which the cause of truth +now sustained. + +The Montanists recognised the distinction of _venial_ and _mortal_ sins. +They held that a professed disciple, who was guilty of what they called +mortal sin, should never again be admitted to sealing ordinances. +[441:1] It is apparent from the writings of Hippolytus, the famous +bishop of Portus, that, in the early part of the third century, some of +the most influential of the catholics cordially supported this +principle. Soon afterwards it was openly advocated by a powerful party +in the Church of Borne, and its rejection by Cornelius, then at the head +of that community, led to the schism of Novatian. But the distinction of +venial and mortal sins, upon which it proceeded, was even now generally +acknowledged. This distinction, which lies at the basis of the ancient +penitential discipline, was already beginning to vitiate the whole +catholic theology. Some sins, it is true, are more heinous than others, +but the comparative turpitude of transgressions depends much on the +circumstances in which they are committed. The wages of every sin is +death, [441:2] and it is absurd to attempt to give a stereotyped +character to any one violation of God's law by classing it, in regard to +the extent of its guilt, in a particular category. Christianity regards +sin, in whatever form, as a spiritual poison; and instead of seeking to +solve the curious problem--how much of it may exist in the soul without +the destruction of spiritual life?--it wisely instructs us to guard +against it in our very thoughts, and to abstain from even the +"appearance of evil." [442:1] "When lust," or indwelling depravity of +any description, "has conceived, it bringeth forth sin; and sin, when it +is finished, bringeth forth death." [442:2] Experience has demonstrated +that the admission of the distinction of venial and mortal sins is most +perilous to the best interests of the Christian community; for, whilst +it is without foundation in the inspired statutebook, it must inevitably +lead to the neglect or careless performance of many duties which the +Most High has solemnly enjoined. + +The Platonic philosophy taught the necessity of a state of purification +after death; [442:3] and a modification of this doctrine formed part of +at least some of the systems of Gnosticism. [442:4] It is inculcated by +Tertullian, the great champion of Montanism; [442:5] and we have seen +how, according to Mani, departed souls must pass, first to the moon, and +then to the sun, that they may thus undergo a twofold purgation. Here, +again, a tenet originally promulgated by the heretics, became at length +a portion of the creed of the Church. The Manichaeans, as well as the +Gnostics, rejected the doctrine of the atonement, and as faith in the +perfection of the cleansing virtue of the blood of Christ declined, a +belief in Purgatory became popular. [442:6] + +The Gnostics, with some exceptions, insisted greatly on the +mortification of the body; and the same species of discipline was +strenuously recommended by the Montanists and the Manichaeans. All these +heretics believed that the largest measure of future happiness was to be +realised by those who practised the most rigid asceticism. Mani admitted +that an individual without any extraordinary amount of self-denial, +might reach the world of Light, for he held out the hope of heaven to +his Hearers; but he taught that its highest distinctions were reserved +for the Elect, who scrupulously refrained from bodily indulgence. The +Church silently adopted the same principle; and the distinction between +_precepts_ and _counsels_, which was soon introduced into its theology, +rests upon this foundation. By precepts are understood those duties +which are obligatory upon all; by counsels, those acts, whether of +charity or abstinence, which are expected from such only as aim at +superior sanctity. [443:1] The Elect of the Manichaeans, as well as many +of the Gnostics, [443:2] declined to enter into wedlock, and the +Montanists were disposed to confer double honour on the single clergy. +[443:3] The Church did not long stand out against the fascinations of +this popular delusion. Her members almost universally caught up the +impression that marriage stands in the way of the cultivation of piety; +and bishops and presbyters, who lived in celibacy, began to be regarded +as more holy than their brethren. This feeling continued to gain +strength; and from it sprung that vast system of monasticism which +spread throughout Christendom, with such amazing rapidity, in the fourth +century. + +It thus appears that asceticism and clerical celibacy have been grafted +on Christianity by Paganism. Hundreds of years before the New Testament +was written, Buddhism could boast of multitudes of monks and eremites. +[443:4] The Gnostics, in the early part of the second century, +celebrated the praises of a single life; and the Elect of the +Manichaeans were all celibates. Meanwhile marriage was permitted to the +clergy of the catholic Church. Well might the apostle exhort the +disciples to beware of those ordinances which have "_a shew of wisdom_ +in will-worship, and humility, and _neglecting of the body_," [444:1] as +the austerities of the cloister are miserable preparatives for the +enjoyments of a world of purity and love. Christianity exhibited +startling tokens of degeneracy when it attempted to nourish piety upon +the spawn of the heathen superstitions. The gospel is designed for +social and for active beings; as it hallows all the relations of life, +it also teaches us how to use all the good gifts of God; and whilst +celibacy and protracted fasting may only generate misanthropy and +melancholy, faith, walking in the ways of obedience, can purify the +heart, and induce the peace that passeth all understanding. + + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +THE DOCTRINE OF THE CHURCH. + + +For some time after the apostolic age, the doctrine of the Church +remained unchanged. Those who had been taught the gospel by the lips of +its inspired heralds could not have been readily induced to relinquish +any of its distinctive principles. It must, indeed, be admitted that the +purity of the evangelical creed was soon deteriorated by the admixture +of dogmas suggested by bigotry and superstition; but, it may safely be +asserted that, throughout the whole of the period now before us, its +elementary articles were substantially maintained by almost all the +Churches of the Empire. + +Though there was still a pretty general agreement respecting the +cardinal points of Christianity, it is not to be thought strange that +the early writers occasionally expressed themselves in a way which would +now be considered loose or inaccurate. Errorists, by the controversies +they awakened, not unfrequently created much perplexity and confusion; +but, in general, the truth eventually issued from discussion with +renovated credit; for, in due time, acute and able advocates came +forward to prove that the articles assailed rested on an impregnable +foundation. During these debates it was found necessary to distinguish +the different shades of doctrine by the establishment of a fixed +terminology. The disputants were obliged to define with precision the +expressions they employed; and thus various forms of speech ceased to +have an equivocal meaning. But, in the second or third century, theology +had not assumed a scientific form; and the language of orthodoxy was, as +yet, unsettled. Hence, when treating of doctrinal questions, those whose +views were substantially correct sometimes gave their sanction to the +use of phrases which were afterwards condemned as the symbols of +heterodoxy. [446:1] + +About the beginning of the third century all adults who were admitted to +baptism were required to make a declaration of their faith by assenting +to some such formula as that now called "The Apostles' Creed;" [446:2] +and though no general council had yet been held, the chief pastors of +the largest and most influential Churches maintained, by letters, an +official correspondence, and were in this way well acquainted with each +other's sentiments. A considerable number of these epistles, or at least +of extracts from them, are still extant; [446:3] and there is thus +abundant proof of the unity of the faith of the ecclesiastical rulers. +But, in treating of this subject, it is necessary to be more specific, +and to notice particularly the leading doctrines which were now commonly +received. + +Before entering directly on this review, it is proper to mention that +the Holy Scriptures were held in the highest estimation. The reading of +them aloud formed part of the stated service of the congregations, and +one or other of the passages brought, at the time, under the notice of +the auditory, usually constituted the groundwork of the preacher's +discourse. Their perusal was recommended to the laity; [447:1] the +husband and wife talked of them familiarly as they sat by the domestic +hearth; [447:2] and children were accustomed to commit them to memory. +[447:3] As many of the disciples could not read, and as the expense of +manuscripts was considerable, copies of the sacred books were not in the +hands of all; but their frequent rehearsal in the public assemblies made +the multitude familiar with their contents, and some of the brethren +possessed an amount of acquaintance with these records which, even at +the present day, would be deemed most extraordinary. Eusebius speaks of +several individuals who could repeat, at will, any required passage from +either the Old or New Testament. On a certain occasion the historian +happened to be present when one of these walking concordances poured +forth the stores of his prodigious memory. "I was struck with +admiration," says he, "when I first beheld him standing amidst a large +crowd, and reciting certain portions of Holy Writ. As long as I could +only hear his voice, I supposed that he was reading, as is usual in the +congregations; but, when I came close up to him, I discovered that, +employing only the eyes of his mind, he uttered the divine oracles like +some prophet." [447:4] + +It was not extraordinary that the early Christians were anxious to +treasure up Scripture in the memory, for in all matters of faith and +practice the Written Word was regarded as the standard of ultimate +appeal. No human authority whatever was deemed equal to the award of +this divine arbiter. "They who are labouring after excellency," says a +father of this period, "will not stop in their search after truth, +_until they have obtained proof of that which they believe from the +Scriptures themselves_." [448:1] Nor was there any dispute as to the +amount of confidence to be placed in the language of the Bible. The +doctrine of its plenary inspiration--a doctrine which many in modern +times either openly or virtually deny--was now received without +abatement or hesitation. Even Origen, who takes such liberties when +interpreting the sacred text, admits most fully that it is all of divine +dictation. "I believe," says he, "that, for those who know how to draw +virtue from the Scriptures, _every letter in the oracles of God has its +end and its work_, even to an iota and particle of a letter. And, as +among plants, there is not one but has its peculiar virtue, and as they +only who have a knowledge of botanical science can tell how each should +be prepared and applied to a useful purpose; so it is that he who is a +holy and spiritual botanist of the Word of God, by gathering up each +atom and element will find the virtue of that Word, and acknowledge that +there is nothing in all that is written that is superfluous." [448:3] + +It has been already stated [448:3] that little difference of sentiment +existed in the early Church respecting the books to be included in the +canon of the New Testament. All, with the exception of the Gnostics and +some other heretics, recognized the claims of the four Gospels, [448:4] +of the Acts of the Apostles, of the Epistles of Paul, of the First +Epistle of Peter, and of the First Epistle of John. Though, for a time, +some Churches hesitated to acknowledge the remaining epistles, their +doubts seem to have been gradually dissipated. At first the genuineness +of the Apocalypse was undisputed; but, after the rise of the Montanists, +who were continually quoting it in proof of their theory of a +millennium, some of their antagonists foolishly questioned its +authority. At an early period two or three tracts [449:1] written by +uninspired men were received as Scripture by a number of Churches. They +were never, however, generally acknowledged; and at length, by common +consent, they were excluded from the canon. [449:2] + +The code of heathen morality supplied a ready apology for falsehood, +[449:3] and its accommodating principles soon found too much +encouragement within the pale of the Church. Hence the pious frauds +which were now perpetrated. Various works made their appearance with the +name of some apostolic man appended to them, [449:4] their fabricators +thus hoping to give currency to opinions or to practices which might +otherwise have encountered much opposition. At the same time many +evinced a disposition to supplement the silence of the Written Word by +the aid of tradition. But though the writers of the period sometimes lay +undue stress upon the evidence of this vague witness, they often resort +to it merely as an offset against statements professedly derived from +the same source which were brought forward by the heretics; and they +invariably admit that the authority of Scripture is entitled to override +the authority of tradition. "The Lord in the Gospel, reproving and +rebuking, declares," says Cyprian, "ye reject the commandment of God +that ye may keep your own tradition. [450:1] .... Custom should, not be +an obstacle that the truth prevail not and overcome, for a _custom +without truth is error inveterate_." [450:2] "What obstinacy is that, or +what presumption, to prefer human tradition to divine ordinances, and +not to perceive that God is displeased and provoked, as often as human +tradition relaxes and sets aside the divine command." [450:3] During +this period--the uncertainty of any other guide than the inspired record +was repeatedly demonstrated; for, though Christians were removed at so +short a distance from apostolic times, the traditions of one Church +sometimes diametrically contradicted those of another. [450:4] + +There is certainly nothing like uniformity in the language employed by +the Christian writers of this era when treating of doctrinal subjects; +and yet their theology seems to have been essentially the same. All +apparently admit the corruption of human nature. Justin Martyr speaks of +a "concupiscence in every man, evil in all its tendencies, and various +in its nature," [450:5] whilst Tertullian mentions original sin under +the designation of "the vice of our origin." [450:6] Our first parent, +says he, "having been seduced into disobedience by Satan was delivered +over to death, and transmitted his condemnation to the whole human race +which was _infected from his seed_." [450:7] Though the ancient fathers +occasionally describe free will in terms which apparently ignore the +existence of indwelling depravity, [451:1] their language should not be +too strictly interpreted, as it only implies a strong protest against +the heathen doctrine of fate, and a recognition of the principle that +man is a voluntary agent. Thus it is that Clemens Alexandrinus, one of +the writers who asserts most decidedly the freedom of the will, admits +the necessity of a new birth unto righteousness. "The Father," says he, +"regenerates by the Spirit unto adoption all who flee to Him." [451:2] +"Since the soul is moved of itself, the grace of God demands from it that +which it has, namely, a ready temper as its contribution to salvation. +For the Lord wishes that _the good which He confers on the soul_ should +be its own, since it is not without sensation, so that it should be +impelled like a body." [451:3] + +No fact is more satisfactorily attested than that the early disciples +rendered divine honours to our Saviour. In the very beginning of the +second century, a heathen magistrate, who deemed it his duty to make +minute inquiries respecting them, reported to the Roman Emperor that, in +their religious assemblies, they sang "hymns to Christ as to a God." +[451:4] They were reproached by the Gentiles, as well as by the Jews, +for worshipping a man who had been crucified. [451:5] When the +accusation was brought against them, they at once admitted its truth, +and they undertook to shew that the procedure for which they were +condemned was perfectly capable of vindication. [452:1] In the days of +Justin Martyr there were certain professing Christians, probably the +Ebionites, [452:2] who held the simple humanity of our Lord, but that +writer represents the great body of the disciples as entertaining very +different sentiments. "There are some of our race," says he, "who +confess that He was the Christ, but affirm that He was a man born of +human parents, with whom I do not agree, neither should I, even if very +many, who entertain the same opinion as myself, were to say so; since we +are commanded by Christ to attend, not to the doctrines of men, but to +that which was proclaimed by the blessed prophets, and taught by +Himself." [452:3] + +When Justin here expresses his dissent from those who described our Lord +as "a man born of human parents," he obviously means no more than that +he is not a Humanitarian, for, in common with the early Church, he held +the doctrine of the two natures in Christ. The fathers who now +flourished, when touching upon the question of the union of humanity and +deity in the person of the Redeemer, do not, it is true, express +themselves always with as much precision as writers who appeared after +the Eutychian controversy in the fifth century; but they undoubtedly +believed that our Lord was both God and man. [453:1] Even already the +subject was pressed on their attention by various classes of errorists +who were labouring with much assiduity to disseminate their principles. +The Gnostics, who affirmed that the body of Jesus was a phantom, shut +them up to the necessity of shewing that He really possessed all the +attributes of a human being; whilst, in meeting objectors from a +different quarter, they were compelled to demonstrate that He was also +the Jehovah of the Old Testament. The Ebionites were not the only +sectaries who taught that Jesus was a mere man. The same doctrine was +inculcated by Theodotus, a native of Byzantium, who settled at Rome +about the end of the second century. This individual, though by trade a +tanner, possessed no small amount of learning, and created some +disturbance in the Church of the Western capital by the novelty and +boldness of his speculations. In the end he is said to have been +excommunicated by Victor, the Roman bishop. Some time afterwards, his +sentiments were adopted by Artemon, whose disciples, named Artemonites, +elected a bishop of their own, [453:2] and existed for some time at Rome +as a distinct community. + +But by far the most distinguished of these ancient impugners of the +proper deity of the Messiah was the celebrated Paul of Samosata, who +flourished shortly after the middle of the third century. Paul occupied +the bishopric of Antioch, the second see in Christendom; and was +undoubtedly a man of superior talent. According to his views, the Divine +Logos is not a distinct Person, but the Reason of God; and Jesus was the +greatest of the sons of men simply because the Logos dwelt in Him after +a higher manner, or more abundantly, than in any other of the posterity +of Adam. [454:1] But though this prelate had great wealth, influence, +and eloquence, his heterodoxy soon raised a storm of opposition which he +could not withstand. The Christians of Antioch in the third century +could not quietly tolerate the ministrations of a preacher who +insinuated that the Word is not truly God. He appears to have possessed +consummate address, and when first arraigned, his plausible +equivocations and sophistries imposed upon his judges; but, at a +subsequent council, held about A.D. 269 in the metropolis of Syria, he +was so closely pressed by Malchion, one of his own presbyters, that he +was obliged reluctantly to acknowledge his real sentiments. He was, in +consequence, deposed from his office by a unanimous vote of the Synod. A +circular letter [454:2] announcing the decision was transmitted to the +leading pastors of the Church all over the Empire, and this +ecclesiastical deliverance seems to have received their universal +sanction. [454:3] + +The theological term translated _Trinity_, [454:4] was in use as early +as the second century; for, about A.D. 180, it is employed by +Theophilus, who is supposed to have been one of the predecessors of Paul +of Samosata in the Church of Antioch. [454:5] Speaking of the formation +of the heavenly bodies on the fourth day of creation, as described in +the first chapter of Genesis, this writer observes--"The three days +which preceded the luminaries are _types of the Trinity_, [454:6] of +God, and His Word, and His Wisdom." Here, as elsewhere in the works of +the fathers of the early Church, the third person of the Godhead is +named under the designation of Wisdom. [455:1] Though this is the first +mention of the word Trinity to be found in any ecclesiastical document +now extant, it is plain that the doctrine is of far higher antiquity. +Justin Martyr repeatedly refers to it, and Athenagoras, who flourished +in the reign of Marcus Aurelius, treats of it with much clearness. "We +speak," says he, "of the Father as God, and the Son as God, and the Holy +Ghost, shewing at the same time their power in unity, and their +distinction in order." [455:2] "We who look upon this present life as +worth little or nothing, and are conducted through it by the sole +principle of knowing God and the Word proceeding from Him, of knowing +what is the unity of the Son with the Father, what the Father +communicates to the Son, what is the Spirit, _what is the union of this +number of Persons_, the Spirit, the Son, and the Father, and in what way +they who are united are divided--shall we not have credit given us for +being worshippers of God?" [455:3] + +The attempts made in the latter half of the second century to pervert +the doctrine of Scripture relative to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, +probably led to the appearance of the word Trinity in the ecclesiastical +nomenclature; for, when controversy commenced, some such symbol was +required to prevent the necessity of constant and tedious +circumlocution. One of the most noted of the parties dissatisfied with +the ordinary mode of speaking respecting the Three Divine Persons, and +desirous of changing the current creed, was Praxeas, a native of Asia +Minor. After having acquired much credit by his fortitude and courage in +a time of persecution, he had also signalised himself by his zeal +against the Montanists. He now taught that the Son and Holy Ghost are +not distinct Persons, but simply modes or energies of the Father; and as +those who adopted his sentiments imagined that they thus held more +strictly than others the doctrine of the existence of a single Ruler of +the universe, they styled themselves _Monarchians_. [456:1] According to +their views the first and second Persons of the Godhead are identical; +and, as it apparently followed from this theory, that the Father +suffered on the cross, they received the name of _Patripassians_. +[456:2] Praxeas travelled from Asia Minor to Rome, and afterwards passed +over into Africa, where he was strenuously opposed by the famous +Tertullian. Another individual, named Noetus, attracted some notice +about the close of the second century by the peculiarity of his +speculations in reference to the Godhead. "Noetus," says a contemporary, +"calls the same both Son and Father, for he speaks thus--'When the +Father had not been born, He was rightly called Father, but when it +pleased Him to undergo birth, then by birth He became the Son of +Himself, and not of another.' Thus he professes to establish the +principle of Monarchianism." [456:3] But, perhaps, the attempts of +Sabellius to modify the established doctrine made the deepest +impression. This man, who was an ecclesiastic connected with Ptolemais +in Africa, [456:4] maintained that there is no foundation for the +ordinary distinction of the Persons of the Trinity, and that the terms +Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, merely indicate different manifestations +of the Supreme Being, or different phases under which the one God +reveals Himself. From him the doctrine of those who confound the Persons +of the Godhead still bears the name of Sabellianism. + +It has been sometimes said that the Church borrowed its idea of a +Trinity from Plato, but this assertion rests upon no historical basis. +Learned men have found it exceedingly difficult to give anything like an +intelligible account of the Trinity of the Athenian philosopher, [457:1] +and it seems to have had only a metaphysical existence. It certainly had +nothing more than a fanciful and verbal resemblance to the Trinity of +Christianity. Had the doctrine of the Church been derived from the +writings of the Grecian sage, it would not have been inculcated with so +much zeal and unanimity by the early fathers. Some of them were bitterly +opposed to Platonism, and yet, though none denounced it more vehemently +than Tertullian, [457:2] we cannot point to any one of them who speaks +of the Three Divine Persons more clearly or copiously. The heretic +thinks, says he, "that we cannot believe in one God in any other way +than if we say that the very same Person is Father, Son, and Holy +Ghost.... These persons assume the number and arrangement of the Trinity +to be a division of the Unity; whereas the Unity, which derives a +Trinity from itself, is not destroyed by it, but has its different +offices performed. They, therefore, boast that two and three Gods are +preached by us, but that they themselves are worshippers of one God; as +if the Unity, when improperly contracted, did not create heresy, and a +Trinity, when properly considered, did not constitute truth." [457:3] + +Every one at all acquainted with the ecclesiastical literature of this +period must acknowledge that the disciples now firmly maintained the +doctrine of the Atonement. The Gnostics and the Manichaeans discarded +this article from their systems, as it was entirely foreign to the +spirit of their philosophy; but, though the Church teachers enter into +scarcely any explanation of it, by attempting to shew how the violated +law required a propitiation, they proclaim it as a glorious truth which +should inspire all the children of God with joy and confidence. Clemens +Alexandrinus gives utterance only to the common faith when he +declares--"Christians are redeemed from corruption by the blood of the +Lord." "The Word poured forth His blood for us to save human nature." +"The Lord gave Himself a victim for us." [458:1] The early writers also +mention faith as the means by which we are to appropriate the benefits +of the Redeemer's sacrifice. Thus, Justin Martyr represents Christ as +"purifying by His blood those who believe on Him." [458:2] Clemens +Alexandrinus, in like manner, speaks of "the one mode of salvation by +faith in God," [458:3] and says that "we have believed in God through +the _voice of the Word_." [458:4] In the "Letter to Diognetus" the +doctrine of justification by faith through the imputed righteousness of +the Saviour is beautifully exhibited. "For what else," says the writer, +"could cover our sins but His righteousness? In whom was it a possible +that we, the lawless and the unholy, could be justified, save by the Son +of God alone? Oh sweet exchange! oh unsearchable wisdom! oh unexpected +benefits! that the sin of many should be hidden by One righteous, and +the righteousness of One justify many sinners." [458:5] + +The Church of the second and third centuries was not agitated by any +controversies relative to grace and predestination. Few, probably, were +disposed to indulge in speculations on these subjects; and some of the +ecclesiastical writers, in the heat of controversial discussion, are +occasionally tempted to make use of language which it would be difficult +to reconcile with the declarations of the New Testament. All of them, +however, either explicitly or virtually, admit the necessity of grace; +and some distinctly enunciate the doctrine of election. "We stand in +especial need of divine grace, and right instruction, and pure +affection," says Clemens Alexandrinus, "and _we require that the Father +should draw us towards himself_." "God, who knows the future as if it +was already present, _knows the elect according to His purpose_ even +before the creation." [459:1] "Your power to do," says Cyprian, "will be +according to the increase of spiritual grace.... What measure we bring +thither of faith to hold, so much do we drink in of grace to inundate. +Hereby is strength given." [459:2] It is worthy of note that those +writers, who speak most decidedly of the freedom of the will, also most +distinctly proclaim their faith in the perfection of the Divine +Sovereignty. Thus, Justin Martyr urges, as a decisive proof of the +impious character of their theology, that the heathen philosophers +repudiated the doctrine of a particular providence; [459:3] and all the +ancient fathers are ever ready to recognise the superintending +guardianship of God in the common affairs of life. + +But though the creed of the Church was still to some extent +substantially sound, it must be admitted that it was already beginning +to suffer much from adulteration. One hundred years after the death of +the Apostle John, spiritual darkness was fast settling down upon the +Christian community; and the fathers, who flourished towards the +commencement of the third century, frequently employ language for which +they would have been sternly rebuked, had they lived in the days of the +apostles and evangelists. Thus, we find them speaking of "sins +_cleansed_ by repentance," [460:1] and of repentance as "_the price_ +at which the Lord has determined to grant forgiveness." [460:2] We read +of "_sins cleansed_ by alms and faith," [460:3] and of the martyr, by +his sufferings, "washing away his own iniquities." [460:4] We are told +that by baptism "we are cleansed from all our sins," and "regain that +Spirit of God which Adam received at his creation and lost by his +transgression." [460:5] "The pertinacious wickedness of the Devil," says +Cyprian, "has power _up to the saving water_, but in baptism he loses +all the poison of his wickedness." [460:6] The same writer insists upon +the necessity of _penance_, a species of discipline unknown to the +apostolic Church, and denounces, with terrible severity, those who +discouraged its performance. "By the deceitfulness of their lies," says +he, they interfere, "that _satisfaction_ be not given to God in His +anger..... All pains are taken that _sins be not expiated by due +satisfactions and lamentations,_ that wounds be not washed clean by +tears." [460:7] It may be said that some of these expressions are +rhetorical, and that those by whom they were employed did not mean to +deny the all-sufficiency of the Great Sacrifice; but had these fathers +clearly apprehended the doctrine of justification by faith in Christ, +they would have recoiled from the use of language so exceedingly +objectionable. + +There are many who imagine that, had they lived in the days of +Tertullian or of Origen, they would have enjoyed spiritual advantages +far higher than any to which they have now access. But a more minute +acquaintance with the ecclesiastical history of the third century might +convince them that they have no reason to complain of their present +privileges. The amount of material light which surrounds us does not +depend on our proximity to the sun. When our planet is most remote from +its great luminary, we may bask in the splendour of his effulgence; and, +when it approaches nearer, we may be involved in thick darkness. So it +is with the Church. The amount of our religious knowledge does not +depend on our proximity to the days of primitive Christianity. The Bible +is the sun of the spiritual firmament; and this divine illuminator, like +the glorious orb of day, pours forth its light with equal brilliancy +from generation to generation. The Church may retire into "chambers of +imagery" erected by her own folly; and there, with the light shut out +from her, may sink into a slumber disturbed only, now and then, by some +dream of superstition; or, with the light still shining on her, her eye +may be dim or disordered, and she may stumble at noonday. But the light +is as pure as in the days of the apostles; and, if we have eyes to +profit by it, we may "understand more than the ancients." The art of +printing has supplied us with facilities for the study of the Scriptures +which were denied to the fathers of the second century; and the +ecclesiastical documents, relative to that age, which have been +transmitted to us from antiquity, contain, perhaps, the greater part of +even the traditionary information which was preserved in the Church. If +we are only "taught of God," we are in as good a position for acquiring +a correct acquaintance with the way of salvation as was Polycarp or +Justin Martyr. What an encouragement for every one to pray--"Open thou +mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law. I am a +stranger in the earth: hide not thy commandments from me!" [461:11] + + + + + + SECTION III. + + THE WORSHIP AND CONSTITUTION OF THE CHURCH. + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE WORSHIP OF THE CHURCH. + + +The religion of the primitive Christians must have appeared exceedingly +strange to their pagan contemporaries. The heathen worship was little +better than a solemn show. Its victims adorned with garlands, its +incense and music and lustral water, its priests arrayed in white robes, +and its marble temples with gilded roofs, were fitted, rather to +fascinate the senses, than to improve the heart or expand the intellect. +Even the Jewish ritual, in the days of its glory, must have had a +powerful effect on the imagination. As the Israelites assembled from all +quarters at their great festivals--as they poured in thousands and tens +of thousands into the courts of their ancient sanctuary--as they +surveyed the various parts of a structure which was one of the wonders +of the world--as they beheld the priests in their holy garments--and as +they gazed on the high priest himself, whose forehead glittered with +gold whilst his breastplate sparkled with precious stones--they must +have felt that they mingled in a scene of extraordinary splendour. But, +when Christianity made its appearance in the world, it presented none of +these attractions. Its adherents were stigmatized as atheists, [463:1] +because they had no altars, no temples, and no sacrifices. They held +their meetings in private dwellings; their ministers wore no peculiar +dress; and, by all who sought merely the gratification of the eye or of +the ear, the simple service in which they engaged must have been +considered very bald and uninteresting. But they rejoiced exceedingly in +its spiritual character, as they felt that they could thus draw near to +God, and hold sweet and refreshing communion with their Father in +heaven. + +It is probable that, during a considerable part of the second century, +the Christians had comparatively few buildings set apart for public +worship. At a time when they congregated to celebrate the rites of their +religion at night or before break of day, it is not to be supposed that +they were anxious to obtrude their conventicles on the notice of their +persecutors. But as they increased in numbers, and as the State became +somewhat more indulgent, they gradually acquired confidence; and, about +the beginning of the third century, the form of their ecclesiastical +structures seems to have been already familiar to the eyes of the +heathen. [463:2] Shortly after that period, their meeting-houses in Rome +were well known; and, in the reign of Alexander Severus, they ventured +to dispute with one of the city trades the possession of a piece of +ground on which they were desirous to erect a place of worship. [463:3] +When the case came for adjudication before the Imperial tribunal, the +sovereign decided in their favour, and thus virtually placed them under +the shield of his protection. When the Emperor Gallienus, about A.D. +260, issued an edict of toleration, church architecture advanced apace, +and many of the old buildings, which were now falling into decay, were +superseded by edifices at once more capacious and more tasteful. The +Christians at this time began to emulate the magnificence of the heathen +temples, and even to ape their arrangements. Thus it is that some of our +churches at the present day are nearly fac-similes of the ancient +religious edifices of paganism. [464:1] + +In addition to the administration of baptism and the Lord's Supper, the +worship of the early Church consisted of singing, prayer, reading the +Scriptures, and preaching. In the earliest notice of the Christians of +the second century which occurs in any pagan writer, their psalmody, +with which they commenced their religious services, [464:2] is +particularly mentioned; for, in his celebrated letter to the Emperor +Trajan, Pliny states that they met together, before the rising of the +sun, to "sing hymns to Christ as to a God." It is highly probable that +the "hymns" here spoken of were the Psalms of the Old Testament. Many of +these inspired effusions celebrate the glories of Immanuel, and as, for +obvious reasons, the Messianic Psalms would be used more frequently than +any others, it is not strange that the disciples are represented as +assembling to sing praise to Christ. But it would appear that the Church +at this time was not confined to the ancient Psalter. Hymns of human +composition were occasionally employed; [464:3] and one of these, to be +found in the writings of Clement of Alexandria, [464:4] was, perhaps, +sung in the early part of the third century by the Christians of the +Egyptian capital. Influential bishops sometimes introduced them by their +own authority, but the practice was regarded with suspicion, and seems +to have been considered irregular. Hence Paul of Samosata, in the +Council of Antioch held A.D. 269, was blamed for discontinuing the +Psalms formerly used, and for establishing a new and very exceptionable +hymnology. [465:1] + +In the church, as well as in the synagogue, the whole congregation +joined in the singing; [465:2] but instrumental music was never brought +into requisition. The early Christians believed that the organs of the +human voice are the most appropriate vehicles for giving utterance to +the feelings of devotion; and viewing the lute and the harp as the +carnal ordinances of a superannuated dispensation, they rejected their +aid in the service of the sanctuary. Long after this period one of the +most eminent of the ancient fathers describes the music of the flutes, +sackbuts, and psalteries of the temple worship as only befitting the +childhood of the Church. "It was," says he, "permitted to the Jews, as +sacrifice was, for the heaviness and grossness of their souls. God +condescended to their weakness, because they were lately drawn off from +idols; but now, instead of instruments, we may use our own bodies to +praise Him withal." [465:3] + +The account of the worship of the Church, given by a Christian writer +who flourished about the middle of the second century, is exceedingly +instructive. "On the day which is called Sunday," says Justin Martyr, +"there is a meeting together in one place of all who dwell either in +towns or in the country; and the memoirs of the apostles, or the +writings of the prophets are read, as long as the time permits. When the +reading ceases, the president delivers a discourse, in which he makes an +application and exhorts to the imitation of these good things. We then +rise all together and pray. Then ... when we cease from prayer, bread is +brought, and wine and water; and the president, in like manner, offers +up prayers and thanksgivings according to his ability; [466:1] and the +people express their assent by saying Amen." [466:2] It is abundantly +clear from this statement that the presiding minister was not restricted +to any set form of supplication. As he prayed "according to his +ability," his petitions could neither have been dictated by others nor +taken from a liturgy. Such a practice as the _reading_ of prayers seems, +indeed, to have been totally unknown in the Church during the first +three centuries. Hence Tertullian represents the Christians of his +generation as praying "_looking up_ with hands spread open, ... and +_without a prompter_ because from the heart." [466:3] In his "Treatise +on Prayer" Origen recommends the worshipper to address God with +stretched out hands and uplifted eyes. [466:4] The erect body with the +arms extended was supposed to represent the cross, [466:5] and therefore +this attitude was deemed peculiarly appropriate for devotion. [466:6] On +the Lord's day the congregation always _stood_ when addressing God. +[466:7] At this period forms of prayer were used in the heathen worship, +[467:1] and in some cases the pagans adhered with singular tenacity to +their ancient liturgies; [467:2] but the Church did not yet require the +aid of such auxiliaries. It is remarkable that, though in the account of +the losses sustained during the Diocletian persecution, we read +frequently of the seizure of the Scriptures, and of the ecclesiastical +utensils, we never meet with any allusion to the spoliation of +prayer-books. [467:3] There is, in fact, no evidence whatever that such +helps to devotion were yet in existence. [467:4] + +The worship was now conducted in a dialect which was understood by the +congregation; and though the officiating minister was at perfect liberty +to select his phraseology, it is probable that he did not think it +necessary to aim at great variety in the mere language of his devotional +exercises. So long as a petition was deemed suitable, it perhaps +continued to be repeated in nearly the same words, whilst providential +interpositions, impending persecutions, and the personal condition of +the flock, would be continually suggesting some fresh topics for +thanksgiving, supplication, and confession. The beautiful and +comprehensive prayer taught by our Lord to His disciples was never +considered out of place; and, as early as the third century, it was, at +least in some districts, used once at every meeting of the faithful. +[468:1] The apostle had taught the brethren that intercessions should be +made "for kings and for all that are in authority," [468:2] and the +primitive disciples did not neglect to commend their earthly rulers to +the care of the Sovereign of the universe. [468:3] But still it is clear +that even such petitions did not run in the channel of any prescribed +formulary. + +From the very days of the apostles the reading of the Scriptures +constituted an important part of public worship. This portion of the +service was, at first perhaps, conducted by one of the elders, but, in +some places, towards the close of the second century, it was committed +to a new official, called the Reader. [468:4] The presiding minister +seems to have been permitted originally to choose whatever passages he +considered most fitting for the occasion, as well as to determine the +amount of time which was to be occupied in the exercise; but, at length, +an order of lessons was prepared, and then the Reader was expected to +confine himself to the Scriptures pointed out in his calendar. [468:5] +This arrangement, which was obviously designed to secure a more uniform +attention to the several parts of the inspired canon, came only +gradually into general operation; and it frequently happened that the +order of lessons for one church was very different from that used in +another. [468:6] + +Whilst the constant reading, in the vernacular tongue, of considerable +portions of Scripture at public worship, promoted the religious +instruction of the people, the mode of preaching which now prevailed +contributed to make them still more intimately acquainted with the +sacred records. The custom of selecting a text as the basis of a +discourse had not yet been introduced; but, when the reading closed, the +minister proceeded to expatiate on that section of the Word which had +just been brought under the notice of the congregation, and pointed out, +as well the doctrines which it recognised, as the practical lessons +which it inculcated. The entire presbytery was usually present in the +congregation every Lord's day, and when one or other of the elders had +made a few comments, [469:1] the president added some remarks of an +expository and hortatory character; but, frequently, he received no +assistance in this part of the service. The method of reading and +elucidating Scripture, now pursued, was eminently salutary; for, whilst +it stored the memory with a large share of biblical knowledge, the whole +Word of God, in the way of earnest appeal, was brought into close +contact with the heart and conscience of each individual. + +So long as pristine piety flourished, the people listened with devout +attention to the observations of the preacher; but, as a more secular +spirit prevailed, he began to be treated, rather as an orator, than a +herald from the King of kings. Before the end of the third century, the +house of prayer occasionally resounded with the plaudits of the theatre. +Such exhibitions were, indeed, condemned at the time by the +ecclesiastical authorities, but the very fact that in the principal +church of one of the chief cities of the Empire, the bishop, as he +proceeded with his sermon, was greeted with stamping of feet, clapping +of hands, and waving of handkerchiefs, [469:2] supplied melancholy +evidence of the progress of spiritual degeneracy. In the days of the +Apostle Paul such demonstrations would have been universally denounced +as unseemly and unseasonable. + +During the first three centuries there was nothing in the ordinary +costume of a Christian minister to distinguish him from any of his +fellow-citizens; [470:1] but, it would appear, that when the pastor +officiated in the congregation, he began, at an early date, to wear some +peculiar piece of apparel. In an old document, purporting to have been +written shortly after the middle of the second century, he is described, +at the period of his advancement to the episcopal chair, as "clothed +with the dress of the bishops." [470:2] As the third century advanced, +there was a growing disposition to increase the pomp of public worship; +in some places vessels of silver or of gold were used at the +dispensation of the, Lord's Supper; [470:3] and it is highly probable +that, about this time, some few decorations were assumed by those who +took part in its administration. But still the habit used by +ecclesiastics at divine service was distinguished by its comparative +simplicity, and differed very little from the dress commonly worn by the +mass of the population. + +What a change must have passed over the Church from the period before us +to the dawn of the Reformation! Now, the making of images was forbidden, +and no picture was permitted to appear even on the walls of the sacred +edifice: [470:4] then, a church frequently suggested the idea of a +studio, or a picture-gallery. Now, the whole congregation joined +heartily in the psalmody: then, the mute crowd listened to the music of +the organ accompanied by the shrill voices of a chorus of thoughtless +boys. Now, prayers, in the vernacular tongue and suited to the occasion, +were offered with simplicity and earnestness; then, petitions, long +since antiquated, were muttered in a dead language. Now, the Word was +read and expounded in a way intelligible to all: then, a few Latin +extracts from it were mumbled over hastily; and, if a sermon followed, +it was, perhaps, a eulogy on some wretched fanatic, or an attack on some +true evangelist. There are writers who believe that the Church was +meanwhile going on in a career of hopeful development; but facts too +clearly testify that she was moving backwards in a path of cheerless +declension. Now, the Church "holding forth the Word of life" was +commending herself to philosophers and statesmen: then, she had sunk +into premature dotage, and her very highest functionaries were lisping +the language of infidelity. + + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +BAPTISM. + + +When the venerable Polycarp was on the eve of martyrdom, he is reported +to have said that he had served Christ "eighty and six years." [472:1] +By the ancient Church these words seem to have been regarded as +tantamount to a declaration of the length of his life, and as implying +that he had been a disciple of the Saviour from his infancy. [472:2] The +account of his martyrdom indicates that he was still in the enjoyment of +a green old age, [472:3] and as very few overpass the term of fourscore +years and six, we are certainly not at liberty to infer, without any +evidence, and in the face of probabilities, that he had now attained a +greater longevity. A contemporary father, who wrote about the middle of +the second century, informs us, that there were then many persons of +both sexes, some sixty, and some seventy years of age, who had been +"disciples of Christ from childhood," [472:4] and the pastor of Smyrna +is apparently included in the description. If he was eighty-six at the +time of his death, he must have been about threescore and ten when +Justin Martyr made this announcement. + +No one could have been considered a disciple of Jesus who had not +received baptism, and it thus appears that there were many aged persons, +living about A.D. 150, to whom, when children, the ordinance had been +administered. We may infer, also, that Polycarp, when an infant, had +been in this way admitted within the pale of visible Christianity. +Infant baptism must, therefore, have been an institution of the age of +the apostles. This conclusion is corroborated by the fact that Justin +Martyr speaks of baptism as supplying the place of circumcision. "We," +says he, "who through Christ have access to God, have not received that +circumcision which is in the flesh, but that spiritual circumcision +which Enoch, and others like him, observed. And this, because we have +been sinners, we do, through the mercy of God, receive _by baptism_." +[473:1] Justin would scarcely have represented the initiatory ordinance +of the Christian Church as supplying so efficiently the place of the +Jewish rite, had it not been of equally extensive application. The +testimony of Irenaeus, the disciple of Polycarp, throws additional light +upon this argument. "Christ," says he, "came to save all persons by +Himself; all, I say, who _by Him are regenerated unto God_--infants, and +little ones, and children, and youths, and aged persons: therefore He +went through the several ages, being made an infant for infants, that He +might _sanctify infants_; [473:2] and, for little ones, He was made a +little one, to sanctify them of that age also." [473:3] Irenaeus +elsewhere speaks of baptism as _our regeneration_ or _new birth unto +God_, [473:4] so that his meaning in this passage cannot well be +disputed. He was born on the confines of the apostolic age, and when he +mentions the _regeneration unto God_ of "infants, and little ones, and +children," he alludes to their admission by baptism to the seal of +salvation. + +The celebrated Origen was born about A.D. 185, and we have as strong +circumstantial evidence as we could well desire that he was baptized in +infancy. [474:1] Both his parents were Christians, and as soon as he was +capable of receiving instruction, he began to enjoy the advantages of a +pious education. He affirms, not only that the practice of infant +baptism prevailed in his own age, but that it had been handed down as an +ecclesiastical ordinance from the first century. "None," says he, "is +free from pollution, though his life upon the earth be but the length of +one day, and for this reason even infants are baptized, because by the +sacrament of baptism the pollution of our birth is put away." [474:2] +"The Church has received the custom of baptizing little children _from +the apostles_." [474:3] + +The only writer of the first three centuries who questions the propriety +of infant baptism is Tertullian. The passage in which he expounds his +views on this subject is a most transparent specimen of special +pleading, and the extravagant recommendations it contains sufficiently +attest that he had taken up a false position. "Considering," says he, +"every one's condition and disposition, and also his age, the delay of +baptism is more advantageous, but especially in the case of little +children. For what necessity is there that the sponsors be brought into +danger? Because they may fail to fulfil their promises by death, or may +be deceived by the child's proving of a wicked disposition. Our Lord +says indeed--'Do not forbid them to come unto me.' Let them come, +therefore, whilst they are growing up, let them come whilst they are +learning, whilst they are being taught where it is they are coming, let +them be made Christians when they are capable of knowing Christ. Why +should their innocent age make haste to the remission of sins? Men +proceed more cautiously in worldly things; and he that is not trusted +with earthly goods, why should he be trusted with divine? Let them know +how to ask salvation, that you may appear to give it to one that asketh. +For no less reason unmarried persons ought to be delayed, because they +are exposed to temptations, as well virgins that are come to maturity, +as those that are in widowhood and have little occupation, until they +either marry or be confirmed in continence. They who know the weight of +baptism will rather dread its attainment than its postponement." [475:1] + +In the apostolic age all adults, when admitted to baptism, answered for +themselves. Had additional sponsors been required for the three thousand +converts who joined the Church on the day of Pentecost, [475:2] they +could not have been procured. The Ethiopian eunuch and the Philippian +jailor [475:3] were their own sponsors. Until long after the time when +Tertullian wrote, there were, in the case of adults, no other sponsors +than the parties themselves. But when an infant was dedicated to God in +baptism, the parents were required to make a profession of the faith, +and to undertake to train up their little one in the way of +righteousness. [476:1] It is to this arrangement that Tertullian refers +when he says--"What necessity is there that _the sponsors_ be brought +into danger? Because even they may fail to fulfil their promises by +death, or may be deceived by the child's proving of a wicked +disposition." + +It is plain, from his own statements, that infant baptism was practised +in the days of this father; and it is also obvious that it was then said +to rest on the authority of the New Testament. Its advocates, he +alleges, quoted in its defence the words of our Saviour--"Suffer the +little children to come unto me and forbid them not." [476:2] And how +does Tertullian meet this argument? Does he venture to say that it is +contradicted by any other Scripture testimony? Does he pretend to assert +that the appearance of parents, as sponsors for their children, is an +ecclesiastical innovation? Had this acute and learned controversialist +been prepared to encounter infant baptism on such grounds, he would not +have neglected his opportunity. But, instead of pursuing such a line of +reasoning, he merely exhibits his weakness by resorting to a piece of +miserable sophistry. When our Lord said--"Suffer the little children to +come unto me and forbid them not," He illustrated His meaning as He +"took them up in His arms, put His hands upon them, and blessed them;" +[476:3] so that the gloss of Tertullian--"Let them come _whilst they +are growing up_, let them come whilst they are learning"--is a palpable +misinterpretation. Nor is this all. The Carthaginian father must have +known that there were frequent instances in the days of the apostles of +the baptism of whole households; and yet he maintains that the +unmarried, especially young widows, cannot with safety be admitted to +the ordinance. Had he been with Paul and Silas at Philippi he would thus +scarcely have consented to the baptism of Lydia; and he would certainly +have protested against the administration of the rite to all the members +of her family. [477:1] + +Though Tertullian may not have formally separated from the Church when +he wrote the tract in which this passage occurs, it is evident that he +had already adopted the principles of the Montanists. These errorists +held that any one who had fallen into heinous sin after baptism could +never again be admitted to ecclesiastical fellowship; and this little +book itself supplies proof that its author now supported the same +doctrine. He here declares that the man "who renews his sins after +baptism" is "destined to fire;" and he intimates that martyrdom, or "the +baptism of blood," can alone "restore" such an offender. [477:2] It was +obviously the policy of the Montanists to discourage infant baptism, and +to retain the mass of their adherents, as long as possible, in the +condition of catechumens. Hence Tertullian here asserts that "they who +know the weight of baptism will rather _dread its attainment_ than its +postponement." [477:3] But neither the apostles, nor the early Church, +had any sympathy with such a sentiment. They represent baptism as a +privilege--as a sign and seal of God's favour--which all should +thankfully embrace. On the very day on which Peter denounced the Jews as +having with wicked hands crucified his Master, he assisted in the +baptism of three thousand of these transgressors. "Repent," says he, +"and _be baptized every one of you_ in the name of Jesus Christ for the +remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, _for +the promise is unto you and to your children_." [478:1] Tertullian would +have given them no such encouragement. But the Montanists believed that +their Phrygian Paraclete was commissioned to supersede the apostolic +discipline. When the African father attacked infant baptism he obviously +acted under this conviction; and whilst seeking to set aside the +arrangements of the Church of his own age, he felt no scruple in +venturing at the same time to subvert an institute of primitive +Christianity. + +We have the clearest evidence that, little more than twenty years after +the death of Tertullian, the whole Church of Africa recognised the +propriety of this practice. About the middle of the third century a +bishop of that country, named Fidus, appears to have taken up the idea +that, when administering the ordinance, he was bound to adhere to the +very letter of the law relative to circumcision, [478:2] and that +therefore he was not at liberty to baptize the child before the eighth +day after its birth. When the case was submitted to Cyprian and an +African Synod, consisting of sixty-six bishops, they _unanimously_ +decided that these scruples were groundless; and, in an epistle +addressed to the pastor who entertained them, the Assembly thus +communicated the result of its deliberations--"As regards the case of +infants who, you say, should not be baptized within the second or third +day after their birth, and that respect should be had to the law of the +ancient circumcision, whence you think that one newly born should not be +baptized and sanctified within the eighth day, we all in our council +thought very differently.... If even to the most grievous offenders, ... +when they afterwards believe, remission of sins is granted, and no one +is debarred from baptism and grace, how much more ought not an infant to +be debarred who, being newly born, has in no way sinned, except that +being born after Adam in the flesh, he has by his first birth contracted +the contagion of the old death; who is on this very account more easily +admitted to receive remission of sins, in that, not his own, but +another's sins are remitted to him." [479:1] + +Whilst it is thus apparent that the baptism of infants was the +established order of the Church, it is equally clear that the particular +mode of administration was not considered essential to the validity of +the ordinance. It was usually dispensed by immersion or affusion, +[479:2] but when the health of the candidate might have been injured by +such an ordeal, sprinkling was deemed sufficient. Aspersion was commonly +employed in the case of the sick, and was known by the designation of +_clinic_ or _bed_ baptism. Cyprian points out to one of his +correspondents the absurdity of the idea that the extent to which the +water is applied can affect the character of the institution. "In the +saving sacrament," says he, "the contagion of sin is not washed away +just in the same way as is the filth of the skin and body in the +ordinary ablution of the flesh, so that there should be need of +saltpetre and other appliances, and a bath and a pool in which the poor +body may be washed and cleansed.... It is apparent that the _sprinkling_ +of water has like force with the saving washing, and that when this is +done in the Church, where the faith both of the giver and receiver is +entire, [480:1] all holds good and is consummated and perfected by the +power of the Lord, and the truth of faith." [480:2] + +Cyprian is here perfectly right in maintaining that the essence of +baptism does not consist in the way in which the water is administered; +but much of the language he employs in speaking of this ordinance cannot +be commended as sober and scriptural. He often confounds it with +regeneration, and expresses himself as if the mere rite possessed a +mystic virtue. "The birth of Christians," says he, "is in baptism." +[480:3] "The Church alone has the life-giving water." [480:4] "The water +must first be cleansed and sanctified by the priest, that it may be +able, by baptism therein, to wash away the sins of the baptized." +[480:5] Tertullian and other writers of the third century make use of +phraseology equally unguarded. [480:6] When the true character of the +institute was so far misunderstood, it is not extraordinary that it +began to be tricked out in the trappings of superstition. The candidate, +as early as the third century, was exorcised before baptism, with a view +to the expulsion of evil spirits; [480:7] and, in some places, after the +application of the water, when the kiss of peace was given to him, a +mixture of milk and honey was administered, [480:8] He was then +anointed, and marked on the forehead with the sign of the cross. [480:9] +Finally, the presiding minister, by the laying on of hands, bestowed the +benediction. [480:10] Tertullian endeavours to explain some of these +ceremonies. "The flesh," says he, "is washed, that the soul may be freed +from spots; the flesh is anointed, that the soul may be consecrated; the +flesh is marked (with the sign of the cross), that the soul may be +guarded; the flesh is overshadowed by the imposition of hands, that the +soul may be enlightened by the Spirit." [481:1] + +It is not improbable that the baptismal service constituted the first +germ of a Church liturgy. As the ordinance was so frequently celebrated, +it was found convenient to adhere to the same form, not only in the +words of administration, [481:2] but also in the accompanying prayers; +and thus each pastor soon had his own baptismal office. But when +heresies spread, and when, in consequence, measures were taken to +preserve the unity of the Catholic faith, a uniform series of +questions--prepared, perhaps, by councils and adopted by the several +ministers--was addressed to all catechumens. Thus, the baptismal +services were gradually assimilated; and, as the power of the hierarchy +increased, one general office, in each district, superseded all the +previously-existing formularies. + +Baptism, as dispensed in apostolic simplicity, is a most significant +ordinance; but the original rite was soon well-nigh hidden behind the +rubbish of human inventions. The milk and honey, the unction, the +crossing, the kiss of peace, and the imposition of hands, were all +designed to render it more imposing; and, still farther to deepen the +impression, it was already administered in the presence of none save +those who had themselves been thus initiated. [481:3] But the +foolishness of God is wiser than man. Nothing is more to be deprecated +than any attempt to improve upon the institutions of Christ. Baptism, as +established by the Divine Founder of our religion, is a visible +exhibition of the gospel; but, as known in the third century, it had +much of the character of one of the heathen mysteries. It was intended +to confirm faith: but it was now contributing to foster superstition. +How soon had the gold become dim, and the most fine gold been changed! + + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE LORD'S SUPPER. + + +Baptism and the Lord's Supper may be regarded as a typical or pictorial +summary of the great salvation. In Baptism the gospel is exhibited +subjectively--renewing the heart and cleansing from all iniquity: in the +Lord's Supper it is exhibited objectively--providing a mighty Mediator, +and a perfect atonement. Regeneration and Propitiation are central +truths towards which all the other doctrines of Christianity converge, +and in marking them out by corresponding symbols, the Head of the Church +has been graciously pleased to signalize their importance. + +The Scriptures are able to make us wise unto salvation and thoroughly +furnished unto all good works; but we are not at liberty to adulterate +these records either by addition or subtraction. If they should be +preserved exactly as they issued from the pen of inspiration, it is +clear that the visible ordinances in which they are epitomized should +also be maintained in their integrity. He who tampers with a +divinely-instituted symbol is obviously to some extent obnoxious to the +malediction [483:1] pronounced upon the man who adds to, or takes away +from, the words of the book of God's prophecy. + +Had the original form of administering the Lord's Supper been rigidly +maintained, the Church might have avoided a multitude of errors; but +very soon the spirit of innovation began to disfigure this institute. +The mode in which it was observed, and the views which were entertained +respecting it by the Christians of Rome, about the middle of the second +century, are minutely described by Justin Martyr. "There is brought," +says he, "to that one of the brethren who is president, bread and a cup +of wine mixed with water. And he, having received them, gives praise and +glory to the Father of all things.... And when he has finished his +praises and thanksgiving, all the people who are present express their +assent saying _Amen_, which in the Hebrew tongue signifies _so be it_. +The president having given thanks, and the people having expressed their +assent, those whom we call deacons give to each of those who are present +a portion of the bread which has been blessed, and of the wine mixed +with water; and carry away some for those who are absent. And this food +is called by us the Eucharist, of which no one may partake unless he +believes that which we teach is true, and is baptized, ... and lives in +such a manner as Christ commanded. For we receive not these elements as +common bread or common drink. But even as Jesus Christ our Saviour ... +had both flesh and blood for our salvation, even so we are taught that +the food which is blessed ... by the digestion of which our blood and +flesh are nourished, is the flesh and blood of that Jesus who was made +flesh. For the apostles in the memoirs composed by them, which are +called gospels, have related that Jesus thus commanded them, that having +taken bread and given thanks He said--'Do this in remembrance of me, +this is my body;' and that, in like manner, having taken the cup and +given thanks, He said, 'This is my blood;' and that He distributed them +to these alone." [484:1] + +The writer does not here mention the posture of the disciples when +communicating, but it is highly probable that they still continued to +_sit_ [485:1] in accordance with the primitive pattern. As they received +the ordinance in the same attitude as that in which they partook of +their common meals, the story that their religious assemblies were the +scenes of unnatural feasting, may have thus originated. [485:2] For the +first three centuries, _kneeling_ at the Lord's Supper was unknown; and +it is not until about a hundred years after the death of the Apostle +John, that we read of the communicants _standing._ [485:3] Throughout +the whole of the third century, this appears to have been the position +in which they partook of the elements. [485:4] + +The bread and wine of the Eucharist were now supplied by the +worshippers, who made "oblations" according to their ability, [485:5] +as well for the support of the ministers of the Church, as for the +celebration of its ordinances. There is no reason to believe that the +bread, used at this period in the holy Supper, was unfermented; for, +though our Lord distributed a loaf, or cake, of that quality when the +rite was instituted, the early Christians seem to have considered the +circumstance accidental; as unleavened bread was in ordinary use among +the Jews at the time of the Passover. The disciples appear to have had +less reason for mixing the wine with water, and they could have produced +no good evidence that such was the beverage used by Christ when He +appointed this commemoration. In the third century superstition already +recognized a mystery in the mixture. "We see," says Cyprian, "that in +the water _the people_ are represented, but that in the wine is +exhibited the blood of Christ. When, however, in the cup water is +mingled with wine, the people are united to Christ, and the multitude of +the faithful are coupled and conjoined to Him on whom they believe." +[486:1] The bread was not put into the mouth of the communicant by the +administrator, but was handed to him by a deacon; and it is said that, +the better to shew forth the unity of the Church, all partook of one +loaf made of a size sufficient to supply the whole congregation. [486:2] +The wine was administered separately, and was drunk out of a cup or +chalice. As early as the third century an idea began to be entertained +that the Eucharist was necessary to salvation, and it was, in +consequence, given to infants. [486:3] None were now suffered to be +present at its celebration but those who were _communicants_; [486:4] +for even the catechumens, or candidates for baptism, were obliged to +withdraw before the elements were consecrated. + +The Passover was kept only once a year, but the Eucharist, which was the +corresponding ordinance of the Christian dispensation, was observed much +more frequently. Justin intimates that it was administered every Lord's +day, and other fathers of this period bear similar testimony. Cyprian +speaks even of its daily celebration. [486:5] The New Testament has +promulgated no precise law upon the subject, and it is probable that +only the more zealous disciples communicated weekly. On the Paschal week +it was observed with peculiar solemnity, and by the greatest concourse +of worshippers. + +The term _sacrament_ was now applied to both Baptism and the Lord's +Supper; but it was not confined to these two symbolic ordinances. +[487:1] The word _transubstantiation_ was not introduced until upwards +of a thousand years after the death of our Saviour; [487:2] and the +doctrine which it indicates was not known to any of the fathers of the +first three centuries. They all concur in describing the elements, after +consecration, as bread and wine; they all represent them as passing +through the usual process of digestion; and they all speak of them as +symbols of the body and blood of Christ. In this strain Justin Martyr +discourses of "that _bread_ which our Christ has commanded us to offer +_in remembrance of His being made flesh_, ... and of that _cup_ which +He +commanded those that celebrate the Eucharist to offer _in remembrance of +His blood._" [487:3] According to Clement of Alexandria the Scripture +designates wine "a mystic symbol of the holy blood." [487:4] Origen, as +if anticipating the darkness which was to overspread the Church, +expresses himself very much in the style of a zealous Protestant. He +denounces as "simpletons" [487:5] those who attributed a supernatural +power to the Eucharistic elements, and repeatedly affirms that the words +used at the institution of the Lord's Supper are to be interpreted +spiritually. "The meat," says he, "which is sanctified by the Word of +God and prayer, as it is material, goes into the stomach, ... but, by +reason of prayer made over it, _it is profitable according to the +proportion of faith_, and is the cause that the understanding is +enlightened and attentive to what is profitable; and _it is not the +substance of bread, but the word pronounced upon it_, which is +profitable to him who eats it in a way not unworthy of the Lord." +[488:1] Cyprian uses language scarcely less equivocal, for he speaks of +"_that wine_ whereby the blood of Christ is set forth," [488:2] and +asserts that it "was wine which He called His blood." [488:3] + +Christ has said--"Where two or three are gathered together in my name, +there am I in the midst of them;" [488:4] and, true to His promises, He +is really present with His people in every act of devotion. Even when +they draw near to Him in secret, or when they read His word, or when +they meditate on His mercy, as well as when they listen to His gospel +preached in the great congregation, He manifests Himself to them not as +He does unto the world. But in the Eucharist He reveals His character +more significantly than in any of His other ordinances; for He here +addresses Himself to all the senses, as well as to the soul. In the +words of institution they "hear His voice;" when the elements are +presented to them, they perceive as it were "the smell of His garments;" +with their hands they "handle of the Word of Life;" and they "taste and +see that the Lord is good." But some of the early Christian writers were +by no means satisfied with such representations. They appear to have +entertained an idea that Christ was in the Eucharist, not only in richer +manifestations of His grace, but also in a way altogether different from +that in which He vouchsafes His presence in prayer, or praise, or any +other divine observance. They conceived that, as the soul of man is +united to his body, the Logos, or Divine nature of Christ, pervades the +consecrated bread and wine, so that they may be called His flesh and +blood; and they imagined that, in consequence, the sacred elements +imparted to the material frame of the believer the germ of immortality. +[489:1] Irenaeus declares that "our bodies, receiving the Eucharist, are +no longer corruptible, but possessed of the hope of eternal life." +[489:2] This misconception of the ordinance was the fruitful source of +superstition. The mere elements began to be regarded with awful +reverence; the loss of a particle of the bread, or of a drop of the +wine, was considered a tremendous desecration; and it was probably the +growth of such feelings which initiated the custom of _standing_ at the +time of participation. But still there were fathers who were not carried +away with the delusion, and who knew that the disposition of the +worshipper was of far more consequence than the care with which he +handled the holy symbols. "You who frequent our sacred mysteries," says +Origen, "know that when you receive the body of the Lord, you take care +with all due caution and veneration, that not even the smallest particle +of the consecrated gift shall fall to the ground and be wasted. [489:3] +If, through inattention, any part thus falls, you justly account +yourselves guilty. If then, with good reason, you use so much caution in +preserving His body, how can you esteem it a _lighter sin to slight the +Word of God_ than to neglect His body?" [489:4] + +"The words of the Lord are pure words, as silver tried in a furnace of +earth purified seven times." [489:5] The history of Baptism and the +Lord's Supper demonstrates that, when speaking of the ordinances of +religion, it is exceedingly dangerous to depart, even from the +phraseology, which the Holy Spirit has dictated. In the second century +Baptism was called "regeneration" and the Eucharistic bread was known by +the compendious designation of "the Lord's body." Such language, if +typically understood, could create no perplexity; but all by whom it was +used could scarcely be expected to give it a right interpretation, and +thus many misconceptions were speedily generated. In a short time names, +for which there is no warrant in the Word of God, were applied to the +Lord's Supper; and false doctrines were eventually deduced from these +ill-chosen and unauthorised designations. Thus, before the close of the +second century, it was called an _offering_, and a _sacrifice_, [490:1] +and the table at which it was administered was styled the _altar_. +[490:2] Though these terms were now used rhetorically, in after-ages +they were literally interpreted; and in this way the most astounding +errors gradually gained currency. Meanwhile other topics led to keen +discussion; but there was a growing disposition to shroud the Eucharist +in mystery; and hence, for many centuries, the question as to the manner +of Christ's presence in the ordinance awakened no controversy. + + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +CONFESSION AND PENANCE. + + +When the Evangelist Matthew is describing the ministry of John the +Baptist, he states that there "went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judea, +and all the region round about Jordan; and were baptized of him in +Jordan, _confessing their sins._" [491:1] The ministry of Paul at +Ephesus produced similar results; for it is said that "fear fell" on all +the Jews and Greeks dwelling in that great capital, "and many that +believed came, and _confessed_, and shewed their deeds," [491:2] + +The confession here mentioned obviously flowed spontaneously from deep +religious convictions. It was not a private admission of guilt made to +an ecclesiastical functionary; but a public acknowledgment of acts which +weighed heavily on the consciences of individuals, and which they felt +constrained to recapitulate and to condemn. Men awakened to a sense of +their sins deemed it due to themselves and to society, to state how +sincerely they deplored their past career; and, no doubt, their words +often produced a profound impression on the multitudes to whom they were +addressed. These confessions of sin were connected with a confession of +faith in Christ, and were generally associated with the ordinance of +baptism. They were not required from all, but were only tendered in +cases where there had been notorious and flagrant criminality; and they +must have been of a very partial character, only embracing such +transgressions as the party had some urgent reason for specializing. + +In the time of the apostles those who embraced the gospel were +immediately baptized. Thus, the three thousand persons who were +converted on the day of Pentecost, were forthwith received into the +bosom of the Church; and the Philippian jailor, "the same hour of the +night" [493:1] when he hearkened to "the word of the Lord," "was +baptized, he and all his, straightway." But, soon, afterwards, the +Christian teachers began to proceed with greater formality; and, about +the middle of the second century, candidates were not admitted to the +ordinance until they had passed through a certain course of probation. +"As many," says Justin Martyr, "as are persuaded and believe that the +things which we teach and declare are true, and promise that they are +determined to live accordingly, are taught to pray, and to beseech God +with fasting to grant them remission of their past sins, while we also +pray and fast with them. We then lead them to a place where there is +water, and there they are regenerated in the same manner as we also +were; for they are then washed in that water in the name of God the +Father and Lord of the universe, and of our Saviour Jesus Christ, and +the Holy Spirit." [493:2] + +These confessions and penitential exercises were repeated and enlarged +when persons who had lapsed into gross sin, and who had, in consequence, +forfeited their position as members of the Church, sought readmission to +ecclesiastical fellowship. It would be difficult, on scriptural grounds, +to vindicate the system of discipline enforced on such occasions; and +yet it is evident that it was established, at least in some quarters, as +early as the beginning of the third century. Tertullian gives a very +striking account of the course pursued by those called penitents about +that period. "Confession of sins," says he, "lightens their burden, as +much as the dissembling of them increases it; for confession savours of +making amends, dissembling, of stubbornness. ..... Wherefore confession +is the discipline of a man's prostrating and humbling himself, enjoining +such a conversation as invites mercy. It restrains a man even as to the +matter of dress and food, requiring him to lie in sackcloth and ashes, +to hide his body in filthy garments, to afflict his soul with sorrow, to +exchange for severe treatment the sins in which he indulged; for the +rest to use simple things for meat and drink, that is, for the sake of +the soul, and not to please the appetite: for the most part also to +quicken prayer by fasts, to groan, to weep, and to moan day and night +before the Lord his God; to throw himself on the ground before the +presbyters, and to fall on his knees before the beloved of God; to +enjoin all the brethren to bear the message of his prayer for mercy--all +these things does confession that it may commend repentance." [493:1] + +When a man is overwhelmed with grief, the state of his mind will often +be revealed by the loss of his appetite. He will think little of his +dress and personal accommodation; and though he may give no utterance to +his feelings, his general appearance will betray to the eye of an +observer the depths of his affliction. The mourner not unfrequently +takes a melancholy satisfaction in surrounding himself with the symbols +of sorrow; and we read, accordingly, in Scripture how, in ancient times +and in Eastern countries, he clothed himself in sackcloth and sat in +ashes. [493:2] There is a wonderful sympathy between the body and the +mind; and as grief affects the appetite, so occasional abstinence from +food may foster a serious and contrite spirit. Hence fasting has been so +commonly associated with penitential exercises. + +Fasting is not to be regarded as one of the ordinary duties of a +disciple of Christ,[494:1] but rather as a kind of discipline in which +he may feel called on to engage under special circumstances.[494:2] When +oppressed with a consciousness of guilt, or when anxious for divine +direction on a critical occasion, or when trembling under the +apprehension of impending judgments, he may thus seek to "afflict his +soul," that he may draw near with deeper humility and reverence into the +presence of the Divine Majesty. But, in such a case, every one should +act according to the dictates of his own enlightened convictions. As the +duty is extraordinary, the self-denial to be practised must be regulated +by various contingencies; and no one can well prescribe to another its +amount or duration. + +According to the Mosaic law, only one day in the year--the great day of +atonement--was required to be kept as a national fast.[494:3] There is +now no divine warrant for so observing any corresponding day, and for +upwards of a hundred years after the death of our Lord, there is no +evidence that any fixed portion of time was thus appropriated under the +sanction of ecclesiastical authority. But towards the close of the +second century the termination of the Paschal week was often so +employed--the interval, between the hour on Friday when our Lord expired +and the morning of the first day of the week, being spent in total +abstinence.[494:4] About the same time some partially abstained from +food on what were called stationary days, or the Wednesday and Friday of +each week.[494:5] At this period some began also to observe Xerophagiae, +or days on which they used neither flesh nor wine. [495:1] Not a few saw +the danger of this ascetic tendency; but, whilst it betokened zeal, it +had also "a show of wisdom," [495:2] and it silently made great +progress. Towards the close of the third century the whole Church was +already pervaded by its influence. + +Fasting has been well described as "the outward shell" of penitential +sorrow, and is not to be confounded with its spiritual elements. It is +its accidental accompaniment, and not one of its true and essential +features. A man may "bow down his head as a bulrush," or fast, or clothe +himself in sackcloth, when he is an utter stranger to that "repentance +to salvation not to be repented of." The hypocrite may put on the +outward badges of mourning merely with a view to regain a position in +the Church, whilst the sincere penitent may "anoint his head and wash +his face," and reveal to the eye of the casual spectator no tokens of +contrition. As repentance is a spiritual exercise, it can only be +recognised by spiritual signs; and the rulers of the ancient Church +committed a capital error when they proposed to test it by certain +dietary indications. Their penitential discipline was directly opposed +to the genuine spirit of the gospel; and it was the fountain from whence +proceeded many of the superstitions which, like a river of death, soon +overspread Christendom. Whilst repentance was reduced to a mechanical +round of bodily exercises, the doctrine of a free salvation was +practically repudiated. + +In connexion with the appearance of a system of penitential discipline, +involving in some cases a penance of several years' continuance, [495:3] +the distinction of venial and mortal sins now began to be recognised. +Venial sins were transgressions which any sincere believer might commit, +whilst mortal sins were such as were considered incompatible with the +genuine profession of Christianity. Penance was prescribed only to those +who had been guilty of mortal sins. Its severity and duration varied +with the character of the offence, and was soon regulated according to +an exact scale arranged by the rulers of the Church in their +ecclesiastical conventions. + +About the middle of the third century a new arrangement was introduced, +with a view to promote the more exact administration of penitential +discipline. During the Decian persecution which occurred at this time, +many were induced by fear to abandon the profession of the gospel; and, +on the return of better days, those who sought restoration to Christian +privileges were so numerous that, in the larger churches, it was deemed +expedient to require the lapsed, in the first instance, to address +themselves to one of the presbyters appointed for their special +examination. The business of this functionary, who was known by the +designation of the _Penitentiary_ [496:1] was to hear the confessions of +the penitents, to ascertain the extent and circumstances of their +apostasy, and to announce the penance required from each by the existing +ecclesiastical regulations. The disclosures made to the Penitentiary did +not supersede the necessity of public confession; it was simply the duty +of this minister to give to the lapsed such instructions as his +professional experience enabled him to supply, including directions as +to the fasts they should observe, and the sins they should openly +acknowledge. Under the guidance of the Penitentiaries the system of +discipline for transgressors seems to have been still farther matured; +and at length, in the beginning of the fourth century, the penitents +were divided into various classes, according to their supposed degrees +of unworthiness. The members of each class were obliged to occupy a +particular position in the place of worship when the congregation +assembled for religious exercises. [497:1] + +It must be obvious from these statements that the institution known as +Auricular Confession had, as yet, no existence. In the early Church the +disciples, under ordinary circumstances, were neither required nor +expected, at stated seasons, to enter into secret conference with any +ecclesiastical searcher of consciences. When a professing Christian +committed a heinous transgression by which religion was scandalized, he +was obliged, before being re-admitted to communion, to express his +sorrow in the face of the congregation; and the revelations made to the +Penitentiary did not relieve him from this act of humiliation. It must +also be apparent that the whole system of penance is an unauthorized +addition to the ordinances of primitive Christianity. Of such a system +we do not find even a trace in the New Testament; and under its +blighting influence, the religion of the Church gradually became little +better than a species of refined heathenism. + +The spiritual darkness now settling down upon the Christian commonwealth +might be traced in the growing obscurity of the ecclesiastical +nomenclature. The power and the form of godliness began to be +confounded, and the same term was employed to denote penance and +repentance. [497:2] Bodily mortification was mistaken for holiness, and +celibacy for sanctity. [497:3] Other errors of an equally grave +character became current, for the penitent was described as _making +satisfaction_ for his sins by his fasts and his outward acts of self +abasement, [497:4] and thus the all-sufficiency of the great atonement +was openly ignored. Thus, too, the doctrine of a free salvation to +transgressors could no longer be proclaimed, for pardon was clogged with +conditions as burdensome to the sinner, as they were alien to the spirit +of the New Testament. The doctrine that "a man is justified by faith +without the deeds of the law," [498:1] reveals the folly of the ancient +penitential discipline. Our Father in heaven demands no useless tribute +of mortification from His children; He merely requires us to "bring +forth fruits meet for repentance." [498:2] "Is not this the fast that I +have chosen?" saith the Lord, "to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo +the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break +every yoke? Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou +bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the +naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine +own flesh? Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine +health shall spring forth speedily; and thy righteousness shall go +before thee: the glory of the Lord shall be thy reward." [498:3] + + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +THE CONSTITUTION OF THE CHURCH IN THE SECOND CENTURY. + + +Justin Martyr, who had travelled much, and who was probably as well +acquainted with the state of the Church about the middle of the second +century as most of his contemporaries, has left behind him an account of +the manner in which its worship was then conducted. This account, which +has already been submitted to the reader, [499:1] represents one +individual as presiding over each Christian community, whether in the +city or the country. Where the Church consisted of a single +congregation, and where only one of the elders was competent to preach, +it is easy to understand how the society was regulated. In accordance +with apostolic arrangement, the presbyter, who laboured in the Word and +doctrine, was counted worthy of double honour, [499:2] and was +recognized as the stated chairman of the solemn assembly. His brother +elders contributed in various ways to assist him in the supervision of +the flock; but its prosperity greatly depended on his own zeal, piety, +prudence, and ability. Known at first as _the president_, and afterwards +distinguished by the title of _the bishop_, he occupied very much the +same position as the minister of a modern parish. + +Where a congregation had more than one preaching elder, the case was +different. There, several individuals were in the habit of addressing +the auditory, [500:1] and it was the duty of the president to preserve +order; to interpose, perhaps, by occasional suggestions; and to close +the exercise. When several congregations with a plurality of preaching +elders existed in the same city, the whole were affiliated; and a +president, acknowledged by them all, superintended their united +movements. + +It must be admitted that much obscurity hangs over the general condition +of the Christian commonwealth in the first half of the second century; +but it so happens that two authentic and valuable documents which still +remain, one of which was written about the beginning and the other about +the close of this period, throw much light upon the question of Church +government. These documents are the "Epistle of Clement to the +Corinthians," and the "Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians." As to +the matters respecting which they bear testimony, we could not desire +more competent witnesses than the authors of these two letters. The one +lived in the West; the other, in the East. Clement, who is mentioned by +the Apostle Paul, [500:2] was a presbyter of the Church of Rome; +Polycarp, who, in his youth, had conversed with the Apostle John, was a +presbyter of the Church of Smyrna. Clement died about the close of the +first century, and his letter to the Corinthians was written three or +four years before, that is, immediately after the Domitian persecution; +Polycarp survived until a somewhat advanced period of the second +century, and his letter to the Philippians was probably written fifty or +sixty years after the date of the Epistle of Clement. [500:3] + +Towards the termination of the first century a spirit of discord +disturbed the Church of Corinth; and the Church of Rome, anxious to +restore peace, addressed a fraternal letter to the distracted community. +The Epistle was drawn up by Clement, who was then the leading minister +of the Italian capital; but, as it is written in the name of the whole +brotherhood, and as it had, no doubt, obtained their sanction, it +obviously possesses all the authority of a public and official +correspondence. From it the constitution of the Church of Corinth, and, +by implication, of the Church of Rome, may be easily ascertained: and it +furnishes abundant proof that, at the time of its composition, both +these Christian societies were under presbyterial government. Had a +prelate then presided in either Church, a circumstance so important +would not have been entirely overlooked, more especially as the document +is of considerable length, and as it treats expressly upon the subject +of ecclesiastical polity. It appears that some members of the community +to which it is addressed had acted undutifully towards those who were +over them in the Lord, and it accordingly condemns in very emphatic +terms a course of proceeding so disreputable. "It is shameful, beloved," +says the Church of Rome in this letter, "it is exceedingly shameful and +unworthy of your Christian profession, to hear that the most firm and +_ancient Church_ of the Corinthians should, by one or two persons, be +led into a sedition against _its elders._" [501:1] "Let the flock of +Christ be in peace with THE ELDERS THAT ARE SET OVER IT." [502:1] Having +stated that the apostles ordained those to whom the charge of the +Christian Church was originally committed, it is added, that they gave +directions in what manner, after the decease of these primitive pastors, +"other chosen and approved men should succeed to their ministry." +[502:2] The Epistle thus continues--"Wherefore we cannot think that +those may justly be thrown out of their ministry who were either +ordained by them (the apostles), or _afterwards by other approved men_ +with the approbation of the whole Church, and who have, with all +lowliness and innocency, ministered to the flock of Christ in peace and +without self-interest, and have been _for a long time_ commended by all. +For it would be no small sin in us, should we cast off those from the +ministry who holily and without blame fulfil the duties of it. Blessed +are _those elders who, having finished their course before these times_, +have obtained a fruitful and perfect dissolution." [502:3] Towards the +conclusion of the letter, the parties who had created this confusion in +the Church of Corinth have the following admonition addressed to +them--"Do ye, therefore, who laid the foundation of the sedition, submit +yourselves unto your _elders_, and be instructed unto repentance, +bending the knees of your hearts." [502:4] + +In the preservation of this precious letter we are bound to recognize +the hand of Providence. [502:5] Its instructions were so highly +appreciated by the ancient Christians that it continued to be publicly +read in many of their churches for centuries afterwards. [502:6] It is +universally acknowledged to be genuine; it breathes the benevolent +spirit of a primitive presbyter; and it is distinguished by its sobriety +and earnestness. It was written upon the verge of the apostolic age, and +it is the production of a pious, sensible, and aged minister who +preached for years in the capital of the Empire. The Church of Rome has +since advanced the most extravagant pretensions, and has appealed in +support of them to ecclesiastical tradition; but here, an elder of her +own--one who had conversed with, the apostles--and one whom she delights +to honour [503:1]--deliberately comes forward and ignores her +assumptions! She fondly believes that Clement was an early Pope, but the +good man himself admits that he was only one of the presbyters. Had +there then been a bishop of Corinth, this letter would unquestionably +have exhorted the malcontents to submit to his jurisdiction; or had +there been a bishop of Rome, it would not have failed to dilate upon the +benefits of episcopal government. But, as to the existence of any such +functionary in either Church, it preserves throughout a most +intelligible silence. It says that the apostles ordained the +first-fruits of their conversions, not as bishops _and presbyters_ and +deacons, but as "_bishops and deacons_ over such as should afterwards +believe;" [503:2] and it is apparent that, when it was written, the +terms bishop and presbyter were still used interchangeably. [503:3] + +The Epistle of Polycarp bears equally decisive testimony. It was drawn +up perhaps about the middle of the second century, [503:4] and though +the last survivor of the apostles was now dead for many years, no +general change had meanwhile taken place in the form of church +government. This document purports to be the letter of "Polycarp and the +elders who are with him [504:1] to the Church of God which is at +Philippi;" but it does not recognize a bishop as presiding over the +Christian community to which it is addressed. The Church was still +apparently in much the same state as when Paul wrote to "the saints in +Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, with the _bishops and deacons;_" +[504:2] for Polycarp was certainly not aware of the existence of any new +office-bearers; and he accordingly exhorts his correspondents to be +"_subject to the presbyters and deacons._" [504:3] "Let _the +presbyters_," says he, "be compassionate, merciful to all, bringing back +such as are in error, seeking out all those that are weak, not +neglecting the widow or the fatherless, or the poor; but providing +always what is good in the sight of God and men; abstaining from all +wrath, respect of persons, and _unrighteous judgment_; being far from +all covetousness; not ready to believe anything against any; _not severe +in judgment_, knowing that we are all debtors in point of sin." [504:4] + +It is stated by the most learned of the fathers of the fourth century +that the Church was at first "governed by the common council of the, +presbyters;" [504:5] and these two letters prove most satisfactorily the +accuracy of the representation. They shew that, throughout the whole of +the apostolic age, this species of polity continued. But the Scriptures +ordain that "all things be done decently and in order;" [504:6] and, as +a common council requires an official head, or mayor, to take the chair +at its meetings, and to act on its behalf, so the ancient eldership, or +presbytery, must have had a president or moderator. It would appear that +the duty and honour of presiding commonly devolved on the senior member +of the judicatory. We may thus account for those catalogues of bishops, +reaching back to the days of the apostles, which are furnished by some +of the writers of antiquity. From the first, every presbytery had its +president; and as the transition from the moderator to the bishop was +the work of time, the distinction at one period was little more than +nominal. Hence, writers who lived when the change was taking place, or +when it had only been recently accomplished, speak of these two +functionaries as identical. But in their attempts to enumerate the +bishops of the apostolic era, they encountered a practical difficulty. +The elders who were at first set over the Christian societies were all +ordained, in each church, on the same occasion, [505:1] and were, +perhaps, of nearly the same age, so that neither their date of +appointment, nor their years, could well determine the precedence; and +it is probable that, in general, no single individual continued +permanently to occupy the office of moderator. There may have been +instances in which a stated president was chosen, and yet it is +remarkable that not even one such case can be clearly established by the +evidence of contemporary documents. When all the other apostles departed +from Jerusalem, James appears to have remained in the holy city, so that +we may reasonably presume he always acted, when present, as chairman of +the mother presbytery; and accordingly, the writers of succeeding ages +have described him as the first bishop of the Jewish metropolis; but so +little consequence was originally attached to the office of moderator, +[505:2] that, in as far as the New Testament is concerned, the situation +held by this distinguished man can be inferred only from some very +obscure and doubtful intimations. [505:3] In Rome, and elsewhere, the +primitive elders at first, perhaps, filled the chair alternately. Hence +the so-called episcopal succession is most uncertain and confused at the +very time when it should be sustained by evidence the most decisive and +perspicuous. The lists of bishops, commencing with the ministry of the +apostles, and extending over the latter half of the first century, are +little better than a mass of contradictions. The compilers seem to have +set down, almost at random, the names of some distinguished men whom +they found connected with the different churches, and thus the +discrepancies are nearly as numerous as the catalogues. [506:1] + +But when Clement dictated the Epistle to the Corinthians most of the +elders, ordained by the apostles or evangelists about the middle of the +first century, must have finished their career; and there is little +reason to doubt that this eminent minister was then the father of the +Roman presbytery. The superscription of the letter to the Philippians +supplies direct proof that, at the time when it was written, Polycarp +likewise stood at the head of the presbytery of Smyrna. [506:2] Other +circumstances indicate that the senior presbyter now began to be +regarded as the stated president of the eldership. Hilary, one of the +best commentators of the ancient Church, [506:3] bears explicit +testimony to the existence of such an arrangement. "At first," says he, +"presbyters were called bishops, so that when the one (who was called +bishop) passed away, the next in order took his place." [507:1] "Though +every bishop is a presbyter, every presbyter is not a bishop, for he is +bishop who is first among the presbyters." [507:2] As soon as the +regulation, recognizing the claims of seniority was proposed, its +advocates were, no doubt, prepared to recommend it by arguments which +possessed at least considerable plausibility. The Scriptures frequently +inculcate respect for age, and when the apostle says--"Likewise, ye +younger, submit yourselves unto the elder," [507:3] he seems, from the +connexion in which the words occur, to refer specially to the deportment +of junior ministers. [507:4] In the lists of the Twelve to be found in +the New Testament the name of Peter appears _first_; [507:5] and if, as +is believed, he was more advanced in years than any of his brethren, +[507:6] it is easy to understand why this precedence has been given to +him; for, in all likelihood, he usually acted as president of the +apostolic presbytery. Even the construction of corporate bodies in the +Roman Empire might have suggested the arrangement; for it is well known +that, in the senates of the cities out of Italy, the oldest decurion, +under the title _principalis_, acted as president. [508:1] Did we, +therefore, even want the direct evidence already quoted, we might have +inferred, on other grounds, that, at an early date, the senior member +generally presided wherever an eldership was erected. + +As a point of such interest relating to the constitution of the ancient +Church should be carefully elucidated, it may be necessary to fortify +the statement of Hilary by some additional evidence. It is not to be +supposed that this candid and judicious commentator ventured, without +due authority, to describe the original order of succession in the +presidential chair; and he had, no doubt, access to sources of +information which have long ceased to be available; but the credit of +the fact for which he vouches does not rest upon the unsustained support +of his solitary attestation. Whilst his averment is recommended by +internal marks of probability, and whilst it is countenanced by several +scriptural intimations, it is also corroborated by a large amount of +varied and independent testimony. We shall now exhibit some of the most +striking portions of the confirmatory proof. + +I. The language applied in ancient documents to the primitive presidents +of the Churches illustrates the accuracy of this venerable commentator. +In one of the earliest extant notices of these ecclesiastical +functionaries, a bishop is designated "the old man." [508:2] The age of +the individual who is thus distinguished was not a matter of accident; +for each of his brethren in the same position, all over the Church, was +called "father" [508:3] on the ground of his seniority. The official +title "_Pope_," which has the same meaning, had also the same origin. It +was given at first to every president of the eldership, because he was, +in point of fact, the father, or senior member, of the judicatory. It +soon, no doubt, ceased to convey this meaning, but it still remained as +a memorial of the primitive regimen. + +II. It is a remarkable fact that, in none of the great sees before the +close of the second century, do we find any trace of the existence of a +young, or even of a middle-aged bishop. When Ignatius of Antioch was +martyred, he was verging on fourscore; Polycarp of Smyrna finished his +career at the age of eighty-six; Pothinus of Lyons fell a victim to +persecution when he was upwards of ninety; [509:1] Narcissus of +Jerusalem must have been at least that age when he was first placed in +the presidential chair; [509:2] one of his predecessors, named Justus, +appears to have been about one hundred and ten when he reached the same +dignity; [509:3] and Simeon of Jerusalem died when he had nearly +completed the patriarchal age of one hundred and twenty. As an +individual might become a member of the presbytery when comparatively +young, [509:4] such extraordinary longevity among the bishops of the +second century can be best explained by accepting the testimony of +Hilary. + +III. The number of bishops now found within a short period in the same +see has long presented a difficulty to many students of ecclesiastical +history. Thus, at Rome in the first forty years of the second century +there were five or six bishops, [509:5] and yet only one of them +suffered martyrdom. Within twelve or fifteen years after the death of +Polycarp, there were several bishops in Smyrna. [510:1] But the Church +of Jerusalem furnishes the most wonderful example of this quick +succession of episcopal dignitaries. Simeon, one of the relatives of our +Lord, is reported to have become the presiding pastor after the +destruction of the city by Titus, and to have been martyred about the +close of the reign of Trajan, or in A.D. 116; and yet, according to the +testimony of Eusebius, [510:2] no less than _thirteen bishops_ in +succession occupied his place before the end of the year A.D. 134. He +must have been set at the head of the Church when he was above +threescore and ten; [510:3] and dying, as already stated, at the extreme +age of one hundred and twenty, he probably left behind him a +considerable staff of very aged elders. These may have become presidents +in the order of their seniority; and as they would pass rapidly away, we +may thus account for the extraordinary number of the early chief pastors +of the ancient capital of Palestine. [510:4] + +At this time, or about A.D. 135, the original Christian Church of +Jerusalem was virtually dissolved. The Jews had grievously provoked +Hadrian by their revolt under the impostor Barchochebas; and the +Emperor, in consequence, resolved to exclude the entire race from the +precincts of the holy city. The faithful Hebrews, who had hitherto +worshipped there under the ministry of Simeon and his successors, still +observed the Mosaic law, and were consequently treated as Jews, so that +they were now obliged to break up their association, and remove to other +districts. A Christian Church, composed chiefly of Gentile converts, was +soon afterwards established in the same place; and the new society +elected an individual, named Marcus, as their bishop, or presiding +elder. Marcus was, probably, in the decline of life when he was placed +at the head of the community; and on his demise, [511:1] as well as long +afterwards, the old rule of succession seems to have been observed. +During the sixty years immediately after his appointment, there were +_fifteen_ bishops at Jerusalem [511:2]--a fact which apparently +indicates that, on the occurrence of a vacancy, the senior elder still +continued to be advanced to the episcopal chair. This conclusion is +remarkably corroborated by the circumstance that Narcissus, who was +bishop of the ancient capital of Judea at the end of these sixty years, +was, as has been already mentioned, upwards of fourscore and ten when he +obtained his ecclesiastical promotion. + +The episcopal roll of Jerusalem has no recorded parallel in the annals +of the Christian ministry, for there were no less than _twenty-eight_ +bishops in the holy city in a period of eighty years. Even the Popes +have never followed each other with such rapidity. The Roman Prelate, +when elevated to St. Peter's chair, has almost invariably been far +advanced in years, and the instances are not a few in which Pontiffs +have fallen victims to poison or to open violence; and yet their +history, even in the worst of times, exhibits nothing equal to the +frequency of the successions indicated by this ancient episcopal +registry. [512:1] It would appear from it that there were more bishops +in Jerusalem in the second century than there have been Archbishops of +Canterbury for the last four hundred years! [512:2] Such facts +demonstrate that those who then stood at the head of the mother Church +of Christendom, must have reached their position by means of some order +of succession very different from that which is now established. Hilary +furnishes at once a simple and an adequate explanation. The senior +minister was the president, or bishop; and as, when placed in the +episcopal chair, he had already reached old age, it was not to be +expected that he could long retain a situation which required some +exertion and involved much anxiety. Hence the startling amount of +episcopal mortality. + +As the Church of Jerusalem may be said to have been founded by our Lord +himself, it could lay claim to a higher antiquity than any other +Christian community in existence; and it long continued to be regarded +by the disciples all over the Empire with peculiar interest and +veneration. [512:3] When re-established about the close of the reign of +Hadrian, it was properly a new society; but it still enjoyed the +prestige of ancient associations. Its history has, therefore, been +investigated by Eusebius with special care; he tells us that he derived +a portion of his information from its own archives; [512:4] and, though +he enters into details respecting very few of the early Churches, he +notices it with unusual frequency, and gives an accredited list of the +names of its successive chief pastors. [513:1] About this period it was +obviously considered a model which other Christian societies of less +note might very safely imitate. It is, therefore, all the more important +if we are able to ascertain its constitution, as we are thus prepared to +speak with a measure of confidence respecting the form of ecclesiastical +government which prevailed throughout the second century. The facts +already stated, when coupled with the positive affirmation of the Roman +Hilary, place the solution of the question, as nearly as possible, upon +the basis of demonstration; for, if we reject the conclusion that, +during a hundred years after the death of the Apostle John, the senior +member of the presbytery of Jerusalem was the president or moderator, we +may in vain attempt to explain, upon any Round statistical principles, +how so many bishops passed away in succession within so limited periods, +and how, at several points along the line, and exactly where they might +have been expected, [513:2] we find individuals in occupation of the +chair who had attained to extreme longevity. + +IV. The statement of Hilary illustrates the peculiar cogency of the +argumentation employed by the defenders of the faith who flourished +about the close of the second century. This century was pre-eminently +the age of heresies, and the disseminators of error were most +extravagant and unscrupulous in their assertions. The heresiarchs, among +other things, affirmed that the inspired heralds of the gospel had not +committed their whole system to written records; that they had entrusted +certain higher revelations only to select or perfect disciples; and that +the doctrine of Aeons, which they so assiduously promulgated, was +derived from this hidden treasure of ecclesiastical tradition. [514:1] +To such assertions the champions of orthodoxy were prepared to furnish a +triumphant reply, for they could shew that the Gnostic system was +inconsistent with Scripture, and that its credentials, said to be +derived from tradition, were utterly apocryphal. They could appeal, in +proof of its falsehood, to the tradition which had come down to +themselves from the apostles, and which was still preserved in the +Churches "through the successions of the elders." [514:2] They could +farther refer to those who stood at the head of their respective +presbyteries as the witnesses most competent to give evidence. "We are +able," says Irenaeus, "to enumerate those whom the apostles established +as bishops in the Churches, [514:3] together with their successors down +to our own times, who neither taught any such doctrine as these men rave +about, nor had any knowledge of it. For if the apostles had been +acquainted with recondite mysteries which they were in the habit of +teaching to the perfect disciples apart and without the knowledge of the +rest, they would by all means have communicated them to those to whom +they entrusted the care of the Church itself, since they wished that +those whom they left behind them as their successors, and to whom they +gave their own place of authority, should be quite perfect and +irreproachable in all things." [514:4] + +Had the succession to the episcopal chair been regulated by the +arrangements of modern times, there would have been little weight in the +reasoning of Irenaeus. The declaration of the bishop respecting the +tradition of the Church over which he happened to preside would have +possessed no special value. But it was otherwise in the days of this +pastor of Lyons. The bishop was generally one of the oldest members of +the community with which he was connected, and had been longer +conversant with its ecclesiastical affairs than any other minister. His +testimony to its traditions was, therefore, of the highest importance. +In a few of the great Churches, as we have elsewhere shewn, [515:1] the +senior elder now no longer succeeded, as a matter of course, to the +episcopate; but age continued to be universally regarded as an +indispensable qualification for the office, [515:2] and, when Irenaeus +wrote, the law of seniority appears to have been still generally +maintained. It was, therefore, with marked propriety that he appealed to +the evidence of the bishops; as they, from their position, were most +competent to expose the falsehood of the fables of Gnosticism. + +V. It is well known that, in some of the most ancient councils of which +we have any record, the senior bishop officiated as moderator [515:3] +and, long after age had ceased to determine the succession to the +episcopal chair, the recognition of its claims, under various forms, may +be traced in ecclesiastical history. In Spain, so late as the fourth +century, the senior chief pastor acted as president when the bishops and +presbyters assembled for deliberation [515:4] In Africa the same rule +was observed until the Church of that country was overwhelmed by the +northern barbarians. In Mauritania and Numidia, even in the fifth +century, the senior bishop of the province, whoever he might be, was +acknowledged as metropolitan. [516:1] In the usages of a still later age +we may discover vestiges of the ancient regulation, for the bishops sat, +in the order of their seniority, in the provincial synods. [516:2] Still +farther, where the bishop of the chief city of the province was the +stated metropolitan, the ecclesiastical law still retained remembrancers +of the primitive polity; as, when this dignitary died, the senior bishop +of the district performed his functions until a successor was regularly +appointed. [516:3] + +Though the senior presbyter presided in the meetings of his brethren, +and was soon known by the name of bishop, it does not appear that he +originally possessed any superior authority. He held his place for life, +but as he was sinking under the weight of years when he succeeded to it, +he could not venture to anticipate an extended career of official +distinction. In all matters relating either to discipline, or the +general interests of the brotherhood, he was expected to carry out the +decisions of the eldership, so that, under his presidential rule, the +Church was still substantially governed by "the common council of the +presbyters." + +The allegation that presbyterial government existed in all its integrity +towards the end of the second century does not rest on the foundation of +obscure intimations or doubtful inferences. It can be established by +direct and conclusive testimony. Evidence has already been adduced to +shew that the senior presbyter of Smyrna continued to preside until the +days of Irenaeus, and there is also documentary proof that meanwhile he +possessed no autocratical authority. The supreme power was still vested +in the council of the elders. This point is attested by Hippolytus, who +was now just entering on his ecclesiastical career, and who, in one of +his works, a fragment of which has been preserved, describes the manner +in which the rulers of the Church dealt with the heretic Noetus. The +transaction probably occurred about A.D. 190. [517:1] "There are certain +others," says Hippolytus, "who introduce clandestinely a strange +doctrine, being disciples of one Noetus, who was by birth a Smyrnean, +and lived not long ago. This man, being puffed up, was led to forget +himself, being elated by the vain fancy of a strange spirit. He said +that Christ is himself the Father, and that the Father himself had been +born, and had suffered and died....When the _blessed presbyters_ heard +these things, they _summoned him and examined him before the Church_. +He, however, denied, saying at first that such were not his sentiments. +But afterwards, when he had intrigued with some, and had found persons +to join him in his error, he took courage, and at length resolved to +stand by his dogma. The _blessed presbyters again summoned him, and +administered a rebuke_. But he withstood them, saying--'Why, what evil +am I doing in glorifying Christ?' To whom _the presbyters replied_--'We +also truly acknowledge one God; we acknowledge Christ; we acknowledge +that the Son suffered as He did suffer, that He died as He did die, and +that He rose again the third day, and that He is at the right hand of +the Father, and that He is coming to judge the quick and the dead; and +we declare those things which we have been taught.' _Then they rebuked +him, and cast him out of the Church._" [517:2] + +About the time to which these words refer a change was made in the +ecclesiastical constitution. The senior minister ceased to preside over +the eldership; and the Church was no longer governed, as heretofore, by +the "blessed presbyters." It would appear that the synods which were +held all over the Church for the suppression of the Montanist agitation, +and in connexion with the Paschal controversy, [518:1] adopted a +modified episcopacy. As parties already in the presidential chair were, +no doubt, permitted to hold office during life, this change could not +have been accomplished instantaneously; but various circumstances concur +to prove that it took place about the period now indicated. The +following reasons, among others, may be adduced in support of this view +of the history of the ecclesiastical revolution. + +I. The Montanists, towards the termination of the second century, +created much confusion by their extravagant doctrines and their claims +to inspiration. These fanatics were in the habit of disturbing public +worship by uttering their pretended revelations, and as they were often +countenanced by individual elders, the best mode of protecting the +Church from their annoyance soon became a question of grave and pressing +difficulty. Episcopacy, as shall afterwards be shewn, [518:2] had +already been introduced in some great cities, and about this time the +Churches generally agreed to follow the influential example. It was, no +doubt, thought that order could be more effectually preserved were a +single individual armed with independent authority. Thus, the system of +government by presbyters was gradually and silently subverted. + +II. It is well known that the close of the second century is a +transition period in the history of the Church. A new ecclesiastical +nomenclature now appeared; [519:1] the bishops acquired increased +authority; and, early in the third century, they were chosen in all the +chief cities by popular suffrage. The alteration mentioned by Hilary +may, therefore, have been the immediate precursor of other and more +vital changes. + +III. Though Eusebius passes over in suspicious silence the history of +all ecclesiastical innovations, his account of the bishops of Jerusalem +gives good reason for believing that the law abolishing the claim of +seniority came into operation about the close of the second century. He +classes together the fifteen chief pastors who followed each other in +the holy city immediately after its restoration by Hadrian, [519:2] and +then goes on to give a list of others, their successors, whose +pastorates were of the ordinary duration. He mentions likewise that the +sixteenth bishop was chosen by _election_. [519:3] May we not here +distinctly recognize the close of one system, and the commencement of +another? As the sixteenth bishop was appointed about A.D. 199, the law +had, probably, been then only recently enacted. + +IV. Eusebius professes to trace the episcopal succession from the days +of the apostles in Rome, Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem; and it has +often been shewn that the accuracy of these four lists is extremely +problematical; but it is remarkable that in other Churches the episcopal +registry cannot be carried up higher than the end of the second century. +The roll of the bishops of Carthage is there discontinued, [519:4] and +the episcopal registry of Spain there also abruptly terminates. But the +history of the Church of Caesarea affords the most extraordinary +specimen of this defalcation. Caesarea was the civil metropolis of +Palestine, and a Christian Church existed in it from the days of Paul +and Peter. [520:1] Its bishop in the early part of the fourth century +was the friend of the Emperor Constantine and the father of +ecclesiastical history. Eusebius enjoyed all needful facilities for +investigating the annals of his own Church; and yet, strange to say, he +commences its episcopal registry about the close of the second century! +[520:2] What explanation can be given of this awkward circumstance? Had +Eusebius taken no notice of any of the bishops of his own see, we could +appreciate his modesty; but why should he overlook those who nourished +before the time of Victor of Rome, and then refer to their successors +with such marked frequency? [520:3] May we not infer, either that he +deemed it inexpedient to proclaim the inconvenient fact that the bishops +of Caesarea were as numerous as the bishops of Jerusalem; or that he +found it impossible to recover the names of a multitude of old men who +had only a nominal precedence among their brethren, and who had passed +off the stage, one after another, in quick succession? + +V. A statement of Eutychius, who was patriarch of Alexandria in the +tenth century, and who has left behind him a history of his see from the +days of the apostles, supplies a remarkable confirmation of the fact +that, towards the close of the second century, a new policy was +inaugurated. According to this writer there was, with the exception of +the occupant of the episcopal chair of Alexandria, "no bishop in the +provinces of Egypt" before Demetrius. [520:4] As Demetrius became bishop +of Alexandria about A.D. 190, Christianity must have now made extensive +progress in the country; [520:5] for it had been planted there perhaps +one hundred and fifty years before; but it would seem that meanwhile, +with the one exception, the Churches still remained under presbyterial +government. Demetrius was a prelate of great influence and energy; and, +during his long episcopate of forty-three years, [521:1] he succeeded in +spreading all over the land the system of which he had been at one time +the only representative. + +It is not, indeed, to be supposed that the whole Church, prompted by a +sudden and simultaneous impulse, agreed, all at once, to change its +ecclesiastical arrangements. Another polity, as has already been +intimated, at first made its appearance in places of commanding +influence; and its advocates now, no doubt, most assiduously endeavoured +to recommend its claims by appealing to the fruits of experience. The +Church of Rome, as will subsequently appear, took the lead in setting up +a mitigated form of prelacy; the Churches of Antioch and Alexandria +followed; and, soon afterwards, other Christian communities of note +adopted the example. That this subject may be fairly understood, a few +chapters must now be employed in tracing the rise and progress of the +hierarchy. + + + + + +CHAPTER VI. + +THE RISE OF THE HIERARCHY CONNECTED WITH THE SPREAD OF HERESIES. + + +Eusebius, already so often quoted, and known so widely as the author of +the earliest Church history, flourished in the former half of the fourth +century. This distinguished father was a spectator of the most wonderful +revolution recorded in the annals of the world. He had seen Christianity +proscribed, and its noblest champions cut down by a brutal martyrdom; +and he had lived to see a convert to the faith seated on the throne of +the Caesars, and ministers of the Church basking in the sunshine of +Imperial bounty. He was himself a special favourite with Constantine; as +bishop of Caesarea, the chief city of Palestine, he had often access to +the presence of his sovereign; and in a work which is still extant, +professing to be a Life of the Emperor, he has well-nigh exhausted the +language of eulogy in his attempts to magnify the virtues of his +illustrious patron. + +Eusebius may have been an accomplished courtier, but certainly he is not +entitled to the praise of a great historian. The publication by which he +is best known would never have acquired such celebrity, had it not been +the most ancient treatise of the kind in existence. Though it mentions +many of the ecclesiastical transactions of the second and third +centuries, and supplies a large amount of information which would have +otherwise been lost, it must be admitted to be a very ill-arranged and +unsatisfactory performance. Its author does not occupy a high position +either as a philosophic thinker, a judicious observer, or a sound +theologian. He makes no attempt to point out the germs of error, to +illustrate the rise and progress of ecclesiastical changes, or to +investigate the circumstances which led to the formation of the +hierarchy. Even the announcement of his Preface, that his purpose is "to +record the successions of the holy apostles," or, in other words, to +exhibit some episcopal genealogies, proclaims how much he was mistaken +as to the topics which should have been noticed most prominently in his +narrative. It is somewhat doubtful whether his history was expressly +written, either for the illumination of his own age, or for the +instruction of posterity; and its appearance, shortly after the public +recognition of Christianity by the State, [523:1] is fitted to generate +a suspicion that it was intended to influence the mind of Constantine, +and to recommend the episcopal order to the consideration of the great +proselyte. + +About six or seven years after the publication of this treatise a child +was born who was destined to attain higher distinction, both as a +scholar and a writer, than the polished Eusebius. This was +Jerome--afterwards a presbyter of Rome, and a father whose productions +challenge the foremost rank among the memorials of patristic erudition. +Towards the close of the fourth century he shone the brightest literary +star in the Church, and even the proud Pope Damasus condescended to +cultivate his favour. At one time he contemplated the composition of a +Church history, [523:2] and we have reason to regret that the design was +never executed, as his works demonstrate that he was in possession of +much rare and important information for which we search in vain in the +pages of the bishop of Caesarea. + +No ancient writer has thrown more light on the history of the hierarchy +than Jerome. His remarks upon the subject frequently drop incidentally +from his pen, and must be sought for up and down throughout his +commentaries and epistles; but he speaks as an individual who was quite +familiar with the topics which he introduces; and, whilst all his +statements are consistent, they are confirmed and illustrated by other +witnesses. As a presbyter, he seems to have been jealous of the honour +of his order; and, when in certain moods, he is obviously very well +disposed to remind the bishops that their superiority to himself was a +mere matter of human arrangement. One of his observations relative to +the original constitution of the Christian commonwealth has been often +quoted. "Before that, by the prompting of the devil, there were parties +in religion, and it was said among the people, I am of Paul, and I of +Apollos, and I of Cephas, the Churches were governed by the common +council of the presbyters. But, _after that each, one began to reckon +those whom he baptized as belonging to himself_ and not to Christ, it +was DECREED THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE WORLD that one elected from the +presbyters should be set over the rest, that he should have the care +of the whole Church, that _the seeds of schisms_ might be destroyed." +[524:1] + +Because Jerome in this place happens to use language which occurs in the +First Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians, we are not to understand him +as identifying the date of that letter with the origin of prelacy. Such +a conclusion would be quite at variance with the tenor of this passage. +The words, "I am of Paul, and I of Apollos, and I of Cephas," [525:1] +are used by him rhetorically; he was accustomed to repeat them when +describing schisms or contentions; and he has employed them on one +memorable occasion in relation to a controversy of the fourth century. +[525:2] The divisions among the Corinthians, noticed by Paul, were +trivial and temporary; the Church at large was not disturbed by them; +but Jerome speaks of a time when the whole ecclesiastical community was +so agitated that it was threatened with dismemberment. The words +immediately succeeding those which we have quoted clearly shew that he +dated the origin of prelacy after the days of the apostles. "Should any +one think that the identification of bishop and presbyter, the one being +a name of age and the other of office, is not a doctrine of Scripture, +but our own opinion, let him refer to the words of the apostle saying to +the Philippians-'Paul and Timotheus, the servants of Jesus Christ, to +all the saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, _with the bishops +and deacons_, Grace to you and peace,' [525:3] and so forth. Philippi is +one city of Macedonia, and truly in one city, there cannot be, as is +thought, more than one bishop; but because, at that time, they called +the same parties bishops and presbyters, therefore he speaks of bishops +as of presbyters without making distinction. Still this may seem +doubtful to some unless confirmed by another testimony. In the Acts of +the Apostles it is written [526:1] that when the apostle came to Miletus +he 'sent to Ephesus and called the elders of the same Church,' to whom +then, among other things, he said--'Take heed to yourselves and to all +the flock over which the Holy Ghost has made you bishops, [526:2] to +feed the Church of the Lord which He has purchased with His own blood.' +And attend specially to this, how, calling the elders of the one city +Ephesus, he afterwards addressed the same as bishops. Whoever is +prepared to receive that Epistle which is written to the Hebrews under +the name of Paul, [526:3] there also the care of the Church is divided +equally among more than one, since he writes to the people--'Obey _them_ +that have the rule over you and submit yourselves, for they are they who +watch for your souls as those who must give account, that they may not +do it with grief, since this is profitable for you.' [526:4] And Peter, +who received his name from the firmness of his faith, in his Epistle +speaks, saying--'The _elders_, therefore, who are among you, I exhort, +_who am also an elder_, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and +who am a partaker of his glory which shall be revealed, feed that flock +of the Lord which is among you, not by constraint but willingly.' +[527:1] We may thus shew that anciently bishops and presbyters were the +same; but, _by degrees_, THAT THE PLANTS OF DISSENSION MIGHT BE ROOTED +UP, all care was transferred to one. As, therefore, the presbyters know +that, in accordance with _the custom of the Church_, they are subject to +him who has been set over them, so the bishops should know that they are +greater than the presbyters, rather _by custom_, than by the truth of an +arrangement of the Lord." [527:2] + +Jerome here explains himself in language which admits of no second +interpretation; for all these proofs, adduced to shew that the Church +was originally under presbyterial government, are of a later date than +the First Epistle to the Corinthians. The Epistle to the Philippians +contains internal evidence that it was dictated during Paul's first +imprisonment at Rome; the Epistle to the Hebrews appeared after his +liberation; and the First Epistle of Peter was written in the old age of +the apostle of the circumcision. [527:3] Nor is this even the full +amount of his testimony to the antiquity of the presbyterian polity. On +another occasion, after mentioning some of the texts which have been +given, he goes on to make quotations from the Second and Third Epistles +of John--which are generally dated towards the close of the first +century [527:4]--and he declares that prelacy had not made its +appearance when these letters were written. Having produced authorities +from Paul and Peter, he exclaims--"Do the testimonies of such men seem +small to you? Let the Evangelical Trumpet, the Son of Thunder, whom +Jesus loved very much, who drank the streams of doctrine from the bosom +of the Saviour, sound in your ears--'The _elder_, unto the elect lady +and her children, whom I love in the truth;' [528:1] and, in another +epistle--'The _elder_ to the very dear Caius, whom I love in the truth.' +[528:2] But _what was done afterwards_, when one was elected who was set +over the rest, was _for a cure of schism_; lest every one, insisting +upon his own will, should rend the Church of God." [528:3] + +We have already seen [528:4] that extant documents, written about the +close of the first century and the middle of the second, bear similar +testimony as to the original constitution of the Church. The "Epistle of +Clement to the Corinthians" cannot be dated earlier than the termination +of the reign of Domitian, for it refers to a recent persecution, [528:5] +it describes the community to which it in addressed as "most ancient," +it declares that others now occupied the places of those who had been +ordained by the apostles, and it states that this second generation of +ministers had been _long_ in possession of their ecclesiastical charges. +[528:6] Candid writers, of almost all parties, acknowledge that this +letter distinctly recognizes the existence of government by presbyters. +[528:7] The evidence of the letter of Polycarp [528:8] is not less +explicit. Jerome, therefore, did not speak without authority when he +affirmed that prelacy was established after the days of the apostles, +and as an antidote against schism. + +The apostolic Church was comparatively free from divisions; and, whilst +the inspired heralds of the gospel lived, it could not be said that +"there were parties in religion." The heretics who appeared were never +able to organize any formidable combinations; they were inconsiderable +in point of numbers; and, though not wanting in activity, those to whom +our Lord had personally entrusted the publication of His Word, were +ready to oppose them, so that all their efforts were effectually checked +or defeated. The most ancient writers acknowledge that, during the early +part of the second century, the same state of things continued. +According to Hegesippus, who outlived Polycarp about fifteen or twenty +years, [529:1] the Church continued until the death of Simeon of +Jerusalem, in A.D. 116, [529:2] "as a pure and uncorrupted virgin." "If +there were any at all," says he, "who attempted to pervert the right +standard of saving doctrine, they were yet skulking in dark retreats; +but when the sacred company of the apostles had, in various ways, +finished their career, AND THE GENERATION OF THOSE WHO HAD BEEN +PRIVILEGED TO HEAR THEIR INSPIRED WISDOM HAD PASSED AWAY, then at length +the fraud of false teachers produced a confederacy of impious errors." +[529:3] The date of the appearance of these parties is also established +by the testimony of Celsus, who lived in the time of the Antonines, and +who was one of the most formidable of the early antagonists of +Christianity. This writer informs us that, though in the beginning the +disciples were agreed in sentiment, they became, in his days, when +"spread out into a multitude, divided and distracted, each aiming to +give stability to his own faction." [530:1] + +The statements of Hegesippus and Celsus are substantiated by a host of +additional witnesses. Justin Martyr, [530:2] Irenaeus, [530:3] Clemens +Alexandrinus, [530:4] Cyprian, [530:5] and others, all concur in +representing the close of the reign of Hadrian, or the beginning of the +reign of Antoninus Pius, as the period when heresies burst forth, like a +flood, upon the Church. The extant ecclesiastical writings of the +succeeding century are occupied chiefly with their refutation. No wonder +that the best champions of the faith were embarrassed and alarmed. They +had hitherto been accustomed to boast that Christianity was the cement +which could unite all mankind, and they had pointed triumphantly to its +influence in bringing together the Jew and the Gentile, the Greek and +the barbarian, the master and the slave, the learned and the illiterate. +They had looked forward with high expectation to the days of its +complete ascendency, when, under its gentle sway, all nations would +exhibit the spectacle of one great and happy brotherhood. How, then, +must they have been chagrined by the rise and spread of heresies! They +saw the Church itself converted into a great battle-field, and every +man's hand turned against his fellow. In almost all the populous cities +of the Empire, as if on a concerted signal, the errorists commenced +their discussions. The Churches of Lyons, [531:1] of Rome, of Corinth, +of Athens, of Ephesus, of Antioch, and of Alexandria, resounded with the +din of theological controversy. Nor were the heresiarchs men whom their +opponents could afford to despise. In point of genius and of literary +resources, many of them were fully equal to the most accomplished of +their adversaries. Their zeal was unwearied, and their tact most +perplexing. Mixing up the popular elements of the current philosophy +with a few of the facts and doctrines of the gospel, they produced a +compound by which many were deceived. How did the friends of the Church +proceed to grapple with these difficulties? They, no doubt, did their +utmost to meet the errorists in argument, and to shew that their +theories were miserable perversions of Christianity. But they did not +confine themselves to the use of weapons drawn from their own heavenly +armoury. Not a few presbyters were themselves tainted with the new +opinions; some of them were even ringleaders of the heretics; [531:2] +and, in an evil hour, the dominant party resolved to change the +constitution of the Church, and to try to put down disturbance by means +of a new ecclesiastical organization. Believing, with many in modern +times, that "parity breedeth confusion," and expecting, as Jerome has +expressed it, "that the seeds of schisms might be destroyed," they +sought to invigorate their administration by investing the presiding +elder with authority over the rest of his brethren. The senior +presbyters, the last survivors of a better age, were all sound in the +faith; and, as they were still at the head of the Churches in the great +cities, it was thought that by enlarging their prerogatives, and by +giving them the name of bishops, they would be the better able to +struggle energetically with the dangers of their position. The principle +that, whoever would not submit to the bishop should be cast out of the +Church, was accordingly adopted; and it was hoped that in due time peace +would be restored to the spiritual commonwealth. + +About the same period arrangements were made in some places for changing +the mode of advancement to the presidential chair, so that, in no case, +an elder suspected of error could have a chance of promotion. [532:1] An +immense majority of the presbyters were yet orthodox; and by being +permitted to depart, as often as they pleased, from the ancient order of +succession, and to nominate any of themselves to the episcopate, they +could always secure the appointment of an individual representing their +own sentiments. In some of the larger Churches, where their number was +considerable, they appear to have usually selected three or four +candidates; and then to have permitted the lot to make the ultimate +decision. [532:2] But the ecclesiastical revolution could not stop here. +Jealousy quickly appeared among the presbyters; and, during the +excitement of elections, the more popular candidates would not long be +willing to limit the voting to the presbytery. The people chose their +presbyters and deacons, and now that the office of moderator possessed +substantial power, and differed so much from what it was originally, why +should not all the members of the Church be allowed to exercise their +legitimate influence? Such a claim could not be well resisted. Thus it +was that the bishops were ultimately chosen by popular suffrage. [533:1] + +Some have imagined that they have discovered inconsistency in the +statements of Jerome relative to prelacy. They allege, in proof, that +whilst he describes the Church as governed, until the rise of "parties +in religion," by the common council of the presbyters, he also speaks of +bishops as in existence from the days of the apostles. "At Alexandria," +says he, "from Mark the Evangelist, [by whom the Church there is said to +have been founded] to Heraclas and Dionysius the bishops, [who +flourished in the third century] the presbyters always named as bishop +one chosen from among themselves and placed along with them [533:2] in a +higher position." [533:3] It must appear, however, on due consideration, +that here there is no inconsistency whatever. In the Epistle where this +passage occurs Jerome is asserting the ancient dignity of presbyters, +and shewing that they originally possessed prerogatives of which they +had more recently been deprived. In proof of this he refers to the +Church of Alexandria, one of the greatest sees in Christendom, where for +upwards of a century and a half after the days of the Evangelist Mark, +the presbyters appointed their spiritual overseers, and performed all +the ceremonies connected with their official investiture. But it does +not therefore follow that meanwhile these overseers had always possessed +exactly the same amount of authority. The very fact mentioned by Jerome +suggests a quite different inference, as it proves that whilst the power +of the presbyters had been declining, that of the bishops had increased. +In the second century the presbyters inaugurated bishops; in the days of +Jerome they were not permitted even to ordain presbyters. + +Jerome says, indeed, that, in the beginning, the Alexandrian presbyters +nominated their _bishops_, but we are not to conclude that the parties +chosen were always known distinctively by the designation which he here +gives to them. He evidently could not have intended to convey such an +impression, as in the same Epistle he demonstrates, by a whole series of +texts of Scripture, that the titles bishop and presbyter were used +interchangeably throughout the whole of the first century. By bishops he +obviously understands the presidents of the presbyteries, or the +officials who filled the chairs which those termed bishops subsequently +occupied. In their own age these primitive functionaries were called +bishops and presbyters indifferently; but they partially represented the +bishops of succeeding times, and they always appeared in the episcopal +registries as links of the apostolical succession, so that Jerome did +not deem it necessary to depart from the current nomenclature. His +meaning cannot be mistaken by any one who attentively marks his +language, for he has stated immediately before, that episcopal authority +properly commenced when the Church began to be distracted by the spirit +of sectarianism. [534:1] + +In this passage, however, the learned father bears unequivocal testimony +to the fact that, from the earliest times, the presbytery had an +official head or president. Such an arrangement was known in the days of +the apostles. But the primitive moderator was very different from the +bishop of the fourth century. He was the representative of the +presbytery--not its master. Christ had said to the disciples--"Whosoever +will be great among you, let him be your minister; and whosoever will be +chief among you, let him be your servant." [535:1] Such a chief was at +the head of the ancient presbytery. Without a president no Church court +could transact business; and it was the duty of the chairman to preserve +order, to bear many official burdens, to ascertain the sentiments of his +brethren, to speak in their name, and to act in accordance with the +dictates of their collective wisdom. [535:2] The bishop of after-times +rather resembled a despotic sovereign in the midst of his counsellors. +He might ask the advice of the presbyters, and condescend to defer to +their recommendations; but he could also negative their united +resolutions, and cause the refractory quickly to feel the gravity of his +displeasure. + +Though Jerome tells us how, for the destruction of the seeds of schisms, +"_it was decreed throughout the whole_ WORLD that one elected from the +presbyters should be set over the rest," we are not to suppose that the +decree was carried out, all at once, into universal operation. General +councils were yet unknown, and the decree must have been sanctioned at +different times and by distant Church judicatories. Such a measure was +first thought of shortly before the middle of the second century, but it +was not very extensively adopted until about fifty years afterwards. The +history of its origin must now be more minutely investigated. + + + + + +CHAPTER VII. + +PRELACY BEGINS IN ROME. + + +Any attentive reader who has marked the chronology of the early bishops +of Rome, as given by Eusebius, [537:1] may have observed that the +pastorates of those who flourished during the first forty years of the +second century were all of comparatively short duration. Clement is +commonly reputed to have died about A.D. 100; [537:2] he was followed by +Evaristus, Alexander, Xystus, and Telesphorus; and Hyginus, who was +placed at the head of the Church in A.D. 139, and who died in A.D. 142, +was the _fifth_ in succession. Thus, the five ministers next in order +after Clement occupied the post of president only forty-two years, and, +with the exception of Hyginus, whose official career was very brief, +each appears to have held the situation for nearly an equal period. +[538:1] But, on the death of Hyginus, a pastorate of unusual length +commences, as Pius, by whom he was followed, continued fifteen years in +office--a term considerably more extended than that of any of his five +predecessors. Reckoning from the date of the advancement of Pius, we +find also a decided increase in the average length of the life of the +president for the remainder of the century; as, of the ten individuals +in all who were at the head of the Roman Church during its revolution, +the five who followed next after Clement lived only _forty-two_ years, +whilst their five successors lived _fifty-nine_ years. Thus, there is at +least some ostensible ground for the inquiry whether any arrangement was +made, about the time of Hyginus, which may account for these statistics. + +The origin of the Church of Rome, like the origin of the city, is buried +in obscurity; and a very few facts constitute the whole amount of our +information respecting it during the first century of its existence. +About the time of Hyginus the twilight of history begins to dawn upon +it. Guided by the glimmerings of intelligence thus supplied, we shall +endeavour to illustrate tins dark passage in its annals. The following +statements may contribute somewhat to the explanation of transactions +which have hitherto been rarely noticed by modern ecclesiastical +writers. + +I. A change in the organization of the Church about the time of Hyginus, +will account for the increase in the average length of the lives of the +Roman bishops. [539:1] If the alteration, mentioned by Hilary, was now +made in the mode of succession to the presidential chair, such a result +must have followed. Under the new regime, the recommendation of large +experience would still have much weight in the choice of a bishop, but +he would frequently enter on his duties at a somewhat earlier age, and +thus the ordinary duration of his official career would be considerably +extended. [539:2] + +II. The time of Hyginus exactly answers to the description of the period +when, according to the testimony of Jerome, prelacy commenced. The +heretics then exhibited extraordinary zeal, so that "parties in +religion" were springing up all over the Empire. The Church of Rome is +said to have hitherto escaped the contagion of false doctrine, [539:3] +but now errorists from all quarters began to violate its purity and to +disturb its peace. Valentine, Cerdo, Marcion, and Marcus appeared about +this time in the Western capital. [540:1] Some of these men were noted +for their genius and learning; and there is every reason to believe that +they created no common ferment. They were assiduous in the dissemination +of their principles, and several of them resorted to very extraordinary +and unwarrantable expedients for strengthening their respective +factions. An ancient writer represents them as conducting their +adherents to water, and as baptizing them "in the name of the Unknown +Father of the universe; in the Truth, the mother of all; and in Him who +descended on Jesus." "Others again," says the same authority, "repeated +Hebrew names to inspire the initiated with the greater awe." [540:2] +These attempts at proselytism were not unsuccessful. Valentine, in +particular, made many converts, and after his death, when Irenaeus wrote +a refutation of his heresy, his disciples must still have been numerous. +[540:3] + +The account given by Jerome of the state of the Christian interest when +it was deemed necessary to set up episcopacy, is not so completely +supplemented by the condition of the Church at any other period. Never +certainly did the brethren at Rome more require the services of a +skilful and energetic leader, than when the Gnostic chiefs settled in +the great metropolis. Never could it be said with so much truth of their +community, in the language of the Latin father, that "every one reckoned +those whom he baptized as belonging to himself and not to Christ;" +[541:1] for, as we have just seen, some, when baptizing their disciples, +used even new forms of initiation. Never, assuredly, had the advocates +of expediency a better opportunity for pleading in favour of a decree +ordaining that "one chosen from among the presbyters should be put over +the rest, and that the whole care of the Church should be committed to +him, that the seeds of schisms should be taken away." [541:2] + +III. The testimony of Hilary, who was contemporary with Jerome, exactly +accords with the views here promulgated as to the date of this +occurrence. This writer, who was also a minister of the Roman Church, +was obviously acquainted with a tradition that a change had taken place +at an early period in the mode of ecclesiastical government. His +evidence is all the more valuable as it contains internal proofs of +derivation from an independent source; for, whilst it corroborates the +statement of Jerome, it supplies fresh historical details. According to +his account, "after that churches were erected in all places and offices +established, an arrangement was adopted different from that which +prevailed at the beginning." [541:3] By "the beginning" he understands +the apostolic age, or the time when the New Testament was written. +[541:4] He then goes on to say, in explanation, that it was found +necessary to change the mode of appointing the chairman of the +eldership, and that he was now promoted to the office by election, and +not by seniority. [541:5] Whilst his language indicates distinctly that +this alteration was made after the days of the apostles, it also implies +a date not later than the second century; for, though it was "after the +beginning," it was at a time when churches had been only _recently_ +"erected in all places, and offices established." The period of the +spread of heresies at Rome, at the commencement of the reign of +Antoninus Pius, and when Hyginus closed his career, answers these +conditions. + +IV. As Rome was the head-quarters of heathenism, it was also the place +where the divisions of the Church must have proved most disastrous. +There, the worship of the State was celebrated in all its magnificence; +there, the Emperor, the Pontifex Maximus of the gods, surrounded by a +splendid hierarchy of priests and augurs, presided at the great +festivals; and there, thousands and tens of thousands, prompted by +interest or by prejudice, were prepared to struggle for the maintenance +of the ancient superstition. Already, the Church of Rome had often +sustained the violence of persecution; but, notwithstanding the bloody +trials it had undergone, it had continued steadily to gain strength; and +a sagacious student of the signs of the times might even now have looked +forward to the day when Christianity and paganism, on nearly equal +terms, would be contending for mastery in the chief city of the Empire. +But the proceedings of the heretics were calculated to dissipate all the +visions of ecclesiastical ascendency. If the Roman Christians were split +up into fragments by sectarianism, the Church, in one of its great +centres of influence, would be incalculably injured. And yet, how could +the crisis be averted? How could heresy be most effectually +discountenanced? How could the unity of the Church be best maintained? +In times of peril the Romans had formerly been wont to set up a +Dictator, and to commit the whole power of the commonwealth to one +trusty and vigorous ruler. During the latter days of the Republic, the +State had been almost torn to pieces by contending factions; and now, +under the sway of the Emperors, it enjoyed comparative repose. It seems +to have occurred to the brethren at Rome that they should try the +effects of a similar change in the ecclesiastical constitution. By +committing the government of the Church, in this emergency, almost +entirely into the hands of one able and resolute administrator, they, +perhaps, hoped to contend successfully against the dangers by which they +were now encompassed. + +V. A recent calamity of a different character was calculated to abate +the jealousy which such a proposition might have otherwise awakened. It +appears that Telesphorus, the immediate predecessor of Hyginus, suffered +a violent death. [543:1] Telesphorus is the first bishop of Rome whose +title to martyrdom can be fairly established; and not one of his +successors during the remainder of the second century forfeited his life +for his religion. The death of the presiding pastor, as a victim to the +intolerance of heathenism, must have thrown the whole Church into a +state of confusion and perplexity; and when Hyginus was called upon to +occupy the vacant chair, well might he enter upon its duties with deep +anxiety. The appearance of heresy multiplied the difficulties of his +office. It might now be asked with no small amount of plausibility--Is +the presiding presbyter to have no special privileges? If his mind is to +be harassed continually by errorists, and if his life is to be +imperilled in the service of the Church, should he not be distinguished +above his brethren? Without some such encouragement will not the elders +at length refuse to accept a situation which entails so much +responsibility, and yet possesses so little influence? Such questions, +urged under such circumstances, must have been felt to be perplexing. + +VI. As there was now constant intercourse between the seat of government +and all the provinces of the Empire, it would seem that the Church of +the metropolis soon contrived to avail itself of the facilities of its +position for keeping up a correspondence with the Churches of other +countries. [544:1] In due time the results became apparent. Every event +of interest which occurred in any quarter of the Christian world was +known speedily in the capital; no important religious movement could be +well expected to succeed without the concurrence and co-operation of the +brethren at Rome; and its ministers gradually acquired such influence +that they were able, to some extent, to control the public opinion of +the whole ecclesiastical community. On this occasion they, perhaps, did +not find it difficult to persuade their co-religionists to enter into +their views. In Antioch, in Alexandria, in Ephesus, and elsewhere, as +well as in Italy, the heretics had been displaying the most mischievous +activity; [544:2] and it is not improbable that the remedy now proposed +by the ruling spirits in the great city had already suggested itself to +others. During the summer months vessels were trading to Rome from all +the coasts of the Mediterranean, so that Christian deputies, without +much inconvenience, could repair to head-quarters, and, in concert with +the metropolitan presbyters, make arrangements for united action. If the +champions of orthodoxy were nearly as zealous as the errorists, [544:3] +they must have travelled much during these days of excitement. But had +not the idea of increasing the power of the presiding pastor originated +in Rome, or had it not been supported by the weighty sanction of the +Church of the capital, it is not to be supposed that it would have been +so readily and so extensively adopted by the Churches in other parts of +the Empire. + +VII. Though we know little of the early history of the Roman see, it +would seem that, on the death of Hyginus, there was a vacancy of unusual +length; and circumstances, which meanwhile took place, argue strongly in +favour of the conclusion that, about this time, the change in the +ecclesiastical constitution indicated by Jerome actually occurred. +According to some, the interval between the death of Hyginus and the +commencement of the episcopate of Pius, his immediate successor, was of +several years' duration; [545:1] but it is clear that the chair must +have been vacant for at least about a twelvemonth. [545:2] How are we to +account for this interregnum? We know that subsequently, in the times of +Decius and of Diocletian, there were vacancies of quite as long +continuance; but then the Church was in the agonies of martyrdom, and +the Roman Christians were prevented by the strong arm of imperial +tyranny from filling up the bishopric. Now no such calamity appears to +have threatened; and the commotions created by the heretics supply +evidence that persecution was asleep. This long vacancy must be +otherwise explained. If Hyginus had been invested with additional +authority, and if he soon afterwards died, it is not to be wondered at +that his removal was the signal for the renewal of agitation. Questions +which, perhaps, had not hitherto been mooted, now arose. How was the +vacant place to be supplied? Was the senior presbyter, no matter how ill +adapted for the crisis, to be allowed to take quiet possession? If other +influential Churches required to be consulted, some time would thus be +occupied; so that delay in the appointment was unavoidable. + +During this interval the spirit of faction was busily at work. The +heretic Marcion sought admission into the Roman presbytery; [546:1] and +Valentine, who appears to have been now recognized as an elder, [546:2] +no doubt supported the application. The presbytery itself was probably +divided, and there is good reason to believe that even Valentine had +hopes of obtaining the presidential chair! His pretensions, at this +period of his career, were sufficiently imposing. Though he may have +been suspected of unsoundness in the faith, he had not yet committed +himself by any public avowal of his errors; and as a man of literary +accomplishment, address, energy, and eloquence, he had few compeers. No +wonder, with so many disturbing elements in operation, that the see +remained so long vacant. + +Some would willingly deny that Valentine was a candidate for the +episcopal chair of Rome, but the fact can be established by evidence the +most direct and conclusive. Tertullian, who had lived in the imperial +city, and who was well acquainted with its Church history, expressly +states that "Valentine hoped for the bishopric, because he excelled in +genius and eloquence, but indignant that another, who had the superior +claim of a confessor, obtained the place, he deserted the Catholic +Church" [546:3] The Carthaginian father does not, indeed, here name the +see to which the heresiarch unsuccessfully aspired, but his words shut +us up to the conclusion that he alluded to Rome. [546:4] And we can thus +discover at least one reason why the history of this vacancy has been +involved in so much mystery. In a few more generations the whole Church +would have felt compromised by any reflection cast upon the orthodoxy of +the great Western bishopric. [547:1] How sadly would many have been +scandalized had it been proclaimed abroad that the arch-heretic +Valentine had once hoped to occupy the chair of St Peter! + +VIII. Two letters which are still extant, and which are supposed to have +been addressed by Pius, the immediate successor of Hyginus, to Justus, +bishop of Vienne in Gaul, supply corroborative evidence that the +presiding pastor had recently obtained additional authority. Though the +genuineness of these documents has been questioned, the objections urged +against them have not been sufficient to prevent critics and +antiquarians of all parties from appealing to their testimony. [547:2] +It is not improbable that they are Latin translations from Greek +originals, and we may thus account for a few words to be found in them +which were introduced at a later period. [547:3] Their tone and spirit, +which are entirely different from the spurious productions ascribed to +the same age, plead strongly in their favour as trustworthy witnesses. +The writer makes no lofty pretensions as a Roman bishop; he speaks of +himself simply as at the head of an humble presbytery; and it would be +difficult to divine the motive which could have tempted an impostor to +fabricate such unpretending compositions. Though given as the veritable +Epistles of Pius by the highest literary authorities of Borne, they are +certainly ill calculated to prop up the cause of the Papacy. If their +claims are admitted, they must be regarded as among the earliest +authentic records in which the distinction between the terms bishop and +presbyter is unequivocally recognized; and it is obvious that if +alterations in the ecclesiastical constitution were made under Hyginus, +they must have prepared the way for such a change in the terminology. In +one of these Epistles Pius gives the following piece of advice to his +correspondent:--"Let the elders and deacons respect you, _not as a +greater_, but as the servant of Christ." [548:1] This letter purports to +have been written when its author anticipated the approach of death; and +the individual to whom it is directed seems to have been just placed in +the episcopal chair. Had Pius believed that Justus had a divine right to +rule over the presbyters, would he have tendered such an admonition? A +hundred years afterwards, Cyprian of Carthage, when addressing a young +prelate, would certainly have expressed himself very differently. He +would, probably, have complained of the presumption of the presbyters, +have boasted of the majesty of the episcopate, and have exhorted the new +bishop to remember his apostolical dignity. But, in the middle of the +second century, such language would have been strangely out of place. +Pius is writing to an individual, just entering on an office lately +endowed with additional privileges, who could not yet afford to make an +arbitrary use of his new authority. He, therefore, counsels him to +moderation, and cautions him against presuming on his power. "Beware," +says he, "in your intercourse with your presbyters and deacons, of +insisting too much on the duty of obedience. Let them feel that your +prerogative is not exercised capriciously, but for good and necessary +purposes. Let the elders and deacons regard you, not so much in the +light of a superior, as the servant of Christ." + +In another portion of this letter a piece of intelligence is +communicated, which, as coming from Pius, possesses peculiar interest. +When the law was enacted altering the mode of succession to the +presidency, it may be supposed that the proceeding was deemed somewhat +ungracious towards those aged presbyters who might have soon expected, +as a matter of right, to obtain possession of the seat of the moderator. +The death of Telesphorus, the predecessor of Hyginus, as a martyr, was, +indeed, calculated to abate an anxiety to secure the chair; for the +whole Church was thus painfully reminded that it was a post of danger, +as well as of dignity; but still, when, on the occurrence of the first +vacancy, Pius was promoted over the heads of older men, he may, on this +ground, have felt, to some extent, embarrassed by his elevation. We may +infer, however, from this letter, that the few senior presbyters, with +whose advancement the late arrangement interfered, did not long survive +this crisis in the history of the Church; for the bishop of Rome here +informs his Gallic brother of their demise. "Those presbyters," says he, +"who were taught by the apostles, [549:1] and who have survived to our +own days, with whom we have united in dispensing the word of faith, have +now, in obedience to the call of the Lord, gone to their eternal +rest." [550:1] Such a notice of the decease of these venerable colleagues +is precisely what might have been expected, under the circumstances, in +a letter from Pius to Justus. + +IX. The use of the word _bishop_, as denoting the president of the +presbytery, marks an era in the history of ecclesiastical polity. New +terms are not coined without necessity; neither, without an adequate +cause, is a new meaning annexed to an ancient designation. When the name +bishop was first used _as descriptive of the chief pastor_, there must +have been some special reason for such an application of the title; and +the rise of the hierarchy furnishes the only satisfactory +explanation.[550:2] If then we can ascertain when this new nomenclature +first made its appearance, we can also fix the date of the origin of +prelacy. Though the documentary proof available for the illustration of +this subject is comparatively scanty, it is sufficient for our purpose; +and it clearly shews that the presiding elder did not begin to be known +by the title of bishop until about the middle of the second century. +Polycarp, who seems to have written about that time,[550:3] still uses +the terminology employed by the apostles. Justin Martyr, the earliest +father who has left behind him memorials amounting in extent to anything +like a volume, often speaks of the chief minister of the Church, and +designates him, not the bishop, but _the president_. [551:1] His +phraseology is all the more important as he lived for some time in Rome, +and as he undoubtedly adopted the style of expression once current in +the great city. But another writer, who was his contemporary, and who +also resided in the capital, incidentally supplies evidence that the new +title was then just coming into use. The author of the book called +"Pastor," when referring to those who were at the head of the +presbyteries, describes them as "THE BISHOPS, _that is_, THE PRESIDENTS +OF THE CHURCHES." [551:2] The reason why he here deems it necessary to +explain what he means by bishops cannot well be mistaken. The name, in +its new application, was not yet familiar to the public ear; and it +therefore required to be interpreted by the more ancient designation. +Could we tell when this work of Hermas was written, we could also +perhaps name the very year when the president of the eldership was first +called bishop. [551:3] It is now pretty generally admitted that the +author was no other than the brother of Pius of Rome, [551:4] the +immediate successor of Hyginus, so that he wrote exactly at the time +when, as appears from other evidences, the transition from presbytery to +prelacy actually occurred. His words furnish a very strong, but an +undesigned, attestation to the novelty of the episcopal regimen. + +X. But, perhaps, the most pointed, and certainly the most remarkable +testimony to the fact that a change took place in the constitution of +the Roman Church in the time of Hyginus is furnished from a quarter +where such a voucher might have been, least of all, anticipated. We +allude to the _Pontifical Book_. This work has been ascribed to Damasus, +the well-known bishop of the metropolis of the West, who flourished in +the fourth century, but much of it is unquestionably of later origin; +and though many of its statements are apocryphal, it is often quoted as +a document of weight by the most distinguished writers of the Romish +communion. [552:1] Its account of the early popes is little better than +a mass of fables; but some of its details are evidently exaggerations, +or rather caricatures, of an authentic tradition; and a few grains of +truth may be discovered here and there in a heap of fictions and +anachronisms. This part of the production contains one brief sentence +which has greatly puzzled the commentators, [552:2] as it is strangely +out of keeping with the general spirit of the narrative, and as it +contradicts, rather awkwardly, the pretensions of the popedom. According +to this testimony, Hyginus "ARRANGED THE CLERGY AND DISTRIBUTED THE +GRADATIONS." [552:3] Peter himself is described by Romanists as +organizing the Church; but here, one of his alleged successors, upwards +of seventy years after his death, is set forth as the real framer of the +hierarchy. [553:1] The facts already adduced prove that this obscure +announcement rests upon a sound historical foundation, and that it +vaguely indicates the alterations now introduced into the ecclesiastical +constitution. If Hilary and Jerome be employed as its interpreters, the +truth may be easily eliminated. At a synod held in Rome, Hyginus brought +under the notice of the meeting the confusion and scandal created by the +movements of the errorists; and, with a view to correct these disorders, +the council agreed to invest the moderator of each presbytery with +increased authority, to give him a discretionary power as the general +superintendent of the Church, and to require the other elders, as well +as the deacons, to act under his advice and direction. A new functionary +was thus established, and, under the old name of _bishop_ or _overseer_, +a third order was virtually added to the ecclesiastical brotherhood. +Hence Hyginus, who, no doubt, took a prominent part in the deliberations +of the convocation, is said to have "arranged the clergy and distributed +the gradations." + +The change in the ecclesiastical polity which now occurred led to +results equally extensive and permanent, and yet it has been but +indistinctly noticed by the writers of antiquity. Nor is it so strange +that we have no contemporary account of this ecclesiastical revolution. +The history of other occurrences and innovations is buried in profound +obscurity. We can only ascertain by inference what were the reasons +which led to the general adoption of the sign of the cross, to the use +of the chrism in baptism, to standing at the Lord's Supper, to the +institution of lectors, acolyths, and sub-deacons, and to the +establishment of metropolitans. Though the Paschal controversy agitated +almost the whole Church towards the close of the second century, and +though Tertullian wrote immediately afterwards, he does not once mention +it in any of his numerous extant publications. [554:1] Owing to peculiar +circumstances the rise of prelacy can be more minutely traced than that +of, perhaps, any other of the alterations which were introduced during +the first three centuries. At the time the change which it involved was +probably considered not very important; but, as the remaining literary +memorials of the period are few and scanty, the reception which it +experienced can now only be conjectured. The alteration was adopted as +an antidote against the growth of heresy, and thus originating in +circumstances of a humiliating character, there would be little +disposition, on the part of ecclesiastical writers, to dwell upon its +details. Soon afterwards the pride of churchmen began to be developed; +and it was then found convenient to forget that all things originally +did not accord with existing arrangements, and that the hierarchy itself +was but a human contrivance. Prelacy soon advanced apace, and every +bishop had an interest in exalting "his order." It is only wonderful +that so much truth has oozed out from witnesses so prejudiced, and that +the Pontifical Book contains so decisive a deposition. And the momentous +consequences of this apparently slight infringement upon the primitive +polity cannot be overlooked. That very Church which, in its attempts to +suppress heresy, first departed from divine arrangements, was soon +involved in doctrinal error, and eventually became the great +foster-mother of superstition and idolatry. + +It may at first seem extraordinary that the ecclesiastical +transformation was so rapidly accomplished; but, when the circumstances +are more attentively considered, this view of the subject presents no +real difficulty. At the outset, the principle now sanctioned produced +very little alteration on the general aspect of the spiritual +commonwealth. At this period a Church, in most places, consisted of a +single congregation; and as one elder labouring in the word and doctrine +was generally deemed sufficient to minister to the flock, only a slight +modification took place in the constitution of such a society. The +preaching elder, who was entitled by authority of Scripture [555:1] to +take precedence of elders who only ruled, had always been permitted to +act as moderator; but, on the ground of the new arrangement, the pastor +probably began to assume an authority over his session which he had +never hitherto ventured to exercise. In the beginning of the reign of +Antoninus Pius the number of towns with several Christian congregations +must have been but small; and if five or six leading cities approved of +the system now inaugurated at Rome, its general adoption was thus +secured. The statements of Jerome and Hilary attest that the matter was +submitted to a synod; and the remarkable interregnum which followed the +death of Hyginus can be best accounted for on the hypothesis that +meanwhile the ministers of the great metropolis found it necessary to +consult the rulers of other influential and distant Churches. If the +measure had the sanction of these foreign brethren, they were of course +prepared to resort to it at home on the demise of their presiding +presbyter. Heretics were now disturbing the Church all over the Empire, +so that the same arguments could be everywhere used in favour of the new +polity. We find, too, that there was a vacancy in the presidential chair +at Antioch about the time of the death of Hyginus; and that, in the +course of the next year, a similar vacancy occurred at Alexandria. +[555:2] If the three most important Churches then in Christendom, with +the sanction of a very few others of less note, almost simultaneously +adopted the new arrangement, the question was practically settled. There +were probably not more than twenty cities to be found with more than one +Christian congregation; and places of inferior consequence would +speedily act upon the example of the large capitals. But unquestionably +the system now introduced gradually effected a complete revolution in +the state of the Church. The ablest man in the presbytery was commonly +elevated to the chair, so that the weight of his talents, and of his +general character, was added to his official consequence. The bishop +soon became the grand centre of influence and authority, and arrogated +to himself the principal share in the administration of all divine +ordinances. + +When this change commenced, the venerable Polycarp was still alive, and +there are some grounds for believing that, when far advanced in life, he +was induced to undertake a journey to Rome on a mission of remonstrance. +This view is apparently corroborated by the fact that his own Church of +Smyrna did not now adopt the new polity; for we have seen [556:1] that, +upwards of a quarter of a century after his demise, it still continued +under presbyterial government. Irenaeus was obviously well acquainted +with the circumstances which occasioned this extraordinary visit of +Polycarp to Rome; but had he not come into collision with the pastor of +the great city in the controversy relating to the Paschal Feast, we +might never have heard of its occurrence. Even when he mentions it, he +observes a mysterious silence as to its main design. The Paschal +question awakened little interest in the days of Polycarp, and among the +topics which he discussed with Anicetus when at Rome, it confessedly +occupied a subordinate position. [556:2] "When," says Irenaeus, "the +most blessed Polycarp came to Rome in the days of Anicetus, and when as +to _certain other matters_ they had a little controversy, they were +immediately agreed on this point (of the Passover) without any +disputation." [557:1] What the "certain other matters" were which +created the chief dissatisfaction, we are left obscurely to conjecture; +but we may presume that they must have been of no ordinary consequence, +when so eminent a minister as Polycarp, now verging on eighty years of +age, felt it necessary to make a lengthened journey by sea and land with +a view to their adjustment. He obviously considered that Anicetus was at +least influentially connected with arrangements which he deemed +objectionable; and he plainly felt that he could hope to obtain their +modification or abandonment only by a personal conference with the Roman +pastor. And intimations are not wanting that he was rather doubtful +whether Anicetus would be disposed to treat with him as his +ecclesiastical peer, for he seems to have been in some degree appeased +when the bishop of the capital permitted him to preside in the Church at +the celebration of the Eucharist. [557:2] This, certainly, was no +extraordinary piece of condescension; as Polycarp, on various grounds, +was entitled to take precedence of his Roman brother; [557:3] and the +reception given to the "apostolic presbyter" was only what might have +fairly been expected in the way of ministerial courtesy. [557:4] Why has +it then been mentioned as an exhibition of the episcopal humility of +Anicetus? Apparently because he had been previously making some arrogant +assumptions. He had been, probably, presuming on his position as a +pastor of the "new order," and his bearing had perhaps been so offensive +that Polycarp had been commissioned to visit him on an errand of +expostulation. But by prudently paying marked deference to the aged +stranger; and, it may be, by giving a plausible account of some +proceedings which had awakened anxiety; he appears to have succeeded in +quieting his apprehensions. That the presiding minister of the Church of +Smyrna was engaged in some such delicate mission is all but certain, as +the design of the journey would not otherwise have been involved in so +profound secrecy. The very fact of its occurrence is first noticed about +forty years afterwards, when the haughty behaviour of another bishop of +Rome provoked Irenaeus to call up certain unwelcome reminiscences which +it must have suggested. + +Though the journey of Polycarp betokens that he must have been deeply +dissatisfied with something which was going forward in the great +metropolis, we can only guess at its design and its results; and it is +now impossible to ascertain whether the alterations introduced there +encountered any very formidable opposition: but it is by no means +improbable that they were effected without much difficulty. The +disorders of the Church imperatively called for some strong remedy; and +it perhaps occurred to not a few that a distracted presbytery, under the +presidency of a feeble old man, was but ill fitted to meet the +emergency. They would accordingly propose to strengthen the executive +government by providing for the appointment of a more efficient +moderator, and by arming him with additional authority. The people would +be gratified by the change, for, though in Rome and some other great +cities, where its effects would be felt most sensibly, they, no doubt, +met before this time in separate congregations, yet they had still much +united intercourse; and as, on such occasions, their edification +depended mainly on the gifts of the chairman of the eldership, they +would gladly join in advancing the best preacher in the presbytery to +the office of president. At this particular crisis the alteration may +not have been unacceptable to the elders themselves. To those of them +who were in the decline of life, there was nothing very inviting in the +prospect of occupying the most prominent position in a Church threatened +by persecution and torn by divisions, so that they may have been not +unwilling to waive any claim to the presidency which their seniority +implied; whilst the more vigorous, sanguine, and aspiring, would hail an +arrangement which promised at no distant day to place one of themselves +in a position of greatly increased dignity and influence. Whilst all +were agreed that the times demanded the appointment of the ablest member +of presbytery as moderator, none, perhaps, foresaw the danger of adding +permanently to the prerogatives of so potent a chairman. It was never +anticipated that the day would come when the new law would be regarded +as any other than a human contrivance; and when the bishops and their +adherents would contend that the presbyters, under no circumstances +whatever, had a right to reassume that power which they now surrendered. +The result, however, has demonstrated the folly of human wisdom. The +prelates, who were originally set up to save the Church from heresy, +became themselves at length the abetters of false doctrine; and whilst +they thus grievously abused the influence with which they were +entrusted, they had the temerity to maintain that they still continued +to be exclusively the fountains of spiritual authority. + +It is not to be supposed that prelacy was set up at once in the +plenitude of its power. Neither is it to be imagined that the system was +simultaneously adopted by Christians all over the world. Jerome informs +us that it was established "by little and little;" [559:1] and he thus +apparently refers, as well to its gradual spread, as to the almost +imperceptible growth of its pretensions. We have shewn, in a preceding +chapter, [560:1] that in various cities, such as Smyrna, Caesarea, and +Jerusalem, the senior presbyter continued to be the president until +about the close of the second century; and there the Church seems to +have been meanwhile governed by "the common council of the presbyters." +[560:2] Evidence can be adduced to prove that, in many places, even at a +much later period, the episcopal system was still unknown. [560:3] But +its advocates were active and influential, and they continued to make +steady progress. The consolidation of the Catholic system contributed +vastly to its advancement. The leading features of this system must now +be illustrated. + + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +THE CATHOLIC SYSTEM. + + +The word _catholic_, which signifies universal or general, came into use +towards the end of the second century. Its introduction indicates a new +phase in the history of the ecclesiastical community. For upwards of a +hundred years after its formation, the Church presented the appearance +of one great and harmonious brotherhood, as false teachers had hitherto +failed to create any considerable diversity of sentiment; but when many +of the literati began to embrace the gospel, the influence of elements +of discord soon became obvious. These converts attempted to graft their +philosophical theories on Christianity; not a few of the more unstable +of the brethren, captivated by their ingenuity and eloquence, were +tempted to adopt their views; and though the great mass of the disciples +repudiated their adulterations of the truth, the Christian commonwealth +was distracted and divided. Those who banded themselves together to +maintain the unity of the Church were soon known by the designation of +Catholics. "After the days of the apostles," says one of the fathers, +"when heresies had burst forth, and were striving under various names to +tear piecemeal and divide the Dove and the Queen of God, [561:1] did not +the apostolic people require a name of their own whereby to mark the +unity of those that were uncorrupted? .... Therefore our people, when +named Catholic, are separated by this title from those denominated +heretics." [562:1] + +The Catholic system, being an integral portion of the policy which +invested the presiding elder with additional authority, rose +contemporaneously with Prelacy. When Gnosticism was spreading so +rapidly, and creating so much scandal and confusion, schism upon schism +appeared unavoidable. How was the Church to be kept from going to +pieces? How could its unity be best conserved? How could it contend most +successfully against its subtle and restless disturbers? Such were the +problems which now occupied the attention of its leading ministers. It +was thought that all these difficulties would be solved by the adoption +of the Catholic system. Were the Church, it was said, to place more +power in the hands of individuals, and then to consolidate its +influence, it could bear down more effectively upon the errorists. Every +chief pastor of the Catholic Church was the symbol of the unity of his +own ecclesiastical district; and the associated bishops represented the +unity of the whole body of the faithful. According to the Catholic +system when strictly carried out, every individual excommunicated by one +bishop was excommunicated by all, so that when a heresiarch was excluded +from fellowship in one city, he could not be received elsewhere. The +visible unity of the Church was the great principle which the Catholic +system sought to realise. "The Church," says Cyprian, "which is catholic +and one, is not separated or divided, but is in truth connected and +joined together by the cement of bishops mutually cleaving to each +other." [562:2] + +The funds of the Church were placed very early in the hands of the +president of the eldership, [563:1] and though they may not have been at +his absolute disposal, he, no doubt, soon found means of sustaining his +authority by means of his monetary influence. But the power which he +possessed, as the recognized centre of ecclesiastical unity, to prevent +any of his elders or deacons from performing any official act of which +he disapproved, constituted one of the essential features of the +Catholic system. "The right to administer baptism," says Tertullian, +"belongs to the chief priest, that is, the bishop: then to the +presbyters and the deacons, [563:2] yet not without the authority of the +bishop, _for the honour of the Church_, which being preserved, peace is +preserved." [563:3] Here, the origin of Catholicism is pretty distinctly +indicated; for the prerogatives of the bishop are described, not as +matters of divine right, but of ecclesiastical arrangement. [563:4] They +were given to him "for the honour of the Church," that peace might be +preserved when heretics began to cause divisions. + +Though the bishop could give permission to others to celebrate divine +ordinances, he was himself their chief administrator. He was generally +the only preacher; he usually dispensed baptism; [563:5] and he presided +at the observance of the Eucharist. At Rome, where the Catholic system +was maintained most scrupulously, his presence seems to have been +considered necessary to the due consecration of the elements. Hence, at +one time, the sacramental symbols were carried from the cathedral church +to all the places of Christian worship throughout the city. [564:1] With +such minute care did the Roman chief pastor endeavour to disseminate the +doctrine that whoever was not in communion with the bishop was out of +the Church. + +The establishment of a close connexion, between certain large Christian +associations and the smaller societies around them, constituted the next +link in the organization of the Catholic system. These communities, +being generally related as mother and daughter churches, were already +prepared to adapt themselves to the new type of ecclesiastical polity. +The apostles, or their immediate disciples, had founded congregations in +most of the great cities of the Empire; and every society thus +instituted, now distinguished by the designation of the principal +[564:2] or apostolic Church, became a centre of ecclesiastical unity. +Its presiding minister sent the Eucharist to the teachers of the little +flocks in his vicinity, to signify that he acknowledged them as +brethren; [564:3] and every pastor who thus enjoyed communion with the +principal Church was recognized as a Catholic bishop. This parent +establishment was considered a bulwark which could protect all the +Christian communities surrounding it from heresy, and they were +consequently expected to be guided by its traditions. "It is manifest," +says Tertullian, "that all doctrine, which agrees with these apostolic +Churches, THE WOMBS AND ORIGINALS OF THE FAITH, [564:4] must be +accounted true, as without doubt containing that which the Churches have +received from the apostles, the apostles from Christ, Christ from God: +and that all other doctrine must be judged at once to be false, which +savours of things contrary to the truth of the Churches, and of the +apostles, and of Christ, and of God....Go through the apostolic +Churches, in which the very _seats of the apostles, at this very day, +preside over their own places_, [565:1] in which their own authentic +writings are read, speaking with the voice of each, and making the face +of each present to the eye. Is Achaia near to you? You have Corinth. If +you are not far from Macedonia, you have Philippi, you have the +Thessalonians. [565:2] If you can travel into Asia, you have Ephesus. +But if you are near to Italy you have Rome, where we also have an +authority close at hand." [565:3] + +But the Catholic system was not yet complete. In every congregation the +bishop or pastor was the centre of unity, and in every district the +principal or apostolic Church bound together the smaller Christian +societies; but how were the apostolic Churches themselves to be united? +This question did not long remain without a solution. [565:4] Had the +Church of Jerusalem, when the Catholic system was first organized, still +occupied its ancient position, it might have established a better title +to precedence than any other ecclesiastical community in existence. It +had been, beyond all controversy, the mother Church of Christendom. But +it had been recently dissolved, and a new society, composed, to a great +extent, of new members, was now in process of formation in the new city +of Aelia. Meanwhile the Church of Rome had been rapidly acquiring +strength, and its connexion with the seat of government pointed it out +as the appropriate head of the Catholic confederation. If the greatest +convenience of the greatest number of Churches were to be taken into +account, it had claims of peculiar potency, for it was easily accessible +by sea or land from all parts of the Empire, and it had facilities for +keeping up communication with the provinces to which no other society +could pretend. Nor were these its only recommendations. It had, as was +alleged, been watered by the ministry of two or three [556:1] of the +apostles, so that, even as an apostolic Church, it had high pretensions. +In addition to all this, it had, more than once, sustained with +extraordinary constancy the first and fiercest brunt of persecution; and +if its members had so signalized themselves in the army of martyrs, why +should not its bishop lead the van of the Catholic Church? Such +considerations urged in favour of a community already distinguished by +its wealth, as well as by its charity, were amply sufficient to +establish its claim as the centre of Catholic unity. If, as is probable, +the arrangement was concocted in Rome itself, they must have been felt +to be irresistible. Hence Irenaeus, writing about A.D. 180, speaks of it +even then as the recognized head of the Churches of the Empire. "To this +Church," says he, "because it is more potentially principal, it is +necessary that every Catholic Church should go, as in it the apostolic +tradition has by the Catholics been always preserved." [567:1] + +Many Protestant writers have attempted to explain away the meaning of +this remarkable passage, but the candid student of history is bound to +listen respectfully to its testimony. When we assign to the words of +Irenaeus all the significance of which they are susceptible, they only +attest the fact that, in the latter half of the second century, the +Church of Rome was acknowledged as the most potent of all the apostolic +Churches. And in the same place the grounds of its pre-eminence are +enumerated pretty fully by the pastor of Lyons. It was the most ancient +Church in the West of Europe; it was also the most populous; like a city +set upon a hill, it was known to all; and it was reputed to have had for +its founders the most illustrious of the inspired heralds of the cross, +the apostle of the Gentiles, and the apostle of the circumcision. +[567:2] It was more "potentially principal," because it was itself the +principal of the apostolic or principal Churches. + +It has been already stated that every principal bishop, [567:3] or +presiding minister of an apostolic Church, sent the Eucharist to the +pastors around him as a pledge of their ecclesiastical fellowship; and +it would appear that the bishop of Rome kept up intercourse with the +other bishops of the apostolic Churches by transmitting to them the same +symbol of catholicity. [567:4] The sacred elements were doubtless +conveyed by confidential churchmen, who served, at the same time, as +channels of communication between the great prelate and the more +influential of his brethren. By this means the communion of the whole +Catholic Church was constantly maintained. + +When the Catholic system was set up, and the bishop of Rome recognized +as its Head, he was not supposed to possess, in his new position, any +arbitrary or despotic authority. He was simply understood to hold among +pastors the place which had previously been occupied by the senior elder +in the presbytery--that is, he was the president or moderator. The +theoretical parity of all bishops, the chief pastor of Rome included, +was a principle long jealously asserted. [568:1] But the prelate of the +capital was the individual to whom other bishops addressed themselves +respecting all matters affecting the general interests of the +ecclesiastical community; he collected their sentiments; and he +announced the decisions of their united wisdom. It was, however, +scarcely possible for an official in his circumstances either to satisfy +all parties, or to keep within the limits of his legitimate power. When +his personal feelings were known to run strongly in a particular +channel, the minority, to whom he was opposed, would at least suspect +him of attempting domination. Hence it was that by those who were +discontented with his policy he was tauntingly designated, as early as +the beginning of the third century, The Supreme Pontiff, and The Bishop +of Bishops. [568:2] These titles cannot now be gravely quoted as proofs +of the existence of the claims which they indicate; for they were +employed ironically by malcontents who wished thus either to impeach his +partiality, or to condemn his interference. But they supply clear +evidence that his growing influence was beginning to be formidable, and +that he already stood at the head of the ministers of Christendom. + +The preceding statements enable us to understand why the interests of +Rome and of the Catholic Church have always been identified. The +metropolis of Italy has, in fact, from the beginning been the heart of +the Catholic system. In ancient times Roman statesmen were noted for +their skill in fitting up the machinery of political government: Roman +churchmen have laboured no less successfully in the department of +ecclesiastical organization. The Catholic system is a wonderful specimen +of constructive ability; and there is every reason to believe that the +same city which produced Prelacy, also gave birth, about the same time, +to this masterpiece of human contrivance. The fact may be established, +as well by other evidences, as by the positive testimony of Cyprian. The +bishop of Carthage, who flourished only about a century after it +appeared, was connected with that quarter of the Church in which it +originated. We cannot, therefore, reasonably reject the depositions of +so competent a witness, more especially when he speaks so frequently and +so confidently of its source. When he describes the Roman bishopric as +"_the root_ and _womb_ of _the Catholic Church_," [569:1] his language +admits of no second interpretation. He was well aware that the Church of +Jerusalem was the root and womb of all the apostolic Churches; and when +he employs such phraseology, he must refer to some new phase of +Christianity which had originated in the capital of the Empire. In +another place he speaks of "the see of Peter, and the principal Church, +_whence the unity of the priesthood took its rise_." [569:2] Such +statements shut us up to the conclusion that Rome was the source and +centre from which Catholicism radiated. + +This system could have been only gradually developed, and nearly half a +century appears to have elapsed before it acquired such maturity that it +attained a distinctive designation. [570:1] But, as it was currently +believed to be admirably adapted to the exigencies of the Church, it +spread with much rapidity; and, in less than a hundred years after its +rise, its influence may be traced in almost all parts of the Empire. We +may thus explain a historical phenomenon which might otherwise be +unaccountable. Towards the close of the second and throughout the whole +of the third century, ecclesiastical writers connected with various and +distant provinces refer with peculiar respect to the Apostle Peter, and +even appeal to Scripture [570:2] with a view to his exaltation. Their +misinterpretations of the Word reveal an extreme anxiety to obtain +something like an inspired warrant for their catholicism. The visible +unity of the Church was deemed by them essential to its very existence, +and the Roman see was the actual key-stone of the Catholic structure. +Hence every friend of orthodoxy imagined it to be, as well his duty as +his interest, to uphold the claims of the supposed representative of +Peter, and thus to maintain the cause of ecclesiastical unity. It might +have been anticipated under such circumstances that Scripture would be +miserably perverted, and that the see, which was believed to possess as +its heritage the prerogatives of the apostle of the circumcision, would +be the subject of extravagant laudation. + +Ambition has been often represented as the great principle which guided +the policy of the early Roman bishops, but there is no evidence that, as +a class, they were inferior in piety to other churchmen, and the +readiness with which some of them suffered for the faith attests their +Christian sincerity and resolution. Ambition, doubtless, soon began to +operate; but their elevation was not so much the result of any deep-laid +scheme for their aggrandizement, as of a series of circumstances pushing +them into prominence, and placing them in a most influential position. +The efforts of heretics to create division led to a reaction, and +tempted the Church to adopt arrangements for preserving union by which +its liberties were eventually compromised. The bishop of Rome found +himself almost immediately at the head of the Catholic league, and there +is no doubt that, before the close of the second century, he was +acknowledged as the chief pastor of Christendom. About that time we see +him writing letters to some of the most distinguished bishops of the +East [571:1] directing them to call councils; and it does not appear +that his epistles were deemed unwarranted or officious. Unity of +doctrine was speedily connected with unity of discipline, and an opinion +gradually prevailed that the Church Catholic should exhibit universal +uniformity. When Victor differed from the Asiatic bishops relative to +the mode of observing the Paschal festival, he was only seeking to +realize the idea of unity; and, as the Head of the Catholic Church, he +might have carried out against them his threat of excommunication, had +he not in this particular case been moving in advance of public opinion. +When Stephen, sixty years afterwards, disputed with Cyprian and others +concerning the rebaptism of heretics, he was still endeavouring to work +out the same unity; and the bishop of Carthage found himself involved in +contradictions when he proceeded at once to assert his independence, and +to concede to the see of Peter the honour which, as he admitted, it +could legitimately challenge. [572:1] + +The theory of Catholicism is based on principles thoroughly fallacious. +Assuming that visible unity is essential to the Church on earth, it +sanctions the startling inference that whoever is not connected with a +certain ecclesiastical society must be out of the pale of salvation. The +most grinding spiritual tyranny ever known has been erected on this +foundation. And yet how hollow is the whole system! It is no more +necessary that all the children of God in this world should belong to +the same visible Church than that all the children of men should be +connected with the same earthly monarchy. All believers are "one in +Christ;" they have all "one Lord, one faith, one baptism;" but "the +kingdom of God cometh not with observation," and the unity of the saints +on earth can be discerned only by the eye of Omniscience. They are all +sustained by the same living bread which cometh down from heaven, but +they may receive their spiritual provision as members of ten thousand +separated Churches. All who truly love the Saviour are united to Him by +a link which can never be broken; and no ecclesiastical barrier can +either exclude them from His presence here, or shut them out from His +fellowship hereafter. But a number of men might as well propose to +appropriate all the light of the sun or all the winds of heaven, as +attempt to form themselves into a privileged society with a monopoly of +the means of salvation. + +The Church of Rome is understood to be the spiritual Babylon of the +Apocalypse, and yet one point of correspondence between the type and the +antitype seems to have been hitherto overlooked. The great city of +Babylon commenced with the erection of Babel, and the builders said--"Go +to, let us build us a city, and a tower whose top may reach unto heaven, +and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of +the whole earth." [573:1] Civil unity was avowedly the end designed by +these architects. Amongst other purposes contemplated by the famous +tower, it appears to have been intended to serve as a centre of +catholicity--a great rallying point or landmark--by which every citizen +might be guided homewards when he lost his way in the plain of Shinar. +It is a curious fact that in the "Pastor of Hermas," perhaps the first +work written in Rome after the establishment of Prelacy, the Church is +described under the similitude of a tower! [573:2] When Hyginus +"established the gradations," the hierarchy at once assumed that +appearance. And the see of Peter, the centre of Catholic unity, was now +to be the great spiritual landmark to guide the steps of all true +churchmen. The ecclesiastical builders prospered for a time, but when +Constantine had finished a new metropolis in the East, some symptoms of +disunion revealed themselves. When the Empire was afterwards divided, +jealousies increased; the builders could not well understand one +another's speech; and the Church at length witnessed the great schism of +the Greeks and the Latins. In due time the Reformation interfered still +more vexatiously with the building of the ecclesiastical Babel. But this +more recent schism has given a mighty impulse to the cause of freedom, +of civilization, and of truth; for the Protestants, scattered abroad +over the face of the whole earth, have been spreading far and wide the +light of the gospel. The builders of Babel still continue their work, +but their boasted unity is gone for ever; and now, with the exception of +their political manoeuvring, their highest achievements are literally in +the department of stone and mortar. They may found costly edifices, and +they may erect spires pointing, like the tower of Babel, to the skies, +but they can no longer reasonably hope to bind together the liberated +nations with the chains of a gigantic despotism, or to induce +worshippers of all kindreds and tongues to adopt the one dead language +of Latin superstition. The signs of the times indicate that the remnant +of the Catholic workmen must soon "leave off to build the city." The +final overthrow of the mystical Babylon will usher in the millennium of +the Church, and the present success of Protestant missions is +premonitory of the approaching doom of Romish ritualism. It is +written--"I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the +everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to +every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud +voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is +come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the +fountains of waters. And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon +is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations +drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication." [574:1] + + + + + +CHAPTER IX. + +PRIMITIVE EPISCOPACY AND PRESBYTERIAN ORDINATION. + + +It has been already stated that, except in a few great cities where +there were several Christian congregations, the introduction of +Episcopacy produced a very slight change in the appearance of the +ecclesiastical community. In towns and villages, where the disciples +constituted but a single flock, they had commonly only one teaching +elder; and as, in accordance with apostolic rule, [575:1] this labourer +in the word and doctrine was deemed worthy of double honour, he was +already the most prominent and influential member of the brotherhood. +The new arrangement merely clothed him with the name of _bishop_, and +somewhat augmented his authority. Having the funds of the Church at his +disposal, he had special influence; and though he could not well act +without the sanction of his elders, he could easily contrive to negative +any of their resolutions which did not meet his approval. + +It is abundantly clear that this primitive dignitary was ordinarily the +pastor of only a single congregation. "If, before the multitude +increase, there should be a place having a few faithful men in it, to +the extent of twelve, who shall be able to make a dedication to pious +uses for a bishop, let them write to the Churches round about the +place," says an ancient canon, "that three chosen men.... may come to +examine with diligence him who has been thought worthy of this +degree.... If he has not a wife, it is a good thing; but if he has +married a wife, having children, let him abide with her, continuing +steadfast in every doctrine, able to explain the Scriptures well." +[576:1] This humble functionary was assisted in the management of his +little flock by two or three elders. "If the bishop has attended to the +knowledge and patience of the love of God," says another regulation, +"let him ordain two presbyters, when he has examined them, or rather +three." [576:2] The bishop, the elders, and the deacons, all assembled +in one place every Lord's day for congregational worship. An old +ecclesiastical law accordingly prescribes the following +arrangement--"Let the seat of the bishop be placed in the midst, and let +the presbyters sit on each side of him, and let the deacons stand by +them,... and let it be their care that the people sit a with all +quietness and order in the other part of the church." [576:3] Thus, +except in the case of a few large towns, the primitive bishop was simply +the parochial minister. Towards the close of the second century, the +bishop and the teacher were designations of the same import. Speaking of +those at the head of the Churches, Irenaeus describes them as +distinguished by their superior or inferior ability in sermonizing; +[576:4] and a well-informed writer, who flourished as late as the fourth +century, mentions preaching as the bishop's peculiar function. [576:5] +In the apostolic age every one who had popular gifts was permitted to +edify the congregation by their exercise; [576:6] and, long afterwards, +any elder, who was qualified to speak in the Church, was at liberty to +address his fellow-worshippers. When Origen, prior to his ordination as +a presbyter, ventured to expound the Scriptures publicly at the request +of the bishops of Palestine, Demetrius, his own ecclesiastical superior, +denounced his conduct as irregular; but the parties, by whom the learned +Alexandrian had been invited to lecture, boldly vindicated the +proceeding. He (Demetrius) has asserted, said they, "that this was never +before either heard or done, that laymen should deliver discourses in +the presence of bishops. We know not how it happens that he is here +evidently so far from the truth. For, indeed, wherever there are found +those qualified to benefit the brethren, they are exhorted by the holy +bishops to address the people." [577:1] But still the bishop himself was +the stated and ordinary preacher; and when he was sick or absent, the +flock could seldom expect a sermon. When present, he always administered +the Lord's Supper with his own hands, and dispensed in person the rite +of baptism. He also occupied the chair at the meetings of the +presbytery, and presided at the ordination of the elders and deacons of +his congregation. + +Though Christians formed but a fraction, and often but a small fraction +of the population, their bishops were thickly planted. Thus, Cenchrea, +the port of Corinth, had an episcopal overseer, [577:2] as well as +Corinth itself; the bishop of Portus and the bishop of Ostia were only +two miles asunder; [577:3] and, of the eighty-seven bishops who met at +Carthage, about A.D. 256, to discuss the question of the rebaptism of +heretics, many, such as Mannulus, Polianus, Dativus, and Secundinus, +[577:4] were located in small towns or villages. Though, probably, some +of these pastors had not the care of more than twenty or thirty +Christian families, each had the same rank and authority as the bishop +of Carthage. "It remains," said Cyprian at the opening of the council, +"that we severally declare our opinion on this same subject, judging no +one, nor depriving any one of the right of communion if he differ from +us. For no one of us sets himself up as a bishop of bishops, or by +tyrannical terror forces his colleagues to a necessity of obeying; +inasmuch as every bishop in the free use of his liberty and power has +the right of forming his own judgment." [578:1] In other quarters of the +Church its episcopal guardians were equally numerous. Hence it is said +of the famous Paul of Samosata, bishop of Antioch, that, to sustain his +reputation, he instigated "the bishops of the adjacent rural districts +and towns" to praise him in their addresses to the people. [578:2] Even +so late as the middle of the third century, the jurisdiction of the +greatest bishops was extremely limited. Cyprian of Carthage, in point of +position the second prelate in the Western Church, presided over only +eight or nine presbyters; [578:3] and Cornelius of Rome, confessedly the +most influential ecclesiastic in Christendom, had the charge of probably +not more than fourteen congregations. [578:4] + +There were commonly several elders and deacons connected with every +worshipping society, and though these, as well as the bishops, began, +towards the close of the second century, to be called clergymen, [578:5] +and were thus taught to cherish the idea that the Lord was their +inheritance, it would be quite a mistake to infer that they all +subsisted on their official income. Not a few of them probably derived +their maintenance from secular employments, some of them being tradesmen +or artizans, and others in stations of greater prominence. Hyacinthus, +an elder of the Church of Rome in the time of bishop Victor, appears to +have held a situation in the Imperial household, [579:1] and Tertullian +complains that persons engaged in trades directly connected with the +support of idolatry were promoted to ecclesiastical offices. [579:2] +There was a time when even an apostle laboured as a tent-maker, but as +the hierarchical spirit acquired strength, and as the Church increased +in wealth and numbers, there was a growing impression that all its +office-bearers were degraded by such services. Cyprian speaks with +extreme bitterness of a deceased elder who had appointed a brother elder +the executor of his will, declaring that the clergy "should in no way be +called off from their holy ministrations nor tied down by secular +troubles and business." [579:3] But the common sense of the Church +revolted against such high-flown spiritualism, as in many districts +where the disciples were still few and indigent, they could not afford a +suitable support for all entrusted with the performance of +ecclesiastical duties. Hence, before the recognition of Christianity by +Constantine, even bishops in some countries were permitted by trade to +eke out a scanty maintenance. "Let not bishops, elders, and deacons +leave their places for the sake of trading," says a council held in the +beginning of the fourth century, "nor travelling about the provinces let +them be found dealing in fairs. However, _to provide a living for +themselves_, let them send either a son, or a freedman, or a servant, or +a friend, or any one else: and if they wish to trade, let them do so +within their province." [580:1] + +It is clear, from the New Testament, that, in the apostolic age, +ordination was performed by "the laying on of the hands of the +presbytery," and this mode of designation to the ministry appears to +have continued until some time in the third century. We are informed by +the most learned of the fathers, in a passage to which the attention of +the reader has already been invited, [580:2] that "even at Alexandria, +from Mark the Evangelist until Heraclas and Dionysius the bishops, the +presbyters were always in the habit of naming bishop one chosen from +among themselves and placed in a higher degree, in the same manner as if +an army should make an emperor, or the deacons choose from among +themselves one whom they knew to be industrious and call him +archdeacon." [580:3] As Jerome here mentions various important facts of +which we might have otherwise remained ignorant, and as this statement +throws much light upon the ecclesiastical history of the early Church, +it is entitled to special notice. + +In the letter where this passage occurs the writer is extolling the +dignity of presbyters, and is endeavouring to shew that they are very +little inferior to bishops. He admits, indeed, that, in his own days, +they had ceased to ordain; but he intimates that they once possessed the +right, and that they retained it in all its integrity until the former +part of the preceding century. Some have thought that Jerome has here +expressed himself indefinitely, and that he did not know the exact date +at which the arrangement he describes ceased at Alexandria. But his +testimony, when fairly analysed, can scarcely be said to want precision; +for he obviously speaks of Heraclas and Dionysius as bishops _by +anticipation_, alleging that a custom which anciently existed among the +elders of the Egyptian metropolis was maintained until the time when +these ecclesiastics, who afterwards successively occupied the episcopal +chair, sat together in the presbytery. The period, thus pointed out, can +be easily ascertained. Demetrius, bishop of Alexandria, after a long +official life of forty-three years, died about A.D. 232, [581:1] and it +is well known that Heraclas and Dionysius were both members of his +presbytery towards the close of his episcopal administration. It was, +therefore, shortly before his demise that the new system was introduced. +In certain parts of the Church the arrangement mentioned by Jerome +probably continued somewhat longer. Cyprian apparently hints at such +cases of exception when he says that in "_almost_ all the provinces," +[581:2] the neighbouring bishops assembled, on the occasion of an +episcopal vacancy, at the new election and ordination. It may have been +that, in a few of the more considerable towns, the elders still +continued to nominate their president. + +When the erudite Roman presbyter informs us that "_even_ at Alexandria" +[581:3] the elders formerly made their own bishop, his language +obviously implies that such a mode of creating the chief pastor was not +confined to the Church of the metropolis of Egypt. It existed wherever +Christianity had gained a footing, and he mentions this particular see, +partly, because of its importance--being, in point of rank, the second +in the Empire--and partly, perhaps, because the remarkable circumstances +in its history, leading to the alteration which he specifies, were known +to all his well-informed contemporaries. Jerome does not say that the +Alexandrian presbyters inducted their bishop by imposition of hands, +[582:1] or set him apart to his office by any formal ordination. His +words apparently indicate that they did not recognize the necessity of +any special rite of investiture; that they made the bishop by election; +and that, when once acknowledged as the object of their choice, he was +at liberty to enter forthwith on the performance of his episcopal +duties. When the Roman soldiers made an emperor they appointed him by +acclamation, and the cheers which issued from their ranks as he stood up +before the legions and as he was clothed with the purple by one of +themselves, constituted the ceremony of his inauguration. The ancient +archdeacon was still one of the deacons; [582:2] as he was the chief +almoner of the Church, he required to possess tact, discernment, and +activity; and, in the fourth century, he was nominated to his office by +his fellow-deacons. Jerome assures us that, until the time of Heraclas +and Dionysius, the elders made a bishop just in the same way as in his +own day the soldiers made an emperor, or as the deacons chose one whom +they knew to be industrious, and made him an archdeacon. + +In one of the letters purporting to have been written by Pius, bishop of +Rome, to Justus of Vienne, shortly after the middle of the second +century, there is a passage which supplies a singularly striking +confirmation of the testimony of Jerome. Even were we to admit that the +genuineness of this epistle cannot be satisfactorily established, it +must still be acknowledged to be a very ancient document, and were it of +somewhat later date than its title indicates, it should at least be +received as representing the traditions which prevailed respecting the +ecclesiastical arrangements of an early antiquity. In this communication +Pius speaks of his episcopal correspondent of Vienne as "_constituted by +the brethren_ and clothed with the dress of the bishops." [583:1] By +"the brethren," as is plain from another part of the letter, [583:2] he +understands the presbytery. And as the soldiers made a sovereign by +saluting him emperor, and arraying him in the purple; so the elders made +a president by clothing him with a certain piece of dress, and calling +him bishop. Thus, the statement of Jerome is exactly corroborated by the +evidence of this witness. + +We may infer from the letter of Pius that in Gaul and Italy, as well as +in Egypt, the elders were in the habit of making their own bishop. +[583:3] There is not a particle of evidence to shew that any other +arrangement originally existed. The declaration of so competent an +authority as Jerome backed by the attestation of this ancient epistle +may be regarded as perfectly conclusive. [583:4] But other proofs +of the same fact are not wanting. For a long period the bishop continued +to be known by the title of "the elder who presides"-a designation which +obviously implies that he was still only one of the presbyters. When the +Paschal controversy created such excitement, and when Victor of Rome +threatened to renounce the communion of those who held views different +from his own, Irenaeus of Lyons wrote a letter of remonstrance to the +haughty churchman in which he broadly reminded him of his ecclesiastical +position. "_Those, presbyters_ before Soter _who governed_ the Church +over which you now preside, I mean," said he, "Anicetus, and Pius, +Hyginus with Telesphorus and Xystus, neither did themselves observe, nor +did they permit those after them to observe it.... But those _very +presbyters_ before you who did not observe it, sent the Eucharist to +those of Churches which did." [584:1] Irenaeus here endeavours to teach +the bishop of Rome a lesson of humility by reminding him repeatedly that +he and his predecessors were but presbyters. + +The pastor of Lyons speaks even still more distinctly respecting the +status of the bishops who flourished in his generation. Thus, he +says--"We should obey those presbyters in the Church who have the +succession from the apostles, and who, _with the succession of the +episcopate_, have received the certain gift of truth according to the +good pleasure of the Father: but we should hold as suspected or as +heretics and of bad sentiments the rest who depart from the principal +succession, and meet together wherever they please.... From all such we +must keep aloof, but we must adhere to those who both preserve, as we +have already mentioned, the doctrine of the apostles, and exhibit, _with +the order of the presbytery_, sound teaching and an inoffensive +conversation." [585:1] "The order of the presbytery" obviously signifies +the official character conveyed by "the laying on of the hands of the +presbytery," and yet such was the ordination of those who, in the time +of Irenaeus, possessed "the succession from the apostles" and "the +succession of the episcopate." + +Some imagine that no one can be properly qualified to administer divine +ordinances who has not received episcopal ordination, but a more +accurate acquaintance with the history of the early Church is all that +is required to dissipate the delusion. The preceding statements clearly +shew that, for upwards of one hundred and fifty years after the death of +our Lord, all the Christian ministers throughout the world were ordained +by presbyters. The bishops themselves were of "the order of the +presbytery," and, as they had never received episcopal consecration, +they could only ordain as presbyters. The bishop was, in fact, nothing +more than the chief presbyter. [585:2] A father of the third century +accordingly observes--"All power and grace are established in the Church +where _elders preside_, who possess the power, as well of baptizing, as +of confirming and ordaining." [585:3] + +An old ecclesiastical law, recently presented for the first time to the +English reader, [586:1] throws much light on a portion of the history of +the Church long buried in great obscurity. This law may well remind us +of those remains of extinct classes of animals which the naturalist +studies with so much interest, as it obviously belongs to an era even +anterior to that of the so-called apostolical canons. [586:2] Though it +is part of a series of regulations once current in the Church of +Ethiopia, there is every reason to believe that it was framed in Italy, +and that its authority was acknowledged by the Church of Rome in the +time of Hippolytus. [586:3] It marks a transition period in the history +of ecclesiastical polity, and whilst it indirectly confirms the +testimony of Jerome relative to the custom of the Church of Alexandria, +it shews that the state of things to which the learned presbyter refers +was now superseded by another arrangement. This curious specimen of +ancient legislation treats of the appointment and ordination of +ministers. "The bishop," says this enactment, "is to be elected by all +the people.... And they shall choose ONE OF THE BISHOPS AND ONE OF THE +PRESBYTERS, ... AND THESE SHALL LAY THEIR HANDS UPON HIS HEAD AND PRAY." +[586:4] Here, to avoid the confusion arising from a whole crowd of +individuals imposing hands in ordination, two were selected to act on +behalf of the assembled office-bearers; and, that the parties entitled +to officiate might be fairly represented, the deputies were to be a +bishop and a presbyter. [587:1] The canon illustrates the jealousy with +which the presbyters in the early part of the third century still +guarded some of their rights and privileges. In the matter of investing +others with Church authority, they yet maintained their original +position, and though many bishops might be present when another was +inducted into office, they would permit only one of the number to unite +with one of themselves in the ceremony of ordination. Some at the +present day do not hesitate to assert that presbyters have no right +whatever to ordain, but this canon supplies evidence that in the third +century they were employed to ordain bishops. + +It thus appears that the bishop of the ancient Church was very different +from the dignitary now known by the same designation. The primitive +bishop had often but two or three elders, and sometimes a single deacon, +[587:2] under his jurisdiction: the modern prelate has frequently the +oversight of several hundreds of ministers. The ancient bishop, +surrounded by his presbyters, preached ordinarily every Sabbath to his +whole flock: the modern bishop may spend an entire lifetime without +addressing a single sermon, on the Lord's day, to many who are under his +episcopal supervision. The early bishop had the care of a parish: the +modern bishop superintends a diocese. The elders of the primitive bishop +were not unfrequently decent tradesmen who earned their bread by the +sweat of their brow: [587:3] the presbyters of a modern prelate have +generally each the charge of a congregation, and are supposed to be +entirely devoted to sacred duties. Even the ancient city bishop had but +a faint resemblance to his modern namesake. He was the most laborious +city minister, and the chief preacher. He commonly baptized all who were +received into the Church, and dispensed the Eucharist to all the +communicants. He was, in fact, properly the minister of an overgrown +parish who required several assistants to supply his lack of service. + +The foregoing testimonies likewise shew that the doctrine of apostolical +succession, as now commonly promulgated, is utterly destitute of any +sound historical basis. According to some, no one is duly qualified to +preach and to dispense the sacraments whose authority has not been +transmitted from the Twelve by an unbroken series of episcopal +ordinations. But it has been demonstrated that episcopal ordinations, +properly so called, originated only in the third century, and that even +the bishops of Rome, who flourished prior to that date, were "of the +order of the presbytery." All the primitive bishops received nothing +more than presbyterian ordination. It is plain, therefore, that the +doctrine of the transmission of spiritual power from the apostles +through an unbroken series of episcopal ordinations flows from sheer +ignorance of the actual constitution of the early Church. + +But the arrangements now described were gradually subverted by episcopal +encroachments, and a separate chapter must be devoted to the +illustration of the progress of Prelacy. + + + + + +CHAPTER X. + +THE PROGRESS OF PRELACY. + + +We cannot tell when the president of the presbytery began to hold office +for life; but it is evident that the change, at whatever period it +occurred, must have added considerably to his power. The chairman of any +court is the individual through whom it is addressed, and, without whose +signature, its proceedings cannot be properly authenticated. He acts in +its name, and he stands forth as its representative. He may, +theoretically, possess no more power than any of the other members of +the judicatory, and he may be bound, by the most stringent laws, simply +to carry out the decisions of their united wisdom; but his very position +gives him influence; and, if he holds office for life, that influence +may soon become formidable. If he is not constantly kept in check by the +vigilance and determination of those with whom he is associated, he may +insensibly trench upon their rights and privileges. In the second +century the moderator of the city eldership was invariably a man +advanced in years, who, instead of being watched with jealousy, was +regarded with affectionate veneration; and it is not strange if he was +often permitted to stretch his authority beyond the exact range of its +legitimate exercise. + +Evidence has already been adduced to shew that, on the rise of Prelacy, +the presidential chair was no longer inherited by the members of the +city presbytery in the order of seniority. The individuals considered +most competent for the situation were now nominated by their brethren; +and as the Church, especially in great towns, was sadly distracted by +the machinations of the Gnostics, it was deemed expedient to arm the +moderator with additional authority. As a matter of necessity, the +official who was furnished with these new powers required a new name; +for the title of _president_ by which he was already known, and which +continued long afterwards in current use, [590:1] did not now fully +indicate his importance. It was, therefore, gradually supplanted by the +designation of _bishop_, or overseer. Whilst this functionary was +nominated by the presbyters, he might be also set aside by them, so that +he felt it necessary to consult their wishes and to use his +discretionary power with modesty and moderation; but, when he began to +be elected by general suffrage, his authority was forthwith established +on a broader and firmer foundation. He was now emphatically the man of +the people; and from this date he possessed an influence with which the +presbytery itself was incompetent to grapple. + +As early as the middle of the second century the bishop, at least in +some places, was entrusted with the chief management of the funds of the +Church; [590:2] and probably, about fifty years afterwards, a large +share of its revenues was appropriated to his personal maintenance. +[590:3] His superior wealth soon added immensely to his influence. He +was thus enabled to maintain a higher position in society than any of +his brethren; and he was at length regarded as the great fountain of +patronage and preferment. Long before Christianity enjoyed the sanction +of the state, the chief pastors of the great cities began to attract +attention by their ostentatious display of secular magnificence. Origen, +who flourished in the former half of the third century, strongly +condemns their vanity and ambition; and though perhaps his ascetic +temperament prompted him to indulge somewhat in the language of +exaggeration, the testimony of so respectable a witness cannot be +rejected as untrue. "We," says he, "proceed so far in the affectation of +pomp and state, as to outdo even bad rulers among the pagans; and, like +the emperors, surround ourselves with a guard that we may be feared and +made difficult of access, particularly to the poor. And in many of our +so-called Churches, _especially in the large towns_, may be found +presiding officers of the Church of God who would refuse to own even the +best among the disciples of Jesus while on earth as their equals." +[591:1] In these remarks the writer had doubtless a particular reference +to his own Church of Alexandria; but it is well known that elsewhere +some bishops in the third century assumed a very lofty bearing. It is +related of the celebrated Paul of Samosata, the bishop of Antioch, that +he acted as a secular judge, that he appeared in public surrounded by a +crowd of servants, and that he took special pleasure in pomp and parade; +and yet, had he not lapsed into heresy, there is no evidence that his +overweening pride would have brought down upon him the vengeance of +ecclesiastical discipline. In the third century the chief pastor of the +Western metropolis must have been known to the great officers of +government, and perhaps to the Emperor himself. Decius must have +regarded the Roman bishop as a somewhat formidable personage when he +declared that he would sooner tolerate a rival candidate for the throne, +and when he proclaimed his determination to annihilate the very office. +[591:2] + +It was not strange that dignitaries who affected so much state soon +contrived to surround themselves with a whole host of new officials. +Within little more than a century after the rise of Prelacy the number +of grades of ecclesiastics was nearly trebled. In addition to the +bishop, the presbyters, and the deacons, there were also, in A.D. 251, +in the Church of Rome lectors, sub-deacons, acolyths, exorcists, and +janitors. [592:1] The lectors, who read the Scriptures to the +congregation [592:2] and who had charge of the sacred manuscripts, +attract our attention as distinct office-bearers about the close of the +second century. The sub-deacons are said to have had the care of the +sacramental cups; the acolyths attended to the lamps of the sacred +edifice; the exorcists [592:3] professed by their prayers to expel evil +spirits out of the bodies of those about to be baptized; and the +janitors performed the more humble duties of porters or door-keepers. At +a subsequent period each of these functionaries was initiated into +office by a special form of ordination or investiture. It was laid down +as a principle that no one could regularly become a bishop who had not +previously passed through all these inferior orders; [592:4] but when +the multitude wished all at once to elevate a layman to the rank of a +bishop or a presbyter, ecclesiastical routine was compelled to yield to +the pressure of popular enthusiasm. [592:5] + +The great city in which Prelacy originated appears to have been the +place where these new offices made their first appearance. Rome, true to +her mission as "the mother of the Catholic Church," conceived and +brought forth nearly all the peculiarities of the Catholic system. The +lady seated on the seven hills was already regarded with great +admiration, and surrounding Churches silently copied the arrangements of +their Imperial parent. In the East, at least one of the orders now +instituted by the great Western prelate, that is, the order of acolyths, +was not adopted for centuries afterwards. [593:1] + +The city bishops were well aware of the vast accession of influence they +acquired in consequence of their election by the people, and did not +fail to insist upon the circumstance when desirous to illustrate their +ecclesiastical title. Any one who peruses the letters of Cyprian may +remark the frequency, as well as the transparent satisfaction, with +which he refers to the mode of his appointment. Who, he seems to say, +could doubt his right to act as bishop of Carthage, seeing that he had +been chosen by "the suffrage of the whole fraternity"--by "the vote of +the people?" [593:2] The members of the Church enthusiastically +acknowledged such appeals to their sympathy and support, and in cases of +emergency promptly rallied round the individuals whom they had +themselves elevated to power. But as all the other church officers were +meanwhile likewise chosen by common suffrage, the bishops soon betrayed +an anxiety to appropriate the distinction, and began, under various +pretexts, to interfere with the free exercise of the popular franchise. +In one of his epistles Cyprian excuses himself to the Christians of +Carthage because he had ventured to ordain a reader without their +approval. He pleads that the peculiar circumstances of the case and the +extraordinary merits of the candidate must be accepted as his apology. +"In clerical ordinations," says he, "my custom is to _consult you +beforehand_, dearest brethren, _and in common deliberation_ to weigh the +character and merits of each. But testimonies of men need not be awaited +when anticipated by the sentence of God." [593:3] The sanction of the +people should have been obtained before the ordination; but, as +persecution now raged, it is suggested that it would have been +inconvenient to lay the matter before them; and Cyprian argues that the +informality was pardonable, inasmuch as the Almighty himself had given +His suffrage in favour of the new lector; for Aurelius, though only a +youth, had nobly submitted to the torture rather than renounce the +gospel. + +The ordination of Aurelius under such circumstances was not, however, a +solitary case; and there is certainly something suspicious in the +frequency with which the bishop of Carthage apologizes to the clergy and +people for neglecting to consult them on the appointment of church +officers. In another of his letters he announces to the presbyters and +deacons that, "on an _urgent occasion_" he had "made Saturus a reader, +and Optatus the confessor a sub-deacon." [594:1] Again, he tells the +same parties, and "the whole people," that "Celerinus, renowned alike +for his courage and his character, has been joined to the clergy, _not +by human suffrage, but by the divine favour;_" [594:2] and at another +time he informs them that he had been "admonished and instructed by a +_divine vouchsafement_ to enrol Numidicus in the number of the +Carthaginian presbyters." [594:3] These cases were, no doubt, afterwards +quoted as precedents for the non-observance of the law; and from time to +time new pretences were discovered for evading its provisions. In this +way the rights of the people were gradually abridged; and in the course +of two or three centuries, the bishops almost entirely ignored their +interference in the election of presbyters and deacons, as well as of +the inferior clergy. + +New canons relative to ordination were promulgated probably about the +time when the city presbyters ceased to have the exclusive right of +electing their own bishop. The altered circumstances of the Church led +to the establishment of these regulations. The election of the chief +pastor of a great town was often a scene of much excitement, and as +several of the elders might be regarded as candidates for the office, it +was obviously unseemly that any of them should preside on the occasion. +It was accordingly arranged that some of the neighbouring bishops should +be present to superintend the proceedings. The successful candidate now +began to be formally invested with his new dignity by the imposition of +hands; and at first, perhaps, one of the bishops, assisted by one of the +presbyters of the place, performed this ceremony. [595:1] But the elders +soon ceased to take part in the ordination. At the election, the people +and the clergy sometimes took opposite sides; and, in the contest, the +ecclesiastical party was not unfrequently completely overborne. It +occasionally happened, as in the case of Cyprian, [595:2] that one of +the elders was chosen in opposition to the wishes of the majority of the +presbytery; or, as in the case of Fabian of Rome, [595:3] that a layman +was all at once elevated to the episcopal chair; and, at such times, the +disappointed presbyters did not care to join in the inauguration. The +bishops availed themselves of the pretexts thus furnished to dispense +with their services altogether. At length the power of admitting to the +ministry by the laying on of hands began to be challenged as the +peculiar prerogative of the episcopal order. + +In many places, perhaps before the middle of the third century, elders +were no longer permitted to take part in the consecration of bishops; +but Prelacy had not yet completely established itself upon the ruins of +the more ancient polity. Sometimes the presbytery itself still +discharged the functions of the bishop. After the martyrdom of Fabian in +A.D. 250, the Church of Rome remained upwards of a year under its care, +[596:1] as the see was meanwhile vacant; and about the same period we +find Cyprian, when in exile, requesting his presbyters and deacons to +execute both _his duties_ and their own. [596:2] It was still admitted +that elders were competent to ordain elders and deacons, as well as to +confirm and to baptize; and the bishop continued to recognise them as +his "_colleagues_" and his "_fellow-presbyters_." [596:3] It is clear, +however, that the relations between them and their episcopal chief were +now very vaguely defined, and that the ambiguous position of the parties +led to mutual complaints of ambition and usurpation. The Epistles of +Cyprian supply evidence that the bishop of Carthage, during a great part +of his episcopate, was engaged with his presbyters in a struggle for +power; [596:4] and though he asserted that he was contending for nothing +more than his legitimate authority, he was sometimes obliged to abate +his pretensions. In one case he complains that, "without his permission +or knowledge," his presbyter Novatus "of his own factiousness and +ambition" had "made Felicissimus his follower a deacon;" [596:5] but +still he does not venture to impeach the validity of the act, or refuse +to recognise the standing of the new ecclesiastic. Felicissimus seems to +have been ordained in a small meeting-house in the neighbourhood of +Carthage; and as Novatus, who probably presided on the occasion, appears +to have proceeded in conjunction with the majority of the presbytery, +they no doubt considered that, under these circumstances, the sanction +of the bishop was by no means indispensable. The manifestation of such a +spirit of independence was, however, exceedingly galling to their +imperious prelate. + +From the manner in which Cyprian expresses himself we may infer that he +would not have been dissatisfied had Novatus and the elders who acted +with him obtained his _permission_ to ordain the deacon Felicissimus. +But about this period the bishops were beginning to look with extreme +jealousy on all presbyterian ordinations, and were commencing a series +of encroachments on the rights of their episcopal brethren in rural +districts. These country bishops, [597:1] who wore simply ministers of +single congregations, and who were generally poor and uninfluential, +soon succumbed to the great city dignitaries. By a council held at +Ancyra in A.D. 314, or very shortly after the close of the Diocletian +persecution, they were forbidden to perform duties which they had +hitherto been accustomed to discharge, for one of its canons declares +that "country bishops must not ordain presbyters or deacons; neither +must city presbyters in another parish without the written permission of +the bishop." [597:2] + +This canon illustrates the strangely anomalous condition of the Church +at the period of its adoption. It takes no notice of _country elders_, +as the proceedings of such an humble class of functionaries probably +awakened no jealousy; and it degrades country bishops, who +unquestionably belonged to the episcopal order, by placing them in a +position inferior to that of city presbyters. About sixty years before, +or in the middle of the third century, three of these country bishops +were deemed competent to ordain a bishop of Rome; [598:1] but now they +are deprived of the right of ordaining even elders and deacons. It is +easy to understand why city presbyters were still permitted, under +certain conditions, to exercise this privilege. As they constituted the +council of the city chief pastor, their influence was considerable; and +as they had, until a recent date, been accustomed even to take part in +his own consecration, it was deemed inexpedient to tempt so formidable a +class of churchmen to make common cause with the country bishops by +stripping both at once of their ancient prerogatives. The country +bishops, as the weaker party, were first subjected to a process of +spoliation. But the recognition of Christianity by Constantine gave an +immense impulse to the progress of the hierarchy, and the city +presbyters were soon afterwards deprived of the privilege now wrested +from the country bishops. + +The current of events had placed the Church, about the middle of the +third century, in a position which it could not long maintain. As the +growth of Christianity in towns was steady and rapid, the bishop there +rose quickly into wealth and power; but, among the comparatively poor +and thinly-scattered population of the country, his condition remained +nearly stationary. When Cyprian, in A.D. 256, addressed the eighty-seven +bishops assembled in the Council of Carthage, and told them that they +were all on an equality, he might have felt that the doctrine of +episcopal parity, as then understood, must be given up as indefensible +if assailed by the skill of a vigorous logician. Who could believe that +the bishop of Carthage held exactly the same official rank as every one +of his episcopal auditors? He was the chief pastor of a flourishing +metropolis; he had several congregations under his care, and several of +his presbyters were preachers; [599:1] but many of the bishops before +him were ministers of single congregations and without even one elder +competent to deliver a sermon, [599:2] In point of ministerial gifts and +actual influence some of the presbyters of Carthage were, no doubt, far +superior to many of the bishops of the council. And who could affirm +that Paul of Samosata, the chief pastor of the capital of the Eastern +Empire, was quite on a level with every one of the village bishops +around him whom he bribed to celebrate his praises? No wonder that it +was soon found necessary to remodel the episcopal system. The city +bishops had a show of equity in their favour when they asserted their +superiority, and their brethren in rural districts were too feeble and +dependent effectively to resist their own degradation. + +The ecclesiastical title _metropolitan_ came into use about the time of +the Council of Nice in A.D. 325. [599:3] and there is reason to believe +that the territorial jurisdiction it implied was then first distinctly +defined and generally established; but the changes of the preceding +three quarters of a century, had been preparing the way for the new +arrangement. Many of the country bishops had meanwhile been reduced to a +condition of subserviency, whilst a considerable number of the chief +pastors in the great cities had been recognized as the constant +presidents of the synods which met in their respective capitals. It is +easy to see how these prelates acquired such a position. Talent, if +exerted, must always assert its ascendency; and it is probable that the +metropolitan bishops were generally more able and accomplished than the +majority of their brethren. They could fairly plead that zeal for the +good of the Church prompted them to take a lead in ecclesiastical +affairs, and their place of residence supplied them with facilities for +communicating with other pastors of which they often deemed it prudent +to avail themselves. When the synod met in the metropolis, the bishop of +the city was wont to entertain many of the members as his guests; and, +as he was elevated above most, if not all, of those with whom he acted, +in point of wealth, social standing, address, and knowledge of the +world, he was usually called on to occupy the chair of the moderator. In +process of time that which was originally conceded as a matter of +courtesy passed into an admitted right. So long as the metropolitan +bishop was inducted into office by mere presbyters, the circumstances of +his investiture pointed out to him the duty of humility; but when the +most distinguished chief pastors of the province deemed it an honour to +take part in his consecration, he immediately increased his pretensions. +Thus it is that the change in the mode of episcopal inauguration forms a +new era in the history of ecclesiastical assumption. + +About the middle of the third century various circumstances conspired to +augment the authority of the great bishops. In the Decian and Valerian +persecutions the chief pastors were specially marked out for attack, and +the heroic constancy with which some of the most eminent encountered a +cruel death vastly enhanced the reputation of their order. In a few +years several bishops of Rome were martyred; Cyprian of Carthage endured +the same fate: Alexander of Jerusalem, and Babylas of Antioch, also laid +down their lives for their religion. [600:1] At the same time the schism +of Novatian at Rome, and the schism of Felicissimus at Carthage +threatened the Church with new divisions, and the same arguments which +were used, upwards of a hundred years before, for increasing the power +of the president of the eldership, could now be urged with equal +pertinency for adding to the authority of the president of the synod. In +point of fact perhaps the earliest occasion on which the bishop of Rome +executed discipline in his archiepiscopal capacity was immediately +connected with the schism of Novatian; for we have no record of any +exercise of such power until Cornelius, at the head of a council held in +the Imperial city, deposed the pastors who had officiated at the +consecration of his rival. [601:1] From this date the Roman metropolitan +probably presided at all the ordinations of the bishops in his vicinity. + +To prevent the recurrence of schisms such as had now happened at Rome +and Carthage, it was, in all likelihood, arranged about this period, at +least in some quarters of the Church, that the presence or sanction of +the stated president of the provincial synod should be necessary to the +validity of all episcopal consecrations. There were still, however, many +districts in which the provincial synod had no fixed chairman. Hence an +ancient canon directs that at the ordination of a member of the +hierarchy, "_one of the principal bishops_ shall pray to God over the +approved candidate." [601:2] By a "principal bishop" we are to +understand the chief pastor of a principal or apostolic church; [601:3] +but in some provinces several such churches were to be found, and this +regulation attests that there no single ecclesiastic had yet acquired an +unchallenged precedence. As the close of the third century approached, +the ecclesiastical structure exhibited increasing uniformity; and one +dignitary in each region began to be known as the stated president of +the episcopal body. In one of the so-called apostolical canons, framed +probably before the Council of Nice, this arrangement is embodied. "The +bishops of every nation," says the ordinance, "ought to know who is the +_first among them_, and him they ought to esteem as their head, and not +do any great thing _without his consent_. ... But neither let him do +anything without the consent of all." [602:1] + +This canon is apparently couched in terms of studied ambiguity, for the +expression "the first among the bishops of every nation" admits of +various interpretations. In many cases it probably meant the senior +bishop of the district; in others, it perhaps denoted the chief pastor +of the chief city of the province; and in others again, it may have +indicated the prelate of a great metropolis who had contrived to +establish his authority over a still more extensive territory. The rise +of the city bishops had completely destroyed that balance of power which +originally existed in the Church; and much commotion preceded the +settlement of a new ecclesiastical equilibrium. During the last forty +years of the third century the Christians enjoyed almost uninterrupted +peace; the chief pastors were meanwhile perpetually engaged in contests +for superiority; and about this time the bishops of Rome, of Alexandria, +and of Antioch, rapidly extended their influence. So rampant was the +usurping spirit of churchmen that even the violence of the Diocletian +persecution was not sufficient to check them in their career of +ambition. A contemporary writer, who was himself a member of the +episcopal order, bears testimony to this melancholy fact. "Some," said +he, "who were reputed our pastors, contemning the law of piety, were, +under the excitement of mutual animosities, fomenting nothing else but +disputes and threatenings and rivalry and reciprocal hostility and +hatred, as they contentiously prosecuted their ambitious designs for +sovereignty." [601:2] + +What a change had passed over the Christian commonwealth in the course +of little more than two hundred years! When the Apostle John died, the +city church was governed by the common council of the elders, and their +president simply announced and executed the decisions of his brethren: +now, the president was transformed into a prelate who, by gradual +encroachments, had stripped the presbytery of a large share of its +authority. At the close of the first century the Church of Rome was, +perhaps, less influential than the Church of Ephesus, and the very name +of its moderator at that period is a matter of disputed and doubtful +tradition; but the Diocletian persecution had scarcely terminated when +the bishop of the great metropolis was found sitting in a council in the +palace of the Lateran, and claiming jurisdiction over eight or ten +provinces of Italy! These revolutions were not effected without much +opposition. The strife between the presbyters and the bishops was +succeeded by a general warfare among the possessors of episcopal power, +for the constant moderator of the synod was as anxious to increase his +authority as the constant moderator of the presbytery. About the close +of the third century the Church appears to have been sadly scandalised +by the quarrels of the bishops, and Eusebius accordingly intimates that, +in the reign of terror which so quickly followed, they suffered a +righteous retribution for their misconduct. + +Discussions respecting questions of Church polity are often exceedingly +distasteful to persons of contracted views but of genuine piety, for +they cannot understand how the progress of vital godliness can be +influenced by forms of ecclesiastical government. [603:1] About this +period such sentiments were probably not uncommon, and much of the +apathy with which innovations were contemplated may thus be easily +explained. Besides, if the early bishop was a man of ability and +address, his influence in his own church was nearly overwhelming; for as +he was the ordinary, if not the only, preacher, he thus possessed the +most effective means of recommending any favourite scheme, and of giving +a decided tone to public opinion. When a parochial charge became vacant +by the demise of the chief pastor, the election of a successor was often +vigorously contested; and when an influential presbyter was defeated, he +sometimes exhibited his mortification by contending for the rights of +his order, and by disputing the pretensions of his successful rival. But +as such opposition was obviously dictated by the spirit of faction, it +was commonly brief, ill-sustained, and abortive. The young, talented, +and aspiring presbyters must have been strongly tempted to encourage the +growth of episcopal prerogative, for each might one day hope to occupy +the place of dignity, and thus to reap the fruits of present +encroachments. The bishops seem to have resisted more strenuously the +establishment of metropolitan ascendency. An ecclesiastical regulation +of great antiquity, [604:1] condemned their translation from one parish +to another, so that when the episcopate was gained, all farther +prospects of promotion were extinguished, for the place of _first among +the bishops_ was either inherited by seniority or claimed by the prelate +of the chief city. Hence it was that the pastors withstood so firmly all +infringements on their theoretical parity; and hence those "ambitious +disputes," [604:2] and those "collisions of bishops with bishops," +[604:3] even amidst the fires of martyrdom, over which the historian of +the Church professes his anxiety to cast the veil of oblivion. + + + + + +CHAPTER XI. + +SYNODS--THEIR HISTORY AND CONSTITUTION. + + +The apostles, and the other original heralds of the gospel, sought +primarily _the conversion of unbelievers_. The commission given to Paul +points out distinctly the grand design of their ministry. When the great +persecutor of the saints was himself converted on his way to Damascus, +our Lord addressed to him the memorable words--"I have appeared unto +thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of +these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I +will appear unto thee; delivering thee from the people, and from the +Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, _to open their eyes, and to turn +them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God_, that +they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which +are sanctified by faith that is in me." [605:1] + +When a few disciples were collected in a particular locality, it not +unfrequently happened that they remained for a time without any proper +ecclesiastical organization. [605:2] But the Christian cause, under such +circumstances, could not be expected to flourish; and therefore, as soon +as practicable, the apostles and evangelists did not neglect to make +arrangements for the increase and edification of these infant +communities. To provide, as well for the maintenance of discipline, as +for the preaching of the Word, they accordingly proceeded to ordain +elders in every city where the truth had gained converts. These elders +afterwards ordained deacons in their respective congregations; and thus, +in due time, the Church was regularly constituted. + +In the first century Christian societies were formed only here and there +throughout the Roman Empire; and, at its close, the gospel had scarcely +penetrated into some of the provinces. It is not to be expected that we +can trace any general confederation of the churches established during +this period, and it would be vain to attempt to demonstrate their +incorporation; as their distance, their depressed condition, and the +jealousy with which they were regarded by the civil government, [606:1] +rendered any extensive combination utterly impossible. At a time when +the disciples met together for worship in secret and before break of +day, it is not to be supposed that their pastors deemed it expedient to +undertake frequent journeys on the business of the Church, or assembled +in multitudinous councils. But though, in the beginning of the second +century, there was no formal bond of union connecting the several +Christian communities throughout the world, they meanwhile contrived in +various ways to cultivate an unbroken fraternal intercourse. Recognising +each other as members of the same holy brotherhood, they maintained an +epistolary correspondence, in which they treated of all matters +pertaining to the common interest. When the pastor of one church visited +another, his status was immediately acknowledged; and even when an +ordinary disciple emigrated to a distant province, the ecclesiastical +certificate which he carried along with him secured his admission to +membership in the strange congregation. Thus, all the churches treated +each other as portions of one great family; all adhered to much the same +system of polity and discipline; and, though there was not unity of +jurisdiction, there was the "keeping of the unity of the Spirit in the +bond of peace." + +In modern times many ecclesiastical historians [607:1] have asserted +that synods commenced about the middle of the second century. But the +statement is unsupported by a single particle of evidence, and a number +of facts may be adduced to prove that it is altogether untenable. There +is no reason to doubt that synods, at least on a limited scale, met in +the days of the apostles, and that the Church courts of a later age were +simply the continuation and expansion of those primitive conventions. We +know very little respecting the history of the Christian commonwealth +during the former half of the second century, for the extant memorials +of the Church of that period are exceedingly few and meagre; and as the +proceedings of most of the synods which were then held did not perhaps +attract much notice, [607:2] it is not remarkable that they have shared +the fate of almost all the other ecclesiastical transactions of the same +date, and that they have been buried in oblivion. [607:3] It is nowhere +intimated by any ancient authority that synodical meetings commenced +fifty years after the death of the beloved disciple, and the earliest +writers who touch upon the subject speak of them as of apostolic +original. Irenaeus, the pastor of Lyons, had probably reached manhood +when, according to Mosheim and others, synods were at first formed; he +enjoyed the instructions of Polycarp, the disciple of the Apostle John; +he was beyond question one of the best informed Christian ministers of +his generation; and yet he obviously considered that these +ecclesiastical assemblies were in existence in the first century. +Speaking of the visit of Paul to Miletus when he sent to Ephesus and +called the elders of the Church, [608:1] he says that the apostle then +convoked "the bishops and presbyters of Ephesus and of the other +adjoining cities" [608:2]--plainly indicating that he summoned a +synodical meeting. Had an assembly of this kind been a novelty in the +days of Irenaeus, the pastor of Lyons would not have given such a +version of a passage in the inspired narrative. Cyprian flourished +shortly after the time when, according to the modern theory, councils +began to meet in Africa, but the bishop of Carthage himself +unquestionably entertained higher views of their antiquity. He declared +that conformably to "the practice received from _divine tradition_ and +_apostolic observance_," [608:3] "all the neighbouring bishops of the +same province met together" among the people over whom a pastor was to +be ordained; [608:4] and he did not here merely give utterance to his +own impressions, for a whole African synod concurred in his statement. +Subsequent writers of unimpeachable credit refer to the canons of +councils of which we otherwise know nothing, and though we cannot now +ascertain the exact time when these courts assembled, there is no reason +to doubt that at least some of them were convened before the middle of +the second century. Thus, when Jerome ascribes the origin of Prelacy to +an ecclesiastical decree, he alludes evidently to some synodical +convention of an earlier date than any of the meetings of which history +has preserved a record. [609:1] + +Did we even want the direct testimony just adduced as to the government +of synods in the former part of the second century, we might on other +grounds infer that this species of polity then existed; for apostolic +example suggested its propriety, and the spirit of fraternity so +assiduously cherished by the early rulers of the Church must have +prompted them to meet together for the discussion and settlement of +ecclesiastical questions in which they felt a common interest. But +whilst Christianity was still struggling for existence, it was not in a +condition to form widely spread organizations. It is probable that the +business of the early Church courts was conducted with the utmost +secrecy, that they were attended by but few members, and that they were +generally composed of those pastors and elders who resided in the same +district and who could conveniently assemble on short notice. Their +meetings, in all likelihood, were summoned at irregular intervals, and +were held, to avoid suspicion, sometimes in one city and sometimes in +another; and, except when an exciting question awakened deep and general +anxiety, the representatives of the Churches of a whole province rarely, +perhaps, ventured on a united convention. Our ignorance of the councils +of the early part of the second century arises simply from the fact that +no writer appeared during that interval to register their acts; and we +have now no means of accurately filling up this blank in the history. +But we have good grounds for believing that Gnosticism now formed the +topic of discussion in several synods. [609:2] The errorists, we know, +were driven out of the Church in all places; and how can we account for +this general expulsion, except upon the principle of the united action +of ecclesiastical judicatories? Jerome gives us to understand that their +machinations led to a change in the ecclesiastical constitution, and +that this change was effected by a synodical decree adopted all over the +world [610:1]--thereby implying that presbyterial government was already +in universal operation. Montanism appeared whilst Gnosticism was yet in +its full strength, and this gloomy fanaticism created intense agitation. +Many of the pastors, as well as of the people, were bewildered by its +pretensions to inspiration, and by the sanctimony of its ascetic +discipline. It immediately occupied the attention of the ecclesiastical +courts, and its progress was, no doubt, arrested by their emphatic +condemnation of its absurdities. It is certain that their interference +was judicious and decided. "When the faithful held frequent meetings in +many places throughout Asia on account of this affair, and examined the +novel doctrines, and pronounced them profane, and rejected them as +heresy," the Montanist prophets "were in consequence driven out of the +Church and excluded from communion." [610:2] + +The words just quoted are from the pen of an anonymous writer who +flourished towards the end of the second or beginning of the third +century; [610:3] and, though they supply the earliest distinct notice of +synodical meetings, they do not even hint that such assemblies were of +recent original. The Paschal controversy succeeded the Montanist +agitation, and convulsed the whole Church from East to West by its +frivolous discussions. The mode of keeping the Paschal festival had for +nearly fifty years been a vexed question, but about the close of the +second century it began to create bitter contention. Eusebius has given +us an account of the affair, and his narrative throws great light upon +the state of the ecclesiastical community at the time of its occurrence. +"For this cause," says he, "there were synods and councils of bishops, +and all, with according judgment, published in epistles an +ecclesiastical decree.... There is still extant a letter from those who +at that time were called together in Palestine, over whom presided +Theophilus, bishop of the parish of Caesarea, and Narcissus, bishop of +the parish of Jerusalem. There is also another letter from those who +were convoked at Rome [611:1] concerning the same question, which shews +that Victor was then bishop. There is too a letter from the bishops of +Pontus, over whom Palmas, as the senior pastor, presided. There is +likewise a letter from the parishes in Gaul of which Irenaeus was +president. And another besides from the Churches in Osroene and the +cities in that quarter." [611:2] + +It is obvious from this statement that, before the termination of the +second century, synodical government was established throughout the +whole Church; for we here trace its operation in France, in Mesopotamia +or Osroene, in Italy, Pontus, and Palestine. This passage also +illustrates the progress of the changes which were taking place about +the period under review in the constitution of ecclesiastical +judicatories. As the president of the presbytery was at first the senior +elder, so the president of the synod was at first the senior pastor. At +this time the primitive arrangement had not been altogether superseded, +for at the meeting of the bishops of Pontus, Palmas, as being the oldest +member present, was called to occupy the chair of the moderator. But +elsewhere this ancient regulation had been set aside, and in some places +no new principle had yet been adopted. At the synod of Palestine the +jealousy of two rivals for the presidency led to a rather awkward +compromise. Caesarea was the seat of government, and on that ground its +bishop could challenge precedence of every other in the district, but +the Church of Jerusalem was the mother of the entire Christian +community, and its pastor, now a hundred years of age, [612:1] +considered that he was entitled to fill the place of dignity. For the +sake of peace the assembled fathers agreed to appoint two chairmen, and +accordingly Theophilus of Caesarea and Narcissus of Jerusalem presided +jointly in the synod of Palestine. In the synod of Rome there was no one +to dispute the pretensions of Bishop Victor. As the chief pastor of the +great metropolitan Church, he seems, as a matter of course, to have +taken possession of the presidential office. + +A few years after the Paschal controversy the celebrated Tertullian +became entangled in the errors of Montanism, and in vindication of his +own principles published a tract "Concerning Fasts," in which there is a +passing reference to the subject of ecclesiastical convocations. "Among +the Greek nations," says he, "these councils of the whole Church are +held in fixed places, in which, whilst certain important questions are +discussed, the representation of the whole Christian name is also +celebrated with great solemnity. And how worthy is this of a faith which +expects to have its converts gathered from all parts to Christ? See how +good and how pleasant a thing it is for brethren to dwell together in +unity! You do not well know how to sing this, except when you are +holding communion with many. But those conventions, after they have been +first employed in prayers and fasting, know how to mourn with the +mourners, and thus at length to rejoice with those that rejoice." +[612:2] + +Greek was now spoken throughout a great part of the Roman Empire, and at +this period it continued to be used even by the chief pastors of the +Italian capital, so that when Tertullian here mentions _the Greek +nations_, [613:1] he employs an expression of somewhat doubtful +significance. But it is probable that he refers chiefly to the mother +country and its colonies on the other side of the Aegean Sea, or to +Greece and Asia Minor. It is apparent from the apostolic epistles, most +of which are addressed to Churches within their borders, that the +gospel, at an early date, spread extensively and rapidly in these +countries; and it is highly probable that, at least in some districts, +its adherents would have now made a considerable figure in any +denominational census. They were thus, perhaps, emboldened to erect +their ecclesiastical courts upon a broader basis, as well as to hold +their meetings with greater publicity, than heretofore; and, as these +assemblies were attended, not only by the pastors and the elders, but +also by many deacons and ordinary church members who were anxious to +witness their deliberations, Tertullian alleges, in his own rhetorical +style of expression, that in them "the representation of the whole +Christian name was celebrated with great solemnity." [613:2] These Greek +councils commenced with a period of _fasting_--a circumstance by which +they seem to have been distinguished from similar meetings convened +elsewhere, and as they thus supplied him with an argument in favour of +one of the grand peculiarities of the discipline of Montanism, it is +obviously for this reason they are here so prominently noticed. If, as +he contends, these fasts were kept so religiously by the representatives +of the Church when in attendance on some of their most solemn +assemblies, there might, after all, be a warrant for the observance of +that more rigid abstinence which he now inculcated. But though this +passage of Tertullian is the only authority adduced to prove that +councils originated in Greece, it is plain that it gives no sanction +whatever to any such theory. Neither does it afford the slightest +foundation for the inference that, at the time when it was written, +these ecclesiastical convocations were unknown in Africa and Italy. We +have direct proof that before this period they not only met in Rome, but +that the bishop of the great city had been in the habit of requesting +his brother pastors in other countries to hold such assemblies. [614:1] +There is, too, satisfactory evidence that they were now not unknown at +Carthage, [614:2] and Tertullian himself elsewhere apparently refers to +the proceedings of African synods. [614:3] He must have been well aware +that they had recently assembled in various parts of the West to +pronounce judgment in the Paschal controversy; for the decisions of the +Gallic and Roman synods mentioned by Eusebius seem to have been +published all over the Church; and the reason why he refers to the +convocations of the Greeks was, not because such meetings were not held +in other lands, but because these, from their peculiar method of +procedure in the way of fasting, [614:4] supplied, as he conceived, a +very apposite argument in support of the discipline which he was so +desirous to recommend. + +If historians have erred in stating that synods commenced in Greece, +they have been still more egregiously mistaken in asserting that the +once famous Amphictyonic Council suggested their establishment, and +furnished the model for their construction. In the second century of the +Christian era the Council of the Amphictyons was shorn of its glory, and +though it then continued to meet, [615:1] it had long ceased to be +either an exponent of the national mind, or a free and independent +assembly. It is not to be imagined that the Christian community, in the +full vigour of its early growth, would all at once have abandoned its +apostolic constitution, and adopted a form of government borrowed from +an effete institute. Synods, which now formed so prominent a part of the +ecclesiastical polity, could claim a higher and holier original. They +were obviously nothing more than the legitimate development of the +primitive structure of the Church, for they could be traced up to that +meeting of the apostles and elders at Jerusalem which relieved the +Gentile converts from the observance of the rite of circumcision. + +The most plausible argument in support of the theory that the +Amphictyonic Council suggested the establishment of synodical +conventions is based upon the alleged fact that these ecclesiastical +meetings were at first held in spring and autumn, or exactly at the +times when the Greek political deputies were accustomed to assemble. +[615:2] But this statement, when closely examined, is found to be quite +destitute of evidence. Tertullian does not say that the Greek synods met +twice a year, and we know that, at least half a century afterwards, they +assembled only annually. This fact is attested by Firmilian of +Cappadocia in his celebrated letter to Cyprian. "It is of necessity +arranged among us," says he, "that we elders and presidents meet _every +year_ [616:1] to set in order the things entrusted to our charge, that +if there be any matters of grave moment they may be settled by common +advice." [616:2] The author of this epistle lived in the very country +where synods are supposed to have assembled so much more frequently half +a century before, so that his evidence demonstrates the fallacy of the +hypothesis framed by some modern historians. + +About the beginning of the third century, or at the time when Tertullian +wrote, it would seem that the members of the Greek synods had an +arrangement which was not then generally adopted. The Greek councils met +together "in fixed places." There is reason to believe that these "fixed +places" were, commonly speaking, the metropolitan cities of the +respective provinces. But still, as we have seen, the pastors and elders +had not yet generally agreed to the regulation that the chief pastor of +the metropolitan city should be the constant moderator of the provincial +synod. In the case of the bishop of Rome the rule was, no doubt, already +established; but, in other instances, the senior pastor present was, as +yet, invited to fill the office of president. The constant meeting of +the synod in the principal town of the province tended, however, to +increase the influence of its bishop; and he was at length almost +everywhere acknowledged as the proper chairman. [616:3] At the Council +of Nice in A.D. 325 his rights were formally secured by ecclesiastical +enactment. About the same date synods appear to have commenced to +assemble with greater frequency. "Let there be a meeting of the bishops +twice a year," says the thirty-seventh of the so-called Apostolical +Canons, "and let them examine amongst themselves the decrees concerning +religion, and settle the ecclesiastical controversies which may have +occurred. One meeting is to be held in the fourth week of the Pentecost, +and the other on the 12th day of the month of October." [617:1] + +As soon as the light of historical records begins to illustrate the +condition of any portion of the ancient Church, its synodical government +may be discovered; and though the literary memorials of the third +century are comparatively few, they are abundantly sufficient to +demonstrate that, as early as the middle of that period, ecclesiastical +courts upon a tolerably extensive scale were everywhere established. +About that time the controversy relative to the propriety of rebaptizing +heretics created much agitation, and the subject was keenly discussed in +the synods which met for its consideration. Nowhere is any hint given +that these courts were of recent formation. Though meeting in so many +places in the East and West, and in countries so far apart, they are +invariably represented as the ancient order of ecclesiastical regimen. +They all appear, too, as co-ordinate and independent judicatories; and +though the Roman bishop, as the chief pastor of the Catholic Church, +endeavoured to induce them to adopt uniform decisions, his attempts to +dictate to the brethren in Spain, Africa, and other countries, were +firmly and indignantly repulsed. There were fundamental principles which +they were all understood to acknowledge; these principles were generally +embodied in the divine Statute-book; it was admitted that the decisions +of every council which adhered to them were entitled to universal +reverence; but, though the reservation was scarcely compatible with the +genius of catholicity, each provincial convention claimed the right of +forming its own judgment of the acts of other courts, and of adopting or +rejecting them accordingly. + +The most influential synods which were held before the establishment of +Christianity by Constantine were those which met in the latter part of +the third century to try the case of the famous Paul of Samosata, the +bishop of Antioch. The charge preferred against him was the denial of +the proper deity of the Son of God, and as he was an individual of much +ability and address, as well as, in point of rank, one of the greatest +prelates in existence, his case awakened uncommon interest. Christianity +had recently obtained the sanction of a legal toleration, [618:1] and +therefore churchmen now ventured to travel from different provinces to +sit in judgment on this noted heresiarch. In the councils which +assembled at Antioch were to be found, not only the pastors of Syria, +but also those of various places in Palestine and Asia Minor. Even +Dionysius, bishop of the capital of Egypt, was invited to be present, +but he pleaded his age and infirmities as an apology for his +non-attendance. [618:2] In a council which assembled A.D. 269, [618:3] +Paul was deposed and excommunicated; and the sentence, which was +announced by letter to the chief pastors of Rome, Alexandria, and other +distinguished sees, was received with general approbation. + +All the information we possess respecting the councils of the first +three centuries is extremely scanty, so that it is no easy matter +exactly to ascertain their constitution; but we have no reason to +question the correctness of the statement of Firmilian of Cappadocia, +who was himself a prominent actor in several of the most famous of these +assemblies, and who affirms that they were composed of "elders and +presiding pastors." [619:1] We have seen that bishops and elders +anciently united even in episcopal ordinations, and these ministers, +when assembled on such occasions, constituted ecclesiastical +judicatories. A modern writer, of high standing in connexion with the +University of Oxford, has affirmed that "bishops alone had a definitive +voice in synods," [619:2] but the testimonies which he has himself +adduced attest the inaccuracy of the assertion. The presbyter Origen, at +an Arabian synod held about A.D. 229, sat with the bishops, and was, in +fact, the most important and influential member of the convention. About +A.D. 230, Demetrius of Alexandria "gathered a council of bishops _and of +certain presbyters_, which _decreed_ that Origen should remove from +Alexandria." [619:3] About the middle of the third century, "during the +vacancy of the see of Rome, _the presbyters of the city_ took part in +the first Roman council on the lapsed." [619:4] At the council of +Eliberis, held about A.D. 305, no less than _twenty-six presbyters_ sat +along with the bishops. [619:5] In some cases deacons, [619:6] and even +laymen, were permitted to address synods, [619:7] but ancient documents +attest that they were never regarded as constituent members. Whilst the +bishops and elders _sat_ together, and thus proclaimed their equality as +ecclesiastical judges, [619:8] the people and even the deacons were +obliged to _stand_ at these meetings. The circular letter of the council +of Antioch announcing the deposition of Paul of Samosata is written in +the name of "bishops, and presbyters, _and deacons, and the Churches of +God_," [620:1] but there is reason to believe that the latter are added +merely as a matter of prudence, and in testimony of their cordial +approval of the ecclesiastical verdict. The heresiarch had left no art +unemployed to acquire popularity, and it was necessary to shew that he +had lost the influence upon which he had been calculating. It is obvious +that the pastors and elders alone were permitted to _adjudicate_, for +why were they assembled from various quarters to uphold the doctrine and +discipline of the Church, if the people who were themselves tainted with +heresy or guilty of irregularity, had the liberty of voting? Under such +circumstances, the decision would have been substantially, not the +decree of the Church rulers, but of the multitude of the particular city +in which they happened to congregate. + +The theory of some modern ecclesiastical historians, who hold that all +the early Christian congregations were originally independent, cannot +bear the ordeal of careful investigation. Whilst it directly conflicts +with the testimony of Jerome, who declares that the churches were at +first "governed by the _common council of the presbyters_," it is +otherwise destitute of evidence. As soon as the light of ecclesiastical +memorials begins to guide our path, we find everywhere presbyteries and +synods in existence. Congregationalism has no solid foundation either in +Scripture or antiquity. The eldership, the most ancient court of the +Church, commenced with the first preaching of the gospel; and in the +account of the meeting of the Twelve to induct the deacons into office, +we have the record of the first ordination performed by the laying on of +the hands of the presbytery of Jerusalem. A few years afterwards the +representatives of several Christian communities assembled in the holy +city and "ordained decrees" for the guidance of the Jewish and Gentile +Churches. The continuous development of the same form of ecclesiastical +regimen has now been illustrated. This polity was obviously based upon +the principle that "in the multitude of counsellors there is safety." +[621:1] At the meetings of the elders, information was multiplied, the +intellect was sharpened, the brethren were made better acquainted with +each other, and the Christian cause enjoyed the benefit of the decisions +of their collective wisdom. The members had been previously elected to +office by the voice of the people, so that the Church had pre-eminently +a free constitution. And it is no mean proof as well of the intrepidity +as of the zeal of the early Christian ministers that, at a time when +their religion was proscribed, they sometimes undertook lengthened +journeys for the purpose of meeting in ecclesiastical judicatories. They +thus nobly asserted the principle that Christ has established in His +Church a government with which the civil magistrate has no right +whatever to intermeddle. It has been said that the early Christian +councils "changed nearly the whole form of the Church," and that by them +"the influence and authority of the bishops were not a little +augmented." [621:2] But this is obviously quite a mistaken view of their +native tendency. The face of the Church was, indeed, changed at an early +period, but it was simply because these councils yielded with too much +facility to the spirit of innovation. Had they been always conducted in +accordance with primitive arrangements, they could have crushed in the +bud the aspirations of clerical ambition. But when the city ministers +were rapidly accumulating wealth, their brethren in rural districts +remained poor; and when councils began to meet on a scale of increased +magnitude, the village and country pastors, who could not afford the +expenses of lengthened journeys, were unable to attend. Meanwhile +Prelacy established itself in the great towns, and the influence of the +city bishops began gradually to preponderate in all ecclesiastical +assemblies. When the prelates had once secured their ascendency in these +conventions, they made use of the machinery for their own purposes. The +people were deprived of many of their rights and privileges; the elders +were stripped of their proper status; the village and rural bishops were +extinguished; and at length the ancient presbytery itself disappeared. +The city dignitaries became the sole depositories of ecclesiastical +power, and the Church lost nearly every vestige of its freedom. But, +long after the beginning of the fourth century, many remnants of the +primitive polity still survived as memorials of its departed excellence. + + + + + +CHAPTER XII. + +THE CEREMONIES AND DISCIPLINE OP THE CHURCH AS ILLUSTRATED BY CURRENT +CONTROVERSIES AND DIVISIONS. + + +Whilst the Christian community was contending against the Gnostics, it +was not without other controversies which were fitted to prejudice its +claims in the sight of the heathen. The destruction of the temple of +Jerusalem by Titus had prevented the sticklers for the Mosaic law from +practising many of their ancient ceremonies: but there were parts of +their ritual, such as circumcision, to which they still adhered, as +these could be observed when the altar and the sanctuary no longer +existed. In the reign of Hadrian a division of sentiment relative to the +continued obligation of the Levitical code led to a great change in the +mother Church of Christendom. About A.D. 132, an adventurer, named +Barchochebas, pretending to be the Messiah and aiming at temporal +dominion, appeared in Palestine; the Jews, in great numbers, flocked to +his standard; and the rebel chief contrived for three years to maintain +a bloody war against the strength of the Roman legions. The Israelitish +race, by their conduct at this juncture, grievously provoked the +emperor; and when he had rebuilt Jerusalem, under the name of Aelia +Capitolina, he threatened them with the severest penalties should they +appear either in the city or the suburbs. Some of the Jewish Christians +of the place, anxious, no doubt, to escape the proscription, now +resolved to give up altogether the observance of circumcision. Others, +however, objected to this course, and persisted in maintaining the +permanent obligation of the Mosaic ritual. The dissentients, called +Nazarenes, formed themselves into a separate community, which obtained +adherents elsewhere, and which subsisted for several centuries. At first +they differed from other Christians chiefly in their adherence to the +initiatory ordinance of Judaism, but eventually they adopted erroneous +principles in regard to the person of our Lord, and were in consequence +ranked amongst heretics. [624:1] + +In the history of the Church, the Nazarenes occupy a somewhat singular +and unique position. Their name was one of the earliest designations by +which the followers of our Saviour were known, [624:2] and though by +many they have been called the First Dissenters, they might have very +fairly pleaded that they were the lineal descendants of the most ancient +stock of Christians in the world. The rite for which they contended had +been practised in the Church of Jerusalem since its very establishment; +the ministers by whom they had been taught had probably been instructed +by the apostles themselves; and all the elders at the time connected +with the holy city seem to have joined the secession. It is alleged that +a number of Christians of Gentile origin, uniting with those of their +brethren of Jewish descent who now agreed to relinquish the Hebrew +ceremonies, chose an individual, named Marcus, for their chief pastor, +and that at this period the succession in the line of the circumcision +"failed." [624:3] This statement cannot signify that some dire calamity +had at once swept away all the old presbytery of Jerusalem. It obviously +indicates that none of its members had joined the party whose principles +had obtained the ascendency. And yet, though the adherents of Marcus +might have been charged with innovation, they acted under the sanction +of apostolical authority. They very properly refused to continue any +longer in bondage to the beggarly elements of a ritual which had long +since been superseded. Though the seceders might have urged that they +were of apostolical descent, and that they were supported by ancient +custom, it must be admitted, after all, that they were but a company of +deluded and narrow-minded bigots. The evangelical pastors of the +primitive Church repudiated their zeal for ritualism, and gave the right +hand of fellowship to Marcus and his newly-organized community. The +history of the mother Church of Christendom in the early part of the +second century is thus fraught with lessons of the gravest wisdom. We +may see from it that the true successors of the apostles were not those +who occupied their seats, or who were able to trace from them a +ministerial lineage, but those who inherited their spirit, who taught +their doctrines, and who imitated their example. + +Though, in this instance, the disciples at Jerusalem nobly emancipated +themselves from the yoke of circumcision, it appears, from a controversy +which created much confusion about sixty years afterwards, that the +whole Church was disposed, to some extent, to conform to another Judaic +ordinance. The embers of this dispute had been for some time +smouldering, before they attracted much notice; but, about the +termination of the second century, they broke out into a flame which +spread from Rome to Jerusalem. The name of Easter [625:1] was yet +unknown, and the Paschal feast appears, at least in some places, to have +been then only recently established; but at an early period there was a +sprinkling of Jewish Christians in almost every Church throughout the +Empire, and they had at length induced their fellow-disciples to mark +the seasons of the Passover and Pentecost [626:1] by certain special +observances. The Passover was regarded as the more solemn feast, and, +strange as it may now appear, was kept at the time by the Christians in +much the same way in which it had been celebrated by the Jews before the +fall of Jerusalem. A lamb was shut up on a certain day; it was +afterwards roasted; and then eaten by the brotherhood. [626:2] The time +when this ceremony was to be observed, and some other circumstantials, +now formed topics of earnest and protracted discussion. One party, known +as the Quarto-decimans, or _Fourteenth Day Men_, held that the Paschal +feast was to be kept exactly at the time when the Jews had been +accustomed to eat the Passover, that is, on the fourteenth day of the +first month of the Jewish year; [626:3] and they celebrated the festival +of the resurrection on the seventeenth day of the month, that is, on the +third day after partaking of the Paschal lamb, whether that happened to +be the first day of the week or otherwise. The other party strenuously +maintained that the eating of the Paschal lamb ought to be postponed +until the night preceding the first Lord's day next following the +fourteenth day of the first month. They considered that this next Lord's +day should be recognized as the festival of our Saviour's resurrection, +and that the whole of the preceding week until the close should be kept +as a fast not to be interrupted by the eating of the Passover. + +The most determined Quarto-decimans were to be found in Asia Minor, and +at their head was Polycrates, the chief pastor of Ephesus. At the head +of the other party was Victor, bishop of Rome. The Church over which he +presided did not originally observe any such appointment, [627:1] but +some of its members of Jewish extraction were probably, on that account, +dissatisfied; and about the time of the establishment of the Catholic +system, the matter seems to have been settled by a compromise. It +appears to have been then arranged that the festival should be kept; but +to avoid the imputation of symbolizing with the Jews, it was agreed that +the Friday of the Paschal week and the Lord's day following, or the day +on which our Saviour suffered and the day on which He rose from the +dead, should be the great days of observance. This arrangement was +pretty generally accepted by those connected with what now began to be +called the Catholic Church: but some parties pertinaciously refused to +conform. Victor, as the head of the Catholic confederation, no doubt +deemed it his duty to exact obedience from all its members; and, deeply +mortified because the Asiatic Churches persisted in their own usages, +shut them out from his communion. But it was soon evident that the +Church was not prepared for such an exercise of authority, for the +Asiatics refused to yield; and as some of Victor's best friends +protested against the imprudence of his procedure, the ecclesiastical +thunderbolt proved an impotent demonstration. + +The Paschal controversy was far from creditable to any of the parties +concerned. The eating of a lamb on a particular day was a fragment of an +antiquated ceremonial, and as the ordinance itself had been superseded, +the time of its observance was not a legitimate question for debate. +Each party is said to have endeavoured to fortify its own position by +quoting the names of Paul or Peter or Philip or John; but had any one of +these apostles risen from the dead and appeared in the ecclesiastical +arena, he would, no doubt, have rebuked all the disputants for their +trivial and unholy wrangling. We have here a notable proof of the +absurdity of appealing to tradition. Within a hundred years after the +death of the last survivor of the Twelve its testimony was most +discordant, for the tradition of the Western Churches, as propounded by +Victor, expressly contradicted the tradition of the Eastern Churches, as +attested by Polycrates. It is clear that in this case the apostles must +have been misrepresented. Peter and Paul certainly never taught the +members of the Church of Rome to eat the Paschal lamb, for the Jewish +temple continued standing until after both these eminent ministers had +finished their career, and meanwhile the eating of the Passover was +confined to those who went up to worship at Jerusalem. Philip and John +may have continued to keep the feast according to the ancient ritual +until shortly before the ruin of the holy city; and if, afterwards, they +permitted the converts from Judaism to kill a lamb and to have a social +repast at the same season of the year, they could have attached no +religious importance to such an observance. But now that both parties +were heated by the spirit of rivalry and contention, they extracted from +tradition a testimony which it did not supply. Vague reports and +equivocal statements, handed down from ages preceding, were compelled to +convey a meaning very different from that which they primarily +communicated; and thus the voice of one tradition could be readily +employed to neutralize the authority of another. + +It is a curious fact that the custom which now created such violent +excitement gradually passed into desuetude. At present there are few +places [629:1] where the eating of the Paschal lamb is continued. But +otherwise the practice for which Victor contended eventually prevailed, +as the Roman mode of celebration was established by the authority of the +Council of Nice. What is called Easter Sunday is still observed in many +Churches as the festival of the resurrection. But the institution of +such a festival is unnecessary, as each returning Lord's day should +remind the Christian that his Saviour has risen from the dead and become +the first-fruits of them that sleep. [629:2] + +This Paschal controversy generated no schism, but other disputes, which +subsequently occurred, did not terminate so peacefully. About the middle +of the third century disagreements respecting matters of discipline rent +the Churches of Carthage and Rome. At Carthage, the malecontents sought +for greater laxity; at Rome, they contended for greater strictness. At +that time the _confessors_ and the _martyrs_, or those who had +persevered in their adherence to the faith under pains and penalties, +and those who had suffered for it unto death, were held in the highest +veneration. They had been even permitted in some places to dictate to +the existing ecclesiastical rulers by granting what were called _tickets +of peace_ [629:3] to the _lapsed_, that is, to those who had apostatized +in a season of persecution, and who had afterwards sought readmission to +Church communion. These certificates, or tickets of peace, were +understood to entitle the parties in whose favour they were drawn up to +be admitted forthwith to the Lord's Supper. But it sometimes happened +that a confessor or a martyr was himself far from a paragon of +excellence, [630:1] as mere obstinacy, or pride, or self-righteousness, +may occasionally hold out as firmly as a higher principle; and a man may +give his body to be burned who does not possess one atom of the grace of +Christian charity. There were confessors and martyrs in the third +century who held very loose views on the subject of Church discipline, +and who gave tickets of peace without much inquiry or consideration. +[630:2] In some instances they did not condescend so far as to name the +parties to whom they supplied recommendations, but directed that a +particular individual "and his friends" [630:3] should be restored to +ecclesiastical fellowship. Cyprian of Carthage at length determined to +set his face against this system of testimonials. He alleged that the +ticket of a martyr was no sufficient proof of the penitence of the party +who tendered it, and that each application for readmission to membership +should be decided on its own merits, by the proper Church authorities. +The bishop was already obnoxious to some of the presbyters and people of +Carthage; and, in the hope of undermining his authority, his enemies +eagerly seized on his refusal to recognize these certificates. They +endeavoured to create a prejudice against him by alleging that he was +acting dictatorially, and that he was not rendering due honour to those +who had so nobly imperilled or sacrificed their lives in the service of +the gospel. To a certain extent their opposition was successful; and, as +much sickness prevailed about the time, Cyprian was obliged to concede +so far as to consent to give the Eucharist, on the tickets of peace, to +those who had lapsed, and who were apparently approaching dissolution. +But, soon afterwards, strengthened by the decision of an African Synod, +he returned to his original position, and the parties now became +hopelessly alienated. The leader of the secession was a deacon of the +Carthaginian Church, named Felicissimus, and from him the schism which +now occurred has received its designation. The Separatists chose a +presbyter, named Fortunatus, as their bishop, and thus in the capital of +the Proconsular Africa a new sect was organized. But the secession, +which was based upon a principle thoroughly unsound, soon dwindled into +insignificance, and rapidly passed into oblivion. + +The schism which occurred about the same time at Rome was of a more +formidable and permanent character. It had long been the opinion of a +certain party in the Church that persons who had committed certain +heinous sins should never again be readmitted to ecclesiastical +fellowship. [631:1] Those who held this principle did not pretend to say +that these transgressions were unpardonable; it was admitted that the +offenders might obtain forgiveness from God, but it was alleged that the +Church on earth could never feel warranted to receive them to communion. +Cornelius, who was then the bishop of Rome, supported a milder system +and contended that those who were not hopelessly excluded from the peace +of God should not be inexorably debarred from the visible pledges of His +affection. The leader of the stricter party was Novatian, a Roman +presbyter of pure morals and considerable ability, who has left behind +him one of the best treatises in defence of the Trinity which the +ecclesiastical literature of antiquity can supply. This individual was +ordained bishop in opposition to Cornelius; and, for a time, some of the +most distinguished pastors of the age found it difficult to decide +between these two claimants of the great bishopric. The high character +of Novatian, and the supposed tendency of his discipline to preserve the +credit and promote the purity of the Church, secured him considerable +support: the sect which derived its designation from him spread into +various countries; and, for several generations, the Novatians could +challenge comparison, as to soundness in the faith and propriety of +general conduct, with those who assumed the name of Catholics. + +The agitation caused by the Novatian schism had not yet subsided when +another controversy respecting the propriety of rebaptizing those +designated heretics created immense excitement. Cyprian at the head of +one party maintained that the baptism of heretical ministers was not to +be recognized, and that the ordinance must again be dispensed to such +sectaries as sought admission to catholic communion; whilst Stephen of +Rome as strenuously affirmed that the rite was not to be repeated. It is +rather singular that the Italian prelate, on this occasion, pleaded for +the more liberal principle; but various considerations conspired to +prompt him to pursue this course. When heresies were only germinating, +and when what was afterwards called the Catholic Church was yet but in +process of formation, no question as to the necessity of rebaptizing +those to whom the ordinance had already been dispensed by any reputed +Christian minister, seems to have been mooted. In the time of Hyginus of +Rome, even the baptism of the leading ministers of the Gnostics was +acknowledged by the chief pastor of the Western metropolis. [633:1] The +Church of Rome had ever since continued to act upon the same system; and +her determination to adhere to it had been fortified, rather than +weakened, by recent occurrences. As the Novatians had set out on the +principle of rebaptizing all who joined them, [633:2] Stephen recoiled +from the idea of deviating from the ancient practice to follow in their +footsteps. But Cyprian, who was naturally of a very imperious temper, +and who had formed most extravagant notions of the dignity of the +Catholic Church, could not brook the thought that the ministers +connected with the schism of Felicissimus could dispense any baptism at +all. He imagined that the honour of the party to which he belonged would +be irretrievably compromised by such an admission, and he was sustained +in these views by a strong party of African and Asiatic bishops. On this +occasion Stephen repeated the experiment made about sixty years before +by his predecessor Victor, and attempted to reduce his antagonists to +acquiescence by excluding them from his fellowship. But this second +effort to enforce ecclesiastical conformity was equally unsuccessful. It +only provoked an outburst of indignation, as the parties in favour of +rebaptizing refused to give way. This controversy led, however, to the +broad assertion of a principle which might not otherwise have been +brought out so distinctly, for it was frequently urged during the course +of the discussion that all pastors stand upon a basis of equality, and +that the bishop of a little African village had intrinsically as good a +right to think and to act for himself as the bishop of the great capital +of the Empire. + +It is very clear that at this time the unity of the Church did not +consist in the uniformity of its discipline and ceremonies. The +believers at Jerusalem continued to practise circumcision nearly a +century after the establishment of Gentile Churches in which such a rite +was unknown. On the question of rebaptizing heretics the Churches of +Africa and Asia Minor were diametrically opposed to the Church of Rome +and other communities in the West. As to the mode of observing the +Paschal feast a still greater diversity existed. According to the +testimony of Irenaeus there was nothing approaching to uniformity in the +practice of the various societies with which he was acquainted. "The +dispute," said he, "is not only respecting the _day_, but also +respecting the _manner_ of fasting. For some think that they ought to +fast only one day, some two, some more days; some compute their day as +consisting of forty hours night and day; [634:1] and this diversity +existing among those that observe it, is not a matter that has just +sprung up in our times, but long ago among those before us." [634:2] +When Cyprian refused to admit the lapsed to the Lord's Supper on the +strength of the tickets of peace furnished by the confessors and the +martyrs, he departed from the course previously adopted in Carthage; and +when Novatian excluded them altogether from communion, he acted on a +principle which was not then novel. There was at that time, in fact, +quite as much diversity in discipline and ceremonies among Christians as +is now to be found in evangelical Protestant Churches. + +It must be admitted that, as we descend from the apostolic age, the +spirit of the dominant body in the Church betrays a growing want of +Christian charity. There soon appeared a disposition, on the part of +some, to monopolize religion, and to disown all who did not adopt their +ecclesiastical Shibboleth. When the great mass of Christians became +organized into what was called the Catholic Church, the chief pastors +branded with the odious name of heretics all who did not belong to their +association. The Nazarenes originally held all the great doctrines of +the gospel, but they soon found themselves in the list of the +proscribed, and they gradually degenerated into abettors of very corrupt +principles. Those members of the Church of Carthage who joined +Felicissimus acted upon principles which the predecessors even of +Cyprian had sanctioned, and yet the African prelate denounced them as +beyond the pale of divine mercy. Novatian was not less orthodox than +Cornelius; but because he contended for a system of discipline which, +though not unprecedented, was deemed by his rival too austere, and +because he organized a party to support him, he also was stigmatized +with the designation of heretic. The Quarto-decimans, as well as those +who contended for Catholic rebaptism, would doubtless have been classed +in the same list, had they not formed numerous and powerful +confederations. Thus it was that those called Catholics were taught to +cherish a contracted spirit, and to look upon all, except their own +party, as out of the reach of salvation. Their false conceptions of what +properly constituted the Church involved them in many errors and tended +to vitiate their entire theology. But this subject is too important to +be discussed in a few cursory remarks, and must be reserved for +consideration in a separate chapter. + + + + + +CHAPTER XIII. + +THE THEORY OF THE CHURCH, AND THE HISTORY OF ITS PERVERSION. + +CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS. + + +"I am the good Shepherd," said Jesus: "the good Shepherd giveth his life +_for the sheep_.... My sheep _hear my voice_, and I know them, and +they follow me: and I give unto them eternal life, and _they shall never +perish_." [636:1] The sheep here spoken of are the true children of God. +They constitute that blessed community of which it is written--"Christ +loved _the Church_, and gave himself for it, that he might sanctify and +cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that he might present +it to himself _a glorious Church_, not having _spot or wrinkle or any +such thing_, but that it should be holy and _without blemish_." [636:2] + +The society thus described is, in the highest sense, "the holy Catholic +Church." Its members are to be found wherever genuine piety exists, and +they are all united to Christ by the bond of the Holy Spirit. Their +Divine Overseer has promised to be with them "alway unto the end of the +world," [636:3] to keep them "through faith unto salvation," [636:4] and +to sustain them even against the violence of "the gates of hell." +[636:5] Though they are scattered throughout different countries, and +separated by various barriers of ecclesiastical division, they have the +elements of concord. Could they be brought together, and divested of +their prejudices, and made fully acquainted with each other's +sentiments, they would speedily incorporate; for they possess "the unity +of the Spirit," [637:1] "the unity of the faith," [637:2] and "the unity +of the knowledge of the Son of God." [637:3] But these heirs of promise +cannot be distinguished by the eye of sense; their true character can be +known infallibly only to the Great Searcher of hearts; and for this, +among other reasons, the spiritual commonwealth to which they belong is +usually designated "_the Church invisible_." [637:4] + +The _visible Church_ is composed, to a considerable extent, of very +different materials. It embraces the whole mixed multitude of nominal +Christians, including not a few who exhibit no evidence whatever of +vital godliness. Our Lord describes it in one of His parables when He +says--"The kingdom of heaven is like unto a net which was cast into the +sea, and gathered of every kind; which, when it was full, they drew to +shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the +bad away. So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come +forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, and shall cast them +into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth." +[637:5] + +In the first century the profession of Christianity was perilous as well +as unpopular, so that the number of spurious disciples was comparatively +small; and so long as the brethren enjoyed the ministrations of inspired +teachers, all attempts to alienate them from each other, or to create +schisms, had little success. But still, even whilst the apostles were on +earth, some of the Churches planted and watered by themselves were +involved in error and agitated by the spirit of division. "It hath been +declared unto me of you," says Paul to the Corinthians, "that there are +contentions among you. Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am +of Paul, and I of Apollos, and I of Cephas, and I of Christ." [638:1] +The same writer had occasion to mourn over the apostasy of the Churches +of Galatia. "I marvel," said he, "that ye are so soon removed from him +that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel.... O +foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you that ye should not obey the +truth?" [638:2] The Church of Sardis in the lifetime of the Apostle John +had sunk into an equally deplorable condition, and hence he was +commissioned to declare to it--"I know thy works, that thou hast a name +that thou livest, _and art dead_." [638:3] + +The circumstances which led to the organization of the Catholic system +have already been detailed, and it has been shewn that the great design +of the arrangement was to secure the visible unity of the ecclesiastical +commonwealth. The Catholic confederation was supposed to comprehend all +the faithful; and it was, no doubt, expected that, not long after its +establishment, it would have rung the death knell of schism and +sectarianism. According to its fundamental principle, whoever was not in +communion with the bishop was out of the Church. To be out of the Church +was soon considered as tantamount to be without God and without hope, so +that this test condemned all who in any way dissented from the dominant +creed as beyond the pale of salvation. Its assumptions, involving a +decision of such grave importance and of such dubious authority, were +acknowledged with some difficulty; and the question as to the extent and +character of the Church seems to have led to considerable discussion; +[639:1] but the horror of heresy which so generally prevailed +strengthened the pretensions of the hierarchy, and at length every +candidate for baptism was required to declare, as one of the articles of +his faith--"I believe in the holy Catholic Church." [639:2] + +According to one interpretation the sentiment embodied in this +profession was perfectly unobjectionable. If by the holy Catholic Church +we understand the Church invisible composed of all the true children of +God, it must be conceded that every devout student of the Scriptures is +bound to express his belief in its existence and its excellence. This +Church is precious in the eyes of the Lord; it is the habitation of His +Spirit; it is the heir of His great and glorious promises. But the holy +Catholic Church, in the current ecclesiastical phraseology of the third +century, had a very different signification. It denoted the great mass +of disciples associated under the care of the Catholic bishops, as +distinguished from all the minor sects throughout the Empire which made +a profession of Christianity. A sincere and intelligent believer might +well have scrupled to give such a title to the mixed society thus +claiming its application. + +It is quite true that there is no salvation out of the Church, if by the +Church is meant that elect company which Christ died to redeem and +sanctify; but the Word of God does not warrant us to assert that the +eternal well-being of man depends on his connexion with any earthly +society. Even in the days of the apostles, some who were subjected to a +sentence of excommunication were the excellent of the earth. "I wrote +unto _the Church_," says John, "but Diotrephes, who loveth to have the +pre-eminence among them, _receiveth us not_. Wherefore, if I come, I +will remember his deeds which he doeth, prating against us with +malicious words, and not content therewith, neither doth he himself +receive _the brethren_, and forbiddeth them that would, and _casteth +them out of the Church_." [640:1] This Diotrephes seems to have been +some wayward and domineering presbyter who took the lead among his +fellow-elders, and who induced them by the influence of commanding +talent, combined, it may be, with superior worldly station, to support +him in his wilfulness. [640:2] But it would be very foolish to suppose +that the brethren who were thus _cast out of the Church_ were thereby +eternally undone, for such certainly was not the judgment of the beloved +disciple. Faith in Christ, and not a relation to any visible society, +secures a title to heaven. Thousands, as well as the thief on the cross, +have been admitted into paradise who have never been baptized, [640:3] +and we might point out numberless cases in which individuals, in the +wonderful providence of God, have been led to a saving knowledge of the +truth who have never had an opportunity of joining a congregation of +Christian worshippers. But those who now assumed the name of Catholics +were continually dwelling upon the importance of a connexion with their +own association; and, assuming that they were _the Church_, they +appropriated to themselves whatever they could find in Scripture in +commendation of its excellence. The promises addressed to the Church in +the book of inspiration refer, however, not to any local and visible +community, but to the "Church of the first-born which are written in +heaven;" [641:1] and the Catholics, by misapplying them, were led to +form very extravagant notions of the advantages of the position which +they occupied. The ascription of the attributes of the Church invisible +to their own association was, in fact, the fundamental misconception on +which a vast fabric of error was erected. By reason of the indwelling of +the Spirit in all believers the Church invisible is _catholic_, or +universal, that is, it is to be found wherever vital Christianity +exists; for the same reason it is _holy_, every member of it being a +living temple of Jehovah; it is also _one_, as one Spirit animates all +the saints and unites them to God and to each other; and it is +_perpetual_, or indestructible, for the Most High has promised never to +leave Himself without witnesses among men, and all His redeemed ones +shall remain as trophies of His grace throughout all eternity. But these +attributes were represented as belonging to the Church visible, and this +radical mistake became the parent of monstrous delusions. The +ecclesiastical writers who flourished towards the end of the second and +beginning of the third century exhibit a considerable amount of +inconsistency and vacillation when they touch upon the subject; [641:2] +but, half a century afterwards, the language currently employed is much +bolder and more decided. At that time Cyprian does not hesitate to +express himself in the strongest terms of high-church exclusiveness. +"_All_," says he, "_are adversaries of the Lord and antichrist_ who +are found to have departed from the charity and unity of the Catholic +Church." [641:3] "You ought to know that the bishop is in the Church and +the Church in the bishop, and _if any be not with the bishop_, that _he +is not in the Church_." [641:4] "The house of God is one, and there +cannot be salvation for any except in the Church." [641:5] "He can no +longer have God for a Father, who has not the Church for a mother." +[642:1] + +Though the Catholics were a compact body, forming the bulk of the +Christian population, their system failed to absorb all the professors +of the gospel, or perhaps even greatly to check the tendency towards +ecclesiastical separation. In their controversies with seceders and +schismatics, their own principles were more distinctly defined; and, as +they soon found that they were quite an overmatch for any individual +sect, their tone gradually became more decided and dictatorial. But the +theological position from which they started was a sophism; and, like +the movements of a traveller who has mistaken his way, every step of +their progress was an advance in a wrong direction. Some of the more +prominent errors to which their theory led may here be enumerated. + +I. The theory of the Catholic Church recognized an odious ecclesiastical +monopoly. Pastors and teachers are "for the perfecting of the saints, +for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ;" +[642:2] and yet a sinner may be saved without their instrumentality. The +truth when spoken by a layman, or when read in a private chamber, may +prove quite as efficacious as when proclaimed from the pulpit of a +cathedral. That kingdom of God which "cometh not with observation" is +built up by "the Word of His grace;" [642:3] and so long as the Word +exists, and so long as the Spirit applies it to enlighten and sanctify +and comfort God's children, the Church is imperishable. The evangelical +labours of the pious master of a merchant vessel have often been blessed +abundantly; and among the tens of thousands afloat upon the broad +waters, who seldom enjoy any ecclesiastical ministrations, may be found +some of the highest types of Christian excellence. Though regularly +ordained pastors are necessary to the growth and well-being of the +Church, such facts shew that they are not essential to its existence. +But, according to the Catholic system, they are the veins and arteries +through which its very life-blood circulates. All grace belongs to the +visible society called the Catholic Church, and of this grace the +Catholic ministers have the exclusive distribution. Without their +intervention, as the dispensers of divine ordinances, no one can hope to +inherit heaven. No other ministers whatever can be instrumental in +conferring any saving benefit. Was it extraordinary that individuals who +were supposed to be entrusted with such tremendous influence soon began +to be regarded with awful reverence? If the services which they rendered +were necessary to salvation, and if these services could be performed by +none else, they were possessed of absolute authority, and it was to be +expected that they would forthwith begin to act as "lords over God's +heritage." + +Under the Mosaic economy none save the descendants of a single +individual were permitted to present the sacrifices or to enter the holy +place. In the celebration of the most solemn rites of their religion the +Jewish people were kept at a mysterious distance from the presence of +the Divine Majesty, and were taught to regard the officiating ministers +as mediators between God and themselves. This arrangement was +symbolical, as all the priests were types of the Great Intercessor. But +every believer may now enjoy the nearest access to his Maker, for the +Saviour has made all His people "kings and priests unto God." [643:1] +The ministers of the gospel do not constitute a privileged fraternity +entitled by birth to exercise certain functions and to claim certain +immunities. They should be appointed _by_ the people as well as _for_ +them, and no service which they perform implies that they have nearer +access to the Divine Presence than the rest of the worshippers. In the +New Testament they are never designated _priests_, [644:1] neither is +their intervention between God and the sinner described as +indispensable. But Catholicism invested them with a factitious +consequence, representing them as inheriting peculiar rights and +privileges by ecclesiastical descent from the apostles. According to +Cyprian, "Christ says to the apostles, _and thereby to all prelates who +by vicarious ordination are successors of the apostles_. 'He that +heareth you, heareth me.'" [644:2] About the commencement of the third +century the pastors of the Church began to be called priests, [644:3] +and this change in the ecclesiastical nomenclature betokens the +influence of Catholic principles on the current theology. The Jewish +sacrificial system had now ceased, and the Hebrew Christians were +perhaps disposed to transfer to their new ministers the titles of the +sons of Levi; but, had not the alteration been in accordance with the +spirit of the times, it could not have been accomplished. It was, +however, justified by Catholicism, as that system set forth the clergy +in the light of mediators between God and the people. This misconception +of the nature of the Christian ministry generated a multitude of errors. +If ministers are priests they must offer sacrifice, and must be +entrusted with the work of atonement. It is true, indeed, that the +monstrous dogma of transubstantiation was not yet broached, but it +cannot be denied that forms of expression which were exceedingly liable +to misinterpretation, now began to be adopted. Thus, the Eucharist was +styled "a sacrifice," [645:1] and the communion-table "the altar." +[645:2] At first such phraseology was not intended to be literally +understood, [645:3] but its tendency, notwithstanding, was most +pernicious, as it fostered false views of a holy ordinance, and laid the +foundation of the most senseless superstition ever imposed on human +credulity. + +Every genuine pastor has a divine call to the sacred office, and no act +of man can supply the place of this spiritual vocation. God alone can +provide a true minister, [645:4] for He alone can bestow the gifts and +the graces which are required. Ordination is simply the form in which +the existing Church rulers endorse the credentials of the candidate, and +sanction his appearance in the character of an ecclesiastical +functionary. But these rulers may themselves be incompetent or profane, +so that their approval may be worthless; or, by mistake, they may permit +wolves in sheep's clothing to take charge of the flock of Christ. The +simple fact, therefore, that an individual holds a certain position in +any section of the visible Church, is no decisive evidence that he is a +true shepherd. Such, however, was not the doctrine of Catholicism. +Whoever was accredited by the existing ecclesiastical authorities was, +according to this system, the chosen of the Lord. When certain parties +who had joined Novatian were induced to retrace their steps, they made +the following penitential declaration in presence of a large +congregation assembled in the Western metropolis--"We acknowledge +Cornelius bishop of the most holy Catholic Church _chosen by God +Almighty_ and Christ our Lord." [646:1] Cyprian asserted that, as he was +bishop of Carthage, he must necessarily have a divine commission. +Nothing, indeed, can exceed the arrogance with which this imperious +prelate expressed himself when speaking of his ecclesiastical authority. +To challenge his conduct was, in his estimation, tantamount to +blasphemy; and, to dispute his prerogatives, a contempt of the Divine +Majesty. Once, in a time of persecution, he retired from Carthage, and +he was, in consequence, upbraided by some as a coward; but when a +fellow-bishop, Papianus, ventured to ask an explanation of a course of +proceeding which apparently betokened indecision, Cyprian treated the +inquiry as an insult, and poured out upon his correspondent a whole +torrent of invectives and reproaches. He is _God's bishop_, and no one +is to attempt, by the breath of suspicion, to stain the lustre of his +episcopal dignity. "I perceive by your letter," says he, "that you +believe the same things of me, and persist in what you believed.... This +is not to believe in God, this is to be a rebel against Christ and +against His gospel.... Do you suppose that the priests of God are +without His cognizance ordained in the Church? For if you believe that +those who are ordained are unworthy and incestuous, what else is it but +to believe that, not by God, or through God, are His bishops appointed +in the Church." [646:2] After indulging at great length in the language +of denunciation, he adds, in a strain of irony--"Vouchsafe at length and +deign to pronounce on us, and to confirm our episcopate by the authority +of _your_ hearing, that God and Christ may give _you_ thanks, that +through you a president and ruler has been restored as well to _their_ +altar as to _their_ people." [647:1] + +II. The Catholic system encouraged its adherents to cultivate very +bigoted and ungenerous sentiments. They were taught to regard themselves +as the "peculiar people," and to look on all others, however excellent, +as without claim to the title or privileges of Christians. How different +the spirit of the inspired heralds of the gospel! When Peter saw that +the Holy Ghost was poured out on men uncircumcised, he recognized the +divine intimation by acknowledging the believing Gentiles as his +brethren in Christ. Conceiving that God himself had thus settled the +question of their Church membership, "he commanded them to be baptized +in the name of the Lord." [647:2] But men who professed to derive their +authority from the apostle, now showed how grievously they misunderstood +the benign and comprehensive genius of his ecclesiastical polity. The +dominant party among the disciples had not long assumed the name of +Catholics when they sadly belied the designation, for nothing could be +more illiberal or uncatholic than their Church principles. All evidences +of piety, no matter how decided, if found among the Nazarenes, or the +Novatians, or the friends of Felicissimus, were rejected by them as +apocryphal. The brightest manifestations of godliness, if exhibited +outside their own denomination, only roused their jealousy or provoked +their uncandid and malicious criticisms. The Catholic bishops acted as +if they moved within something like a charmed circle, and as if a curse +rested upon everything not under their own influence. Their proceedings +often displayed alike their folly and inconsistency. Tertullian, for +example, was a Montanist, and yet he was the writer from whom Cyprian +himself derived a large share of his theological instruction. "Give me +_the master_," the bishop of Carthage is reported to have said, when he +called for his favourite author. [648:1] Thus, an individual who, +according to Cyprian's own principles, was beyond the pale of hope, was +the teacher with whom he was daily holding spiritual fellowship! The +bigotry of the party must appear all the more intolerable when we +consider that some of those who differed from them taught the cardinal +doctrines of the gospel, as zealously and as fully as themselves. The +Novatians seceded from their communion merely on the ground of a +question of discipline, and yet the Catholics could not believe that any +grace could exist among these ancient Puritans. The Novatians in their +lives might exhibit much of the beauty of holiness, and they might shed +their blood in the cause of Christianity, [648:2] but all this availed +them nothing in the estimation of their narrow-minded antagonists. "Let +no one think," says Cyprian, "that they can be good men who leave the +Church." [648:3] "He can never attain to the kingdom who leaves her with +whom the kingdom shall be." [648:4] "He cannot be a martyr who is not in +the Church." [648:5] Every man not blinded by prejudice might well have +suspected the soundness of a theory which could only be sustained by +such brazen recklessness of assertion. + +III. Nothing, however, more clearly revealed the anti-evangelical +character of the Catholic system than its interference with the claims +of the Word of God. The gospel commends itself by the light of its own +evidence. The official rank of the preacher cannot add to its truth, +neither can the corrupt motives which may prompt him to proclaim it, +impair its authority. As a revelation from heaven, it possesses a title +to consideration irrespective of any individual, or any Church; and God +honours His own communication even though it may be delivered by a very +unworthy messenger. [649:1] "Some indeed," says Paul, "preach Christ +even of envy and strife, and some also of good-will.... What then? +Notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence or in truth, Christ is +preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice." [649:2] But +Catholicism taught its partizans to cherish very different feelings, for +they were instructed to believe that the gospel itself was without +efficacy when promulgated by a minister who did not belong to their own +party. They could not challenge a single flaw in the creed of Novatian, +[649:3] and yet they strongly maintained that his preaching was useless, +and that the baptism he dispensed was worthless as the ablution of a +heathen. "You should know," says Cyprian, "that _we ought not even to be +curious as to what Novatian teaches, since he teaches out of the +Church._ Whosoever he be, and whatsoever he be, he is not a Christian +who is not in the Church of Christ." [649:4] "When the Novatians +say--'Dost thou believe remission of sins and eternal life by the Holy +Church?' they lie in their interrogatory, since they _have no Church._" +[649:5] + +Strange infatuation! Who could have anticipated that one hundred and +fifty years after the death of the Apostle John, such miserable and +revolting bigotry would have been current? The Scriptures teach us that, +in the salvation of sinners, ministers are as nothing, and the gospel +everything. "Whosoever," says Paul, "shall call upon the name of the +Lord _shall be saved_.... Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by _the +Word of God._" [650:1] Cyprian did not understand such doctrine. He +imagined that the Word of God had no power except when issuing from the +lips of the ministers of his own communion. The Catholic Church must put +its seal upon the gospel to give it currency. Without this stamp it was +all in vain to announce it to a world lying in wickedness. The Catholic +pastor might be a man without ability; he might be comparatively +ignorant; and he might be of more than suspicious integrity; and yet the +King of the Church was supposed to look down with complacency on all the +official acts of this wretched hireling, whilst no dew of heavenly +influence rested on the labours of a pious and accomplished Novatian +minister! When men like Cyprian were prepared to acknowledge such folly, +it was not strange that a darkness which might be felt soon settled down +upon Christendom. + + * * * * * + +In the preceding pages the history of the ancient Church for the first +three centuries has passed under review, and a few general observations +may now be not inappropriately appended to this concluding chapter. The +details here furnished supply ample evidence that Christianity was +greatly corrupted long before the conversion of Constantine. It is true, +indeed, that much of the superstition which has since so much disfigured +the Church was yet unknown. During the first three centuries we find no +recognition of the mediatorship of Mary, or of the dogma of her +immaculate conception, [650:2] or of the worship of images, or of the +celebration of divine service in an unknown tongue, or of the doctrine +of the infallibility of the Roman bishop. But the germs of many +dangerous errors were distinctly visible, and when the sun of Imperial +favour began to shine upon the Christians, these errors rapidly reached +maturity. The Eucharistic bread and wine were viewed with superstitious +awe, and language was applied to them which was calculated to bewilder +and to confound. A system of penitential discipline alien to the spirit +of the New Testament was already in existence; rites and ceremonies +unknown in the apostolic age had now made their appearance; and in the +great towns a crowd of functionaries, whom Paul and Peter would have +refused to own, added to the pomp of public worship. Some imagine that +in the times of Tertullian and of Cyprian we may find the purest faith +in the purest form, but a more intimate acquaintance with the history of +the period is quite sufficient to dispel the delusion. A little +consideration may, indeed, convince us that, in the second or third +century, we could scarcely expect to see either the most brilliant +displays of the light of truth or the most attractive exhibitions of +personal holiness. The waters of life gushed forth, clear as crystal, +from the Rock of Ages; but, as their course was through the waste +wilderness of a degenerate world, they were soon defiled by its +pollutions; and it was not until the desert began "to rejoice and +blossom as the rose," that the stream flowed smoothly in the channel it +had wrought, and partially recovered its native purity. At the present +day we would not be warranted in expecting as high a style of +Christianity in a convert from idolatry as in one who had been trained +up from infancy under the care of enlightened and godly parents. By +judicious culture the graces of the Spirit, as well as the fruits of the +earth, may be improved; but when a section of the open field of +immorality and ignorance is first added to the garden of the Lord, it +may not forthwith possess all the fertility and loveliness of the more +ancient plantation. [652:1] A large portion of the early disciples had +once been heathens; they had to struggle against evil habits and +inveterate prejudices; they were surrounded on all sides by corrupting +influences; and, as they had not the same means of obtaining an exact +and comprehensive knowledge of the gospel as ourselves, we cannot +reasonably hope to find among them any very extraordinary measure either +of spiritual wisdom or of consistent piety. + +When the Church towards the middle of the second century was sorely +harassed by divisions, its situation was extremely critical and +embarrassing. Christianity had appeared among men bearing the olive +branch of peace, and had proposed to supersede the countless +superstitions of the heathen by a faith which would bind the human race +together in one great and harmonious family. How mortified, then, must +have been its friends when Basilides, Marcion, Valentine, Cerdo, Mark, +and many others began to propagate their heresies, and when it appeared +as if the divisions of the Church were to be as numerous as the +religions of paganism! Had the ministers of the gospel girded themselves +for the emergency; had they boldly encountered the errorists, and +vanquished them with weapons drawn from the armoury of the Word; they +would have approved themselves worthy of their position, and acquired +strength for future conflicts. But whilst they did not altogether +neglect an appeal to Scripture, they were tempted in an evil hour to +think of sequestrating their own freedom that they might overwhelm +heresy with the vigour of an ecclesiastical despotism. By investing +their chairman with arbitrary power and by making communion with this +functionary the criterion of discipleship, they at once sanctioned a +perilous arrangement and endorsed a vicious principle. From this date we +may trace the commencement of a career of defection. The bishop and the +Church began to supplant Christ and a knowledge of the gospel. Bigotry +advanced apace, and conscience found itself in bondage. + +The establishment of the hierarchical system, though imparting, as was +thought, greater unity to the structure of the Church, did not really +invigorate its constitution. The spiritual commonwealth is very +different from any merely earthly organization, for it has no +statute-book but the Bible, and it owes explicit obedience to no ruler +but the King of Zion. Freedom of conscience, in obedience to the Word, +is the heritage of all its members; and every one of them is bound to +exercise the privilege, and to resist its violation. Its unity appears, +not in adhesion to any visible head, but in cordial submission to its +one great Lord and Sovereign. When a change was made in its primitive +framework, its essential unity was impaired. After the elders had handed +over a considerable share of their authority to their president, they +could not be expected to take such a deep interest in its government as +when they were themselves individually responsible for its official +administration. They still, indeed, acted as his counsellors, but as +they no longer held the independent footing they had once occupied, they +could neither speak nor act so freely and so energetically as before. +Thus, whilst one member of the ecclesiastical body was permitted to +attain an unnatural magnitude, others ceased to perform their proper +functions, and the whole eventually became diseased and misshapen. And +the new arrangement entirely failed in checking the growth of the +errorists. After its adoption heresies sprung up as rapidly as ever, and +the multitude of its sects continued to be the scandal of Christianity +even in the time of Constantine. [654:1] Their suppression is to be +attributed, not to the potency of Prelacy, but to the stern intolerance +of the Imperial laws. By the rigid enforcement of conformity the +Catholic Church at length reigned without a rival. + +It is easy to see from the extant ecclesiastical writings of the third +century that the doctrine of the visible unity of the Church as +represented by the Catholic hierarchy already formed a prominent part of +the current creed. As there is "one God, one Christ, and one Holy +Ghost," it was affirmed that there could be but "one bishop in the +Catholic Church." [654:2] This theory seemed somewhat inconsistent with +the fact that there were many bishops in almost every province of the +Empire; but the ingenuity of churchmen attempted a solution of the +difficulty. It was alleged that the whole episcopacy should be regarded +as one, and that each bishop constituted an integral part of the grand +unit. "The episcopacy is one," says Cyprian, "it is a whole in which +each enjoys full possession." [654:3] "There is one Church from Christ +throughout the whole world divided into many members, and _one +episcopate_ diffused throughout an harmonious multitude of many +bishops." [654:4] + +We have seen that the Roman prelate was already recognized as the centre +of ecclesiastical unity. A misunderstood passage in the Gospel of +Matthew [654:5] was supposed to sanction this ecclesiastical primacy. +"There is," said the bishop of Carthage, "one God, and one Christ, and +one Church, and _one chair founded by the Word of the Lord on the +Rock_." [654:6] Though the Roman chief pastor might be considered +theoretically only the first among the Catholic bishops, his zeal for +uniformity had now more than once interrupted the peace of the Christian +community. The erection of a new capital and the subsequent +dismemberment of the Empire considerably affected his position; but, +within a certain sphere, he steadily endeavoured to carry out the idea +of Catholic unity. The doctrine reached its highest point of development +after the lapse of upwards of a thousand years. Then, the bishop of Rome +had become a sovereign prince, and was the acknowledged ruler of a vast +and magnificent hierarchy. Then, he swayed his spiritual sceptre over +all the tribes of Western Christendom. Then, verily, uniformity had its +day of triumph; for, with some rare exceptions, wherever the stranger +travelled throughout Europe, he found the same order of divine service, +and saw the ministers of the sanctuary arrayed in the same costume, and +practising even the same gestures. Then, wherever he entered a sacred +edifice, he heard the same language, and listened to the same prayers +expressed in the very same phraseology. But what was meanwhile the real +condition of the Church? Was there love without dissimulation, and the +keeping of the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace? Nothing of the +kind. Never could it be said with greater truth of the people of the +West that they were "foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers +lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one +another." There were wars and rumours of wars; nation rose up against +nation and kingdom against kingdom; and the Pope was generally the cause +of the contention. The very man who claimed to be the centre of Catholic +unity was the grand fomenter of ecclesiastical and political +disturbance. The Sovereign Pontiff, and the Catholic princes with whom +he was engaged in deadly feuds, were equally faithless, restless, and +implacable. Freedom of thought was proscribed, and the human mind was +placed under the most exacting and intolerable tyranny by which it was +ever oppressed. + +The mutilation of this Dagon of hierarchical unity is one of the many +glorious results of the great Reformation. The sooner the remaining +fragments of this idol be crushed to atoms, the better for the peace and +freedom of Christendom. The unity of the Church cannot be achieved by +the iron rod of despotism, neither can the communion of saints be +promoted by the sacrifice of their rights and privileges. "Where the +Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." [656:1] Christ alone can draw +all men unto Him. The real unity of His Church is, not any merely +ecclesiastical cohesion, but a unity of faith, of hope, and of +affection. It is the fellowship of Christian freemen walking together in +the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost. It is the +attraction of all hearts to one heavenly Saviour, and the submission of +all wills to one holy law. Looking at the past condition or the present +aspect of society, we may think the difficulties in the way of such +unity altogether insurmountable; but it will, in due time, be brought +about by Him "who doeth great things and unsearchable, marvellous things +without number." Its realization will present the most delightful and +impressive spectacle that the earth has ever seen. "Every valley shall +be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low; and the +crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain; _and the +glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it +together_." [656:2] "Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice, with the +_voice together shall they sing; for they shall see eye to eye_, when +the Lord shall bring again Zion." [656:3] "And the Lord shall be King +over all the earth; in that day shall there be _one Lord, and His name +one_." [656:4] AMEN. + + + THE END. + + + + + +[ENDNOTES] + + +[3:1] Mr Merivale, in his "History of the Romans under the Empire," +(vol. iv. p. 450,) estimates the population in the time of Augustus +at eighty-five millions, but in this reckoning he does not include +Palestine, and perhaps some of his calculations are rather low. +Greswell computes the population of Palestine at ten millions, and that +of the whole empire at one hundred and twenty millions. ("Dissertations +upon an Harmony of the Gospels," vol. iv. p. 11, 493.) + +[7:1] See the article [Greek: Hetairai] in Smith's "Dictionary of Greek +and Roman Antiquities." + +[8:1] "We despise," says an early Christian writer, "the supercilious +looks of philosophers, whom we have known to be the corrupters of +innocence, adulterers, and tyrants, and eloquent declaimers against +vices of which they themselves are guilty."--_Octavius of Minucius +Felix._ + +[9:1] "De Republ.," ii. + +[9:2] In the "Octavius of Minucius Felix" (c. 25), we meet with the +following startling challenge--"Where are there more bargains for +debauchery made, more assignations concerted, or more adultery devised +than _by the priests_ amidst the altars and shrines of the gods?" This, +of course, refers to the state of things in the third century, but there +is no reason to believe that it was now much better. Tertullian speaks +in the same manner ("Apol". c. 15). See also "Juvenal," sat. vi. 488, +and ix. 23. + +[10:1] "Origen. Contra Celsum," lib. i. c. 49. + +[10:2] Mat. xxii. 23. + +[10:3] Luke ii. 25, 36. + +[11:1] See Matt. v. 18; John v. 39, and x. 35. + +[11:2] See Josephus against Apion, i. § 8. Origen says that the Hebrews +had twenty-two sacred books corresponding to the number of letters in +their alphabet. Opera, ii. 528. It would appear from Jerome that they +reckoned in the following manner: they considered the Twelve Minor +Prophets only one book; First and Second Samuel, one book; First and +Second Kings, one book; First and Second Chronicles, one book; Ezra and +Nehemiah, one book; Jeremiah and Lamentations, one book; the Pentateuch, +five books; Judges and Ruth, one book; thus, with the other ten books of +Joshua, Esther, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Canticles, Isaiah, +Ezekiel, and Daniel, making up twenty-two. The most learned Roman +Catholic writers admit that what are called the apocryphal books were +never acknowledged by the Jewish Church. See, for example, Dupin's +"History of Ecclesiastical Writers," Preliminary Dissertation, section +ii. See also Father Simon's "Critical History of the Old Testament," +book. i. chap. viii. + +[11:3] Matt, xxiii. 15. + +[12:1] Many proofs of this occur in the Acts. See Acts x. 2, xiii. 43, +xvi. 14, xvii. 4. + +[12:2] See Cudworth's "Intellectual System," i. 318, &c. Edition, +London, 1845. Warburton has adduced evidence to prove that this doctrine +was imparted to the initiated in the heathen mysteries. "Divine Legation +of Moses," i. 224. Edit., London, 1837. + +[12:3] Gal. iv. 4. + +[12:4] Gen. xlix. 10; Dan. ix. 25; Haggai ii. 6, 7. + +[12:5] Virgil. Ec. iv. Suetonius. Octavius, 94. Tacitus. Histor. v. 13. + +[13:1] Haggai ii. 7. + +[13:2] Dan. vii. 14. + +[14:1] See Supplementary Note at the end of this chapter on the year of +Christ's Birth. + +[14:2] Luke ii. 6, 7. + +[15:1] Luke i. 11, 19. + +[15:2] Luke. 26, 31. + +[15:3] Luke ii. 13, 14. + +[15:4] Matt. ii. 9. + +[15:5] Matt. ii. 12. + +[15:6] Matt. ii. 3. The evangelist does not positively assert that the +wise men met Herod _at Jerusalem_. On their arrival in the holy city he +was probably at Jericho--distant about a day's journey--for Josephus +states that he died there. ("Antiq." xvii. 6. § 5. and 8. § 1.) We may +infer, therefore, that he "heard" of the strangers on his sick-bed, and +"privily called" them to Jericho. The chief priests and scribes were, +perhaps, summoned to attend him at the same place. + +[16:1] Matt. ii. 16. The estimates formed at a subsequent period of the +number of infants in the village of Bethlehem and its precincts betray a +strange ignorance of statistics. "The Greek Church canonised the 14,000 +innocents," observes the Dean of St Paul's, "and another notion, founded +on a misrepresentation of Revelations (xiv. 3), swelled the number to +144,000. The former, at least, was the common belief of our Church, +though _even in our liturgy the latter has in some degree been +sanctioned_ by retaining the chapter of Revelations as the epistle for +the day. Even later, Jeremy Taylor, in his 'Life of Christ,' admits the +14,000 without scruple, or rather without thought."--_Milman's History +of Christianity_, i. p. 113, note. + +[16:2] Matt. ii. 11. + +[16:3] Luke ii. 38. It is a curious fact that in the year 751 of the +city of Rome, the year of the Birth of Christ according to the +chronology adopted in this volume, the passover was not celebrated as +usual in Judea. The disturbances which occurred on the death of Herod +had become so serious on the arrival of the paschal day, that Archelaus +was obliged to disperse the people by force of arms in the very midst of +the sacrifices. So soon did Christ begin to cause the sacrifice and the +oblation to cease. See Greswell's "Dissertations," i. p 393, 394, note. + +[17:1] Luke ii. 40. + +[17:2] Luke ii. 52. + +[17:3] Mark vi. 3. + +[17:4] John vii. 15. + +[18:1] Luke ii. 46, 47. + +[18:2] Luke iv. 16. + +[18:3] Luke iii. 21-23. "It became Him, being in the likeness of sinful +flesh, to go through these appointed rites and purifications which +belonged to that flesh. There is no more strangeness in His having been +baptized by John, than in His keeping the Passover. The one rite, as the +other, belonged to sinners, and among the transgressors He was +numbered."--ALFORD, _Greek Testament_, Note on Matt. iii. 13-17. + +[18:4] See Greswell's "Dissertations upon an Harmony of the Gospels," +vol. i. p. 362, 363. John probably commenced his ministry about the +feast of Tabernacles, A.D. 27. + +[18:5] See Josephus, "Antiq." xviii, 5, § 2. + +[19:1] Matt. iv. 23. + +[19:2] Matt. iv. 24, 25. + +[19:3] Isaiah xlv. 15. + +[19:4] 1 Kings viii. 10-12. + +[19:5] John v. 13, vi. 15, viii. 59, xii. 36; Mark i. 45, vii. 24. + +[19:6] Mark ii. 1, 2; Matt. xiv. 13, 14, 21, xv. 32, 38, 39. + +[20:1] Matt. iv. 13. Hence it is said to have been "exalted unto heaven" +in the way of privilege. Matt. xi. 23; Luke x. 15. It was the residence +as well of Peter and Andrew (Matt. xvii. 24), as of James, John (Mark i. +21, 29), and Matthew (Mark ii. 1, 14, 15), and there also dwelt the +nobleman whose son was healed by our Lord (John iv. 46). It was on the +borders of the Sea of Galilee, so that by crossing the water He could at +once reach the territory of another potentate, and withdraw Himself from +the multitudes drawn together by the fame of His miracles. See Milman's +"History of Christianity," i. 188. + +[21:1] John i. 46. + +[22:1] Luke xxiv. 32. + +[22:2] Matt. vii. 29. + +[23:1] According to Mr Greswell our Lord adopted this method of teaching +about eighteen months after the commencement of His ministry, and the +Parable of the Sower was the first delivered. "Exposition of the +Parables," Vol. i. p. 2. + +[23:2] Isa. xxxv. 5, 6. + +[23:3] See John v. 13, ix. 1, 6, 25, 36. + +[23:4] Mark ii. 6, 7, 10, 11, iii. 5, 22. + +[24:1] John vi. 9. + +[24:2] Matt. xiv. 24, 25. + +[24:3] Mark iv. 39; Matt. viii. 26, 27. + +[24:4] John ix. 16. + +[24:5] Matt. xxi. 19. Neander has shown that this was a typical action +pointing to the rejection of the Jews. See his "Life of Christ." Bohn's +Edition. + +[24:6] John ii. 9. + +[24:7] Matt. ix. 28, 29; Mark vi. 5, ix. 23, 24. + +[25:1] John viii. 12. + +[26:1] Several of the early fathers imagined that it continued only a +year. Some of them, such as Clemens Alexandrinus, drew this conclusion +from Isaiah lxi. 1, "To preach _the acceptable year_ of the Lord." See +Kaye's "Clement of Alexandria," p. 347. + +[26:2] John ii. 13, v. 1, vi. 4, xii. 1. Eusebius argues from the number +of high priests that our Lord's ministry did not embrace four entire +years. "Ecc. Hist." i. c. x. + +[26:3] He lived, therefore, about thirty-three years. According to Malto +Brun ("Universal Geography," book xxii.), "the _mean duration_ of human +life is between thirty and forty years," and, in the same chapter, he +computes it at thirty-three years. It would thus appear that, at the +time of His death, our Lord was, in point of age, a fitting +representative of the species. + +[26:4] Luke iv. 44, viii. 1; Matt. ix. 35. + +[27:1] John iii. 1, 2. + +[27:2] Matt. xxvi. 63-66. + +[27:3] Matt, xxvii. 38. + +[27:4] Matt, xxvii. 24; John xviii. 38. + +[27:5] Mark xv. 10, 15. + +[28:1] Acts ii. 23. + +[28:2] Matt. xxvi. 38; Mark xiv. 33. + +[28:3] Luke xxii. 44. + +[28:4] Matt, xxvii. 46. + +[28:5] Luke xxii. 43. + +[28:6] Luke xxiii. 44; Mark xv. 33. + +[29:1] Matt, xxvii. 51, 52. + +[29:2] Matt, xxvii. 54. + +[29:3] John x. 18. + +[29:4] Ps. xvi. 10; Acts ii. 31. + +[29:5] John ii. 19; Mark viii. 31; Luke xviii, 33. + +[29:6] John xiv. 19; 1 Thess. iv. 14. + +[29:7] Rom. i. 4; 1 Cor. xv. 14, 17; 1 Pet. i. 3; Rev. i. 18. + +[29:8] John xix. 33, 34. + +[29:9] Matt, xxvii. 60. + +[30:1] Matt, xxvii. 66. + +[30:2] Matt, xxviii. 2, 4. + +[30:3] Matt, xxviii. 11. + +[30:4] Matt, xxviii. 12, 13, 15. + +[30:5] Rev. i. 5. + +[30:6] Acts x. 40, 41. + +[30:7] John xiv. 22. + +[31:1] Acts i. 3. + +[31:2] Luke xxiv. 27. + +[31:3] Matt, xxviii. 19. + +[31:4] Luke xxiv. 50, 51. + +[32:1] John i. 10-12. + +[36:1] Isa. liii. 3. + +[36:2] John vii. 39. + +[36:3] Acts i. 15. + +[37:1] 1 Cor. xv. 6. + +[37:2] See Matt. xv. 31; John ii. 23, vii. 31, viii. 30. + +[37:3] See Joshua xv. 25. + +[37:4] Hence called Iscariot, that is, _Ish Kerioth_, or, a man of +Kerioth. See Alford, Greek Test., Matt. x. 4. + +[37:5] Acts ii. 7. + +[37:6] Compare Matt. ix. 9, 10, and Mark ii. 14, 15. + +[37:7] "As St John never mentions Bartholomew in the number of the +apostles, so the other evangelists never take notice of Nathanael, +probably because the same person under two several names; and as in +John, Philip and Nathanael are joined together in their coming to +Christ, so in the rest of the evangelists, Philip and Bartholomew are +constantly put together without the least variation."--Cave's Lives of +the Apostles. Life of Bartholomew. Compare Matt. x. 3; Acts i. 13; and +John i. 45, xxl. 2. + +[38:1] Compare Matt. x. 3, and Acts i. 13. + +[38:2] John xi. 16, xxi. 2. + +[38:3] Mark xv. 40. He was in some way related to our Lord, and hence +called His brother (Gal. i. 19). But though Mary, the mother of our +Saviour, had evidently several sons (see Matt. i. 20, 25, compared with +Matt. xiii. 55; Mark vi. 3; Matt. xii. 46, 47), they were not disciples +when the apostles wore appointed, and none of them consequently could +have been of the Twelve. (See John vii. 5). The other sons of Mary, who +must all have been younger than Jesus, seem to have been converted about +the time of the resurrection. Hence they are found among the disciples +before the day of Pentecost (Acts i. 14). + +[38:4] Mark iii. 17. + +[38:5] Matt. x. 2. + +[38:6] John i. 42. + +[38:7] Matt. x. 4; Mark iii. 18; Luke vi. 15; Acts i. 13. Some think +that _Kananites_ is equivalent to _Zelotes_, whilst others +contend that it in derived from a village called Canan. See Alford, +Greek Test., Matt. x. 4; and Greswell's; "Dissertations," vol. ii. +p. 128. Some MSS. have [Greek: Kananaios]. + +[38:8] Mark vi. 7. "Although no two of these catalogues (of the Twelve) +agree precisely in the order of the names, they may all be divided into +three quaternions, which are never interchanged, and the leading names +of which are the same in all. Thus the first is always Peter, the fifth +Philip, the ninth James the son of Alpheus, and the twelfth Judas +Iscariot. Another difference is that Matthew and Luke's Gospel gives the +names in pairs, or two and two, while Mark enumerates them singly, and +the list before us (in the Acts) follows both, these methods, one after +the other."--_Alexander on the Acts_, vol. i. p. 19. + +[39:1] Gal. i. 19. + +[39:2] Acts i. 13. See also Jude v. 1. + +[39:3] Upon this subject see the conjectures of Greswell, +"Dissertation," vol. ii. p. 120. + +[39:4] John i. 35, 40. + +[39:5] From the great minuteness of the statements in the passage, it +has been conjectured that the evangelist himself was the second of the +two disciples mentioned in John i. 35-37. + +[39:6] John iii. 30. + +[39:7] Matt. xix. 27. + +[40:1] Mark i. 20. + +[40:2] Luke xix. 2. + +[40:3] Luke xix. 2. + +[40:4] Mark ii. 15. + +[40:5] John vii. 52. + +[40:6] John xi. 16. See also v. 8. + +[41:1] John xx. 25. + +[41:2] John xx. 28. + +[41:3] Some writers have asserted that he is a different person from +James "the Lord's brother" mentioned Gal. i. 19, but the statement rests +upon no solid foundation. Compare John vii. 5; 1 Cor. xv. 7; Acts i. 14, +xv. 2, 13. See also note p. 38 [38:3] of this chapter. + +[41:4] John i. 47. + +[41:5] Mark v. 37, ix. 2; Matt. xxvi. 37. + +[41:6] Acts xii. 2, 3. "It is remarkable that, so far as we know, one of +these inseparable brothers (James and John) was the first, and one the +last, that died of the apostles."--_Alexander on the Acts_, i. 443. + +[41:7] See Greswell's "Dissertations," vol. ii. p. 115. + +[42:1] Matt. xx. 20, 21. + +[42:2] Some writers have asserted that Philip and Nathanael were learned +men, but of this there is no good evidence. See Cave's "Lives of the +Apostles," Philip and Bartholomew. + +[42:3] Greswell makes it nine months. See his "Harmonia Evangelica," p. +xxiv. xxvi. + +[42:4] Matt. x. 5, 6. + +[42:5] See Vitringa "De Synagoga Vetere," p. 577, and Mosheim's +"Commentaries," by Vidal, vol. i. 120-2, note. + +[43:1] This is the calculation of Greswell. "Harmonia Evangelica," p. +xxvi. xxxi. Robinson makes the interval considerably shorter. See his +"Harmony of the Four Gospels in Greek." + +[43:2] They received new powers at the close of their first missionary +excursion. See Luke x. 19. + +[43:3] Selden in his treatise "De Synedriis" supplies some curious +information on this subject. See lib. ii. cap. 9, § 3. See also some +singular speculations respecting it in Baumgarten's "Theologischer +Commentar zum Pentateuch," i. 153, 351. Some of the fathers speak of +seventy-two disciples and of seventy-two nations _and tongues_. See +Stieren's "Irenaeus," i. p. 544, note, and Epiphanius, tom. i. p. 50, +Edit. Coloniae, 1682; compared with Greswell's "Dissertations," ii. +p. 7. + +[43:4] Gen. x. 32. + +[44:1] The following tabular view of the names of the descendants of +Shem, Ham, and Japheth, mentioned in the 10th chapter of Genesis, will +illustrate this statement:-- + + SHEM. | HAM. +Elam.Asshur.Arphaxad, Lud. Aram, |Cush, Mizraim, Phut. Canaan, + Salah, Uz, |Seba, Ludim, Sidon, + Eber, Hul, |Havilah, Anamim, Heth, + Peleg, Gether,|Sabtah, Lehabim, Jebusite, + Joktan, Mash. |Raamah, Naphtuhim, Amorite, + Almodad, |Sabtechab,Pathrusim, Girgasite, + Sheleph, |Sheba, Caslubim, Hivite, + Hazarmaveth, |Dedan, Caphtorim, Arkite, + Jerah, |Nimrod. Philistim. Sinite, + Hadoram, | Arvadite, + Uzal, | Zemarite, + Diklah, | Hamathite. + Obal, | + Abimael, | + Sheba, | + Ophir, | + Havilah, | + Jobab. | + + JAPHETH. + Gomer, Magog. Madai. Javan, Tubal. Meshech. Tiras. + Ashkenaz, Elishah, + Riphath, Tarshish, + Togarmah. Kittim, + Dodanim. + +It often happens that one branch of a family is exceedingly prolific +whilst another is barren. So it seems to have been with the descendants +of the three sons of Noah. Thus, Elam, Ashur, and others, appear each to +have founded only one nation, whilst Arphaxad and his posterity founded +eighteen. + +[45:1] Luke x. 1. + +[45:2] John iv. 39. + +[45:3] Mark vii. 24, 26, 30, 31. + +[45:4] This is the opinion of Dr Robinson. See His "Harmony." See also +Luke ix. 51, 52, x. 33. + +[45:5] Luke x. 13, 17, 18. + +[45:6] Matt. xv. 24. + +[46:1] Rev. xxi. 14. + +[46:2] It is certain that some were called apostles who were not of the +number of the Twelve. See Acts xiv. 4. In 1 Cor. xv. 5, 7, both "the +Twelve," and "all the apostles," are mentioned, and it may be that the +Seventy are included under the latter designation. Such was the opinion +of Origen--[Greek: epeita tois eterois para tous dôdeka apostolois pasi, +tacha tois ebdomêkoita]. "Contra Celsum," lib. ii. 65. See also "De +Recta in Deum Fide," sec. i., Opera, tom. i. p. 806. + +[46:3] Luke x. 9, 16, 19, 24. + +[46:4] Eph. ii. 20. See also Eph. iii. 5. It is evident, especially from +the latter passage, that the _prophets_ here spoken of belong to the New +Testament Church. + +[47:1] Acts xv. 6, xxi. 18. + +[47:2] 1 Pet. v. 1; 2 John v. 1; 3 John v. 1. It is remarkable that +Papias, one of the very earliest of the fathers, actually speaks of the +apostles simply as _the elders_. See Euseb. book iii. chap. 39. + +[47:3] Thus, Simon Zelotes is said to have travelled into Egypt and +thence passed into Mesopotamia and Persia, where he suffered martyrdom; +whilst, according to others, he travelled through Egypt to Mauritania +and thence to Britain, where he was crucified. See Cave's "Lives of the +Apostles," Life of Simon the Zealot. No weight can be attached to such +legends. Origen states that the Apostle Thomas laboured in Parthia, and +Andrew in Scythia. "In Genesim," Opera, tom. ii. p. 24. + +[47:4] Acts vi. 6. + +[48:1] Matt. vii. 16. + +[48:2] Acts xxvi. 16; Luke x. 2; 1 Tim. i. 12. + +[48:3] Such was Valentine, the most formidable of the Gnostic +heresiarchs, said to be a disciple of Theodas, the companion of Paul. +Clem. Alex. Strom. vii. Paul of Samosata and Arius were able to boast, +at least as much as their antagonists, of their apostolic descent. + +[49:1] 1 John iv. 1, 6. + +[49:2] 2 John 10, 11. + +[49:3] Gal. i. 8, 9. + +[50:1] Luke x. 16. + +[50:2] 2 Cor. iii. 1-3. + +[51:1] Acts i. 3. + +[51:2] Luke xxiv. 46, 47. + +[52:1] Acts ii. 41. + +[52:2] Acts ii. 44, 45. + +[53:1] See Acts iv. 34. Barnabas was probably obliged to go to Cyprus to +complete the sale. + +[53:2] Acts vi. 1. + +[54:1] Acts vi. 2, 3. + +[54:2] Acts i. 15, 23. They selected two, and not knowing which to +prefer, they decided finally by lot. + +[54:3] Acts vi. 6. + +[55:1] Acts iv. 18. + +[55:2] Acts iv. 19. + +[55:3] That is, A.D. 34, dating the crucifixion A.D. 31. Tillemont, but +on entirely different grounds, assigns the same date to the martyrdom of +Stephen. See "Memoires pour servir à L'Histoire Ecclesiastique des six +premiers siecles," tome prem. sec. par. p. 420. Stephen's martyrdom +probably occurred about the feast of Tabernacles. + +[55:4] Daniel ix. 27. A _day_ in prophetic language denotes a _year_. +Ezek. iv. 4, 5. A prophetic week, or seven days, is, therefore, +equivalent to seven years. + +[56:1] "The one week, or Passion-week, in the midst of which our Lord +was crucified A.D. 31, began with His public ministry A.D. 28, and ended +with the martyrdom of Stephen A.D. 34."--_Hales' Chronology_, ii. p. +518. Faber and others, who hold that the one week terminated with the +crucifixion, are obliged to adopt the untenable hypothesis that John the +Baptist and our Lord together preached seven years. The view here taken +is corroborated by the statement in Dan. ix. 27--"_In the midst of the +week_ he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease,"--as +Christ by one sacrifice of Himself "perfected for ever them that are +sanctified." + +[56:2] Matt, xxviii. 19. + +[57:1] Acts viii. 6, 12. + +[57:2] John iv. 9. + +[57:3] Acts viii. 1. + +[57:4] Luke xxiv. 47; Acts i. 4. + +[57:5] Acts i. 8. + +[57:6] Acts viii. 27-38. + +[57:7] Acts x. 19, 30, 32. + +[57:8] Acts x. 1. + +[58:1] Acts x. 2. + +[58:2] Acts xxi. 39. + +[58:3] Strabo, xiv. p. 673. + +[58:4] Rom. xi. 13; 1 Tim. ii. 7; 2 Tim. i. 11. + +[58:5] Matt. x. 5, 6. + +[59:1] 1 Cor. xv. 8. + +[59:2] Rom. i. 1. + +[59:3] Acts xxii. 3. + +[59:4] Acts xxii. 3. + +[59:5] Acts xxvi. 5. + +[59:6] Acts vii. 58. + +[60:1] Acts xxvi. 10. [Greek: psêphon]. See Alford on Acts xxvi. 10, and +Acts viii. 1. See also "The Life and Epistles of St Paul" by Conybeare +and Howson, i. 85. Edit., London, 1852. Paul says that "all the Jews" +knew his manner of life _from his youth_--a declaration from which we +may infer that he was a person of note. See Acts xxvi. 4. There is a +tradition that he aspired to be the son-in-law of the high priest. +Epiphanius, "Ad Haer.," 1, 2, § 16 and § 25. + +[60:2] Acts ix. 2, and xxii. 5. + +[60:3] Acts ix. 3-21. + +[60:4] Gal. i. 17, 18. + +[60:5] This date may be established thus:--Stephen, as has been shewn, +was martyred A.D. 34. See note, p. 55 of this chapter. Paul seems to +have been converted in the same year, and therefore, if he returned to +Damascus three years afterwards, he must have been in that city in A.D. +37. It would appear, from another source of evidence, that this is the +true date. The Emperor Tiberius died A.D. 37, and Aretas immediately +afterwards seems to have obtained possession of Damascus. He was in +possession of it when Paul was now there. See 2 Cor. xi. 32, 33. It is +probable that he remained master of the place only a very short time. + +[60:6] Gal. i. 12. + +[60:7] 2 Cor. xi. 5. + +[61:1] Acts ix. 17, 18. + +[61:2] Acts xiii. 1, 2. + +[61:3] Simeon or Niger, according to Epiphanius, was one of the Seventy. +"Haeres," 20, sec. 4. Luke, the writer of the Book of the Acts, is said +to have been one of the Seventy, and some have asserted that he is the +same as Lucius of Cyrene, mentioned Acts xiii. 1. + +[61:4] Ananias, by whom he was baptized, was, according to the Greek +martyrologies, one of the Seventy. See Burton's "Lectures," i. 88, note. +It is evident that Ananias was a person of note among the Christians of +Damascus. + +[62:1] Acts ix. 23. + +[62:2] See Josephus' "Antiquities," xviii. 5. + +[62:3] See Burton's "Lectures," i. 116, 117. + +[62:4] 2 Cor. xi. 32, 33. + +[62:5] Acts ix. 26, 27. + +[62:6] This statement rests on the authority of a monk of Cyprus, named +Alexander, a comparatively late writer. See Burton's "Lectures," i. 56, +note. + +[62:7] Acts xxii. 21. + +[63:1] Acts ix. 29, 30. + +[63:2] Gal. i. 21. + +[63:3] Acts xv. 23, 41. + +[63:4] Acts xi. 25, 26. + +[64:1] Griesbach, Lachmann, Alford, and other critics of great note, +here prefer [Greek: Hellênas] to [Greek: Hellênistas], but the common +rending is better supported by the authority of manuscripts, and more in +accordance with Acts xiv. 27, where Paul and Barnabas are represented, +long afterwards, as declaring to the Church of Antioch how God "had +opened the door of faith _unto the Gentiles_." See an excellent +vindication of the _textus receptus_ in the _Journal of Sacred +Literature_ for January 1857, No. VIII., p. 285, by the Rev. W. Kay, +M.A., Principal of Bishop's College, Calcutta. + +[64:2] Acts xi. 20. + +[65:1] John xix. 19-22. + +[65:2] Acts xi. 27-30. + +[66:1] It is obvious from Acts ix. 31, xxvi. 20, and Gal. i. 22, that +such churches now existed. + +[66:2] Acts xii. 3, 24, 25. + +[66:3] Clem. Alex. Strom, vi. p. 742, note; Edit. Potter. Eusebius, +v. 18. + +[66:4] "Antiquities," xix. c. 8, § 2, xx. c. 2, § 5. + +[66:5] Acts xii. 20-23. + +[66:6] From the comparative table of chronology appended to Wieseler's +"Chronologie des apostolischen Zeitalters," it appears that the date +given in the text is adopted by no less than twenty of the highest +chronological authorities, including Ussher, Pearson, Spanheim, +Tillemont, Michaelis, Hug, and De Wette. It is also adopted by Burton. +Wieseler himself, apparently on insufficient grounds, adopts A.D. 45. + +[67:1] Though Peter was taught, by the case of Cornelius, that "God also +to the Gentiles had granted repentance unto life" (Acts xi. 18), and +though he doubtless felt himself a debtor, both to the Greeks and to the +Jews, yet still he continued to cherish the conviction that his mission +was, primarily to his kinsmen according to the flesh. James and John had +the same impression. See Gal. ii. 9; James i. 1; 1 Pet. i. 1. + +[68:1] Acts xii. 2. + +[68:2] Acts xxii. 17-21. + +[68:3] I here partially adopt the translation of Conybeare and Howson. +Their work is one of the most valuable contributions to sacred +literature which has appeared in the present century. + +[68:4] The Second Epistle to the Corinthians was written about fourteen +years after this, or towards the close of A.D. 57. See Chap. IX. of this +Section. The Jews often reckoned current time as if it were complete. + +[68:5] 2 Cor. xii. 2-4. + +[68:6] Exodus iii. 2-10. + +[68:7] Isaiah vi. 1, 2, 8, 9. + +[70:1] Acts xiii. 1-3. + +[70:2] Acts iv. 36. + +[71:1] Deut. xxxiii. 10. + +[72:1] Rom. i. 1. + +[73:1] Gen. xlviii. 13-15. + +[73:2] Lev. viii. 18, and iv. 4. + +[73:3] Num. xxvii. 18. + +[74:1] 1 Tim. v. 17. + +[74:2] This portion of the apostolic history may illustrate 1 Tim. iv. +14, for Paul had official authority conferred on him "by prophecy," or +in consequence of a revelation made, perhaps, through one of the +prophets of Antioch, "with the laying on of the hands of the +Presbytery." Something similar, probably, occurred in the case of +Timothy. But, in ordinary circumstances, the rulers of the Church must +judge of a divine call to the ministry from the gifts and graces of the +candidate for ordination. + +[75:1] Acts xiii. 4. + +[75:2] Acts xiii. 4. + +[75:3] Acts iv. 36. + +[75:4] Until this date we read of "Barnabas and Saul," now of "Paul and +Barnabas." Paul was the Roman, and Saul the Hebrew name of the great +apostle. His superior qualifications had now full scope for development, +and accordingly, as he takes the lead, he is henceforth, generally named +before Barnabas. + +[75:5] 2 Cor. xi. 26,--[Greek: potamôn]. + +[76:1] Acts xv. 38. + +[76:2] Acts xv. 39. + +[76:3] Acts xiv. 6. + +[76:4] Acts xiv. 23. + +[76:5] [Greek: Cheirotonêsantes de autois kat' ekklêsian +presbuterous].--The interpretation given in the text is sanctioned by +the highest authorities. See Rothe's "Anfange der Christlichen Kirche," +p. 150; Alford on Acts xiv. 23; Burton's "Lectures," i. 150; +Baumgarten's "Acts of the Apostles," Acts xiv. 23; Litton's "Church of +Christ," p. 595. + +[76:6] Acts xiv. 27. + +[76:7] They set out on the mission probably in A.D. 44, and returned to +Antioch in A.D. 50. The Council of Jerusalem took place the year +following. + +[77:1] Acts xiii. 48. + +[77:2] Acts xiv. 13. + +[77:3] Acts xiii. 6-8. + +[77:4] Acts xiii. 50. + +[77:5] Acts xiv. 2. + +[78:1] Acts xiv. 19. + +[78:1] 2 Tim. iii. 10, 11. + +[79:1] Acts xv. 1. + +[79:2] This inference was indeed admitted. See Acts xv. 5, 24. + +[79:3] Gal. v. 2-4, vi. 13, 14. + +[79:4] Acts xvi. 31; John iii. 36. + +[80:1] Luke xxiii. 43. + +[80:2] Ps. ii. 12. + +[80:3] Acts xv. ii. + +[81:1] Acts xv. 2. + +[81:2] Acts xv. 23, 24, 41. + +[81:3] Acts xvi. 4. + +[81:4] Paul and Barnabas, with the other deputies, were sent "to +Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders" (Acts xv. 2); "when they were +come to Jerusalem, they were received of the church, and of the apostles +and elders" (Acts xv. 4); and the decrees are said to have been ordained +"of the apostles and elders which were at Jerusalem" (Acts xvi. 4); but +not one of these statements necessarily implies that these rulers were +exclusively elders _of the Church of Jerusalem_. + +[82:1] It has been argued by Burton ("Lectures," vol. i. p. 122), that +the first visit of Paul to Jerusalem after his conversion took place +about the time of one of the great festivals, as he is said, on the +occasion, to have "disputed against the Grecians" (Acts ix. 29), who +were likely then to have been very numerous in the city. If he arrived +now at the time of the same festival, the interval must have been +precisely fourteen years. + +[82:2] Gal. ii. 1. Some make these fourteen years to include the three +years mentioned Gal. i. 18, but this interpretation does violence to the +languages of the apostle. The system of chronology here adopted requires +no such forced expositions. Paul came to Jerusalem three years after his +conversion, that is, in A.D. 37; and fourteen years after, that is, in +A.D. 51, he was at this Synod. + +[82:3] Acts ix. 26. + +[83:1] Acts xxi. 20. + +[83:2] Acts xxi. 21. + +[83:3] Acts xv. 5. + +[83:4] Gal. ii. 4. It is here taken for granted that the visit to +Jerusalem, mentioned in the second chapter of the Epistle to the +Galatians, is the same as that described in the fifteenth of Acts. Paul +says that he went up "by revelation" (Gal. ii. 2),--a statement from +which it appears that he was divinely instructed to adopt this method of +settling the question. + +[83:5] Gal. ii. 12. + +[83:6] Gal. ii. 2. + +[83:7] Acts xvi. 4, xxi. 25. + +[84:1] Acts xv. 12. + +[84:2] Acts xv. 22. + +[84:3] Acts xv. 23. + +[84:4] The expression here used--"the multitude" ([Greek: to +plêthos])--is repeatedly applied in the New Testament to the Sanhedrim, +a court consisting of not more than seventy-two members. See Luke +xxiii. 1; Acts xxiii. 7. There were probably more individuals present +at this meeting. + +[84:5] Acts xv. 2. + +[84:6] 1 Cor. xii. 28; Eph. iv. 11. + +[84:7] In Acts xi. 27, we read of "prophets" who came "from Jerusalem +unto Antioch." + +[84:8] Acts xv. 23. "The apostles, and elders, _and_ brethren." + +[84:9]The context may appear to be favourable to this interpretation, +for the two deputies now chosen--"Judas surnamed Barsabas, and +Silas"--who are said to have been "chief men among _the brethren_" (ver. +22), are likewise described as "_prophets_ also themselves" (ver. 32). +In Acts xviii. 27, "the brethren" appear to be distinguished from "the +disciples." + +[85:1] This reading, which is adopted by Mill in the Prolegomena to his +New Testament, as well as by Lachmann, Neander, Alford, and Tregelles, +is supported by the authority of the Codex Vaticanus, the Codex +Alexandrinus, the Codex Ephraemi, and the Codex Bezae. It is likewise to +be found in by far the most valuable cursive MS. yet known. It is +confirmed also by the early testimony of Irenaeus, and by the Latin of +the Codex Bezae, a version more ancient than the Vulgate, as well as by +the Vulgate itself. The reading in the _textus receptus_ may be +accounted for by the growth of the doctrine of apostolical succession; +as, when the hierarchy was in its glory, transcribers could not +understand how the apostles and elders could be fellow presbyters. + +[85:2] It is worthy of note that Peter, fourteen or fifteen years +afterwards, speaks in the style here indicated. Thus he says--"The +elders which are among you, I exhort, _who am also an elder_" ([Greek: +sumpresbuteros]).--(l Pet. v. 1.) + +[85:3] Acts xv. 28. + +[86:1] Gal. iii. 2. + +[86:2] Acts xv. 8-10. + +[86:3] Acts xi. 15, 17. + +[86:4] This style of speaking was used by councils in after-ages, and +often in cases when it was singularly inappropriate. + +[87:1] Acts xv. 29. + +[87:2] See 1 Cor. x. 23, 31, 32. + +[88:1] "Since the eating of such food, as Paul expressly teaches (1 Cor. +x. 19, 33), was not sinful in itself, and yet to be avoided out of +tenderness to those who thought it so, the abstinence here recommended +must be understood in the same manner."--_Alexander on the Acts,_ ii. +84. + +[89:1] Gal. ii. 12. + +[89:2] Gal. ii. 9. + +[89:3] Gal. ii. 13. + +[90:1] Acts xvi. 9. + +[90:2] Acts xvi. 12. + +[91:1] "The _Jus Italicum_ raised provincial land to the same state of +_immunity from taxation_ which belonged to land in Italy."--_Conybeare +and Howson,_ i. 302, note. + +[91:2] Not the Strymon. See Conybeare and Howson, i. 316. + +[91:3] Acts xvi. 14. + +[91:4] Acts xvi. 14. + +[92:1] Acts xvi. 16-18. + +[92:2] They may have perceptive powers of which we can form no +conception, and may thus discern the approach of particular events as +distinctly an we can now calculate the ebb and flow of the tides, or the +eclipses of the sun and moon. + +[92:3] Matt. viii. 28, 29; Mark i. 24, 25; Luke iv. 34, 35. + +[93:1] Acts xvi. 18. + +[93:2] Acts xvi. 19. + +[93:3] In some parts of the Empire magistrates and men of rank acted +gratuitously, but a large portion of the priests subsisted on the +emoluments of office. + +[94:1] Acts xvi. 24. + +[94:2] Acts xvi. 25. + +[95:1] Acts xvi. 26. + +[95:2] Acts xvi. 28. "By a singular historical coincidence, this very +city of Philippi, or its neighbourhood, had been signalised within a +hundred years, not only by the great defeat of Brutus and Cassius, but +by the suicide of both, and by a sort of wholesale self-destruction on +the part of their adherents."--Alexander on the Acts, ii. 122, 123. + +[96:1] Acts xvi. 29, 30. + +[97:1] Acts xvi. 31. + +[98:1] Acts xvi. 33, 34. + +[98:2] Acts xvi. 35. + +[98:3] Paul says that he was "free born" (Acts xxii. 28). It was +unlawful to scourge a Roman citizen, or even, except in extraordinary +cases, to imprison him without trial. He had also the privilege of +appeal to the Emperor. + +[98:4] Acts xvi. 37. + +[99:1] Acts xvi. 39. + +[99:2] Acts xvi. 40. + +[99:3] Phil. iv. 14-16. + +[100:1] Acts xvii. 4. + +[100:2] Acts xvii. 7. + +[100:3] Acts xvii. 8. [Greek: etaraxan--tous politarchas]. It has been +remarked that the name here given to the magistrates (politarchs), does +not occur in ancient literature; but it is a curious and important fact +that a Greek inscription, on an arch still to be seen at this place, +demonstrates the accuracy of the sacred historian. This arch supplies +evidence that it was erected about the time when the Republic was +passing into the Empire, and that it was in existence when Paul now +preached there. It appears from it that the magistrates of Thessalonica +were called politarchs, and that they were seven in number. What is +almost equally striking is that three of the names in the inscription +are Sopater, Gaius, and Secundus, the same as those of three of Paul's +friends in this district. Conybeare and Howson, i. 360. + +[101:1] Acts xvii. 11. + +[102:1] Acts xvii. 16. + +[102:2] Acts xvii. 17. + +[102:3] See Conybeare and Howson, i. 241. + +[102:4] See Alford on Acts xiii. 9, and xxiii. 1. + +[102:5] 2 Cor. x. 10. + +[102:6] 2 Cor. x. 10. + +[102:7] Acts xvii. 18. + +[103:1] [Greek: Adikei Sôkratês--etera de kaina daimonia +eispherôn.]--_Xen. Mem._ i. 1. + +[103:2] Acts xvii. 19, 20. It is very evident that he was not arraigned +before the court of Areopagus as our English translation seems to +indicate. + +[104:1] Acts xvii. 22, 23. This translation obviously conveys the +meaning of the original more distinctly than our English version. See +Alford, ii. 178; and Conybeare and Howson, i. 406. + +[104:2] It is a curious fact that the impostor Apollonius of Tyana, who +was the contemporary of the apostle, speaks of Athens as a place "where +altars are raised _to the unknown Gods_." "Life," by Philostratus, book +vi. c. 3. See also Pausanias, Attic, i. 4. + +[105:1] See Cudworth's "Intellectual System, with Notes by Mosheim," i. +513, 111. Edition, London, 1845. + +[105:2] See Mosheim's "Commentaries on the Affairs of the Christians +before Constantine," by Vidal, i. 42. + +[105:3] Acts xvii. 24. + +[105:4] See Alford on Acts xvii. 26. + +[105:5] Acts xvii. 26. + +[105:6] Acts xvii. 25, 26. + +[106:1] Acts xvii. 29. + +[106:2] Acts xvii. 31. + +[106:3] Cudworth, with Notes by Mosheim, ii. 120, and Mosheim's +"Commentaries," by Vidal, i. 42. + +[106:4] Acts xvii. 32. + +[106:5] Acts xvii. 21. + +[107:1] Acts xvii. 34. + +[107:2] These writings, which made their appearance not earlier than the +fourth or fifth century, were held in great reputation, particularly by +the Mystics, in the Middle Ages. + +[107:3] Burton's "Lectures," i. 183. + +[108:1] 1 Cor. ii. 1, 2, 4, 5. + +[109:1] Strabo, lib. viii. vol. i., p. 549; Edit. Oxon. 1807. + +[109:2] Acts xviii. 6. + +[109:3] Acts xviii. 8. + +[109:4] 1 Cor. i. 26. + +[109:5] Rom. xvi. 23. This epistle was written from Corinth. + +[109:6] Acts xviii. 8. + +[109:7] 1 Cor. i. 14; Rom. xvi. 23. + +[109:8] Acts xviii. 2, 26; Rom. xvi. 3; 1 Cor. xvi. 19; 2 Tim. iv. 19. + +[110:1] Acts xviii. 2. + +[110:2] "Rabbi Judah saith, 'He that teacheth not his son a trade, doth +the same as if he taught him to be a thief;' and Rabban Gamaliel saith, +'He that hath a trade in his hand, to what is he like? He is like a +vineyard that is fenced.'"--See _Alford on Acts_, xviii. 3. + +[110:3] Acts xviii. 3. + +[111:1] Epiphanius, "Haer.," xxx. 16. + +[111:2] Acts xviii. 11. + +[112:1] Acts xviii. 9, 10. + +[112:2] See 1 Cor. i. 11, and xi. 20, 21; and 2 Cor. xii. 21, and +xiii. 2. + +[112:3] See 1 Cor. vi. 9-11. + +[112:4] Acts xviii. 12. + +[112:5] Acts xviii. 13. + +[113:1] Acts xviii. 14-16. + +[113:2] Acts xviii. 17. + +[113:3] 1 Thess. v. 12, 13. + +[113:4] 2 Thess. ii. 2. + +[113:5] 2 Thess. ii. 3-12. + +[113:6] 1 Thess. i. 9. + +[114:1] [Greek: Tas paradoseis]. + +[114:2] 2 Thess. ii. 15. Paul is here speaking, not of what had been +handed down from preceding generations, but of what had been established +by his own apostolic authority, so that the rendering "traditions" in +our English version is a peculiarly unhappy translation. + +[115:1] Acts xviii. 18. + +[115:2] See Conybeare and Howson, i. 454. + +[115:3] Acts xviii. 19. + +[116:1] Acts xviii. 24. + +[116:2] Acts xviii. 25. + +[116:3] Acts xviii. 26. + +[116:4] It is worthy of note that she is named before Aquila in Acts +xviii. 18; Rom. xvi. 3; and 2 Tim. iv. 19. + +[116:5] 1 Cor. xiv. 34, 35; 1 Tim. ii. 12. + +[117:1] Acts xviii. 24. + +[117:2] Acts xviii. 27. + +[117:3] Acts xviii. 27, 28. + +[117:4] 1 Cor. iii. 4-6. + +[118:1] Acts xviii. 22. + +[118:2] Acts xviii. 23. + +[118:3] Acts xvi. 6. + +[118:4] Acts xix. 8. + +[118:5] Acts xix. 9. + +[119:1] That this epistle was written after the second visit appears +from Gal. iv. 13. Mr Ellicott asserts that "the first time" is here the +preferable translation of [Greek: to proteron], and yet, rather +inconsistently, adds, that "no historical conclusions can safely be +drawn from this expression alone." See his "Critical and Grammatical +Commentary on Galatians," iv. 13. + +[119:2] Gal. i. 6, iii. 1. + +[120:1] Gal. ii. 16, iv. 1-4, v. 1. + +[120:2] 1 Cor. xvi. 7; 2 Cor. xii. 14, xiii. 1. + +[120:3] The Acts take no notice of various parts of his early career as +a preacher. Compare Acts ix. 20-26 with Gal. i. 17. + +[120:4] 2 Cor. xi. 25. + +[120:5] 2 Cor. xi. 26. + +[120:6] Titus i. 5. + +[120:7] See Titus i. 6-11, ii. 1, 7, 8, 15, iii. 8-11. The reasons +assigned in support of a later date for the writing of this epistle do +not appear at all satisfactory. Paul directs the evangelist (Titus iii. +12) to come to him to Nicopolis, for he had "determined there to +winter." This Nicopolis was in Greece, in the province of Achaia, and we +know that Paul wintered there in A.D. 57-58. Acts xx. 2, 3. See Schaff's +"Apostolic Church," i. 390. + +[120:8] 2 Cor. ii. 13, vii. 6, 13, viii. 6, 16, 23, xii. 18; Gal. ii. +1, 3. + +[121:1] Acts xix. 10. + +[121:2] See Col. iv. 13, 15, 16. These churches were not, however, +founded by Paul. See Col. ii. 1. + +[121:3] "This was the largest of the Greek temples. The area of the +Parthenon at Athens was _not one fourth_ of that of the temple of +Ephesus."--_Smith's Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography, Art._ +EPHESUS. + +[121:4] Conybeare and Howson, ii. 72. + +[121:5] Acts xix. 35. + +[122:1] Conybeare and Howson, ii. 73. Minucius Felix in his Octavius +speaks of Diana as represented "at Ephesus with many distended breasts +ranged in tiers." + +[122:2] Conybeare and Howson, ii. 13. + +[122:3] His Life, written by Philostratus about A.D. 210, is full of +lying wonders. His biographer mentions his visit to Ephesus, book iv. 1. + +[123:1] Acts xix. 11, 12. + +[123:2] Acts xix. 16, 17. + +[123:3] The piece of silver here mentioned was worth about tenpence, so +that the estimated value of the books burned was about £2000. + +[123:4] Acts xix. 19, 20. + +[123:5] It was written not long before Paul left Ephesus, and probably +about the time of the Passover. 1 Cor. v. 7, xvi. 5-8. + +[123:6] 1 Cor. i. 11. + +[123:7] 1 Cor. v. 1. + +[123:8] 1 Cor. xv. 12. This passage supplies evidence that errorists +very soon made their appearance in the Christian Church, and furnishes +an answer to those chronologists who date all the Pastoral Epistles +after Paul's release from his first imprisonment, on the ground that the +Gnostics had no existence at an earlier period. + +[124:1] Acts xix. 24. + +[124:2] Conybeare and Howson, ii. 74. + +[124:3] Acts xix. 25. + +[125:1] Acts xix. 25-27. + +[125:2] Acts xix. 28. + +[125:3] See Conybeare and Howson, ii. 79-81. + +[125:4] Acts xix. 29. + +[125:5] See Hackett's "Commentary on the Acts of the Apostles," p. 273. + +[125:6] Acts xix. 31. + +[126:1] Acts xx. 34. The Asiarchs "derived their title from the name of +the province, as the corresponding officers in Cyprus, Syria, and Lydia, +were called Cypriarchs, Syriarchs, Lydiarchs. Those of Asia are said to +have been ten in number.... As the games and sacrifices over which these +Asiarchs presided, were provided at their own expense, they were always +chosen from the richest class, and may be said to represent the highest +rank of the community."--_Alexander on the Acts_, ii. 210. + +[126:2] 2 Tim. iv. 14. + +[126:3] Acts xix. 34. It has been observed that, according to the ideas +of the heathen, this unintermitted cry was, in itself, _an act of +worship_; and hence we may understand why it was so long continued, but +it is surely a notable example of "vain repetitions." See Hackett, p. +275. + +[127:1] Acts xix. 40. + +[127:2] Acts xix. 32. + +[127:3] Our English version "robbers of _churches_" is obviously +incorrect. + +[127:4] Acts xix. 37. It is plain from this passage that the apostle, +when referring to the Gentile worship, avoided the use of language +calculated to give unnecessary offence. + +[128:1] 1 Cor. xvi. 8. + +[128:2] Acts xx. 1. + +[128:3] Rom. xv. 19. + +[128:4] See Acts xix. 22. + +[128:5] 1 Tim. i. 3. + +[128:6] 1 Tim. i. 2. + +[129:1] According to the chronology adopted in our English Bible, all +the Pastoral Epistles were written after Paul's release from his first +imprisonment, and this theory has recently been strenuously advocated by +Conybeare and Howson, Alford, and Ellicott; but their reasonings are +exceedingly unsatisfactory. For, I. The statement of Conybeare and +Howson that "the three epistles were nearly contemporaneous with each +other" is a mere assertion resting on no solid foundation; as +resemblance in style, especially when all the letters were dictated by +the same individual, can be no evidence as to date. II. There is direct +evidence that heresies, such as those described in these epistles, +existed in the Church long before Paul's first imprisonment. See 1 Cor. +iii. 18, 19, xv. 12; 2 Cor. xi. 4, 13, 14, 15, 22, compared with 1 Tim. +i. 3, 7. III. The early Churches were very soon organised, as appears +from Acts xiv. 23; 1 Thess. v. 12, 13; so that the state of +ecclesiastical organisation described in the First Epistle to Timothy +and the Epistle to Titus is no proof of the late date of these letters. +IV. But the grand argument in support of the early date, and one with +which the advocates of the later chronology have never fairly grappled, +is derived from the fact that Paul never was in Ephesus after the time +mentioned in Acts xx. When he wrote to Timothy he intended shortly to +return thither. See 1 Tim. i. 3, iii. 14, 15. It is evident that when +the apostle addressed the elders of Ephesus (Acts xx. 25) and told them +they should "see his face no more," he considered himself as speaking +prophetically. It is clear, too, that his words were so understood by +his auditors (Acts xx. 38), and that the evangelist, who wrote them down +several years afterwards, was still under the same impression. I agree, +therefore, with Wieseler, and others, in assigning an early date to the +First Epistle to Timothy and the Epistle to Titus. + +[130:1] 2 Cor. xi. 9, 24-28, 32, 33, xii. 2, 7-9. The Second Epistle to +the Corinthians was written late in A.D. 57. + +[130:2] 2 Cor. ii. 4. + +[130:3] [Greek: eis tên Hellada], _i.e._, Achaia. + +[130:4] Acts xx. 2, 3. + +[130:5] Rom. xvi. 1, 2, 23. + +[130:6] Rom. i. 8. + +[130:7] Rom. xvi. 7, 11. + +[130:8] Rom. xvi. 3. + +[130:9] Acts xix. 21; Rom. i. 10, 11, xv. 23, 24. + +[131:1] Acts xx. 3. + +[131:2] Acts xx. 6. + +[131:3] Acts xx. 6. + +[131:4] Acts xx. 17-35. + +[131:5] Acts xx. 36-38. + +[131:6] Acts xxi. 8. + +[131:7] Acts xx. 23, xxi. 10, 11. + +[131:8] [Greek: hepiskeuaramenoi]--the reading adopted by Lachmann and +others. The word "carriages" used in the authorised version for baggage, +or luggage, is now unintelligible to the English reader. The word +"carriage" is also used in our translation in Judges xviii. 21, and 1 +Sam. xvii. 22, for something to be carried. + +[131:9] Acts xxi. 15. + +[132:1] Acts ii. 45. + +[132:2] Rom. xv. 26. + +[132:3] 1 Cor. xvi. 3; 2 Cor. viii. 19. + +[132:4] Acts xx. 4. + +[133:1] Prov. xviii. 10. + +[133:2] Acts xxi. 17. + +[133:3] Acts xxi. 24. + +[133:4] "It was customary among the Jews for those who had received +deliverance from any great peril, or who from other causes desired +publicly to testify their dedication to God, to take upon themselves the +vow of a Nazarite.... No rule is laid down (Numb. vi.) as to the time +during which this life of ascetic rigour was to continue; but we learn +from the Talmud and Josephus that thirty days was at least a customary +period. During this time the Nazarite was bound to abstain from wine, +and to suffer his hair to grow uncut. At the termination of the period, +he was bound to present himself in the temple, with certain offerings, +and his hair was then cut off and burnt upon the altar. The offerings +required were beyond the means of the very poor, and consequently it was +thought an act of piety for a rich man to pay the necessary expenses, +and thus enable his poorer countrymen to complete their vow." +--_Conybeare and Howson_, ii. 250, 251. + +[133:5] Acts xxi. 26. + +[134:1] Acts xxi. 29. + +[134:2] Acts xxi. 30. + +[134:3] Acts xxi. 30. + +[134:4] Acts xxiii. 26. + +[134:5] Acts xxi. 32. + +[134:6] Acts xxi. 33, 34. There were barracks in the tower of Antonia. + +[135:1] Acts xxi. 38. "_Assassins_ is in the original a Greek inflection +of the Latin word _Sicarii_, so called from _Sica_, a short sword or +dagger, and described by Josephus as a kind of robbers who concealed +short swords beneath their garments, and infested Judea in the period +preceding the destruction of Jerusalem."--_Alexander on the Acts_, ii. +289. + +[135:2] Acts xxii. 2. + +[135:3] Acts xxii. 22-24. + +[136:1] Acts xxiii. 6. + +[136:2] Acts xxiii. 7. + +[136:3] Acts xxiii. 10. + +[136:4] Acts xxiii. 12, 21. + +[136:5] Acts xxiii. 16, 23, 30. + +[136:6] "Per omnem saevitiam ac libidinem jus regium servili ingenio +exercuit."--_Hist_. v. 9. + +[136:7] Josephus' "Antiq." xx. c. 7. § 1,2. + +[137:1] Acts xxiv. 25. + +[137:2] Acts xxiv. 27. + +[137:3] See some account of him in Josephus' "Antiq," xx. c. 8, §. 9, 10. + +[138:1] Acts. xxv. 11. + +[138:2] Acts xxv. 12. + +[138:3] Acts xxv. 13. Festus appears to have been Procurator from the +beginning of the autumn of A.D. 60 to the summer of A.D. 62. Felix was +recalled A.D. 60. See Conybeare and Howson, Appendix ii. note (C). + +[139:1] Josephus' "Wars," ii. c. 12, § 8; "Antiq." xx. c. 5, § 2. + +[139:2] Acts xxv. 23. + +[139:3] Acts xxvi. 6. + +[140:1] Acts xxvi. 22. + +[140:2] Acts xxvi. 24. + +[140:3] Acts xxvi. 27. + +[140:4] Acts xxvi. 28. Some would translate [Greek: en oligô] "in +short," instead of "almost." + +[140:5] Acts xxvi. 29. + +[141:1] Acts xxvi. 30-32. + +[141:2] Eph. vi. 22; Phil. ii. 1, 2; Col. i. 24, iv. 8; Philem. 7, +compared with 2 Cor i. 3, 4. + +[141:3] Acts ix. 15, 16. + +[142:1] Acts xxvii. 20. This part of the history of the apostle has been +illustrated with singular ability by James Smith, Esq. of Jordanhill in +his "Voyage and Shipwreck of St Paul." + +[142:2] Acts xxvii. 5, 6. + +[142:3] Acts xxviii. 1. That Melita is Malta has been conclusively +established by Smith in his "Voyage and Shipwreck of St Paul." +"Dissertation," ii. + +[142:4] Acts xxviii. 11. "With regard to the dimensions of the ships of +the ancients, some of them must have been quite equal to the largest +merchantman of the present day. The ship of St Paul had, in passengers +and crew, 276 persons on board, besides her cargo of wheat, and as they +were carried on by another ship of the same class, she must also have +been of great size. The ship in which Josephus was wrecked contained 600 +people."--Smith's _Voyage and Shipwreck of St Paul_, p. 147. + +[143:1] Acts xxviii. 13. + +[143:2] Acts xxvii. 17. + +[143:3] Acts xxvii. 29. "The ancient vessels did not carry, in general, +so large anchors as those which we employ; and hence they had often a +greater number of them. Athenaeus mentions a ship which had eight iron +anchors." Hackett, p. 372. + +[143:4] Acts xxvii. 27. + +[143:5] "When the _Lively_, frigate, unexpectedly fell in with this very +point, the quarter-master on the look-out, who first observed it, +states, in his evidence at the court-martial, that, _at the distance of +a quarter of a mile_ the land could not be seen."--Smith's _Voyage and +Shipwreck of St Paul_, pp. 89, 90. + +[144:1] Hackett, p. 371. + +[144:2] Acts xxvii. 28. + +[144:3] Conybeare and Howson, ii. 351. + +[144:4] Acts xxvii. 39. + +[144:5] Acts xxvii 41. + +[144:6] Smith's "Voyage and Shipwreck of St Paul," p. 102. + +[144:7] Smith's "Voyage and Shipwreck of St Paul," p. 92. + +[144:8] Acts xxvii. 41. + +[145:1] Smith's "Voyage and Shipwreck of St Paul," p. 104. + +[145:2] Conybeare and Howson make the population more than 2,000,000 +(ii. 376). Merivale reduces it to something less than 700,000 (iv. 520). +In Smith's "Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography" it is stated as +upwards of 2,000,000. Greswell makes it about 1,000,000 +("Dissertations," iv. 46). Dean Milman reckons it from 1,000,000 to +1,500,000 ("History of Latin Christianity," i. 23). + +[145:3] Merivale, iv. 391. + +[145:4] Rev. xvii. 1. + +[146:1] Merivale, iv. 412. + +[146:2] Merivale, iv. 414-420. + +[146:3] Rev. xviii. 11. + +[146:4] Acts xxviii. 14. + +[147:1] Acts xxviii. 14. + +[147:2] Acts xxviii. 15. + +[147:3] Acts xxviii. 15. + +[147:4] Called in our English version "the captain of the guard." The +celebrated Burrus was at this time (A.D. 61) the Praetorian Prefect. +Wieseler, p. 393. See also Greswell's "Dissertations," iv. p. 199. + +[147:5] Acts xxviii. 16. + +[148:1] Acts xxviii. 17. + +[148:2] Acts xxviii. 23. + +[148:3] Acts xxviii. 24. + +[148:4] Acts xxviii. 31. + +[148:5] Conybeare and Howson, ii. 296. + +[149:1] Philem. 9. + +[149:2] 2 Cor. x. 10. + +[149:3] See Conybeare and Howson, ii. 428. + +[149:4] Phil. ii. 25; Philem. 2. + +[149:5] Eph. vi. 13, 14, 16, 17. + +[149:6] Phil. iv. 3. When speaking of a "_true_ yoke-fellow," he may +here refer to the way in which he was himself unequally yoked. + +[149:7] See Acts xxvi. 1, 29. + +[149:8] Eph. iv. 1. + +[150:1] [Greek: en olô tô praitôriô]--"We never find the word employed +for the Imperial house at Rome; and we believe the truer view to +be--that it denotes here, not the palace itself, but the quarters of +that part of the Imperial guards which was in immediate attendance on +the Emperor."-_Conybeare and Howson_, ii. 428. + +[150:2] Phil. i. 12-14. + +[150:3] Philem. 18, 19. + +[150:4] Col. iv. 7. + +[150:5] Col. ii. 8, 16, 18, 23. + +[150:6] Eph. vi. 21, 22. + +[151:1] Eph. i. 1. + +[151:2] Col. iv. 16. + +[151:3] Phil. i. 3-7. + +[152:1] Phil. ii. 24; Philem. 22. + +[152:2] Phil. i. 23-25. + +[152:3] Rom. xv. 24, 28. + +[153:1] [Greek: epi to terma tês duseôs]--Epist. to the Corinthians v. +Clement in the same place mentions that Paul was seven times in bonds. +See also Greswell, "Dissertations," vol. iv. p. 225-228. + +[153:2] See Cave's "Fathers," i. 147. Oxford, 1840. + +[153:3] [Greek: ton phelonên]. Some think that he wished for the cloak +to protect him against the cold of winter. See 2 Tim. iv. 21. + +[153:4] In the "Life of St Columba" by Adamnan (Dublin, 1857), the +learned editor, Dr Reeves, has given an interesting account of an +ancient leather book-case in his own possession. See "Life of St +Columba," p. 115. If Paul referred to a case, it was probably to one of +a larger description. + +[153:5] 2 Tim. iv. 13. It is probable that, in the anticipation of his +death, he wished to give the documents as a legacy to some of his +friends. Among them may have been Scripture autographs. + +[153:6] 2 Tim. iv. 20. [Greek: apelipon]. The translation "_they_ left," +instead of "_I_ left," is given up even by Dr Davidson, though he +rejects the idea of a second imprisonment. See his "Introduction to the +New Testament," iii. 53. + +[153:7] Miletum, or Miletus, in Crete, is mentioned by Homer. "Iliad," +ii. 647. + +[154:1] Acts xii. 6-9. + +[154:2] Heb. xiii. 23, 24. In this epistle he apparently refers to his +late imprisonment. Heb. x. 34, but the reading of the _textus receptus_ +is here rejected by many of our highest critical authorities, such as +Griesbach, Lachmann, Tischendorf, and Scholz. Respecting the second +imprisonment, see also Eusebius, ii. c. 22. + +[155:1] 2 Tim. iv. 20. + +[155:2] Phil. ii. 24. + +[155:3] 2 Tim. iv. 13. + +[155:4] Philem. 22. + +[155:5] Heb. xiii. 23. + +[155:6] 2 Tim. iv. 20. + +[155:7] 2 Tim. iv. 16, ii. 9. + +[155:8] This may refer to some powerful defence of Christianity which he +had made before the Gentile tribunal of Nero. + +[155:9] 2 Tim. iv. 16, 17. + +[156:1] 2 Tim. iv. 6-8. + +[156:2] "Euseb. Hist." ii. 25. + +[156:3] Euseb. ii. 25. See the Note of Valesius on the words [Greek: +katha ton auton kairon]. See also Davidson's "Introduction to the New +Testament," iii. 361. + +[156:4] 2 Tim. iv. 11. + +[156:5] Tertullian "De Praescrip," c. 36. Euseb. ii. 25. See also +Lactantius, or the work ascribed to him, "De Mort. Persecutorum," c. 2. + +[156:6] According to Gregory Nazianzen, Judea was the sphere of Peter. +"Oratio." 25, tom. i. 438. If so, Paul when visiting Jerusalem was +likely to meet with him. + +[157:1] 1 Pet. v. 13. + +[157:2] Rev. xvii. 5, xviii. 2, 10, 21. + +[157:3] Euseb. ii. 15. + +[157:4] 1 Pet. iv. 12. + +[157:5] 2 Tim. iv. 11. + +[157:6] 1 Pet. v. 13. + +[157:7] 1 Pet. v. 12. + +[157:8] Acts xv. 40, xvi. 19, 25, xvii. 4, 10, xviii. 5; 1 Thess. i. 1; +2 Thess. i. 1. + +[158:1] 1 Pet. v. 12. + +[158:2] The Jews at this time were wont to call Rome by the name of +Babylon. It was not, therefore, strange that Peter, being a Jew, used +this phraseology. See Wordsworth's "Lectures on the Apocalypse," p. 345, +and the authorities there quoted. + +[158:3] 2 Pet. i. 12, iii. 1. + +[158:4] These words apparently suggest that the preceding letter was +written not long before. + +[159:1] 2 Pet. i. 13. 14. + +[159:2] Gal. iv. 17, 21, vi. 12; Col. ii. 16-18. + +[159:3] 1 Pet. i. 1. + +[159:4] 2 Pet. iii. 16. + +[159:5] As Heb. vi. 4-6, vii. 1-3, ix. 17. + +[160:1] 2 Pet. iii. 16. + +[160:2] Euseb. iii. 1. + +[160:3] Euseb. iii. 1. + +[160:4] Prudentius, "Peristeph. in Pass. Petr. et Paul." Hymn xii. +Augustine, serm. 28. "De Sanctis." The testimony of earlier witnesses +represents them as dying "_about_ the same time." See Euseb. ii. c. 25. + +[161:1] Phil. iv. 22. + +[161:2] Caius, a Roman presbyter who flourished about the beginning of +the third century, refers to the Vatican and the Ostian Way as the +places where they suffered. Routh's "Reliquiae," ii. p. 127. + +[162:1] Hab. ii. 3. + +[163:1] John i. 11. + +[163:2] John xix. 15. + +[163:3] Acts iv. 3, v. 18. + +[164:1] Acts xii. 2, 3. + +[164:2] See Acts xvii. 5, xviii. 12. + +[165:1] Acts xviii. 2. Suetonius in Claud. (c. 25), says--"Judaeos +impulsore Chresto assidue tumultuantes Roma expulit." The words Christus +and Chrestus seem to have been often confounded, and it has been thought +that the historian here refers to some riotous proceedings among the +Jews in Rome arising out of discussions relative to Christianity. These +disturbances took place about A.D. 53. It is remarkable that even in the +beginning of the third century the Christians were sometimes called +_Chrestiani_. Hence Tertullian says--"Sed et cum perperam Chrestianus +pronunciatur a vobis, nam nec nominis certa est notitia penes vos, de +suavitate vel benignitate compositum est." "Apol." c. iii. See also +"Ad Nationes," lib. i. c. 3. + +[165:2] See Greswell's "Dissertations," iv. p. 233. + +[165:3] Eusebius, ii. 23. + +[166:1] "Certi enim esse debemus, si quos latet per ignorantiam +literature secularis, etiam ostiorum deos apud Romanos, Cardeam a +cardinibus appellatam, et Forculum a foribus, et Limentinum a limine, et +ipsum Janum a janua." Tertullian, "De Idololatria," c. 15. See also the +same writer "Ad Nationes," ii. c. 10, 15; and "De Corona," 13. + +[166:2] 2 Tim. iii. 12. Cyprian touches upon the same subject in his +Treatise on the "Vanity of Idols," c. 2. + +[167:1] The Christians were familiar with the idea of the conflagration +of the world, and there is much plausibility in the conjecture that, as +they gazed on the burning city, they may have given utterance to +expressions which were misunderstood, and which awakened suspicion. +"Some," says Dean Milman, "in the first instance, apprehended and +examined, may have made acknowledgments before a passionate and +astonished tribunal, which would lead to the conclusion that, in the +hour of general destruction, they had some trust, some security, denied +to the rest of mankind; and this exemption from common misery, if it +would not mark them out in some dark manner, as the authors of the +conflagration, at all events would convict them of that hatred of the +human race so often advanced against the Jews."--_Milman's History of +Christianity,_ ii. 37, 38. + +[167:2] Tacitus, "Annal." xv. 44. + +[167:3] Heb. xii. 4. + +[167:4] Heb. x. 25. + +[168:1] 1 Pet. iv. 12. + +[168:2] 1 Pet. iv. 17. + +[168:3] Tertullian, "Ad Nationes," i. 7. + +[168:4] See "De Mortibus Persecutorum," c. 2, and Sulpitius Severus, +lib. ii. p. 139; Edit. Leyden, 1635. + +[168:5] Dan. ix. 27. + +[169:1] Matt. xxiv. 2, 15, 16, 34; Mark xiii. 2, 14, 30; Luke xxi. 6, +20, 21, 24, 32. + +[169:2] See Euseb. iii. 31. + +[169:3] Acts xvii. 7. + +[169:4] Euseb. iii. 20. + +[169:5] Matt. xiii. 55. See Greswell's "Dissertations," ii. 114, 121, +122. + +[170:1] Matt, xxvii. 57; Mark xv. 43. + +[170:2] Acts xiii. 7. + +[170:3] Phil. iv. 22. + +[170:4] Dio Cassius, lxvii. 14. + +[170:5] Euseb. iii. 18. + +[171:1] Rev. i. 9. + +[171:2] Tertullian, "De Praescrip. Haeret." c. 36. + +[171:3] See Mosheim, Cent. i. part i. ch. 5. + +[171:4] According to Baronius ("Annal." ad. an. 92, 98) John was six +years in Patmos, or from A.D. 92 to A.D. 98. Other writers think that he +was set at liberty some time before the death of Domitian, or about A.D. +95. According to this reckoning, had he been six years in exile, he must +have been banished A.D. 89. This conclusion derives some countenance +from the "Chronicon" of Eusebius, which represents the tyrant in the +eighth and ninth years of his reign, or about A.D. 89, as proscribing +and putting to death very many of his subjects. If the visions of the +Apocalypse were vouchsafed to John in A.D. 89, the interval between +their revelation and the establishment of the Pope as a temporal prince +is found to be 755-89, or exactly 666 years. See Rev. xiii. 18. There is +another very curious coincidence in this case; for the interval between +the fall of the Western Empire, and the establishment of the Bishop of +Rome as a temporal prince, is 755-476=279 complete, or 280 current +years, that is, 40 prophetic weeks. But it so happens that the period of +human gestation is 40 weeks, and this would lead to the inference that +the Man of Sin was conceived as soon as the Western Empire fell. See 2 +Thess. ii. 7, 8. I am not aware that these remarkable coincidences have +yet been noticed, and I therefore submit them to the consideration of +the students of prophecy. + +[172:1] See Burton's "Lectures," i. 361. + +[172:2] 2 John 1; 3 John 1. + +[172:3] 1 Pet. v. 1; Philem. 1. + +[172:4] Acts xx. 28. + +[172:5] Mark iii. 17. + +[172:6] Jerome, "Comment. on Galatians," vi. 10. + +[172:7] See Vitringa, "Observationes Sacrae," lib. iv. c. 7, 8. + +[173:1] Rev. iii. 16. + +[173:2] Rev. iii. 2. + +[173:3] Rev. ii. 5. + +[173:4] Claudia, the wife of Pudens, supposed to be mentioned 2 Tim. iv. +21, is said to have been a Briton by birth. See Fuller's "Church History +of Britain," vol. i. p. 11; Edit. London, 1837. + +[173:5] Euseb. ii. 16. + +[173:6] Acts ii. 10. + +[174:1] Acts ii. 9, 11. + +[174:2] See in Cave's "Fathers," Bartholomew, Matthew, and Thomas. + +[175:1] 1 Cor. vi. 9-11. + +[175:2] Prov. xviii. 24. + +[177:1] John xiv. 26. + +[177:2] John xvi. 13. + +[177:3] See Irenaeus, "Adv. Haeres.," iii. 1; and Euseb. vi. 14. + +[177:4] It is probable that these three Gospels were written nearly at +the same time. When Luke wrote, he does not seem to have been aware of +the existence of any other Gospel. See Luke i. 4. + +[177:5] Origen, "Dial, de Recta in Deum Fide," sec. i. tom. i. p. 806; +Edit. Delarue. Paris, 1733. See Whitby's "Preface to Luke." There is +good reason to believe that the "young man" mentioned Mark xiv. 51, 52, +was no other than Mark himself (Davidson's "Introduction to the New +Testament," i. 139); and if so, we have thus additional evidence that +the evangelist had enjoyed the advantages of our Lord's ministry. He has +always been reputed the founder of the Church of Alexandria, and the +testimony of Origen to the fact that he was one of the Seventy is +therefore of special value; as the Alexandrian presbyter was, no doubt, +well acquainted with the traditions of the Church of the Egyptian +metropolis. + +[178:1] Acts i. 21. + +[178:2] Luke i. 2. + +[178:3] Matt. ix. 9, x. 3. + +[178:4] Mark xiv. 71. + +[178:5] Luke xxiv. 25. + +[178:6] John xxi. 23. + +[178:7] Matt. xxviii. 19. + +[179:1] Mark ix. 15. + +[179:2] Luke x. 1. + +[179:3] John xiv., xv., xvi., xvii. + +[179:4] See Horne's "Introduction," ii. 173. Sixth Edition. + +[180:1] See Baumgarten on Acts, vii., viii., ix., xiii. + +[180:2] Period i. sec. i. chap. 7, 8, 9. + +[180:3] Horne, iv. 359. + +[181:1] See Wordsworth "On the Canon," Lectures viii. ix. + +[181:2] Prov. xxx. 5. + +[181:3] This designation is not found in the most ancient manuscripts. +Thus, in the very ancient "Recension of the Four Gospels in Syriac," +recently edited by Dr Cureton, we have simply--"Gospel of Mark"--"Gospel +of John," &c. See p. 6, Preface. See also any ordinary edition of the +Greek Testament. + +[181:4] Horne, ii. 174. + +[182:1] Titus iii. 12. + +[182:2] Some, however, assign to it a much earlier date. See Davidson's +"Introduction to the New Testament," iii. 320. + +[182:3] See Period i. sec. i. chap. 10, p. 158. + +[182:4] See Wordsworth "On the Canon," p. 273. + +[182:5] See Davidson's "Introduction," iii. 464, 491. + +[182:6] Irenaeus, v. 30. Euseb. iii. 18. + +[182:7] See Wordsworth "On the Canon," p. 157, 160, 249. + +[182:8] Justin Martyr, ap. i. 67. + +[182:9] 2 Pet. iii. 16 + +[183:1] Wordsworth "On the Canon," p. 205. + +[183:2] "The allusions to the Epistle to the Hebrews are so numerous +that it is not too much to say that it was wholly transfused into +Clement's mind."--_Westcott on the Canon_, p. 32. See also Euseb. iii. +38. + +[183:3] Wordsworth "On the Canon," p. 249. + +[183:4] "The word ([Greek: graphê]) translated _Scripture_, which +properly means simply _a writing_, occurs fifty times in the New +Testament; and in all these fifty places, it is applied to the writings +of the Old and New Testament, and _to no other_."--Wordsworth, p. 185, +186. + +[183:5] Wordsworth, p. 249, 250. + +[184:1] See Davidson's "Introduction," iii. 540-550. + +[184:2] See Horne's "Introduction," ii. 168. The author of the present +division into chapters is said to have been Hugo de Sancto Caro, a +learned writer who flourished about the middle of the thirteenth +century. The New Testament was first divided into verses by Robert +Stephens in 1551. The Geneva Bible was the first English version of the +Scriptures into which these divisions of Stephens were introduced. + +[184:3] Horne, ii. 169. + +[185:1] John v. 39; 2 Tim. iii. 15. + +[185:2] Rev. i. 3. See also 2 Peter i. 19. + +[185:3] Paul's epistles were often written with the hand of another. See +Rom. xvi. 22; 2 Thess. iii. 17. + +[186:1] Ps. xii. 6. + +[186:2] The epistle to Diognetus may have been written in the first +century, but it is commonly referred to a later date. + +[186:3] He speaks of the Church of Corinth at the time as "most ancient" +(§ 47), and refers apparently to the Domitian persecution. See Euseb. +iii. 15, 16. + +[186:4] Tertullian also illustrates the resurrection by the story of the +phoenix, "De Resurrec. Carn." c. 13. + +[187:1] Clement's "Epistle to the Corinthians," § 25. The fragment of +the second epistle is not generally considered genuine. + +[189:1] Matt. v. 17. + +[189:2] 2 Tim. i. 10. + +[189:3] Matt. xvi. 16; John i. 41. + +[189:4] Luke xxiv. 19, 21; John i. 49. + +[189:5] Matt. xvi. 21, 22; John xii. 34. + +[189:6] Mark xv. 43; Luke ii. 38. + +[189:7] John iv. 20-25. + +[189:8] John xix. 12. + +[189:9] Matt. ii. 2, 3, xx. 21; John vi. 15. + +[190:1] Acts i. 6. + +[190:2] Luke xxiv. 45. + +[190:3] Luke xxiv. 44. + +[190:4] Acts x. 34, 35. + +[190:5] Acts xi. 3, 17. + +[190:6] Heb. x. 1, 14, 18. + +[190:7] Period i. sec. ii. chap. 1. + +[191:1] Mark vii. 7-9. + +[191:2] Matt. iv. 1-10, xii. 3, 5, 7; Mark xii. 26. + +[191:3] John v. 39. + +[191:4] Acts ii. 14-36. + +[191:5] 2 Tim. iii. 15. + +[191:6] 2 Tim. iii. 16, 17. + +[191:7] Matt. xxii. 43, 45; Gal. iii. 16; Heb. ii. 8, 11. + +[191:8] John x. 34, 35; Heb. viii. 13. + +[191:9] Acts xxviii. 25; Heb. iii. 7. + +[191:10] Heb. i. 1, 2; Matt. i. 22, ii. 15. + +[192:1] 1 Cor. ii. 13. + +[192:2] 2 Tim. iii. 16. + +[192:3] Gen. iii. 15; Ps. cxxx. 7, 8; Dan. ix. 24. + +[192:4] Ps. xcviii. 1-4; Isa. ix. 6. + +[192:5] Rom. iii. 19. + +[192:6] Eph. ii. 1. + +[192:7] John v. 24. + +[192:8] Rev. iii. 20. + +[192:9] Heb. xi. 27. + +[193:1] Heb. xii. 2. + +[193:2] Heb. vi. 18. + +[193:3] 1 Pet. ii. 3. + +[193:4] Rom. v. 1. + +[193:5] Acts xv. 9. + +[193:6] 1 John v. 4. + +[193:7] Rom. v. 2. + +[193:8] Heb. xi. 1. + +[193:9] John xx. 31. + +[193:10] John i. 29. + +[193:11] Rom. x. 4. + +[194:1] Eph. v. 23. + +[194:2] Rev. xvii. 14. + +[194:3] Col. i. 27. + +[194:4] Ps. cxlvi. 8, compared with John ix. 32, 33. + +[194:5] Job ix. 8, compared with Matt. xiv. 25. + +[194:6] Ps. cvii. 29, compared with Luke viii. 24. + +[194:7] Amos iv. 13, compared with Matt. xii. 25, and John ii. 24, 25. + +[194:8] Tit. ii. 14. + +[194:9] Mark ii. 5-10. + +[194:10] Eph. v. 26. + +[194:11] Acts xvi. 14; Luke xxiv. 45. + +[194:12] Rev. ii. 23. + +[194:13] Mal. iii. i. + +[194:14] Isa. xl. 3, and vi. 1, compared with John xii. 38-41. + +[194:15] Isa. xl. 3, 9; Ps. xlv. 6. + +[194:16] Ps. ii. 12. + +[194:17] Ps. lxxii. 15. + +[194:18] Ps. ii. 12, compared with Ps. cxlvi. 3, 5, and Isa. xxvi. 4. + +[194:19] John i. 49; Matt. xvi. 16, 17. + +[194:20] Such as John xx. 28, xxi. 17. + +[195:1] Luke xxiv. 27. + +[195:2] 1 Cor. xii. 3. + +[195:3] Rom. ix. 5. + +[195:4] Eph. i. 12, 13; Matt. xii. 21. + +[195:5] Col. iii. 24. + +[195:6] Acts ix. 14; 1 Cor. i. 2. + +[195:7] Rev. v. 11-13. Though modern criticism has shaken the credit of +some passages usually quoted in support of the Deity of Christ, such as +1 Tim. iii. 16, it is remarkable that it has discovered others equally +strong not now in the received text. See Lachmann's text of Col. ii. 2, +and 1 Pet. iii. 15. + +[196:1] Heb. ii. 14. + +[196:2] Matt. xvi. 22. + +[196:3] Luke xxiv. 46. + +[196:4] Rom. iii. 26. + +[197:1] Heb. ix. 12. + +[197:2] 1 Cor. i. 24. + +[197:3] Phil. ii. 13. + +[197:4] Eph. i. 4-6. + +[197:5] Matt, xxviii. 19; John x. 30, xv. 26. + +[198:1] Eph. iv. 5. + +[198:2] See Bingham, iii. 323-327. + +[198:3] Acts viii. 37; 1 Pet. iii. 21. + +[198:4] Matt. i. 21. + +[199:1] Prov. viii. 11. + +[199:2] Phil. iv. 11-14. + +[200:1] "[Greek: Hairesis] autem Graecé, ab electione dicitur: quòd +scilicet eam sibi unusquisque eligat disciplinam, quam putat esse +meliorem."--_Hieronymus in Epist. ad Galat._ c. 5. See also Tertullian, +"De Praescrip." c. 6. + +[200:2] "Life," Section 2; "Antiq." xiii. 5, 9. + +[200:3] Acts xxvi. 5. + +[200:4] Acts xxiv. 5. + +[200:5] Gal. v. 20. + +[201:1] Eph. iv. 17, 18; Col. i. 13. + +[201:2] John iii. 18, 19. + +[201:3] Mosheim has overlooked this fact, and has, in consequence, been +betrayed into some false criticism when treating on this subject. + +[201:4] Titus iii. 10. + +[201:5] 2 Pet. ii. 1. + +[202:1] Every one acquainted with the works of Philo Judaeus must be +aware that Jewish literature was now largely impregnated with pagan +philosophy. + +[202:2] Col. ii. 8. + +[202:3] 1 Tim. vi. 20. + +[202:4] See Burton's "Inquiry into the Heresies of the Apostolic Age," +pp. 314, 315. Also Mosheim's "Dissertation" appended to Cudworth, iii. +171. + +[203:1] Col. i. 16, 17. + +[204:1] From [Greek: dokeô], I appear. + +[204:2] John i. 14. + +[204:3] 1 John iv. 3. + +[204:4] 1 John i. 1-3. + +[204:5] 2 John 7. + +[204:6] 1 Cor. xv. 12. + +[204:7] 2 Tim. ii. 16-18. + +[205:1] Acts viii. 9. + +[205:2] Irenaeus, i. 23; Eusebius, ii. 13. + +[205:3] Acts viii. 20-23. + +[205:4] Acts viii. 9. + +[205:5] Justin Martyr, "Apol." ii. 69. Edit. Paris, 1615. + +[205:6] 1 Tim. i. 20; 2 Tim. i. 15, ii. 17, iv. 14. + +[206:1] Irenaeus, i. 25, 26; Tertullian, "De Praescrip. Haeret." 33; +Epiphanius, "Haer." xxx. 2, lxix. 23. + +[206:2] Irenaeus, iii. 3, 4. + +[206:3] Irenaeus, iii. 11. + +[206:4] Rev. ii. 6, 15. + +[206:5] Acts vi. 5. Others conceive, however, that the name Nicolaitanes +is merely equivalent to Balaamites (as Balaam in Hebrew is nearly +equivalent to Nicolas in Greek, each word signifying _Ruler, or +Conqueror of the people_), and that the apostle does not here refer to +any party already known by this designation, but to all who, like +Balaam, were seducers of God's people. See Neander, "General History," +ii. 159. Edinburgh edition, 1847. + +[207:1] Rev. ii. 6, 15. + +[207:2] Acts xxiii. 1, 6. + +[207:3] 1 John ii. 19. + +[207:4] Compare Jude 19, and Heb. x. 25. + +[208:1] 1 Tim. i. 20. + +[208:2] Rev. ii. 15. + +[208:3] Hegesippus in Euseb., iv. 22. + +[208:4] Eusebius, iv. 22. + +[208:5] 1 Cor. xi. 19. + +[209:1] James iii. 17. + +[210:1] Luke xxiv. 21. + +[210:2] Luke xxiv. 17, 22, 23. + +[211:1] Acts xx. 7. + +[211:2] Rev. i. 10, [Greek: hê kurtakê hêmera]. The day was ever +afterwards distinguished by this designation. See a letter from Dionysius +of Corinth in Eusebius, iv. 23. See also Kaye's "Clement of Alexandria," +p. 418. The first day of the week is called "the Christian Sabbath" in +the Ethiopic version of the "Apostolical Constitutions." See Platt's +"Didascalia," p. 99. But these Constitutions are of comparatively late +origin. + +[211:3] Matt. v. 17-19. + +[211:4] Matt. iii. 15. + +[211:5] Matt. xii. 3-5; Mark ii. 25, 26. + +[211:6] Matt. xii. 7. + +[211:7] Gen. ii. 3. + +[212:1] Exod. xx. 1-17. + +[212:2] Mark ii. 27. + +[212:3] Matt. xxiv. 20. + +[212:4] See Heb. xiii. 10, 15, 16; Ps. li. 17. + +[212:5] Isa. lvi. 6, 7. Compare with Isa. ii. 2. + +[212:6] Mark ii. 28. + +[212:7] John xx. 19, 26. According to the current style of speaking," +after eight days" means _the eighth day after_. See Matt, xxvii. 63. + +[213:1] Acts ii. 1. That the day of Pentecost was the first day of the +week appears from Lev. xxiii. 11, 15. The same inference may be drawn +from John xviii. 28, and xix. 31, compared with Lev. xxiii. 5, 6. See +also Schaff's "History of the Apostolic Church," i. p. 230, note, and +the authorities there quoted. + +[213:2] In the same way the Eucharist is called the Lord's Supper: +[Greek: Kuriakon deipnon] (1 Cor. xi. 20). Thus also we speak of the +Lord's house, and the Lord's people. + +[213:3] Heb. x. 25. + +[213:4] 1 Cor. xvi. 1, 2. + +[213:5] Isa. lxv. 17, 18. + +[213:6] [Greek: Sabbatiamos]. See Owen "On the Hebrews," iv. 9. + +[213:7] Heb. iv. 9, 10. + +[213:8] Rom. xiv. 5. + +[214:1] Col. ii. 16, 17. + +[214:2] The ordinary temple service could scarcely be called +congregational. It was almost exclusively ceremonial and typical, +consisting of sacrificing, burning incense, and offering various +oblations. The worshippers generally prayed apart. See Luke i. 10, +xviii. 10, 11. + +[215:1] See these eighteen prayers in Prideaux's "Connexions," i. 375, +and note. Bingham admits (Orig. iv. 194), that these are their _"most +ancient"_ forms of devotion; and, of course, if they were written after +the fall of Jerusalem, it follows that the Jews had no liturgy in the +days of our Lord. Had they then been limited to fixed forms, He would +scarcely have upbraided the Scribes and Pharisees for hypocritically +_"making long prayer"_ Matt, xxiii. 14. + +[215:2] See Palmer's "Origines Liturgicae," i. pp. 44-92; and Clarkson's +"Discourse concerning Liturgies;" "Select Works," p. 342. + +[215:3] Matt. vi. 9-13. + +[215:4] 1 Thess. v. 18. + +[215:5] Eph. vi. 18. + +[215:6] Eph. vi. 18. + +[215:7] Acts i. 24, 25, iv. 24-30. + +[216:1] See Lightfoot's "Temple Service," ch. vii. sec. 2; "Works," ix. +56. + +[216:2] Lightfoot's "Prospect of the Temple," ch. xxxiii.; "Works," ix. +384. + +[216:3] The multitudes who assembled at the great festivals in the +temple could not well unite in one service. The wall of the building was +more than half a mile in circumference. See Lightfoot, ix. 217. There +were various courts and divisions in the building. + +[216:4] Heb. ix. 9-12, x. 1; John ii. 19-21; 1 Pet. ii. 5. + +[216:5] Vitringa, "De Synagoga," p. 203. + +[216:6] Eph. v. 19. According to some, the Psalms were divided into +these three classes. + +[216:7] Heb. xiii. 15. + +[217:1] Bingham, ii. 482-484. + +[217:2] Luke iv. 16, 17. + +[217:3] Col. iv. 16; 1 Thess. v. 27. + +[217:4] 1 Cor. xiv. 29. It would appear from this that only _two_ or +_three_ persons were permitted to speak at a meeting. By him that +"sitteth by" (verse 30), a doctor or teacher is meant. See Vitringa, "De +Synagoga," p. 600, and Matt. v. 1. + +[217:5] 1 Cor. xiv. 27. The gift of "interpretation of tongues" (1 Cor. +xii. 10) was quite as wonderful as the gift of "divers kinds of tongues" +(1 Cor. xii. 10). + +[218:1] Censers were introduced into the Church about the fourth or +fifth century. Bingham, ii. 454, 455. + +[218:2] 1 Cor. xvi. 19; Col. iv. 15; Philem. 2. + +[218:3] Matt. iii. 4. + +[218:4] The rite of confirmation, as now practised, has no sanction in +the New Testament. The "baptisms" and "laying on of hands," mentioned +Heb. vi. 2, are obviously the "divers washings" of the Jews, and the +_imposition of hands on the heads of victims_. The laying on of the +apostles' hands conferred miraculous gifts. Had the apostle referred to +Christian baptism in Heb. vi. 2, he would have used the singular number. + +[218:5] Lightfoot affirms that the use of baptism among the Israelites +was as ancient as the days of Jacob. He appeals in support of this view +to Gen. xxxv. 2. "Works," iv. 278. + +[219:1] Lightfoot's "Works," iv. 409, 410. Edit. London, 1822. + +[219:2] Acts x. 2, 44-48, xvi. 15, 33, xviii. 8; 1 Cor. i. 16. + +[219:3] Acts viii. 37. + +[219:4] Mark xvi. 16; John iii. 18. + +[219:5] Matt. xix. 14; Luke xviii. 15. In the New Testament children are +described as uniting with their Christian parents in prayer (Acts xxi. +5). Were not these children baptized? They were no doubt brought up "in +the _nurture_ and admonition of the Lord" (Eph. vi. 4). + +[220:1] Col. ii. 11, 12, 13. + +[220:2] Col. i. 2, iii. 20; Eph. vi. 1, 4. + +[220:3] 1 John ii. 12. + +[220:4] Acts ii. 38, 39. + +[220:5] 1 Cor. vii. 14. The absurdity of the interpretation according to +which _holy_ is here made to signify _legitimate_, is well exposed by Dr +Wilson in his treatise on "Infant Baptism," p. 513. London, 1848. + +[220:6] This would, indeed, have been almost, if not altogether, +impossible. They would probably act somewhat differently at the river +Jordan and in such a place as the jail at Philippi. + +[220:7] [Greek: Baptizô]. + +[221:1] Dr Wilson has demonstrated the incorrectness of Dr Carson's +statements on this subject. See his "Infant Baptism," p. 96. + +[221:2] Wilson's "Infant Baptism," p. 157. In Titus iii. 5, 6, there is +something like a reference to this mode of baptism: "The washing of +regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost which _he shed_ (or _poured +out_) on us abundantly." [Greek: Ou execheen eph' hêmas plousiôs]. + +[221:3] In some cases, as at Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost, they do +not seem to have had the means of immersing their converts. See also +Acts x. 47. The text John iii. 23, indicates the difficulty of baptizing +by dipping. + +[221:4] Isa. lii. 15; Ezek. xxxvi. 25; I Pet. i. 2; Heb. ix. 10; +Rev. i. 5. + +[221:5] 1 Cor. v. 7, 8. + +[221:6] Acts xx. 7. + +[221:7] Acts xx. 7; 1 Cor. x. 16. + +[222:1] It was in use before the end of the second century. See Kaye's +"Tertullian," p. 431, 451. + +[222:2] 1 Cor. x. 17. + +[222:3] 1 Cor. v. 11. + +[222:4] See Lightfoot's "Works," iii. 242, and xi. 179. Vitringa +"De Synagoga," p. 550. + +[222:5] Acts xx. 28. + +[223:1] Heb. xiii. 17. + +[223:2] Heb. xxi. 17. + +[223:3] 1 Tim. iii. 5. + +[223:4] 1 Tim. v. 19, 20. + +[223:5] Heb. xiii. 17. + +[223:6] 1 Cor. v. 1,13. + +[223:7] 2 Cor. ii. 6. + +[224:1] See Period I. section i. chap. v. p. 88. + +[224:2] 1 Cor. v. 2, 6. + +[224:3] 1 Cor. V. 3-5. + +[224:4] 1 John v. 19, [Greek: en tô ponêrô]. + +[225:1] In the above passage respecting delivering unto Satan there may +be a reference to Job ii. 6, 7, and it may be that some bodily +affliction rested on the offender. In that case there would be here an +exercise of supernatural power on the part of Paul. According to +Tertullian, to deliver to Satan was simply to excommunicate. "De ceteris +dixit qui illis traditis Satanae, id est, extra ecclesiam projectis, +erudiri haberent blasphemandum non esse."--"De Pudicitia," c. xiii. + +[225:2] 1 Cor. i. 11,12. + +[225:3] That the Church of Corinth at this time was organized in the +same way as other Christian communities is evident from various +allusions in the first epistle. See 1 Cor. iv. 15, vi. 5, xii. 27, 28. +Crispus, mentioned Acts xviii. 8, was, no doubt, one of the eldership. +There is a reference to the elders in 1 Cor. xiv. 30. See Vitringa, "De +Synagoga," p. 600. + +[225:4] In the apostolic age, censures were pronounced in presence of +the whole church. See 1 Tim. v. 20. It is to be noted that Paul himself +does not excommunicate the offender. He merely delivers his apostolic +judgment that the thing should be done, and calls upon the Corinthians +to do it; but he expects them to proceed in due order, the rulers and +the people performing their respective parts. + +[227:1] 2 Cor. ii. 7, 8. The mode of proceeding here indicated is +illustrated by what took place in the Church of Rome about the middle of +the third century. There certain penitents first appeared before the +presbytery to express their contrition, and then it was arranged that +"this whole proceeding should be communicated _to the people_, that they +might see those established in the Church, whom they had so long seen +and mourned wandering and straying."--Cyprian, Epist. xlvi. p. 136. +Edit. Baluzius, Venice, 1728. + +[228:1] That "the church" here signifies the eldership, see Vitringa, +"De Synagoga," p. 724. + +[228:2] Matt, xviii. 15, 17. + +[228:3] In our English version the original word [Greek:(paradosin)] is +improperly rendered _tradition_. + +[228:4] Thess. iii. 6. + +[228:5] Matt. v. 45. + +[229:1] 2 Thess. iii. 14, 15. + +[229:2] For an account of the excommunication of the Druids, see Caesar, +"De Bello Gallico," vi. 13. Many things in the Latin excommunication are +doubtless borrowed from paganism. + +[229:3] As an example of this, see an old form of excommunication in +Collier's "Ecclesiastical History," ii. 273. Edit. London, 1840. + +[230:1] Eph. iv. 11, 12. + +[230:2] 1 Cor. xii. 28. + +[230:3] 2 Tim. iv. 5. + +[230:4] Acts xxi. 8, viii. 5. + +[230:5] 1 Tim. i 3, v. 1, 7, 17; Tit. i. 5. + +[231:1] Acts viii. 13; 2 Tim. i. 6. This latter text is often quoted, +though erroneously, as if it referred to the ordination of Timothy. The +ordainer usually laid on only his right hand. See "Con. Carthag." iv. +can. iii. iv. In conferring extraordinary endowments both hands were +imposed. See Acts xix. 6. + +[231:2] John xiv. 26, xvi. 13, xx. 22. + +[231:3] Matt. x. 1, xxviii. 18, 19. + +[231:4] John xx. 26, xxi. 1; Acts i. 3; 1 Cor. ix. 1. + +[231:5] Such is the opinion of Chrysostom and others. See Alford on this +passage. + +[231:6] Acts vi. 2-4. + +[231:7] In the Peshito version helps and governments are translated +_helpers_ and _governors_. + +[232:1] It is remarkable that the lay council of the modern synagogue +are called Parnasim or Pastors. See Vitringa, "De Synagoga," pp. 578, +635. + +[232:2] Mr Alford observes that in 1 Cor. xii. 28, "we must not seek for +a _classified_ arrangement"--the arrangement being "rather suggestive +than logical." Hence "helps" are mentioned _before_ "governments." In +the same way in Eph. iv. 11, "pastors" precede "teachers." + +[232:3] Acts xx. 28; 1 Pet. v. 2. + +[232:4] Acts xx. 17, 28; Titus i. 5, 7; 1 Pet. v. 1, 2. + +[232:5] 1 Tim. iii. 1, 2, 5. + +[232:6] 1 Pet. v. 1, 2, 4 The identity of elders and pastors is more +distinctly exhibited in the original here, and in Acts xx. 17, 28, as +the word translated _feed_ signifies literally _to act as a shepherd_ or +pastor. + +[232:7] 1 Tim. v. 17. Mr Ellicott, in his work on the "Pastoral +Epistles," thus speaks of this passage--"The concluding words, [Greek: +en logô kai didask.], certainly seem to imply _two_ kinds of ruling +presbyters, those who preached and taught and those who did not." + +[233:1] Compare 1 Cor. xii. 28, and Philip, i. 1; 1 Tim. iii. 1-8. + +[233:2] Acts vi. 3, xiv. 23; Titus i. 5; James v. 14. + +[233:3] 1 Cor. xiv. 1, 5, 6, 31. + +[233:4] Section Rom. xii. 6-8. + +[233:5] 1 Tim, iii. 5. Lightfoot says that, "in every synagogue there +was a civil triumvirate, that is, three magistrates who judged of +matters in contest arising within that synagogue."--"Works," xi.179. The +same writer declares that "in every synagogue there were elders that +ruled in civil affairs, and elders that laboured in the word and +doctrine."--"Works," iii. 242, 243. + +[234:1] [Greek: diplês timês]. Those who adduce this passage to prove +that the apostle here defines the pecuniary remuneration of elders +involve themselves in much difficulty; for, if limited to the matter of +payment, and literally interpreted, it would lead to the inference that, +irrespective of the amount of service rendered, all the elders should +receive the same compensation; and that no church teacher, though the +father of a large family, should be allowed more than twice the gratuity +of a poor widow! Compare I Tim. v. 3, and 17. The "double honour" of I +Tim. v. 17, is evidently equivalent to the "all honour" of 1 Tim. vi. 1. +In the latter case there can be no reference to payment. Paul obviously +means to say that the claims of elders should be fully recognized; and +in the following verse (1 Tim. v. 18) he refers pointedly to the +temporal support to which church teachers are entitled. + +[234:2] 1 Tim. iii. 2-7. + +[234:3] [Greek: didaktikon]. + +[234:4] Matt. iv. 23; Acts v. 42, xv. 35. + +[235:1] Heb. iii. 13. + +[235:2] Col. iii. 16. + +[235:3] 1 Pet. iii. 15. + +[235:4] 2 Tim. ii. 24, 25. + +[235:5] Even a female, though not permitted to speak in the Church, had +often this aptness for teaching. Such was the case with the excellent +Priscilla, Acts xviii. 26. The aged women were required to be "teachers +of good things," Titus ii. 3. + +[237:1] In the Church of Corinth several speakers were in the habit of +addressing the same meeting. 1 Cor. xiv. 26, 27, 29, 31. + +[237:2] 1 Tim. v. 17. + +[237:3] Gal. vi. 6. + +[237:4] 1 Tim. v. 18. + +[237:5] 1 Cor. ix. 14. + +[237:6] Matt. x. 1; 1 Cor. xiv. 18. + +[237:7] "The place which the apostles occupied while they lived is now +filled, not by a living order of ministers, but by their own inspired +writings, which constitute, or ought to constitute, the supreme +authority in the Church of God.... The New Testament Scriptures, as they +are the only real apostolate now in existence, so, are sufficient to +supply to us the place of the inspired Twelve."--_Litton's Church of +Christ_, p. 410. + +[237:1] "While it is clearly recorded that the apostles instituted the +orders of presbyters and deacons, it is not so clearly recorded, _indeed +it is not recorded at all_, that they instituted the order of +bishops."--_Litton_, p. 426. Such a testimony from a Fellow of Oxford is +creditable alike to his candour and his intelligence. + +[237:2] Acts xv. 6, xvi. 4, xxi. 18, 25. + +[237:3] Acts xx. 17, 25. + +[237:4] Acts xx. 29-31. + +[237:5] Acts vi. 4. "Here," says Mr Litton, "no mention is made of +government or of ordination, as the special prerogative of the apostolic +office; _and if it were not dangerous to lay too much stress upon a +single passage_, it might from this one be plausibly inferred that _the +special function of the apostles, as representatives of the ordinary +Christian ministry, has descended_, not to bishops, but to presbyters, +to whom it specially pertains to give themselves to prayer and the +ministry of the Word."--_Litton's Church of Christ_, p. 407. It is +certainly not dangerous to lay as much stress upon any Scripture as it +will legitimately bear, and the inference hero drawn is in accordance +with the rules of the most exact logic. + +[238:1] 1 Cor. i. 17. + +[238:2] Eph. iii. 8. In dealing with individuals, the apostles seldom +challenged obedience on the ground of their divine authority. When they +are represented as directing the movements of ministers, the language +generally implies simply that the parties in question undertook certain +services at their instigation or request, or by their advice. Thus, Paul +says that he _besought_ Timothy to abide in Ephesus, that he _left_ +Titus in Crete, and that he _sent_ Epaphroditus to the Philippians (1 +Tim. i. 3; Titus i. 5; Philip. ii. 25). But Paul himself is said to have +been _sent forth_ to Tarsus _by the brethren_ (Acts ix. 30). When Mark +refused to accompany Paul and Silas into Asia Minor he did not therefore +forfeit his ecclesiastical status (Acts xiii. 13, xv. 37-39). Apart from +their special commission, the apostles were entitled to deference from +other ministers on account of their superior age and experience; and +Paul sometimes refers to this claim. See Philem. 8, 9. On the same +ground all who have recently entered the ministry are bound to yield +precedence to aged pastors, and to respect their advice. See 1 Pet. v. 5. + +[238:3] It can scarcely be necessary to remind the reader that the +postscripts to these epistles setting forth that Timothy was "ordained +the first bishop of the church of the Ephesians," and that Titus was +"ordained the first bishop of the Church of the Cretians," are spurious. +See Period i. sec. ii. chap. i. p. 181. + +[239:1] 1 Tim. i. 3. Paul says (1 Cor. iv. 17) to the _Corinthians_--"I +have sent unto you Timotheus .... who shall bring you into remembrance +of my ways which be in Christ;" and, according to the mode of reasoning +employed by some, we might infer from this text that Timothy was bishop +of Corinth. "It is a suspicious circumstance," says Dr Burton, "that +several persons who are mentioned in the New Testament, are said to have +been bishops of the places connected with their names. Thus Cornelius is +said to have been bishop of Caesarea, and to have succeeded Zacchaeus, +though it is highly improbable that either of them filled such an +office."--"Lectures," i., p. 182. + +[239:2] 1 Tim. vi. 17. + +[239:3] See Period i. sect. i. chap, ix. p. 131. + +[239:4] Acts xx. 30, 31. + +[240:1] The word [Greek: katastêsês], here translated "ordain," should +rather be rendered _constitute_, or _establish_. + +[240:2] Titus i. 5. + +[240:3] Titus iii. 13. + +[240:4] Acts vi. 3, xiv. 23; 2 Cor. viii. 19, 23. + +[240:5] Acts xxiii. 3. + +[240:6] "The whole Sanhedrim were the judges, and sitting to judge him +according to the law."--_Alford on Acts_ xxiii. 3. + +[241:1] See Prideaux's "Connections," part ii. books 1 and 8. + +[241:2] Acts xxvi. 17, 18. See also, as another illustration, Matt. xvi. +19. + +[241:3] 2 Cor. xi. 28. + +[241:4] 1 Tim. iv. 12, 13; 2 Tim. ii. 22, 23; Titus ii. 7, 8. + +[241:5] 1 Tim. ii. 1, 2, iv. 16, v. 19, 20, 22; 2 Tim. ii. 2, 15, iv. 2, +5; Titus iii, 8, 9. + +[242:1] 1 Tim. v. 5, 16, vi. 1, 2, 9, 17; Titus ii. 6, 9, 10. + +[242:2] One of the most remarkable instances of an appeal to the sense +of individual obligation in a case where many were concerned may be +found in Gal. vi. 1. + +[242:3] Whitby, in his "Preface to the Epistle to Titus," says candidly +of the allegation that Timothy and Titus were bishops respectively of +Ephesus and Crete--"Now, of this matter, I confess I can find nothing in +any writer of the first three centuries, nor any intimation that they +bore that name." + +[242:4] 1 Tim. i. 3; 2 Tim. iv. 10, 12, 21; Titus i. 5, iii. 12. + +[242:5] Hence Fulgentius speaks of "cathedra Joannis Evangelistae +Ephesi." Lib. "De Trinitate," c. 1. Contradictory traditions sometimes +happily annihilate each other. + +[243:1] Homer, "Iliad," ii. v. 156. + +[243:2] Mark x. 42-45. + +[244:1] 1 Pet. v. 3. + +[244:2] Acts i. 15, 21-23, 26. + +[244:3] 2 Cor. viii. 19, 23. See also 1 Cor xvi. 3. + +[244:4] Acts vi. 3, xiv. 23. See also 1 Tim. iii. 10, compared with 1 +John iv. 1. + +[244:5] Clemens Romanus states that, in the apostolic age, +ecclesiastical appointments were made "with the approbation of the whole +church." "Epist. to Corinthians," § 44. + +[245:1] Acts vi. 6; 1 Tim. v. 22. + +[245:2] See Selden, "De Synedriis," lib. i. c. 14. + +[245:3] Acts xiii. 1-3. + +[245:4] Acts xiv. 23. + +[245:5] 1 Tim. iv. 14. That the preposition [Greek: meta] here indicates +the instrumental cause, see Acts xiii. 17, xiv. 27. + +[245:6] Acts vi. 6. Some have thought it strange that Paul gives no +instructions to Titus respecting the ordination of deacons in Crete. See +Titus i. 8. This was unnecessary, as the elders, when ordained, could +afterwards ordain deacons. + +[245:7] Rom. xvi. 1. + +[245:8] [Greek: diakonon]. + +[246:1] 1 Tim. v. 3, 4, 9. + +[246:2] Rom. xvi 2. + +[247:1] 1 Cor. xii. 12, 21, 26. + +[249:1] Such as we find described in Deut. xxxi. 10-12. + +[249:2] In Greek [Greek: ekklêsia]. The reference in the text is to its +ecclesiastical use, for in the New Testament it sometimes signifies a +mob. See Acts xix. 32. + +[249:3] Acts xi. 22, xv. 4. + +[249:4] Acts xxi. 20, [Greek: posai muriades]--literally, "how many tens +of thousands." + +[249:5] One of these is mentioned Acts xii. 12. + +[249:6] Acts xiii. 1. + +[249:7] Acts ix. 31. The true reading here is, "Then had _the church_ +([Greek: ekklêsia]) rest throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria." +This reading is supported by the most ancient manuscripts, including +ABC; by the Vulgate, and nearly all the ancient versions; including the +old Syriac, Coptic, Sahidic, Ethiopian, Arabic of Erpenius, and +Armenian; and by the most distinguished critics, such as Kuinoel, +Lachmann, Tischendorf, Alford, and Tregelles. It is likewise sustained +by the authority of what is believed to be by far the most valuable +cursive MS. in existence. See Scrivener's "Codex Augiensis," Introd. +lxviii., and p. 425. Cambridge, 1859. + +[250:1] John xvii. 21. + +[250:2] Eph. iv. 16. + +[250:3] See Col. ii. 19. + +[251:1] Acts viii. 14. + +[251:2] Acts xi. 22. "No notion is more at variance with the spirit of +apostolic Christianity than that of societies of Christians existing in +the same neighbourhood, but not in communion with each other, and not +under a common government."--_Litton_, p. 450. + +[251:3] 2 Cor. viii. 19. + +[251:4] Period I. sec. iii. chap. i. p. 214. + +[251:5] "That the Church did really derive its polity from the synagogue +is a fact upon the proof of which, in the present state of theological +learning, it is needless to expend many words."--_Litton's Church of +Christ_, p. 254. + +[251:6] See Selden, "De Synedriis," lib. ii. c. 5; Lightfoot's "Works," +iii. 242, and xi. 179. Josephus says that Moses appointed only seven +judges in every city. "Antiq." book iv. c. 8, § 14. See also "Wars of +the Jews," ii. c. 20, § 5. + +[252:1] Luke xxii. 66; Acts v. 21, vi. 15. See also Prideaux, part ii. +book vii., and Lightfoot's "Works," ix. 342. + +[252:2] Matt. xvi. 21, xxvi. 59; Mark xv. 1. See also Lightfoot's +"Works," iv. 223. + +[252:3] 1 Chron. xxiv. 4, 7-18. + +[252:4] Acts v. 34. + +[252:5] As they represented the people, and were probably twenty-four in +number, there may be a reference to them in Rev. iv. 4. + +[252:6] Matt. v. 22. + +[253:1] Deut. xvii. 8-10; 2 Chron. xix. 8-11; Ps. cxxii. 5. + +[253:2] Acts ix. 1, 2, 14. + +[253:3] Acts ii. 14, 41, 42, iv. 4, 32, 33, 35, v. 14, 42, vi. 6, 7, +viii. 14. + +[253:4] Acts xiii. 1, 3. + +[253:5] Titus i. 5. + +[253:6] 1 Tim. iv. 14. + +[253:7] In the same way the Puritans, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, +frequently held meetings in London during the sittings of Parliament. +See Collier, vii. 33, 64. + +[254:1] For a more particular account of the constitution of the meeting +mentioned in the 15th chapter of the Acts, see Period I. sec. i. chap. +v. p. 82. + +[255:1] Acts xv. 6. + +[255:2] Acts xv. 19. "James, according to the somewhat pompous rendering +in our English version, says--'Wherefore _my sentence is_'--in the +original--[Greek: dio elô krina]--a common formula by which the members +of the Greek assemblies introduced the expression of their individual +opinion, as appears from its repeated occurrence in Thucydides, with +which may be compared the corresponding Latin phrase (_sic censeo_) of +frequent use in Cicero's orations."--_Alexander on the Acts_, ii. p. 83. + +[256:1] Mark xvi. 15. + +[257:1] See the spurious epistle of Clement to James, prefixed to the +Clementine Homilies. Cotelerius, "Pat. Apost." vol. i. p. 617. + +[258:1] Acts xx. 17. + +[258:2] Acts xx. 16. + +[258:3] The view here taken is corroborated by the authority of +Irenaeus, iii. c. 14, § 2:--"In Mileto enim convocatis episcopis et +presbyteris, qui erant ab Epheso, _et a reliquis proximis civitatibus_," +&c. + +[259:1] Acts xx. 18. + +[259:2] Acts xix. 8, 10. + +[259:3] Acts xx. 31. + +[259:4] Acts xx. 25. Demetrius says to the craftsmen--"Ye see and hear +that _not alone at Ephesus, but almost throughout all Asia_, this Paul +hath persuaded and turned away much people." Acts xix. 26. + +[259:5] See Period I. sec. i. chap. viii. p. 123. + +[259:6] 1 Cor. xvi. 19. + +[259:7] Gal. i. 2. + +[259:8] Gal. v. 13. + +[259:9] Gal. vi. 2. + +[259:10] 1 Pet. i. 1. + +[260:1] 1 Pet. v. i, 2. + +[260:2] In Acts xx. 28, these designations are identical. The +exhortation in 1 Pet. v. 5--"Yea, all of you be _subject one to +another_"--is obviously addressed to _ministers_, and implies their +mutual subordination. This command can be acted upon only by ministers +who are confederated and who hold the same ecclesiastical status. +Lachmann adopts a somewhat different reading of this verse without +changing the sense, for he puts a semi-period after [Greek: allêlois]. +According to his Larger Edition of the Greek Testament, the commencement +of the verse should be rendered thus--"Likewise ye younger (presbyters) +submit yourselves unto the elder, AND ALL TO ONE ANOTHER." I here +suppose _presbyters_ to be understood, as the apostle is speaking to +them in all the preceding part of the chapter. + +[260:3] 2 Cor. viii. 5, 18, 22; Phil. ii. 25, 28; Col. iv. 7-9; 2 Tim. +iv. 9-12. + +[260:4] 2 Cor. iii. 1. + +[261:1] 2 John 10. + +[261:2] 1 John iv. 1. + +[261:3] Phil. i. 15-18. + +[263:1] Rev. i. 1. + +[264:1] Rev. i. 11. + +[264:2] Rev. i. 12-16. + +[264:3] Rev. i. 20. + +[264:4] This was the opinion of Gregory Nazianzen, as well as others. +There is an ingenious article on this subject in the "Bibliotheca Sacra" +for April 1855. Its author, the Rev. Isaac Jennings, advocates the view +propounded in this chapter. + +[265:1] This is the opinion of Prideaux, Vitringa, and many others. See +Prid. "Connec." part. i. book vi.; and Vitringa, "De Synagoga," lib. +iii. par. 2, cap. 3. + +[265:2] Acts xiii. 15. + +[265:3] Luke iv. 16. + +[265:4] Luke iv. 20. + +[266:1] Prideaux, part i. book vi. vol. i. p. 385. Edit. London, 1716. + +[266:2] "The hours of public devotions in them on their synagogue days +were, as to morning and evening prayers, the same hours in which the +morning and evening sacrifices were offered up at the temple."--Prideaux, +part i. book vi. + +[266:3] Maurice, in his work on Diocesan Episcopacy in reply to +Clarkson, admits (p. 257) that in our Saviour's time, Laodicea had "but +few inhabitants." Philadelphia is described by Strabo as a place with a +small population. + +[266:4] Acts xix. 20. + +[266:5] Acts xix. 26. + +[267:1] Prideaux speaks of the angel of the synagogue, in relation to +the rulers, as "_next to them_, or perchance one of them."--Part i. book +vi. vol. i. p. 385. + +[267:2] It appears never to have occurred to Tertullian that the angels +of the Churches were bishops. He obviously considered the angel of the +Church an invisible intelligence. Thus he says of Paul--"Lusit igitur et +de suo spiritu, et de ecclesiae angelo, et de virtute Domini, si quod de +consilio eorum pronunciaverat rescidit."--_De Pudicitia_, c. xiv. ad +finem. See also Tertullian "De Baptismo," c. vi. Such, too, was the +opinion of Origen.--"De Principiis," lib. i. c. 8, and "De Oratione," +11. The fact that, _long after the hierarchy was formed_, in two or +three rare cases a bishop is called an angel, in reference to the angels +of the Apocalypse, is nothing to the purpose. See Bingham, i. 79. + +[268:1] Phil. iv. 14, 18. + +[269:1] Phil. ii. 25. + +[269:2] 2 Cor. viii. 23, [Greek: apostoloi ekklêsiôn]. In after-times it +was deemed proper that those messengers should be of the clerical +order.--See Cyprian, epist. xxiv., lxxv., and lxxix. + +[269:3] Luke vii. 27, [Greek: ton angelon mou]. + +[269:4] James ii, 25, [Greek: tous angelous]. + +[269:5] John xxi. 7, 20. + +[270:1] Thus Hippolytus speaks of a certain elder, named Hyacinthus, who +was sent to the governor of Sardinia with a letter for the release of +the Christians banished there. "Philosophumena," p. 288. The _legate_ of +the bishop of Rome is a species of memorial of the angel of the ancient +Church. + +[270:2] Rev. ii. 7, 11, 17, 29, iii. 6, 13, 22. + +[270:3] Rev. i. 11. + +[271:1] Rev. i. 1. + +[271:2] Isa. xlix. 15, 16. + +[271:3] The Christians of Hierapolis are mentioned Col. iv. 13. + +[271:4] Acts xx. 4. + +[272:1] Lev. xxvi. 11, 12. + +[272:2] Rev. i. 16. + +[272:3] Ps. lxvii. 1, 2. + +[275:1] A.D. 96 to A.D. 98. + +[275:2] A.D. 98 to A.D. 117. + +[276:1] Origen, "Contra Celsum," i. § 67. See also i. § 26. + +[276:2] Origen, "Contra Celsum," iii. § 29. + +[277:1] Justin Martyr, "Apol." ii. 61. Edit, Paris, 1615. + +[277:2] The Peshito, or old Syriac version, is supposed to have been +made in the first half of the second century.--Westcott "On the Canon," +pp. 264, 265. There are traces of the existence of a Latin version in +the time of Tertullian, or before the close of the second +century.--Ibid., p. 275. "Two versions into the dialects of Upper and +Lower Egypt--the Thebaic (Sahidic) and Memphitic--date from the close of +the third century."--Ibid. pp. 415, 416. + +[278:1] See Middleton's "Inquiry," pp. 3, 9. + +[278:2] See Kaye's "Tertullian," pp. 98-101. Edition, Cambridge, 1826. + +[278:3] Tertullian states that the Emperor Marcus Aurelius became +friendly to the Christians, in consequence of a remarkable interposition +of Providence in favour of his army, in a war with the Marcomanni and +the Quadi. It was alleged that, in answer to the prayers of a body of +Christian soldiers, afterwards known as the _Thundering Legion_, the +imperial troops were relieved by rain, whilst a thunderstorm confounded +the enemy. It is quite certain that the Roman army was rescued from +imminent peril by a seasonable shower; but it is equally clear that the +emperor attributed his deliverance, not to the God of the Christians, +but to Jupiter Pluvius, and that a certain section of the Roman soldiers +was known long before by the name of the Thundering Legion. There is no +evidence that Marcus Aurelius ever became friendly to the Christians. +See Lardner. "Heathen Testimonies," "Works," vii. 176-188. + +[279:1] See Middleton's "Inquiry," p. 84. Edition, Dublin, 1749. Bishop +Kaye has remarked that, in the writings of Tertullian, "the only power +of the exercise of which specific instances are alleged, was that of +exorcising evil spirits." "Kaye's Tertullian," p. 461. From the symptoms +mentioned it would appear that the individuals with whom the exorcists +succeeded were epileptics. + +[279:2] Irenaeus, who seems to have been not unfavourable to the +Montanists, speaks of the gift of tongues as possessed by some in his +age, and yet he himself, as a missionary, was obliged to struggle with +the difficulties of a foreign language. "Adv. Haeres," v., c. 6, and +"Praef." ad. 1. + +[279:3] When Theophilus of Antioch, towards the end of the second +century, was invited by Autolycus to point out a single person who had +been raised from the dead, he did not accept the challenge. See Kaye's +"Justin Martyr," p. 217. + +[279:4] Middleton's "Inquiry," Preface, p. iv. + +[279:5] Middleton, pp. 22, 23. + +[280:1] Plinii, "Epist." lib. x. epist. 97. + +[280:2] Tertullian, "Ad Scapulam," c. 5. + +[280:3] "Spicilegium Syriacum" by Cureton, p. 31. The correspondence +between Abgar and our Lord, given by Eusebius, is manifestly spurious. + +[281:1] Gregory of Tours, "Hist. Francorum," lib. i. c. 28. + +[281:2] Sozomen, "Hist. Eccles." ii. 6, and Philostorgius, "Hist. +Eccles." ii. 5. + +[281:3] "Adversus Judaeos," c. 7. + +[282:1] Justin Martyr, "Dialogue with Trypho," Opera, p. 345. + +[282:2] Theophilus, "Ad Autolycum," lib. ii. See also Origen, "In +Matthaeum," Opera, tom. iii. p. 858. + +[282:3] "Life of Alexander Severus," by Lampridius. + +[282:4] Euseb. viii. 1. + +[284:1] Cyprian, "De Laude Martyrii," Opera, pp. 620, 621. See also +Tertullian, "Ad Scapulam," c. 5. _ad finem_. + +[285:1] Tertullian, "Apol." 50. + +[287:1] Tertullian, "De Idololatria," c. 17. + +[287:2] Matt. x. 35, 36. + +[287:3] Tertullian, "Apol." c. 3, and "Ad Nationes," i. § 4. + +[287:4] 1 Cor. xv. 19. + +[288:1] The Christians long gloried in the fact that Nero was their +first persecutor. See Tertullian, "Apol." c. 5. + +[289:1] Plinii, "Epist." lib. x. epist. 97. + +[290:1] Matt. xiii. 55; Mark vi. 3. That Simon and Simeon are the same, +see Acts xv. 7, 14. + +[290:2] Trajan died A.D. 117, and if Simeon was born a year after Jesus, +he entered upon the 120th year of his age about the close of this +Emperor's reign. See Greswell's "Dissertations," vol. ii. pp. 127, 128. +It was the opinion of Tertullian that Mary had other sons after she gave +birth to our Lord. See Neander's "Antignostikus," and Tertullian "De +Monogamia," c. 8. + +[293:1] The account of the trial of himself and his companions, as given +in the "Acta Sincera Martyrum" by Ruinart, bears all the marks of truth. + +[293:2] An account of his martyrdom is given in a circular letter of the +Church of Smyrna. See Jacobson's "Patres Apostolici," tom. ii. p. 542. +Euseb. iv. 15. + +[294:1] These places are distant from each other about seventeen miles. + +[296:1] Euseb. v. 1. + +[296:2] Among the Romans a concubine held a certain legal position, and +was in fact a wife with inferior privileges. Converted concubines were +admitted to the communion of the ancient Church. See Bunsen's +"Hippolytus," iii. 7. + +[296:3] Mosheim ("Commentaries" by Vidal. ii. 52, note) and many others, +refer the transaction recorded in the text to the reign of Hadrian, but +without any good cause. Tertullian, who tells the story ("Ad Scapulani," +c. 5), evidently alludes to a transaction which had recently occurred. +In the reign of Commodus there was a proconsul named Arrius Antoninus +who was put to death. See Lamprid, "Vita Commodi," c. 6, 7. See also +Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 146, note; and "Neander's General History" by +Torrey, i. 162, note. + +[296:4] Clemens Alexandrinus apparently refers to the times immediately +following the death of Commodus when he says--"Many martyrs are daily +burned, crucified, and decapitated before our eyes." Strom, lib. ii. p. +414. + +[297:1] Tertullian, "Ad Scapulam," c. 4. + +[297:2] Compare Justin Martyr, "Apol." ii. pp. 70, 71, and "Dial, cum +Tryphone," p. 227, with Tertullian, "Apol." c. 7. + +[297:3] Called _libellos_. + +[297:4] These parties sometimes appealed to Acts xvii. 9, in +justification of their conduct. + +[298:1] The _sacrificati_, or those who had sacrificed, as well as +offered incense, were considered still more guilty. + +[298:2] "Acta Perpetuae et Felicitatis." The martyrs appear to have been +Montanists. See Gieseler, by Cunningham, i. 125, note. Tertullian +mentions Perpetua, and his language countenances the supposition that +she was a Montanist. "De Anima," c. 55. + +[300:1] See the "Chronicon" of Eusebius, par. ii., adnot. p. 197. Edit. +Venet, 1818. + +[301:1] The Roman clergy speak of "the remnants and ruined heaps of the +fallen lying on all sides." Cyp. "Epist." xxxi. p. 99. Cyprian complains +of _"thousands_ of letters given _daily_" in behalf of the lapsed by +misguided confessors and martyrs. "Epist." xiv. p. 59. The writer here +probably speaks somewhat rhetorically, and evidently does not mean, as +some have thought, that all these letters were written at Carthage. He +speaks of what was done "everywhere," including Italy, as well as the +cities of Africa. "Epist." xiv., xxii., xxvi. + +[301:2] Dionysius of Alexandria, quoted by Euseb., vi. 41. + +[302:1] Euseb. vi. 39. + +[302:2] A.D. 249 to A.D. 251. + +[302:3] Cyprian, Epist. 82, ad Successum. + +[302:4] Cyprian, who seems to have been much respected personally by the +high officers of government at Carthage, was, when taken prisoner, +granted as great indulgence as his circumstances would permit; but +Gibbon, who describes his case with special minuteness, most uncandidly +represents it as affording an average specimen of the style in which +condemned Christians were treated. As an evidence of the social position +of the bishop of Carthage we may refer to the testimony of Pontius his +deacon, who states that "numbers of eminent and illustrious persons, men +of rank and family and secular distinction, for the sake of their old +friendship with him, urged him many times to retire." "Life," § 14. + +[303:1] Euseb. vii. 13. + +[303:2] See Bingham, ii. p. 451. + +[304:1] "De Mortibus Persec." c. 10. + +[304:2] Euseb. viii. 2; "De Mort. Persec." c. 13. See also "Neander," by +Torrey, i. 202, note. + +[305:1] Eusebius, "Martyrs of Palestine," c. 4. + +[305:2] Eusebius, "Martyrs of Palestine," c. 9. + +[305:3] The Vatican Manuscript, the oldest in existence, was probably +written shortly after this persecution. It possesses internal evidences +that its date is anterior to the middle of the fourth century. See +Horne, iv. 161, 10th edition. + +[306:1] Eusebius, viii. 6, 9, 10, 12. + +[307:1] Firmilian refers to a noted persecution which "did not extend to +the whole world, _but was local_." Cyprian, "Epist." lxxv. p. 305. + +[308:1] The treatise "De Mortibus Persecutorum" is generally attributed +to Lactantius who flourished in the early part of the fourth century. +The authorship is doubtful. + +[308:2] Ps. ix. 16. + +[308:3] Herodian, iii. 23. This circumstance, as well as some others +here stated, is not mentioned in the work "De Mort. Persec." Tertullian +mentions some other remarkable facts, "Ad Scapulam," c. 3. + +[308:4] "De Mortib. Persec.," c. 49. + +[309:1] Tertullian, "Apol." c. 46. + +[310:1] Tertullian, "Apol." 28. + +[310:2] Tertullian, "Ad Scapulam," § 2. + +[311:1] John xviii. 36. + +[312:1] Phil. iii. 18, 19. + +[313:1] Cyprian, "De Lapsis," p. 374. + +[313:2] Cyprian, "Ad Cornelium," epist. xlix. p. 143. Cyprian also +charges one of his deacons with fraud, extortion, and adultery. Epist. +xxxviii. p. 116. + +[313:3] Cornelius of Rome in Euseb. vi. 43. + +[315:1] See Eusebius, v. 3, vi. 9. + +[315:2] See Neander's "Antignostikus," part ii. sect. ii. at the end. It +appears that the Christian ascetics adopted the dress of the pagan +philosophers. + +[315:3] Cyprian, "De Habitu Virginum," pp. 354, 361. + +[315:4] Still, in the time of Origen, the sons of bishops, presbyters, +and deacons valued themselves upon their parentage.--Origen in +"Matthaeum" xv. opera, tom. in. p. 690. Even Cyprian bears honourable +testimony to certain married presbyters. See "Epist." xxxv. p. 111. See +also "Epist." xviii. p. 67. Cyprian himself was indebted for his +conversion to an eminent presbyter, named Caecilius, who had a wife and +children. "Life of Cyprian," by Pontius the Deacon, § 5. + +[315:1] Cyprian, "Epist." lxii. p. 219. Concerning the _Subintroductae_, +see also the letter relating to Paul of Samosata in Euseb. vii. 30. + +[316:1] Jerome and Athanasius. + +[316:2] See Medhurst's "China," p. 217. The symbol of the cross was +engraved on the walls of the temple of Serapis. "When the temple of +Serapis was torn down and laid bare," says Socrates, "there were found +in it, engraven on stones, certain characters, which they call +hieroglyphics, having the forms of crosses. _Both the Christians and +Pagans on seeing them, thought they had reference to their respective +religions_." "Ecc. Hist." v. 17. + +[316:3] Prescott, "Conquest of Mexico," in. 338-340. See also note, p. +340. Sir Robert Ker Porter mentions a block of stone found among the +ruins of Susa, having, on one side, inscriptions in the cuneiform +diameter; and, on another, hieroglyphical figures with a cross in the +corner. See his "Travels," vol. ii. p. 415. Among the ancient pagans, +the cross was the symbol of eternal life, or divinity. On medals and +monuments of a date far anterior to Christianity, it is found in the +hands of statues of victory and of figures of monarchs. See also +Tertullian, "Apol." c. 16. + +[317:1] Tertullian, "De Praescrip. Haeret." c. 40. See also Kaye's +Tertullian, p. 441. "The ancient world was possessed by a dread of +demons, and under an anxious apprehension of the influence of charms, +sought for external preservatives against the powers of evil, and +accompanied their prayers with external signs and gestures." Bunsen's +"Hippolytus," iii. 351. + +[317:2] See Justin Martyr, "Dialogue with Trypho," pp. 259, 318, and +"Apol." ii. p. 90. Tertullian, "Adv. Judaeos," c. 10. In the "Octavius" +of Minucius Felix, the following remarkable passage occurs:--"What are +your military ensigns, and banners, and standards, but crosses gilded +and ornamented? _Your trophies of victory not only imitate the +appearance of a cross, but also of a man fixed to it_. We discern the +sign of a cross in the very form of a ship, whether it is wafted along +with swelling sails, or glides with its oars extended. When a military +yoke is erected there is a sign of a cross, and, in like manner, when +one with hands stretched forth devoutly addresses his God. _Thus, there +seems to be some reason in nature for it, and some reference to it in +your own system of religion_." The monogram [symbol: Chi-Rho], composed +of the initial Greek capitals [Greek: Chi] and [Greek: Rho] of the name +[Greek: christos], was in use among the heathen long before our era. It +is to be found on coins of the Ptolemies. Aringhus, "Roma Subterranea," +ii. p. 567. + +[318:1] Tertullian maintains ("Ad Jud." c. xi.) that the _mark_ +mentioned Ezekiel ix. 4 was the letter T, or the sign of the cross. See +a Dissertation on this subject by Vitringa, "Observationes Sacrae," lib. +ii. c. 15. See also Origen. "In Ezechielem," Opera, tom. iii. p. 424, +and Cyprian to Demetrianus, § 12. It would appear that the worshippers +of Apollo used to mark themselves on the forehead with the letters +[Greek: CHI ETA]. See Kitto's "Cyclopaedia of Bib. Lit." art. FOREHEAD. + +[318:2] Tertullian, "De Corona." c. 3. By the Romans, crosses were +erected in conspicuous places to intimidate offenders, just in the same +way as the drop is now exhibited in the front of a jail. It is not +improbable that some of these crosses were afterwards worshipped by the +Christians! Aringhi mentions a stone, to be seen in his own time in the +Vatican, which was treated with the same absurd reverence. On this stone +many of the early Christians were said to have suffered martyrdom, +probably by decapitation; but it was afterwards held "in very great +honour" at Rome, and regarded as "a sacred thing!" "Roma Subterranea,'" +i. 219. + +[319:1] Minucius Felix, "Octavius," c. 24. There is a similar passage in +Tertullian, "Apol." c. 12. + +[319:2] Clemens Alexandrinus, "Paedagog." iii. Opera, pp. 246, 247. + +[319:3] Clemens Alexandrinus, "Stromat." v. Opera, p. 559. + +[320:1] Canon 30. The comment of the Roman Catholic Dupin upon this +canon is worthy of note. "To me," says he, "it seems better to +understand it in the plainest sense, and to confess that the Fathers of +this Council did not approve the use of images, no more than that of wax +candles lighted in full daylight."--_History of Ecclesiastical Writers, +Fourth Century_. + +[320:2] Tertullian, "De Pudicitia," c. 7. But all were not so +scrupulous, for Tertullian elsewhere complains that the image-makers +were chosen to church offices. "De Idololatria," c. 7. + +[320:3] Tertullian, "De Idololatria," c. 6. + +[321:1] Cyprian, "Ad Donatum," Opera, p. 5. + +[321:2] Tertullian, "De Spectaculis," c. 4. According to the English +Liturgy the person baptized "renounces the devil and all his works, the +vain pomp and glory of the world." This was originally intended to apply +to such exhibitions as those mentioned in the text. + +[322:1] Tertullian, "De Pudicitia," c. 7. Theophilus to Autolycus, book +iii. + +[322:2] Tertullian "Apol." c. 44. Minucius Felix, in his "Octavius," +makes a similar statement:--"The prisons are crowded with criminals of +your religion, but no Christian is there, unless he is either accused on +account of his faith, or is a deserter from his faith." + +[322:3] Justin Martyr, in his Dialogue with Trypho the Jew, says to +him--"Your blind and foolish teachers even to this day permit every one +of you to have _four or five wives_."--_Opera_, p. 363. + +[323:1] 1 Tim. iii. 2, 12. + +[323:2] Rom. vii. 1-3; 1 Cor. vii. 2. + +[323:3] The Montanists, in their extravagance, insisted that any one who +contracted a second marriage after the death of his first wife should be +excommunicated. + +[323:4] 2 Cor. vi. 14. + +[324:1] Tertullian, "Ad Uxorem," ii. 4. + +[324:2] Gibbon, "Decline and Fall," chap. ii. Some writers, such as +Zumpt and Merivale, consider this estimate quite extravagant. Others +again think it quite too low. See Schaff's "History of the Christian +Church," p. 316. New York, 1859. + +[324:3] Gal. iii. 28. + +[325:1] Onesimus, the slave mentioned Philem. 10, 16, probably became a +Christian minister. + +[325:2] 1 Cor. vii. 21. + +[325:3] 1 Cor. vii. 20-22. + +[325:4] 1 Tim. vi. 1, 2. + +[325:5] Kindness to slaves was particularly enjoined by the early Church +teachers. See Cyprian, "Lib. Tres. Test. adv. Judaeos," lib. iii. § 72, +73. + +[325:6] It is stated in the "Octavius" of Minucius Felix that, in the +estimation of the heathen, "for a slave to be partaker in certain +religious ceremonies is deemed abominable impiety." (c. 25.) + +[326:1] One of the laws made by Constantine shortly after his conversion +sanctioned the manumission of slaves on the Lord's day. + +[326:2] Thus, on one occasion, Cyprian raised a contribution of about +£900 in Carthage to purchase the release of some Christians of Numidia. +Cyprian, Epist. lx. p. 216. Tertullian said to the heathen, "Our charity +dispenses more in every street, than your religion in each +temple."--_Apol._ c. 42. + +[327:1] About A.D. 252. + +[327:2] Cyprian, "Ad Demetrianum," and "De Mortalitate." "Vita Cypriani +per Pontium," c. 9. + +[327:3] Euseb. vii. 22. + +[328:1] Athanasius, "Hist. Arian. ad Monachos," § 64. + +[329:1] Luke xxii. 24-26. + +[329:2] Rom. i. 8, 13. + +[330:1] Gal. ii. 7-9. + +[330:2] Rom. xvi. 3-15. + +[330:3] Acts ii. 10. + +[330:4] Euseb. ii. 22. + +[330:5] Period 1. sec. i. chap. x. + +[331:1] Hegesippus seems to have been the first who attempted to draw up +a list of the bishops, or presiding presbyters of Rome. See Pearson's +Criticism on Euseb. iv. 22, in his "Minor Works," vol. ii. p. 319, +Oxford, 1844; and Routh's "Reliquiae," i. pp. 270, 271. + +[331:2] Thus, Irenaeus (i. 27) speaks of Hyginus as the _ninth_, and +again (iii. 3), as the _eighth_ in succession from the apostles. + +[331:3] Thus, Irenaeus affirms (iii. 3) that Linus was the immediate +successor of the apostles, whilst Tertullian, who was his contemporary, +and who possessed equally good means of information, assigns that +position to Clement. "De Praescrip. Haeret." c. 32. + +[331:4] Euseb. iii. 4. + +[332:1] Irenaeus, "Contra Om. Haer." iii. 3, § 3. Bunsen has justly +remarked that, "with Telesphorus the most obscure period of the Roman +Church terminates."--_Hippolytus_, iv. pp. 209, 210. + +[332:2] Irenaeus, iii. 4, § 3. + +[332:3] This name continued to be given to the Roman bishop until at +least the close of the second century. See Irenaeus quoted in Euseb. v. +24. + +[332:4] [Greek: katholikos]. See this subject more fully illustrated in +Period II. sec. iii. chap. viii. + +[333:1] "Qui absistunt a principali successione, et quocunque loco +colligunt, suspectos habere (oportet) vel quasi haereticos et malae +sententiae; vel quasi scindentes et elatos et sibi placentes; aut rursus +ut hypocritas, quaestus gratia et vanae gloriae hoc operantes." +Irenaeus, iv. 26, § 2. + +[333:2] See Period II. sec. iii. chap. vii. + +[333:3] Blondel's "Apologia pro sententia Hieronymi," p. 18. Under +ordinary circumstances the new president, or bishop, was often elected +before his predecessor was buried. See Bingham, book ii. c. xi. § 2. + +[333:4] See Pearson's "Minor Works," ii. 520. + +[333:5] This method of appointment continued to be observed long +afterwards in some parts of the Church. See Bingham, book iv. chap. i. +sec. i. At Alexandria in the beginning of the fourth century the +presbyters selected three of their senior members, of whom the people +chose one. Cotelerius, ii., app. p. 180. + +[334:1] [Greek: Ton tês episkopês klêron]. "Irenaeus," ed. Stieren, i. +p. 433. + +[334:2] The Paschal feast. Irenaeus admits that this point formed only a +subordinate topic of discussion. See Stieren's "Irenaeus," i. p. 826, +note 6. + +[334:3] See Period II. sec. iii. chap. vii. + +[334:4] Euseb. iv. 14. + +[335:1] Cyprian speaks of sending messengers to Rome "to ascertain and +report as to any rescript published respecting" the Christians. "Epist. +ad Successum." The Roman clergy could at once supply the information. + +[336:1] Extract of a letter from Dionysius of Corinth, preserved in +Eusebius, iv. 23. + +[336:2] The testimonies to this fact may be found discussed in Minter's +"Primordia Eccelesiae Africanae," p. 10. Herodian, who flourished in the +third century, speaks of Carthage as the next city after Rome in size +and wealth. Lib. vii. 6. + +[336:3] In this way we may readily account for various statements in +Tertullian and Cyprian. + +[337:1] We here see how a father who wrote so soon after the apostolic +age, blunders egregiously respecting the history of the Apostolic +Church. + +[337:2] So I understand "his qui sunt undique." See Wordsworth's +"Hippolytus," p. 200. We have thus a remarkable proof that the word +_catholic_ was not in use when Irenaeus wrote, for he here expresses the +idea by a circumlocution. + +[337:3] "Propter potentiorem principalitatem." + +[337:4] Irenaeus iii. 3. See on this passage Gieseler, by Cunningham, i. +97, note. See also Period II. sec. iii. chap. viii. + +[337:5] The circular letter relating to the martyrdom of Polycarp quoted +in Euseb. iv. 15. It was probably written a considerable time after the +death of the martyr, as it speaks of the way in which his _memory_ was +cherished when it was drawn up. § 19. As it uses the word _catholic_ it +must have been written after the appearance of the work of Irenaeus. + +[337:6] Irenaeus quoted in Euseb. v. 24. See Period II. sec. iii. chap. +viii. + +[339:1] We have an extract from them in Euseb. v. 4. + +[339:2] Period II. sec. i. chap. ii. p. 296. + +[339:3] Hippolytus, "Refut. Om. Haeres." book ix. + +[340:1] This probably occurred early in the reign of Septimius Severus, +who at first is said to have been very favourable to the Church. Shortly +before, many in Rome of great wealth and eminent station had become +Christians.--Euseb. v. c. 21. + +[340:2] See a more minute account of this controversy in Period II. sec. +iii. chap. xii. + +[340:3] This is evident from the fact that Hippolytus is scarcely +willing to recognise some of the Roman bishops, his contemporaries. But +meanwhile both parties probably belonged to the same synod. Hippolytus +seems to have been the leader of a formidable opposition. + +[341:1] Matt. xvi. 18. + +[341:2] See the Muratorian fragment in Bunsen's "Analecta Ante-Nicaena," +i. 154, 155. This, according to Bunsen, is a fragment of a work of +Hegesippus, and written about A.D. 165. Hippolytus, i. 314. + +[341:3] "Hermae Pastor," lib. iii. simil. ix. § 12-14. "Petra haec.... +Filius Dei est.... Quid est deinde haec turris? Haec, inquit, ecclesia +est.... Demonstra mihi quare non in terra aedificatur haec turris, sed +supra petram." + +[341:4] Tertullian, "De Praescrip." xxii. "Latuit aliquid Petrum +aedificandae ecclesiae petram dictum?" Tertullian here speaks of the +doctrine as already current. Even after he became a Montanist, he still +adhered to the same interpretation--"Petrum solum invenio maritum, per +socrum; monogamum praesumo per _ecclesiam, quae super illum, aedificata_ +omnem gradum ordinis sui de monogamis erat collocatura."--_De +Monogamia_, c. viii. Again, in another Montanist tract, he says--"Qualis +es, evertens atque commutans manifestam domini intentionem personaliter +hoc Petro conferentem? _Super te_, inquit, _aedificabo ecclesiam +meam_."--_De Pudicitia_, c. xxi. See also "De Praescrip." c. xxii. +According to Origen every believer, as well as Peter, is the foundation +of the Church. "Contra Celsum," vi. 77. See also "Comment in Matthaeum +xii.," Opera, tom. iii. p. 524, 526. + +[342:1] See this subject more fully explained in Period II. sec. iii. +ch. viii. + +[343:1] Even the letters of Victor, which created such a sensation +throughout the Church, are not forthcoming. See Pearson's "Vindiciae +Ignatianae," pars 2, cap. 13, as to the spuriousness of those imputed to +him. + +[343:2] They extend from Clement, who, according to some lists, was the +first Pope, to Syricius, who was made Bishop of Rome A.D. 384. All +candid writers, whether Romanists or Protestants, now acknowledge them +to be forgeries. They may be found in "Binii Concilia." They made their +appearance, for the first time, about the eighth century. + +[344:1] This is the date assigned to its erection by Bunsen, but Dr +Wordsworth argues that it was erected earlier. + +[344:2] 22d August. + +[345:1] The first edition appeared at Oxford in 1851, exactly three +hundred years after the discovery of the statue. + +[345:2] This point has been fully established by Bunsen and Wordsworth. + +[345:3] This is expressly stated by Tertullian, "Adversus Praxeam," c. +i. + +[345:4] See Bower's "History of the Popes." Victor, 13th Bishop. + +[345:5] According to the commonly received chronology, Victor occupied +the papal chair from A.D. 192 to A.D. 201; Zephyrinus from A.D. 201 to +A.D. 219; and Callistus from A.D. 219 to A.D. 223. + +[346:1] [Greek: andros idiôtu kai aischrokerdous]. + +[346:2] [Greek: apeiron tôn ekklêsiakôn horôn]. + +[346:3] "Philosophumena," book ix. + +[348:1] "Philosophumena," book ix. + +[348:2] 14th October. + +[348:3] "Philosophumena," book i., prooemium. + +[348:4] [Greek: dedoikôs eme]. + +[348:5] Bunsen describes Hippolytus as "a member of the Roman +presbytery" ("Hippolytus," i. 313), but he is here evidently mistaken. +Hippolytus was at the head of a presbytery of his own, the presbytery of +Portus. The presbytery of Rome was confined to the elders or presbyters +of that city. The _presbyter_ Hippolytus mentioned by some ancient +writers seems to have been a quite different person from the bishop of +Portus. + +[348:6] "Philosophumena," book ix. + +[349:1] It is probable that the bishop was at first chosen by lot out of +a leet of three selected by the presbytery from among its members. (See +preceding chapter, p. 333, note.) An appointment was now made out of +this leet of three, not by lot, but by popular suffrage. + +[349:2] Euseb. vi. 29. + +[350:1] Evidently from [Greek: kata], _down_, and [Greek: kumbos], _a +cavity_. Mr Northcote, in his work on the "Roman Catacombs," published +in 1857, calculates that the streets in all, taken together, are 900 +miles long! + +[350:2] See "Three Introductory Lectures on Ecclesiastical History," by +William Lee, D.D., of Trinity College, Dublin, p. 27. + +[350:3] It is probable that many were condemned to labour in these mines +as a punishment for having embraced Christianity. See Lee's "Three +Lectures," p. 28. + +[350:4] Maitland's "Church in the Catacombs," p. 24. Dr Maitland visited +Rome in 1841, but his inspection of the Lapidarian Gallery seems to have +been regarded with extreme jealousy by the authorities there. After +having obtained a licence "to make some memoranda in drawing in that +part of the Museum," he was officially informed that "his permission +_did not extend to the inscriptions_", and the communication was +accompanied by a demand that "the copies already made should be given +up." To his refusal to yield to this mandate we are indebted for many +important memorials to be found in his interesting volume. + +[351:1] See Maitland, pp. 27-29. + +[352:1] Maitland, p. 14. + +[352:2] Maitland, pp. 33, 41, 43, 170. + +[352:3] "Philosophumena," book ix. + +[352:4] As Carthage now furnished Rome with marble and granite, it is +probable that the quarrymen and sand-diggers of the catacombs came +frequently into contact with the Carthaginian sailors; and we may thus +see how, in the time of Cyprian, there were such facilities for +epistolary intercourse between the Churches of Rome and Carthage. Under +favourable circumstances, the mariner could accomplish the voyage +between the two ports in two or three days. + +[353:1] "Philosophumena," book ix. Tertullian corroborates the charges +of Hippolytus. See "De Pudicitia," cap. i. + +[353:2] We know, however, that, long after this period, married bishops +were to be found almost everywhere. One of the most eminent martyrs in +the Diocletian persecution was a bishop who had a wife and children. See +Eusebius, viii. c.9. Clemens Romanus, reputed one of the early bishops +of the Western capital, speaks as a married man. See his "Epistle to the +Corinthians," § 21. + +[353:3] Maitland, pp. 191-193. These inscriptions may be found also in +Aringhi, i. 421, 419. + +[353:4] Aringhi, ii. pp. 228; Rome, 1651. + +[354:1] Cyprian to Antonianus, Epist. lii, p. 151. + +[355:1] Cyprian speaks of "the blessed martyrs, Cornelius and Lucius." +Epist. lxvii. p. 250. + +[355:2] See Cyprian's "Epistle to Successus," where it is stated that +"Xystus was martyred in the cemetery [the catacombs] on the eighth of +the Ides of August, and with him four deacons." + +[355:3] This fragment may be found in Euseb. vi. 43. + +[355:4] For an account of their duties see Period II. sec. iii. chap. x. + +[355:5] According to some manuscripts, there were, not forty-six, but +forty-two presbyters, seven deacons, seven sub-deacons, and forty-two +acolyths. At a later period, we find three presbyters connected with +each Roman church. There were fourteen regions in the city, and +supposing a congregation in each, there would now be three presbyters, +one deacon or sub-deacon, and three acolyths belonging to each church. +See Blondel's "Apologia," p. 224. + +[356:1] Cornelius (Euseb. vi. 43) calls him "a malicious beast," but he +evidently writes under a feeling of deep mortification. + +[357:1] Firmilian, "Cypriani Epistolae," lxxv. + +[357:2] Matt. xvi. 16-18. + +[357:3] John i. 42. + +[357:4] See 1 Pet. ii. 5. Peter adds, as if to illustrate Matt. xvi. +18--"Wherefore also it is contained in the Scripture--Behold I lay in +Zion _a chief corner stone_, elect, precious; _and he that believeth on +him shall not be confounded_." 1 Pet. ii. 6. + +[358:1] Matt. vii. 24, 25. + +[358:2] See Tertullian, "De Praescrip." xxii.; and Cyprian to Cornelius, +Epist. lv. p. 178, where he says--"Petrus, tamen, super quem aedificuta +ab eodem Domino fuerat ecclesia." See also the same epistle, pp. 182, +183, and many other passages. + +[358:3] Thus, Cyprian in his letter to Quintus (Epist. lxxi. p. 273) +makes the following awkward attempt to get over the difficulty:--"Nam +nec Petrus, _quem primum Dominus elegit, et super quem aedificavit +ecclesiam suam,_ cum secum Paulus de circumcisione postmodum +disceptaret, vindicavit sibi aliquid insolenter aut arroganter +assumpsit, _ut diceret se primatum tenere et obtemperari a novellis et +posteris sibi potius oportere_." + +[359:1] A.D. 325. + +[359:2] The Suburbicarian Provinces comprehended the three islands of +Sicily, Corsica, and Sardinia, and the whole of the southern part of +Italy, including Naples and nearly all the territory now belonging to +Tuscany and the States of the Church. See Bingham, iii. p. 20. + +[359:3] Basil, Ep. 220. + +[360:1] Euseb. vii. 50. + +[360:2] Thus we read of "the blessed Pope Cyprian," bishop of Carthage. +Cyprian, Epist. ii. p. 25. The name was sometimes given to the head of a +monastery. In the catacombs there was found an inscription probably to +the memory of a Pope of this description. See Maitland, p. 185. See also +Routh's "Reliquiae," iii. pp. 256, 265. + +[360:3] See Bower, "Marcellus," 29th Bishop. + +[360:4] That is, from the autumn of A.D. 304 to the spring of A.D. 308. +See Burton's "Lectures on the Ecc. Hist, of the First Three Cent." ii. +p. 433. + +[361:1] In the life of Marcellus we read of so many places of worship in +Rome. See "Hist. Platinae De Vitis Pontif. Roman," p. 40, Coloniae, +1593. Optatus speaks of forty churches in Rome at this time; but he is +probably mistaken as to the date. There may have been so many after the +establishment of Christianity by Constantine. There were only fifty +churches in the Western capital in the beginning of the fifth century. +See Neander, i. 276; Edit. Edinburgh, 1847. + +[362:1] In Matt. xvi. 18. Opera, tom. ii. p. 344; Edit. Eton, 1612. + +[362:2] In Joh. i. 50. Opera, tom. ii. p. 637; Edit. Eton, 1612. + +[362:3] "In Johann. Evang. Tractat." 124, § 5. Opera, tom. ix. c. 572. +Augustine had before held the more fashionable view. See "Barrow on the +Pope's Supremacy," by Dr M'Crie, p. 78. + +[365:1] The references in this work to the Apostolic Fathers by +Cotelerius are to the Amsterdam Edition, folio, 1724. + +[365:2] This is the date assigned to it by Bunsen. "Hippolytus," i. 309. +It is not probable that Polycarp was at the head of the eldership of +Smyrna much earlier. See Period II. sec. iii. chap, v., note. + +[365:3] According to Ussher in A.D. 169. + +[365:4] See Pearson's "Minor Works," ii. 531. + +[366:1] The original narrative may be found in the Dialogue with Trypho. + +[366:2] The references to Justin in this work are to the Paris folio +edition of 1615. + +[367:1] He afterwards became the founder of a sect noted for its austere +discipline. His followers used water, instead of wine, at the +celebration of the Lord's Supper. They lived in celibacy, and observed +rigorous fasts. + +[367:2] The writer says of the temple (chap. xvi.)--"It is now destroyed +by their (the Jews) enemies, and _the servants of their enemies are +building it up._" Jerusalem was rebuilt by Hadrian about A.D. 135, and +the name Aelia given to it. + +[368:1] Two short letters ascribed to Pius are mentioned Period II. sec. +iii. chap. vii. For a long time Barnabas, the author of the epistle, was +absurdly confounded with the companion of Paul mentioned Acts xiii. 1, +and elsewhere; and Hermas was supposed to be the individual saluted in +Rom. xvi. 14. Hence these two writers have been called, like Polycarp +and others, _Apostolic Fathers_. + +[368:2] Eusebius, who has preserved a few fragments of this author, +describes him as a very credulous person. See his "Hist." iii. 39. + +[368:3] In the text it has not been considered necessary to mention all +the writers, however small their contributions to our ecclesiastical +literature, who appeared during the second and third centuries. Hence, +Melito of Sardis, Caius of Rome, and many others are unnoticed. The +remaining fragments of these early ecclesiastical writers may be found +in Routh's "Reliquiae," and elsewhere. + +[368:4] [Greek: haemôn, tôn en Keltois diatribontôn kai peri barbaron +dialekton to pleiston ascholoumenôn].--_Contra Haereses_, lib. i. Praef. + +[369:1] The references to Irenaeus in this work are to Stieren's edition +of 1853. + +[369:2] Wordsworth has remarked that in the "Philosophumena" of +Hippolytus we have some of the lost text of Irenaeus. St Hippolytus, p. +15. + +[369:3] Such is the testimony of Jerome. See Cave's "Life of Irenaeus." + +[369:4] Euseb. "Hist." iii. 39. + +[369:5] Irenaeus adopted the millenarianism of Papias. + +[370:1] This is evident from his own statements. See his "Apology," c. +18, and "De Spectaculis," c. 19. The references to Tertullian in this +work are either to the edition of Oehler of 1853, or to that of +Rigaltius of 1675. + +[370:2] According to some the population of Carthage at this time +amounted to hundreds of thousands. "The intercourse between Carthage and +Rome, on account of the corn trade alone, was probably more regular and +rapid than with any other part of the Empire."--_Milman's Latin +Christianity_, i. p. 47. + +[370:3] See Euseb. ii. 2, 25. + +[370:4] Such is the testimony of Jerome, who asserts farther that the +treatment he received from the clergy of Rome induced him to leave that +city. + +[370:5] Such as the tracts "De Pallio" and "De Jejuniis." + +[371:1] As a choice specimen of his vituperative ability his +denunciation of Marcion may be quoted--"Sed nihil tam barbarum ac triste +apud Pontum quam quod illic Marcion natus est, Scythia tetrior, +Hamaxobio instabilior, Massageta inhumanior, Amazona audacior, nubilo +obscurior, hieme frigidior, gelu fragilior, Istro fallacior, Caucaso +abruptior."--_Adversus Marcionem_, lib. i. c. 1. + +[371:2] Victor of Rome, who was contemporary with Tertullian, is said to +have written in Latin, but the extant letters ascribed to him are +considered spurious. + +[372:1] Such, according to Jerome, was the practice of Cyprian. + +[372:2] He is supposed to have died at an advanced age, but the date of +his demise cannot be accurately determined. Most of his works were +written between A.D. 194 and A.D. 217. + +[372:3] The part of the work "Adversus Judaeos," from the beginning of +the ninth chapter, is taken chiefly from the third book of the Treatise +against Marcion, and has apparently been added by another hand. + +[374:1] "Admonitio ad Gentes," Opera, p. 69. Edit. Coloniae, 1688. + +[374:2] "Stromata," book v. + +[374:3] See Kaye's "Clement of Alexandria," p. 378. + +[374:4] Period II. sec. i. chap. v. p. 344. + +[375:1] Prudentius. See Wordsworth's "Hippolytus," p. 106-112. + +[377:1] He had acted literally as described, Matt, xix. 12. + +[377:2] Euseb. vi. 3. + +[377:3] Euseb. vi. 21. + +[378:1] He says Celsus lived in the reign of Hadrian and afterwards. +"Contra Celsum," i. § 8; Opera, tom. i. p. 327. The references to Origen +in this work are to the edition of the Benedictine Delarue, 4 vols. +folio. Paris, 1733-59. + +[379:1] The three other Greek versions were those of Aquila, of +Symmachus, and of Theodotion. + +[379:2] Origen, in his writings, repeatedly refers to Philo by name. See +Opera, i. 543. + +[379:3] See Euseb. ii. c. 17. + +[380:1] Thus he declares-"The prophets indicating what is wise +concerning the circumstances of our generation, say that sacrifice is +offered for sin, _even the sin of those newly born_ as not free from +sin, for it is written--'I was shapen in wickedness, and in sin did my +mother conceive me.'"--_Contra Celsum_, vii. § 50. + +[380:2] He held, however, that Satan is to be excepted from the general +salvation. See "Epist. ad Amicos Alexandrinos," Opera, i. p. 5. + +[381:1] See Sage's "Vindication of the Principles of the Cyprianic Age," +p. 348. London, 1701. + +[382:1] In the case of these epistles, much confusion arises, in the way +of reference, from their various arrangement by different editors. The +references in this work to Cyprian are to the edition of Baluzius, +folio, Venice, 1728. Baluzius, in the arrangement of the letters, adopts +the same order as Pamelius, but Epistle II. of the latter is Epistle I. +of the former, and so on to Epistle XXIII. of Pamelius, which is Epistle +XXII. of the other. Baluzius here conforms exactly to the numeration of +the preceding editor by making Epistle XXIV. immediately follow Epistle +XXII., so that from this to the end of the series the same references +apply equally well to the work of either. The numeration of the Oxford +edition of Bishop Fell is, with a few exceptions, quite different. + +[382:2] Mr Shepherd has completely failed in his attempt to disprove the +genuineness of these writings. They are as well attested as any other +documents of antiquity. + +[383:1] See Period II. sec. i. chap. ii. p. 302, note. + +[383:2] It has not been thought necessary in this chapter to notice +either _Arnobius_, an African rhetorician, who wrote seven Books against +the Gentiles; or the Christian Cicero, _Lactantius_, who is said to have +been his pupil. Both these authors appeared about the end of the period +embraced in this history, and consequently exerted little or no +influence during the time of which it treats. + +[384:1] His life was written by Gregory Nyssen about a century after his +death. + +[385:1] See a preceding note in this chapter, p. 367. + +[385:2] Matt. x. 29. + +[385:3] Scorpiace, c. ix. + +[385:4] Stromata, book iii. + +[385:5] Matt, xviii. 20. + +[385:6] "For," says he, "from the first hour to the third, a trinity of +number is manifested; from the fourth on to the sixth, is another +trinity; and in the seventh closing with the ninth, a perfect trinity is +numbered, in spaces of three hours."-_On the Lord's Prayer_, p. 426. + +[386:1] "Contra Celsum," v. § 11. + +[386:2] Theophilus to Autolycus, lib. ii. § 24. + +[386:3] In proof of this see his treatise "Contra Celsum," i. 25, also +"Opera," iii. p. 616, and iv. p. 86. + +[386:4] "Contra Haereses," ii. c. xxiv. § 2. See Matt. i. 21. + +[386:5] "Contra Haereses," ii. c. xxxv. 3. He seems to have confounded +_Adonai_ and _Yehovah_. The latter word was regarded by the Jews as the +"unutterable" name. Hence it has been thought that in the Latin version +of Irenaeus we should read "innominabile" for "nominabile." See +Stieren's "Irenaeus," i. 418. + +[386:6] "Paedagogue," book i. See Gen. xxxii. 28. + +[386:7] "Stromata," book v. Sec Gen. xvii. 5. Not a few of these +mistakes may be traced to Philo Judaeus. Thus, this interpretation of +Abraham may be found in his "Questions and Solutions on Genesis," book +iii. 43. + +[386:8] "Apol." ii. p. 88. + +[386:9] "Dialogue with Trypho," Opera, p. 268. + +[386:10] "Apol." ii. p. 76. + +[386:11] "Apol." ii. p. 86. + +[387:1] "Contra Haereses," ii. c. xxii. § 5. + +[387:2] He thus makes His ministry about a year in length. "Adversus +Judaeos," c. viii. + +[387:3] "De Cultu Feminarum," lib. i. c. 2, and lib. ii. c. 10. + +[387:4] See Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 196. See also Warburton's "Divine +Legation of Moses," i. 510. Edit. London, 1837. + +[387:5] "Adversus Hermogenem," c. 35, and "Adversus Praxeam," c. 7. + +[389:1] In 1842, Archdeacon Tattam, who had returned only about three +years before from Egypt, where he had been searching for ancient +manuscripts, set out a second time to that country, under the auspices +of the Trustees of the British Museum, chiefly for the purpose of +endeavouring to procure copies of the Ignatian epistles. On this +occasion he succeeded in obtaining possession of the Syriac copy of the +three letters published by Dr. Cureton in 1845. Shortly before the +Revolution of 1688, Robert Huntingdon, afterwards Bishop of Raphoe, and +then chaplain to the British merchants at Aleppo, twice undertook a +voyage to Egypt in quest of copies of the Ignatian epistles. On one of +these occasions he visited the monastery in the Nitrian desert in which +the letters were recently found. + +[390:1] Of the writers who have taken a prominent part in the Ignatian +controversy we may particularly mention Ussher, Vossius, Hammond, +Daillé, Pearson, Larroque, Rothe, Baur, Cureton, Hefele, and Bunsen. + +[390:2] Matt, xviii. 2-4; Mark ix. 36. + +[390:3] There has been a keen controversy respecting the accentuation of +[Greek: Theophoros]. Those who place the accent on the antepenult +([Greek: Theó'phoros]) give it the meaning mentioned in the test; whilst +others, placing the accent on the penult ([Greek: Theophó'ros]), +understand by it _God-bearing_, the explanation given in the "Acts of +the Martyrdom of Ignatius." See Daillé, "De Scriptis quae sub Dionysii +Areop. et Ignatii Antioch. nom. circumferuntur," lib. ii. c. 25; and +Pearson's "Vindiciae Ignatianae," pars. sec. cap. xii. + +[391:1] Cave reckons that at the time of his martyrdom he was probably +"above fourscore years old." See his "Life of Ignatius." + +[391:2] See Period II. sec. in. chap. v. Evodius is commonly represented +as the first bishop of Antioch. + +[392:1] "Fuerunt alii similis amentiae: quos, quia cives Romani erant, +annotavi in Urbem remittendos."--_Plinii_, _Epist_. lib. x. epist. 96. + +[392:2] The Greek says the _ninth_, and the Latin the _fourth_ year. +According to both, the condemnation took place _early_ in the reign of +Trajan. See also the first sentence of the "Acts." In his translation of +these "Acts," Wake, regardless of this statement, and in opposition to +all manuscript authority, represents the sentence as pronounced "in the +_nineteenth_ year" of Trajan. + +[392:3] See Jacobson's "Patres Apostolici," ii. p. 504. See also +Greswell's "Dissertations," vol. iv. p. 422. It is evident that the date +in the "Acts" cannot be the mistake of a transcriber, for in the same +document the martyrdom is said to have occurred when Sura and Synecius +were consuls. These, as Greswell observes, were actually consuls "in the +_ninth_ of Trajan." Greswell's "Dissertations," iv. p. 416. Hefele, +however, has attempted to show that Trajan was really in Antioch about +this time. See his "Pat. Apost. Opera Prolegomena," p. 35. Edit. +Tubingen, 1842. + +[393:1] "Acts of his Martyrdom," § 8. + +[393:2] He is said, when at Smyrna, to have been visited by a deputation +from the Magnesians. But had notice been sent to them as soon as he +arrived at Smyrna, the messenger would have required three days to +perform the journey; and had the Magnesians set out instantaneously, +they must have occupied three days more in travelling to him. Thus, +notwithstanding all the precipitation with which he was hurried along, +he could scarcely have been less than a week in Smyrna. See "Corpus +Ignatianum," pp. 326, 327. + +[394:1] "He was _pressed_ by the soldiers to _hasten_ to the public +spectacles at great Rome." "And the _wind continuing favourable_ to us, +in one day and night we were _hurried_ on."--_Acts of his Martyrdom_, § +10, 11. + +[394:2] Philadelphia is distant from Troas about two hundred miles. +"Corpus Ignatianum," pp. 331, 332. Here, then, is another difficulty +connected with this hasty journey. How could a deputation from +Philadelphia meet Ignatius in Troas, as some allege they did, if he did +not stop a considerable time there? See other difficulties suggested by +Dr Cureton. "Cor. Ignat." p. 332. + +[395:1] Such is the opinion maintained by the celebrated Whiston in his +"Primitive Christianity." More recently Meier took up nearly the same +position. + +[395:2] See Preface to the "Corpus Ignatianum," p. 4. + +[395:3] Published in 1849. In 1846 he published his "Vindiciae +Ignatianae; or the Genuine Writings of St Ignatius, as exhibited in the +ancient Syriac version, vindicated from the charge of heresy." + +[396:1] In 1847 another copy of the Syriac version of the three epistles +was deposited in the British Museum, and since, Sir Henry Rawlinson is +said to have obtained a third copy at Bagdad. See "British Quarterly" +for October 1855, p. 452. + +[396:2] Dr Lee, late Regius Professor of Hebrew in Cambridge, Chevalier +Bunsen, and other scholars of great eminence, have espoused the views of +Dr Cureton. + +[396:3] By Archbishop Ussher in 1644, and by Vossius in 1646. + +[396:4] Such was the opinion of Ussher himself. "Concludimus ... nullas +omni ex parte sinceras esse habendas et genuinas." Dissertation prefixed +to his edition of "Polycarp and Ignatius," chap. 18. + +[397:1] Pearson was occupied six years in the preparation of this work. +The publication of Daillé, to which it was a reply, appeared in 1666. +Daillé died in 1670, at the advanced age of seventy-six. The work of +Pearson did not appear until two years afterwards, or in 1672. The year +following he received the bishopric of Chester as his reward. + +[397:2] "In the whole course of my inquiry respecting the Ignatian +Epistles," says Dr Cureton, "_I have never met with one person who +professes to have read Bishop Pearson's celebrated book_; but I was +informed by one of the most learned and eminent of the present bench of +bishops, that Porson, after having perused the 'Vindiciae,' had +expressed to him his opinion that it was a 'very unsatisfactory +work.'"--_Corpus Ignat._, Preface, pp. 14, 15, note. Bishop Pearson's +work is written in Latin. + +[397:3] The "Three Epistles" edited by Dr Cureton contain only about the +_one-fourth_ of the matter of the seven shorter letters edited by +Ussher. + +[398:1] Dr Cureton has shewn that even the learned Jerome must have +known very little of these letters. "Corpus Ignat.", Introd. p. 67. + +[398:2] Euseb. iii. c. 36. + +[399:1] Euseb. i. c. 13. + +[399:2] "Corpus Ignatianum," Introd. p. 71. + +[399:3] Proleg. in "Cantic. Canticorum," and Homil. vi. in "Lucam." + +[399:4] In the Epistle to the Romans, and the Epistle to the Ephesians. + +[399:5] He quotes the words--"I am not an incorporeal demon," from the +"Doctrine of Peter;" but they are found in the shorter recension of the +seven letters in the "Epistle to the Smyrnaeans," § 3. Had this epistle +been known to him, he would certainly have quoted from an apostolic +father rather than from a work which he knew to be spurious. See Origen, +"Opera," i. p. 49, note. + +[400:1] "Opera," ii. 20, 21; iii. 271. + +[400:2] See Period II. sec. ii. chap. i. p. 367. Origen, "Opera," iv. +473. + +[400:3] Ibid. p. 368. + +[400:4] "Opera," i. 79; iv. 683. + +[400:5] "Contra Haereses," lib. v. c. 28, § 4. "Quidam de nostris dixit, +propter martyrium in Deum adjudicatus ad bestias: Quoniam frumentum sum +Christi, et per dentes bestiarum molor, ut mundus panis Dei inveniar." + +[401:1] Thus he speaks of "Saturninus, who was from Antioch." "Contra +Haereses," lib. i. c. 24, § 1. + +[401:2] It seems to have been soon translated into Syriac. See Bunsen's +"Hippolytus," iv. Preface, p. 8. + +[401:3] See large extracts from this letter in Euseb. v. c. i. Also +Routh's "Reliquiae," i. 329. + +[402:1] Irenaeus, "Contra Haereses," lib. iii. c. 2, § 1, 2. + +[402:2] Lib. iii. c. 3, § 3. + +[402:3] Lib. iii. c. iii. § 4. + +[402:4] Lib. v. c. xxxiii. § 3, 4. + +[402:5] Lib. iv. c. vi. § 2. + +[402:6] In his "Vindiciae," (Pars. i. cap. 6,) Pearson attempts to parry +this argument by urging that Irenaeus does not mention other writers, +such as Barnabas, Quadratus, Aristidus, Athenagoras, and Theophilus. But +the reply is obvious--1. These writers were occupied chiefly in +defending Christianity against the attacks of paganism, so that +testimonies against heresy could not be expected in their works. 2. None +of them were so early as Ignatius, so that their testimony, even could +it have been obtained, would have been of less value. Some of them, such +as Theophilus, were the contemporaries of Irenaeus. 3. None of them held +such an important position in the Church as Ignatius. + +[403:1] He was martyred A.D. 167, at the age of eighty-six. According to +the Acts of his Martyrdom, Ignatius was martyred sixty years before, or +A.D. 107. Polycarp must, therefore, have been now about twenty-six. See +more particularly Period II. sec. ii. chap. v. note. + +[403:2] Sec. 4. + +[403:3] Secs. 5, 6. + +[403:4] Sec. 11. + +[403:5] Sec. 3. + +[404:1] [Greek: ou monon en tois makariois Ignatiô, kai Zôsimô, kai +Rouphô, alla kai en allois tois ex humôn].--§ 9. + +[404:2] See Baronius, "Annal. ad Annum." 109, tom. ii. c. 48, and +Jacobson's "Pat. Apost." ii. 482, note 6. Edit. Oxon., 1838. + +[405:1] Epist. xxxiv. p. 109. + +[405:2] "Scripsistis mihi, et vos et Ignatius, ut si quis vadit ad +Syriam, deferat literas meas quas fecero ad vos." The Greek of Eusebius +is somewhat different, but may express the same sense. See Euseb. iii. +36. There is an important variation even in the readings of Eusebius. +See Cotelerius, vol. ii. p. 191, note 3. + +[405:3] Thus Bunsen, in his "Ignatius von Antiochen und seine Zeit," +says--"At the present stand-point of the criticism of Ignatius, this +passage can only be a witness against itself." And, again--"The forger +of Ignatius has interpolated this passage." And, again--"The connexion +is entirely broken by that interpolation." (Pp. 108, 109.) Viewed as a +postscript, it is not remarkable that the transition should be somewhat +abrupt. + +[405:4] "Et de ipso Ignatio, et de his qui cum eo sunt, quod certius +agnoveritis, significate." + +[406:1] See the "Acts of his Martyrdom," § 10, 12. + +[406:2] See this "Epistle," § 1, 9. + +[406:3] "Epistolas sane Ignatii, quae transmissae sunt vobis ab eo, et +alias, quantascunque apud nos habuimus, transmisimus vobis." According +to the Greek of Eusebius we should read "The letters of Ignatius which +were sent _to us_ ([Greek: hêmin]) by him." Either reading is alike +perplexing to the advocates of the Syriac version of the Ignatian +epistles. See Jacobson, ii. 489, not. 5. + +[406:4] See a preceding note, p. 405. + +[407:1] It would seem that only two Greek copies are known to exist, +both wanting the concluding part. See Cotelerius, vol. ii. p. 186, +note 1. + +[407:2] It is not easy to understand the meaning of the passage--"Si +habuerimus tempus opportunum, sive ego, seu legatus quem misero pro +vobis." Some words seem to be wanting to complete the sense. + +[407:3] [Greek: Smurnan] for [Greek: Surian]. In the beginning of the +Epistle from Smyrna concerning Polycarp's martyrdom, the Church is said +to be--[Greek: hê paroikousa Smurnan.] The very same mistake has been +made in another case. Thus, in an extract published by Dr Cureton from a +Syriac work, Polycarp is called Bishop in _Syria_, instead of in Smyrna. +See "Corpus Ignatianum," p. 220, line 5 from the foot. Such mistakes in +manuscripts are of very frequent occurrence. See "Corpus Ignatianum," +pp. 278, 300. A more extraordinary blunder, which long confounded +the critics, has been recently corrected by Dr Wordsworth. See his +"St. Hippolytus," pp. 318, 319, Appendix. + +[409:1] Pearson alleges that the reason why Tertullian does not quote +Ignatius against the heretics was because he did not require his +testimony! He had, forsooth, apostolic evidence. "Quasi vero Ignatii +testimonio opus esset ad eam rem, cujus testem Apostolum habuit." +"Vindiciae," Pars. prima, caput. xi. He finds it convenient, however, to +mention Hermas, Clement of Rome, Justin Martyr, and many others. + +[409:2] See also in Euseb. v. 28, a long extract from a work against the +heresy of Artemon in which various early writers, who asserted that +"Christ is God and man," are named, and Ignatius omitted. + +[409:3] See Neander's "General History," by Torrey, i. 455. Octavo +Edition Edinburgh, 1847. See also Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 415. + +[409:4] The number of spurious writings which appeared in the early ages +was very great. Shortly after the date mentioned in the text it is well +known that an individual named Leucius forged the Acts of John, Andrew, +Peter, and others. See Jones on the "Canon," p. 210, and ii. p. 289. + +[410:1] This is a literal translation of part of the superscription of +the letter as given by Dr Cureton himself in his "Epistles of Saint +Ignatius," p. 17. In the "Corpus Ignatianum" he has somewhat weakened +the strength of the expression by a more free translation--"To her who +_presideth_ in the place of the country of the Romans." "Corp. Ignat." +p. 230. Tertullian speaks ("De Praescrip." c. 36) of the "Apostolic sees +_presiding over their own places_"--referring to an arrangement then +recently made which recognised the precedence of Churches to which +Apostles had ministered. This arrangement, which was unknown in the time +of Ignatius, was suggested by the disturbances and divisions created by +the heretics. Though the words in the text may be quoted in support of +the claims of the bishop of Rome, they do not necessarily imply his +presidency over all Churches, but they plainly acknowledge his position +as at the head of the Churches of Italy. + +[411:1] See Euseb. iii. 36. + +[411:2] See preceding note, p. 406. + +[411:3] "Corpus Ignatianum," Intro, p. 86, note. + +[412:1] See "Corpus Ignatianum," pp. 265, 267, 269, 271, 286. + +[412:2] See Blunt's "Right Use of the Early Fathers." First Series. +Lectures v. and vi. + +[414:1] It would be very unfair to follow up this comparison by speaking +of the Trustees of the British Museum, as the representatives of +hierarchical pride and power, proceeding, like Tarquin at the +instigation of his augurs, to give a high price for the manuscripts. We +believe that these gentlemen have rendered good service to the cause of +truth and literature by the purchase. + +[414:2] Bunsen rather reluctantly admits that the highest literary +authority of the present century, the late Dr Neander, declined to +recognise even the Syriac version of the Ignatian Epistles. See +"Hippolytus and his Age," iv. Preface, p. 26. + +[415:1] See "Corpus Ignat." Introd. p. 51. + +[416:1] Thus, in his "Epistle to the Corinthians," Clemens Romanus, on +one occasion, (§ 16,) quotes the whole of the 53d chapter of Isaiah; +and, on another, (§ 18,) the whole of the 51st Psalm, with the exception +of the last two verses. + +[416:2] How different from the course pursued by Clement of Rome and by +Polycarp! Thus, Clement says to the Corinthians--"Let us do _as it is +written_," and then goes on to quote several passages of Scripture. § +13. Polycarp says--"I trust that ye are well _exercised in the Holy +Scriptures_" and then proceeds, like Clement, to make some quotations. +§ 12. + +[416:3] Phil. iii. 3. + +[416:4] Eph. vi. 17. + +[416:5] Heb. xii. 1, 2. + +[416:6] "Epistle to Polycarp." Lest the plain English reader should +believe that the folly of the original is exaggerated in the +translation, I beg to say that, here and elsewhere, the English version +of Dr Cureton is given word for word. + +[417:1] Sec. 8. + +[417:2] See Period II. sec. ii. chap. ii. p. 403. + +[417:3] Epistle to Philemon, 10. + +[418:1] See Daillé, lib. ii. c. 13. p. 316. + +[418:2] According to some accounts, Timothy presided over the Church of +Ephesus until nearly the close of the first century, when he was +succeeded by Gaius. See Daillé, ii. c. 13. Some attempt to get over the +difficulty by alleging that there was a _second_ Onesimus in Ephesus, +who succeeded Gaius, but of this there is no evidence whatever. The +writer who thought that Ignatius had been at school with Polycarp, also +believed, and with greater reason, that he was contemporary with the +Onesimus of the New Testament. + +[418:3] "Epistle to the Romans." + +[419:1] Euseb. v. 21. + +[419:2] See Period II. sec. i. chap. v. p. 354. + +[419:3] Paul was certainly at Rome before Peter, and according to the +reading of some copies of Irenaeus, in the celebrated passage, lib. iii. +c. 3. § 2, the Church of Rome is said to have been founded by "Paul and +Peter" (see Stieren's "Irenaeus," i. 428); but Ignatius here uses the +style of expression current in the third century, and speaks of "Peter +and Paul." + +[419:4] In the Epistle to Polycarp, Ignatius says, "If a man be able in +strength _to continue in chastity_, (i.e. celibacy,) _for the honour of +the body of our Lord_, let him continue without boasting." Here the word +in the Greek is [Greek: hagneia]. But this word is applied in the New +Testament to Timothy, who may have been "the husband of one wife." See 1 +Tim. iv, 12, and v. 2. It is also applied by Polycarp, in his Epistle, +to married women. "Let us teach your (or our) wives to walk in the faith +that is given to them, both _in love and purity_" ([Greek: agapê kai +hagneia]).--_Epistle to the Philippians_, § 4. See also "The Shepherd of +Hermas," book ii. command. 4; Cotelerius, i. 87. + +[420:1] This is very evident from the recently discovered work of +Hippolytus, as well as from other writers of the same period. See +Bunsen's "Hippolytus," i. p. 312. + +[420:2] Euseb. vii. 30. + +[420:3] Some have supposed that this was the church of Antioch, but it +is not likely that Paul would have cared to retain the church when +deserted by the people. Besides, the building is called, not the church, +but "the house of the Church" ([Greek: tês ekklêsias oikos]). + +[420:4] If the reading adopted by Junius, and others, of a passage in +the 4th chapter of his Epistle be correct, Polycarp must have been a +married man, and probably had a family. "Let us teach our wives to walk +in the faith that is given to them, both in love and purity,.... and _to +bring up their children_ in the instruction and fear of the Lord." See +Jacobson's "Pat. Apost." ii. 472, note. + +[421:1] Period II. sec. iii. chap. vii. + +[421:2] See his "Epistle to the Corinthians," c. 42, 44, 47, 54. + +[421:3] See Westcott on the "Canon," pp. 262, 264, 265. + +[421:4] "In the estimation of those able and apostolical men who, in the +second century, prepared the Syriac version of the New Testament for the +use of some of the Oriental Churches, the _bishop and presbyter_ of the +apostolic ordination were _titles of the same individual_. Hence in +texts wherein the Greek word _episcopos_, 'bishop,' occurs, it is +rendered in their version by the Syriac word '_Kashisha_,' +presbyter."--_Etheridge's Syrian Churches and Gospels_, pp. 102, 103. + +[421:5] The use of the word _catholic_ in the "Seven Epistles," edited +by Ussher, is sufficient to discredit them. See "Epist. to Smyrnaeans," +§ 8. The word did not come into use until towards the close of the +second century. See Period II. sec. iii, chap, viii., and p. 337, note. + +[422:1] "Epistle to the Ephesians." + +[422:2] Daillé has well observed--"Funi Dei quidem verbum, ministerium, +beneficia non inepte comparaveris; Spiritum vero, qui his, ut sic dicam, +divinae benignitatis funiculis, ad nos movendos et attrahendos utitur, +ipsi illi quo utitur, funi comparare, ab omni ratione alienum +est."--Lib. ii. c. 27, pp. 409, 410. + +[422:3] Col. ii. 18. + +[423:1] "Epistle to the Ephesians." + +[423:2] Matt. xxvi. 39. + +[423:3] John xxi. 18. + +[423:4] 2 Tim. iv. 17. + +[424:1] We have here an additional and very clear proof that Polycarp, +in his Epistle, is not referring to Ignatius of Antioch. Instead of +pronouncing the letters now current as treating "of faith and +_patience_, and of all things that pertain to edification," he would +have condemned them as specimens of folly, impatience, and presumption. +Dr Cureton seems to think that, because Ignatius was an old man, he was +at liberty to throw away his life ("Corp. Ignat." p. 321); but Polycarp +was still older, and he thought differently. + +[424:2] Sec. 4. + +[424:3] See "Corpus Ignatianum," p. 253. + +[424:4] The reader is to understand that all the extracts given in the +text are from the Syriac version of the "Three Epistles." + +[425:1] "Epistle to the Ephesians." + +[425:2] "Epistle to the Romans." Pearson can see nothing but the +perfection of piety in all this. "In quibus nihil putidum, nihil +odiosum, nihil _inscitè_ aut _imprudenter_ scriptum est." ... "Omnia cum +pia, legitima, praeclara."--_Vindiciae_, pars secunda, c. ix. + +[425:3] From A.D. 208 to A.D. 258. + +[425:4] Thus in the "Acts of Paul and Thecla," fabricated about the +beginning of the third century, Thecla says--"Give me the seal of +Christ, (_i.e._ baptism,) and _no temptation shall touch me_," (c. 18.) +See Jones on the "Canon of the New Testament," ii. p. 312. + +[426:1] "Epistle to Polycarp." + +[426:2] 1 Cor. xiii. 3. + +[426:3] See Blunt's "Early Fathers," p. 237. See also Origen's +"Exhortation to Martyrdom," § 27, 30, 50. + +[426:4] According to Dr Lee, a strenuous advocate for the Syriac version +of the "Three Epistles," _this translation_, as he supposes it to be, +was made "not later perhaps than the close of the second, or beginning +of the _third century_." "Corpus Ignat." Introd. p. 86, note. Dr Cureton +occasionally supplies strong presumptive evidence that the translation +has been made, not from Greek into Syriac, but from Syriac into Greek. +"Cor. Ignat." p. 278. + +[426:5] Though Milner, in his "History of the Church of Christ," quotes +these letters so freely, he seems to have scarcely turned his attention +to the controversy respecting them. Hence he intimates that Ussher +reckoned _seven_ of them genuine, though it is notorious that the +Primate of Armagh rejected the Epistle to Polycarp. (See Milner, cent. +ii. chap, i.) Others, as well as Milner, who have written respecting +these Epistles, have committed similar mistakes. Thus, Dr Elrington, +Regius Professor of Divinity in Trinity College, Dublin, the recent +editor of "Ussher's Works," when referring to the Primate's share in +this controversy, speaks of "the recent discovery of a Syriac version of +_four_ Epistles by Mr Cureton!" "Life of Ussher," p. 235, note. + +[428:1] "Instit." lib. i. c. xiii. § 29. + +[429:1] See Bunsen's "Hippolytus," i. p. 27. + +[430:1] Period I. sec. ii. chap, iii. pp. 202, 203. + +[430:2] See Tertullian, "Adversus Hermogenem," c. x. and iv. + +[430:3] [Greek: gnôsis]. + +[431:1] Ps. cxiii. 6. + +[431:2] See Tertullian, "Adversus Marcionem," lib. i. c. 2. About this +time many works were written on the subject. Eusebius mentions a +publication by Irenaeus, "On Sovereignty, or on the Truth that _God is +not the Author of Evil_," and another by Maximus on "_The Origin of +Evil_." Euseb. v. 20, 27. + +[431:3] Irenaeus, "Contra Haeres." lib. i. c. 24, § 7. + +[433:1] Irenaeus, lib. i. c. 24. According to Clemens Alexandrinus, +Basilides flourished in the reigns of Hadrian and Antoninus Pius. +"Stromata," lib. vii. Opera, p. 764. + +[433:2] [Greek: Buthos kai ennoia, nous kai alêtheia, logos kai zôê]. + +[433:3] According to some, Valentine was the disciple of Marcion. +Clemens Alexandrinus states that Marcion was his senior. "Strom." lib. +viii. Tertullian says expressly that Valentine was at one time the +disciple of Marcion. "De Carne Christi," c. 1. + +[434:1] See Neander's "General History," by Torrey, ii. pp. 171, 174, +notes. + +[434:2] See Kaye's "Clement of Alexandria," pp. 316, 317. + +[435:1] The Ophites carried this feeling so far as to maintain that the +serpent which deceived Eve was no other than the divine Aeon Sophia, or +Wisdom, who thus weakened the power of Ialdabaoth, or the Demiurge. + +[435:2] See Mosheim, "De Caussis Suppositorum Librorum inter Christianos +Saeculi Primi et Secundi." "Dissert, ad Hist. Eccl. Pertin." vol. i. +221. + +[437:1] His great text was Rev. xx. 6, 7. Hence some now began to +dispute the authority of the Apocalypse. + +[437:2] Others, who do not appear to have been connected with Montanus, +but who lived about the same time, held the same views on the subject of +marriage. Thus, Athenagoras says--"A second marriage is by us esteemed a +specious adultery."--_Apology_, § 33. + +[437:3] "Nam idem (Praxeas) tunc Episcopum Romanum, agnoscentem jam +prophetias Montani, Priseae, Maximillae, et ex ea agnitione pacem +ecclesiis Asiae et Phrygiae inferentem, falsa de ipsis prophetis et +ecclesiis eorum adseverando et praecessorum ejus auctoritates defendendo +coegit et litteras pacis revocare jam emissas et a proposito +recipiendorum charismatum concessare."--_Tertullian, Adv. Praxean._, c. i. + +[438:1] Euseb. v. 16. + +[438:2] It would appear, however, that it maintained a lingering +existence for several centuries. Even Justinian, about A.D. 530, enacts +laws against the Montanists or Tertullianists. + +[438:3] Isaiah xlv. 5, 7. + +[439:1] Augustin, "Contra Epist. Fundamenti," c. 13. + +[439:2] On the ground that their oil is _the food of light_! Schaff's +"History of the Christian Church," p. 249. + +[441:1] We find Tertullian, after he became a Montanist, dwelling on the +distinction of venial and mortal sins. See Kaye's "Tertullian," pp. 255, +339. + +[441:2] Rom. vi. 23. + +[442:1] 1 Thess. v. 22. + +[442:2] James i. 15. + +[442:3] See Cudworth's "Intellectual System," with Notes by Mosheim, +iii. p. 297. Edition, London, 1845. + +[442:4] See Hagenbach's "History of Doctrines," i. p. 218. + +[442:5] See Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 348. + +[442:6] The doctrine of Purgatory, as now held, was not, however, fully +recognised until the time of Gregory the Great, or the beginning of the +seventh century. + +[443:1] See Mosheim's "Institutes," by Soames, i. 166. + +[443:2] Marcion, it appears, declined to baptize those who were married. +"Non tinguitur apud illum caro, nisi virgo, nisi vidua, nisi caelebs, +nisi divortio baptisma mercata."--_Tertullian, Adver. Marcionem_, lib. +i. c. 29. + +[443:3] See Neander's "General History," ii. 253. + +[443:4] In the "Westminster Review" for October 1856, there is an +article on _Buddhism_, written, indeed, in the anti-evangelical spirit +of that periodical, but containing withal much curious and important +information. + +[444:1] Col. ii. 23. + +[446:1] The most remarkable instance of this is the condemnation of the +word [Greek: homoousios], as applied to our Lord, by the Synod of +Antioch in A.D. 269. It is well known that the very same word was +adopted in A.D. 325, by the Council of Nice as the symbol of orthodoxy; +and yet these two ecclesiastical assemblies held the same views. See +also, as to the application of the word [Greek: hupostauis], Burton's +"Ante-Nicene Testimonies," p. 129. + +[446:2] "The inference to be drawn from a comparison of different +passages scattered through Tertullian's writings is, that the Apostle's +Creed in its present form was not known to him as a summary of faith; +but that the various clauses of which it is composed were generally +received as articles of faith by orthodox Christians."--_Kaye's +Tertullian_, p. 324. + +[446:3] These may be found in Routh's "Reliquiae." Eusebius has +preserved many of them. + +[447:1] "Si quis legat Scripturas.....et erit consummatus discipulus, et +similis patrifamilias, qui de thesauro suo profert nova et +vetera."--_Irenaeus_, iv. c. 26, § i. + +[447:2] "Ubi fomenta fidei de scripturarum interjectione?"--_Tertullian, +Ad Uxorem_, lib. ii. c. 6. + +[447:3] As in the case of Origen. In the Didascalia we meet with the +following directions--"Teach then your children the word of the +Lord..... Teach them to write, and to read the Holy Scriptures." +--_Ethiopic Didascalia, by Platt_, p. 130. + +[447:4] Euseb. viii. c. 13. + +[448:1] Clemens Alexandrinus, "Stromata," lib. vii. + +[448:2] Homil. xxxix. on Jer. xliv. 22. + +[448:3] Period I. sec. ii. chap. i. p. 184. + +[448:4] The fathers traced analogies between the four Gospels and the +four cardinal points, the living creatures with four faces, and the four +rivers of Paradise. See Irenaeus, lib. iii. c. xi. § 8; and Cyprian, +Epist. lxxiii., Opera, p. 281. + +[449:1] Such as the Epistle of Barnabas and the Shepherd of Hermas. + +[449:2] See Westcott on the Canon, pp. 452, 453. + +[449:3] "The opinion that falsehood, was allowable, and might even be +necessary to guide the multitude, was," says Neander, "a principle +inbred into the aristocratic spirit of the old world."--_General +History_, ii. p. 72. + +[449:4] Such as the numerous works ascribed to Clemens Romanus, and the +Ignatian Epistles. + +[450:1] Cyprian, Epist. lxxiv. p. 294. + +[450:2] Cyprian, Epist. lxxiv. p. 296. + +[450:3] Cyprian, Epist. lxxiv. p. 294. + +[450:4] The conflicting traditions relative to the time of keeping the +Paschal feast afford a striking illustration of this fact. + +[450:5] See Kaye's "Justin Martyr," p. 75. + +[450:6] "Originis vitium." "Malum igitur animae.... ex originis vitio +antecedit."--_De Anima_, c. 41. Cyprian calls it "contagio antiqua." +"Innovati Spiritu Sancto a sordibus contagionis antiquae."--_De Habitu +Virginum_, cap iv. + +[450:7] "Per quem (Satanan) homo a primordio circumventus, ut praeceptum +Dei excederet, et propterea in mortem datus exinde totum genus de suo +semine infectum suae etiam damnationis traducem fecit."--_De Testimonio +Animae_, c. iii. + +[451:1] "Nothing can be less systematic or less organized than their +notions on this subject; I might say, often even contradictory; such +inconsistency partly, perhaps, arising from the point never having been +canvassed by men with any care, as it eventually was by +controversialists of a later day,... and partly from the embarrassment +of their position; for whilst Scripture and self-experience compelled +them to admit the grievous corruption of our nature, they had +perpetually to contend against a powerful body of heretics, _who made +such corruption the ground for affirming that a world so evil could not +have been created by a good God, but was the work of a Demiurgus_" +--_Blunt's Early Fathers_, pp. 585, 586. + +[451:2] "Paedagogue," lib. i. + +[451:3] See Kaye's "Clement," p. 432. See also the comments of Neander, +"General History," ii. 388. + +[451:4] Pliny's Epistle to Trajan. + +[451:5] See various passages in Justin's Dialogue with Trypho, and in +Origen against Celsus. + +[452:1] Thus Origen says--"We do not pay the _highest worship to Him who +appeared so lately, as to a person who had no previous existence_, for +we believe Him when He says himself--'Before Abraham was, I +am.'"--_Contra Celsum_, viii. § 12. + +[452:1] The origin of this name has been much controverted. It is +probable that it was derived from Ebion, the founder of the sect. See +Period I. sect. ii. chap. iii. p. 206. Among other things the party seem +to have inculcated voluntary poverty. + +[452:3] This passage, which is somewhat obscure as it stands in the +original, has been misinterpreted by Unitarian writers from generation +to generation. The rendering which they commonly give of it makes it +quite inconsistent with the context, and with the statements of Justin +elsewhere. See Kaye's "Justin," p. 51. + +[453:1] Thus Tertullian says, "The only man without sin is Christ, +because Christ is _also God_."--_De Anima_, cap. xli. Justin Martyr +complains that the Jews had expunged from the Septuagint many passages +"wherein it might be clearly shewn that He who was crucified was _both +God and man_."--_Dialogue with Trypho_, § 71. + +[453:2] Euseb. v. 28. + +[454:1] Euseb. v. 27, 30. Epiphanius, "Haer." 65, 1. + +[454:2] The superscription of this epistle is a sufficient refutation of +much of the reasoning of Mr Shepherd against the genuineness of the +Cyprianic correspondence, as here the names of a crowd of bishops are +given without any mention whatever of their sees. + +[454:3] Euseb. vii. 30. + +[454:4] [Greek: trias] or trinitas. + +[454:5] This is, however, by no means clear, as there is nothing in his +works to indicate that he held such a position. + +[454:6] "Ad Autolycum," ii. c. 15. [Greek: tupoi eisin tes Triados]. + +[455:1] Thus Irenaeus says--"There is ever present with Him (the Father) +the Word and _Wisdom_, the Son and _Spirit_."--_Contra Haereses_, iv. +20, § 1. It may here be proper to add that the early Christians +worshipped the third Person of the Trinity. Thus, Hippolytus +says--"Through Him (the Incarnate Word) we form a conception of the +Father; we believe in the Son; _we worship the Holy Ghost_."--_Contra +Noetum_, c. 12. + +[455:2] "Legat. pro. Christianis," c. 10. + +[455:3] "Legat. pro. Christ." c. 12. + +[456:1] "Monarchiam, inquiunt, tenemus."--_Tertullian, Adv. Praxean_, c. +3. + +[456:2] "Athanas de Synodis," c. 7. + +[456:3] Hippolytus, "Philosophumena," book ix. + +[456:4] He flourished about A.D. 220, and was contemporary with +Hippolytus. See Bunsen, i. 131. + +[457:1] Hermias speaks of the Trinity of Plato as "God, and matter, and +example."--Sec. 5. + +[457:2] "Doleo bona fide Platonem omnium haereticorum condimentarium +factum. ... Cum igitur hujusmodi argumento illa insinuentur a Platone +quae haeretici mutuantur, satis haereticos repercutiam, si argumentum +Platonis elidam."--_De Anima_, c. 23. + +[457:3] "Adversus Praxeam," c. 2, 3. + +[458:1] "Paedagogue," book i. c. 5, 6, 11. + +[458:2] Opera, p. 74. + +[458:3] "Paedagogue," book i. c. 1. + +[458:4] "Stromata," book ii. + +[458:5] Justin, Opera, p. 500. + +[459:1] See Kaye's "Clement," pp. 431, 435. + +[459:2] Epist. i. ad Donatum, Opera, p. 3. + +[459:3] The philosophers, according to Justin, maintained a general, but +denied a particular providence. Dial, with Trypho, Opera, p. 218. Some +who call themselves Christians adopt this portion of the pagan theology. + +[460:1] "Non facti solum, verum et voluntatis delicta vitanda, et +poenitentia purganda esse."--_Tertullian, De Paenitentia_, c. iii. + +[460:2] "Hoc enim pretio Dominus veniam addicere instituit."--_Tert. De +Paenit_. c. vi. + +[460:3] Clemens Alexandrinus, "Strom." book vi. + +[460:4] "Sufficiat martyri propria delicta purgasse."--_Tertullian, De +Pudicitia_, c. 22. + +[460:5] See Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 431. Origen speaks of the baptism of +blood (martyrdom) rendering us purer than the baptism of water. Opera, +ii. p. 473. + +[460:6] Epist. lxxvi. Opera, p. 322. + +[460:7] Epist. lv. p. 181. + +[461:1] Ps. cxix 18, 19. + +[463:1] See the Apology of Athenagoras, secs. 3, 10; and Minucius Felix, +c. 10. + +[463:2] "Nostrae columbae etiam domus simplex, in editis semper et +apertis, et ad lucem."--_Tertullian, Advers. Valent._ c. 3. + +[463:3] Life of Alexander Severus, by Lampridius, c. 49. + +[464:1] See Kennett's "Antiquities of Rome," p. 41. + +[464:2] Bingham has proved, by a variety of testimonies, that such was +the order of the ancient service. See his "Origines," iv. 383, 400, 417. +The early Christians thus literally obeyed the commandment--"Come before +his presence with singing;" "_Enter into his gates_ with thanksgiving, +and into his courts with praise."--(Ps. c. 2, 4.). + +[464:3] See 1 Cor. xiv. 26. See also Euseb. v. 28. + +[464:4] At the end of his "Paedagogue." This hymn to the Saviour was +composed by Clement himself. + +[465:1] Euseb. vii. 30. + +[465:2] See Bingham, i. p. 383. Edit. London, 1840. + +[465:3] Chrysostom in Psalm cxlix. See Bingham, ii. 485. + +[466:1] [Greek: hosê dunamis.] See Origen, "Contra Celsum," iii. 1 and +57; Opera, i. 447, 485. + +[466:2] "Apol." ii. p. 98. + +[466:3] "Suspicientes Christiani manibus expansis denique sine monitore, +quia de pectore oramus."--_Apol._ c. 30. The omission of a single word, +when repeating the heathen liturgy, was considered a great misfortune. +Chevallier says, speaking of this expression _sine monitore_--"There is +probably an allusion to the persons who were appointed, at the +sacrifices of the Romans, _to prompt the magistrates_, lest they should +incidentally omit _a single word_ in the appropriate formulae, which +would have vitiated the whole proceedings."--_Translation of the +Epistles of Clement_, &c., p. 411, note. + +[466:4] Opera, i. 267. + +[466:5] See Minucius Felix. + +[466:6] Tertullian, "De Oratione," c. 14. + +[466:7] See Bingham, iv. 324. In prayer the Christians soon began to +turn the face to the east. See Tertullian, "Apol." c. 16. This custom +appears to have been borrowed from the Eastern nations who worshipped +the sun. See Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 408. + +[467:1] Thus Prideaux mentions how the Persian priests, long before the +commencement of our era, approached the sacred fire "to read _the daily +offices of their Liturgy_ before it."--_Connections_, part i., book iv., +vol. i. p. 218. This liturgy was composed by Zoroaster nearly five +hundred years before Christ's birth. + +[467:2] See Clarkson on "Liturgies," and Hartung, "Religion der Romer." +It is remarkable that the old pagan Roman liturgy, in consequence of the +change in the language from the time of its original establishment, +began at length to be almost unintelligible to the people. It thus +resembles the present Romish Liturgy. The pagans believed that their +prayers were more successful when offered up in a barbarous and unknown +language. See Potter's "Antiquities of Greece," i. 288. Edit. Edinburgh, +1818. The Lacedaemonians had a form of prayer from which they never +varied either in public or private. Potter i. 281. + +[467:3] "In the persecutions under Diocletian and his associates, though +a strict inquiry was made after the books of Scripture, and other things +belonging to the Church, which were often delivered up by the +_Traditores_ to be burnt, yet we never read of any ritual books, or +books of divine service, delivered up among them."--_Bingham_, iv. 187. + +[467:4] It is worthy of note that, in modern times, when there is any +great revival of religion, forms of prayer fall into comparative +desuetude even among those by whom they were formerly used. + +[468:1] See Tertullian, "De Oratione," c. 9; and Origen, "De Oratione." + +[468:2] 1 Tim. ii. 2. + +[468:3] Tertullian, "Apol." c. 39. + +[468:4] See Tertullian, "De Praescrip." c. 41. + +[468:5] See Guerike's "Manual of the Antiquities of the Church," by +Morrison, p. 214. + +[468:6] Guerike's "Manual," p. 213. + +[469:1] There is reference to this in the "Apostolic Constitutions," +lib. ii. c. 57. Cotelerius, i. 266. + +[469:2] Euseb. vii. 30. + +[470:1] See Bingham, ii. 212. + +[470:2] Letter from Pius of Rome to Justus of Vienne. + +[470:3] Bingham, ii. 451. + +[470:4] See Period II. sec. i. chap. iii. p. 320. + +[472:1] See the "Epistle of the Church of Smyrna," giving an account of +his martyrdom, § 9. + +[472:2] The Latin version of his words, as given by Jacobson, +is--"Octogesimum jam et sextum _annum aetatis_ ingredior."--_Pat. +Apost._ ii. 565. See also the "Chronicum Alexandrinum" as quoted by +Cotelerius, ii. 194; and Gregory of Tours, "Hist." i. 28. + +[472:3] He is represented as _standing_, when offering up a prayer of +about two hours' length (§ 7), and as _running_ with great speed (§ 8). +Such strength at such an age was extraordinary. The Apostle John is said +to have lived to the age of one hundred; but, towards the close of his +life, he appears to have lost his wonted energy. + +[472:4] "Apol." ii. Opera, p. 62. See Dr Wilson's observations on this +passage in his "Infant Baptism," pp. 447, 448. + +[473:1] Dialogue with Trypho. Opera, p. 261. + +[473:2] There may here be a reference to 1 Cor. vii. 14. + +[473:3] Book ii. c. xxii. § 4. + +[473:4] Thus he says--"Giving to His disciples the power of +_regeneration unto God_, He said to them--Go and teach all nations, +_baptizing_ them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the +Holy Ghost."--Book iii. c. xvii. § 1. Thus, too, he speaks of the +heretics using certain rites "to the rejection of _baptism, which is +regeneration unto God_."--Book i. c. xxi. § 1. Irenaeus here apparently +means that baptism _typically_ is regeneration, in the same way as the +bread and wine in the Eucharist are _typically_ the body and blood of +Christ. + +[474:1] That infant baptism was now practised at Alexandria is apparent +also from the testimony of Clemens Alexandrinus, who, in allusion to +this rite, speaks of "the children that are _drawn up out of the +water_."--Paedag. iii. c. 11. + +[474:2] Hom. xiv. in "Lucam." Opera, iii. 948. See also Opera, ii. 230. +Hom. viii. in "Leviticum." + +[474:3] Comment. in "Epist. ad Roman," lib. v. Opera, iv. 565. + +[475:1] "De Baptismo," c. 18. + +[475:2] Acts ii. 41. + +[475:3] Acts viii. 37, 38; xvi. 31-33. + +[476:1] "_Parents_ were commonly _sponsors for their own children_ ... +and the extraordinary cases in which they were presented by others, were +commonly such cases, where the parent could not, or would not, do that +kind office for them; as when slaves were presented to baptism by their +masters, or children whose parents were dead, were brought, by the +charity of any who would shew mercy on them; or children exposed by +their parents, which were sometimes taken up by the holy virgins of the +Church, and by them presented unto baptism. These are _the only cases_ +mentioned by St Austin in which children seem to have had other +sponsors."--_Bingham_, iii. 552. + +[476:2] Mark x. 14. + +[476:3] Compare Mark x. 13-16 with Luke xviii. 15, 16. + +[477:1] See Acts xvi. 15. + +[477:2] "De Baptismo," c. viii. xvi. + +[477:3] "It would be thought by many a cruelty to place a person +_without his own consent_, and in unconscious infancy, in a situation, +so far, much more disadvantageous than that of those brought up pagans, +that if he did ever--suppose at the age of fifteen or twenty--fall into +any sin, he must remain for the rest of his life--perhaps for above half +a century--deprived of all hope, or at least of all confident hope, of +restoration to the divine favour; shut out from all that cheering +prospect which, if his baptism in infancy _had been omitted_, might have +lain before him."--_Archbishop Whately's Scripture Doctrine concerning +the Sacraments_, p. 11, note. + +[478:1] Acts ii. 38, 39. + +[478:2] Gen. xvii. 12; Lev. xii. 3. + +[479:1] Epist. lix. pp. 211, 212. + +[479:2] Laurentius, a Roman deacon, who flourished about the middle of +the third century, is represented as baptizing one Romanus, a soldier, +in a pitcher of water, and another individual, named Lucillus, by +pouring water upon his head. See Bingham, iii. 599. + +[480:1] Here the validity of the ordinance is made to depend upon the +personal character of the administrator. + +[480:2] Epist. lxxvi. p. 321. + +[480:3] Epist. lxxiv. p. 295. + +[480:4] Epist. lxxvi. p. 317. In like manner Clement of Alexandria +says--"Our transgressions are remitted by one sovereign medicine, the +baptism according to the Word." See Kaye's "Clement," p. 437. + +[480:5] Epist. lxx. p. 269. + +[480:6] Tertullian, "De Baptismo," c. 1. + +[480:7] Cyprian, "Con. Carthag." pp. 600, 602. + +[480:8] See Kaye's "Clement of Alexandria," p. 441, and Tertullian, "De +Corona," c. 3. + +[480:9] Tertullian, "De Baptismo," c. 7. + +[480:10] Tertullian, "De Baptismo," c. 8. + +[481:1] "De Resurrectione Carnis," c. 8. + +[481:2] "In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy +Ghost."--Matt, xxviii. 19. + +[481:3] Bingham, iii. 377. + +[483:1] Rev. xxii. 18, 19. + +[484:1] "Apol." ii. Opera, pp. 97, 98. + +[485:1] In an article on the Roman Catacombs, in the "Edinburgh Review" +for January 1859, the writer observes--"It is apparent from all the +paintings of Christian feasts, whether of the Agapae, or the burial +feasts of the dead, or the Communion of the Holy Sacrament, that they +were celebrated by the early Christians _sitting round a table_." + +[485:2] This calumny created much prejudice against them in the second +century. See Justin Martyr's "Dialogue with Trypho," § 10; and the +"Apology of Athenagoras," § 3. If Pliny refers to the Eucharist when he +speaks of the early Christians as partaking of food together, it is +obvious that they must then have communicated sitting, or in the posture +in which they partook of their ordinary meals. + +[485:3] Tertullian, "De Oratione," c. 14. + +[485:4] See Euseb. vii. 9. + +[485:5] Justin Martyr, "Apol." ii. 98; and Tertullian's "Apol." c. 39. + +[486:1] Epist. lxiii. "To Caecilius," Opera, p. 229. + +[486:2] Larroque's "History of the Eucharist," p. 35. London, 1684. + +[486:3] Cyprian, "De Lapsis," Opera, pp. 375, 381. This was probably the +result of carrying to excess a protest against the Montanist opposition +to infant baptism. Such a reaction often occurs. It was now maintained +that the Lord's Supper, as well as Baptism, should be administered to +infants. + +[486:4] At an earlier period it was dispensed in presence of the +catechumens. See Bingham, iii. p. 380. + +[486:5] "De Oratione Dominica," Opera, p. 421. + +[487:1] See Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 357. + +[487:2] See Gieseler's "Text Book of Ecclesiastical History," by +Cunningham ii. 331, note 3. + +[487:3] "Dialogue with Trypho," Opera, pp. 296, 297. + +[487:4] See Kaye's "Clement of Alexandria," p. 445. + +[487:5] [Greek: akeraioterôn], Opera, in. p. 498. + +[488:1] In Mat. tom. xi. Opera, iii. 499, 500. + +[488:2] Epist. lxiii. "To Caecilius," Opera, p. 225. + +[488:3] Epist. lxiii. Opera, 228. + +[488:4] Matt, xviii. 20. + +[489:1] Irenaeus, "Contra Haereses," v. c. 2, § 3. Clement of Alexandria +says that "to drink the blood of Jesus is to partake of the incorruption +of the Lord."--_Paedagogue_, book ii. + +[489:2] "Contra Haereses," iv. c. 18, § 5. + +[489:3] This feeling prevailed in the time of Tertullian. "Calicis aut +panis etiam nostri aliquid decuti in terram auxie patimur."--_De +Corona_, c. 3. + +[489:4] Hom. xiii. in "Exod." Opera, ii. 176. + +[489:5] Ps. xii. 6. + +[490:1] See Kaye's "Justin Martyr," p. 94. Irenaeus, iv. o. 17, § 5. +Tertullian, "De Oratione," c. 14. + +[490:2] "Nonne solemnior erit statio tua, si et ad aram Dei steteris?" +Tertullian, "De Oratione," c. 14, or, according to Oehler, c. 19. + +[491:1] Matt. iii. 5, 6. + +[491:2] Acts xix. 17, 18. + +[493:1] Acts xvi. 33. + +[493:2] "Apol." ii. Opera, p. 93, 94. + +[493:1] "De Paenitentia," c. ix. + +[493:2] Joshua vii. 6; Esther iv. 1; Isaiah lviii. 5; Ezek. xxvii. 30. + +[494:1] See a "Memorial concerning Personal and Family Fasting," by the +pious Thomas Boston. Edinburgh, 1849. + +[494:2] Matt. ix. 15. + +[494:3] Lev. xxiii. 27. + +[494:4] The text Matt. ix. 15 was urged in support of this observance. +See Tertullian, "De Jejun." c. ii. + +[494:5] "Wednesday being selected because on that day the Jews took +counsel to destroy Christ, and Friday because that was the day of His +crucifixion."--_Kaye's Tertullian_, p. 418. As Wednesday was dedicated +to Mercury and Friday to Venus, this fasting, according to Clement, +signified to the more advanced disciple, that he was to renounce the +love of gain and the love of pleasure. Kaye's "Clement," p. 454. + +[495:1] These Xerophagiae, or Dry Food Days, were even now objected to +by some of the more enlightened Christians on the ground that they were +an import from heathenism. Tertullian, "De Jejun." c. ii. + +[495:2] Col. ii. 23. + +[495:3] Thus Cyprian, Epist. liii. p. 169, speaks of a penance of three +years' duration. + +[496:1] Socrates, v. c. 19. + +[497:1] See canon xi. of the Council of Nice. + +[497:2] See Cyprian, Epist. xl., p. 53, and "ad Demetrianum," p. 442. + +[497:3] See p. 419, note §. + +[497:4] See p. 460. + +[498:1] Rom. iii. 28. + +[498:2] Matt. iii. 8. + +[498:3] Isa. lviii. 6-8. + +[499:1] Period II. sec. iii. chap. i. pp. 465, 466. + +[499:2] 1 Tim. v. 17. + +[500:1] Apost. Constit. ii. c. 17. + +[500:2] Phil. iv. 3. + +[500:3] No less than five persons are mentioned as having preceded +Polycarp in the see of Smyrna, viz., Aristo, Strataeas, another Aristo, +Apelles, and Bucolus. See Jacobson's "Patres Apostolici," ii. 564, 565, +note. It is not at all probable that he became the senior presbyter long +before the middle of the second century. Irenaeus, indeed, tells us that +he was constituted bishop of Smyrna _by the apostles_ (lib. iii. c. 3, § +4)--a statement which implies that _at least two_ of the inspired +heralds of the gospel were concerned in his designation to the ministry; +but as he was still only a boy of nineteen when the last survivor of the +twelve died in extreme old age, the words cannot mean that he was +actually ordained by those to whom our Lord originally entrusted the +organization of the Church. The language was probably designed simply to +import that John and perhaps Philip had announced his future eminence +when he was yet a child, and that thus, like Timothy, he was invested +with the pastoral commission "according to the prophecies" which they +had previously delivered. See 1 Tim. i. 18; iv. 14. + +[501:1] Sec. 74. + +[502:1] Sec. 54. + +[502:2] Sec. 44. + +[502:3] Sec. 44. All these quotations attest the late date of the +Epistle. Tillemont places it in A.D. 97. Eusebius had evidently no doubt +as to its late date. See his "History," iii. 16. + +[502:4] Sec. 57. + +[502:5] For many centuries it was considered lost. At length in the +reign of Charles I. a copy of it was discovered appended to a very +ancient manuscript containing the Septuagint and Greek Testament--the +manuscript now known as the Codex Alexandrinus. + +[502:6] Euseb. iii. 16; iv. 23. + +[503:1] See the Romish Breviary under the 23d of November, where a +number of absurd stories are told concerning him. + +[503:2] Sec. 42. + +[503:3] They continued to be so used when the Peshito version of the New +Testament was made. That version is assigned by the best authorities to +the former half of the second century. See p. 421, note. + +[503:4] It is probably of nearly the same date as the first Apology of +Justin Martyr. + +[504:1] [Greek: hoi sun autoi presbuteroi]--evidently equivalent to +[Greek: sumpresbuteroi]. See 1 Pet. v. i. + +[504:2] Phil. i. 1. + +[504:3] Sec. 5. + +[504:4] Sec. 6. + +[504:5] Jerome, "Comment. in Tit." + +[504:6] 1 Cor. xiv. 40. + +[505:1] As in Acts xiv. 23. + +[505:2] I make no apology for employing a word which, even the +Benedictine Editor of Origen has adopted. Thus he speaks of the +"senatores et _moderatores_ ecclesiae Dei."--_Contra Celsum._ iii. 30, +Opera, i. 466. + +[505:3] Such as Acts xxi. 18; Gal. ii. 12. + +[506:1] "At Antioch some, as Origen and Eusebius, make Ignatius to +succeed Peter. Jerome makes him the third bishop, and placeth Evodius +before him. Others, therefore, to solve that, make them contemporary +bishops; the one, of the Church of the Jews; the other, of the +Gentiles.... Come we to Rome, and here the succession is as muddy as the +Tiber itself; for here Tertullian, Rufinus, and several others, place +Clement next to Peter. Irenaeus and Eusebius set Anacletus before him; +Epiphanius and Optatus both Anacletus and Cletus; Augustinus and +Damasus, with others, make Anacletus, Cletus, and Linus all to precede +him. What way shall we find to extricate ourselves out of this +labyrinth?"--_Stillingfleet's Irenicum_, part ii. ch. 7. p. 321. + +[506:2] "Polycarp, and the elders who are with him, to the Church of God +which is at Philippi." + +[506:3] A Roman deacon of the fourth century. His works are commonly +appended to those of Ambrose. + +[507:1] "Primum presbyteri episcopi appellabantur, ut, recedente uno, +sequens ei succederet."--_Comment. in Eph._ iv. + +[507:2] "Ut omnis episcopus presbyter sit, non omnis presbyter +episcopus; hic enim episcopus est, qui inter presbyteros primus +est."--_Comment. in 1 Tim_. iii. According to a learned writer this +arrangement extended farther. "Ita, uti videtur, comparatum fuit, ut +defuncto presbytero, primus ordine diaconus locum occuparet ultimum +presbyterorum, novusque in locum novissimum substitueretur diaconus; +decedente vero episcopo, primus ordine presbyter in ejus locum +sufficeretur, et primus in ordine diaconorum novissimam presbyterii +sedem capesseret."--_Thomae Brunonis Judicium de auctore Can. et Const. +quae apost. dicuntur_. Cotelerius, ii. Ap. p. 179. + +[507:3] 1 Pet. v. 5. It is a curious and striking fact, arguing strongly +in favour of the antiquity of their Church polity, that among the +Vaudois Barbs of old the claims of seniority were distinctly +acknowledged. The following rule of discipline is taken from one of +their ancient MSS. "He that is received the last (into the ministry by +imposition of hands) ought to do nothing without the permission of him +that was received before him."--_Moreland, History of the Evang. Ch. of +the Valleys of Piedmont_, p. 74. + +[507:4] He is speaking immediately before of presbyters. See 1 Pet. +v. 1-4. + +[507:5] Matt. x. 2, "_The first_, Simon, who is called Peter." Mark iii. +16; Luke vi. 14; Acts i. 13. + +[507:6] Jerome in "Jovin," i. 14. + +[508:1] Savigny's "History of the Roman Law," by Cathcart, i. pp. 62, +63, 75. + +[508:2] Euseb. iii. 23. [Greek: ho presbutês]. + +[508:3] In Africa the senior bishop or metropolitan was called _father_. +See Bingham, i. 200. In the second century we find the name given to the +Roman bishop. See Routh's "Reliquiae," i. 287. According to Eutychius, +his predecessor in the see of Alexandria in the early part of the third +century was called "Baba (Papa), that is, grandfather." + +[509:1] Euseb. v. 1. + +[509:2] He was one hundred and sixteen years of age in A.D. 212 (Euseb. +vi. 11), so that in A.D. 196, or about the time of the Palestinian Synod +at which he presided (Euseb. v. 23), he was a century old. + +[509:3] Etheridge's "Syrian Churches," pp. 9, 10. + +[509:4] See 1 Tim. iv. 12. + +[509:5] That is, Anacletus, Evaristus, Alexander, Sixtus, Telesphorus, +and Hyginus; but some consider Anacletus the same as Cletus, who is +supposed to have died before Clement. + +[510:1] Pearson has noticed this fact, and has endeavoured to erect upon +it an argument against the current chronology. See his "Minor Works," +ii. 527. It would appear that the names of the three bishops of Smyrna +next after Polycarp were Thraseas, Papirius, and Camerius. At least two +of these had passed away a considerable time before the Paschal +controversy. See Greswell's "Dissertations," iv. part ii. p. 600, note. + +[510:2] Hist. iv. 5. + +[510:3] According to Eusebius his appointment took place _after_ the +destruction of Jerusalem, or about A.D. 71. He was, therefore, at the +head of the Church forty-five years, as his martyrdom occurred in A.D. +116. According to this reckoning he was in his seventy-fifth year when +made president. + +[510:4] This explanation of the matter approximates to that given by +Tillemont. "Cela peut etre venu de ce qu'on les choisissoit entre les +plus agez du Clergé pour les faire Evesques: car on ne voit pas qu'ils +ayent esté plus persecutez que d'autres."--_Mém. pour servir à +l'Histoire Ecclesiastique_, tom. ii. part ii. p. 40. It would appear +from Eusebius (iii. 32), that at the time of the death of Simeon there +were still living a number of very old persons who were relatives of our +Lord. Some of these were, probably, elders in the Church of Jerusalem. + +[511:1] He is said in the "Chronicon" of Eusebius to have presided +sixteen years. + +[511:2] Euseb. v. 12. + +[512:1] In the tenth century, the darkest and most revolting period in +the history of the Popedom, there were _twenty-four_ bishops of Rome. +Some of these reigned only a few days; at least one of them was +strangled; several of them died in prison; and several others were +driven from the see or deposed. There have been only twenty-four Popes +in the last two hundred and fifty years. + +[512:2] There have been only twenty-eight Archbishops of Canterbury +since 1454. + +[512:3] In the middle of the third century we find Firmilian appealing +to it as a witness against the Church of Home. Cyprian, Epist. lxxv. +Opera, p. 303. + +[512:4] "Hist." vi. 20. + +[513:1] "Hist." iv. 5; v. 12. + +[513:2] Such as, after the death of the aged Simeon, when Justus, at the +age of fivescore and ten, was advanced to the presidential chair. + +[514:1] Irenaeus, iii. 2. Tertullian, "De Praescrip. Haeret." § 25. + +[514:2] "Ad eam iterum traditionem, quae est ab apostolis, quae _per +successiones presbyterorum_ in ecclesiis custoditur, provocamus +eos."--Irenaeus, iii. 2. + +[514:3] Irenaeus here speaks in the language of his own times, and +refers to the presidents, or senior ministers, of the presbyteries. In +like manner Hilary says that the change in the mode of appointing the +president of the presbytery was made by the decision of many _priests_ +(multorum _sacerdotum_ judicio), though the title _priest_ was not given +to a Christian minister when the alteration was originally proposed. + +[514:4] Irenaeus, iii. 3. + +[515:1] Period II. sec. i. chap. iv.; and Period II. sect. iii. chap. +vii. + +[515:2] According to a very ancient canon, no one under fifty years of +age could be made a bishop. See Bunsen's "Hippolytus," iii. 56. Even in +the time of Cyprian much stress was still laid upon age. See Cyprian, +Epist. lii. p. 156. + +[515:3] Sec Period II. sect. iii. chap. xi. See also Bingham, i. 198. + +[515:4] Münter's "Primordia Ecclesiae Africanae," p. 49. See also +Bingham, vi. 377-379. + +[516:1] Bingham, i. 201. + +[516:2] Binius, i. 5. Fourth Council of Toledo, canon 4. + +[516:3] Bingham, i. 204. + +[517:1] Bunsen dates it about A.D. 200. "Hippolytus and his Age," p. +114. The recently discovered treatise of Hippolytus against all heresies +shews that Noetus must have appeared much earlier than most modern +ecclesiastical historians have reckoned. + +[517:2] Routh, "Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Opuscula," tom. i. pp. 49, +50. Oxon, 1858. This extract proves that the Church of Smyrna continued +under presbyterial government long after the time of Polycarp. Other +Churches about this time were in the same position. See Eusebius, v. 16. + +[518:1] During the Paschal controversy the Churches of Jerusalem, +Caesarea, and others sided with Rome, and then probably adopted her +ecclesiastical regimen. It had, perhaps, been generally adopted in Asia +Minor during the Montanist agitation. + +[518:2] Chapter vii. of this section. + +[519:1] The word _catholic_ came now into use. The minister of the Word +was called a _priest_, and the communion table, an _altar_. + +[519:2] Euseb. v. 12. + +[519:3] Euseb. vi. 10. The word [Greek: cheirotonian] here employed is +indicative of a popular choice. See also the "Chronicon" of Eusebius. + +[519:4] Münter's "Primordia Eccles. Afric.," pp. 25, 26. + +[520:1] Acts x. 1, 45-48; xxi. 8. + +[520:2] "Hist." v. 22. + +[520:3] "Hist." v. 23; v. 25; vi. 19; vi. 23; vi. 46; vii. 14, &c, &c. + +[520:4] "Annal." p. 332. + +[520:5] See Lardner's Works, vii. 99. Edit. London, 1838. + +[521:1] Eusebius, vi. 26. Towards the close of his episcopate Demetrius +held several synods in Alexandria, at which a considerable number of +bishops were present. + +[523:1] It would appear that the "Ecclesiastical History" of Eusebius +was published shortly after Constantine first publicly recognized +Christianity. That event took place in A.D. 324, and with that year the +history terminates. + +[523:2] "Vita Malchi," Opera, iv. pp. 90, 91. Edit. Paris, 1706. + +[524:1] "Antequam _Diaboli instinctu_, studia in religione fierent, et +diceretur in populis, Ego sum Pauli, ego Apollo, ego autem Cephae, +communi presbyterorum consilio ecclesiae gubernabantur. Postquam vero +unusquisque eos quos baptizaverat suos putabat esse, non Christi, in +toto orbe decretum est, ut unus de presbyteris, electus superponeretur +caeteris, ad quem omnis ecclesiae cura pertineret, et _schismatum semina +tollerentur_."--_Comment. in Titum._ The language here used bears a +strong resemblance to that employed by Lactantius long before when +treating of the same subject--"Multae haereses extiterunt, et +_instinctibus daemonum_ populus Dei _scissus est_."--_Instit. Divin._, +lib. iv. c. 30. + +[525:1] 1 Cor. i. 12. + +[525:2] "Hic locus vel maxime adversum Haereticos facit qui pacis +vinculo dissipato atque corrupto, putant se tenere Spiritus unitatem; +quum unitas Spiritus in pacis vinculo conservetur. Quando enim non +idipsum omnes loquimur, et alius dicit _Ego sum Pauli, Ego Apollo, Ego +Cephae_, dividimus Spiritus unitatem, et eam in partes ac membra +discerpimus."-_Comment, in Ephes._, lib. ii. cap. 4. Again, we find him +saying-"Neonon et dissensiones opera carnis sunt, quum quis nequaquam +perfectus, eodem sensu, et eadem sententia dicit. _Ego sum Pauli, et ego +Apollo, et ego Cephae, et ego Christi._ ...Nonnumquam evenit, ut et in +expositionibus Scripturarum oriatur dissensio, _e quibus haereses quoque +quae nunc in carnis opere ponuntur_, ebulliunt."--_Comment, in Epist. ad +Galat._, cap. 5. + +[525:3] Philip, i. 1, 2. + +[526:1] Acts xx. 17, 28. + +[526:2] Our translators, as it would appear acting under instructions +from James I., here render the word "overseers." + +[526:3] The Church of Rome, of which Jerome was a presbyter, long +hesitated to receive the Epistle to the Hebrews. Its opposition to +ritualism seems, in the third and fourth centuries, to have been +offensive to the ecclesiastical leaders in the Western metropolis. In +the first century no such doubts respecting it existed among the Roman +Christians. See Period I. sec. ii. chap. i. p. 183. + +[526:4] Heb. xiii. 17. The reading of Jerome, here, as well as in the +case of other texts quoted, differs somewhat from that of our authorized +version. He seems to have often quoted from memory. + +[527:1] 1 Pet. v. l, 2. + +[527:2] It may suffice to give in the original only the conclusion of +this long quotation. "Paulatim vero, ut dissensionum plantaria +evellerentur, ad unum omnem solicitudinem esse delatam. Sicut ergo +presbyteri sciunt se ex ecclesiae consuetudine ei qui sibi praepositus +fuerit esse subjectos; ita episcopi noverint se magis consuetudine quam +dispositionis dominicae veritate presbyteris esse majores."--_Comment, +in Titum_. + +[527:3] See Period I. sec. i. chap. 10. p. 157. + +[527:4] Thus Dr Burton says that "the Epistles of St John were composed +in the _latter part_ of Domitian's reign."--_Lectures_, i. 382. Jerome +was evidently of this opinion, for he says that, in his First Epistle, +he refers to Cerinthus and Ebion, who appeared towards the close of the +first century. "Jam tunc haereticorum semina pullularent Cerinthi, +Ebionis, et caeterorum qui negant Christum in carne venisse, quos et +ipse in Epistola sua Antichristos vocat."--_Proleg. in Comment, super +Matthaeum_. + +[528:1] 2 John 1. + +[528:2] 3 John 1. + +[528:3] Epist. ci. "Ad Evangelum." + +[528:4] Period II. sec. iii. chap. 5. p. 500. + +[528:5] Sec. 1. + +[528:6] The reader may find the quotations in the preceding chapter, pp. +501, 502. + +[528:7] Thus Milner says that "so far as one may judge by Clement's +Epistle," the Church of Corinth, when the letter was written, had Church +governors "_only of two ranks_," presbyters and deacons.--_Hist. of the +Church_, cent. ii. chap. 1. + +[528:8] As the letter supplies no trace whatever of the existence of a +bishop in the Church to which it is addressed, Pearson is sadly puzzled +by its testimony, and gravely advances the supposition that _the bishop +of Philippi must have been dead_ when Polycarp wrote! "Vindiciae +Ignatianae," pars ii. cap. 13. Rothe is equally perplexed by the Epistle +of Clement. He says that "in the whole Epistle there is never any +reference to a bishop of the Corinthian community," and he admits that, +when the letter was written, "the Corinthian community had no bishop at +all;" but, to support his favourite theory, he contends, like Pearson, +that the bishop of Corinth must also have been dead! "Die Anfange der +Christlichen Kirche," pp. 403, 404. Strange that the bishop of Corinth +and the bishop of Philippi both happened to be dead at the only time +that their existence would have been of any historical value, and that +_no reference_ is made either to them or their successors! + +[529:1] See Euseb. iv. c. 11. + +[529:2] Euseb. in. 32, and iv. 22. + +[529:3] Euseb. iii. 32. It was probably immediately after the election +of Marcus, as bishop of Jerusalem, that Thebuthis became a heretic. See +Euseb. iv. 22. About that time the sect of the Nazarenes originated. + +[530:1] Origen, "Contra Celsum," iii. § 10, Opera, i. 453, 454. + +[530:2] "Dialogue with Trypho," Opera, p. 253. + +[530:3] "Contra Haeres." i. 27, § 1. + +[530:4] "Strom." p. 764. + +[530:5] Epist. lxxiv. Opera, p. 293. The ancient writers speak of all +the early schismatics as heretics. Thus Novatian, though sound in the +faith, is so described. Cyprian, Epist. lxxvi. p. 315. When, therefore, +Jerome speaks of the early schismatics he obviously refers to the +heretics. Irenaeus says of them--"_Scindunt_ et separant unitatem +ecclesiae."--Lib. iv. c. xxvi. § 2. In like manner Cyprian represents +"heresies and schisms" as making their appearance after the apostolic +age, and as inseparably connected. "Cum haereses et schismata postmodum +nata sint, dum conventicula sibi diversa constituunt."--_De Unitate +Eccles._, Opera, p. 400. + +[531:1] The existence of heresy in Gaul in the second century is +established by the fact that Irenaeus spent so much time in its +refutation. Had he not been annoyed by it, he never would have thought +of writing his treatise "Contra Haereses." + +[531:2] Valentine himself seems to have been a presbyter. He at one time +expected to be made bishop. + +[532:1] Such is the statement of Hilary--"Immutata est ratio, +prospiciente concilio, ut non ordo sed meritum crearet episcopum, +multorum sacerdotum judicio constitutum, ne indignus temere usurparet, +et esset multis scandalum."--_Comment. in Eph_. iv. + +[532:2] See Period II. sec. i. chap. iv. pp. 333, 334, 349. + +[533:1] At an early period, out of three elders nominated by the +presbytery, one was chosen by lot; subsequently, out of three elders +chosen by lot, one was elected by the people. See pp. 333, 349. + +[533:2] "Collocatum." + +[533:3] Epist. ci. "Ad Evangelum." + +[534:1] A few passages of the letter may here be given in the original. +"Manifestissime comprobatur eundem esse episcopum atque presbyterum.... +Quod autem _postea_ unus electus est, qui cicteris praeponeretur, in +schismatic remedium factum est, ne unusquisque ad se trahens Christi +ecclesiam rumperet. Nam et Alexandriae à Marco Evangelista usque ad +Heraclam et Dionysium Episcopos, presbyteri semper unum ex se electum in +excelsiori gradu collocatum episcopum nominabant."-Epist. ci. ad +Evangelum. + +[535:1] Matt. xx. 26, 27. + +[535:2] The view here taken is sustained by the verdict of learned and +candid episcopalians. "When elders were ordained by the apostles in +every Church, through every city, to feed the flock of Christ, whereof +the Holy Ghost had made them overseers: they, to the intent that they +might the better do it by common counsel and consent, did use to +assemble themselves and meet together. In the which meetings, for the +more orderly handling and concluding of things pertaining to their +charge, they chose one amongst them to be the president of their company +and moderator of their actions."--_The Judgment of Doctor Rainoldes +touching the Original of Episcopacy more largely confirmed out of +Antiquity, by James Ussher, Archbishop of Armagh._ Ussher's Works, vii. +p. 75. + +[537:1] Pearson has endeavoured to destroy the credit of this +chronology, and has urged against it the authority of the "Annals of +Eutychius!" "De Successione prim. Rom. Episc." He had before laboured to +prove that the testimony of these "Annals" is worthless. "Vindic. +Ignat." pars i. c. xi. + +[537:2] The chronology of Eusebius, as arranged by Bower in his "Lives +of the Popes," stands thus:-- + +Evaristus, A.D. 100 to A.D. 109. +Alexander, A.D. 109 to A.D. 119. +Sixtus (or Xystus), A.D. 119 to A.D. 128. +Telesphorus, A.D. 128 to A.D. 139. +Hyginus, A.D. 139 to A.D. 142. +Pius, A.D. 142 to A.D. 157. +Anicetus, A.D. 157 to A.D. 168. +Soter, A.D. 168 to A.D. 176. +Eleutherius, A.D. 176 to A.D. 192. +Victor, A.D. 192 to A.D. 201. + +[538:1] The following is the chronology of Pearson:-- + +Clement died A.D. 83. +Evaristus, A.D. 83 to A.D. 91. +Alexander, A.D. 91 to A.D. 101. +Xystus, A.D. 101 to A.D. 111. +Telesphorus, A.D. 111 to A.D. 122. +Hyginus, A.D. 122 to A.D. 126. +Pius, A.D. 127 to A.D. 142. +Anicetus, A.D. 142 to A.D. 161. +Soter, A.D. 161 to A.D. 170. +Eleutherius, A.D. 170 to A.D. 185. +Victor, A.D. 185 to A.D. 197. + +--"Minor Works," ii. pp. 570; 571. + +[539:1] I have endeavoured, from the records of the late Synod of +Ulster, to estimate the medium length of the incumbency of a moderator +for life, being the senior minister of a presbytery of from ten to +fifteen members, and have found that the average of thirty-six +successions amounted to between eight and nine years. In these +presbyteries young ministers generally constituted a considerable +portion of the members. Had they all been persons advanced in life, the +average must have been greatly reduced. + +[539:2] During that part of the second century which terminated with the +death of Hyginus, the average duration of the life of a Roman bishop +very little exceeded eight years; whereas, during the remainder of the +century, it amounted to nearly twelve years. According to the chronology +of Pearson the disproportion is still greater, being as eight years and +a fraction to fourteen years. If we insert the episcopate of Anacletus, +it will be nearly as seven to fourteen. + +[539:3] In the verses erroneously attributed to Tertullian, the Church +of Rome is represented as in a flourishing state when visited by Cerdo. + + "Advenit Romam Cerdo, nova vulnera gestans + Detectus, quoniam voces et verba veneni + Spargebat furtim; quapropter ab agmine pulsus, + Sacrilegum genus hoc genuit spirante dracone. + Constabat pietate vigens Ecclesia Romae + Composita a Petro, cujus successor et ipse + Jamque loco nono cathedram suscepit Hyginus." + +[540:1] Euseb. iv. 11. Irenaeus says that Valentine, the most famous and +formidable of the Gnostic teachers, "came to Rome under Hyginus, was in +his prime under Pius, and lived until the time of Anicetus."--_Contra +Haeres._, iii. 4. § 3. Cyprian speaks of "the more _grievous pestilences +of heresy breaking forth_ when Marcion the Pontian emerged from Pontus, +whose master Cerdo came to Rome _during the episcopate of +Hyginus_."--_Epist_. lxxiv. He adds--"But it is acknowledged that +heresies _afterwards became more numerous and worse_."--_Epist_. lxxiv. +Opera, pp. 293, 294. + +[540:2] Euseb. iv. 11. See also a fragment attributed to Irenaeus in +Stieren's edition, i. 938. + +[540:3] See Mosheim, "Commentaries," by Vidal, ii. 266. + +[541:1] Hieronymus, "Comment, in Titum." + +[541:2] Ibid. + +[541:3] "Tamen postquam in omnibus locis ecclesiae sunt constitutae, et +officia ordinata, aliter composita res est, quam coeperat."--_Comment. +in Epist. ad Ephes._ cap. 4. + +[541:4] "Ideo non per omnia conveniunt scripta apostoli ordinationi, +quae nunc in ecclesia est; quia haec _inter ipsa primordia_ sunt +scripta."--Ibid. + +[541:5] "Ut non ordo, sed meritum crearet episcopum."--_Ibid._ Hilary +appears to have believed with Jerome that the Church was originally +governed "by the common council of the presbyters," but that, meanwhile, +_with their sanction_, or under peculiar circumstances, deacons might +preach and even laymen baptize. Such, too, seems to have been the +opinion of Tertullian. See Kaye's "Tertullian," pp. 226, 448. Hilary, +however, maintained that this arrangement was soon abrogated. "Coepit +alio ordine et providentia gubernari ecclesia; quia si omnes eadem +possent, irrationabile esset, et vulgaris res, et vilissima videretur." + +[543:1] Irenaeus, iii. 3, § 3. + +[544:1] See Period II. sec. 1. chap. iv. pp. 334-336. + +[544:2] Irenaeus, i. 24, § 1; i. 28, § 1. + +[544:3] Thus, Valentine travelled from Alexandria to Rome, and +afterwards settled in Cyprus. Marcion, who was originally connected with +Pontus, and who taught in Rome, is said to have also travelled in Egypt +and the East. + +[545:1] "Blondelli Apologia pro Sententia Hieronymi," p. 18. Blondel +makes the vacancy of four years' continuance. + +[545:2] Pearson's "Minor Works," ii. p. 571. + +[546:1] Epiphanius, "Haeres." 42, Opera, tom. i. p. 302. + +[546:2] See Burton's "Lectures," ii. 98. + +[546:3] "Speraverat episcopatum Valentinus, quia et ingenio poterat et +eloquio. Sed alium ex martyrii praerogativa loci potitum indignatus de +ecclesia authenticae regulae abrupit."--_Adv. Valent._ c. iv. + +[546:4] Tertullian states that Valentine at first believed the doctrine +of the Catholics _in the Church of Rome_. "Be Praescrip." c. 30. When he +came to the city he was admitted to communion. He set up a distinct sect +after Pius was made bishop. It is impossible, therefore, to avoid the +inference that he was mortified because he was not himself chosen. +Tertullian here confounds Eleutherius and Hyginus. + +[547:1] The unwillingness even of Tertullian to say anything to its +prejudice has been often remarked. See Neander on a passage in the tract +"De Virg. Veland." in his "Antignostikos," appended to his "History of +the Planting and Training of the Christian Church," in Bohn's edition, +ii. 420. See also the same, p. 429. See also "De Pudicitia," c. 1. + +[547:2] They are quoted as genuine by Binius, Baronius, Bona, Thorndike, +Bingham, Salmasius, and many others. Bishop Beveridge speaks of one of +them as of undoubted authority. "In _indubitata_ illius +epistola."--_Annot. in Can. Ap._ See Cotelerius, i. 459. Pearson rejects +them as spurious, whilst contending so valiantly for the Ignatian +Epistles. + +[547:3] Such as _Missa_ and _Titulus_. But that Pastor really did erect +a place in which the Christians assembled for worship, as stated in one +of these letters, is not improbable. See Routh's "Reliquiae," i. 430. +Pearson objects to them on the ground that Eleutherius is spoken of in +one of them as a _presbyter_, whereas Hegesippus describes him as +_deacon_ afterwards in the time of Anicetus. See Euseb. iv. 22. But it +is not clear that Hegesippus here uses the word deacon in its strictly +technical sense. He may mean by it _minister_ or _manager_, and may +design to indicate that Eleutherius was the most _prominent official +personage_ under Anicetus, occupying the position afterwards held by the +_archdeacon_. + +[548:1] "Presbyteri et Diaconi, non ut majorem, sed ut ministrum Christi +te observent." + +[549:1] That, in the time of Marcion, there were Roman presbyters who +had been disciples of the apostles, see Tillemont, "Mémoires," tom. ii. +sec. par. p. 215. Edit. Brussels, 1695. + +[550:1] "Presbyteri illi qui ab apostolis educati usque ad nos +pervenerunt, cum quibus simul verbum fidei partiti sumus, a Domino +vocati in cubilibus aeternis clausi tenentur." + +[550:2] Pearson ("Vindiciae," par. ii. c. 13) has appealed to a letter +from the Emperor Hadrian to the Consul Servianus as a proof that the +terms _bishop_ and _presbyter_ had distinctive meanings as early as A.D. +134. The passage is as follows:--"Illi qui Serapim colunt, Christiani +sunt; et devoti sunt Serapi, qui se Christi episcopos dicunt. Nemo illic +Archisynagogus Judaeorum, nemo Samarites, nemo Christianorum +Presbyter.... Ipse ille Patriarcha, quum Aegyptum venerit, ab aliis +Serapidem adorare, ab aliis cogitur Christum." Such a testimony only +shews that Pearson was sadly in want of evidence. This same letter has +in fact often been adduced to prove that the terms bishop and presbyter +were still used interchangeably, and such is certainly the more +legitimate inference. See Lardner's remarks on this letter, Works, vol. +vii. p. 99. Edit. London, 1838. + +[550:3] "The Philippians appear to have continued to live under the same +aristocratic constitution (of venerable elders) _about the middle of the +second century_, when Polycarp addressed his Epistle to +them."--_Bunsen's Hippolytus_, i. 369. + +[551:1] [Greek: proestôs], Opera, pp. 97-99. + +[551:2] "Episcopi, _id est, praesides ecclesiarum_."--Lib. iii. simil. +ix. c. 27. There is a parallel passage to this in Tertullian, "De +Baptismo," c. 17--"Summus sacerdos, _qui est episcopus_." This is, +perhaps, the first instance on record in which a bishop is called the +chief priest. Hence the necessity of the interpretation--"qui est +episcopus." Pastor considered an explanation of the title "episcopus" +equally necessary. + +[551:3] Neander supposes this work to have been written A.D. 156. +"General History," ii. 443. + +[551:4] See Period II. sec. ii. chap. i. p. 368. + +[552:1] So high indeed is its authority that many facts taken from it +are recorded in the "Breviary." Even Bunsen appeals to it. See "Analecta +Antenicaena," iii. 52, 53. + +[552:2] Binius makes the following abortive attempt to explain the +statement-"Quòd hierarchicus catholicae ecclesiaeae ordo, quo presbyteri +episcopis, diaconi presbyteris, populus presbyteris et diaconis subditus +est, ab Hygino compositus esse hic dicitur, _non aliter intelligi +potest_, quâm quod Hyginus hierarchiae ecclesiasticae jam tempore +apostolorum a Christo Domino constitutae, et a sanctis Patribus ipso +antiquioribus comprobatae, quaedam duntaxat injuria temporum et +scriptorum deperdita addiderit, vel eadem quae Divino jure instituta, et +a patribus comprobata sunt, hac constitutione sua illustraverit." +--_Concilia_, i. 65, 66. + +[552:3] "Hic clerum composuit, et distribuit gradus."--_Binii Concil._ +i. 65. Baronius, ad annum, 158. + +[553:1] When referring to this statement Baronius says--"Porrò quod ad +gradus cujusque ordinis in Ecclesia, quo ecclesiastica habetur composita +hierarchia, jam a temporibus apostolorum haec facta esse, _Ignatio +auctore_ et aliis, tomo primo Annalium demonstravimus; verum _aliqua +antiquae formae ab Hyginio fuisse addita_, vel eadem illustrata, _aequum +est aestimare_." + +[554:1] See Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 414. + +[555:1] 1 Tim. v. 17. + +[555:2] Euseb. iv. 11; iv. 19. Dr Burton has well observed that +Alexandria and Antioch were "the hotbeds from which nearly all the +mischief arose, which, under the name of philosophy, inundated the +Church in the second century."--_Lectures_, vol. ii. p. 103. + +[556:1] Period II. sec. iii. chap. v. pp. 516, 517. + +[556:2] "Quanquam sunt inter scriptores ecclesiasticos qui putaverint +Polycarpum Romam venissè, ut quaereret de festo paschatis: ex his +Irenaei verbis luco clarius elucet, _ob alias causas_ Ioannis apostoli +discipulum Romam profectum esse."--_Stieren's Irenaeus_, i. p. 826, +note. + +[557:1] Euseb. v. 24. + +[557:2] Stieren's "Irenaeus," i. 827. + +[557:3] First, as his senior; and secondly, as a disciple of the +apostles. + +[557:4] It was a standing rule of the Church that a strange bishop +should be thus treated. See "Didascalia," by Platt, p. 97. + +[559:1] "_Paulatim_ vero, ut dissensionum plantaria evellerentur, ad +unum omnem solicitudinem esse delatam."--_Comment. in Tit_. + +[560:1] Period II. sec. iii. chap. 5, pp. 510, 512, 516, 520. + +[560:2] But the presiding elders now began generally to be called +bishops. + +[560:3] Thus, though, as we may infer from the testimony of Tertullian, +Christianity was planted in North Britain in the second century, the +universal tradition is that originally there were no bishops in that +country. According to an ancient MS. belonging to the former bishops of +St Andrews, and to be found in the "Life of William Wishart," one of +their number who lived in the thirteenth century, the first bishop +created in Scotland was elected in A.D. 270. See Jamieson's "Culdees," +pp. 101, 101. + +[561:1] Song of Solomon, vi. 9; Ps. xlv. 9. "Sub Apostolis nemo +Catholicus vocabatur.....Cum post Apostolos haereses extitissent, +diversisque nominibus columbam Dei atque reginam lacerare per partes et +scindere niterentur; nonno cognomen suum ecclesia postulabat, quae +incorrupti populi distingueret unitatem?" + +[562:1] Pacian, "Epist. to Sympronian," secs. 5 and 8. Pacian is said to +have been bishop of Barcelona. He died A.D. 392. + +[562:2] Epist. lxix. 265, 266. + +[563:1] Justin Martyr, Opera, p. 99. + +[563:2] According to the "Apostolic Constitutions" the deacons were not +at liberty to baptize. Lib. viii. c. 28. + +[563:3] "De Baptismo," c. 17. + +[563:4] Tertullian thus corroborates the testimony of Jerome. + +[563:5] "In the sixth century the clergy of Italy complained to +Justinian that, _owing to the vacancy of sees_, 'an immense multitude of +people died without baptism.' Even so late as the time of Hinemar (the +ninth century) baptisms were still performed by the bishop, and _they +alone were considered canonical_."--_Palmer's Episcopacy Vindicated_, p. +35, note. + +[564:1] "It appears to have been the custom at Rome and other places to +send from the cathedral church the bread consecrated to the several +parish churches."--_Stillingfleet's Irenicum_, pp. 369, 370. +"Thomassinus shown that in the fifth century the presbyters of Rome did +not consecrate the Eucharist in their respective churches, but it was +sent to them from the principal church."--_Palmer_, p. 35, note. + +[564:2] Thus Rome is called the "principal Church" in regard to +Carthage. Cyprian, Epist. lv. p. 183. + +[564:3] Tertullian apparently refers to this when he says--"Una omnes +probant unitate _communicatio pacis_ et appellatio fraternitatis, et +contesseratio hospitalitatis."--_De Praescrip_. c. 20. + +[564:4] "Ecclesiis apostolicis matricibus et originalibus fidei." + +[565:1] "Cathedrae apostolorum suis locis praesident." These words +clearly indicate that the Churches founded by the apostles were now +recognized as centres of unity for the surrounding Christian +communities. + +[565:2] It is worthy of note that, in the second canonical epistle ever +written by Paul, he warns this Church of the coming of the Man of Sin. +(2 Thess. ii. 3.) It appears from the text that thus early it was +identified with the system which resulted in the establishment of the +Papacy. It is equally remarkable that the bishop of Thessalonica was the +first _Papal Vicar_ ever appointed. See Bower's "History of the Popes," +Damasus, thirty-sixth bishop; and Gieseler, i. 264. + +[565:3] "De Praescrip." xxi., xxxvi. + +[565:4] The tendency of "Church principles" to terminate in the +recognition of a universal bishop has appeared in modern as well as in +ancient times. "What other step," says a noble author, "remains to stand +between those who held those principles and Rome? _Only one:_ that the +priesthood so constituted, invested with such powers, is organized under +one head--a Pope....The space to be traversed in arriving at it is so +narrow, and so unimpeded by any positive barrier, _either of logic or of +feeling_, that the slightest influence of sentiment or imagination, of +weakness or of superstition, is sufficient to draw men across."--_Letter +from the Duke of Argyll to the Bishop of Oxford_, p. 23. London, Moxon, +1851. + +[566:1] Tertullian says that John, as well as Peter and Paul, had been +in Rome. "De Praescrip." xxxvi. + +[567:1] "Contra Haeres." iii. c. iii. § 2. + +[567:2] "Maximae et antiquissimae et omnibus cognitae, a gloriosissimis +duobus apostolis Petro et Paulo Romae fundatae et constitutae +ecclesiae."--_Irenaeus_, iii. c. iii. § 2. + +[567:3] We find this designation in some of the early canons. See +Bunsen's "Hippolytus," iii. 50. + +[567:4] Euseb. v. 24. + +[568:1] See the statement of Cyprian in the Council of Carthage, +"Opera," p. 597; and Jerome, in his Epistle to Evangelus, "Opera," iv. +secund. pars. p. 803. + +[568:2] "Pontifex scilicet Maximus, quod est episcopus episcoporum, +edicit: Ego et moechiae et fornicationis delicta poenitentia functis +dimitto."--_Tertullian, De Pudicitia_, c. 1. "Neque enim quisquam +nostrum episcopum se esse episcoporum constituit."--_Cyprian, Con. Car., +Opera_, 597. + +[569:1] "Ecclesiae catholicae radicem et matricem."--_Epist_. xlv. p. +133. + +[569:2] "Navigare audent et ad Petri cathedram atque ad ecclesiam +principalem unde unitas sacerdotalis exorta est."--_Epist_. lv. p. 183. +"Nam Petro primum Dominus, super quem aedificavit ecclesiam, et unde +unitatis originem instituit et ostendit, potestatem istam +dedit."--_Epist_. lxxiii. p. 280. See also _Epist_. lxx.-"Una ecclesia a +Christo Domino super Petrum origine unitatis et ratione fundata." + +[570:1] The word _catholic_ first occurs in the Epistle of the Church of +Smyrna giving an account of the martyrdom of Polycarp, but that letter +was probably not written until at least twenty years after the event +which it records. See Period II. sec. i. chap. iv. p. 337. It is +remarkable that the word is not found in Irenaeus, or used by his Latin +interpreter. The pastor of Lyons, however, recognizes the distinction +indicated by the word catholic, for he speaks of the _ecclesiastici_ or +churchmen, and of those "_qui sunt undique_." Stieren's "Irenaeus," i. +430, 502, note. The word catholic was obviously quite current in the +time of Tertullian. + +[570:2] Particularly Matt. xvi. 18. Clemens Alexandrinus says that our +Lord baptized Peter only, and that Peter then baptized other apostles. +See Kaye's "Clement," p. 442; and Bunsen's "Analecta Antenic." i. p. +317. See also Origen, "Opera," ii. 245; and Firmilian's "Epistle." + +[571:1] Even Polycrates of Ephesus admits that he had been requested by +Victor to convene a synod. Euseb. v. 24. About sixty years afterwards +Cyprian writes to Stephen of Rome requesting him to send letters into +Gaul that Marcianus the bishop, who had sided with Novatian, "being +excommunicated, another may be substituted in his room."--_Cyprian, +Epist_. lxvii. pp. 248, 249. + +[572:1] Thus he says--"For neither did Peter, _whom the Lord chose +first, and on whom He built His Church_, when Paul afterwards disputed +with him about circumcision, claim or assume anything insolently and +arrogantly to himself, so as _to say that he held the primacy_."--Epist. +lxxi. p. 273. + +[573:1] Gen. xi. 4. + +[573:2] Book I. vision iii. § 3, &c. + +[574:1] Rev. xiv. 6-8. + +[575:1] 1 Tim. v. 17. + +[576:1] See Bunsen's "Hippolytus," ii. 305, and iii. 35, 36. + +[576:2] Bunsen's "Hippolytus," iii. 36. + +[576:3] "Apost. Constit." ii. 57. + +[576:4] [Greek: kai oute ho panu dunatos en logô tôn en tais ekklêsiais +proestôtôn, hetera toutôn erei (oudeis gar huper ton didaskalon) oute ho +asthenês en tô logo elattôsei tên paradosin].--_Contra Haereses_, i. c. +10. § 2. + +[576:5] "Optatus adv. Donat." vii. 6. + +[576:6] 1 Cor. xiv. 5, 24, 26, 31. + +[577:1] Euseb. vi. 19. It is to be observed that these laymen, having +the sanction of the ecclesiastical authorities, were thus virtually +licensed to preach. + +[577:2] "Apost. Constit." vii. 46. There was a Church at Cenchrea in the +time of the apostles. Rom. xvi. 1. Strabo calls Cenchrea a village, lib. +viii. + +[577:3] See Bingham, iii. 129. + +[577:4] Cyprian, "Council of Carthage." Girba, Mileum, Badias, and +Carpi, the sees of these bishops, were all small places with, no doubt, +a still smaller Christian population. + +[578:1] Cyprian, "Council of Carthage." + +[578:2] Euseb. vii. 30. + +[578:3] See Sage's "Vindication of the Principles of the Cyprianic Age," +p. 348. Edit., London, 1701. + +[578:4] See Period II. sec. i. chap. v. pp. 355, 356. + +[578:5] See Bingham, i. 41, 43. + +[579:1] Bunsen's "Hippolytus," i. 129; and Wordsworth, p. 257. It would +appear from Celsus that not a few of the Church teachers in the second +century supported themselves by manual labour. See Origen, Opera, i. +484. + +[579:2] "Adleguntur in ordinem ecclesiasticum artifices idolorum."--_De +Idololatria_, c. vii. Malchion, one of the presbyters of Antioch in the +time of Paul of Samosata, was the head-master of one of the principal +schools in the place. Euseb. vii. 29. + +[579:3] Cyprian, Epist. lxvi. p. 246. In after times the bishop himself +was the grand-executor, having the charge of all the wills of his +diocese! + +[581:1] Council of Elvira, A.D. 305, 18th canon. + +[581:2] Period II. sec. iii. chap. vi. p. 533. + +[581:3] "Nam et Alexandria à Marco Evangelista usque ad Heraclam et +Dionysium Episcopos, presbyteri semper unum ex se electum, in excelsiori +gradu collocatum Episcopum nominabant; quomodo si exercitus Imperatorem +faciat; aut Diaconi eligant de se quem industrium noverint, et +Archidiaconum vocent."--_Epist. ad Evangelum_. + +[581:1] Heraclas now succeeded him. The immediate successor of Heraclas +was Dionysius. + +[581:2] "_Apud nos_ quoque et _fere_ per provincias universas +tenetur."--_Cyprian_, Epist. lxviii. p. 256. The arrangement of which +Cyprian speaks was now, perhaps, pretty generally established in the +West, but he may have understood, through his intercourse with +Firmilian, that in some parts of the East a different usage still +prevailed. + +[581:3] "Nam _et_ Alexandriae." + +[582:1] Eutychius, the celebrated patriarch of Alexandria who flourished +in the beginning of the tenth century, makes this assertion. According +to this writer there were originally twelve presbyters connected with +the Alexandrian Church; and, when the patriarchate became vacant, they +elected "one of the twelve presbyters, _on whose head the remaining +eleven laid hands_, and blessed him and created him patriarch."--_See +the original passage in Selden's Works_, ii. c. 421, 422; London, 1726. +This passage furnishes a remarkable confirmation of the testimony of +Jerome as to the fact that the Alexandrian presbyters originally made +their bishops, but it is probably not very accurate as to the details. +As to the laying on of hands it is not supported by Jerome. + +[582:2] The case is different with the modern English archdeacon who is +a presbyter. + +[583:1] "A fratribus constitutus et colobio episcoporum vestitus." + +[583:2] "Saluta _omne collegium fratrum_, qui tecum sunt in Domino." + +[583:3] The practice seems to have continued longer at Alexandria than +at Rome and various other places. + +[583:4] The statement of Jerome is not inconsistent with the fact that +the senior elder was originally the president or bishop, for he was +recognized as such by mutual agreement. Neither is it at variance with +the idea that the elders sometimes made a selection _by lot_ out of +three of their number previously put in nomination. There are good +grounds for believing that even after bishops begun to be elected by +general suffrage, the people were in some places restricted to certain +candidates chosen from among the elders by lot. Cyprian apparently +refers to this circumstance when he says that he was chosen _by "the +judgment of God"_ as well as by the vote of the people. Epist. xl. p. +119. The people of Alexandria, towards the close of the third and +beginning of the fourth century, are said to have been restricted to +certain candidates. See p. 333, Period II. sec. i. chap. iv. Cornelius +of Rome is said to have been made bishop by "the judgment of God and of +his Christ" and by the votes of the people. Cyprian, Epist. lii. pp. +150, 151. + +[584:1] Euseb. v. 24. + +[585:1] "Contra Haereses," iv. c. 26, secs. 2, 4. "Quapropter eis qui in +ecclesia sunt, _presbyteris_ obaudire oportet, his qui successionem +habent ab apostolis, sicut ostendimus; qui _cum episcopatus successione_ +charisma veritatis certum secundum placitum Patris acceperunt; reliquos +vero, qui absistunt a principali successione, et quocunque loco +colligunt, suspectos habere vel quasi haereticos et malae sententiae.... +Ab omnibus igitur talibus absistere oportet; adhaerere vero his qui et +apostolorum, sicut praediximus, doctrinam custodiunt, et _cum +presbyterii ordine_ sermonem sanum et conversationem sine offensa +praestant." + +[585:2] This was long the received doctrine. Thus, the author of the +"Questions on the Old and New Testament" says--"Quid est episcopus nisi +_primus presbyter_?"--_Aug. Quaest._ c. 101. + +[585:3] "Onmis potestas et gratia in ecclesia constituta sit, ubi +praesident majores natu, qui et baptizandi et manum imponendi et +ordinandi possident potestatem."--_Firmilian, Epist. Cyprian_, Opera, p. +304. + +[586:1] See Bunsen's "Hippolytus," ii. 351-357. See also Fabricius, +"Biblioth. Graecae," liber v. p. 208. Hamburg, 1723. + +[586:2] The earliest of these canons was probably framed only a few +years before the middle of the third century. They were called +apostolical perhaps because concocted by some of the bishops of the +so-called apostolic Churches. + +[586:3] The collection to which it belongs bears the designation of the +"Canons of _Abulides_,"--the name of _Hippolytus in Abyssinian_, as +their calendar shews. Bunsen, ii. 352. The canons edited by Hippolytus +were, no doubt, at one time acknowledged by the Western Church. + +[586:4] Bunsen's "Hippolytus," iii. 43, and "Analecta Antenicaena," iii. +415. + +[587:1] Eutychius intimates that the Alexandrian presbyters continued to +ordain their own bishop until the time of the Council of Nice. It is not +improbable that, until then, some of them may have continued to take +part in the ordination, and the statement of the Alexandrian patriarch +may be so far correct. + +[587:2] See Bunsen, iii. 45. + +[587:3] Where the bishop, as in the case contemplated in a canon quoted +in the text, had to depend for his official income on the contributions +of twelve families, it is plain that the elders could expect no +remuneration for their services. As the hierarchy advanced these ruling +elders disappeared. Hence Hilary says--"The synagogue, and afterwards +_the Church_, had elders, without whose counsel nothing was done in the +Church, which, by what negligence _it grew into disuse_ I know not; +unless, perhaps, by the sloth, or rather by the pride of the teachers, +while they alone wished to appear something."--_Comment on 1 Tim._ v. 1. +Some late writers have contended that these elders (_seniores_) were not +ecclesiastical officers at all, but civil magistrates of municipal +corporations peculiar to Africa. It must, however, be recollected that +Hilary was a _Roman_ deacon of the fourth century, and that he speaks of +them as belonging _to the Church_ before the civil establishment of +Christianity. + +[590:1] Thus, Firmilian speaks of "seniores et _praepositi_," and of the +Church "ubi _praesident_ majores natu."--_Cyprian_, Opera, p. 302 and +304. + +[590:2] Justin Martyr, Opera, p. 99. + +[590:3] In the days of Origen the episcopal office was not unfrequently +coveted for its wealth. Origen, Opera, iii. p. 501. See also Cyprian, +Epist. lxiv. p. 240. + +[591:1] Comment, in Matt., Opera, iii. p. 723. + +[591:2] See Period II. sec. i. chap. v. p. 354. + +[592:1] Euseb. vi. 43. + +[592:2] Tertullian, "Praescrip. Haeret." c. 41. This office, even in the +fourth century, was often committed to mere children--a sad proof that +the importance of reading the Word effectively was not duly appreciated. + +[592:3] Origen makes mention of them, Opera, ii. p. 453; and Firmilian, +Cyprian, Epist. 1xxv. p. 306. + +[592:4] Cyprian, Epist. lii. p. 150. + +[592:5] As in the case of Fabian of Rome. Euseb. vi. 29. + +[593:1] Bingham, i. 356, 359. + +[593:2] Cyprian, Epist. lv. pp. 177, 178; xl. pp. 119, 120. + +[593:3] Epist. xxxiii. p. 105. + +[594:1] Epist. xxiv. pp. 79, 80. + +[594:2] Epist. xxxiv. pp. 107, 108. + +[594:3] Epist. xxxv. p. 111. + +[595:1] Bishops and presbyters appear to have continued to ordain +bishops in the time of Origen. His "Commentaries on Matthew," written +according to his Benedictine editor in A.D. 245 (see Delarue's "Origen," +iii. Praef.), speak of _bishops and presbyters_ "committing whole +churches to unfit persons and _constituting incompetent +governors_."--_Opera_, iii. p. 753. + +[595:2] It would appear that the five presbyters who opposed Cyprian +constituted the majority of the presbytery. Cyprian, Epist. xl. pp. 119, +120. See also Sage's "Vindication of the Principles of the Cyprianic +Age," p. 348. + +[595:3] Euseb. vi. 29. + +[596:1] Cyprian, Epist. xxxi. pp. 99, 100. + +[596:2] Cyprian, Epist. iv. p. 31. + +[596:3] Cyprian, Epist. xxxiii. p. 106, xxxiv. p. 107, lviii. p. 207, +lxxi. p. 271, lxxvii. p. 327. Euseb. vii. 5. + +[596:4] Thus we find him going so far as to complain that his presbyters +"with contempt and dishonour of the bishop arrogate sole authority to +themselves."--_Epist._ ix. p. 48. + +[596:5] Epist. xlix. p. 143. See Neander's "General History," i. 307, +and Burton's "Lectures on the Ecc. Hist, of the First Three Centuries," +ii. 331. Burton repudiates the attempts of Bingham and others to explain +away this proceeding. + +[597:1] They are called so for the first time in the Council of Ancyra. +They had before always been called simply bishops. It has been remarked +that we never find any _chorepiscopi_ among the African bishops, though +many of them occupied as humble a position as those so designated +elsewhere. + +[597:2] Canon xiii., "Canones Apost. et Concil. Berolini," 1839. + +[598:1] In the case of Novatian. Euseb. vi. 43. + +[599:1] These presbyters were called _Doctores_. Cyprian, Epist. xxxiv. +p. 80. + +[599:2] It would appear that, even at the time of the Council of +Carthage held A.D. 397, a bishop had sometimes only one presbyter under +his care. See Dupin's account of the Council. + +[599:3] Bingham, i. 198; and Beveridge, "Cotelerius," tom. ii. App. p. +17. + +[600:1] See Period II. sec. i. chap. ii. p. 302, and p. 355. + +[601:1] Euseb. vi. 43. + +[601:2] Bunsen's "Hippolytus," iii. 50. Another canon says--"_He who is +worthy out of the bishops_ ... putteth his hand upon him whom they have +made bishop, praying over him."--Bunsen, iii. 42. + +[601:3] See chapter viii. of this section, pp. 565, 567. + +[602:1] Bunsen, iii. 111. + +[602:2] Euseb. viii. 1. + +[603:1] The following observation of a distinguished writer of the +Church of England is well worthy of consideration. "The remains of +ancient ecclesiastical literature, especially those of the Latin Church, +teach us that the corruption of Christianity of which Romanism is the +full development, manifested itself, in the first instance, _not in the +doctrines which relate to the spiriting life of the individual_, but in +those connected with _the constitution and authority_ of the Christian +society."--_Litton's Church of Christ_, p. 12. + +[604:1] "Can. Apost." xiv. "Concil. Nic." xv. + +[604:2] Euseb. "Martyrs of Palestine," c. 12. + +[604:3] Euseb. viii. i. + +[605:1] Acts xxvi. 16-18. + +[605:2] Such was the case with the churches mentioned Acts xiv. 23, and +Titus i. 5. + +[606:1] Trajan regarded with great suspicion all associations, even fire +brigades and charitable societies. See Pliny's "Letters," book x., +letters 43 and 94. + +[607:1] Such as Mosheim, "Instit." i. 149, 150; Neander, "General +History," i. 281. + +[607:2] During the first forty years of the second century Gnosticism +did not excite much notice, and as the Church courts must have been +occupied chiefly with matters of mere routine, it is not remarkable that +their proceedings have not been recorded. + +[607:3] We have no contemporary evidence to prove that _ordinations_ +took place in the former half of the second century, and yet we cannot +doubt their occurrence. + +[608:1] Acts xx. 17. + +[608:2] "In Mileto enim convocatis episcopis et presbyteris, qui erant +ab Epheso et a reliquis proximis civitatibus."--_Contra Haeres_, iii. c. +14. § 2. + +[608:3] Cyprian, Epist. lxviii. § 256. + +[608:4] The new bishop was often chosen before the interment of his +predecessor; and even when the senior elder was the president, it is +probable that the neighbouring pastors assembled to attend the funeral +of the deceased pastor, and to be present at the inauguration of his +successor. + +[609:1] See Chapter vi. of this Section, p. 524. + +[609:2] The old writer called Praedestinatus speaks of several synods +held in reference to the Gnostics before the middle of the second +century. He may have had access to some documents now lost, but the +testimony of a witness who lived in the fifth or sixth century is not of +much value. + +[610:1] "In toto orbe decretum est ut unus de presbyteris electus +superponeretur caeteris."--_Com. in Titum_. + +[610:2] Euseb. v. 16. + +[610:3] See Routh's "Reliquiae," ii. 183, 195. + +[611:1] Mosheim ("Commentaries" by Vidal, ii. 105) has made a vain +attempt to set aside the Latin translation of this passage by Valesius, +as he saw that it completely upsets his favourite theory. But any one +who carefully examines the Greek of Eusebius may see that the rendering +complained of is quite correct. It cannot be necessary to point out to +the intelligent reader the transparent sophistry of nearly all that +Mosheim has written on this subject. + +[611:2] Euseb. v. 23. + +[612:1] See Period II. sec. iii. chap. v. p. 509. + +[612:2] Tertullian, "De Jejun," c. xiii. + +[613:1] "Aguntur praeterea _per Graecias_ illa certis in locis concilia +ex universis ecclesiis." + +[613:2] "Ipsa repraesentatio totius nominis Christiani magna veneratione +celebratur." Mosheim argues from these words that the bishops attended +these assemblies, not by right of office, but as _representatives of the +people_! He might, with more plausibility, have contended that they were +held only once a year. "Ista _sollemnia_ quibus tunc praesens +patrocinatus est sermo." + +[614:1] Euseb. v. 24. Hippolytus complains of a bishop of Rome that he +was "ignorant of the _ecclesiastical rules_,"--a plain proof, not only +that synods were in existence in the West, but also that a knowledge of +canon law was considered an important accomplishment. See Bunsen, ii. +223. + +[614:2] Cyprian (Epist. lxxiii.) speaks of a large council held "many +years" before his time "under Agrippinus," one of his predecessors. This +bishop appears to have been contemporary with Tertullian. + +[614:3] In his book "De Pudicitia," c. 10, he speaks of the "Pastor" of +Hermas as classed among apocryphal productions "_ab omni concilio +ecclesiarum_"--implying that it had been condemned by African councils, +as well as others. + +[614:4] The prevalence of the Montanistic spirit in Asia Minor may +account for this. + +[615:1] See Potter's "Antiquities of Greece," i. 106. + +[615:2] See Mosheim's "Commentaries," cent. ii. sect. 22. + +[616:1] "Per singulos annos seniores et praepositi in unum conveniamus." + +[616:2] Cyprian, Epist. lxxv. pp. 302, 303. + +[616:3] In Africa, however, this arrangement was not established even in +the fifth century. There, the senior bishop still continued president. + +[617:1] This canon somewhat differs from the fifth of the Council of +Nice, as the latter requires the first meeting to be held "before Lent." +It is somewhat doubtful which canon is of higher antiquity. + +[619:1] "Seniores et praepositi."--_Epist. Cypriani, Opera_, p. 302. + +[619:2] "The Councils of the Church," by Rev. E.B. Pusey, D.D., p. 34 +Oxford, 1857. + +[619:3] Pusey, p. 58. + +[619:4] Ibid. p. 66. + +[619:5] Ibid. p. 95. + +[619:6] As in the case of Athanasius at the Council of Nice. + +[619:7] As witnesses and commissioners may still be heard by Church +courts. + +[619:8] "Graviter commoti sumus ego et collegae mei qui praesentes +aderant et _compresbyteri nostri qui nobis assidebant"--Cyprian_, Epist. +lxvi. p. 245. "_Residentibus_ etiam viginti et sex _presbyteris, +adstantibus diaconibus et omni plebe."--Concil. Illiberit_. + +[620:1] Euseb. vii. 30. + +[621:1] Prov. xi. 14. + +[621:2] Mosheim's "Institutes," by Soames, i. 150. + +[624:1] See Mosheim's "Commentaries," cent. ii. sec. 39; American +edition by Murdock. + +[624:2] Acts xxiv. 5. + +[624:3] Euseb. iv. 5. + +[625:1] The English name _Easter_ is derived from that of a Teutonic +goddess whose festival was celebrated by the ancient Saxons in the month +of April, and for which the Paschal feast was substituted. + +[626:1] Pentecost, called Whitsunday or White-Sunday, on account of the +white garments worn by those who then received baptism, was observed as +early as the beginning of the third century. Origen, "Contra Celsum," +book viii. Tertullian, "De Idololatria," c. 14. We have then no trace of +the observation of Christmas. See Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 413. + +[626:2] See Mosheim's "Commentaries," by Murdock, cent. ii. sec. 71. Dr +Schaff seems disposed to deny this, but he assigns no reasons. See his +"Hist. of the Christ. Church," p. 374. + +[626:3] Even as to this point there is not unanimity--some alleging that +our Lord partook of the Paschal lamb on the night preceding that on +which it was eaten by the Jews. + +[627:1] This is distinctly asserted by Irenaeus. "Anicetus and Pius, +Hyginus with Telesphorus and Xystus, neither did themselves observe, nor +did they permit those after them to observe it. And yet though they +themselves did not keep it, they were not the less at peace with those +from churches where it was kept, whenever they came to them, although to +keep it then was so much the more in opposition to those who did +not."--_Euseb._ v. 24. + +[629:1] It would appear that the Armenians, the Copts, and others, still +observe this rite. Mosheim's "Comment." cent. ii. sec. 71. As to the +continuance of this custom at Rome, see Bingham, v. 36, 37. + +[629:2] Socrates, an ecclesiastical historian of the fifth century, has +expressed himself with remarkable candour on this subject. "It appears +to me," says he, "that neither the ancients nor moderns who have +affected to follow the Jews have had any rational foundation for +contending so obstinately about it (Easter). For they have altogether +lost sight of the fact that when our religion superseded the Jewish +economy, the obligation to observe the Mosaic law and the ceremonial +types ceased.... The Saviour and His apostles have enjoined us by no law +to keep this feast: nor in the New Testament are we threatened with any +penalty, punishment, or curse for the neglect of it, as the Mosaic law +does the Jews."--_Ecc. Hist._ v. c. 22. + +[629:3] This system seems to have been in existence in the time of +Tertullian. See Tertullian, "Ad. Martyr." c. 1., and "De Pudicitia," +c. 22. + +[630:1] Cyprian speaks of a confessor spending his time "in drunkenness +and revealing," (_Epist._ vi. p. 37,) and of some guilty of "fraud, +fornication, and adultery." (_De Unit. Ecc._ p. 404.) + +[630:2] Thus Cyprian says--"Lucianus, not only while Paulus was still in +prison, gave letters in his name _indiscriminately_ written with his own +hand, but _even after his decease_ continued to do the same in his name, +saying that he had been ordered to do so by Paulus."--_Epist._ xxii. +p. 77. + +[630:3] Cyprian, Epist. x. p. 52. + +[631:1] Apostasy in time of persecution was considered a mortal sin. +Adultery was placed in the same category. Cyprian, Epist. lii. p. 155. +At one time Cyprian himself held the sentiments of the stricter party. +See his "Scripture Testimonies against the Jews," book iii. § 28, p. 563. + +[633:1] Cyprian, Epist. lxxiii. p. 279, and lxxiv. p. 295. + +[633:2] Cyprian, Epist. lxxiii. p. 277, 278. + +[634:1] In Stieren's "Irenaeus," i. 824, there is a different reading of +this passage, according to which some continued the fast forty days. + +[634:2] Euseb. v. 24. + +[636:1] John x. 11, 27, 28. + +[636:2] Eph. v. 25-27. + +[636:3] Matt, xxviii. 20. + +[636:4] 1 Pet. i. 5. + +[636:5] Matt. xvi. 18. + +[637:1] Eph. iv. 3. + +[637:2] Eph. iv. 13. + +[637:3] Eph. iv. 13. + +[637:4] No writer since the Reformation has discussed the subject of the +Church with more learning and ability than the Rev. Dr Hodge of +Princeton. Those who wish to be thoroughly acquainted with all the +bearings of the question should consult his "Essays and Reviews," New +York, 1857. Also the "Princeton Review." See also an article of his +taken from the "Princeton Review" in the "British and Foreign +Evangelical Review" for Sept. 1854. + +[637:5] Matt. xiii. 47-50. + +[638:1] 1 Cor. i. 11, 12. + +[638:2] Gal. i. 6, iii. 1. + +[638:3] Rev. iii. 1. + +[639:1] Thus, Melito of Sardis is said to have written a work "On the +Church." Euseb. iv. 26. + +[639:2] Apostles' Creed. For another form see Bunsen's "Hippolytus," +iii. 25, 27. + +[640:1] 3 John 9, 10. + +[640:2] He appears, for certain reasons now unknown, to have been +dissatisfied with some disciples who had been engaged in missionary +work; and he had influence sufficient to procure the excommunication of +the brethren who entertained them. + +[640:3] He would be a bold man who would assert that all the pious +members of the Society of Friends are in a hopeless condition. + +[641:1] Heb. xii. 23. + +[641:2] See Rothe's "Anfange der Christlichen Kirche," p. 575. + +[641:3] Cyprian, Epist. lxxvi. p. 316. + +[641:4] Epist. lxix. p. 265. + +[641:5] Epist. lxii. p. 221. + +[642:1] "De Unit. Ecc." p. 397. See also Lactantius, "De Vera +Sapientia," lib. iv. p. 282. + +[642:2] Eph. iv. 12. + +[642:3] Acts xx. 32. + +[643:1] Rev. i. 6. + +[644:1] If our authorized version of the English Bible is to be regarded +as a standard of correct usage, the word priest cannot be properly +employed to designate a Christian minister. In the New Testament, as +stated in the text, a minister of the word is never called a _priest_ +([Greek: hiereus]), and the latter term, when used in reference to an +official personage in our English Bible, always denotes an individual +_who offers sacrifice_. To call a gospel minister a priest is, +therefore, at once to adopt an incorrect expression and to insinuate a +false doctrine. The English word priest is derived, not as some say, +from the Greek [Greek: presbuteros] through the French _prêtre_, but +from the Greek [Greek: proestôs], in Latin _praestes_, and in Saxon +_preost_. See Webster's "Dictionary of the English Language." + +[644:2] Epist. lxix. p. 264. + +[644:3] Thus, Tertullian speaks of the "ordo sacerdotalis." "De Exhor. +Cast." c. vii. + +[645:1] Cyprian, Epist. lxiii. p. 230; lxiv. p. 239. + +[645:2] Cyprian, Epist. lxix. p. 264. Cotelerius, i. 442. The Eucharist +is called a sacrifice by Justin Martyr (see his Dialogue with Trypho., +"Opera," p. 260) apparently in a figurative sense, but when dispensed by +a minister called a _priest_, such language became exceedingly liable to +misconception. + +[645:3] In proof of this see Cyprian, Epist. lvi. p. 200, and lxiii. +p. 231. In the former place Cyprian says--"Mindful of the Eucharist, +the hand which has received _the Lord's body_ may embrace the _Lord +himself_." + +[645:4] Heb. v. 4; Acts xx. 28, xxvi. 16. + +[646:1] Cyprian, Epist. xlvi. p. 136. + +[646:2] Epist. lxix. p. 262. See also Epist. lv. p. 177. "If any amount +of difference of opinion as to the truth or untruth of the teaching of a +geographical priesthood, will justify separation under another Christian +ministry, then it at once ceases to be true that there _can_ be but one +bishop, or one priest, over any given area in which such differences +exist; there then _may_ obviously be as many bishops, or as many +priests, as there may be different bodies of men differing from each +other's teaching in what they deem sufficiently essential points to +justify separation."--_Letter from the Duke of Argyll to the Bishop of +Oxford_, p. 8. + +[647:1] Epist. lxix. p. 264. + +[647:2] Acts x. 48. + +[648:1] Jerome, "Catalogue of Ecclesiastical Writers." + +[648:2] Some of those called heretics had many martyrs. Euseb. v. 16. + +[648:3] "De Unit. Ecc." Opera, p. 399. + +[648:4] "De Unit. Ecc." p. 401. + +[648:5] "De Unit. Ecc." p. 401. + +[649:1] Jeremiah xxiii. 21, 22. + +[649:2] Phil. i. 15, 18. See also Mark ix. 38, 39. + +[649:3] Cyprian himself makes this admission. Epist. lxxvi. p. 319. + +[649:4] Epist. lii. p. 156. + +[649:5] Epist. lxxvi. p. 319. + +[650:1] Rom. x. 13,17. + +[650:2] Tertullian did not hold the doctrine of her perpetual virginity. +See "De Monog." c. 8, and "De Carne Christi," c. 23. Neither did he +believe in her immaculate conception. See Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 338. + +[652:1] One of the most distinguished and sagacious of modern +missionaries has called attention to this fact. See Livingstone's +"Missionary Travels in South Africa," p. 107. + +[654:1] Maximian, in his famous edict of toleration, lays great stress +on this circumstance. "De Mortibus Persecutorum," c. 34. + +[654:2] Cornelius to Cyprian, Epist. xlvi. p. 136. + +[654:3] "De Unit. Eccles." p. 397. + +[654:4] Epist. lii. p. 156. + +[654:5] Matt. xvi. 18. + +[654:6] Cyprian, Epist. xl. pp. 120, 121. + +[656:1] 2 Cor. iii. 17. + +[656:2] Isa. xl. 4, 5. + +[656:3] Isa. lii. 8. + +[656:4] Zech. xiv. 9. + + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's The Ancient Church, by W.D. [William Dool] Killen + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE ANCIENT CHURCH *** + +***** This file should be named 16700-8.txt or 16700-8.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + https://www.gutenberg.org/1/6/7/0/16700/ + +Produced by PG Distributed Proofreaders + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, +set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to +copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to +protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project +Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you +charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you +do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the +rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose +such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and +research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do +practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is +subject to the trademark license, especially commercial +redistribution. + + + +*** START: FULL LICENSE *** + +THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE +PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK + +To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free +distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work +(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project +Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project +Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at +https://gutenberg.org/license). + + +Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic works + +1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to +and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property +(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all +the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy +all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. +If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the +terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or +entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. + +1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be +used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who +agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few +things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works +even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See +paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement +and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. See paragraph 1.E below. + +1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" +or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the +collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an +individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are +located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from +copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative +works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg +are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project +Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by +freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of +this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with +the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by +keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project +Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. + +1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern +what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in +a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check +the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement +before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or +creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project +Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning +the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United +States. + +1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: + +1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate +access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently +whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the +phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project +Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, +copied or distributed: + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + +1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived +from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is +posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied +and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees +or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work +with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the +work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 +through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the +Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or +1.E.9. + +1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted +with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution +must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional +terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked +to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the +permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. + +1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this +work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. + +1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this +electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without +prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with +active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project +Gutenberg-tm License. + +1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, +compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any +word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or +distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than +"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version +posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), +you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a +copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon +request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other +form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. + +1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, +performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works +unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. + +1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing +access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided +that + +- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from + the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method + you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is + owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he + has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the + Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments + must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you + prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax + returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and + sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the + address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to + the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." + +- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies + you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he + does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm + License. You must require such a user to return or + destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium + and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of + Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any + money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the + electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days + of receipt of the work. + +- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free + distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set +forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from +both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael +Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the +Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. + +1.F. + +1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable +effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread +public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm +collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain +"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or +corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual +property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a +computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by +your equipment. + +1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right +of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project +Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all +liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal +fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT +LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE +PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE +TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE +LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR +INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH +DAMAGE. + +1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a +defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can +receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a +written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you +received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with +your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with +the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a +refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity +providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to +receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy +is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further +opportunities to fix the problem. + +1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth +in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER +WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO +WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. + +1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied +warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. +If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the +law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be +interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by +the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any +provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. + +1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the +trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone +providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance +with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, +promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, +harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, +that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do +or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm +work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any +Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. + + +Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm + +Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of +electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers +including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists +because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from +people in all walks of life. + +Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the +assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's +goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will +remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure +and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. +To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation +and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 +and the Foundation web page at https://www.pglaf.org. + + +Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive +Foundation + +The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit +501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the +state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal +Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification +number is 64-6221541. Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at +https://pglaf.org/fundraising. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent +permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. + +The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. +Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered +throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at +809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email +business@pglaf.org. Email contact links and up to date contact +information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official +page at https://pglaf.org + +For additional contact information: + Dr. Gregory B. Newby + Chief Executive and Director + gbnewby@pglaf.org + + +Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation + +Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide +spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of +increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be +freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest +array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations +($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt +status with the IRS. + +The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating +charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United +States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a +considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up +with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations +where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To +SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any +particular state visit https://pglaf.org + +While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we +have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition +against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who +approach us with offers to donate. + +International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make +any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from +outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. + +Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation +methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other +ways including including checks, online payments and credit card +donations. To donate, please visit: https://pglaf.org/donate + + +Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. + +Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm +concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared +with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project +Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. + + +Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. +unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + https://www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. diff --git a/16700-8.zip b/16700-8.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..9c4b7fb --- /dev/null +++ b/16700-8.zip diff --git a/16700.txt b/16700.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..5a9dc98 --- /dev/null +++ b/16700.txt @@ -0,0 +1,25163 @@ +Project Gutenberg's The Ancient Church, by W.D. [William Dool] Killen + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The Ancient Church + Its History, Doctrine, Worship, and Constitution + +Author: W.D. [William Dool] Killen + +Release Date: September 24, 2005 [EBook #16700] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE ANCIENT CHURCH *** + + + + +Produced by PG Distributed Proofreaders + + + + + + +THE ANCIENT CHURCH: + +Its History, Doctrine, Worship, and Constitution, +Traced for the First Three Hundred Years. + + + +BY + +W.D. KILLEN, D.D. + +Professor of Ecclesiastical History and Pastoral Theology to the +General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. + + + +"Glorious things are spoken of thee, O city of God." + PSALM lxxxvii. 3. + + + + +NEW YORK: +MDCCC.LIX. + + + + + +PREFATORY NOTE. + + +I cannot permit this Edition of "The Ancient Church" to appear before +the citizens of the United States without acknowledging my obligations +to Mr Charles Scribner of New York. Mr Scribner was the first gentleman +connected with the noble profession to which he belongs, either in the +Old or in the New World, from whom I received encouragement in this +undertaking; and his prompt and generous offers aided me materially in +making arrangements for the publication of the work in Great Britain. +Every line of the present impression has been corrected by myself, and +should my life be spared, any future Edition which Mr Scribner may +publish is to appear under the same supervision. I trust that the Trade +throughout the Union will recognize the debt of gratitude which I owe to +my American friend. There is a higher law than the law of international +copyright, and I feel confident that no Publisher of honour and +integrity in the Great Republic will repudiate its claims. + +W.D. KILLEN. + +17 University Square, Belfast, Ireland, +_July_ 1859. + + + + + +PREFACE. + + +The appearance of another history of the early Church requires some +explanation. As the progress of the Christian commonwealth for the first +three hundred years has been recently described by British, German, and +American writers of eminent ability, it may, perhaps, be thought that +the subject is now exhausted. No competent judge will pronounce such an +opinion. During the last quarter of a century, various questions +relating to the ancient Church, which are almost, if not altogether, +ignored in existing histories, have been earnestly discussed; whilst +several documents, lately discovered, have thrown fresh light on its +transactions. There are, besides, points of view, disclosing unexplored +fields for thought, from which the ecclesiastical landscape has never +yet been contemplated. The following work is an attempt to exhibit some +of its features as seen from a new position. + +The importance of this portion of the history of the Church can scarcely +be over-estimated. Our attention is here directed to the life of Christ, +to the labours of the apostles and evangelists, to the doctrines which +they taught, to the form of worship which they sanctioned, to the +organization of the community which they founded, and to the indomitable +constancy with which its members suffered persecution. The practical +bearing of the topics thus brought under review must be sufficiently +obvious. + +In the interval between the days of the apostles and the conversion of +Constantine, the Christian commonwealth changed its aspect. The Bishop +of Rome--a personage unknown to the writers of the New Testament-- +meanwhile rose into prominence, and at length took precedence of +all other churchmen. Rites and ceremonies, of which neither Paul nor +Peter ever heard, crept silently into use, and then claimed the rank of +divine institutions. Officers, for whom the primitive disciples could +have found no place, and titles, which to them would have been +altogether unintelligible, began to challenge attention, and to be named +apostolic. It is the duty of the historian to endeavour to point out the +origin, and to trace the progress of these innovations. A satisfactory +account of them must go far to settle more than one of our present +controversies. An attempt is here made to lay bare the causes which +produced these changes, and to mark the stages of the ecclesiastical +revolution. When treating of the rise and growth of the hierarchy, +several remarkable facts and testimonies which have escaped the notice +of preceding historians are particularly noticed. + +Some may, perhaps, consider that, in a work such as this, undue +prominence has been given to the discussion of the question of the +Ignatian epistles. Those who have carefully examined the subject will +scarcely think so. If we accredit these documents, the history of the +early Church is thrown into a state of hopeless confusion; and men, +taught and honoured by the apostles themselves, must have inculcated the +most dangerous errors. But if their claims vanish, when touched by the +wand of truthful criticism, many clouds which have hitherto darkened the +ecclesiastical atmosphere disappear; and the progress of corruption can +be traced on scientific principles. The special attention of all +interested in the Ignatian controversy is invited to the two chapters of +this work in which the subject is investigated. Evidence is there +produced to prove that these Ignatian letters, even as edited by the +very learned and laborious Doctor Cureton, are utterly spurious, and +that they should be swept away from among the genuine remains of early +Church literature with the besom of scorn. + +Throughout the work very decided views are expressed on a variety of +topics; but it must surely be unnecessary to tender an apology for the +free utterance of these sentiments; for, when recording the progress of +a revolution affecting the highest interests of man, the narrator cannot +be expected to divest himself of his cherished convictions; and very few +will venture to maintain that a writer, who feels no personal interest +in the great principles brought to light by the gospel, is, on that +account, more competent to describe the faith, the struggles, and the +triumphs of the primitive Christians. I am not aware that mere prejudice +has ever been permitted to influence my narrative, or that any statement +has been made which does not rest upon solid evidence. Some of the views +here presented may not have been suggested by any previous investigator, +and they may be exceedingly damaging to certain popular theories; but +they should not, therefore, be summarily condemned. Surely every honest +effort to explain and reconcile the memorials of antiquity is entitled +to a candid criticism. Nor, from those whose opinion is really worthy of +respect, do I despair of a kindly reception for this volume. One of the +most hopeful signs of the times is the increasing charity of evangelical +Christians. There is a growing disposition to discountenance the spirit +of religious partisanship, and to bow to the supremacy of TRUTH. I trust +that those who are in quest of the old paths trodden by the apostles and +the martyrs will find some light to guide them in the following pages. + + + + + +CONTENTS. + + + * * * * * + + PERIOD I + + FROM THE BIRTH OF CHRIST TO THE + DEATH OF THE APOSTLE JOHN, A.D. 100. + + * * * * * + + + SECTION I. + + HISTORY OF THE PLANTING AND GROWTH OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE ROMAN EMPIRE AT THE TIME OF THE BIRTH OF CHRIST. + PAGE +The boundaries of the Empire, 3 +Its population, strength, and grandeur, ib. +Its orators, poets, and philosophers, 5 +The influence of Rome upon the provinces, ib. +The languages most extensively spoken, 6 +The moral condition of the Empire, ib. +The influence of the philosophical sects--the Epicureans, the + Stoics, the Academics, and Plato, 7 +The influence of the current Polytheism, 9 +The state of the Jews--the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the Essenes, ib. +Preparations for a great Deliverer, and expectation of His appearance, 11 + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE LIFE OF CHRIST. + +The date of the Birth of Christ, 14 +The place of His Birth, ib. +The visit of the angel to the shepherds, 15 +The visit of the Magi--the flight into Egypt--and the murder of + the infants at Bethlehem, ib. +The presentation in the Temple, 16 +The infancy and boyhood of Jesus, 17 +His baptism and entrance upon His public ministry, 18 +His mysterious movements, 19 +The remarkable blanks in the accounts given of Him in the Gospels, 20 +His moral purity, 21 +His doctrine and His mode of teaching, 22 +His miracles, 23 +The independence of His proceedings as a reformer, 25 +The length of His ministry, 26 +The Sanhedrim and Pontius Pilate, 27 +The Death of Christ, and its significance, 28 +His Resurrection, and His appearance afterwards only to His own + followers, 29 +His Ascension, 30 +His extraordinary character, 31 +SUPPLEMENTARY NOTE on the year of the Birth of Christ, 32 + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE TWELVE AND THE SEVENTY. + +Our Lord during His short ministry trained eighty-two preachers--the + Twelve and the Seventy, 36 +Various names of some of the Twelve, 37 +Relationship of some of the parties, 39 +Original condition of the Twelve, ib. +Various characteristics of the Twelve, 40 +Twelve, why called _Apostles_, 42 +Typical meaning of the appointment of the Twelve and the Seventy, 43 +In what sense the Apostles founded the Church, 45 +Why so little notice of the Seventy in the New Testament, 46 +No account of ordinations of pastors or elders by the Twelve or + the Seventy, 47 +No succession from the Twelve or Seventy can be traced, 48 +In what sense the Twelve and Seventy have no successors, and in + what sense they have, 50 + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE PROGRESS OF THE GOSPEL FROM THE DEATH OF CHRIST TO THE DEATH +OF THE APOSTLE JAMES, THE BROTHER OF JOHN.--A.D. 31 TO A.D. 44. + +The successful preaching of the Apostles in Jerusalem, 52 +The disciples have all things common, ib. +The appointment of the deacons, 54 +The Apostles refuse to obey the rulers of the Jews, 55 +The date of the martyrdom of Stephen, ib. +The gospel preached in Samaria, 56 +The baptism of the Ethiopian eunuch, and of Cornelius the centurion, 57 +The conversion of Saul, his character, position, and sufferings, 59 +His visit to Jerusalem, and vision, 62 +His ministry in Syria and Cilicia, 63 +His appearance at Antioch, ib. +Why the disciples were called Christians, 64 +Paul and Barnabas sent from Antioch with relief to the poor saints + in Judea, 65 +The Apostles leave Jerusalem--why no successor appointed on + the death of James the brother of John, 66 +Why Paul taken up to Paradise, 68 + + +CHAPTER V. + +THE ORDINATION OF PAUL AND BARNABAS; THEIR MISSIONARY TOUR IN +ASIA MINOR; AND THE COUNCIL OF JERUSALEM.--A.D. 44 TO A.D. 51. + +Previous position of Paul and Barnabas, 70 +Why now ordained, 71 +Import of ordination, 73 +By whom Paul and Barnabas were ordained, 74 +They visit Cyprus, Perga, Antioch in Pisidia, Iconium, and other + places, 75 +Ordain elders in every Church, 76 +Opposition of the Jews, and dangers of the missionaries, 77 +Some insist on the circumcision of the Gentile converts, and are + resisted by Paul, 79 +Why he objected to the proposal, ib. +Deputation to Jerusalem about this question, 81 +Constituent members of the Council of Jerusalem, ib. +Date of the meeting, 82 +Not a popular assembly, 83 +In what capacity the Apostles here acted, 85 +Why the Council said "It seemed good to the Holy Ghost and to us," 86 +The decision, 87 +Why the converts were required to abstain from blood and + things strangled, 88 +Importance of the decision, 89 + + +CHAPTER VI. + +THE INTRODUCTION OF THE GOSPEL INTO EUROPE, AND THE MINISTRY OF +PAUL AT PHILIPPI.-A.D. 52. + +Date of Paul's first appearance in Europe, 90 +History of Philippi, ib. +Jewish Oratory there, 91 +Conversion of Lydia, ib. +The damsel with the spirit of divination, 92 +Paul and Silas before the magistrates, 93 +Causes of early persecutions, ib. +Paul and Silas in prison, 94 +Earthquake and alarm of the jailer, 95 +Remarkable conversion of the jailer, 96 +Alarm of the magistrates, 98 +Liberality of the Philippians, 99 + + +CHAPTER VII. + +THE MINISTRY OF PAUL IN THESSALONICA, BEREA, ATHENS, AND CORINTH. +--A.D. 52 TO A.D. 54. + +Thessalonica and its rulers, 100 +The more noble Bereans, 101 +Athens and its ancient glory, ib. +Paul's appearance among the philosophers, 102 +His speech on Mars' Hill 104 +Altar to the unknown God, ib. +The Epicureans and Stoics, 105 +The resurrection of the body, a strange doctrine, 106 +Conversion of Dionysius the Areopagite, 107 +Corinth in the first century, ib. +Paul's success here, 109 +Works at the trade of a tent-maker, 110 +Corinth a centre of missionary operation, 111 +The Corinthian Church, and its character, 112 +Opposition of Jews, and conduct of the Proconsul Gallio, ib. +Paul writes the First and Second Epistles to the Thessalonians, 113 + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +THE CONVERSION OF APOLLOS; HIS CHARACTER; AND THE MINISTRY OF +PAUL IN EPHESUS.--A.D. 54 TO A.D. 57. + +Paul's first visit to Ephesus; 115 +Aquila and Priscilla instruct Apollos, 116 +Position of the Jews in Alexandria, ib. +Gifts of Apollos, 117 +Ministry of Apollos in Corinth, ib. +Paul returns to Ephesus, and disputes in the school of Tyrannus, 118 +The Epistle to the Galatians, 119 +Paul's visit to Crete, and perils in the sea, 120 +Churches founded at Colosse and elsewhere, 121 +Temple of Diana at Ephesus, and the Ephesian letters, ib. +Apollonius of Tyana, and Paul's miracles, 122 +First Epistle to the Corinthians, 123 +Demetrius and the craftsmen, 124 +The Asiarchs and the town-clerk, 125 +Progress of the gospel in Ephesus, 127 + + +CHAPTER IX. + +PAUL'S EPISTLES; HIS COLLECTION FOR THE POOR SAINTS AT JERUSALEM; +HIS IMPRISONMENT THERE, AND AT CAESAREA AND ROME.--A.D. 57 TO A.D. 63. + +Paul preaches in Macedonia and Illyricum, 128 +Writes the First Epistle to Timothy, and the Second Epistle to + the Corinthians, 129 +Arrives in Corinth, and writes the Epistle to the Romans, 130 +Sets out on his return to Jerusalem; and, when at Miletus, sends + to Ephesus for the elders of the Church, 131 +The collection for the poor saints of Jerusalem carried by + seven commissioners, 132 +Riot when Paul appeared in the Temple at Jerusalem, 134 +Paul rescued by the chief captain and made a prisoner, ib. +Paul before the Sanhedrim, 136 +Removed to Caesarea, ib. +Paul before Felix and Festus, 137 +Appeals to Caesar, 138 +His defence before Agrippa, 139 +His voyage to Rome, and shipwreck, 142 +His arrival in Italy, 145 +Greatness and luxury of Rome, ib. +Paul preaches in his own hired house, 148 +His zeal, labours, and success, 149 +Writes to Philemon, to the Colossians, the Ephesians, and the + Philippians, 150 + + +CHAPTER X. + +PAUL'S SECOND IMPRISONMENT, AND MARTYRDOM; PETER, HIS EPISTLES, +HIS MARTYRDOM, AND THE ROMAN CHURCH. + +Evidences of Paul's release from his first Roman imprisonment, 152 +His visit to Spain, 153 +Writes the Epistle to the Hebrews, 154 +Revisits Jerusalem, and returns to Rome, 155 +His second Roman imprisonment, ib. +Writes Second Epistle to Timothy, ib. +Date of his martyrdom, 156 +Peter's arrival in Rome, ib. +His First Epistle written from Rome, 157 +Why Rome called Babylon, 158 +Peter writes his Second Epistle, ib. +His testimony to the inspiration of Paul, 159 +His martyrdom, 160 +Circumstances which, at an early period, gave prominence to the + Church of Rome, ib. +Its remarkable history, 162 + + +CHAPTER XI. + +THE PERSECUTIONS OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH, AND ITS CONDITION AT THE +TERMINATION OF THE FIRST CENTURY. + +The Jews at first the chief persecutors of the Church, 163 +Their banishment from Rome by Claudius, 164 +Martyrdom of James the Just, 165 +Why Christians so much persecuted, 166 +Persecution of Nero, ib. +A general persecution, 167 +Effect of the fall of Jerusalem, 168 +Persecution of Domitian, 169 +The grandchildren of Jude, ib. +Flavius Clemens and Flavia Domitilla, 170 +John banished to Patmos, 171 +His last days, and death, 172 +State of the Christian interest towards the close of the first + century, ib. +Spread of the gospel, 173 +Practical power of Christianity, 174 + + + + SECTION II. + + THE LITERATURE AND THEOLOGY OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE NEW TESTAMENT, ITS HISTORY, AND THE AUTHORITY OF ITS VARIOUS PARTS.-- +THE EPISTLE OF CLEMENT OF ROME. + +Why our Lord wrote nothing Himself, 176 +The order in which the Gospels appeared, 177 +Internal marks of truthfulness and originality in the writings of + the Evangelists, 178 +The Acts of the Apostles treat chiefly of the acts of Peter and Paul, 179 +On what principle the Epistles of Paul arranged in the New Testament, 180 +The titles of the sacred books not appended by the Apostles or + Evangelists, and the postscripts of the Epistles of Paul not + added by himself, and often not trustworthy, 181 +The dates of the Catholic Epistles, 182 +The authenticity of the various parts of the New Testament, ib. +Doubts respecting the Epistle to the Hebrews, and some of the + smaller Epistles, and the Apocalypse, 183 +Division of the New Testament into chapters and verses, 184 +All, in primitive times, were invited and required to study the + Scriptures, ib. +The autographs of the sacred penmen not necessary to prove the + inspiration of their writings, 185 +The Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians, 186 +The truth of the New Testament established by all the proper tests + which can be applied, 187 + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE DOCTRINE OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + +Same system of doctrine in Old and New Testaments, 188 +The New Testament the complement of the Old, ib. +The views of the Apostles at first obscure, 189 +New light received after the resurrection, 190 +In the New Testament a full statement of apostolic doctrine, ib. +Sufficiency and plenary inspiration of Scripture, 191 +State of man by nature, 192 +Faith and the Word, ib. +All the doctrines of the Bible form one system, 193 +The Deity of Christ 194 +The Incarnation and Atonement, 195 +Predestination, 197 +The Trinity, ib. +Creeds, 198 +Practical tendency of apostolic doctrine, ib. + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE HERESIES OF THE APOSTOLIC AGE. + +Original meaning of the word Heresy, 200 +How the word came to signify something wrong, 201 +The Judaizers the earliest errorists, ib. +Views of the Gnostics respecting the present world, the body of + Christ, and the resurrection of the body, 202 +Simon Magus and other heretics mentioned in the New Testament, 205 +Carpocrates, Cerinthus, and Ebion, 206 +The Nicolaitanes, ib. +Peculiarities of Jewish, sectarianism, 207 +Unity of apostolic Church not much affected by the heretics, 208 +Heresy convicted by its practical results, ib. + + + + SECTION III. + + THE WORSHIP AND CONSTITUTION OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE LORD'S DAY; THE WORSHIP OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH; ITS +SYMBOLIC ORDINANCES, AND ITS DISCIPLINE. + +Christians assembled for worship on the first day of the week, 210 +Our Lord recognized the permanent obligation of the + Fourth Commandment, 211 +Worship of the Church resembled, not that of the Temple, but + that of the Synagogue, 214 +No Liturgies in the apostolic Church, 215 +No instrumental music, 216 +Scriptures read publicly, 217 +Worship in the vulgar tongue, ib. +Ministers had no official dress, 218 +Baptism administered to infants, 219 +Mode of Baptism, 220 +The Lord's Supper frequently administered, 221 +The elements not believed to be transubstantiated, 222 +Profane excluded from the Eucharist, ib. +Cases of discipline decided by Church rulers, 223 +Case of the Corinthian fornicator, ib. +Share of the people in Church discipline, 226 +Significance of excommunication in the apostolic Church, 228 +Perversion of excommunication by the Church of Rome, 229 + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE EXTRAORDINARY TEACHERS OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH; AND ITS +ORDINARY OFFICE-BEARERS, THEIR APPOINTMENT, AND ORDINATION. + +Enumeration of ecclesiastical functionaries in Ephesians iv. 11, 12, + and 1 Corinthians xii. 28, 230 +Ordinary Church officers, teachers, rulers, and deacons, 232 +Elders, or bishops, the same as pastors and teachers, ib. +Different duties of elders and deacons, 233 +All the primitive elders did not preach, 234 +The office of the teaching elder most honourable, 236 +Even the Apostles considered preaching their highest function, 237 +Timothy and Titus not diocesan bishops of Ephesus and Crete, 238 +The Pastoral Epistles inculcate all the duties of ministers of the + Word, 241 +Ministers of the Word should exercise no lordship over each other, 243 +The members of the apostolic Churches elected all their own + office-bearers, 244 +Church officers ordained by the presbytery, 245 +The office of deaconess, ib. +All the members of the apostolic Churches taught to contribute + to each other's edification, 246 + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE ORGANIZATION OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + +Unity of the Church of Israel, 248 +Christian Church also made up of associated congregations, 249 +The Apostles act upon the principle of ecclesiastical confederation, 250 +Polity of the Christian Church borrowed from the institutions of + the Israelites, 251 +Account of the Sanhedrim and inferior Jewish courts, ib. +Evidences of similar arrangements in the Christian Church, 253 +How the meeting mentioned in the 15th chapter of the Acts differed + in its construction from the Sanhedrim, 254 +Why we have not a more particular account of the government + of the Christian Church in the New Testament, 255 +No higher and lower houses of convocation in the apostolic Church, ib. +James not bishop of Jerusalem, 256 +Origin of the story, ib. +Jerusalem for some time the stated place of meeting of the highest + court of the Christian Church, 257 +Traces of provincial organization in Proconsular Asia, Galatia, and + other districts, among the apostolic Churches, 258 +Intercourse between apostolic Churches, by letters and deputations, 260 +How there were preachers in the apostolic Church of whom the + Apostles disapproved, 261 +The unity of the apostolic Church--in what it consisted, to + what it may be compared, 262 + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE ANGELS OF THE SEVEN CHURCHES. + +The mysterious symbols of the Apocalypse, 263 +The seven stars seven angels, 264 +These angels not angelic beings, and not corporate bodies, + but individuals, 265 +The name angel probably not taken from that of an officer of the + synagogue, ib. +The angel of the synagogue a congregational officer, 266 +The angels of the Churches not diocesan bishops, 267 +The stars, not attached to the candlesticks, but in the hand of + Christ, 268 +The angels of the Churches were their messengers sent to visit + John in Patmos, ib. +Why only seven angels named, 271 + + + + * * * * * + + PERIOD II. + + FROM THE DEATH OF THE APOSTLE JOHN + TO THE CONVERSION OF CONSTANTINE.-- + A.D. 100 TO AD. 312. + + * * * * * + + + + SECTION I. + + THE HISTORY OF THE CHURCH. + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE GROWTH OF THE CHURCH. + +Prospects of the Church in the beginning of the second century, 275 +Christianity recommended by its good fruits, 276 +Diffusion of Scriptures and preparation of versions in + other languages, 277 +Doubtful character of the miracles attributed to this period, 278 +Remarkable progress of the gospel, 280 +Christianity propagated in Africa, France, Thrace, and Scotland, ib. +Testimonies to its success, 281 +Gains ground rapidly towards the close of the third century, 282 +Its progress, how to be tested, 283 + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE PERSECUTIONS OF THE CHURCH. + +Spectators impressed by the sufferings of the Christians, 284 +The blood of the martyrs the seed of the Church, 285 +Persecution promoted the purity of the Church, ib. +Christian graces gloriously displayed in times of persecution, ib. +Private sufferings of the Christians, 286 +How far the Romans acted on a principle of toleration, 288 +Christianity opposed as a "new religion," 288 +Correspondence between Pliny and Trajan, 289 +Law of Trajan, ib. +Martyrdom of Simeon of Jerusalem, 290 +Sufferings of Christians under Hadrian, 291 +Hadrian's rescript, ib. +Marcus Aurelius a persecutor, 292 +Justin and Polycarp martyred, 293 +Persecution at Lyons and Vienne, 294 +Absurd passion for martyrdom, 296 +Treatment of the Christians by Septimius Severus, 297 +The Libellatici and Thurificati, 298 +Perpetua and Felicitas martyred, ib. +Alexander Severus and Philip the Arabian favourable to the Christians, 299 +Persecution under Decius, 300 +Persecution under Valerian, 302 +Gallienus issues an edict of toleration, 303 +State of the Church during the last forty years of the third century, ib. +Diocletian persecution, 304 +The Traditors, 305 +Cruelties now practised, 306 +Not ten general persecutions, 307 +Deaths of the persecutors, 308 +Causes of the persecutions, 309 +The sufferings of the Christians did not teach them toleration, 310 + + +CHAPTER III. + +FALSE BRETHREN AND FALSE PRINCIPLES IN THE CHURCH; SPIRIT AND +CHARACTER OF THE CHRISTIANS. + +Piety of the early Christians not superior to that of all + succeeding ages, 312 +Covetous and immoral pastors in the ancient Church, 313 +Asceticism and its pagan origin, 314 +The unmarried clergy and the virgins, 315 +Paul and Antony the first hermits, ib. +Origin of the use of the sign of the cross, 316 +Opposition of the Christians to image-worship, 319 +Image-makers condemned, 320 +Objections of the Christians to the theatre, the gladiatorial shows, + and other public spectacles, 321 +Superior morality of the mass of the early Christians, 322 +How they treated the question of polygamy, ib. +Condemned intermarriages with heathens, 323 +How they dealt with the question of slavery, 324 +Influence of Christianity on the condition of the slave, 325 +Brotherly love of the Christians, 326 +Their kindness to distressed heathens, 327 +Christianity fitted for all mankind, 328 + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE CHURCH OF ROME IN THE SECOND CENTURY. + +Weak historical foundation of Romanism, 329 +Church of Rome not founded by either Paul or Peter, ib. +Its probable origin, 330 +Little known of its primitive condition, ib. +Its early episcopal succession a riddle, 331 +Martyrdom of Telesphorus, 332 +Heresiarchs in Rome, ib. +Its presiding presbyter called bishop, and invested with additional + power, ib. +Beginning of the Catholic system, ib. +Changes in the ecclesiastical constitution not accomplished without + opposition, 333 +Visit of Polycarp to Rome, 334 +Why so much deference so soon paid to the Roman Church, ib. +Wealth and influence of its members, 335 +Remarkable testimony of Irenaeus respecting it, 337 +Under what circumstances given, 338 +Victor's excommunication of the Asiatic Christians, 339 +Extent of Victor's jurisdiction, 340 +Explanation of his arrogance, 341 +First-fruits of the Catholic system, 342 + + +CHAPTER V. + +THE CHURCH OF ROME IN THE THIRD CENTURY. + +Genuine letters of the early bishops of Rome and false Decretal + epistles, 343 +Discovery of the statue of Hippolytus and of his "Philosophumena," 344 +The Roman bishops Zephyrinus and Callistus, 345 +Heresy of Zephyrinus, 346 +Extraordinary career and heresy of Callistus, ib. +The bishop of Rome not a metropolitan in the time of Hippolytus, 348 +Bishops of Rome chosen by the votes of clergy and people, 349 +Remarkable election of Fabian, ib. +Discovery of the catacombs, 350 +Origin of the catacombs, and how used by the Christians of Rome, ib. +The testimony of their inscriptions, 351 +The ancient Roman clergy married, 353 +Severity of persecution at Rome about the middle of the third + century, 354 +Four Roman bishops martyred, 355 +Statistics of the Roman Church about this period, ib. +Schism of Novatian, 356 +Controversy respecting rebaptism of heretics, and rashness of + Stephen, bishop of Rome, ib. +Misinterpretation of Matt. xvi. 18, 357 +Increasing power of Roman bishop, 359 +The bishop of Rome becomes a metropolitan, and is recognized by + the Emperor Aurelian, 360 +Early Roman bishops spoke and wrote in Greek, ib. +Obscurity of their early annals, ib. +Advancement of their power during the second and third centuries, 361 +Causes of their remarkable progress, ib. + + + + SECTION II. + + THE LITERATURE AND THEOLOGY OF THE CHURCH. + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE ECCLESIASTICAL WRITERS. + +The amount of their extant writings, 364 +The Epistle of Polycarp, 365 +Justin Martyr, his history and his works, ib. +The Epistle to Diognetus, 367 +Tatian, Athenagoras, Theophilus, and Hermas, ib. +The Epistle of Barnabas and the Shepherd of Hermas, ib. +Papias and Hegesippus, ib. +Irenaeus and his Works, 368 +Tertullian, his character and writings, 370 +Clement of Alexandria, 373 +Hippolytus, 374 +Minucius Felix, 375 +Origen--his early history and remarkable career--his great learning-- + his speculative spirit--his treatise against Celsus and his + "Hexapla"--his theological peculiarities, ib. +Cyprian--his training, character, and writings, 381 +Gregory Thaumaturgus, 383 +The value of the Fathers as ecclesiastical authorities, 384 +Their erroneous and absurd expositions, 385 +The excellency of Scripture, 387 + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE IGNATIAN EPISTLES AND THEIR CLAIMS--THE EXTERNAL EVIDENCE. + +The journeys undertaken in search of the Ignatian Epistles, and + the amount of literature to which they have given birth, 389 +Why these letters have awakened such interest, 390 +The story of Ignatius and its difficulties, ib. +The Seven Epistles known to Eusebius and those which appeared + afterwards, 394 +The different recensions of the Seven Letters known to Eusebius, 395 +The discovery of the Syriac version, ib. +Diminished size of the Curetonian Letters, 397 +The testimony of Eusebius considered, 398 +The testimony of Origen, 399 +The Ignatian Epistles not recognised by Irenaeus or Polycarp, 400 +These letters not known to Tertullian, Hippolytus, and other early + writers, 408 +The date of their fabrication. Their multiplication accounted for, 409 +Remarkable that spurious works are often found in more than one + edition, 411 + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE IGNATIAN EPISTLES AND THEIR CLAIMS--THE INTERNAL EVIDENCE. + +The history of these Epistles like the story of the Sibylline books, 413 +The three Curetonian Letters as objectionable as those formerly + published, 414 +The style suspicious, challenged by Ussher, 415 +The Word of God strangely ignored in these letters, ib. +Their chronological blunders betray their forgery, 417 +Various words in them have a meaning which they did not acquire + until after the time of Ignatius, 419 +Their puerilities, vapouring, and mysticism betray their + spuriousness, 422 +The anxiety for martyrdom displayed in them attests their forgery, 423 +The internal evidence confirms the view already taken of the date + of their fabrication, 425 +Strange attachment of Episcopalians to these letters, 426 +The sagacity of Calvin, 427 + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE GNOSTICS, THE MONTANISTS, AND THE MANICHAEANS. +The early heresies numerous, 429 +The systems with which Christianity had to struggle, 430 +The leading peculiarities of Gnosticism, ib. +The Aeons, the Demiurge, and the Saviour, 431 +Saturninus, Basilides, and Valentine, 433 +Marcion and Carpocrates, ib. +Causes of the popularity of Gnosticism, and its defects, 434 +Montanus and his system, 436 +His success and condemnation, 437 +Mani and his doctrine of the Two Principles, 438 +The Elect and Hearers of the Manichaeans, 439 +Martyrdom of Mani, 440 +Peculiarities of the heretics gradually adopted by the + Catholic Church, 441 +Doctrine of Venial and Mortal Sins, ib. +Doctrine of Purgatory, 442 +Celibacy and Asceticism, 443 + + +CHAPTER V. + +THE DOCTRINE OF THE CHURCH + +Leading doctrines of the gospel still acknowledged, 445 +Meaning of theological terms not yet exactly defined, ib. +Scripture venerated and studied, 446 +Extraordinary scriptural acquirements of some of the + early Christians, 447 +Doctrine of Plenary Inspiration of Scripture taught, 448 +The canon of the New Testament, ib. +Spurious scriptures and tradition, 449 +Human Depravity and Regeneration, 450 +Christ worshipped by the early Christians, 451 +Christ God and man, 452 +The Ebionites, Theodotus, Artemon, and Paul of Samosata, 453 +Doctrine of the Trinity, 454 +Praxeas, Noetus, and Sabellius, 455 +Doctrine of the Trinity not borrowed from Platonism, 457 +The Atonement and Justification by Faith, 458 +Grace and Predestination, ib. +Theological errors, 459 +Our knowledge of the gospel does not depend on our proximity to + the days of the Apostles, 461 + + + + SECTION III. + + THE WORSHIP AND CONSTITUTION OF THE CHURCH. + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE WORSHIP OF THE CHURCH. + +Splendour of the Pagan and Jewish worship--simplicity of Christian + worship, 462 +The places of worship of the early Christians, 463 +Psalmody of the Church, 464 +No instrumental music, 465 +No forms of prayer used by the early pastors, 466 +Congregation stood at prayer, 466 +Worship, how conducted, 467 +Scriptures read in public worship, 468 +The manner of preaching, 469 +Deportment of the congregation, 469 +Dress of ministers, 470 +Great change between this and the sixteenth century, 470 + + +CHAPTER II. + +BAPTISM. + +Polycarp probably baptized in infancy, 472 +Testimony of Justin Martyr and Irenaeus for Infant Baptism, 473 +Testimony of Origen, 474 +Objections of Tertullian examined, 475 +Sponsors in Baptism, who they were, ib. +The Baptism of Blood, 477 +Infant Baptism universal in Africa in the days of Cyprian, 478 +The mode of Baptism not considered essential, 479 +Errors respecting Baptism, and new rites added to the original + institution, 480 +The Baptismal Service the germ of a Church Liturgy, 481 +Evils connected with the corruption of the baptismal institute, ib. + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE LORD'S SUPPER. + +Danger of changing any part of a typical ordinance, 483 +How the Holy Supper was administered in Rome in the second century, 484 +The posture of the communicants--sitting and standing, 485 +The bread not unleavened, ib. +Wine mixed with water, ib. +Bread not put into the mouth by the minister, 486 +Infant communion, ib. +How often the Lord's Supper celebrated, ib. +The words _Sacrament_ and _Transubstantiation_, 487 +Bread and wine types or symbols, ib. +How Christ is present in the Eucharist, 488 +Growth of superstition in regard to the Eucharist, 489 +Danger of using language not warranted by Scripture, ib. + + +CHAPTER IV. + +CONFESSION AND PENANCE. + +Confession often made at Baptism by disciples of John the Baptist, + and of Christ, 491 +The early converts forthwith baptized, 492 +In the second century fasting preceded Baptism, 492 +The exomologesis of penitents, 493 +Influence of the mind on the body, and of the body on the mind, ib. +Fasting not an ordinary duty, 494 +Fasts of the ancient Church, ib. +Fasting soon made a test of repentance, 495 +The ancient penitential discipline, ib. +Establishment of a Penitentiary, 496 +Different classes of penitents, ib. +Auricular confession now unknown, 497 +Increasing spiritual darkness leads to confusion of terms, ib. + + +CHAPTER V. + +THE CONSTITUTION OF THE CHURCH IN THE SECOND CENTURY. + +Statement of Justin Martyr, 499 +Great obscurity resting on the subject, 500 +Illustrated by the Epistles of Clement and Polycarp, ib. +Circumstances which led to the writing of Clement's Epistle, 501 +Churches of Corinth and Borne then governed by presbyters, 503 +Churches of Smyrna and Philippi governed by presbyters, 504 +The presbyters had a chairman or president, ib. +Traces of this in the apostolic age, 505 +Early catalogues of bishops--their origin and contradictions, ib. +The senior presbyter the ancient president, 506 +Testimony of Hilary confirmed by various proofs, 507 +Ancient names of the president of the presbytery, 508 +Great age of ancient bishops, 509 +Great number of ancient bishops in a given period, ib. +Remarkable case of the Church of Jerusalem, 510 +No parallel to it in more recent times, 511 +Argument against heretics from the episcopal succession illustrated, 513 +The claims of seniority long respected in various ways, 515 +The power of the presiding presbyter limited, for the Church was + still governed by the common council of the presbyters, 516 +Change of the law of seniority, 518 +Change made about the end of the second century, ib. +Singular that many episcopal lists stop at the end of the second + century, 519 +Before that date only one bishop in Egypt, 520 +In some places another system set up earlier, 521 + + +CHAPTER VI. + +THE RISE OF THE HIERARCHY CONNECTED WITH THE SPREAD OF HERESIES. + +Eusebius. The defects of his Ecclesiastical History, 522 +Superior erudition of Jerome, 523 +His account of the origin of Prelacy, 524 +Prelacy originated after the apostolic age, 527 +Suggested by the distractions of the Church, 529 +Formidable and vexatious character of the early heresies, 530 +Mode of appointing the president of the eldership changed. + Popular election of bishops, how introduced, 532 +The various statements of Jerome consistent, 533 +The primitive moderator and the bishop contrasted, 535 +How the decree relative to a change in the ecclesiastical + constitution adopted throughout the whole world, ib. + + +CHAPTER VII. + +PRELACY BEGINS IN ROME. + +Comparative length of the lives of the early bishops of Rome, 537 +Observations relative to a change in the organization of the + Roman Church in the time of Hyginus, 538 + 1. The statement of Hilary will account for the increased average + in the length of episcopal life, 539 + 2. The testimony of Jerome cannot otherwise be explained, 540 + 3. Hilary indicates that the constitution of the Church was + changed about this period, 541 + 4. At this time such an arrangement must naturally have suggested + itself to the Roman Christians, 542 + 5. The violent death of Telesphorus fitted to prepare the way + for it, 543 + 6. The influence of Rome would recommend its adoption, 544 + 7. A vacancy which occurred after the death of Hyginus accords + with this view. Valentine a candidate for the Roman bishopric, 545 + 8. The letters of Pius to Justus corroborate this view, 547 + 9. It is sustained by the fact that the word _bishop_ now + began to be applied to the presiding elder, 550 + 10. The Pontifical Book remarkably confirms it--Not strange that + history speaks so little of this change, 552 +Little alteration at first apparent in the general aspect of the + Church in consequence of the adoption of the new principle, 554 +Facility with which the change could be accomplished, 565 +Polycarp probably dissatisfied with the new arrangements, 556 +Change, in all likelihood, not much opposed, 558 +Many presbyters, as well as the people, would be favourable to it, ib. +The new system gradually spread, 559 + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +THE CATHOLIC SYSTEM. + +History of the word Catholic, 561 +Circumstances in which the system originated, ib. +The bishop the centre of unity for his district, 562 +Principal or apostolic Churches--their position, 564 +The Church of Rome more potentially principal, 566 +How communion maintained among the Churches, 567 +Early jealousy towards the bishop of Rome, 568 +The Catholic system identified with Rome, 569 +Why the Apostle Peter everywhere so highly exalted, 570 +Roman bishops sought to work out the idea of unity, 571 +Theory of the Catholic system fallacious, 572 +How Rome the antitype of Babylon, 573 + + +CHAPTER IX. + +PRIMITIVE EPISCOPACY AND PRESBYTERIAN ORDINATION. + +Where Christians formed only a single congregation Episcopacy + made little change, 575 +The bishop the parish minister, ib. +Every one who could might preach if the bishops permitted, 576 +Bishops thickly planted--all of equal rank--the greatest had very + limited jurisdiction, 577 +Ecclesiastics often engaged in secular pursuits, 578 +The Alexandrian presbyters made their bishops, 580 +When this practice ceased, 581 +Alexandrian bishops not originally ordained by imposition of + hands, 582 +Roman presbyters and others made their bishops, 583 +The bishop the presiding elder--early Roman bishops so called, 584 +Bishops of the order of the presbytery, 585 +All Christian ministers originally ordained by presbyters, ib. +A bishop ordained by a bishop and a presbyter, 586 +Difference between ancient and modern bishops, 587 + + +CHAPTER X. + +THE PROGRESS OF PRELACY. + +Power of the president of a court, 589 +Power of the ecclesiastical president increased when elected by the + people, 590 +The superior wealth of the bishop added to his influence, ib. +Appointment of lectors, sub-deacons, acolyths, exorcists, + and janitors, 592 +These new offices first appeared in Rome, ib. +Bishops began to appoint church officers without consulting the + people, 593 +New canons relative to ordination, 594 +Presbyters ceased to inaugurate bishops, 595 +Presbyters continued to ordain presbyters and deacons, 596 +Country bishops deprived of the right to ordain, 597 +Account of their degradation, 598 +Rise of metropolitans, 599 +Circumstances which added to the power of the city bishops, ib. +One bishop in each province at the head of the rest, 601 +Jealousies and contentions of city bishops, 602 +Great change in the Church, in two centuries, 603 +Reasons why the establishment of metropolitans so much opposed, 604 + + +CHAPTER XI. + +SYNODS--THEIR HISTORY AND CONSTITUTION. + +Apostles sought, first, the conversion of sinners, and then the + edification of their converts, 605 +No general union of Churches originally, 606 +But intercourse in various ways maintained, ib. +Synods did not commence about the middle of the second century, 607 +A part of the original constitution of the Church, ib. +At first held on a limited scale, 609 +Reason why we have no account of early Synods, ib. +First notice of Synods, 610 +Synods held respecting the Paschal controversy, 611 +Found in operation everywhere before the end of the second century, ib. +Tertullian does not say that Synods commenced in Greece, 612 +Why he notices the Greek Synods, 613 +Amphictyonic Council did not suggest the establishment of Synods, 615 +Synods originally met only once a-year, ib. +Began to meet in fixed places in Greece and Asia Minor, 616 +Met twice a-year in the beginning of the fourth century, ib. +Synods in third century respecting re-baptism, 617 +Synods at Antioch respecting Paul of Samosata, 618 +Early Synods composed of bishops and elders, 619 +Deacons and laymen had no right of voting, ib. +Churches not originally independent, 620 +Utility of Synods, 621 +Circumstances which led to a change in their constitution, ib. +Decline of primitive polity, 622 + + +CHAPTER XII. + +THE CEREMONIES AND DISCIPLINE OF THE CHURCH, AS ILLUSTRATED BY +CURRENT CONTROVERSIES AND DIVISIONS. + +The rise of the Nazarenes, 623 +Lessons taught by their history, 624 +The Paschal controversy and Victor's excommunication, 625 +Danger of depending on tradition, 628 +Institution of Easter unnecessary, 629 +The tickets of peace and the schism of Felicissimus, ib. +Schism of Novatian, 631 +Controversy respecting the baptism of heretics, and Stephen's + excommunication, 632 +Uniformity in discipline and ceremonies not to be found in the + ancient Church, 633 +Increasing intolerance of the dominant party in this Church, 634 + + +CHAPTER XIII. + +THE THEORY OF THE CHURCH, AND THE HISTORY OF ITS PERVERSION-- +CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS. + +The Church invisible and its attributes, 636 +The visible Church and its defects, 637 +The holy Catholic Church--what it meant, 639 +Church visible and Church invisible confounded, 640 +Evils of the Catholic system, 642 +Establishment of an odious ecclesiastical monopoly, ib. +Pastors began to be called priests, 644 +Arrogant assumptions of bishops, 646 +The Catholic system encouraged bigotry, 647 +Its ungenerous spirit, ib. +The claims of the Word of God not properly recognized, 648 +Many corruptions already in the Church, 650 +The establishment of the hierarchy a grand mistake, 652 +Only promoted outward, not real unity, 653 +Sad state of the Church when Catholicism was fully developed, 655 +Evangelical unity--in what it consists, 656 + + + + + + * * * * * + + PERIOD I. + + FROM THE BIRTH OF CHRIST TO THE DEATH + OF THE APOSTLE JOHN, A.D. 100. + + * * * * * + + + + + + SECTION I. + + HISTORY OF THE PLANTING AND GROWTH OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE ROMAN EMPIRE AT THE TIME OF THE BIRTH OF CHRIST. + + +Upwards of a quarter of a century before the Birth of Christ, the +grandnephew of Julius Caesar had become sole master of the Roman world. +Never, perhaps, at any former period, had so many human beings +acknowledged the authority of a single potentate. Some of the most +powerful monarchies at present in Europe extend over only a fraction of +the territory which Augustus governed: the Atlantic on the west, the +Euphrates on the east, the Danube and the Rhine on the north, and the +deserts of Africa on the south, were the boundaries of his empire. + +We do not adequately estimate the rank of Augustus among contemporary +sovereigns, when we consider merely the superficial extent of the +countries placed within the range of his jurisdiction. His subjects +probably formed more than one-third of the entire population of the +globe, and amounted to about one hundred millions of souls.[Endnote 3:1] +His empire embraced within its immense circumference the best cultivated +and the most civilised portions of the earth. The remains of its +populous cities, its great fortresses, its extensive aqueducts, and its +stately temples, may still be pointed out as the memorials of its +grandeur. The capital was connected with the most distant provinces by +carefully constructed roads, along which the legions could march with +ease and promptitude, either to quell an internal insurrection, or to +encounter an invading enemy. And the military resources at the command +of Augustus were abundantly sufficient to maintain obedience among the +myriads whom he governed. After the victory of Actium he was at the head +of upwards of forty veteran legions; and though some of these had been +decimated by war, yet, when recruited, and furnished with their full +complement of auxiliaries, they constituted a force of little less than +half a million of soldiers. + +The arts of peace now nourished under the sunshine of imperial +patronage. Augustus could boast, towards the end of his reign, that he +had converted Rome from a city of brick huts into a city of marble +palaces. The wealth of the nobility was enormous; and, excited by the +example of the Emperor and his friend Agrippa, they erected and +decorated mansions in a style of regal magnificence. The taste cherished +in the capital was soon widely diffused; and, in a comparatively short +period, many new and gorgeous temples and cities appeared throughout the +empire. Herod the Great expended vast sums on architectural +improvements. The Temple of Jerusalem, rebuilt under his administration, +was one of the wonders of the world. + +The century terminating with the death of Augustus claims an undisputed +pre-eminence in the history of Roman eloquence and literature. Cicero, +the prince of Latin orators, now delivered those addresses which +perpetuate his fame; Sallust and Livy produced works which are still +regarded as models of historic composition; Horace, Virgil, and others, +acquired celebrity as gifted and accomplished poets. Among the subjects +fitted to exercise and expand the intellect, religion was not +overlooked. In the great cities of the empire many were to be found who +devoted themselves to metaphysical and ethical studies; and questions, +bearing upon the highest interests of man, were discussed in the schools +of the philosophers. + +The barbarous nations under the dominion of Augustus derived many +advantages from their connexion with the Roman empire. They had, no +doubt, often reason to complain of the injustice and rapacity of +provincial governors; but, on the whole, they had a larger share of +social comfort than they could have enjoyed had they preserved their +independence; for their domestic feuds were repressed by the presence of +their powerful rulers, and the imperial armies were at hand to protect +them against foreign aggression. By means of the constant intercourse +kept up with all its dependencies, the skill and information of the +metropolis of Italy were gradually imparted to the rude tribes under its +sway, and thus the conquest of a savage country by the Romans was an +important step towards its civilisation. The union of so many nations in +a great state was otherwise beneficial to society. A Roman citizen might +travel without hindrance from Armenia to the British Channel; and as all +the countries washed by the Mediterranean were subject to the empire, +their inhabitants could carry on a regular and prosperous traffic by +availing themselves of the facilities of navigation. + +The conquests of Rome modified the vernacular dialects of not a few of +its subjugated provinces, and greatly promoted the diffusion of Latin. +That language, which had gradually spread throughout Italy and the west +of Europe, was at length understood by persons of rank and education in +most parts of the empire. But in the time of Augustus, Greek was spoken +still more extensively. Several centuries before, it had been planted in +all the countries conquered by Alexander the Great, and it was now, not +only the most general, but also the most fashionable medium of +communication. Even Rome swarmed with learned Greeks, who employed their +native tongue when giving instruction in the higher branches of +education. Greece itself, however, was considered the head-quarters of +intellectual cultivation, and the wealthier Romans were wont to send +their sons to its celebrated seats of learning, to improve their +acquaintance with philosophy and literature. + +The Roman Empire in the time of Augustus presents to the eye of +contemplation a most interesting spectacle, whether we survey its +territorial magnitude, its political power, or its intellectual +activity. But when we look more minutely at its condition, we may +discover many other strongly marked and less inviting features. That +stern patriotism, which imparted so much dignity to the old Roman +character, had now disappeared, and its place was occupied by ambition +or covetousness. Venality reigned throughout every department of the +public administration. Those domestic virtues, which are at once the +ornaments and the strength of the community, were comparatively rare; +and the prevalence of luxury and licentiousness proclaimed the unsafe +state of the social fabric. There was a growing disposition to evade the +responsibilities of marriage, and a large portion of the citizens of +Rome deliberately preferred the system of concubinage to the state of +wedlock. The civil wars, which had created such confusion and involved +such bloodshed, had passed away; but the peace which followed was, +rather the quietude of exhaustion, than the repose of contentment. + +The state of the Roman Empire about the time of the birth of Christ +abundantly proves that there is no necessary connexion between +intellectual refinement and social regeneration. The cultivation of the +arts and sciences in the reign of Augustus may have been beneficial to a +few, by diverting them from the pursuit of vulgar pleasures, and opening +up to them sources of more rational enjoyment; but it is a most +humiliating fact that, during the brightest period in the history of +Roman literature, vice in every form was fast gaining ground among +almost all classes of the population. The Greeks, though occupying a +higher position as to mental accomplishments, were still more dissolute +than the Latins. Among them literature and sensuality appeared in +revolting combination, for their courtesans were their only females who +attended to the culture of the intellect. [7:1] + +Nor is it strange that the Roman Empire at this period exhibited such a +scene of moral pollution. There was nothing in either the philosophy or +the religion of heathenism sufficient to counteract the influence of +man's native depravity. In many instances the speculations of the pagan +sages had a tendency, rather to weaken, than to sustain, the authority +of conscience. After unsettling the foundations of the ancient +superstition, the mind was left in doubt and bewilderment; for the +votaries of what was called wisdom entertained widely different views +even of its elementary principles. The Epicureans, who formed a large +section of the intellectual aristocracy, denied the doctrine of +Providence, and pronounced pleasure to be the ultimate end of man. The +Academics encouraged a spirit of disputatious scepticism; and the +Stoics, who taught that the practice of, what they rather vaguely +designated, virtue, involves its own reward, discarded the idea of a +future retribution. Plato had still a goodly number of disciples; and +though his doctrines, containing not a few elements of sublimity and +beauty, exercised a better influence, it must be admitted, after all, +that they constituted a most unsatisfactory system of cold and barren +mysticism. The ancient philosophers delivered many excellent moral +precepts; but, as they wanted the light of revelation, their arguments +in support of duty were essentially defective, and the lessons which +they taught had often very little influence either on themselves or +others. [8:1] Their own conduct seldom marked them out as greatly +superior to those around them, so that neither their instructions nor +their example contributed efficiently to elevate the character of their +generation. + +Though the philosophers fostered a spirit of inquiry, yet, as they made +little progress in the discovery of truth, they were not qualified to +act with the skill and energy of enlightened reformers; and, whatever +may have been the amount of their convictions, they made no open and +resolute attack on the popular mythology. A very superficial examination +was, indeed, enough to shake the credit of the heathen worship. The +reflecting subjects of the Roman Empire might have remarked the very +awkward contrast between the multiplicity of their deities, and the +unity of their political government. It was the common belief that every +nation had its own divine guardians, and that the religious rites of one +country might be fully acknowledged without impugning the claims of +those of another; but still a thinking pagan might have been staggered +by the consideration that a human being had apparently more extensive +authority than some of his celestial overseers, and that the +jurisdiction of the Roman emperor was established over a more ample +territory than that which was assigned to many of the immortal gods. + +But the multitude of its divinities was by no means the most offensive +feature of heathenism. The gods of antiquity, more particularly those of +Greece, were of an infamous character. Whilst they were represented by +their votaries as excelling in beauty and activity, strength and +intelligence, they were at the same time described as envious and +gluttonous, base, lustful, and revengeful. Jupiter, the king of the +gods, was deceitful and licentious; Juno, the queen of heaven, was cruel +and tyrannical. What could be expected from those who honoured such +deities? Some of the wiser heathens, such as Plato, [9:1] condemned +their mythology as immoral, for the conduct of one or other of the gods +might have been quoted in vindication of every species of transgression; +and had the Gentiles but followed the example of their own heavenly +hierarchy, they might have felt themselves warranted in pursuing a +course either of the most diabolical oppression, or of the most +abominable profligacy. [9:2] + +At the time of the birth of our Lord even the Jews had sunk into a state +of the grossest degeneracy. They were now divided into sects, two of +which, the Pharisees and the Sadducees, are frequently mentioned in the +New Testament. The Pharisees were the leading denomination, being by far +the most numerous and powerful. By adding to the written law a mass of +absurd or frivolous traditions, which, as they foolishly alleged, were +handed down from Moses, they completely subverted the authority of the +sacred record, and changed the religion of the patriarchs and prophets +into a wearisome parade of superstitious observances. The Sadducees were +comparatively few, but as a large proportion of them were persons of +rank and wealth, they possessed a much greater amount of influence than +their mere numbers would have enabled them to command. It has been said +that they admitted the divine authority only of the Pentateuch, [10:1] +and though it may be doubted whether they openly ventured to deny the +claims of all the other books of the Old Testament, it is certain that +they discarded the doctrine of the immortality of the soul, [10:2] and +that they were disposed to self-indulgence and to scepticism. There was +another still smaller Jewish sect, that of the Essenes, of which there +is no direct mention in the New Testament. The members of this community +resided chiefly in the neighbourhood of the Dead Sea, and as our Lord +seldom visited that quarter of the country, it would appear that, during +the course of His public ministry, He rarely or never came in contact +with these religionists. Some of them were married, but the greater +number lived in celibacy, and spent much of their time in contemplation. +They are said to have had a common-stock purse, and their course of life +closely resembled that of the monks of after-times. + +Though the Jews, as a nation, were now sunk in sensuality or +superstition, there were still some among them, such as Simeon and Anna, +noticed in the Gospel of Luke, [10:3] who were taught of God, and who +exhibited a spirit of vital piety. "The law of the Lord is perfect +converting the soul," and as the books of the Old Testament were +committed to the keeping of the posterity of Abraham, there were "hidden +ones" here and there who discovered the way to heaven by the perusal of +these "lively oracles." We have reason to believe that the Jews were +faithful conservators of the inspired volume, as Christ uniformly takes +for granted the accuracy of their "Scriptures." [11:1] It is an +important fact that they did not admit into their canon the writings now +known under the designation of the _Apocrypha_. [11:2] Nearly three +hundred years before the appearance of our Lord, the Old Testament had +been translated into the Greek language, and thus, at this period, the +educated portion of the population of the Roman Empire had all an +opportunity of becoming acquainted with the religion of the chosen +people. The Jews were now scattered over the earth, and as they erected +synagogues in the cities where they settled, the Gentile world had ample +means of information in reference to their faith and worship. + +Whilst the dispersion of the Jews disseminated a knowledge of their +religion, it likewise suggested the approaching dissolution of the +Mosaic economy, as it was apparent that their present circumstances +absolutely required another ritual. It could not be expected that +individuals dwelling in distant countries could meet three times in the +year at Jerusalem to celebrate the great festivals. The Israelites +themselves had a presentiment of coming changes, and anxiously awaited +the appearance of a Messiah. They were actuated by an extraordinary zeal +for proselytism, [11:3] and though their scrupulous adherence to a stern +code of ceremonies often exposed them to much obloquy, they succeeded, +notwithstanding, in making many converts in most of the places where they +resided. [12:1] A prominent article of their creed was adopted in a +quarter where their theology otherwise found no favour, for the Unity of +the Great First Cause was now distinctly acknowledged in the schools of +the philosophers. [12:2] + +From the preceding statements we may sec the peculiar significance of +the announcement that God sent forth His Son into the world "_when the +fulness of the time was come_." [12:3] Various predictions [12:4] +pointed out this age as the period of the Messiah's Advent, and +Gentiles, as well as Jews, seem by some means to have caught up the +expectation that an extraordinary personage was now about to appear on +the theatre of human existence. [12:5] Providence had obviously prepared +the way for the labours of a religious reformer. The civil wars which +had convulsed the state were now almost forgotten, and though the +hostile movements of the Germans, and other barbarous tribes on the +confines of the empire, occasionally created uneasiness or alarm, the +public mind was generally unoccupied by any great topic of absorbing +interest. In the populous cities the multitude languished for +excitement, and sought to dissipate the time in the forum, the circus, +or the amphitheatre. At such a crisis the heralds of the most gracious +message that ever greeted the ears of men might hope for a patient +hearing. Even the consolidation of so many nations under one government +tended to "the furtherance of the gospel," for the gigantic roads, which +radiated from Rome to the distant regions of the east and of the west, +facilitated intercourse; and the messengers of the Prince of Peace could +travel from country to country without suspicion and without passports. +And well might the Son of God be called "The desire of all nations." +[13:1] Though the wisest of the pagan sages could not have described the +renovation which the human family required, and though, when the +Redeemer actually appeared, He was despised and rejected of men, there +was, withal, a wide spread conviction that a Saviour was required, and +there was a longing for deliverance from the evils which oppressed +society. The ancient superstitions were rapidly losing their hold on the +affection and confidence of the people, and whilst the light of +philosophy was sufficient to discover the absurdities of the prevailing +polytheism, it failed to reveal any more excellent way of purity and +comfort. The ordinances of Judaism, which were "waxing old" and "ready +to vanish away," were types which were still unfulfilled; and though +they pointed out the path to glory, they required an interpreter to +expound their import. This Great Teacher now appeared. He was born in +very humble circumstances, and yet He was the heir of an empire beyond +comparison more illustrious than that of the Caesars. "There was given +him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and +languages, should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, +which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be +destroyed." [13:2] + + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE LIFE OF CHRIST. + + +Nearly three years before the commencement of our era, [14:1] Jesus +Christ was born. The Holy Child was introduced into the world under +circumstances extremely humiliating. A decree had gone forth from Caesar +Augustus that all the Roman Empire should be taxed, and the Jews, as a +conquered people, were obliged to submit to an arrangement which +proclaimed their national degradation. The reputed parents of Jesus +resided at Nazareth, a town of Galilee; but, as they were "of the house +and lineage of David," they were obliged to repair to Bethlehem, a +village about six miles south of Jerusalem, to be entered in their +proper place in the imperial registry. "And so it was, that, while they +were there, the days were accomplished that Mary should be delivered, +and she brought forth her first-born son, and wrapped him in swaddling +clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in +the inn." [14:2] + +This child of poverty and of a despised race, born in the stable of the +lodging-house of an insignificant town belonging to a conquered +province, did not enter upon life surrounded by associations which +betokened a career of earthly prosperity. But intimations were not +wanting that the Son of Mary was regarded with the deepest interest by +the inhabitants of heaven. An angel had appeared to announce the +conception of the individual who was to be the herald of his ministry; +[15:1] and another angel had been sent to give notice of the incarnation +of this Great Deliverer. [15:2] When He was born, the angel of the Lord +communicated the tidings to shepherds in the plains of Bethlehem; "and +suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host +praising God and saying--Glory to God in the highest, and on earth +peace, good will toward men." [15:3] Inanimate nature called attention +to the advent of the illustrious babe, for a wonderful star made known +to wise men from the east the incarnation of the King of Israel; and +when they came to Jerusalem "the star, which they saw in the east, went +before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was." +[15:4] The history of these eastern sages cannot now be explored, and we +know not on what grounds they regarded the star as the sign of the +Messiah; but they rightly interpreted the appearance, and the narrative +warrants us to infer that they acted under the guidance of divine +illumination. As they were "warned of God in a dream" [15:5] to return +to their own country another way, we may presume that they were +originally directed by some similar communication to undertake the +journey. It is probable that they did not belong to the stock of +Abraham; and if so, their visit to the babe at Bethlehem may be +recognised as the harbinger of the union of Jews and Gentiles under the +new economy. The presence of these Orientals in Jerusalem attracted the +notice of the watchful and jealous tyrant who then occupied the throne +of Judea. Their story filled him with alarm; and his subjects +anticipated some tremendous outbreak of his suspicions and savage +temper. "When the king had heard these things he was troubled, and all +Jerusalem with him." [15:6] His rage soon vented itself in a terrible +explosion. Having ascertained from the chief priests and scribes of the +people where Christ was to be born, he "sent forth and slew all the +children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two +years old and under." [16:1] + +Joseph and Mary, in accordance with a message from heaven, had meanwhile +fled towards the border of Egypt, and thus the holy infant escaped this +carnage. The wise men, on the occasion of their visit, had "opened their +treasures," and had "presented unto him gifts, _gold_, and frankincense, +and myrrh," [16:2] so that the poor travellers had providentially +obtained means for defraying the expenses of their journey. The +slaughter of the babes of Bethlehem was one of the last acts of the +bloody reign of Herod; and, on his demise, the exiles were divinely +instructed to return, and the child was presented in the temple. This +ceremony evoked new testimonies to His high mission. On His appearance +in His Father's house, the aged Simeon, moved by the Spirit from on +high, embraced Him as the promised Shiloh; and Anna, the prophetess, +likewise gave thanks to God, and "spake of him to all them that looked +for redemption in Jerusalem." [16:3] Thus, whilst the Old Testament +predictions pointed to Jesus as the Christ, living prophets appeared to +interpret these sacred oracles, and to bear witness to the claims of the +new-born Saviour. + +Though the Son of Mary was beyond all comparison the most extraordinary +personage that ever appeared on earth, it is remarkable that the sacred +writers enter into scarcely any details respecting the history of His +infancy, His youth, or His early manhood. They tell us that "the child +grew and waxed strong in spirit," [17:1] and that He "increased in +wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man;" [17:2] but they do +not minutely trace the progress of His mental development, neither do +they gratify any feeling of mere curiosity by giving us His infantile +biography. In what is omitted by the penmen of the New Testament, as +well as in what is written we must acknowledge the guidance of +inspiration; and though we might have perused with avidity a description +of the pursuits of Jesus when a child, such a record has not been deemed +necessary for the illustration of the work of redemption. It would +appear that He spent about thirty years on earth almost unnoticed and +unknown; and He seems to have been meanwhile trained to the occupation +of a carpenter. [17:3] The obscurity of His early career must doubtless +be regarded as one part of His humiliation. But the circumstances in +which He was placed enabled Him to exhibit more clearly the divinity of +His origin. He did not receive a liberal education, so that when He came +forward as a public teacher "the Jews marvelled, saying--How knoweth +this man letters _having never learned?_" [17:4] When He was only twelve +years old, He was "found in the temple sitting in the midst of the +doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions; and all that +heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers." [18:1] As +He grew up, He was distinguished by His diligent attendance in the house +of God; and it seems not improbable that He was in the habit of +officiating at public worship by assisting in the reading of the law and +the prophets; for we are told that, shortly after the commencement of +His ministry, "He came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and, +as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath-day, and +_stood up for to read_." [18:2] + +When He was about thirty years of age, and immediately before His public +appearance as a prophet, our Lord was baptized of John in Jordan. [18:3] +The Baptist did not, perhaps, preach longer than six months, [18:4] but +it is probable that during his imprisonment of considerably upwards of a +year, he still contributed to prepare the way of Christ; for, in the +fortress of Machaerus in which he was incarcerated, [18:5] he was not +kept in utter ignorance of passing occurrences, and when permitted to +hold intercourse with his friends, he would doubtless direct their +special attention to the proceedings of the Great Prophet. The claims of +John, as a teacher sent from God, were extensively acknowledged; and +therefore his recognition of our Lord as the promised Messiah, must have +made a deep impression upon the minds of the Israelites. The miracles of +our Saviour corroborated the testimony of His forerunner, and created a +deep sensation. He healed "all manner of sickness, and all manner of +disease." [19:1] It was, consequently, not strange that "His fame went +throughout all Syria," and that "there followed him great multitudes of +people, from Galilee, and from Decapolis, and from Jerusalem, and from +Judea, and from beyond Jordan." [19:2] + +Even when the Most High reveals himself there is something mysterious in +the manifestation, so that, whilst we acknowledge the tokens of His +presence, we may well exclaim--"Verily thou art a God that hidest +thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour." [19:3] When He displayed His +glory in the temple of old, He filled it with thick darkness; [19:4] +when He delivered the sure word of prophecy, He employed strange and +misty language; when He announced the Gospel itself, He uttered some +things hard to be understood. It might have been said, too, of the Son +of God, when He appeared on earth, that His "footsteps were not known." +In early life He does not seem to have arrested the attention of His own +townsmen; and when He came forward to assert His claims as the Messiah, +He did not overawe or dazzle his countrymen by any sustained +demonstration of tremendous power or of overwhelming splendour. To-day +the multitude beheld His miracles with wonder, but to-morrow they could +not tell where to meet with Him; [19:5] ever and anon He appeared and +disappeared; and occasionally His own disciples found it difficult to +discover the place of His retirement. When He arrived in a district, +thousands often hastily gathered around Him; [19:6] but He never +encouraged the attendance of vast assemblages by giving general notice +that, in a specified place and on an appointed day, He would deliver a +public address, or perform a new and unprecedented miracle. We may here +see the wisdom of Him who "doeth all things well." Whilst the secresy +with which He conducted His movements baffled any premature attempts on +the part of His enemies, to effect His capture or condemnation, it also +checked that intense popular excitement which a ministry so +extraordinary might have been expected to awaken. + +Four inspired writers have given separate accounts of the life of +Christ--all repeat many of His wonderful sayings--all dwell with marked +minuteness on the circumstances of His death--and all attest the fact of +His resurrection. Each mentions some things which the others have +omitted; and each apparently observes the order of time in the details +of his narrative. But when we combine and arrange their various +statements, so as to form the whole into one regular and comprehensive +testimony, we discover that there are not a few periods of His life +still left utterly blank in point of incidents; and that there is no +reference whatever to topics which we might have expected to find +particularly noticed in the biography of so eminent a personage. After +His appearance as a public teacher, He seems, not only to have made +sudden transitions from place to place, but otherwise to have often +courted the shade; and, instead of unfolding the circumstances of His +private history, the evangelists dwell chiefly on His Discourses and His +Miracles. During His ministry, Capernaum was His headquarters; [20:1] +but we cannot positively tell with whom He lodged in that place; nor +whether the twelve sojourned there under the same roof with Him; nor how +much time He spent in it at any particular period. We cannot point out +the precise route which He pursued on any occasion when itinerating +throughout Galilee or Judea; neither are we sure that He always +journeyed on foot, or that He adhered to a uniform mode of travelling. +It is most singular that the inspired writers throw out no hint on which +an artist might seize as the groundwork of a painting of Jesus. As if to +teach us more emphatically that we should beware of a sensuous +superstition, and that we should direct our thoughts to the spiritual +features of His character, the New Testament never mentions either the +colour of His hair, or the height of His stature, or the cast of His +countenance. How wonderful that even "the beloved disciple," who was +permitted to lean on the bosom of the Son of man, and who had seen him +in the most trying circumstances of His earthly history, never speaks of +the tones of His voice, or of the expression of His eye, or of any +striking peculiarity pertaining to His personal appearance! The silence +of all the evangelists respecting matters of which at least some of them +must have retained a very vivid remembrance, and of which ordinary +biographers would not have failed to preserve a record, supplies an +indirect and yet a most powerful proof of the Divine origin of the +Gospels. + +But whilst the sacred writers enter so sparingly into personal details, +they leave no doubt as to the perfect integrity which marked every part +of our Lord's proceedings. He was born in a degenerate age, and brought +up in a city of Galilee which had a character so infamous that no good +thing was expected to proceed from it; [21:1] and yet, like a ray of +purest light shining into some den of uncleanness, He contracted no +defilement from the scenes of pollution which He was obliged to witness. +Even in boyhood, He must have uniformly acted with supreme discretion; +for though His enemies from time to time gave vent to their malignity in +various accusations, we do not read that they ever sought to cast so +much as a solitary stain upon His youthful reputation. The most +malicious of the Jews failed to fasten upon Him in after life any charge +of immorality. Among those constantly admitted to His familiar +intercourse, a traitor was to be found; and had Judas been able to +detect anything in His private deportment inconsistent with His public +profession, he would doubtless have proclaimed it as an apology for his +perfidy; but the keen eye of that close observer could not discover a +single blemish in the character of his Master; and, when prompted by +covetousness, he betrayed Him to the chief priests, the thought of +having been accessory to the death of one so kind and so holy, continued +to torment him, until it drove him to despair and to self-destruction. + +The doctrine inculcated by our Lord commended itself by the light of its +own evidence. It was nothing more than a lucid and comprehensive +exposition of the theology of the Old Testament; and yet it, presented +such a new view of the faith of patriarchs and of prophets, that it had +all the freshness and interest of an original revelation. It discovered +a most intimate acquaintance with the mental constitution of man--it +appealed with mighty power to the conscience--and it was felt to be +exactly adapted to the moral state and to the spiritual wants of the +human family. The disciples of Jesus did not require to be told that He +had "the key of knowledge," for they were delighted and edified as "He +opened" to them the Scriptures. [22:1] He taught the multitude "as one +having authority;" [22:2] and they were "astonished at His doctrine." +The discourses of the Scribes, their most learned instructors, were +meagre and vapid--they were not calculated to enlarge the mind or to +move the affections--they consisted frequently of doubtful disputations +relating to the ceremonials of their worship--and the very air with +which they were delivered betrayed the insignificance of the topics of +discussion. But Jesus spake with a dignity which commanded respect, and +with the deep seriousness of a great Teacher delivering to perishing +sinners tidings of unutterable consequence. + +There was something singularly beautiful and attractive, as well as +majestic and impressive, in the teaching of our Lord. The Sermon on the +Mount is a most pleasing specimen of His method of conveying +instruction. Whilst He gives utterance to sentiments of exalted wisdom, +He employs language so simple, and imagery so chaste and natural, that +even a child takes a pleasure in perusing His address. There is reason +to think that He did not begin to speak in parables until a considerable +time after He had entered upon His ministry. [23:1] By these symbolical +discourses He at once blinded the eyes of His enemies, and furnished +materials for profitable meditation to His genuine disciples. The +parables, like the light of prophecy, are, to this very day, a beacon to +the Church, and a stumbling-block to unbelievers. + +The claims of Jesus as the Christ were decisively established by the +Divine power which He manifested. It had been foretold that certain +extraordinary recoveries from disease and infirmity would be witnessed +in the days of the Messiah; and these predictions were now literally +fulfilled. The eyes of the blind were opened, and the ears of the deaf +were unstopped; the lame man leaped as an hart, and the tongue of the +dumb sang. [23:2] Not a few of the cures of our Saviour were wrought on +individuals to whom He was personally unknown; [23:3] and many of His +works of wonder were performed in the presence of friends and foes. +[23:4] Whilst His miracles exceeded in number all those recorded in the +Old Testament, they were still more remarkable for their variety and +their excellence. By His touch, or His word, he healed the most +inveterate maladies; He fed the multitude by thousands out of a store of +provisions which a little boy could carry; [24:1] He walked upon the +waves of the sea, when it was agitated by a tempest; [24:2] He made the +storm a calm, so that the wind at once ceased to blow, and the surface +of the deep reposed, at the same moment, in glassy smoothness; [24:3] He +cast out devils; and He restored life to the dead. Well might the +Pharisees be perplexed by the inquiry--"How can a man that is a sinner +do such miracles?" [23:4] It is quite possible that false prophets, by +the help of Satan, may accomplish feats fitted to excite astonishment; +and yet, in such cases, the agents of the Wicked One may be expected to +exhibit some symptoms of his spirit and character. But nothing +diabolical, or of an evil tendency, appeared in the miracles of our +Lord. With the one exception of the cursing of the barren fig-tree +[24:5]--a malediction which created no pain, and involved no substantial +loss--all his displays of power were indicative of His goodness and His +mercy. No other than a true prophet would have been enabled so often to +control the course of nature, in the production of results of such +utility, such benignity, and such grandeur. + +The miracles of Christ illustrated, as well as confirmed, His doctrines. +When, for instance, He converted the water into wine at the marriage in +Cana of Galilee. [24:6] He taught, not only that he approved of wedlock, +but also that, within proper limits, He was disposed to patronise the +exercise of a generous hospitality, in some cases He required faith in +the individuals whom He vouchsafed to cure, [24:7] thus distinctly +suggesting the way of a sinner's salvation. Many of His miracles were +obviously of a typical character. When He acted as the physician of the +body, He indirectly gave evidence of His efficiency as the physician of +the soul; when He restored sight to the blind, He indicated that He +could turn men from darkness to light; when He raised the dead, He +virtually demonstrated His ability to quicken such as are dead in +trespasses and sins. Those who witnessed the visible exhibitions of His +power were prepared to listen with the deepest interest to His words +when He declared--"I am the light of the world; he that followeth me +shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the _light of life_." [25:1] + +Though our Lord's conduct, as a public teacher, fully sustained His +claims as the Messiah, it must have been a complete enigma to all +classes of politicians. He did not seek to obtain power by courting the +favour of the great, neither did He attempt to gain popularity by +flattering the prejudices of the multitude. He wounded the national +pride by hinting at the destruction of the temple; He gave much offence +by holding intercourse with the odious publicans; and with many, He +forfeited all credit, as a patriot, by refusing to affirm the +unlawfulness of paying tribute to the Roman emperor. The greatest human +characters have been occasionally swayed by personal predilections or +antipathies, but, in the life of Christ, we can discover no memorial of +any such infirmity. Like a sage among children, He did not permit +Himself to be influenced by the petty partialities, whims, or +superstitions of His countrymen. He inculcated a theological system for +which He could not expect the support of any of the existing classes of +religionists. He differed from the Essenes, as He did not adopt their +ascetic habits; He displeased the Sadducees, by asserting the doctrine +of the resurrection; He provoked the Pharisees, by declaring that they +worshipped God in vain, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men; +and He incurred the hostility of the whole tribe of Jewish zealots, by +maintaining His right to supersede the arrangements of the Mosaic +economy. By pursuing this independent course He vindicated His title to +the character of a Divine lawgiver, but at the same time He forfeited a +vast amount of sympathy and aid upon which He might otherwise have +calculated. + +There has been considerable diversity of opinion regarding the length of +our Saviour's ministry. [26:1] We could approximate very closely to a +correct estimate could we tell the number of passovers from its +commencement to its close, but this point cannot be determined with +absolute certainty. Four are apparently mentioned [26:2] by the +evangelist John; and if, as is probable, they amounted to no more, it +would seem that our Lord's career, as a public teacher, was of about +three years' duration. [26:3] The greater part of this period was spent +in Galilee; and the sacred writers intimate that He made several +circuits, as a missionary, among the cities and villages of that +populous district. [26:4] Matthew, Mark, and Luke dwell chiefly upon +this portion of His history. Towards the termination of His course, +Judea was the principal scene of His ministrations. Jerusalem was the +centre of Jewish power and prejudice, and He had hitherto chiefly +laboured in remote districts of the land, that He might escape the +malignity of the scribes and Pharisees; but, as His end approached, He +acted with greater publicity, and often taught openly in the very courts +of the temple. John supplements the narratives of the other evangelists +by recording our Lord's proceedings in Judea. + +A few members of the Sanhedrim, such as Nicodemus, [27:1] believed Jesus +to be "a teacher come from God," but by far the majority regarded Him +with extreme aversion. They could not imagine that the son of a +carpenter was to be the Saviour of their country, for they expected the +Messiah to appear surrounded with all the splendour of secular +magnificence. They were hypocritical and selfish; they had been +repeatedly rebuked by Christ for their impiety; and, as they marked His +increasing favour with the multitude, their envy and indignation became +ungovernable. They accordingly seized Him at the time of the Passover, +and, on the charge that He said He was the Son of God, He was condemned +as a blasphemer. [27:2] He suffered crucifixion--an ignominious form of +capital punishment from which the laws of the empire exempted every +Roman citizen--and, to add to His disgrace, He was put to death between +two thieves. [27:3] But even Pontius Pilate, who was then Procurator of +Judea, and who, in that capacity, endorsed the sentence, was constrained +to acknowledge that He was a "just person" in whom He could find "no +fault." [27:4] Pilate was a truckling time-server, and he acquiesced in +the decision, simply because he was afraid to exasperate the Jews by +rescuing from their grasp an innocent man whom they persecuted with +unrelenting hatred. [27:5] + +The death of Christ, of which all the evangelists treat so particularly, +is the most awful and the most momentous event in the history of the +world. He, no doubt, fell a victim to the malice of the rulers of the +Jews; but He was delivered into their hands "by the determinate counsel +and foreknowledge of God;" [28:1] and if we discard the idea that He was +offered up as a vicarious sacrifice, we must find it impossible to give +anything like a satisfactory account of what occurred in Gethsemane and +at Calvary. The amount of physical suffering He sustained from man did +not exceed that endured by either of the malefactors with whom He was +associated; and such was His magnanimity and fortitude, that, had He +been an ordinary martyr, the prospect of crucifixion would not have been +sufficient to make Him "exceeding sorrowful" and "sore amazed." [28:2] +His holy soul must have been wrung with no common agony, when "His sweat +was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground," [28:3] +and when He was forced to cry out--"My God, my God, why hast thou +forsaken me?" [28:4] In that hour of "the power of darkness" He was +"smitten of God and afflicted," and there was never sorrow like unto His +sorrow, for upon Him were laid "the iniquities of us all." + +The incidents which accompanied the death of Jesus were even more +impressive than those which signalised His birth. When He was in the +garden of Gethsemane there appeared unto Him an angel from Heaven +strengthening Him. [28:5] During the three concluding hours of His +intense anguish on the cross, there was darkness overall the land, +[28:6] as if nature mourned along with the illustrious sufferer. When He +bowed His head on Calvary and gave up the ghost, the event was marked by +notifications such as never announced the demise of any of this world's +great potentates, for "the veil of the temple was rent in twain," and +the rocks were cleft asunder, and the graves were opened, and the earth +trembled. [29:1] "The centurion and they that were with him," in +attendance at the execution, seem to have been Gentiles; and though, +doubtless, they had heard that Jesus claimed to be the Messiah of the +Jews, they perhaps very imperfectly comprehended the import of the +designation; but they were forthwith overwhelmed with the conviction, +that He, whose death they had just witnessed, must have given a true +account of His mission and His dignity, for "when they saw the +earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, +saying--Truly this was _the Son of God_" [29:2] + +The body of our Lord was committed to the grave on the evening of +Friday, and, early on the morning of the following Sunday, He issued +from the tomb. An ordinary individual has no control over the duration +of his existence, but Jesus demonstrated that He had power to lay down +His life, and that He had power to take it again. [29:3] Had He been a +deceiver His delusions must have terminated with His death, so that His +resurrection must be regarded as His crowning miracle, or rather, as the +affixing of the broad seal of heaven to the truth of His mission as the +Messiah. It was, besides, the fulfilment of an ancient prophecy; [29:4] +a proof of His fore-knowledge; [29:5] and a pledge of the resurrection +of His disciples. [29:6] Hence, in the New Testament, [29:7] it is so +often mentioned with marked emphasis. + +There is no fact connected with the life of Christ better attested than +that of His resurrection. He was put to death by His enemies; and His +body was not removed from the cross until they were fully satisfied that +the vital spark had fled. [29:8] His tomb was scooped out of a solid +rock; [29:9] the stone which blocked up the entrance was sealed with all +care; and a military guard kept constant watch to prevent its violation. +[30:1] But in due time an earthquake shook the cemetery--"The angel of +the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from +the door and sat upon it ... and for fear of him the keepers did shake, +and became as dead men." [30:2] Our Lord meanwhile came forth from the +grave, and the sentinels, in consternation, hastened to the chief +priests and communicated the astounding intelligence. [30:3] But these +infatuated men, instead of yielding to the force of this overwhelming +evidence, endeavoured to conceal their infamy by the base arts of +bribery and falsehood. "They gave large money unto the soldiers, +saying--Say ye--His disciples came by night and stole him away while we +slept...so they took the money, and did as they were taught." [30:4] + +Jesus, as the first-born of Mary, was presented in the temple forty days +after His birth; and, as "the first-begotten of the dead," [30:5] He +presented Himself before His Father, in the temple above, forty days +after He had opened the womb of the grave. During the interval he +appeared only to His own followers. [30:6] Those who had so long and so +wilfully rejected the testimony of His teaching and His miracles, had +certainly no reason to expect any additional proofs of His Divine +mission. But the Lord manifests Himself to His Church, "and not unto the +world," [30:7] and to such as fear His name He is continually supplying +new and interesting illustrations of His presence, His power, His +wisdom, and His mercy. Whilst He is a pillar of darkness to His foes, He +is a pillar of light to His people. Though Jesus was now invisible to +the Scribes and Pharisees, He admitted His disciples to high and holy +fellowship. Now their hearts burned within them as He spake to them "of +the things pertaining to the kingdom of God," [31:1] and as "He +expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning +Himself." [31:2] Now He doubtless pointed out to them how He was +symbolised in the types, how He was exhibited in the promises, and how +He was described in the prophecies. Now He explained to them more fully +the arrangements of His Church, and now He commanded His apostles to go +and "teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of +the Son, and of the Holy Ghost." [31:3] Having assured the twelve of His +presence with His true servants even unto the end of the world, and +having led them out as far as Bethany, a village a few furlongs from +Jerusalem, "he lifted up his hands and blessed them. And it came to +pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up +into heaven." [31:4] + +Thus closed the earthly career of Him who is both the Son of man and the +Son of God. Though He was sorely tried by the privations of poverty, +though He was exposed to the most brutal and degrading insults, and +though at last He was forsaken by His friends and consigned to a death +of lingering agony, He never performed a single act or uttered a single +word unworthy of His exalted and blessed mission. The narratives of the +evangelists supply clear internal evidence that, when they described the +history of Jesus, they must have copied from a living original; for +otherwise, no four individuals, certainly no four Jews, could have each +furnished such a portrait of so great and so singular a personage. +Combining the highest respect for the institutions of Moses with a +spirit eminently catholic, He was at once a devout Israelite and a +large-hearted citizen of the world. Rising far superior to the +prejudices of His countrymen, He visited Samaria, and conversed freely +with its population; and, whilst declaring that He was sent specially to +the seed of Abraham, He was ready to extend His sympathy to their +bitterest enemies. Though He took upon Him the form of a servant, there +was nothing mean or servile in His behaviour; for, when He humbled +Himself, there was ever about Him an air of condescending majesty. +Whether He administers comfort to the mourner, or walks upon the waves +of the sea, or replies to the cavils of the Pharisees, He is still the +same calm, holy, and gracious Saviour. When His passion was immediately +in view, He was as kind and as considerate as ever, for, on the very +night in which He was betrayed, He was employed in the institution of an +ordinance which was to serve as a sign and a seal of His grace +throughout all generations. His character is as sublime as it is +original. It has no parallel in the history of the human family. The +impostor is cunning, the demagogue is turbulent, and the fanatic is +absurd; but the conduct of Jesus Christ is uniformly gentle and serene, +candid, courteous, and consistent. Well, indeed, may His name be called +Wonderful. "He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the +world know him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. +But an many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of +God, even to them that believe on his name." [32:1] + + + + +SUPPLEMENTARY NOTE TO CHAPTER II. + +THE YEAR OF CHRIST'S BIRTH. + +The Christian era commences on the 1st of January of the year 754 of the +city of Rome. That our Lord was born about the time stated in the text +may appear from the following considerations-- + +_The visit of the wise men to Bethlehem must have taken place a very few +days after the birth of Jesus, and before His presentation in the +temple._ Bethlehem was not the stated residence of Joseph and Mary, +either before or after the birth of the child (Luke i. 26, ii. 4, 39; +Matt. ii. 2). They were obliged to repair to the place on account of the +taxing, and immediately after the presentation in the temple, they +returned to Nazareth and dwelt there (Luke ii. 39). Had the visit of the +wise men occurred, as some think, six, or twelve, or eighteen months +after the birth, the question of Herod to "the chief priests and scribes +of the people" where "Christ _should be born_"--would have been quite +vain, as the infant might have been removed long before to another part +of the country. The wise men manifestly expected to see a _newly born_ +infant, and hence they asked--"where is he that _is born_ King of the +Jews?" (Matt. ii. 2.) The evangelist also states expressly that they came +to Jerusalem "_when Jesus was born_" (Matt. ii. 1). At a subsequent +period they would have found the Holy Child, not at Bethlehem, but at +Nazareth. + +The only plausible objection to this view of the matter is derived from +the statement that Herod "sent forth and slew all the children that were +in Bethlehem and in all the coasts thereof, _from two years old and +under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the +wise men"_ (Matt. ii. 16). The king had ascertained from these sages +"what time the star appeared" (Matt. ii. 7), and they seem to have +informed him that it had been visible a year before. A Jewish child was +said to be two years old _when it had entered on its second year_ (see +Greswell's "Dissertations," vol. ii. 136); and, to make sure of his +prey, Herod murdered all the infants in Bethlehem and the neighbourhood +under the age of thirteen months. The wise men had not told him that the +child was a year old--it was obvious that they thought very +differently--but the tyrant butchered all who came, within the range of +suspicion. It is highly probable that the star announced the appearance +of the Messiah twelve months before he was born. Such an intimation was +given of the birth of Isaac, who was a remarkable type of Christ (Gen. +xvii. 21). See also 2 Kings iv. 16, and Dan. iv. 29, 33. + +The presentation of the infant in the temple occurred _after the death +of Herod_. This follows as a corollary from what has been already +advanced, for if the wise men visited Bethlehem immediately after the +birth, and if the child was then hurried away to Egypt, the presentation +could not have taken place earlier. The ceremony was performed _forty +days after the birth_ (Luke ii. 22, and Lev. xii. 2, 3, 4), and as the +flight and the return might both have been accomplished in eight or ten +days, there was ample time for a sojourn of at least two or three weeks +in that part of Egypt which was nearest to Palestine. Herod died during +this brief exile, and yet his demise happened so soon before the +departure of the holy family on their way home, that the intelligence +had not meanwhile reached Joseph by the voice of ordinary fame; and +until his arrival in the land of Israel, he did not even know that +Archelaus reigned in Judea (Matt. ii. 22). He seems to have inferred +from the dream that the dynasty of the Herodian family had been +completely subverted, so that when he heard of the succession of +Archelaus "he was afraid" to enter his territory; but, at this juncture, +being "counselled of God" in another dream, he took courage, proceeded +on his journey, and, after the presentation in the temple, "returned +into the parts of Galilee." + +That the presentation in the temple took place after the death of Herod +is further manifest from the fact that the babe remained uninjured, +though his appearance in the sacred courts awakened uncommon interest, +and though Anna "spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in +Jerusalem" (Luke ii. 38). Herod had his spies in all quarters, and had +he been yet living, the intelligence of the presentation and of its +extraordinary accompaniments, would have soon reached his ears, and he +would have made some fresh attempt upon the life of the infant. But when +the babe was actually brought to the temple, the tyrant was no more. +Jerusalem was in a state of great political excitement, and Archelaus +had, perhaps, already set sail for Rome to secure from the emperor the +confirmation of his title to the kingdom (see Josephus' Antiq. xvii. c. +9), so that it is not strange if the declarations of Simeon and Anna did +not attract any notice on the part of the existing rulers. + +Assuming, then, that Christ was born a very short time before the death +of Herod, we have now to ascertain the date of the demise of that +monarch. Josephus states (Antiq. xiv. 14, Sec. 5) that Herod was made king +by the Roman Senate in the 184th Olympiad, when Calvinus and Pollio were +consuls, that is, in the year of Rome 714; and that he reigned +thirty-seven years (Antiq. xvii. 8, Sec. 1). We may infer, therefore, that +his reign terminated in the year 751 of the city of Rome. He died +shortly before the passover; his disease seems to have been of a very +lingering character; and he appears to have languished under it upwards +of a year (Josephus' Antiq. xvii. 6, Sec. 4, 5, and xvii. 9, Sec. 2, 3). The +passover of 751 fell on the 31st of March (see Greswell's +"Dissertations," vol. i. p. 331), and as our Lord was in all likelihood +born early in the month, the Jewish king probably ended his days a week +or two afterwards, or about the time of the vernal equinox. According to +this computation the _conception_ took place exactly at the feast of +Pentecost, which fell, in 750, on the 31st of May. + +This view is corroborated by Luke iii. 1, where it is said that the word +of God came to John the Baptist "in the _fifteenth year_ of the reign of +Tiberius Caesar." John's ministry had continued only a short time when +he was imprisoned, and then Jesus "began to be _about thirty_ years of +age" (Luke iii. 23). Augustus died in August 767, and this year 767, +according to a mode of reckoning then in use (see Hales' "Chronology," +i. 49, 171, and Luke xxiv. 21), was the _first year_ of his successor +Tiberius. The _fifteenth year_ of Tiberius, according to the same mode +of calculation, commenced on the 1st of January 781 of the city of Rome, +and terminated on the 1st of January 782. If then our Lord was born +about the 1st of March 751 of Rome, and if the Baptist was imprisoned +early in 781, it could be said with perfect propriety that Jesus then +"began to be about thirty years of age." This view is further confirmed +by the fact that Quirinius, or Cyrenius, mentioned Luke ii. 2, was +_first_ governor of Syria from the _close_ of the year 750 of Rome to +753. (See Merivale, iv. p. 457, note.) Our Lord was born under his +administration, and according to the date we have assigned to the +nativity, the "taxing" at Bethlehem must have taken place a few months +after Cyrenius entered into office. + +This view of the date of the birth of Christ, which differs somewhat +from that of any writer with whom I am acquainted, appears to meet all +the difficulties connected with this much-disputed question. It is based +partly upon the principle, so ingeniously advocated by Whiston in his +"Chronology," that the flight into Egypt took place before the +presentation in the temple. I have never yet met with any antagonist of +that hypothesis who was able to give a satisfactory explanation of the +text on which it rests. Some other dates assigned for the birth of +Christ are quite inadmissible. In Judea shepherds could not have been +found "abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night" +(Luke ii. 8) in November, December, January, or, perhaps, February; but +in March, and especially in a mild season, such a thing appears to have +been quite common. (See Greswell's "Dissertations," vol. i. p. 391, and +Robinson's "Biblical Researches," vol ii. p. 97, 98.) Hippolytus, one of +the earliest Christian writers who touches on the subject, indicates +that our Lord was born about the time of the passover. (See Greswell, i. +461, 462.) + + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE TWELVE AND THE SEVENTY. + + +It has often been remarked that the personal preaching of our Lord was +comparatively barren. There can be no doubt that the effects produced +did not at all correspond to what might have been expected from so +wonderful a ministry; but it had been predicted that the Messiah would +be "despised and _rejected_ of men," [36:1] and the unbelief of the Jews +was one of the humiliating trials He was ordained to suffer during His +abode on earth. "The Holy Ghost was not yet given, because that Jesus +was not yet glorified." [36:2] We have, certainly, no evidence that any +of His discourses made such an impression as that which accompanied the +address of Peter on the day of Pentecost. Immediately after the +outpouring of the Spirit at that period an abundant blessing followed +the proclamation of the gospel. But though Jesus often mourned over the +obduracy of His countrymen, and though the truth, preached by His +disciples, was often more effective than when uttered by Himself, it +cannot with propriety be said that His own evangelical labours were +unfruitful. The one hundred and twenty, who met in an upper room during +the interval between His Ascension and the day of Pentecost [36:3] were +but a portion of His followers. The fierce and watchful opposition of +the Sanhedrim had kept Him generally at a distance from Jerusalem; it +was there specially dangerous to profess an attachment to His cause; and +we may thus, perhaps, partially account for the paucity of His adherents +in the Jewish metropolis. His converts were more numerous in Galilee; +and it was, probably, in that district He appeared to the company of +upwards of five hundred brethren who saw Him after His resurrection. +[37:1] He had itinerated extensively as a missionary; and, from some +statements incidentally occurring in the gospels, we may infer, that +there were individuals who had imbibed His doctrines in the cities and +villages of almost all parts of Palestine. [37:2] But the most signal +and decisive proof of the power of His ministry is presented in the fact +that, during the three years of its duration, He enlisted and sent forth +no less than eighty-two preachers. Part of these have since been known +as "The Twelve," and the rest as "The Seventy." + +The Twelve are frequently mentioned in the New Testament, and yet the +information we possess respecting them is exceedingly scanty. Of some we +know little more than their names. It has been supposed that a town +called Kerioth, [37:3] or Karioth, belonging to the tribe of Judah, was +the birthplace of Judas, the traitor; [37:4] but it is probable that all +his colleagues were natives of Galilee. [37:5] Some of them had various +names; and the consequent diversity which the sacred catalogues present +has frequently perplexed the reader of the evangelical narratives. +Matthew was also called Levi; [37:6] Nathanael was designated +Bartholomew; [36:7] and Jude had the two other names of Lebbaeus and +Thaddaeus. [38:1] Thomas was called Didymus, [38:2] or the twin, in +reference, we may presume, to the circumstances of his birth; James the +son of Alphaeus was styled, perhaps by way of distinction, James "the +Less" [38:3]--in allusion, it would seem, to the inferiority of his +stature; the other James and John were surnamed Boanerges, [38:4] or the +sons of thunder--a title probably indicative of the peculiar solemnity +and power of their ministrations; and Simon stands at the head of all +the lists, and is expressly said to be "first" of the Twelve, [38:5] +because, as we have reason to believe, whilst his advanced age might +have warranted him to claim precedence, his superior energy and +promptitude enabled him to occupy the most prominent position. The same +individual was called Cephas, or Peter, or _Stone_, [38:6] apparently on +account of the firmness of his character. His namesake, the other Simon, +was termed the Canaanite, and also Zelotes, [38:7] or the zealot--a +title expressive, in all likelihood, of the zeal and earnestness with +which he was wont to carry out his principles. We are informed that our +Lord sent forth the Twelve "by two and two," [38:8] but we cannot tell +whether He observed any general rule in the arrangement of those who +were to travel in company. The relationship of the parties to each other +might, at least in three instances, have suggested a classification; as +Peter and Andrew, James and John, James the Less and Jude, were, +respectively, brothers. James the Less is described as "the Lord's +brother," [39:1] and Jude is called "the brother of James," [39:2] so +that these two disciples must have been in some way related to our +Saviour; but the exact degree of affinity or consanguinity cannot now, +perhaps, be positively ascertained. [39:3] Some of the disciples, such +as Andrew, [39:4] and probably John, [39:5] had previously been +disciples of the Baptist, but their separation from their former master +and adherence to Jesus did not lead to any estrangement between our Lord +and His pious forerunner. As the Baptist contemplated the more permanent +and important character of the Messiah's mission, he could cheerfully +say--"He must increase, but I must decrease." [39:6] + +All the Twelve, when enlisted as disciples of Christ, appear to have +moved in the humbler walks of life; and yet we are scarcely warranted in +asserting that they were extremely indigent. Peter, the fisherman, +pretty plainly indicates that, in regard to worldly circumstances, he +had been, to some extent, a loser by obeying the call of Jesus. [39:7] +Though James and John were likewise fishermen, the family had at least +one little vessel of their own, and they could afford to pay "hired +servants" to assist them in their business. [40:1] Matthew acted, in a +subordinate capacity, as a collector of imperial tribute; but though the +Jews cordially hated a functionary who brought so painfully to their +recollection their condition as a conquered people, it is pretty clear +that the publican was engaged in a lucrative employment. Zacchaeus, said +to have been a "chief among the publicans," [40:2] is represented as a +rich man; [40:3] and Matthew, though probably in an inferior station, +was able to give an entertainment in his own house to a numerous +company. [40:4] Still, however, the Twelve, as a body, were qualified, +neither by their education nor their habits, for acting as popular +instructors; and had the gospel been a device of human wisdom, it could +not have been promoted by their advocacy. Individuals who had hitherto +been occupied in tilling the land, in fishing, and in mending nets, or +in sitting at the receipt of custom, could not have been expected to +make any great impression as ecclesiastical reformers. Their position in +society gave them no influence; their natural talents were not +particularly brilliant; and even their dialect betokened their connexion +with a district from which nothing good or great was anticipated. [40:5] +But God exalted these men of low degree, and made them the spiritual +illuminators of the world. + +Though the New Testament enters very sparingly into the details of their +personal history, it is plain that the Twelve presented a considerable +variety of character. Thomas, though obstinate, was warm-hearted and +manly. Once when, as he imagined, his Master was going forward to +certain death, he chivalrously proposed to his brethren that they should +all perish along with Him; [40:6] and though at first he doggedly +refused to credit the account of the resurrection, [41:6] yet, when his +doubts were removed, he gave vent to his feelings in one of the most +impressive testimonies [41:2] to the power and godhead of the Messiah to +be found in the whole book of revelation. James, the son of Alphaeus, +was noted for his prudence and practical wisdom; [41:3] and Nathanael +was frank and candid--"an Israelite indeed, in whom was no guile." +[41:4] Our Lord bestowed on Peter and the two sons of Zebedee peculiar +proofs of confidence and favour, for they alone were permitted to +witness some of the most remarkable scenes in the history of the Man of +Sorrows. [41:5] Though these three brethren displayed such a +congeniality of disposition, it does not appear that they possessed +minds of the same mould, but each had excellencies of his own which +threw a charm around his character. Peter yielded to the impulse of the +moment and acted with promptitude and vigour; James became the first of +the apostolic martyrs, probably because by his ability and boldness, as +a preacher, he had provoked the special enmity of Herod and the Jews; +[41:6] whilst the benevolent John delighted to meditate on the "deep +things of God," and listened with profound emotion to his Master as He +discoursed of the mystery of His Person, and of the peace of believers +abiding in His love. It has been conjectured that there was some family +relationship between the sons of Zebedee and Jesus; but of this there is +no satisfactory evidence. [41:7] It was simply, perhaps, the marked +attention of our Saviour to James and John which awakened the ambition +of their mother, and induced her to bespeak their promotion in the +kingdom of the Son of Man. [42:1] + +Though none of the Twelve had received a liberal education, [42:2] it +cannot be said that they were literally "novices" when invested with the +ministerial commission. It is probable that, before they were invited to +follow Jesus, they had all seriously turned their attention to the +subject of religion; some of them had been previously instructed by the +Baptist; and all, prior to their selection, appear to have been about a +year under the tuition of our Lord himself. From that time until the end +of His ministry they lived with Him on terms of the most intimate +familiarity. From earlier acquaintance, as well as from closer and more +confidential companionship, they had a better opportunity of knowing His +character and doctrines than any of the rest of His disciples. When, +perhaps about six or eight months [42:3] after their appointment, they +were sent forth as missionaries, they were commanded neither to walk in +"the way of the Gentiles," nor to enter "into any city of the +Samaritans," but rather to go "to the lost sheep of the house of +Israel." [42:4] Their number _Twelve_ corresponded to the number of the +tribes, and they were called _apostles_ probably in allusion to a class +of Jewish functionaries who were so designated. It is said that the High +Priest was wont to send forth from Jerusalem into foreign countries +certain accredited agents, or messengers, styled apostles, on +ecclesiastical errands. [42:5] + +During the personal ministry of our Lord the Twelve seem to have been +employed by Him on only one missionary excursion. About twelve months +after that event [43:1] He "appointed other seventy also" to preach His +Gospel. Luke is the only evangelist who mentions the designation of +these additional missionaries; and though we have no reason to believe +that their duties terminated with the first tour in which they were +engaged, [43:2] they are never subsequently noticed in the New +Testament. Many of the actions of our Lord had a typical meaning, and it +is highly probable that He designed to inculcate an important truth by +the appointment of these Seventy new apostles. According to the ideas of +the Jews of that age there were _seventy_ heathen nations; [43:3] and it +is rather singular that, omitting Peleg the progenitor of the +Israelites, the names of the posterity of Shem, Ham, and Japheth, +recorded in the 10th chapter of Genesis, amount exactly to seventy. +"These," says the historian, "are the families of the sons of Noah, +_after their generations, in their nations; and by these were the +nations divided_ in the earth after the flood." [43:4] Every one who +looks into the narrative will perceive that the sacred writer does not +propose to furnish a complete catalogue of the descendants of Noah, for +he passes over in entire silence the posterity of the greater number of +the patriarch's grandchildren; he apparently intends to name only those +who were _the founders of nations_; and thus it happens that whilst, in +a variety of instances, he does not trace the line of succession, he +takes care, in others, to mention the father and many of his sons. +[44:1] The Jewish notion current in the time of our Lord as to the +existence of seventy heathen nations, seems, therefore, to have rested +on a sound historical basis, inasmuch as, according to the Mosaic +statement, there were, beside Peleg, precisely seventy individuals by +whom "the nations were divided in the earth after the flood." We may +thus infer that our Lord meant to convey a great moral lesson by the +appointment alike of the Twelve and of the Seventy. In the ordination of +the Twelve He evinced His regard for all the tribes of Israel; in the +ordination of the Seventy He intimated that His Gospel was designed for +all the nations of the earth. When the Twelve were about to enter on +their first mission He required them to go only to the Jews, but He sent +forth the Seventy "two and two before His face _into every city and +place whither He himself would come_." [45:1] Towards the commencement +of His public career, He had induced many of the Samaritans to believe +on Him, [45:2] whilst at a subsequent period His ministry had been +blessed to Gentiles in the coasts of Tyre and Sidon; [45:3] and there is +no evidence that in the missionary journey which He contemplated when He +appointed the Seventy as His pioneers, He intended to confine His +labours to His kinsmen of the seed of Abraham. It is highly probable +that the Seventy were actually sent forth _from Samaria_, [45:4] and the +instructions given them apparently suggest that, in the circuit now +assigned to them, they were to visit certain districts lying north of +Galilee of the Gentiles. [45:5] The personal ministry of our Lord had +respect primarily and specially to the lost sheep of the house of +Israel, [45:6] but His conduct in this case symbolically indicated the +catholic character of His religion. He evinced His regard for the Jews +by sending no less than twelve apostles to that one nation, but He did +not Himself refuse to minister either to Samaritans or Gentiles; and to +shew that He was disposed to make provision for the general diffusion of +His word, He "appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two +before His face into every city and place whither He himself would +come." + +It is very clear that our Lord committed, in the first instance, to the +Twelve the organisation of the ecclesiastical commonwealth. The most +ancient Christian Church, that of the metropolis of Palestine, was +modelled under their superintendence; and the earliest converts gathered +into it, after His ascension, were the fruits of their ministry. Hence, +in the Apocalypse, the wall of the "holy Jerusalem" is said to have +"twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the +Lamb." [46:1] But it does not follow that others had no share in +founding the spiritual structure. The Seventy also received a commission +from Christ, and we have every reason to believe that, after the death +of their Master, they pursued their missionary labours with renovated +ardour. That they were called apostles as well as the Twelve, cannot, +perhaps, be established by distinct testimony; [46:2] but it is certain, +that they were furnished with supernatural endowments; [46:3] and it is +scarcely probable that they are overlooked in the description of the +sacred writer when He represents the New Testament Church as "built upon +the foundation of the _apostles and prophets_, Jesus Christ himself +being the chief corner stone." [46:4] + +The appointment of the Seventy, like that of the Twelve, was a typical +act; and it is not, therefore, extraordinary that they are only once +noticed in the sacred volume. Our Lord never intended to constitute two +permanent corporations, limited, respectively, to twelve and seventy +members, and empowered to transmit their authority to successors from +generation to generation. In a short time after His death the symbolical +meaning of the mission of the Seventy was explained, as it very soon +appeared that the gospel was to be transmitted to all the ends of the +earth; and thus it was no longer necessary to refer to these +representatives of the ministry of the universal Church. When the Twelve +turned to the Gentiles, their number lost its significance, and from +that date they accordingly ceased to fill up vacancies occurring in +their society; and, as the Church assumed a settled form, the apostles +were disposed to insist less and less on any special powers with which +they had been originally furnished, and rather to place themselves on a +level with the ordinary rulers of the ecclesiastical community. Hence we +find them sitting in church courts with these brethren, [47:1] and +desirous to be known not as apostles, but as elders. [47:2] We possess +little information respecting either their official or their personal +history. A very equivocal, and sometimes contradictory, tradition [47:3] +is the only guide which even professes to point out to us where the +greater number of them laboured; and the same witness is the only +voucher for the statements which describe how most of them finished +their career. It is an instructive fact that no proof can be given, from +the sacred record, of the ordination either by the Twelve or by the +Seventy, of even one presbyter or pastor. With the exception of the +laying on of hands upon the seven deacons, [47:4] no inspired writer +mentions any act of the kind in which the Twelve ever engaged. The +deacons were not _rulers_ in the Church, and therefore could not by +ordination confer ecclesiastical power on others. + +There is much meaning in the silence of the sacred writers respecting +the official proceedings and the personal career of the Twelve and the +Seventy. It thus becomes impossible for any one to make out a title to +the ministry by tracing his ecclesiastical descent; for no contemporary +records enable us to prove a connexion between the inspired founders of +our religion, and those who were subsequently entrusted with the +government of the Church. At the critical point where, had it been +deemed necessary, we might have had the light of inspiration, we are +left to wander in total darkness. We are thus shut up to the conclusion +that the claims of those who profess to be heralds of the gospel are to +be tested by some other criterion than their ecclesiastical lineage. It +is written--"_By their fruits_ ye shall know them." [48:1] God alone can +make a true minister; [48:2] and he who attempts to establish his right +to feed the flock of Christ by appealing to his official genealogy +miserably mistakes the source of the pastoral commission. It would, +indeed, avail nothing though a minister could prove his relationship to +the Twelve or the Seventy by an unbroken line of ordinations, for some +who at the time may have been able to deduce their descent from the +apostles were amongst the most dangerous of the early heretics. [48:3] +True religion is sustained, not by any human agency, but by that Eternal +Spirit who quickens all the children of God, and who has preserved for +them a pure gospel in the writings of the apostles and evangelists. The +perpetuity of the Church no more depends on the uninterrupted succession +of its ministers than does the perpetuity of a nation depend on the +continuance of the dynasty which may happen at a particular date to +occupy the throne. As plants possess powers of reproduction enabling +them, when a part decays, to throw it off, and to supply its place by a +new and vigorous vegetation, so it is with the Church--the spiritual +vine which the Lord has planted. Its government may degenerate into a +corrupt tyranny by which its most precious liberties may be invaded or +destroyed, but the freemen of the Lord are not bound to submit to any +such domination. Were even all the ecclesiastical rulers to become +traitors to the King of Zion, the Church would not therefore perish. The +living members of the body of Christ would be then required to repudiate +the authority of overseers by whom they were betrayed, and to choose +amongst themselves such faithful men as were found most competent to +teach and to guide the spiritual community. The Divine Statute-book +clearly warrants the adoption of such an alternative. "Beloved," says +the Apostle John, "believe not every spirit, but _try the spirits_ +whether they are of God. .... We are of God, _he that knoweth God +heareth us_, he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the +spirit of truth and the spirit of error." [49:1] "If there come _any_ +unto you, and _bring not this doctrine_, receive him not into your +house, neither bid him God-speed; for he that biddeth him God-speed is +partaker of his evil deeds." [49:2] Paul declares, still more +emphatically--"Though WE, or AN ANGEL FROM HEAVEN, preach any other +gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, _let him be +accursed_. As we said before, so say I now again, If _any man_ preach +any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, _let him be +accursed_." [49:3] + +In one sense neither the Twelve nor the Seventy had successors. All of +them were called to preach the gospel by the living voice of Christ +himself; all had "companied" with Him during the period of His ministry; +all had listened to His sermons; all had been spectators of His works of +wonder; all were empowered to perform miracles; all seem to have +conversed with Him after His resurrection; and all appear to have +possessed the gift of inspired utterance. [50:1] But in another sense +every "good minister of Jesus Christ" is a successor of these primitive +preachers; for every true pastor is taught of God, and is moved by the +Spirit to undertake the service in which he is engaged, and is warranted +to expect a blessing on the truth which he disseminates. As of old the +descent from heaven of fire upon the altar testified the Divine +acceptance of the sacrifices, so now the descent of the Spirit, as +manifested in the conversion of souls to God, is a sure token that the +labours of the minister have the seal of the Divine approbation. The +great Apostle of the Gentiles did not hesitate to rely on such a proof +of his commission from heaven. "Need we," says he to the Corinthians, +"epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you? +Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men; +forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ +ministered by us, written, not with ink, but with the Spirit of the +living God, not in tables of stone, but in the fleshy tables of the +heart." [50:2] No true pastor will be left entirely destitute of such +encouragement, and neither the Twelve nor the Seventy could produce +credentials more trustworthy or more intelligible. + + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE PROGRESS OF THE GOSPEL FROM THE DEATH OF CHRIST TO THE DEATH OF +THE APOSTLE JAMES, THE BROTHER OF JOHN. + +A.D. 31 TO A.D. 44. + + +When our Lord bowed His head on the cross and "gave up the ghost," the +work of atonement was completed. The ceremonial law virtually expired +when He explained, by His death, its awful significance; and the crisis +of His passion was the birthday of the Christian economy. At this date +the history of the New Testament Church properly commences. + +After His resurrection Jesus remained forty days on earth, [51:1] and, +during this interval, He often took occasion to point out to His +disciples the meaning of His wonderful career. He is represented as +saying to them--"Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to +suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and +remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations, +_beginning at Jerusalem_." [51:2] The inspired narratives of the +teaching and miracles of our Lord are emphatically corroborated by the +fact, that a large Christian Church was established, almost immediately +after His decease, in the metropolis of Palestine. The Sanhedrim and the +Roman governor had concurred in His condemnation; and, on the night of +His trial, even the intrepid Peter had been so intimidated that he had +been tempted to curse and to swear as he averred that he knew not "The +Man." It might have been expected that the death of Jesus would have +been followed by a reign of terror, and that no attempt would have been +made, at least in the place where the civil and ecclesiastical +authorities resided, to assert the Divine mission of Him whom they had +crucified as a malefactor. But perfect love casteth out fear. In the +very city where He had suffered, and a few days after His passion, His +disciples ventured in the most public manner to declare His innocence +and to proclaim Him as the Messiah. The result of their appeal is as +wonderful as its boldness. Though the imminent peril of confessing +Christ was well known, such was the strength of their convictions that +multitudes resolved, at all hazards, to enrol themselves among His +followers. The success which accompanied the preaching of the apostolic +missionaries at the feast of Pentecost was a sign and a pledge of their +future triumphs, for "the same day there were added unto them about +three thousand souls." [52:1] + +The disinterested behaviour of the converts betokened their intense +earnestness. "All that believed were together and had all things common, +and sold their possessions and goods and parted them to all men, as +every man had need." [52:2] These early disciples were not, indeed, +required, as a term of communion, to deposit their property in a common +stock-purse; but, in the overflowings of their first love, they +spontaneously adopted the arrangement. On the part of the more opulent +members of the community residing in a place which was the stronghold of +Jewish prejudice and influence, this course was, perhaps, as prudent as +it was generous. By joining a proscribed sect they put their lives, as +well as their wealth, into jeopardy; but, by the sale of their effects, +they displayed a spirit of self-sacrifice which must have astonished and +confounded their adversaries. They thus anticipated all attempts at +spoliation, and gave a proof of their readiness to submit to any +suffering for the cause which they had espoused. An inheritance, when +turned into money, could not be easily sequestered; and those who were +in want could obtain assistance out of the secreted treasure. Still, +even at this period, the principle of a community of goods was not +carried out into universal operation; for the foreign Jews who were now +converted to the faith, and who were "possessors of lands or houses" +[53:1] in distant countries, could neither have found purchasers, nor +negotiated transfers, in the holy city. The first sales must obviously +have been confined to those members of the Church who were owners of +property in Jerusalem and its neighbourhood. + +The system of having all things common was suggested in a crisis of +apparently extreme peril, so that it was only a temporary expedient; and +it is evident that it was soon given up altogether, as unsuited to the +ordinary circumstances of the Christian Church. But though, in a short +time, the disciples in general were left to depend on their own +resources, the community continued to provide a fund for the help of the +infirm and the destitute. At an early period complaints were made +respecting the distribution of this charity, and we are told that "there +arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews because their +widows were neglected in the daily ministration." [53:2] The _Grecians_, +or those converts from Judaism who used the Greek language, were +generally of foreign birth; and as the _Hebrews_, or the brethren who +spoke the vernacular tongue of Palestine, were natives of the country, +there were, perhaps, suspicions that local influence secured for their +poor an undue share of the public bounty. The expedient employed for the +removal of this "root of bitterness" seems to have been completely +successful. "The twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them +and said, It is not reason that we should leave the word of God and +serve tables. Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of +honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint +over this business." [54:1] + +Had the apostles been anxious for power they would themselves have +nominated the deacons. They might have urged, too, a very plausible +apology for here venturing upon an exercise of patronage. They might +have pleaded that the disciples were dissatisfied with each other--that +the excitement of a popular election was fitted to increase this feeling +of alienation--and that, under such circumstances, prudence required +them to take upon themselves the responsibility of the appointment. But +they were guided by a higher wisdom; and their conduct is a model for +the imitation of ecclesiastical rulers in all succeeding generations. It +was the will of the Great Lawgiver that His Church should possess a free +constitution; and accordingly, at the very outset, its members were +intrusted with the privilege of self-government. The community had +already been invited to choose an apostle in the room of Judas, [54:2] +and they were now required to name office-bearers for the management of +their money transactions. But, whilst the Twelve, on this occasion, +appealed to the suffrages of the Brotherhood, they reserved to +themselves the right of confirming the election; and they might, by +withholding ordination, have refused to fiat an improper appointment. +Happily no such difficulty occurred. In compliance with the instructions +addressed to them, the multitude chose seven of their number "whom they +set before the apostles, and, when they had prayed, they laid their +hands on them." [54:3] + +Prior to the election of the deacons, Peter and John had been +incarcerated. The Sanhedrim wished to extort from them a pledge that +they would "not speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus," [55:1] but +the prisoners nobly refused to consent to any such compromise. They +"answered and said unto them--Whether it be right in the sight of God to +hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye." [55:2] The apostles here +disclaimed the doctrine of passive obedience, and asserted principles +which lie at the foundation of the true theory of religious freedom. +They maintained that "God alone is Lord of the conscience"--that His +command overrides all human regulations--and that, no matter what may be +the penalties which earthly rulers may annex to the breach of the +enactments of their statute-book, the Christian is not bound to obey, +when the civil law would compel him to violate his enlightened +convictions. But the Sanhedrim obviously despised such considerations. +For a time they were obliged to remain quiescent, as public feeling ran +strongly in favour of the new preachers; but, soon after the election of +the deacons, they resumed the work of persecution. The tide of +popularity now began to turn; and Stephen, one of the Seven, +particularly distinguished by his zeal, fell a victim to their +intolerance. + +The martyrdom of Stephen appears to have occurred about three years and +a half after the death of our Lord. [55:3] Daniel had foretold that the +Messiah would "confirm the covenant with many _for one week_" [55:4]--an +announcement which has been understood to indicate that, at the time of +his manifestation, the gospel would be preached with much success among +his countrymen _for seven years_--and if the prophetic week commenced +with the ministry of John the Baptist, it probably terminated with this +bloody tragedy. [56:1] The Christian cause had hitherto prospered in +Jerusalem, and there are good grounds for believing that, mean while, it +had also made considerable progress throughout all Palestine; but, at +this date, it is suddenly arrested in its career of advancement. The +Jewish multitude begin to regard it with aversion; and the Roman +governor discovers that he may, at any time, obtain the tribute of their +applause by oppressing its ablest and most fearless advocates. + +After His resurrection our Lord commanded the apostles to go and "teach +_all nations_" [56:2] and yet years rolled away before they turned their +thoughts towards the evangelisation of the Gentiles. The Jewish mind was +slow to apprehend such an idea, for the posterity of Abraham had been +long accustomed to regard themselves as the exclusive heirs of divine +privileges; but the remarkable development of the kingdom of God +gradually led them to entertain more enlarged and more liberal +sentiments. The progress of the gospel in Samaria, immediately after the +death of Stephen, demonstrated that the blessings of the new +dispensation were not to be confined to God's ancient people. Though +many of the Samaritans acknowledged the divine authority of the writings +of Moses, they did not belong to the Church of Israel; and between them +and the Jews a bitter antipathy had hitherto existed. When Philip +appeared among them, and preached Jesus as the promised Messiah, they +listened most attentively to his appeals, and not a few of them gladly +received Christian baptism. [57:1] It could now no longer be said that +the Jews had "no dealings with the Samaritans," [57:2] for the gospel +gathered both into the fold of a common Saviour, and taught them to keep +"the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." + +When the disciples were scattered abroad by the persecution which arose +after the martyrdom of Stephen, the apostles still kept their post in +the Jewish capital; [57:3] for Christ had instructed them to begin their +ministry in that place: [57:4] and they perhaps conceived that, until +authorised by some further intimation, they were bound to remain at +Jerusalem. But the conversion of the Samaritans must have reminded them +that the sphere of their labours was more extensive. Our Lord had said +to them--"Ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all +Judea, and in Samaria, and _unto the uttermost part of the earth,_" +[57:5] and events, which were now passing before their view, were +continually throwing additional light upon the meaning of this +announcement. The baptism of the Ethiopian eunuch, [57:6] about this +period, was calculated to enlarge their ideas; and the baptism of +Cornelius pointed out, still more distinctly, the wide range of their +evangelical commission. The minuteness with which the case of the devout +centurion is described is a proof of its importance as connected with +this transition-stage in the history of the Church. He had before known +nothing of Peter; and, when they met at Caesarea, each could testify +that he had been prepared for the interview by a special revelation from +heaven. [57:7] Cornelius was "a centurion of the band called the Italian +band" [57:8]--he was a representative of that military power which then +ruled the world--and, in his baptism, we see the Roman Empire +presenting, on the altar of Christianity, the first-fruits of the +Gentiles. + +It was not, however, very obvious, from any of the cases already +enumerated, that the salvation of Christ was designed for all classes +and conditions of the human family. The Samaritans did not, indeed, +worship at Jerusalem, but they claimed some interest in "the promises +made unto the fathers;" and they conformed to many of the rites of +Judaism. It does not appear that the Ethiopian eunuch was of the seed of +Abraham; but he acknowledged the inspiration of the Old Testament, and +he was disposed, at least to a certain extent, to observe its +institutions. Even the Roman centurion was what has been called a +_proselyte of the gate_, that is, he professed the Jewish theology--"he +feared God with all his house" [58:1]--though he had not received +circumcision, and had not been admitted into the congregation of Israel. +But the time was approaching when the Church was to burst forth beyond +the barriers within which it had been hitherto inclosed, and an +individual now appeared upon the scene who was to be the leader of this +new movement. He is "a citizen of no mean city" [58:2]--a native of +Tarsus in Cilicia, a place famous for its educational institutes +[58:3]--and he is known, by way of distinction, as "an apostle of _the +nations_." [58:4] + +The apostles were at first sent only to their own countrymen; [58:5] and +we have seen that, for some time after our Lord's death, they do not +appear to have contemplated any more comprehensive mission. When Peter +called on the disciples to appoint a successor to Judas, he seems to +have acted under the conviction that the company of the Twelve must +still be maintained in its integrity, and that its numbers must still +exactly correspond to the number of the tribes of Israel. But the Jews, +after the death of Stephen, evinced an increasing aversion to the +gospel; and as the apostles were eventually induced to direct their +views elsewhere, they were, of course, also led to abandon an +arrangement which had a special reference to the sectional divisions of +the chosen people. Meanwhile, too, the management of ecclesiastical +affairs had partially fallen into other hands; new missions, in which +the Twelve had no share, had been undertaken; and Paul henceforth +becomes most conspicuous and successful in extending and organising the +Church. + +Paul describes himself as "one born out of due time." [59:1] He was +converted to Christianity when his countrymen seemed about to be +consigned to judicial blindness; and he was "called to be an apostle" +[59:2] when others had been labouring for years in the same vocation. +But he possessed peculiar qualifications for the office. He was ardent, +energetic, and conscientious, as well as acute and eloquent. In his +native city Tarsus he had probably received a good elementary education, +and afterwards, "at the feet of Gamaliel," [59:3] in Jerusalem, he +enjoyed the tuition of a Rabbi of unrivalled celebrity. The apostle of +the Gentiles had much the same religious experience as the father of the +German Reformation; for as Luther, before he understood the doctrine of +a free salvation, attempted to earn a title to heaven by the austerities +of monastic discipline, so Paul in early life was "taught according to +the perfect manner of the law of the fathers," [59:4] and "after the +strictest sect of his religion lived a Pharisee." [59:5] His zeal led +him to become a persecutor; and when Stephen was stoned, the witnesses, +who were required to take part in the execution, prepared themselves for +the work of death, by laying down their upper garments at the feet of +the "young man" Saul. [59:6] He had established himself in the +confidence of the Sanhedrim, and he appears to have been a member of +that influential judicatory, for he tells us that he "shut up many of +the saints in prison," and that, when they were put to death, "he gave +his voice, or his _vote_, [60:1] against them"--a statement implying +that he belonged to the court which pronounced the sentence of +condemnation. As he was travelling to Damascus armed with authority to +seize any of the disciples whom he discovered in that city, and to +convey them bound to Jerusalem, [60:2] the Lord appeared to him in the +way, and he was suddenly converted. [60:3] After reaching the end of his +journey, and boldly proclaiming his attachment to the party he had been +so recently endeavouring to exterminate, he retired into Arabia, [60:4] +where he appears to have spent three years in the devout study of the +Christian theology. He then returned to Damascus, and entered, about +A.D. 37, [60:5] on those missionary labours which he prosecuted with so +much efficiency and perseverance for upwards of a quarter of a century. + +Paul declares that he derived a knowledge of the gospel immediately from +Christ; [60:6] and though, for many years, he had very little +intercourse with the Twelve, he avers that he was "not a whit behind the +very chiefest apostles." [60:7] Throughout life he was associated, not +with them, but with others as his fellow-labourers; and he obviously +occupied a distinct and independent position. When he was baptized, the +ordinance was administered by an individual who is not previously +mentioned in the New Testament, [61:1] and when he was separated to the +work to which the Lord had called him, [61:2] the ordainers were +"prophets and teachers," respecting whose own call to the ministry the +inspired historian supplies us with no information. But it may fairly be +presumed that they were regularly introduced into the places which they +are represented as occupying; they are all described by the evangelist +as receiving the same special instructions from heaven; and the +tradition that, at least some of them, were of the number of the +Seventy, [61:3] is exceedingly probable. And if, as has already been +suggested, the mission of the Seventy indicated the design of our +Saviour to diffuse the gospel all over the world, we can see a peculiar +propriety in the arrangement that Paul was ushered into the Church under +the auspices of these ministers. [61:4] It was most fitting that he who +was to be, by way of eminence, the apostle of the Gentiles, was baptized +and ordained by men whose own appointment was intended to symbolise the +catholic spirit of Christianity. + +In the treatment of Paul by his unbelieving countrymen we have a most +melancholy illustration of the recklessness of religious bigotry. These +Jews must have known that, in as far as secular considerations were +concerned, he had everything to lose by turning into "the way which they +called heresy;" they were bound to acknowledge that, by connecting +himself with an odious sect, he at least demonstrated his sincerity and +self-denial; but they were so exasperated by his zeal that they "took +counsel to kill him." [62:1] When, after his sojourn in Arabia, he +returned to Damascus that city was in the hands of Aretas, the king of +Arabia Petraea; [62:2] who seems to have contrived to gain possession of +it during the confusion which immediately followed the death of the +Emperor Tiberius. This petty sovereign courted the favour of the Jewish +portion of the population by permitting them to persecute the disciples; +[62:3] and the apostle, at this crisis, would have fallen a victim to +their malignity had not his friends let him down "through a window, in a +basket, by the wall," [62:4] and thus enabled him to escape a premature +martyrdom. He now repaired to Jerusalem, where the brethren do not +appear to have heard of his conversion, and where they at first refused +to acknowledge him as a member of their society; [62:5] for he had been +obliged to leave Damascus with so much precipitation that he had brought +with him no commendatory letters; but Barnabas, who is said to have been +his school-fellow, [62:6] and who had in some way obtained information +respecting his subsequent career, made the leaders of the Mother Church +acquainted with the wonderful change which had taken place in his +sentiments and character, and induced them to admit him to fellowship. +During this visit to the holy city, while he prayed in the temple, he +was more fully instructed respecting his future destination. In a +trance, he saw Jesus, who said to him--"Depart, for I will send thee +_far hence unto the Gentiles_." [62:7] Even had he not received this +intimation, the murderous hostility of the Jews would have obliged him +to retire. "When he spake boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus, and +disputed against the Grecians, they went about to slay him--which, when +the brethren knew, they brought him down to Caesarea, and sent him forth +to Tarsus." [63:1] + +The apostle now laboured for some years as a missionary in "the regions +of Syria and Cilicia." [63:2] His native city and its neighbourhood +probably enjoyed a large share of his ministrations, and his exertions +seem to have been attended with much success, for, soon afterwards, the +converts in these districts attract particular notice. [63:3] Meanwhile +the gospel was making rapid progress in the Syrian capital, and as Saul +was considered eminently qualified for conducting the mission in that +place, he was induced to proceed thither. "Then," says the sacred +historian, "Barnabas departed to Tarsus to seek Saul, and when he had +found him he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass that a whole +year they assembled themselves with the Church, and taught much people; +and the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch." [63:4] + +The establishment of a Church in this city formed a new era in the +development of Christianity. Antioch was a great commercial mart with a +large Jewish, as well as Gentile, population; it was virtually the +capital of the Roman Empire in the East--being the residence of the +president, or governor, of Syria; its climate was delightful; and its +citizens, enriched by trade, were noted for their gaiety and +voluptuousness. In this flourishing metropolis many proselytes from +heathenism were to be found in the synagogues of the Greek-speaking +Jews, and the gospel soon made rapid progress among these Hellenists. +"Some of them (which were scattered abroad upon the persecution that +arose about Stephen) were men of Cyprus and Cyrene, which when they were +come to Antioch, spake unto the Grecians, [64:1] preaching the Lord +Jesus. And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number +believed and turned unto the Lord." [64:2] The followers of Jesus at +this time received a new designation. They had hitherto called +themselves "brethren" or "disciples" or "believers," but now they "were +called Christians" by some of the inhabitants of the Syrian capital. As +the unconverted Jews did not admit that Jesus was the Christ they were +obviously not the authors of this appellation, and, in contempt, they +probably styled the party Nazarenes or Galileans; but it is easy to +understand how the name was suggested to the Pagans as most descriptive +and appropriate. No one could be long in company with the new +religionists without perceiving that Christ was "the end of their +conversation." They delighted to tell of His mighty miracles, of His +holy life, of the extraordinary circumstances which accompanied His +death, of His resurrection and ascension. Out of the fulness of their +hearts they discoursed of His condescension and His meekness, of His +wonderful wisdom, of His sublime theology, and of His unutterable love +to a world lying in wickedness. When they prayed, they prayed to Christ; +when they sang, they sang praise to Christ; when they preached, they +preached Christ. Well then might the heathen multitude agree with one +voice to call them _Christians_. The inventor of the title may have +meant it as a nickname, but if so, He who overruled the waywardness of +Pilate so that he wrote on the cross a faithful inscription, [65:1] also +caused this mocker of His servants to stumble on a most truthful and +complimentary designation. + +From his first appearance in Antioch Paul seems to have occupied a very +influential position among his brethren. In that refined and opulent +city his learning, his dialectic skill, his prudence, and his pious +ardour were all calculated to make his ministry most effective. About a +year after his arrival there, he was deputed, in company with a friend, +to visit Palestine on an errand of love. "In those days came prophets +from Jerusalem unto Antioch. And there stood up one of them, named +Agabus, and signified by the Spirit that there should be great dearth +throughout all the world; which came to pass in the days of Claudius +Caesar. Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, +determined to send relief to the brethren which dwelt in Judea. Which +also they did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and +Saul." [65:2] + +This narrative attests that the principle of a community of goods was +not recognised in the Church of Antioch, for the aid administered was +supplied, not out of a general fund, but by "every man according to his +ability." There was here no "murmuring of the Grecians against the +Hebrews," as, in the spirit of true brotherhood, the wealthy Hellenists +of Antioch cheerfully contributed to the relief of the poor Hebrews of +their fatherland. It does not appear that "the elders" in whose hands +the money was deposited, were all office-bearers connected with the +Church of Jerusalem. These would, of course, receive no small share of +the donations, but as the assistance was designed for the "brethren +which dwelt _in Judea_," and not merely for the disciples in the holy +city, we may infer that it was distributed among the elders of all the +Churches now scattered over the southern part of Palestine. [66:1] +Neither would Barnabas and Paul require to make a tour throughout the +district to visit these various communities. All the elders of Judea +still continued to observe the Mosaic law, and as the deputies from +Antioch were in Jerusalem at the time of the Passover, [66:2] they would +find their brethren in attendance upon the festival. + +It is reported by several ancient writers that the apostles were +instructed to remain at Jerusalem for twelve years after the crucifixion +of our Lord, [66:3] and if the tradition is correct, the holy city +continued to be their stated residence until shortly before the period +of the arrival of these deputies from the Syrian capital. The time of +this visit can be pretty accurately ascertained, and there is perhaps no +point connected with the history of the book of the Acts respecting +which there is such a close approximation to unanimity amongst +chronologists; for, as Josephus notices [66:4] both the sudden death of +Herod Agrippa, grandson of Herod the Great, which now occurred, [66:5] +and the famine against which this contribution was intended to provide, +it is apparent from the date which he assigns to them, that Barnabas and +Saul must have reached Jerusalem about A.D. 44. [66:6] At this juncture +at least two of the apostles, James the brother of John, and Peter, were +in the Jewish capital; and it is probable that all the rest had not yet +finally taken their departure. The Twelve, it would seem, did not set +out on distant missions until they were thoroughly convinced that they +had ceased to make progress in the conversion of their countrymen in the +land of their fathers. And it is no trivial evidence, at once of the +strength of their convictions, and of the truth of the evangelical +history, that they continued so long and so efficiently to proclaim the +gospel in the chief city of Palestine. Had they not acted under an +overwhelming sense of duty, they would not have remained in a place +where their lives were in perpetual jeopardy; and had they not been +faithful witnesses, they could not have induced so many, of all classes +of society, to believe statements which, if unfounded, could have been +easily contradicted on the spot. The apostles must have been known to +many in Jerusalem as the companions of our Lord; for, during His public +ministry, they had often been seen with Him in the city and the temple; +and it was to be, therefore, expected, that peculiar importance would be +attached to their testimony respecting His doctrines and His miracles. +Their preaching in the head-quarters of Judaism was fitted to exert an +immense influence, as that metropolis itself contained a vast +population, and as it was, besides, the resort of strangers from all +parts of the world. And so long as the apostles ministered in Jerusalem +or in Palestine only to the house of Israel, it was expedient that their +number, which was an index of the Divine regard for the whole of the +twelve tribes, should be maintained in its integrity. But when, after +preaching twelve years among their countrymen at home, they found their +labours becoming comparatively barren; and when, driven by persecution +from Judea, they proceeded on distant missions, their position was quite +altered. Their number had now at least partially [67:1] lost its +original significance; and hence, when an apostle died, the survivors no +longer deemed it necessary to take steps for the appointment of a +successor. We find accordingly that when Herod "killed James, the +brother of John, with the sword," [68:1] no other individual was +selected to occupy the vacant apostleship. + +It has been already stated that when Paul appeared in Jerusalem for the +first time after his conversion, he received, when praying in the +temple, a divine communication informing him of his mission to the +heathen. [68:2] It would seem that, during his present visit, as the +bearer of the contributions from Antioch, he was favoured with another +revelation. In his Second Epistle to the Corinthians he apparently +refers to this most comfortable, yet mysterious, manifestation. "I +know," [68:3] says he, "a man in Christ fourteen years ago [68:4] +(whether in the body, I cannot tell, or whether out of the body, I +cannot tell; God knoweth) such an one caught up to the third heaven. And +I know such a man (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot +tell; God knoweth) that he was caught up into paradise, and heard +unspeakable words which it is not lawful for man to utter." [68:5] The +present position of the apostle explains the design of this sublime and +delightful vision. As Moses was encouraged to undertake the deliverance +of his countrymen when God appeared to him in the burning bush, [68:6] +and as Isaiah was emboldened to go forth, as the messenger of the Lord +of hosts, when he saw Jehovah sitting upon His throne attended by the +seraphim, [68:7] so Paul was stirred up by an equally impressive +revelation to gird himself for the labours of a new appointment. He was +about to commence a more extensive missionary career, and before +entering upon so great and so perilous an undertaking, the King of kings +condescended to encourage him by admitting him to a gracious audience, +and by permitting him to enjoy some glimpses of the glory of those +realms of light where "they that be wise shall shine as the brightness +of the firmament, and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars +for ever and ever." + + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +THE ORDINATION OF PAUL AND BARNABAS; THEIR MISSIONARY TOUR +IN ASIA MINOR; AND THE COUNCIL OF JERUSALEM. + +A.D. 44 TO A.D. 51. + + +Soon after returning from Jerusalem to Antioch, Paul was formally +invested with his new commission. His fellow-deputy, Barnabas, was +appointed, as his coadjutor, in this important service. "Now," says the +evangelist, "there were in the church that was at Antioch certain +prophets and teachers, as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, +and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod +the tetrarch, and Saul. As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the +Holy Ghost said--Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I +have called them. And when they had fasted, and prayed, and laid their +hands on them, they sent them away." [70:1] + +Ten years had now elapsed since the conversion of Paul; and during the +greater part of this period, he had been busily engaged in the +dissemination of the gospel. In the days of his Judaism the learned +Pharisee had, no doubt, been accustomed to act as a teacher in the +synagogues, and, when he became obedient to the faith, he was permitted, +as a matter of course, to expound his new theology in the Christian +assemblies. Barnabas, his companion, was a Levite; [70:2] and as his +tribe was specially charged with the duty of public instruction, [71:1] +he too had probably been a preacher before his conversion. Both these +men had been called of God to labour as evangelists, and the Head of the +Church had already abundantly honoured their ministrations; but hitherto +neither of them seems to have been clothed with pastoral authority by +any regular ordination. Their constant presence in Antioch was now no +longer necessary, so that they were thus left at liberty to prosecute +their missionary operations in the great field of heathendom; and at +this juncture it was deemed necessary to designate them, in due form, to +their "ministry and apostleship." "The Holy Ghost said--Separate me +Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them." When we +consider the present circumstances of these two brethren, we may see, +not only why these instructions were given, but also why their +observance has been so distinctly registered. + +It is apparent that Barnabas and Saul were now called to a position of +higher responsibility than that which they had previously occupied. They +had heretofore acted simply as preachers of the Christian doctrine. +Prompted by love to their common Master, and by a sense of individual +obligation, they had endeavoured to diffuse all around them a knowledge +of the Redeemer. They taught in the name of Jesus, just because they +possessed the gifts and the graces required for such a service; and, as +their labours were acknowledged of God, they were encouraged to +persevere. But they were now to go forth as a solemn deputation, under +the sanction of the Church, and not only to proclaim the truth, but also +to baptize converts, to organise Christian congregations, and to ordain +Christian ministers. It was, therefore, proper, that, on this occasion, +they should be regularly invested with the ecclesiastical commission. + +On other grounds it was desirable that the mission of Barnabas and Paul +should be thus inaugurated. Though the apostles had been lately driven +from Jerusalem, and though the Jews were exhibiting increasing aversion +to the gospel, the Church was, notwithstanding, about to expand with +extraordinary vigour by the ingathering of the Gentiles. In reference to +these new members Paul and Barnabas pursued a bold and independent +course, advocating views which many regarded as dangerous, +latitudinarian, and profane; for they maintained that the ceremonial law +was not binding on the converts from heathenism. Their adoption of this +principle exposed them to much suspicion and obloquy; and because of the +tenacity with which they persisted in its vindication, not a few were +disposed to question their credentials as expositors of the Christian +faith. It was, therefore, expedient that their right to perform all the +apostolic functions should be placed above challenge. In some way, which +is not particularly described, their appointment by the Spirit of God +was accordingly made known to the Church at Antioch, and thus all the +remaining prophets and teachers, who officiated there, were warranted to +testify that these two brethren had received a call from heaven to +engage in the work to which they were now designated. Their ordination, +in obedience to this divine communication, was a decisive recognition of +their spiritual authority. The Holy Ghost had attested their commission, +and the ministers of Antioch, by the laying on of hands, set their seal +to the truth of the oracle. Their title to act as founders of the Church +was thus authenticated by evidence which could not be legitimately +disputed. Paul himself obviously attached considerable importance to +this transaction, and he afterwards refers to it in language of marked +emphasis, when, in the beginning of the Epistle to the Romans, he +introduces himself as "a servant of Jesus Christ, _called_ to be an +apostle, _separated unto the gospel of God_." [71:1] + +In the circumstantial record of this proceeding, to be found in the Acts +of the Apostles, we have a proof of the wisdom of the Author of +Revelation. He foresaw that the rite of "the laying on of hands" would +be sadly abused; that it would be represented as possessing something +like a magic potency; and that it would be at length converted, by a +small class of ministers, into an ecclesiastical monopoly. He has, +therefore, supplied us with an antidote against delusion by permitting +us, in this simple narrative, to scan its exact import. And what was the +virtue of the ordination here described? Did it furnish Paul and +Barnabas with a title to the ministry? Not at all. God himself had +already called them to the work, and they could receive no higher +authorisation. Did it necessarily add anything to the eloquence, or the +prudence, or the knowledge, or the piety, of the missionaries? No +results of the kind could be produced by any such ceremony. What then +was its meaning? The evangelist himself furnishes an answer. The Holy +Ghost required that Barnabas and Saul should be _separated_ to the work +to which the Lord had called them, and the laying on of hands was the +_mode_, or _form_, in which they were set apart, or designated, to the +office. This rite, to an Israelite, suggested grave and hallowed +associations. When a Jewish father invoked a benediction on any of his +family, he laid his hand upon the head of the child; [73:1] when a +Jewish priest devoted an animal in sacrifice, he laid his hand upon the +head of the victim; [73:2] and when a Jewish ruler invested another with +office, he laid his hand upon the head of the new functionary. [73:3] +The ordination of these brethren possessed all this significance. By the +laying on of hands the ministers of Antioch implored a blessing on +Barnabas and Saul, and announced their separation, or dedication, to the +work of the gospel, and intimated their investiture with ecclesiastical +authority. + +It is worthy of note that the parties who acted as ordainers were not +dignitaries, planted here and there throughout the Church, and selected +for this service on account of their official pre-eminence. They were +all, at the time, connected with the Christian community assembling in +the city which was the scene of the inauguration. It does not appear +that any individual amongst them claimed the precedence; all engaged on +equal terms in the performance of this interesting ceremony. We cannot +mistake the official standing of these brethren if we only mark the +nature of the duties in which they were ordinarily occupied. They were +"prophets and teachers;" they were sound scriptural expositors; some of +them, perhaps, were endowed with the gift of prophetic interpretation; +and they were all employed in imparting theological instruction. Though +the name is not here expressly given to them, they were, at least +virtually, "the elders who laboured in the word and doctrine." [74:1] +Paul, therefore, was ordained by the laying on of the hands of the +_Presbytery_ of Antioch. [74:2] + +If the narrative of Luke was designed to illustrate the question of +ministerial ordination, it plainly suggests that the power of Church +rulers is very circumscribed. They have no right to refuse the laying on +of hands to those whom God has called to the work of the gospel, and +who, by their gifts and graces, give credible evidences of their holy +vocation; and they are not at liberty to admit the irreligious or +incompetent to ecclesiastical offices. In the sight of the Most High the +ordination to the pastorate of an individual morally and mentally +disqualified is invalid and impious. + +Immediately after their ordination Paul and Barnabas entered on their +apostolic mission. Leaving Antioch they quickly reached Seleucia +[75:1]--a city distant about twelve miles--and from thence passed on to +Cyprus, [75:2] the native country of Barnabas. [75:3] They probably +spent a considerable time in that large island. It contained several +towns of note; it was the residence of great numbers of Jews; and the +degraded state of its heathen inhabitants may be inferred from the fact +that Venus was their tutelary goddess. The preaching of the apostles in +this place appears to have created an immense sensation; their fame at +length attracted the attention of persons of the highest distinction; +and the heart of Paul was cheered by the accession of no less +illustrious a convert than Sergius Paulus, [75:4] the Roman proconsul. +Departing from Cyprus, Paul and Barnabas now set sail for Asia Minor, +where they landed at Perga in Pamphylia. Here John Mark, the nephew of +Barnabas, by whom they had been hitherto accompanied, refused to proceed +further. He seems to have been intimidated by the prospect of +accumulating difficulties. From many, on religious grounds, they had +reason to anticipate a most discouraging reception; and the land journey +now before them was otherwise beset with dangers. Whilst engaged in it, +Paul seems to have experienced those "perils of waters," or of "rivers," +[75:5] and "perils of robbers," which he afterwards mentions; for the +highlands of Asia Minor were infested with banditti, and the mountain +streams often rose with frightful rapidity, and swept away the unwary +stranger. John Mark now returned to Jerusalem, and, at a subsequent +period, we find Paul refusing, in consequence, to receive him as a +travelling companion. [76:1] But though Barnabas was then dissatisfied +because the apostle continued to be distrustful of his relative, and +though "the contention was so sharp" between these two eminent heralds +of the cross that "they departed asunder one from the other," [76:2] the +return of this young minister from Perga appears to have led to no +change in their present arrangements. Continuing their journey into the +interior of the country, they now preached in Antioch of Pisidia, in +Iconium, in "Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia," and in "the region +that lieth round about." [76:3] When they had proceeded thus far, they +began to retrace their steps, and again visited the places where they +had previously succeeded in collecting congregations. They now supplied +their converts with a settled ministry. When they had presided in every +church at an appointment of elders, [76:4] in which the choice was +determined by popular suffrage, [76:5] and when they had prayed with +fasting, they laid their hands on the elected office-bearers, and in +this form "commended them to the Lord on whom they believed." Having +thus planted the gospel in many districts which had never before been +trodden by the feet of a Christian missionary, they returned to Antioch +in Syria to rehearse "all that God had done with them, and how he had +opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles." [76:6] + +Paul and Barnabas spent about six years in this first tour; [76:7] and, +occasionally, when their ministrations were likely to exert a wide and +permanent influence, remained long in particular localities. The account +of their designation, and of their labours in Cyprus, Pamphylia, +Lycaonia, and the surrounding regions, occupies two whole chapters of +the Acts of the Apostles. The importance of their mission may be +estimated from this lengthened notice. Christianity now greatly extended +its base of operations, and shook paganism in some of its strongholds. +In every place which they visited, the apostles observed a uniform plan +of procedure. In the first instance, they made their appeal to the seed +of Abraham; as they were themselves learned Israelites, they were +generally permitted, on their arrival in a town, to set forth the claims +of Jesus of Nazareth in the synagogue; and it was not until the Jews had +exhibited a spirit of unbelief, that they turned to the heathen +population. In the end, by far the majority of their converts were +reclaimed idolaters. "The Gentiles were glad, and glorified the word of +the Lord, and as many as were ordained to eternal life, believed." +[77:1] Astonished at the mighty miracles exhibited by the two +missionaries, the pagans imagined that "the gods" had come down to them +"in the likeness of men;" and at Lystra the priest of Jupiter "brought +oxen and garlands unto the gates, and would have done sacrifice with the +people;" [77:2] but the Jews looked on in sullen incredulity, and kept +alive an active and implacable opposition. At Cyprus, the apostles had +to contend against the craft of a Jewish conjuror; [77:3] at Antioch, +"the Jews stirred up the devout and honourable women, and the chief men +of the city, and raised persecution" against them, "and expelled them +out of their coasts;" [77:4] at Iconium, the Jews again "stirred up the +Gentiles, and made their minds evil affected against the brethren;" +[77:5] and at Lystra, the same parties "persuaded the people, and having +stoned Paul, drew him out of the city, supposing he had been dead" +[78:1] The trials through which he now passed seem to have made an +indelible impression on the mind of the great apostle, and in the last +of his epistles, written many years afterwards, he refers to them as +among the most formidable he encountered in his perilous career. +Timothy, who at this time must have been a mere boy, appears to have +witnessed some of these ebullitions of Jewish malignity, and to have +marked with admiration the heroic spirit of the heralds of the Cross. +Paul, when about to be decapitated by the sword of Nero, could, +therefore, appeal to the evangelist, and could fearlessly declare that, +twenty years before, when his life was often at stake, he had not +quailed before the terrors of martyrdom. "Thou," says he, "hast fully +known my long-suffering, charity, patience, persecutions, afflictions, +which came unto me at _Antioch_, at _Iconium_, at _Lystra_, what +persecutions I endured, but, out of them all, the Lord delivered me." +[78:2] + +The hostile efforts of the Jews did not arrest the gospel in its +triumphant career. The truth prevailed mightily among the Gentiles, and +the great influx of converts began to impart an entirely new aspect to +the Christian community. At first the Church consisted exclusively of +Israelites by birth, and all who entered it still continued to observe +the institutions of Moses. But it was now evident that the number of its +Gentile adherents would soon very much preponderate, and that, ere long, +the keeping of the typical law would become the peculiarity of a small +minority of its members. Many of the converted Jews were by no means +prepared for such an alternative. They prided themselves upon their +divinely-instituted worship; and, misled by the fallacy that whatever is +appointed by God can never become obsolete, they conceived that the +spread of Christianity must be connected with the extension of their +national ceremonies. They accordingly asserted that the commandment +relative to the initiatory ordinance of Judaism was binding upon all +admitted to Christian fellowship. "Certain men which came down from +Judea" to Antioch, "taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be +circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved." [79:1] + +Paul was eminently qualified to deal with such errorists. There was a +time when he had valued himself upon his Pharisaic strictness, but when +God revealed to him His glory in the face of Jesus Christ, he was taught +to distinguish between a living faith, and a dead formalism. He still +maintained his social status, as one of the "chosen people," by the +keeping of the law; but he knew that it merely prefigured the great +redemption, and that its types and shadows must quickly disappear before +the light of the gospel. He saw, too, that the arguments urged for +circumcision could also be employed in behalf of all the Levitical +arrangements, [79:2] and that the tendency of the teaching of these "men +which came down from Judea" was to encumber the disciples with the +weight of a superannuated ritual. Nor was this all. The apostle was well +aware that the spirit which animated those Judaising zealots was a +spirit of self-righteousness. When they "taught the brethren and said, +Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, _ye cannot be +saved_" they subverted the doctrine of justification by faith alone. +[79:3] A sinner is saved as soon as he believes on the Lord Jesus +Christ, [79:4] and he requires neither circumcision, nor any other +ordinance, to complete his pardon. Baptism is, indeed, the sign by which +believers solemnly declare their acceptance of the gospel, and the seal +by which God is graciously pleased to recognise them as heirs of the +righteousness of faith; and yet even baptism is not essential to +salvation, for the penitent thief, though unbaptized, was admitted into +paradise. [80:1] But circumcision is no part of Christianity at all; it +does not so much as indicate that the individual who submits to it is a +believer in Jesus. Faith in the Saviour is the only and the perfect way +of justification. "Blessed are all they that put their trust in him," +[80:2] for Christ will, without fail, conduct to glory all who commit +themselves to His guidance and protection. Those who trust in Him cannot +but love Him, and those who love Him cannot but delight to do His will; +and as faith is the root of holiness and happiness, so unbelief is the +fountain of sin and misery. But though the way of salvation by faith can +only be spiritually discerned, many seek to make it palpable by +connecting it with certain visible institutions. Faith looks to Jesus as +the only way to heaven; superstition looks to some outward observance, +such as baptism or circumcision, (which is only a finger-post on the +way,) and confounds it with the way itself. Faith is satisfied with a +very simple ritual; superstition wearies itself with the multiplicity of +its minute observances. Faith holds communion with the Saviour in all +His appointments, and rejoices in Him with joy unspeakable; superstition +leans on forms and ceremonies, and is in bondage to these beggarly +elements. No wonder then that the attempt to impose on the converted +Gentiles the rites of both Christianity and Judaism encountered such +resolute opposition. Paul and Barnabas at once withstood its abettors, +and had "no small dissension and disputation with them." [80:3] It was +felt, however, that a matter of such grave importance merited the +consideration of the collective wisdom of the Church, and it was +accordingly agreed to send these two brethren, "and certain other of +them" "to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question." +[81:1] + +It is not stated that the Judaising teachers confined their interference +to Antioch, and the subsequent narrative apparently indicates that the +deputation to Jerusalem acted on behalf of all the Churches in Syria and +Cilicia. [81:2] The Christian societies scattered throughout Pamphylia, +Lycaonia, and some other districts of Asia Minor, do not seem to have +been directly concerned in sending forward the commissioners; but as +these communities had been collected and organised by Paul and Barnabas, +they doubtless considered that they were represented by their founders, +and they at once acceded to the decision of the assembly which met in +the Jewish metropolis. [81:3] That assembly approached, perhaps, more +closely than any ecclesiastical convention that has ever since been +held, to the character of a general council. It is pretty clear that its +deliberations must have taken place at the time of one of the great +annual festivals, for, seven or eight years before, the apostles had +commenced their travels as missionaries, and except about the season of +the Passover or of Pentecost, the Syrian deputation could have scarcely +reckoned on finding them in the holy city. It is not said that the +officials who were to be consulted belonged exclusively to Jerusalem. +[81:4] They, not improbably, included the elders throughout Palestine +who usually repaired to the capital to celebrate the national +solemnities. This meeting, therefore, seems to have been constructed on +a broader basis than what a superficial reading of the narrative might +suggest. Amongst its members were the older apostles, as well as +Barnabas and Paul, so that it contained the principal founders of the +Jewish and Gentile Churches: there were also present the elders of +Jerusalem, and deputies from Antioch, that is, the representatives of +the two most extensive and influential Christian societies in existence: +whilst commissioners from the Churches of Syria and Cilicia, and elders +from various districts of the holy land, were, perhaps, likewise in +attendance. The Universal Church was thus fairly represented in this +memorable Synod. + +The meeting was held A.D. 51, and Paul, exactly fourteen years before, +[82:1] had visited Jerusalem for the first time after his conversion. +[82:2] So little was then known of his remarkable history, even in the +chief city of Judea, that when he "assayed to join himself to the +disciples, they were all afraid of him, and believed not that he was a +disciple;" [82:3] but now his position was completely changed, and he +was felt to be one of the most influential personages who took part in +the proceedings of this important convention. Some have maintained that +the whole multitude of believers in the Jewish capital deliberated and +voted on the question in dispute, but there is certainly nothing in the +statement of the evangelist to warrant such an inference. It is very +evident that the disciples in the holy city were not prepared to approve +_unanimously_ of the decision which was actually adopted, for we are +told that, long afterwards, they were "all zealous of the law," [83:1] +and that they looked with extreme suspicion on Paul himself, because of +the lax principles, in reference to its obligation, which he was +understood to patronise. [83:2] When he arrived in Jerusalem on this +mission he found there a party determined to insist on the circumcision +of the converts from heathenism; [83:3] he complains of the opposition +he now encountered from these "false brethren unawares brought in;" +[83:4] and, when he returned to Antioch, he was followed by emissaries +from the same bigoted and persevering faction. [83:5] It is quite clear, +then, that the finding of the meeting, mentioned in the fifteenth +chapter of the Acts, _did not please_ all the members of the church of +the metropolis. The apostle says expressly that he communicated +"privately" on the subject with "them which were of reputation," [83:6] +and in the present state of feeling, especially in the head-quarters of +Judaism, Paul would have recoiled from the discussion of a question of +such delicacy before a promiscuous congregation. The resolution now +agreed upon, when subsequently mentioned, is set forth as the act, not +of the whole body of the disciples, but of "the apostles and elders," +[83:7] and as they were the arbiters to whom the appeal was made, they +were obviously the only parties competent to pronounce a deliverance. + +Two or three expressions of doubtful import, which occur in connexion +with the history of the meeting, have induced some to infer that all the +members of the Church of Jerusalem were consulted on this occasion. It +is said that "all the _multitude_ kept silence and gave audience to +Barnabas and Paul"; [84:1] that it "pleased the apostles and elders with +the _whole church_ to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch:" +[84:2] and, according to our current text, that the epistle, intrusted +to the care of these commissioners, proceeded from "the apostles and +elders _and brethren_." [84:3] But "the whole church," and "all the +multitude," merely signify _the whole assembly present_, and do not +necessarily imply even a very numerous congregation. [84:4] Some, at +least, of the "certain other" deputies [84:5] sent with Paul and +Barnabas to Jerusalem, were, in all likelihood, disposed to doubt or +dispute their views; as it is not probable that a distracted +constituency would have consented to the appointment of commissioners, +all of whom were already committed to the same sentiments. When, +therefore, the evangelist reports that the proposal made by James +"pleased the apostles and elders _with the whole Church_," he thus +designs to intimate that it met the universal approval of the meeting, +including the deputies on both sides. There were prophets, and others +possessed of extraordinary endowments, in the early Church, [84:6] and, +as some of these were, no doubt, at this time in Jerusalem, [84:7] we +can scarcely suppose that they were not permitted to be present in this +deliberative assembly. If we adopt the received reading of the +superscription of the circular letter, [84:8] the "brethren," who are +there distinguished from "the apostles and elders," were, in all +likelihood, these gifted members. [84:9] But, according to the testimony +of the best and most ancient manuscripts, the true reading of the +commencement of this encyclical epistle is, "The apostles _and elders +brethren_." [85:1] As the Syrian deputies were commissioned to consult, +not the general body of Christians at Jerusalem, but the apostles and +elders, this reading, now recognised as genuine by the highest critical +authorities, is sustained by the whole tenor of the narrative. The same +parties who "came together to consider of this matter" also framed the +decree. The apostles and elders brethren were the only individuals +officially concerned in this important transaction. [85:2] + +In this council the apostles acted, not as men oracularly pronouncing +the will of the Eternal, but, as ordinary church rulers, proceeding, +after careful inquiry, to adopt the suggestions of an enlightened +judgment. One passage of the Synodical epistle has been supposed to +countenance a different conclusion, for those assembled "to consider of +this matter" are represented as saying to the Syrian and Cilician +Churches--"_It seemed good to the Holy Ghost and to us_ to lay upon you +no greater burden" [85:3] than the restrictions which are presently +enumerated. But it is to be observed that this is the language of "the +elders brethren," as well as of the apostles, so that it must have been +used by many who made no pretensions to inspiration; and it is apparent +from the context that the council here merely reproduces an argument +against the Judaizers which had been always felt to be irresistible. The +Gentiles had received the Spirit "by the hearing of faith," [86:1] and +not by the ordinance of circumcision; and hence it was contended that +the Holy Ghost himself had decided the question. Peter, therefore, says +to the meeting held at Jerusalem--"God, which knoweth the hearts, bare +them witness, _giving them the Holy Ghost_, even as he did unto us; and +put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith. +Now, therefore, _why tempt ye God_, to put a yoke upon the neck of the +disciples, which neither our fathers, nor we, were able to bear?" [86:2] +He had employed the same reasoning long before, in defence of the +baptism of Cornelius and his friends. "The Holy Ghost," said he, "fell +on them.... Forasmuch, then, as God gave them the like gift as he did +unto us, who believed on the Lord Jesus Christ,--_what was I that I +could withstand God?_" [86:3] When, then, the members of the council +here declared, "It seemed good to the Holy Ghost and to us," [86:4] they +thus simply intimated that they were shut up to the arrangement which +they now announced--that God himself, by imparting His Spirit to those +who had not received the rite of circumcision, had already settled the +controversy--and that, as it had seemed good to the Holy Ghost not to +impose the ceremonial law upon the Gentiles, so it also seemed good to +"the apostles and elders brethren." + +But whilst the abundant outpouring of the Spirit on the Gentiles +demonstrated that they could be sanctified and saved without +circumcision, and whilst the Most High had thus proclaimed their freedom +from the yoke of the Jewish ritual, it is plain that, in regard to this +point, as well as other matters noticed in the letter, the writers speak +as the accredited _interpreters_ of the will of Jehovah. They state that +it seemed good to the Holy Ghost and to them to require the converts +from paganism "to abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, +and from things strangled, and from fornication." [87:1] And yet, +without any special revelation, they might have felt themselves +warranted to give such instructions in such language, for surely they +were at liberty to say that the Holy Ghost had interdicted fornication; +and, as the expounders of the doctrine of Christian expediency, [87:2] +their views may have been so clear that they could speak with equal +confidence as to the duty of the disciples under present circumstances +to abstain from blood, and from things strangled, and from meats offered +to idols. If they possessed "the full assurance of understanding" as to +the course to be pursued, they doubtless deemed it right to signify to +their correspondents that the decision which they now promulgated was, +not any arbitrary or hasty deliverance, but the very "mind of the +Spirit" either expressly communicated in the Word, or deduced from it by +good and necessary inference. In this way they aimed to reach the +conscience, and they knew that they thus furnished the most potential +argument for submission. + +It may at first sight appear strange that whilst the apostles, and those +who acted with them at this meeting, condemned the doctrine of the +Judaizers, and affirmed that circumcision was not obligatory on the +Gentiles, they, at the same time, required the converts from paganism to +observe a part of the Hebrew ritual; and it may seem quite as +extraordinary that, in a letter which was the fruit of so much +deliberation, they placed an immoral act, and a number of merely +ceremonial usages, in the same catalogue. But, on mature reflection, we +may recognise their tact and Christian prudence in these features of +their communication. Fornication was one of the crying sins of +Gentilism, and, except when it interfered with social arrangements, the +heathen did not even acknowledge its criminality. When, therefore, the +new converts were furnished with the welcome intelligence that they were +not obliged to submit to the painful rite of circumcision, it was well, +at the same time, to remind them that there were lusts of the flesh +which they were bound to mortify; and it was expedient that, whilst a +vice so prevalent as fornication should be specified, they should be +distinctly warned to beware of its pollutions. For another reason they +were directed to abstain from "meats offered to idols." It often +happened that what had been presented at the shrine of a false god was +afterwards exposed for sale, and the council cautioned the disciples +against partaking of such food, as they might thus appear to give a +species of sanction to idolatry, as well as tempt weak brethren to go a +step further, and directly countenance the superstitions of the heathen +worship. [88:1] The meeting also instructed the faithful in Syria and +Cilicia to abstain from "blood and from things strangled," because the +Jewish converts had been accustomed from infancy to regard aliment of +this description with abhorrence, and they could scarcely be expected to +sit at meat with parties who partook of such dishes. Though the use of +them was lawful, it was, at least for the present, not expedient; and on +the same principle that, whether we eat, or drink, or whatever we do, we +should do all to the glory of God, the Gentile converts were admonished +to remove them from their tables, that no barrier might be raised up in +the way of social or ecclesiastical communion with their brethren of the +seed of Abraham. + +It was high time for the authoritative settlement of a question at once +so perplexing and so delicate. It already threatened to create a schism +in the Church; and the agitation, which had commenced before the meeting +of the council, was not immediately quieted. When Peter visited Antioch +shortly afterwards, he at first triumphed so far over his prejudices as +to sit at meat with the converts from paganism; but when certain +sticklers for the law arrived from Jerusalem, "he withdrew, and +separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision." [89:1] +The "decree" of the apostles and elders undoubtedly implied the +lawfulness of eating with the Gentiles, but it contained no express +injunction on the subject, and Peter, who was now about to "go unto the +circumcision," [89:2] and who was, therefore, most anxious to conciliate +the Jews, may have pleaded this technical objection in defence of his +inconsistency. It is said that others, from whom better things might +have been expected, followed his example, "insomuch that Barnabas also +was carried away with their dissimulation." [89:3] But, on this critical +occasion, Paul stood firm; and his bold and energetic remonstrances +appear to have had the effect of preventing a division which must have +been most detrimental to the interests of infant Christianity. + + + + + +CHAPTER VI. + +THE INTRODUCTION OF THE GOSPEL INTO EUROPE, AND THE MINISTRY OF PAUL AT +PHILIPPI. + +A.D. 52. + + +After the Council of Jerusalem, the gospel continued its prosperous +career. When Paul had remained for some time at Antioch, where he +returned with the deputation, he set out to visit the Churches of Syria +and Cilicia; and then travelled through Lycaonia, Galatia, and some +other portions of Asia Minor. He was now directed, by a vision, [90:1] +to pass over into Greece; and about the spring of A.D. 52, or twenty-one +years after the crucifixion, Europe was entered, for the first time, by +the Apostle of the Gentiles. Paul commenced his ministry in this new +sphere of labour by announcing the great salvation to the inhabitants of +Philippi, a city of Macedonia, and a Roman colony. [90:2] + +Nearly a century before, two powerful factions, contending for the +government of the Roman world, had converted the district now visited +into a theatre of war; immense armies had been here drawn out in hostile +array; and two famous battles, which issued in the overthrow of the +Republic, had been fought in this very neighbourhood. The victor had +rewarded some of his veterans by giving them possessions at Philippi. +The Christian missionary entered, as it were, the suburbs of the great +metropolis of the West, when he made his appearance in this military +colony; for, it had the same privileges as the towns of Italy, [91:1] +and its inhabitants enjoyed the status of Roman citizens. Here he now +originated a spiritual revolution which eventually changed the face of +Europe. The Jews had no synagogue in Philippi; but, in places such as +this, where their numbers were few, they were wont, on the Sabbath, to +meet for worship by the side of some river in which they could +conveniently perform their ablutions; and Paul accordingly repaired to +the banks of the Gangitas, [91:2] where he expected to find them +assembled for devotional exercises. A small oratory, or house of prayer, +seems to have been erected on the spot; but the little society connected +with it must have been particularly apathetic, as the apostle found only +a few females in attendance. One of these was, however, the first-fruits +of his mission to the Western continent. Lydia, a native of Thyatira, +and a seller of purple,--a species of dye for which her birthplace had +acquired celebrity,--was the name of the convert; and though the gospel +may already have made some progress in Rome, it must be admitted that, +in as far as direct historical testimony is concerned, this woman has +the best claim to be recognised as the mother of European Christianity. +It is said that she "worshipped God," [91:3] that is, though a Gentile, +she had been proselyted to the Jewish faith; and the history of her +conversion is given by the evangelist with remarkable clearness and +simplicity. "The Lord _opened her heart_ that she attended unto the +things that were spoken of Paul." [91:4] When she and her family were +baptized, she entreated the missionaries to "come into her house and +abide there" during their sojourn in the place; and, after some +hesitation, they accepted the proffered hospitality. + +Another female acts a conspicuous part in connexion with this apostolic +visit. "It came to pass," says Luke, "as we went to prayer, a certain +damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her +masters much gain by soothsaying: the same followed Paul and us, and +cried, saying, These men are the servants of the Most High God, which +shew unto us the way of salvation. And this did she many days." [92:1] +It is quite possible that even daemons have the power of discerning +certain classes of future events with the quickness of intuition; [92:2] +and if, as the Scriptures testify, they have sometimes entered into +human bodies, we can well understand how the individuals thus possessed +have obtained credit for divination. In this way the damsel mentioned by +the evangelist may have acquired her celebrity. We cannot explain how +disembodied spirits maintain intercourse; but it is certain that they +possess means of mutual recognition, and that they can be impressed by +the presence of higher and holier intelligences. And as the approach of +a mighty conqueror spreads dismay throughout the territory he invades, +so when the Son of God appeared on earth, the devils were troubled at +His presence, and, in the agony of their terror, proclaimed His dignity. +[92:3] It would appear that some influence of an analogous character +operated on this Pythoness. The arrival of the missionaries in Philippi +alarmed the powers of darkness, and the damsel, under the pressure of an +impulse which she found it impossible to resist, told their commission. +But neither the apostles, nor our Lord, cared for credentials of such +equivocal value. As this female followed the strangers through the +streets, and in a loud voice announced their errand to the city, "Paul, +being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee, in the +name of Jesus Christ, to come out of her, and he came out the same +hour." [93:1] + +The unbelieving Jews had hitherto been the great persecutors of the +Church; but now, for the first time, the apostles encountered opposition +from another quarter; and the expulsion of the spirit from the damsel +evoked the hostility of this new adversary. When the masters of the +Pythoness "saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul +and Silas, and drew them into the marketplace unto the rulers." [93:2] +We here discover one great cause of our Lord under the government of the +pagan emperors. The Jews were prompted by mere bigotry to display hatred +to the gospel--but the Gentiles were generally guided by the still more +ignoble principle of selfishness. Many of the heathen multitude cared +little for their idolatrous worship; but all who depended for +subsistence on the prevalence of superstition, such as the image-makers, +the jugglers, the fortune-tellers, and a considerable number of the +priests, [93:3] were dismayed and driven to desperation by the progress +of Christianity. They saw that, with its success, "the hope of their +gains was gone;" and, under pretence of zeal for the public interest, +and for the maintenance of the "lawful" ceremonies, they laboured to +intimidate and oppress the adherents of the new doctrine. + +The appearance of the missionaries at Philippi must have created a +profound sensation, as otherwise it is impossible to account for the +tumult which now occurred. The "masters" of the damsel possessed of the +"spirit of divination," no doubt, took the initiatory step in the +movement; but had not the public mind been in some degree prepared for +their appeals, they could not have induced all classes of their +fellow-citizens so soon to join in the persecution. "The multitude rose +up together" at their call; the duumviri, or magistrates, rent off the +clothes of the apostles with their own hands, and commanded them to be +scourged; the lictors "laid many stripes upon them;" they wore ordered +to be kept in close confinement; and the jailer exceeded the exact +letter of his instructions by thrusting them "into the inner prison," +and by making "their feet fast in the stocks." [94:1] The power of +Imperial Rome arrayed itself against the preachers of the gospel, and +now distinctly gave note of warning of the approach of that long night +of affliction throughout which the church was yet to struggle. + +If the proceedings of the missionaries, before their committal to +prison, produced such a ferment, it is clear that the circumstances +attending their incarceration were not calculated to abate the +excitement. It soon appeared that they had sources of enjoyment which no +human authority could either destroy or disturb; for as they lay in the +pitchy darkness of their dungeon with their feet compressed in the +stocks, their hearts overflowed with divine comfort. "At midnight Paul +and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard +them." [94:2] What must have been the wonder of the other inmates of the +jail, as these sounds fell upon their ears! Instead of a cry of distress +issuing from "the inner prison," there was the cheerful voice of +thanksgiving! The apostles rejoiced that they were counted worthy to +suffer in the service of Christ. The King of the Church sympathised with +His oppressed saints, and speedily vouchsafed to them most wonderful +tokens of encouragement. Scarcely had they finished their song of praise +when it was answered by a very significant response, proclaiming that +they were supported by a power which could crush the might of Rome. +"Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the +prison were shaken, and immediately all the doors were opened, and every +one's bands were loosed." [95:1] + +It is not improbable that the mind of the jailer had already been ill at +ease. He must have heard of the extraordinary history of the damsel with +the spirit of divination who announced that his prisoners were the +servants of the Most High God, and that they shewed unto men the way of +salvation. Rumour had, perhaps, supplied him with some information in +reference to their doctrines; and during even his short intercourse with +Paul and Silas in the jail, he may have been impressed by much that he +noticed in their spirit and deportment. But he had meanwhile gone to +rest, and he remained asleep until roused by the noise and tremor of the +earthquake. When he awoke and saw "the prison doors open," he was in a +paroxysm of alarm; and concluding that the prisoners had escaped, and +that he might expect to be punished, perhaps capitally, for neglect of +duty, he resolved to anticipate such a fate, and snatched his sword to +commit suicide. At this moment, a voice issuing from the dungeon where +the missionaries were confined, at once dispelled his fears as to the +prisoners, and arrested him almost in the very act of self-murder. "Paul +cried with a loud voice, saying--Do thyself no harm, for we are all +here." [95:2] These words operated on the unhappy man like a shock of +electricity. They instantaneously directed his thoughts into another +channel, and imparted intensity to feelings which, had hitherto been +comparatively dormant. The conviction flashed upon his conscience that +the men whom he had so recently thrust into the inner prison were no +impostors; that they had, as they alleged, authority to treat of matters +infinitely more important than any of the passing interests of time; +that they had, verily, a commission from heaven to teach the way of +eternal salvation; and that he and others, who had taken part in their +imprisonment, had acted most iniquitously. For what now could be more +evident than that the apostles were the servants of the Most High God? +When everything around them was enveloped in the gloom of midnight, they +seemed able to tell what was passing all over the prison. How strange +that, when the jailer was about to kill himself, a voice should issue +from a different apartment saying--Do thyself no harm! How strange that +the very man whose feet, a few hours before, had boon made fast in the +stocks, should now be the giver of this friendly counsel! How remarkable +that, when all the doors were opened, no one attempted to escape! And +how extraordinary that, during the very night on which the apostles were +imprisoned, the bands of all the inmates were loosed, and that the +building was made to rock to its foundations! Did not the earthquake +indicate that He, whom the apostles served, was able to save and to +destroy? Did it not proclaim, trumpet-tongued, that He would surely +punish their persecutors? When the jailer thought on these things, well +might he be paralysed with fear, and believing that the apostles alone +could tell him how he was Lo obtain relief from the anxiety which +oppressed his spirit, it is not strange that "he called for a light, and +sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, and +brought them out, and said--Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" [96:1] + +The missionaries were prepared with a decisive reply to this earnest +inquiry, and it is probable that their answer took the jailer by +surprise. He expected, perhaps, to be called upon to do something, +either to propitiate the apostles themselves, or to turn away the wrath +of the God of the apostles. It is obvious, from the spirit which he +manifested, that, to obtain peace of conscience, he was ready to go very +far in the way of self-sacrifice. He may have been willing to part with +his property, or to imperil his life, or to give "the fruit of his body +for the sin of his soul." What, then, must have been his astonishment +when he found that the divine mercy so far transcended anything he could +have possibly anticipated! With what satisfaction must he have listened +to the assurance that an atonement had already been made, and that the +sinner is safe as soon as he lays the hand of faith on the head of the +great Sacrifice! What delight must he have experienced when informed +that unbelief alone could shut him out from heaven; that the Son of God +had died the just for the unjust; and that this almighty Saviour now +waited to be gracious to-himself! How must the words of the apostles +have thrilled through his soul, as he heard them repeating the +invitation-"Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, +and thy house." [97:1] + +The jailer joyfully accepted the proffered Deliverer; and felt that, +resting on this Rock of Salvation, he was at peace. Though well aware +that, by openly embracing the gospel, he exposed himself to considerable +danger, he did not shrink from the position of a confessor. The love of +Christ had obtained full possession of his soul, and he was quite +prepared to suffer in the service of his Divine Master. He took Paul and +Silas "the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes, and was +baptized, he and all his, straightway; and when he had brought them into +his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with +all his house." [98:1] + +It is highly probable that the shock of the earthquake was felt beyond +the precincts of the jail, and that the events which had occurred there +had soon been communicated to the city authorities. We can thus best +account for the fact that "when it was day, the magistrates sent the +serjeants saying, Let those men go." [98:2] As it is not stated that the +apostles had previously entered into any vindication of their +conduct, it has been thought singular that they now declined to leave +the prison without receiving an apology for the violation of their +privileges as Roman citizens. But this matter presents no real +difficulty. The magistrates had yielded to the clamour of an infuriated +mob; and, instead of giving Paul and Silas a fair opportunity of defence +or explanation, had summarily consigned them to the custody of the +jailer. These functionaries now seemed prepared to listen to +remonstrance; and Paid deemed it due to himself, and to the interests of +the Christian Church, to complain of the illegal character of the +proceedings from which he had suffered. He had been punished, without a +trial, and scourged, though a Roman citizen. [98:3] Hence, when informed +that the duumviri had given orders for the liberation of himself and his +companion, the apostle exclaimed--"They have beaten us openly +uncondemned, being Romans, and have cast us into prison, and now do they +thrust us out privily? Nay, verily, but let them come themselves, and +fetch us out." [98:4] These words, which were immediately reported by the +serjeants, or lictors, inspired the magistrates with apprehension, and +suggested to them the expediency of conciliation. "And they came" to the +prison to the apostles, "and _besought them_, and brought them out, and +desired them to depart out of the city." [99:1] The missionaries did +not, however, leave Philippi until they had another opportunity of +meeting with their converts. "They went out of the prison, and entered +into the house of Lydia, and when they had seen the brethren, they +comforted them and departed." [99:2] + +On the whole Paul and Silas had reason to thank God and take courage, +when they reviewed their progress in the first European city which they +visited. Though they had met with much opposition, their ministry had +been greatly blessed; and, in the end, the magistrates, who had treated +them with much severity, had felt it necessary to apologise. The +extraordinary circumstances accompanying their imprisonment must have +made their case known to the whole body of the citizens, and thus +secured a degree of attention to their preaching which could not have +been otherwise expected. The Church, now established at Philippi, +contained a number of most generous members, and Paul afterwards +gratefully acknowledged the assistance he received from them. "Ye have +well done," said he, "that ye did communicate with my affliction. Now, +ye Philippians, know also, that in the beginning of the gospel, when I +departed from Macedonia, no church communicated with me, as concerning +giving and receiving, but ye only. For, even in Thessalonica, ye sent +once and again unto my necessity." [99:3] + + + + + +CHAPTER VII. + +THE MINISTRY OF PAUL IN THESSALONICA, BEREA, ATHENS, +AND CORINTH. + +A.D. 52 TO A.D. 54. + + +After leaving Philippi, and passing through Amphipolis and Apollonia, +Paul made his way to Thessalonica. In this city there was a Jewish +synagogue where he was permitted, for three successive Sabbaths, to +address the congregation. His discourses produced a powerful impression; +as some of the seed of Abraham believed, "and, of the devout Greeks, a +great multitude, and of the chief women, not a few." [100:1] The +unbelieving Jews attempted to create annoyance by representing the +missionaries as acting "contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying--that +there is another king, one Jesus;" [100:2] but though they contrived to +trouble "the rulers" [100:3] and to "set all the city in an uproar," +they could not succeed in preventing the formation of a flourishing +Christian community. Paul appeared next in Berea, and, when reporting +his success here, the sacred historian bears a remarkable testimony to +the right of the laity to judge for themselves as to the meaning of the +Book of Inspiration; for he states that the Jews of this place "were +_more noble_ than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word +with all readiness of mind, and _searched the scriptures daily"_ [101:1] +to ascertain the truth of the apostolic doctrine. Paul now proceeded "to +go as it were to the sea," and soon afterwards arrived at Athens. + +The ancient capital of Attica had long been the literary metropolis of +heathendom. Its citizens could boast that they were sprung from a race +of heroes, as their forefathers had nobly struggled for freedom on many +a bloody battlefield, and, by prodigies of valour, had maintained their +independence against all the might of Persia. Minerva, the goddess of +wisdom, was their tutelary deity. The Athenians, from time immemorial, +had been noted for their intellectual elevation; and a brilliant array +of poets, legislators, historians, philosophers, and orators, had +crowned their community with immortal fame. Every spot connected with +their city was classic ground. Here it was that Socrates had discoursed +so sagely; and that Plato had illustrated, with so much felicity and +genius, the precepts of his great master; and that Demosthenes, by +addresses of unrivalled eloquence, had roused and agitated the +assemblies of his countrymen. As the stranger passed through Athens, +artistic productions of superior excellence everywhere met his eye. Its +statues, its public monuments, and its temples, were models alike of +tasteful design and of beautiful workmanship. But there may be much +intellectual culture where there is no spiritual enlightenment, and +Athens, though so far advanced in civilisation and refinement, was one +of the high places of pagan superstition. Amidst the splendour of its +architectural decorations, as well as surrounded with proofs of its +scientific and literary eminence, the apostle mourned over its religious +destitution, and "his spirit was stirred in him, when he saw the city +wholly given to idolatry." [102:1] + +On this new scene Paul exhibited his usual activity and earnestness. "He +disputed in the synagogue with the Jews, and with the devout persons, +and in the market daily with them that met with him." [102:2] The +Christian preacher, doubtless, soon became an object of no little +curiosity. He was of diminutive stature; [102:3] he seems to have +laboured under the disadvantages of imperfect vision; [102:4] and his +Palestinian Greek must have sounded harshly in the ears of those who +were accustomed to speak their mother tongue in its Attic purity. But, +though his "bodily presence was weak," [102:5] he speedily convinced +those who came in contact with him, that the frail earthly tabernacle +was the habitation of a master mind; and though mere connoisseurs in +idioms and pronunciation might designate "his speech contemptible," +[102:6] he riveted the attention of his hearers by the force and +impressiveness of his oratory. The presence of this extraordinary +stranger could not remain long unknown to the Athenian literati; but, +when they entered into conversation with him, some of them were disposed +to ridicule him as an idle talker, whilst others seemed inclined to +denounce him as a dangerous innovator. "Certain philosophers of the +Epicureans and of the Stoics encountered him; and some said--What will +this babbler say? other some--He seemeth to be a setter forth of strange +gods, because he preached unto them Jesus and the resurrection." [102:7] +Upwards of four hundred years before, Socrates had been condemned to +death by the Athenians as "a setter forth of strange gods," [103:1] and +it may be that some of these philosophers hoped to intimidate the +apostle by hinting that he was now open to the same indictment. But it +is very improbable that they seriously contemplated a prosecution; as +they had themselves no faith in the pagan mythology. They were quite +ready to employ their wit to turn the heathen worship into scorn; and +yet they could point out no "more excellent way" of religious service. +In Athens, philosophy had demonstrated its utter impotence to do +anything effective for the reformation of the popular theology; and its +professors had settled down into the conviction that, as the current +superstition exercised an immense influence over the minds of the +multitude it was inexpedient for wise men to withhold from it the +tribute of outward reverence. The discourses of Paul were very far from +complimentary to parties who valued themselves so highly on their +intellectual advancement; for he quietly ignored all their speculations +as so much folly; and, whilst he propounded his own system with the +utmost confidence, he, at the same time, supported it by arguments which +they were determined to reject, but unable to overturn. It is pretty +clear that they were to some extent under the influence of pique and +irritation when they noticed his deviations from the established faith, +and applied to him the epithet of "babbler;" but Paul was not the man to +be put down either by irony or insult; and at length it was found +necessary to allow him a fair opportunity of explaining his principles. +It is accordingly stated that "they took him and brought him unto Mars +Hill saying--May we know what this new doctrine, whereof thou speakest, +is, for thou bringest certain strange things to our ears--we would know, +therefore, what these things mean." [103:2] + +The speech delivered by Paul on this memorable occasion has been often +admired for its tact, vigour, depth, and fidelity. Whilst giving the +Athenians full credit for their devotional feeling, and avoiding any +pointed and sarcastic attack on the absurdities of their religious +ritual, he contrives to present such an outline of the prominent +features of the Christian revelation, as might have convinced any candid +and intelligent auditor of its incomparable superiority, as well to the +doctrines of the philosophers, as to the fables of heathenism. In the +very commencement of his observations he displays no little address. "Ye +men of Athens," said he, "I perceive that, in every point of view, ye +are carrying your religious reverence very far; for, as I passed by, and +observed the objects of your worship, I found an altar with this +inscription--To the unknown God--whom, therefore, ye worship, though ye +know him not, him declare I unto you." [104:1] The existence in this +city of inscriptions, such as that here given, is attested by several +other ancient witnesses [104:2] as well as Paul, and the altars thus +distinguished appear to have been erected when the place was afflicted +by certain strange and unprecedented calamities which the deities, +already recognised, were supposed to be unable to remove. The auditors +of the apostle could not well be dissatisfied with the statement that +they carried their "religious reverence very far;" and yet, perhaps, +they were scarcely prepared for the reference to this altar by which the +observation was illustrated; for the inscription which he quoted +contained a most humiliating confession of their ignorance, and +furnished him with an excellent apology for proposing to act as their +theological instructor. + +His discourse, which treats of the Being and Attributes of God, must +have been heard with no ordinary interest by the polite and intelligent +Athenians. Its reasoning is plain, pertinent, and powerful; and whilst +adopting a didactic tone, and avoiding the language and spirit of +controversy, the apostle, in every sentence, comes into direct +collision, either with the errors of polytheism, or the dogmas of the +Grecian philosophy. The Stoics were Pantheists, and held the doctrine of +the eternity of matter; [105:1] whilst the Epicureans maintained that +the universe arose out of a fortuitous concurrence of atoms; [105:2] and +therefore Paul announced his opposition to both these sects when he +declared that "God made the world and all things therein." [105:3] The +Athenians boasted that they were of nobler descent than the rest of +their countrymen; [105:4] and the heathen generally believed that each +nation belonged to a distinct stock and was under the guardianship of +its own peculiar deities; but the apostle affirmed that "God hath made +_of one blood_ all nations of men to dwell on all the face of the +earth." [105:5] The Epicureans asserted that the gods did not interfere +in the concerns of the human family, and that they were destitute of +foreknowledge; but Paul here assured them that the great Creator "giveth +to all life and breath and all things," and "hath determined the times +before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation." [105:6] The +heathen imagined that the gods inhabited their images; but whilst Paul +was ready to acknowledge the excellence, as works of art, of the statues +which he saw all around him, he at the same time distinctly intimated +that these dead pieces of material mechanism could never even faintly +represent the glory of the invisible First Cause, and that they were +unworthy the homage of living and intellectual beings. "As we are the +offspring of God," said he, "we ought not to think that the Godhead is +like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device." +[106:1] After having thus borne testimony to the spirituality of the I +am that I am, and asserted His authority as the Maker and Preserver of +the world, Paul proceeded to point out his claims as its righteous +Governor. "He hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world +in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained, whereof he hath +given assurance unto all men in that he hath raised him from the dead." +[106:2] The pleasure-loving Epicureans refused to believe in a future +state of rewards and punishments; and concurred with the Stoics in +denying the immortality of the soul. [106:3] Both these parties were, of +course, prepared to reject the doctrine of a general judgment. The idea +of the resurrection of the body was quite novel to almost all classes of +the Gentiles; and, when at first propounded to the Athenians, was +received, by many, with doubt, and by some, with ridicule. "When they +heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked, and others said, We +will hear thee again of this matter. So Paul departed from among them." +[106:4] + +The frivolous spirit cherished by the citizens of the ancient capital of +Attica was exceedingly unfavourable to the progress of the earnest faith +of Christianity. "All the Athenians, and strangers which were there, +spent their time in nothing else but either to tell or to hear some new +thing." [106:5] Though they had acquired a world-wide reputation for +literary culture, it is an instructive fact that their city continued +for several centuries afterwards to be one of the strongholds of Gentile +superstition. But the labours of Paul at this time were not entirely +unproductive. "Certain men clave unto him and believed, among the which +was Dionysius, the Areopagite, and a woman, named Damaris, and others +with them." [107:1] The court of Areopagus, long the highest judicial +tribunal in the place, had not even yet entirely lost its celebrity; and +the circumstance that Dionysius was connected with it, is a proof that +this Christian convert must have been a respectable and influential +citizen. He appears to have occupied a very high place among the +primitive disciples; and the number of spurious writings ascribed to him +[107:2] shew that his name was deemed a tower of strength to the cause +with which it was associated. He seems to have been long at the head of +the Athenian presbytery; and to have survived his conversion about forty +years, or until the time of the Domitian persecution. [107:3] + +From Athens Paul directed his steps to Corinth, where he appears to have +arrived in the autumn of A.D. 52. Nearly two hundred years before, this +city had been completely destroyed; but, after a century of desolation, +it had been rebuilt; and having since rapidly increased, it was now +flourishing and populous. As a place of trade, its position, near an +isthmus of the same name, gave it immense advantages; for it had a +harbour on each side, so that it was the central depot of the commerce +of the East and West. Its inhabitants valued themselves much upon their +attainments in philosophy and general literature; but, whilst, by +traffic, they had succeeded in acquiring wealth, they had given way to +the temptations of luxury and licentiousness. Corinth was, in fact, at +this time one of the most dissolute cities of the Empire. It was the +capital of the large province of Achaia, and the residence of the Roman +proconsul. + +When Paul was at Athens he was led to adapt his style of instruction to +the character of his auditors, and he was thus obliged to occupy much of +his time in discussing the principles of natural religion. He +endeavoured to gain over the citizens by shewing them that their views +of the Godhead could not stand the test of a vigorous and discriminating +logic, and that Christianity alone rested on a sound philosophical +foundation. But the exposition of a pure system of theism had +comparatively little influence on the hearts and consciences of these +system-builders. Considering the time and skill devoted to its culture, +Athens had yielded perhaps less spiritual fruit than any field of labour +on which he had yet operated. When he arrived in Corinth he resolved, +therefore, to avoid, as much as possible, mere metaphysical +argumentation, and he sought rather to stir up sinners to flee from the +wrath to come by pressing home upon them earnestly the peculiar +doctrines of revelation. In the first epistle, addressed subsequently to +the Church now established in this place, he thus describes the spirit +in which he conducted his apostolical ministrations. "And I, brethren," +says he, "when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of +wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God--for I determined not to +know anything among you save _Jesus Christ and Him crucified_; and my +speech and my preaching was, not with enticing words of man's wisdom, +but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power--that your faith should +not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God." [108:1] + +The result demonstrated that the apostle thus pursued the most effective +mode of advancing the Christian cause. It might, indeed, have been +thought that Corinth was a very ungenial soil for the gospel, as Venus +was the favourite deity of the place; and a thousand priestesses, or, in +other words, a thousand prostitutes, were employed in the celebration of +her orgies. [109:1] The inhabitants generally were sunk in the very +depths of moral pollution. But the preaching of the Cross produced a +powerful impression even in this hotbed of iniquity. Notwithstanding the +enmity of the Jews, who "opposed themselves and blasphemed," [109:2] +Paul succeeded in collecting here a large and prosperous congregation. +"Many of the Corinthians hearing, believed, and were baptized." [109:3] +Most of the converts were in very humble circumstances, and hence the +apostle says to them in his first epistle--"Ye see your calling, +brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, +not many noble are called;" [109:4] but still a few persons of +distinction united themselves to the despised community. Thus, it +appears [109:5] that Erastus, the chamberlain, or treasurer, of the +city, was among the disciples. It may be that this civic functionary +joined the Church at a somewhat later date; but, even now, Paul was +encouraged by the accession of some remarkable converts. Of these, +perhaps, the most conspicuous was Crispus, "the chief ruler of the +synagogue," who, "with all his house," submitted to baptism. [109:6] +About the same time Gaius, who seems to have been an opulent citizen, +and who rendered good service to the common cause by his Christian +hospitality, [109:7] openly embraced the gospel. Two other converts, who +are often honourably mentioned in the New Testament, were now likewise +added to the infant Church. These were Aquila and Priscilla. [109:8] +Some have, indeed, supposed that this couple had been already baptized; +but, on the arrival of Paul in Corinth, Aquila is represented as _a Jew_ +[110:1]--a designation which would not have been descriptive of his +position had he been previously a believer--and we must therefore infer +that the conversion of himself and his excellent partner occurred at +this period. + +In this city, as well as in many other places, the apostle supported +himself by the labour of his own hands. It was now customary, even for +Israelites in easy circumstances, to train up their children to some +mechanical employment, so that should they sink into penury, they could +still, by manual industry, procure a livelihood. [110:2] Paul had been +taught the trade of a tent-maker, or manufacturer of awnings of +hair-cloth--articles much used in the East as a protection against the +rays of the sun, by travellers and mariners; It was in connexion with +this occupation that lie became acquainted with Aquila and Priscilla. +"Because he was of the same craft, he abode with them, and wrought." +[110:3] The Jew and his wife had probably a large manufactory, and thus +they could furnish the apostle with remunerative employment. Whilst +under their roof, he did not neglect the opportunities he enjoyed of +presenting the gospel to their attention, and both soon became his +ardent and energetic coadjutors in missionary service. + +The conduct of Paul in working with his own hands, whilst engaged in the +dissemination of the gospel, is a noble example of Christian +self-denial. He could, it appears, expect little assistance from the +mother church of Antioch; and had he, in the first instance, demanded +support from those to whom he now ministered, he would have exposed +himself and his cause to the utmost suspicion. In a commercial city, +such as Corinth, he would have been regarded by many as a mere +adventurer who had resorted to a new species of speculation in the hope +of obtaining a maintenance. His disinterested behaviour placed him at +once beyond the reach of this imputation; and his intense love to Christ +prepared him to make the sacrifice, which the course he thus adopted, +required. And what a proof of the humility of Paul that he cheerfully +laboured for his daily bread at the trade of a tent-maker! The Rabbi who +was once admired for his genius and his learning by the most +distinguished of his countrymen--who had once sat among the members of +the great Sanhedrim--and who might have legitimately aspired to be the +son-in-law of the High Priest of Israel [111:1]--was now content to toil +"night and day" at a menial occupation sitting among the workmen of +Aquila and Priscilla! How like to Him, who, though He was rich, yet, for +our sakes, became poor, that we, through His poverty, might be rich! + +Paul was well aware of the importance of Corinth as a centre of +missionary influence. Strangers from the East passed through it on their +way to Rome, and travellers from the Western metropolis stopped here on +their way to Asia Minor, Palestine, or Syria, so that it was one of the +greatest thoroughfares in the Empire; and, as a commercial mart, it was +second to very few cities in the world. The apostle therefore saw that +if a Church could be firmly planted in this busy capital, it could +scatter the seeds of truth to all the ends of the earth. We may thus +understand why he remained in Corinth so much longer than in any other +place he had yet visited since his departure from Antioch. "He continued +there a year and six months teaching the Word of God among them." +[111:2] He was, too, encouraged by a special communication from Heaven +to prosecute his labours with zeal and diligence. "The Lord spake to +Paul in the night by a vision--Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not +thy peace--for I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt +thee, for I have much people in this city." [112:1] Though the ministry +of the apostle was now attended with such remarkable success, his +converts did not all continue to walk worthy of their profession. But if +in the Church of this flourishing mercantile metropolis there were +greater disorders than in perhaps any other of the early Christian +communities, [112:2] the explanation is obvious. Even in a degenerate +age Corinth was notorious for its profligacy; and it would have been +indeed marvellous if excesses had not been occasionally committed by +some of the members of a religious society composed, to a considerable +extent, of reclaimed libertines. [112:3] + +The success of the gospel in Corinth roused the unbelieving Jews to +opposition; and here, as elsewhere, they endeavoured to avail themselves +of the aid of the civil power; but, in this instance, their appeal to +the Roman magistrate was signally unsuccessful. Gallio, brother of the +celebrated Seneca the philosopher, was now "the deputy of Achaia;" +[112:4] and when the bigoted and incensed Israelites "made insurrection +with one accord against Paul, and brought him to the judgment-seat, +saying--This fellow persuaded men to worship God _contrary to the +law,_" [112:5] the proconsul turned a deaf ear to the accusation. When +the apostle was about to enter on his defence, Gallio intimated that +such a proceeding was quite unnecessary, as the affair did not come +within the range of his jurisdiction. "If," said he, "it were a matter +of wrong, or wicked lewdness, O ye Jews, reason would that I should bear +with you; but if it be a question of words and names and of _your law,_ +look ye to it, for I will be no judge of such matters. And he drive them +from the judgment-seat." [113:1] On this occasion, for the first time +since the arrival of Paul and his brethren in Europe, the mob was on the +side of the missionaries, and under the very eye of the proconsul, and +without any effort on his part to interfere and arrest their violence, +the most prominent of the plaintiffs was somewhat roughly handled. "Then +all the Greeks took Smoothens, the chief ruler of the synagogue, and +beat him before the judgment-seat. And Gallio cared for none of these +things." [113:2] + +When Paul was at Corinth, and probably in A.D. 53, he wrote his two +earliest letters, that is, the First and Second Epistles to the +Thessalonians. These communications must, therefore, have been drawn up +about twelve months after the original formation of the religious +community to which they are addressed. The Thessalonian Church was +already fully organised, as the apostle here points out to the disciples +their duties to those who laboured among them and who were over them in +the Lord. [113:3] In the meantime several errors had gained currency; +and a letter, announcing that the day of Christ was at hand, and +purporting to have been penned by Paul himself, had thrown the brethren +into great consternation. [113:4] The apostle accordingly deemed it +necessary to interpose, and to point out the dangerous character of the +doctrines which had been so industriously promulgated. He now, too, +delivered his famous prophecy announcing the revelation of the "Man of +Sin" before the second coming of the Redeemer. [113:5] Almost all the +members of the Thessalonian Church were probably converted Gentiles, +[113:6] who must still have been but little acquainted with the Jewish +Scriptures; and this is perhaps the reason why there is no quotation +from the Old Testament in either of these letters. Even the Gospels do +not seem to have been yet written, and hence Paul exhorts the brethren +"to hold fast the traditions," or rather "ordinances," [114:1] which +they had been taught, "whether by word or his epistle." [114:2] + + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +THE CONVERSION OF APOLLOS, HIS CHARACTER, AND THE +MINISTRY OF PAUL IN EPHESUS. + +A.D. 54 TO A.D. 57. + + +The Apostle "took his leave" [115:1] of the Corinthian brethren in the +spring of A.D. 54, and embarking at the port of Cenchrea, about eight or +nine miles distant, set sail for Ephesus. The navigation among the +islands of the Greek Archipelago was somewhat intricate; and the voyage +appears to have not unfrequently occupied from ten to fifteen days. +[115:2] At Ephesus Paul "entered into the synagogue, and reasoned with +the Jews." [115:3] His statements produced a favourable impression, and +he was solicited to prolong his visit; but as he was on his way to +Jerusalem, where he was anxious to be present at the approaching feast +of Pentecost, he could only assure them of his intention to return, and +then bid them farewell. He left behind him, however, in this great city +his two Corinthian converts, Aquila and Priscilla, who carried on with +industry and success the work which he had commenced so auspiciously. +Among the first fruits of their pious care for the spread of +Christianity was the famous Apollos, an Alexandrian Jew, who now arrived +in the metropolis of the Proconsular Asia. + +The seed of Abraham in the birthplace of Apollos spoke the Greek +language, and were in somewhat peculiar circumstances. They were free +from some of the prejudices of the Jews in Palestine; and, though living +in the midst of a heathen population, had advantages which were enjoyed +by very few of their brethren scattered elsewhere among the Gentiles. At +Alexandria their sumptuous synagogues were unequivocal evidences of +their wealth; they constituted a large and influential section of the +inhabitants; they had much political power; and, whilst their study of +the Greek philosophy had modified their habits of thought, they had +acquired a taste for the cultivation of eloquence and literature. +Apollos, the Jew "born at Alexandria," [116:1] who now became acquainted +with Aquila and Priscilla, was an educated and accomplished man. It is +said that "he was instructed in the way of the Lord, and being fervent +in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, +knowing only the baptism of John." [116:2] The influence of the +preaching of the Baptist may be estimated from this incidental notice; +for though the forerunner of our Saviour had now finished his career +about a quarter of a century, the Alexandrian Jew was only one of many +still living witnesses to testify that he had not ministered in vain. In +this case John had indeed "prepared the way" of his Master, as, under +the tuition of Aquila and Priscilla, Apollos was led without difficulty +to embrace the Christian doctrine. It is said of this pious couple that +"they took him unto them, and expounded unto him the way of God more +perfectly." [116:3] Priscilla was no less distinguished than her husband +[116:4] for intelligence and zeal; and though she was prevented, as +much, perhaps, by her native modesty, as by the constitution of the +Church, [116:5] from officiating as a public instructor, she was, no +doubt, "apt to teach;" and there must have been something most +interesting and impressive in her private conversation. It is a +remarkable fact that one of the ablest preachers of the apostolic age +was largely indebted to a female for his acquaintance with Christian +theology. + +The accession, at this juncture, of such a convert as Apollos was of +great importance to the evangelical cause. The Church of Corinth, in the +absence of Paul, much required the services of a minister of superior +ability; and the learned Alexandrian was eminently qualified to promote +its edification. He was "an eloquent man, and mighty in the Scriptures." +[117:1] After sojourning some time at Ephesus, it seems to have occurred +to him that he would have a more extensive sphere of usefulness at +Corinth; and "when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren +wrote exhorting the disciples to receive him." [117:2] It soon appeared +that his friends in Asia had formed no exaggerated idea of his gifts and +acquirements. When he reached the Greek capital, he "helped them much +which had believed through grace; for he mightily convinced the Jews, +and that publicly, shewing by the Scriptures that Jesus was Christ." +[117:3] His surpassing rhetorical ability soon proved a snare to some of +the hypercritical Corinthians, and tempted them to institute invidious +comparisons between him and their great apostle. Hence in the first +epistle addressed to them, the writer finds it necessary to rebuke them +for their folly and fastidiousness. "While one saith, I am of Paul, and +another, I am of Apollos, are ye," says he, "not carnal? Who then is +Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the +Lord gave to every man? I have planted, Apollos watered, but God gave +the increase." [117:4] + +When Aquila and Priscilla were at Ephesus expounding "the way of God +more perfectly" to the Jew of Alexandria, Paul was travelling to +Jerusalem. Three years before, he had been there to confer with the +apostles and elders concerning the circumcision of the Gentiles; and he +had not since visited the holy city. His present stay seems to have been +short--apparently not extending beyond a few days at the time of the +feast of Pentecost,--and giving him a very brief opportunity of +intercourse with his brethren of the Jewish capital. He then "went down +to Antioch" [118:1]--a place with which from the commencement of his +missionary career he had been more intimately associated. "After he had +spent some time there, he departed and went over all the country of +Galatia and Phrygia in order, strengthening all the disciples." [118:2] +On a former occasion, after he had passed through the same districts, he +had been "forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in (the +Proconsular) Asia;" [118:3] but, at this time, the restriction was +removed, and in accordance with the promise made to the Jews at Ephesus +in the preceding spring, he now resumed his evangelical labours in that +far-famed metropolis. There must have been a strong disposition on the +part of many of the seed of Abraham in the place to attend to his +instructions, as he was permitted "for the space of _three months_" to +occupy the synagogue, "disputing and persuading the things concerning +the kingdom of God." [118:4] At length, however, he began to meet with +so much opposition that he found it expedient to discontinue his +addresses in the Jewish meeting-house. "When divers were hardened and +believed not, but spake evil of that way before the multitude, he +departed from them, and separated the disciples, disputing daily in the +school of one Tyrannus." [118:5] This Tyrannus was, in all probability, +a Gentile convert, and a teacher of rhetoric--a department of education +very much cultivated at that period by all youths anxious to attain +social distinction. What is here called his "school," appears to have +been a spacious lecture-room sufficient to accommodate a numerous +auditory. + +About this time the Epistle to the Galatians was, in all likelihood, +written. The Galatians, as their name indicated, were the descendants of +a colony of Gaols settled in Asia Minor several centuries before; and, +like the French of the present day, seem to have been distinguished by +their lively and mercurial temperament. Paul had recently visited their +country for the second time, [119:1] and had been received by them with +the warmest demonstrations of regard; but meanwhile Humanizing zealots +had appeared among them, and had been only too successful in their +efforts to induce them to observe the Mosaic ceremonies. The apostle, at +Antioch, and at the synod of Jerusalem, had already protested against +these attempts; and subsequent reflection had only more thoroughly +convinced him of their danger. Hence he here addresses the Galatians in +terms of unusual severity. "I marvel," he exclaims, "that ye are so soon +removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another +gospel"--"O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you that ye should not +obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set +forth, crucified among you!" [119:2] At the same time he proves that the +sinner is saved by faith alone; that the Mosaic institutions were +designed merely for the childhood of the Church; and that the disciples +of Jesus should refuse to be "entangled" with any such "yoke of +bondage." [120:1] His epistle throughout is a most emphatic testimony to +the doctrine of a free justification. + +Some time after Paul reached Ephesus, on his return from Jerusalem, he +appears to have made a short visit to Corinth. [120:2] There is no doubt +that he encountered a variety of dangers of which no record is to be +found in the Acts of the Apostles; [120:3] and it is most probable that +many of these disasters were experienced about this period. Thus, not +long after this date, he says--"Thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and +a day I have been in the deep." [120:4] There are good grounds for +believing that he now visited Crete, as well as Corinth; and it would +seem that these voyages exposed him to the "perils in the sea" which he +enumerates among his trials. [120:5] On his departure from Crete he left +Titus behind him to "set in order the things that were wanting, and to +ordain elders in every city;" [120:6] and in the spring of A.D. 57 he +wrote to the evangelist that brief epistle in which he points out, with +so much fidelity and wisdom, the duties of the pastoral office. [120:7] +The silence of Luke respecting this visit to Crete is the less +remarkable, as the name of Titus does not once occur in the book of the +Acts, though there is distinct evidence that he was deeply interested in +some of the most important transactions which are there narrated. +[120:8] + +Paul, about two years before, had been prevented, as has been stated, by +a divine intimation, from preaching in the district called Asia; but +when he now commenced his ministrations in Ephesus, its capital, he +continued in that city and its neighbourhood longer than in any other +place he had yet visited. After withdrawing from the synagogue and +resuming his labours in the school of Tyrannus, he remained there "by +the space of _two years_; so that all they which dwelt in Asia heard the +word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks." [121:1] Meanwhile the +churches of Laodicea, Colosse, and Hierapolis appear to have been +founded. [121:2] The importance of Ephesus gave it a special claim to +the attention which it now received. It was the metropolis of the +district, and the greatest commercial city in the whole of Asia Minor. +Whilst it was connected by convenient roads with all parts of the +interior, it was visited by trading vessels from the various harbours of +the Mediterranean. But, in another point of view, it was a peculiarly +interesting field of missionary labour; for it was, perhaps, the most +celebrated of all the high places of Eastern superstition. Its temple of +Artemis, or Diana, was one of the wonders of the world. This gorgeous +structure, covering an area of upwards of two acres, [121:3] was +ornamented with columns one hundred and twenty-seven in number, each +sixty feet high, and each the gift of a king. [121:4] It was nearly all +open to the sky, but that part of it which was covered, was roofed with +cedar. The image of the goddess occupied a comparatively small apartment +within the magnificent enclosure. This image, which was said to have +fallen down from Jupiter, [121:5] was not like one of those pieces of +beautiful sculpture which adorned the Acropolis of Athens, but rather +resembled an Indian idol, being an unsightly female form with many +breasts, made of wood, and terminating below in a shapeless block. +[122:1] On several parts of it were engraved mysterious symbols, called +"Ephesian letters." [122:2] These letters, when _pronounced_, were +believed to operate as charms, and, when _written_, were carried about +as amulets. To those who sought an acquaintance with the Ephesian magic, +they constituted an elaborate study, and many books were composed to +expound their significance, and point out their application. + +About this time the famous Apollonius of Tyana [122:3] was attracting +uncommon attention by his tricks as a conjuror; and it has been thought +not improbable that he now met Paul in Ephesus. If so, we can assign at +least one reason why the apostle was prevented from making his +appearance at an earlier date in the Asiatic metropolis. Men had thus an +opportunity of comparing the wonders of the greatest of magicians with +the miracles of the gospel; and of marking the contrast between the +vainglory of an impostor, and the humility of a servant of Jesus. The +attentive reader of Scripture may observe that some of the most +extraordinary of the mighty works recorded in the New Testament were +performed at this period; and it is not unreasonable to conclude that, +in a city so much given to jugglery and superstition, these genuine +displays of the power of Omnipotence were exhibited for the express +purpose of demonstrating the incomparable superiority of the Author of +Christianity. It is said that "God wrought _special miracles_ by the +hands of Paul, so that from his body were brought unto the sick +handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the +evil spirits went out of them." [123:1] The disastrous consequences of +an attempt, on the part of the sons of a Jewish priest, to heal the +afflicted by using the name of the Lord Jesus as a charm, alarmed the +entire tribe of exorcists and magicians. "The man, in whom the evil +spirit was, leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against +them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. And this +was known to all the Jews and Greeks also dwelling at Ephesus, and _fear +fell on them all_, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified." +[123:2] The visit of Paul told upon the whole population, and tended +greatly to discourage the study of the "Ephesian letters". "Many of them +also which used curious arts brought their books together and burned +them before all men; and they counted the price of them, and found it +fifty thousand pieces of silver. [123:3] So mightily grew the word of +God and prevailed." [123:4] + +Some time before the departure of Paul from Ephesus, he wrote the First +Epistle to the Corinthians. The letter contains internal evidence that +it was dictated in the spring of A.D. 57. [123:5] The circumstances of +the Corinthian disciples at this juncture imperatively required the +interference of the apostle. Divisions had sprung up in their community; +[123:6] the flagrant conduct of one member had brought dishonour on the +whole Christian name; [123:7] and various forms of error had been making +their appearance. [123:8] Paul therefore felt it right to address to +them a lengthened and energetic remonstrance. This letter is more +diversified in its contents than any of his other epistles; and presents +us with a most interesting view of the daily life of the primitive +Christians in a great commercial city. It furnishes conclusive evidence +that the Apostolic Church of Corinth was not the paragon of excellence +which the ardent and unreflecting have often pictured in their +imaginations, but a community compassed with infirmities, and certainly +not elevated, in point of spiritual worth, above some of the more +healthy Christian congregations of the nineteenth century. + +Shortly after this letter was transmitted to its destination, Ephesus +was thrown into a ferment by the riotous proceedings of certain parties +who had an interest in the maintenance of the pagan superstition. Among +those who derived a subsistence from the idolatry of its celebrated +temple were a class of workmen who "made silver shrines for Diana," +[124:1] that is, who manufactured little models of the sanctuary and of +the image which it contained. These models were carried about by the +devotees of the goddess in processions, and set up, in private +dwellings, as household deities. [124:2] The impression produced by the +Christian missionaries in the Asiatic metropolis had affected the +traffic in such articles, and those who were engaged in it began to +apprehend that their trade would be ultimately ruined. An individual, +named Demetrius, who appears to have been a master-manufacturer, did not +find it difficult, under these circumstances, to collect a mob, and to +disturb the peace of the city. Calling together the operatives of his +own establishment, "with the workmen of like occupation," [124:3] he +said to them--"Sirs, ye know, that by this craft we have our wealth. +Moreover, ye see and know, that not alone at Ephesus, but almost +throughout all Asia, this Paul hath persuaded and turned away much +people, saying that they be no gods which are made with hands--so that +not only this our craft is in danger to be set at nought, but also that +the temple of the great goddess Diana should be despised, and her +magnificence should be destroyed, whom all Asia and the world +worshipped." [125:1] This address did not fail to produce the effect +contemplated. A strong current of indignation was turned against the +missionaries; and the craftsmen were convinced that they were bound to +support the credit of their tutelary guardian. They were "full of wrath, +and cried out saying--Great is Diana of the Ephesians." [125:2] This +proceeding seems to have taken place in the month of May, and at a time +when public games were celebrated in honour of the Ephesian goddess, +[125:3] so that a large concourse of strangers now thronged the +metropolis. An immense crowd rapidly collected; the whole city was +filled with confusion; and it soon appeared that the lives of the +Christian preachers were in danger; for the mob caught "Gaius and +Aristech's, men of Macedonia, Paul's companions in travel," and "rushed +with one accord into the theatre." [125:4] This edifice, the largest of +the kind in Asia Minor, is said to have been capable of containing +thirty thousand persons. [125:5] As it was sufficiently capacious to +accommodate the multitudinous assemblage, and as it was also the +building in which public meetings of the citizens were usually convened, +it was now quickly occupied. Paul was at first prompted to enter it, and +to plead his cause before the excited throng; but some of the +magistrates, or, as they are called by the evangelist, "certain of the +_chief of Asia_, which were his friends, sent unto him, desiring him +that he would not adventure himself" into so perilous a position. +[125:6] These _Asiarchs_ were persons of exalted rank who presided at +the celebration of the public spectacles. The apostle was now in very +humble circumstances, for even in Ephesus he continued to work at the +occupation of a tent-maker; [126:1] and it is no mean testimony to his +worth that he had secured the esteem of such high functionaries. It was +quickly manifest that any attempt to appease the crowd would have been +utterly in vain. A Jew, named Alexander, who seems to have been one of +the craftsmen, and who was, perhaps, the same who is elsewhere +distinguished as "the coppersmith," [126:2] made an effort to address +them, probably with the view of shewing that his co-religionists were +not identified with Paul; but when the mob perceived that he was one of +the seed of Abraham, they took it for granted that he was no friend to +the manufacture of their silver shrines; and his appearance was the +signal for increased uproar. "When they knew that he was a Jew, all with +one voice, _about the space of two hours_, cried out--Great is Diana of +the Ephesians." [126:3] At length the town-clerk, or recorder, of +Ephesus, contrived to obtain a hearing; and, by his prudence and +address, succeeded in putting an end to this scene of confusion. He told +his fellow-townsmen that, if Paul and his companions had transgressed +the law, they could be made amenable to punishment; but that, as their +own attachment to the worship of Diana could not be disputed, their +present tumultuary proceedings could only injure their reputation as +orderly and loyal citizens. "We are in danger," said he, "to be called +in question for this day's uproar, there being no cause whereby we may +give an account of this concourse." [127:1] The authority of the speaker +imparted additional weight to his suggestions, the multitude quietly +dispersed, and the missionaries escaped unscathed. + +Even this tumult supplies evidence that the Christian preachers had +already produced an immense impression in this great metropolis. No more +decisive test of their success could be adduced than that here furnished +by Demetrius and his craftsmen; for a lucrative trade connected with the +established superstition was beginning to languish. The silversmiths, +and the other operatives whose interests were concerned, were obviously +the instigators of all the uproar; and it does not appear that they +could reckon upon the undivided sympathy even of the crowd they had +congregated. "Some cried one thing, and some another, for the assembly +was confused, and the _more part_ knew not wherefore they were come +together." [127:2] A number of the Asiarchs were decidedly favourable to +the apostle and his brethren; and when the town-clerk referred to their +proceedings his tone was apologetic and exculpatory. "Ye have," said he, +"brought hither these men who are neither profaners of temples, [127:3] +nor yet blasphemers of your goddess." [127:4] But here we see the real +cause of much of that bitter persecution which the Christians endured +for the greater part of three centuries. The craft of the imagemakers +was in danger; the income of the pagan priests was at stake; the secular +interests of many other parties were more or less affected; and hence +the new religion encountered such a cruel and obstinate opposition. + + + + + +CHAPTER IX. + +PAUL'S EPISTLES; HIS COLLECTION FOR THE POOR SAINTS AT JERUSALEM; +HIS IMPRISONMENT THERE, AND AT CAESAREA AND ROME. + +A.D. 57 TO A.D. 63. + + +Paul had already determined to leave Ephesus at Pentecost, [128:1] and +as the secular games, at which the Asiarchs presided, took place during +the month of May, the disorderly proceedings of Demetrius and the +craftsmen, which occurred at the same period, do not seem to have +greatly accelerated his removal. Soon afterwards, however, he "called +unto him the disciples, and embraced them, and departed to go into +Macedonia." [128:2] When he reached that district, he was induced to +enter on new scenes of missionary enterprise; and now, "round about unto +Illyricum," he "fully preached the gospel of Christ." [128:3] Shortly +before, Timothy had returned from Greece to Ephesus, [128:4] and when +the apostle took leave of his friends in that metropolis, he left the +evangelist behind him to protect the infant Church against the +seductions of false teachers. [128:5] He now addressed the first epistle +to his "own son in the faith," [128:6] and thus also supplied to the +ministers of all succeeding generations the most precious instructions +on the subject of pastoral theology. [129:1] Soon afterwards he wrote +the Second Epistle to the Corinthians. This letter throws much light on +the private character of Paul, and enables us to understand how he +contrived to maintain such a firm hold on the affections of those among +whom he ministered. Though he uniformly acted with great decision, he +was singularly amiable and gentle, as well as generous and warm-hearted. +No one could doubt his sincerity; no one could question his +disinterestedness; no one could fairly complain that he was harsh or +unkind. In his First Epistle to the Corinthians he had been obliged to +employ strong language when rebuking them for their irregularities; but +now they exhibited evidences of repentance, and he is obviously most +willing to forget and forgive. In his Second Epistle to them he enters +into many details of his personal history unnoticed elsewhere in the New +Testament, [130:1] and throughout displays a most loving and +conciliatory spirit. He states that, when he dictated his former letter, +it was far from his intention to wound their feelings, and that it was +with the utmost pain he had sent them such a communication. "Out of much +affliction, and anguish of heart," said he, "I wrote unto you with many +tears, not that ye should be grieved, but that ye might know the love +which I have more abundantly unto you." [130:2] The Corinthians could +not have well resented an advice from such a correspondent. + +When Paul had itinerated throughout Macedonia and Illyricum "he came +into Greece, [130:3] and there abode three months." [130:4] He now +visited Corinth for the third time; and, during his stay in that city, +dictated the Epistle to the Romans. [130:5] At this date, a Church +"spoken of throughout the whole world" [130:6] had been formed in the +great metropolis; some of its members were the relatives of the apostle; +[130:7] and others, such as Priscilla and Aquila, [130:8] had been +converted under his ministry. As he himself contemplated an early visit +to the far-famed city, [130:9] he sent this letter before him, to +announce his intentions, and to supply the place of his personal +instructions. The Epistle to the Romans is a precious epitome of +Christian theology. It is more systematic in its structure than, +perhaps, any other of the writings of Paul; and being a very lucid +exposition of the leading truths taught by the inspired heralds of the +gospel, it remains an emphatic testimony to the doctrinal defections of +the religious community now bearing the name of the Church to which it +was originally addressed. + +The apostle had been recently making arrangements for another visit to +Jerusalem; and he accordingly left Greece in the spring of A.D. 58; but +the malignity of his enemies appears to have obliged him to change his +plan of travelling. "When the Jews laid wait for him as he was about to +sail" from Cenchrea, the port of Corinth, "into Syria," he found it +expedient "to return through Macedonia." [131:1] Proceeding, therefore, +to Philippi, [131:2] the city in which he had commenced his European +ministry, he passed over to Troas; [131:3] and then continued his +journey along the coast of Asia Minor. On his arrival at Miletus "he +sent to Ephesus, and called the elders of the Church; and, when they +were come to him," he delivered to them a very pathetic pastoral +address, and bade them farewell. [131:4] At the conclusion, "he kneeled +down and prayed with them all, and they all wept sore, and fell on +Paul's neck, and kissed him, sorrowing most of all for the words which +he spake that they should see his face no more: and they accompanied him +unto the ship." [131:5] He now pursued his course to Jerusalem, and +after various delays, arrived at Caesarea. There, says Luke, "we entered +into the house of Philip, the evangelist, which was one of the seven, +and abode with him." [131:6] In Caesarea, as in other cities through +which he had already passed, he was told that bonds and afflictions +awaited him in the place of his destination; [131:7] but he was not thus +deterred from pursuing his journey. "When he would not be persuaded," +says the sacred historian, "we ceased, saying, The will of the Lord be +done, and after those days, having packed up, [131:8] we went up to +Jerusalem." [131:9] The apostle and his companions reached the holy city +about the time of the feast of Pentecost. + +Paul was well aware that there were not a few, even among the Christians +of Palestine, by whom he was regarded with jealousy or dislike; and he +had reason to believe that the agitation for the observance of the +ceremonial law, which had disturbed the Churches of Galatia, had been +promoted by the zealots of the Hebrew metropolis. But he had a strong +attachment to the land of his fathers; and he felt deeply interested in +the well-being of his brethren in Judea. They were generally in indigent +circumstances; for, after the crucifixion, when the Spirit was poured +out on the day of Pentecost, those of them who had property "sold their +possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had +need;" [132:1] and, ever since, they had been harassed and persecuted by +their unbelieving countrymen. "The poor saints" that were in Jerusalem +[132:2] had, therefore, peculiar claims on the kind consideration of the +disciples in other lands; and Paul had been making collections for their +benefit among their richer co-religionists in Greece and Asia Minor. A +considerable sum had been thus provided; and that there might be no +misgivings as to its right appropriation, individuals chosen by the +contributors had been appointed to travel with the apostle, and to +convey it to Jerusalem. [132:3] The number of the deputies appears to +have been seven, namely, "Sopater of Berea; and of the Thessalonians, +Aristech's and Secundus; and Gaius of Derbe, and Timotheus; and of +Asia, Tychicus and Trophimus." [132:4] The apostle knew that he had +enemies waiting for his halting; and as they would willingly have seized +upon any apology for accusing him of tampering with this collection, he, +no doubt, deemed it prudent to put it into other hands, and thus place +himself above challenge. But he appears to have had a farther reason for +suggesting the appointment of these commissioners. He was, in all +likelihood, desirous that his brethren in Judea should have a favourable +specimen of the men who constituted "the first fruits of the Gentiles;" +and as all the deputies selected to accompany him to Jerusalem seem to +have been persons of an excellent spirit, he probably reckoned that +their wise and winning behaviour would do much to disarm the hostility +of those who had hitherto contended so strenuously for the observance of +the Mosaic ceremonies. Solomon has said that "a man's gift maketh room +for him;" [133:1] and if Gentile converts could ever expect a welcome +reception from those who were zealous for the law, it was surely when +they appeared as the bearers of the liberality of the Gentile Churches. + +When the apostle and his companions reached the Jewish capital, "the +brethren received them gladly." [133:2] Paul was, however, given to +understand that, as he was charged with encouraging the neglect of the +Mosaic ceremonies, he must be prepared to meet a large amount of +prejudice; and he was accordingly recommended to endeavour to pacify the +multitude by giving some public proof that he himself "walked orderly +and kept the law." [133:3] Acting on this advice, he joined with four +men who had on them a Nazaritic vow; [133:4] and, "purifying himself +with them, entered into the temple." [133:5] When there, he was observed +by certain Jews from Asia Minor, who had probably become acquainted with +his personal appearance during his residence in Ephesus; and as they had +before seen him in the city with Trophimus, one of the seven deputies +and a convert from paganism, whom they seem also to have known, [134:1] +they immediately concluded that he had now some Gentile companions along +with him, and that he was encouraging the uncircumcised to pollute with +their presence the sacred court of the Israelites. A tumult forthwith +ensued; the report of the defilement of the holy place quickly +circulated through the crowd; "all the city was moved;" [134:2] the +people ran together; and Paul was seized and dragged out of the temple. +[134:3] The apostle would have fallen a victim to popular fury had it +not been for the prompt interference of the officer who had the command +of the Roman garrison in the tower of Antonia. This stronghold +overlooked the courts of the sanctuary; and, no doubt, some of the +sentinels on duty immediately gave notice of the commotion. The chief +captain, whose name was Claudius Lysias, [134:4] at once "took soldiers +and centurions," and running down to the rioters, arrived in time to +prevent a fatal termination of the affray; for, as soon as the military +made their appearance, the assailants "left beating of Paul." [134:5] +"Then the chief captain came near, and took him, and commanded him to be +bound with two chains, and demanded who he was, and what he had done. +And some cried one thing, some another, among the multitude, and when he +could not know the certainty for the tumult, he commanded him to be +carried into the castle." [134:6] In proceeding thus, the commanding +officer acted illegally; for, as Paul was a Roman citizen, he should +not, without a trial, have been deprived of his liberty, and put in +irons. But Lysias, in the hurry and confusion of the moment, had been +deceived by false information; as he had been led to believe that his +prisoner was an Egyptian, a notorious outlaw, who, "before these days," +had created much alarm by leading "out into the wilderness four thousand +men that were murderers." [135:1] He was quite astonished to find that +the individual whom he had rescued from such imminent danger was a +citizen of Tarsus in Cilicia who could speak Greek; and as it was now +evident that there existed much misapprehension, the apostle was +permitted to stand on the stairs of the fortress, and address the +multitude. When they saw him preparing to make some statement, the noise +subsided; and, "when they heard that he spake to them in the Hebrew +tongue," that is, in the Aramaic, the current language of the country, +"they kept the more silence." [135:2] Paul accordingly proceeded to give +an account of his early life, of the remarkable circumstances of his +conversion, and of his subsequent career; but, when he mentioned his +mission to the Gentiles, it was at once apparent that the topic was most +unpopular, for his auditors lost all patience. "They gave him audience +unto this word, and then lifted up their voices and said, Away with such +a fellow from the earth, for it is not fit that he should live. And as +they cried out, and cast off their clothes, and threw dust into the air, +the chief captain commanded him to be brought into the castle." [135:3] + +The confinement of Paul, which now commenced at the feast of Pentecost +in A.D. 58, continued about five years. It may be enough to notice the +mere outline of his history during this tedious bondage. In the first +place, for the purpose of ascertaining the exact nature of the charge +against him, he was confronted with the Sanhedrim; but when he informed +them that "of the hope and resurrection of the dead" he was called in +question, [136:1] there "arose a dissension between the Pharisees and +the Sadducees" [136:2] constituting the council; and the chief captain, +fearing lest his prisoner "should have been pulled in pieces of them, +commanded the soldiers to go down, and to take him by force from among +them, and to bring him into the castle." [136:3] Certain of the Jews, +about forty in number, now entered into a conspiracy binding themselves +"under a curse, saying, that they would neither eat nor drink till they +had killed Paul;" [136:4] and it was arranged that the bloody vow should +be executed when, under pretence of a new examination, he should be +brought again before the Sanhedrim; but their proceedings meanwhile +became known to the apostle's nephew; the chief captain received timely +information; and the scheme thus miscarried. [136:5] Paul, protected by +a strong military escort, was now sent away by night to Caesarea; and, +when there, was repeatedly examined before Felix, the Roman magistrate +who at this time, under the title of Procurator, had the government of +Judea. The historian Tacitus says of this imperial functionary that "in +the practice of all kinds of cruelty and lust, he exercised the power of +a king with the mind of a slave;" [136:6] and it is a remarkable proof, +as well of the intrepid faithfulness, as of the eloquence of the +apostle, that he succeeded in arresting the attention, and in alarming +the fears of this worthless profligate. Drusilla, his wife, a woman who +had deserted her former husband, [136:7] was a Jewess; and, as she +appears to have been desirous to see and hear the great Christian +preacher who had been labouring with so much zeal to propagate his +principles throughout the Empire, Paul, to satisfy her curiosity, was +brought into her presence. But an interview, which seems to have been +designed merely for the amusement of the Procurator and his partner, +soon assumed an appearance of the deepest solemnity. As the grave and +earnest orator went on to expound the faith of the gospel, and "as he +reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix +trembled." [137:1] His apprehensions, however, soon passed away, and +though he was fully convinced that Paul had not incurred any legal +penalty, he continued to keep him in confinement, basely expecting to +obtain a bribe for his liberation. When disappointed in this hope, he +still perversely refused to set him at liberty. Thus, "after two years," +when "Porcius Festus came into Felix' room," the ex-Procurator, "willing +to shew the Jews a pleasure, left Paul bound." [137:2] + +The apostle was soon required to appear before the new Governor. Festus +has left behind him the reputation of an equitable judge; [137:3] and +though he was obviously most desirous to secure the good opinion of the +Jews, he could not be induced by them to act with palpable injustice. +After he had brought them down to Caesarea, and listened to their +complaints against the prisoner, he perceived that they could convict +him of no violation of the law; but he proposed to gratify them so far +as to have the case reheard in the holy city. Paul, however, well knew +that they only sought such an opportunity to compass his assassination, +and therefore peremptorily refused to consent to the arrangement. "I +stand," said he, "at Caesar's judgment-seat, where I ought to be judged. +To the Jews have I done no wrong, as thou very well knowest. For if I be +an offender, or have committed anything worthy of death, I refuse not to +die; but if there be none of these things whereof these accuse me, no +man may deliver me unto them. _I appeal unto Caesar._" [138:1] + +The right of appeal from the decision of an inferior tribunal to the +Emperor himself was one of the great privileges of a Roman citizen; and +no magistrate could refuse to recognise it without exposing himself to +condign punishment. There were, indeed, a few exceptional cases of a +flagrant character in which such an appeal could not be received; and +Festus here consulted with his assessors to ascertain in what light the +law contemplated that of the apostle. It appeared, however, that he was +at perfect liberty to demand a hearing before the tribunal of Nero. +"Then," says the evangelist, "when Festus had conferred with the +council, he answered, Hast thou appealed unto Caesar? Unto Caesar shalt +thou go." [138:2] + +The Procurator was now placed in a somewhat awkward position; for, when +sending Paul to Rome, he was required at the same time to report the +crimes imputed to the prisoner; but the charges were so novel, and +apparently so frivolous, that he did not well know how to embody them in +an intelligible document. Meanwhile King Agrippa and his sister Bernice +came to Caesarea "to salute Festus," [138:3] that is, to congratulate +the new Governor on his arrival in the country; and the royal party +expressed a desire to hear what the apostle had to say in his +vindication. Agrippa was great-grandson of that Herod who reigned in +Judea when Jesus was born in Bethlehem, and the son of the monarch of +the same name whose sudden and awful death is recorded in the twelfth +chapter of the Acts. On the demise of his father in A.D. 44, he was only +seventeen years of age; and Judea, which was then reduced into the form +a Roman province with Caesarea for its capital, had remained ever since +under the government of Procurators. But though Agrippa had not been +permitted to succeed to the dominions of his father, he had received +various proofs of imperial favour; for he had obtained the government, +first of the principality of Chalcis, and then of several other +districts; and he had been honoured with the title of King. [139:1] The +Gentile Procurators could not be expected to be very minutely acquainted +with the ritual and polity of Israel; but as Agrippa was a Jew, and +consequently familiar with the customs and sentiments of the native +population, he had been entrusted with the care of the temple and its +treasures, as well as with the appointment of the high priest. Festus, +no doubt, felt that in a case such as that of Paul, the advice of this +visitor should be solicited; and hoped that Agrippa would be able to +supply some suggestion to relieve him out of his present perplexity. It +was accordingly arranged that the apostle should be permitted to plead +his cause in the hearing of the Jewish monarch. The affair seems to have +created unusual interest; the public appear to have been partially +admitted on the occasion; and seldom, or, perhaps, never before, had +Paul enjoyed an opportunity of addressing such an influential and +brilliant auditory. "Agrippa came, and Bernice, _with great pomp_, and +entered into the place of hearing, with the chief captains, and +principal men of the city." [139:2] Paul, still in bonds, made his +appearance before this courtly throng; and though it might have been +expected that a two years' confinement would have broken the spirit of +the prisoner, he displayed powers of argument and eloquence which +astonished and confounded his judges. The Procurator was quite +bewildered by his reasoning, for he appealed to "the promise made unto +the fathers," [139:3] and to things which "Moses and the prophets did +say should come;" [140:1] and as Festus could not appreciate the lofty +enthusiasm of the Christian orator (for he had never, when at Rome, been +accustomed to hear the advocates of heathenism plead so earnestly in its +defence), he "said with a loud voice--Paul, thou art beside thyself; +much learning doth make thee mad." [140:2] But the apostle's +self-possession was in nowise shaken by this blunt charge. "I am not +mad, most noble Festus," he replied, "but speak forth the words of truth +and soberness;" and then, turning to the royal stranger, vigorously +pressed home his argument. "King Agrippa," he exclaimed, "believest thou +the prophets? I know that thou believest." [140:3] The King, thus +challenged, was a libertine; and at this very time was believed to be +living in incestuous intercourse with his sister Bernice; and yet he +seems to have been staggered by Paul's solemn and pointed interrogatory. +"Almost," said he, "thou persuadest me to be a Christian." [140:4] It +has been thought by some that these words were uttered with a sneer; but +whatever may have been the frivolity of the Jewish King, they elicited +from the apostle one of the noblest rejoinders that ever issued from +human lips, "And Paul said, I would to God that not only thou, but also +all that hear me this day, were both almost and altogether such as I am, +except these bonds." [140:5] + +The singularly able defence now made by the apostle convinced his judges +of the futility of the charges preferred against him by the Sanhedrim. +But at this stage of the proceedings it was no longer practicable to +quash the prosecution. When Paul concluded his address "the king rose +up, and the governor, and Bernice, and they that sat with them. And when +they were gone aside, they talked between themselves, saying--This man +doeth nothing worthy of death or of bonds. Then said Agrippa unto +Festus--This man might have been set at liberty, if he had not appealed +unto Caesar." [141:1] + +At first sight it may appear extraordinary that so eminent a missionary +in the meridian of his usefulness was subjected to so long an +imprisonment. But "God's ways are not as our ways, nor His thoughts as +our thoughts." When thus, to a great extent, laid aside from official +duty, he had ample time to commune with his own heart, and to trace out, +with adoring wonder, the glorious grace and the manifold wisdom of the +work of redemption. Having himself partaken largely of affliction, and +experienced the sustaining power of the gospel so abundantly, he was the +better prepared to comfort the distressed; and hence his letters, +written at this period, are so full of consolation. [141:2] And apart +from other considerations, we may here recognise the fulfilment of a +prophetic announcement. When Paul was converted, the Lord said to +Ananias--"He is a chosen vessel unto me to bear my name before the +Gentiles, and _kings_, and the children of Israel, for I will shew him +_how great things he must suffer_ for my name's sake." [141:3] During +his protracted confinement he exhibited alike to Jew and Gentile an +illustrious specimen of faith and constancy; and called attention to the +truth in many quarters where otherwise it might have remained unknown. +Though he was chained to a soldier, he was not kept in very rigorous +custody, so that he had frequent opportunities of proclaiming the great +salvation. He was peculiarly fitted by his education and his genius for +expounding Christianity to persons moving in the upper circles of +society; and had he remained at liberty he could have expected to gain +access very rarely to such auditors. But already, as a prisoner, he had +pleaded the claims of the gospel before no inconsiderable portion of the +aristocracy of Palestine. He had been heard by the chief captain in +command of the garrison in the castle of Antonia, by the Sanhedrim, by +Felix and Drusilla, by Festus, by King Agrippa and his sister Bernice, +and probably by "the principal men" of both Caesarea and Jerusalem. In +criminal cases the appeals of Roman citizens were heard by the Emperor +himself, so that the apostle was about to appear as an ambassador for +Christ in the presence of the greatest of earth's potentates. Who can +tell but that some of that splendid assembly of senators and nobles who +surrounded Nero, when Paul was brought before his judgment-seat, will +have reason throughout all eternity to remember the occasion as the +birth-day of their blessedness! + +The apostle and "certain other prisoners" embarked for Rome in the +autumn of A.D. 60. The compass was then unknown; in weather, "when +neither sun nor stars in many days appeared," [142:1] the mariner was +without a guide; and, late in the season, navigation was peculiarly +dangerous. The voyage proved disastrous; after passing into a second +vessel at Myra, [142:2] a city of Lycia, Paul and his companions were +wrecked on the coast of the island of Malta; [142:3] when they had +remained there three months, they set sail once more in a corn ship of +Alexandria, the Castor and Pollux; [142:4] and at length in the early +part of A.D. 61, reached the harbour of Puteoli, [143:1] then the great +shipping port of Italy. + +The account of the voyage from Caesarea to Puteoli, as given in the Acts +of the Apostles, is one of the most curious passages to be found in the +whole of the sacred volume. Some may think it strange that the inspired +historian enters so much into details, and the nautical terms which he +employs may puzzle not a few readers; but these features of his +narrative attest its authenticity and genuineness. No one, who had not +himself shared the perils of the scene, could have been expected to +describe with so much accuracy the circumstances of the shipwreck. It +has been remarked that, after the lapse of eighteen hundred years, the +references of the evangelist to prevailing winds and currents, to the +indentations of the coast, to islands, bays, and harbours, may still be +exactly verified. Recent investigators have demonstrated that the +sailors, in the midst of danger, displayed no little ability, and that +their conduct in "undergirding the ship," [143:2] and in casting "four +anchors out of the stern," [143:3] evidenced their skilful seamanship. +Luke states that, after a long period of anxiety and abstinence, "about +midnight the shipmen deemed that they drew near to some country." +[143:4] The headland they were approaching is very low, and in a stormy +night is said to be invisible even at the distance of a quarter of a +mile; [143:5] but the sailors could detect the shore by other +indications. Even in a storm _the roar of breakers_ can be distinguished +from other sounds by the practised ear of a mariner; [144:1] and it can +be shewn that, with such a gale as was then blowing, the sea still +dashes with amazing violence against the very same point of land off +which Paul and his companions were that night labouring. In the depth of +the water at the place there is another most remarkable coincidence. We +are told that the sailors "sounded and found it _twenty fathoms_, and +when they had gone a little farther, they sounded, and found it _fifteen +fathoms_." [144:2] "But what," observes a modern writer, "are the +soundings at this point? They are now _twenty fathoms_. If we proceed a +little farther we find _fifteen fathoms_. It may be said that this, in +itself is nothing remarkable. But if we add that the fifteen-fathom +depth is _in the direction of the vessel's drift_ (W. by N.) from the +twenty-fathom depth, the coincidence is startling." [144:3] It may be +stated also that the "creek with a shore" [144:4] or sandy beach, and +the "place where two seas met," [144:5] and where "they ran the ship +aground" may still be recognised in what is now called St Paul's Bay at +Malta. [144:6] Even in the nature of the submarine strata we have a most +striking confirmation of the truth of the inspired history. It appears +that the four anchors cast out of the stern retained their hold, and it +is well known that the ground in St Paul's Bay is remarkably firm; for +in our English sailing directions it is mentioned that "while the cables +hold, there is no danger, as the anchors will never start." [144:7] Luke +reports that when the ship ran aground, "the fore-part stuck fast and +remained unmoveable" [144:8]--a statement which is corroborated by the +fact that "the bottom is mud graduating into tenacious clay" +[145:1]--exactly the species of deposit from which such a result might +be anticipated. + +When Paul landed at Puteoli, he must have contemplated with deep emotion +the prospect of his arrival in Rome. The city to which he now approached +contained, perhaps, upwards of a million of human beings. [145:2] But +the amount of its inhabitants was one of the least remarkable of its +extraordinary distinctions. It was the capital of the mightiest empire +that had ever yet existed; one hundred races speaking one hundred +languages were under its dominion; [145:3] and the sceptre which ruled +so many subject provinces was wielded by an absolute potentate. This +great autocrat was the high priest of heathenism--thus combining the +grandeur of temporal majesty with the sacredness of religious elevation. +Senators and generals, petty kings and provincial governors, were all +obliged to bow obsequiously to his mandates. In this vast metropolis +might be found natives of almost every clime; some engaged in its trade; +some who had travelled to it from distant countries to solicit the +imperial favour; some, like Paul, conveyed to it as prisoners; some +stimulated to visit it by curiosity; and some attracted to it by the +vague hope of bettering their condition. The city of the Caesars might +well be described as "sitting upon many waters;" [145:4] for, though +fourteen or fifteen miles from the mouth of the Tiber, the mistress of +the world was placed on a peninsula stretching out into the middle of a +great inland sea over which she reigned without a rival. In the summer +months almost every port of every country along the shores of the +Mediterranean sent forth vessels freighted with cargoes for the +merchants of Rome. [146:1] The fleet from Alexandria laden with wheat +for the supply of the city was treated with peculiar honour; for its +ships alone were permitted to hoist their topsails as they approached +the shore; a deputation of senators awaited its arrival; and, as soon as +it appeared, the whole surrounding population streamed to the pier, and +observed the day as a season of general jubilee. But an endless supply +of other articles in which the poor were less interested found their way +to Rome. The mines of Spain furnished the great capital with gold and +silver, whilst its sheep yielded wool of superior excellence; and, in +those times of Roman conquest, slaves were often transported from the +shores of Britain. The horses and chariots and fine linen of Egypt, the +gums and spices and silk and ivory and pearls of India, the Chian and +the Lesbian wines, and the beautiful marble of Greece and Asia Minor, +all met with purchasers in the mighty metropolis. [146:2] As John +surveyed in vision the fall of Rome, and as he thought of the almost +countless commodities which ministered to her insatiable luxury, well +might he represent the world's traffic as destroyed by the catastrophe; +and well might he speak of the merchants of the earth as weeping and +mourning over her, because "no man buyeth their merchandise any more." +[146:3] + +Paul had often desired to prosecute his ministry in the imperial city; +for he knew that if Christianity could obtain a firm footing in that +great centre of civilisation and of power, its influence would soon be +transmitted to the ends of the earth: but he now appeared there under +circumstances equally painful and discouraging. And yet even in this +embarrassing position he was not overwhelmed with despondency. At +Puteoli he "found brethren," [146:4] and through the indulgence of +Julius, the centurion to whose care he was committed, he was courteously +allowed to spend a week [147:1] with the little Church of which they +were members. He now set out on his way to the metropolis; but the +intelligence of his arrival had travelled before him, and after crossing +the Pomptine marshes, he was, no doubt, delighted to find a number of +Christian friends from Rome assembled at Appii Forum to tender to him +the assurances of their sympathy and affection. The place was +twenty-seven miles from the capital; and yet, at a time when travelling +was so tedious and so irksome, they had undertaken this lengthened +journey to visit the poor, weather-beaten, and tempest-tossed prisoner. +At the Three Taverns, ten miles nearer to the city, he met another party +of disciples [147:2] anxious to testify their attachment to so +distinguished a servant of their Divine Master. These tokens of respect +and love made a deep impression upon the susceptible mind of the +apostle; and it is accordingly stated that, when he saw the brethren, +"he thanked God and took courage." [147:3] + +The important services he had been able to render on the voyage gave him +a claim to particular indulgence; and accordingly, when he reached Rome, +and when the centurion delivered the prisoners to the Praetorian +Prefect, or the commander-in-chief of the Praetorian guards, [147:4] +"Paul was suffered to dwell by himself with a soldier that kept him." +[147:5] But though he enjoyed this comparative liberty, he was chained +to his military care-taker, so that his position must still have been +very far from comfortable. And yet even thus he continued his ministry +with as much ardour as if he had been without restraint, and as if he +had been cheered on by the applause of his generation. Three days after +his arrival in the city he "called the chief of the Jews together," +[148:1] and gave them an account of the circumstances of his committal, +and of his appeal to the imperial tribunal. They informed him that his +case had not been reported to them by their brethren in Judea; and then +expressed a desire to hear from him a statement of the claims of +Christianity. "And when they had appointed him a day, there came many to +him into his lodging; to whom he expounded and testified the kingdom of +God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses and +out of the prophets from morning till evening." [148:2] His appeals +produced a favourable impression upon only a part of his audience. "Some +believed the things which were spoken, and some believed not." [148:3] + +Several years prior to this date a Christian Church existed in the +Western metropolis, and at this time there were probably several +ministers in the city; but the apostle, in all likelihood, now entered +upon some field of labour which had not hitherto been occupied. He +"dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that +came in unto him--preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those +things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence, no man +forbidding him." [148:4] All this time Paul's right hand was chained to +the left hand of a soldier, who was responsible for the safe keeping of +his prisoner. The soldiers relieved each other in this duty. [148:5] It +would appear that Paul's chain might be relaxed at meal-times, and +perhaps he was occasionally granted some little additional indulgence; +but day and night he and his care-taker must have remained in close +proximity, as the life of the soldier was forfeited should his ward +escape. We can well conceive that the very appearance of the preacher at +this period invited special attention to his ministrations. He was now +"Paul the aged;" [149:1] he had perhaps passed the verge of threescore +years; and though his detractors had formerly objected that "his bodily +presence was weak," [149:2] all would at this time have, probably, +admitted, that his aspect was venerable. His life had been a career of +unabated exertion; and now, though worn down by toils, and hardships, +and imprisonments, his zeal burned with unquenched ardour. As the +soldier who kept him belonged to the Praetorian guards, it has been +thought that the apostle spent much of his time in the neighbourhood of +their quarters on the Palatine hill, [149:3] and that as he was now so +much conversant with military sights and sounds, we may in this way +account for some of the allusions to be found in his epistles written +during his present confinement. Thus, he speaks of Archippus and +Epaphroditus as his "fellow-soldiers;" [149:4] and he exhorts his +brethren to "put on the whole armour of God," including "the breastplate +of righteousness, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the +sword of the Spirit." [149:5] As the indefatigable old man, with the +soldier who had charge of him, passed from house to house inviting +attendance on his services, the very appearance of such "yoke-fellows" +[149:6] must have created some interest; and, when the congregation +assembled, who could remain unmoved as the apostle stretched forth his +chained hand, [149:7] and proceeded to expound his message! He seems +himself to have thought that the very position which he occupied, as +"the prisoner of the Lord," [149:8] imparted somewhat to the power of +his testimony. Hence we find him saying--"I would ye should understand, +brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather +unto _the furtherance of the gospel_, so that my bonds in Christ are +manifest in all the Praetorium, [150:1] and in all other places; and +many of the brethren in the Lord waxing confident by my bonds are much +more bold to speak the word without fear." [150:2] + +During this imprisonment at Rome, Paul dictated a number of his +epistles. Of these, the letter to Philemon, a Christian of Colosse, +seems to have been first written. The bearer of this communication was +Onesimus, who had at one time been a slave in the service of the +individual to whom it is addressed; and who, as it appears, after +robbing his master, had left the country. The thief made his way to +Rome, where he was converted under the ministry of the apostle; and +where he had since greatly recommended himself as a zealous and +trustworthy disciple. He was now sent back to Colosse with this Epistle +to Philemon, in which the writer undertakes to be accountable for the +property that had been pilfered, [150:3] and entreats his correspondent +to give a kindly reception to the penitent fugitive. Onesimus, when +conveying the letter to his old master, was accompanied by Tychicus, +whom the apostle describes as "a beloved brother and a faithful minister +and fellow-servant in the Lord" [150:4] who was entrusted with the +Epistle to the Colossians. Error, in the form of false philosophy and +Judaizing superstition, had been creeping into the Colossian Church, +[150:5] and the apostle in this letter exhorts his brethren to beware of +its encroachments. About the same time Paul wrote the Epistle to the +Ephesians; and Tychicus was also the bearer of this communication. +[150:6] Unlike most of the other epistles, it has no salutations at the +close; it is addressed, not only "to the saints which are at Ephesus" in +particular, but also "to the faithful in Christ Jesus" [151:1] in +general; and as its very superscription thus bears evidence that it was +originally intended to be a circular letter, it is probably "the epistle +from Laodicea" mentioned in the Epistle to the Colossians. [151:2] The +first division of it is eminently distinguished by the profound and +comprehensive views of the Christian system it exhibits; whilst the +latter portion is no less remarkable for the variety, pertinency, and +wisdom, of its practical admonitions. The Epistle to the Philippians was +likewise written about this period. Paul always took a deep interest in +the well-being of his earliest European converts, and here he speaks in +most hopeful terms of their spiritual condition. [151:3] They were less +disturbed by divisions and heresies than perhaps any other of the +Apostolic Churches. + + + + + +CHAPTER X. + +PAUL'S SECOND IMPRISONMENT, AND MARTYRDOM; PETER, HIS EPISTLES, HIS +MARTYRDOM, AND THE ROMAN CHURCH. + + +The Book of the Acts terminates abruptly; and the subsequent history of +Paul is involved in much obscurity. Some have contended that the apostle +was never released from his first imprisonment at Rome, and accordingly +consider that he was one of the earliest Christian martyrs who suffered +under the Emperor Nero. But this theory is encumbered with insuperable +difficulties. In his letters written after his first appearance in Rome, +Paul evidently anticipates his liberation; [152:1] and in some of them +he apparently speaks prophetically. Thus, he says to the Philippians--"I +am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart and to be with +Christ, which is far better--nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more +needful for you--and having this confidence _I know that I shall abide +and continue_ with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith." +[152:2] The apostle had long cherished a desire to visit Spain; [152:3] +and there is evidence that he actually preached the gospel in that +country; for Clemens Romanus, who was his contemporary and +fellow-labourer, positively affirms that he travelled "to the extremity +of the west." [153:1] Clemens appears to have been himself a native of +the great metropolis; [153:2] and as he makes the statement just quoted +in a letter written from Rome, it cannot be supposed that, under such +circumstances, he would have described Italy as the boundary of the +earth. The Second Epistle to Timothy, which is generally admitted to +have been written immediately before Paul's death, contains several +passages which obviously indicate that the author had been very recently +at liberty. Thus, he says-"The cloak [153:3] (or, as some render it, +_the case_) [153:4] that I left at Troas, with Carpus, when thou comest +bring with thee, and the books, but especially the parchments." [153:5] +These words suggest that the apostle had lately visited Troas on the +coast of Asia Minor. Again, he remarks--"Erastus abode at Corinth, but +Trophimus have I left at Miletum sick." [153:6] Any ordinary reader +would at once infer from this observation that the writer had just +arrived from Miletum. [153:7] The language of the concluding verses of +the Acts warrants the impression that Paul's confinement had ended some +time before the book was completed; for had the apostle been still in +bondage, it would scarcely have been said that, when a prisoner, he +dwelt for two whole years in his own hired house--thereby implying that +the period of his residence, at least in that abode, had terminated. And +if Paul was released at the expiration of these two years, we can well +understand why the sacred historian may have deemed it inexpedient to +give an account of his liberation. The subjects of Rome at that time +were literally living under a reign of terror; and it would perhaps have +been most unwise to have proceeded farther with the narrative. Paul, as +Peter once before, [154:1] may have been miraculously delivered; and +prudence may have required the concealment of his subsequent movements. +Or, the history of his release may have been so mixed up with the freaks +of the tyrant who then oppressed the Roman world, that its publication +might have brought down the imperial vengeance on the head of the +evangelist. + +We have seen that Paul arrived in Rome as a prisoner in the beginning of +A.D. 61; and if at this time his confinement continued only two years, +he must have been liberated in the early part of A.D. 63. Nero had not +then commenced his memorable persecution of the Church; for the burning +of the city took place in the summer of A.D. 64; and, until that date, +the disciples do not appear to have been singled out as the special +objects of his cruelty. It is probable that Paul, after his release, +accomplished his intention of visiting the Spanish Peninsula; and, on +his return to Italy, he appears to have written the Epistle to the +Hebrews. [154:2] The destruction of Jerusalem was at this time +approaching; and, as the apostle demonstrates in this letter that the +law was fulfilled in Christ, he thus prepares the Jewish Christians for +the extinction of the Mosaic ritual. In all likelihood he now once more +visited Jerusalem, travelling by Corinth, [155:1] Philippi, [155:2] and +Troas, [155:3] where he left for the use of Carpus the case with the +books and parchments which he mentions in his Second Epistle to Timothy. +Passing on then to Colosse, [155:4] he may have visited Antioch in +Pisidia and other cities of Asia Minor, the scenes of his early +ministrations; and reached Jerusalem [155:5] by way of Antioch in Syria. +He perhaps returned from Palestine to Rome by sea, leaving Trophimus +sick [155:6] at Miletum in Crete. The journey did not probably occupy +much time; and, on his return to Italy, he seems to have been +immediately incarcerated. His condition was now very different from what +it had been during his former confinement; for he was deserted by his +friends, and treated as a malefactor. [155:7] When he wrote to Timothy +he had already been brought before the judgment-seat, and had narrowly +escaped martyrdom. "At my first answer," says he, "no man stood with me, +but all men forsook me. I pray God that it may not be laid to their +charge. Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, that +by me the preaching might be fully known, and that all the Gentiles +might hear; [155:8] and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion." +[155:9] The prospect, however, still continued gloomy; and he had no +hope of ultimate escape. In the anticipation of his condemnation, he +wrote those words so full of Christian faith and heroism, "I am now +ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have +fought a good fight--I have finished my course--I have kept the faith. +Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the +Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give me in that day, and not to me +only, but unto all them also that love his appearing." [156:1] + +Paul was martyred perhaps about A.D. 66. Tradition reports that he was +beheaded; [156:2] and as he was a Roman citizen, it is not probable that +he suffered any more ignominious fate. About the third or fourth +century, a statement appeared to the effect that he and Peter were put +to death at Rome on the same day; [156:3] but all the early documentary +evidence we possess is quite opposed to such a representation. If Peter +really finished his career in the Western metropolis, it would seem that +he did not arrive there until very shortly before the decapitation of +the Apostle of the Gentiles; for Paul makes no reference, in any of his +writings, to the presence of such a fellow-labourer in the capital of +the Empire. In the Epistle to the Romans, containing so many salutations +to the brethren in the great city, the name of Peter is not found; and +in none of the letters written _from_ Rome is he ever mentioned. In the +last of his Epistles--the Second to Timothy--the writer says--"_only +Luke_ is with me" [156:4]--and had Peter then been in the place, Paul +would not have thus ignored the existence of the apostle of the +circumcision. + +But still there is a very ancient and apparently a well authenticated +tradition that Peter suffered martyrdom at Rome; [156:5] and if, as is +not improbable, Paul met him in Jerusalem, during his visit to that city +after his release from his first imprisonment, it may be that he was +then encouraged to undertake a journey to the West. [156:6] It is not +improbable that he was recommended, at the same time, to visit the +Churches of Asia Minor for the purpose of using his influence to defeat +the efforts of the Judaizing zealots; and if, after passing through +Galatia, Bithynia, and other districts, he continued his course to Home, +we can well understand why, on reaching the seat of Empire, he addressed +his first epistle to the Christians with whom he had so recently held +intercourse. The tradition that the "Babylon" from which this letter was +written, [157:1] is no other than Rome, or the mystical Babylon of the +Apocalypse, [157:2] is unquestionably of great antiquity; [157:3] and +some of the announcements it contains are certainly quite in unison with +such an interpretation. Thus, Peter tells his brethren of "the fiery +trial" which was "to try" them, [157:4] alluding, in all likelihood, to +the extension of the Neronian persecution to the provinces; and it may +be presumed that, in the capital, and in communication with some of +"Caesar's household," he had means of information in reference to such +matters, to which elsewhere he could have had no access, Mark, who +probably arrived in Rome about the time of the death of Paul, [157:5] +was with Peter when this letter was written; [157:6] and we have thus +additional evidence that the apostle of the circumcision was now in the +Western capital. It is also worthy of remark that this epistle was +transmitted to its destination by Silas, or Silvanus, [157:7] apparently +the same individual who had so frequently accompanied the Apostle Paul +on his missionary journeys. [157:8] Silvanus had been for many years +acquainted with the brethren to whom the letter is addressed, and +therefore was well suited to be its bearer. But though he had long +occupied a prominent position in the Church, he seems to have been very +little known to Peter; and hence the somewhat singular manner in which +he is noticed towards the close of this epistle--"By Silvanus, a +faithful brother unto you, as I suppose, I have written briefly, +exhorting, and testifying that this is the true grace of God wherein ye +stand." [158:1] + +If this letter was written from Rome about the time of the death of +Paul, it is not strange that Peter deemed it prudent to conceal his +place of residence under the designation of Babylon. Nero was then +seeking the extermination of the Christians in the capital; and they had +enemies in all quarters who would have rejoiced to point out to him such +a distinguished victim as the aged apostle. And how could Peter more +appropriately describe the seat of Empire than by naming it _Babylon?_ +Nebuchadnezzar, who reigned so gloriously in the great Eastern capital, +had destroyed the temple of God; and now Nero, who ruled in the Western +metropolis, was seeking to ruin the Church of God. Nebuchadnezzar had +led the Jews into captivity; but Rome now enthralled both Jews and +Gentiles. If Nebuchadnezzar had an antitype in Nero, assuredly Babylon +had an antitype in Rome. [158:2] + +The Second Epistle of Peter was written soon after the first, and was +addressed to the same Churches. [158:3] The author now contemplated the +near approach of death, so that the advices he here gives may be +regarded as his dying instructions. "I think it meet," says he, "_as +long as I am in this tabernacle_, [158:4] to stir you up by putting you +in remembrance--knowing that _shortly_ I must put off this my +tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me." [159:1] If +then Peter was martyred at Rome, we may infer that this letter must have +been written somewhere in the same neighbourhood, and probably in the +same city. We have thus a corroborative proof that the Babylon of the +first letter is no other than the great metropolis. + +It deserves notice that in this second epistle, Peter bears emphatic +testimony to the character and inspiration of Paul. The Judaizing party, +as there is reason to think, were in the habit of pleading that they +were supported by the authority of the apostle of the circumcision; and +as many of these zealots were to be found in the Churches of Asia Minor, +[159:2] such a recognition of the claims of the Apostle of the Gentiles +was calculated to exert a most salutary influence. "The strangers +scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia," +[159:3] were thus given to understand that all the true heralds of the +gospel had but "one faith;" and that any attempt to create divisions in +the Church, by representing the doctrine of one inspired teacher as +opposed to the doctrine of another, was most unwarrantable. The +reference to Paul, to be found in the Second Epistle of Peter, is +favourable to the supposition that the Apostle of the Gentiles was now +dead; as, had he been still living to correct such misinterpretations, +it would scarcely have been said that in all his epistles were things +"hard to be understood" which "the unlearned and unstable" wrested +"unto their own destruction." [159:4] It would seem, too, that Peter +here alludes particularly to the Epistle to the Hebrews--a letter, as we +have seen, addressed to Jewish Christians, and written after Paul's +liberation from his first Roman imprisonment. It must be admitted that +this letter contains passages [159:5] which have often proved perplexing +to interpreters; but, notwithstanding, it bears the impress of a divine +original; and Peter, who maintains that all the writings of Paul were +dictated by unerring wisdom, places them upon a level with "the _other +Scriptures_" [160:1] either of the evangelists or of the Old Testament. + +According to a current tradition, Peter suffered death at Rome by +crucifixion. [160:2] He was not a Roman citizen; and was, therefore, +like our Lord himself, consigned to a mode of punishment inflicted on +slaves and the lowest class of malefactors. The story that, at his own +request, he was crucified with his head downwards as more painful and +ignominious than the doom of his Master, [160:3] is apparently the +invention of an age when the pure light of evangelical religion was +greatly obscured; for the apostle was too well acquainted with the truth +to believe that he was at liberty to inflict upon himself any +unnecessary suffering. The tradition that he died on the same day of the +same month as Paul, but exactly a year afterwards, [160:4] is not +destitute of probability. According to this statement he suffered A.D. +67; and he may have been about a year in Rome before his martyrdom. + +In the New Testament it is impossible to find a trace of either the +primacy of Peter or the supremacy of the Pope; but the facts already +stated throw some light on the history of that great spiritual despotism +whose seat of government has been so long established in the city of the +Caesars. It is obvious that at a very early period various circumstances +contributed to give prominence to the Church of Rome. The epistle +addressed to it contains a more complete exhibition of Christian +doctrine than any other of the apostolical letters; and, in that +remarkable communication, Paul expresses an earnest desire to visit a +community already celebrated all over the world. Five or six of his +letters, now forming part of the inspired canon, were dictated in the +capital of the Empire. The two epistles of the apostle of the +circumcision appear to have emanated from the same metropolis. There is +every reason to believe that the book of the Acts was written at Rome; +and it is highly probable that the great city was also the birthplace of +the Gospels of Mark and Luke. Thus, a large portion of the New Testament +issued from the seat of Empire. Rome could also boast that it was for +some time the residence of two of the most eminent of the apostles. Paul +was there for at least two years as a prisoner; and Peter may have +resided for twelve months within its walls. Some of the most illustrious +of the early converts were members of the Church of Rome; for in the +days of the Apostle of the Gentiles there were disciples in "Caesar's +household." [161:1] And when Nero signalised himself as the first +Imperial persecutor of the Christians, the Church of Rome suffered +terribly from his insane and savage cruelty. Even the historian Tacitus +acknowledges that the tortures to which its adherents were exposed +excited the commiseration of the heathen multitude. Paul and Peter were +cut off in his reign; and the soil of Rome absorbed the blood of these +apostolic martyrs. [161:2] It was not strange, therefore, that the Roman +Church was soon regarded with peculiar respect by all the disciples +throughout the Empire. As time passed on, it increased rapidly in +numbers and in affluence; and circumstances, which properly possessed +nothing more than an historic interest, began to be urged as arguments +in favour of its claims to pre-eminence. At first these claims assumed +no very definite form; and, at the termination of a century after the +days of Paul and Peter, they amounted simply to the recognition of +something like an honorary precedence. At that period it was, perhaps, +deemed equally imprudent and ungracious to quarrel with its pretensions, +more especially as the community by which they were advanced was +distributing its bounty all around, and was itself nobly sustaining the +brunt of almost every persecution. In the course of time, the Church of +Rome proceeded to challenge a substantial supremacy; and then the facts +of its early history were mis-stated and exaggerated in accommodation to +the demands of its growing ambition. It was said at first that "its +faith was spoken of throughout the whole world;" it was at length +alleged that its creed should be universally adopted. It was admitted at +an early period that, as it had enjoyed the ministrations of Peter and +Paul, it should be considered an apostolic church; it was at length +asserted that, as an apostle was entitled to deference from ordinary +pastors, a church instructed by two of the most eminent apostles had a +claim to the obedience of other churches. In process of time it was +discovered that Paul was rather an inconvenient companion for the +apostle of the circumcision; and Peter alone then began to be spoken of +as the founder and first bishop of the Church of Rome. Strange to say, a +system founded on a fiction has since sustained the shocks of so many +centuries. One of the greatest marvels of this "mystery of iniquity" is +its tenacity of life; and did not the sure word of prophecy announce +that the time would come when it would be able to boast of its +antiquity, and did we not know that paganism can plead a more remote +original, we might be perplexed by its longevity. But "the vision is yet +for an appointed time--at the end it shall speak and not lie. Though it +tarry, wait for it, because it will surely come, it will not tarry." +[162:1] + + + + + +CHAPTER XI. + +THE PERSECUTIONS OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH, AND ITS CONDITION AT THE +TERMINATION OF THE FIRST CENTURY. + + +Jesus Christ was a Jew, and it might have been expected that the advent +of the most illustrious of His race, in the character of the Prophet +announced by Moses, would have been hailed with enthusiasm by His +countrymen. But the result was far otherwise. "He came unto his own, and +his own received him not." [163:1] The Jews cried "Away with him, away +with him, crucify him;" [163:2] and He suffered the fate of the vilest +criminal. The enmity of the posterity of Abraham to our Lord did not +terminate with His death; they long maintained the bad pre-eminence of +being the most inveterate of the persecutors of His early followers. +Whilst the awful portents of the Passion, and the marvels of the day of +Pentecost were still fresh in public recollection, their chief priests +and elders threw the apostles into prison; [163:3] and soon afterwards +the pious and intrepid Stephen fell a victim to their malignity. Their +infatuation was extreme; and yet it was not unaccountable. They looked, +not for a crucified, but for a conquering Messiah. They imagined that +the Saviour would release them from the thraldom of the Roman yoke; that +He would make Jerusalem the capital of a prosperous and powerful empire; +and that all the ends of the earth would celebrate the glory of the +chosen people. Their vexation, therefore, was intense when they +discovered that so many of the seed of Jacob acknowledged the son of a +carpenter as the Christ, and made light of the distinction between Jew +and Gentile. In their case the natural aversion of the heart to a pure +and spiritual religion was inflamed by national pride combined with +mortified bigotry; and the fiendish spirit which they so frequently +exhibited in their attempts to exterminate the infant Church may thus +admit of the most satisfactory explanation. + +Many instances of their antipathy to the new sect have already been +noticed. In almost every town where the missionaries of the cross +appeared, the Jews "opposed themselves and blasphemed;" and magistrates +speedily discovered that in no way could they more easily gain the +favour of the populace than by inflicting sufferings on the Christians. +Hence, as we have seen, about the time of Paul's second visit to +Jerusalem after his conversion, Herod, the grandson of Herod the Great, +"killed James, the brother of John, with the sword; and because he saw +_it pleased the Jews,_ he proceeded further to take Peter also." [164:1] +The apostle of the circumcision was delivered by a miracle from his +grasp; but it is probable that other individuals of less note felt the +effects of his severity. Even in countries far remote from their native +land, the posterity of Abraham were the most bitter opponents of +Christianity. [164:2] As there was much intercourse between Palestine +and Italy, the gospel soon found its way to the seat of government; and +it has been conjectured that some civic disturbance created in the great +metropolis by the adherents of the synagogue, and intended to annoy and +intimidate the new sect, prompted the Emperor Claudius, about A.D. 53, +to interfere in the manner described by Luke, and to command "all Jews +to depart from Rome." [165:1] But the hostility of the Israelites was +most formidable in their own country; and for this, as well as other +reasons, "the brethren which dwelt in Judea" specially required the +sympathy of their fellow-believers throughout the Empire. When Paul +appeared in the temple at the feast of Pentecost in A.D. 58, the Jews, +as already related, made an attempt upon his life; and when the apostle +was rescued by the Roman soldiers, a conspiracy was formed for his +assassination. Four years afterwards, or about A.D. 62, [165:2] another +apostle, James surnamed the Just, who seems to have resided chiefly in +Jerusalem, finished his career by martyrdom. Having proclaimed Jesus to +be the true Messiah on a great public occasion, his fellow-citizens were +so indignant that they threw him from a pinnacle of the temple. As he +was still alive when he reached the ground, he was forthwith assailed +with a shower of stones, and beaten to pieces with the club of a fuller. +[165:3] + +As the Christians were at first confounded with the Jews, the +administrators of the Roman law, for upwards of thirty years after our +Lord's death, conceded to them the religious toleration enjoyed by the +seed of Abraham. But, from the beginning, "the sect of the Nazarenes" +enjoyed very little of the favour of the heathen multitude. Paganism had +set its mark upon all the relations of life, and had erected an idol +wherever the eye could turn. It had a god of War, and a god of Peace; a +god of the Sea, and a god of the Wind; a god of the River, and a god of +the Fountain; a god of the Field, and a god of the Barn Floor; a god of +the Hearth, a god of the Threshold, a god of the Door, and a god of the +Hinges. [166:1] When we consider its power and prevalence in the +apostolic age, we need not wonder at the declaration of Paul--"All that +will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution." [166:2] +Whether the believer entered into any social circle, or made his +appearance in any place of public concourse, he was constrained in some +way to protest against dominant errors; and almost exactly in proportion +to his consistency and conscientiousness, he was sure to incur the +dislike of the more zealous votaries of idolatry. Hence it was that the +members of the Church were so soon regarded by the pagans as a morose +generation instinct with hatred to the human race. In A.D. 64, when +Nero, in a fit of recklessness, set fire to his capital, he soon +discovered that he had, to a dangerous extent, provoked the wrath of the +Roman citizens; and he attempted, in consequence, to divert the torrent +of public indignation from himself, by imputing the mischief to the +Christians. They were already odious as the propagators of what was +considered "a pernicious superstition," and the tyrant, no doubt, +reckoned that the mob of the metropolis were prepared to believe any +report to the discredit of these sectaries. But even the pagan historian +who records the commencement of this first imperial persecution, and who +was deeply prejudiced against the disciples of our Lord, bears testimony +to the falsehood of the accusation. Nero, says Tacitus, "found wretches +who were induced to confess themselves guilty; and, on their evidence, a +great multitude of Christians were convicted, not indeed on clear proof +of their having set the city on fire, but rather on account of their +hatred of the human race. [167:1] They were put to death amidst insults +and derision. Some were covered with the skins of wild beasts, and left +to be torn to pieces by dogs; others were nailed to the cross; and some, +covered over with inflammable matter, were lighted up, when the day +declined, to serve as torches during the night. The Emperor lent his own +gardens for the exhibition. He added the sports of the circus, and +assisted in person, sometimes driving a curricle, and occasionally +mixing with the rubble in his coachman's dress. At length these +proceedings excited a feeling of compassion, as it was evident that the +Christians were destroyed, not for the public good, but as a sacrifice +to the cruelty of a single individual." [167:2] Some writers have +maintained that the persecution under Nero was confined to Rome; but +various testimonies concur to prove that it extended to the provinces. +Paul seems to contemplate its spread throughout the Empire when he tells +the Hebrews that they had "_not yet_ resisted _unto blood_ striving +against sin," [167:3] and when he exhorts them not to forsake the +assembling of themselves together as they "see _the day approaching_." +[167:4] Peter also, as has been stated in a preceding chapter, +apparently refers to the same circumstance in his letter to the brethren +"scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia," +when he announces "the fiery trial" which was "to try" them, [168:1] and +when he tells them of "judgment" beginning "at the house of God." +[168:2] If Nero enacted that the profession of Christianity was a +capital offence, his law must have been in force throughout the Roman +world; and an early ecclesiastical writer positively affirms that he was +the author of such sanguinary legislation. [168:3] The horror with which +his name was so long regarded by members of the Church in all parts of +the Empire [168:4] strongly corroborates the statement that the attack +on the disciples in the capital was only the signal for the commencement +of a general persecution. + +Nero died A.D. 68, and the war which involved the destruction of +Jerusalem and of upwards of a million of the Jews, was already in +progress. The holy city fell A.D. 70; and the Mosaic economy, which had +been virtually abolished by the death of Christ, now reached its +practical termination. At the same period the prophecy of Daniel was +literally fulfilled; for "the sacrifice and the oblation" were made to +cease, [168:5] as the demolition of the temple and the dispersion of the +priests put an end to the celebration of the Levitical worship. The +overthrow of the metropolis of Palestine contributed in various ways to +the advancement of the Christian cause. Judaism, no longer able to +provide for the maintenance of its ritual, was exhibited to the world as +a defunct system; its institutions, now more narrowly examined by the +spiritual eye, were discovered to be but types of the blessings of a +more glorious dispensation; and many believers, who had hitherto adhered +to the ceremonial law, discontinued its observances. Christ, forty years +before, had predicted the siege and desolation of Jerusalem; [169:1] and +the remarkable verification of a prophecy, delivered at a time when the +catastrophe was exceedingly improbable, appears to have induced not a +few to think more favourably of the credentials of the gospel. In +another point of view the ruin of the ancient capital of Judea proved +advantageous to the Church. In the subversion of their chief city the +power of the Jews sustained a shock from which it has never since +recovered; and the disciples were partially delivered from the attacks +of their most restless and implacable persecutors. + +Much obscurity rests upon the history of the period which immediately +follows the destruction of Jerusalem. Though Philip and John, [169:2] +and perhaps one or two more of the apostles, still survived, we know +almost nothing of their proceedings. After the death of Nero the Church +enjoyed a season of repose, but when Domitian, in A.D. 81, succeeded to +the government, the work of persecution recommenced. The new sovereign, +who was of a gloomy and suspicious temper, encouraged a system of +espionage; and as he seems to have imagined that the Christians fostered +dangerous political designs, he treated them with the greater harshness. +The Jewish calumny, that they aimed at temporal dominion, and that they +sought to set up "another king one Jesus," [169:3] had obviously +produced an impression upon his mind; and he accordingly sought out the +nearest kinsmen of the Messiah, that he might remove these heirs of the +rival dynasty. But when the two grandchildren of Jude, [169:4] called +the brother of our Lord, [169:5] were conducted to Rome, and brought to +his tribunal, he discovered the groundlessness of his apprehensions. The +individuals who had inspired the Emperor with such anxiety, were the +joint-proprietors of a small farm in Palestine which they cultivated +with their own hands; and the jealous monarch at once saw that, when his +fears had been excited by reports of the treasonable designs of such +simple and illiterate husbandmen, he had been miserably befooled. After +a single interview, these poor peasants met with no farther molestation +from Domitian. + +Had all the disciples been in such circumstances as the grandchildren of +Jude, the gospel might have been identified with poverty and ignorance; +and it might have been said that it was fitted to make way only among +the dregs of the population. But it was never fairly open to this +objection. From the very first it reckoned amongst its adherents at +least a sprinkling of the wealthy, the influential, and the educated. +Joseph of Arimathea, one of the primitive followers of our Lord, was "a +rich man" and an "honourable counsellor;" [170:1] Paul himself, as a +scholar, stood high among his countrymen, for he had been brought up at +the feet of Gamaliel; and Sergius Paulus, one of the first fruits of the +mission to the Gentiles, was a Roman Proconsul. [170:2] In the reign of +Nero the Church could boast of some illustrious converts; and the saints +of "Caesar's household" are found addressing their Christian salutations +to their brethren at Philippi. [170:3] In the reign of Domitian the +gospel still continued to have friends among the Roman nobility. Flavius +Clemens, a person of consular dignity, and the cousin of the Emperor, +was now put to death for his attachment to the cause of Christ; [170:4] +and his near relative Flavia Domitilla, for the same reason, was +banished with many others to Pontia, [170:5] a small island off the +coast of Italy used for the confinement of state prisoners. + +Domitian governed the Empire fifteen years, but his persecution of the +Christians appears to have been limited to the latter part of his reign. +About this time the Apostle John, "for the word of God and for the +testimony of Jesus Christ," [171:1] was sent as an exile into Patmos, a +small rocky island in the Aegaean Sea not far from the coast of Asia +Minor. It is said that he had previously issued unhurt from a cauldron +of boiling oil into which he had been plunged in Rome by order of the +Emperor; but this story, for which a writer who flourished about a +century afterwards is the earliest voucher, [171:2] has been challenged +as of doubtful authority. [171:3] We have no means of ascertaining the +length of time during which he remained in banishment; [171:4] and all +we know of this portion of his life is, that he had now those sublime +and mysterious visions to be found in the Apocalypse. After the fall of +Jerusalem, as well as after he was permitted to leave Patmos, he appears +to have resided chiefly in the metropolis of the Proconsular Asia; and +hence some ancient writers, who flourished after the establishment of +the episcopal system, have designated him the "Bishop of Ephesus." +[172:1] But the apostle, when advanced in life, chose to be known simply +by the title of "the elder;" [172:2] and though he was certainly by far +the most influential minister of the district where he sojourned, there +is every reason to believe that he admitted his brethren to a share in +the government of the Christian community. Like Peter and Paul before +him, he acknowledged the other elders as his "fellow-presbyters," +[172:3] and, as became his age and apostolic character, he doubtless +exhorted them to take heed unto themselves and to all the flock over the +which the Holy Ghost had made them overseers. [172:4] + +John seems to have been the last survivor of the apostles. He is said to +have reached the advanced age of one hundred years, and to have died +about the close of the first century. He was a "Son of Thunder," [172:5] +and he appears to have long maintained the reputation of a powerful and +impressive preacher; but when his strength began to give way beneath the +pressure of increasing infirmities, he ceased to deliver lengthened +addresses. When he appeared before the congregation in extreme old age, +he is reported to have simply repeated the exhortation "Children, love +one another;" and when asked, why he always confined himself to the same +brief admonition, he replied that "no more was necessary." [172:6] Such +a narrative is certainly quite in harmony with the character of the +beloved disciple, for he knew that love is the "bond of perfectness" and +"the fulfilling of the law." + +It has been thought that, towards the close of the first century, the +Christian interest was in a somewhat languishing condition; [172:7] and +the tone of the letters addressed to the Seven Churches in Asia is +calculated to confirm this impression. The Church of Laodicea is said to +be "neither cold nor hot;" [173:1] the Church of Sardis is admonished to +"strengthen the things which remain that are ready to die;" [173:2] and +the Church of Ephesus is exhorted to "remember from whence she has +fallen, and repent, and do the first works." [173:3] When it was known +that Christianity was under the ban of a legal proscription, it was not +strange that "the love of many" waxed cold; and the persecutions of Nero +and Domitian must have had a most discouraging influence. But though the +Church had to encounter the withering blasts of popular odium and +imperial intolerance, it struggled through an ungenial spring; and, in +almost every part of the Roman Empire, it had taken root and was +beginning to exhibit tokens of a steady and vigorous growth as early as +the close of the first century. The Acts and the apostolical epistles +speak of the preaching of the gospel in Palestine, Syria, Cyprus, Asia +Minor, Greece, Illyricum, and Italy; and, according to traditions which +we have no reason to discredit, the way of salvation was proclaimed, +before the death of John, in various other countries. It is highly +probable that Paul himself assisted in laying the foundations of the +Church in Spain; at an early date there were disciples in Gaul; and +there is good evidence that, before the close of the first century, the +new faith had been planted even on the distant shores of Britain. +[173:4] It is generally admitted that Mark laboured successfully as an +evangelist in Alexandria, the metropolis of Egypt; [173:5] and it has +been conjectured that Christians were soon to be found in "the parts of +Libya about Cyrene," [173:6] for if Jews from that district were +converted at Jerusalem by Peter's famous sermon on the day of Pentecost, +they would not fail, on their return home, to disseminate the precious +truths by which they had been quickened and comforted. On the same +grounds it may be inferred that the gospel soon found its way into +Parthia, Media, Persia, Arabia, and Mesopotamia. [174:1] Various +traditions [174:2] attest that several of the apostles travelled +eastwards, after their departure from the capital of Palestine. + +Whilst Christianity, in the face of much obloquy, was gradually +attracting more and more attention, it was at the same time nobly +demonstrating its power as the great regenerator of society. The +religion of pagan Rome could not satisfy the wants of the soul; it could +neither improve the heart nor invigorate the intellect; and it was now +rapidly losing its hold on the consciences of the multitude. The high +places of idolatrous worship often exercised a most demoralising +influence, as their rites were not unfrequently a wretched mixture of +brutality, levity, imposture, and prostitution. Philosophy had +completely failed to ameliorate the condition of man. The vices of some +of its most distinguished professors were notorious; its votaries were +pretty generally regarded as a class of scheming speculators; and they +enjoyed neither the confidence nor the respect of the mass of the +people. But, even under the most unpromising circumstances, it soon +appeared that Christianity could accomplish social and spiritual changes +of a very extraordinary character. The Church of Corinth was perhaps one +of the least exemplary of the early Christian communities, and yet it +stood upon a moral eminence far above the surrounding population; and, +from the roll of its own membership, it could produce cases of +conversion to which nothing parallel could, be found in the whole +history of heathendom. Paul could say to it--"Neither fornicators, nor +idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves +with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, +nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God, _and such were some +of you_ but ye are washed, but ye _are sanctified_, but ye are justified +in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God." [175:1] +Nor was this all. The gospel proved itself sufficient to meet the +highest aspirations of man. It revealed to him a Friend in heaven who +"sticketh closer than a brother;" [175:2] and, as it assured him of +eternal happiness in the enjoyment of fellowship with God, it imparted +to him a "peace that passeth all understanding." The Roman people +witnessed a new spectacle when they saw the primitive followers of +Christ expiring in the fires of martyrdom. The pagans did not so value +their superstitions; but here was a religion which was accounted "better +than life." Well then might the flames which illuminated the gardens of +Nero supply some spiritual light to the crowds who were present at the +sad scene; and, in the indomitable spirit of the first sufferers, well +might the thoughtful citizen have recognised a system which was destined +yet to subdue the world. + + + + + + SECTION II. + + THE LITERATURE AND THEOLOGY OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + + + + +CHAPTER I + +THE NEW TESTAMENT, ITS HISTORY, AND THE AUTHORITY OF ITS VARIOUS PARTS. +THE EPISTLE OF CLEMENT OF ROME. + + +The conduct of our Lord, as a religious teacher, betokened that He was +something more than man. Mohammed dictated the Koran, and left it behind +him as a sacred book for the guidance of his followers; many others, who +have established sects, have also founded a literature for their +disciples; but Jesus Christ wrote nothing. The Son of God was not +obliged to condescend to become His own biographer, and thus to testify +of Himself. He had at His disposal the hearts and the pens of others; +and He knew that His words and actions would be accurately reported to +the latest generations. During His personal ministry, even His apostles +were only imperfectly acquainted with His theology; but, shortly before +His death, He gave them an assurance that, in due time, He would +disclose to them more fully the nature and extent of the great +salvation. He said to them--"The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, +whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and +bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. +[177:1].... He will guide you into all truth." [177:2] + +The resurrection poured a flood of light into the minds of the apostles, +and they forthwith commenced with unwonted boldness to proclaim the +truth in all its purity and power; but, perhaps, no part of the +evangelical history was written until upwards of twenty years after the +death of our Saviour. [177:3] According to tradition, the Gospels of +Matthew, Mark, and Luke, then appeared in the order in which they are +now presented in our authorised version. [177:4] It is certain that all +these narratives were published several years before the tall of +Jerusalem in A.D. 70; and as each contains our Lord's announcement of +its speedy catastrophe, there is much probability in the report, that +the exact fulfilment of so remarkable a prophecy, led many to +acknowledge the divine origin of the Christian religion. The Gospel of +John is of a much later date, and seems to have been written towards the +conclusion of the century. + +Two of the evangelists, Matthew and John, were apostles; and the other +two, Mark and Luke, appear to have been of the number of the Seventy. +[177:5] All were, therefore, fully competent to bear testimony to the +facts which they record, for the Seventy had "companied" with the Twelve +"all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among" them, [178:1] +and all "were from the beginning eye-witnesses and ministers of the +word." [178:2] These writers mention many miracles performed by Christ, +and at least three of the Gospels were in general circulation whilst +multitudes were still alive who are described in them as either the +spectators or the subjects of His works of wonder; and yet, though the +evangelists often enter most minutely into details, so that their +statements, if capable of contradiction, might have been at once +challenged and exposed, we do not find that any attempt was meanwhile +made to impeach their accuracy. Their manner of recording the acts of +the Great Teacher is characterised by remarkable simplicity, and the +most acute reader in vain seeks to detect in it the slightest trace of +concealment or exaggeration. Matthew artlessly confesses that he +belonged to the odious class of publicans; [178:3] Mark tells how Peter, +his friend and companion, "began to curse and to swear," and to declare +that he knew not the Man; [178:4] Luke, who was probably one of the two +brethren who journeyed to Emmaus, informs us how Jesus drew near to them +on the way and upbraided them as "fools and slow of heart to believe all +that the prophets had spoken;" [178:5] and John honestly repudiates the +pretended prediction setting forth that he himself was not to die. +[178:6] Each evangelist mentions incidents unnoticed by the others, and +thus supplies proof that he is entitled to the credit of an original and +independent witness. Matthew alone gives the formula of baptism "in the +name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost;" [178:7] Mark +alone speaks of the great amazement of the people as they beheld the +face of Christ on His descent from the Mount of Transfiguration; [179:1] +Luke alone announces the appointment of the Seventy; [179:2] and John +alone records some of those sublime discourses in which our Lord treats +of the doctrine of His Sonship, of the mission of the Comforter, and of +the mysterious union between Himself and His people. [179:3] All the +evangelists direct our special attention to the scene of the +crucifixion. As they proceed to describe it, they obviously feel that +they are dealing with a transaction of awful import; and they +accordingly become more impressive and circumstantial. Their statements, +when combined, furnish a complete and consistent narrative of the sore +travail, the deep humiliation, and the dying utterances of the +illustrious sufferer. + +If the appointment of the Seventy indicated our Lord's intention of +sending the glad tidings of salvation to the ends of the earth, there +was a peculiar propriety in the selection of an individual of their +number as the historian of the earliest missionary triumphs. Whilst Luke +records the wonderful success of Christianity amongst the Gentiles, he +takes care to point out the peculiar features of the new economy; and +thus it is that his narrative abounds with passages in which the +doctrine, polity, and worship of the primitive disciples are illustrated +or explained. It is well known that the titles of the several parts of +the New Testament were prefixed to them, not by their authors, but at a +subsequent period by parties who had no claim to inspiration; [179:4] +and it is obvious that the book called--"The Acts of the Apostles" has +not been very correctly designated. It is confined almost exclusively to +the acts of Peter and Paul, and it sketches only a portion of their +proceedings. As its narrative terminates at the end of Paul's second +year's imprisonment at Rome, it was probably written about that period. +Superficial readers may object to its information as curt and +fragmentary; but the careful investigator will discover that it marks +with great distinctness the most important stages in the early +development of the Church. [180:1] It shews how Christianity spread +rapidly among the Jews from the day of Pentecost to the martyrdom of +Stephen; it points out how it then took root among the Gentiles; and it +continues to trace its dissemination from Judea westwards, until it was +firmly planted by the apostle of the uncircumcision in the metropolis of +the Empire. + +It is highly probable that some of the fourteen epistles of Paul were +written before any other portion of the New Testament, for we have +already seen [180:2] that the greater number of them were transmitted to +the parties to whom they are addressed during the time over which the +Acts of the Apostles extend; but though Luke makes no mention of these +letters, his account of the travels of their author throws considerable +light on the question of their chronology. Guided by statements which he +supplies, and by evidence contained in the documents themselves, we have +endeavoured to point out the order of their composition. It thus appears +that they are not placed chronologically in the New Testament. The +present arrangement is, however, of great antiquity, as it can be traced +up to the beginning of the fourth century; [180:3] and it is made upon +the principle that the Churches addressed should be classed according to +their relative importance. The Church of Rome at an early period was +recognised as the most influential in existence, and hence the Epistle +to the Romans stands at the head of the collection. The Church of +Corinth seems to have ranked next, and accordingly the Epistles to the +Corinthians occupy the second place. The letters to the Churches are +followed by those to individuals, that is, to Timothy, Titus, and +Philemon; and it has been conjectured that the Epistle to the Hebrews is +put last, because it is anonymous. Some have contended that this letter +was composed by Barnabas; others have ascribed it to Clement, or Luke, +or Silas, or Apollos; but, though Paul has not announced his name, the +external and internal evidences concur to prove that he was its author. +[181:1] + +"Every word of God is pure," [181:2] but the word of man is often +deceitful; and nowhere do his fallibility and ignorance appear more +conspicuously than in his appendages to Scripture. Even the titles +prefixed to the writings of the apostles and evangelists are redolent of +superstition, for no satisfactory reason can be given why the +designation of _saint_, [181:3] has been bestowed on Matthew, Mark, +Luke, and John, whilst it is withheld, not only from Moses and Isaiah, +but also from such eminently holy ministers as Timothy and Titus. The +postscripts to the epistles of Paul have been added by transcribers, and +are also calculated to mislead. Thus, the Epistle to the Galatians is +said to have been "written from Rome," though it is now generally +acknowledged that Paul was not in the capital of the Empire until long +after that letter was dictated. The first Epistle to Timothy is dated +"from Laodicea, which is the chiefest city of Phrygia Pacatiana;" but it +is well known that Phrygia was not divided into Phrygia Prima, or +Pacatiana, and Phrygia Secunda until the fourth century. [181:4] It is +stated at the end of another epistle that it was "written to Titus +ordained the first Bishop of the Church of the Cretians;" but, as the +letter itself demonstrates, Paul did not intend that Titus should remain +permanently in Crete, [182:1] and it can be shewn that, for centuries +afterwards, such a dignitary as "the Bishop of the Church of the +Cretians" was utterly unknown. + +The seven letters written by James, Peter, Jude, and John, are called +General or Catholic epistles. The Epistle of James was addressed "to the +twelve tribes scattered abroad" probably in A.D. 61, and its author +survived its publication perhaps little more than twelve months. [182:2] +Peter, as we have seen, appears to have written his two epistles only a +short time before his martyrdom. [182:3] The Epistle of Jude is the +production of a later period, as it contains quotations from the Second +Epistle of Peter. [182:4] The exact dates of the Epistles of John cannot +now be discovered, but they supply internal proof that they must have +been written towards the close of the first century. [182:5] + +According to some, the Apocalypse, or Revelation of John, was drawn up +before the destruction of Jerusalem, and in the time of the Emperor +Nero; but the arguments in support of so early an origin are very +unsatisfactory. Ancient writers [182:6] attest that it was written in +the reign of Domitian towards the close of the first century, and the +truth of this statement is established by various collateral evidences. + +The divine authority of the four Gospels and of the Acts of the Apostles +was, from their first appearance, universally acknowledged in the +ancient Church. [182:7] These books were publicly read in the religious +assemblies of the primitive Christians, and were placed on a level with +the Old Testament Scriptures. [182:8] The epistles of Paul occupied an +equally honourable position. [182:9] In the second and third centuries +the Epistle to the Hebrews was not, indeed, received among the sacred +books by the Church of Rome; [183:1] but at an earlier period its +inspiration was acknowledged by the Christians of the great city, for it +is quoted as the genuine work of the Apostle Paul by an eminent Roman +pastor who flourished in the first century. [183:2] The authority of two +of the most considerable of the Catholic epistles--the First Epistle of +Peter and the First Epistle of John--was never questioned; [183:3] but, +for a time, there were churches which doubted the claims of the five +others to be ranked amongst "the Scriptures." [183:4] The multitude of +spurious writings which were then abroad suggested to the disciples the +necessity of caution, and hence suspicions arose in certain cases where +they were destitute of foundation. But these suspicions, which never +seem to have been entertained by more than a minority of the churches, +gradually passed away; and at length, towards the close of the fourth +century, the whole of what are now called the Catholic epistles were +received, by unanimous consent, as inspired documents. [183:5] The +Apocalypse was acknowledged to be a divine revelation as soon as it +appeared; and its credit remained unimpeached until the question of the +Millennium began to create discussion. Its authenticity was then +challenged by some of the parties who took an interest in the +controversy; but it still continued to be regarded as a part of Holy +Scripture by the majority of Christians, and there is no book of the New +Testament in behalf of which a title to a divine original can be +established by more conclusive and ample evidence. [184:1] + +It thus appears that, with the exception of a few short epistles which +some hesitated to accredit, the New Testament, in the first century, was +acknowledged as the Word of God by all the Apostolical Churches. Its +various parts were not then included in a single volume; and as a +considerable time must have elapsed before copies of every one of them +were universally disseminated, it is not to be thought extraordinary if +the appearance of a letter, several years after it was written, and in +quarters where it had been previously unknown, awakened suspicion or +scepticism. But the slender objections, advanced under such +circumstances, gradually vanished before the light of additional +evidence; and it may safely be asserted that the whole of the documents, +now known as the Scriptures of the New Testament, were received, as +parts of a divine revelation, by an overwhelming majority of the early +Christians. The present division into chapters and verses was introduced +at a period comparatively recent; [184:2] but there is reason to believe +that stated portions of the writings of the apostles and evangelists +were read by the primitive disciples at their religious meetings, and +that, for the direction of the reader, as well as for the facility of +reference, the arrangement was soon notified in the manuscripts by +certain marks of distinction. [184:3] It is well known that in the +ancient Churches persons of all classes and conditions were encouraged +and required to apply themselves to the study of the sacred records; +that even children were made acquainted with the Scriptures; [185:1] and +that the private perusal of the inspired testimonies was considered an +important means of individual edification. All were invited and +stimulated by special promises to meditate upon the mysterious, as well +as the plain, passages of the book of Revelation. "Blessed," says the +Apostle John, "is he that readeth, and _they that hear the words of this +prophecy_, and keep those things which are written therein." [185:2] + +The original manuscripts of the New Testament, which must from the first +have been accessible to comparatively few, have all long since +disappeared; and it is now impossible to tell whether they were worn +away by the corroding tooth of time, or destroyed in seasons of +persecution. Copies of them were rapidly multiplied; and though heathen +adversaries displayed no small amount of malice and activity, it was +soon found impossible to effect their annihilation. It was not necessary +that the apostolic autographs [185:3] should be preserved for ever, as +the records, when transcribed, still retained the best and clearest +proofs of their inspiration. They did not require even the imprimatur of +the Church, for they exhibited in every page the stamp of divinity; and +as soon as they were published, they commended themselves by the +internal tokens of their heavenly lineage to the acceptance of the +faithful. "The Word of God is quick and powerful," and every one who +peruses the New Testament in a right spirit must feel that it has +emanated from the Searcher of hearts. It speaks to the conscience; it +has all the simplicity and majesty of a divine communication; it +enlightens the understanding; and it converts the soul. No mere man +could have invented such a character as the Saviour it reveals; no mere +man could have contrived such a system of mercy as that which it +announces. The New Testament is always on the side of whatsoever is +just, and honest, and lovely, and of good report; it glorifies God; it +alarms the sinner; it comforts the saint. "The words of the Lord are +pure words, as silver tried in a furnace of earth purified seven +times." [186:1] + +The excellence of the New Testament is displayed to singular advantage +when contrasted with those uninspired productions of nearly the same +date which emanated from the companions of the apostles. The only +genuine document of this nature which has come down to us, and which +appeared in the first century,[186:2] is an epistle to the Corinthians. +It was prepared immediately after the Domitian persecution, or about +A.D. 96,[186:3] with a view to heal certain divisions which had sprung +up in the religious community to which it is addressed; and, though +written in the name of the Church of Rome, there is no reason to doubt +that it is the composition of Clement, who was then at the head of the +Roman presbytery. The advice which it administers is most judicious; and +the whole letter breathes the peaceful spirit of a devoted Christian +pastor. But it contains passages which furnish conclusive evidence that +it has no claims whatever to inspiration; and its illustration of the +doctrine of the resurrection is in itself more than sufficient to +demonstrate that it could not have been dictated under any supernatural +guidance. "There is," says Clement,[186:4] "a certain bird called the +phoenix. Of this there is never but one at a time, and that lives five +hundred years: and when the time of its dissolution draws near that it +must die, it makes itself a nest of frankincense, and myrrh, and other +spices, into which, when its time is fulfilled, it enters and dies. But +its flesh putrefying breeds a certain worm which, being nourished with +the juice of the dead bird, brings forth feathers; and when it is grown +to a perfect state, it takes up the nest in which the bones of its +parent are, and carries it from Arabia into Egypt to a city called +Heliopolis; and flying in open day, in the sight of all men, lays it +upon the altar of the Sun, and so returns from whence it came. The +priests then search into the records of the time, and find that it +returned precisely at the end of five hundred years." [187:1] + +In point of education the authors of the New Testament did not generally +enjoy higher advantages than Clement; and yet, writing "as they were +moved by the Holy Ghost," they were prevented from giving currency, even +in a single instance, to such a story as this fable of the phoenix. All +their statements will be found to be true, whether tried by the standard +of mental or of moral science, of geography, or of natural history. The +theology which they teach is at once sound and genial; and those by whom +it is appreciated can testify that whilst it invigorates and elevates +the intellect, it also pacifies the conscience and purifies the heart. + + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE DOCTRINE OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH + + +The same system of doctrine is inculcated throughout the whole of the +sacred volume. Though upwards of fifteen hundred years elapsed between +the commencement and the completion of the canon of Scripture; though +its authors were variously educated; though they were distinguished, as +well by their tastes, as by their temperaments; and though they lived in +different countries and in different ages; all the parts of the volume +called the Bible exhibit the clearest indications of unity of design. +Each writer testifies to the "one faith," and each contributes something +to its illustration. Thus it is that, even at the present day, every +book in the canon is "good to the use of edifying." The announcements +made to our first parents will continue to impart spiritual refreshment +to their posterity of the latest generations; and the believer can now +give utterance to his devotional feelings in the language of the Psalms, +as appropriately as could the worshipper of old, when surrounded by all +the types and shadows of the Levitical ceremonial. + +The Old Testament is related to the New as the dawn to the day, or the +prophecy to its accomplishment. Jesus appeared merely to consummate the +Redemption which "the promises made to the fathers" had announced. +"Think not," said he, "that I am come to destroy the law or the +prophets, I am not come to destroy but to fulfil." [189:1] The mission +of our Lord explained many things which had long remained mysterious; +and, in allusion to the great amount of fresh information thus +communicated, He is said to have "brought life and immortality to light +through the gospel." [189:2] + +When the apostles first became disciples of the Son of Mary, their views +were certainly very indefinite and circumscribed. Acting under the +influence of strong attachment to the Wonderful Personage who exhibited +such wisdom and performed so many mighty works, they promptly obeyed the +invitation to come and follow Him; and yet when required to tell who was +this Great Teacher to whom they were attached by the charm of such a +holy yet mysterious fascination, they could do little more than declare +their conviction that Jesus was THE CHRIST. [189:3] They knew, indeed, +that the Messiah, or the Great Prophet, was to be a redeemer, and a +King; [189:4] but they did not understand how their lowly Master was to +establish His title to such high offices. [189:5] Though they "looked +for redemption," and "waited for the kingdom of God," [189:6] there was +much that was vague, as well as much that was visionary, in their +notions of the Redemption and the Kingdom. We may well suppose that the +views of the multitude were still less correct and perspicuous. Some, +perhaps, expected that Christ, as a prophet, would decide the +ecclesiastical controversies of the age; [189:7] others, probably, +anticipated that, as a Redeemer, he would deliver His countrymen from +Roman domination; [189:8] whilst others again cherished the hope that, +as a King, he would erect in Judea a mighty monarchy. [189:9] The +expectation that he would assert the possession of temporal dominion was +long entertained even by those who had been taught to regard Him as a +spiritual Saviour. [190:1] + +During the interval between the resurrection and ascension, the apostles +profited greatly by the teaching of our Lord. "Then opened He their +understanding that they might understand the Scriptures," [190:2] +shewing that all things were "fulfilled which were written in the law of +Moses, and in the Prophets, and in the Psalms" [190:3] concerning Him. +The true nature of Christ's Kingdom was now fully disclosed to them; +they saw that the history of Jesus was embodied in the ancient +predictions; and thus their ideas were brought into harmony with the +revelations of the Old Testament. On the day of Pentecost they, +doubtless, received additional illumination; and thus, maturely +qualified for the duties of their apostleship, they began to publish the +great salvation. Even afterwards, their knowledge continued to expand; +for they had yet to be taught that the Gentiles also were heirs of the +Kingdom of Heaven; [190:4] that uncircumcised believers were to be +admitted to all the privileges of ecclesiastical fellowship; [190:5] and +that the ceremonial law had ceased to be obligatory. [190:6] + +We do not require, however, to trace the progress of enlightenment in +the minds of the original heralds of the gospel, that we may ascertain +the doctrine of the Apostolic Church; for in the New Testament we have a +complete and unerring exposition of the faith delivered to the saints. +We have seen that, with a few comparatively trivial exceptions, all the +documents dictated by the apostles and evangelists were at once +recognised as inspired, [190:7] so that in them, combined with the +Jewish Scriptures, we have a perfect ecclesiastical statute-book. The +doctrine set forth in the New Testament was cordially embraced in the +first century by all genuine believers. And it cannot be too +emphatically inculcated that _the written Word_ was of paramount +authority among the primitive Christians. The Israelites had traditions +which they professed to have received from Moses; but our Lord +repudiated these fables, and asserted the supremacy of the book of +inspiration. [191:1] In His own discourses He honoured the Scriptures by +continually quoting from them; [191:2] and He commanded the Jews to +refer to them as the only sure arbiters of his pretensions. [191:3] The +apostles followed His example. More than one-half of the sermon preached +by Peter on the day of Pentecost consisted of passages selected from the +Old Testament. [191:4] The Scriptures, too, inculcate, not only their +claims as standards of ultimate appeal, but also their sufficiency to +meet all the wants of the faithful; for they are said to be "able to +make wise unto salvation," [191:5] and to be "profitable for doctrine, +for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the +man of God may be _perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works_." +[191:6] The sacred records teach, with equal clearness, their own +plenary inspiration. Each writer has his peculiarities of style, and yet +each uses language which the Holy Spirit dictates. In the New Testament +a single word is more than once made the basis of an argument; [191:7] +and doctrines are repeatedly established by a critical examination of +particular forms of expression, [191:8] When statements advanced by +Moses, or David, or Isaiah, are adduced, they are often prefaced with +the intimation that thus "the Holy Ghost saith," [191:9] or thus "it is +spoken of the Lord." [191:10] The apostles plainly aver that they employ +language of infallible authority. "We speak," says Paul, "_in the +words_ which the Holy Ghost teacheth," [192:1] "All Scripture is given +by inspiration of God." [192:2] + +It is of unutterable importance that the Scriptures are the very word of +the Lord, for they relate to our highest interests, and were they of +less authority, they could not command our entire confidence. The +momentous truths which they reveal are in every way worthy to be +recorded in memorials given by inspiration of God. Under the ancient +economy the sinner was assured of a Redeemer; [192:3] and intimations +were not wanting that his deliverance would be wrought out in a way +which would excite the wonder of the whole intelligent creation; [192:4] +but the New Testament uplifts the veil, and sheds a glorious radiance +over the revelation of mercy. According to the doctrine of the Apostolic +Church the human race are at once "guilty before God," [192:5] and "dead +in trespasses and sins;" [192:6] and as Christ in the days of His flesh +called forth Lazarus from the tomb, and made him a monument of His +wonder-working power, so by His word He still awakens dead sinners and +calls them with an holy calling, that they may be trophies of His grace +throughout all eternity. And as the restoration of hearing is an +evidence of the restoration of life, so the reception of the word by +faith is a sure token of spiritual vitality. "_He that heareth my +word_," said Christ, "and believeth on Him that sent me, hath +everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation, but _is passed +from death unto life_." [192:7] + +Faith is to the soul of the believer what the living organs are to his +body. It is the ear, the eye, the hand, and the palate of the spiritual +man. By faith he hears the voice of the Son of God; [192:8] by faith he +sees Him who is invisible; [192:9] by faith he looks unto Jesus; [193:1] +by faith he lays hold upon the Hope set before him; [193:2] and by faith +he tastes that the Lord is gracious. [193:3] All the promises are +addressed to faith; and by faith they are appropriated and enjoyed. By +faith the believer is pardoned, [193:4] sanctified, [193:5] sustained, +[193:6] and comforted. [193:7] Faith is the substance of things hoped +for, the evidence of things not seen; [193:8] for it enables us to +anticipate the happiness of heaven, and to realize the truth of God. + +The word of the Lord is to the faith of the Christian what the material +world is to his bodily senses. As the eye gazes with delight on the +magnificent scenery of creation, the eye of faith contemplates with joy +unspeakable the exceedingly great and precious promises. And as the eye +can look with pleasure only on those objects which it sees, faith can +rest with satisfaction only on those things which are written in the +book of God's testimony. It has been "written that we might believe that +Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing we might have +life through his name." [193:9] + +The Scriptures are not to be regarded as a storehouse of facts, +promises, and precepts, without relation or dependency; but a volume in +which may be found a collection of glorious truths, all forming one +great and well-balanced system. Every part of revelation refers to the +Redeemer; and His earthly history is the key by means of which its +various announcements may be illustrated and harmonized. In the theology +of the New Testament Christ is indeed the "All in all." In addition to +many other illustrious titles which He bears, He is represented as "the +Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world," [193:10] "the End +of the Law for righteousness to every one that believeth," [193:11] "the +Head of the Church," [194:1] the "King of kings," [194:2] and "the Hope +of glory." [194:3] During His public ministry He performed miracles such +as had been previously understood to mark the peculiar energy of +Omnipotence; for He opened the eyes of the blind; [194:4] He walked upon +the waves of the sea; [194:5] He made the storm a calm; [194:6] and He +declared to man what was his thought. [194:7] In His capacity of Saviour +He exercises attributes which are essentially divine; as He redeems from +all iniquity, [194:8] and pardons sin, [194:9] and sanctifies the +Church, [194:10] and opens the heart, [194:11] and searches the reins. +[194:12] Had Jesus of Nazareth failed to assert His divine dignity, the +credentials of His mission would have been incomplete, for the Messiah +of the Old Testament is no other than the Monarch of the universe. +Nothing can be more obvious than that the ancient prophets invest Him +with the various titles and attributes of Deity. He is called "the +Lord," [194:13] "Jehovah," [194:14] and "God;" [194:15] He is +represented as the object of worship; [194:16] He is set forth as the +King's Son who shall daily be praised; [194:17] and He is exhibited as +an Almighty and Eternal Friend in whom all that put their trust are +blessed. [194:18] + +During the public ministry of our Lord the Twelve do not seem to have +been altogether ignorant of His exalted dignity; [194:19] and yet the +most decisive attestations to His Godhead do not occur until after His +resurrection. [194:20] When the apostles surveyed the humble individual +with whom they were in daily intercourse, it is not extraordinary that +their faith faltered, and that their powers of apprehension failed, as +they pondered the prophecies relating to His advent. When they attempted +closely to grapple with the amazing truths there presented to their +contemplation, and thought of "the Word made flesh," well might they be +overwhelmed with a feeling of giddy and dubious wonder. Even after the +resurrection had illustrated so marvellously the announcements of the +Old Testament, the disciples still continued to regard them with a +species of bewilderment; and our Saviour himself found it necessary to +point out in detail their meaning and their fulfilment. "Beginning at +Moses and all the prophets he expounded to them in all the Scriptures +the things concerning himself." [195:1] The whole truth as to the glory +of His person now flashed upon their minds, and henceforth they do not +scruple to apply to Him all the lofty titles bestowed of old on the +Messiah. The writers of the New Testament say expressly that "Jesus is +the Lord," [195:2] and "God blessed for ever;" [195:3] they describe +believers as trusting in Him, [195:4] as serving Him, [195:5] and as +calling upon His name; [195:6] and they tell of saints and angels, +uniting in the celebration of His praise. [195:7] Such testimonies leave +no doubt as to their ideas of His dignity. Divine incarnations were +recognised in the heathen mythology, so that the Gentiles could not well +object to the doctrine of the assumption of our nature by the Son of +God; but Christianity asserts its immense superiority to paganism in its +account of the design of the union of humanity and Deity in the person +of the Redeemer. According to the poets of Greece and Rome, the gods +often adopted material forms for the vilest of purposes; but the Lord of +glory was made partaker of our flesh and blood, [196:1] that He might +satisfy the claims of eternal justice, and purchase for us a happy and +immortal inheritance. In the cross of Christ sin appears "exceedingly +sinful," and the divine law has been more signally honoured by His +sufferings than if all men of all generations had for ever groaned under +its chastisements. The Jewish ritual must have made the apostles +perfectly familiar with the doctrine of atonement; but they were "slow +of heart to believe" that their Master was Himself the Mighty Sacrifice +represented in the types of the Mosaic ceremonial [196:2] The evangelist +informs us that He expounded this subject after His resurrection, +shewing them that "thus it behoved Christ to suffer." [196:3] Still, the +crucifixion of the Saviour was to multitudes a "rock of offence." The +ambitious Israelite, who expected that the Messiah would go forth +conquering and to conquer, and that He would make Palestine the seat of +universal empire, could not brook the thought that the Great Deliverer +was to die; and the learned Greek, who looked upon all religion with no +little scepticism, was prepared to ridicule the idea of the burial of +the Son of God; but the very circumstance which awakened such +prejudices, suggested to those possessed of spiritual discernment +discoveries of stupendous grandeur. Justice demands the punishment of +transgressors; mercy pleads for their forgiveness: holiness requires the +execution of God's threatenings; goodness insists on the fulfilment of +His promises: and all these attributes are harmonized in the doctrine of +a Saviour sacrificed. God is "just, and the justifier of him which, +believeth in Jesus." [196:4] The Son of Man "by his own blood obtained +eternal redemption" [197:1] for His Church; "mercy and truth meet +together" in His expiation; and His death is thus the central point to +which the eye of faith is now directed. Hence Paul says--"We preach +Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling-block, and unto the Greeks +foolishness; but unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, +Christ, the power of God, and the wisdom of God." [197:2] + +The doctrine of the Apostolic Church is simple and consistent, as well +as spiritual and sublime. The way of redemption it discloses is not an +extempore provision of Supreme benevolence called forth by an unforeseen +contingency, but a plan devised from eternity, and fitted to display all +the divine perfections in most impressive combination. Whilst it +recognises the voluntary agency of man, it upholds the sovereignty of +God. Jehovah graciously secures the salvation of every heir of the +promises by both contriving and carrying out all the arrangements of the +"well ordered covenant." His Spirit quickens the dead soul, and works in +us "to will and to do of His good pleasure." [197:3] "The Father hath +chosen us in Christ before the foundation of the world, that we should +be holy and without blame before him in love; having predestinated us +unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to +the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of the glory of his grace, +wherein he hath made us accepted in the Beloved." [197:4] + +The theological term Trinity was not in use in the days of the apostles, +but it does not follow that the doctrine now so designated was then +unknown; for the New Testament clearly indicates that the Father, the +Son, and the Holy Ghost exist in the unity of the Godhead. [197:5] +Neither can it be inferred from the absence of any fixed formula of +doctrine that the early followers of our Lord did not all profess the +same sentiments, for they had "one Lord, one faith, one baptism." +[198:1] The document commonly called "the Apostles' Creed" is certainly +of very great antiquity, but no part of it proceeded from those to whom +it is attributed by its title; [198:2] and its rather bald and dry +detail of facts and principles obviously betokens a decline from the +simple and earnest spirit of primitive Christianity. Though the early +converts, before baptism, made a declaration of their faith, [198:3] +there is in the sacred volume no authorised summary of doctrinal belief; +and in this fact we have a proof of the far-seeing wisdom by which the +New Testament was dictated; as heresy is ever changing its features, and +a test of orthodoxy, suited to the wants of one age, would not exclude +the errorists of another. It has been left to the existing rulers of the +Church to frame such ecclesiastical symbols as circumstances require; +and it is a striking evidence of the perfection of the Bible that it has +been found capable of furnishing an antidote to every form of heterodoxy +which has ever appeared. + +It may be added that the doctrine of the Apostolic Church is eminently +practical. The great object of the mission of Jesus was to "save His +people from their sins;" [198:4] and the tendency of all the teachings +of the New Testament is to promote sanctification. But the holiness of +the gospel is not a shy asceticism which sits in a cloister in moody +melancholy, so that its light never shines before men; but a generous +consecration of the heart to God, which leads us to confess Christ in +the presence of gainsayers, and which prompts us to delight in works of +benevolence. The true Christian should be happy as well as holy; for the +knowledge of the highest truth is connected with the purest enjoyment. +This "wisdom is better than rubies, and all the things that may be +desired are not to be compared to it." [199:1] The Apostle Paul, when a +prisoner at Rome, had comforts to which Nero was an utter stranger. Even +then he could say--"I have learned in whatsoever state I am therewith to +be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound; +everywhere and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be +hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through +Christ which strengtheneth me." [199:2] When all around the believer may +be dark and discouraging, there may be sunshine in his soul. There are +no joys comparable to the joys of a Christian. They are the gifts of the +Spirit of God, and the first-fruits of eternal blessedness; they are +serene and heavenly, solid and satisfying. + + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE HERESIES OF THE APOSTOLIC AGE. + + +The Greek word translated _heresy_ [200:1] in our authorised version of +the New Testament, did not primarily convey an unfavourable idea. It +simply denoted a _choice_ or _preference_. It was often employed to +indicate the adoption of a particular class of philosophical sentiments; +and thus it came to signify a _sect_ or _denomination_. Hence we find +ancient writers speaking of the _heresy_ of the Stoics, the _heresy_ +of +the Epicureans, and the _heresy_ of the Academics. The Jews who used the +Greek language did not consider that the word necessarily reflected on +the party it was intended to describe; and Josephus, who was himself a +Pharisee, accordingly discourses of the three heresies of the Pharisees, +the Sadducees, and the Essenes. [200:2] The Apostle Paul, when speaking +of his own history prior to his conversion, says, that "after the +strictest heresy" of his religion he lived a Pharisee. [200:3] We learn, +too, from the book of the Acts, that the early Christians were known as +"the heresy of the Nazarenes." [200:4] But very soon the word began to +be employed to denote something which the gospel could not sanction; and +accordingly, in the Epistle to the Galatians, heresies are enumerated +among the works of the flesh. [200:5] It is not difficult to explain why +Christian writers at an early date were led to attach such a meaning to +a term which had hitherto been understood to imply nothing +reprehensible. The New Testament teaches us to regard an erroneous +theology as sinful, and traces every deviation from "the one faith" of +the gospel to the corruption of a darkened intellect. [201:1] It +declares--"He that believeth not is _condemned already_, because he hath +not believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God; and this is +the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved +darkness rather than light, _because their deeds were evil_." [201:2] +Thus it was that the most ancient ecclesiastical authors described all +classes of unbelievers, sceptics, and innovators, under the general name +of heretics. Persons who in matters of religion made a _false choice_, +of whatever kind, were viewed as "vainly puffed up by a fleshly mind," +or as under the influence of some species of mental depravity. + +It thus appears that heresy, in the first century, denoted every +deviation from the Christian faith. Pagans and Jews, as well as +professors of apocryphal forms of the gospel, were called heretics. +[201:3] But in the New Testament our attention is directed chiefly to +errorists who in some way disturbed the Church, and adulterated the +doctrine taught by our Lord and His apostles. Paul refers to such +characters when he says--"A man that is an heretic, after the first and +second admonition, reject;" [201:4] and Peter also alludes to them when +he speaks of false teachers who were to appear and "privily bring in +damnable heresies." [201:5] + +The earliest corrupters of the gospel were unquestionably those who +endeavoured to impose the observance of the Mosaic law on the converted +Gentiles. Their proceedings were condemned in the Council of Jerusalem, +mentioned in the fifteenth chapter of the Acts of the Apostles; and +Paul, in his letter to the Galatians, subsequently exposed their +infatuation. But evangelical truth had, perhaps, more to fear from +dilution with the speculations of the Jewish and pagan literati. [202:1] +The apostle had this evil in view when he said to the Colossians-- +"Beware lest any man spoil you through _philosophy_ and vain +deceit, after the tradition of men, after the _rudiments of the world_, +and not after Christ." [202:2] He likewise emphatically attested the +danger to be apprehended from it when he addressed to his own son in the +faith the impassioned admonition--"O Timothy, keep that which is +committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and +_oppositions of science_ falsely so called." [202:3] + +There is no reason to doubt that the "science" or "philosophy" of which +Paul was so anxious that the disciples should beware, was the same which +was afterwards so well known by the designation of _Gnosticism_. The +second century was the period of its most vigorous development, and it +then, for a time, almost engrossed the attention of the Church; but it +was already beginning to exert a pernicious influence, and it is +therefore noticed by the vigilant apostle. Whilst it acknowledged, to a +certain extent, the authority of the Christian revelation, it also +borrowed largely from Platonism; and, in a spirit of accommodation to +the system of the Athenian sage, it rejected some of the leading +doctrines of the gospel. Plato never seems to have entertained the +sublime conception of the creation of all things out of nothing by the +word of the Most High. He held that matter is essentially evil, and that +it existed from eternity. [202:4] The false teachers who disturbed the +Church in the apostolic age adopted both these views; and the errors +which they propagated and of which the New Testament takes notice, +flowed from their unsound philosophy by direct and necessary +consequence. As a right understanding of certain passages of Scripture +depends on an acquaintance with their system, it may here be expedient +to advert somewhat more particularly to a few of its peculiar features. + +The Gnostics alleged that the present world owes neither its origin nor +its arrangement to the Supreme God. They maintained that its constituent +parts have been always in existence; and that, as the great Father of +Lights would have been contaminated by contact with corrupt matter, the +visible frame of things was fashioned, without His knowledge, by an +inferior Intelligence. These principles obviously derogated from the +glory of Jehovah. By ascribing to matter an independent and eternal +existence, they impugned the doctrine of God's Omnipotent Sovereignty; +and by representing it as regulated without His sanction by a spiritual +agent of a lower rank, they denied His Universal Providence. The +apostle, therefore, felt it necessary to enter his protest against all +such cosmogonies. He declared that Jehovah alone, as Father, Son, and +Holy Ghost, existed from eternity; and that all things spiritual and +material arose out of nothing in obedience to the word of the second +person of the Godhead. "By Him," says he, "were all things _created_, +that are in heaven and that are in earth, _visible and invisible_, +whether they be thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all +things were created by Him and for Him, and He is _before all things_, +and by Him _all things consist_." [203:1] + +The philosophical system of the Gnostics also led them to adopt false +views respecting the _body of Christ_. As, according to their theory, +the Messiah appeared to deliver men from the bondage of evil matter, +they could not consistently acknowledge that He himself inhabited an +earthly tabernacle. They refused to admit that our Lord was born of a +human parent; and, as they asserted that He had a body only in +appearance, or that His visible form as man was in reality a phantom, +they were at length known by the title of Docetae. [204:1] The Apostle +John repeatedly attests the folly and the danger of such speculations. +"The Word," says he, "was _made flesh_ and dwelt among us. [204:2] ... +Every spirit that _confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the +flesh_ is not of God. [204:3] ... That which was from the beginning, +which we have _heard_, which we have _seen_ with our eyes, which we have +_looked upon_, and _our hands have handled_ of the Word of Life ... +declare we unto you. [204:4] ... _Many deceivers_ are entered into the +world who confess not that _Jesus Christ is come in the flesh_." [204:5] + +Reasoning from the principle that evil is inherent in matter, the +Gnostics believed the union of the soul and the body to be a calamity. +According to their views the spiritual being can never attain the +perfection of which he is susceptible so long as he remains connected +with his present corporeal organization. Hence they rejected the +doctrine of the resurrection of the body. When Paul asks the +Corinthians--"How say some among you that there is no resurrection of +the dead?" [204:6]--he alludes to the Gnostic denial of this article of +the Christian theology. He also refers to the same circumstance when he +denounces the "profane and vain babblings" of those who "concerning the +truth" had erred, "saying that the resurrection is past already." +[204:7] These heretics, it would appear, maintained that an introduction +to their _Gnosis_, or knowledge, was the only genuine deliverance from +the dominion of death; and argued accordingly that, in the case of those +who had been initiated into the mysteries of their system, the +resurrection was "past already." + +The ancient Christian writers concur in stating that Simon, mentioned in +the Acts of the Apostles, [205:1] and commonly called Simon Magus, was +the father of the sects of the Gnostics. [205:2] He was a Samaritan by +birth, and after the rebuke he received from Peter, [205:3] he is +reported to have withdrawn from the Church, and to have concocted a +theology of his own, into which he imported some elements borrowed from +Christianity. At a subsequent period he travelled to Rome, where he +attracted attention by the novelty of his creed, and the boldness of his +pretensions. We are told that, prior to his baptism by Philip, he "had +used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that +himself was some great one;" [205:4] and subsequently he seems to have +pursued a similar career. According to a very early authority, nearly +all the inhabitants of his native country, and a few persons in other +districts, worshipped him as the first or supreme God. [205:5] There is, +probably, some exaggeration in this statement; but there seems no reason +to doubt that he laid claim to extraordinary powers, maintaining that +the same spirit which had been imparted to Jesus, had descended on +himself. He is also said to have denied that our Lord had a real body. +Some, who did not enrol themselves under his standard, soon partially +adopted his principles; and there is cause to think that Hymenaeus, +Philetus, Alexander, Phygellus, and Hermogenes, mentioned in the New +Testament, [205:6] were all more or less tinctured with the spirit of +Gnosticism. Other heresiarchs, not named in the sacred record, are known +to have flourished towards the close of the first century. Of these the +most famous were Carpocrates, Cerinthus, and Ebion. [206:1] There is a +tradition that John, "the beloved disciple," came in contact with +Cerinthus, when going into a bath at Ephesus, and retired abruptly from +the place, that he might not compromise himself by remaining in the same +building with such an enemy of the Christian revelation. [206:2] It is +also stated that the same apostle's testimony to the dignity of the +Word, in the beginning of his Gospel, was designed as an antidote to the +errors of this heresiarch. [206:3] + +When the gospel exerts its proper influence on the character it produces +an enlightened, genial, and consistent piety; but a false faith is apt +to lead, in practice, to one of two extremes, either the asceticism of +the Essene, or the sensualism of the Sadducee. Gnosticism developed +itself in both these directions. Some of its advocates maintained that, +as matter is essentially evil, the corrupt propensities of the body +should be kept in constant subjection by a life of rigorous +mortification; others held that, as the principle of evil is inherent in +the corporeal frame, the malady is beyond the reach of cure, and that, +therefore, the animal nature should be permitted freely to indulge its +peculiar appetites. To the latter party, as some think, belonged the +Nicolaitanes noticed by John in the Apocalypse. [206:4] They are said to +have derived their name from Nicolas, one of the seven deacons ordained +by the apostles; [206:5] and to have been a class of Gnostics noted for +their licentiousness. The origin of the designation may, perhaps, admit +of some dispute; but it is certain that those to whom it was applied +were alike lax in principle and dissolute in practice, for the Spirit of +God has declared His abhorrence as well of the "_doctrine_," as of "the +_deeds_ of the Nicolaitanes." [207:1] + +Though the Jews, at the time of the appearance of our Lord, were so much +divided in sentiment, and though the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the +Essenes, had each their theological peculiarities, their sectarianism +did not involve any complete severance or separation. Notwithstanding +their differences of creed, the Pharisees and Sadducees sat together in +the Sanhedrim, [207:2] and worshipped together in the temple. All the +seed of Abraham constituted one Church, and congregated in the same +sacred courts to celebrate the great festivals. In the Christian Church, +in the days of the apostles, there was something approaching to the same +outward unity. Though, for instance, there were so many parties among +the Corinthians--though one said, I am of Paul, and another I am of +Apollos, and another I am of Cephas, and another I am of Christ--all +assembled in the same place to join in the same worship, and to partake +of the same Eucharist. Those who withdrew from the disciples with whom +they had been previously associated, appear generally to have +relinquished altogether the profession of Christianity. [207:3] Some, at +least, of the Gnostics acted very differently. When danger appeared they +were inclined to temporize, and to discontinue their attendance on the +worship of the Church; but they were desirous to remain still nominally +connected with the great body of believers. [207:4] Any form of alliance +with such dangerous errorists was, however, considered a cause of +scandal; and the inspired teachers of the gospel insisted on their +exclusion from ecclesiastical fellowship. Hence Paul declares that he +had delivered Hymenaeus and Alexander "unto Satan" that they might learn +"not to blaspheme;" [208:1] and John upbraids the Church in Pergamos +because it retained in its communion "them that held the doctrine of the +Nicolaitanes." [208:2] During the first century the Gnostics seem to +have been unable to create anything like a schism among those who had +embraced Christianity. Whilst the apostles lived the "science falsely so +called" could not pretend to a divine sanction; and though here and +there they displayed considerable activity in the dissemination of their +principles, they were sternly and effectually discountenanced. It is +accordingly stated by one of the earliest ecclesiastical writers that, +in the time of Simeon of Jerusalem, who finished his career in the +beginning of the second century, "they called the Church as yet a +virgin, inasmuch as it was not yet corrupted by vain discourses." +[208:3] Other writers concur in bearing testimony to the fact that, +whilst the apostles were on earth, false teachers failed "to divide the +unity" of the Christian commonwealth, "by the introduction of corrupt +doctrines." [208:4] + +The gospel affords scope for the healthful and vigorous exercise of the +human understanding, and it is itself the highest and the purest wisdom. +It likewise supplies a test for ascertaining the state of the heart. +Those who receive it with faith unfeigned will delight to meditate on +its wonderful discoveries; but those who are unrenewed in the spirit of +their minds will render to it only a doubtful submission, and will +pervert its plainest announcements. The apostle therefore says--"There +must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be +made manifest among you." [208:5] The heretic is made manifest alike by +his deviations from the doctrines and the precepts of revelation. His +creed does not exhibit the consistency of truth, and his life fails to +display the beauty of holiness. Bible Christianity is neither +superstitious nor sceptical, neither austere nor sensual. "The wisdom +that is from above is _first pure,_ then peaceable, gentle, and easy to +be intreated, _full of mercy and good fruits_, without partiality and +without hypocrisy." [209:1] + + + + + + SECTION III. + + THE WORSHIP AND CONSTITUTION OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE LORD'S DAY--THE WORSHIP OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH--ITS SYMBOLIC +ORDINANCES AND ITS DISCIPLINE. + + +To the primitive disciples the day on which our Lord rose from the grave +was a crisis of intense excitement. The crucifixion had cast a dismal +cloud over their prospects; for, immediately before, when He entered +Jerusalem amidst the hosannahs of the multitude, they had probably +anticipated that He was about to assert His sovereignty as the Messiah: +yet, when His body was committed to the tomb, they did not at once sink +into despair; and, though filled with anxiety, they ventured to indulge +a hope that the third day after His demise would be signalised by some +new revelation. [210:1] The report of those who were early at the +sepulchre at first inspired the residue of the disciples with wonder and +perplexity; [210:2] but, as the proofs of His resurrection multiplied, +they became confident and joyful. Ever afterwards the first day of the +week was observed by them as the season of holy convocation. [211:1] +Those members of the Apostolic Church who had been originally Jews, +continued for some time to meet together also on the Saturday; but, what +was called "The Lord's Day," [211:2] was regarded by all as sacred to +Christ. + +It has often been asserted that, during His own ministry, our Saviour +encouraged His disciples to violate the Sabbath, and thus prepared the +way for its abolition. But this theory is as destitute of foundation as +it is dangerous to morality. Even the ceremonial law continued to be +binding until Jesus expired upon the cross; and meanwhile He no doubt +felt it to be His duty to attend to every jot and tittle of its +appointments. [211:3] Thus, it became Him "to fulfil all righteousness." +[211:4] He is at pains to shew that the acts of which the Pharisees +complained as breaches of the Sabbath could be vindicated by Old +Testament authority; [211:5] and that these formalists "condemned _the +guiltless,"_ [211:6] when they denounced the disciples as doing that +which was unlawful. Jesus never transgressed either the letter or the +spirit of any commandment pertaining to the holy rest; but superstition +had added to the written law a multitude of minute observances; and +every Israelite was at perfect liberty to neglect any or all of these +frivolous regulations. + +The Great Teacher never intimated that the Sabbath was a ceremonial +ordinance which was to cease with the Mosaic ritual. It was instituted +when our first parents were in Paradise; [211:7] and the precept +enjoining its remembrance, being a portion of the Decalogue, [212:1] is +of perpetual obligation. Hence, instead of regarding it as a merely +Jewish institution, Christ declares that it "was made for MAN," [212:2] +or, in other words, that it was designed for the benefit of the whole +human family. Instead of anticipating its extinction along with the +ceremonial law, He speaks of its existence after the downfal of +Jerusalem. When He announces the calamities connected with the ruin of +the holy city, He instructs His followers to pray that the urgency of +the catastrophe may not deprive them of the comfort of the ordinances of +the sacred rest. "Pray ye," said he, "that your flight be not in the +winter, _neither on the Sabbath-day_." [212:3] And the prophet Isaiah, +when describing the ingathering of the Gentiles and the glory of the +Church in the times of the gospel, mentions the keeping of the Sabbath +as characteristic of the children of God. "The sons of the stranger," +says he, "that join themselves to the Lord to serve him, and to love the +name of the Lord, to be his servants, every one _that keepeth the +Sabbath from polluting it,_ and taketh hold of my covenant--even them I +will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of +prayer; their burnt-offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted +upon mine altar: [212:4] for mine house shall be called an house of +prayer _for all people._" [212:5] + +But when Jesus declared that "the Son of Man is Lord also of the +Sabbath," [212:6] He unquestionably asserted His right to alter the +circumstantials of its observance. He accordingly abolished its +ceremonial worship, gave it a new name, and changed the day of its +celebration. He signalised the first day of the week by then appearing +once and again to His disciples after His resurrection, [212:7] and by +that Pentecostal outpouring of the Spirit [213:1] which marks the +commencement of a new era in the history of redemption. As the Lord's +day was consecrated to the Lord's service, [213:2] the disciples did not +now neglect the assembling of themselves together; [213:3] and the +apostle commanded them at this holy season to set apart a portion of +their gains for religious purposes. [213:4] It was most fitting that the +first day of the week should be thus distinguished under the new +economy; for the deliverance of the Church is a more illustrious +achievement than the formation of the world; [213:5] and as the primeval +Sabbath commemorated the rest of the Creator, the Christian Sabbath +reminds us of the completion of the work of the Redeemer. "There +remaineth, therefore, the keeping of a Sabbath [213:6] to the people of +God, for he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his +own works, as God did from his." [213:7] + +As many of the converts from Judaism urged the circumcision of their +Gentile brethren, they were likewise disposed to insist on their +observance of the Hebrew festivals. The apostles, at least for a +considerable time, did not deem it expedient positively to forbid the +keeping of such days; but they required that, in matters of this nature, +every one should be left to his own discretion. "One man," says Paul, +"esteemeth one day above another; another esteemeth every day alike. Let +every man be fully persuaded in his own mind." [213:8] It is obvious +that the Lord's day is not included in this compromise; for from the +morning of the resurrection there appears to have been no dispute as to +its claims, and its very title attests the general recognition of its +authority. The apostle can refer only to days which were typical and +ceremonial. Hence he says elsewhere--"Let no man judge you in meat, or +in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the +Sabbath days--_which are a shadow of things to come, but the body is of +Christ_." [214:1] + +Though the New Testament furnishes no full and circumstantial +description of the worship of the Christian Church, it makes such +incidental allusions to its various parts, as enable us to form a pretty +accurate idea of its general character. Like the worship of the +synagogue [214:2] it consisted of prayer, singing, reading the +Scriptures, and expounding or preaching. Those who joined the Church, +for several years after it was first organized, were almost exclusively +converts from Judaism, and when they embraced the Christian faith, they +retained the order of religious service to which they had been hitherto +accustomed; but by the recognition of Jesus Christ as the Messiah of +whom the law and the prophets testified, their old forms were inspired +with new life and significance. At first the heathen did not challenge +the distinction between the worship of the synagogue and the Church; and +thus it was, as has already been intimated, that for a considerable +portion of the first century, the Christians and the Jews were +frequently confounded. + +It has often been asserted, that the Jews had a liturgy when our Lord +ministered in their synagogues; but the proof adduced in support of this +statement is far from satisfactory; and their prayers which are still +extant, and which are said to have been then in use, must obviously have +been written after the destruction of Jerusalem. [215:1] It is, however, +certain that the Christians in the apostolic age were not restricted to +any particular forms of devotion. The liturgies ascribed to Mark, James, +and others, are unquestionably the fabrications of later times; [215:2] +and had any of the inspired teachers of the gospel composed a book of +common prayer, it would, of course, have been received into the canon of +the New Testament. Our Lord taught His disciples to pray, and supplied +them with a model to guide them in their devotional exercises; [215:3] +but there is no evidence whatever that, in their stated services, they +constantly employed the language of that beautiful and comprehensive +formulary. The very idea of a liturgy was altogether alien to the spirit +of the primitive believers. They were commanded to give thanks "in +everything," [215:4] to pray "always _with all prayer and supplication_ +in the spirit," [215:5] and to watch thereunto "with all perseverance +and supplication _for all saints_;" [215:6] and had they been limited to +a form, they would have found it impossible to comply with these +admonitions. Their prayers were dictated by the occasion, and varied +according to passing circumstances. Some of them which have been +recorded, [215:7] had a special reference to the occurrences of the day, +and could not have well admitted of repetition. In the apostolic age, +when the Spirit was poured out in such rich effusion on the Church, the +gift, as well as the grace, of prayer was imparted abundantly, so that a +liturgy would have been deemed superfluous, if not directly calculated +to freeze the genial current of devotion. + +Singing, in which none but Levites were permitted to unite, [216:1] and +which was accompanied by instrumental music, constituted a prominent +part of the temple service. The singers occupied an elevated platform +adjoining the court of the priests; [216:2] and it is somewhat doubtful +whether, in that position, they were distinctly heard by the majority of +the worshippers within the sacred precincts. [216:3] As the sacrifices, +offerings, and other observances of the temple, as well as the priests, +the vestments, and even the building itself, had an emblematic meaning, +[216:4] it would appear that the singing, intermingled with the music of +various instruments of sound, was also typical and ceremonial. It seems +to have indicated that the tongue of man cannot sufficiently express the +praise of the King Eternal, and that all things, animate and inanimate, +owe Him a revenue of glory. The worship of the synagogue was more +simple. Its officers had, indeed, trumpets and cornets, with which they +published their sentences of excommunication, and announced the new +year, the fasts, and the Sabbath; [216:5] but they did not introduce +instrumental music into their congregational services. The early +Christians followed the example of the synagogue; and when they +celebrated the praises of God "in psalms, and hymns, and spiritual +songs," [216:6] their melody was "the fruit of the lips." [216:7] For +many centuries after this period, the use of instrumental music was +unknown in the Church. [217:1] + +The Jews divided the Pentateuch and the writings of the Prophets into +sections, one of which was read every Sabbath in the synagogue; [217:2] +and thus, in the place set apart to the service of the God of Israel, +His own will was constantly proclaimed. The Christians bestowed equal +honour on the holy oracles; for in their solemn assemblies, the reading +of the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament formed a part of their +stated worship. [217:3] At the close of this exercise, one or more of +the elders edified the congregation, either by giving a general +exposition of the passage read, or by insisting particularly on some +point of doctrine or duty which it obviously inculcated. If a prophet +was present, he, too, had now an opportunity of addressing the auditory. +[217:4] + +As apostolic Christianity aimed to impart light to the understanding, +its worship was uniformly conducted in the language of the people. It, +indeed, attested its divine origin by miracles, and it accordingly +enabled some to speak in tongues in which they had never been +instructed; but it permitted such individuals to exercise their gifts in +the church only when interpreters were present to translate their +communications. [217:5] Whilst the gift of tongues, possessed by so many +of the primitive disciples, must have attracted the attention of the +Gentile as well as of the Jewish literati, it must also have made a +powerful impression on the popular mind, more especially in large +cities; for in such places there were always foreigners to whom these +strange utterances would be perfectly intelligible, and for whom a +discourse delivered in the speech of their native country would have +peculiar charms. But in the worship of the primitive Christians there +was no attempt, in the way of embellishment or decoration, to captivate +the senses. The Church had no gorgeous temples, no fragrant incense, +[218:1] no splendid vestments. For probably the whole of the first +century, she celebrated her religious ordinances in private houses, +[218:2] and her ministers officiated in their ordinary costume. John, +the forerunner of our Saviour, "had his raiment of camel's hair, and a +leathern girdle about his loins;" [218:3] but perhaps few of the early +Christian preachers were arrayed in such coarse canonicals. + +The Founder of the Christian religion instituted only two symbolic +ordinances--Baptism and the Lord's Supper. [218:4] It is universally +admitted that, in the apostolic age, baptism was dispensed to all who +embraced the gospel; but it has been much disputed whether it was also +administered to the infant children of the converts. The testimony of +Scripture on the subject is not very explicit; for, as the ordinance was +in common use amongst the Jews, [218:5] a minute description of its mode +and subjects was, perhaps, deemed unnecessary by the apostles and +evangelists. When an adult heathen was received into the Church of +Israel, it is well known that the little children of the proselyte were +admitted along with him; [219:1] and as the Christian Scriptures _no +where forbid_ the dispensation of the rite to infants, it may be +presumed that the same practice was observed by the primitive ministers +of the gospel. This inference is emphatically corroborated by the fact +that, of the comparatively small number of passages in the New Testament +which treat of its administration, no less than _five_ refer to the +baptism of whole households. [219:2] It is also worthy of remark that +these five cases are not mentioned as rare or peculiar, but as ordinary +specimens of the method of apostolic procedure. It is not, indeed, +absolutely certain that there was an infant in any of these five +households; but it is, unquestionably, much more probable that they +contained a fair proportion of little children, than that every +individual in each of them had arrived at years of maturity, and that +all these adults, without exception, at once participated in the faith +of the head of the family, and became candidates for baptism. + +In the New Testament faith is represented as the grand qualification for +baptism; [219:3] but this principle obviously applies only to all who +are capable of believing; for in the Word of God faith is also +represented as necessary to salvation, [219:4] and yet it is generally +conceded that little children may be saved. Under the Jewish +dispensation infants were circumcised, and were thus recognised as +interested in the divine favour, so that, if they be excluded from the +rite of baptism, it follows that they occupy a worse position under a +milder and more glorious economy. But the New Testament forbids us to +adopt such an inference. It declares that infants should be "suffered to +come" to the Saviour; [219:5] it indicates that baptism supplies the +place of circumcision, for it connects the gospel institution with "the +circumcision of Christ;" [220:1] it speaks of children as "saints" and +as "in the Lord," [220:2] and, of course, as having received some +visible token of Church membership; and it assures them that their sins +are forgiven them "for His name's sake." [220:3] The New Testament does +not record a single case in which the offspring of Christian parents +were admitted to baptism on arriving at years of intelligence; but it +tells of the apostles exhorting the men of Judea to repent and to submit +to the ordinance, inasmuch as it was a privilege proffered to them and +_to their children_. [220:4] Nay more, Paul plainly teaches that the +seed of the righteous are entitled to the recognition of saintship; and +that, even when only one of the parents is a Christian, the offspring do +not on that account forfeit their ecclesiastical inheritance. "The +unbelieving husband," says he, "is sanctified by the wife, and the +unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband, else were your _children_ +unclean, but _now are they holy_." [220:5] This passage demonstrates +that the Apostolic Church recognised the holiness of infants, or in +other words, that it admitted them to baptism. + +The Scriptures furnish no very specific instructions as to the mode of +baptism; and it is probable that, in its administration, the primitive +heralds of the gospel did not adhere to a system of rigid uniformity. +[220:6] Some have asserted that the Greek word translated _baptize_, +[220:7] in our authorised version, always signifies _immerse_, but it +has been clearly shewn [221:1] that this statement is inaccurate, and +that baptism does not necessarily imply _dipping_. In ancient times, and +in the lands where the apostles laboured, bathing was perhaps as +frequently performed by _affusion_ as immersion; [221:2] and it may be +that the apostles varied their method of baptizing according to +circumstances. [221:3] The ordinance was intended to convey the idea of +_washing_ or purifying; and it is obvious that water may be applied, in +many ways, as the means of ablution. In the sacred volume _sprinkling_ +is often spoken of as equivalent to washing. [221:4] + +As baptism was designed to supersede the Jewish circumcision, the Lord's +Supper was intended to occupy the place of the Jewish Passover. [221:5] +The Paschal lamb could be sacrificed nowhere except in the temple of +Jerusalem, and the Passover was kept only once a year; but the Eucharist +could be dispensed wherever a Christian congregation was collected; and +at this period it seems to have been observed every first day of the +week, at least by the more zealous and devout worshippers. [221:6] The +wine, as well as the other element, was given to all who joined in its +celebration; and the title of the "Breaking of _Bread_," [221:7] one of +the names by which the ordinance was originally distinguished, supplies +evidence that the doctrine of transubstantiation was then utterly +unknown. The word _Sacrament_, as applied to Baptism and the Holy +Supper, was not in use in the days of the apostles, and the subsequent +introduction of this nomenclature, [222:1] probably contributed to throw +an air of mystery around these institutions. The primitive disciples +considered the elements employed in them simply as signs and seals of +spiritual blessings; and they had no more idea of regarding the bread in +the Eucharist as the real body of our Saviour, than they had of +believing that the water of baptism is the very blood in which He washed +His people from their sins. They knew that they enjoyed the light of His +countenance in prayer, in meditation, and in the hearing of His Word; +and that He was not otherwise present in these symbolic ordinances. + +Whilst, in the Lord's Supper, believers hold fellowship with Christ, +they also maintain and exhibit their communion with each other. "We, +being many," says Paul, "are one bread and one body, for we are all +partakers of that one bread." [222:2] Those who joined together in the +observance of this holy institution were thereby pledged to mutual love; +but every one who acted in such a way as to bring reproach upon the +Christian name, was no longer admitted to the sacred table. Paul, +doubtless, refers to exclusion from this ordinance, as well as from +intimate civil intercourse, when he says to the Corinthians--"I have +written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a +brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a +drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat." [222:3] + +In the synagogue all cases of discipline were decided by the bench of +elders; [222:4] and it is plain, from the New Testament, that those who +occupied a corresponding position in the Christian Church, also +exercised similar authority. They are described as having the oversight +of the flock, [222:5] as bearing rule, [223:1] as watching for souls, +[223:2] and as taking care of the Church of God. [223:3] They are +instructed how to deal with offenders, [223:4] and they are said to be +entitled to obedience. [223:5] Such representations obviously imply that +they were intrusted with the administration of ecclesiastical +discipline. + +This account of the functions of the spiritual rulers has been supposed +by some to be inconsistent with several statements in the apostolic +epistles. It has been alleged that, according to these letters, the +administration of discipline was vested in the whole body of the people; +and that originally the members of the Church, in their collective +capacity, exercised the right of excommunication. The language of Paul, +in reference to a case of scandal which had occurred among the +Christians of Corinth, has been often quoted in proof of the democratic +character of their ecclesiastical constitution. "It is reported +commonly," says the apostle, "that there is fornication, among you, and +such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one +should have his father's wife..... Therefore _put away from among +yourselves that wicked person_." [223:6] The admonition was obeyed, and +the application of discipline seems to have produced a most salutary +impression upon the mind of the offender. In his next letter the apostle +accordingly alludes to this circumstance, and observes--"Sufficient to +such a man is this punishment, which was _inflicted of many_." [223:7] +These words have been frequently adduced to shew that the government of +the Corinthian Church was administered by the whole body of the +communicants. + +The various statements of Scripture, if rightly understood, must exactly +harmonize, and a closer investigation of the case of this transgressor +is all that is required to prove that he was not tried and condemned by +a tribunal composed of the whole mass of the members of the Church of +Corinth. His true history reveals facts of a very different character. +For reasons which it would, perhaps, be now in vain to hope fully to +explore, he seems to have been a favourite among his fellow-disciples; +many of them, prior to their conversion, had been grossly licentious; +and, it may be, that they continued to regard certain lusts of the flesh +with an eye of comparative indulgence. [224:1] Some of them probably +considered the conduct of this offender as only a legitimate exercise of +his Christian liberty; and they appear to have manifested a strong +inclination to shield him from ecclesiastical censure. Paul, therefore, +felt it necessary to address them in the language of indignant +expostulation. "_Ye are puffed up_," says he, "and have not rather +mourned that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among +you....._Your glorying is not good_. Know ye not that a little leaven +leaveneth the whole lump." [224:2] At the same time, as an apostle bound +to vindicate the reputation of the Church, and to enforce the rules of +ecclesiastical discipline, he solemnly announces his determination to +have the offender excommunicated. "I verily," says he, "as absent in +body, but present in spirit, _have judged_ already as though I were +present, concerning him that hath so done this deed, in the name of our +Lord Jesus Christ, _when ye are gathered together_, and my spirit, with +the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, _to deliver such an one unto Satan_ +for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the +day of the Lord Jesus." [224:3] To deliver any one to Satan is to expel +him from the Church, for whoever is not in the Church is in the world, +and "the whole world lieth in the wicked one." [224:4] This discipline +was designed to teach the fornicator to mortify his lusts, and it thus +aimed at the promotion of his highest interests; or, as the apostle +expresses it, he was to be excommunicated "for the destruction of the +flesh, [225:1] that the spirit might be saved in the day of the Lord +Jesus." It is obvious that the Church of Corinth was now in a state of +great disorder. A partisan spirit had crept in amongst its members; +[225:2] and it seems probable that those elders [225:3] who were anxious +to maintain wholesome discipline were opposed and overborne. The +fornicator had in some way contrived to make himself so popular that an +attempt at his expulsion would, it was feared, throw the whole society +into hopeless confusion. Under these circumstances Paul felt it +necessary to interpose, to assert his apostolic authority, and to insist +upon the maintenance of ecclesiastical order. Instead, however, of +consulting the people as to the course to be pursued, he peremptorily +delivers his _judgment_, and requires them to hold a solemn +assembly that they may listen to the public announcement [225:4] of a +sentence of excommunication. He, of course, expected that their rulers +would concur with him in this decision, and that one of them would +officially publish it when they were "gathered together." + +When the case is thus stated, it is easy to understand why the apostle +required all the disciples to "put away" from among themselves "that +wicked person." Had they continued to cherish the spirit which they had +recently displayed, they might either have encouraged the fornicator to +refuse submission to the sentence, or they might have rendered it +comparatively powerless. He therefore reminds them that they too should +seek to promote the purity of ecclesiastical fellowship; and that they +were bound to cooperate in carrying out a righteous discipline. They +were to cease to recognize this fallen disciple as a servant of Christ; +they were to withdraw themselves from his society; they were to decline +to meet him on the same terms, as heretofore, in social intercourse; and +they were not even to eat in his company. Thus would the reputation of +the Church be vindicated; for in this way it would be immediately known +to all who were without that he was no longer considered a member of the +brotherhood. + +The Corinthians were awakened to a sense of duty by this apostolic +letter, and acted up to its instructions. The result was most +satisfactory. When the offender, saw that he was cut off from the +Church, and that its members avoided his society, he was completely +humbled. The sentence of the apostle, or the eldership, if opposed or +neglected by the people, might have produced little impression; but "the +punishment which was inflicted of many"--the immediate and entire +abandonment of all connexion with him by the disciples at +Corinth--overwhelmed him with shame and terror. He felt as a man smitten +by the judgment of God; he renounced his sin; and he exhibited the most +unequivocal tokens of genuine contrition. In due time he was restored to +Church fellowship; and the apostle then exhorted his brethren to readmit +him to intercourse, and to treat him with kindness and confidence. "Ye +ought," says he, "rather to forgive him and comfort him, lest perhaps +such an one should be swallowed up with overmuch sorrow. Wherefore I +beseech you that ye would confirm your love toward him." [227:1] + +This case of the Corinthian fornicator has been recorded for the +admonition and guidance of believers in all generations. It teaches that +every member of a Christian Church is bound to use his best endeavours +to promote a pure communion; and that he is not guiltless if, prompted +by mistaken charity or considerations of selfishness, he is not prepared +to co-operate in the exclusion of false brethren. Many an immoral +minister has maintained his position, and has thus continued to bring +discredit on the gospel, simply because those who had witnessed his +misconduct were induced to suppress their testimony; and many a church +court has been prevented from enforcing discipline by the clamours or +intimidation of an ignorant and excited congregation. The command--"Put +away from among yourselves that wicked person," is addressed to the +people, as well as to the ministry; and all Christ's disciples should +feel that, in vindicating the honour of His name, they have a common +interest, and share a common responsibility. Every one cannot be a +member of a church court; but every one can aid in the preservation of +church discipline. He may supply information, or give evidence, or +encourage a healthy tone of public sentiment, or assist, by petition or +remonstrance, in quickening the zeal of lukewarm judicatories. And +discipline is never so influential as when it is known to be sustained +by the approving verdict of a pious and intelligent community. The +punishment "inflicted of many"--the withdrawal of the confidence and +countenance of a whole church--is a most impressive admonition to a +proud sinner. + +In the apostolic age the sentence of excommunication had a very +different significance from that which was attached to it at a +subsequent period. Our Lord pointed out its import with equal precision +and brevity when he said--"If thy brother....neglect to hear the church, +[228:1] let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican." [228:2] +The Israelites could have no religious fellowship with heathens, or the +worshippers of false gods; and they could have no personal respect for +publicans, or Roman tax-gatherers, who were regarded as odious +representatives of the oppressors of their country. To be "unto them as +an heathen" was to be excluded from the privileges of their church; and +to be "unto them as a publican" was to be shut out from their society in +the way of domestic intercourse. When the apostle says--"Now we command +you, brethren, that _ye withdraw yourselves_ from every brother that +walketh disorderly and not after the ordinance [228:3] which he received +of us," [228:4] he doubtless designed to intimate that those who were +excommunicated should be admitted neither to the intimacy of private +friendship nor to the sealing ordinances of the gospel. But it did not +follow that the disciples were to treat such persons with insolence or +inhumanity. They were not at liberty to act thus towards heathens and +publicans; for they were to love even their enemies, and they were to +imitate the example of their Father in heaven who "maketh his sun to +rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on +the unjust." [228:5] It is obvious from the address of the apostle to +the Thessalonians that the members of the Church were not forbidden to +speak to those who were separated from communion; and that they were not +required to refuse them the ordinary charities of life. They were simply +to avoid such an intercourse as implied a community of faith, of +feeling, and of interest. "If any man," says he, "obey not our word by +this epistle, note that man, and _have no company with him_, that he may +be ashamed. Yet _count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a +brother_." [229:1] + +How different was this discipline from that which was established, +several centuries afterwards, in the Latin Church! The spirit and usages +of paganism then supplanted the regulations of the New Testament, and +the excommunication of Christianity was converted into the +excommunication of Druidism. [229:2] Our Lord taught that "whoever would +not hear the church" should be treated as a heathen man and a publican; +but the time came when he who forfeited his status as a member of the +Christian commonwealth was denounced as a monster or a fiend. Paul +declared that the person excommunicated, instead of being counted as an +enemy, should be admonished as a brother; but the Latin Church, in a +long list of horrid imprecations, [229:3] invoked a curse upon every +member of the body of the offender, and commanded every one to refuse to +him the civility of the coldest salutation! The early Church acted as a +faithful monitor, anxious to reclaim the sinner from the error of his +ways: the Latin Church, like a tyrant, refuses to the transgressor even +that which is his due, and seeks either to reduce him to slavery, or to +drive him to despair. + + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE EXTRAORDINARY TEACHERS OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH; AND ITS ORDINARY +OFFICE-BEARERS, THEIR APPOINTMENT, AND ORDINATION. + + +Paul declares that Christ "gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and +some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of +the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body +of Christ." [230:1] In another place the same writer, when speaking of +those occupying positions of prominence in the ecclesiastical community, +makes a somewhat similar enumeration. "God," says he, "hath set some in +the church, first, apostles; secondarily, prophets; thirdly, teachers; +after that, miracles; then, gifts of healings, helps, governments, +diversities of tongues." [230:2] + +These two passages, presenting something like catalogues of the most +prominent characters connected with the Apostolic Church, throw light +upon each other. They mention the ordinary, as well as the +extraordinary, ecclesiastical functionaries. Under the class of ordinary +office-bearers must be placed those described as "pastors and teachers," +"helps," and "governments." The evangelists, such as Timothy, [230:3] +Titus, and Philip, [230:4] seem to have had a special commission to +assist in organizing the infant Church; [230:5] and, as they were +furnished with supernatural endowments, [231:1] they may be considered +extraordinary functionaries. The apostles themselves clearly belong to +the same denomination. They all possessed the gift of inspiration +[231:2] they all received their authority immediately from Christ; +[231:3] they all "went in and out with Him" during His personal +ministry; and, as they all saw Him after He rose from the dead, they +could all attest His resurrection. [231:4] It is plain, too, that the +ministrations of "the prophets," as well as of those who wrought +"miracles," who possessed "gifts of healings," and who had "diversities +of tongues," must also be designated extraordinary. + +It is probable that by the "helps," of whom Paul here speaks, he +understands _the deacons_, [231:5] who were originally appointed to +relieve the apostles of a portion of labour which they felt to be +inconvenient and burdensome. [231:6] The duties of the deacons were not +strictly of a spiritual character; these ministers held only a +subordinate station among the office-bearers of the Church; and, even in +dealing with its temporalities, they acted under the advice and +direction of those who were properly entrusted with its government. +Hence, perhaps, they were called "helps" or attendants. [231:7] + +When these helps and the extraordinary functionaries are left out of the +apostolic catalogues, it is rather singular that, in the passage +addressed to the Ephesians, we have nothing remaining but "PASTORS AND +TEACHERS;" and, in that to the Corinthians, nothing but "TEACHERS" AND +"GOVERNMENTS." There are good grounds for believing that these two +residuary elements are identical,--the "pastors," mentioned +before[232:1] the teachers in one text, being equivalent to the +"governments" mentioned after them in the other.[232:2] Nor is it +strange that those entrusted with the ecclesiastical government should +be styled pastors or shepherds; for they are the guardians and rulers of +"the flock of God." [232:3] Thus, it appears that the ordinary +office-bearers of the Apostolic Church were pastors, teachers, and +helps; or, teachers, rulers, and deacons. + +In the apostolic age we read likewise of elders and bishops; and in the +New Testament these names are often used interchangeably.[232:4] The +elders or bishops, were the same as the pastors and teachers; for they +had the charge of the instruction and government of the Church.[232:5] +Hence elders are required to act as faithful pastors under Christ, the +Chief Shepherd.[232:6] It appears, too, that whilst some of the elders +were only pastors, or rulers, others were also teachers. The apostle +says accordingly--"Let the elders that _rule_ well, be counted worthy of +double honour, especially those that _labour in the word and +doctrine_".[232:7] We may thus see that the teachers, governments, and +helps, mentioned by Paul when writing to the Corinthians, are the same +as the "bishops and deacons" of whom he speaks elsewhere. [233:1] + +In primitive times there were, generally, a plurality of elders, as well +as a plurality of deacons, in every church or congregation; [233:2] and +each functionary was expected to apply himself to that particular +department of his office which he could manage most efficiently. Some +elders possessed a peculiar talent for expounding the gospel in the way +of preaching, or, as it was occasionally called, prophesying; [233:3] +others excelled in delivering hortatory addresses to the people; others +displayed great tact and sagacity in conducting ecclesiastical business, +or in dealing personally with offenders, or with penitents; whilst +others again were singularly successful in imparting private instruction +to catechumens. Some deacons were frequently commissioned to administer +to the wants of the sick; and others, who were remarkable for their +shrewdness and discrimination, were employed to distribute alms to the +indigent. In one of his epistles Paul pointedly refers to the multiform +duties of these ecclesiastical office-bearers-"Having then," says he," +gifts, differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether +prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; or +ministry (of the deacon), let us wait on our ministering; or he that +teacheth, on teaching; or he that exhorteth, on exhortation; he that +giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; +he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness." [233:4] It has been supposed +by some that all the primitive elders, or bishops, were preachers; but +the records of apostolic times warrant no such conclusion. These elders +were appointed simply to "take care of the Church of God;" [233:5] and +it was not necessary that each individual should perform all the +functions of the pastoral office. Even at the present day a single +preacher is generally sufficient to minister to a single congregation. +When Paul requires that the elders who rule well, though they may not +"labour in the word and doctrine," shall be counted worthy of double +honour, [234:1] is language distinctly indicates that there were then +persons designated elders who did not preach, and who, notwithstanding, +were entitled to respect as exemplary and efficient functionaries. It is +remarkable that when the apostle enumerates the qualifications of a +bishop, or elder, [234:2] he scarcely refers to oratorical endowments. +He states that the ruler of the Church should be grave, sober, prudent, +and benevolent; but, as to his ability to propagate his principles, he +employs only one word--rendered in our version "apt to teach." [234:3] +This does not imply that he must be qualified to _preach_, for +_teaching_ and _preaching_ are repeatedly distinguished in the New +Testament; [234:4] neither does it signify that he must become a +professional tutor, for, as has already been intimated, all elders are +not expected to labour in the word and doctrine; it merely denotes that +he should be able and willing, as often as an opportunity occurred, to +communicate a knowledge of divine truth. All believers are required to +"exhort one another daily," [235:1] "_teaching_ and admonishing one +another," [235:2] being "ready always to give an answer to every man +that asketh them a reason of the hope that is in them;" [235:3] and +those who "watch for souls" should be specially zealous in performing +these duties of their Christian vocation. The word which has been +supposed to indicate that every elder should be a public instructor +occurs in only one other instance in the New Testament; and in that case +it is used in a connexion which serves to illustrate its meaning. Paul +there states that whilst such as minister to the Lord should avoid a +controversial spirit, they should at the same time be willing to supply +explanations to objectors, and to furnish them with information. "The +servant of the Lord," says he, "must not strive, but be gentle unto all +men, _apt to teach_, patient, in meekness _instructing_ those that +oppose themselves, if God peradventure will give them repentance to the +acknowledging of the truth." [235:4] Here the _aptness to teach_ refers +apparently to a talent for winning over gainsayers by means of +instruction communicated in private conversation. [235:5] + +But still preaching is the grand ordinance of God, as well for the +edification of saints as for the conversion of sinners; and it was, +therefore, necessary that at least some of the session or eldership +connected with each flock should be competent to conduct the +congregational worship. As spiritual gifts were more abundant in the +apostolic times than afterwards, it is probable that at first several of +the elders [236:1] were found ready to take part in its celebration. By +degrees, however, nearly the whole service devolved on one individual; +and this preaching elder was very properly treated with peculiar +deference. [236:2] He was accordingly soon recognized as the stated +president of the presbytery, or eldership. + +It thus appears that the preaching elder held the most honourable +position amongst the ordinary functionaries of the Apostolic Church. +Whilst his office required the highest order of gifts and +accomplishments, and exacted the largest amount of mental and even +physical exertion, the prosperity of the whole ecclesiastical community +depended mainly on his acceptance and efficiency. The people are +accordingly frequently reminded that they are bound to respect and +sustain their spiritual instructors. "Let him that is taught in the +word," says Paul, "communicate unto him that teacheth in all good +things." [236:3] "The Scripture saith--Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that +treadeth out the corn; and, The labourer is worthy of his reward." +[236:4] "So hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel +should live of the gospel." [236:5] + +The apostles held a position which no ministers after them could occupy, +for they were sip pointed by our Lord himself to organize the Church. As +they were to carry out instructions which they had received from His own +lips, and as they were armed with the power of working miracles, [236:6] +they possessed an extraordinary share of personal authority. Aware that +their circumstances were peculiar, and that their services would be +available until the end of time, [236:7] they left the ecclesiastical +government, as they passed away one after another, to the care of the +elders who had meanwhile shared in its administration. [237:1] As soon +as the Church began to assume a settled form, they mingled with these +elders on terms of equality; and, as at the Council of Jerusalem, +[237:2] sat with them in the same deliberative assemblies. When Paul +addressed the elders of Ephesus for the last time, and took his solemn +farewell of them, [237:3] he commended the Church to their charge, and +emphatically pressed upon them the importance of fidelity and vigilance. +[237:4] In his Second Epistle to Timothy, written in the prospect of his +martyrdom, he makes no allusion to the expediency of selecting another +individual to fill his place. The apostles had fully executed their +commission when, as wise master-builders, they laid the foundation of +the Church and fairly exhibited the divine model of the glorious +structure; and as no other parties could produce the same credentials, +no others could pretend to the same authority. But even the apostles +repeatedly testified that they regarded the preaching of the Word as the +highest department of their office. It was, not as church rulers, but as +church teachers, that they were specially distinguished. "We will give +ourselves," said they, "continually to prayer, and _to the ministry of +the Word_." [237:5] "Christ sent me," said Paul, "not to baptize, but to +preach the gospel." [238:1] "Unto me, who am less than the least of all +saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the +unsearchable riches of Christ." [238:2] + +But though, according to the New Testament, the business of ruling +originally formed only a subordinate part of the duty of the church +teacher, some have maintained that ecclesiastical government pertains to +a higher function than ecclesiastical instruction; and that the apostles +instituted a class of spiritual overseers to whose jurisdiction all +other preachers are amenable. They imagine that, in the Pastoral +Epistles, they find proofs of the existence of such functionaries; +[238:3] and they contend that Timothy and Titus were diocesan bishops, +respectively of Ephesus and Crete. But the arguments by which they +endeavour to sustain these views are quite inconclusive. Paul says to +Timothy--"I besought thee to abide still at Ephesus, when I went into +Macedonia, that _thou mightest charge_ some that _they teach no other +doctrine_;" [239:1] and it has hence been inferred that the evangelist +was the only minister in the capital of the Proconsular Asia who was +sufficiently authorized to oppose heresiarchs. It happens, however, that +in this epistle the writer says also to his correspondent--"_Charge them +that are rich_ in this world that they be not high-minded, nor trust in +uncertain riches;" [239:2] so that, according to the same method of +interpretation, it would follow that Timothy was the only preacher in +the place who was at liberty to admonish the opulent. When Paul +subsequently stood face to face with the elders of Ephesus [239:3] he +told them that it was their common duty to discountenance and resist +false teachers; [239:4] and he had therefore now no idea of entrusting +that responsibility to any solitary individual. The reason why the +service was pressed specially on Timothy is sufficiently apparent. He +had been trained up by Paul himself; he was a young minister remarkable +for intelligence, ability, and circumspection; and he was accordingly +deemed eminently qualified to deal with the errorists. Hence at this +juncture his presence at Ephesus was considered of importance; and the +apostle besought him to remain there whilst he himself was absent on +another mission. + +The argument founded on the instructions addressed to Titus is equally +unsatisfactory. Paul says to him--"For this cause left I thee in Crete, +that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain +[240:1] elders in every city as I had appointed thee;" [240:2] and from +these words the inference has been drawn that to Titus alone was +committed the ecclesiastical oversight of all the churches of the +island. But the words of the apostle warrant no such sweeping +conclusion. Apollos, [240:3] and probably other ministers equal in +authority to the evangelist, were now in Crete, and were, no doubt, +ready to co-operate with him in the business of church organization. +Titus, besides, had no right to act without the concurrence of the +people; for, in all cases, even when the apostles were officiating, the +church members were consulted in ecclesiastical appointments. [240:4] It +is probable that the evangelist had much administrative ability, and +this seems to have been the great reason why he was left behind Paul in +Crete. The apostle expected that, with his peculiar energy and tact, he +would stimulate the zeal of the people, as well as of the other +preachers; and thus complete, as speedily as possible, the needful +ecclesiastical arrangements. + +When Paul once said to the high priest of Israel--"_Sittest thou to +judge me_ after the law, and commandest me to be smitten contrary to the +law" [240:5]--he had no intention of declaring that the dignitary he +addressed was the only member of the Jewish council who had the right of +adjudication. [240:6] The court consisted of at least seventy +individuals, every one of whom had a vote as effective as that of the +personage with whom he thus remonstrated. It is said that the high +priest at this period was not even the president of the Sanhedrim. +[241:1] Paul was perfectly aware of the constitution of the tribunal to +which Ananias belonged; and he merely meant to remind his oppressor that +the circumstances in which he was placed added greatly to the iniquity +of his present procedure. Though only one of the members of a large +judicatory he was not the less accountable. Thus too, when Jesus said to +Paul himself--"I send _thee_" to the Gentiles, "to open their eyes, and +to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto +God" [241:2]--it was certainly not understood that the apostle was to be +the only labourer in the wide field of heathendom. The address simply +intimated that he was individually commissioned to undertake the +service. And though there were other ministers at Ephesus and Crete, +Paul reminds Timothy and Titus that he had left them there to perform +specific duties, and thus urges upon them the consideration of their +personal responsibility. Though surrounded by so many apostles and +evangelists, he tells us that there rested on himself daily "the care of +all the churches;" [241:3] for he believed that the whole commonwealth +of the saints had a claim on his prayers, his sympathy, and his +services; and he desired to cherish in the hearts of his young brethren +the same feeling of individual obligation. Hence, in these Pastoral +Epistles, he gives his correspondents minute instructions respecting all +the departments of the ministerial office, and reminds them how much +depends on their personal faithfulness. Hence he here points out to them +how they are to deport themselves in public and in private; [241:4] as +preachers of the Word, and as members of church judicatories; [241:5] +towards the rich and the poor, masters and slaves, young men and widows. +[242:1] But there is not a single advice addressed to Timothy and Titus +in any of these three epistles which may not be appropriately given to +any ordinary minister of the gospel, or which necessarily implies that +either of these evangelists exercised exclusive ecclesiastical authority +in Ephesus or Crete. [242:2] + +The legend that Timothy and Titus were the bishops respectively of +Ephesus and Crete appears to have been invented about the beginning of +the fourth century, and at a time when the original constitution of the +Church had been completely, though silently, revolutionized. [242:3] It +is obvious that, when the Pastoral Epistles were written, these +ministers were not permanently located in the places with which their +names have been thus associated. [242:4] The apostle John resided +principally at Ephesus during the last thirty years of the first +century; [242:5] so that, according to this tale, the beloved disciple +must have been nearly all this time under the ecclesiastical supervision +of Timothy! The story otherwise exhibits internal marks of absurdity and +fabrication. It would lead us to infer that Paul must have distributed +most unequally the burden of official labour; for whilst Timothy is said +to have presided over the Christians of a single city, Titus is +represented as invested with the care of a whole island celebrated in +ancient times for its _hundred cities_. [243:1] It is well known that +long after this period, and when the distinction between the president +of the presbytery and his elders was fully established, a bishop had the +charge of only one church, so that the account of the episcopate of +Titus over all Crete must be rejected as a monstrous fiction. + +On the occasion of an ambitious request from James and John, our Lord +expounded to His apostles one of the great principles of His +ecclesiastical polity. "Jesus called them to him, and saith unto +them--Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles +exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority +upon them. _But so shall it not be among you_, but whosoever will be +great among you, shall be your minister, and whosoever of you will be +chiefest, shall be servant of all. For even the Son of man came not to +be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for +many." [243:2] The teaching elder holds the most honourable position in +the Church, simply because his office is the most laborious, the most +responsible, and the most useful. And no minister of the Word is +warranted to exercise lordship over his brethren, for all are equally +the servants of the same Divine Master. He is the greatest who is most +willing to humble himself, to spend, and to be spent, that Christ may be +exalted. Even the Son of man came, not to be ministered unto, but to +minister; it was His meat and His drink to do the will of His Father in +heaven; He was ready to give instruction to many or to few; at the sea +or by the wayside; in the house, the synagogue, or the corn-field; on +the mountain or in the desert; when sitting in the company of publicans, +or when He had not where to lay His head. He who exhibits most of the +spirit and character of the Great Teacher is the most illustrious of +Christ's ministers. + +The primitive Church was pre-eminently a free society; and, with a view +to united action, its members were taught to consult together respecting +all matters of common interest. Whilst the elders were required to +beware of attempting to domineer over each other, they were also warned +against deporting themselves as "lords over God's heritage." [244:1] All +were instructed to be courteous, forbearing, and conciliatory; and each +individual was made to understand that he possessed some importance. +Though the apostles, as inspired rulers of the Christian commonwealth, +might have done many things on their own authority, yet, even in +concerns comparatively trivial, as well as in affairs of the greatest +consequence, they were guided by the wishes of the people. When an +apostle was to be chosen in the place of Judas, the multitude were +consulted. [244:2] When deputies were required to accompany Paul in a +journey to be undertaken for the public service, the apostle did not +himself select his fellow-travellers, but the churches concerned, +proceeded, by a regular vote, to make the appointment. [244:3] When +deacons A or elders were to be nominated, the choice rested with the +congregation. [244:4] The records of the apostolic age do not mention +any ordinary church functionary who was not called to his office by +popular suffrage. [244:5] + +But though, in apostolic times, the communicants were thus freely +entrusted with the elective franchise, the constitution of the primitive +Church was not purely democratic; for while its office-bearers were +elected for life, and whilst its elders or bishops formed a species of +spiritual aristocracy, the powers of the people and the rulers were so +balanced as to check each other's aberrations, and to promote the +healthful action of all parts of the ecclesiastical body. When a deacon +or a bishop was elected, he was not permitted, without farther ceremony, +to enter upon the duties of his vocation. He was bound to submit himself +to the presbytery, that they might ratify the choice by ordination; and +this court, by refusing the imposition of hands, could protect the +Church against the intrusion of incompetent or unworthy candidates. +[245:1] + +Among the Jews every ordained elder was considered qualified to join in +the ordination of others. [245:2] The same principle was acknowledged in +the early Christian Church; and when any functionary was elected, he was +introduced to his office by the presbytery of the city or district with +which he was connected. There is no instance in the apostolic age in +which ordination was conferred by a single individual, Paul and Barnabas +were separated to the work to which the Lord had called them by the +ministers of Antioch; [245:3] the first elders of the Christian Churches +of Asia Minor were set apart by Paul and Barnabas; [245:4] Timothy was +invested with ecclesiastical authority by "the laying on of the hands of +the presbytery;" [245:5] and even the seven deacons were ordained by the +twelve apostles acting, for the time, as the presbytery of Jerusalem. +[245:6] + +Towards the conclusion of the Epistle to the Romans, [245:7] Paul +mentions Phoebe, "a servant [245:8] of the Church which is at Cenchrea;" +and from this passage some have inferred that the apostles instituted an +order of _deaconesses_. It is scarcely safe to build such an hypothesis +on the foundation of a solitary text of doubtful significance. It may be +that Phoebe was one of the poor widows supported by the Church; [246:1] +and that, as such, she was employed by the elders in various little +services of a confidential or benevolent character. It is probable that, +at one period, she had been in more comfortable circumstances, and that +she had then distinguished herself by her humane and obliging +disposition; for Paul refers apparently to this portion of her history +when he says, "she hath been a succourer of many, and of myself also." +[246:2] + +In the primitive age all the members of the same Church were closely +associated. As brethren and sisters in the faith, they took a deep +interest in each other's prosperity; and they regarded the afflictions +of any single disciple as a calamity which had befallen the whole +society. Each individual was expected in some way to contribute to the +well-being of all. Even humble Phoebe could be the bearer of an +apostolic letter to the Romans; and, on her return to Cenchrea, could +exert a healthful influence among the younger portion of the female +disciples, by her advice, her example, and her prayers. The industrious +scribe could benefit the brotherhood by writing out copies of the +gospels or epistles; and the pleasant singer, as he joined in the holy +psalm, could thrill the hearts of the faithful by his notes of grave +sweet melody. By establishing a plurality of both elders and deacons in +every worshipping society, the apostles provided more efficiently, as +well for its temporal, as for its spiritual interests; and the most +useful members of the congregation were thus put into positions in which +their various graces and endowments were better exhibited and exercised. +One deacon attested his fitness for his office by his delicate +attentions to the sick; another, by his considerate kindness to the +poor; and another, by his judicious treatment of the indolent, the +insincere, and the improvident. One elder excelled as an awakening +preacher; another, as a sound expositor; and another, as a sagacious +counsellor: whilst another still, who never ventured to address the +congregation, and whose voice was seldom heard at the meetings of the +eldership, could go to the house of mourning, or the chamber of disease, +and there pour forth the fulness of his heart in most appropriate and +impressive supplications. Every one was taught to appreciate the talents +of his neighbour, and to feel that he was, to some extent, dependent on +others for his own edification. The preaching elder could not say to the +ruling elders, "I have no need of you;" neither could the elders say to +the deacons, "We have no need of you." When the sweet singer was absent, +every one admitted that the congregational music was less interesting; +when the skilful penman removed to another district, the Church soon +began to complain of a scarcity of copies of the sacred manuscripts; and +even when the pious widow died in a good old age, the blank was visible, +and the loss of a faithful servant of the Church was acknowledged and +deplored. "As the body is one, and hath many members, and all the +members of that one body, being many, are one body; so also is Christ. +And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again +the head to the feet, I have no need of you. And whether one member +suffer, all the members suffer with it, or one member be honoured, all +the members rejoice with it." [247:1] + + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE ORGANIZATION OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH. + + +The Israelites were emphatically "a peculiar people." Though amounting, +in the days of our Lord, to several millions of individuals, they were +all the lineal descendants of Abraham; and though two thousand years had +passed away since the time of their great progenitor; they had not +meanwhile intermingled, to any considerable extent, with the rest of the +human family. The bulk of the nation still occupied the land which had +been granted by promise to the "father of the faithful;" the same farms +had been held by the same families from age to age; and probably some of +the proprietors could boast that their ancestors, fifteen hundred years +before, had taken possession of the very fields which they now +cultivated. They had all one form of worship, one high priest, and one +place of sacrifice. At stated seasons every year all the males of a +certain age were required to meet together at Jerusalem; and thus a full +representation of the whole race was frequently collected in one great +congregation. + +The written law of Moses was the sacred bond which united so closely the +Church of Israel. The ritual observances of the Hebrews, which had all a +typical meaning, are described by the inspired lawgiver with singular +minuteness; and any deviation from them was forbidden, not only because +it involved an impeachment either of the authority or the wisdom of +Jehovah, but also because it was calculated to mar their significance. +Under the Mosaic economy the posterity of Abraham were taught to regard +each other as members of the same family, interested, as joint heirs, in +the blessings promised to their distinguished ancestor. The Israelites +were knit together by innumerable ties, as well secular as religious; +and when they appeared in one multitudinous assemblage on occasions of +peculiar solemnity, [249:1] they presented a specimen of ecclesiastical +unity such as the world has never since contemplated. + +Some, however, have contended that the Christian community was +originally constructed upon very different principles. According to them +the word _church_ [249:2] in the New Testament is always used in one of +two senses--either as denoting a single worshipping society, or the +whole commonwealth of the faithful; and from this they infer that, in +primitive times, every Christian congregation was independent of every +other. But such allegations, which are exceedingly improbable in +themselves, are found, when carefully investigated, to be totally +destitute of foundation. The Church of Jerusalem, [249:3] with the tens +of thousands of individuals belonging to it, [249:4] must have consisted +of several congregations; [249:5] the Church of Antioch, to which so +many prophets and teachers ministered, [249:6] was probably in a similar +position; and the Church of Palestine [249:7] obviously comprehended a +large number of associated churches. When our Saviour prayed that all +His people "may be one," [250:1] He evidently indicated that the unity +of the Church, so strikingly exhibited in the nation of Israel, should +still be studied and maintained; and when Paul describes the household +of faith, he speaks of it, not as a loose mass of independent +congregations, but as a "body fitly _joined together and compacted_ by +that which every _joint_ supplieth." [250:2] The apostle here refers to +the vital union of believers by the indwelling of the Holy Ghost; but he +apparently alludes also to those "bands" of outward ordinances, and +"joints" [250:3] of visible confederation, by which their communion is +upheld; for, were the Church split up into an indefinite number of +insulated congregations, even the unity of the spirit could neither be +distinctly ascertained nor properly cultivated. When oiled by the spirit +of Divine love, the machinery of the Church moves with admirable +harmony, and accomplishes the most astonishing results; but, when +pervaded by another spirit, it is strained and dislocated, and in danger +of dashing itself to pieces. + +Those who hold that every congregation, however small, is a complete +church in itself, are quite unable to explain why the system of +ecclesiastical organization should be thus circumscribed. The New +Testament inculcates the unity of all the faithful, as well as the unity +of particular societies; and the same principle of Christian brotherhood +which prompts a number of individuals to meet together for religious +fellowship, should also lead a number of congregations in the same +locality to fraternize. The twelve may be regarded as the +representatives of the doctrine of ecclesiastical confederation; for +though they were commanded to go into all the world and to preach the +gospel to every creature, yet, as long as circumstances permitted, they +continued to co-operate. "When the apostles which were at Jerusalem +heard that Samaria had received the word of God, _they sent_ unto them +Peter and John;" [251:1] and, at a subsequent period, they concurred in +_sending "forth_ Barnabas, that he should go as far as Antioch." [251:2] +These facts distinctly prove that they had a common interest in +everything pertaining to the well-being of the whole Christian +commonwealth; and that, like Paul, they were entrusted with "the care of +all the churches." Nor did the early Christian congregations act +independently. They believed that union is strength, and they were "knit +together" in ecclesiastical relationship. Hence, we read of the brother +who was "chosen of the churches" [251:3] to travel with the Apostle +Paul. It is now impossible to determine in what way this choice was +made--whether at a general meeting of deputies from different +congregations, or by a separate vote in each particular society--but, in +whatever way the election was accomplished, the appointment of one +representative for several churches was itself a recognition of their +ecclesiastical unity. + +We have seen that the worship of the Church was much the same as the +worship of the synagogue, [251:4] and it would seem that its polity also +was borrowed from the institutions of the chosen people. [251:5] Every +Jewish congregation was governed by a bench of elders; and in every city +there was a smaller sanhedrim, or presbytery, consisting of twenty-three +members, [251:6] to which the neighbouring synagogues were subject. +Jerusalem is said to have had two of these smaller sanhedrims, as it was +found that the multitudes of cases arising among so vast a population +were more than sufficient to occupy the time of any one judicatory. +Appeals lay from all these tribunals to the Great Sanhedrim, or +"Council," so frequently mentioned in the New Testament. [252:1] This +court consisted of seventy or seventy-two members, made up, perhaps, in +equal portions, of chief priests, scribes, and elders of the people, +[252:2] The chief priests were probably twenty-four in number--each of +the twenty-four courses, into which the sacerdotal order was divided, +[252:3] thus furnishing one representative. The scribes were the men of +learning, like Gamaliel, [252:4] who had devoted themselves to the study +of the Jewish law, and who possessed recondite, as well as extensive +information. The elders were laymen of reputed wisdom and experience, +who, in practical matters, might be expected to give sound advice. +[252:5] It was not strange that the Jews had so profound a regard for +their Great Sanhedrim. In the days of our Lord and His apostles it had, +indeed, miserably degenerated; but, at an earlier period, its members +must have been eminently entitled to respect, as in point of +intelligence, prudence, piety, and patriotism, they held the very +highest place among their countrymen. + +The details of the ecclesiastical polity of the ancient Israelites are +now involved in much obscurity; but the preceding statements may be +received as a pretty accurate description of its chief outlines. Our +Lord himself, in the sermon on the mount, is understood to refer to the +great council and its subordinate judicatories; [252:6] and in the Old +Testament appeals from inferior tribunals to the authorities in the holy +city are explicitly enjoined. [253:1] All the synagogues, not only in +Palestine but in foreign countries, obeyed the orders of the Sanhedrim +at Jerusalem; [253:2] and it constituted a court of review to which all +other ecclesiastical arbiters yielded submission. + +In the government of the Apostolic Church we may trace a resemblance to +these arrangements. Every Christian congregation, like every synagogue, +had its elders; and every city had its presbytery, consisting of the +spiritual rulers of the district. In the introductory chapters of the +book of the Acts we discover the germ of this ecclesiastical +constitution; for we there find the apostles ministering to thousands of +converts, and, as the presbytery of Jerusalem, ordaining deacons, +exercising discipline, and sending out missionaries. [253:3] The +prophets and teachers of Antioch obviously performed the same functions; +[253:4] Titus was instructed to have elders established, or a presbytery +constituted, in every city of Crete; [253:5] and Timothy was ordained by +such a judicatory. [253:6] For the first thirty years after the death of +our Lord a large proportion of the ministers of the gospel were Jews by +birth, and as they were in the habit of going up to Jerusalem to +celebrate the great festivals, they appear to have taken advantage of +the opportunity, and to have held meetings in the holy city for +consultation respecting the affairs of the Christian commonwealth. +Prudence and convenience conspired to dictate this course, as they could +then reckon upon finding there a considerable number of able and +experienced elders, and as their presence in the Jewish metropolis on +such occasions was fitted to awaken no suspicion. [253:7] + +We may thus see that the transaction mentioned in the 15th chapter of +the Acts admits of a simple and satisfactory explanation. When the +question respecting the circumcision of the Gentile converts began to be +discussed at Antioch, there were individuals in that city quite as well +qualified as any in Jerusalem to pronounce upon its merits; for the +Church there enjoyed the ministry of prophets; and Paul, its most +distinguished teacher, was "not a whit behind the very chiefest +apostles." But the parties proceeded in the matter in much the same way +as Israelites were accustomed to act under similar circumstances. Had a +controversy relative to any Mosaic ceremony divided the Jewish +population of Antioch, they would have appealed for a decision to their +Great Sanhedrim; and now, when this dispute distracted the Christians of +the capital of Syria, they had recourse to another tribunal at Jerusalem +which they considered competent to pronounce a deliverance. [254:1] This +tribunal consisted virtually of the rulers of the universal Church; for +the apostles, who had a commission to all the world, and elders from +almost every place where a Christian congregation existed, were in the +habit of repairing to the capital of Palestine. In one respect this +judicatory differed from the Jewish council, for it was not limited to +seventy members. In accordance with the free spirit of the gospel +dispensation, it appears to have consisted of as many ecclesiastical +rulers as could conveniently attend its meetings. But the times were +somewhat perilous; and it is probable that the ministers of the early +Christian Church did not deem it expedient to congregate in very large +numbers. + +A single Scripture precedent for the regulation of the Church is as +decisive as a multitude; and though the New Testament distinctly records +only one instance in which a question of difficulty was referred by a +lower to a higher ecclesiastical tribunal, this case sufficiently +illustrates the character of the primitive polity. A very substantial +reason can be given why Scripture takes so little notice of the meetings +of Christian judicatories. The different portions of the New Testament +were put into circulation as soon as written; and though it was most +important that the heathen should be made acquainted with the doctrines +of the Church, it was not by any means expedient that their attention +should be particularly directed to the machinery by which it was +regulated. An accurate knowledge of its constitution would only have +exposed it more fearfully to the attacks of persecuting Emperors. Every +effort would have been made to discover the times and places of the +meetings of pastors and teachers, and to inflict a deadly wound on the +Church by the destruction of its office-bearers. Hence, in general, its +courts appear to have assembled in profound secrecy; and thus it is +that, for the first three centuries, so little is known of the +proceedings of these conventions. + +It is to be observed that, in the first century, when the rulers of the +Church met for consultation, they all sat in the same assembly. When the +ecclesiastical constitution was fairly settled, even the Twelve were +disposed to waive their personal claims to precedence, and to assume the +status of ordinary ministers. We find accordingly that there were then +no higher and lower houses of convocation; for "the apostles and elders +came together." [255:1] Some, who suppose that James was the first +bishop of the holy city, imagine that in his manner of giving the advice +adopted at the Synod of Jerusalem, they can detect marks of his prelatic +influence. [255:2] But the sacred narrative, when candidly interpreted, +merely shews that he acted on the occasion as a judicious counsellor. He +was, assuredly, not entitled to dictate to Paul or Peter. The reasoning +of those who maintain that, as a matter of right, he expected the +meeting to yield to the weight of his official authority, would go to +prove, not that he was bishop of the Jewish capital, but that he was the +prince of the apostles. + +The New Testament history speaks frequently of James, and extends over +the whole period of his public career; but it never once hints that he +was bishop of Jerusalem, he himself has left behind him an epistle +addressed "to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad," in which he +makes no allusion to his possession of any such office. Paul, who was +well acquainted with him, and who often visited the mother Church during +the time of his alleged episcopate, is equally silent upon the subject. +But it is easy to understand how the story originated. The command of +our Lord to the apostles, "Go ye unto all the world and preach the +gospel to every creature," [256:1] did not imply that their countrymen +at home were not to enjoy a portion of their ministrations; and it was +probably considered expedient that one of their number should reside in +the Jewish capital. This field of exertion seems to have been assigned +to James. His colleagues meanwhile travelled to distant countries to +disseminate the truth; and as he was the only individual of the +apostolic company who could ordinarily be consulted in the holy city, he +soon became the ruling spirit among the Christians of that crowded +metropolis. In all cases of importance and of difficulty his advice +would be sought and appreciated; and his age, experience, and rank as +one of the Twelve, would suggest the propriety of his appointment as +president of any ecclesiastical meeting he would attend. The precedence +thus so generally conceded to him would be remembered in after-times +when the hierarchical spirit began to dominate; and would afford a basis +for the legend that he was the first bishop of Jerusalem. And as he, +perhaps, commonly occupied the chair when the rulers of the Church +assembled there at the annual festivals, we can see too why he is also +called "bishop of bishops" in documents of high antiquity. [257:1] + +During a considerable part of the first century Jerusalem probably +contained a much greater number of disciples than any other city in the +Roman Empire; and until shortly before its destruction by Titus in A.D. +70, it continued to be the centre of Christian influence. There is every +reason to believe that, for some time, all matters in dispute throughout +the Church, which could not be settled by inferior judicatories, were +decided by the apostles and elders there convened. But the rapid +propagation of Christianity, the rise of persecution, and the progress +of political events, soon rendered such procedure inconvenient, if not +impracticable. Persons of Gentile extraction who lived in distant lands, +and who were in humble circumstances, could not be expected to travel +for redress of their ecclesiastical grievances to the ancient capital of +Palestine; and, when the temple was destroyed, the myriads who had +formerly repaired to it to celebrate the sacred feasts, of course +discontinued their attendance. The Christian communities throughout the +Empire about this period began to assume that form which they present in +the following century, the congregations of each province associating +together for their better government and discipline. There are not +wanting evidences, as we shall now endeavour to show, that the apostles +themselves suggested the arrangement. + +It has been taken for granted by many that when Paul, on his arrival at +Miletus, "sent to Ephesus and called the elders of the Church," [258:1] +he convoked a meeting only of the ecclesiastical rulers of the chief +city of the Proconsular Asia. But a more attentive examination, of the +passage in which the transaction is described may lead us to doubt the +correctness of such an interpretation. It is probable that, when the +apostle sent to Ephesus, the Christian elders of the surrounding +district, as well as of the capital, were requested to meet him at +Miletus. Such a conclusion is sustained by the reason assigned for his +mode of proceeding at this juncture. Ephesus was a seaport about thirty +miles from Miletus, and it is said he did not touch at it on his voyage +"because _he would not spend the time in Asia_, for he hasted, if it +were possible for him, to be at Jerusalem the day of Pentecost." [258:2] +But, had he merely wished to see the elders of this provincial +metropolis, his visit to it need have created no delay, for he might +have gone to it as quickly as the messenger who was the bearer of his +communication. He seems, however, to have felt that, had he appeared +there, he would have given offence had he not also favoured the +Christian communities in its neighbourhood with his presence; and as he +could not afford to spend so much time in Asia as would thus have been +required, he adopted the expedient of inviting all the elders of the +district to repair to him in the place where he now sojourned. [258:3] +From Ephesus, the capital, his invitation could be readily transmitted +to other provincial cities. The address which he delivered to the +assembled elders certainly conveys the impression that they did not all +belong to the metropolis, and its very first sentence suggests such an +inference. "When they were come to him, he said unto them, Ye know from +the first day that I came _into Asia_ after what manner I have been +_with you_ at all seasons." [259:1] The evangelist informs us that he +had spent only two years and three months at Ephesus, [259:2] and yet he +here tells his audience that "by the space of _three years_" he had not +ceased to warn every one night and day with tears. [259:3] He says also +"I know that _ye all among whom I have gone_ preaching the kingdom of +God, shall see my face no more," [259:4]--thereby intimating that his +auditors were not resident in one locality. We have also distinct +evidence that when Paul formerly ministered at Ephesus, there were +Christian societies throughout the province, for in his First Epistle to +the Corinthians written from that city, [259:5] he sends his +correspondents the salutations of "the Churches of Asia." [259:6] These +Churches must obviously have been united by the ties of Christian +fellowship; and the apostle must have been in close communication with +them when he was thus employed as the medium of conveyance for the +expression of their evangelical attachment. + +In other parts of the New Testament we may discern traces of +consociation among the primitive Churches. Thus, Paul, their founder, +sends to "the Churches of Galatia" [259:7] a common letter in which he +requires them to "serve one another," [259:8] and to "bear one another's +burdens." [259:9] Without some species of united action, the Galatians +could not well have obeyed such admonitions. Peter also, when writing to +the disciples "scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, +and Bithynia," [259:10] represents them as an associated body. "The +elders," says he, "which are among you I exhort, who am also an +elder....feed _the flock of God_ which is among you taking the oversight +thereof." [260:1] This "flock of God," which was evidently equivalent to +the "Church of God," [260:2] was spread over a large territory; and yet +the apostle suggests that the elders were conjointly charged with its +supervision. Had the Churches scattered throughout so many provinces +been a multitude of independent congregations, Peter would not have +described them as one "flock" of which these rulers had the oversight. + +But, though the elders of congregations in adjoining provinces could +maintain ecclesiastical intercourse, and meet together at least +occasionally or by delegates, it was otherwise with Churches in +different countries. Even these, however, cultivated the communion of +saints; for there are evidences that they corresponded with each other +by letters or deputations. The attentive reader of the inspired epistles +must have observed how the apostles contrived to keep open a door of +access to their converts by means of itinerating preachers; [260:3] and +the same agency seems to have been continued in succeeding generations. +Disciples travelling into strange lands were furnished with "epistles of +commendation" [260:4] to the foreign Churches; and Christian teachers, +who had these credentials, were permitted freely to officiate in the +congregations which they visited. It is an extraordinary fact that, +during the lives of the apostles, there were preachers, in whom they had +no confidence, who were yet in full standing, and who went from place to +place addressing apostolic Churches. Having found their way into the +ministry in a particular locality, they set out to other regions +provided with their "letters of commendation;" and, on the strength of +these testimonials, they were readily recognised as heralds of the +cross. The apostles deemed it prudent to advise their correspondents not +to rest satisfied with the certificates of these itinerant evangelists, +but to try them by a more certain standard. "If there come any unto +you," says John, "and _bring not this doctrine_, receive him not into +your house, neither bid him God speed." [261:1]--"Beloved, believe not +every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God, because many +false prophets are gone out into the world." [261:2] Strange as it may +now appear, even some of the apostles had personal enemies among the +primitive preachers, and yet when these proclaimed the truth, they were +suffered to proceed without interruption. "Some indeed," says Paul, +"preach Christ even of envy and strife; and some also of good will. The +one preach Christ of contention, not sincerely, _supposing to add +affliction to my bonds_; but the other of love, knowing that I am set +for the defence of the gospel. What then? notwithstanding, every way, +whether in pretence or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do +rejoice, yea, and will rejoice." [261:3] + +The preceding statements may enable us to appreciate the unity of the +Apostolic Church. This unity was not perfect; for there were false +brethren who stirred up strife, and false teachers who fomented +divisions. But these elements of discord no more disturbed the general +unity of the Church than the presence of a few empty or blasted ears of +corn affects the productiveness of an abundant harvest. As a body, the +disciples of Christ were never so united as in the first century. Heresy +had yet made little impression; schism was scarcely known; and charity, +exerting her gentle influence with the brotherhood, found it +comparatively easy to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. +The members of the Church had "one Lord, one faith, one baptism." But +their unity was very different from uniformity. They had no canonical +hours, no clerical costume, no liturgies. The prayers of ministers and +people varied according to circumstances, and were dictated by their +hopes and fears, their wants and sympathies. When they met for worship, +the devotional exercises were conducted in a language intelligible to +all; when the Scriptures were read in their assemblies, every one heard +in his own tongue the wonderful works of God. The unity of the Apostolic +Church did not consist in its subordination to any one visible head or +supreme pontiff; for neither Peter nor Paul, James nor John pretended to +be the governor of the household of faith. Its unity was not like the +unity of a jail where all the prisoners must wear the same dress, and +receive the same rations, and dwell in cells of the same construction, +and submit to the orders of the same keeper; but like the unity of a +cluster of stalks of corn, all springing from one prolific grain, and +all rich with a golden produce. Or it may be likened to the unity of the +ocean, where all the parts are not of the same depth, or the same +colour, or the same temperature; but where all, pervaded by the same +saline preservative, ebb and flow according to the same heavenly laws, +and concur in bearing to the ends of the earth the blessings of +civilisation and of happiness. + + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE ANGELS OF THE SEVEN CHURCHES. + + +The Apocalypse is a book of symbols. The light which we obtain from it +may well remind us of the instruction communicated to the Israelites by +the ceremonies of the law. The Mosaic institutions imparted to a Jew the +knowledge of an atonement and a Saviour; but he could scarcely have +undertaken to explain, with accuracy and precision, their individual +significance, as their meaning was not fully developed until the times +of the Messiah. So is it with "the Revelation of Jesus Christ which God +gave unto him to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come +to pass," and which "he sent and signified by his angel unto his servant +John." [263:1] The Church here sees, as "through a glass darkly," the +transactions of her future history; and she can here distinctly discern +the ultimate triumph of her principles, so that, in days of adversity, +she is encouraged and sustained; but she cannot speak with confidence of +the import of much of this mysterious record; and it would seem as if +the actual occurrence of the events foretold were to supply the only +safe key for the interpretation of some of its strange imagery. + +In the beginning of this book we have an account of a glorious vision +presented to the beloved disciple. He was instructed to write down what +he saw, and to send it to the Seven Churches in Asia, "unto Ephesus, and +unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and +unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea." [264:1] A vision so extraordinary +as that which he describes, must have left upon his mind a permanent and +most vivid impression. "I saw," says he, "_seven golden candlesticks_, +and in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of Man +clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a +golden girdle. His head and his hair were white like wool, as white as +snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; and his feet like unto fine +brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of +many waters--and _he had in his rigid hand seven stars_, and out of his +mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and his countenance was as the sun +shineth in his strength." [264:2] + +In the foreground of this picture the Son of God stands conspicuous. His +dress corresponds to that of the Jewish high priest, and the whole +description of His person has obviously a reference, either to His own +divine perfections, or to His offices as the Saviour of sinners. He +himself is the expositor of two of the most remarkable of the symbols. +"The seven stars," says He, "are the angels of the Seven Churches, and +the seven candlesticks which thou sawest, are the Seven Churches." +[264:3] + +But though the symbol of the stars has been thus interpreted by Christ, +the interpretation itself has been the subject of considerable +discussion. Much difficulty has been experienced in identifying the +angels of the Seven Churches; and there have been various conjectures as +to the station which they occupied, and the duties which they performed. +According to some they were literally angelic beings who had the special +charge of the Seven Churches. [264:4] According to others, the angel of +a Church betokens the collective body of ministers connected with the +society. But such explanations are very far from satisfactory. The +Scriptures nowhere teach that each Christian community is under the care +of its own angelic guardian; neither is it to be supposed that an angel +represents the ministry of a Church, for one symbol would not be +interpreted by another symbol of dubious signification. It seems clear +that the angel of the Church is a single individual, and that he must +have been a personage well known to the body with which he was connected +at the time when the Apocalypse was written. + +It has often been asserted that the title "The angel of the Church" is +borrowed from the designation of one of the ministers of the synagogue. +[265:1] This point, however, has never been fairly demonstrated. In +later times there was, no doubt, in the synagogue an individual known by +the name of the _legate_, or the _angel_; but there is no decisive +evidence that an official with such a designation existed in the first +century. In the New Testament we have repeated references to the +office-bearers of the synagogue; we are told of the rulers [265:2] or +elders, the reader, [265:3] and the minister [265:4] or deacon; but the +angel is never mentioned. Philo and Josephus are equally silent upon the +subject. It is, therefore, extremely doubtful whether a minister with +this title was known among the Jews in the days of the apostles. Even +granting, what is so very problematical, that there were in the +synagogues in the first century individuals distinguished by the +designation of angels, it is still exceedingly doubtful whether the +angels of the Seven Churches borrowed their names from these +functionaries. If so, the angel of the Church must have occupied the +same position as the angel of the synagogue, for the adoption of the +same title indicated the possession of the same office. But it was the +duty of the angel of the synagogue to offer up the prayers of the +assembly; [266:1] and as, in all the synagogues, there was worship at +the same hour, [266:2] he could, of course, be the minister of only one +congregation. If then the angel of the Church discharged the same +functions as the angel of the synagogue, it would follow that, towards +the termination of the first century, there was only one Christian +congregation in each of the seven cities of Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, +Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. It may, however, be fairly +questioned whether the number of disciples in every one of these places +was then so limited as such an inference would suggest. In Laodicea, and +perhaps in one or two of the other cities, [266:3] there may have been +only a single congregation; but it is scarcely probable that all the +brethren in Ephesus still met together in one assembly. About forty +years before, the Word of God "grew mightily and prevailed" [266:4] in +that great metropolis; and, among its inhabitants, Paul had persuaded +"much people" [266:5] to become disciples of Christ. But if the angel of +the Church derived his title from the angel of the synagogue, and if the +position of these two functionaries was the same, we are shut up to the +conclusion that there was now only one congregation in the capital of +the Proconsular Asia. The angel could not be in two places at the same +time; and, as it was his duty to offer up the prayers of the assembled +worshippers, it was impossible for him to minister to two congregations. + +These considerations abundantly attest the futility of the imagination +that the angel of the Church was a diocesan bishop. The office of the +angel of the synagogue had, in fact, no resemblance whatever to that of +a prelate. The rank of the ancient Jewish functionary seems to have been +similar to that of a precentor in some of our Protestant churches; and +when set forms of prayer were introduced among the Israelites, it was +his duty to read them aloud in the congregation. The angel was not the +chief ruler of the synagogue; he occupied a subordinate position; and +was amenable to the authority of the bench of elders. [267:1] It is in +vain then to attempt to recognise the predecessors of our modern +diocesans in the angels of the Seven Churches. Had bishops been +originally called angels, they never would have parted with so +complimentary a designation. Had the Spirit of God in the Apocalypse +bestowed upon them such a title, it never would have been laid aside. +When, about a century after this period, we begin to discover distinct +traces of a hierarchy, an extreme anxiety is discernible to find for it +something like a footing in the days of the apostles; but, strange to +say, the earliest prelates of whom we read are not known by the name of +angels. [267:2] If such a nomenclature existed in the time of the +Apostle John, it must have passed away at once and for ever! No trace of +it can be detected even in the second century. It is thus apparent that, +whatever the angels of the Seven Churches may have been, they certainly +were _not_ diocesan bishops. + +The place where these angels are to be found in the apocalyptic scene +also suggests the fallacy of the interpretation that they are the chief +pastors of the Seven Churches. The stars are seen, not distributed over +the seven candlesticks, but collected together in the hand of Christ. +Though the angels seem to be in someway related to the Churches, the +relation is such that they may be separated without inconvenience. What, +then, can these angels be? How do they happen to possess the name they +bear? Why are they gathered into the right hand of the Son of Man? All +these questions admit of a very plain and satisfactory solution. + +An angel literally signifies a _messenger_, and these angels were simply +the messengers of the Seven Churches. John had long resided at Ephesus; +and now that he was banished to the Isle of Patmos "for the word of God +and for the testimony of Jesus Christ," it would appear that the +Christian communities among which he had ministered so many years, sent +trusty deputies to visit him, to assure him of their sympathy, and to +tender to him their friendly offices. In primitive times such angels +were often sent to the brethren in confinement or in exile. Thus, Paul, +when in imprisonment at Rome, says to the Philippians--"Ye have well +done that ye did communicate with my affliction ... I am full, having +received of Epaphroditus the things which were sent from you." [268:1] +Here, Epaphroditus is presented to us as the angel of the Church of +Philippi. This minister seems, indeed, to have now spent no small +portion of his time in travelling between Rome and Macedonia. Hence Paul +observes--"I supposed it necessary _to send to you_ Epaphroditus, my +brother and companion in labour and fellow-soldier, but _your messenger_ +and _he that ministered_ _to my wants_." [269:1] In like manner, the +individuals selected to convey, to the poor saints in Jerusalem, the +contributions of the Gentile converts in Greece and Asia Minor, are +called "the _messengers_ of the Churches." [269:2] The practice of +sending messengers to visit and comfort the saints in poverty, in +confinement, or in exile, may be traced for centuries in the history of +the Church. It also deserves notice that, in other parts of the New +Testament as well as in the Apocalypse, an individual sent on a special +errand is repeatedly called an angel. Thus, John the Baptist, who was +commissioned to announce the approach of the Messiah, is styled God's +angel, [269:3] or messenger, and the spies, sent to view the land of +Canaan, are distinguished by the same designation. [269:4] + +Towards the close of the first century the Apostle John must have been +regarded with extraordinary veneration by his Christian brethren. He was +the last survivor of a band of men who had laid the foundations of the +New Testament Church; and he was himself one of the most honoured +members of the little fraternity, for he had enjoyed peculiarly intimate +fellowship with his Divine Master. Our Lord, "in the days of His flesh," +had permitted him to lean upon His bosom; and he has been described by +the pen of inspiration as "_the_ disciple whom Jesus loved." [269:5] All +accounts concur in representing him as most amiable and warm-hearted; +and as he had now far outlived the ordinary term of human existence, the +snows of age must have imparted additional interest to a personage +otherwise exceedingly attractive. It is not to be supposed that such a +man was permitted in apostolic times to pine away unheeded in solitary +exile. The small island which was the place of his banishment was not +far from the Asiatic metropolis, and the other six cities named in the +Apocalypse were all in the same district as Ephesus. It was, therefore, +by no means extraordinary that seven messengers from seven neighbouring +Churches, to all of which he was well known, are found together in +Patmos on a visit to the venerable confessor. + +This explanation satisfies all the conditions required by the laws of +interpretation. Whilst it reveals a concern for the welfare of John +quite in keeping with the benevolent spirit of apostolic times, it is +also simple and sufficient. In prophetic language a _star_ usually +signifies a _ruler_, and it is probable that the angels sent to Patmos +were selected from among the elders, or rulers, of the Churches with +which they were respectively connected; for, it is well known that, at +an early period, elders, or presbyters, were frequently appointed to act +as messengers or commissioners. [270:1] We may thus perceive, too, why +the letters are addressed to the angels, for in this case they were the +official organs of communication between the apostle and the religious +societies which they had been deputed to represent. It is obvious that +the instructions contained in the epistles were designed, not merely for +the angels individually, but for the communities of which they were +members; and hence the exhortation with which each of them +concludes--"He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto +_the Churches_." [270:2] When the apostle was honoured with the vision, +he was directed to write out an account of what he saw, and to "_send +it_ unto the Seven Churches which are in Asia;" [270:3] and this +interpretation explains how he transmitted the communication; for, as +Christ is said to have "_sent_ and signified" His Revelation "by his +angel unto his servant John," [271:1] so John, in his turn, conveyed it +by the _seven angels_ to the Seven Churches. It was, no doubt, thought +that the messengers undertook a most perilous errand when they engaged +to visit a distinguished Christian minister who had been driven into +banishment by a jealous tyrant; but they are taught by the vision that +they are under the special care of Him who is "the Prince of the kings +of the earth;" for the Saviour appears holding them in His right hand as +He walks in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks. When bearing +consolation to the aged minister, each one of them could enjoy the +comfort of the promise--"Can a woman forget her sucking child that she +should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, +yet will not I forget thee. _Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms +of my hands_." [271:2] + +It has often been thought singular that only _seven_ Churches of the +Proconsular Asia are here addressed, as it is well known that, at this +period, there were several other Christian societies in the same +province. Thus, in the immediate neighbourhood of Laodicea were the +Churches of Colosse and Hierapolis; [271:3] and in the vicinity of +Ephesus, perhaps the Churches of Tralles and Magnesia. But the seven +angels mentioned by John may have been the only ecclesiastical +messengers in Patmos at the time of the vision; and they may have been +the organs of communication with a greater number of Churches than those +which they directly represented. Seven was regarded by the Jews as the +symbol of perfection; and it is somewhat remarkable that, on another +occasion noticed in the New Testament, [271:4] we find exactly seven +messengers deputed by the Churches of Greece and Asia Minor to convey +their contributions to the indigent disciples in Jerusalem. There are, +too, grounds for believing that these seven religious societies, in +their varied character and prospects, are emblems of the Church +universal. The instructions addressed to the disciples in these seven +cities of Asia were designed for the benefit of "THE CHURCHES" of all +countries as well as of all succeeding generations; and the whole +imagery indicates that the vision is to be thus interpreted. The Son of +Man does not confine His care to the Seven Churches of Asia, for He who +appears walking in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks is the +same who said of old to the nation of Israel--"I will set up my +tabernacle among you, and my soul shall not abhor you, and _I will walk +among you_, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people." [272:1] In +the vision, the "countenance" of the Saviour is said to have been "as +the sun shineth in his strength;" [272:2] and the prayer of the Church +catholic is--"God be merciful unto us, and bless us, and _cause his face +to shine upon us_, that that thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving +health among all nations." [272:3] + +The preceding statements demonstrate the folly of attempting to +construct a system of ecclesiastical polity from such a +highly-figurative portion of Scripture as the Apocalypse. In the angel +of the Church some have believed they have discovered the moderator of a +presbytery; others, the bishop of a diocese; and others, the minister of +an Irvingite congregation. But the basis on which all such theories are +founded is a mere blunder as to the significance of an ecclesiastical +title. The angels of the Seven Churches were neither moderators, nor +diocesans, nor precentors, but messengers sent on an errand of love to +an apostle in tribulation. + + + + + + * * * * * + + PERIOD II. + + FROM THE DEATH OF THE APOSTLE JOHN + TO THE CONVERSION OF CONSTANTINE, + A.D. 100 TO A.D. 312. + + * * * * * + + + + + + SECTION I. + + THE HISTORY OF THE CHURCH. + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE GROWTH OF THE CHURCH. + + +The dawn of the second century was full of promise to the Church. On the +death of Domitian in A.D. 96, the Roman Empire enjoyed for a short time +[275:1] the administration of the mild and equitable Nerva. This prince +repealed the sanguinary laws of his predecessor, and the disciples had a +respite from persecution. Trajan, who succeeded him, [275:2] and who now +occupied the throne, seemed not unwilling to imitate his policy, so +that, in the beginning of his reign, the Christians had no reason to +complain of imperial oppression. All accounts concur in stating that +their affairs, at this period, presented a most hopeful aspect. They yet +displayed a united front, for they had hitherto been almost entirely +free from the evils of sectarianism; and now, that they were relieved +from the terrible incubus of a ruthless tyranny, their spirits were as +buoyant as ever; for though intolerance had thinned their ranks, it had +also exhibited their constancy and stimulated their enthusiasm. Their +intense attachment to the evangelical cause stood out in strange and +impressive contrast with the apathy of polytheism. A heathen repeated, +not without scepticism, the tales of his mythology, and readily passed +over from one form of superstition to another; but the Christian felt +himself strong in the truth, and was prepared to peril all that was dear +to him on earth rather than abandon his cherished principles. Well might +serious pagans be led to think favourably of a creed which fostered such +decision and magnanimity. + +The wonderful improvement produced by the gospel on the lives of +multitudes by whom it was embraced, was, however, its most striking and +cogent recommendation. The Christian authors who now published works in +its defence, to many of which they gave the designation of _apologies_, +and who sought, by means of these productions, either to correct the +misrepresentations of its enemies, or to check the violence of +persecution, always appeal with special confidence to this weighty +testimonial. A veteran profligate converted into a sober and exemplary +citizen was a witness for the truth whose evidence it was difficult +either to discard or to depreciate. Nor were such vouchers rare either +in the second or third century. A learned minister of the Church could +now venture to affirm that Christian communities were to be found +composed of men "_reclaimed from ten thousand vices,_" [276:1] and that +these societies, compared with others around them, were "as lights in +the world." [276:2] The practical excellence of the new faith is +attested, still more circumstantially, by another of its advocates who +wrote about half a century after the age of the apostles. "We," says he, +"who formerly delighted in vicious excesses are now temperate and +chaste; we, who once practised magical arts, have consecrated ourselves +to the good and unbegotten God; we, who once prized gain above all +things, give even what we have to the common use, and share it with such +as are in need; we, who once hated and murdered one another, who, on +account of difference of customs, would have no common hearth with +strangers, now, since the appearance of Christ, live together with them; +we pray for our enemies; we seek to persuade those who hate us without +cause to live conformably to the goodly precepts of Christ, that they +may become partakers with us, of the joyful hope of blessings from God, +the Lord of all." [277:1] When we consider that all the old +superstitions had now become nearly effete, we cannot be surprised at +the signal triumphs of a system which could furnish such noble +credentials. + +Whilst Christianity demonstrated its divine virtue by the good fruits +which it produced, it, at the same time, invited all men to study its +doctrines and to judge for themselves. Those who were disposed to +examine its internal evidences were supplied with facilities for +pursuing the investigation, as the Scriptures of the New Testament were +publicly read in the assemblies of the faithful, and copies of them were +diligently multiplied, so that these divine guides could be readily +consulted by every one who really wished for information. The importance +of the writings of the apostles and evangelists suggested the propriety +of making them available for the instruction of those who were ignorant +of Greek; and versions in the Latin, the Syriac, and other languages +[277:2] soon made their appearance. Some compositions are stripped of +their charms when exhibited in translations, as they owe their +attractiveness to the mere embellishments of style or expression; but +the Word of God, like all the works of the High and the Holy One, speaks +with equal power to every kindred and tongue and people. When correctly +rendered into another language, it is still full of grace and truth, of +majesty and beauty. In whatever dialect it may be clothed, it continues +to awaken the conscience and to convert the soul. Its dissemination at +this period either in the original or in translations, contributed +greatly to the extension of the Church; and the gospel, issuing from +this pure fountain, at once revealed its superiority to all the +miserable dilutions of superstition and absurdity presented in the +systems of heathenism. + +When accounting for the rapid diffusion of the new faith in the second +and third centuries, many have laid much stress on the miraculous powers +of the disciples; but the aid derived from this quarter seems to have +been greatly over-estimated. The days of Christ and His apostles were +properly the times of "wonders and mighty deeds;" and though the lives +of some, on whom extraordinary endowments were conferred, probably +extended far into the second century, it is remarkable that the earliest +ecclesiastical writers are almost, if not altogether, silent upon the +subject of contemporary miracles. [278:1] Supernatural gifts perhaps +ceased with those on whom they were bestowed by the inspired founders of +the Church; [278:2] but many imagined that their continuance was +necessary to the credit of the Christian cause, and were, therefore, +slow to admit that these tokens of the divine recognition had completely +disappeared. It must be acknowledged that the prodigies attributed to +this period are very indifferently authenticated as compared with those +reported by the pen of inspiration. [278:3] In some cases they are +described in ambiguous or general terms, such as the narrators might +have been expected to employ when detailing vague and uncertain rumours; +and not a few of the cures now dignified with the title of miracles are +of a commonplace character, such as could have been accomplished without +any supernatural interference, and which Jewish and heathen quacks +frequently performed. [279:1] No writer of this period asserts that he +himself possessed the power either of speaking with tongues, [279:2] or +of healing the sick, or of raising the dead. [279:3] Legend now began to +supply food for popular credulity; and it is a suspicious circumstance +that the greater number of the miracles which are said to have happened +in the second and third centuries are recorded for the first time about +a hundred years after the alleged date of their occurrence. [279:4] But +Christianity derived no substantial advantage from these fictitious +wonders. Some of them were so frivolous as to excite contempt, and +others so ridiculous as to afford matter for merriment to the more +intelligent pagans. [279:5] + +The gospel had better claims than any furnished by equivocal miracles; +and, though it still encountered opposition, it now moved forward in a +triumphant career. In some districts it produced such an impression that +it threatened the speedy extinction of the established worship. In +Bithynia, early in the second century, the temples of the gods were +well-nigh deserted, and the sacrificial victims found very few +purchasers. [280:1] The pagan priests now took the alarm; the power of +the magistrate interposed to prevent the spread of the new doctrine; and +spies were found willing to dog the steps and to discover the +meeting-places of the converts. Many quailed before the prospect of +death, and purchased immunity from persecution by again repairing to the +altars of idolatry. But, notwithstanding all the arts of intimidation +and chicanery, the good cause continued to prosper. In Rome, in Antioch, +in Alexandria, and in other great cities, the truth steadily gained +ground; and, towards the end of the second century, it had acquired such +strength even in Carthage--a place far removed from the scene of its +original proclamation--that, according to the statement of one of its +advocates, its adherents amounted to a _tenth_ of the inhabitants. +[280:2] About the same period Churches were to be found in various parts +of the north of Africa between Egypt and Carthage; and, in the East, +Christianity soon acquired a permanent footing in the little state of +Edessa, [280:3] in Arabia, in Parthia, and in India. In the West, it +continued to extend itself throughout Greece and Italy, as well as in +Spain and France. In the latter country the Churches of Lyons and Vienne +attract attention in the second century; and in the third, seven eminent +missionaries are said to have formed congregations in Paris, Tours, +Arles, Narbonne, Toulouse, Limoges, and Clermont. [281:1] Meanwhile the +light of divine truth penetrated into Germany; and, as the third century +advanced, even the rude Goths inhabiting Moesia and Thrace were +partially brought under its influence. The circumstances which led to +the conversion of these barbarians are somewhat remarkable. On the +occasion of one of their predatory incursions into the Empire, they +carried away captive some Christian presbyters; but the parties thus +unexpectedly reduced to bondage did not neglect the duties of their +spiritual calling, and commended their cause so successfully to those by +whom they had been enslaved, that the whole nation eventually embraced +the gospel. [281:2] Even the barriers of the ocean did not arrest the +progress of the victorious faith. Before the end of the second century +the religion of the cross seems to have reached Scotland; for though +Tertullian certainly speaks rhetorically when he says that "the places +of Britain inaccessible to the Romans were subject to Christ," [281:3] +his language at least implies that the message of salvation had already +been proclaimed with some measure of encouragement in Caledonia. + +Though no contemporary writer has furnished us with anything like an +ecclesiastical history of this period, it is very clear, from occasional +hints thrown out by the early apologists and controversialists, that the +progress of the Church must have been both extensive and rapid. A +Christian author, who flourished about the middle of the second century, +asserts that there was then "no race of men, whether of barbarians or of +Greeks, or bearing any other name, either because they lived in waggons +without fixed habitations, or in tents leading a pastoral life, among +whom prayers and thanksgivings were not offered up to the Father and +Maker of all things through the name of the crucified Jesus." [282:1] +Another father, who wrote shortly afterwards, observes that, "as in the +sea there are certain habitable and fertile islands, with wholesome +springs, provided with roadsteads and harbours, in which those who are +overtaken by tempests may find refuge--in like manner has God placed in +a world tossed by the billows and storms of sin, congregations or holy +churches, in which, as in insular harbours, the doctrines of truth are +sheltered, and to which those who desire to be saved, who love the +truth, and who wish to escape the judgment of God, may repair." [282:2] +These statements indicate that the gospel must soon have been very +widely disseminated. Within less than a hundred years after the +apostolic age places of Christian worship were to be seen in the chief +cities of the Empire; and early in the third century a decision of the +imperial tribunal awarded to the faithful in the great Western +metropolis a plot of ground for the erection of one of their religious +edifices. [282:3] At length about A.D. 260 the Emperor Gallienus issued +an edict of toleration in their favour; and, during the forty years +which followed, their numbers so increased that the ecclesiastical +buildings in which they had hitherto assembled were no longer sufficient +for their accommodation. New and spacious churches now supplanted the +old meeting-houses, and these more fashionable structures were soon +filled to overflowing. [282:4] But the spirit of the world now began to +be largely infused into the Christian communities; the Church was +distracted by its ministers struggling with each other for pre-eminence; +and even the terrible persecution of Diocletian which succeeded, could +neither quench the ambition, nor arrest the violence of contending +pastors. + +If we stand, only for a moment, on the beach, we may find it impossible +to decide whether the tide is ebbing or flowing. But if we remain there +for a few hours, the question will not remain unsettled. The sea will +meanwhile either retire into its depths, or compel us to retreat before +its advancing waters. So it is with the Church. At a given date we may +be unable to determine whether it is aggressive, stationary, or +retrograde. But when we compare its circumstances at distant intervals, +we may easily form a judgment. From the first to the fourth century, +Christianity moved forward like the flowing tide; and yet, perhaps, its +advance, during any one year, was not very perceptible. When, however, +we contrast its weakness at the death of the Apostle John with its +strength immediately before the commencement of the last imperial +persecution, we cannot but acknowledge its amazing progress. At the +termination of the first century, its adherents were a little flock, +thinly scattered over the empire. In the reign of Diocletian, such was +even their numerical importance that no prudent statesman would have +thought it safe to overlook them in the business of legislation. They +held military appointments of high responsibility; they were to be found +in some of the most honourable civil offices; they were admitted to the +court of the sovereign; and in not a few cities they constituted a most +influential section of the population. The wife of Diocletian, and his +daughter Valeria, are said to have been Christians. The gospel had now +passed over the boundaries of the empire, and had made conquests among +savages, some of whom had, perhaps, scarcely ever heard of the majesty +of Rome. But it did not establish its dominion unopposed, and, in +tracing its annals, we must not neglect to notice the history of its +persecutions. + + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE PERSECUTIONS OF THE CHURCH. + + +The persecutions of the early Church form an important and deeply +interesting portion of its history. When its Great Author died on the +accursed tree, Christianity was baptized in blood; and for several +centuries its annals consist largely of details of proscription and of +suffering. God might have introduced the gospel amongst men amidst the +shouts of applauding nations, but "He doeth all things well;" and He +doubtless saw that the way in which its reign was actually inaugurated, +was better fitted to exhibit His glory, and to attest its excellence. +Multitudes, who might otherwise have trifled with the great salvation, +were led to think of it more seriously, when they saw that it prompted +its professors to encounter such tremendous sacrifices. As the heathen +bystanders gazed on the martyrdom of a husband and a master, and as they +observed the unflinching fortitude with which he endured his anguish, +they often became deeply pensive. They would exclaim--"The man has +children, we believe--a wife he has, unquestionably--and yet he is not +unnerved by these ties of kindred: he is not turned from his purpose by +these claims of affection. We must look into the affair--we must get at +the bottom of it. Be it what it may, it can be no trifle which makes one +ready to suffer and willing to die for it." [284:1] The effects produced +on spectators by the heroism of the Christians cannot have escaped the +notice of the heathen magistrates. The Church herself was well aware of +the credit she derived from these displays of the constancy of her +children; and hence, in an address to the persecutors which appeared +about the beginning of the third century, the ardent writer boldly +invites them to proceed with the work of butchery. "Go on," says he +tauntingly, "ye good governors, so much better in the eyes of the people +if ye sacrifice the Christians to them--rack, torture, condemn, grind us +to powder--our numbers increase in proportion as you mow us down. The +blood of Christians is their harvest seed--that very obstinacy with +which you upbraid us, is a teacher. For who is not incited by the +contemplation of it to inquire what there is in the core of the matter? +and who, that has inquired, does not join us? and who, that joins us, +does not long to suffer?" [285:1] + +In another point of view the perils connected with a profession of the +gospel exercised a wholesome influence. Comparatively few undecided +characters joined the communion of the Church; and thus its members, as +a body, displayed much consistency and steadfastness. The purity of the +Christian morality was never seen to more advantage than in those days +of persecution, as every one who joined the hated sect was understood to +possess the spirit of a martyr. And never did the graces of the religion +of the cross appear in more attractive lustre than when its disciples +were groaning under the inflictions of imperial tyranny. As some plants +yield their choicest odours only under the influence of pressure, it +would seem as if the gospel reserved its richest supplies of patience, +strength, and consolation, for times of trouble and alarm. Piety never +more decisively asserts its celestial birth than when it stands +unblenched under the frown of the persecutor, or calmly awaits the shock +of death. In the second and third centuries an unbelieving world often +looked on with wonder as the Christians submitted to torment rather than +renounce their faith. Nor were spectators more impressed by the _amount_ +of suffering sustained by the confessors and the martyrs, than by the +_spirit_ with which they endured their trials. They approached their +tortures in no temper of dogged obstinacy or sullen defiance. They +rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer in so good a cause. +They manifested a self-possession, a meekness of wisdom, a gentleness, +and a cheerfulness, at which the multitude were amazed. Nor were these +proofs of Christian magnanimity confined to any one class of the +sufferers. Children and delicate females, illiterate artisans and poor +slaves, sometimes evinced as much intrepidity and decision as +hoary-headed pastors. It thus appeared that the victims of intolerance +were upheld by a power which was divine, and of which philosophy could +give no explanation. + +We form a most inadequate estimate of the trials of the early +Christians, if we take into account only those sufferings they endured +from the hands of the pagan magistrates. Circumstances which seldom came +under the eye of public observation not unfrequently kept them for life +in a state of disquietude. Idolatry was so interwoven with the very +texture of society that the adoption of the new faith sometimes abruptly +deprived an individual of the means of subsistence. If he was a +statuary, he could no longer employ himself in carving images of the +gods; if he was a painter, he could no more expend his skill in +decorating the high places of superstition. To earn a livelihood, he +must either seek out a new sphere for the exercise of his art, or betake +himself to some new occupation. If the Christian was a merchant, he was, +to a great extent, at the mercy of those with whom he transacted +business. When his property was in the hands of dishonest heathens, he +was often unable to recover it, as the pagan oaths administered in the +courts of justice prevented him from appealing for redress to the laws +of the empire. [287:1] Were he placed in circumstances which enabled him +to surmount this difficulty, he could not afford to exasperate his +debtors; as they could have so easily retaliated by accusing him of +Christianity. The wealthy disciple could not accept the office of a +magistrate, for he would have thus only betrayed his creed; neither +could he venture to aspire to any of the honours of the state, as his +promotion would most certainly have aggravated the perils of his +position. Our Saviour had said--"I am come to set a man at variance +against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the +daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man's foes shall be +they of his own household." [287:2] These words were now verified with +such woeful accuracy that the distrust pervading the domestic circle +often imbittered the whole life of the believer. The slave informed +against his Christian master; the husband divorced his Christian wife; +and children who embraced the gospel were sometimes disinherited by +their enraged parents. [287:3] As the followers of the cross +contemplated the hardships which beset them on every side, well might +they have exclaimed in the words of the apostle--"If in this life only +we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable." [287:4] + +In the first century the very helplessness of the Church served +partially to protect it from persecution. Its adherents were then almost +all in very humble circumstances; and their numbers were not such as to +inspire the sovereign with any political anxiety. When they were +harassed by the unbelieving Jews, the civil magistrate sometimes +interposed, and spread over them the shield of toleration; and though +Nero and Domitian were their persecutors, the treatment they experienced +from two princes so generally abhorred for cruelty elicited a measure of +public sympathy. [288:1] At length, however, the Roman government, even +when administered by sovereigns noted for their political virtues, began +to assume an attitude of decided opposition; and, for many generations, +the disciples were constantly exposed to the hostility of their pagan +rulers. + +The Romans acted so far upon the principle of toleration as to permit +the various nations reduced under their dominion to adhere to whatever +religion they had previously professed. They were, no doubt, led to +pursue this policy by the combined dictates of expediency and +superstition; for whilst they were aware that they could more easily +preserve their conquests by granting indulgence to the vanquished, they +believed that each country had its own tutelary guardians. But they +looked with the utmost suspicion upon all new systems of religion. Such +novelties, they conceived, might be connected with designs against the +state; and should, therefore, be sternly discountenanced. Hence it was +that Christianity so soon met with opposition from the imperial +government. For a time it was confounded with Judaism, and, as such, was +regarded as entitled to the protection of the laws; but when its true +character was ascertained, the disciples were involved in all the +penalties attached to the adherents of an unlicensed worship. + +Very early in the second century the power of the State was turned +against the gospel. About A.D. 107, the far-famed Ignatius, the pastor +of Antioch, is said to have suffered martyrdom. Soon afterwards our +attention is directed to the unhappy condition of the Church by a +correspondence between the celebrated Pliny, and the Emperor Trajan. It +would seem that in Bithynia, of which Pliny was governor, the new faith +was rapidly spreading; and that those who derived their subsistence from +the maintenance of superstition, had taken the alarm. The proconsul had, +therefore, been importuned to commence a persecution; and as existing +statutes supplied him with no very definite instructions respecting the +method of procedure, he deemed it necessary to seek directions from his +Imperial master. He stated, at the same time, the course which he had +hitherto pursued. If individuals arraigned before his judgment-seat, and +accused of Christianity, refused to repudiate the obnoxious creed, they +were condemned to death; but if they abjured the gospel, they were +permitted to escape unscathed. Trajan approved of this policy, and it +now became the law of the Empire. + +In his letter to his sovereign [289:1] Pliny has given a very favourable +account of the Christian morality, and has virtually admitted that the +new religion was admirably fitted to promote the good of the community, +he mentions that the members of the Church were bound by solemn +obligations to abstain from theft, robbery, and adultery; to keep their +promises, and to avoid every form of wickedness. When such was their +acknowledged character, it may appear extraordinary that a sagacious +prince and a magistrate of highly cultivated mind concurred in thinking +that they should be treated with extreme rigour. We have here, however, +a striking example of the military spirit of Roman legislation. The laws +of the Empire made no proper provision for the rights of conscience; and +they were based throughout upon the principle that implicit obedience is +the first duty of a subject. Neither Pliny nor Trajan could understand +why a Christian should not renounce his creed at the bidding of the +civil governor. In their estimation, "inflexible obstinacy" in +confessing the Saviour was a crime which deserved no less a penalty than +death. + +Though the rescript of Trajan awarded capital punishment to the man who +persisted in acknowledging himself a Christian, it also required that +the disciples should not be inquisitively sought after. The zeal of many +of the enemies of the Church was, no doubt, checked by this provision; +as those who attempted to hunt down the faithful expressly violated the +spirit of the imperial enactment. But still, some Christians now +suffered the penalty of a good confession. Pliny himself admits that +individuals who were brought before his own tribunal, and who could not +be induced to recant, were capitally punished; and elsewhere the law was +not permitted to remain in abeyance. About the close of the reign of +Trajan, Simeon, the senior minister of Jerusalem, now in the hundred and +twentieth year of his age, fell a victim to its severity. This martyr +was, probably, the second son of Mary, the mother of our Lord. He is, +perhaps, the same who is enumerated in the Gospels [290:1] among the +brethren of Christ; and the chronology accords with the supposition that +he was a year younger than our Saviour. [290:2] His relationship to +Jesus, his great age, and his personal excellence secured for him a most +influential position in the mother Church of Christendom; and hence, by +writers who flourished afterwards, and who expressed themselves in the +language of their generation, he has been called the second bishop of +Jerusalem. + +Though the rescript of Trajan served for a time to restrain the violence +of persecution, it pronounced the profession of Christianity illegal; so +that doubts, which had hitherto existed as to the interpretation of the +law, could no longer be entertained. The heathen priests, and others +interested in the support of idolatry, did not neglect to proclaim a +fact so discouraging to the friends of the gospel. The law, indeed, +still presented difficulties, for an accuser who failed to substantiate +his charge was liable to punishment; but the wily adversaries of the +Church soon contrived to evade this obstacle. When the people met +together on great public occasions, as at the celebration of their +games, or festivals, and when the interest in the sports began to flag, +attempts were often made to provide them with a new and more exciting +pastime by raising the cry of "The Christians to the Lions;" and as, at +such times, the magistrates had been long accustomed to yield to the +wishes of the multitude, many of the faithful were sacrificed to their +clamours. Here, no one was obliged to step forward and hold himself +responsible for the truth of an indictment; and thus, without incurring +any danger, personal malice and blind bigotry had free scope for their +indulgence. In the reign of Hadrian, the successor of Trajan, the +Christians were sadly harassed by these popular ebullitions; and at +length Quadratus and Aristides, two eminent members of the Church at +Athens, presented apologies to the Emperor in which they vividly +depicted the hardships of their position. Serenius Granianus, the +Proconsul of Asia, also complained to Hadrian of the proceedings of the +mob; and, in consequence, that Prince issued a rescript requiring that +the magistrates should in future refuse to give way to the extempore +clamours of public meetings. + +Antoninus Pius, who inherited the throne on the demise of Hadrian, was a +mild Sovereign; and under him the faithful enjoyed comparative +tranquillity; but his successor Marcus Aurelius, surnamed the +Philosopher, pursued a very different policy. Marcus is commonly reputed +one of the best of the Roman Emperors; at a very early period of life he +gave promise of uncommon excellence; and throughout his reign he +distinguished himself as an able and accomplished monarch. But he was +proud, pedantic, and self-sufficient; and, like every other individual +destitute of spiritual enlightenment, his character presented the most +glaring inconsistencies; for he was at once a professed Stoic, and a +devout Pagan. This Prince could not brook the contempt with which the +Christians treated his philosophy; neither could he tolerate the idea +that they should be permitted to think for themselves. He could conceive +how an individual, yielding to the stern law of fate, could meet death +with unconcern; but he did not understand how the Christians could glory +in tribulation, and hail even martyrdom with a song of triumph. Had he +calmly reflected on the spirit displayed by the witnesses for the truth, +he might have seen that they were partakers of a higher wisdom than his +own; but the tenacity with which they adhered to their principles, only +mortified his self-conceit, and roused his indignation. It is remarkable +that this philosophic Emperor was the most systematic and heartless of +all the persecutors who had ever yet oppressed the Church. When Nero +lighted up his gardens with the flames which issued from the bodies of +the dying Christians, he wished to transfer to them the odium of the +burning of Rome, and he acted only with the caprice and cunning of a +tyrant; and when Domitian promulgated his cruel edicts, he was haunted +with the dread that the proscribed sect would raise up a rival +Sovereign; but Marcus Aurelius could not plead even such miserable +apologies. He hated the Christians with the cool acerbity of a Stoic; +and he took measures for their extirpation which betrayed at once his +folly and his malevolence. Disregarding the law of Trajan which required +that they should not be officiously sought after, he encouraged spies +and informers to harass them with accusations. He caused them to be +dragged before the tribunals of the magistrates; and, under pain of +death, to be compelled to conform to the rites of idolatry. With a +refinement of cruelty unknown to his predecessors, he employed torture +for the purpose of forcing them to recant. If, in their agony, they gave +way, and consented to sacrifice to the gods, they were released; if they +remained firm, they were permitted to die in torment. In his reign we +read of new and hideous forms of punishment--evidently instituted for +the purpose of aggravating pain and terror. The Christians were +stretched upon the rack, and their joints were dislocated; their bodies, +when lacerated with scourges, were laid on rough sea-shells, or on other +most uncomfortable supports; they were torn to pieces by wild beasts; or +they were roasted alive on heated iron chairs. Ingenuity was called to +the ignoble office of inventing new modes and new instruments of +torture. + +One of the most distinguished sufferers of this reign was Justin, +surnamed the Martyr. [293:1] He was a native of Samaria; but he had +travelled into various countries, and had studied various systems of +philosophy, with a view, if possible, to discover the truth. His +attention had at length been directed to the Scriptures, and in them he +had found that satisfaction which he could not obtain elsewhere. When in +Rome about A.D. 165, he came into collision with Crescens, a Cynic +philosopher, whom he foiled in a theological discussion. His +unscrupulous antagonist, annoyed by this discomfiture, turned informer; +and Justin, with some others, was put to death. Shortly afterwards +Polycarp, the aged pastor of Smyrna, was committed to the flames. +[293:2] This venerable man, who had been acquainted in his youth with +the Apostle John, had long occupied a high position as a prudent, +exemplary, and devoted minister. Informations were now laid against him, +and orders were given for his apprehension. At first he endeavoured to +elude his pursuers; but when he saw that escape was impossible, he +surrendered himself a prisoner. After all, he would have been permitted +to remain unharmed had he consented to renounce the gospel. In the sight +of an immense throng who gloated over the prospect of his execution, the +good old man remained unmoved. When called on to curse Christ he +returned the memorable answer--"Eighty and six years have I served Him, +and He has done me nothing but good; and how could I curse Him my Lord +and Saviour?" "I will cast you to the wild beasts," said the Proconsul, +"if you do not change your mind." "Bring the wild beasts hither," +replied Polycarp, "for change my mind from the better to the worse I +will not." "Despise you the wild beasts?" exclaimed the magistrate--"I +will subdue your spirit by the flames." "The flames which you menace +endure but for a time and are soon extinguished," calmly rejoined the +prisoner, "but there is a fire reserved for the wicked, whereof you know +not; the fire of a judgment to come and of punishment everlasting." +These answers put an end to all hope of pardon; a pile of faggots was +speedily collected; and Polycarp was burned alive. + +Towards the end of the reign of Marcus Aurelius, or about A.D. 177, the +Churches of Lyons and Vienne [294:1] in France endured one of the most +horrible persecutions recorded in the annals of Christian martyrdom. A +dreadful pestilence, some years before, had desolated the Empire; and +the pagans seem to have been impressed with the conviction that the new +religion had provoked the visitation. The mob in various cities became, +in consequence, exasperated; and demanded, with loud cries, the +extirpation of the hated sectaries. In the south of France a +considerable time appears to have elapsed before the ill-will of the +multitude broke out into open violence. At first the disciples in Lyons +and Vienne were insulted in places of public concourse; they were then +pelted with stones and forced to shut themselves up in their own houses; +they were subsequently seized and thrown into prison; and afterwards +their slaves were put to the torture, and compelled to accuse them of +crimes of which they were innocent. Pothinus, the pastor of Lyons, now +upwards of ninety years of age, was brought before the governor, and so +roughly handled by the populace that he died two days after he was +thrown into confinement. The other prisoners were plied with hunger and +thirst, and then put to death with wanton and studied cruelty. Two of +the sufferers, Blandina, a female, and Ponticus, a lad of fifteen, +displayed singular calmness and intrepidity. For several days they were +obliged to witness the tortures inflicted on their fellow-disciples, +that they might, if possible, be intimidated by the appalling spectacle. +After passing through this ordeal, the torture was applied to +themselves. Ponticus soon sunk under his sufferings; but Blandina still +survived. When she had sustained the agony of the heated iron chair, she +was put into a net and thrown to a wild bull that she might be trampled +and torn by him; and she continued to breathe long after she had been +sadly mangled by the infuriated animal. While subjected to these +terrible inflictions, she exhibited the utmost patience; no boasts +escaped her lips; no murmurs were uttered by her; and even in the +paroxysms of her anguish she was seen to be full of faith and courage. +But such touching exhibitions of the spirit of the gospel failed to +repress the fury of the excited populace. Their hatred of the gospel was +so intense that they resolved to deprive the disciples who survived this +reign of terror of the melancholy satisfaction of paying the last +tribute of respect to the remains of their martyred brethren. They, +accordingly, burned the dead bodies, and then cast the ashes into the +Rhone. "Now," said they, "we will see whether they will rise again, and +whether God can help them, and deliver them out of our hands." [296:1] + +Under the brutal and bloody Commodus, the son and heir of Marcus +Aurelius, the Christians had some repose. Marcia, his favourite +concubine, was a member of the Church; [296:2] and her influence was +successfully exerted in protecting her co-religionists. But the penal +statutes were still in force, and they were not everywhere permitted to +remain a dead letter. In this reign [296:3] we meet with some of the +earliest indications of that zeal for martyrdom which was properly the +spawn of the fanaticism of the Montanists. In a certain district of +Asia, a multitude of persons, actuated by this absurd passion, presented +themselves in a body before the proconsul Arrius Antoninus; and +proclaimed themselves Christians. The sight of such a crowd of victims +appalled the magistrate; and, after passing judgment on a few, he is +said to have driven the remainder from his tribunal, exclaiming-- +"Miserable men, if you wish to kill yourselves, you have ropes or +precipices." + +The reigns of Pertinax and Julian, the Emperors next in succession after +Commodus, amounted together only to a few months; and the faithful had +meanwhile to struggle with many discouragements; [296:4] but these +short-lived sovereigns were so much occupied with other matters, that +they could not afford time for legislation on the subject of religion. +Septimius Severus, who now obtained the Imperial dignity, was at first +not unfriendly to the Church; and a cure performed on him by Proculus, a +Christian slave, [297:1] has been assigned as the cause of his +forbearance; but, as his reign advanced, he assumed an offensive +attitude; and it cannot be denied that the disciples suffered +considerably under his administration. As the Christians were still +obliged to meet at night to celebrate their worship, they were accused +of committing unnatural crimes in their nocturnal assemblies; and though +these heartless calumnies had been triumphantly refuted fifty or sixty +years before, they were now revived and circulated with fresh industry. +[297:2] About this period, Leonides, the father of the learned Origen, +was put to death. By a law, promulgated probably in A.D. 202, the +Emperor interdicted conversions to Christianity; and at a time when the +Church was making vigorous encroachments on heathenism, this enactment +created much embarrassment and anxiety. Some of the governors of +provinces, as soon as they ascertained the disposition of the Imperial +court, commenced forthwith a persecution; and there were magistrates who +proceeded to enforce the laws for the base purpose of extorting money +from the parties obnoxious to their severity. Sometimes individuals, and +sometimes whole congregations purchased immunity from suffering by +entering into pecuniary contracts with corrupt and avaricious rulers; +and by the payment of a certain sum obtained certificates [297:3] which +protected them from all farther inquisition. [297:4] The purport of +these documents has been the subject of much discussion. According to +some they contained a distinct statement to the effect that those named +in them had sacrificed to the gods, and had thus satisfied the law; +whilst others allege that, though they guaranteed protection, they +neither directly stated an untruth, nor compromised the religious +consistency of their possessors. But it is beyond all controversy that +the more scrupulous and zealous Christians uniformly condemned the use +of such certificates. Their owners were known by the suspicious +designation of "Libellatici," or "the Certified;" and were considered +only less criminal than the "Thurificati," or those who had actually +apostatised by offering incense on the altars of paganism. [298:1] + +About this time the enforcement of the penal laws in a part of North +Africa, probably in Carthage, led to a most impressive display of some +of the noblest features of the Christian character. Five catechumens, or +candidates for baptism, among whom were Perpetua and Felicitas, [298:2] +had been put under arrest. Perpetua, who was only two and twenty years +of age, was a lady of rank and of singularly prepossessing appearance. +Accustomed to all the comforts which wealth could procure, she was ill +fitted, with a child at the breast, to sustain the rigours of +confinement--more especially as she was thrown into a crowded dungeon +during the oppressive heat of an African summer. But, with her infant in +her arms, she cheerfully submitted to her privations; and the thought +that she was persecuted for Christ's sake, converted her prison into a +palace. Her aged father, who was a pagan, was overwhelmed with distress +because, as he conceived, she was bringing deep and lasting disgrace +upon her family by her attachment to a proscribed sect; and as she was +his favourite child, he employed every expedient which paternal +tenderness and anxiety could dictate to lead her to a recantation. When +she was conducted to the judgment-seat with the other prisoners, the old +gentleman appeared there, to try the effect of another appeal to her; +and the presiding magistrate, touched with pity, entreated her to listen +to his arguments, and to change her resolution. But, though deeply moved +by the anguish of her aged parent, all these attempts to shake her +constancy were in vain. At the place of execution she sung a psalm of +victory, and, before she expired, she exhorted her brother and another +catechumen, named Rusticus, to continue in the faith, to love each +other, and to be neither affrighted nor offended by her sufferings. Her +companion Felicitas exhibited quite as illustrious a specimen of +Christian heroism. When arrested, she was far advanced in pregnancy, and +during her imprisonment, the pains of labour came upon her. Her cries +arrested the attention of the jailer, who said to her--"If your present +sufferings are so great, what will you do when you are thrown to the +wild beasts? You did not consider this when you refused to sacrifice." +With undaunted spirit Felicitas replied--"It is _I_ that suffer _now_, +but _then_ there will be Another with me, who will suffer for me, +because I shall suffer for His sake." The prisoners were condemned to be +torn by wild beasts on the occasion of an approaching festival; and when +they had passed through this terrible ordeal, they were despatched with +the sword. + +After the death of Septimius Severus, the Christians experienced some +abatement of their sufferings. Caracalla and Elagabalus permitted them +to remain almost undisturbed; and Alexander Severus has been supposed by +some to have been himself a believer. Among the images in his private +chapel was a representation of Christ, and he was obviously convinced +that Jesus possessed divine endowments; but there is no proof that he +ever accepted unreservedly the New Testament revelation. He was simply +an eclectic philosopher who held that a portion of truth was to be found +in each of the current systems of religion; and who undertook to analyse +them, and extract the spiritual treasure. The Emperor Maximin was less +friendly to the Church; and yet his enmity was confined chiefly to those +Christian ministers who had been favourites with his predecessor; so +that he cannot be said to have promoted any general persecution. Under +Gordian the disciples were free from molestation; and his successor, +Philip the Arabian, was so well affected to their cause that he has been +sometimes, though erroneously, represented as the first Christian +Emperor. [300:1] The death of this monarch in A.D. 249 was, however, +soon followed by the fiercest and the most extensive persecution under +which the faithful had yet groaned. The more zealous of the pagans, who +had been long witnessing with impatience the growth of Christianity, had +become convinced that, if the old religion were to be upheld, a mighty +effort must very soon be made to strangle its rival. Various expedients +were meanwhile employed to prejudice the multitude against the gospel. +Every disaster which occurred throughout the Empire was attributed to +its evil influence; the defeat of a general, the failure of a harvest, +the overflowing of the Tiber, the desolations of a hurricane, and the +appearance of a pestilence, were all ascribed to its most inauspicious +advancement. The public mind was thus gradually prepared for measures of +extreme severity; and Decius, who now became emperor, aimed at the utter +extirpation of Christianity. All persons suspected of attachment to the +gospel were summoned before the civil authorities; and if, regardless of +intimidation, they refused to sacrifice, attempts were made to overcome +their constancy by torture, by imprisonment, and by starvation. When all +such expedients failed, the punishment of death was inflicted. Those who +fled before the day appointed for their appearance in presence of the +magistrates, forfeited their property; and were forbidden, under the +penalty of death, to return to the district. The Church in many places +had now enjoyed peace for thirty years, and meanwhile the tone of +Christian principle had been considerably lowered. It was not strange, +therefore, that, in these perilous days, many apostatised. [301:1] The +conduct of not a few of the more opulent Christians of Alexandria has +been graphically described by a contemporary. "As they were severally +called by name, they approached the unholy offering; some, pale and +trembling, as if they were going, not to sacrifice, but to be sacrificed +to the gods; so that they were jeered by the mob who thronged around +them, as it was plain to all that they were equally afraid to sacrifice +and to die. Others advanced more briskly, carrying their effrontery so +far as to avow that they never had been Christians." [301:2] Multitudes +now withdrew into deserts or mountains, and there perished with cold and +hunger. The prisons were everywhere crowded with Christians; and the +magistrates were occupied with the odious task of oppressing and +destroying the most meritorious of their fellow-citizens. The disciples +were sent to labour in the mines, branded on the forehead, subjected to +mutilation, and reduced to the lowest depth of misery. In this +persecution the pastors were treated with marked severity, and during +its continuance many of them suffered martyrdom. Among the most +distinguished victims were Fabian bishop of Rome, Babylas bishop of +Antioch, and Alexander bishop of Jerusalem. [302:1] + +The reign of Decius was short; [302:2] but the hardships of the Church +did not cease with its termination, as Gallus adopted the policy of his +predecessor. Though Valerian, the successor of Gallus, for a time +displayed much moderation, he eventually relinquished this pacific +course; and, instigated by his favourite Macrianus, an Egyptian +soothsayer, began about A.D. 257 to repeat the bloody tragedy which, in +the days of Decius, had filled the Empire with such terror and distress. +At first the pastors were driven into banishment, and the disciples +forbidden to meet for worship. But more stringent measures were soon +adopted. An edict appeared announcing that bishops, presbyters, and +deacons were to be put to death; that senators and knights, who were +Christians, were to forfeit their rank and property; and that, if they +still refused to repudiate their principles, they were to be capitally +punished; whilst those members of the Church who were in the service of +the palace, were to be put in chains, and sent to labour on the imperial +estates. [302:3] In this persecution, Sixtus bishop of Rome, and Cyprian +bishop of Carthage, [302:4] were martyred. + +On the accession of Gallienus in A.D. 260, the Church was once more +restored to peace. Gallienus, though a person of worthless character, +was the first Emperor who protected the Christians by a formal edict of +toleration. He commanded that they should not only be permitted to +profess their religion unmolested, but that they should again be put in +possession of their cemeteries [303:1] and of all other property, either +in houses or lands, of which they had been deprived during the reign of +his predecessor. This decree was nearly as ample in its provisions as +that which was issued in their favour by the great Constantine upwards +of half a century afterwards. + +But, notwithstanding the advantages secured by this imperial law, the +Church still suffered occasionally in particular districts. Hostile +magistrates might plead that certain edicts had not been definitely +repealed; and, calculating on the connivance of the higher +functionaries, might perpetrate acts of cruelty and oppression. The +Emperor Aurelian had even resolved to resume the barbarous policy of +Decius and Valerian; and, in A.D. 275, had actually prepared a +sanguinary edict; but, before it could be executed, death stepped in to +arrest his violence, and to prevent the persecution. Thus, as has +already been intimated, for the last forty years of the third century +the Christians enjoyed, almost uninterruptedly, the blessings of +toleration. Spacious edifices, frequented by crowds of worshippers, and +some of them furnished with sacramental vessels of silver or gold, +[303:2] were to be seen in all the great cities of the Empire. But, +about the beginning of the fourth century, the prospect changed. The +pagan party beheld with dismay the rapid extension of the Church, and +resolved to make a tremendous effort for its destruction. This faction, +pledged to the maintenance of idolatry, now caused its influence to be +felt in all political transactions; and the treatment of the Christians +once more became a question on which statesmen were divided. Diocletian, +who was made Emperor in A.D. 285, continued for many years afterwards to +act upon the principle of toleration; but at length he was induced, +partly by the suggestions of his own superstitious and jealous temper, +and partly by the importunities of his son-in-law Galerius, to enter +upon another course. The persecution commenced in the army, where all +soldiers refusing to sacrifice forfeited their rank, and were dismissed +the service. [304:1] But other hostile demonstrations soon followed. In +the month of February A.D. 303, the great church of Nicomedia, the city +in which the Emperor then resided, was broken open; the copies of the +Scriptures to be found in it were committed to the flames; and the +edifice itself was demolished. The next day an edict appeared +interdicting the religious assemblies of the faithful; commanding the +destruction of their places of worship; ordering all their sacred books +to be burned; requiring those who held offices of honour and emolument +to renounce their principles on pain of the forfeiture of their +appointments; declaring that disciples in the humbler walks of life, who +remained steadfast, should be divested of their rights as citizens and +free-men; and providing that even slaves, so long as they continued +Christians, should be incapable of manumission. [304:2] Some time +afterwards another edict was promulgated directing that all +ecclesiastics should be seized and put in chains. When the jails were +thus filled with Christian ministers, another edict made its appearance, +commanding that the prisoners should by all means be compelled to +sacrifice. At length a fourth edict, of a still more sweeping character +and extending to the whole body of Christians, was published. In +accordance with this decree proclamation was made throughout the streets +of the cities, and men, women, and children, were enjoined to repair to +the heathen temples. The city gates were guarded that none might escape; +and, from lists previously prepared, every individual was summoned by +name to present himself, and join in the performance of the rites of +paganism. [305:1] At a subsequent period all provisions sold in the +markets, in some parts of the empire, were sprinkled with the water or +the wine employed in idolatrous worship, that the Christians might +either be compelled to abstinence, or led to defile themselves by the +use of polluted viands. [305:2] + +Throughout almost the whole Church the latter part of the third century +was a period of spiritual decay; and many returned to heathenism during +the sifting time which now followed. Not a few incurred the reproach of +their more consistent and courageous brethren by surrendering the +Scriptures in their possession; and those who thus purchased their +safety were stigmatised with the odious name of _traditors_. Had the +persecutors succeeded in burning all the copies of the Word of God, they +would, without the intervention of a miracle, have effectually secured +the ruin of the Church; but their efforts to destroy the sacred volume +proved abortive; for the faithful seized the earliest opportunity of +replacing the consumed manuscripts. The holy book was prized by them +more highly than ever, and Bible burning only gave a stimulus to Bible +transcription. Still, however, sacred literature sustained a loss of no +ordinary magnitude in this wholesale destruction of the inspired +writings, and there is not at present in existence a single codex of the +New Testament of higher antiquity than the Diocletian persecution. +[305:3] + +It has been computed that a greater number of Christians perished under +Decius than in all the attacks which had previously been made upon them; +but their sufferings under Diocletian were still more formidable and +disastrous. Paganism felt that it was now engaged in a death struggle; +and this, its last effort to maintain its ascendency, was its most +protracted and desperate conflict. It has been frequently stated that +the Diocletian persecution was of ten years' duration; and, reckoning +from the first indications of hostility to the promulgation of an edict +of toleration, it may certainly be thus estimated; but all this time the +whole Church was not groaning under the pressure of the infliction. The +Christians of the west of Europe suffered comparatively little; as there +the Emperor Constantius Chlorus, and afterwards his son Constantine, to +a great extent, preserved them from molestation. In the East they passed +through terrific scenes of suffering; for Galerius and Maximin, the two +stern tyrants who governed that part of the empire on the abdication of +Diocletian, endeavoured to overcome their steadfastness by all the +expedients which despotic cruelty could suggest. A contemporary, who had +access to the best sources of information, has given a faithful account +of the torments they endured. Vinegar mixed with salt was poured on the +lacerated bodies of the dying; some were roasted on huge gridirons; +some, suspended aloft by one hand, were then left to perish in +excruciating agony; and some, bound to parts of different trees which +had been brought together by machinery, were torn limb from limb by the +sudden revulsion of the liberated branches. [306:1] But, even in the +East, this attempt to overwhelm Christianity was not prosecuted from its +commencement to its close with unabated severity. Sometimes the +sufferers obtained a respite; and again, the work of blood was resumed +with fresh vigour. Though many were tempted for a season to make a +hollow profession of paganism, multitudes met every effort to seduce +them in a spirit of indomitable resolution. At length tyranny became +weary of its barren office, and the Church obtained peace. In A.D. 311, +Galerius, languishing under a loathsome disease, and perhaps hoping that +he might be relieved by the God of the Christians, granted them +toleration. Maximin subsequently renewed the attacks upon them; but at +his death, which occurred in A.D. 313, the edict in favour of the +Church, which Constantine and his colleague Licinius had already +published, became law throughout the empire. + +It is often alleged that the Church, before the conversion of +Constantine, passed through ten persecutions; but the statement gives a +very incorrect idea of its actual suffering. It would be more accurate +to say that, for between two and three hundred years, the faithful were +under the ban of imperial proscription. During all this period they were +liable to be pounced upon at any moment by bigoted, domineering, or +greedy magistrates. There were not, indeed, ten persecutions conducted +with the systematic and sanguinary violence exhibited in the times of +Diocletian or of Decius; but there were perhaps provinces of the empire +where almost every year for upwards of two centuries some Christians +suffered for the faith. [307:1] The friends of the confessors and the +martyrs were not slow to acknowledge the hand of Providence, as they +traced the history of the emperors by whom the Church was favoured or +oppressed. It was remarked that the disciples were not worn out by the +barbarities of a continuous line of persecutors; for an unscrupulous +tyrant was often succeeded on the throne by an equitable or an indulgent +sovereign. Thus, the Christians had every now and then a breathing-time +during which their hopes were revived and their numbers recruited. It +was observed, too, that the princes, of whose cruelty they had reason to +complain, generally ended their career under very distressing +circumstances. An ecclesiastical writer who is supposed to have +flourished towards the commencement of the fourth century has discussed +this subject in a special treatise, in which he has left behind him a +very striking account of "The Deaths of the Persecutors." [308:1] Their +history certainly furnishes a most significant commentary on the Divine +announcement that "the Lord is known by the judgment which he +executeth." [308:2] Nero, the first hostile emperor, perished +ignominiously by his own hand. Domitian, the next persecutor, was +assassinated. Marcus Aurelius died a natural death; but, during his +reign, the Empire suffered dreadfully from pestilence and famine; and +war raged, almost incessantly, from its commencement to its close. The +people of Lyons, who now signalised themselves by their cruelty to the +Christians, did not escape a righteous retribution; for about twenty +years after the martyrdom of Pothinus and his brethren, the city was +pillaged and burned. [308:3] Septimius Severus narrowly escaped murder +by the hand of one of his own children. Decius, whose name is associated +with an age of martyrdom, perished in the Gothic war. Valerian, another +oppressor, ended his days in Persia in degrading captivity. The Emperor +Aurelian was assassinated. Diocletian languished for years the victim of +various maladies, and is said to have abruptly terminated his life by +suicide. Galerius, his son-in-law, died of a most horrible distemper; +and Maximin took away his own life by poison. [308:4] The interpretation +of providences is not to be rashly undertaken; but the record of the +fate of persecutors forms a most extraordinary chapter in the history of +man; and the melancholy circumstances under which so many of the enemies +of religion have finished their career, have sometimes impressed those +who have been otherwise slow to acknowledge the finger of the Almighty. + +The persecutions of the early Church originated partly in selfishness +and superstition. Idolatry afforded employment to tens of thousands of +artists and artisans--all of whom had thus a direct pecuniary interest +in its conservation; whilst the ignorant rabble, taught to associate +Christianity with misfortune, were prompted to clamour for its +overthrow. Mistaken policy had also some share in the sufferings of the +Christians; for statesmen, fearing that the disciples in their secret +meetings might be hatching treason, viewed them with suspicion and +treated them with severity. But another element of at least equal +strength contributed to promote persecution. The pure and spiritual +religion of the New Testament was distasteful to the human heart, and +its denunciations of wickedness in every form stirred up the malignity +of the licentious and unprincipled. The faithful complained that they +suffered for neglecting the worship of the gods, whilst philosophers, +who derided the services of the established ritual, escaped with +impunity. [309:1] But the sophists were not likely ever to wage an +effective warfare against immorality and superstition. Many of +themselves were persons of worthless character, and their speculations +were of no practical value. It was otherwise with the gospel. Its +advocates were felt to be in earnest; and it was quickly perceived that, +if permitted to make way, it would revolutionize society. Hence the +bitter opposition which it so soon awakened. + +It might have been expected that the sore oppression which the Church +endured for so many generations would have indelibly imprinted on the +hearts of her children the doctrine of liberty of conscience. As the +early Christians expostulated with their pagan rulers, they often +described most eloquently the folly of persecution. "How unjust is it," +said they, "that freemen should be driven to sacrifice to the gods, when +in all other instances a willing mind is required as an indispensable +qualification for any office of religion?" [310:1] "It appertains to +man's proper right and natural privilege that each should worship that +which he thinks to be God....Neither is it the part of religion to +compel men to religion, which ought to be adopted voluntarily, not of +compulsion, seeing that sacrifices are required of a willing mind. Thus, +even if you compel us to sacrifice, you shall render no sacrifice +thereby to your gods, for they will not desire sacrifices from unwilling +givers, unless they are contentious; but God is not contentious." +[310:2] When, however, the Church obtained possession of the throne of +the empire, she soon ignored these lessons of toleration; and, snatching +the weapons of her tormentors, she attempted, in her turn, to subjugate +the soul by the dungeon, the sword, and the faggot. For at least +thirteen centuries after the establishment of Christianity by +Constantine, it was taken for granted almost everywhere that those +branded with the odious name of heretics were unworthy the protection of +the laws; and that, though good and loyal citizens, they ought to be +punished by the civil magistrate. This doctrine, so alien to the spirit +of the New Testament, has often spread desolation and terror throughout +whole provinces; and has led to the deliberate murder of a hundredfold +more Christians than were destroyed by pagan Rome. Even the fathers of +the Reformation did not escape from the influence of an intolerant +training; but that Bible which they brought forth from obscurity has +been gradually imparting a milder tone to earthly legislation; and +various providences have been illustrating the true meaning of the +proposition that Christ's kingdom is "not of this world." [311:1] In all +free countries it is now generally admitted that the weapons of the +Church are not carnal, and that the jurisdiction of the magistrate is +not spiritual. "God alone is Lord of the conscience;" and it is only by +the illumination of His Word that the monitor within can be led to +recognise His will, and submit to His authority. + + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +FALSE BRETHREN AND FALSE PRINCIPLES IN THE CHURCH: SPIRIT AND CHARACTER +OF THE CHRISTIANS. + + +Some have an idea that the saintship of the early Christians was of a +type altogether unique and transcendental. In primitive times the Spirit +was, no doubt, poured out in rich effusion, and the subjects of His +grace, when contrasted with the heathen around them, often exhibited +most attractively the beauty of holiness; but the same Spirit still +dwells in the hearts of the faithful, and He is now as able, as He ever +was, to enlighten and to save. As man, wherever he exists, possesses +substantially the same organic conformation, so the true children of +God, to whatever generation they belong, have the same divine +lineaments. The age of miracles has passed away, but the reign of grace +continues, and, at the present day, there may, perhaps, be found amongst +the members of the Church as noble examples of vital godliness as in the +first or second century. + +There was a traitor among the Twelve, and it is apparent from the New +Testament that, in the Apostolic Church, there were not a few unworthy +members. "_Many_ walk," says Paul, "of whom I have told you often, and +now tell you, even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of +Christ, whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose +glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things." [312:1] In the second +and third centuries the number of such false brethren did not diminish. +To those who are ignorant of its saving power, Christianity may commend +itself, by its external evidences, as a revelation from God; and many, +who are not prepared to submit to its authority, may seek admission to +its privileges. The superficial character of much of the evangelism now +current appeared in times of persecution; for, on the first appearance +of danger, multitudes abjured the gospel, and returned to the heathen +superstitions. It is, besides, a fact which cannot be disputed that, in +the third century, the more zealous champions of the faith felt it +necessary to denounce the secularity of many of the ministers of the +Church. Before the Decian persecution not a few of the bishops were mere +worldlings, and such was their zeal for money-making, that they left +their parishes neglected, and travelled to remote districts where, at +certain seasons of the year, they might carry on a profitable traffic +[313:1]. If we are to believe the testimony of the most distinguished +ecclesiastics of the period, crimes were then perpetrated to which it +would be difficult to find anything like parallels in the darkest pages +of the history of modern Christianity. The chief pastor of the largest +Church in the Proconsular Africa tells, for instance, of one of his own +presbyters who robbed orphans and defrauded widows, who permitted his +father to die of hunger and treated his pregnant wife with horrid +brutality. [313:2] Another ecclesiastic, of still higher position, +speaks of three bishops in his neighbourhood who engaged, when +intoxicated, in the solemn rite of ordination. [313:3] Such excesses +were indignantly condemned by all right-hearted disciples, but the fact, +that those to whom they were imputed were not destitute of partisans, +supplies clear yet melancholy proof that neither the Christian people +nor the Christian ministry, even in the third century, possessed an +unsullied reputation. + +Meanwhile the introduction of a false standard of piety created much +mischief. It had long been received as a maxim, among certain classes of +philosophers, that bodily abstinence is necessary to those who would +attain more exalted wisdom; and the Gentile theology, especially in +Egypt and the East, had endorsed the principle. It was not without +advocates among the Jews, as is apparent from the discipline of the +Essenes and the Therapeutae. At an early period its influence was felt +within the pale of the Church, and before the termination of the second +century, individual members here and there were to be found who eschewed +certain kinds of food and abstained from marriage. [314:1] The pagan +literati, who now joined the disciples in considerable numbers, did much +to promote the credit of this adulterated Christianity. Its votaries, +who were designated _ascetics_ and _philosophers_ [314:2] did not +withdraw themselves from the world, but, whilst adhering to their own +regimen, still remained mindful of their social obligations. Their +self-imposed mortification soon found admirers, and an opinion gradually +gained ground that these abstinent disciples cultivated a higher form of +piety. The adherents of the new discipline silently increased, and by +the middle of the third century, a class of females who led a single +life, and who, by way of distinction, were called virgins, were in some +places regarded by the other Church members with special veneration. +[314:3] Among the clergy also celibacy was now considered a mark of +superior holiness. [314:4] But, in various places, pietism about this +time assumed a form which disgusted all persons of sober judgment and +ordinary discretion. The unmarried clergy and the virgins deemed it +right to cultivate the communion of saints after a new fashion, alleging +that, in each other's society, they enjoyed peculiar advantages for +spiritual improvement. It was not, therefore, uncommon to find a single +ecclesiastic and one of the sisterhood of virgins dwelling in the same +house and sharing the same bed! [315:1] All the while the parties +repudiated the imputation of any improper intercourse, but in some cases +the proofs of profligacy were too plain to be concealed, and common +sense refused to credit the pretensions of such an absurd and suspicious +spiritualism. The ecclesiastical authorities felt it necessary to +interfere, and compel the professed virgins and the single clergy to +abstain from a degree of intimacy which was unquestionably not free from +the appearance of evil. + +About the time that the advocates of "whatsoever things are of good +report" were protesting against the improprieties of these spiritual +brethren and sisters, Paul and Antony, the fathers and founders of +Monachism, commenced to live as hermits. Paul was a native of Egypt, and +the heir of a considerable fortune; but, driven at first by persecution +from the abodes of men, he ultimately adopted the desert as the place of +his chosen residence. Antony, in another part of the same country, +guided by a mistaken spirit of self-renunciation, divested himself of +all his property; and also retired into a wilderness. The biographies of +these two well-meaning but weak-minded visionaries, which have been +written by two of the most eminent divines of the fourth century, +[316:1] are very humiliating memorials of folly and fanaticism. These +solitaries spent each a long life in a cave, macerating the body with +fasting, and occupying the mind with the reveries of a morbid +imagination. In an age of growing superstition their dreamy pietism was +mistaken by many for sanctity of uncommon excellence; and the admiration +bestowed on them, tempted others, in the beginning of the following +century, to imitate their example. Soon afterwards, societies of these +sons of the desert were established; and, in the course of a few years, +a taste for the monastic life spread, like wild-fire, over the whole +Church. + +It is a curious fact that the figure of the instrument of torture on +which our Lord was put to death, occupied a prominent place among the +symbols of the ancient heathen worship. From the most remote antiquity +the cross was venerated in Egypt and Syria; it was held in equal honour +by the Buddhists of the East, [316:2] and, what is still more +extraordinary, when the Spaniards first visited America, the well-known +sign was found among the objects of worship in the idol temples of +Anahuac. [316:3] It is also remarkable that, about the commencement of +our era, the pagans were wont to make the sign of a cross upon the +forehead in the celebration of some of their sacred mysteries. [317:1] A +satisfactory explanation of the origin of such peculiarities in the +ritual of idolatry can now scarcely be expected; but it certainly need +not excite surprise if the early Christians were impressed by them, and +if they viewed them as so many unintentional testimonies to the truth of +their religion. The disciples displayed, indeed, no little ingenuity in +their attempts to discover the figure of a cross in almost every object +around them. They could recognise it in the trees and the flowers, in +the fishes and the fowls, in the sails of a ship and the structure of +the human body; [317:2] and if they borrowed from their heathen +neighbours the custom of making a cross upon the forehead, they would of +course be ready to maintain that they thus only redeemed the holy sign +from profanation. Some of them were, perhaps, prepared, on prudential +grounds, to plead for its introduction. Heathenism was, to a +considerable extent, a religion of bowings and genuflexions; its +votaries were, ever and anon, attending to some little rite or form; +and, because of the multitude of these diminutive acts of outward +devotion, its ceremonial was at once frivolous and burdensome. When the +pagan passed into the Church, he, no doubt, often felt, for a time, the +awkwardness of the change; and was frequently on the point of repeating, +as it were automatically, the gestures of his old superstition. It may, +therefore, have been deemed expedient to supersede more objectionable +forms by something of a Christian complexion; and the use of the sign of +the cross here probably presented itself as an observance equally +familiar and convenient. [318:1] But the disciples would have acted more +wisely had they boldly discarded all the puerilities of paganism; for +credulity soon began to ascribe supernatural virtue to this vestige of +the repudiated worship. As early as the beginning of the third century, +it was believed to operate like a charm; and it was accordingly employed +on almost all occasions by many of the Christians. "In all our travels +and movements," says a writer of this period, "as often as we come in or +go out, when we put on our clothes or our shoes, when we enter the bath +or sit down at table, when we light our candles, when we go to bed, or +recline upon a couch, or whatever may be our employment, we mark our +forehead with the sign of the cross." [318:2] + +But whilst not a few of the Christians were beginning to adopt some of +the trivial rites of paganism, they continued firmly to protest against +its more flagrant corruptions. They did not hesitate to assail its gross +idolatry with bold and biting sarcasms. "Stone, or wood, or silver," +said they, "becomes a god when man chooses that it should, and dedicates +it to that end. With how much more truth do dumb animals, such as mice, +swallows, and kites, judge of your gods? They know that your gods feel +nothing; they gnaw them, they trample and sit on them; and if you did +not drive them away, they would make their nests in the very mouth of +your deity." [319:1] The Church of the first three centuries rejected +the use of images in worship, and no pictorial representations of the +Saviour were to be found even in the dwellings of the Christians. They +conceived that such visible memorials could convey no idea whatever of +the ineffable glory of the Son of God; and they held that it is the duty +of His servants to foster a spirit of devotion, not by the contemplation +of His material form, but by meditating on His holy and divine +attributes as they are exhibited in creation, providence, and +redemption. So anxious were they to avoid even the appearance of +anything like image-worship, that when they wished to mark articles of +dress or furniture with an index of their religious profession, they +employed the likeness of an anchor, or a dove, or a lamb, or a cross, or +some other object of an emblematical character. [319:2] "We must not," +said they, "cling to the sensuous but rise to the spiritual. The +familiarity of daily sight lowers the dignity of the divine, and to +pretend to worship a spiritual essence through earthly matter, is to +degrade that essence to the world of sense." [319:3] Even so late as the +beginning of the fourth century the practice of displaying paintings in +places of worship was prohibited by ecclesiastical authority. A canon +which bears upon this subject, and which was enacted by the Council of +Elvira held about A.D. 305, is more creditable to the pious zeal than to +the literary ability of the assembled fathers. "We must not," said they, +"have pictures in the church, lest that which is worshipped and adored +be painted on the walls." [320:1] + +It has been objected to the Great Reformation of the sixteenth century +that it exercised a prejudicial influence on the arts of painting and +statuary. The same argument might have been urged against the gospel +itself in the days of its original promulgation. Whilst the early Church +entirely discarded the use of images in worship, its more zealous +members looked with suspicion upon all who assisted in the fabrication +of these objects of the heathen idolatry. [320:2] The excuse that the +artists were labouring for subsistence, and that they had themselves no +idea of bowing down to the works of their own hands, did not by any +means satisfy the scruples of their more consistent and conscientious +brethren. "Assuredly," they exclaimed, "you are a worshipper of idols +when you help to promote their worship. It is true you bring to them no +outward victim, but you sacrifice to them, your mind. Your sweat is +their drink-offering. You kindle for them the light of your skill." +[320:3] By denouncing image-worship the early Church, no doubt, to some +extent interfered with the profits of the painter and the sculptor; but, +in another way, it did much to purify and elevate the taste of the +public. In the second and third centuries the playhouse in every large +town was a centre of attraction; and whilst the actors were generally +persons of very loose morals, their dramatic performances were +perpetually pandering to the depraved appetites of the age. It is not, +therefore, wonderful that all true Christians viewed the theatre with +disgust. Its frivolity was offensive to their grave temperament; they +recoiled from its obscenity; and its constant appeals to the gods and +goddesses of heathenism outraged their religious convictions. [321:1] In +their estimation, the talent devoted to its maintenance was miserably +prostituted; and whilst every actor was deemed unworthy of +ecclesiastical fellowship, every church member was prohibited, by +attendance or otherwise, from giving any encouragement to the stage. The +early Christians were also forbidden to frequent the public shows, as +they were considered scenes of temptation and pollution. Every one at +his baptism was required to renounce "the devil, his pomp, and his +angels" [321:2]--a declaration which implied that he was henceforth to +absent himself from the heathen spectacles. At this time, statesmen, +poets, and philosophers were not ashamed to appear among the crowds who +assembled to witness the combats of the gladiators, though, on such +occasions, human life was recklessly sacrificed. But here the Church, +composed chiefly of the poor of this world, was continually giving +lessons in humanity to heathen legislators and literati. It protested +against cruelty, as well to the brute creation as to man; and condemned +the taste which could derive gratification from the shedding of the +blood either of lions or of gladiators. All who sanctioned by their +presence the sanguinary sports of the amphitheatre incurred a sentence +of excommunication. [322:1] + +At this time, though an increasing taste for inactivity and solitude +betokened the growth of a bastard Christianity, and though various other +circumstances were indicative of tendencies to adulterate religion, +either by reducing it to a system of formalism, or by sublimating it +into a life of empty contemplation, there were still abundant proofs of +the existence of a large amount of healthy and vigorous piety. The +members of the Church, as a body, were distinguished by their exemplary +morals; and about the beginning of the third century, one of their +advocates, when pleading for their toleration, could venture to assert +that, among the numberless culprits brought under the notice of the +magistrates, none were Christians. [322:2] Wherever the gospel spread, +its social influence was most salutary. Its first teachers applied +themselves discreetly to the redress of prevalent abuses; and time +gradually demonstrated the effectiveness of their plans of reformation. +When they appeared, polygamy was common; [322:3] and had they assailed +it in terms of unmeasured severity, they would have defeated their own +object by rousing up a most formidable and exasperated opposition. It +would have been argued by the Jews that they were reflecting on the +patriarchs; and it would have been said by the Roman governors that they +were interfering with matters which belonged to the province of the +civil magistrate. They were obliged, therefore, to proceed with extreme +caution. In the first place, they laid it down as a principle that every +bishop and deacon must be "the husband of one wife," [323:1] or, in +other words, that no polygamist could hold office in their society. They +thus, in the most pointed way, inculcated sound views respecting the +institution of marriage; for they intimated that whoever was the husband +of more than one wife was not, in every respect, "a pattern of good +works," and was consequently unfit for ecclesiastical promotion. In the +second place, in all their discourses they proceeded on the assumption +that the union of one man and one woman is the divine arrangement. +[323:2] Throughout the whole of the New Testament, wherever marriage is +mentioned, no other idea is entertained. It is easy to see what must +have been the effect of this method of procedure. It soon came to be +understood that no good Christian could have at one time more than one +wife; and at length the polygamist was excluded from communion by a +positive enactment. [323:3] + +Every disciple who married a heathen was cut off from Church privileges. +The apostles had condemned such an alliance, [323:4] and it still +continued to be spoken of in terms of the strongest reprobation. +Nothing, it was said, but discomfort and danger could be anticipated +from the union; as parties related so closely, and yet differing so +widely on the all-important subject of religion, could not permanently +hold cordial intercourse. A writer of this period has given a vivid +description of the trials of the female who made such an ill-assorted +match. Whilst she is about to be engaged in spiritual exercises, her +husband will probably contrive some scheme for her annoyance; and her +zeal may be expected to awaken his jealousy, and provoke his opposition. +"If there be a prayer-meeting, the husband will devote this day to the +use of the bath; if a fast is to be observed, the husband has a feast at +which he entertains his friends; if a religious ceremony is to be +attended, never does household business fall more upon her hands. And +who would allow his wife, for the sake of visiting the brethren, to go +from street to street the round of strange and especially of the poorer +class of cottages? ... If a stranger brother come to her, what lodging +in an alien's house? If a present is to be made to any, the barn, the +storehouse are closed against her." [324:1] + +The primitive heralds of the gospel acted with remarkable prudence in +reference to the question of slavery. According to some high +authorities, bondsmen constituted one-half [324:2] of the entire +population of the Roman Empire; and as the new religion was designed to +promote the spiritual good of man, rather than the improvement of his +civil or political condition, the apostles did not deem it expedient, in +the first instance, to attempt to break up established relations. They +did not refuse to receive any one as a member of the Church because he +happened to be a slave-owner; neither did they reject any applicant for +admission because he was a slave. The social position of the individual +did not at all affect his ecclesiastical standing; for bond and free are +"all one in Christ Jesus." [324:3] In the Church the master and the +servant were upon a footing of equality; they joined in the same +prayers; they sat down, side by side, at the same communion table; and +they saluted each other with the kiss of Christian recognition. A +slave-owner might belong to a congregation of which his slave was the +teacher; and thus, whilst in the household, the servant was bound to +obey his master according to the flesh, in the Church the master was +required to remember that his minister was "worthy of double honour." +[325:1] + +The spirit of the gospel is pre-eminently a spirit of freedom; but the +inspired founders of our religion did not fail to remember that we may +be partakers of the glorious liberty of the children of God, whilst we +are under the yoke of temporal bondage. Whilst, therefore, they did not +hesitate to speak of emancipation as a blessing, and whilst they said to +the slave--"If thou mayest be made free, use it rather;" [325:2] they at +the same time declared it to be his duty to submit cheerfully to the +restraints of his present condition. "Let every man," said they, "abide +in the same calling wherein he was called; for he that is called in the +Lord, being a servant, is the Lord's freeman." [325:3] They were most +careful to teach converted slaves that they were not to presume upon +their church membership; and that they were not to be less respectful +and obedient when those to whom they were in bondage were their brethren +in the Lord. "Let as many servants as are under the yoke," says the +apostle, "count their own masters worthy of all honour, that the name of +God and his doctrine be not blasphemed. And they that have believing +masters, let them not despise them, because they are brethren, but +rather do them service, because they are faithful and beloved, partakers +of the benefit." [325:4] + +The influence of Christianity on the condition of the slave was soon +felt. The believing master was more humane than his pagan neighbour; +[325:5] his bearing was more gentle, conciliatory, and considerate; and +the domestics under his care were more comfortable. [325:6] There was a +disposition among pious slave-owners to let the oppressed go free, and +when they performed such an act of mercy, and both parties were in +communion with the Church, the congregation was assembled to witness the +consummation of the happy deliverance. [326:1] Thus, multitudes of +bondsmen in all parts of the Roman Empire were soon taught to regard the +gospel as their best benefactor. + +Whilst Christianity, in the spirit of its Great Founder, was labouring +to improve the tone of public sentiment, and to undo heavy burdens, it +exhibited other most attractive characteristics. Wherever a disciple +travelled, if a church existed in the district, he felt himself at home. +The ecclesiastical certificate which he carried along with him, at once +introduced him to the meetings of his co-religionists, and secured for +him all the advantage of membership. The heathen were astonished at the +cordiality with which the believers among whom they resided greeted a +Christian stranger. He was saluted with the kiss of peace; ushered into +their assembly; and invited to share the hospitality of the domestic +board. If he was sick, they visited him; if he was in want, they made +provision for his necessities. The poor widows were supported at the +expense of the Church; and if any of the brethren were carried captive +by predatory bands of the barbarians who hovered upon the borders of the +Empire, contributions were made to purchase their liberation from +servitude. [326:2] To those who were without the Church, its members +appeared as one large and affectionate family. The pagan could not +comprehend what it was that so closely cemented their brotherhood; for +he did not understand how they could be attracted to each other by love +to a common Saviour. He was almost induced to believe that they held +intercourse by certain mysterious signs, and that they were affiliated +by something like the bond of freemasonry. Even statesmen observed with +uneasiness the spirit of fraternity which reigned among the Christians; +and, though the disciples could never be convicted of any political +designs, suspicions were often entertained that, after all, they might +form a secret association, on an extensive scale, which might one day +prove dangerous to the established government. + +But Christianity, like the sun, shines on the evil and the good; and +opportunities occurred for shewing that its charities were not confined +within the limits of its own denomination. There were occasions on which +its very enemies could not well refuse to admit its excellence; for in +seasons of public distress, its adherents often signalised themselves as +by far the most energetic, benevolent, and useful citizens. At such +times its genial philanthropy appeared to singular advantage when +contrasted with the cold and selfish spirit of polytheism. Thus, in the +reign of the Emperor Gallus, when a pestilence spread dismay throughout +North Africa, [327:1] and when the pagans shamefully deserted their +nearest relatives in the hour of their extremity, the Christians stepped +forward, and ministered to the wants of the sick and dying without +distinction. [327:2] Some years afterwards, when the plague appeared in +Alexandria, and when the Gentile inhabitants left the dead unburied and +cast out the dying into the streets, the disciples vied with each other +in their efforts to alleviate the general suffering. [327:3] The most +worthless men can scarcely forget acts of kindness performed under such +circumstances. Forty years afterwards, when the Church in the capital of +Egypt was overtaken by the Diocletian persecution, their pagan +neighbours concealed the Christians in their houses, and submitted to +fines and imprisonment rather than betray the refugees. [328:1] + +The fact that the heathen were now ready to shelter the persecuted +members of the Church is itself of importance as a sign of the times. +When the disciples first began to rise into notice in the great towns, +they were commonly regarded with aversion; and, when the citizens were +assembled in thousands at the national spectacles, no cry was more +vociferously repeated than that of "The Christians to the lions." But +this bigoted and intolerant spirit was fast passing away; and when the +state now set on foot a persecution, it could not reckon so extensively +on the support of popular antipathy. The Church had attained such a +position that the calumnies once repeated to its prejudice could no +longer obtain credence; the superior excellence of its system of morals +was visible to all; and it could point on every side to proofs of the +blessings it communicated. It could demonstrate, by a reference to its +history, that it produced kind masters and dutiful servants, +affectionate parents and obedient children, faithful friends and +benevolent citizens. On all classes, whether rich or poor, learned or +unlearned, its effects were beneficial. It elevated the character of the +working classes, it vastly improved the position of the wife, it +comforted the afflicted, and it taught even senators wisdom. Its +doctrines, whether preached to the half-naked Picts or the polished +Athenians, to the fierce tribes of Germany or the literary coteries of +Alexandria, exerted the same holy and happy influence. It promulgated a +religion obviously fitted for all mankind. There had long since been a +prediction that its dominion should extend "from sea to sea and from the +river unto the ends of the earth;" and its progress already indicated +that the promise would receive a glorious accomplishment. + + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE CHURCH OF ROME IN THE SECOND CENTURY. + + +The great doctrines of Christianity are built upon _the facts_ of the +life of our Lord. These facts are related by the four evangelists with +singular precision, and yet with a variety of statement, as to details, +which proves that each writer delivered an independent testimony. The +witnesses all agree when describing the wonderful history of the Captain +of our Salvation; and they dwell upon the narrative with a minuteness +apparently corresponding to the importance of the _doctrine_ which the +facts establish or illustrate. Hence it is that, whilst they scarcely +notice, or altogether omit, several items of our Saviour's biography, +they speak particularly of His birth and of His miracles, of His death +and of His resurrection. Thus, all the great facts of the gospel are +most amply authenticated. + +It is not so with the system of Romanism; as nothing can be weaker than +the historical basis on which it rests. The New Testament demonstrates +that Peter was _not_ the Prince of the Apostles; for it records the +rebuke which our Lord delivered to the Twelve when they strove among +themselves "which of them should be accounted the greatest." [329:1] It +also supplies evidence that neither Peter nor Paul founded the Church of +Rome; as, before that Church had been visited by the Apostle of the +Gentiles, its faith was "spoken of throughout the whole world;" [329:2] +and the apostle of the circumcision was meanwhile labouring in another +part of the Empire. [330:1] When writing to the Romans in A.D. 57, Paul +greets many members of the Church, and mentions the names of a great +variety of individuals; [330:2] but, throughout his long epistle, Peter +is not once noticed. Had he been connected with that Christian +community, he would, beyond doubt, have been prominently recognised. + +There is, indeed, a sense in which Peter may, perhaps, be said to have +founded the great Church of the West; for it is possible that some of +the "strangers of Rome," [330:3] who heard his celebrated sermon on the +day of Pentecost, were then converted by his ministry; and it may be +that these converts, on their return home, proceeded to disseminate the +truth, and to organize a Christian society, in the chief city of the +Empire. This, however, is mere matter of conjecture; and it is now +useless to speculate upon the subject; as, in the absence of historical +materials to furnish us with information, the question must remain +involved in impenetrable mystery. It is certain that the Roman Church +was established long before it was visited by an apostle; and it is +equally clear that its members were distinguished, at an early period, +by their Christian excellence. When Paul was prisoner for the first time +in the great city, he was freely permitted to exercise his ministry; +but, subsequently, when there during the Neronian persecution, he was, +according to the current tradition, seized and put to death. [330:4] +Peter's martyrdom took place, as we have seen, [330:5] perhaps about a +year afterwards; but the legend describing it contains very improbable +details, and the facts have obviously been distorted and exaggerated. + +For at least seventy years after the death of the apostle of the +circumcision, nothing whatever is known of the history of the Roman +Church, except the names of some of its leading ministers. It was +originally governed, like other Christian communities, by the common +council of the presbyters, who, as a matter of order, must have had a +chairman; but though, about a hundred years after the martyrdom of +Peter, when the presidents began to be designated _bishops_, an attempt +was made to settle their order of succession, [331:1] the result was by +no means satisfactory. Some of the earliest writers who touch +incidentally upon the question are inconsistent with themselves; [331:2] +whilst they flatly contradict each other. [331:3] In fact, to this day, +what is called the episcopal succession in the ancient Church of Rome is +an historical riddle. At first no one individual seems to have acted for +life as the president, or moderator, of the presbytery; but as it was +well known that, at an early date, several eminent pastors had belonged +to it, the most distinguished names found their way into the catalogues, +and each writer appears to have consulted his own taste or judgment in +regulating the order of succession. Thus, it has probably occurred that +their lists are utterly irreconcileable. All such genealogies are, +indeed, of exceedingly dubious credit, and those who deem them of +importance must always be perplexed by the candid acknowledgment of the +father of ecclesiastical history. "How many," says he, "and who, +prompted by a kindred spirit, were judged fit to feed the churches +established by the apostles, it _is not easy to say, any farther than +may be gathered from the statements of Paul_." [331:4] + +About A.D. 139, Telesphorus, who was then at the head of the Roman +presbytery, is said to have been put to death for his profession of the +gospel; but the earliest authority for this fact is a Christian +controversialist who wrote upwards of forty years afterwards; [332:1] +and we are totally ignorant of all the circumstances connected with the +martyrdom. The Church of the capital, which had hitherto enjoyed +internal tranquillity, began in the time of Hyginus, who succeeded +Telesphorus, to be disturbed by false teachers. Valentine, Cerdo, and +other famous heresiarchs, now appeared in Rome; [332:2] and laboured +with great assiduity to disseminate their principles. The distractions +created by these errorists seem to have suggested the propriety of +placing additional power in the hands of the _presiding presbyter_. +[332:3] Until this period every teaching elder had been accustomed to +baptize and administer the Eucharist on his own responsibility; but it +appears to have been now arranged that henceforth none should act +without the sanction of the president, who was thus constituted the +centre of ecclesiastical unity. According to the previous system, some +of the presbyters, who were themselves, perhaps, secretly tainted with +unsound doctrine, might have continued to hold communion with the +heretics; and it might have been exceedingly difficult to convict them +of any direct breach of ecclesiastical law; but now their power was +curtailed; and a broad line of demarcation was established between true +and false churchmen. Thus, Rome was the city in which what has been +called the Catholic system was first organized. Every one who was in +communion with the president, or bishop, was a catholic; [332:4] every +one who allied himself to any other professed teacher of the Christian +faith was a sectary, a schismatic, or a heretic. [333:1] + +The study of the best forms of government was peculiarly congenial to +the Roman mind; and the peace enjoyed under the Empire, as contrasted +with the miseries of the civil wars in the last days of the Republic, +pleaded, no doubt, strongly in favour of a change in the ecclesiastical +constitution. But though this portion of the history of the Church is +involved in much obscurity, there are indications that the transference +of power from the presbyters to their president was not accomplished +without a struggle. Until this period the Roman elders appear to have +generally succeeded each other as moderators of presbytery in the order +of their seniority; [333:2] but it was now deemed necessary to adopt +another method of appointment; and it is not improbable that, at this +time, a division of sentiment as to the best mode of filling up the +presidential chair, was the cause of an unusually long vacancy. +According to some, no less than four years [333:3] passed away between +the death of Hyginus and the choice of his successor Pius; and even +those who object to this view of the chronology admit that there was an +interval of a twelvemonth. [333:4] The plan now adopted seems to have +been to choose the bishop by lot out of a leet of selected candidates. +[333:5] Thus, to use the phraseology current towards the end of the +second century, the new chief pastor "obtained _the lot_ of the +episcopacy." [334:1] + +The changes introduced at Rome were probably far from agreeable to many +of the other Churches throughout the Empire; and Polycarp, the venerable +pastor of Smyrna, who was afterwards martyred, and who was now nearly +eighty years of age, appears to have been sent to the imperial city on a +mission of remonstrance. The design of this remarkable visit is still +enveloped in much mystery, for with the exception of an allusion to a +question confessedly of secondary consequence, [334:2] ecclesiastical +writers have passed over the whole subject in suspicious silence; but +there is every reason to believe that Polycarp was deputed to complain +of the incipient assumptions of Roman prelacy. [334:3] Anicetus, who +then presided over the Church of the capital, prudently bestowed very +flattering attentions on the good old Asiatic pastor; and, though there +is no evidence that his scruples were removed, he felt it to be his duty +to assist in opposing the corrupt teachers who were seeking to propagate +their errors among the Roman disciples. The testimony to primitive truth +delivered by so aged and eminent a minister produced a deep impression, +and gave a decided check to the progress of heresy in the metropolis of +the Empire. [334:4] + +But though the modified prelacy now established encountered opposition, +the innovation thus inaugurated in the great city was sure to exert a +most extensive influence. Rome was then, not only the capital, but the +mistress of a large portion of the world. She kept up a constant +communication with every part of her dominions in Asia, Africa, and +Europe; strangers from almost every clime were to be found among her +teeming population; and intelligence of whatever occurred within her +walls soon found its way to distant cities and provinces. The Christians +in other countries would be slow to believe that their brethren at +head-quarters had consented to any unwarrantable distribution of Church +power, for they had hitherto displayed their zeal for the faith by most +decisive and illustrious testimonies. Since the days of Nero they had +sustained the first shock of every persecution, and nobly led the van of +the army of martyrs. Telesphorus, the chairman of the presbytery, had +recently paid for his position with his life; their presiding pastor was +always specially obnoxious to the spirit of intolerance; and if they +were anxious to strengthen his hands, who could complain? The Roman +Church had the credit of having enjoyed the tuition of Peter and Paul; +its members had long been distinguished for intelligence and piety; and +it was not to be supposed that its ministers would sanction any step +which they did not consider perfectly capable of vindication. There were +other weighty reasons why Christian societies in Italy, as well as +elsewhere, should regard the acts of the Church of the imperial city +with peculiar indulgence. It was the sentinel at the seat of government +to give them notice of the approach of danger, [335:1] and the kind +friend to aid them in times of difficulty. The wealth of Rome was +prodigious; and though as yet "not many mighty" and "not many noble" had +joined the proscribed sect, it had been making way among the middle +classes; and there is cause to think that at this time a considerable +number of the rich merchants of the capital belonged to its communion. +It was known early in the second century as a liberal benefactor; and, +from a letter addressed to it about A.D. 170, it would appear that even +the Church of Corinth was then indebted to its munificence. "It has ever +been your habit," says the writer, "to confer benefits in various ways, +and to send assistance to the Churches in every city. You have relieved +the wants of the poor, and afforded help to the brethren condemned to +the mines. By a succession of these gifts, Romans, you preserve the +customs of your Roman ancestors." [336:1] + +The influence of the Roman Church throughout the West soon became +conspicuous. Here, as in many other instances, commerce was the pioneer +of religion; and as the merchants of the capital traded with all the +ports of their great inland sea, it is not improbable that their sailors +had a share in achieving some of the early triumphs of the gospel. +Carthage, now one of the most populous cities in the Empire, is said to +have been indebted for Christianity to Rome; [336:2] and by means of the +constant intercourse kept up between these two commercial marts, the +mother Church contrived to maintain an ascendancy over her African +daughter. Thus it was that certain Romish practices and pretensions so +soon found advocates among the Carthaginian clergy. [336:3] In other +quarters we discover early indications of the extraordinary deference +paid to the Church of the city "sitting upon many waters." Towards the +close of the second century, Irenaeus, a disciple of Polycarp, was +pastor of Lyons; and from this some have rather abruptly drawn the +inference that the Christian congregations then existing in the south of +France were established by missionaries from the East; but it is at +least equally probable that the young minister from Asia Minor was in +Rome before he passed to the more distant Gaul; and it is certain that +he is the first father who speaks of the superior importance of the +Church of the Italian metropolis. His testimony to the position which it +occupied about eighty years after the death of the Apostle John shews +clearly that it stood already at the head of the Western Churches. The +Church of Rome, says he, is "very great and very ancient, and known to +all, founded and established by the two most glorious Apostles Peter and +Paul." [337:1] "To this Church in which Catholics [337:2] have always +preserved apostolic tradition, every Catholic Church should, because it +is more potentially apostolical, [337:3] repair." [337:4] + +The term _Catholic_, which occurs for the first time in a document +written about this period, [337:5] was probably coined at Rome, and +implied, as already intimated, that the individual so designated was in +communion with the bishop. The presiding pastors in the great city began +now, in token of fraternity and recognition, to send the Eucharist to +their brethren elsewhere by trusty messengers, [337:6] and thus the name +was soon extended to all who maintained ecclesiastical relations with +these leading ministers. Sectaries were almost always the minority; and +in many places, where Christianity was planted, they were utterly +unknown. The orthodox might, therefore, not inappropriately be styled +members of the _Catholic_ or _general_ Church, inasmuch as they formed +the bulk of the Christian population, and were to be found wherever the +new religion had made converts. And though the heretics pleaded +tradition in support of their peculiar dogmas, it was clear that their +statements could not stand the test of examination. Irenaeus, in the +work from which the words just quoted are extracted, very fairly argues +that no such traditions as those propagated by the sectaries were to be +found in the most ancient and respectable Churches. No Christian +community in Western Europe could claim higher antiquity than that of +Rome; and as it had been taught by Paul and Peter, none could be +supposed to be better acquainted with the original gospel. Because of +its extent it already required a larger staff of ministers than perhaps +any other Church; and thus there were a greater number of individuals to +quicken and correct each other's recollections. It might be accordingly +inferred that the traditions of surrounding Christian societies, if +true, should correspond to those of Rome; as the great metropolitan +Church might, for various reasons, be said to be more potentially +primitive or apostolical, and as its traditions might be expected to be +particularly accurate. The doctrines of the heretics, which were +completely opposed to the testimony of this important witness, should be +discarded as entirely destitute of authority. + +We can only conjecture the route by which Irenaeus travelled to the +south of France when he first set out from Asia Minor; but we have +direct evidence that he had paid a visit to the capital shortly before +he wrote this memorable eulogium on the Roman Church. About the close of +the dreadful persecution endured in A.D. 177 by the Christians of Lyons +and Vienne, he had been commissioned to repair to Italy with a view to a +settlement of the disputes created by the appearance of the Montanists. +As he was furnished with very complimentary credentials, [339:1] we may +presume that he was handsomely treated by his friends in the metropolis; +and if he returned home laden with presents to disciples whose +sufferings had recently so deeply moved the sympathy of their brethren, +it is not strange that he gracefully seized an opportunity of extolling +the Church to which he owed such obligations. His account of its +greatness is obviously the inflated language of a panegyrist; but in due +time its hyperbolic statements received a still more extravagant +interpretation; and, on the authority of this ancient father, the Church +of Rome was pompously announced as the mistress and the mother of all +Churches. + +It has been mentioned in a former chapter [339:2] that the celebrated +Marcia who, until shortly before his death, possessed almost absolute +control over the Emperor Commodus, made a profession of the faith. Her +example, no doubt, encouraged other personages of distinction to connect +themselves with the Roman Church; and, through the medium of these +members of his flock, the bishop Eleutherius must have had an influence +such as none of his predecessors possessed. It is beyond doubt that +Marcia, after consulting with Victor, the successor of Eleutherius, +induced the Emperor to perform acts of kindness to some of her +co-religionists. [339:3] The favour of the court seems to have puffed up +the spirit of this naturally haughty churchman; and though, as we have +seen, there is cause to suspect that certain ecclesiastical movements in +the chief city had long before excited much ill-suppressed +dissatisfaction, the Christian commonwealth was now startled for the +first time by a very flagrant exhibition of the arrogance of a Roman +prelate. [340:1] Because the Churches of Asia Minor celebrated the +Paschal feast in a way different from that observed in the metropolis, +[340:2] Victor cut them off from his communion. But this attempt of the +bishop of the great city to act as lord over God's heritage was +premature. Other churches condemned the rashness of his procedure; his +refusal to hold fellowship with the Asiatic Christians threatened only +to isolate himself; and he seems to have soon found it expedient to +cultivate more pacific councils. + +At this time the jurisdiction of Victor did not properly extend beyond +the few ministers and congregations to be found in the imperial city. A +quarter of a century afterwards even the bishop of Portus, a seaport +town at the mouth of the Tiber about fifteen miles distant from the +capital, acknowledged no allegiance to the Roman prelate. [340:3] The +boldness of Victor in pronouncing so many foreign brethren unworthy of +Catholic communion may at first, therefore, appear unaccountable. But it +is probable that he acted, in this instance, in conjunction with many +other pastors. Among the Churches of Gentile origin there was a deep +prejudice against what was considered the judaizing of the Asiatic +Christians in relation to the Paschal festival, and a strong impression +that the character of the Church was compromised by any very marked +diversity in its religious observances. There is, however, little reason +to doubt that Victor was to some extent prompted by motives of a +different complexion. Fifty years before, the remarkable words addressed +to the apostle of the circumcision--"Thou art Peter, and upon this Rock +I will build my Church" [341:1]--were interpreted at Rome in the way in +which they are now understood commonly by Protestants; for the brother +of the Roman bishop Pius, [341:2] writing about A.D. 150, teaches that +the Rock on which the Church is built is the Son of God; [341:3] but +ingenuity was already beginning to discover another exposition, and the +growing importance of the Roman bishopric suggested the startling +thought that the Church was built on Peter! [341:4] The name of the +Galilean fisherman was already connected with the see of Victor; and it +was thus easy for ambition or flattery to draw the inference that Victor +himself was in some way the heir and representative of the great +apostle. The doctrine that the bishop was necessary as the centre of +Catholic unity had already gained currency; and if a centre of unity for +the whole Church was also indispensable, who had a better claim to the +pre-eminence than the successor of Peter? When Victor fulminated his +sentence of excommunication against the Asiatic Christians he probably +acted under the partial inspiration of this novel theory. He made an +abortive attempt to speak in the name of the whole Church--to assert a +position as the representative or president of all the bishops of the +Catholic world [342:1]--and to carry out a new system of ecclesiastical +unity. The experiment was a failure, simply because the idea looming in +the imagination of the Roman bishop had not yet obtained full possession +of the mind of Christendom. + +Prelacy had been employed as the cure for Church divisions, but the +remedy had proved worse than the disease. Sects meanwhile continued to +multiply; and they were, perhaps, nowhere so abundant as in the very +city where the new machinery had been first set up for their +suppression. Towards the close of the second century their multitude was +one of the standing reproaches of Christianity. What was called the +Catholic Church was now on the brink of a great schism; and the very +man, who aspired to be the centre of Catholic unity, threatened to be +the cause of the disruption. It was becoming more and more apparent +that, when the presbyters consented to surrender any portion of their +privileges to the bishop, they betrayed the cause of ecclesiastical +freedom; and even now indications were not wanting that the Catholic +system was likely to degenerate into a spiritual despotism. + + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +THE CHURCH OF ROME IN THE THIRD CENTURY. + + +Though very few of the genuine productions of the ministers of the +ancient Church of Rome are still extant, [343:1] multitudes of spurious +epistles attributed to its early bishops have been carefully preserved. +It is easy to account for this apparent anomaly. The documents now known +as the false Decretals, [343:2] and ascribed to the Popes of the first +and immediately succeeding centuries, were suited to the taste of times +of ignorance, and were then peculiarly grateful to the occupants of the +Roman see. As evidences of its original superiority they were +accordingly transmitted to posterity, and ostentatiously exhibited among +the papal title-deeds. But the real compositions of the primitive +pastors of the great city supplied little food for superstition; and +must have contained startling and humiliating revelations which laid +bare the absurdity of claims subsequently advanced. These unwelcome +witnesses were, therefore, quietly permitted to pass into oblivion. + +It has been said, however, that Truth is the daughter of Time, and the +discovery of monuments long since forgotten, or of writings supposed to +have been lost, has often wonderfully verified and illustrated the +apologue. The reappearance, within the last three hundred years, of +various ancient records and memorials, has shed a new light upon the +history of antiquity. Other testimonies equally valuable will, no doubt, +yet be forthcoming for the settlement of existing controversies. + +In A.D. 1551, as some workmen in the neighbourhood of Rome were employed +in clearing away the ruins of a dilapidated chapel, they found a broken +mass of sculptured marble among the rubbish. The fragments, when put +together, proved to be a statue representing a person of venerable +aspect sitting in a chair, on the back of which were the names of +various publications. It was ascertained, on more minute examination, +that, some time after the establishment of Christianity by Constantine, +[344:1] this monument had been erected in honour of Hippolytus--a +learned writer and able controversialist, who bad been bishop of Portus +in the early part of the third century, and who had finished his career +by martyrdom, about A.D. 236, during the persecution under the Emperor +Maximin. Hippolytus is commemorated as a saint in the Romish Breviary; +[344:2] and the resurrection of his statue, after it had been buried for +perhaps a thousand years, created quite a sensation among his papal +admirers. Experienced sculptors, under the auspices of the Pontiff, Pius +IV., restored the fragments to nearly their previous condition; and the +renovated statue was then duly honoured with a place in the Library of +the Vatican. + +Nearly three hundred years afterwards, or in 1842, a manuscript which +had been found in a Greek monastery at Mount Athos, was deposited in the +Royal Library at Paris. This work, which has been since published, +[345:1] and which is entitled "Philosophumena, or a Refutation of all +Heresies," has been identified as the production of Hippolytus. It does +not appear in the list of his writings mentioned on the back of the +marble chair; but any one who inspects its contents can satisfactorily +account for its exclusion from that catalogue. It reflects strongly on +the character and principles of some of the early Roman bishops; and as +the Papal see was fast rising into power when the statue was erected, it +was obviously deemed prudent to omit an invidious publication. The +writer of the "Philosophumena" declares that he is the author of one of +the books named on that piece of ancient sculpture, and various other +facts amply corroborate his testimony. There is, therefore, no good +reason to doubt that a Christian bishop who lived about fifteen miles +from Rome, and who flourished little more than one hundred years after +the death of the Apostle John, composed the newly discovered Treatise. +[345:2] + +In accordance with the title of his work, Hippolytus here reviews all +the heresies which had been broached up till the date of its +publication. Long prior to the reappearance of this production, it was +known that one of the early Roman bishops had been induced to +countenance the errors of the Montanists; [345:3] and it would seem that +Victor was the individual who was thus deceived; [345:4] but it had not +been before suspected that Zephyrinus and Callistus, the two bishops +next to him in succession, [345:5] held unsound views respecting the +doctrine of the Trinity. Such, however, is the testimony of their +neighbour and contemporary, the bishop of Portus. The witness may, +indeed, be somewhat fastidious, as he was himself both erudite and +eloquent; but had there not been some glaring deficiency in both the +creed and the character of the chief pastor of Rome, Hippolytus would +scarcely have described Zephyrinus as "an illiterate and covetous man," +[346:1] "unskilled in ecclesiastical science," [346:2] and a +disseminator of heretical doctrine. According to the statement of his +accuser, he confounded the First and Second Persons of the Godhead, +maintaining the identity of the Father and the Son. [346:3] + +Callistus, who was made bishop on the death of Zephyrinus, must have +possessed a far more vigorous intellect than his predecessor. Though +regarded by the orthodox Hippolytus with no friendly eye, it is plain +that he was endowed with an extraordinary share of energy and +perseverance. He had been originally a slave, and he must have won the +confidence of his wealthy Christian master Carpophores, for he had been +intrusted by him with the care of a savings bank. The establishment +became insolvent, in consequence, as Hippolytus alleges, of the +mismanagement of its conductor; and many widows and others who had +committed their money to his keeping, lost their deposits. When +Carpophorus, by whom he was now suspected of embezzlement, determined to +call him to account, Callistus fled to Portus--in the hope of escaping +by sea to some other country. He was, however, overtaken, and, after an +ineffectual attempt to drown himself, was arrested, and thrown into +prison. His master, who was placable and kind-hearted, speedily +consented to release him from confinement; but he was no sooner at +large, than, under pretence of collecting debts due to the savings bank, +he went into a Jewish synagogue during the time of public worship, and +caused such disturbance that he was seized and dragged before the city +prefect. The magistrate ordered him first to be scourged, and then to be +transported to the mines of Sardinia. He does not appear to have +remained long in exile; for, about this time, Marcia procured from the +Emperor Commodus an order for the release of the Christians who had been +banished to that unhealthy island; and Callistus, though not included in +the act of grace, contrived to prevail upon the governor to set him at +liberty along with the other prisoners. He now returned to Rome, where +he appears to have acquired the reputation of a changed character. In +due time he procured an appointment to one of the lower ecclesiastical +offices; and as he possessed much talent, he did not find it difficult +to obtain promotion. When Zephyrinus was advanced to the episcopate, +Callistus, who was his special favourite, became one of the leading +ministers of the Roman Church; and exercised an almost unbounded sway +over the mind of the superficial and time-serving bishop. The Christians +of the chief city were now split up into parties, some advocating the +orthodox doctrine of the Trinity, and others abetting a different +theory. Callistus appears to have dexterously availed himself of their +divisions; and, by inducing each faction to believe that he espoused its +cause, managed, on the death of Zephyrinus, to secure his election to +the vacant dignity. + +When Callistus had attained the object of his ambition, he tried to +restore peace to the Church by endeavouring to persuade the advocates of +the antagonistic principles to make mutual concessions. Laying aside the +reserve which he had hitherto maintained, he now took up an intermediate +position, in the hope that both parties would accept his own theory of +the Godhead. "He invented," says Hippolytus, "such a heresy as follows. +He said that the Word is the Son and is also the Father, being called by +different names, but being one indivisible spirit; and that the Father +is not one and the Son another (person), but that they both are one and +the same.... The Father, having taken human flesh, deified it by uniting +it to Himself,... and so he said that the Father had suffered with the +Son." [348:1] + +Though Callistus, as well as Hippolytus, is recognised as a saint in the +Romish Breviary, [348:2] it is thus certain that the bishop of Portus +regarded the bishop of Rome as a schemer and a heretic. It is equally +clear that, at this period, all bishops were on a level of equality, for +Hippolytus, though the pastor of a town in the neighbourhood of the +chief city, did not acknowledge Callistus as his metropolitan. The +bishop of Portus describes himself as one of those who are "successors +of the apostles, partakers with them of the same grace both of principal +priesthood and doctorship, and reckoned among the guardians of the +Church." [348:3] Hippolytus testifies that Callistus was afraid of him, +[348:4] and if both were members of the same synod, [348:5] well might +the heterodox prelate stand in awe of a minister who possessed +co-ordinate authority, with greater honesty and superior erudition. But +still, it is abundantly plain, from the admissions of the +"Philosophumena," that the bishop of Rome, in the time of the author of +this treatise, was beginning to presume upon his position. Hippolytus +complains of his irregularity in receiving into his communion some who +had been "cast out of the Church" of Portus "after judicial sentence." +[348:6] Had the bishop of the harbour of Rome been subject to the bishop +of the capital, he would neither have expressed himself in such a style, +nor preferred such an accusation. + +Various circumstances indicate, as has already been suggested, that the +bishop of Rome, in the time of the Antonines, was chosen by lot; but we +may infer from the "Philosophumena" that, early in the third century, +another mode of appointment had been adopted. [349:1] It is obvious that +he now owed his advancement to the suffrages of the Church members, for +Hippolytus hints very broadly that Callistus pursued a particular course +with a view to promote his popularity and secure his election. It is +beyond doubt that, about A.D. 236, Fabian was chosen bishop of Rome by +the votes of the whole brotherhood, and there is on record a minute +account of certain extraordinary circumstances which signalised the +occasion. "When all the brethren had assembled in the church for the +purpose of choosing their future bishop, and when the names of many +worthy and distinguished men had suggested themselves to the +consideration of the multitude, no one so much as thought of Fabian who +was then present. They relate, however, that a dove gliding down from +the roof, straightway settled on his head, as when the Holy Spirit, like +a dove, rested upon the head of our Saviour. On this, the whole people, +as if animated by one divine impulse, with great eagerness, and with the +utmost unanimity, exclaimed that he was worthy; and, taking hold of him, +placed him forthwith on the bishop's chair." [349:2] + +Some time after the resurrection of the statue of Hippolytus, another +revelation was made in the neighbourhood of Rome which has thrown much +light upon its early ecclesiastical history. In the latter part of the +sixteenth century, the unusual appearance of some apertures in the +ground, not far from the Papal capital, awakened curiosity, and led to +the discovery of dark subterranean passages of immense extent filled +with monuments and inscriptions. These dismal regions, after having been +shut up for about eight hundred years, were then again re-opened and +re-explored. + +The soil for miles around Rome is undermined, and the long labyrinths +thus created are called catacombs. [350:1] The galleries are often found +in stories two or three deep, communicating with each other by stairs; +and it has been thought that formerly some of them were partially +lighted from above. They were originally gravel-pits or stone-quarries, +and were commenced long before the reign of Augustus. [350:2] The +enlargement of the city, and the growing demand for building materials, +led then to new and most extensive excavations. In the preparation of +these vast caverns, we may trace the presiding care of Providence. As +America, discovered a few years before the Reformation, furnished a +place of refuge to the Protestants who fled from ecclesiastical +intolerance, so the catacombs, re-opened shortly before the birth of our +Lord, supplied shelter to the Christians in Rome during the frequent +proscriptions of the second and third centuries. When the gospel was +first propagated in the imperial city, its adherents belonged chiefly to +the lower classes; and, for reasons of which it is now impossible to +speak with certainty, [350:3] it seems to have been soon very generally +embraced by the quarrymen and sand-diggers. [350:4] Thus it was that +when persecution raged in the capital, the Christian felt himself +comparatively safe in the catacombs. The parties in charge of them were +his friends; they could give him seasonable intimation of the approach +of danger; and among these "dens and caves of the earth," with countless +places of ingress and egress, the officers of government must have +attempted in vain to overtake a fugitive. + +At present their appearance is most uncomfortable; they contain no +chamber sufficient for the accommodation of any large number of +worshippers; and it has even been questioned whether human life could be +long supported in such gloomy habitations. But we have the best +authority for believing that some of the early Christians remained for a +considerable time in these asylums. [351:1] Wells of water have been +found in their obscure recesses; fonts for baptism have also been +discovered; and it is beyond doubt that the disciples met here for +religious exercises. As early as the second century these vaults became +the great cemetery of the Church. Many of the memorials of the dead +which they contained have long since been transferred to the Lapidarian +Gallery in the Vatican; and there, in the palace of the Pope, the +venerable tombstones testify, to all who will consult them, how much +modern Romanism differs from ancient Christianity. + +Though many of these sepulchral monuments were erected in the fourth and +fifth centuries, they indicate a remarkable freedom from superstitions +with which the religion of the New Testament has been since defiled. +These witnesses to the faith of the early Church of Rome altogether +repudiate the worship of the Virgin Mary, for the inscriptions of the +Lapidarian Gallery, all arranged under the papal supervision, contain no +addresses to the mother of our Lord. [352:1] They point only to Jesus as +the great Mediator, Redeemer, and Friend. It is also worthy of note that +the tone of these voices from the grave is eminently cheerful. Instead +of speaking of masses for the repose of souls, or representing departed +believers as still doomed to pass through purgatory, they describe the +deceased as having entered immediately into the abodes of eternal rest. +"Alexander," says one of them, "is not dead, but lives beyond the stars, +and his body rests in this tomb." "Here," says another, "lies Paulina, +in the place of the blessed." "Gemella," says a third, "sleeps in +peace." "Aselus," says a fourth, "sleeps in Christ." [352:2] + +We learn from the testimony of Hippolytus that, during the episcopate of +Zephyrinus, Callistus was "set over the cemetery." [352:3] This was +probably considered a highly important trust, as, in those perilous +times, the safety of the Christians very much depended on the prudence, +activity, and courage of the individual who had the charge of their +subterranean refuge. [352:4] The new curator seems to have signalised +himself by the ability with which he discharged the duties of his +appointment; he probably embellished and enlarged some of these dreary +caves; and hence a portion of the catacombs was designated "The Cemetery +of Callistus." Hippolytus, led astray by the ascetic spirit beginning so +strongly to prevail in the commencement of the third century, was +opposed to all second marriages, so that he was sadly scandalized by the +exceedingly liberal views of his Roman brother on the subject of +matrimony; and he was so ill-informed as to pronounce them novel. "In +his time," says he indignantly, "bishops, presbyters, and deacons, +though they had been twice or three times married, began to be +recognised as God's ministers; and if any one of the clergy married, it +was determined that such a person should remain among the clergy, as not +having sinned." [353:1] We cannot tell how many of the ancient bishops +of the great city were husbands; [353:2] we have certainly no distinct +evidence that even Callistus took to himself a wife; but we have the +clearest proof that the primitive Church of Rome did not impose celibacy +on her ministers; and, in support of this fact, we can produce the +unimpeachable testimony of her own catacombs. There is, for instance, a +monument "To Basilus the Presbyter, and Felicitas his wife;" and, on +another tombstone, erected about A.D. 472, or only four years before the +fall of the Western Empire, there is the following singular +record--"Petronia, a deacon's wife, the type of modesty. In this place I +lay my bones: spare your tears, dear husband and daughters, and believe +that it is forbidden to weep for one who lives in God." [353:3] "Here," +says another epitaph, "Susanna, the happy daughter of the late Presbyter +Gabinus, lies in peace along with her father." [353:4] In the Lapidarian +Gallery of the papal palace, the curious visitor may still read other +epitaphs of the married ministers of Rome. + +Though the gospel continued to make great progress in the metropolis, +there was perhaps no city of the Empire in which it encountered, from +the very first, such steady and powerful opposition. The Sovereign, +being himself the Supreme Pontiff of Paganism, might be expected to +resent, as a personal indignity, any attempt to weaken its influence; +and the other great functionaries of idolatry, who all resided in the +capital, were of course bound by the ties of office to resist the +advancement of Christianity. The old aristocracy disliked everything in +the shape of religious innovation, for they believed that the glory of +their country was inseparably connected with an adherence to the worship +of the gods of their ancestors. Thus it was that the intolerance of the +state was always felt with peculiar severity at the seat of government. +Exactly in the middle of the third century a persecution of unusual +violence burst upon the Roman Church. Fabian, whose appointment to the +bishopric took place, as already related, under such extraordinary +circumstances, soon fell a victim to the storm. After his martyrdom, the +whole community over which he presided seems to have been paralysed with +terror; and sixteen months passed away before any successor was elected; +for Decius, the tyrant who now ruled the Roman world, had proclaimed, +his determination rather to suffer a competitor for his throne than a +bishop for his chief city. [354:1] A veritable rival was quickly +forthcoming to prove the falsehood of his gasconade; for when Julius +Valens appeared to dispute his title to the Empire, Decius was obliged, +by the pressure of weightier cares, to withdraw his attention from the +concerns of the Roman Christians. During the lull in the storm of +persecution, Cornelius was chosen bishop; but after an official life of +little more than a year, he was thrown into confinement. His death in +prison was, no doubt, occasioned by harsh treatment. The episcopate of +his successor Lucius was even shorter than his own, for he was martyred +about six months after his election. [355:1] Stephen, who was now +promoted to the vacant chair, did not long retain possession of it; for +though we have no reliable information as to the manner of his death, it +is certain that he occupied the bishopric only between four and five +years. His successor Xystus in less than twelve months finished his +course by martyrdom. [355:2] Thus, in a period of eight years, Rome lost +no less than five bishops, at least four of whom were cut down by +persecution: of these Cornelius and Stephen, by far the most +distinguished, were interred in the cemetery of Callistus. + +There is still extant the fragment of a letter written by Cornelius +furnishing a curious statistical account of the strength of the Roman +Church at this period. [355:3] According to this excellent authority it +contained forty-six presbyters, seven deacons, seven sub-deacons, +forty-two acolyths, fifty-two others who were either exorcists, readers, +or door-keepers, and upwards of fifteen hundred besides, who were in +indigent circumstances, and of whom widows constituted a large +proportion. All these poor persons were maintained by the liberality of +their fellow-worshippers. Rome, as we have seen, was the birthplace of +prelacy; and other ecclesiastical organisms unknown to the New Testament +may also be traced to the same locality, for here we read for the first +time of such officials as the acolyths. [355:4] We may infer from the +details supplied by the letter of Cornelius, that there were now +fourteen congregations [355:5] of the faithful in the great city; and +its Christian population has been estimated at about fifty thousand. No +wonder that the chief pastor of such a multitude of zealous disciples +all residing in his capital, awakened the jealousy of a suspicious +Emperor. + +A schism, which continued for generations to exert an unhappy influence, +commenced in the metropolis during the short episcopate of Cornelius. +The leader of this secession was Novatian, a man of blameless character, +[356:1] and a presbyter of the Roman Church. In the Decian persecution +many had been terrified into temporary conformity to paganism; and this +austere ecclesiastic maintained, that persons who had so sadly +compromised themselves, should, on no account whatever, be re-admitted +to communion. When he found that he could not prevail upon his brethren +to adopt this unrelenting discipline, he permitted himself to be +ordained bishop in opposition to Cornelius; and became the founder of a +separate society, known as the sect of the Novatians. As he denied the +validity of the ordinance previously administered, he rebaptized his +converts, and exhibited otherwise a miserably contracted spirit; but +many sympathised with him in his views, and Novatian bishops were soon +established in various parts of the Empire. + +Immediately after the rise of this sect, a controversy relative to the +propriety of rebaptizing heretics brought the Church of Rome into +collision with many Christian communities in Africa and Asia Minor. The +discussion, which did not eventuate in any fresh schism, is chiefly +remarkable for the firm stand now made against the assumptions of the +great Bishop of the West. When Stephen, who was opposed to rebaptism, +discovered that he could not induce the Asiatics and Africans to come +over to his sentiments, he rashly tried to overbear them by declaring +that he would shut them out from his communion; but his antagonists +treated the threat merely as an empty display of insolence. "What strife +and contention hast thou awakened in the Churches of the whole world, O +Stephen," said one of his opponents, "and how great sin hast thou +accumulated when thou didst cut thyself off from so many flocks! Deceive +not thyself, for he is truly the schismatic who has made himself an +apostate from the communion of the unity of the Church. For whilst thou +thinkest that all may be excommunicated by thee, thou hast +excommunicated thyself alone from all." [357:1] + +When the apostle of the circumcision said to his Master--"Thou art the +Christ, the Son of the living God," Jesus replied--"_Blessed_ art thou, +Simon Bar-jona, _for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but +my Father which is in heaven_." To this emphatic acknowledgment of the +faith of His disciple, our Lord added the memorable words--"And I say +also unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my +church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." [357:2] As +the word Peter signifies a _stone_, [357:3] this address admits of a +very obvious and satisfactory exposition. "Thou art," said Christ to the +apostle, "a lively stone [357:4] of the spiritual structure I erect; and +upon this rock on which thy faith is established, as witnessed by thy +good confession, I will build my Church; and though the rains of +affliction may descend, and the floods of danger may come, and the winds +of temptation may blow, and beat upon this house, it shall remain +immoveable, [358:1] because it rests upon an impregnable foundation." +But a different interpretation was already gaining wide currency; for +though Peter had been led to deny Christ with oaths and imprecations, +the rapid growth and preponderating wealth of the Roman bishopric, of +which the apostle was supposed to be the founder, had now induced many +to believe that he was the Rock of Salvation, the enduring basis on +which the living temple of God was to be reared! Tertullian and Cyprian, +in the third century the two most eminent fathers of the West, +countenanced the exposition; [358:2] and though both these writers were +lamentably deficient in critical sagacity, men of inferior standing were +slow to impugn the verdict of such champions of the faith. Thus it was +that a false gloss of Scripture was already enthralling the mind of +Christendom; and Stephen boldly renewed the attempt at domination +commenced by his predecessor Victor. His opponents deserved far greater +credit for the sturdy independence with which they upheld their +individual rights than for the scriptural skill with which they unmasked +the sophistry of a delusive theory; for all their reasonings were +enervated and vitiated by their stupid admission of the claims of the +chair of Peter as the rock on which the Church was supposed to rest. +[358:3] This second effort of Rome to establish her ascendancy was, +indeed, a failure; but the misinterpretation of Holy Writ, by which it +was encouraged, was not effectively corrected and exposed; and thus the +great Western prelate was left at liberty, at another more favourable +opportunity, to wrest the Scriptures for the destruction of the Church. + +From the middle of the third century, the authority of the Roman bishops +advanced apace. The magnanimity with which so many of them then +encountered martyrdom elicited general admiration; and the divisions +caused by the schism of Novatian supplied them with a specious apology +for enlarging their jurisdiction. The argument from the necessity of +unity, which was urged so successfully for the creation of a bishop +upwards of a hundred years before, could now be adduced with equal +plausibility for the erection of a metropolitan; and, from this date, +these prelates undoubtedly exercised archiepiscopal power. Seventy years +afterwards, or at the Council of Nice, [359:1] the ecclesiastical rule +of the Primate of Rome was recognised by the bishops of the ten +suburbicarian provinces, including no small portion of Italy. [359:2] + +For the last forty years of the third century the Church was free from +persecution, and, during this long period of repose, the great Western +see enjoyed an unwonted measure of outward prosperity. Its religious +services were now conducted with increasing splendour, and distressed +brethren in very distant countries shared the fruits of its munificence. +In the reign of Gallienus, when the Goths burst into the Empire and +devastated Asia Minor, the bishop of Rome transmitted a large sum of +money for the release of the Christians who had fallen into the hands of +the barbarians. [359:3] A few years afterwards, when Paul of Samosata +was deposed for heresy, and when, on his refusal to surrender the +property of the Church of Antioch, an application was made to the +Emperor Aurelian for his interference, that prince submitted the matter +in dispute to the decision of Dionysius of Rome and the other bishops of +Italy. [360:1] This reference, in which the position of the Roman +prelate was publicly recognised, perhaps for the first time, by a Roman +Emperor, was calculated to add vastly to the importance of the +metropolitan see in public estimation. When Christianity was established +about fifty years afterwards by Constantine, the bishop of the chief +city was thus, to a great extent, prepared for the high position to +which he was suddenly promoted. + +None of the early bishops of Rome were distinguished for their mental +accomplishments; and though they are commonly reputed the founders of +the Latin Church, it would appear that, for nearly two hundred years, +they all wrote and spoke the Greek language. The name _Pope_, which they +have since appropriated, was now common to all pastors. [360:2] For the +first three centuries almost every question relating to them is involved +in much mystery; and, as we approach the close of this period, the +difficulty of unravelling their perplexed traditions rather increases +than diminishes. Even the existence of some who are said to have now +flourished has been considered doubtful. [360:3] It is alleged that the +see was vacant for upwards of three years and a half during the +Diocletian persecution in the beginning of the fourth century; [360:4] +but even this point has not been very clearly ascertained. The Roman +bishopric was by far the most important in the Church; and the obscurity +which overhangs its early history, cannot but be embarrassing to those +who seek to establish a title to the ministry by attempting to trace it +up through such dark annals. + +On looking back over the first three centuries, we may remark how much +the chairman of the Roman eldership, about the time of the death of the +Apostle John, differed from the prelate who filled his place two hundred +years afterwards. The former was the servant of the presbyters, and +appointed to carry out their decisions; the latter was their master, and +entitled to require their submission. The former presided over the +ministers of, perhaps, three or four comparatively poor congregations +dispirited by recent persecution; the latter had the charge of at least +five-and-twenty flourishing city churches, [361:1] together with all the +bishops in all the surrounding territory. In eventful times an +individual of transcendent talent, such as Pepin or Napoleon, has +adroitly bolted into a throne; but the bishop of Rome was indebted for +his gradual elevation and his ultimate ascendancy neither to +extraordinary genius nor superior erudition, but to a combination of +circumstances of unprecedented rarity. His position furnished him with +peculiar facilities for acquiring influence. Whilst the city in which he +was located was the largest in the world, it was also the most opulent +and the most powerful. He was continually coming in contact with men of +note in the Church from all parts of the Empire; and he had frequent +opportunities of obliging these strangers by various offices of +kindness. He thus, too, possessed means of ascertaining the state of the +Christian interest in every land, and of diffusing his own sentiments +under singularly propitious circumstances. When he was fast rising into +power, it was alleged that he was constituted chief pastor of the Church +by Christ himself; and a text of Scripture was quoted which was supposed +to endorse his title. For a time no one cared to challenge its +application; for meanwhile his precedence was but nominal, and those, +who might have been competent to point out the delusion, had no wish to +give offence, by attacking the fond conceit of a friendly and prosperous +prelate. But when the scene changed, and when the Empire found another +capital, the acumen of the bishop of the rival metropolis soon +discovered a sounder exposition; and Chrysostom of Constantinople, at +once the greatest preacher and the best commentator of antiquity, +ignored the folly of Tertullian and of Cyprian. "Upon the rock," says +he, "that is, upon the faith of the apostle's confession," [362:1] the +Church is built. "Christ said that he would build His Church on Peter's +confession." [362:2] Soon afterwards, the greatest divine connected with +the Western Church, and the most profound theologian among the fathers, +pointed out, still more distinctly, the true meaning of the passage. +"Our Lord declares," says Augustine, "On this rock I will found my +Church, because Peter had said: Thou art the Christ, the Son of the +living God. On _this rock, which thou hast confessed_, He declares I +will build my Church, for Christ was the rock on whose foundation Peter +himself was built; for other foundation hath no man laid than that which +is laid, which is Christ Jesus." [362:3] In the Italian capital, the +words on which the power of the Papacy is understood to rest are +exhibited in gigantic letters within the dome of St Peter's; but their +exhibition only proves that the Church of Rome has lost the key of +knowledge; for, though she would fain appeal to Scripture, she shews +that she does not understand the meaning of its testimony; and, closing +her eyes against the light supplied by the best and wisest of the +fathers, she persists in adhering to a false interpretation. + + + + + + SECTION II. + + THE LITERATURE AND THEOLOGY OF THE CHURCH. + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE ECCLESIASTICAL WRITERS. + + +By "the Fathers" we understand the writers of the ancient Christian +Church. The name is, however, of rather vague application, for though +generally employed to designate only the ecclesiastical authors of the +first six centuries, it is extended, occasionally, to distinguished +theologians who flourished in the middle ages. + +The fathers of the second and third centuries have a strong claim on our +attention. Living on the verge of apostolic times, they were acquainted +with the state of the Church when it had recently passed from under the +care of its inspired founders; and, as witnesses to its early +traditions, their testimony is of peculiar value. But the period before +us produced comparatively few authors, and a considerable portion of its +literature has perished. There have been modern divines, such as Calvin +and Baxter, who have each left behind a more voluminous array of +publications than now survives from all the fathers of these two hundred +years. Origen was by far the most prolific of the writers who flourished +during this interval, but the greater number of his productions have +been lost; and yet those which remain, if translated into English, would +amount to nearly triple the bulk of our authorised version of the Bible. +His extant works are, however, more extensive than all the other +memorials of this most interesting section of the history of the Church. + +Among the earliest ecclesiastical writers after the close of the first +century is Polycarp of Smyrna. He is said to have been a disciple of the +Apostle John, and hence he is known as one of the _Apostolic Fathers_. +[365:1] An epistle of his addressed to the Philippians, and designed to +correct certain vices and errors which had been making their appearance, +is still preserved. It seems to have been written towards the middle of +the second century; [365:2] its style is simple; and its general tone +worthy of a man who had enjoyed apostolic tuition. Its venerable author +suffered martyrdom about A.D. 167, [365:3] at the advanced age of +eighty-six. [365:4] + +_Justin Martyr_ was contemporary with Polycarp. He was a native of +Samaria, and a Gentile by birth; he had travelled much; he possessed a +well-cultivated mind; and he had made himself acquainted with the +various systems of philosophy which were then current. He could derive +no satisfaction from the wisdom of the pagan theorists; but, one day, as +he walked, somewhat sad and pensive, near the sea shore, a casual +meeting with an aged stranger led him to turn his thoughts to the +Christian revelation. The individual, with whom he had this solitary and +important interview, was a member and, perhaps, a minister of the +Church. After pointing out to Justin the folly of mere theorising, and +recommending him to study the Old Testament Scriptures, as well on +account of their great antiquity as their intrinsic worth, he proceeded +to expatiate on the nature and excellence of the gospel. [366:1] The +impression now made upon the mind of the young student was never +afterwards effaced; he became a decided Christian; and, about A.D. 165, +finished his career by martyrdom. + +Justin is the first writer whose contributions to ecclesiastical +literature are of considerable extent. Some of the works ascribed to him +are unquestionably the productions of others; but there is no reason to +doubt the genuineness of his Dialogue with Trypho the Jew, and of the +two Apologies addressed to the Emperors, [366:2] Though the meeting with +Trypho is said to have occurred at Ephesus, it is now perhaps impossible +to determine whether it ever actually took place, or whether the +Dialogue is only the report of an imaginary discussion. It serves, +however, to illustrate the mode of argument then adopted in the +controversy between the Jews and the disciples, and throws much light +upon the state of Christian theology. Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius +appear to have been the Emperors to whom the Apologies are addressed. In +these appeals to Imperial justice the calumnies against the Christians +are refuted, whilst the simplicity of their worship and the purity of +their morality are impressively described. + +Justin, even after his conversion, still wore the philosopher's cloak, +and continued to cherish an undue regard for the wisdom of the pagan +sages. His mind never was completely emancipated from the influence of a +system of false metaphysics; and thus it was that, whilst his views of +various doctrines of the gospel remained confused, his allusions to them +are equivocal, if not contradictory. But it has been well remarked that +_conscience_, rather than _science_, guided many of the fathers; and the +case of Justin demonstrates the truth of the observation. He possessed +an extensive knowledge of the Scriptures; and though his theological +views were not so exact or so perspicuous as they might have been, had +he been trained up from infancy in the Christian faith, or had he +studied the controversies which subsequently arose, it is beyond doubt +that his creed was substantially evangelical. He had received the truth +"in the love of it," and he counted not his life dear in the service of +his Divine Master. + +The _Epistle to Diognetus_, frequently included amongst the works of +Justin, is apparently the production of an earlier writer. Its author, +who styles himself "a disciple of apostles," designed by it to promote +the conversion of a friend; his own views of divine truth are +comparatively correct and clear; and in no uninspired memorial of +antiquity are the peculiar doctrines of the gospel exhibited with +greater propriety and beauty. Appended also to the common editions of +the works of Justin are the remains of a few somewhat later writers, +namely, Tatian, Athenagoras, Theophilus, and Hernias. Tatian was a +disciple of Justin; [367:1] Athenagoras was a learned man of Athens; +Theophilus is said to have been one of the pastors of Antioch; and of +Hermas nothing whatever is known. The tracts of these authors relate +almost entirely to the controversy between Christianity and Paganism. +Whilst they point out the folly and falsehood of the accusations so +frequently preferred against the brethren, they press the gospel upon +the acceptance of the Gentiles with much earnestness, and support its +claims by a great variety of arguments. + +The tract known as the _Epistle of Barnabas_ was probably composed in +A.D.135. [367:2] It is the production apparently of a convert from +Judaism who took special pleasure in allegorical interpretations of +Scripture. Hermas, the author of the little work called _Pastor_, or The +Shepherd, is a writer of much the same character. He was, in all +likelihood, the brother of Pius, [368:1] who flourished about the middle +of the second century, and who was, perhaps, the first or second +individual who was officially designated Bishop of Rome. The writings of +Papias, said to have been pastor of Hierapolis in the time of Polycarp, +are no longer extant. [368:2] The works of Hegesippus, of a somewhat +later date, and treating of the subject of ecclesiastical history, have +also disappeared. [368:3] + +_Irenaeus_ of Lyons is the next writer who claims our special notice. He +was originally connected with Asia Minor; and in his youth he is said to +have enjoyed the tuition of Polycarp of Smyrna. We cannot tell when he +left his native country, or what circumstances led him to settle on the +banks of the Rhone; but we know that, towards the termination of the +reign of Marcus Aurelius, he was appointed by the Gallic Christians to +visit the Roman Church on a mission of importance. The Celtic language, +still preserved in the Gaelic or Irish, was then spoken in France, +[368:4] and Irenaeus found it necessary to qualify himself for the +duties of a preacher among the heathen by studying the barbarous +dialect. His zeal, energy, and talent were duly appreciated; soon after +the death of the aged Pothinus he became the chief pastor of Lyons; and +for many years he exercised considerable influence throughout the whole +of the Western Church. When the Paschal controversy created such +excitement, and when Victor of Rome threatened to rend the Christian +commonwealth by his impetuous and haughty bearing, Irenaeus interposed, +and to some extent succeeded in moderating the violence of the Italian +prelate. He was the author of several works, [369:1] but his only extant +production is a treatise "Against Heresies." It is divided into five +books, four of which exist only in a Latin version; [369:2] and it +contains a lengthened refutation of the Valentinians and other Gnostics. + +Irenaeus is commonly called the disciple of Polycarp; but it is reported +that he was also under the tuition of a less intelligent preceptor, +Papias of Hierapolis. [369:3] This teacher, who has been already +mentioned, and who was the author of a work now lost, entitled, "The +Explanations of the Discourses of the Lord," is noted as the earliest +ecclesiastical writer who held the doctrine of the personal reign of +Christ at Jerusalem during the millennium. "These views," says Eusebius, +"he appears to have adopted in consequence of having misunderstood the +apostolic narratives.... For he was a man of very slender intellect, as +is evident from his discourses." [369:4] His pupil Irenaeus possessed a +much superior capacity; but even his writings are not destitute of +puerilities; and it is not improbable that he derived some of the errors +to be found in them from his weak-minded teacher. [369:5] + +Irenaeus is supposed to have died in the beginning of the third century; +and, shortly before that date, by far the most vigorous and acute writer +who had yet appeared among the fathers, began to attract attention. This +was the celebrated TERTULLIAN. He was originally a heathen, [370:1] and +he appears in early life to have been engaged in the profession of a +lawyer. At that time, as afterwards, there was constant intercourse +between Rome and Carthage; [370:2] Tertullian seems to have been well +acquainted with both these great cities; and he had probably resided for +several years in the capital of the Empire. [370:3] But most of his +public life was, perhaps, spent in Carthage, the place of his birth. In +the beginning of the third century clerical celibacy was beginning to be +fashionable; and yet Tertullian, though a presbyter, [370:4] was +married; for two of his tracts are addressed _To his Wife_; and it is +apparent from his works that then no law of the Church prohibited +ecclesiastics from entering into wedlock. + +The extant productions of this writer are numerous; and, if rendered +into our language, would form a very portly volume. But though several +parts of them have found translators, the whole have never yet appeared +in English; and, of some pieces, the most accomplished scholar would +scarcely undertake to furnish at once a literal and an intelligible +version. [370:5] His style is harsh, his transitions are abrupt, and his +inuendos and allusions most perplexing. He must have been a man of very +bilious temperament, who could scarcely distinguish a theological +opponent from a personal enemy; for he pours forth upon those who differ +from him whole torrents of sarcasm and invective. [371:1] His strong +passion, acting upon a fervid imagination, completely overpowered his +judgment; and hence he deals so largely in exaggeration, that, as to +many matters of fact, we cannot safely depend upon his testimony. His +tone is dictatorial and dogmatic; and, though we cannot doubt his piety, +we must feel that his spirit is somewhat repulsive and ungenial. Whilst +he was sadly deficient in sagacity, he was very much the creature of +impulse; and thus it was that he was so superstitious, so bigoted, and +so choleric. But he was, beyond question, possessed of erudition and of +genius; and when he advocates a right principle, he can expound, defend, +and illustrate it with great ability and eloquence. + +Tertullian is commonly known as the earliest of the Latin fathers. +[371:2] The writer who first attempted to supply the rulers of the world +with a Christian literature in their own tongue encountered a task of +much difficulty. It was no easy matter to conduct theological +controversies in a language which was not remarkable for flexibility, +and which had never before been employed in such discussions; and +Tertullian seems to have often found it necessary to coin unwonted forms +of expression, or rather to invent an ecclesiastical nomenclature. The +ponderous Latin, hitherto accustomed to speak only of Jupiter and the +gods, engages somewhat awkwardly in its new vocation; and yet contrives +to proclaim, with wonderful power, the great thoughts for which it must +now find utterance. Several years after his appearance as an author, +Tertullian lapsed into Montanism--a species of heresy peculiarly +attractive to a man of his rugged and austere character. Some of his +works bear clear traces of this change of sentiment; but others furnish +no internal evidences warranting us to pronounce decisively respecting +the date of their composition. It is remarkable that though he +identified himself with a party under the ban of ecclesiastical +proscription, his works still continued to be held in high repute, and +to be perused with avidity by those who valued themselves on their zeal +for orthodoxy. It is recorded of one of the most influential of the +Catholic bishops of the third century that he read a portion of them +daily; and, when calling for his favourite author, he is reported to +have said--"Give me _the Master_." [372:1] + +Tertullian flourished at a period when ecclesiastical usurpation was +beginning to produce some of its bitter fruits, and when religion was +rapidly degenerating from its primitive purity. [372:2] His works, which +treat of a great variety of topics interesting to the Christian student, +throw immense light on the state of the Church in his generation. His +best known production is his _Apology_, in which he pleads the cause of +the persecuted disciples with consummate talent, and urges upon the +state the equity and the wisdom of toleration. He expounds the doctrine +of the Trinity more lucidly than any preceding writer; he treats of +Prayer, of Repentance, and of Baptism; he takes up the controversy with +the Jews; [372:3] and he assails the Valentinians and other heretics. +But the way of salvation by faith seems to have been very indistinctly +apprehended by him, so that he cannot be safely trusted as a theologian. +He had evidently no clear conception of the place which works ought to +occupy according to the scheme of the gospel; and hence he sometimes +speaks as if pardon could be purchased by penance, by fasting, or by +martyrdom. + +_Clement of Alexandria_ was contemporary with Tertullian. Like him, he +was a Gentile by birth; but we know nothing of the circumstances +connected with his conversion. In early times Alexandria was one of the +great marts of literature and science; its citizens were noted for their +intellectual culture; and, when a Church was formed there, learned men +began to pass over to the new religion in considerable numbers. It was, +in consequence, deemed expedient to establish an institute where +catechumens of this class, before admission to baptism, could be +instructed in the faith by some well qualified teacher. The plan of the +seminary seems to have been gradually enlarged; and it soon supplied +education to candidates for the ministry. Towards the close of the +second century, Pantaenus, a distinguished scholar, had the charge of +it; and Clement, who had been his pupil, became his successor as its +president. Some of the works of this writer have perished, and his only +extant productions are a discourse entitled "What rich man shall be +saved?" his Address to the Greeks or Gentiles, his Paedagogue, and his +Stromata. The hortatory Address is designed to win over the pagans from +idolatry; the Paedagogue directs to Jesus, or the Word, as the great +Teacher, and supplies converts with practical precepts for their +guidance; whilst in the Stromata, or Miscellanies, we have a description +of what he calls the Gnostic or perfect Christian. He here takes +occasion to attack those who, in his estimation, were improperly +designated Gnostics, such as Basilides, Valentine, Marcion, and others. + +Clement, as is apparent from his writings, was extensively acquainted +with profane literature. But he formed quite too high an estimate of the +value of the heathen philosophy, whilst he allegorized Scripture in a +way as dangerous as it was absurd. By the serpent which deceived Eve, +according to Clement, "_pleasure_, an earthly vice which creeps upon the +belly, is allegorically represented." [374:1] Moses, speaking +allegorically, if we may believe this writer, called the Divine Wisdom +_the tree of life_ planted in paradise; by which paradise we may +understand the world, in which all the works of creation were called +into being. [374:2] He even interprets the ten commandments +allegorically. Thus, by _adultery_, he understands a departure from the +true knowledge of the Most High, and by _murder_, a violation of the +truth respecting God and His eternal existence. [374:3] It is easy to +see how Scripture, by such a system of interpretation, might be tortured +into a witness for any extravagance. + +In the early part of the third century _Hippolytus_ of Portus exerted +much influence by his writings. It was long believed that, with the +exception of some fragments and a few tracts of little consequence, the +works of this father had ceased to exist; but, as stated in a preceding +chapter, [374:4] one of his most important publications, the +"Philosophumena, or Refutation of all Heresies," has been recently +recovered. The re-appearance of this production after so many centuries +of oblivion is an extraordinary fact; and its testimony relative to +historical transactions of deep interest connected with the early Church +of Rome, has created quite a sensation among the students of +ecclesiastical literature. + +Hippolytus was the disciple of Irenaeus, and one of the soundest +theologians of his generation. His works, which are written in Greek, +illustrate his learning, his acuteness, and his eloquence. His views on +some matters of ecclesiastical discipline were, indeed, too rigid; and, +by a writer of the fifth century, [375:1] he has been described as an +abettor of Novatianism; but his zeal and piety are universally admitted. +He is said to have lost his life in the cause of Christianity; and +though he attests the heretical teaching of two of her chief pastors, +the Church of Rome still honours him as a saint and a martyr. + +Minucius Felix was the contemporary of Hippolytus. He was a Roman +lawyer, and a convert from paganism. In his Dialogue, entitled +"Octavius," the respective merits of Christianity and heathenism are +discussed with much vivacity. In point of style this little work is +surpassed by none of the ecclesiastical writings of the period. + +Another and a still more distinguished author, contemporary with +Hippolytus, was ORIGEN. He was born at Alexandria about A.D. 185; his +father Leonides, who was a teacher of rhetoric, was a member of the +Church; and his son enjoyed the advantages of an excellent elementary +education. Origen, when very young, was required daily to commit +prescribed portions of the Word of God to memory; and the child soon +became intensely interested in the study of the sacred oracles. The +questions which he proposed to his father, as he repeated his appointed +tasks, displayed singular precocity of intellect; and Leonides rejoiced +exceedingly as he observed from time to time the growing indications of +his extraordinary genius. But, before Origen reached maturity, his good +parent fell a victim to the intolerance of the imperial laws. In the +persecution under Septimius Severus, when the young scholar was about +seventeen years of age, Leonides was put into confinement, and then +beheaded. He had a wife and seven children who were likely to be left +destitute by his death; but Origen, who was his first born, afraid lest +his constancy should be overcome by the prospect of a beggared family, +wrote a letter to him when he was in prison to encourage him to +martyrdom. "Stand steadfast, father," said the ardent youth, "and take +care not to desert your principles on our account." At this crisis he +would have exposed himself to martyrdom, had not his mother hid his +clothes, and thus prevented him from appearing in public. + +When Leonides was put to death his property was confiscated, and his +family reduced to poverty. But Origen now attracted the notice of a rich +and noble lady of Alexandria, who received him into her house, and +became his patron. He did not, however, remain long under her roof; as +he was soon able to earn a maintenance by teaching. He continued, +meanwhile, to apply himself with amazing industry to the acquisition of +knowledge; and at length he began to be regarded as one of the most +learned of the Christians. So great was his celebrity as a divine that, +more than once during his life, whole synods of foreign bishops +solicited his advice and interference in the settlement of theological +controversies. + +Whilst Origen, by intense study, was constantly adding to his +intellectual treasures, he also improved his mind by travelling. When +about twenty-six years of age he made a journey to Rome; and he +subsequently visited Arabia, Palestine, Syria, Asia Minor, and Greece. +As he passed through Palestine in A.D. 228, when he was in the +forty-third year of his age, he was ordained a presbyter by some of the +bishops of that country. He was now teacher of the catechetical school +of Alexandria--an office in which he had succeeded Clement--and his +ordination by the foreign pastors gave great offence to Demetrius, his +own bishop. It has been said that this haughty churchman was galled by +the superior reputation of the great scholar; and Origen, on his return +to Egypt, was exposed to an ecclesiastical persecution. An indiscreet +act of his youth was now converted into a formidable accusation, [377:1] +whilst some incautious speculations in which he had indulged were urged +as evidences of his unsoundness in the faith. His ordination was +pronounced invalid; he was deprived of his appointment as president of +the catechetical school; and he was excommunicated as a heretic. He now +retired to Caesarea, where he appears to have spent the greater portion +of the remainder of his life. The sentence of excommunication was +announced by Demetrius to the Churches abroad; but though it was +approved at Rome and elsewhere, it was not recognised in Palestine, +Phoenice, Arabia, and Achaia. At Caesarea, Origen established a +theological seminary such as that over which he had so long presided at +Alexandria; and, in this institute, some of the most eminent pastors of +the third century received their education. + +This great man throughout life practised extraordinary self-denial. His +clothing was scarcely sufficient to protect him from the cold; he slept +on the ground; he confined himself to the simplest fare; and for years +he persisted in going barefoot. [377:2] But his austerities did not +prevent him from acquiring a world-wide reputation. Pagan philosophers +attended his lectures, and persons of the highest distinction sought his +society. When Julia Mammaea, the mother of Alexander Severus, invited +him to visit her, and when, in compliance with this summons, he +proceeded to Antioch [377:3] escorted by a military guard, he must have +been an object of no little curiosity to the Imperial courtiers. It +could now no longer be said that the Christians were an illiterate +generation; as, in all that brilliant throng surrounding the throne of +the Master of the Roman world, there was not, perhaps, one to be +compared, with the poor catechist of Alexandria for varied and profound +scholarship. But his theological taste was sadly vitiated by his study +of the pagan philosophy. Clement, his early instructor, led him to +entertain far too high an opinion of its excellence; and a subsequent +teacher, Ammonius Saccas, the father of New Platonism, thoroughly imbued +his mind with many of his own dangerous principles. According to +Ammonius all systems of religion and philosophy contain the elements of +truth; and it is the duty of the wise man to trace out and exhibit their +harmony. The doctrines of Plato formed the basis of his creed, and it +required no little ingenuity, to shew how all other theories quadrated +with the speculations of the Athenian sage. To establish his views, he +was obliged to draw much on his imagination, and to adopt modes of +exegesis the most extravagant and unwarrantable. The philosophy of +Ammonius exerted a very pernicious influence upon Origen, and seduced +him into not a few of those errors which have contributed so greatly to +lower his repute as a theologian. + +Origen was a most prolific author; and, if all his works were still +extant, they would be far more voluminous than those of any other of the +fathers. But most of his writings have been lost; and, in not a few +instances, those which remain have reached us either in a very mutilated +form, or in a garbled Latin version. His treatise "Against Celsus," +which was composed when he was advanced in life, and which is by far the +most valuable of his existing works, has come down to us in a more +perfect state than, perhaps, any of his other productions. It is a +defence of Christianity in reply to the publication of a witty heathen +philosopher who wrote against it in the time of the Antonines. [378:1] +Of his celebrated "Hexapla," to which he is said to have devoted much of +his time for eight and twenty years, only some fragments have been +preserved. This great work appears to have been undertaken to meet the +cavils of the Jews against the Septuagint--the Greek translation of the +Old Testament in current use in the days of the apostles, and still most +appreciated by the Christians. The unbelieving Israelites now pronounced +it a corrupt version; and, that all might have an opportunity of judging +for themselves, Origen exhibited the text in six consecutive +columns--the first, containing the original Hebrew--the second, the same +in Greek letters--and the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth, four of the +most famous of the Greek translations, including the Septuagint. [379:1] +The labour employed in the collation of manuscripts, when preparing this +work, was truly prodigious. The expense, which must also have been +great, is said to have been defrayed by Ambrosius, a wealthy Christian +friend, who placed at the disposal of the editor the constant services +of seven amanuenses. By his "Hexapla" Origen did much to preserve the +purity of the sacred text, and he may be said to have thus laid the +foundations of the science of Scripture criticism. + +This learned writer cannot be trusted as an interpreter of the inspired +oracles. Like the Jewish Cabbalists, of whom Philo, whose works he had +diligently studied, [379:2] is a remarkable specimen, he neglects the +literal sense of the Word, and betakes himself to mystical expositions. +[379:3] In this way the divine record may be made to support any +crotchet which happens to please the fancy of the commentator. Origen +may, in fact, be regarded as the father of Christian mysticism; and, in +after-ages, to a certain class of visionaries, especially amongst the +monks, his writings long continued to present peculiar attractions. + +On doctrinal points his statements are not always consistent, so that it +is extremely difficult to form anything like a correct idea of his +theological sentiments. Thus, on the subject of the Trinity, he +sometimes speaks most distinctly in the language of orthodoxy, whilst +again he employs phraseology which rather savours of the creed of +Sabellius or of Arius. In his attempts to reconcile the gospel and his +philosophy, he miserably compromised some of the most important truths +of Scripture. The fall of man seems to be not unfrequently repudiated in +his religious system; and yet, occasionally, it is distinctly +recognized. [380:1] He maintained the pre-existence of human souls; he +held that the stars are animated beings; he taught that all men shall +ultimately attain happiness; and he believed that the devils themselves +shall eventually be saved. [380:2] It is abundantly clear that Origen +was a man of true piety. His whole life illustrates his self-denial, his +single-mindedness, his delight in the Word of God, and his zeal for the +advancement of the kingdom of Christ. In the Decian persecution he +suffered nobly as a confessor; and the torture which he then endured +seems to have hastened his demise. But with all his learning he was +obviously deficient in practical sagacity; and though both his genius +and his eloquence were of a high order, he possessed scarcely even an +average share of prudence and common sense. His writings diffused, not +the genial light of the Sun of Righteousness, but the mist and darkness +of a Platonized Christianity. Though he induced many philosophers to +become members of the Church, the value of these accessions was greatly +deteriorated by the daring spirit of speculation which they were still +encouraged to cultivate. Of his Christian courage, his industry, and his +invincible perseverance, there can be no doubt. He closed a most +laborious career at Tyre, A.D. 254, in the seventieth year of his age. + +About the time of the death of Origen, a Latin author, whose writings +are still perused with interest, was beginning to attract much notice. +CYPRIAN of Carthage, before his conversion to Christianity, was a +professor of rhetoric and a gentleman of property. When he renounced +heathenism, he is supposed to have reached the mature age of forty-five +or forty-six; and as he possessed rank, talent, and popular eloquence, +he was deemed no ordinary acquisition to the Church. About two years +after his baptism, the chief pastor of the metropolis of the Proconsular +Africa was removed by death; and Cyprian, by the acclamations of the +Christian people, was called to the vacant office. At that time there +seem to have been only eight presbyters, [381:1] or elders, connected +with the bishopric of Carthage; but the city contained probably some +hundreds of thousands of a population; and, though the episcopal dignity +was not without its perils, it did not want the attractions of wealth +and influence. The advancement of Cyprian gave great offence to the +other elders, who appear to have conceived that one of themselves, on +the ground of greater experience and more lengthened services, had a +better title to promotion. Though the new bishop was sustained by the +enthusiastic support of the multitude, the presbytery contrived, +notwithstanding, to give him considerable annoyance. Five of them, +constituting a majority, formed themselves into a regular opposition; +and for several years the Carthaginian Church was distracted by the +struggles between the bishop and his eldership. + +The pastorate of Cyprian extended over a period of about ten years; but +meanwhile persecution raged, and the bishop was obliged to spend nearly +the one-third of his episcopal life in retirement and in exile. From his +retreat he kept up a communication by letters with his flock. [382:1] +The worship and constitution of the Church about the middle of the third +century may be ascertained pretty clearly from the Cyprianic +correspondence. Some of the letters addressed to the Carthaginian +bishop, as well as those dictated by him, are still extant; and as he +maintained an epistolary intercourse with Rome, Cappadocia, and other +places, the documents known as the Cyprianic writings, [382:2] are +amongst the most important of the ancient ecclesiastical memorials. This +eminent pastor has also left behind him several short treatises on +topics which were then attracting public attention. Among these may be +mentioned his tracts on "The Unity of the Church," "The Lord's Prayer," +"The Vanity of Idols," "The Grace of God," "The Dress of Virgins," and +"The Benefit of Patience." + +The writings of Cyprian have long been noted for their orthodoxy; and +yet it must be admitted that his hierarchical prejudices stunted his +charity and obscured his intellectual vision. Tertullian was his +favourite author; and it is evident that he possessed much of the +contracted spirit and of the stiff formalism of the great Carthaginian +presbyter. He speaks in more exalted terms of the authority of bishops +than any preceding writer. It is not improbable that the attempts of his +discontented elders to curb his power inflamed his old aristocratic +hauteur, and thus led to a reaction; and that, supported by the popular +voice, he was tempted absurdly to magnify his office, and to stretch his +prerogative beyond the bounds of its legitimate exercise. His name +carried with it great influence, and from his time episcopal pretensions +advanced apace. + +Cyprian was martyred about A.D. 258 in the Valerian persecution. As he +was a man of rank, and perhaps personally related to some of the +imperial officers at Carthage, he seems to have been treated, when a +prisoner, with unusual respect and indulgence. On the evening before his +death an elegant supper was provided for him, and he was permitted to +enjoy the society of a numerous party of his friends. When he reached +the spot where he was to suffer, he was subjected to no lingering +torments; for his head was severed from his body by a single stroke of +the executioner. [383:1] + +The only other writer of note who flourished after Cyprian, in the third +century, [383:2] was _Gregory_, surnamed _Thaumaturgus_, or _The +Wonder-Worker_. He belonged to a pagan family of distinction; and, when +a youth, was intended for the profession of the law; but, becoming +acquainted with Origen at Caesarea in Palestine, he was induced to +embrace the Christian faith, and relinquish flattering prospects of +secular promotion. He became subsequently the bishop of Neo-Caesarea in +Pontus. When he entered on his charge he is said to have had a +congregation of only seventeen individuals; but his ministry must have +been singularly successful; for, according to tradition, all the +inhabitants of the city, with seventeen exceptions, were, at the time of +his death, members of the Church. The reports respecting him are +obviously exaggerated, and no credit can be attached to the narrative of +his miracles. [384:1] He wrote several works, of which his "Panegyric on +Origen," and his "Paraphrase on Ecclesiastes," are still extant. The +genuineness of some other tracts ascribed to him may be fairly +challenged. + +The preceding account of the fathers of the second and third centuries +may enable us to form some idea of the value of these writers as +ecclesiastical authorities. Most of them had reached maturity before +they embraced the faith of the gospel, so that, with a few exceptions, +they wanted the advantages of an early Christian education. Some of +them, before their conversion, had bestowed much time and attention on +the barren speculations of the pagan philosophers; and, after their +reception into the bosom of the Church, they still continued to pursue +the same unprofitable studies. Cyprian, one of the most eloquent of +these fathers, had been baptized only about two years before he was +elected bishop of Carthage; and, during his comparatively short +episcopate, he was generally in a turmoil of excitement, and had, +consequently, little leisure for reading or mental cultivation. Such a +writer is not entitled to command confidence as an expositor of the +faith once delivered to the saints. Even in our own day, with all the +facilities supplied by printing for the rapid accumulation of knowledge, +no one would expect much spiritual instruction from an author who would +undertake the office of an interpreter of Scripture two years after his +conversion from heathenism. The fathers of the second and third +centuries were not regarded as safe guides even by their Christian +contemporaries. Tatian was the founder of a sect of extreme +Teetotallers. [383:1] Tertullian, who, in point of learning, vigour, and +genius, stands at the head of the Latin writers of this period, was +connected with a party of gloomy fanatics. Origen, the most voluminous +and erudite of the Greek fathers, was excommunicated as a heretic. If we +estimate these authors, as they were appreciated by the early Church of +Rome, we must pronounce their writings of little value. Tertullian, as a +Montanist, was under the ban of the Roman bishop. Hippolytus could not +have been a favourite with either Zephyrinus or Callistus, for he +denounced both as heretics. Origen was treated by the Roman Church as a +man under sentence of excommunication. Stephen deemed even Cyprian +unworthy of his ecclesiastical fellowship, because the Carthaginian +prelate maintained the propriety of rebaptizing heretics. + +Nothing can be more unsatisfactory, or rather childish, than the +explanations of Holy Writ sometimes given by these ancient expositors. +According to Tertullian, the two sparrows mentioned in the New Testament +[383:2] signify the soul and the body; [383:3] and Clemens Alexandrinus +gravely pleads for marriage [383:4] from the promise-"Where two or three +are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them." +[383:5] Cyprian produces, as an argument in support of the doctrine of +the Trinity, that the Jews observed "the third, sixth, and ninth hours" +as their "fixed and lawful seasons for prayer." [383:6] Origen +represents the heavenly bodies as literally engaged in acts of devotion. +[386:1] If these authorities are to be credited, the Gihon, one of the +rivers of Paradise, was no other than the Nile. [386:2] Very few of the +fathers of this period were acquainted with Hebrew, so that, as a class, +they were miserably qualified for the interpretation of the Scriptures. +Even Origen himself must have had a very imperfect knowledge of the +language of the Old Testament. [386:3] In consequence of their literary +deficiencies, the fathers of the second and third centuries occasionally +commit the most ridiculous blunders. Thus, Irenaeus tells us that the +name Jesus in Hebrew consists of two letters and a half, and describes +it as signifying "that Lord who contains heaven and earth!" [386:4] This +father asserts also that the Hebrew word _Adonai_, or the Lord, denotes +"utterable and wonderful." [386:5] Clemens Alexandrinus is not more +successful as an interpreter of the sacred tongue of the chosen people; +for he asserts that Jacob was called _Israel_ "because he had seen the +Lord God," [386:6] and he avers that _Abraham_ means "the elect father +of a sound!" [386:7] Justin Martyr errs egregiously in his references to +the Old Testament; as he cites Isaiah for Jeremiah, [386:8] Zechariah +for Malachi, [386:9] Zephaniah for Zechariah, [386:10] and Jeremiah for +Daniel. [386:11] Irenaeus repeats, as an apostolic tradition, that when +our Lord acted as a public teacher He was between forty and fifty years +of age; [387:1] and Tertullian affirms that He was about thirty years of +age at the time of His crucifixion. [387:2] The opinion of this same +writer in reference to angels is still more extraordinary. He maintains +that some of these beings, captivated by the beauty of the daughters of +men, came down from heaven and married them; and that, out of +complaisance to their brides, they communicated to them the arts of +polishing and setting precious stones, of preparing cosmetics, and of +using other appliances which minister to female vanity. [387:3] His +ideas upon topics of a different character are equally singular. Thus, +he affirms that the soul is corporeal, having length, breadth, height, +and figure. [387:4] He even goes so far as to say that there is no +substance which is not corporeal, and that God himself is a body. +[387:5] + +It would seem as if the Great Head of the Church permitted these early +writers to commit the grossest mistakes, and to propound the most +foolish theories, for the express purpose of teaching us that we are not +implicitly to follow their guidance. It might have been thought that +authors, who flourished on the borders of apostolic times, knew more of +the mind of the Spirit than others who appeared in succeeding ages; but +the truths of Scripture, like the phenomena of the visible creation, are +equally intelligible to all generations. If we possess spiritual +discernment, the trees and the flowers will display the wisdom and the +goodness of God as distinctly to us as they did to our first parents; +and, if we have the "unction from the Holy One," we may enter into the +meaning of the Scriptures as fully as did Justin Martyr or Irenaeus. To +assist us in the interpretation of the New Testament, we have at command +a critical apparatus of which they were unable to avail themselves. +Jehovah is jealous of the honour of His Word, and He has inscribed in +letters of light over the labours of its most ancient interpreters-- +"CEASE YE FROM MAN." The "opening of the Scriptures," so as to exhibit +their beauty, their consistency, their purity, their wisdom, and their +power, is the clearest proof that the commentator is possessed of "the +key of knowledge." When tried by this test, Thomas Scott or Matthew +Henry is better entitled to confidence than either Origen or Gregory +Thaumaturgus. The Bible is its own safest expositor. "The law of the +Lord is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, +making wise the simple." + + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE IGNATIAN EPISTLES AND THEIR CLAIMS. THE EXTERNAL EVIDENCE. + + +The Epistles attributed to Ignatius have attracted greater notice, and +have created more discussion, than any other uninspired writings of the +same extent in existence. The productions ascribed to this author, and +now reputed genuine by the most learned of their recent editors, might +all be printed on the one-fourth of a page of an ordinary newspaper; and +yet, the fatigue of travelling thousands of miles has been encountered, +[389:1] for the special purpose of searching after correct copies of +these highly-prized memorials. Large volumes have been written, either +to establish their authority, or to prove that they are forgeries; and, +if collected together, the books in various languages to which they have +given birth, would themselves form a considerable library. Recent +discoveries have thrown new light on their pretensions, but though the +controversy has now continued upwards of three hundred years, it has not +hitherto reached a satisfactory termination. [390:1] + +The Ignatian letters owe almost all their importance to the circumstance +that they are alleged to have been written on the confines of the +apostolic age. As very few records remain to illustrate the +ecclesiastical history of that period, it is not strange that epistles, +purporting to have emanated from one of the most distinguished ministers +who then flourished, should have excited uncommon attention. But doubts +regarding their genuineness have always been entertained by candid and +competent scholars. The spirit of sectarianism has entered largely into +the discussion of their claims; and, whilst certain distinct references +to the subject of Church polity, which they contain, have greatly +enhanced their value in the estimation of one party, the same passages +have been quoted, by those who repudiate their authority, as so many +decisive proofs of their fabrication. The annals of literature furnish, +perhaps, scarcely any other case in which ecclesiastical prejudices have +been so much mixed up with a question of mere criticism. + +The history of the individual to whom these letters have been ascribed, +has been so metamorphosed by fables, that it is now, perhaps, impossible +to ascertain its true outlines. There is a tradition that he was the +child whom our Saviour set in the midst of His disciples as a pattern of +humility; [390:2] and as our Lord, on the occasion, took up the little +personage in His arms, it has been asserted that Ignatius was therefore +surnamed _Theophorus_, that is, _borne or carried by God_. [390:3] +Whatever may be thought as to the truth of this story, it probably gives +a not very inaccurate view of the date of his birth; for he was, in all +likelihood, far advanced in life [391:1] at the period when he is +supposed to have written these celebrated letters. According to the +current accounts, he was the second bishop of Antioch at the time of his +martyrdom; and as his age would lead us to infer that he was then the +senior member of the presbytery, [391:2] the tradition may have thus +originated. It is alleged that when Trajan visited the capital of Syria +in the ninth year of his reign, or A.D. 107, Ignatius voluntarily +presented himself before the imperial tribunal, and avowed his +Christianity. It is added, that he was in consequence condemned to be +carried a prisoner to Rome, there to be consigned to the wild beasts for +the entertainment of the populace. On his way to the Western metropolis, +he is said to have stopped at Smyrna. The legend represents Polycarp as +then the chief pastor of that city; and, when there, Ignatius is +described as having received deputations from the neighbouring churches, +and as having addressed to them several letters. From Smyrna he is +reported to have proceeded to Troas; where he dictated some additional +epistles, including one to Polycarp. The claims of these letters to be +considered his genuine productions have led to the controversy which we +are now to notice. + +The story of Ignatius exhibits many marks of error and exaggeration; and +yet it is no easy matter to determine how much of it should be +pronounced fictitious. Few, perhaps, will venture to assert that the +account of his martyrdom is to be rejected as altogether apocryphal; and +still fewer will go so far as to maintain that he is a purely imaginary +character. There is every reason to believe that, very early in the +second century, he was connected with the Church of Antioch; and that, +about the same period, he suffered unto death in the cause of +Christianity. Pliny, who was then Proconsul of Bithynia, mentions that, +as he did not well know, in the beginning of his administration, how to +deal with the accused Christians, he sent those of them who were Roman +citizens to the Emperor, that he might himself pronounce judgment. +[392:1] It is possible that the chief magistrate of Syria pursued the +same course; and that thus Ignatius was transmitted as a prisoner into +Italy. But, upon some such substratum of facts, a mass of incongruous +fictions has been erected. The "Acts of his Martyrdom," still extant, +and written probably upwards of a hundred years after his demise, cannot +stand the test of chronological investigation; and have evidently been +compiled by some very superstitious and credulous author. According to +these Acts, Ignatius was condemned by Trajan at Antioch in the _ninth_ +[392:2] year of his reign; but it has been contended that, not until +long afterwards, was the Emperor in the Syrian capital. [392:3] In the +"Acts," Ignatius is described as presenting himself before his sovereign +_of his own accord_, to proclaim his Christianity--a piece of +foolhardiness for which it is difficult to discover any reasonable +apology. The report of the interview between Ignatius and Trajan, as +given in this document, would, if believed, abundantly warrant the +conclusion that the martyr must have entirely lost the humility for +which he is said to have obtained credit when a child; as his conduct, +in the presence of the Emperor, betrays no small amount of boastfulness +and presumption. The account of his transmission to Rome, that he might +be thrown to wild beasts, presents difficulties with which even the most +zealous defenders of his legendary history have found it impossible to +grapple. He was sent away, say they, to the Italian metropolis that the +sight of so distinguished a victim passing through so many cities on his +way to a cruel death might strike terror into the hearts of the +Christian inhabitants. But we are told that he was conveyed from Syria +to Smyrna _by water_, [393:1] so that the explanation is quite +unsatisfactory; and, had the journey been accomplished by land, it would +still be insufficient, as the disciples of that age were unhappily only +too familiar with spectacles of Christian martyrdom. Our perplexity +increases as we proceed more minutely to investigate the circumstances +under which the epistles are reported to have been composed. Whilst +Ignatius is said to have been hurried with great violence and barbarity +from the East to the West, he is at the same time represented, with +strange inconsistency, as remaining for many days together in the same +place, [393:2] as receiving visitors from the churches all around, and +as writing magniloquent epistles. What is still more remarkable, though +he was pressed by the soldiers to hasten forward, and though a +prosperous gale speedily carried his vessel into Italy, [394:1] one of +these letters is supposed to outstrip the rapidity of his own progress, +and to reach Rome before himself and his impatient escort! + +Early in the fourth century at least seven epistles attributed to +Ignatius were in circulation, for Eusebius of Caesarea, who then +flourished, distinctly mentions so many, and states to whom they were +addressed. From Smyrna the martyr is said to have written four +letters--one to the Ephesians, another to the Magnesians, a third to the +Trallians, and a fourth to the Romans. From Troas he is reported to have +written three additional letters--one to Polycarp, a second to the +Smyrnaeans, and a third to the Philadelphians. [394:2] At a subsequent +period eight more epistles made their appearance, including two to the +Apostle John, one to the Virgin Mary, one to Maria Cassobolita, one to +the Tarsians, one to the Philippians, one to the Antiochians, and one to +Hero the deacon. Thus, no less than fifteen epistles claim Ignatius of +Antioch as their author. + +It is unnecessary to discuss the merits of the eight letters unknown to +Eusebius. They were probably all fabricated after the time of that +historian; and critics have long since concurred in rejecting them as +spurious. Until recently, those engaged in the Ignatian controversy were +occupied chiefly with the examination of the claims of the documents +mentioned by the bishop of Caesarea. Here, however, the strange +variations in the copies tended greatly to complicate the discussion. +The letters of different manuscripts, when compared together, disclosed +extraordinary discrepancies; for, whilst all the codices contained much +of the same matter, a letter in one edition was, in some cases, about +double the length of the corresponding letter in another. Some writers +contended for the genuineness of the shorter epistles, and represented +the larger as made up of the true text extended by interpolations; +whilst others pronounced the larger letters the originals, and condemned +the shorter as unsatisfactory abridgments. [395:1] But, though both +editions found most erudite and zealous advocates, many critics of +eminent ability continued to look with distrust upon the text, as well +of the shorter, as of the larger letters; whilst not a few were disposed +to suspect that Ignatius had no share whatever in the composition of any +of these documents. + +In the year 1845 a new turn was given to this controversy by the +publication of a Syriac version of three of the Ignatian letters. They +were printed from a manuscript deposited in 1843 in the British Museum, +and obtained, shortly before, from a monastery in the desert of Nitria +in Egypt. The work was dedicated by permission to the Archbishop of +Canterbury, and the views propounded in it were understood to have the +sanction of the English metropolitan. [395:2] Dr Cureton, the editor, +has since entered more fully into the discussion of the subject in his +"Corpus Ignatianum" [395:3]--a volume dedicated to His Royal Highness +the Prince Albert, in which the various texts of all the epistles are +exhibited, and in which the claims of the three recently discovered +letters, as the only genuine productions of Ignatius, are ingeniously +maintained. In the Syriac copies, [396:1] these letters are styled "_The +Three_ Epistles of Ignatius, Bishop, and Martyr," and thus the inference +is suggested that, at one time, they were _the only three_ epistles in +existence. Dr Cureton's statements have obviously made a great +impression upon the mind of the literary public, and there seems at +present to be a pretty general disposition in certain quarters [396:2] +to discard all the other epistles as forgeries, and to accept those +preserved in the Syriac version as the veritable compositions of the +pastor of Antioch. + +It must be obvious from the foregoing explanations that increasing light +has wonderfully diminished the amount of literature which once obtained +credit under the name of the venerable Ignatius. In the sixteenth +century he was reputed by many as the author of fifteen letters: it was +subsequently discovered that eight of them must be set aside as +apocryphal: farther investigation convinced critics that considerable +portions of the remaining seven must be rejected: and when the short +text of these epistles was published, [396:3] about the middle of the +seventeenth century, candid scholars confessed that it still betrayed +unequivocal indications of corruption. [396:4] But even some Protestant +writers of the highest rank stoutly upheld their claims, and the learned +Pearson devoted years to the preparation of a defence of their +authority. [397:1] His "Vindiciae Ignatianae" has long been considered +by a certain party as unanswerable; and, though the publication has been +read by very few, [397:2] the advocates of what are called "High-Church +principles" have been reposing for nearly two centuries under the shadow +of its reputation. The critical labours of Dr Cureton have somewhat +disturbed their dream of security, as that distinguished scholar has +adduced very good evidence to shew that about three-fourths of the +matter [397:3] which the Bishop of Chester spent a considerable portion +of his mature age in attempting to prove genuine, is the work of an +impostor. It is now admitted by the highest authorities that _four_ of +the seven short letters must be given up as spurious; and the remaining +three, which are addressed respectively to Polycarp, to the Ephesians, +and to the Romans, and which are found in the Syriac version, are much +shorter even than the short epistles which had already appeared under +the same designations. The Epistle to Polycarp, the shortest of the +seven letters in preceding editions, is here presented in a still more +abbreviated form; the Epistle to the Romans wants fully the one-third of +its previous matter; and the Epistle to the Ephesians has lost nearly +three-fourths of its contents. Nor is this all. In the Syriac version a +large fragment of one of the four recently rejected letters reappears; +as the new edition of the Epistle to the Romans contains two entire +paragraphs to be found in the discarded letter to the Trallians. + +It is only due to Dr Cureton to acknowledge that his publications have +thrown immense light on this tedious and keenly agitated controversy. +But, unquestionably, he has not exhausted the discussion. Instead of +abruptly adopting the conclusion that the three letters of the Syriac +version are to be received as genuine, we conceive he would have argued +more logically had he inferred that they reveal one of the earliest +forms of a gross imposture. We are persuaded that the epistles he has +edited, as well as all the others previously published, are fictitious; +and we shall endeavour to demonstrate, in the sequel of this chapter, +that the external evidence in their favour is most unsatisfactory. + +When discussing the testimonies from the writers of antiquity in their +support, it is not necessary to examine any later witness than Eusebius. +The weight of his literary character influenced all succeeding fathers, +some of whom, who appear never to have seen these documents, refer to +them on the strength of his authority. [398:1] In his "Ecclesiastical +History," which was published as some think about A.D. 325, he asserts +that Ignatius wrote seven letters, and from these he makes a few +quotations. [398:2] But his admission of the genuineness of a +correspondence, bearing date upwards of two hundred years before his own +appearance as an author, is an attestation of very doubtful value. He +often makes mistakes respecting the character of ecclesiastical +memorials; and in one memorable case, of far more consequence than that +now under consideration, he has blundered most egregiously; for he has +published, as genuine, the spurious correspondence between Abgarus and +our Saviour. [399:1] He was under strong temptations to form an unduly +favourable judgment of the letters attributed to Ignatius, inasmuch as, +to use the words of Dr Cureton, "they seemed to afford evidence to the +apostolic succession in several churches, an account of which he +professes to be one of the chief objects of his history." [399:2] His +reference to them is decisive as to the fact of their _existence_ in the +early part of the fourth century; but those who adopt the views +propounded in the "Corpus Ignatianum," are not prepared to bow to his +critical decision; for, on this very occasion, he has given his sanction +to four letters which they pronounce apocryphal. + +The only father who notices these letters before the fourth century, is +Origen. He quotes from them twice; [399:3] the citations which he gives +are to be found in the Syriac version of the three epistles; [399:4] and +it would appear from his writings that he was not acquainted with the +seven letters current in the days of Eusebius. [399:5] Those to which he +refers were, perhaps, brought under his notice when he went to Antioch +on the invitation of Julia Mammaea, the mother of the Emperor; as, for +reasons subsequently to be stated, it is probable that they were +manufactured in that neighbourhood not long before his visit. If +presented to him at that time by parties interested in the recognition +of their claims, they were, under the circumstances, exactly such +documents as were likely to impose upon him; for the student of Philo, +and the author of the "Exhortation to Martyrdom," could not but admire +the spirit of mysticism by which they are pervaded, and the anxiety to +die under persecution which they proclaim. Whilst, therefore, his +quotation of these letters attests their existence in his time, it is of +very little additional value. Again and again in his writings we meet +with notices of apocryphal works unaccompanied by any intimations of +their spuriousness. [400:1] He asserts that Barnabas, the author of the +epistle still extant under his name, [400:2] was the individual +mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles as the companion of Paul; and he +frequently quotes the "Pastor" of Hermas [400:3] as a book given by +inspiration of God. [400:4] Such facts abundantly prove that his +recognition of the Ignatian epistles is a very equivocal criterion of +their genuineness. + +Attempts have been made to shew that two other writers, earlier than +Origen, have noticed the Ignatian correspondence; and Eusebius himself +has quoted Polycarp and Irenaeus as if bearing witness in its favour. +Polycarp in early life was contemporary with the pastor of Antioch; and +Irenaeus is said to have been the disciple of Polycarp; and, could it be +demonstrated that either of these fathers vouched for its genuineness, +the testimony would be of peculiar importance. But, when their evidence +is examined, it is found to be nothing to the purpose. In the Treatise +against Heresies, Irenaeus speaks, in the following terms, of the +heroism of a Christian martyr--"One of our people said, when condemned +to the beasts on account of his testimony towards God--As I am the wheat +of God, I am also ground by the teeth of beasts, that I may be found the +pure bread of God." [400:5] These words of the martyr are found in the +Syriac Epistle to the Romans, and hence it has been inferred that they +are a quotation from that letter. But it is far more probable that the +words of the letter were copied out of Irenaeus, and quietly +appropriated, by a forger, to the use of his Ignatius, with a view to +obtain credit for a false document. The individual who uttered them is +not named by the pastor of Lyons; and, after the death of that writer, a +fabricator might put them into the mouth of whomsoever he pleased +without any special danger of detection. The Treatise against Heresies +obtained extensive circulation; and as it animadverted on errors which +had been promulgated in Antioch, [401:1] it, no doubt, soon found its +way into the Syrian capital. [401:2] But who can believe that Irenaeus +describes Ignatius, when he speaks of "_one of our people_?" The martyr +was not such an insignificant personage that he could be thus ignored. +He was one of the most eminent Christians of his age--the companion of +apostles--and the presiding minister of one of the most influential +Churches in the world. Irenaeus is obviously alluding to some disciple +who occupied a very different position. He is speaking, not of what the +martyr _wrote_, but of what he _said_--not of his letters, but of his +words. Any reader who considers the situation of Irenaeus a few years +before he published this treatise, can have no difficulty in +understanding the reference. He had witnessed at Lyons one of the most +terrible persecutions the disciples ever had endured; and, in the letter +to the Churches of Asia and Phrygia, he had graphically described its +horrors. [401:3] He there tells how his brethren had been condemned to +be thrown to wild beasts, and he records with simplicity and pathos the +constancy with which they suffered. But in such an epistle he could not +notice every case which had come under his observation, and he here +mentions a new instance of the Christian courage of some believer +unknown to fame, when he states--"one of our people when condemned to +the beasts, said, 'As I am the wheat of God, I am also ground by the +teeth of beasts, that I may be found the pure bread of God.'" + +The Treatise against Heresies supplies the clearest evidence that +Irenaeus was quite ignorant of the existence of the Ignatian epistles. +These letters contain pointed references to the errorists of the early +Church, and had they been known to the pastor of Lyons, he could have +brought them to bear with most damaging effect against the heretics he +assailed. Ignatius was no ordinary witness, for he had heard the truth +from the lips of the apostles; he had spent a long life in the society +of the primitive disciples; and he filled one of the most responsible +stations that a Christian minister could occupy. The heretics boldly +affirmed that they had tradition on their side, [402:1] and therefore +the testimony of Ignatius, as of an individual who had received +tradition at the fountain-head, would have been regarded by Irenaeus as +all-important. And the author of the Treatise against Heresies was not +slow to employ such evidence when it was in any way available. He plies +his antagonists with the testimony of Clement of Rome, [402:2] of +Polycarp [402:3] of Papias, [402:4] and of Justin Martyr. [402:5] But +throughout the five books of his discussion he never adduces any of the +words of the pastor of Antioch. He never throws out any hint from which +we can infer that he was aware of the existence of his Epistles. [402:6] +He never even mentions his name. Could we desire more convincing proof +that he had never heard of the Ignatian correspondence? + +The only other witness now remaining to be examined is Polycarp. It has +often been affirmed that he distinctly acknowledges the authority of +these letters; and yet, when honestly interrogated, he will be found to +deliver quite a different deposition. But, before proceeding to consider +his testimony, let us inquire his _age_ when his epistle was written. It +bears the following superscription:--"Polycarp, _and the elders who are +with him_, to the Church of God which is at Philippi." At this time, +therefore, though the early Christians paid respect to hoary hairs, and +were not willing to permit persons without experience to take precedence +of their seniors, Polycarp must have been at the head of the presbytery. +But, at the death of Ignatius, when according to the current theory he +dictated this letter, he was a young man of six and twenty. [403:1] Such +a supposition is very much out of keeping with the tone of the document. +In it he admonishes the widows to be sober; [403:2] he gives advice to +the elders and deacons; [403:3] he expresses his great concern for +Valens, an erring brother, who had once been a presbyter among them; +[403:4] and he intimates that the epistle was written at the urgent +request of the Philippians themselves. [403:5] Is it at all probable +that Polycarp, at the age of six and twenty, was in a position to +warrant him to use such a style of address? Are we to believe he was +already so well known and so highly venerated that a Christian community +on the other side of the Aegean Sea, and the oldest Church in all +Greece, would apply to him for advice and direction? We must be prepared +to admit all this, before we can acknowledge that his epistle refers to +Ignatius of Antioch. + +Let us attend now to that passage in the letter to the Philippians where +he is supposed to speak of the Syrian pastor. "I exhort all of you that +ye obey the word of righteousness, and exercise all patience, which ye +have seen set forth before your eyes, _not only in the blessed Ignatius, +and Zosimus, and Rufus, but also in others of you_." [404:1] These words +would suggest to an ordinary reader that Polycarp is here speaking, not +of Ignatius of Antioch, but of an Ignatius of Philippi. If this Ignatius +did not belong to the Philippian Church, why, when addressing its +members, does he speak of Ignatius, Zosimus, Rufus, and "others of you?" +Ignatius of Antioch could not have been thus described. But who, it may +be asked, were Zosimus and Rufus here mentioned as fellow-sufferers with +Ignatius? They were exactly in the position which the words of Polycarp +literally indicate; they were men _of Philippi_; and, as such, they are +commemorated in the "Martyrologies." [404:2] It is impossible, +therefore, to avoid the conclusion that the Ignatius of Polycarp was +also a Philippian. + +It appears, then, that this testimony of the pastor of Smyrna has been +strangely misunderstood. Ignatius, as is well known, was not a very +uncommon name; and it would seem that several martyrs of the ancient +Church bore this designation. Cyprian, for example, tells us of an +Ignatius in Africa who was put to death for the profession of +Christianity in the former part of the third century. [405:1] It is +apparent from the words of Polycarp that there was also an Ignatius of +Philippi, as well as an Ignatius of Antioch. + +It may, however, be objected that the conclusion of this letter clearly +points to Ignatius of Antioch, inasmuch as Polycarp there speaks +apparently of _Syria_, and of some one interested about Ignatius who +might shortly visit that country. [405:2] Some critics of high name have +maintained that this portion of the epistle is destitute of authority, +and that it has been added by a later hand to countenance the Ignatian +forgery. [405:3] But every candid and discriminating reader may see that +the charge is destitute of foundation. An Ignatian interpolator would +not have so mismanaged his business. He would not have framed an +appendix which, as we shall presently shew, testifies against himself. +The passage to which such exception has been taken is unquestionably the +true postscript of the letter, for it bears internal marks of +genuineness. + +In this postscript Polycarp says--"What you know certainly both of +Ignatius himself, and of those _who are with him_, communicate." [405:4] +Here is another proof that the Ignatius of Polycarp is not Ignatius of +Antioch. The Syrian pastor is said to have been hurried with the utmost +expedition to Rome that he might be thrown to the beasts before the +approaching termination of the public spectacles; and it is reported +that when he reached the great city, he was forthwith consigned to +martyrdom. [406:1] But, though letters had been meanwhile passing +between Philippi and Smyrna, this Ignatius is understood to be still +alive. It would appear, too, that Zosimus and Rufus, previously named as +his partners in tribulation, continued to be his companions. Polycarp, +therefore, must be speaking of the "patience" of confessors who were yet +"in bonds," [406:2] and not of a man who had already been devoured by +the lions. + +Other parts of this postscript are equally embarrassing to those who +contend for the authority of the Ignatian Epistles. Thus, Polycarp +says--"The Epistles of Ignatius _which were sent to you by him_, and +whatever others we have by us, we have sent to you." [406:3] If these +words apply to Ignatius of Antioch, it follows that he must have written +_several_ letters to the _Philippians_; and yet it in now almost +universally admitted that even the one extant epistle addressed to them +in his name is an impudent fabrication. Again, Polycarp states--"Ye have +written to me, both ye and Ignatius, that when any one goes to Syria, he +can carry my letters to you." [406:4] But no such suggestion is to be +found, either in the Syriac version of the Three Epistles, or in the +larger edition known to Eusebius. Could we desire clearer proof that +Polycarp must here be speaking of another Ignatius, and another +correspondence? + +The words which we have last quoted deserve an attentive consideration. +Were a citizen of New York, in the postscript of a letter to a citizen +of London, to suggest that his correspondent should take an opportunity +of writing to him, when any common friend went to Jerusalem, the +Englishman might well feel perplexed by such a communication. Why should +a letter from London to New York travel round by Palestine? Such an +arrangement would not, however, be a whit more absurd than that +seemingly pointed out in this postscript. Philippi and Smyrna were not +far distant, and there was considerable intercourse between them; but +Syria was in another quarter of the Empire, and Polycarp could have +rarely found an individual passing to Antioch from "the chief city" of a +"part of Macedonia," and travelling to and fro by Smyrna. This +difficulty admits, however, of a very simple and satisfactory solution. +We have no entire copy of the epistle in the original Greek, [407:1] and +the text of the old Latin version in this place is so corrupt that it is +partially unintelligible; [407:2] but as the context often guides us in +the interpretation of a manuscript where it is blotted or torn, so here +it may enable us to spell out the meaning. The insertion of one letter +and the change of another in a single word [407:3] will render the +passage intelligible. If we read _Smyrna_ for Syria, the obscurity +vanishes. Polycarp then says to the Philippians--"Ye have written to me, +both ye and Ignatius, that, when any one goes to Smyrna, he can carry my +letters to you." The postscript, thus understood, refers to the desire +of his correspondents, that he should write frequently, and that, when a +friend went from Philippi to Smyrna, he should not be permitted to +return without letters. + +As it can be thus shewn that the letter of Polycarp, when tested by +impartial criticism, refuses to accredit the Epistles ascribed to +Ignatius of Antioch, it follows that, with the single exception of +Origen, no father of the first three centuries has noticed this +correspondence. Had these letters, at the alleged date of their +appearance, attracted such attention as they would themselves lead us to +believe, is it possible that no writer for upwards of a century after +the demise of their reputed author, would have bestowed upon them even a +passing recognition? They convey the impression that, when Ignatius was +on his way to Rome, all Asia Minor was moved at his presence--that +Greece caught the infection of excitement--and that the Western capital +itself awaited, with something like breathless anxiety, the arrival of +the illustrious martyr. Strange, indeed, then that even his letter to +the Romans is mentioned by no Western father until between two and three +hundred years after the time of its assumed publication! Nor were +Western writers wanting who would have sympathised with its spirit. It +would have been quite to the taste of Tertullian, and he could have +quoted it to shew that some of the peculiar principles of Montanism had +been held by a man of the apostolic era. Nor can it be said that had the +letter then been in existence, it was likely to have escaped his +observation. He had lived for years in Rome, and we have good reason to +believe that he was a presbyter of the Church of the Imperial city. A +man of his inquiring spirit, and literary habits, must have been well +acquainted with the Epistle had it obtained currency in Italy. But in +not one of his numerous treatises does he ever speak of it, or even name +its alleged author. [409:1] Hippolytus of Portus is another writer who +might have been expected to know something of this production. He lived +within a few miles of Rome, and he was conversant with the history of +its Church and with its ecclesiastical memorials. He, as well as +Tertullian, could have sympathised with the rugged and ascetic spirit +pervading the Ignatian correspondence. But, even in his treatise against +all heresies, he has not fortified his arguments by any testimony from +these letters. He had evidently never heard, of the now far famed +documents. [409:2] + +The conclusion to be drawn from these facts must be sufficiently +obvious. The Ignatian Epistles began to be fabricated in the time of +Origen; and the first edition of them appeared, not at Troas or Smyrna, +but in Syria or Palestine. At an early period festivals were kept in +honour of the martyrs; and on his natal day, [409:3] why should not the +Church of Antioch have something to tell of her great Ignatius? The Acts +of his Martyrdom were probably written in the former part of the third +century--a time when the work of ecclesiastical forgery was rife +[409:4]--and the Epistle to the Romans, which is inserted in these Acts, +is in all likelihood of earlier date than any of the other letters. The +Epistle to the Ephesians, perhaps, next made its appearance, and then +followed the Epistle to Polycarp. These letters gradually crept into +circulation as "The Three Epistles of Ignatius, Bishop, and Martyr." +There is every reason to believe that, as edited by Dr Cureton, they are +now presented to the public in their original _language_, as well as in +their original form. Copies of these short letters are not known to be +extant in any manuscript either Greek or Latin. Dr Cureton has not +attempted any explanation of this emphatic fact. If the Epistle to the +Romans, in its newly discovered form, is genuine, how does it happen +that there are no previous traces of its existence in the Western +Church? How are we to account for the extraordinary circumstance that +the Church of Rome can produce no copy of it in either Greek or Latin? +She had every reason to preserve such a document had it ever come into +her possession; for, even considered as a pious fraud of the third +century, the address "_to her who sitteth at the head_ in the place of +the country of the Romans," [410:1] is one of the most ancient +testimonies to her early pre-eminence to be found in the whole range of +ecclesiastical literature. Why should she have permitted it to be +supplanted by an interpolated document? Can any man, who adopts the +views of Dr Cureton, fairly answer such an inquiry? + +It is plain that the mistake or corruption of a word in the postscript +of the Epistle of Polycarp has had much to do with this Ignatian +imposture. In some worn or badly written manuscript, Syria was perhaps +read instead of Smyrna, and the false reading probably led to the +incubation of the whole brood of Ignatian letters. The error, whether of +accident or design, was adopted by Eusebius, [411:1] and from him passed +into general currency. We may thus best account for the strange +multiplication of these Ignatian epistles. It was clear that the +Ignatius spoken of by Polycarp had written more letters than what first +appeared, [411:2] and thus the epistles to the Smyrnaeans, the +Magnesians, the Trallians, and the Philadelphians, in due time emerged +into notice. At a subsequent date the letters to the Philippians, the +Antiochians, the Virgin Mary, and others, were forthcoming. + +The variety of forms assumed by this Ignatian fraud is not the least +remarkable circumstance connected with its mysterious history. All the +seven Epistles mentioned by Eusebius exist in a Longer and a Shorter +Recension; whilst the Syriac version exhibits three of them in a reduced +size, and a third edition. It is a curious fact that other spurious +productions display similar transformations. "_A great number_ of +spurious or interpolated works of the early ages of Christianity," says +Dr Cureton, "are found in two Recensions, a Shorter and a Longer, as in +the instance of the Ignatian Epistles. Thus, we find the two Recensions +of the Clementines, the two Recensions of the Acts of St Andrew, ..... +the Acts of St Thomas, the Journeying of St John, the Letter of Pilate +to Tiberius." [411:3] It is still more suspicious that some of these +spurious writings present a striking similarity _in point of style_ to +the Ignatian Epistles. [412:1] The standard coin of the realm is seldom +put into the crucible, but articles of pewter or of lead are freely +melted down and recast according to the will of the modeller. We cannot +add a single leaf to a genuine flower, but an artificial rose may be +exhibited in quite another form by a fresh process of manipulation. +Such, too, has been the history of ancient ecclesiastical records. The +genuine works of the fathers have come down to us in a state of +wonderful preservation; and comparatively few attempts have been made, +by interpolation or otherwise, to interfere with their integrity; +[412:2] but spurious productions seem to have been considered legitimate +subjects for the exercise of the art of the fabricator; and hence the +strange discrepancies in their text which have so often puzzled their +editors. + + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE IGNATIAN EPISTLES AND THEIR CLAIMS. +THE INTERNAL EVIDENCE. + + +The history of the Ignatian Epistles may well remind us of the story of +the Sibylline Books. A female in strange attire is said to have appeared +before Tarquin of Rome, offering to sell nine manuscripts which she had +in her possession; but the king, discouraged by the price, declined the +application. The woman withdrew; destroyed the one-third of her literary +treasures; and, returning again into the royal presence, demanded the +same price for what were left. The monarch once more refused to come up +to her terms; and the mysterious visitor retired again, and burnt the +one-half of her remaining store. Her extraordinary conduct excited much +astonishment; and, on consulting with his augurs, Tarquin was informed +that the documents which she had at her disposal were most valuable, and +that he should by all means endeavour to secure such a prize. The king +now willingly paid for the three books, not yet committed to the flames, +the full price originally demanded for all the manuscripts. The Ignatian +Epistles have experienced something like the fate of those Sibylline +oracles. In the sixteenth century, fifteen letters were brought out from +beneath the mantle of a hoary antiquity, and offered to the world as the +productions of the pastor of Antioch. Scholars refused to receive them +on the terms required, and forthwith eight of them were admitted to be +forgeries. In the seventeenth century, the seven remaining letters, in a +somewhat altered form, again came forth from obscurity, and claimed to +be the works of Ignatius. Again, discerning critics refused to +acknowledge their pretensions; but curiosity was roused by this second +apparition, and many expressed an earnest desire to obtain a sight of +the real epistles. Greece, Syria, Palestine, and Egypt were ransacked in +search of them, and at length three letters are found. The discovery +creates general gratulation; it is confessed that four of the Epistles, +so lately asserted to be genuine, are apocryphal; and it is boldly said +that the three now forthcoming are above challenge. [414:1] But Truth +still refuses to be compromised, and sternly disowns these claimants for +her approbation. The internal evidence of these three epistles +abundantly attests that, like the last three books of the Sibyl, they +are only the last shifts of a grave imposture. [414:2] + +The candid investigator, who compares the Curetonian version of the +letters with that previously in circulation, must acknowledge that +Ignatius, in his new dress, has lost nothing of his absurdity and +extravagance. The passages of the Epistles, which were formerly felt to +be so objectionable, are yet to be found here in all their unmitigated +folly. Ignatius is still the same anti-evangelical formalist, the same +puerile boaster, the same dreaming mystic, and the same crazy fanatic. +These are weighty charges, and yet they can be substantiated. But we +must enter into details, that we may fairly exhibit the spirit, and +expose the falsehood of these letters. + +I. The style of the Epistles is certainly not above suspicion. On the +ground of style alone, it is, unquestionably, somewhat hazardous to +pronounce a decisive judgment upon any document; but, if such an element +is ever to be taken into consideration, it cannot, in this case, be +overlooked. It is well known that, of the seven epistles mentioned by +Eusebius, there was one which scholars of the highest reputation always +regarded with extreme dubiety. In style it appeared to them so different +from the rest of the letters, and so unlike what might have been +expected from an apostolic minister, that some who were prepared to +admit the genuineness of the other documents, did not hesitate to +declare it a forgery. We allude to the Epistle to Polycarp. Even +Archbishop Ussher and Cardinal Bona [415:1] concurred in its +condemnation. It so happens, however, that it is one of the three +letters recently re-edited; and it appears that, of the three, _it has +been the least altered_. If then such a man as Ussher be considered a +safe and sufficient judge of the value of an ancient ecclesiastical +memorial, the Epistle to Polycarp, published by Dr Cureton, must be +pronounced spurious. Their editor urges that the letters to the +Ephesians and Romans, as expurgated in the Syriac version, now closely +resemble the Epistle to Polycarp in style; and if so, may we not fairly +infer that, had they been presented, in their new form, to the learned +Primate of Armagh, consistency would have bound him to denounce them as +also forgeries? + +II. The way in which the Word of God is ignored in these Epistles argues +strongly for their spuriousness. Every one acquainted with the early +fathers must have observed their frequent use of the sacred records. A +considerable portion of a chapter is sometimes introduced in a +quotation. [416:1] Hence it has been remarked that were all the copies +of the Bible lost and the writings of these fathers preserved, a large +share of the Holy Volume might thus be recovered. But Ignatius would +contribute nothing to the work of restoration; as, in the whole of the +three letters, not a single verse of Scripture is given at length. They, +no doubt, occasionally use Bible phraseology, as without it an +ecclesiastical document could not well be written; but not one promise +is quoted, and not one testimony from the Word is repeated for the +edification of the faithful. [416:2] An apostolical pastor on his way to +martyrdom would have written very differently. He would have reminded +his brethren of the "lively oracles," and he would have mentioned some +of those precious assurances which now contributed to his own spiritual +refreshment. He would have told them to have "no confidence in the +flesh;" [416:3] to take unto themselves "the sword of the Spirit which +is the Word of God;" [416:4] and to lay aside every weight and the sin +which did so easily beset them, "_looking unto Jesus_." [416:5] But, +instead of adopting such a course, this Ignatius addresses them in the +style of a starched and straitlaced churchman. "Let your treasures," +says he, "be your good works. Let your baptism be to you as armory." +"_Look to the bishop_ that God also may look upon you. I will be instead +of the souls of those who are subject to the bishop, and the presbyters +and the deacons." [416:6] What intelligent Christian can believe that a +minister, instructed by Paul or Peter, and filling one of the most +important stations in the apostolic Church, was verily such an ignorant +driveller? + +III. The chronological blunders in these Epistles betray their forgery. +In the "Acts of the Martyrdom of Ignatius," he and Polycarp are +represented as "fellow-scholars" of the Apostle John, [417:1] and the +pastor of Smyrna is supposed to be, in point of age, at least as +venerable a personage as the pastor of Antioch. The letter to Polycarp +is evidently written under the same impression. Ignatius there says to +him--"I praise God that I have been deemed _worthy of thy countenance_, +which in God I long after." When these words are supposed to have been +penned, Polycarp was only about six and twenty years of age; [417:2] and +the Church of Smyrna, with which he was connected, did not occupy a very +prominent place in the Christian commonwealth. Is it probable that a man +of the mature faith and large experience of Ignatius would have thus +addressed so youthful a minister? It also seems passing strange that the +aged martyr should commit all the widows of the community to his special +guardianship, and should think it necessary to add--"It is becoming to +men and women who marry, that they marry _by the counsel of the +bishop_." Was an individual, who was himself not much advanced beyond +boyhood, the most fitting person to give advice as to these matrimonial +engagements? A similar mistake as to age is made in the case of +Onesimus, who is supposed to be bishop of Ephesus. This minister, who is +understood to be mentioned in the New Testament. [417:3] is said at an +early date to have been pastor of the Church of the metropolis of the +Proconsular Asia; and the Ignatian forger obviously imagined that he was +still alive when his hero passed through Smyrna on his way to the +Western capital. But Onesimus perished in the Domitian persecution, +[418:1] so that Ignatius is made to write to a Christian brother who had +been long in his grave. [418:2] The fabricator proceeds more cautiously +in his letter to the Romans. How marvellous that this old gentleman, who +is willing to pledge his soul for every one who would submit to the +bishop, does not find it convenient to _name_ the bishop of Rome! The +experiment might have been somewhat hazardous. The early history of the +Roman Church was better known than that of any other in the world, and, +had he here made a mistake, the whole cheat might have been at once +detected. Though his erudition was so great that he could tell "the +places of angels," [418:3] he evidently did not dare to commit himself +by giving us a piece of earthly information, and by telling us who was +at the head of the Church of the Great City in the ninth year of the +reign of Trajan. But the same prudence does not prevail throughout the +Epistle. He here obviously speaks of the Church of Rome, not as she +existed a few years after the death of Clement, but of the same Church +as she was known after the death of Victor. In the beginning of the +second century the Church of the Syrian capital would not have +acknowledged the precedence of her Western sister. On the fall of +Jerusalem, the Church of Antioch was herself the first Christian +community in the Empire. She had a higher antiquity, a more +distinguished prestige, and perhaps a more numerous membership than any +other Church in existence. In the Syrian metropolis the disciples had +first been called Christians; there, Barnabas and Paul had been +separated to the work to which the Lord had called them; there, Peter +had preached; and there, prophets had laboured. But a century had +brought about a wonderful change. The Church of Rome had meanwhile +obtained the first place among Christian societies; and, before the +middle of the third century, "the See of Peter" was honoured as the +centre of catholic unity. Towards the close of the second century, many +persons of rank and power joined her communion, [419:1] and her +political influence was soon felt to be so formidable that even the +Roman Emperor began to be jealous of the Roman bishop. [419:2] But the +Ignatian forger did not take into account this ecclesiastical +revolution. Hence he here incautiously speaks in the language of his own +age, and writing "to her _who sitteth at the head_ in the place of the +country of the Romans," he says to her with all due humility--"I am not +commanding you like Peter and Paul" [419:3]--"Ye have taught +others"--"It is easy for you to do whatsoever you please." + +IV. Various words in these Epistles have a meaning which they did not +acquire until long after the time of Ignatius. Thus, the term employed +in the days of the Apostles to denote _purity_, or _chastity_, here +signifies _celibacy_. [419:4] Even in the commencement of the third +century those who led a single life were beginning to be considered +Christians of a superior type, as contrasted with those who were +married; and clerical celibacy was becoming very fashionable. [420:1] +The Ignatian fabricator writes under the influence of the popular +sentiment. "The house of the Church" at Antioch, of which Paul of +Samosata kept possession after his deposition about A.D. 269, [420:2] +seems to have been a dwelling appropriated to the use of the +ecclesiastical functionaries, [420:3] and the schemer who wrote the +first draft of these letters evidently believed that the ministers of +Christ should be a brotherhood of bachelors. Hence Ignatius is made thus +to address Polycarp and his clergy--"Labour together one with another; +make the struggle together one with another; run together one with +another; suffer together one with another; _sleep together one with +another; rise together one with another_." Polycarp and others of the +elders of Smyrna were probably married; [420:4] so that some +inconvenience might have attended this arrangement. + +The word _bishop_ is another term found in these Epistles, and employed +in a sense which it did not possess at the alleged date of their +publication. Every one knows that, in the New Testament, it does not +signify the chief pastor of a Church; but, about the middle of the +second century, as will subsequently appear, [421:1] it began to have +this acceptation. Clement of Rome, writing a few years before the time +of the martyrdom of Ignatius, uses the words bishop and presbyter +interchangeably. [421:2] Polycarp, in his own Epistle, dictated, +perhaps, forty years after the death of the Syrian pastor, still adheres +to the same phraseology. In the Peshito version of the New Testament, +executed probably in the former half of the second century, [421:3] the +same terminology prevails. [421:4] Ignatius, however, is far in advance +of his generation. When new terms are introduced, or when new meanings +are attached to designations already current, it seldom happens that an +old man changes his style of speaking. He is apt to persevere, in spite +of fashion, in the use of the phraseology to which he has been +accustomed from his childhood. But Ignatius is an exception to all such +experience, for he repeats the new nomenclature with as much flippancy +as if he had never heard any other. [421:5] Surely this minister of +Antioch must be worthy of all the celebrity he has attained, for he can +not only carry on a written correspondence with the dead, but also +anticipate by half a century even the progress of language! + +V. The puerilities, vapouring, and mysticism of these letters proclaim +their forgery. We would expect an aged apostolic minister, on his way to +martyrdom, to speak as a man in earnest, to express himself with some +degree of dignity, and to eschew trivial and ridiculous comparisons. +But, when treating of a grave subject, what can be more silly or +indecorous than such language as the following--"Ye are raised on high +by the engine of Jesus Christ, which is the cross, and ye are drawn by +the rope, which is the Holy Ghost, and your pulley is your faith." +[422:1] Well may the Christian reader exclaim, with indignation, as he +peruses these words, Is the Holy Ghost then a mere rope? Is that +glorious Being who worketh in us to will and to do according to His own +good pleasure, a mere piece of tackling pertaining to the ecclesiastical +machinery, to be moved and managed according to the dictation of Bishop +Ignatius? [422:2] But the frivolity of this impostor is equalled by his +gasconade. He thus tantalises the Romans with an account of his +attainments--"I am able to write to you heavenly things, _but I fear +lest I should do you an injury_." ..... + +"I am able to know heavenly things, and the places of angels, and the +station of powers that are visible and invisible." Where did he gather +all this recondite lore? Certainly not from the Old or New Testament. +May we not safely pronounce this man to be one who seeks to be wise +above what is written, "intruding into those things which he hath not +seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind?" [422:3] He seems, indeed, +to have himself had some suspicion that such was his character, for he +says, again, to his brethren of the Western metropolis--"I know many +things in God, but I moderate myself that I may not _perish through +boasting_; for now it is becoming to me that I should fear the more +abundantly, and should not look to _those that puff me up_." Let us now +hear a specimen of the mysticism of this dotard. "There was hidden from +the Ruler of this world the virginity of Mary, and the birth of our +Lord, and the three mysteries of the shout, which were done in the +quietness of God by means of the star, and here by the manifestation of +the Son magic began to be dissolved." [423:1] Who can undertake to +expound such jargon? What are we to understand by "the quietness of +God?" Who can tell how "the three mysteries of the shout" were "done by +means of the star?" + +VI. The unhallowed and insane anxiety for martyrdom which appears +throughout these letters is another decisive proof of their fabrication. +He who was, in the highest sense, the Faithful Witness betrayed no +fanatic impatience for the horrid tragedy of crucifixion; and, true to +the promptings of his human nature, he prayed, in the very crisis of His +agony--"O my Father, _if it be possible, let this cup pass from me_." +[423:2] The Scriptures represent the most exalted saints as shrinking +instinctively from suffering. In the prophecy announcing the violent +death of Peter, it is intimated that even the intrepid apostle of the +circumcision would feel disposed to recoil from the bloody ordeal. "When +thou shalt be old," said our Lord to him, "thou shalt stretch forth thy +hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee _whither thou +wouldest not_." [423:3] Paul mentions with thankfulness how, on a +critical occasion, the Lord stood with him, and "_delivered_" him "out +of the mouth of the lion." [423:4] Long after the apostolic age, the +same spirit continued to be cherished, and hence we are told of Polycarp +that, even when bowed down by the weight of years, he felt it right to +retire out of the way of those who sought his destruction. The +disciples, whom he had so long taught, took the same view of Christian +duty; and accordingly, in the Epistle of the Church of Smyrna, which +records his martyrdom, the conduct of those who "present themselves _of +their own accord_ to the trial" is emphatically condemned. [424:1] "We +do not," say the believers of Smyrna, "commend those who offer +themselves to persecution, _seeing the gospel teaches no such thing_." +[424:2] But a man who is supposed to have enjoyed far higher advantages +than Polycarp--a minister who is said to have been contemporary with all +the apostles--a ruler of the Church who is understood to have occupied a +far more prominent and influential position than the pastor of +Smyrna--is exhibited in the legend of his martyrdom as appearing "of his +own free will" [424:3] at the judgment-seat of the Emperor, and as +manifesting the utmost anxiety to be delivered into the mouth of the +lion. In the commencement of the second century the Churches of Rome and +Ephesus doubtless possessed as much spiritual enlightenment as any other +Churches in the world, and it is a libel upon their Christianity to +suppose that they could have listened with any measure of complacency to +the senseless ravings to be found even in the recent edition of the +Ignatian Letters. [424:4] The writer is made to assure the believers in +these great cities that he has an unquenchable desire to be eaten alive, +and he beseeches them to pray that he may enjoy this singular +gratification. "I hope," says he, "_through your prayers_ that I shall +be devoured by the beasts in Rome." [425:1] ... "I beg of you, be not +with me in the love that is not in its season. Leave me, that I may be +for the beasts, that by means of them I may be worthy of God.... With +provoking _provoke ye the beasts_ that they may be a grave for me, and +may leave nothing of my body, that not even when I am fallen asleep may +I be a burden upon any man.... I rejoice in the beasts which are +prepared for me, and _I pray that they may be quickly found for me_, and +I will provoke them that they may quickly devour me." [425:2] Every man +jealous for the honour of primitive Christianity should be slow to +believe that an apostolic preacher addressed such outrageous folly to +apostolic Churches. + +When reviewing the external evidence in support of these Epistles, we +have had occasion to shew that they were probably fabricated in the +former part of the third century. The internal evidence corroborates the +same conclusion. Ecclesiastical history attests that during the fifty +years preceding the death of Cyprian, [425:3] the principles here put +forward were fast gaining the ascendency. As early as the days of +Tertullian, ritualism was rapidly supplanting the freedom of evangelical +worship; baptism was beginning to be viewed as an "armour" of marvellous +potency; [425:4] the tradition that the great Church of the West had +been founded by Peter and Paul was now extensively propagated; and there +was an increasing disposition throughout the Empire to recognise the +precedence of "her who sitteth at the head in the place of the country +of the Romans." It is apparent from the writings of Cyprian that in some +quarters the "church system" was already matured. The language ascribed +to Ignatius--"Be careful for unanimity, than _which there is nothing +more_ excellent" [426:1]--then expressed a prevailing sentiment. To +maintain unity was considered a higher duty than to uphold truth, and to +be subject to the bishop was deemed one of the greatest of evangelical +virtues. Celibacy was then confounded with chastity, and mysticism was +extensively occupying the place of scriptural knowledge and intelligent +conviction. And the admiration of martyrdom which presents itself in +such a startling form in these Epistles was one of the characteristics +of the period. Paul taught that a man may give his body to be burned and +yet want the spirit of the gospel; [426:2] but Origen does not scruple +to describe martyrdom as "the cup of salvation," the baptism which +cleanses the sufferer, the act which makes his blood precious in God's +sight to the redemption of others. [426:3] Do not all these +circumstances combined supply abundant proof that these Epistles were +written in the time of this Alexandrian father? [426:4] + +It is truly wonderful that men, such as Dr Cureton, have permitted +themselves to be befooled by these Syriac manuscripts. It is still more +extraordinary that writers, such as the pious and amiable Milner, +[426:5] have published, with all gravity, the rhapsodies of Ignatius for +the edification of their readers. It would almost appear as if the name +_Bishop_ has such a magic influence on some honest and enlightened +Episcopalians, that when the interests of their denomination are +supposed to be concerned, they can be induced to close their eyes +against the plainest dictates of common sense and the clearest light of +historical demonstration. In deciding upon matters of fact the spirit of +party should never be permitted to interfere. Truth is the common +property of the catholic Church; and no good and holy cause can require +the support of an apocryphal correspondence. + +It is no mean proof of the sagacity of the great Calvin, that, upwards +of three hundred years ago, he passed a sweeping sentence of +condemnation on these Ignatian Epistles. At the time, many were startled +by the boldness of his language, and it was thought that he was somewhat +precipitate in pronouncing such a decisive judgment. But he saw +distinctly, and he therefore spoke fearlessly. There is a far more +intimate connexion than many are disposed to believe between sound +theology and sound criticism, for a right knowledge of the Word of God +strengthens the intellectual vision, and assists in the detection of +error wherever it may reveal itself. Had Pearson enjoyed the same clear +views of gospel truth as the Reformer of Geneva, he would not have +wasted so many precious years in writing a learned vindication of the +nonsense attributed to Ignatius. Calvin knew that an apostolic man must +have been acquainted with apostolic doctrine, and he saw that these +letters must have been the productions of an age when the pure light of +Christianity was greatly obscured. Hence he denounced them so +emphatically: and time has verified his deliverance. His language +respecting them has been often quoted, but we feel we cannot more +appropriately close our observations on this subject than by another +repetition of it. "There is nothing more abominable than that trash +which is in circulation under the name of Ignatius." [428:1] + + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE GNOSTICS, THE MONTANISTS, AND THE MANICHAEANS. + + +When Christianity made its appearance in the world, it produced a +profound sensation. It spread on all sides with great rapidity; it was +at once felt to be a religion for the common people; and some +individuals of highly cultivated minds soon acknowledged its authority. +For a time its progress was impeded by the persecutions of Nero and +Domitian; but, about the beginning of the second century, it started +upon a new career of prosperous advancement, and quickly acquired such a +position that the most distinguished scholars and philosophers could no +longer overlook its pretensions. In the reigns of Trajan and Hadrian, a +considerable number of men of learning were already in its ranks; but it +would appear that, on the whole, it derived very equivocal aid from the +presence of these new adherents. Not a few of the literati who joined +its standard attempted to corrupt it; and one hundred and twenty years +after the death of the Apostle John, the champions of orthodoxy had to +contend against no less than thirty-two heresies. [429:1] + +Of those who now adulterated the gospel, the Gnostics were by far the +most subtle, the most active, and the most formidable. The leaders of +the party were all men of education; and as they were to be found +chiefly in the large cities, the Church in these centres of influence +was in no small degree embarrassed and endangered by their speculations. +Some of the peculiarities of Gnosticism have been already noticed; +[430:1] but as the second century was the period when it made most +progress and awakened most anxiety, we must here advert more distinctly +to its outlines. The three great antagonists of the gospel were the +Grecian philosophy, the heathen mythology, and a degenerate Judaism; and +Gnosticism may be described as an attempt to effect a compromise between +Christianity and these rivals. As might have been expected, the attempt +met with much encouragement; for many, who hesitated to accept the new +religion unconditionally, were constrained to acknowledge that it +exhibited many indications of truth and divinity; and they were, +therefore, prepared to look on it with favour when presented to them in +an altered shape and furnished with certain favourite appendages. The +Gnostics called themselves believers; and their most celebrated teachers +would willingly have remained in the bosom of the Church; but it soon +appeared that their principles were subversive of the New Testament +revelation; and they were accordingly excluded from ecclesiastical +fellowship. + +Gnosticism assumed a variety of forms, and almost every one of its +teachers had his own distinctive creed; but, as a system, it was always +known by certain remarkable features. It uniformly ignored the doctrine +that God made all things out of nothing; [430:2] and, taking for granted +the eternity of matter, it tried to account, on philosophical +principles, for the moral and spiritual phenomena of the world which we +inhabit. The _Gnosis_, [430:3] or knowledge, which it supplied, and from +which it derived its designation, was a strange congeries of wild +speculations. The Scriptures describe the Most High as humbling Himself +to behold the things that are on earth, [431:1] as exercising a constant +providence over all His creatures, as decking the lilies of the valley, +and as numbering the very hairs of our heads; but Gnosticism exhibited +the Supreme God as separated by an immeasurable interval from matter, +and as having no direct communication with anything thus contaminated. +The theory by means of which many of its adherents endeavoured to solve +the problem of the origin of evil, [431:2] and to trace the connexion +between the finite and the infinite, was not without ingenuity. They +maintained that a series of Aeons, or divine beings, emanated from the +Primal Essence; but, as sound issuing from a given point gradually +becomes fainter until it is finally lost in silence, each generation of +Aeons, as it receded from the great Fountain of Spiritual Existence, +lost somewhat of the vigour of divinity; and at length an Aeon was +produced without power sufficient to maintain its place in the Pleroma, +or habitation of the Godhead. This scheme of a series of Aeons of +gradually decreasing excellence was apparently designed to shew how, +from an Almighty and Perfect Intelligence, a weak and erring being might +be generated. There were Gnostics who carried the principle of +attenuation so far as to teach that the inhabitants of the celestial +world were distributed into no less than three hundred and sixty-five +heavens, [431:3] each somewhat inferior to the other. According to some +of these systems, an Aeon removed by many emanations from the source of +Deity, and, in consequence, possessed of comparatively little strength, +passed over the bounds of the Pleroma, and imparted life to matter. +Another Power, called the _Demiurge_, was now produced, who, out of the +materials already in existence, fashioned the present world. The human +race, ushered, under such circumstances, upon the stage of time, are +ignorant of the true God, and in bondage to corrupt matter. But all men +are not in a state of equal degradation. Some possess a spiritual +nature; some, a physical or animal nature; and some, only a corporeal or +carnal nature. Jesus now appeared, and, at His baptism in the Jordan, +Christ, a powerful Aeon, joined Him, that He might be fitted for +redeeming souls from the ignorance and slavery in which they are +entangled. This Saviour taught the human family the knowledge of the +true God. Jesus was seized and led to crucifixion, and the Aeon Christ +now departed from Him; but, as His body was composed of the finest +ethereal elements, and was, in fact, a phantom, He did not really suffer +on the accursed tree. Many of the Gnostics taught that there are two +spheres of future enjoyment. They held that, whilst the spiritual +natures shall be restored to the Pleroma, the physical or animal natures +shall be admitted to an inferior state of happiness; and that such souls +as are found to be incapable of purification shall be consigned to +perdition or annihilation. + +Whilst, according to all the Gnostics, the Demiurge, or maker of this +world, is far inferior to the Supreme Deity, these system-builders were +by no means agreed as to his position and his functions. Some of them +regarded him as an Aeon of inferior intelligence who acted in obedience +to the will of the Great God; others conceived that he was no other than +the God of the Jews, who, in their estimation, was a Being of somewhat +rugged and intractable character; whilst others contended that he was an +Evil Power at open war with the righteous Sovereign of the universe. The +Gnostics also differed in their views respecting matter. Those of them +who were Egyptians, and who had been addicted to the study of the +Platonic philosophy, held matter to be inert until impregnated with +life; but the Syrians, who borrowed much from the Oriental theology, +taught that it was eternally subject to a Lord, or Ruler, who had been +perpetually at variance with the Great God of the Pleroma. + +Two of the most distinguished Gnostic teachers who flourished in the +early part of the second century were Saturninus of Antioch and +Basilides of Alexandria. [433:1] Valentine, who appeared somewhat later, +and who is supposed to have first excited attention at Rome about A.D. +140, was still more celebrated. He taught that in the Pleroma there are +fifteen male and fifteen female Aeons, whom he professed to distinguish +by their names; and he even proceeded to point out how they are +distributed into married pairs. Some have supposed that certain deep +philosophical truths were here concealed by him under the veil of +allegory. As he, like others of the same class, conveyed parts of his +Gnosis only into the ears of the initiated, it may be that the +explanation of its symbols was reserved for those who were thus made +acquainted with its secret wisdom. It has been alleged that he +personified the attributes of God, and that the Aeons, whom he names and +joins together, are simply those divine perfections which, when +combined, are fitted to produce the most remarkable results. Thus, he +associated _Profundity_ and _Thought, Intelligence_ and _Truth_, +_Reason_ and _Life_. [433:2] His system seems to have had many +attractions for his age, as his disciples, in considerable numbers, were +soon to be found both in the East and in the West. + +When Valentine was at Rome, Marcion, another heresiarch of the same +class, was also in the great metropolis. [433:3] This man is said to +have been born in Pontus, and though some of the fathers have attempted +to fix a stain upon his early reputation, his subsequent character seems +to have been irreproachable. [434:1] There is reason to think that he +was one of the most upright and amiable of the Gnostics. These errorists +were charged by their orthodox antagonists with gross immorality; and +there was often, perhaps, too much ground for the accusation; for some +of them, such as Carpocrates, [434:2] avowed and encouraged the most +shameless licentiousness; but others, such as Marcion, were noted for +their ascetic strictness. All the more respectable Gnostics appear to +have recommended themselves to public confidence by the austerity of +their discipline. They enjoined rigorous fasting, and inculcated +abstinence from wine, flesh-meat, and marriage. The Oriental theology, +as well as the Platonic philosophy, sanctioned such a mode of living; +and, therefore, those by whom it was practised were in a favourable +position for gaining the public ear when they came forward as +theological instructors. + +Gnosticism may appear to us a most fantastic system; but, in the second +century, it was dreaded as a very formidable adversary by the Church; +and the extent to which it spread attests that it possessed not a few of +the elements of popularity. Its doctrine of Aeons, or Divine Emanations, +was quite in accordance with theories which had then gained extensive +currency; and its account of the formation of the present world was +countenanced by established modes of thinking. Many who cherished a +hereditary prejudice against Judaism were gratified by the announcement +that the Demiurge was no other than the God of the Israelites; and many +more were flattered by the statement that some souls are essentially +purer and better than others. [435:1] The age was sunk in sensuality; +and, as it was the great boast of the heresiarchs that their _Gnosis_ +secured freedom from the dominion of the flesh, multitudes, who secretly +sighed for deliverance, were thus induced to test its efficacy. But +Gnosticism, in whatever form it presented itself, was a miserable +perversion of the gospel. Some of its teachers entirely rejected the Old +Testament; others reduced its history to a myth; whilst all mutilated +and misinterpreted the writings of the apostles and evangelists. Like +the Jewish Cabbalists, who made void the law of God by expositions which +fancy suggested and tradition embalmed, the Gnostics by their +far-fetched and unnatural comments, threw an air of obscurity over the +plainest passages of the New Testament. Some of them, aware that they +could derive no support from the inspired records, actually fabricated +Gospels, and affixed to them the names of apostles or evangelists, in +the hope of thus obtaining credit for the spurious documents. [435:2] +Whilst Gnosticism in this way set aside the authority of the Word of +God, it also lowered the dignity of the Saviour; and even when Christ +was most favourably represented by it, He was but an Aeon removed at the +distance of several intermediate generations from the Supreme Ruler of +the universe. The propagators of this system altogether misconceived the +scope of the gospel dispensation. They substituted salvation by carnal +ordinances for salvation by faith; they represented man in his natural +state rather as an ignoramus than a sinner; and, whilst they absurdly +magnified their own Gnosis, they entirely discarded the doctrine of a +vicarious atonement. + +Shortly after the middle of the second century the Church began to be +troubled by a heresy in some respects very different from Gnosticism. At +that time the persecuting spirit displayed by Marcus Aurelius filled the +Christians throughout the Empire with alarm, and those of them who were +given to despondency began to entertain the most gloomy anticipations. +An individual, named Montanus, who laid claim to prophetic endowments, +now appeared in a village on the borders of Phrygia; and though he seems +to have possessed a rather mean capacity, his discipline was so suited +to the taste of many, and the predictions which he uttered so accorded +with prevailing apprehensions, that he soon created a deep impression. +When he first came forward in the character of a Divine Instructor he +had been recently converted to Christianity; and he seems to have +strangely misapprehended the nature of the gospel. When he delivered his +pretended communications from heaven, he is said to have wrought himself +up into a state of frenzied excitement. His countrymen, who had been +accustomed to witness the ecstasies of the priests of Bacchus and +Cybele, saw proofs of a divine impulse in his bodily contortions; and +some of them at once acknowledged his extraordinary mission. By means of +two wealthy female associates, named Priscilla and Maximilla, who also +professed to utter prophecies, Montanus was enabled rapidly to extend +his influence. His fame spread abroad on all sides; and, in a few years, +he had followers in Europe and in Africa, as well as in Asia. + +It cannot be said that this heresiarch attempted to overturn the creed +of the Church. He was neither a profound thinker nor a logical reasoner; +and he certainly had not maturely studied the science of theology. But +he possessed an ardent temperament, and he seems to have mistaken the +suggestions of his own fanaticism for the dictates of inspiration. The +doctrine of the personal reign of Christ during the millennium appears +to have formed a prominent topic in his ministrations. [437:1] He +maintained that the discipline of the Church had been left incomplete by +the apostles, and that he was empowered to supply a better code of +regulations. According to some he proclaimed himself the _Paraclete_; +but, if so, he most grievously belied his assumed name, for his system +was far better fitted to induce despondency than to inspire comfort. All +his precepts were conceived in the sour and contracted spirit of mere +ritualism. He insisted upon long fasts; he condemned second marriages; +[437:2] he inveighed against all who endeavoured to save themselves by +flight in times of persecution; and he asserted that such as had once +been guilty of any heinous transgression should never again be admitted +to ecclesiastical fellowship. Whilst he promulgated this stern +discipline, he at the same time delivered the most dismal predictions, +announcing, among other things, the speedy catastrophe of the Roman +Empire. He also gave out that the Phrygian village where he ministered +was to become the New Jerusalem of renovated Christianity. + +But the Church was still too strongly impregnated with the free spirit +of the gospel to submit to such a prophet as Montanus. He had, however, +powerful advocates, and even a Roman bishop at one time gave him +countenance. [437:3] Though his discipline commended itself to the +morose and pharisaical, it was rejected by those who rightly understood +the mystery of godliness. Several councils were held to discuss its +merits, and it was emphatically condemned. [438:1] The signal failure of +some of the Montanist predictions had greatly lowered the credit of the +party; Montanus was pronounced a false prophet; and though the sect was +supported by Tertullian, the most vigorous writer of the age, it +gradually ceased to attract notice. [438:2] + +About a century after the appearance of Montanus, another individual, in +a more remote part of Asia, acquired great notoriety as a heresiarch. +The doctrine of two First Principles, a good deity and an evil deity, +had been long current in the East. Even in the days of Isaiah we may +trace its existence, for there is a most significant allusion to it in +one of his prophecies, in which Jehovah is represented as saying--"I am +the Lord, and there is _none else_, there is no God beside me.... _I +form the light, and create darkness; I make peace, and create evil:_ I +the Lord do all these things." [438:3] About the fifth century before +Christ, the Persian theology had been reformed by Zoroaster, and the +subordination of the two Principles to one God, the author of both, had +been acknowledged as an article of the established creed. In the early +part of the third century of the Christian era, there was a struggle +between the adherents of the old and the new faith of Parsism; and the +supporters of the views of Zoroaster had been again successful. But a +considerable party still refused to relinquish the doctrine of the +independence of the two Principles; and some of these probably joined +themselves to Mani, a Persian by birth, who, in the latter half of the +third century, became distinguished as the propagator of a species of +mongrel Christianity. This man, who was born about A.D. 240, possessed +genius of a high order. Though he finished his career when he was only +thirty-seven years of age, he had already risen to eminence among his +countrymen, and attracted the notice of several successive sovereigns. +He is said to have been a skilful physician, an accomplished painter, +and an excellent astronomer, as well as an acute metaphysician. Like +Montanus, he laid claim to a divine commission, and alleged that he was +the Paraclete who was promised to guide into all truth. He maintained +that there are two First Principles of all things, light and darkness: +God, in the kingdom of light, and the devil, in the kingdom of darkness, +have existed from eternity. Mani thus accounted for the phenomena of the +world around us--"Over the kingdom of light," said this heresiarch, +"ruled God the Father, eternal in His sacred race, glorious in His +might, the truth by His very essence.... But the Father himself, +glorious in His majesty; incomprehensible in His greatness, has united +with Himself blessed and glorious Aeons, in number and greatness +surpassing estimation." [439:1] He taught that Christ appeared to +liberate the light from the darkness, and that he himself was now +deputed to reveal the mysteries of the universe, and to assist men in +recovering their freedom. He rejected a great portion of the canon of +Scripture, and substituted certain writings of his own, which his +followers were to receive as of divine authority. His disciples, called +Manichees or Manichaeans, assumed the name of a _Church_, and were +divided into two classes, the _Elect_ and the _Hearers_. The Elect, +who were comparatively few, were the sacred order. They alone were made +acquainted with the mysteries, or more recondite doctrines, of the sect; +they practised extreme abstinence; they subsisted chiefly upon olives; +[439:2] and they lived in celibacy. They were not to kill, or even +wound, an animal; neither were they to pull up a vegetable, or pluck a +flower. The Hearers were permitted to share in the business and +pleasures of the world, but they were taught only the elements of the +system. After death, according to Mani, souls do not pass immediately +into the world of light. They must first undergo a two-fold +purification; one, by _water_ in the moon; another, by _fire_ +in the sun. + +Mani had provoked the enmity of the Magians; and, at their instigation, +he was consigned, about A.D. 277, by order of the Persian monarch, to a +cruel and ignominious death. But the sect which he had organized did not +die along with him. His system was well fitted to please the Oriental +fancy; its promise of a higher wisdom to those who obtained admission +into the class of the Elect encouraged the credulity of the auditors; +and, to such as had not carefully studied the Christian revelation, its +hypothesis of a Good and of an Evil Deity accounted rather plausibly for +the mingled good and evil of our present existence. The Manichaeans were +exposed to much suffering in the country where they first appeared; and, +as a sect of Persian origin, they were oppressed by the Roman +government; but they were not extinguished by persecution, and, far down +in the middle ages, they still occasionally figure in the drama of +history. + +Synods and councils may pass resolutions condemnatory of false doctrine, +but it is somewhat more difficult to counteract the seduction of the +principles from which heresies derive their influence. The Gnostics, the +Montanists, and the Manichaeans, owed much of their strength to +fallacies and superstitions with which the Christian teachers of the age +were not fully prepared to grapple; and hence it was that, whilst the +errorists themselves were denounced by ecclesiastical authority, a large +portion of their peculiar leaven found its way into the Church, and +gradually produced an immense change in its doctrine and discipline. A +notice of the more important of the false sentiments and dangerous +practices which the heretics propagated and the catholics adopted, may +enable us to estimate the amount of the damage which the cause of truth +now sustained. + +The Montanists recognised the distinction of _venial_ and _mortal_ sins. +They held that a professed disciple, who was guilty of what they called +mortal sin, should never again be admitted to sealing ordinances. +[441:1] It is apparent from the writings of Hippolytus, the famous +bishop of Portus, that, in the early part of the third century, some of +the most influential of the catholics cordially supported this +principle. Soon afterwards it was openly advocated by a powerful party +in the Church of Borne, and its rejection by Cornelius, then at the head +of that community, led to the schism of Novatian. But the distinction of +venial and mortal sins, upon which it proceeded, was even now generally +acknowledged. This distinction, which lies at the basis of the ancient +penitential discipline, was already beginning to vitiate the whole +catholic theology. Some sins, it is true, are more heinous than others, +but the comparative turpitude of transgressions depends much on the +circumstances in which they are committed. The wages of every sin is +death, [441:2] and it is absurd to attempt to give a stereotyped +character to any one violation of God's law by classing it, in regard to +the extent of its guilt, in a particular category. Christianity regards +sin, in whatever form, as a spiritual poison; and instead of seeking to +solve the curious problem--how much of it may exist in the soul without +the destruction of spiritual life?--it wisely instructs us to guard +against it in our very thoughts, and to abstain from even the +"appearance of evil." [442:1] "When lust," or indwelling depravity of +any description, "has conceived, it bringeth forth sin; and sin, when it +is finished, bringeth forth death." [442:2] Experience has demonstrated +that the admission of the distinction of venial and mortal sins is most +perilous to the best interests of the Christian community; for, whilst +it is without foundation in the inspired statutebook, it must inevitably +lead to the neglect or careless performance of many duties which the +Most High has solemnly enjoined. + +The Platonic philosophy taught the necessity of a state of purification +after death; [442:3] and a modification of this doctrine formed part of +at least some of the systems of Gnosticism. [442:4] It is inculcated by +Tertullian, the great champion of Montanism; [442:5] and we have seen +how, according to Mani, departed souls must pass, first to the moon, and +then to the sun, that they may thus undergo a twofold purgation. Here, +again, a tenet originally promulgated by the heretics, became at length +a portion of the creed of the Church. The Manichaeans, as well as the +Gnostics, rejected the doctrine of the atonement, and as faith in the +perfection of the cleansing virtue of the blood of Christ declined, a +belief in Purgatory became popular. [442:6] + +The Gnostics, with some exceptions, insisted greatly on the +mortification of the body; and the same species of discipline was +strenuously recommended by the Montanists and the Manichaeans. All these +heretics believed that the largest measure of future happiness was to be +realised by those who practised the most rigid asceticism. Mani admitted +that an individual without any extraordinary amount of self-denial, +might reach the world of Light, for he held out the hope of heaven to +his Hearers; but he taught that its highest distinctions were reserved +for the Elect, who scrupulously refrained from bodily indulgence. The +Church silently adopted the same principle; and the distinction between +_precepts_ and _counsels_, which was soon introduced into its theology, +rests upon this foundation. By precepts are understood those duties +which are obligatory upon all; by counsels, those acts, whether of +charity or abstinence, which are expected from such only as aim at +superior sanctity. [443:1] The Elect of the Manichaeans, as well as many +of the Gnostics, [443:2] declined to enter into wedlock, and the +Montanists were disposed to confer double honour on the single clergy. +[443:3] The Church did not long stand out against the fascinations of +this popular delusion. Her members almost universally caught up the +impression that marriage stands in the way of the cultivation of piety; +and bishops and presbyters, who lived in celibacy, began to be regarded +as more holy than their brethren. This feeling continued to gain +strength; and from it sprung that vast system of monasticism which +spread throughout Christendom, with such amazing rapidity, in the fourth +century. + +It thus appears that asceticism and clerical celibacy have been grafted +on Christianity by Paganism. Hundreds of years before the New Testament +was written, Buddhism could boast of multitudes of monks and eremites. +[443:4] The Gnostics, in the early part of the second century, +celebrated the praises of a single life; and the Elect of the +Manichaeans were all celibates. Meanwhile marriage was permitted to the +clergy of the catholic Church. Well might the apostle exhort the +disciples to beware of those ordinances which have "_a shew of wisdom_ +in will-worship, and humility, and _neglecting of the body_," [444:1] as +the austerities of the cloister are miserable preparatives for the +enjoyments of a world of purity and love. Christianity exhibited +startling tokens of degeneracy when it attempted to nourish piety upon +the spawn of the heathen superstitions. The gospel is designed for +social and for active beings; as it hallows all the relations of life, +it also teaches us how to use all the good gifts of God; and whilst +celibacy and protracted fasting may only generate misanthropy and +melancholy, faith, walking in the ways of obedience, can purify the +heart, and induce the peace that passeth all understanding. + + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +THE DOCTRINE OF THE CHURCH. + + +For some time after the apostolic age, the doctrine of the Church +remained unchanged. Those who had been taught the gospel by the lips of +its inspired heralds could not have been readily induced to relinquish +any of its distinctive principles. It must, indeed, be admitted that the +purity of the evangelical creed was soon deteriorated by the admixture +of dogmas suggested by bigotry and superstition; but, it may safely be +asserted that, throughout the whole of the period now before us, its +elementary articles were substantially maintained by almost all the +Churches of the Empire. + +Though there was still a pretty general agreement respecting the +cardinal points of Christianity, it is not to be thought strange that +the early writers occasionally expressed themselves in a way which would +now be considered loose or inaccurate. Errorists, by the controversies +they awakened, not unfrequently created much perplexity and confusion; +but, in general, the truth eventually issued from discussion with +renovated credit; for, in due time, acute and able advocates came +forward to prove that the articles assailed rested on an impregnable +foundation. During these debates it was found necessary to distinguish +the different shades of doctrine by the establishment of a fixed +terminology. The disputants were obliged to define with precision the +expressions they employed; and thus various forms of speech ceased to +have an equivocal meaning. But, in the second or third century, theology +had not assumed a scientific form; and the language of orthodoxy was, as +yet, unsettled. Hence, when treating of doctrinal questions, those whose +views were substantially correct sometimes gave their sanction to the +use of phrases which were afterwards condemned as the symbols of +heterodoxy. [446:1] + +About the beginning of the third century all adults who were admitted to +baptism were required to make a declaration of their faith by assenting +to some such formula as that now called "The Apostles' Creed;" [446:2] +and though no general council had yet been held, the chief pastors of +the largest and most influential Churches maintained, by letters, an +official correspondence, and were in this way well acquainted with each +other's sentiments. A considerable number of these epistles, or at least +of extracts from them, are still extant; [446:3] and there is thus +abundant proof of the unity of the faith of the ecclesiastical rulers. +But, in treating of this subject, it is necessary to be more specific, +and to notice particularly the leading doctrines which were now commonly +received. + +Before entering directly on this review, it is proper to mention that +the Holy Scriptures were held in the highest estimation. The reading of +them aloud formed part of the stated service of the congregations, and +one or other of the passages brought, at the time, under the notice of +the auditory, usually constituted the groundwork of the preacher's +discourse. Their perusal was recommended to the laity; [447:1] the +husband and wife talked of them familiarly as they sat by the domestic +hearth; [447:2] and children were accustomed to commit them to memory. +[447:3] As many of the disciples could not read, and as the expense of +manuscripts was considerable, copies of the sacred books were not in the +hands of all; but their frequent rehearsal in the public assemblies made +the multitude familiar with their contents, and some of the brethren +possessed an amount of acquaintance with these records which, even at +the present day, would be deemed most extraordinary. Eusebius speaks of +several individuals who could repeat, at will, any required passage from +either the Old or New Testament. On a certain occasion the historian +happened to be present when one of these walking concordances poured +forth the stores of his prodigious memory. "I was struck with +admiration," says he, "when I first beheld him standing amidst a large +crowd, and reciting certain portions of Holy Writ. As long as I could +only hear his voice, I supposed that he was reading, as is usual in the +congregations; but, when I came close up to him, I discovered that, +employing only the eyes of his mind, he uttered the divine oracles like +some prophet." [447:4] + +It was not extraordinary that the early Christians were anxious to +treasure up Scripture in the memory, for in all matters of faith and +practice the Written Word was regarded as the standard of ultimate +appeal. No human authority whatever was deemed equal to the award of +this divine arbiter. "They who are labouring after excellency," says a +father of this period, "will not stop in their search after truth, +_until they have obtained proof of that which they believe from the +Scriptures themselves_." [448:1] Nor was there any dispute as to the +amount of confidence to be placed in the language of the Bible. The +doctrine of its plenary inspiration--a doctrine which many in modern +times either openly or virtually deny--was now received without +abatement or hesitation. Even Origen, who takes such liberties when +interpreting the sacred text, admits most fully that it is all of divine +dictation. "I believe," says he, "that, for those who know how to draw +virtue from the Scriptures, _every letter in the oracles of God has its +end and its work_, even to an iota and particle of a letter. And, as +among plants, there is not one but has its peculiar virtue, and as they +only who have a knowledge of botanical science can tell how each should +be prepared and applied to a useful purpose; so it is that he who is a +holy and spiritual botanist of the Word of God, by gathering up each +atom and element will find the virtue of that Word, and acknowledge that +there is nothing in all that is written that is superfluous." [448:3] + +It has been already stated [448:3] that little difference of sentiment +existed in the early Church respecting the books to be included in the +canon of the New Testament. All, with the exception of the Gnostics and +some other heretics, recognized the claims of the four Gospels, [448:4] +of the Acts of the Apostles, of the Epistles of Paul, of the First +Epistle of Peter, and of the First Epistle of John. Though, for a time, +some Churches hesitated to acknowledge the remaining epistles, their +doubts seem to have been gradually dissipated. At first the genuineness +of the Apocalypse was undisputed; but, after the rise of the Montanists, +who were continually quoting it in proof of their theory of a +millennium, some of their antagonists foolishly questioned its +authority. At an early period two or three tracts [449:1] written by +uninspired men were received as Scripture by a number of Churches. They +were never, however, generally acknowledged; and at length, by common +consent, they were excluded from the canon. [449:2] + +The code of heathen morality supplied a ready apology for falsehood, +[449:3] and its accommodating principles soon found too much +encouragement within the pale of the Church. Hence the pious frauds +which were now perpetrated. Various works made their appearance with the +name of some apostolic man appended to them, [449:4] their fabricators +thus hoping to give currency to opinions or to practices which might +otherwise have encountered much opposition. At the same time many +evinced a disposition to supplement the silence of the Written Word by +the aid of tradition. But though the writers of the period sometimes lay +undue stress upon the evidence of this vague witness, they often resort +to it merely as an offset against statements professedly derived from +the same source which were brought forward by the heretics; and they +invariably admit that the authority of Scripture is entitled to override +the authority of tradition. "The Lord in the Gospel, reproving and +rebuking, declares," says Cyprian, "ye reject the commandment of God +that ye may keep your own tradition. [450:1] .... Custom should, not be +an obstacle that the truth prevail not and overcome, for a _custom +without truth is error inveterate_." [450:2] "What obstinacy is that, or +what presumption, to prefer human tradition to divine ordinances, and +not to perceive that God is displeased and provoked, as often as human +tradition relaxes and sets aside the divine command." [450:3] During +this period--the uncertainty of any other guide than the inspired record +was repeatedly demonstrated; for, though Christians were removed at so +short a distance from apostolic times, the traditions of one Church +sometimes diametrically contradicted those of another. [450:4] + +There is certainly nothing like uniformity in the language employed by +the Christian writers of this era when treating of doctrinal subjects; +and yet their theology seems to have been essentially the same. All +apparently admit the corruption of human nature. Justin Martyr speaks of +a "concupiscence in every man, evil in all its tendencies, and various +in its nature," [450:5] whilst Tertullian mentions original sin under +the designation of "the vice of our origin." [450:6] Our first parent, +says he, "having been seduced into disobedience by Satan was delivered +over to death, and transmitted his condemnation to the whole human race +which was _infected from his seed_." [450:7] Though the ancient fathers +occasionally describe free will in terms which apparently ignore the +existence of indwelling depravity, [451:1] their language should not be +too strictly interpreted, as it only implies a strong protest against +the heathen doctrine of fate, and a recognition of the principle that +man is a voluntary agent. Thus it is that Clemens Alexandrinus, one of +the writers who asserts most decidedly the freedom of the will, admits +the necessity of a new birth unto righteousness. "The Father," says he, +"regenerates by the Spirit unto adoption all who flee to Him." [451:2] +"Since the soul is moved of itself, the grace of God demands from it that +which it has, namely, a ready temper as its contribution to salvation. +For the Lord wishes that _the good which He confers on the soul_ should +be its own, since it is not without sensation, so that it should be +impelled like a body." [451:3] + +No fact is more satisfactorily attested than that the early disciples +rendered divine honours to our Saviour. In the very beginning of the +second century, a heathen magistrate, who deemed it his duty to make +minute inquiries respecting them, reported to the Roman Emperor that, in +their religious assemblies, they sang "hymns to Christ as to a God." +[451:4] They were reproached by the Gentiles, as well as by the Jews, +for worshipping a man who had been crucified. [451:5] When the +accusation was brought against them, they at once admitted its truth, +and they undertook to shew that the procedure for which they were +condemned was perfectly capable of vindication. [452:1] In the days of +Justin Martyr there were certain professing Christians, probably the +Ebionites, [452:2] who held the simple humanity of our Lord, but that +writer represents the great body of the disciples as entertaining very +different sentiments. "There are some of our race," says he, "who +confess that He was the Christ, but affirm that He was a man born of +human parents, with whom I do not agree, neither should I, even if very +many, who entertain the same opinion as myself, were to say so; since we +are commanded by Christ to attend, not to the doctrines of men, but to +that which was proclaimed by the blessed prophets, and taught by +Himself." [452:3] + +When Justin here expresses his dissent from those who described our Lord +as "a man born of human parents," he obviously means no more than that +he is not a Humanitarian, for, in common with the early Church, he held +the doctrine of the two natures in Christ. The fathers who now +flourished, when touching upon the question of the union of humanity and +deity in the person of the Redeemer, do not, it is true, express +themselves always with as much precision as writers who appeared after +the Eutychian controversy in the fifth century; but they undoubtedly +believed that our Lord was both God and man. [453:1] Even already the +subject was pressed on their attention by various classes of errorists +who were labouring with much assiduity to disseminate their principles. +The Gnostics, who affirmed that the body of Jesus was a phantom, shut +them up to the necessity of shewing that He really possessed all the +attributes of a human being; whilst, in meeting objectors from a +different quarter, they were compelled to demonstrate that He was also +the Jehovah of the Old Testament. The Ebionites were not the only +sectaries who taught that Jesus was a mere man. The same doctrine was +inculcated by Theodotus, a native of Byzantium, who settled at Rome +about the end of the second century. This individual, though by trade a +tanner, possessed no small amount of learning, and created some +disturbance in the Church of the Western capital by the novelty and +boldness of his speculations. In the end he is said to have been +excommunicated by Victor, the Roman bishop. Some time afterwards, his +sentiments were adopted by Artemon, whose disciples, named Artemonites, +elected a bishop of their own, [453:2] and existed for some time at Rome +as a distinct community. + +But by far the most distinguished of these ancient impugners of the +proper deity of the Messiah was the celebrated Paul of Samosata, who +flourished shortly after the middle of the third century. Paul occupied +the bishopric of Antioch, the second see in Christendom; and was +undoubtedly a man of superior talent. According to his views, the Divine +Logos is not a distinct Person, but the Reason of God; and Jesus was the +greatest of the sons of men simply because the Logos dwelt in Him after +a higher manner, or more abundantly, than in any other of the posterity +of Adam. [454:1] But though this prelate had great wealth, influence, +and eloquence, his heterodoxy soon raised a storm of opposition which he +could not withstand. The Christians of Antioch in the third century +could not quietly tolerate the ministrations of a preacher who +insinuated that the Word is not truly God. He appears to have possessed +consummate address, and when first arraigned, his plausible +equivocations and sophistries imposed upon his judges; but, at a +subsequent council, held about A.D. 269 in the metropolis of Syria, he +was so closely pressed by Malchion, one of his own presbyters, that he +was obliged reluctantly to acknowledge his real sentiments. He was, in +consequence, deposed from his office by a unanimous vote of the Synod. A +circular letter [454:2] announcing the decision was transmitted to the +leading pastors of the Church all over the Empire, and this +ecclesiastical deliverance seems to have received their universal +sanction. [454:3] + +The theological term translated _Trinity_, [454:4] was in use as early +as the second century; for, about A.D. 180, it is employed by +Theophilus, who is supposed to have been one of the predecessors of Paul +of Samosata in the Church of Antioch. [454:5] Speaking of the formation +of the heavenly bodies on the fourth day of creation, as described in +the first chapter of Genesis, this writer observes--"The three days +which preceded the luminaries are _types of the Trinity_, [454:6] of +God, and His Word, and His Wisdom." Here, as elsewhere in the works of +the fathers of the early Church, the third person of the Godhead is +named under the designation of Wisdom. [455:1] Though this is the first +mention of the word Trinity to be found in any ecclesiastical document +now extant, it is plain that the doctrine is of far higher antiquity. +Justin Martyr repeatedly refers to it, and Athenagoras, who flourished +in the reign of Marcus Aurelius, treats of it with much clearness. "We +speak," says he, "of the Father as God, and the Son as God, and the Holy +Ghost, shewing at the same time their power in unity, and their +distinction in order." [455:2] "We who look upon this present life as +worth little or nothing, and are conducted through it by the sole +principle of knowing God and the Word proceeding from Him, of knowing +what is the unity of the Son with the Father, what the Father +communicates to the Son, what is the Spirit, _what is the union of this +number of Persons_, the Spirit, the Son, and the Father, and in what way +they who are united are divided--shall we not have credit given us for +being worshippers of God?" [455:3] + +The attempts made in the latter half of the second century to pervert +the doctrine of Scripture relative to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, +probably led to the appearance of the word Trinity in the ecclesiastical +nomenclature; for, when controversy commenced, some such symbol was +required to prevent the necessity of constant and tedious +circumlocution. One of the most noted of the parties dissatisfied with +the ordinary mode of speaking respecting the Three Divine Persons, and +desirous of changing the current creed, was Praxeas, a native of Asia +Minor. After having acquired much credit by his fortitude and courage in +a time of persecution, he had also signalised himself by his zeal +against the Montanists. He now taught that the Son and Holy Ghost are +not distinct Persons, but simply modes or energies of the Father; and as +those who adopted his sentiments imagined that they thus held more +strictly than others the doctrine of the existence of a single Ruler of +the universe, they styled themselves _Monarchians_. [456:1] According to +their views the first and second Persons of the Godhead are identical; +and, as it apparently followed from this theory, that the Father +suffered on the cross, they received the name of _Patripassians_. +[456:2] Praxeas travelled from Asia Minor to Rome, and afterwards passed +over into Africa, where he was strenuously opposed by the famous +Tertullian. Another individual, named Noetus, attracted some notice +about the close of the second century by the peculiarity of his +speculations in reference to the Godhead. "Noetus," says a contemporary, +"calls the same both Son and Father, for he speaks thus--'When the +Father had not been born, He was rightly called Father, but when it +pleased Him to undergo birth, then by birth He became the Son of +Himself, and not of another.' Thus he professes to establish the +principle of Monarchianism." [456:3] But, perhaps, the attempts of +Sabellius to modify the established doctrine made the deepest +impression. This man, who was an ecclesiastic connected with Ptolemais +in Africa, [456:4] maintained that there is no foundation for the +ordinary distinction of the Persons of the Trinity, and that the terms +Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, merely indicate different manifestations +of the Supreme Being, or different phases under which the one God +reveals Himself. From him the doctrine of those who confound the Persons +of the Godhead still bears the name of Sabellianism. + +It has been sometimes said that the Church borrowed its idea of a +Trinity from Plato, but this assertion rests upon no historical basis. +Learned men have found it exceedingly difficult to give anything like an +intelligible account of the Trinity of the Athenian philosopher, [457:1] +and it seems to have had only a metaphysical existence. It certainly had +nothing more than a fanciful and verbal resemblance to the Trinity of +Christianity. Had the doctrine of the Church been derived from the +writings of the Grecian sage, it would not have been inculcated with so +much zeal and unanimity by the early fathers. Some of them were bitterly +opposed to Platonism, and yet, though none denounced it more vehemently +than Tertullian, [457:2] we cannot point to any one of them who speaks +of the Three Divine Persons more clearly or copiously. The heretic +thinks, says he, "that we cannot believe in one God in any other way +than if we say that the very same Person is Father, Son, and Holy +Ghost.... These persons assume the number and arrangement of the Trinity +to be a division of the Unity; whereas the Unity, which derives a +Trinity from itself, is not destroyed by it, but has its different +offices performed. They, therefore, boast that two and three Gods are +preached by us, but that they themselves are worshippers of one God; as +if the Unity, when improperly contracted, did not create heresy, and a +Trinity, when properly considered, did not constitute truth." [457:3] + +Every one at all acquainted with the ecclesiastical literature of this +period must acknowledge that the disciples now firmly maintained the +doctrine of the Atonement. The Gnostics and the Manichaeans discarded +this article from their systems, as it was entirely foreign to the +spirit of their philosophy; but, though the Church teachers enter into +scarcely any explanation of it, by attempting to shew how the violated +law required a propitiation, they proclaim it as a glorious truth which +should inspire all the children of God with joy and confidence. Clemens +Alexandrinus gives utterance only to the common faith when he +declares--"Christians are redeemed from corruption by the blood of the +Lord." "The Word poured forth His blood for us to save human nature." +"The Lord gave Himself a victim for us." [458:1] The early writers also +mention faith as the means by which we are to appropriate the benefits +of the Redeemer's sacrifice. Thus, Justin Martyr represents Christ as +"purifying by His blood those who believe on Him." [458:2] Clemens +Alexandrinus, in like manner, speaks of "the one mode of salvation by +faith in God," [458:3] and says that "we have believed in God through +the _voice of the Word_." [458:4] In the "Letter to Diognetus" the +doctrine of justification by faith through the imputed righteousness of +the Saviour is beautifully exhibited. "For what else," says the writer, +"could cover our sins but His righteousness? In whom was it a possible +that we, the lawless and the unholy, could be justified, save by the Son +of God alone? Oh sweet exchange! oh unsearchable wisdom! oh unexpected +benefits! that the sin of many should be hidden by One righteous, and +the righteousness of One justify many sinners." [458:5] + +The Church of the second and third centuries was not agitated by any +controversies relative to grace and predestination. Few, probably, were +disposed to indulge in speculations on these subjects; and some of the +ecclesiastical writers, in the heat of controversial discussion, are +occasionally tempted to make use of language which it would be difficult +to reconcile with the declarations of the New Testament. All of them, +however, either explicitly or virtually, admit the necessity of grace; +and some distinctly enunciate the doctrine of election. "We stand in +especial need of divine grace, and right instruction, and pure +affection," says Clemens Alexandrinus, "and _we require that the Father +should draw us towards himself_." "God, who knows the future as if it +was already present, _knows the elect according to His purpose_ even +before the creation." [459:1] "Your power to do," says Cyprian, "will be +according to the increase of spiritual grace.... What measure we bring +thither of faith to hold, so much do we drink in of grace to inundate. +Hereby is strength given." [459:2] It is worthy of note that those +writers, who speak most decidedly of the freedom of the will, also most +distinctly proclaim their faith in the perfection of the Divine +Sovereignty. Thus, Justin Martyr urges, as a decisive proof of the +impious character of their theology, that the heathen philosophers +repudiated the doctrine of a particular providence; [459:3] and all the +ancient fathers are ever ready to recognise the superintending +guardianship of God in the common affairs of life. + +But though the creed of the Church was still to some extent +substantially sound, it must be admitted that it was already beginning +to suffer much from adulteration. One hundred years after the death of +the Apostle John, spiritual darkness was fast settling down upon the +Christian community; and the fathers, who flourished towards the +commencement of the third century, frequently employ language for which +they would have been sternly rebuked, had they lived in the days of the +apostles and evangelists. Thus, we find them speaking of "sins +_cleansed_ by repentance," [460:1] and of repentance as "_the price_ +at which the Lord has determined to grant forgiveness." [460:2] We read +of "_sins cleansed_ by alms and faith," [460:3] and of the martyr, by +his sufferings, "washing away his own iniquities." [460:4] We are told +that by baptism "we are cleansed from all our sins," and "regain that +Spirit of God which Adam received at his creation and lost by his +transgression." [460:5] "The pertinacious wickedness of the Devil," says +Cyprian, "has power _up to the saving water_, but in baptism he loses +all the poison of his wickedness." [460:6] The same writer insists upon +the necessity of _penance_, a species of discipline unknown to the +apostolic Church, and denounces, with terrible severity, those who +discouraged its performance. "By the deceitfulness of their lies," says +he, they interfere, "that _satisfaction_ be not given to God in His +anger..... All pains are taken that _sins be not expiated by due +satisfactions and lamentations,_ that wounds be not washed clean by +tears." [460:7] It may be said that some of these expressions are +rhetorical, and that those by whom they were employed did not mean to +deny the all-sufficiency of the Great Sacrifice; but had these fathers +clearly apprehended the doctrine of justification by faith in Christ, +they would have recoiled from the use of language so exceedingly +objectionable. + +There are many who imagine that, had they lived in the days of +Tertullian or of Origen, they would have enjoyed spiritual advantages +far higher than any to which they have now access. But a more minute +acquaintance with the ecclesiastical history of the third century might +convince them that they have no reason to complain of their present +privileges. The amount of material light which surrounds us does not +depend on our proximity to the sun. When our planet is most remote from +its great luminary, we may bask in the splendour of his effulgence; and, +when it approaches nearer, we may be involved in thick darkness. So it +is with the Church. The amount of our religious knowledge does not +depend on our proximity to the days of primitive Christianity. The Bible +is the sun of the spiritual firmament; and this divine illuminator, like +the glorious orb of day, pours forth its light with equal brilliancy +from generation to generation. The Church may retire into "chambers of +imagery" erected by her own folly; and there, with the light shut out +from her, may sink into a slumber disturbed only, now and then, by some +dream of superstition; or, with the light still shining on her, her eye +may be dim or disordered, and she may stumble at noonday. But the light +is as pure as in the days of the apostles; and, if we have eyes to +profit by it, we may "understand more than the ancients." The art of +printing has supplied us with facilities for the study of the Scriptures +which were denied to the fathers of the second century; and the +ecclesiastical documents, relative to that age, which have been +transmitted to us from antiquity, contain, perhaps, the greater part of +even the traditionary information which was preserved in the Church. If +we are only "taught of God," we are in as good a position for acquiring +a correct acquaintance with the way of salvation as was Polycarp or +Justin Martyr. What an encouragement for every one to pray--"Open thou +mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law. I am a +stranger in the earth: hide not thy commandments from me!" [461:11] + + + + + + SECTION III. + + THE WORSHIP AND CONSTITUTION OF THE CHURCH. + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE WORSHIP OF THE CHURCH. + + +The religion of the primitive Christians must have appeared exceedingly +strange to their pagan contemporaries. The heathen worship was little +better than a solemn show. Its victims adorned with garlands, its +incense and music and lustral water, its priests arrayed in white robes, +and its marble temples with gilded roofs, were fitted, rather to +fascinate the senses, than to improve the heart or expand the intellect. +Even the Jewish ritual, in the days of its glory, must have had a +powerful effect on the imagination. As the Israelites assembled from all +quarters at their great festivals--as they poured in thousands and tens +of thousands into the courts of their ancient sanctuary--as they +surveyed the various parts of a structure which was one of the wonders +of the world--as they beheld the priests in their holy garments--and as +they gazed on the high priest himself, whose forehead glittered with +gold whilst his breastplate sparkled with precious stones--they must +have felt that they mingled in a scene of extraordinary splendour. But, +when Christianity made its appearance in the world, it presented none of +these attractions. Its adherents were stigmatized as atheists, [463:1] +because they had no altars, no temples, and no sacrifices. They held +their meetings in private dwellings; their ministers wore no peculiar +dress; and, by all who sought merely the gratification of the eye or of +the ear, the simple service in which they engaged must have been +considered very bald and uninteresting. But they rejoiced exceedingly in +its spiritual character, as they felt that they could thus draw near to +God, and hold sweet and refreshing communion with their Father in +heaven. + +It is probable that, during a considerable part of the second century, +the Christians had comparatively few buildings set apart for public +worship. At a time when they congregated to celebrate the rites of their +religion at night or before break of day, it is not to be supposed that +they were anxious to obtrude their conventicles on the notice of their +persecutors. But as they increased in numbers, and as the State became +somewhat more indulgent, they gradually acquired confidence; and, about +the beginning of the third century, the form of their ecclesiastical +structures seems to have been already familiar to the eyes of the +heathen. [463:2] Shortly after that period, their meeting-houses in Rome +were well known; and, in the reign of Alexander Severus, they ventured +to dispute with one of the city trades the possession of a piece of +ground on which they were desirous to erect a place of worship. [463:3] +When the case came for adjudication before the Imperial tribunal, the +sovereign decided in their favour, and thus virtually placed them under +the shield of his protection. When the Emperor Gallienus, about A.D. +260, issued an edict of toleration, church architecture advanced apace, +and many of the old buildings, which were now falling into decay, were +superseded by edifices at once more capacious and more tasteful. The +Christians at this time began to emulate the magnificence of the heathen +temples, and even to ape their arrangements. Thus it is that some of our +churches at the present day are nearly fac-similes of the ancient +religious edifices of paganism. [464:1] + +In addition to the administration of baptism and the Lord's Supper, the +worship of the early Church consisted of singing, prayer, reading the +Scriptures, and preaching. In the earliest notice of the Christians of +the second century which occurs in any pagan writer, their psalmody, +with which they commenced their religious services, [464:2] is +particularly mentioned; for, in his celebrated letter to the Emperor +Trajan, Pliny states that they met together, before the rising of the +sun, to "sing hymns to Christ as to a God." It is highly probable that +the "hymns" here spoken of were the Psalms of the Old Testament. Many of +these inspired effusions celebrate the glories of Immanuel, and as, for +obvious reasons, the Messianic Psalms would be used more frequently than +any others, it is not strange that the disciples are represented as +assembling to sing praise to Christ. But it would appear that the Church +at this time was not confined to the ancient Psalter. Hymns of human +composition were occasionally employed; [464:3] and one of these, to be +found in the writings of Clement of Alexandria, [464:4] was, perhaps, +sung in the early part of the third century by the Christians of the +Egyptian capital. Influential bishops sometimes introduced them by their +own authority, but the practice was regarded with suspicion, and seems +to have been considered irregular. Hence Paul of Samosata, in the +Council of Antioch held A.D. 269, was blamed for discontinuing the +Psalms formerly used, and for establishing a new and very exceptionable +hymnology. [465:1] + +In the church, as well as in the synagogue, the whole congregation +joined in the singing; [465:2] but instrumental music was never brought +into requisition. The early Christians believed that the organs of the +human voice are the most appropriate vehicles for giving utterance to +the feelings of devotion; and viewing the lute and the harp as the +carnal ordinances of a superannuated dispensation, they rejected their +aid in the service of the sanctuary. Long after this period one of the +most eminent of the ancient fathers describes the music of the flutes, +sackbuts, and psalteries of the temple worship as only befitting the +childhood of the Church. "It was," says he, "permitted to the Jews, as +sacrifice was, for the heaviness and grossness of their souls. God +condescended to their weakness, because they were lately drawn off from +idols; but now, instead of instruments, we may use our own bodies to +praise Him withal." [465:3] + +The account of the worship of the Church, given by a Christian writer +who flourished about the middle of the second century, is exceedingly +instructive. "On the day which is called Sunday," says Justin Martyr, +"there is a meeting together in one place of all who dwell either in +towns or in the country; and the memoirs of the apostles, or the +writings of the prophets are read, as long as the time permits. When the +reading ceases, the president delivers a discourse, in which he makes an +application and exhorts to the imitation of these good things. We then +rise all together and pray. Then ... when we cease from prayer, bread is +brought, and wine and water; and the president, in like manner, offers +up prayers and thanksgivings according to his ability; [466:1] and the +people express their assent by saying Amen." [466:2] It is abundantly +clear from this statement that the presiding minister was not restricted +to any set form of supplication. As he prayed "according to his +ability," his petitions could neither have been dictated by others nor +taken from a liturgy. Such a practice as the _reading_ of prayers seems, +indeed, to have been totally unknown in the Church during the first +three centuries. Hence Tertullian represents the Christians of his +generation as praying "_looking up_ with hands spread open, ... and +_without a prompter_ because from the heart." [466:3] In his "Treatise +on Prayer" Origen recommends the worshipper to address God with +stretched out hands and uplifted eyes. [466:4] The erect body with the +arms extended was supposed to represent the cross, [466:5] and therefore +this attitude was deemed peculiarly appropriate for devotion. [466:6] On +the Lord's day the congregation always _stood_ when addressing God. +[466:7] At this period forms of prayer were used in the heathen worship, +[467:1] and in some cases the pagans adhered with singular tenacity to +their ancient liturgies; [467:2] but the Church did not yet require the +aid of such auxiliaries. It is remarkable that, though in the account of +the losses sustained during the Diocletian persecution, we read +frequently of the seizure of the Scriptures, and of the ecclesiastical +utensils, we never meet with any allusion to the spoliation of +prayer-books. [467:3] There is, in fact, no evidence whatever that such +helps to devotion were yet in existence. [467:4] + +The worship was now conducted in a dialect which was understood by the +congregation; and though the officiating minister was at perfect liberty +to select his phraseology, it is probable that he did not think it +necessary to aim at great variety in the mere language of his devotional +exercises. So long as a petition was deemed suitable, it perhaps +continued to be repeated in nearly the same words, whilst providential +interpositions, impending persecutions, and the personal condition of +the flock, would be continually suggesting some fresh topics for +thanksgiving, supplication, and confession. The beautiful and +comprehensive prayer taught by our Lord to His disciples was never +considered out of place; and, as early as the third century, it was, at +least in some districts, used once at every meeting of the faithful. +[468:1] The apostle had taught the brethren that intercessions should be +made "for kings and for all that are in authority," [468:2] and the +primitive disciples did not neglect to commend their earthly rulers to +the care of the Sovereign of the universe. [468:3] But still it is clear +that even such petitions did not run in the channel of any prescribed +formulary. + +From the very days of the apostles the reading of the Scriptures +constituted an important part of public worship. This portion of the +service was, at first perhaps, conducted by one of the elders, but, in +some places, towards the close of the second century, it was committed +to a new official, called the Reader. [468:4] The presiding minister +seems to have been permitted originally to choose whatever passages he +considered most fitting for the occasion, as well as to determine the +amount of time which was to be occupied in the exercise; but, at length, +an order of lessons was prepared, and then the Reader was expected to +confine himself to the Scriptures pointed out in his calendar. [468:5] +This arrangement, which was obviously designed to secure a more uniform +attention to the several parts of the inspired canon, came only +gradually into general operation; and it frequently happened that the +order of lessons for one church was very different from that used in +another. [468:6] + +Whilst the constant reading, in the vernacular tongue, of considerable +portions of Scripture at public worship, promoted the religious +instruction of the people, the mode of preaching which now prevailed +contributed to make them still more intimately acquainted with the +sacred records. The custom of selecting a text as the basis of a +discourse had not yet been introduced; but, when the reading closed, the +minister proceeded to expatiate on that section of the Word which had +just been brought under the notice of the congregation, and pointed out, +as well the doctrines which it recognised, as the practical lessons +which it inculcated. The entire presbytery was usually present in the +congregation every Lord's day, and when one or other of the elders had +made a few comments, [469:1] the president added some remarks of an +expository and hortatory character; but, frequently, he received no +assistance in this part of the service. The method of reading and +elucidating Scripture, now pursued, was eminently salutary; for, whilst +it stored the memory with a large share of biblical knowledge, the whole +Word of God, in the way of earnest appeal, was brought into close +contact with the heart and conscience of each individual. + +So long as pristine piety flourished, the people listened with devout +attention to the observations of the preacher; but, as a more secular +spirit prevailed, he began to be treated, rather as an orator, than a +herald from the King of kings. Before the end of the third century, the +house of prayer occasionally resounded with the plaudits of the theatre. +Such exhibitions were, indeed, condemned at the time by the +ecclesiastical authorities, but the very fact that in the principal +church of one of the chief cities of the Empire, the bishop, as he +proceeded with his sermon, was greeted with stamping of feet, clapping +of hands, and waving of handkerchiefs, [469:2] supplied melancholy +evidence of the progress of spiritual degeneracy. In the days of the +Apostle Paul such demonstrations would have been universally denounced +as unseemly and unseasonable. + +During the first three centuries there was nothing in the ordinary +costume of a Christian minister to distinguish him from any of his +fellow-citizens; [470:1] but, it would appear, that when the pastor +officiated in the congregation, he began, at an early date, to wear some +peculiar piece of apparel. In an old document, purporting to have been +written shortly after the middle of the second century, he is described, +at the period of his advancement to the episcopal chair, as "clothed +with the dress of the bishops." [470:2] As the third century advanced, +there was a growing disposition to increase the pomp of public worship; +in some places vessels of silver or of gold were used at the +dispensation of the, Lord's Supper; [470:3] and it is highly probable +that, about this time, some few decorations were assumed by those who +took part in its administration. But still the habit used by +ecclesiastics at divine service was distinguished by its comparative +simplicity, and differed very little from the dress commonly worn by the +mass of the population. + +What a change must have passed over the Church from the period before us +to the dawn of the Reformation! Now, the making of images was forbidden, +and no picture was permitted to appear even on the walls of the sacred +edifice: [470:4] then, a church frequently suggested the idea of a +studio, or a picture-gallery. Now, the whole congregation joined +heartily in the psalmody: then, the mute crowd listened to the music of +the organ accompanied by the shrill voices of a chorus of thoughtless +boys. Now, prayers, in the vernacular tongue and suited to the occasion, +were offered with simplicity and earnestness; then, petitions, long +since antiquated, were muttered in a dead language. Now, the Word was +read and expounded in a way intelligible to all: then, a few Latin +extracts from it were mumbled over hastily; and, if a sermon followed, +it was, perhaps, a eulogy on some wretched fanatic, or an attack on some +true evangelist. There are writers who believe that the Church was +meanwhile going on in a career of hopeful development; but facts too +clearly testify that she was moving backwards in a path of cheerless +declension. Now, the Church "holding forth the Word of life" was +commending herself to philosophers and statesmen: then, she had sunk +into premature dotage, and her very highest functionaries were lisping +the language of infidelity. + + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +BAPTISM. + + +When the venerable Polycarp was on the eve of martyrdom, he is reported +to have said that he had served Christ "eighty and six years." [472:1] +By the ancient Church these words seem to have been regarded as +tantamount to a declaration of the length of his life, and as implying +that he had been a disciple of the Saviour from his infancy. [472:2] The +account of his martyrdom indicates that he was still in the enjoyment of +a green old age, [472:3] and as very few overpass the term of fourscore +years and six, we are certainly not at liberty to infer, without any +evidence, and in the face of probabilities, that he had now attained a +greater longevity. A contemporary father, who wrote about the middle of +the second century, informs us, that there were then many persons of +both sexes, some sixty, and some seventy years of age, who had been +"disciples of Christ from childhood," [472:4] and the pastor of Smyrna +is apparently included in the description. If he was eighty-six at the +time of his death, he must have been about threescore and ten when +Justin Martyr made this announcement. + +No one could have been considered a disciple of Jesus who had not +received baptism, and it thus appears that there were many aged persons, +living about A.D. 150, to whom, when children, the ordinance had been +administered. We may infer, also, that Polycarp, when an infant, had +been in this way admitted within the pale of visible Christianity. +Infant baptism must, therefore, have been an institution of the age of +the apostles. This conclusion is corroborated by the fact that Justin +Martyr speaks of baptism as supplying the place of circumcision. "We," +says he, "who through Christ have access to God, have not received that +circumcision which is in the flesh, but that spiritual circumcision +which Enoch, and others like him, observed. And this, because we have +been sinners, we do, through the mercy of God, receive _by baptism_." +[473:1] Justin would scarcely have represented the initiatory ordinance +of the Christian Church as supplying so efficiently the place of the +Jewish rite, had it not been of equally extensive application. The +testimony of Irenaeus, the disciple of Polycarp, throws additional light +upon this argument. "Christ," says he, "came to save all persons by +Himself; all, I say, who _by Him are regenerated unto God_--infants, and +little ones, and children, and youths, and aged persons: therefore He +went through the several ages, being made an infant for infants, that He +might _sanctify infants_; [473:2] and, for little ones, He was made a +little one, to sanctify them of that age also." [473:3] Irenaeus +elsewhere speaks of baptism as _our regeneration_ or _new birth unto +God_, [473:4] so that his meaning in this passage cannot well be +disputed. He was born on the confines of the apostolic age, and when he +mentions the _regeneration unto God_ of "infants, and little ones, and +children," he alludes to their admission by baptism to the seal of +salvation. + +The celebrated Origen was born about A.D. 185, and we have as strong +circumstantial evidence as we could well desire that he was baptized in +infancy. [474:1] Both his parents were Christians, and as soon as he was +capable of receiving instruction, he began to enjoy the advantages of a +pious education. He affirms, not only that the practice of infant +baptism prevailed in his own age, but that it had been handed down as an +ecclesiastical ordinance from the first century. "None," says he, "is +free from pollution, though his life upon the earth be but the length of +one day, and for this reason even infants are baptized, because by the +sacrament of baptism the pollution of our birth is put away." [474:2] +"The Church has received the custom of baptizing little children _from +the apostles_." [474:3] + +The only writer of the first three centuries who questions the propriety +of infant baptism is Tertullian. The passage in which he expounds his +views on this subject is a most transparent specimen of special +pleading, and the extravagant recommendations it contains sufficiently +attest that he had taken up a false position. "Considering," says he, +"every one's condition and disposition, and also his age, the delay of +baptism is more advantageous, but especially in the case of little +children. For what necessity is there that the sponsors be brought into +danger? Because they may fail to fulfil their promises by death, or may +be deceived by the child's proving of a wicked disposition. Our Lord +says indeed--'Do not forbid them to come unto me.' Let them come, +therefore, whilst they are growing up, let them come whilst they are +learning, whilst they are being taught where it is they are coming, let +them be made Christians when they are capable of knowing Christ. Why +should their innocent age make haste to the remission of sins? Men +proceed more cautiously in worldly things; and he that is not trusted +with earthly goods, why should he be trusted with divine? Let them know +how to ask salvation, that you may appear to give it to one that asketh. +For no less reason unmarried persons ought to be delayed, because they +are exposed to temptations, as well virgins that are come to maturity, +as those that are in widowhood and have little occupation, until they +either marry or be confirmed in continence. They who know the weight of +baptism will rather dread its attainment than its postponement." [475:1] + +In the apostolic age all adults, when admitted to baptism, answered for +themselves. Had additional sponsors been required for the three thousand +converts who joined the Church on the day of Pentecost, [475:2] they +could not have been procured. The Ethiopian eunuch and the Philippian +jailor [475:3] were their own sponsors. Until long after the time when +Tertullian wrote, there were, in the case of adults, no other sponsors +than the parties themselves. But when an infant was dedicated to God in +baptism, the parents were required to make a profession of the faith, +and to undertake to train up their little one in the way of +righteousness. [476:1] It is to this arrangement that Tertullian refers +when he says--"What necessity is there that _the sponsors_ be brought +into danger? Because even they may fail to fulfil their promises by +death, or may be deceived by the child's proving of a wicked +disposition." + +It is plain, from his own statements, that infant baptism was practised +in the days of this father; and it is also obvious that it was then said +to rest on the authority of the New Testament. Its advocates, he +alleges, quoted in its defence the words of our Saviour--"Suffer the +little children to come unto me and forbid them not." [476:2] And how +does Tertullian meet this argument? Does he venture to say that it is +contradicted by any other Scripture testimony? Does he pretend to assert +that the appearance of parents, as sponsors for their children, is an +ecclesiastical innovation? Had this acute and learned controversialist +been prepared to encounter infant baptism on such grounds, he would not +have neglected his opportunity. But, instead of pursuing such a line of +reasoning, he merely exhibits his weakness by resorting to a piece of +miserable sophistry. When our Lord said--"Suffer the little children to +come unto me and forbid them not," He illustrated His meaning as He +"took them up in His arms, put His hands upon them, and blessed them;" +[476:3] so that the gloss of Tertullian--"Let them come _whilst they +are growing up_, let them come whilst they are learning"--is a palpable +misinterpretation. Nor is this all. The Carthaginian father must have +known that there were frequent instances in the days of the apostles of +the baptism of whole households; and yet he maintains that the +unmarried, especially young widows, cannot with safety be admitted to +the ordinance. Had he been with Paul and Silas at Philippi he would thus +scarcely have consented to the baptism of Lydia; and he would certainly +have protested against the administration of the rite to all the members +of her family. [477:1] + +Though Tertullian may not have formally separated from the Church when +he wrote the tract in which this passage occurs, it is evident that he +had already adopted the principles of the Montanists. These errorists +held that any one who had fallen into heinous sin after baptism could +never again be admitted to ecclesiastical fellowship; and this little +book itself supplies proof that its author now supported the same +doctrine. He here declares that the man "who renews his sins after +baptism" is "destined to fire;" and he intimates that martyrdom, or "the +baptism of blood," can alone "restore" such an offender. [477:2] It was +obviously the policy of the Montanists to discourage infant baptism, and +to retain the mass of their adherents, as long as possible, in the +condition of catechumens. Hence Tertullian here asserts that "they who +know the weight of baptism will rather _dread its attainment_ than its +postponement." [477:3] But neither the apostles, nor the early Church, +had any sympathy with such a sentiment. They represent baptism as a +privilege--as a sign and seal of God's favour--which all should +thankfully embrace. On the very day on which Peter denounced the Jews as +having with wicked hands crucified his Master, he assisted in the +baptism of three thousand of these transgressors. "Repent," says he, +"and _be baptized every one of you_ in the name of Jesus Christ for the +remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, _for +the promise is unto you and to your children_." [478:1] Tertullian would +have given them no such encouragement. But the Montanists believed that +their Phrygian Paraclete was commissioned to supersede the apostolic +discipline. When the African father attacked infant baptism he obviously +acted under this conviction; and whilst seeking to set aside the +arrangements of the Church of his own age, he felt no scruple in +venturing at the same time to subvert an institute of primitive +Christianity. + +We have the clearest evidence that, little more than twenty years after +the death of Tertullian, the whole Church of Africa recognised the +propriety of this practice. About the middle of the third century a +bishop of that country, named Fidus, appears to have taken up the idea +that, when administering the ordinance, he was bound to adhere to the +very letter of the law relative to circumcision, [478:2] and that +therefore he was not at liberty to baptize the child before the eighth +day after its birth. When the case was submitted to Cyprian and an +African Synod, consisting of sixty-six bishops, they _unanimously_ +decided that these scruples were groundless; and, in an epistle +addressed to the pastor who entertained them, the Assembly thus +communicated the result of its deliberations--"As regards the case of +infants who, you say, should not be baptized within the second or third +day after their birth, and that respect should be had to the law of the +ancient circumcision, whence you think that one newly born should not be +baptized and sanctified within the eighth day, we all in our council +thought very differently.... If even to the most grievous offenders, ... +when they afterwards believe, remission of sins is granted, and no one +is debarred from baptism and grace, how much more ought not an infant to +be debarred who, being newly born, has in no way sinned, except that +being born after Adam in the flesh, he has by his first birth contracted +the contagion of the old death; who is on this very account more easily +admitted to receive remission of sins, in that, not his own, but +another's sins are remitted to him." [479:1] + +Whilst it is thus apparent that the baptism of infants was the +established order of the Church, it is equally clear that the particular +mode of administration was not considered essential to the validity of +the ordinance. It was usually dispensed by immersion or affusion, +[479:2] but when the health of the candidate might have been injured by +such an ordeal, sprinkling was deemed sufficient. Aspersion was commonly +employed in the case of the sick, and was known by the designation of +_clinic_ or _bed_ baptism. Cyprian points out to one of his +correspondents the absurdity of the idea that the extent to which the +water is applied can affect the character of the institution. "In the +saving sacrament," says he, "the contagion of sin is not washed away +just in the same way as is the filth of the skin and body in the +ordinary ablution of the flesh, so that there should be need of +saltpetre and other appliances, and a bath and a pool in which the poor +body may be washed and cleansed.... It is apparent that the _sprinkling_ +of water has like force with the saving washing, and that when this is +done in the Church, where the faith both of the giver and receiver is +entire, [480:1] all holds good and is consummated and perfected by the +power of the Lord, and the truth of faith." [480:2] + +Cyprian is here perfectly right in maintaining that the essence of +baptism does not consist in the way in which the water is administered; +but much of the language he employs in speaking of this ordinance cannot +be commended as sober and scriptural. He often confounds it with +regeneration, and expresses himself as if the mere rite possessed a +mystic virtue. "The birth of Christians," says he, "is in baptism." +[480:3] "The Church alone has the life-giving water." [480:4] "The water +must first be cleansed and sanctified by the priest, that it may be +able, by baptism therein, to wash away the sins of the baptized." +[480:5] Tertullian and other writers of the third century make use of +phraseology equally unguarded. [480:6] When the true character of the +institute was so far misunderstood, it is not extraordinary that it +began to be tricked out in the trappings of superstition. The candidate, +as early as the third century, was exorcised before baptism, with a view +to the expulsion of evil spirits; [480:7] and, in some places, after the +application of the water, when the kiss of peace was given to him, a +mixture of milk and honey was administered, [480:8] He was then +anointed, and marked on the forehead with the sign of the cross. [480:9] +Finally, the presiding minister, by the laying on of hands, bestowed the +benediction. [480:10] Tertullian endeavours to explain some of these +ceremonies. "The flesh," says he, "is washed, that the soul may be freed +from spots; the flesh is anointed, that the soul may be consecrated; the +flesh is marked (with the sign of the cross), that the soul may be +guarded; the flesh is overshadowed by the imposition of hands, that the +soul may be enlightened by the Spirit." [481:1] + +It is not improbable that the baptismal service constituted the first +germ of a Church liturgy. As the ordinance was so frequently celebrated, +it was found convenient to adhere to the same form, not only in the +words of administration, [481:2] but also in the accompanying prayers; +and thus each pastor soon had his own baptismal office. But when +heresies spread, and when, in consequence, measures were taken to +preserve the unity of the Catholic faith, a uniform series of +questions--prepared, perhaps, by councils and adopted by the several +ministers--was addressed to all catechumens. Thus, the baptismal +services were gradually assimilated; and, as the power of the hierarchy +increased, one general office, in each district, superseded all the +previously-existing formularies. + +Baptism, as dispensed in apostolic simplicity, is a most significant +ordinance; but the original rite was soon well-nigh hidden behind the +rubbish of human inventions. The milk and honey, the unction, the +crossing, the kiss of peace, and the imposition of hands, were all +designed to render it more imposing; and, still farther to deepen the +impression, it was already administered in the presence of none save +those who had themselves been thus initiated. [481:3] But the +foolishness of God is wiser than man. Nothing is more to be deprecated +than any attempt to improve upon the institutions of Christ. Baptism, as +established by the Divine Founder of our religion, is a visible +exhibition of the gospel; but, as known in the third century, it had +much of the character of one of the heathen mysteries. It was intended +to confirm faith: but it was now contributing to foster superstition. +How soon had the gold become dim, and the most fine gold been changed! + + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE LORD'S SUPPER. + + +Baptism and the Lord's Supper may be regarded as a typical or pictorial +summary of the great salvation. In Baptism the gospel is exhibited +subjectively--renewing the heart and cleansing from all iniquity: in the +Lord's Supper it is exhibited objectively--providing a mighty Mediator, +and a perfect atonement. Regeneration and Propitiation are central +truths towards which all the other doctrines of Christianity converge, +and in marking them out by corresponding symbols, the Head of the Church +has been graciously pleased to signalize their importance. + +The Scriptures are able to make us wise unto salvation and thoroughly +furnished unto all good works; but we are not at liberty to adulterate +these records either by addition or subtraction. If they should be +preserved exactly as they issued from the pen of inspiration, it is +clear that the visible ordinances in which they are epitomized should +also be maintained in their integrity. He who tampers with a +divinely-instituted symbol is obviously to some extent obnoxious to the +malediction [483:1] pronounced upon the man who adds to, or takes away +from, the words of the book of God's prophecy. + +Had the original form of administering the Lord's Supper been rigidly +maintained, the Church might have avoided a multitude of errors; but +very soon the spirit of innovation began to disfigure this institute. +The mode in which it was observed, and the views which were entertained +respecting it by the Christians of Rome, about the middle of the second +century, are minutely described by Justin Martyr. "There is brought," +says he, "to that one of the brethren who is president, bread and a cup +of wine mixed with water. And he, having received them, gives praise and +glory to the Father of all things.... And when he has finished his +praises and thanksgiving, all the people who are present express their +assent saying _Amen_, which in the Hebrew tongue signifies _so be it_. +The president having given thanks, and the people having expressed their +assent, those whom we call deacons give to each of those who are present +a portion of the bread which has been blessed, and of the wine mixed +with water; and carry away some for those who are absent. And this food +is called by us the Eucharist, of which no one may partake unless he +believes that which we teach is true, and is baptized, ... and lives in +such a manner as Christ commanded. For we receive not these elements as +common bread or common drink. But even as Jesus Christ our Saviour ... +had both flesh and blood for our salvation, even so we are taught that +the food which is blessed ... by the digestion of which our blood and +flesh are nourished, is the flesh and blood of that Jesus who was made +flesh. For the apostles in the memoirs composed by them, which are +called gospels, have related that Jesus thus commanded them, that having +taken bread and given thanks He said--'Do this in remembrance of me, +this is my body;' and that, in like manner, having taken the cup and +given thanks, He said, 'This is my blood;' and that He distributed them +to these alone." [484:1] + +The writer does not here mention the posture of the disciples when +communicating, but it is highly probable that they still continued to +_sit_ [485:1] in accordance with the primitive pattern. As they received +the ordinance in the same attitude as that in which they partook of +their common meals, the story that their religious assemblies were the +scenes of unnatural feasting, may have thus originated. [485:2] For the +first three centuries, _kneeling_ at the Lord's Supper was unknown; and +it is not until about a hundred years after the death of the Apostle +John, that we read of the communicants _standing._ [485:3] Throughout +the whole of the third century, this appears to have been the position +in which they partook of the elements. [485:4] + +The bread and wine of the Eucharist were now supplied by the +worshippers, who made "oblations" according to their ability, [485:5] +as well for the support of the ministers of the Church, as for the +celebration of its ordinances. There is no reason to believe that the +bread, used at this period in the holy Supper, was unfermented; for, +though our Lord distributed a loaf, or cake, of that quality when the +rite was instituted, the early Christians seem to have considered the +circumstance accidental; as unleavened bread was in ordinary use among +the Jews at the time of the Passover. The disciples appear to have had +less reason for mixing the wine with water, and they could have produced +no good evidence that such was the beverage used by Christ when He +appointed this commemoration. In the third century superstition already +recognized a mystery in the mixture. "We see," says Cyprian, "that in +the water _the people_ are represented, but that in the wine is +exhibited the blood of Christ. When, however, in the cup water is +mingled with wine, the people are united to Christ, and the multitude of +the faithful are coupled and conjoined to Him on whom they believe." +[486:1] The bread was not put into the mouth of the communicant by the +administrator, but was handed to him by a deacon; and it is said that, +the better to shew forth the unity of the Church, all partook of one +loaf made of a size sufficient to supply the whole congregation. [486:2] +The wine was administered separately, and was drunk out of a cup or +chalice. As early as the third century an idea began to be entertained +that the Eucharist was necessary to salvation, and it was, in +consequence, given to infants. [486:3] None were now suffered to be +present at its celebration but those who were _communicants_; [486:4] +for even the catechumens, or candidates for baptism, were obliged to +withdraw before the elements were consecrated. + +The Passover was kept only once a year, but the Eucharist, which was the +corresponding ordinance of the Christian dispensation, was observed much +more frequently. Justin intimates that it was administered every Lord's +day, and other fathers of this period bear similar testimony. Cyprian +speaks even of its daily celebration. [486:5] The New Testament has +promulgated no precise law upon the subject, and it is probable that +only the more zealous disciples communicated weekly. On the Paschal week +it was observed with peculiar solemnity, and by the greatest concourse +of worshippers. + +The term _sacrament_ was now applied to both Baptism and the Lord's +Supper; but it was not confined to these two symbolic ordinances. +[487:1] The word _transubstantiation_ was not introduced until upwards +of a thousand years after the death of our Saviour; [487:2] and the +doctrine which it indicates was not known to any of the fathers of the +first three centuries. They all concur in describing the elements, after +consecration, as bread and wine; they all represent them as passing +through the usual process of digestion; and they all speak of them as +symbols of the body and blood of Christ. In this strain Justin Martyr +discourses of "that _bread_ which our Christ has commanded us to offer +_in remembrance of His being made flesh_, ... and of that _cup_ which +He +commanded those that celebrate the Eucharist to offer _in remembrance of +His blood._" [487:3] According to Clement of Alexandria the Scripture +designates wine "a mystic symbol of the holy blood." [487:4] Origen, as +if anticipating the darkness which was to overspread the Church, +expresses himself very much in the style of a zealous Protestant. He +denounces as "simpletons" [487:5] those who attributed a supernatural +power to the Eucharistic elements, and repeatedly affirms that the words +used at the institution of the Lord's Supper are to be interpreted +spiritually. "The meat," says he, "which is sanctified by the Word of +God and prayer, as it is material, goes into the stomach, ... but, by +reason of prayer made over it, _it is profitable according to the +proportion of faith_, and is the cause that the understanding is +enlightened and attentive to what is profitable; and _it is not the +substance of bread, but the word pronounced upon it_, which is +profitable to him who eats it in a way not unworthy of the Lord." +[488:1] Cyprian uses language scarcely less equivocal, for he speaks of +"_that wine_ whereby the blood of Christ is set forth," [488:2] and +asserts that it "was wine which He called His blood." [488:3] + +Christ has said--"Where two or three are gathered together in my name, +there am I in the midst of them;" [488:4] and, true to His promises, He +is really present with His people in every act of devotion. Even when +they draw near to Him in secret, or when they read His word, or when +they meditate on His mercy, as well as when they listen to His gospel +preached in the great congregation, He manifests Himself to them not as +He does unto the world. But in the Eucharist He reveals His character +more significantly than in any of His other ordinances; for He here +addresses Himself to all the senses, as well as to the soul. In the +words of institution they "hear His voice;" when the elements are +presented to them, they perceive as it were "the smell of His garments;" +with their hands they "handle of the Word of Life;" and they "taste and +see that the Lord is good." But some of the early Christian writers were +by no means satisfied with such representations. They appear to have +entertained an idea that Christ was in the Eucharist, not only in richer +manifestations of His grace, but also in a way altogether different from +that in which He vouchsafes His presence in prayer, or praise, or any +other divine observance. They conceived that, as the soul of man is +united to his body, the Logos, or Divine nature of Christ, pervades the +consecrated bread and wine, so that they may be called His flesh and +blood; and they imagined that, in consequence, the sacred elements +imparted to the material frame of the believer the germ of immortality. +[489:1] Irenaeus declares that "our bodies, receiving the Eucharist, are +no longer corruptible, but possessed of the hope of eternal life." +[489:2] This misconception of the ordinance was the fruitful source of +superstition. The mere elements began to be regarded with awful +reverence; the loss of a particle of the bread, or of a drop of the +wine, was considered a tremendous desecration; and it was probably the +growth of such feelings which initiated the custom of _standing_ at the +time of participation. But still there were fathers who were not carried +away with the delusion, and who knew that the disposition of the +worshipper was of far more consequence than the care with which he +handled the holy symbols. "You who frequent our sacred mysteries," says +Origen, "know that when you receive the body of the Lord, you take care +with all due caution and veneration, that not even the smallest particle +of the consecrated gift shall fall to the ground and be wasted. [489:3] +If, through inattention, any part thus falls, you justly account +yourselves guilty. If then, with good reason, you use so much caution in +preserving His body, how can you esteem it a _lighter sin to slight the +Word of God_ than to neglect His body?" [489:4] + +"The words of the Lord are pure words, as silver tried in a furnace of +earth purified seven times." [489:5] The history of Baptism and the +Lord's Supper demonstrates that, when speaking of the ordinances of +religion, it is exceedingly dangerous to depart, even from the +phraseology, which the Holy Spirit has dictated. In the second century +Baptism was called "regeneration" and the Eucharistic bread was known by +the compendious designation of "the Lord's body." Such language, if +typically understood, could create no perplexity; but all by whom it was +used could scarcely be expected to give it a right interpretation, and +thus many misconceptions were speedily generated. In a short time names, +for which there is no warrant in the Word of God, were applied to the +Lord's Supper; and false doctrines were eventually deduced from these +ill-chosen and unauthorised designations. Thus, before the close of the +second century, it was called an _offering_, and a _sacrifice_, [490:1] +and the table at which it was administered was styled the _altar_. +[490:2] Though these terms were now used rhetorically, in after-ages +they were literally interpreted; and in this way the most astounding +errors gradually gained currency. Meanwhile other topics led to keen +discussion; but there was a growing disposition to shroud the Eucharist +in mystery; and hence, for many centuries, the question as to the manner +of Christ's presence in the ordinance awakened no controversy. + + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +CONFESSION AND PENANCE. + + +When the Evangelist Matthew is describing the ministry of John the +Baptist, he states that there "went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judea, +and all the region round about Jordan; and were baptized of him in +Jordan, _confessing their sins._" [491:1] The ministry of Paul at +Ephesus produced similar results; for it is said that "fear fell" on all +the Jews and Greeks dwelling in that great capital, "and many that +believed came, and _confessed_, and shewed their deeds," [491:2] + +The confession here mentioned obviously flowed spontaneously from deep +religious convictions. It was not a private admission of guilt made to +an ecclesiastical functionary; but a public acknowledgment of acts which +weighed heavily on the consciences of individuals, and which they felt +constrained to recapitulate and to condemn. Men awakened to a sense of +their sins deemed it due to themselves and to society, to state how +sincerely they deplored their past career; and, no doubt, their words +often produced a profound impression on the multitudes to whom they were +addressed. These confessions of sin were connected with a confession of +faith in Christ, and were generally associated with the ordinance of +baptism. They were not required from all, but were only tendered in +cases where there had been notorious and flagrant criminality; and they +must have been of a very partial character, only embracing such +transgressions as the party had some urgent reason for specializing. + +In the time of the apostles those who embraced the gospel were +immediately baptized. Thus, the three thousand persons who were +converted on the day of Pentecost, were forthwith received into the +bosom of the Church; and the Philippian jailor, "the same hour of the +night" [493:1] when he hearkened to "the word of the Lord," "was +baptized, he and all his, straightway." But, soon, afterwards, the +Christian teachers began to proceed with greater formality; and, about +the middle of the second century, candidates were not admitted to the +ordinance until they had passed through a certain course of probation. +"As many," says Justin Martyr, "as are persuaded and believe that the +things which we teach and declare are true, and promise that they are +determined to live accordingly, are taught to pray, and to beseech God +with fasting to grant them remission of their past sins, while we also +pray and fast with them. We then lead them to a place where there is +water, and there they are regenerated in the same manner as we also +were; for they are then washed in that water in the name of God the +Father and Lord of the universe, and of our Saviour Jesus Christ, and +the Holy Spirit." [493:2] + +These confessions and penitential exercises were repeated and enlarged +when persons who had lapsed into gross sin, and who had, in consequence, +forfeited their position as members of the Church, sought readmission to +ecclesiastical fellowship. It would be difficult, on scriptural grounds, +to vindicate the system of discipline enforced on such occasions; and +yet it is evident that it was established, at least in some quarters, as +early as the beginning of the third century. Tertullian gives a very +striking account of the course pursued by those called penitents about +that period. "Confession of sins," says he, "lightens their burden, as +much as the dissembling of them increases it; for confession savours of +making amends, dissembling, of stubbornness. ..... Wherefore confession +is the discipline of a man's prostrating and humbling himself, enjoining +such a conversation as invites mercy. It restrains a man even as to the +matter of dress and food, requiring him to lie in sackcloth and ashes, +to hide his body in filthy garments, to afflict his soul with sorrow, to +exchange for severe treatment the sins in which he indulged; for the +rest to use simple things for meat and drink, that is, for the sake of +the soul, and not to please the appetite: for the most part also to +quicken prayer by fasts, to groan, to weep, and to moan day and night +before the Lord his God; to throw himself on the ground before the +presbyters, and to fall on his knees before the beloved of God; to +enjoin all the brethren to bear the message of his prayer for mercy--all +these things does confession that it may commend repentance." [493:1] + +When a man is overwhelmed with grief, the state of his mind will often +be revealed by the loss of his appetite. He will think little of his +dress and personal accommodation; and though he may give no utterance to +his feelings, his general appearance will betray to the eye of an +observer the depths of his affliction. The mourner not unfrequently +takes a melancholy satisfaction in surrounding himself with the symbols +of sorrow; and we read, accordingly, in Scripture how, in ancient times +and in Eastern countries, he clothed himself in sackcloth and sat in +ashes. [493:2] There is a wonderful sympathy between the body and the +mind; and as grief affects the appetite, so occasional abstinence from +food may foster a serious and contrite spirit. Hence fasting has been so +commonly associated with penitential exercises. + +Fasting is not to be regarded as one of the ordinary duties of a +disciple of Christ,[494:1] but rather as a kind of discipline in which +he may feel called on to engage under special circumstances.[494:2] When +oppressed with a consciousness of guilt, or when anxious for divine +direction on a critical occasion, or when trembling under the +apprehension of impending judgments, he may thus seek to "afflict his +soul," that he may draw near with deeper humility and reverence into the +presence of the Divine Majesty. But, in such a case, every one should +act according to the dictates of his own enlightened convictions. As the +duty is extraordinary, the self-denial to be practised must be regulated +by various contingencies; and no one can well prescribe to another its +amount or duration. + +According to the Mosaic law, only one day in the year--the great day of +atonement--was required to be kept as a national fast.[494:3] There is +now no divine warrant for so observing any corresponding day, and for +upwards of a hundred years after the death of our Lord, there is no +evidence that any fixed portion of time was thus appropriated under the +sanction of ecclesiastical authority. But towards the close of the +second century the termination of the Paschal week was often so +employed--the interval, between the hour on Friday when our Lord expired +and the morning of the first day of the week, being spent in total +abstinence.[494:4] About the same time some partially abstained from +food on what were called stationary days, or the Wednesday and Friday of +each week.[494:5] At this period some began also to observe Xerophagiae, +or days on which they used neither flesh nor wine. [495:1] Not a few saw +the danger of this ascetic tendency; but, whilst it betokened zeal, it +had also "a show of wisdom," [495:2] and it silently made great +progress. Towards the close of the third century the whole Church was +already pervaded by its influence. + +Fasting has been well described as "the outward shell" of penitential +sorrow, and is not to be confounded with its spiritual elements. It is +its accidental accompaniment, and not one of its true and essential +features. A man may "bow down his head as a bulrush," or fast, or clothe +himself in sackcloth, when he is an utter stranger to that "repentance +to salvation not to be repented of." The hypocrite may put on the +outward badges of mourning merely with a view to regain a position in +the Church, whilst the sincere penitent may "anoint his head and wash +his face," and reveal to the eye of the casual spectator no tokens of +contrition. As repentance is a spiritual exercise, it can only be +recognised by spiritual signs; and the rulers of the ancient Church +committed a capital error when they proposed to test it by certain +dietary indications. Their penitential discipline was directly opposed +to the genuine spirit of the gospel; and it was the fountain from whence +proceeded many of the superstitions which, like a river of death, soon +overspread Christendom. Whilst repentance was reduced to a mechanical +round of bodily exercises, the doctrine of a free salvation was +practically repudiated. + +In connexion with the appearance of a system of penitential discipline, +involving in some cases a penance of several years' continuance, [495:3] +the distinction of venial and mortal sins now began to be recognised. +Venial sins were transgressions which any sincere believer might commit, +whilst mortal sins were such as were considered incompatible with the +genuine profession of Christianity. Penance was prescribed only to those +who had been guilty of mortal sins. Its severity and duration varied +with the character of the offence, and was soon regulated according to +an exact scale arranged by the rulers of the Church in their +ecclesiastical conventions. + +About the middle of the third century a new arrangement was introduced, +with a view to promote the more exact administration of penitential +discipline. During the Decian persecution which occurred at this time, +many were induced by fear to abandon the profession of the gospel; and, +on the return of better days, those who sought restoration to Christian +privileges were so numerous that, in the larger churches, it was deemed +expedient to require the lapsed, in the first instance, to address +themselves to one of the presbyters appointed for their special +examination. The business of this functionary, who was known by the +designation of the _Penitentiary_ [496:1] was to hear the confessions of +the penitents, to ascertain the extent and circumstances of their +apostasy, and to announce the penance required from each by the existing +ecclesiastical regulations. The disclosures made to the Penitentiary did +not supersede the necessity of public confession; it was simply the duty +of this minister to give to the lapsed such instructions as his +professional experience enabled him to supply, including directions as +to the fasts they should observe, and the sins they should openly +acknowledge. Under the guidance of the Penitentiaries the system of +discipline for transgressors seems to have been still farther matured; +and at length, in the beginning of the fourth century, the penitents +were divided into various classes, according to their supposed degrees +of unworthiness. The members of each class were obliged to occupy a +particular position in the place of worship when the congregation +assembled for religious exercises. [497:1] + +It must be obvious from these statements that the institution known as +Auricular Confession had, as yet, no existence. In the early Church the +disciples, under ordinary circumstances, were neither required nor +expected, at stated seasons, to enter into secret conference with any +ecclesiastical searcher of consciences. When a professing Christian +committed a heinous transgression by which religion was scandalized, he +was obliged, before being re-admitted to communion, to express his +sorrow in the face of the congregation; and the revelations made to the +Penitentiary did not relieve him from this act of humiliation. It must +also be apparent that the whole system of penance is an unauthorized +addition to the ordinances of primitive Christianity. Of such a system +we do not find even a trace in the New Testament; and under its +blighting influence, the religion of the Church gradually became little +better than a species of refined heathenism. + +The spiritual darkness now settling down upon the Christian commonwealth +might be traced in the growing obscurity of the ecclesiastical +nomenclature. The power and the form of godliness began to be +confounded, and the same term was employed to denote penance and +repentance. [497:2] Bodily mortification was mistaken for holiness, and +celibacy for sanctity. [497:3] Other errors of an equally grave +character became current, for the penitent was described as _making +satisfaction_ for his sins by his fasts and his outward acts of self +abasement, [497:4] and thus the all-sufficiency of the great atonement +was openly ignored. Thus, too, the doctrine of a free salvation to +transgressors could no longer be proclaimed, for pardon was clogged with +conditions as burdensome to the sinner, as they were alien to the spirit +of the New Testament. The doctrine that "a man is justified by faith +without the deeds of the law," [498:1] reveals the folly of the ancient +penitential discipline. Our Father in heaven demands no useless tribute +of mortification from His children; He merely requires us to "bring +forth fruits meet for repentance." [498:2] "Is not this the fast that I +have chosen?" saith the Lord, "to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo +the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break +every yoke? Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou +bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the +naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine +own flesh? Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine +health shall spring forth speedily; and thy righteousness shall go +before thee: the glory of the Lord shall be thy reward." [498:3] + + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +THE CONSTITUTION OF THE CHURCH IN THE SECOND CENTURY. + + +Justin Martyr, who had travelled much, and who was probably as well +acquainted with the state of the Church about the middle of the second +century as most of his contemporaries, has left behind him an account of +the manner in which its worship was then conducted. This account, which +has already been submitted to the reader, [499:1] represents one +individual as presiding over each Christian community, whether in the +city or the country. Where the Church consisted of a single +congregation, and where only one of the elders was competent to preach, +it is easy to understand how the society was regulated. In accordance +with apostolic arrangement, the presbyter, who laboured in the Word and +doctrine, was counted worthy of double honour, [499:2] and was +recognized as the stated chairman of the solemn assembly. His brother +elders contributed in various ways to assist him in the supervision of +the flock; but its prosperity greatly depended on his own zeal, piety, +prudence, and ability. Known at first as _the president_, and afterwards +distinguished by the title of _the bishop_, he occupied very much the +same position as the minister of a modern parish. + +Where a congregation had more than one preaching elder, the case was +different. There, several individuals were in the habit of addressing +the auditory, [500:1] and it was the duty of the president to preserve +order; to interpose, perhaps, by occasional suggestions; and to close +the exercise. When several congregations with a plurality of preaching +elders existed in the same city, the whole were affiliated; and a +president, acknowledged by them all, superintended their united +movements. + +It must be admitted that much obscurity hangs over the general condition +of the Christian commonwealth in the first half of the second century; +but it so happens that two authentic and valuable documents which still +remain, one of which was written about the beginning and the other about +the close of this period, throw much light upon the question of Church +government. These documents are the "Epistle of Clement to the +Corinthians," and the "Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians." As to +the matters respecting which they bear testimony, we could not desire +more competent witnesses than the authors of these two letters. The one +lived in the West; the other, in the East. Clement, who is mentioned by +the Apostle Paul, [500:2] was a presbyter of the Church of Rome; +Polycarp, who, in his youth, had conversed with the Apostle John, was a +presbyter of the Church of Smyrna. Clement died about the close of the +first century, and his letter to the Corinthians was written three or +four years before, that is, immediately after the Domitian persecution; +Polycarp survived until a somewhat advanced period of the second +century, and his letter to the Philippians was probably written fifty or +sixty years after the date of the Epistle of Clement. [500:3] + +Towards the termination of the first century a spirit of discord +disturbed the Church of Corinth; and the Church of Rome, anxious to +restore peace, addressed a fraternal letter to the distracted community. +The Epistle was drawn up by Clement, who was then the leading minister +of the Italian capital; but, as it is written in the name of the whole +brotherhood, and as it had, no doubt, obtained their sanction, it +obviously possesses all the authority of a public and official +correspondence. From it the constitution of the Church of Corinth, and, +by implication, of the Church of Rome, may be easily ascertained: and it +furnishes abundant proof that, at the time of its composition, both +these Christian societies were under presbyterial government. Had a +prelate then presided in either Church, a circumstance so important +would not have been entirely overlooked, more especially as the document +is of considerable length, and as it treats expressly upon the subject +of ecclesiastical polity. It appears that some members of the community +to which it is addressed had acted undutifully towards those who were +over them in the Lord, and it accordingly condemns in very emphatic +terms a course of proceeding so disreputable. "It is shameful, beloved," +says the Church of Rome in this letter, "it is exceedingly shameful and +unworthy of your Christian profession, to hear that the most firm and +_ancient Church_ of the Corinthians should, by one or two persons, be +led into a sedition against _its elders._" [501:1] "Let the flock of +Christ be in peace with THE ELDERS THAT ARE SET OVER IT." [502:1] Having +stated that the apostles ordained those to whom the charge of the +Christian Church was originally committed, it is added, that they gave +directions in what manner, after the decease of these primitive pastors, +"other chosen and approved men should succeed to their ministry." +[502:2] The Epistle thus continues--"Wherefore we cannot think that +those may justly be thrown out of their ministry who were either +ordained by them (the apostles), or _afterwards by other approved men_ +with the approbation of the whole Church, and who have, with all +lowliness and innocency, ministered to the flock of Christ in peace and +without self-interest, and have been _for a long time_ commended by all. +For it would be no small sin in us, should we cast off those from the +ministry who holily and without blame fulfil the duties of it. Blessed +are _those elders who, having finished their course before these times_, +have obtained a fruitful and perfect dissolution." [502:3] Towards the +conclusion of the letter, the parties who had created this confusion in +the Church of Corinth have the following admonition addressed to +them--"Do ye, therefore, who laid the foundation of the sedition, submit +yourselves unto your _elders_, and be instructed unto repentance, +bending the knees of your hearts." [502:4] + +In the preservation of this precious letter we are bound to recognize +the hand of Providence. [502:5] Its instructions were so highly +appreciated by the ancient Christians that it continued to be publicly +read in many of their churches for centuries afterwards. [502:6] It is +universally acknowledged to be genuine; it breathes the benevolent +spirit of a primitive presbyter; and it is distinguished by its sobriety +and earnestness. It was written upon the verge of the apostolic age, and +it is the production of a pious, sensible, and aged minister who +preached for years in the capital of the Empire. The Church of Rome has +since advanced the most extravagant pretensions, and has appealed in +support of them to ecclesiastical tradition; but here, an elder of her +own--one who had conversed with, the apostles--and one whom she delights +to honour [503:1]--deliberately comes forward and ignores her +assumptions! She fondly believes that Clement was an early Pope, but the +good man himself admits that he was only one of the presbyters. Had +there then been a bishop of Corinth, this letter would unquestionably +have exhorted the malcontents to submit to his jurisdiction; or had +there been a bishop of Rome, it would not have failed to dilate upon the +benefits of episcopal government. But, as to the existence of any such +functionary in either Church, it preserves throughout a most +intelligible silence. It says that the apostles ordained the +first-fruits of their conversions, not as bishops _and presbyters_ and +deacons, but as "_bishops and deacons_ over such as should afterwards +believe;" [503:2] and it is apparent that, when it was written, the +terms bishop and presbyter were still used interchangeably. [503:3] + +The Epistle of Polycarp bears equally decisive testimony. It was drawn +up perhaps about the middle of the second century, [503:4] and though +the last survivor of the apostles was now dead for many years, no +general change had meanwhile taken place in the form of church +government. This document purports to be the letter of "Polycarp and the +elders who are with him [504:1] to the Church of God which is at +Philippi;" but it does not recognize a bishop as presiding over the +Christian community to which it is addressed. The Church was still +apparently in much the same state as when Paul wrote to "the saints in +Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, with the _bishops and deacons;_" +[504:2] for Polycarp was certainly not aware of the existence of any new +office-bearers; and he accordingly exhorts his correspondents to be +"_subject to the presbyters and deacons._" [504:3] "Let _the +presbyters_," says he, "be compassionate, merciful to all, bringing back +such as are in error, seeking out all those that are weak, not +neglecting the widow or the fatherless, or the poor; but providing +always what is good in the sight of God and men; abstaining from all +wrath, respect of persons, and _unrighteous judgment_; being far from +all covetousness; not ready to believe anything against any; _not severe +in judgment_, knowing that we are all debtors in point of sin." [504:4] + +It is stated by the most learned of the fathers of the fourth century +that the Church was at first "governed by the common council of the, +presbyters;" [504:5] and these two letters prove most satisfactorily the +accuracy of the representation. They shew that, throughout the whole of +the apostolic age, this species of polity continued. But the Scriptures +ordain that "all things be done decently and in order;" [504:6] and, as +a common council requires an official head, or mayor, to take the chair +at its meetings, and to act on its behalf, so the ancient eldership, or +presbytery, must have had a president or moderator. It would appear that +the duty and honour of presiding commonly devolved on the senior member +of the judicatory. We may thus account for those catalogues of bishops, +reaching back to the days of the apostles, which are furnished by some +of the writers of antiquity. From the first, every presbytery had its +president; and as the transition from the moderator to the bishop was +the work of time, the distinction at one period was little more than +nominal. Hence, writers who lived when the change was taking place, or +when it had only been recently accomplished, speak of these two +functionaries as identical. But in their attempts to enumerate the +bishops of the apostolic era, they encountered a practical difficulty. +The elders who were at first set over the Christian societies were all +ordained, in each church, on the same occasion, [505:1] and were, +perhaps, of nearly the same age, so that neither their date of +appointment, nor their years, could well determine the precedence; and +it is probable that, in general, no single individual continued +permanently to occupy the office of moderator. There may have been +instances in which a stated president was chosen, and yet it is +remarkable that not even one such case can be clearly established by the +evidence of contemporary documents. When all the other apostles departed +from Jerusalem, James appears to have remained in the holy city, so that +we may reasonably presume he always acted, when present, as chairman of +the mother presbytery; and accordingly, the writers of succeeding ages +have described him as the first bishop of the Jewish metropolis; but so +little consequence was originally attached to the office of moderator, +[505:2] that, in as far as the New Testament is concerned, the situation +held by this distinguished man can be inferred only from some very +obscure and doubtful intimations. [505:3] In Rome, and elsewhere, the +primitive elders at first, perhaps, filled the chair alternately. Hence +the so-called episcopal succession is most uncertain and confused at the +very time when it should be sustained by evidence the most decisive and +perspicuous. The lists of bishops, commencing with the ministry of the +apostles, and extending over the latter half of the first century, are +little better than a mass of contradictions. The compilers seem to have +set down, almost at random, the names of some distinguished men whom +they found connected with the different churches, and thus the +discrepancies are nearly as numerous as the catalogues. [506:1] + +But when Clement dictated the Epistle to the Corinthians most of the +elders, ordained by the apostles or evangelists about the middle of the +first century, must have finished their career; and there is little +reason to doubt that this eminent minister was then the father of the +Roman presbytery. The superscription of the letter to the Philippians +supplies direct proof that, at the time when it was written, Polycarp +likewise stood at the head of the presbytery of Smyrna. [506:2] Other +circumstances indicate that the senior presbyter now began to be +regarded as the stated president of the eldership. Hilary, one of the +best commentators of the ancient Church, [506:3] bears explicit +testimony to the existence of such an arrangement. "At first," says he, +"presbyters were called bishops, so that when the one (who was called +bishop) passed away, the next in order took his place." [507:1] "Though +every bishop is a presbyter, every presbyter is not a bishop, for he is +bishop who is first among the presbyters." [507:2] As soon as the +regulation, recognizing the claims of seniority was proposed, its +advocates were, no doubt, prepared to recommend it by arguments which +possessed at least considerable plausibility. The Scriptures frequently +inculcate respect for age, and when the apostle says--"Likewise, ye +younger, submit yourselves unto the elder," [507:3] he seems, from the +connexion in which the words occur, to refer specially to the deportment +of junior ministers. [507:4] In the lists of the Twelve to be found in +the New Testament the name of Peter appears _first_; [507:5] and if, as +is believed, he was more advanced in years than any of his brethren, +[507:6] it is easy to understand why this precedence has been given to +him; for, in all likelihood, he usually acted as president of the +apostolic presbytery. Even the construction of corporate bodies in the +Roman Empire might have suggested the arrangement; for it is well known +that, in the senates of the cities out of Italy, the oldest decurion, +under the title _principalis_, acted as president. [508:1] Did we, +therefore, even want the direct evidence already quoted, we might have +inferred, on other grounds, that, at an early date, the senior member +generally presided wherever an eldership was erected. + +As a point of such interest relating to the constitution of the ancient +Church should be carefully elucidated, it may be necessary to fortify +the statement of Hilary by some additional evidence. It is not to be +supposed that this candid and judicious commentator ventured, without +due authority, to describe the original order of succession in the +presidential chair; and he had, no doubt, access to sources of +information which have long ceased to be available; but the credit of +the fact for which he vouches does not rest upon the unsustained support +of his solitary attestation. Whilst his averment is recommended by +internal marks of probability, and whilst it is countenanced by several +scriptural intimations, it is also corroborated by a large amount of +varied and independent testimony. We shall now exhibit some of the most +striking portions of the confirmatory proof. + +I. The language applied in ancient documents to the primitive presidents +of the Churches illustrates the accuracy of this venerable commentator. +In one of the earliest extant notices of these ecclesiastical +functionaries, a bishop is designated "the old man." [508:2] The age of +the individual who is thus distinguished was not a matter of accident; +for each of his brethren in the same position, all over the Church, was +called "father" [508:3] on the ground of his seniority. The official +title "_Pope_," which has the same meaning, had also the same origin. It +was given at first to every president of the eldership, because he was, +in point of fact, the father, or senior member, of the judicatory. It +soon, no doubt, ceased to convey this meaning, but it still remained as +a memorial of the primitive regimen. + +II. It is a remarkable fact that, in none of the great sees before the +close of the second century, do we find any trace of the existence of a +young, or even of a middle-aged bishop. When Ignatius of Antioch was +martyred, he was verging on fourscore; Polycarp of Smyrna finished his +career at the age of eighty-six; Pothinus of Lyons fell a victim to +persecution when he was upwards of ninety; [509:1] Narcissus of +Jerusalem must have been at least that age when he was first placed in +the presidential chair; [509:2] one of his predecessors, named Justus, +appears to have been about one hundred and ten when he reached the same +dignity; [509:3] and Simeon of Jerusalem died when he had nearly +completed the patriarchal age of one hundred and twenty. As an +individual might become a member of the presbytery when comparatively +young, [509:4] such extraordinary longevity among the bishops of the +second century can be best explained by accepting the testimony of +Hilary. + +III. The number of bishops now found within a short period in the same +see has long presented a difficulty to many students of ecclesiastical +history. Thus, at Rome in the first forty years of the second century +there were five or six bishops, [509:5] and yet only one of them +suffered martyrdom. Within twelve or fifteen years after the death of +Polycarp, there were several bishops in Smyrna. [510:1] But the Church +of Jerusalem furnishes the most wonderful example of this quick +succession of episcopal dignitaries. Simeon, one of the relatives of our +Lord, is reported to have become the presiding pastor after the +destruction of the city by Titus, and to have been martyred about the +close of the reign of Trajan, or in A.D. 116; and yet, according to the +testimony of Eusebius, [510:2] no less than _thirteen bishops_ in +succession occupied his place before the end of the year A.D. 134. He +must have been set at the head of the Church when he was above +threescore and ten; [510:3] and dying, as already stated, at the extreme +age of one hundred and twenty, he probably left behind him a +considerable staff of very aged elders. These may have become presidents +in the order of their seniority; and as they would pass rapidly away, we +may thus account for the extraordinary number of the early chief pastors +of the ancient capital of Palestine. [510:4] + +At this time, or about A.D. 135, the original Christian Church of +Jerusalem was virtually dissolved. The Jews had grievously provoked +Hadrian by their revolt under the impostor Barchochebas; and the +Emperor, in consequence, resolved to exclude the entire race from the +precincts of the holy city. The faithful Hebrews, who had hitherto +worshipped there under the ministry of Simeon and his successors, still +observed the Mosaic law, and were consequently treated as Jews, so that +they were now obliged to break up their association, and remove to other +districts. A Christian Church, composed chiefly of Gentile converts, was +soon afterwards established in the same place; and the new society +elected an individual, named Marcus, as their bishop, or presiding +elder. Marcus was, probably, in the decline of life when he was placed +at the head of the community; and on his demise, [511:1] as well as long +afterwards, the old rule of succession seems to have been observed. +During the sixty years immediately after his appointment, there were +_fifteen_ bishops at Jerusalem [511:2]--a fact which apparently +indicates that, on the occurrence of a vacancy, the senior elder still +continued to be advanced to the episcopal chair. This conclusion is +remarkably corroborated by the circumstance that Narcissus, who was +bishop of the ancient capital of Judea at the end of these sixty years, +was, as has been already mentioned, upwards of fourscore and ten when he +obtained his ecclesiastical promotion. + +The episcopal roll of Jerusalem has no recorded parallel in the annals +of the Christian ministry, for there were no less than _twenty-eight_ +bishops in the holy city in a period of eighty years. Even the Popes +have never followed each other with such rapidity. The Roman Prelate, +when elevated to St. Peter's chair, has almost invariably been far +advanced in years, and the instances are not a few in which Pontiffs +have fallen victims to poison or to open violence; and yet their +history, even in the worst of times, exhibits nothing equal to the +frequency of the successions indicated by this ancient episcopal +registry. [512:1] It would appear from it that there were more bishops +in Jerusalem in the second century than there have been Archbishops of +Canterbury for the last four hundred years! [512:2] Such facts +demonstrate that those who then stood at the head of the mother Church +of Christendom, must have reached their position by means of some order +of succession very different from that which is now established. Hilary +furnishes at once a simple and an adequate explanation. The senior +minister was the president, or bishop; and as, when placed in the +episcopal chair, he had already reached old age, it was not to be +expected that he could long retain a situation which required some +exertion and involved much anxiety. Hence the startling amount of +episcopal mortality. + +As the Church of Jerusalem may be said to have been founded by our Lord +himself, it could lay claim to a higher antiquity than any other +Christian community in existence; and it long continued to be regarded +by the disciples all over the Empire with peculiar interest and +veneration. [512:3] When re-established about the close of the reign of +Hadrian, it was properly a new society; but it still enjoyed the +prestige of ancient associations. Its history has, therefore, been +investigated by Eusebius with special care; he tells us that he derived +a portion of his information from its own archives; [512:4] and, though +he enters into details respecting very few of the early Churches, he +notices it with unusual frequency, and gives an accredited list of the +names of its successive chief pastors. [513:1] About this period it was +obviously considered a model which other Christian societies of less +note might very safely imitate. It is, therefore, all the more important +if we are able to ascertain its constitution, as we are thus prepared to +speak with a measure of confidence respecting the form of ecclesiastical +government which prevailed throughout the second century. The facts +already stated, when coupled with the positive affirmation of the Roman +Hilary, place the solution of the question, as nearly as possible, upon +the basis of demonstration; for, if we reject the conclusion that, +during a hundred years after the death of the Apostle John, the senior +member of the presbytery of Jerusalem was the president or moderator, we +may in vain attempt to explain, upon any Round statistical principles, +how so many bishops passed away in succession within so limited periods, +and how, at several points along the line, and exactly where they might +have been expected, [513:2] we find individuals in occupation of the +chair who had attained to extreme longevity. + +IV. The statement of Hilary illustrates the peculiar cogency of the +argumentation employed by the defenders of the faith who flourished +about the close of the second century. This century was pre-eminently +the age of heresies, and the disseminators of error were most +extravagant and unscrupulous in their assertions. The heresiarchs, among +other things, affirmed that the inspired heralds of the gospel had not +committed their whole system to written records; that they had entrusted +certain higher revelations only to select or perfect disciples; and that +the doctrine of Aeons, which they so assiduously promulgated, was +derived from this hidden treasure of ecclesiastical tradition. [514:1] +To such assertions the champions of orthodoxy were prepared to furnish a +triumphant reply, for they could shew that the Gnostic system was +inconsistent with Scripture, and that its credentials, said to be +derived from tradition, were utterly apocryphal. They could appeal, in +proof of its falsehood, to the tradition which had come down to +themselves from the apostles, and which was still preserved in the +Churches "through the successions of the elders." [514:2] They could +farther refer to those who stood at the head of their respective +presbyteries as the witnesses most competent to give evidence. "We are +able," says Irenaeus, "to enumerate those whom the apostles established +as bishops in the Churches, [514:3] together with their successors down +to our own times, who neither taught any such doctrine as these men rave +about, nor had any knowledge of it. For if the apostles had been +acquainted with recondite mysteries which they were in the habit of +teaching to the perfect disciples apart and without the knowledge of the +rest, they would by all means have communicated them to those to whom +they entrusted the care of the Church itself, since they wished that +those whom they left behind them as their successors, and to whom they +gave their own place of authority, should be quite perfect and +irreproachable in all things." [514:4] + +Had the succession to the episcopal chair been regulated by the +arrangements of modern times, there would have been little weight in the +reasoning of Irenaeus. The declaration of the bishop respecting the +tradition of the Church over which he happened to preside would have +possessed no special value. But it was otherwise in the days of this +pastor of Lyons. The bishop was generally one of the oldest members of +the community with which he was connected, and had been longer +conversant with its ecclesiastical affairs than any other minister. His +testimony to its traditions was, therefore, of the highest importance. +In a few of the great Churches, as we have elsewhere shewn, [515:1] the +senior elder now no longer succeeded, as a matter of course, to the +episcopate; but age continued to be universally regarded as an +indispensable qualification for the office, [515:2] and, when Irenaeus +wrote, the law of seniority appears to have been still generally +maintained. It was, therefore, with marked propriety that he appealed to +the evidence of the bishops; as they, from their position, were most +competent to expose the falsehood of the fables of Gnosticism. + +V. It is well known that, in some of the most ancient councils of which +we have any record, the senior bishop officiated as moderator [515:3] +and, long after age had ceased to determine the succession to the +episcopal chair, the recognition of its claims, under various forms, may +be traced in ecclesiastical history. In Spain, so late as the fourth +century, the senior chief pastor acted as president when the bishops and +presbyters assembled for deliberation [515:4] In Africa the same rule +was observed until the Church of that country was overwhelmed by the +northern barbarians. In Mauritania and Numidia, even in the fifth +century, the senior bishop of the province, whoever he might be, was +acknowledged as metropolitan. [516:1] In the usages of a still later age +we may discover vestiges of the ancient regulation, for the bishops sat, +in the order of their seniority, in the provincial synods. [516:2] Still +farther, where the bishop of the chief city of the province was the +stated metropolitan, the ecclesiastical law still retained remembrancers +of the primitive polity; as, when this dignitary died, the senior bishop +of the district performed his functions until a successor was regularly +appointed. [516:3] + +Though the senior presbyter presided in the meetings of his brethren, +and was soon known by the name of bishop, it does not appear that he +originally possessed any superior authority. He held his place for life, +but as he was sinking under the weight of years when he succeeded to it, +he could not venture to anticipate an extended career of official +distinction. In all matters relating either to discipline, or the +general interests of the brotherhood, he was expected to carry out the +decisions of the eldership, so that, under his presidential rule, the +Church was still substantially governed by "the common council of the +presbyters." + +The allegation that presbyterial government existed in all its integrity +towards the end of the second century does not rest on the foundation of +obscure intimations or doubtful inferences. It can be established by +direct and conclusive testimony. Evidence has already been adduced to +shew that the senior presbyter of Smyrna continued to preside until the +days of Irenaeus, and there is also documentary proof that meanwhile he +possessed no autocratical authority. The supreme power was still vested +in the council of the elders. This point is attested by Hippolytus, who +was now just entering on his ecclesiastical career, and who, in one of +his works, a fragment of which has been preserved, describes the manner +in which the rulers of the Church dealt with the heretic Noetus. The +transaction probably occurred about A.D. 190. [517:1] "There are certain +others," says Hippolytus, "who introduce clandestinely a strange +doctrine, being disciples of one Noetus, who was by birth a Smyrnean, +and lived not long ago. This man, being puffed up, was led to forget +himself, being elated by the vain fancy of a strange spirit. He said +that Christ is himself the Father, and that the Father himself had been +born, and had suffered and died....When the _blessed presbyters_ heard +these things, they _summoned him and examined him before the Church_. +He, however, denied, saying at first that such were not his sentiments. +But afterwards, when he had intrigued with some, and had found persons +to join him in his error, he took courage, and at length resolved to +stand by his dogma. The _blessed presbyters again summoned him, and +administered a rebuke_. But he withstood them, saying--'Why, what evil +am I doing in glorifying Christ?' To whom _the presbyters replied_--'We +also truly acknowledge one God; we acknowledge Christ; we acknowledge +that the Son suffered as He did suffer, that He died as He did die, and +that He rose again the third day, and that He is at the right hand of +the Father, and that He is coming to judge the quick and the dead; and +we declare those things which we have been taught.' _Then they rebuked +him, and cast him out of the Church._" [517:2] + +About the time to which these words refer a change was made in the +ecclesiastical constitution. The senior minister ceased to preside over +the eldership; and the Church was no longer governed, as heretofore, by +the "blessed presbyters." It would appear that the synods which were +held all over the Church for the suppression of the Montanist agitation, +and in connexion with the Paschal controversy, [518:1] adopted a +modified episcopacy. As parties already in the presidential chair were, +no doubt, permitted to hold office during life, this change could not +have been accomplished instantaneously; but various circumstances concur +to prove that it took place about the period now indicated. The +following reasons, among others, may be adduced in support of this view +of the history of the ecclesiastical revolution. + +I. The Montanists, towards the termination of the second century, +created much confusion by their extravagant doctrines and their claims +to inspiration. These fanatics were in the habit of disturbing public +worship by uttering their pretended revelations, and as they were often +countenanced by individual elders, the best mode of protecting the +Church from their annoyance soon became a question of grave and pressing +difficulty. Episcopacy, as shall afterwards be shewn, [518:2] had +already been introduced in some great cities, and about this time the +Churches generally agreed to follow the influential example. It was, no +doubt, thought that order could be more effectually preserved were a +single individual armed with independent authority. Thus, the system of +government by presbyters was gradually and silently subverted. + +II. It is well known that the close of the second century is a +transition period in the history of the Church. A new ecclesiastical +nomenclature now appeared; [519:1] the bishops acquired increased +authority; and, early in the third century, they were chosen in all the +chief cities by popular suffrage. The alteration mentioned by Hilary +may, therefore, have been the immediate precursor of other and more +vital changes. + +III. Though Eusebius passes over in suspicious silence the history of +all ecclesiastical innovations, his account of the bishops of Jerusalem +gives good reason for believing that the law abolishing the claim of +seniority came into operation about the close of the second century. He +classes together the fifteen chief pastors who followed each other in +the holy city immediately after its restoration by Hadrian, [519:2] and +then goes on to give a list of others, their successors, whose +pastorates were of the ordinary duration. He mentions likewise that the +sixteenth bishop was chosen by _election_. [519:3] May we not here +distinctly recognize the close of one system, and the commencement of +another? As the sixteenth bishop was appointed about A.D. 199, the law +had, probably, been then only recently enacted. + +IV. Eusebius professes to trace the episcopal succession from the days +of the apostles in Rome, Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem; and it has +often been shewn that the accuracy of these four lists is extremely +problematical; but it is remarkable that in other Churches the episcopal +registry cannot be carried up higher than the end of the second century. +The roll of the bishops of Carthage is there discontinued, [519:4] and +the episcopal registry of Spain there also abruptly terminates. But the +history of the Church of Caesarea affords the most extraordinary +specimen of this defalcation. Caesarea was the civil metropolis of +Palestine, and a Christian Church existed in it from the days of Paul +and Peter. [520:1] Its bishop in the early part of the fourth century +was the friend of the Emperor Constantine and the father of +ecclesiastical history. Eusebius enjoyed all needful facilities for +investigating the annals of his own Church; and yet, strange to say, he +commences its episcopal registry about the close of the second century! +[520:2] What explanation can be given of this awkward circumstance? Had +Eusebius taken no notice of any of the bishops of his own see, we could +appreciate his modesty; but why should he overlook those who nourished +before the time of Victor of Rome, and then refer to their successors +with such marked frequency? [520:3] May we not infer, either that he +deemed it inexpedient to proclaim the inconvenient fact that the bishops +of Caesarea were as numerous as the bishops of Jerusalem; or that he +found it impossible to recover the names of a multitude of old men who +had only a nominal precedence among their brethren, and who had passed +off the stage, one after another, in quick succession? + +V. A statement of Eutychius, who was patriarch of Alexandria in the +tenth century, and who has left behind him a history of his see from the +days of the apostles, supplies a remarkable confirmation of the fact +that, towards the close of the second century, a new policy was +inaugurated. According to this writer there was, with the exception of +the occupant of the episcopal chair of Alexandria, "no bishop in the +provinces of Egypt" before Demetrius. [520:4] As Demetrius became bishop +of Alexandria about A.D. 190, Christianity must have now made extensive +progress in the country; [520:5] for it had been planted there perhaps +one hundred and fifty years before; but it would seem that meanwhile, +with the one exception, the Churches still remained under presbyterial +government. Demetrius was a prelate of great influence and energy; and, +during his long episcopate of forty-three years, [521:1] he succeeded in +spreading all over the land the system of which he had been at one time +the only representative. + +It is not, indeed, to be supposed that the whole Church, prompted by a +sudden and simultaneous impulse, agreed, all at once, to change its +ecclesiastical arrangements. Another polity, as has already been +intimated, at first made its appearance in places of commanding +influence; and its advocates now, no doubt, most assiduously endeavoured +to recommend its claims by appealing to the fruits of experience. The +Church of Rome, as will subsequently appear, took the lead in setting up +a mitigated form of prelacy; the Churches of Antioch and Alexandria +followed; and, soon afterwards, other Christian communities of note +adopted the example. That this subject may be fairly understood, a few +chapters must now be employed in tracing the rise and progress of the +hierarchy. + + + + + +CHAPTER VI. + +THE RISE OF THE HIERARCHY CONNECTED WITH THE SPREAD OF HERESIES. + + +Eusebius, already so often quoted, and known so widely as the author of +the earliest Church history, flourished in the former half of the fourth +century. This distinguished father was a spectator of the most wonderful +revolution recorded in the annals of the world. He had seen Christianity +proscribed, and its noblest champions cut down by a brutal martyrdom; +and he had lived to see a convert to the faith seated on the throne of +the Caesars, and ministers of the Church basking in the sunshine of +Imperial bounty. He was himself a special favourite with Constantine; as +bishop of Caesarea, the chief city of Palestine, he had often access to +the presence of his sovereign; and in a work which is still extant, +professing to be a Life of the Emperor, he has well-nigh exhausted the +language of eulogy in his attempts to magnify the virtues of his +illustrious patron. + +Eusebius may have been an accomplished courtier, but certainly he is not +entitled to the praise of a great historian. The publication by which he +is best known would never have acquired such celebrity, had it not been +the most ancient treatise of the kind in existence. Though it mentions +many of the ecclesiastical transactions of the second and third +centuries, and supplies a large amount of information which would have +otherwise been lost, it must be admitted to be a very ill-arranged and +unsatisfactory performance. Its author does not occupy a high position +either as a philosophic thinker, a judicious observer, or a sound +theologian. He makes no attempt to point out the germs of error, to +illustrate the rise and progress of ecclesiastical changes, or to +investigate the circumstances which led to the formation of the +hierarchy. Even the announcement of his Preface, that his purpose is "to +record the successions of the holy apostles," or, in other words, to +exhibit some episcopal genealogies, proclaims how much he was mistaken +as to the topics which should have been noticed most prominently in his +narrative. It is somewhat doubtful whether his history was expressly +written, either for the illumination of his own age, or for the +instruction of posterity; and its appearance, shortly after the public +recognition of Christianity by the State, [523:1] is fitted to generate +a suspicion that it was intended to influence the mind of Constantine, +and to recommend the episcopal order to the consideration of the great +proselyte. + +About six or seven years after the publication of this treatise a child +was born who was destined to attain higher distinction, both as a +scholar and a writer, than the polished Eusebius. This was +Jerome--afterwards a presbyter of Rome, and a father whose productions +challenge the foremost rank among the memorials of patristic erudition. +Towards the close of the fourth century he shone the brightest literary +star in the Church, and even the proud Pope Damasus condescended to +cultivate his favour. At one time he contemplated the composition of a +Church history, [523:2] and we have reason to regret that the design was +never executed, as his works demonstrate that he was in possession of +much rare and important information for which we search in vain in the +pages of the bishop of Caesarea. + +No ancient writer has thrown more light on the history of the hierarchy +than Jerome. His remarks upon the subject frequently drop incidentally +from his pen, and must be sought for up and down throughout his +commentaries and epistles; but he speaks as an individual who was quite +familiar with the topics which he introduces; and, whilst all his +statements are consistent, they are confirmed and illustrated by other +witnesses. As a presbyter, he seems to have been jealous of the honour +of his order; and, when in certain moods, he is obviously very well +disposed to remind the bishops that their superiority to himself was a +mere matter of human arrangement. One of his observations relative to +the original constitution of the Christian commonwealth has been often +quoted. "Before that, by the prompting of the devil, there were parties +in religion, and it was said among the people, I am of Paul, and I of +Apollos, and I of Cephas, the Churches were governed by the common +council of the presbyters. But, _after that each, one began to reckon +those whom he baptized as belonging to himself_ and not to Christ, it +was DECREED THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE WORLD that one elected from the +presbyters should be set over the rest, that he should have the care +of the whole Church, that _the seeds of schisms_ might be destroyed." +[524:1] + +Because Jerome in this place happens to use language which occurs in the +First Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians, we are not to understand him +as identifying the date of that letter with the origin of prelacy. Such +a conclusion would be quite at variance with the tenor of this passage. +The words, "I am of Paul, and I of Apollos, and I of Cephas," [525:1] +are used by him rhetorically; he was accustomed to repeat them when +describing schisms or contentions; and he has employed them on one +memorable occasion in relation to a controversy of the fourth century. +[525:2] The divisions among the Corinthians, noticed by Paul, were +trivial and temporary; the Church at large was not disturbed by them; +but Jerome speaks of a time when the whole ecclesiastical community was +so agitated that it was threatened with dismemberment. The words +immediately succeeding those which we have quoted clearly shew that he +dated the origin of prelacy after the days of the apostles. "Should any +one think that the identification of bishop and presbyter, the one being +a name of age and the other of office, is not a doctrine of Scripture, +but our own opinion, let him refer to the words of the apostle saying to +the Philippians-'Paul and Timotheus, the servants of Jesus Christ, to +all the saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, _with the bishops +and deacons_, Grace to you and peace,' [525:3] and so forth. Philippi is +one city of Macedonia, and truly in one city, there cannot be, as is +thought, more than one bishop; but because, at that time, they called +the same parties bishops and presbyters, therefore he speaks of bishops +as of presbyters without making distinction. Still this may seem +doubtful to some unless confirmed by another testimony. In the Acts of +the Apostles it is written [526:1] that when the apostle came to Miletus +he 'sent to Ephesus and called the elders of the same Church,' to whom +then, among other things, he said--'Take heed to yourselves and to all +the flock over which the Holy Ghost has made you bishops, [526:2] to +feed the Church of the Lord which He has purchased with His own blood.' +And attend specially to this, how, calling the elders of the one city +Ephesus, he afterwards addressed the same as bishops. Whoever is +prepared to receive that Epistle which is written to the Hebrews under +the name of Paul, [526:3] there also the care of the Church is divided +equally among more than one, since he writes to the people--'Obey _them_ +that have the rule over you and submit yourselves, for they are they who +watch for your souls as those who must give account, that they may not +do it with grief, since this is profitable for you.' [526:4] And Peter, +who received his name from the firmness of his faith, in his Epistle +speaks, saying--'The _elders_, therefore, who are among you, I exhort, +_who am also an elder_, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and +who am a partaker of his glory which shall be revealed, feed that flock +of the Lord which is among you, not by constraint but willingly.' +[527:1] We may thus shew that anciently bishops and presbyters were the +same; but, _by degrees_, THAT THE PLANTS OF DISSENSION MIGHT BE ROOTED +UP, all care was transferred to one. As, therefore, the presbyters know +that, in accordance with _the custom of the Church_, they are subject to +him who has been set over them, so the bishops should know that they are +greater than the presbyters, rather _by custom_, than by the truth of an +arrangement of the Lord." [527:2] + +Jerome here explains himself in language which admits of no second +interpretation; for all these proofs, adduced to shew that the Church +was originally under presbyterial government, are of a later date than +the First Epistle to the Corinthians. The Epistle to the Philippians +contains internal evidence that it was dictated during Paul's first +imprisonment at Rome; the Epistle to the Hebrews appeared after his +liberation; and the First Epistle of Peter was written in the old age of +the apostle of the circumcision. [527:3] Nor is this even the full +amount of his testimony to the antiquity of the presbyterian polity. On +another occasion, after mentioning some of the texts which have been +given, he goes on to make quotations from the Second and Third Epistles +of John--which are generally dated towards the close of the first +century [527:4]--and he declares that prelacy had not made its +appearance when these letters were written. Having produced authorities +from Paul and Peter, he exclaims--"Do the testimonies of such men seem +small to you? Let the Evangelical Trumpet, the Son of Thunder, whom +Jesus loved very much, who drank the streams of doctrine from the bosom +of the Saviour, sound in your ears--'The _elder_, unto the elect lady +and her children, whom I love in the truth;' [528:1] and, in another +epistle--'The _elder_ to the very dear Caius, whom I love in the truth.' +[528:2] But _what was done afterwards_, when one was elected who was set +over the rest, was _for a cure of schism_; lest every one, insisting +upon his own will, should rend the Church of God." [528:3] + +We have already seen [528:4] that extant documents, written about the +close of the first century and the middle of the second, bear similar +testimony as to the original constitution of the Church. The "Epistle of +Clement to the Corinthians" cannot be dated earlier than the termination +of the reign of Domitian, for it refers to a recent persecution, [528:5] +it describes the community to which it in addressed as "most ancient," +it declares that others now occupied the places of those who had been +ordained by the apostles, and it states that this second generation of +ministers had been _long_ in possession of their ecclesiastical charges. +[528:6] Candid writers, of almost all parties, acknowledge that this +letter distinctly recognizes the existence of government by presbyters. +[528:7] The evidence of the letter of Polycarp [528:8] is not less +explicit. Jerome, therefore, did not speak without authority when he +affirmed that prelacy was established after the days of the apostles, +and as an antidote against schism. + +The apostolic Church was comparatively free from divisions; and, whilst +the inspired heralds of the gospel lived, it could not be said that +"there were parties in religion." The heretics who appeared were never +able to organize any formidable combinations; they were inconsiderable +in point of numbers; and, though not wanting in activity, those to whom +our Lord had personally entrusted the publication of His Word, were +ready to oppose them, so that all their efforts were effectually checked +or defeated. The most ancient writers acknowledge that, during the early +part of the second century, the same state of things continued. +According to Hegesippus, who outlived Polycarp about fifteen or twenty +years, [529:1] the Church continued until the death of Simeon of +Jerusalem, in A.D. 116, [529:2] "as a pure and uncorrupted virgin." "If +there were any at all," says he, "who attempted to pervert the right +standard of saving doctrine, they were yet skulking in dark retreats; +but when the sacred company of the apostles had, in various ways, +finished their career, AND THE GENERATION OF THOSE WHO HAD BEEN +PRIVILEGED TO HEAR THEIR INSPIRED WISDOM HAD PASSED AWAY, then at length +the fraud of false teachers produced a confederacy of impious errors." +[529:3] The date of the appearance of these parties is also established +by the testimony of Celsus, who lived in the time of the Antonines, and +who was one of the most formidable of the early antagonists of +Christianity. This writer informs us that, though in the beginning the +disciples were agreed in sentiment, they became, in his days, when +"spread out into a multitude, divided and distracted, each aiming to +give stability to his own faction." [530:1] + +The statements of Hegesippus and Celsus are substantiated by a host of +additional witnesses. Justin Martyr, [530:2] Irenaeus, [530:3] Clemens +Alexandrinus, [530:4] Cyprian, [530:5] and others, all concur in +representing the close of the reign of Hadrian, or the beginning of the +reign of Antoninus Pius, as the period when heresies burst forth, like a +flood, upon the Church. The extant ecclesiastical writings of the +succeeding century are occupied chiefly with their refutation. No wonder +that the best champions of the faith were embarrassed and alarmed. They +had hitherto been accustomed to boast that Christianity was the cement +which could unite all mankind, and they had pointed triumphantly to its +influence in bringing together the Jew and the Gentile, the Greek and +the barbarian, the master and the slave, the learned and the illiterate. +They had looked forward with high expectation to the days of its +complete ascendency, when, under its gentle sway, all nations would +exhibit the spectacle of one great and happy brotherhood. How, then, +must they have been chagrined by the rise and spread of heresies! They +saw the Church itself converted into a great battle-field, and every +man's hand turned against his fellow. In almost all the populous cities +of the Empire, as if on a concerted signal, the errorists commenced +their discussions. The Churches of Lyons, [531:1] of Rome, of Corinth, +of Athens, of Ephesus, of Antioch, and of Alexandria, resounded with the +din of theological controversy. Nor were the heresiarchs men whom their +opponents could afford to despise. In point of genius and of literary +resources, many of them were fully equal to the most accomplished of +their adversaries. Their zeal was unwearied, and their tact most +perplexing. Mixing up the popular elements of the current philosophy +with a few of the facts and doctrines of the gospel, they produced a +compound by which many were deceived. How did the friends of the Church +proceed to grapple with these difficulties? They, no doubt, did their +utmost to meet the errorists in argument, and to shew that their +theories were miserable perversions of Christianity. But they did not +confine themselves to the use of weapons drawn from their own heavenly +armoury. Not a few presbyters were themselves tainted with the new +opinions; some of them were even ringleaders of the heretics; [531:2] +and, in an evil hour, the dominant party resolved to change the +constitution of the Church, and to try to put down disturbance by means +of a new ecclesiastical organization. Believing, with many in modern +times, that "parity breedeth confusion," and expecting, as Jerome has +expressed it, "that the seeds of schisms might be destroyed," they +sought to invigorate their administration by investing the presiding +elder with authority over the rest of his brethren. The senior +presbyters, the last survivors of a better age, were all sound in the +faith; and, as they were still at the head of the Churches in the great +cities, it was thought that by enlarging their prerogatives, and by +giving them the name of bishops, they would be the better able to +struggle energetically with the dangers of their position. The principle +that, whoever would not submit to the bishop should be cast out of the +Church, was accordingly adopted; and it was hoped that in due time peace +would be restored to the spiritual commonwealth. + +About the same period arrangements were made in some places for changing +the mode of advancement to the presidential chair, so that, in no case, +an elder suspected of error could have a chance of promotion. [532:1] An +immense majority of the presbyters were yet orthodox; and by being +permitted to depart, as often as they pleased, from the ancient order of +succession, and to nominate any of themselves to the episcopate, they +could always secure the appointment of an individual representing their +own sentiments. In some of the larger Churches, where their number was +considerable, they appear to have usually selected three or four +candidates; and then to have permitted the lot to make the ultimate +decision. [532:2] But the ecclesiastical revolution could not stop here. +Jealousy quickly appeared among the presbyters; and, during the +excitement of elections, the more popular candidates would not long be +willing to limit the voting to the presbytery. The people chose their +presbyters and deacons, and now that the office of moderator possessed +substantial power, and differed so much from what it was originally, why +should not all the members of the Church be allowed to exercise their +legitimate influence? Such a claim could not be well resisted. Thus it +was that the bishops were ultimately chosen by popular suffrage. [533:1] + +Some have imagined that they have discovered inconsistency in the +statements of Jerome relative to prelacy. They allege, in proof, that +whilst he describes the Church as governed, until the rise of "parties +in religion," by the common council of the presbyters, he also speaks of +bishops as in existence from the days of the apostles. "At Alexandria," +says he, "from Mark the Evangelist, [by whom the Church there is said to +have been founded] to Heraclas and Dionysius the bishops, [who +flourished in the third century] the presbyters always named as bishop +one chosen from among themselves and placed along with them [533:2] in a +higher position." [533:3] It must appear, however, on due consideration, +that here there is no inconsistency whatever. In the Epistle where this +passage occurs Jerome is asserting the ancient dignity of presbyters, +and shewing that they originally possessed prerogatives of which they +had more recently been deprived. In proof of this he refers to the +Church of Alexandria, one of the greatest sees in Christendom, where for +upwards of a century and a half after the days of the Evangelist Mark, +the presbyters appointed their spiritual overseers, and performed all +the ceremonies connected with their official investiture. But it does +not therefore follow that meanwhile these overseers had always possessed +exactly the same amount of authority. The very fact mentioned by Jerome +suggests a quite different inference, as it proves that whilst the power +of the presbyters had been declining, that of the bishops had increased. +In the second century the presbyters inaugurated bishops; in the days of +Jerome they were not permitted even to ordain presbyters. + +Jerome says, indeed, that, in the beginning, the Alexandrian presbyters +nominated their _bishops_, but we are not to conclude that the parties +chosen were always known distinctively by the designation which he here +gives to them. He evidently could not have intended to convey such an +impression, as in the same Epistle he demonstrates, by a whole series of +texts of Scripture, that the titles bishop and presbyter were used +interchangeably throughout the whole of the first century. By bishops he +obviously understands the presidents of the presbyteries, or the +officials who filled the chairs which those termed bishops subsequently +occupied. In their own age these primitive functionaries were called +bishops and presbyters indifferently; but they partially represented the +bishops of succeeding times, and they always appeared in the episcopal +registries as links of the apostolical succession, so that Jerome did +not deem it necessary to depart from the current nomenclature. His +meaning cannot be mistaken by any one who attentively marks his +language, for he has stated immediately before, that episcopal authority +properly commenced when the Church began to be distracted by the spirit +of sectarianism. [534:1] + +In this passage, however, the learned father bears unequivocal testimony +to the fact that, from the earliest times, the presbytery had an +official head or president. Such an arrangement was known in the days of +the apostles. But the primitive moderator was very different from the +bishop of the fourth century. He was the representative of the +presbytery--not its master. Christ had said to the disciples--"Whosoever +will be great among you, let him be your minister; and whosoever will be +chief among you, let him be your servant." [535:1] Such a chief was at +the head of the ancient presbytery. Without a president no Church court +could transact business; and it was the duty of the chairman to preserve +order, to bear many official burdens, to ascertain the sentiments of his +brethren, to speak in their name, and to act in accordance with the +dictates of their collective wisdom. [535:2] The bishop of after-times +rather resembled a despotic sovereign in the midst of his counsellors. +He might ask the advice of the presbyters, and condescend to defer to +their recommendations; but he could also negative their united +resolutions, and cause the refractory quickly to feel the gravity of his +displeasure. + +Though Jerome tells us how, for the destruction of the seeds of schisms, +"_it was decreed throughout the whole_ WORLD that one elected from the +presbyters should be set over the rest," we are not to suppose that the +decree was carried out, all at once, into universal operation. General +councils were yet unknown, and the decree must have been sanctioned at +different times and by distant Church judicatories. Such a measure was +first thought of shortly before the middle of the second century, but it +was not very extensively adopted until about fifty years afterwards. The +history of its origin must now be more minutely investigated. + + + + + +CHAPTER VII. + +PRELACY BEGINS IN ROME. + + +Any attentive reader who has marked the chronology of the early bishops +of Rome, as given by Eusebius, [537:1] may have observed that the +pastorates of those who flourished during the first forty years of the +second century were all of comparatively short duration. Clement is +commonly reputed to have died about A.D. 100; [537:2] he was followed by +Evaristus, Alexander, Xystus, and Telesphorus; and Hyginus, who was +placed at the head of the Church in A.D. 139, and who died in A.D. 142, +was the _fifth_ in succession. Thus, the five ministers next in order +after Clement occupied the post of president only forty-two years, and, +with the exception of Hyginus, whose official career was very brief, +each appears to have held the situation for nearly an equal period. +[538:1] But, on the death of Hyginus, a pastorate of unusual length +commences, as Pius, by whom he was followed, continued fifteen years in +office--a term considerably more extended than that of any of his five +predecessors. Reckoning from the date of the advancement of Pius, we +find also a decided increase in the average length of the life of the +president for the remainder of the century; as, of the ten individuals +in all who were at the head of the Roman Church during its revolution, +the five who followed next after Clement lived only _forty-two_ years, +whilst their five successors lived _fifty-nine_ years. Thus, there is at +least some ostensible ground for the inquiry whether any arrangement was +made, about the time of Hyginus, which may account for these statistics. + +The origin of the Church of Rome, like the origin of the city, is buried +in obscurity; and a very few facts constitute the whole amount of our +information respecting it during the first century of its existence. +About the time of Hyginus the twilight of history begins to dawn upon +it. Guided by the glimmerings of intelligence thus supplied, we shall +endeavour to illustrate tins dark passage in its annals. The following +statements may contribute somewhat to the explanation of transactions +which have hitherto been rarely noticed by modern ecclesiastical +writers. + +I. A change in the organization of the Church about the time of Hyginus, +will account for the increase in the average length of the lives of the +Roman bishops. [539:1] If the alteration, mentioned by Hilary, was now +made in the mode of succession to the presidential chair, such a result +must have followed. Under the new regime, the recommendation of large +experience would still have much weight in the choice of a bishop, but +he would frequently enter on his duties at a somewhat earlier age, and +thus the ordinary duration of his official career would be considerably +extended. [539:2] + +II. The time of Hyginus exactly answers to the description of the period +when, according to the testimony of Jerome, prelacy commenced. The +heretics then exhibited extraordinary zeal, so that "parties in +religion" were springing up all over the Empire. The Church of Rome is +said to have hitherto escaped the contagion of false doctrine, [539:3] +but now errorists from all quarters began to violate its purity and to +disturb its peace. Valentine, Cerdo, Marcion, and Marcus appeared about +this time in the Western capital. [540:1] Some of these men were noted +for their genius and learning; and there is every reason to believe that +they created no common ferment. They were assiduous in the dissemination +of their principles, and several of them resorted to very extraordinary +and unwarrantable expedients for strengthening their respective +factions. An ancient writer represents them as conducting their +adherents to water, and as baptizing them "in the name of the Unknown +Father of the universe; in the Truth, the mother of all; and in Him who +descended on Jesus." "Others again," says the same authority, "repeated +Hebrew names to inspire the initiated with the greater awe." [540:2] +These attempts at proselytism were not unsuccessful. Valentine, in +particular, made many converts, and after his death, when Irenaeus wrote +a refutation of his heresy, his disciples must still have been numerous. +[540:3] + +The account given by Jerome of the state of the Christian interest when +it was deemed necessary to set up episcopacy, is not so completely +supplemented by the condition of the Church at any other period. Never +certainly did the brethren at Rome more require the services of a +skilful and energetic leader, than when the Gnostic chiefs settled in +the great metropolis. Never could it be said with so much truth of their +community, in the language of the Latin father, that "every one reckoned +those whom he baptized as belonging to himself and not to Christ;" +[541:1] for, as we have just seen, some, when baptizing their disciples, +used even new forms of initiation. Never, assuredly, had the advocates +of expediency a better opportunity for pleading in favour of a decree +ordaining that "one chosen from among the presbyters should be put over +the rest, and that the whole care of the Church should be committed to +him, that the seeds of schisms should be taken away." [541:2] + +III. The testimony of Hilary, who was contemporary with Jerome, exactly +accords with the views here promulgated as to the date of this +occurrence. This writer, who was also a minister of the Roman Church, +was obviously acquainted with a tradition that a change had taken place +at an early period in the mode of ecclesiastical government. His +evidence is all the more valuable as it contains internal proofs of +derivation from an independent source; for, whilst it corroborates the +statement of Jerome, it supplies fresh historical details. According to +his account, "after that churches were erected in all places and offices +established, an arrangement was adopted different from that which +prevailed at the beginning." [541:3] By "the beginning" he understands +the apostolic age, or the time when the New Testament was written. +[541:4] He then goes on to say, in explanation, that it was found +necessary to change the mode of appointing the chairman of the +eldership, and that he was now promoted to the office by election, and +not by seniority. [541:5] Whilst his language indicates distinctly that +this alteration was made after the days of the apostles, it also implies +a date not later than the second century; for, though it was "after the +beginning," it was at a time when churches had been only _recently_ +"erected in all places, and offices established." The period of the +spread of heresies at Rome, at the commencement of the reign of +Antoninus Pius, and when Hyginus closed his career, answers these +conditions. + +IV. As Rome was the head-quarters of heathenism, it was also the place +where the divisions of the Church must have proved most disastrous. +There, the worship of the State was celebrated in all its magnificence; +there, the Emperor, the Pontifex Maximus of the gods, surrounded by a +splendid hierarchy of priests and augurs, presided at the great +festivals; and there, thousands and tens of thousands, prompted by +interest or by prejudice, were prepared to struggle for the maintenance +of the ancient superstition. Already, the Church of Rome had often +sustained the violence of persecution; but, notwithstanding the bloody +trials it had undergone, it had continued steadily to gain strength; and +a sagacious student of the signs of the times might even now have looked +forward to the day when Christianity and paganism, on nearly equal +terms, would be contending for mastery in the chief city of the Empire. +But the proceedings of the heretics were calculated to dissipate all the +visions of ecclesiastical ascendency. If the Roman Christians were split +up into fragments by sectarianism, the Church, in one of its great +centres of influence, would be incalculably injured. And yet, how could +the crisis be averted? How could heresy be most effectually +discountenanced? How could the unity of the Church be best maintained? +In times of peril the Romans had formerly been wont to set up a +Dictator, and to commit the whole power of the commonwealth to one +trusty and vigorous ruler. During the latter days of the Republic, the +State had been almost torn to pieces by contending factions; and now, +under the sway of the Emperors, it enjoyed comparative repose. It seems +to have occurred to the brethren at Rome that they should try the +effects of a similar change in the ecclesiastical constitution. By +committing the government of the Church, in this emergency, almost +entirely into the hands of one able and resolute administrator, they, +perhaps, hoped to contend successfully against the dangers by which they +were now encompassed. + +V. A recent calamity of a different character was calculated to abate +the jealousy which such a proposition might have otherwise awakened. It +appears that Telesphorus, the immediate predecessor of Hyginus, suffered +a violent death. [543:1] Telesphorus is the first bishop of Rome whose +title to martyrdom can be fairly established; and not one of his +successors during the remainder of the second century forfeited his life +for his religion. The death of the presiding pastor, as a victim to the +intolerance of heathenism, must have thrown the whole Church into a +state of confusion and perplexity; and when Hyginus was called upon to +occupy the vacant chair, well might he enter upon its duties with deep +anxiety. The appearance of heresy multiplied the difficulties of his +office. It might now be asked with no small amount of plausibility--Is +the presiding presbyter to have no special privileges? If his mind is to +be harassed continually by errorists, and if his life is to be +imperilled in the service of the Church, should he not be distinguished +above his brethren? Without some such encouragement will not the elders +at length refuse to accept a situation which entails so much +responsibility, and yet possesses so little influence? Such questions, +urged under such circumstances, must have been felt to be perplexing. + +VI. As there was now constant intercourse between the seat of government +and all the provinces of the Empire, it would seem that the Church of +the metropolis soon contrived to avail itself of the facilities of its +position for keeping up a correspondence with the Churches of other +countries. [544:1] In due time the results became apparent. Every event +of interest which occurred in any quarter of the Christian world was +known speedily in the capital; no important religious movement could be +well expected to succeed without the concurrence and co-operation of the +brethren at Rome; and its ministers gradually acquired such influence +that they were able, to some extent, to control the public opinion of +the whole ecclesiastical community. On this occasion they, perhaps, did +not find it difficult to persuade their co-religionists to enter into +their views. In Antioch, in Alexandria, in Ephesus, and elsewhere, as +well as in Italy, the heretics had been displaying the most mischievous +activity; [544:2] and it is not improbable that the remedy now proposed +by the ruling spirits in the great city had already suggested itself to +others. During the summer months vessels were trading to Rome from all +the coasts of the Mediterranean, so that Christian deputies, without +much inconvenience, could repair to head-quarters, and, in concert with +the metropolitan presbyters, make arrangements for united action. If the +champions of orthodoxy were nearly as zealous as the errorists, [544:3] +they must have travelled much during these days of excitement. But had +not the idea of increasing the power of the presiding pastor originated +in Rome, or had it not been supported by the weighty sanction of the +Church of the capital, it is not to be supposed that it would have been +so readily and so extensively adopted by the Churches in other parts of +the Empire. + +VII. Though we know little of the early history of the Roman see, it +would seem that, on the death of Hyginus, there was a vacancy of unusual +length; and circumstances, which meanwhile took place, argue strongly in +favour of the conclusion that, about this time, the change in the +ecclesiastical constitution indicated by Jerome actually occurred. +According to some, the interval between the death of Hyginus and the +commencement of the episcopate of Pius, his immediate successor, was of +several years' duration; [545:1] but it is clear that the chair must +have been vacant for at least about a twelvemonth. [545:2] How are we to +account for this interregnum? We know that subsequently, in the times of +Decius and of Diocletian, there were vacancies of quite as long +continuance; but then the Church was in the agonies of martyrdom, and +the Roman Christians were prevented by the strong arm of imperial +tyranny from filling up the bishopric. Now no such calamity appears to +have threatened; and the commotions created by the heretics supply +evidence that persecution was asleep. This long vacancy must be +otherwise explained. If Hyginus had been invested with additional +authority, and if he soon afterwards died, it is not to be wondered at +that his removal was the signal for the renewal of agitation. Questions +which, perhaps, had not hitherto been mooted, now arose. How was the +vacant place to be supplied? Was the senior presbyter, no matter how ill +adapted for the crisis, to be allowed to take quiet possession? If other +influential Churches required to be consulted, some time would thus be +occupied; so that delay in the appointment was unavoidable. + +During this interval the spirit of faction was busily at work. The +heretic Marcion sought admission into the Roman presbytery; [546:1] and +Valentine, who appears to have been now recognized as an elder, [546:2] +no doubt supported the application. The presbytery itself was probably +divided, and there is good reason to believe that even Valentine had +hopes of obtaining the presidential chair! His pretensions, at this +period of his career, were sufficiently imposing. Though he may have +been suspected of unsoundness in the faith, he had not yet committed +himself by any public avowal of his errors; and as a man of literary +accomplishment, address, energy, and eloquence, he had few compeers. No +wonder, with so many disturbing elements in operation, that the see +remained so long vacant. + +Some would willingly deny that Valentine was a candidate for the +episcopal chair of Rome, but the fact can be established by evidence the +most direct and conclusive. Tertullian, who had lived in the imperial +city, and who was well acquainted with its Church history, expressly +states that "Valentine hoped for the bishopric, because he excelled in +genius and eloquence, but indignant that another, who had the superior +claim of a confessor, obtained the place, he deserted the Catholic +Church" [546:3] The Carthaginian father does not, indeed, here name the +see to which the heresiarch unsuccessfully aspired, but his words shut +us up to the conclusion that he alluded to Rome. [546:4] And we can thus +discover at least one reason why the history of this vacancy has been +involved in so much mystery. In a few more generations the whole Church +would have felt compromised by any reflection cast upon the orthodoxy of +the great Western bishopric. [547:1] How sadly would many have been +scandalized had it been proclaimed abroad that the arch-heretic +Valentine had once hoped to occupy the chair of St Peter! + +VIII. Two letters which are still extant, and which are supposed to have +been addressed by Pius, the immediate successor of Hyginus, to Justus, +bishop of Vienne in Gaul, supply corroborative evidence that the +presiding pastor had recently obtained additional authority. Though the +genuineness of these documents has been questioned, the objections urged +against them have not been sufficient to prevent critics and +antiquarians of all parties from appealing to their testimony. [547:2] +It is not improbable that they are Latin translations from Greek +originals, and we may thus account for a few words to be found in them +which were introduced at a later period. [547:3] Their tone and spirit, +which are entirely different from the spurious productions ascribed to +the same age, plead strongly in their favour as trustworthy witnesses. +The writer makes no lofty pretensions as a Roman bishop; he speaks of +himself simply as at the head of an humble presbytery; and it would be +difficult to divine the motive which could have tempted an impostor to +fabricate such unpretending compositions. Though given as the veritable +Epistles of Pius by the highest literary authorities of Borne, they are +certainly ill calculated to prop up the cause of the Papacy. If their +claims are admitted, they must be regarded as among the earliest +authentic records in which the distinction between the terms bishop and +presbyter is unequivocally recognized; and it is obvious that if +alterations in the ecclesiastical constitution were made under Hyginus, +they must have prepared the way for such a change in the terminology. In +one of these Epistles Pius gives the following piece of advice to his +correspondent:--"Let the elders and deacons respect you, _not as a +greater_, but as the servant of Christ." [548:1] This letter purports to +have been written when its author anticipated the approach of death; and +the individual to whom it is directed seems to have been just placed in +the episcopal chair. Had Pius believed that Justus had a divine right to +rule over the presbyters, would he have tendered such an admonition? A +hundred years afterwards, Cyprian of Carthage, when addressing a young +prelate, would certainly have expressed himself very differently. He +would, probably, have complained of the presumption of the presbyters, +have boasted of the majesty of the episcopate, and have exhorted the new +bishop to remember his apostolical dignity. But, in the middle of the +second century, such language would have been strangely out of place. +Pius is writing to an individual, just entering on an office lately +endowed with additional privileges, who could not yet afford to make an +arbitrary use of his new authority. He, therefore, counsels him to +moderation, and cautions him against presuming on his power. "Beware," +says he, "in your intercourse with your presbyters and deacons, of +insisting too much on the duty of obedience. Let them feel that your +prerogative is not exercised capriciously, but for good and necessary +purposes. Let the elders and deacons regard you, not so much in the +light of a superior, as the servant of Christ." + +In another portion of this letter a piece of intelligence is +communicated, which, as coming from Pius, possesses peculiar interest. +When the law was enacted altering the mode of succession to the +presidency, it may be supposed that the proceeding was deemed somewhat +ungracious towards those aged presbyters who might have soon expected, +as a matter of right, to obtain possession of the seat of the moderator. +The death of Telesphorus, the predecessor of Hyginus, as a martyr, was, +indeed, calculated to abate an anxiety to secure the chair; for the +whole Church was thus painfully reminded that it was a post of danger, +as well as of dignity; but still, when, on the occurrence of the first +vacancy, Pius was promoted over the heads of older men, he may, on this +ground, have felt, to some extent, embarrassed by his elevation. We may +infer, however, from this letter, that the few senior presbyters, with +whose advancement the late arrangement interfered, did not long survive +this crisis in the history of the Church; for the bishop of Rome here +informs his Gallic brother of their demise. "Those presbyters," says he, +"who were taught by the apostles, [549:1] and who have survived to our +own days, with whom we have united in dispensing the word of faith, have +now, in obedience to the call of the Lord, gone to their eternal +rest." [550:1] Such a notice of the decease of these venerable colleagues +is precisely what might have been expected, under the circumstances, in +a letter from Pius to Justus. + +IX. The use of the word _bishop_, as denoting the president of the +presbytery, marks an era in the history of ecclesiastical polity. New +terms are not coined without necessity; neither, without an adequate +cause, is a new meaning annexed to an ancient designation. When the name +bishop was first used _as descriptive of the chief pastor_, there must +have been some special reason for such an application of the title; and +the rise of the hierarchy furnishes the only satisfactory +explanation.[550:2] If then we can ascertain when this new nomenclature +first made its appearance, we can also fix the date of the origin of +prelacy. Though the documentary proof available for the illustration of +this subject is comparatively scanty, it is sufficient for our purpose; +and it clearly shews that the presiding elder did not begin to be known +by the title of bishop until about the middle of the second century. +Polycarp, who seems to have written about that time,[550:3] still uses +the terminology employed by the apostles. Justin Martyr, the earliest +father who has left behind him memorials amounting in extent to anything +like a volume, often speaks of the chief minister of the Church, and +designates him, not the bishop, but _the president_. [551:1] His +phraseology is all the more important as he lived for some time in Rome, +and as he undoubtedly adopted the style of expression once current in +the great city. But another writer, who was his contemporary, and who +also resided in the capital, incidentally supplies evidence that the new +title was then just coming into use. The author of the book called +"Pastor," when referring to those who were at the head of the +presbyteries, describes them as "THE BISHOPS, _that is_, THE PRESIDENTS +OF THE CHURCHES." [551:2] The reason why he here deems it necessary to +explain what he means by bishops cannot well be mistaken. The name, in +its new application, was not yet familiar to the public ear; and it +therefore required to be interpreted by the more ancient designation. +Could we tell when this work of Hermas was written, we could also +perhaps name the very year when the president of the eldership was first +called bishop. [551:3] It is now pretty generally admitted that the +author was no other than the brother of Pius of Rome, [551:4] the +immediate successor of Hyginus, so that he wrote exactly at the time +when, as appears from other evidences, the transition from presbytery to +prelacy actually occurred. His words furnish a very strong, but an +undesigned, attestation to the novelty of the episcopal regimen. + +X. But, perhaps, the most pointed, and certainly the most remarkable +testimony to the fact that a change took place in the constitution of +the Roman Church in the time of Hyginus is furnished from a quarter +where such a voucher might have been, least of all, anticipated. We +allude to the _Pontifical Book_. This work has been ascribed to Damasus, +the well-known bishop of the metropolis of the West, who flourished in +the fourth century, but much of it is unquestionably of later origin; +and though many of its statements are apocryphal, it is often quoted as +a document of weight by the most distinguished writers of the Romish +communion. [552:1] Its account of the early popes is little better than +a mass of fables; but some of its details are evidently exaggerations, +or rather caricatures, of an authentic tradition; and a few grains of +truth may be discovered here and there in a heap of fictions and +anachronisms. This part of the production contains one brief sentence +which has greatly puzzled the commentators, [552:2] as it is strangely +out of keeping with the general spirit of the narrative, and as it +contradicts, rather awkwardly, the pretensions of the popedom. According +to this testimony, Hyginus "ARRANGED THE CLERGY AND DISTRIBUTED THE +GRADATIONS." [552:3] Peter himself is described by Romanists as +organizing the Church; but here, one of his alleged successors, upwards +of seventy years after his death, is set forth as the real framer of the +hierarchy. [553:1] The facts already adduced prove that this obscure +announcement rests upon a sound historical foundation, and that it +vaguely indicates the alterations now introduced into the ecclesiastical +constitution. If Hilary and Jerome be employed as its interpreters, the +truth may be easily eliminated. At a synod held in Rome, Hyginus brought +under the notice of the meeting the confusion and scandal created by the +movements of the errorists; and, with a view to correct these disorders, +the council agreed to invest the moderator of each presbytery with +increased authority, to give him a discretionary power as the general +superintendent of the Church, and to require the other elders, as well +as the deacons, to act under his advice and direction. A new functionary +was thus established, and, under the old name of _bishop_ or _overseer_, +a third order was virtually added to the ecclesiastical brotherhood. +Hence Hyginus, who, no doubt, took a prominent part in the deliberations +of the convocation, is said to have "arranged the clergy and distributed +the gradations." + +The change in the ecclesiastical polity which now occurred led to +results equally extensive and permanent, and yet it has been but +indistinctly noticed by the writers of antiquity. Nor is it so strange +that we have no contemporary account of this ecclesiastical revolution. +The history of other occurrences and innovations is buried in profound +obscurity. We can only ascertain by inference what were the reasons +which led to the general adoption of the sign of the cross, to the use +of the chrism in baptism, to standing at the Lord's Supper, to the +institution of lectors, acolyths, and sub-deacons, and to the +establishment of metropolitans. Though the Paschal controversy agitated +almost the whole Church towards the close of the second century, and +though Tertullian wrote immediately afterwards, he does not once mention +it in any of his numerous extant publications. [554:1] Owing to peculiar +circumstances the rise of prelacy can be more minutely traced than that +of, perhaps, any other of the alterations which were introduced during +the first three centuries. At the time the change which it involved was +probably considered not very important; but, as the remaining literary +memorials of the period are few and scanty, the reception which it +experienced can now only be conjectured. The alteration was adopted as +an antidote against the growth of heresy, and thus originating in +circumstances of a humiliating character, there would be little +disposition, on the part of ecclesiastical writers, to dwell upon its +details. Soon afterwards the pride of churchmen began to be developed; +and it was then found convenient to forget that all things originally +did not accord with existing arrangements, and that the hierarchy itself +was but a human contrivance. Prelacy soon advanced apace, and every +bishop had an interest in exalting "his order." It is only wonderful +that so much truth has oozed out from witnesses so prejudiced, and that +the Pontifical Book contains so decisive a deposition. And the momentous +consequences of this apparently slight infringement upon the primitive +polity cannot be overlooked. That very Church which, in its attempts to +suppress heresy, first departed from divine arrangements, was soon +involved in doctrinal error, and eventually became the great +foster-mother of superstition and idolatry. + +It may at first seem extraordinary that the ecclesiastical +transformation was so rapidly accomplished; but, when the circumstances +are more attentively considered, this view of the subject presents no +real difficulty. At the outset, the principle now sanctioned produced +very little alteration on the general aspect of the spiritual +commonwealth. At this period a Church, in most places, consisted of a +single congregation; and as one elder labouring in the word and doctrine +was generally deemed sufficient to minister to the flock, only a slight +modification took place in the constitution of such a society. The +preaching elder, who was entitled by authority of Scripture [555:1] to +take precedence of elders who only ruled, had always been permitted to +act as moderator; but, on the ground of the new arrangement, the pastor +probably began to assume an authority over his session which he had +never hitherto ventured to exercise. In the beginning of the reign of +Antoninus Pius the number of towns with several Christian congregations +must have been but small; and if five or six leading cities approved of +the system now inaugurated at Rome, its general adoption was thus +secured. The statements of Jerome and Hilary attest that the matter was +submitted to a synod; and the remarkable interregnum which followed the +death of Hyginus can be best accounted for on the hypothesis that +meanwhile the ministers of the great metropolis found it necessary to +consult the rulers of other influential and distant Churches. If the +measure had the sanction of these foreign brethren, they were of course +prepared to resort to it at home on the demise of their presiding +presbyter. Heretics were now disturbing the Church all over the Empire, +so that the same arguments could be everywhere used in favour of the new +polity. We find, too, that there was a vacancy in the presidential chair +at Antioch about the time of the death of Hyginus; and that, in the +course of the next year, a similar vacancy occurred at Alexandria. +[555:2] If the three most important Churches then in Christendom, with +the sanction of a very few others of less note, almost simultaneously +adopted the new arrangement, the question was practically settled. There +were probably not more than twenty cities to be found with more than one +Christian congregation; and places of inferior consequence would +speedily act upon the example of the large capitals. But unquestionably +the system now introduced gradually effected a complete revolution in +the state of the Church. The ablest man in the presbytery was commonly +elevated to the chair, so that the weight of his talents, and of his +general character, was added to his official consequence. The bishop +soon became the grand centre of influence and authority, and arrogated +to himself the principal share in the administration of all divine +ordinances. + +When this change commenced, the venerable Polycarp was still alive, and +there are some grounds for believing that, when far advanced in life, he +was induced to undertake a journey to Rome on a mission of remonstrance. +This view is apparently corroborated by the fact that his own Church of +Smyrna did not now adopt the new polity; for we have seen [556:1] that, +upwards of a quarter of a century after his demise, it still continued +under presbyterial government. Irenaeus was obviously well acquainted +with the circumstances which occasioned this extraordinary visit of +Polycarp to Rome; but had he not come into collision with the pastor of +the great city in the controversy relating to the Paschal Feast, we +might never have heard of its occurrence. Even when he mentions it, he +observes a mysterious silence as to its main design. The Paschal +question awakened little interest in the days of Polycarp, and among the +topics which he discussed with Anicetus when at Rome, it confessedly +occupied a subordinate position. [556:2] "When," says Irenaeus, "the +most blessed Polycarp came to Rome in the days of Anicetus, and when as +to _certain other matters_ they had a little controversy, they were +immediately agreed on this point (of the Passover) without any +disputation." [557:1] What the "certain other matters" were which +created the chief dissatisfaction, we are left obscurely to conjecture; +but we may presume that they must have been of no ordinary consequence, +when so eminent a minister as Polycarp, now verging on eighty years of +age, felt it necessary to make a lengthened journey by sea and land with +a view to their adjustment. He obviously considered that Anicetus was at +least influentially connected with arrangements which he deemed +objectionable; and he plainly felt that he could hope to obtain their +modification or abandonment only by a personal conference with the Roman +pastor. And intimations are not wanting that he was rather doubtful +whether Anicetus would be disposed to treat with him as his +ecclesiastical peer, for he seems to have been in some degree appeased +when the bishop of the capital permitted him to preside in the Church at +the celebration of the Eucharist. [557:2] This, certainly, was no +extraordinary piece of condescension; as Polycarp, on various grounds, +was entitled to take precedence of his Roman brother; [557:3] and the +reception given to the "apostolic presbyter" was only what might have +fairly been expected in the way of ministerial courtesy. [557:4] Why has +it then been mentioned as an exhibition of the episcopal humility of +Anicetus? Apparently because he had been previously making some arrogant +assumptions. He had been, probably, presuming on his position as a +pastor of the "new order," and his bearing had perhaps been so offensive +that Polycarp had been commissioned to visit him on an errand of +expostulation. But by prudently paying marked deference to the aged +stranger; and, it may be, by giving a plausible account of some +proceedings which had awakened anxiety; he appears to have succeeded in +quieting his apprehensions. That the presiding minister of the Church of +Smyrna was engaged in some such delicate mission is all but certain, as +the design of the journey would not otherwise have been involved in so +profound secrecy. The very fact of its occurrence is first noticed about +forty years afterwards, when the haughty behaviour of another bishop of +Rome provoked Irenaeus to call up certain unwelcome reminiscences which +it must have suggested. + +Though the journey of Polycarp betokens that he must have been deeply +dissatisfied with something which was going forward in the great +metropolis, we can only guess at its design and its results; and it is +now impossible to ascertain whether the alterations introduced there +encountered any very formidable opposition: but it is by no means +improbable that they were effected without much difficulty. The +disorders of the Church imperatively called for some strong remedy; and +it perhaps occurred to not a few that a distracted presbytery, under the +presidency of a feeble old man, was but ill fitted to meet the +emergency. They would accordingly propose to strengthen the executive +government by providing for the appointment of a more efficient +moderator, and by arming him with additional authority. The people would +be gratified by the change, for, though in Rome and some other great +cities, where its effects would be felt most sensibly, they, no doubt, +met before this time in separate congregations, yet they had still much +united intercourse; and as, on such occasions, their edification +depended mainly on the gifts of the chairman of the eldership, they +would gladly join in advancing the best preacher in the presbytery to +the office of president. At this particular crisis the alteration may +not have been unacceptable to the elders themselves. To those of them +who were in the decline of life, there was nothing very inviting in the +prospect of occupying the most prominent position in a Church threatened +by persecution and torn by divisions, so that they may have been not +unwilling to waive any claim to the presidency which their seniority +implied; whilst the more vigorous, sanguine, and aspiring, would hail an +arrangement which promised at no distant day to place one of themselves +in a position of greatly increased dignity and influence. Whilst all +were agreed that the times demanded the appointment of the ablest member +of presbytery as moderator, none, perhaps, foresaw the danger of adding +permanently to the prerogatives of so potent a chairman. It was never +anticipated that the day would come when the new law would be regarded +as any other than a human contrivance; and when the bishops and their +adherents would contend that the presbyters, under no circumstances +whatever, had a right to reassume that power which they now surrendered. +The result, however, has demonstrated the folly of human wisdom. The +prelates, who were originally set up to save the Church from heresy, +became themselves at length the abetters of false doctrine; and whilst +they thus grievously abused the influence with which they were +entrusted, they had the temerity to maintain that they still continued +to be exclusively the fountains of spiritual authority. + +It is not to be supposed that prelacy was set up at once in the +plenitude of its power. Neither is it to be imagined that the system was +simultaneously adopted by Christians all over the world. Jerome informs +us that it was established "by little and little;" [559:1] and he thus +apparently refers, as well to its gradual spread, as to the almost +imperceptible growth of its pretensions. We have shewn, in a preceding +chapter, [560:1] that in various cities, such as Smyrna, Caesarea, and +Jerusalem, the senior presbyter continued to be the president until +about the close of the second century; and there the Church seems to +have been meanwhile governed by "the common council of the presbyters." +[560:2] Evidence can be adduced to prove that, in many places, even at a +much later period, the episcopal system was still unknown. [560:3] But +its advocates were active and influential, and they continued to make +steady progress. The consolidation of the Catholic system contributed +vastly to its advancement. The leading features of this system must now +be illustrated. + + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +THE CATHOLIC SYSTEM. + + +The word _catholic_, which signifies universal or general, came into use +towards the end of the second century. Its introduction indicates a new +phase in the history of the ecclesiastical community. For upwards of a +hundred years after its formation, the Church presented the appearance +of one great and harmonious brotherhood, as false teachers had hitherto +failed to create any considerable diversity of sentiment; but when many +of the literati began to embrace the gospel, the influence of elements +of discord soon became obvious. These converts attempted to graft their +philosophical theories on Christianity; not a few of the more unstable +of the brethren, captivated by their ingenuity and eloquence, were +tempted to adopt their views; and though the great mass of the disciples +repudiated their adulterations of the truth, the Christian commonwealth +was distracted and divided. Those who banded themselves together to +maintain the unity of the Church were soon known by the designation of +Catholics. "After the days of the apostles," says one of the fathers, +"when heresies had burst forth, and were striving under various names to +tear piecemeal and divide the Dove and the Queen of God, [561:1] did not +the apostolic people require a name of their own whereby to mark the +unity of those that were uncorrupted? .... Therefore our people, when +named Catholic, are separated by this title from those denominated +heretics." [562:1] + +The Catholic system, being an integral portion of the policy which +invested the presiding elder with additional authority, rose +contemporaneously with Prelacy. When Gnosticism was spreading so +rapidly, and creating so much scandal and confusion, schism upon schism +appeared unavoidable. How was the Church to be kept from going to +pieces? How could its unity be best conserved? How could it contend most +successfully against its subtle and restless disturbers? Such were the +problems which now occupied the attention of its leading ministers. It +was thought that all these difficulties would be solved by the adoption +of the Catholic system. Were the Church, it was said, to place more +power in the hands of individuals, and then to consolidate its +influence, it could bear down more effectively upon the errorists. Every +chief pastor of the Catholic Church was the symbol of the unity of his +own ecclesiastical district; and the associated bishops represented the +unity of the whole body of the faithful. According to the Catholic +system when strictly carried out, every individual excommunicated by one +bishop was excommunicated by all, so that when a heresiarch was excluded +from fellowship in one city, he could not be received elsewhere. The +visible unity of the Church was the great principle which the Catholic +system sought to realise. "The Church," says Cyprian, "which is catholic +and one, is not separated or divided, but is in truth connected and +joined together by the cement of bishops mutually cleaving to each +other." [562:2] + +The funds of the Church were placed very early in the hands of the +president of the eldership, [563:1] and though they may not have been at +his absolute disposal, he, no doubt, soon found means of sustaining his +authority by means of his monetary influence. But the power which he +possessed, as the recognized centre of ecclesiastical unity, to prevent +any of his elders or deacons from performing any official act of which +he disapproved, constituted one of the essential features of the +Catholic system. "The right to administer baptism," says Tertullian, +"belongs to the chief priest, that is, the bishop: then to the +presbyters and the deacons, [563:2] yet not without the authority of the +bishop, _for the honour of the Church_, which being preserved, peace is +preserved." [563:3] Here, the origin of Catholicism is pretty distinctly +indicated; for the prerogatives of the bishop are described, not as +matters of divine right, but of ecclesiastical arrangement. [563:4] They +were given to him "for the honour of the Church," that peace might be +preserved when heretics began to cause divisions. + +Though the bishop could give permission to others to celebrate divine +ordinances, he was himself their chief administrator. He was generally +the only preacher; he usually dispensed baptism; [563:5] and he presided +at the observance of the Eucharist. At Rome, where the Catholic system +was maintained most scrupulously, his presence seems to have been +considered necessary to the due consecration of the elements. Hence, at +one time, the sacramental symbols were carried from the cathedral church +to all the places of Christian worship throughout the city. [564:1] With +such minute care did the Roman chief pastor endeavour to disseminate the +doctrine that whoever was not in communion with the bishop was out of +the Church. + +The establishment of a close connexion, between certain large Christian +associations and the smaller societies around them, constituted the next +link in the organization of the Catholic system. These communities, +being generally related as mother and daughter churches, were already +prepared to adapt themselves to the new type of ecclesiastical polity. +The apostles, or their immediate disciples, had founded congregations in +most of the great cities of the Empire; and every society thus +instituted, now distinguished by the designation of the principal +[564:2] or apostolic Church, became a centre of ecclesiastical unity. +Its presiding minister sent the Eucharist to the teachers of the little +flocks in his vicinity, to signify that he acknowledged them as +brethren; [564:3] and every pastor who thus enjoyed communion with the +principal Church was recognized as a Catholic bishop. This parent +establishment was considered a bulwark which could protect all the +Christian communities surrounding it from heresy, and they were +consequently expected to be guided by its traditions. "It is manifest," +says Tertullian, "that all doctrine, which agrees with these apostolic +Churches, THE WOMBS AND ORIGINALS OF THE FAITH, [564:4] must be +accounted true, as without doubt containing that which the Churches have +received from the apostles, the apostles from Christ, Christ from God: +and that all other doctrine must be judged at once to be false, which +savours of things contrary to the truth of the Churches, and of the +apostles, and of Christ, and of God....Go through the apostolic +Churches, in which the very _seats of the apostles, at this very day, +preside over their own places_, [565:1] in which their own authentic +writings are read, speaking with the voice of each, and making the face +of each present to the eye. Is Achaia near to you? You have Corinth. If +you are not far from Macedonia, you have Philippi, you have the +Thessalonians. [565:2] If you can travel into Asia, you have Ephesus. +But if you are near to Italy you have Rome, where we also have an +authority close at hand." [565:3] + +But the Catholic system was not yet complete. In every congregation the +bishop or pastor was the centre of unity, and in every district the +principal or apostolic Church bound together the smaller Christian +societies; but how were the apostolic Churches themselves to be united? +This question did not long remain without a solution. [565:4] Had the +Church of Jerusalem, when the Catholic system was first organized, still +occupied its ancient position, it might have established a better title +to precedence than any other ecclesiastical community in existence. It +had been, beyond all controversy, the mother Church of Christendom. But +it had been recently dissolved, and a new society, composed, to a great +extent, of new members, was now in process of formation in the new city +of Aelia. Meanwhile the Church of Rome had been rapidly acquiring +strength, and its connexion with the seat of government pointed it out +as the appropriate head of the Catholic confederation. If the greatest +convenience of the greatest number of Churches were to be taken into +account, it had claims of peculiar potency, for it was easily accessible +by sea or land from all parts of the Empire, and it had facilities for +keeping up communication with the provinces to which no other society +could pretend. Nor were these its only recommendations. It had, as was +alleged, been watered by the ministry of two or three [556:1] of the +apostles, so that, even as an apostolic Church, it had high pretensions. +In addition to all this, it had, more than once, sustained with +extraordinary constancy the first and fiercest brunt of persecution; and +if its members had so signalized themselves in the army of martyrs, why +should not its bishop lead the van of the Catholic Church? Such +considerations urged in favour of a community already distinguished by +its wealth, as well as by its charity, were amply sufficient to +establish its claim as the centre of Catholic unity. If, as is probable, +the arrangement was concocted in Rome itself, they must have been felt +to be irresistible. Hence Irenaeus, writing about A.D. 180, speaks of it +even then as the recognized head of the Churches of the Empire. "To this +Church," says he, "because it is more potentially principal, it is +necessary that every Catholic Church should go, as in it the apostolic +tradition has by the Catholics been always preserved." [567:1] + +Many Protestant writers have attempted to explain away the meaning of +this remarkable passage, but the candid student of history is bound to +listen respectfully to its testimony. When we assign to the words of +Irenaeus all the significance of which they are susceptible, they only +attest the fact that, in the latter half of the second century, the +Church of Rome was acknowledged as the most potent of all the apostolic +Churches. And in the same place the grounds of its pre-eminence are +enumerated pretty fully by the pastor of Lyons. It was the most ancient +Church in the West of Europe; it was also the most populous; like a city +set upon a hill, it was known to all; and it was reputed to have had for +its founders the most illustrious of the inspired heralds of the cross, +the apostle of the Gentiles, and the apostle of the circumcision. +[567:2] It was more "potentially principal," because it was itself the +principal of the apostolic or principal Churches. + +It has been already stated that every principal bishop, [567:3] or +presiding minister of an apostolic Church, sent the Eucharist to the +pastors around him as a pledge of their ecclesiastical fellowship; and +it would appear that the bishop of Rome kept up intercourse with the +other bishops of the apostolic Churches by transmitting to them the same +symbol of catholicity. [567:4] The sacred elements were doubtless +conveyed by confidential churchmen, who served, at the same time, as +channels of communication between the great prelate and the more +influential of his brethren. By this means the communion of the whole +Catholic Church was constantly maintained. + +When the Catholic system was set up, and the bishop of Rome recognized +as its Head, he was not supposed to possess, in his new position, any +arbitrary or despotic authority. He was simply understood to hold among +pastors the place which had previously been occupied by the senior elder +in the presbytery--that is, he was the president or moderator. The +theoretical parity of all bishops, the chief pastor of Rome included, +was a principle long jealously asserted. [568:1] But the prelate of the +capital was the individual to whom other bishops addressed themselves +respecting all matters affecting the general interests of the +ecclesiastical community; he collected their sentiments; and he +announced the decisions of their united wisdom. It was, however, +scarcely possible for an official in his circumstances either to satisfy +all parties, or to keep within the limits of his legitimate power. When +his personal feelings were known to run strongly in a particular +channel, the minority, to whom he was opposed, would at least suspect +him of attempting domination. Hence it was that by those who were +discontented with his policy he was tauntingly designated, as early as +the beginning of the third century, The Supreme Pontiff, and The Bishop +of Bishops. [568:2] These titles cannot now be gravely quoted as proofs +of the existence of the claims which they indicate; for they were +employed ironically by malcontents who wished thus either to impeach his +partiality, or to condemn his interference. But they supply clear +evidence that his growing influence was beginning to be formidable, and +that he already stood at the head of the ministers of Christendom. + +The preceding statements enable us to understand why the interests of +Rome and of the Catholic Church have always been identified. The +metropolis of Italy has, in fact, from the beginning been the heart of +the Catholic system. In ancient times Roman statesmen were noted for +their skill in fitting up the machinery of political government: Roman +churchmen have laboured no less successfully in the department of +ecclesiastical organization. The Catholic system is a wonderful specimen +of constructive ability; and there is every reason to believe that the +same city which produced Prelacy, also gave birth, about the same time, +to this masterpiece of human contrivance. The fact may be established, +as well by other evidences, as by the positive testimony of Cyprian. The +bishop of Carthage, who flourished only about a century after it +appeared, was connected with that quarter of the Church in which it +originated. We cannot, therefore, reasonably reject the depositions of +so competent a witness, more especially when he speaks so frequently and +so confidently of its source. When he describes the Roman bishopric as +"_the root_ and _womb_ of _the Catholic Church_," [569:1] his language +admits of no second interpretation. He was well aware that the Church of +Jerusalem was the root and womb of all the apostolic Churches; and when +he employs such phraseology, he must refer to some new phase of +Christianity which had originated in the capital of the Empire. In +another place he speaks of "the see of Peter, and the principal Church, +_whence the unity of the priesthood took its rise_." [569:2] Such +statements shut us up to the conclusion that Rome was the source and +centre from which Catholicism radiated. + +This system could have been only gradually developed, and nearly half a +century appears to have elapsed before it acquired such maturity that it +attained a distinctive designation. [570:1] But, as it was currently +believed to be admirably adapted to the exigencies of the Church, it +spread with much rapidity; and, in less than a hundred years after its +rise, its influence may be traced in almost all parts of the Empire. We +may thus explain a historical phenomenon which might otherwise be +unaccountable. Towards the close of the second and throughout the whole +of the third century, ecclesiastical writers connected with various and +distant provinces refer with peculiar respect to the Apostle Peter, and +even appeal to Scripture [570:2] with a view to his exaltation. Their +misinterpretations of the Word reveal an extreme anxiety to obtain +something like an inspired warrant for their catholicism. The visible +unity of the Church was deemed by them essential to its very existence, +and the Roman see was the actual key-stone of the Catholic structure. +Hence every friend of orthodoxy imagined it to be, as well his duty as +his interest, to uphold the claims of the supposed representative of +Peter, and thus to maintain the cause of ecclesiastical unity. It might +have been anticipated under such circumstances that Scripture would be +miserably perverted, and that the see, which was believed to possess as +its heritage the prerogatives of the apostle of the circumcision, would +be the subject of extravagant laudation. + +Ambition has been often represented as the great principle which guided +the policy of the early Roman bishops, but there is no evidence that, as +a class, they were inferior in piety to other churchmen, and the +readiness with which some of them suffered for the faith attests their +Christian sincerity and resolution. Ambition, doubtless, soon began to +operate; but their elevation was not so much the result of any deep-laid +scheme for their aggrandizement, as of a series of circumstances pushing +them into prominence, and placing them in a most influential position. +The efforts of heretics to create division led to a reaction, and +tempted the Church to adopt arrangements for preserving union by which +its liberties were eventually compromised. The bishop of Rome found +himself almost immediately at the head of the Catholic league, and there +is no doubt that, before the close of the second century, he was +acknowledged as the chief pastor of Christendom. About that time we see +him writing letters to some of the most distinguished bishops of the +East [571:1] directing them to call councils; and it does not appear +that his epistles were deemed unwarranted or officious. Unity of +doctrine was speedily connected with unity of discipline, and an opinion +gradually prevailed that the Church Catholic should exhibit universal +uniformity. When Victor differed from the Asiatic bishops relative to +the mode of observing the Paschal festival, he was only seeking to +realize the idea of unity; and, as the Head of the Catholic Church, he +might have carried out against them his threat of excommunication, had +he not in this particular case been moving in advance of public opinion. +When Stephen, sixty years afterwards, disputed with Cyprian and others +concerning the rebaptism of heretics, he was still endeavouring to work +out the same unity; and the bishop of Carthage found himself involved in +contradictions when he proceeded at once to assert his independence, and +to concede to the see of Peter the honour which, as he admitted, it +could legitimately challenge. [572:1] + +The theory of Catholicism is based on principles thoroughly fallacious. +Assuming that visible unity is essential to the Church on earth, it +sanctions the startling inference that whoever is not connected with a +certain ecclesiastical society must be out of the pale of salvation. The +most grinding spiritual tyranny ever known has been erected on this +foundation. And yet how hollow is the whole system! It is no more +necessary that all the children of God in this world should belong to +the same visible Church than that all the children of men should be +connected with the same earthly monarchy. All believers are "one in +Christ;" they have all "one Lord, one faith, one baptism;" but "the +kingdom of God cometh not with observation," and the unity of the saints +on earth can be discerned only by the eye of Omniscience. They are all +sustained by the same living bread which cometh down from heaven, but +they may receive their spiritual provision as members of ten thousand +separated Churches. All who truly love the Saviour are united to Him by +a link which can never be broken; and no ecclesiastical barrier can +either exclude them from His presence here, or shut them out from His +fellowship hereafter. But a number of men might as well propose to +appropriate all the light of the sun or all the winds of heaven, as +attempt to form themselves into a privileged society with a monopoly of +the means of salvation. + +The Church of Rome is understood to be the spiritual Babylon of the +Apocalypse, and yet one point of correspondence between the type and the +antitype seems to have been hitherto overlooked. The great city of +Babylon commenced with the erection of Babel, and the builders said--"Go +to, let us build us a city, and a tower whose top may reach unto heaven, +and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of +the whole earth." [573:1] Civil unity was avowedly the end designed by +these architects. Amongst other purposes contemplated by the famous +tower, it appears to have been intended to serve as a centre of +catholicity--a great rallying point or landmark--by which every citizen +might be guided homewards when he lost his way in the plain of Shinar. +It is a curious fact that in the "Pastor of Hermas," perhaps the first +work written in Rome after the establishment of Prelacy, the Church is +described under the similitude of a tower! [573:2] When Hyginus +"established the gradations," the hierarchy at once assumed that +appearance. And the see of Peter, the centre of Catholic unity, was now +to be the great spiritual landmark to guide the steps of all true +churchmen. The ecclesiastical builders prospered for a time, but when +Constantine had finished a new metropolis in the East, some symptoms of +disunion revealed themselves. When the Empire was afterwards divided, +jealousies increased; the builders could not well understand one +another's speech; and the Church at length witnessed the great schism of +the Greeks and the Latins. In due time the Reformation interfered still +more vexatiously with the building of the ecclesiastical Babel. But this +more recent schism has given a mighty impulse to the cause of freedom, +of civilization, and of truth; for the Protestants, scattered abroad +over the face of the whole earth, have been spreading far and wide the +light of the gospel. The builders of Babel still continue their work, +but their boasted unity is gone for ever; and now, with the exception of +their political manoeuvring, their highest achievements are literally in +the department of stone and mortar. They may found costly edifices, and +they may erect spires pointing, like the tower of Babel, to the skies, +but they can no longer reasonably hope to bind together the liberated +nations with the chains of a gigantic despotism, or to induce +worshippers of all kindreds and tongues to adopt the one dead language +of Latin superstition. The signs of the times indicate that the remnant +of the Catholic workmen must soon "leave off to build the city." The +final overthrow of the mystical Babylon will usher in the millennium of +the Church, and the present success of Protestant missions is +premonitory of the approaching doom of Romish ritualism. It is +written--"I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the +everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to +every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud +voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is +come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the +fountains of waters. And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon +is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations +drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication." [574:1] + + + + + +CHAPTER IX. + +PRIMITIVE EPISCOPACY AND PRESBYTERIAN ORDINATION. + + +It has been already stated that, except in a few great cities where +there were several Christian congregations, the introduction of +Episcopacy produced a very slight change in the appearance of the +ecclesiastical community. In towns and villages, where the disciples +constituted but a single flock, they had commonly only one teaching +elder; and as, in accordance with apostolic rule, [575:1] this labourer +in the word and doctrine was deemed worthy of double honour, he was +already the most prominent and influential member of the brotherhood. +The new arrangement merely clothed him with the name of _bishop_, and +somewhat augmented his authority. Having the funds of the Church at his +disposal, he had special influence; and though he could not well act +without the sanction of his elders, he could easily contrive to negative +any of their resolutions which did not meet his approval. + +It is abundantly clear that this primitive dignitary was ordinarily the +pastor of only a single congregation. "If, before the multitude +increase, there should be a place having a few faithful men in it, to +the extent of twelve, who shall be able to make a dedication to pious +uses for a bishop, let them write to the Churches round about the +place," says an ancient canon, "that three chosen men.... may come to +examine with diligence him who has been thought worthy of this +degree.... If he has not a wife, it is a good thing; but if he has +married a wife, having children, let him abide with her, continuing +steadfast in every doctrine, able to explain the Scriptures well." +[576:1] This humble functionary was assisted in the management of his +little flock by two or three elders. "If the bishop has attended to the +knowledge and patience of the love of God," says another regulation, +"let him ordain two presbyters, when he has examined them, or rather +three." [576:2] The bishop, the elders, and the deacons, all assembled +in one place every Lord's day for congregational worship. An old +ecclesiastical law accordingly prescribes the following +arrangement--"Let the seat of the bishop be placed in the midst, and let +the presbyters sit on each side of him, and let the deacons stand by +them,... and let it be their care that the people sit a with all +quietness and order in the other part of the church." [576:3] Thus, +except in the case of a few large towns, the primitive bishop was simply +the parochial minister. Towards the close of the second century, the +bishop and the teacher were designations of the same import. Speaking of +those at the head of the Churches, Irenaeus describes them as +distinguished by their superior or inferior ability in sermonizing; +[576:4] and a well-informed writer, who flourished as late as the fourth +century, mentions preaching as the bishop's peculiar function. [576:5] +In the apostolic age every one who had popular gifts was permitted to +edify the congregation by their exercise; [576:6] and, long afterwards, +any elder, who was qualified to speak in the Church, was at liberty to +address his fellow-worshippers. When Origen, prior to his ordination as +a presbyter, ventured to expound the Scriptures publicly at the request +of the bishops of Palestine, Demetrius, his own ecclesiastical superior, +denounced his conduct as irregular; but the parties, by whom the learned +Alexandrian had been invited to lecture, boldly vindicated the +proceeding. He (Demetrius) has asserted, said they, "that this was never +before either heard or done, that laymen should deliver discourses in +the presence of bishops. We know not how it happens that he is here +evidently so far from the truth. For, indeed, wherever there are found +those qualified to benefit the brethren, they are exhorted by the holy +bishops to address the people." [577:1] But still the bishop himself was +the stated and ordinary preacher; and when he was sick or absent, the +flock could seldom expect a sermon. When present, he always administered +the Lord's Supper with his own hands, and dispensed in person the rite +of baptism. He also occupied the chair at the meetings of the +presbytery, and presided at the ordination of the elders and deacons of +his congregation. + +Though Christians formed but a fraction, and often but a small fraction +of the population, their bishops were thickly planted. Thus, Cenchrea, +the port of Corinth, had an episcopal overseer, [577:2] as well as +Corinth itself; the bishop of Portus and the bishop of Ostia were only +two miles asunder; [577:3] and, of the eighty-seven bishops who met at +Carthage, about A.D. 256, to discuss the question of the rebaptism of +heretics, many, such as Mannulus, Polianus, Dativus, and Secundinus, +[577:4] were located in small towns or villages. Though, probably, some +of these pastors had not the care of more than twenty or thirty +Christian families, each had the same rank and authority as the bishop +of Carthage. "It remains," said Cyprian at the opening of the council, +"that we severally declare our opinion on this same subject, judging no +one, nor depriving any one of the right of communion if he differ from +us. For no one of us sets himself up as a bishop of bishops, or by +tyrannical terror forces his colleagues to a necessity of obeying; +inasmuch as every bishop in the free use of his liberty and power has +the right of forming his own judgment." [578:1] In other quarters of the +Church its episcopal guardians were equally numerous. Hence it is said +of the famous Paul of Samosata, bishop of Antioch, that, to sustain his +reputation, he instigated "the bishops of the adjacent rural districts +and towns" to praise him in their addresses to the people. [578:2] Even +so late as the middle of the third century, the jurisdiction of the +greatest bishops was extremely limited. Cyprian of Carthage, in point of +position the second prelate in the Western Church, presided over only +eight or nine presbyters; [578:3] and Cornelius of Rome, confessedly the +most influential ecclesiastic in Christendom, had the charge of probably +not more than fourteen congregations. [578:4] + +There were commonly several elders and deacons connected with every +worshipping society, and though these, as well as the bishops, began, +towards the close of the second century, to be called clergymen, [578:5] +and were thus taught to cherish the idea that the Lord was their +inheritance, it would be quite a mistake to infer that they all +subsisted on their official income. Not a few of them probably derived +their maintenance from secular employments, some of them being tradesmen +or artizans, and others in stations of greater prominence. Hyacinthus, +an elder of the Church of Rome in the time of bishop Victor, appears to +have held a situation in the Imperial household, [579:1] and Tertullian +complains that persons engaged in trades directly connected with the +support of idolatry were promoted to ecclesiastical offices. [579:2] +There was a time when even an apostle laboured as a tent-maker, but as +the hierarchical spirit acquired strength, and as the Church increased +in wealth and numbers, there was a growing impression that all its +office-bearers were degraded by such services. Cyprian speaks with +extreme bitterness of a deceased elder who had appointed a brother elder +the executor of his will, declaring that the clergy "should in no way be +called off from their holy ministrations nor tied down by secular +troubles and business." [579:3] But the common sense of the Church +revolted against such high-flown spiritualism, as in many districts +where the disciples were still few and indigent, they could not afford a +suitable support for all entrusted with the performance of +ecclesiastical duties. Hence, before the recognition of Christianity by +Constantine, even bishops in some countries were permitted by trade to +eke out a scanty maintenance. "Let not bishops, elders, and deacons +leave their places for the sake of trading," says a council held in the +beginning of the fourth century, "nor travelling about the provinces let +them be found dealing in fairs. However, _to provide a living for +themselves_, let them send either a son, or a freedman, or a servant, or +a friend, or any one else: and if they wish to trade, let them do so +within their province." [580:1] + +It is clear, from the New Testament, that, in the apostolic age, +ordination was performed by "the laying on of the hands of the +presbytery," and this mode of designation to the ministry appears to +have continued until some time in the third century. We are informed by +the most learned of the fathers, in a passage to which the attention of +the reader has already been invited, [580:2] that "even at Alexandria, +from Mark the Evangelist until Heraclas and Dionysius the bishops, the +presbyters were always in the habit of naming bishop one chosen from +among themselves and placed in a higher degree, in the same manner as if +an army should make an emperor, or the deacons choose from among +themselves one whom they knew to be industrious and call him +archdeacon." [580:3] As Jerome here mentions various important facts of +which we might have otherwise remained ignorant, and as this statement +throws much light upon the ecclesiastical history of the early Church, +it is entitled to special notice. + +In the letter where this passage occurs the writer is extolling the +dignity of presbyters, and is endeavouring to shew that they are very +little inferior to bishops. He admits, indeed, that, in his own days, +they had ceased to ordain; but he intimates that they once possessed the +right, and that they retained it in all its integrity until the former +part of the preceding century. Some have thought that Jerome has here +expressed himself indefinitely, and that he did not know the exact date +at which the arrangement he describes ceased at Alexandria. But his +testimony, when fairly analysed, can scarcely be said to want precision; +for he obviously speaks of Heraclas and Dionysius as bishops _by +anticipation_, alleging that a custom which anciently existed among the +elders of the Egyptian metropolis was maintained until the time when +these ecclesiastics, who afterwards successively occupied the episcopal +chair, sat together in the presbytery. The period, thus pointed out, can +be easily ascertained. Demetrius, bishop of Alexandria, after a long +official life of forty-three years, died about A.D. 232, [581:1] and it +is well known that Heraclas and Dionysius were both members of his +presbytery towards the close of his episcopal administration. It was, +therefore, shortly before his demise that the new system was introduced. +In certain parts of the Church the arrangement mentioned by Jerome +probably continued somewhat longer. Cyprian apparently hints at such +cases of exception when he says that in "_almost_ all the provinces," +[581:2] the neighbouring bishops assembled, on the occasion of an +episcopal vacancy, at the new election and ordination. It may have been +that, in a few of the more considerable towns, the elders still +continued to nominate their president. + +When the erudite Roman presbyter informs us that "_even_ at Alexandria" +[581:3] the elders formerly made their own bishop, his language +obviously implies that such a mode of creating the chief pastor was not +confined to the Church of the metropolis of Egypt. It existed wherever +Christianity had gained a footing, and he mentions this particular see, +partly, because of its importance--being, in point of rank, the second +in the Empire--and partly, perhaps, because the remarkable circumstances +in its history, leading to the alteration which he specifies, were known +to all his well-informed contemporaries. Jerome does not say that the +Alexandrian presbyters inducted their bishop by imposition of hands, +[582:1] or set him apart to his office by any formal ordination. His +words apparently indicate that they did not recognize the necessity of +any special rite of investiture; that they made the bishop by election; +and that, when once acknowledged as the object of their choice, he was +at liberty to enter forthwith on the performance of his episcopal +duties. When the Roman soldiers made an emperor they appointed him by +acclamation, and the cheers which issued from their ranks as he stood up +before the legions and as he was clothed with the purple by one of +themselves, constituted the ceremony of his inauguration. The ancient +archdeacon was still one of the deacons; [582:2] as he was the chief +almoner of the Church, he required to possess tact, discernment, and +activity; and, in the fourth century, he was nominated to his office by +his fellow-deacons. Jerome assures us that, until the time of Heraclas +and Dionysius, the elders made a bishop just in the same way as in his +own day the soldiers made an emperor, or as the deacons chose one whom +they knew to be industrious, and made him an archdeacon. + +In one of the letters purporting to have been written by Pius, bishop of +Rome, to Justus of Vienne, shortly after the middle of the second +century, there is a passage which supplies a singularly striking +confirmation of the testimony of Jerome. Even were we to admit that the +genuineness of this epistle cannot be satisfactorily established, it +must still be acknowledged to be a very ancient document, and were it of +somewhat later date than its title indicates, it should at least be +received as representing the traditions which prevailed respecting the +ecclesiastical arrangements of an early antiquity. In this communication +Pius speaks of his episcopal correspondent of Vienne as "_constituted by +the brethren_ and clothed with the dress of the bishops." [583:1] By +"the brethren," as is plain from another part of the letter, [583:2] he +understands the presbytery. And as the soldiers made a sovereign by +saluting him emperor, and arraying him in the purple; so the elders made +a president by clothing him with a certain piece of dress, and calling +him bishop. Thus, the statement of Jerome is exactly corroborated by the +evidence of this witness. + +We may infer from the letter of Pius that in Gaul and Italy, as well as +in Egypt, the elders were in the habit of making their own bishop. +[583:3] There is not a particle of evidence to shew that any other +arrangement originally existed. The declaration of so competent an +authority as Jerome backed by the attestation of this ancient epistle +may be regarded as perfectly conclusive. [583:4] But other proofs +of the same fact are not wanting. For a long period the bishop continued +to be known by the title of "the elder who presides"-a designation which +obviously implies that he was still only one of the presbyters. When the +Paschal controversy created such excitement, and when Victor of Rome +threatened to renounce the communion of those who held views different +from his own, Irenaeus of Lyons wrote a letter of remonstrance to the +haughty churchman in which he broadly reminded him of his ecclesiastical +position. "_Those, presbyters_ before Soter _who governed_ the Church +over which you now preside, I mean," said he, "Anicetus, and Pius, +Hyginus with Telesphorus and Xystus, neither did themselves observe, nor +did they permit those after them to observe it.... But those _very +presbyters_ before you who did not observe it, sent the Eucharist to +those of Churches which did." [584:1] Irenaeus here endeavours to teach +the bishop of Rome a lesson of humility by reminding him repeatedly that +he and his predecessors were but presbyters. + +The pastor of Lyons speaks even still more distinctly respecting the +status of the bishops who flourished in his generation. Thus, he +says--"We should obey those presbyters in the Church who have the +succession from the apostles, and who, _with the succession of the +episcopate_, have received the certain gift of truth according to the +good pleasure of the Father: but we should hold as suspected or as +heretics and of bad sentiments the rest who depart from the principal +succession, and meet together wherever they please.... From all such we +must keep aloof, but we must adhere to those who both preserve, as we +have already mentioned, the doctrine of the apostles, and exhibit, _with +the order of the presbytery_, sound teaching and an inoffensive +conversation." [585:1] "The order of the presbytery" obviously signifies +the official character conveyed by "the laying on of the hands of the +presbytery," and yet such was the ordination of those who, in the time +of Irenaeus, possessed "the succession from the apostles" and "the +succession of the episcopate." + +Some imagine that no one can be properly qualified to administer divine +ordinances who has not received episcopal ordination, but a more +accurate acquaintance with the history of the early Church is all that +is required to dissipate the delusion. The preceding statements clearly +shew that, for upwards of one hundred and fifty years after the death of +our Lord, all the Christian ministers throughout the world were ordained +by presbyters. The bishops themselves were of "the order of the +presbytery," and, as they had never received episcopal consecration, +they could only ordain as presbyters. The bishop was, in fact, nothing +more than the chief presbyter. [585:2] A father of the third century +accordingly observes--"All power and grace are established in the Church +where _elders preside_, who possess the power, as well of baptizing, as +of confirming and ordaining." [585:3] + +An old ecclesiastical law, recently presented for the first time to the +English reader, [586:1] throws much light on a portion of the history of +the Church long buried in great obscurity. This law may well remind us +of those remains of extinct classes of animals which the naturalist +studies with so much interest, as it obviously belongs to an era even +anterior to that of the so-called apostolical canons. [586:2] Though it +is part of a series of regulations once current in the Church of +Ethiopia, there is every reason to believe that it was framed in Italy, +and that its authority was acknowledged by the Church of Rome in the +time of Hippolytus. [586:3] It marks a transition period in the history +of ecclesiastical polity, and whilst it indirectly confirms the +testimony of Jerome relative to the custom of the Church of Alexandria, +it shews that the state of things to which the learned presbyter refers +was now superseded by another arrangement. This curious specimen of +ancient legislation treats of the appointment and ordination of +ministers. "The bishop," says this enactment, "is to be elected by all +the people.... And they shall choose ONE OF THE BISHOPS AND ONE OF THE +PRESBYTERS, ... AND THESE SHALL LAY THEIR HANDS UPON HIS HEAD AND PRAY." +[586:4] Here, to avoid the confusion arising from a whole crowd of +individuals imposing hands in ordination, two were selected to act on +behalf of the assembled office-bearers; and, that the parties entitled +to officiate might be fairly represented, the deputies were to be a +bishop and a presbyter. [587:1] The canon illustrates the jealousy with +which the presbyters in the early part of the third century still +guarded some of their rights and privileges. In the matter of investing +others with Church authority, they yet maintained their original +position, and though many bishops might be present when another was +inducted into office, they would permit only one of the number to unite +with one of themselves in the ceremony of ordination. Some at the +present day do not hesitate to assert that presbyters have no right +whatever to ordain, but this canon supplies evidence that in the third +century they were employed to ordain bishops. + +It thus appears that the bishop of the ancient Church was very different +from the dignitary now known by the same designation. The primitive +bishop had often but two or three elders, and sometimes a single deacon, +[587:2] under his jurisdiction: the modern prelate has frequently the +oversight of several hundreds of ministers. The ancient bishop, +surrounded by his presbyters, preached ordinarily every Sabbath to his +whole flock: the modern bishop may spend an entire lifetime without +addressing a single sermon, on the Lord's day, to many who are under his +episcopal supervision. The early bishop had the care of a parish: the +modern bishop superintends a diocese. The elders of the primitive bishop +were not unfrequently decent tradesmen who earned their bread by the +sweat of their brow: [587:3] the presbyters of a modern prelate have +generally each the charge of a congregation, and are supposed to be +entirely devoted to sacred duties. Even the ancient city bishop had but +a faint resemblance to his modern namesake. He was the most laborious +city minister, and the chief preacher. He commonly baptized all who were +received into the Church, and dispensed the Eucharist to all the +communicants. He was, in fact, properly the minister of an overgrown +parish who required several assistants to supply his lack of service. + +The foregoing testimonies likewise shew that the doctrine of apostolical +succession, as now commonly promulgated, is utterly destitute of any +sound historical basis. According to some, no one is duly qualified to +preach and to dispense the sacraments whose authority has not been +transmitted from the Twelve by an unbroken series of episcopal +ordinations. But it has been demonstrated that episcopal ordinations, +properly so called, originated only in the third century, and that even +the bishops of Rome, who flourished prior to that date, were "of the +order of the presbytery." All the primitive bishops received nothing +more than presbyterian ordination. It is plain, therefore, that the +doctrine of the transmission of spiritual power from the apostles +through an unbroken series of episcopal ordinations flows from sheer +ignorance of the actual constitution of the early Church. + +But the arrangements now described were gradually subverted by episcopal +encroachments, and a separate chapter must be devoted to the +illustration of the progress of Prelacy. + + + + + +CHAPTER X. + +THE PROGRESS OF PRELACY. + + +We cannot tell when the president of the presbytery began to hold office +for life; but it is evident that the change, at whatever period it +occurred, must have added considerably to his power. The chairman of any +court is the individual through whom it is addressed, and, without whose +signature, its proceedings cannot be properly authenticated. He acts in +its name, and he stands forth as its representative. He may, +theoretically, possess no more power than any of the other members of +the judicatory, and he may be bound, by the most stringent laws, simply +to carry out the decisions of their united wisdom; but his very position +gives him influence; and, if he holds office for life, that influence +may soon become formidable. If he is not constantly kept in check by the +vigilance and determination of those with whom he is associated, he may +insensibly trench upon their rights and privileges. In the second +century the moderator of the city eldership was invariably a man +advanced in years, who, instead of being watched with jealousy, was +regarded with affectionate veneration; and it is not strange if he was +often permitted to stretch his authority beyond the exact range of its +legitimate exercise. + +Evidence has already been adduced to shew that, on the rise of Prelacy, +the presidential chair was no longer inherited by the members of the +city presbytery in the order of seniority. The individuals considered +most competent for the situation were now nominated by their brethren; +and as the Church, especially in great towns, was sadly distracted by +the machinations of the Gnostics, it was deemed expedient to arm the +moderator with additional authority. As a matter of necessity, the +official who was furnished with these new powers required a new name; +for the title of _president_ by which he was already known, and which +continued long afterwards in current use, [590:1] did not now fully +indicate his importance. It was, therefore, gradually supplanted by the +designation of _bishop_, or overseer. Whilst this functionary was +nominated by the presbyters, he might be also set aside by them, so that +he felt it necessary to consult their wishes and to use his +discretionary power with modesty and moderation; but, when he began to +be elected by general suffrage, his authority was forthwith established +on a broader and firmer foundation. He was now emphatically the man of +the people; and from this date he possessed an influence with which the +presbytery itself was incompetent to grapple. + +As early as the middle of the second century the bishop, at least in +some places, was entrusted with the chief management of the funds of the +Church; [590:2] and probably, about fifty years afterwards, a large +share of its revenues was appropriated to his personal maintenance. +[590:3] His superior wealth soon added immensely to his influence. He +was thus enabled to maintain a higher position in society than any of +his brethren; and he was at length regarded as the great fountain of +patronage and preferment. Long before Christianity enjoyed the sanction +of the state, the chief pastors of the great cities began to attract +attention by their ostentatious display of secular magnificence. Origen, +who flourished in the former half of the third century, strongly +condemns their vanity and ambition; and though perhaps his ascetic +temperament prompted him to indulge somewhat in the language of +exaggeration, the testimony of so respectable a witness cannot be +rejected as untrue. "We," says he, "proceed so far in the affectation of +pomp and state, as to outdo even bad rulers among the pagans; and, like +the emperors, surround ourselves with a guard that we may be feared and +made difficult of access, particularly to the poor. And in many of our +so-called Churches, _especially in the large towns_, may be found +presiding officers of the Church of God who would refuse to own even the +best among the disciples of Jesus while on earth as their equals." +[591:1] In these remarks the writer had doubtless a particular reference +to his own Church of Alexandria; but it is well known that elsewhere +some bishops in the third century assumed a very lofty bearing. It is +related of the celebrated Paul of Samosata, the bishop of Antioch, that +he acted as a secular judge, that he appeared in public surrounded by a +crowd of servants, and that he took special pleasure in pomp and parade; +and yet, had he not lapsed into heresy, there is no evidence that his +overweening pride would have brought down upon him the vengeance of +ecclesiastical discipline. In the third century the chief pastor of the +Western metropolis must have been known to the great officers of +government, and perhaps to the Emperor himself. Decius must have +regarded the Roman bishop as a somewhat formidable personage when he +declared that he would sooner tolerate a rival candidate for the throne, +and when he proclaimed his determination to annihilate the very office. +[591:2] + +It was not strange that dignitaries who affected so much state soon +contrived to surround themselves with a whole host of new officials. +Within little more than a century after the rise of Prelacy the number +of grades of ecclesiastics was nearly trebled. In addition to the +bishop, the presbyters, and the deacons, there were also, in A.D. 251, +in the Church of Rome lectors, sub-deacons, acolyths, exorcists, and +janitors. [592:1] The lectors, who read the Scriptures to the +congregation [592:2] and who had charge of the sacred manuscripts, +attract our attention as distinct office-bearers about the close of the +second century. The sub-deacons are said to have had the care of the +sacramental cups; the acolyths attended to the lamps of the sacred +edifice; the exorcists [592:3] professed by their prayers to expel evil +spirits out of the bodies of those about to be baptized; and the +janitors performed the more humble duties of porters or door-keepers. At +a subsequent period each of these functionaries was initiated into +office by a special form of ordination or investiture. It was laid down +as a principle that no one could regularly become a bishop who had not +previously passed through all these inferior orders; [592:4] but when +the multitude wished all at once to elevate a layman to the rank of a +bishop or a presbyter, ecclesiastical routine was compelled to yield to +the pressure of popular enthusiasm. [592:5] + +The great city in which Prelacy originated appears to have been the +place where these new offices made their first appearance. Rome, true to +her mission as "the mother of the Catholic Church," conceived and +brought forth nearly all the peculiarities of the Catholic system. The +lady seated on the seven hills was already regarded with great +admiration, and surrounding Churches silently copied the arrangements of +their Imperial parent. In the East, at least one of the orders now +instituted by the great Western prelate, that is, the order of acolyths, +was not adopted for centuries afterwards. [593:1] + +The city bishops were well aware of the vast accession of influence they +acquired in consequence of their election by the people, and did not +fail to insist upon the circumstance when desirous to illustrate their +ecclesiastical title. Any one who peruses the letters of Cyprian may +remark the frequency, as well as the transparent satisfaction, with +which he refers to the mode of his appointment. Who, he seems to say, +could doubt his right to act as bishop of Carthage, seeing that he had +been chosen by "the suffrage of the whole fraternity"--by "the vote of +the people?" [593:2] The members of the Church enthusiastically +acknowledged such appeals to their sympathy and support, and in cases of +emergency promptly rallied round the individuals whom they had +themselves elevated to power. But as all the other church officers were +meanwhile likewise chosen by common suffrage, the bishops soon betrayed +an anxiety to appropriate the distinction, and began, under various +pretexts, to interfere with the free exercise of the popular franchise. +In one of his epistles Cyprian excuses himself to the Christians of +Carthage because he had ventured to ordain a reader without their +approval. He pleads that the peculiar circumstances of the case and the +extraordinary merits of the candidate must be accepted as his apology. +"In clerical ordinations," says he, "my custom is to _consult you +beforehand_, dearest brethren, _and in common deliberation_ to weigh the +character and merits of each. But testimonies of men need not be awaited +when anticipated by the sentence of God." [593:3] The sanction of the +people should have been obtained before the ordination; but, as +persecution now raged, it is suggested that it would have been +inconvenient to lay the matter before them; and Cyprian argues that the +informality was pardonable, inasmuch as the Almighty himself had given +His suffrage in favour of the new lector; for Aurelius, though only a +youth, had nobly submitted to the torture rather than renounce the +gospel. + +The ordination of Aurelius under such circumstances was not, however, a +solitary case; and there is certainly something suspicious in the +frequency with which the bishop of Carthage apologizes to the clergy and +people for neglecting to consult them on the appointment of church +officers. In another of his letters he announces to the presbyters and +deacons that, "on an _urgent occasion_" he had "made Saturus a reader, +and Optatus the confessor a sub-deacon." [594:1] Again, he tells the +same parties, and "the whole people," that "Celerinus, renowned alike +for his courage and his character, has been joined to the clergy, _not +by human suffrage, but by the divine favour;_" [594:2] and at another +time he informs them that he had been "admonished and instructed by a +_divine vouchsafement_ to enrol Numidicus in the number of the +Carthaginian presbyters." [594:3] These cases were, no doubt, afterwards +quoted as precedents for the non-observance of the law; and from time to +time new pretences were discovered for evading its provisions. In this +way the rights of the people were gradually abridged; and in the course +of two or three centuries, the bishops almost entirely ignored their +interference in the election of presbyters and deacons, as well as of +the inferior clergy. + +New canons relative to ordination were promulgated probably about the +time when the city presbyters ceased to have the exclusive right of +electing their own bishop. The altered circumstances of the Church led +to the establishment of these regulations. The election of the chief +pastor of a great town was often a scene of much excitement, and as +several of the elders might be regarded as candidates for the office, it +was obviously unseemly that any of them should preside on the occasion. +It was accordingly arranged that some of the neighbouring bishops should +be present to superintend the proceedings. The successful candidate now +began to be formally invested with his new dignity by the imposition of +hands; and at first, perhaps, one of the bishops, assisted by one of the +presbyters of the place, performed this ceremony. [595:1] But the elders +soon ceased to take part in the ordination. At the election, the people +and the clergy sometimes took opposite sides; and, in the contest, the +ecclesiastical party was not unfrequently completely overborne. It +occasionally happened, as in the case of Cyprian, [595:2] that one of +the elders was chosen in opposition to the wishes of the majority of the +presbytery; or, as in the case of Fabian of Rome, [595:3] that a layman +was all at once elevated to the episcopal chair; and, at such times, the +disappointed presbyters did not care to join in the inauguration. The +bishops availed themselves of the pretexts thus furnished to dispense +with their services altogether. At length the power of admitting to the +ministry by the laying on of hands began to be challenged as the +peculiar prerogative of the episcopal order. + +In many places, perhaps before the middle of the third century, elders +were no longer permitted to take part in the consecration of bishops; +but Prelacy had not yet completely established itself upon the ruins of +the more ancient polity. Sometimes the presbytery itself still +discharged the functions of the bishop. After the martyrdom of Fabian in +A.D. 250, the Church of Rome remained upwards of a year under its care, +[596:1] as the see was meanwhile vacant; and about the same period we +find Cyprian, when in exile, requesting his presbyters and deacons to +execute both _his duties_ and their own. [596:2] It was still admitted +that elders were competent to ordain elders and deacons, as well as to +confirm and to baptize; and the bishop continued to recognise them as +his "_colleagues_" and his "_fellow-presbyters_." [596:3] It is clear, +however, that the relations between them and their episcopal chief were +now very vaguely defined, and that the ambiguous position of the parties +led to mutual complaints of ambition and usurpation. The Epistles of +Cyprian supply evidence that the bishop of Carthage, during a great part +of his episcopate, was engaged with his presbyters in a struggle for +power; [596:4] and though he asserted that he was contending for nothing +more than his legitimate authority, he was sometimes obliged to abate +his pretensions. In one case he complains that, "without his permission +or knowledge," his presbyter Novatus "of his own factiousness and +ambition" had "made Felicissimus his follower a deacon;" [596:5] but +still he does not venture to impeach the validity of the act, or refuse +to recognise the standing of the new ecclesiastic. Felicissimus seems to +have been ordained in a small meeting-house in the neighbourhood of +Carthage; and as Novatus, who probably presided on the occasion, appears +to have proceeded in conjunction with the majority of the presbytery, +they no doubt considered that, under these circumstances, the sanction +of the bishop was by no means indispensable. The manifestation of such a +spirit of independence was, however, exceedingly galling to their +imperious prelate. + +From the manner in which Cyprian expresses himself we may infer that he +would not have been dissatisfied had Novatus and the elders who acted +with him obtained his _permission_ to ordain the deacon Felicissimus. +But about this period the bishops were beginning to look with extreme +jealousy on all presbyterian ordinations, and were commencing a series +of encroachments on the rights of their episcopal brethren in rural +districts. These country bishops, [597:1] who wore simply ministers of +single congregations, and who were generally poor and uninfluential, +soon succumbed to the great city dignitaries. By a council held at +Ancyra in A.D. 314, or very shortly after the close of the Diocletian +persecution, they were forbidden to perform duties which they had +hitherto been accustomed to discharge, for one of its canons declares +that "country bishops must not ordain presbyters or deacons; neither +must city presbyters in another parish without the written permission of +the bishop." [597:2] + +This canon illustrates the strangely anomalous condition of the Church +at the period of its adoption. It takes no notice of _country elders_, +as the proceedings of such an humble class of functionaries probably +awakened no jealousy; and it degrades country bishops, who +unquestionably belonged to the episcopal order, by placing them in a +position inferior to that of city presbyters. About sixty years before, +or in the middle of the third century, three of these country bishops +were deemed competent to ordain a bishop of Rome; [598:1] but now they +are deprived of the right of ordaining even elders and deacons. It is +easy to understand why city presbyters were still permitted, under +certain conditions, to exercise this privilege. As they constituted the +council of the city chief pastor, their influence was considerable; and +as they had, until a recent date, been accustomed even to take part in +his own consecration, it was deemed inexpedient to tempt so formidable a +class of churchmen to make common cause with the country bishops by +stripping both at once of their ancient prerogatives. The country +bishops, as the weaker party, were first subjected to a process of +spoliation. But the recognition of Christianity by Constantine gave an +immense impulse to the progress of the hierarchy, and the city +presbyters were soon afterwards deprived of the privilege now wrested +from the country bishops. + +The current of events had placed the Church, about the middle of the +third century, in a position which it could not long maintain. As the +growth of Christianity in towns was steady and rapid, the bishop there +rose quickly into wealth and power; but, among the comparatively poor +and thinly-scattered population of the country, his condition remained +nearly stationary. When Cyprian, in A.D. 256, addressed the eighty-seven +bishops assembled in the Council of Carthage, and told them that they +were all on an equality, he might have felt that the doctrine of +episcopal parity, as then understood, must be given up as indefensible +if assailed by the skill of a vigorous logician. Who could believe that +the bishop of Carthage held exactly the same official rank as every one +of his episcopal auditors? He was the chief pastor of a flourishing +metropolis; he had several congregations under his care, and several of +his presbyters were preachers; [599:1] but many of the bishops before +him were ministers of single congregations and without even one elder +competent to deliver a sermon, [599:2] In point of ministerial gifts and +actual influence some of the presbyters of Carthage were, no doubt, far +superior to many of the bishops of the council. And who could affirm +that Paul of Samosata, the chief pastor of the capital of the Eastern +Empire, was quite on a level with every one of the village bishops +around him whom he bribed to celebrate his praises? No wonder that it +was soon found necessary to remodel the episcopal system. The city +bishops had a show of equity in their favour when they asserted their +superiority, and their brethren in rural districts were too feeble and +dependent effectively to resist their own degradation. + +The ecclesiastical title _metropolitan_ came into use about the time of +the Council of Nice in A.D. 325. [599:3] and there is reason to believe +that the territorial jurisdiction it implied was then first distinctly +defined and generally established; but the changes of the preceding +three quarters of a century, had been preparing the way for the new +arrangement. Many of the country bishops had meanwhile been reduced to a +condition of subserviency, whilst a considerable number of the chief +pastors in the great cities had been recognized as the constant +presidents of the synods which met in their respective capitals. It is +easy to see how these prelates acquired such a position. Talent, if +exerted, must always assert its ascendency; and it is probable that the +metropolitan bishops were generally more able and accomplished than the +majority of their brethren. They could fairly plead that zeal for the +good of the Church prompted them to take a lead in ecclesiastical +affairs, and their place of residence supplied them with facilities for +communicating with other pastors of which they often deemed it prudent +to avail themselves. When the synod met in the metropolis, the bishop of +the city was wont to entertain many of the members as his guests; and, +as he was elevated above most, if not all, of those with whom he acted, +in point of wealth, social standing, address, and knowledge of the +world, he was usually called on to occupy the chair of the moderator. In +process of time that which was originally conceded as a matter of +courtesy passed into an admitted right. So long as the metropolitan +bishop was inducted into office by mere presbyters, the circumstances of +his investiture pointed out to him the duty of humility; but when the +most distinguished chief pastors of the province deemed it an honour to +take part in his consecration, he immediately increased his pretensions. +Thus it is that the change in the mode of episcopal inauguration forms a +new era in the history of ecclesiastical assumption. + +About the middle of the third century various circumstances conspired to +augment the authority of the great bishops. In the Decian and Valerian +persecutions the chief pastors were specially marked out for attack, and +the heroic constancy with which some of the most eminent encountered a +cruel death vastly enhanced the reputation of their order. In a few +years several bishops of Rome were martyred; Cyprian of Carthage endured +the same fate: Alexander of Jerusalem, and Babylas of Antioch, also laid +down their lives for their religion. [600:1] At the same time the schism +of Novatian at Rome, and the schism of Felicissimus at Carthage +threatened the Church with new divisions, and the same arguments which +were used, upwards of a hundred years before, for increasing the power +of the president of the eldership, could now be urged with equal +pertinency for adding to the authority of the president of the synod. In +point of fact perhaps the earliest occasion on which the bishop of Rome +executed discipline in his archiepiscopal capacity was immediately +connected with the schism of Novatian; for we have no record of any +exercise of such power until Cornelius, at the head of a council held in +the Imperial city, deposed the pastors who had officiated at the +consecration of his rival. [601:1] From this date the Roman metropolitan +probably presided at all the ordinations of the bishops in his vicinity. + +To prevent the recurrence of schisms such as had now happened at Rome +and Carthage, it was, in all likelihood, arranged about this period, at +least in some quarters of the Church, that the presence or sanction of +the stated president of the provincial synod should be necessary to the +validity of all episcopal consecrations. There were still, however, many +districts in which the provincial synod had no fixed chairman. Hence an +ancient canon directs that at the ordination of a member of the +hierarchy, "_one of the principal bishops_ shall pray to God over the +approved candidate." [601:2] By a "principal bishop" we are to +understand the chief pastor of a principal or apostolic church; [601:3] +but in some provinces several such churches were to be found, and this +regulation attests that there no single ecclesiastic had yet acquired an +unchallenged precedence. As the close of the third century approached, +the ecclesiastical structure exhibited increasing uniformity; and one +dignitary in each region began to be known as the stated president of +the episcopal body. In one of the so-called apostolical canons, framed +probably before the Council of Nice, this arrangement is embodied. "The +bishops of every nation," says the ordinance, "ought to know who is the +_first among them_, and him they ought to esteem as their head, and not +do any great thing _without his consent_. ... But neither let him do +anything without the consent of all." [602:1] + +This canon is apparently couched in terms of studied ambiguity, for the +expression "the first among the bishops of every nation" admits of +various interpretations. In many cases it probably meant the senior +bishop of the district; in others, it perhaps denoted the chief pastor +of the chief city of the province; and in others again, it may have +indicated the prelate of a great metropolis who had contrived to +establish his authority over a still more extensive territory. The rise +of the city bishops had completely destroyed that balance of power which +originally existed in the Church; and much commotion preceded the +settlement of a new ecclesiastical equilibrium. During the last forty +years of the third century the Christians enjoyed almost uninterrupted +peace; the chief pastors were meanwhile perpetually engaged in contests +for superiority; and about this time the bishops of Rome, of Alexandria, +and of Antioch, rapidly extended their influence. So rampant was the +usurping spirit of churchmen that even the violence of the Diocletian +persecution was not sufficient to check them in their career of +ambition. A contemporary writer, who was himself a member of the +episcopal order, bears testimony to this melancholy fact. "Some," said +he, "who were reputed our pastors, contemning the law of piety, were, +under the excitement of mutual animosities, fomenting nothing else but +disputes and threatenings and rivalry and reciprocal hostility and +hatred, as they contentiously prosecuted their ambitious designs for +sovereignty." [601:2] + +What a change had passed over the Christian commonwealth in the course +of little more than two hundred years! When the Apostle John died, the +city church was governed by the common council of the elders, and their +president simply announced and executed the decisions of his brethren: +now, the president was transformed into a prelate who, by gradual +encroachments, had stripped the presbytery of a large share of its +authority. At the close of the first century the Church of Rome was, +perhaps, less influential than the Church of Ephesus, and the very name +of its moderator at that period is a matter of disputed and doubtful +tradition; but the Diocletian persecution had scarcely terminated when +the bishop of the great metropolis was found sitting in a council in the +palace of the Lateran, and claiming jurisdiction over eight or ten +provinces of Italy! These revolutions were not effected without much +opposition. The strife between the presbyters and the bishops was +succeeded by a general warfare among the possessors of episcopal power, +for the constant moderator of the synod was as anxious to increase his +authority as the constant moderator of the presbytery. About the close +of the third century the Church appears to have been sadly scandalised +by the quarrels of the bishops, and Eusebius accordingly intimates that, +in the reign of terror which so quickly followed, they suffered a +righteous retribution for their misconduct. + +Discussions respecting questions of Church polity are often exceedingly +distasteful to persons of contracted views but of genuine piety, for +they cannot understand how the progress of vital godliness can be +influenced by forms of ecclesiastical government. [603:1] About this +period such sentiments were probably not uncommon, and much of the +apathy with which innovations were contemplated may thus be easily +explained. Besides, if the early bishop was a man of ability and +address, his influence in his own church was nearly overwhelming; for as +he was the ordinary, if not the only, preacher, he thus possessed the +most effective means of recommending any favourite scheme, and of giving +a decided tone to public opinion. When a parochial charge became vacant +by the demise of the chief pastor, the election of a successor was often +vigorously contested; and when an influential presbyter was defeated, he +sometimes exhibited his mortification by contending for the rights of +his order, and by disputing the pretensions of his successful rival. But +as such opposition was obviously dictated by the spirit of faction, it +was commonly brief, ill-sustained, and abortive. The young, talented, +and aspiring presbyters must have been strongly tempted to encourage the +growth of episcopal prerogative, for each might one day hope to occupy +the place of dignity, and thus to reap the fruits of present +encroachments. The bishops seem to have resisted more strenuously the +establishment of metropolitan ascendency. An ecclesiastical regulation +of great antiquity, [604:1] condemned their translation from one parish +to another, so that when the episcopate was gained, all farther +prospects of promotion were extinguished, for the place of _first among +the bishops_ was either inherited by seniority or claimed by the prelate +of the chief city. Hence it was that the pastors withstood so firmly all +infringements on their theoretical parity; and hence those "ambitious +disputes," [604:2] and those "collisions of bishops with bishops," +[604:3] even amidst the fires of martyrdom, over which the historian of +the Church professes his anxiety to cast the veil of oblivion. + + + + + +CHAPTER XI. + +SYNODS--THEIR HISTORY AND CONSTITUTION. + + +The apostles, and the other original heralds of the gospel, sought +primarily _the conversion of unbelievers_. The commission given to Paul +points out distinctly the grand design of their ministry. When the great +persecutor of the saints was himself converted on his way to Damascus, +our Lord addressed to him the memorable words--"I have appeared unto +thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of +these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I +will appear unto thee; delivering thee from the people, and from the +Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, _to open their eyes, and to turn +them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God_, that +they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which +are sanctified by faith that is in me." [605:1] + +When a few disciples were collected in a particular locality, it not +unfrequently happened that they remained for a time without any proper +ecclesiastical organization. [605:2] But the Christian cause, under such +circumstances, could not be expected to flourish; and therefore, as soon +as practicable, the apostles and evangelists did not neglect to make +arrangements for the increase and edification of these infant +communities. To provide, as well for the maintenance of discipline, as +for the preaching of the Word, they accordingly proceeded to ordain +elders in every city where the truth had gained converts. These elders +afterwards ordained deacons in their respective congregations; and thus, +in due time, the Church was regularly constituted. + +In the first century Christian societies were formed only here and there +throughout the Roman Empire; and, at its close, the gospel had scarcely +penetrated into some of the provinces. It is not to be expected that we +can trace any general confederation of the churches established during +this period, and it would be vain to attempt to demonstrate their +incorporation; as their distance, their depressed condition, and the +jealousy with which they were regarded by the civil government, [606:1] +rendered any extensive combination utterly impossible. At a time when +the disciples met together for worship in secret and before break of +day, it is not to be supposed that their pastors deemed it expedient to +undertake frequent journeys on the business of the Church, or assembled +in multitudinous councils. But though, in the beginning of the second +century, there was no formal bond of union connecting the several +Christian communities throughout the world, they meanwhile contrived in +various ways to cultivate an unbroken fraternal intercourse. Recognising +each other as members of the same holy brotherhood, they maintained an +epistolary correspondence, in which they treated of all matters +pertaining to the common interest. When the pastor of one church visited +another, his status was immediately acknowledged; and even when an +ordinary disciple emigrated to a distant province, the ecclesiastical +certificate which he carried along with him secured his admission to +membership in the strange congregation. Thus, all the churches treated +each other as portions of one great family; all adhered to much the same +system of polity and discipline; and, though there was not unity of +jurisdiction, there was the "keeping of the unity of the Spirit in the +bond of peace." + +In modern times many ecclesiastical historians [607:1] have asserted +that synods commenced about the middle of the second century. But the +statement is unsupported by a single particle of evidence, and a number +of facts may be adduced to prove that it is altogether untenable. There +is no reason to doubt that synods, at least on a limited scale, met in +the days of the apostles, and that the Church courts of a later age were +simply the continuation and expansion of those primitive conventions. We +know very little respecting the history of the Christian commonwealth +during the former half of the second century, for the extant memorials +of the Church of that period are exceedingly few and meagre; and as the +proceedings of most of the synods which were then held did not perhaps +attract much notice, [607:2] it is not remarkable that they have shared +the fate of almost all the other ecclesiastical transactions of the same +date, and that they have been buried in oblivion. [607:3] It is nowhere +intimated by any ancient authority that synodical meetings commenced +fifty years after the death of the beloved disciple, and the earliest +writers who touch upon the subject speak of them as of apostolic +original. Irenaeus, the pastor of Lyons, had probably reached manhood +when, according to Mosheim and others, synods were at first formed; he +enjoyed the instructions of Polycarp, the disciple of the Apostle John; +he was beyond question one of the best informed Christian ministers of +his generation; and yet he obviously considered that these +ecclesiastical assemblies were in existence in the first century. +Speaking of the visit of Paul to Miletus when he sent to Ephesus and +called the elders of the Church, [608:1] he says that the apostle then +convoked "the bishops and presbyters of Ephesus and of the other +adjoining cities" [608:2]--plainly indicating that he summoned a +synodical meeting. Had an assembly of this kind been a novelty in the +days of Irenaeus, the pastor of Lyons would not have given such a +version of a passage in the inspired narrative. Cyprian flourished +shortly after the time when, according to the modern theory, councils +began to meet in Africa, but the bishop of Carthage himself +unquestionably entertained higher views of their antiquity. He declared +that conformably to "the practice received from _divine tradition_ and +_apostolic observance_," [608:3] "all the neighbouring bishops of the +same province met together" among the people over whom a pastor was to +be ordained; [608:4] and he did not here merely give utterance to his +own impressions, for a whole African synod concurred in his statement. +Subsequent writers of unimpeachable credit refer to the canons of +councils of which we otherwise know nothing, and though we cannot now +ascertain the exact time when these courts assembled, there is no reason +to doubt that at least some of them were convened before the middle of +the second century. Thus, when Jerome ascribes the origin of Prelacy to +an ecclesiastical decree, he alludes evidently to some synodical +convention of an earlier date than any of the meetings of which history +has preserved a record. [609:1] + +Did we even want the direct testimony just adduced as to the government +of synods in the former part of the second century, we might on other +grounds infer that this species of polity then existed; for apostolic +example suggested its propriety, and the spirit of fraternity so +assiduously cherished by the early rulers of the Church must have +prompted them to meet together for the discussion and settlement of +ecclesiastical questions in which they felt a common interest. But +whilst Christianity was still struggling for existence, it was not in a +condition to form widely spread organizations. It is probable that the +business of the early Church courts was conducted with the utmost +secrecy, that they were attended by but few members, and that they were +generally composed of those pastors and elders who resided in the same +district and who could conveniently assemble on short notice. Their +meetings, in all likelihood, were summoned at irregular intervals, and +were held, to avoid suspicion, sometimes in one city and sometimes in +another; and, except when an exciting question awakened deep and general +anxiety, the representatives of the Churches of a whole province rarely, +perhaps, ventured on a united convention. Our ignorance of the councils +of the early part of the second century arises simply from the fact that +no writer appeared during that interval to register their acts; and we +have now no means of accurately filling up this blank in the history. +But we have good grounds for believing that Gnosticism now formed the +topic of discussion in several synods. [609:2] The errorists, we know, +were driven out of the Church in all places; and how can we account for +this general expulsion, except upon the principle of the united action +of ecclesiastical judicatories? Jerome gives us to understand that their +machinations led to a change in the ecclesiastical constitution, and +that this change was effected by a synodical decree adopted all over the +world [610:1]--thereby implying that presbyterial government was already +in universal operation. Montanism appeared whilst Gnosticism was yet in +its full strength, and this gloomy fanaticism created intense agitation. +Many of the pastors, as well as of the people, were bewildered by its +pretensions to inspiration, and by the sanctimony of its ascetic +discipline. It immediately occupied the attention of the ecclesiastical +courts, and its progress was, no doubt, arrested by their emphatic +condemnation of its absurdities. It is certain that their interference +was judicious and decided. "When the faithful held frequent meetings in +many places throughout Asia on account of this affair, and examined the +novel doctrines, and pronounced them profane, and rejected them as +heresy," the Montanist prophets "were in consequence driven out of the +Church and excluded from communion." [610:2] + +The words just quoted are from the pen of an anonymous writer who +flourished towards the end of the second or beginning of the third +century; [610:3] and, though they supply the earliest distinct notice of +synodical meetings, they do not even hint that such assemblies were of +recent original. The Paschal controversy succeeded the Montanist +agitation, and convulsed the whole Church from East to West by its +frivolous discussions. The mode of keeping the Paschal festival had for +nearly fifty years been a vexed question, but about the close of the +second century it began to create bitter contention. Eusebius has given +us an account of the affair, and his narrative throws great light upon +the state of the ecclesiastical community at the time of its occurrence. +"For this cause," says he, "there were synods and councils of bishops, +and all, with according judgment, published in epistles an +ecclesiastical decree.... There is still extant a letter from those who +at that time were called together in Palestine, over whom presided +Theophilus, bishop of the parish of Caesarea, and Narcissus, bishop of +the parish of Jerusalem. There is also another letter from those who +were convoked at Rome [611:1] concerning the same question, which shews +that Victor was then bishop. There is too a letter from the bishops of +Pontus, over whom Palmas, as the senior pastor, presided. There is +likewise a letter from the parishes in Gaul of which Irenaeus was +president. And another besides from the Churches in Osroene and the +cities in that quarter." [611:2] + +It is obvious from this statement that, before the termination of the +second century, synodical government was established throughout the +whole Church; for we here trace its operation in France, in Mesopotamia +or Osroene, in Italy, Pontus, and Palestine. This passage also +illustrates the progress of the changes which were taking place about +the period under review in the constitution of ecclesiastical +judicatories. As the president of the presbytery was at first the senior +elder, so the president of the synod was at first the senior pastor. At +this time the primitive arrangement had not been altogether superseded, +for at the meeting of the bishops of Pontus, Palmas, as being the oldest +member present, was called to occupy the chair of the moderator. But +elsewhere this ancient regulation had been set aside, and in some places +no new principle had yet been adopted. At the synod of Palestine the +jealousy of two rivals for the presidency led to a rather awkward +compromise. Caesarea was the seat of government, and on that ground its +bishop could challenge precedence of every other in the district, but +the Church of Jerusalem was the mother of the entire Christian +community, and its pastor, now a hundred years of age, [612:1] +considered that he was entitled to fill the place of dignity. For the +sake of peace the assembled fathers agreed to appoint two chairmen, and +accordingly Theophilus of Caesarea and Narcissus of Jerusalem presided +jointly in the synod of Palestine. In the synod of Rome there was no one +to dispute the pretensions of Bishop Victor. As the chief pastor of the +great metropolitan Church, he seems, as a matter of course, to have +taken possession of the presidential office. + +A few years after the Paschal controversy the celebrated Tertullian +became entangled in the errors of Montanism, and in vindication of his +own principles published a tract "Concerning Fasts," in which there is a +passing reference to the subject of ecclesiastical convocations. "Among +the Greek nations," says he, "these councils of the whole Church are +held in fixed places, in which, whilst certain important questions are +discussed, the representation of the whole Christian name is also +celebrated with great solemnity. And how worthy is this of a faith which +expects to have its converts gathered from all parts to Christ? See how +good and how pleasant a thing it is for brethren to dwell together in +unity! You do not well know how to sing this, except when you are +holding communion with many. But those conventions, after they have been +first employed in prayers and fasting, know how to mourn with the +mourners, and thus at length to rejoice with those that rejoice." +[612:2] + +Greek was now spoken throughout a great part of the Roman Empire, and at +this period it continued to be used even by the chief pastors of the +Italian capital, so that when Tertullian here mentions _the Greek +nations_, [613:1] he employs an expression of somewhat doubtful +significance. But it is probable that he refers chiefly to the mother +country and its colonies on the other side of the Aegean Sea, or to +Greece and Asia Minor. It is apparent from the apostolic epistles, most +of which are addressed to Churches within their borders, that the +gospel, at an early date, spread extensively and rapidly in these +countries; and it is highly probable that, at least in some districts, +its adherents would have now made a considerable figure in any +denominational census. They were thus, perhaps, emboldened to erect +their ecclesiastical courts upon a broader basis, as well as to hold +their meetings with greater publicity, than heretofore; and, as these +assemblies were attended, not only by the pastors and the elders, but +also by many deacons and ordinary church members who were anxious to +witness their deliberations, Tertullian alleges, in his own rhetorical +style of expression, that in them "the representation of the whole +Christian name was celebrated with great solemnity." [613:2] These Greek +councils commenced with a period of _fasting_--a circumstance by which +they seem to have been distinguished from similar meetings convened +elsewhere, and as they thus supplied him with an argument in favour of +one of the grand peculiarities of the discipline of Montanism, it is +obviously for this reason they are here so prominently noticed. If, as +he contends, these fasts were kept so religiously by the representatives +of the Church when in attendance on some of their most solemn +assemblies, there might, after all, be a warrant for the observance of +that more rigid abstinence which he now inculcated. But though this +passage of Tertullian is the only authority adduced to prove that +councils originated in Greece, it is plain that it gives no sanction +whatever to any such theory. Neither does it afford the slightest +foundation for the inference that, at the time when it was written, +these ecclesiastical convocations were unknown in Africa and Italy. We +have direct proof that before this period they not only met in Rome, but +that the bishop of the great city had been in the habit of requesting +his brother pastors in other countries to hold such assemblies. [614:1] +There is, too, satisfactory evidence that they were now not unknown at +Carthage, [614:2] and Tertullian himself elsewhere apparently refers to +the proceedings of African synods. [614:3] He must have been well aware +that they had recently assembled in various parts of the West to +pronounce judgment in the Paschal controversy; for the decisions of the +Gallic and Roman synods mentioned by Eusebius seem to have been +published all over the Church; and the reason why he refers to the +convocations of the Greeks was, not because such meetings were not held +in other lands, but because these, from their peculiar method of +procedure in the way of fasting, [614:4] supplied, as he conceived, a +very apposite argument in support of the discipline which he was so +desirous to recommend. + +If historians have erred in stating that synods commenced in Greece, +they have been still more egregiously mistaken in asserting that the +once famous Amphictyonic Council suggested their establishment, and +furnished the model for their construction. In the second century of the +Christian era the Council of the Amphictyons was shorn of its glory, and +though it then continued to meet, [615:1] it had long ceased to be +either an exponent of the national mind, or a free and independent +assembly. It is not to be imagined that the Christian community, in the +full vigour of its early growth, would all at once have abandoned its +apostolic constitution, and adopted a form of government borrowed from +an effete institute. Synods, which now formed so prominent a part of the +ecclesiastical polity, could claim a higher and holier original. They +were obviously nothing more than the legitimate development of the +primitive structure of the Church, for they could be traced up to that +meeting of the apostles and elders at Jerusalem which relieved the +Gentile converts from the observance of the rite of circumcision. + +The most plausible argument in support of the theory that the +Amphictyonic Council suggested the establishment of synodical +conventions is based upon the alleged fact that these ecclesiastical +meetings were at first held in spring and autumn, or exactly at the +times when the Greek political deputies were accustomed to assemble. +[615:2] But this statement, when closely examined, is found to be quite +destitute of evidence. Tertullian does not say that the Greek synods met +twice a year, and we know that, at least half a century afterwards, they +assembled only annually. This fact is attested by Firmilian of +Cappadocia in his celebrated letter to Cyprian. "It is of necessity +arranged among us," says he, "that we elders and presidents meet _every +year_ [616:1] to set in order the things entrusted to our charge, that +if there be any matters of grave moment they may be settled by common +advice." [616:2] The author of this epistle lived in the very country +where synods are supposed to have assembled so much more frequently half +a century before, so that his evidence demonstrates the fallacy of the +hypothesis framed by some modern historians. + +About the beginning of the third century, or at the time when Tertullian +wrote, it would seem that the members of the Greek synods had an +arrangement which was not then generally adopted. The Greek councils met +together "in fixed places." There is reason to believe that these "fixed +places" were, commonly speaking, the metropolitan cities of the +respective provinces. But still, as we have seen, the pastors and elders +had not yet generally agreed to the regulation that the chief pastor of +the metropolitan city should be the constant moderator of the provincial +synod. In the case of the bishop of Rome the rule was, no doubt, already +established; but, in other instances, the senior pastor present was, as +yet, invited to fill the office of president. The constant meeting of +the synod in the principal town of the province tended, however, to +increase the influence of its bishop; and he was at length almost +everywhere acknowledged as the proper chairman. [616:3] At the Council +of Nice in A.D. 325 his rights were formally secured by ecclesiastical +enactment. About the same date synods appear to have commenced to +assemble with greater frequency. "Let there be a meeting of the bishops +twice a year," says the thirty-seventh of the so-called Apostolical +Canons, "and let them examine amongst themselves the decrees concerning +religion, and settle the ecclesiastical controversies which may have +occurred. One meeting is to be held in the fourth week of the Pentecost, +and the other on the 12th day of the month of October." [617:1] + +As soon as the light of historical records begins to illustrate the +condition of any portion of the ancient Church, its synodical government +may be discovered; and though the literary memorials of the third +century are comparatively few, they are abundantly sufficient to +demonstrate that, as early as the middle of that period, ecclesiastical +courts upon a tolerably extensive scale were everywhere established. +About that time the controversy relative to the propriety of rebaptizing +heretics created much agitation, and the subject was keenly discussed in +the synods which met for its consideration. Nowhere is any hint given +that these courts were of recent formation. Though meeting in so many +places in the East and West, and in countries so far apart, they are +invariably represented as the ancient order of ecclesiastical regimen. +They all appear, too, as co-ordinate and independent judicatories; and +though the Roman bishop, as the chief pastor of the Catholic Church, +endeavoured to induce them to adopt uniform decisions, his attempts to +dictate to the brethren in Spain, Africa, and other countries, were +firmly and indignantly repulsed. There were fundamental principles which +they were all understood to acknowledge; these principles were generally +embodied in the divine Statute-book; it was admitted that the decisions +of every council which adhered to them were entitled to universal +reverence; but, though the reservation was scarcely compatible with the +genius of catholicity, each provincial convention claimed the right of +forming its own judgment of the acts of other courts, and of adopting or +rejecting them accordingly. + +The most influential synods which were held before the establishment of +Christianity by Constantine were those which met in the latter part of +the third century to try the case of the famous Paul of Samosata, the +bishop of Antioch. The charge preferred against him was the denial of +the proper deity of the Son of God, and as he was an individual of much +ability and address, as well as, in point of rank, one of the greatest +prelates in existence, his case awakened uncommon interest. Christianity +had recently obtained the sanction of a legal toleration, [618:1] and +therefore churchmen now ventured to travel from different provinces to +sit in judgment on this noted heresiarch. In the councils which +assembled at Antioch were to be found, not only the pastors of Syria, +but also those of various places in Palestine and Asia Minor. Even +Dionysius, bishop of the capital of Egypt, was invited to be present, +but he pleaded his age and infirmities as an apology for his +non-attendance. [618:2] In a council which assembled A.D. 269, [618:3] +Paul was deposed and excommunicated; and the sentence, which was +announced by letter to the chief pastors of Rome, Alexandria, and other +distinguished sees, was received with general approbation. + +All the information we possess respecting the councils of the first +three centuries is extremely scanty, so that it is no easy matter +exactly to ascertain their constitution; but we have no reason to +question the correctness of the statement of Firmilian of Cappadocia, +who was himself a prominent actor in several of the most famous of these +assemblies, and who affirms that they were composed of "elders and +presiding pastors." [619:1] We have seen that bishops and elders +anciently united even in episcopal ordinations, and these ministers, +when assembled on such occasions, constituted ecclesiastical +judicatories. A modern writer, of high standing in connexion with the +University of Oxford, has affirmed that "bishops alone had a definitive +voice in synods," [619:2] but the testimonies which he has himself +adduced attest the inaccuracy of the assertion. The presbyter Origen, at +an Arabian synod held about A.D. 229, sat with the bishops, and was, in +fact, the most important and influential member of the convention. About +A.D. 230, Demetrius of Alexandria "gathered a council of bishops _and of +certain presbyters_, which _decreed_ that Origen should remove from +Alexandria." [619:3] About the middle of the third century, "during the +vacancy of the see of Rome, _the presbyters of the city_ took part in +the first Roman council on the lapsed." [619:4] At the council of +Eliberis, held about A.D. 305, no less than _twenty-six presbyters_ sat +along with the bishops. [619:5] In some cases deacons, [619:6] and even +laymen, were permitted to address synods, [619:7] but ancient documents +attest that they were never regarded as constituent members. Whilst the +bishops and elders _sat_ together, and thus proclaimed their equality as +ecclesiastical judges, [619:8] the people and even the deacons were +obliged to _stand_ at these meetings. The circular letter of the council +of Antioch announcing the deposition of Paul of Samosata is written in +the name of "bishops, and presbyters, _and deacons, and the Churches of +God_," [620:1] but there is reason to believe that the latter are added +merely as a matter of prudence, and in testimony of their cordial +approval of the ecclesiastical verdict. The heresiarch had left no art +unemployed to acquire popularity, and it was necessary to shew that he +had lost the influence upon which he had been calculating. It is obvious +that the pastors and elders alone were permitted to _adjudicate_, for +why were they assembled from various quarters to uphold the doctrine and +discipline of the Church, if the people who were themselves tainted with +heresy or guilty of irregularity, had the liberty of voting? Under such +circumstances, the decision would have been substantially, not the +decree of the Church rulers, but of the multitude of the particular city +in which they happened to congregate. + +The theory of some modern ecclesiastical historians, who hold that all +the early Christian congregations were originally independent, cannot +bear the ordeal of careful investigation. Whilst it directly conflicts +with the testimony of Jerome, who declares that the churches were at +first "governed by the _common council of the presbyters_," it is +otherwise destitute of evidence. As soon as the light of ecclesiastical +memorials begins to guide our path, we find everywhere presbyteries and +synods in existence. Congregationalism has no solid foundation either in +Scripture or antiquity. The eldership, the most ancient court of the +Church, commenced with the first preaching of the gospel; and in the +account of the meeting of the Twelve to induct the deacons into office, +we have the record of the first ordination performed by the laying on of +the hands of the presbytery of Jerusalem. A few years afterwards the +representatives of several Christian communities assembled in the holy +city and "ordained decrees" for the guidance of the Jewish and Gentile +Churches. The continuous development of the same form of ecclesiastical +regimen has now been illustrated. This polity was obviously based upon +the principle that "in the multitude of counsellors there is safety." +[621:1] At the meetings of the elders, information was multiplied, the +intellect was sharpened, the brethren were made better acquainted with +each other, and the Christian cause enjoyed the benefit of the decisions +of their collective wisdom. The members had been previously elected to +office by the voice of the people, so that the Church had pre-eminently +a free constitution. And it is no mean proof as well of the intrepidity +as of the zeal of the early Christian ministers that, at a time when +their religion was proscribed, they sometimes undertook lengthened +journeys for the purpose of meeting in ecclesiastical judicatories. They +thus nobly asserted the principle that Christ has established in His +Church a government with which the civil magistrate has no right +whatever to intermeddle. It has been said that the early Christian +councils "changed nearly the whole form of the Church," and that by them +"the influence and authority of the bishops were not a little +augmented." [621:2] But this is obviously quite a mistaken view of their +native tendency. The face of the Church was, indeed, changed at an early +period, but it was simply because these councils yielded with too much +facility to the spirit of innovation. Had they been always conducted in +accordance with primitive arrangements, they could have crushed in the +bud the aspirations of clerical ambition. But when the city ministers +were rapidly accumulating wealth, their brethren in rural districts +remained poor; and when councils began to meet on a scale of increased +magnitude, the village and country pastors, who could not afford the +expenses of lengthened journeys, were unable to attend. Meanwhile +Prelacy established itself in the great towns, and the influence of the +city bishops began gradually to preponderate in all ecclesiastical +assemblies. When the prelates had once secured their ascendency in these +conventions, they made use of the machinery for their own purposes. The +people were deprived of many of their rights and privileges; the elders +were stripped of their proper status; the village and rural bishops were +extinguished; and at length the ancient presbytery itself disappeared. +The city dignitaries became the sole depositories of ecclesiastical +power, and the Church lost nearly every vestige of its freedom. But, +long after the beginning of the fourth century, many remnants of the +primitive polity still survived as memorials of its departed excellence. + + + + + +CHAPTER XII. + +THE CEREMONIES AND DISCIPLINE OP THE CHURCH AS ILLUSTRATED BY CURRENT +CONTROVERSIES AND DIVISIONS. + + +Whilst the Christian community was contending against the Gnostics, it +was not without other controversies which were fitted to prejudice its +claims in the sight of the heathen. The destruction of the temple of +Jerusalem by Titus had prevented the sticklers for the Mosaic law from +practising many of their ancient ceremonies: but there were parts of +their ritual, such as circumcision, to which they still adhered, as +these could be observed when the altar and the sanctuary no longer +existed. In the reign of Hadrian a division of sentiment relative to the +continued obligation of the Levitical code led to a great change in the +mother Church of Christendom. About A.D. 132, an adventurer, named +Barchochebas, pretending to be the Messiah and aiming at temporal +dominion, appeared in Palestine; the Jews, in great numbers, flocked to +his standard; and the rebel chief contrived for three years to maintain +a bloody war against the strength of the Roman legions. The Israelitish +race, by their conduct at this juncture, grievously provoked the +emperor; and when he had rebuilt Jerusalem, under the name of Aelia +Capitolina, he threatened them with the severest penalties should they +appear either in the city or the suburbs. Some of the Jewish Christians +of the place, anxious, no doubt, to escape the proscription, now +resolved to give up altogether the observance of circumcision. Others, +however, objected to this course, and persisted in maintaining the +permanent obligation of the Mosaic ritual. The dissentients, called +Nazarenes, formed themselves into a separate community, which obtained +adherents elsewhere, and which subsisted for several centuries. At first +they differed from other Christians chiefly in their adherence to the +initiatory ordinance of Judaism, but eventually they adopted erroneous +principles in regard to the person of our Lord, and were in consequence +ranked amongst heretics. [624:1] + +In the history of the Church, the Nazarenes occupy a somewhat singular +and unique position. Their name was one of the earliest designations by +which the followers of our Saviour were known, [624:2] and though by +many they have been called the First Dissenters, they might have very +fairly pleaded that they were the lineal descendants of the most ancient +stock of Christians in the world. The rite for which they contended had +been practised in the Church of Jerusalem since its very establishment; +the ministers by whom they had been taught had probably been instructed +by the apostles themselves; and all the elders at the time connected +with the holy city seem to have joined the secession. It is alleged that +a number of Christians of Gentile origin, uniting with those of their +brethren of Jewish descent who now agreed to relinquish the Hebrew +ceremonies, chose an individual, named Marcus, for their chief pastor, +and that at this period the succession in the line of the circumcision +"failed." [624:3] This statement cannot signify that some dire calamity +had at once swept away all the old presbytery of Jerusalem. It obviously +indicates that none of its members had joined the party whose principles +had obtained the ascendency. And yet, though the adherents of Marcus +might have been charged with innovation, they acted under the sanction +of apostolical authority. They very properly refused to continue any +longer in bondage to the beggarly elements of a ritual which had long +since been superseded. Though the seceders might have urged that they +were of apostolical descent, and that they were supported by ancient +custom, it must be admitted, after all, that they were but a company of +deluded and narrow-minded bigots. The evangelical pastors of the +primitive Church repudiated their zeal for ritualism, and gave the right +hand of fellowship to Marcus and his newly-organized community. The +history of the mother Church of Christendom in the early part of the +second century is thus fraught with lessons of the gravest wisdom. We +may see from it that the true successors of the apostles were not those +who occupied their seats, or who were able to trace from them a +ministerial lineage, but those who inherited their spirit, who taught +their doctrines, and who imitated their example. + +Though, in this instance, the disciples at Jerusalem nobly emancipated +themselves from the yoke of circumcision, it appears, from a controversy +which created much confusion about sixty years afterwards, that the +whole Church was disposed, to some extent, to conform to another Judaic +ordinance. The embers of this dispute had been for some time +smouldering, before they attracted much notice; but, about the +termination of the second century, they broke out into a flame which +spread from Rome to Jerusalem. The name of Easter [625:1] was yet +unknown, and the Paschal feast appears, at least in some places, to have +been then only recently established; but at an early period there was a +sprinkling of Jewish Christians in almost every Church throughout the +Empire, and they had at length induced their fellow-disciples to mark +the seasons of the Passover and Pentecost [626:1] by certain special +observances. The Passover was regarded as the more solemn feast, and, +strange as it may now appear, was kept at the time by the Christians in +much the same way in which it had been celebrated by the Jews before the +fall of Jerusalem. A lamb was shut up on a certain day; it was +afterwards roasted; and then eaten by the brotherhood. [626:2] The time +when this ceremony was to be observed, and some other circumstantials, +now formed topics of earnest and protracted discussion. One party, known +as the Quarto-decimans, or _Fourteenth Day Men_, held that the Paschal +feast was to be kept exactly at the time when the Jews had been +accustomed to eat the Passover, that is, on the fourteenth day of the +first month of the Jewish year; [626:3] and they celebrated the festival +of the resurrection on the seventeenth day of the month, that is, on the +third day after partaking of the Paschal lamb, whether that happened to +be the first day of the week or otherwise. The other party strenuously +maintained that the eating of the Paschal lamb ought to be postponed +until the night preceding the first Lord's day next following the +fourteenth day of the first month. They considered that this next Lord's +day should be recognized as the festival of our Saviour's resurrection, +and that the whole of the preceding week until the close should be kept +as a fast not to be interrupted by the eating of the Passover. + +The most determined Quarto-decimans were to be found in Asia Minor, and +at their head was Polycrates, the chief pastor of Ephesus. At the head +of the other party was Victor, bishop of Rome. The Church over which he +presided did not originally observe any such appointment, [627:1] but +some of its members of Jewish extraction were probably, on that account, +dissatisfied; and about the time of the establishment of the Catholic +system, the matter seems to have been settled by a compromise. It +appears to have been then arranged that the festival should be kept; but +to avoid the imputation of symbolizing with the Jews, it was agreed that +the Friday of the Paschal week and the Lord's day following, or the day +on which our Saviour suffered and the day on which He rose from the +dead, should be the great days of observance. This arrangement was +pretty generally accepted by those connected with what now began to be +called the Catholic Church: but some parties pertinaciously refused to +conform. Victor, as the head of the Catholic confederation, no doubt +deemed it his duty to exact obedience from all its members; and, deeply +mortified because the Asiatic Churches persisted in their own usages, +shut them out from his communion. But it was soon evident that the +Church was not prepared for such an exercise of authority, for the +Asiatics refused to yield; and as some of Victor's best friends +protested against the imprudence of his procedure, the ecclesiastical +thunderbolt proved an impotent demonstration. + +The Paschal controversy was far from creditable to any of the parties +concerned. The eating of a lamb on a particular day was a fragment of an +antiquated ceremonial, and as the ordinance itself had been superseded, +the time of its observance was not a legitimate question for debate. +Each party is said to have endeavoured to fortify its own position by +quoting the names of Paul or Peter or Philip or John; but had any one of +these apostles risen from the dead and appeared in the ecclesiastical +arena, he would, no doubt, have rebuked all the disputants for their +trivial and unholy wrangling. We have here a notable proof of the +absurdity of appealing to tradition. Within a hundred years after the +death of the last survivor of the Twelve its testimony was most +discordant, for the tradition of the Western Churches, as propounded by +Victor, expressly contradicted the tradition of the Eastern Churches, as +attested by Polycrates. It is clear that in this case the apostles must +have been misrepresented. Peter and Paul certainly never taught the +members of the Church of Rome to eat the Paschal lamb, for the Jewish +temple continued standing until after both these eminent ministers had +finished their career, and meanwhile the eating of the Passover was +confined to those who went up to worship at Jerusalem. Philip and John +may have continued to keep the feast according to the ancient ritual +until shortly before the ruin of the holy city; and if, afterwards, they +permitted the converts from Judaism to kill a lamb and to have a social +repast at the same season of the year, they could have attached no +religious importance to such an observance. But now that both parties +were heated by the spirit of rivalry and contention, they extracted from +tradition a testimony which it did not supply. Vague reports and +equivocal statements, handed down from ages preceding, were compelled to +convey a meaning very different from that which they primarily +communicated; and thus the voice of one tradition could be readily +employed to neutralize the authority of another. + +It is a curious fact that the custom which now created such violent +excitement gradually passed into desuetude. At present there are few +places [629:1] where the eating of the Paschal lamb is continued. But +otherwise the practice for which Victor contended eventually prevailed, +as the Roman mode of celebration was established by the authority of the +Council of Nice. What is called Easter Sunday is still observed in many +Churches as the festival of the resurrection. But the institution of +such a festival is unnecessary, as each returning Lord's day should +remind the Christian that his Saviour has risen from the dead and become +the first-fruits of them that sleep. [629:2] + +This Paschal controversy generated no schism, but other disputes, which +subsequently occurred, did not terminate so peacefully. About the middle +of the third century disagreements respecting matters of discipline rent +the Churches of Carthage and Rome. At Carthage, the malecontents sought +for greater laxity; at Rome, they contended for greater strictness. At +that time the _confessors_ and the _martyrs_, or those who had +persevered in their adherence to the faith under pains and penalties, +and those who had suffered for it unto death, were held in the highest +veneration. They had been even permitted in some places to dictate to +the existing ecclesiastical rulers by granting what were called _tickets +of peace_ [629:3] to the _lapsed_, that is, to those who had apostatized +in a season of persecution, and who had afterwards sought readmission to +Church communion. These certificates, or tickets of peace, were +understood to entitle the parties in whose favour they were drawn up to +be admitted forthwith to the Lord's Supper. But it sometimes happened +that a confessor or a martyr was himself far from a paragon of +excellence, [630:1] as mere obstinacy, or pride, or self-righteousness, +may occasionally hold out as firmly as a higher principle; and a man may +give his body to be burned who does not possess one atom of the grace of +Christian charity. There were confessors and martyrs in the third +century who held very loose views on the subject of Church discipline, +and who gave tickets of peace without much inquiry or consideration. +[630:2] In some instances they did not condescend so far as to name the +parties to whom they supplied recommendations, but directed that a +particular individual "and his friends" [630:3] should be restored to +ecclesiastical fellowship. Cyprian of Carthage at length determined to +set his face against this system of testimonials. He alleged that the +ticket of a martyr was no sufficient proof of the penitence of the party +who tendered it, and that each application for readmission to membership +should be decided on its own merits, by the proper Church authorities. +The bishop was already obnoxious to some of the presbyters and people of +Carthage; and, in the hope of undermining his authority, his enemies +eagerly seized on his refusal to recognize these certificates. They +endeavoured to create a prejudice against him by alleging that he was +acting dictatorially, and that he was not rendering due honour to those +who had so nobly imperilled or sacrificed their lives in the service of +the gospel. To a certain extent their opposition was successful; and, as +much sickness prevailed about the time, Cyprian was obliged to concede +so far as to consent to give the Eucharist, on the tickets of peace, to +those who had lapsed, and who were apparently approaching dissolution. +But, soon afterwards, strengthened by the decision of an African Synod, +he returned to his original position, and the parties now became +hopelessly alienated. The leader of the secession was a deacon of the +Carthaginian Church, named Felicissimus, and from him the schism which +now occurred has received its designation. The Separatists chose a +presbyter, named Fortunatus, as their bishop, and thus in the capital of +the Proconsular Africa a new sect was organized. But the secession, +which was based upon a principle thoroughly unsound, soon dwindled into +insignificance, and rapidly passed into oblivion. + +The schism which occurred about the same time at Rome was of a more +formidable and permanent character. It had long been the opinion of a +certain party in the Church that persons who had committed certain +heinous sins should never again be readmitted to ecclesiastical +fellowship. [631:1] Those who held this principle did not pretend to say +that these transgressions were unpardonable; it was admitted that the +offenders might obtain forgiveness from God, but it was alleged that the +Church on earth could never feel warranted to receive them to communion. +Cornelius, who was then the bishop of Rome, supported a milder system +and contended that those who were not hopelessly excluded from the peace +of God should not be inexorably debarred from the visible pledges of His +affection. The leader of the stricter party was Novatian, a Roman +presbyter of pure morals and considerable ability, who has left behind +him one of the best treatises in defence of the Trinity which the +ecclesiastical literature of antiquity can supply. This individual was +ordained bishop in opposition to Cornelius; and, for a time, some of the +most distinguished pastors of the age found it difficult to decide +between these two claimants of the great bishopric. The high character +of Novatian, and the supposed tendency of his discipline to preserve the +credit and promote the purity of the Church, secured him considerable +support: the sect which derived its designation from him spread into +various countries; and, for several generations, the Novatians could +challenge comparison, as to soundness in the faith and propriety of +general conduct, with those who assumed the name of Catholics. + +The agitation caused by the Novatian schism had not yet subsided when +another controversy respecting the propriety of rebaptizing those +designated heretics created immense excitement. Cyprian at the head of +one party maintained that the baptism of heretical ministers was not to +be recognized, and that the ordinance must again be dispensed to such +sectaries as sought admission to catholic communion; whilst Stephen of +Rome as strenuously affirmed that the rite was not to be repeated. It is +rather singular that the Italian prelate, on this occasion, pleaded for +the more liberal principle; but various considerations conspired to +prompt him to pursue this course. When heresies were only germinating, +and when what was afterwards called the Catholic Church was yet but in +process of formation, no question as to the necessity of rebaptizing +those to whom the ordinance had already been dispensed by any reputed +Christian minister, seems to have been mooted. In the time of Hyginus of +Rome, even the baptism of the leading ministers of the Gnostics was +acknowledged by the chief pastor of the Western metropolis. [633:1] The +Church of Rome had ever since continued to act upon the same system; and +her determination to adhere to it had been fortified, rather than +weakened, by recent occurrences. As the Novatians had set out on the +principle of rebaptizing all who joined them, [633:2] Stephen recoiled +from the idea of deviating from the ancient practice to follow in their +footsteps. But Cyprian, who was naturally of a very imperious temper, +and who had formed most extravagant notions of the dignity of the +Catholic Church, could not brook the thought that the ministers +connected with the schism of Felicissimus could dispense any baptism at +all. He imagined that the honour of the party to which he belonged would +be irretrievably compromised by such an admission, and he was sustained +in these views by a strong party of African and Asiatic bishops. On this +occasion Stephen repeated the experiment made about sixty years before +by his predecessor Victor, and attempted to reduce his antagonists to +acquiescence by excluding them from his fellowship. But this second +effort to enforce ecclesiastical conformity was equally unsuccessful. It +only provoked an outburst of indignation, as the parties in favour of +rebaptizing refused to give way. This controversy led, however, to the +broad assertion of a principle which might not otherwise have been +brought out so distinctly, for it was frequently urged during the course +of the discussion that all pastors stand upon a basis of equality, and +that the bishop of a little African village had intrinsically as good a +right to think and to act for himself as the bishop of the great capital +of the Empire. + +It is very clear that at this time the unity of the Church did not +consist in the uniformity of its discipline and ceremonies. The +believers at Jerusalem continued to practise circumcision nearly a +century after the establishment of Gentile Churches in which such a rite +was unknown. On the question of rebaptizing heretics the Churches of +Africa and Asia Minor were diametrically opposed to the Church of Rome +and other communities in the West. As to the mode of observing the +Paschal feast a still greater diversity existed. According to the +testimony of Irenaeus there was nothing approaching to uniformity in the +practice of the various societies with which he was acquainted. "The +dispute," said he, "is not only respecting the _day_, but also +respecting the _manner_ of fasting. For some think that they ought to +fast only one day, some two, some more days; some compute their day as +consisting of forty hours night and day; [634:1] and this diversity +existing among those that observe it, is not a matter that has just +sprung up in our times, but long ago among those before us." [634:2] +When Cyprian refused to admit the lapsed to the Lord's Supper on the +strength of the tickets of peace furnished by the confessors and the +martyrs, he departed from the course previously adopted in Carthage; and +when Novatian excluded them altogether from communion, he acted on a +principle which was not then novel. There was at that time, in fact, +quite as much diversity in discipline and ceremonies among Christians as +is now to be found in evangelical Protestant Churches. + +It must be admitted that, as we descend from the apostolic age, the +spirit of the dominant body in the Church betrays a growing want of +Christian charity. There soon appeared a disposition, on the part of +some, to monopolize religion, and to disown all who did not adopt their +ecclesiastical Shibboleth. When the great mass of Christians became +organized into what was called the Catholic Church, the chief pastors +branded with the odious name of heretics all who did not belong to their +association. The Nazarenes originally held all the great doctrines of +the gospel, but they soon found themselves in the list of the +proscribed, and they gradually degenerated into abettors of very corrupt +principles. Those members of the Church of Carthage who joined +Felicissimus acted upon principles which the predecessors even of +Cyprian had sanctioned, and yet the African prelate denounced them as +beyond the pale of divine mercy. Novatian was not less orthodox than +Cornelius; but because he contended for a system of discipline which, +though not unprecedented, was deemed by his rival too austere, and +because he organized a party to support him, he also was stigmatized +with the designation of heretic. The Quarto-decimans, as well as those +who contended for Catholic rebaptism, would doubtless have been classed +in the same list, had they not formed numerous and powerful +confederations. Thus it was that those called Catholics were taught to +cherish a contracted spirit, and to look upon all, except their own +party, as out of the reach of salvation. Their false conceptions of what +properly constituted the Church involved them in many errors and tended +to vitiate their entire theology. But this subject is too important to +be discussed in a few cursory remarks, and must be reserved for +consideration in a separate chapter. + + + + + +CHAPTER XIII. + +THE THEORY OF THE CHURCH, AND THE HISTORY OF ITS PERVERSION. + +CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS. + + +"I am the good Shepherd," said Jesus: "the good Shepherd giveth his life +_for the sheep_.... My sheep _hear my voice_, and I know them, and +they follow me: and I give unto them eternal life, and _they shall never +perish_." [636:1] The sheep here spoken of are the true children of God. +They constitute that blessed community of which it is written--"Christ +loved _the Church_, and gave himself for it, that he might sanctify and +cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that he might present +it to himself _a glorious Church_, not having _spot or wrinkle or any +such thing_, but that it should be holy and _without blemish_." [636:2] + +The society thus described is, in the highest sense, "the holy Catholic +Church." Its members are to be found wherever genuine piety exists, and +they are all united to Christ by the bond of the Holy Spirit. Their +Divine Overseer has promised to be with them "alway unto the end of the +world," [636:3] to keep them "through faith unto salvation," [636:4] and +to sustain them even against the violence of "the gates of hell." +[636:5] Though they are scattered throughout different countries, and +separated by various barriers of ecclesiastical division, they have the +elements of concord. Could they be brought together, and divested of +their prejudices, and made fully acquainted with each other's +sentiments, they would speedily incorporate; for they possess "the unity +of the Spirit," [637:1] "the unity of the faith," [637:2] and "the unity +of the knowledge of the Son of God." [637:3] But these heirs of promise +cannot be distinguished by the eye of sense; their true character can be +known infallibly only to the Great Searcher of hearts; and for this, +among other reasons, the spiritual commonwealth to which they belong is +usually designated "_the Church invisible_." [637:4] + +The _visible Church_ is composed, to a considerable extent, of very +different materials. It embraces the whole mixed multitude of nominal +Christians, including not a few who exhibit no evidence whatever of +vital godliness. Our Lord describes it in one of His parables when He +says--"The kingdom of heaven is like unto a net which was cast into the +sea, and gathered of every kind; which, when it was full, they drew to +shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the +bad away. So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come +forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, and shall cast them +into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth." +[637:5] + +In the first century the profession of Christianity was perilous as well +as unpopular, so that the number of spurious disciples was comparatively +small; and so long as the brethren enjoyed the ministrations of inspired +teachers, all attempts to alienate them from each other, or to create +schisms, had little success. But still, even whilst the apostles were on +earth, some of the Churches planted and watered by themselves were +involved in error and agitated by the spirit of division. "It hath been +declared unto me of you," says Paul to the Corinthians, "that there are +contentions among you. Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am +of Paul, and I of Apollos, and I of Cephas, and I of Christ." [638:1] +The same writer had occasion to mourn over the apostasy of the Churches +of Galatia. "I marvel," said he, "that ye are so soon removed from him +that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel.... O +foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you that ye should not obey the +truth?" [638:2] The Church of Sardis in the lifetime of the Apostle John +had sunk into an equally deplorable condition, and hence he was +commissioned to declare to it--"I know thy works, that thou hast a name +that thou livest, _and art dead_." [638:3] + +The circumstances which led to the organization of the Catholic system +have already been detailed, and it has been shewn that the great design +of the arrangement was to secure the visible unity of the ecclesiastical +commonwealth. The Catholic confederation was supposed to comprehend all +the faithful; and it was, no doubt, expected that, not long after its +establishment, it would have rung the death knell of schism and +sectarianism. According to its fundamental principle, whoever was not in +communion with the bishop was out of the Church. To be out of the Church +was soon considered as tantamount to be without God and without hope, so +that this test condemned all who in any way dissented from the dominant +creed as beyond the pale of salvation. Its assumptions, involving a +decision of such grave importance and of such dubious authority, were +acknowledged with some difficulty; and the question as to the extent and +character of the Church seems to have led to considerable discussion; +[639:1] but the horror of heresy which so generally prevailed +strengthened the pretensions of the hierarchy, and at length every +candidate for baptism was required to declare, as one of the articles of +his faith--"I believe in the holy Catholic Church." [639:2] + +According to one interpretation the sentiment embodied in this +profession was perfectly unobjectionable. If by the holy Catholic Church +we understand the Church invisible composed of all the true children of +God, it must be conceded that every devout student of the Scriptures is +bound to express his belief in its existence and its excellence. This +Church is precious in the eyes of the Lord; it is the habitation of His +Spirit; it is the heir of His great and glorious promises. But the holy +Catholic Church, in the current ecclesiastical phraseology of the third +century, had a very different signification. It denoted the great mass +of disciples associated under the care of the Catholic bishops, as +distinguished from all the minor sects throughout the Empire which made +a profession of Christianity. A sincere and intelligent believer might +well have scrupled to give such a title to the mixed society thus +claiming its application. + +It is quite true that there is no salvation out of the Church, if by the +Church is meant that elect company which Christ died to redeem and +sanctify; but the Word of God does not warrant us to assert that the +eternal well-being of man depends on his connexion with any earthly +society. Even in the days of the apostles, some who were subjected to a +sentence of excommunication were the excellent of the earth. "I wrote +unto _the Church_," says John, "but Diotrephes, who loveth to have the +pre-eminence among them, _receiveth us not_. Wherefore, if I come, I +will remember his deeds which he doeth, prating against us with +malicious words, and not content therewith, neither doth he himself +receive _the brethren_, and forbiddeth them that would, and _casteth +them out of the Church_." [640:1] This Diotrephes seems to have been +some wayward and domineering presbyter who took the lead among his +fellow-elders, and who induced them by the influence of commanding +talent, combined, it may be, with superior worldly station, to support +him in his wilfulness. [640:2] But it would be very foolish to suppose +that the brethren who were thus _cast out of the Church_ were thereby +eternally undone, for such certainly was not the judgment of the beloved +disciple. Faith in Christ, and not a relation to any visible society, +secures a title to heaven. Thousands, as well as the thief on the cross, +have been admitted into paradise who have never been baptized, [640:3] +and we might point out numberless cases in which individuals, in the +wonderful providence of God, have been led to a saving knowledge of the +truth who have never had an opportunity of joining a congregation of +Christian worshippers. But those who now assumed the name of Catholics +were continually dwelling upon the importance of a connexion with their +own association; and, assuming that they were _the Church_, they +appropriated to themselves whatever they could find in Scripture in +commendation of its excellence. The promises addressed to the Church in +the book of inspiration refer, however, not to any local and visible +community, but to the "Church of the first-born which are written in +heaven;" [641:1] and the Catholics, by misapplying them, were led to +form very extravagant notions of the advantages of the position which +they occupied. The ascription of the attributes of the Church invisible +to their own association was, in fact, the fundamental misconception on +which a vast fabric of error was erected. By reason of the indwelling of +the Spirit in all believers the Church invisible is _catholic_, or +universal, that is, it is to be found wherever vital Christianity +exists; for the same reason it is _holy_, every member of it being a +living temple of Jehovah; it is also _one_, as one Spirit animates all +the saints and unites them to God and to each other; and it is +_perpetual_, or indestructible, for the Most High has promised never to +leave Himself without witnesses among men, and all His redeemed ones +shall remain as trophies of His grace throughout all eternity. But these +attributes were represented as belonging to the Church visible, and this +radical mistake became the parent of monstrous delusions. The +ecclesiastical writers who flourished towards the end of the second and +beginning of the third century exhibit a considerable amount of +inconsistency and vacillation when they touch upon the subject; [641:2] +but, half a century afterwards, the language currently employed is much +bolder and more decided. At that time Cyprian does not hesitate to +express himself in the strongest terms of high-church exclusiveness. +"_All_," says he, "_are adversaries of the Lord and antichrist_ who +are found to have departed from the charity and unity of the Catholic +Church." [641:3] "You ought to know that the bishop is in the Church and +the Church in the bishop, and _if any be not with the bishop_, that _he +is not in the Church_." [641:4] "The house of God is one, and there +cannot be salvation for any except in the Church." [641:5] "He can no +longer have God for a Father, who has not the Church for a mother." +[642:1] + +Though the Catholics were a compact body, forming the bulk of the +Christian population, their system failed to absorb all the professors +of the gospel, or perhaps even greatly to check the tendency towards +ecclesiastical separation. In their controversies with seceders and +schismatics, their own principles were more distinctly defined; and, as +they soon found that they were quite an overmatch for any individual +sect, their tone gradually became more decided and dictatorial. But the +theological position from which they started was a sophism; and, like +the movements of a traveller who has mistaken his way, every step of +their progress was an advance in a wrong direction. Some of the more +prominent errors to which their theory led may here be enumerated. + +I. The theory of the Catholic Church recognized an odious ecclesiastical +monopoly. Pastors and teachers are "for the perfecting of the saints, +for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ;" +[642:2] and yet a sinner may be saved without their instrumentality. The +truth when spoken by a layman, or when read in a private chamber, may +prove quite as efficacious as when proclaimed from the pulpit of a +cathedral. That kingdom of God which "cometh not with observation" is +built up by "the Word of His grace;" [642:3] and so long as the Word +exists, and so long as the Spirit applies it to enlighten and sanctify +and comfort God's children, the Church is imperishable. The evangelical +labours of the pious master of a merchant vessel have often been blessed +abundantly; and among the tens of thousands afloat upon the broad +waters, who seldom enjoy any ecclesiastical ministrations, may be found +some of the highest types of Christian excellence. Though regularly +ordained pastors are necessary to the growth and well-being of the +Church, such facts shew that they are not essential to its existence. +But, according to the Catholic system, they are the veins and arteries +through which its very life-blood circulates. All grace belongs to the +visible society called the Catholic Church, and of this grace the +Catholic ministers have the exclusive distribution. Without their +intervention, as the dispensers of divine ordinances, no one can hope to +inherit heaven. No other ministers whatever can be instrumental in +conferring any saving benefit. Was it extraordinary that individuals who +were supposed to be entrusted with such tremendous influence soon began +to be regarded with awful reverence? If the services which they rendered +were necessary to salvation, and if these services could be performed by +none else, they were possessed of absolute authority, and it was to be +expected that they would forthwith begin to act as "lords over God's +heritage." + +Under the Mosaic economy none save the descendants of a single +individual were permitted to present the sacrifices or to enter the holy +place. In the celebration of the most solemn rites of their religion the +Jewish people were kept at a mysterious distance from the presence of +the Divine Majesty, and were taught to regard the officiating ministers +as mediators between God and themselves. This arrangement was +symbolical, as all the priests were types of the Great Intercessor. But +every believer may now enjoy the nearest access to his Maker, for the +Saviour has made all His people "kings and priests unto God." [643:1] +The ministers of the gospel do not constitute a privileged fraternity +entitled by birth to exercise certain functions and to claim certain +immunities. They should be appointed _by_ the people as well as _for_ +them, and no service which they perform implies that they have nearer +access to the Divine Presence than the rest of the worshippers. In the +New Testament they are never designated _priests_, [644:1] neither is +their intervention between God and the sinner described as +indispensable. But Catholicism invested them with a factitious +consequence, representing them as inheriting peculiar rights and +privileges by ecclesiastical descent from the apostles. According to +Cyprian, "Christ says to the apostles, _and thereby to all prelates who +by vicarious ordination are successors of the apostles_. 'He that +heareth you, heareth me.'" [644:2] About the commencement of the third +century the pastors of the Church began to be called priests, [644:3] +and this change in the ecclesiastical nomenclature betokens the +influence of Catholic principles on the current theology. The Jewish +sacrificial system had now ceased, and the Hebrew Christians were +perhaps disposed to transfer to their new ministers the titles of the +sons of Levi; but, had not the alteration been in accordance with the +spirit of the times, it could not have been accomplished. It was, +however, justified by Catholicism, as that system set forth the clergy +in the light of mediators between God and the people. This misconception +of the nature of the Christian ministry generated a multitude of errors. +If ministers are priests they must offer sacrifice, and must be +entrusted with the work of atonement. It is true, indeed, that the +monstrous dogma of transubstantiation was not yet broached, but it +cannot be denied that forms of expression which were exceedingly liable +to misinterpretation, now began to be adopted. Thus, the Eucharist was +styled "a sacrifice," [645:1] and the communion-table "the altar." +[645:2] At first such phraseology was not intended to be literally +understood, [645:3] but its tendency, notwithstanding, was most +pernicious, as it fostered false views of a holy ordinance, and laid the +foundation of the most senseless superstition ever imposed on human +credulity. + +Every genuine pastor has a divine call to the sacred office, and no act +of man can supply the place of this spiritual vocation. God alone can +provide a true minister, [645:4] for He alone can bestow the gifts and +the graces which are required. Ordination is simply the form in which +the existing Church rulers endorse the credentials of the candidate, and +sanction his appearance in the character of an ecclesiastical +functionary. But these rulers may themselves be incompetent or profane, +so that their approval may be worthless; or, by mistake, they may permit +wolves in sheep's clothing to take charge of the flock of Christ. The +simple fact, therefore, that an individual holds a certain position in +any section of the visible Church, is no decisive evidence that he is a +true shepherd. Such, however, was not the doctrine of Catholicism. +Whoever was accredited by the existing ecclesiastical authorities was, +according to this system, the chosen of the Lord. When certain parties +who had joined Novatian were induced to retrace their steps, they made +the following penitential declaration in presence of a large +congregation assembled in the Western metropolis--"We acknowledge +Cornelius bishop of the most holy Catholic Church _chosen by God +Almighty_ and Christ our Lord." [646:1] Cyprian asserted that, as he was +bishop of Carthage, he must necessarily have a divine commission. +Nothing, indeed, can exceed the arrogance with which this imperious +prelate expressed himself when speaking of his ecclesiastical authority. +To challenge his conduct was, in his estimation, tantamount to +blasphemy; and, to dispute his prerogatives, a contempt of the Divine +Majesty. Once, in a time of persecution, he retired from Carthage, and +he was, in consequence, upbraided by some as a coward; but when a +fellow-bishop, Papianus, ventured to ask an explanation of a course of +proceeding which apparently betokened indecision, Cyprian treated the +inquiry as an insult, and poured out upon his correspondent a whole +torrent of invectives and reproaches. He is _God's bishop_, and no one +is to attempt, by the breath of suspicion, to stain the lustre of his +episcopal dignity. "I perceive by your letter," says he, "that you +believe the same things of me, and persist in what you believed.... This +is not to believe in God, this is to be a rebel against Christ and +against His gospel.... Do you suppose that the priests of God are +without His cognizance ordained in the Church? For if you believe that +those who are ordained are unworthy and incestuous, what else is it but +to believe that, not by God, or through God, are His bishops appointed +in the Church." [646:2] After indulging at great length in the language +of denunciation, he adds, in a strain of irony--"Vouchsafe at length and +deign to pronounce on us, and to confirm our episcopate by the authority +of _your_ hearing, that God and Christ may give _you_ thanks, that +through you a president and ruler has been restored as well to _their_ +altar as to _their_ people." [647:1] + +II. The Catholic system encouraged its adherents to cultivate very +bigoted and ungenerous sentiments. They were taught to regard themselves +as the "peculiar people," and to look on all others, however excellent, +as without claim to the title or privileges of Christians. How different +the spirit of the inspired heralds of the gospel! When Peter saw that +the Holy Ghost was poured out on men uncircumcised, he recognized the +divine intimation by acknowledging the believing Gentiles as his +brethren in Christ. Conceiving that God himself had thus settled the +question of their Church membership, "he commanded them to be baptized +in the name of the Lord." [647:2] But men who professed to derive their +authority from the apostle, now showed how grievously they misunderstood +the benign and comprehensive genius of his ecclesiastical polity. The +dominant party among the disciples had not long assumed the name of +Catholics when they sadly belied the designation, for nothing could be +more illiberal or uncatholic than their Church principles. All evidences +of piety, no matter how decided, if found among the Nazarenes, or the +Novatians, or the friends of Felicissimus, were rejected by them as +apocryphal. The brightest manifestations of godliness, if exhibited +outside their own denomination, only roused their jealousy or provoked +their uncandid and malicious criticisms. The Catholic bishops acted as +if they moved within something like a charmed circle, and as if a curse +rested upon everything not under their own influence. Their proceedings +often displayed alike their folly and inconsistency. Tertullian, for +example, was a Montanist, and yet he was the writer from whom Cyprian +himself derived a large share of his theological instruction. "Give me +_the master_," the bishop of Carthage is reported to have said, when he +called for his favourite author. [648:1] Thus, an individual who, +according to Cyprian's own principles, was beyond the pale of hope, was +the teacher with whom he was daily holding spiritual fellowship! The +bigotry of the party must appear all the more intolerable when we +consider that some of those who differed from them taught the cardinal +doctrines of the gospel, as zealously and as fully as themselves. The +Novatians seceded from their communion merely on the ground of a +question of discipline, and yet the Catholics could not believe that any +grace could exist among these ancient Puritans. The Novatians in their +lives might exhibit much of the beauty of holiness, and they might shed +their blood in the cause of Christianity, [648:2] but all this availed +them nothing in the estimation of their narrow-minded antagonists. "Let +no one think," says Cyprian, "that they can be good men who leave the +Church." [648:3] "He can never attain to the kingdom who leaves her with +whom the kingdom shall be." [648:4] "He cannot be a martyr who is not in +the Church." [648:5] Every man not blinded by prejudice might well have +suspected the soundness of a theory which could only be sustained by +such brazen recklessness of assertion. + +III. Nothing, however, more clearly revealed the anti-evangelical +character of the Catholic system than its interference with the claims +of the Word of God. The gospel commends itself by the light of its own +evidence. The official rank of the preacher cannot add to its truth, +neither can the corrupt motives which may prompt him to proclaim it, +impair its authority. As a revelation from heaven, it possesses a title +to consideration irrespective of any individual, or any Church; and God +honours His own communication even though it may be delivered by a very +unworthy messenger. [649:1] "Some indeed," says Paul, "preach Christ +even of envy and strife, and some also of good-will.... What then? +Notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence or in truth, Christ is +preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice." [649:2] But +Catholicism taught its partizans to cherish very different feelings, for +they were instructed to believe that the gospel itself was without +efficacy when promulgated by a minister who did not belong to their own +party. They could not challenge a single flaw in the creed of Novatian, +[649:3] and yet they strongly maintained that his preaching was useless, +and that the baptism he dispensed was worthless as the ablution of a +heathen. "You should know," says Cyprian, "that _we ought not even to be +curious as to what Novatian teaches, since he teaches out of the +Church._ Whosoever he be, and whatsoever he be, he is not a Christian +who is not in the Church of Christ." [649:4] "When the Novatians +say--'Dost thou believe remission of sins and eternal life by the Holy +Church?' they lie in their interrogatory, since they _have no Church._" +[649:5] + +Strange infatuation! Who could have anticipated that one hundred and +fifty years after the death of the Apostle John, such miserable and +revolting bigotry would have been current? The Scriptures teach us that, +in the salvation of sinners, ministers are as nothing, and the gospel +everything. "Whosoever," says Paul, "shall call upon the name of the +Lord _shall be saved_.... Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by _the +Word of God._" [650:1] Cyprian did not understand such doctrine. He +imagined that the Word of God had no power except when issuing from the +lips of the ministers of his own communion. The Catholic Church must put +its seal upon the gospel to give it currency. Without this stamp it was +all in vain to announce it to a world lying in wickedness. The Catholic +pastor might be a man without ability; he might be comparatively +ignorant; and he might be of more than suspicious integrity; and yet the +King of the Church was supposed to look down with complacency on all the +official acts of this wretched hireling, whilst no dew of heavenly +influence rested on the labours of a pious and accomplished Novatian +minister! When men like Cyprian were prepared to acknowledge such folly, +it was not strange that a darkness which might be felt soon settled down +upon Christendom. + + * * * * * + +In the preceding pages the history of the ancient Church for the first +three centuries has passed under review, and a few general observations +may now be not inappropriately appended to this concluding chapter. The +details here furnished supply ample evidence that Christianity was +greatly corrupted long before the conversion of Constantine. It is true, +indeed, that much of the superstition which has since so much disfigured +the Church was yet unknown. During the first three centuries we find no +recognition of the mediatorship of Mary, or of the dogma of her +immaculate conception, [650:2] or of the worship of images, or of the +celebration of divine service in an unknown tongue, or of the doctrine +of the infallibility of the Roman bishop. But the germs of many +dangerous errors were distinctly visible, and when the sun of Imperial +favour began to shine upon the Christians, these errors rapidly reached +maturity. The Eucharistic bread and wine were viewed with superstitious +awe, and language was applied to them which was calculated to bewilder +and to confound. A system of penitential discipline alien to the spirit +of the New Testament was already in existence; rites and ceremonies +unknown in the apostolic age had now made their appearance; and in the +great towns a crowd of functionaries, whom Paul and Peter would have +refused to own, added to the pomp of public worship. Some imagine that +in the times of Tertullian and of Cyprian we may find the purest faith +in the purest form, but a more intimate acquaintance with the history of +the period is quite sufficient to dispel the delusion. A little +consideration may, indeed, convince us that, in the second or third +century, we could scarcely expect to see either the most brilliant +displays of the light of truth or the most attractive exhibitions of +personal holiness. The waters of life gushed forth, clear as crystal, +from the Rock of Ages; but, as their course was through the waste +wilderness of a degenerate world, they were soon defiled by its +pollutions; and it was not until the desert began "to rejoice and +blossom as the rose," that the stream flowed smoothly in the channel it +had wrought, and partially recovered its native purity. At the present +day we would not be warranted in expecting as high a style of +Christianity in a convert from idolatry as in one who had been trained +up from infancy under the care of enlightened and godly parents. By +judicious culture the graces of the Spirit, as well as the fruits of the +earth, may be improved; but when a section of the open field of +immorality and ignorance is first added to the garden of the Lord, it +may not forthwith possess all the fertility and loveliness of the more +ancient plantation. [652:1] A large portion of the early disciples had +once been heathens; they had to struggle against evil habits and +inveterate prejudices; they were surrounded on all sides by corrupting +influences; and, as they had not the same means of obtaining an exact +and comprehensive knowledge of the gospel as ourselves, we cannot +reasonably hope to find among them any very extraordinary measure either +of spiritual wisdom or of consistent piety. + +When the Church towards the middle of the second century was sorely +harassed by divisions, its situation was extremely critical and +embarrassing. Christianity had appeared among men bearing the olive +branch of peace, and had proposed to supersede the countless +superstitions of the heathen by a faith which would bind the human race +together in one great and harmonious family. How mortified, then, must +have been its friends when Basilides, Marcion, Valentine, Cerdo, Mark, +and many others began to propagate their heresies, and when it appeared +as if the divisions of the Church were to be as numerous as the +religions of paganism! Had the ministers of the gospel girded themselves +for the emergency; had they boldly encountered the errorists, and +vanquished them with weapons drawn from the armoury of the Word; they +would have approved themselves worthy of their position, and acquired +strength for future conflicts. But whilst they did not altogether +neglect an appeal to Scripture, they were tempted in an evil hour to +think of sequestrating their own freedom that they might overwhelm +heresy with the vigour of an ecclesiastical despotism. By investing +their chairman with arbitrary power and by making communion with this +functionary the criterion of discipleship, they at once sanctioned a +perilous arrangement and endorsed a vicious principle. From this date we +may trace the commencement of a career of defection. The bishop and the +Church began to supplant Christ and a knowledge of the gospel. Bigotry +advanced apace, and conscience found itself in bondage. + +The establishment of the hierarchical system, though imparting, as was +thought, greater unity to the structure of the Church, did not really +invigorate its constitution. The spiritual commonwealth is very +different from any merely earthly organization, for it has no +statute-book but the Bible, and it owes explicit obedience to no ruler +but the King of Zion. Freedom of conscience, in obedience to the Word, +is the heritage of all its members; and every one of them is bound to +exercise the privilege, and to resist its violation. Its unity appears, +not in adhesion to any visible head, but in cordial submission to its +one great Lord and Sovereign. When a change was made in its primitive +framework, its essential unity was impaired. After the elders had handed +over a considerable share of their authority to their president, they +could not be expected to take such a deep interest in its government as +when they were themselves individually responsible for its official +administration. They still, indeed, acted as his counsellors, but as +they no longer held the independent footing they had once occupied, they +could neither speak nor act so freely and so energetically as before. +Thus, whilst one member of the ecclesiastical body was permitted to +attain an unnatural magnitude, others ceased to perform their proper +functions, and the whole eventually became diseased and misshapen. And +the new arrangement entirely failed in checking the growth of the +errorists. After its adoption heresies sprung up as rapidly as ever, and +the multitude of its sects continued to be the scandal of Christianity +even in the time of Constantine. [654:1] Their suppression is to be +attributed, not to the potency of Prelacy, but to the stern intolerance +of the Imperial laws. By the rigid enforcement of conformity the +Catholic Church at length reigned without a rival. + +It is easy to see from the extant ecclesiastical writings of the third +century that the doctrine of the visible unity of the Church as +represented by the Catholic hierarchy already formed a prominent part of +the current creed. As there is "one God, one Christ, and one Holy +Ghost," it was affirmed that there could be but "one bishop in the +Catholic Church." [654:2] This theory seemed somewhat inconsistent with +the fact that there were many bishops in almost every province of the +Empire; but the ingenuity of churchmen attempted a solution of the +difficulty. It was alleged that the whole episcopacy should be regarded +as one, and that each bishop constituted an integral part of the grand +unit. "The episcopacy is one," says Cyprian, "it is a whole in which +each enjoys full possession." [654:3] "There is one Church from Christ +throughout the whole world divided into many members, and _one +episcopate_ diffused throughout an harmonious multitude of many +bishops." [654:4] + +We have seen that the Roman prelate was already recognized as the centre +of ecclesiastical unity. A misunderstood passage in the Gospel of +Matthew [654:5] was supposed to sanction this ecclesiastical primacy. +"There is," said the bishop of Carthage, "one God, and one Christ, and +one Church, and _one chair founded by the Word of the Lord on the +Rock_." [654:6] Though the Roman chief pastor might be considered +theoretically only the first among the Catholic bishops, his zeal for +uniformity had now more than once interrupted the peace of the Christian +community. The erection of a new capital and the subsequent +dismemberment of the Empire considerably affected his position; but, +within a certain sphere, he steadily endeavoured to carry out the idea +of Catholic unity. The doctrine reached its highest point of development +after the lapse of upwards of a thousand years. Then, the bishop of Rome +had become a sovereign prince, and was the acknowledged ruler of a vast +and magnificent hierarchy. Then, he swayed his spiritual sceptre over +all the tribes of Western Christendom. Then, verily, uniformity had its +day of triumph; for, with some rare exceptions, wherever the stranger +travelled throughout Europe, he found the same order of divine service, +and saw the ministers of the sanctuary arrayed in the same costume, and +practising even the same gestures. Then, wherever he entered a sacred +edifice, he heard the same language, and listened to the same prayers +expressed in the very same phraseology. But what was meanwhile the real +condition of the Church? Was there love without dissimulation, and the +keeping of the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace? Nothing of the +kind. Never could it be said with greater truth of the people of the +West that they were "foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers +lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one +another." There were wars and rumours of wars; nation rose up against +nation and kingdom against kingdom; and the Pope was generally the cause +of the contention. The very man who claimed to be the centre of Catholic +unity was the grand fomenter of ecclesiastical and political +disturbance. The Sovereign Pontiff, and the Catholic princes with whom +he was engaged in deadly feuds, were equally faithless, restless, and +implacable. Freedom of thought was proscribed, and the human mind was +placed under the most exacting and intolerable tyranny by which it was +ever oppressed. + +The mutilation of this Dagon of hierarchical unity is one of the many +glorious results of the great Reformation. The sooner the remaining +fragments of this idol be crushed to atoms, the better for the peace and +freedom of Christendom. The unity of the Church cannot be achieved by +the iron rod of despotism, neither can the communion of saints be +promoted by the sacrifice of their rights and privileges. "Where the +Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." [656:1] Christ alone can draw +all men unto Him. The real unity of His Church is, not any merely +ecclesiastical cohesion, but a unity of faith, of hope, and of +affection. It is the fellowship of Christian freemen walking together in +the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost. It is the +attraction of all hearts to one heavenly Saviour, and the submission of +all wills to one holy law. Looking at the past condition or the present +aspect of society, we may think the difficulties in the way of such +unity altogether insurmountable; but it will, in due time, be brought +about by Him "who doeth great things and unsearchable, marvellous things +without number." Its realization will present the most delightful and +impressive spectacle that the earth has ever seen. "Every valley shall +be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low; and the +crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain; _and the +glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it +together_." [656:2] "Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice, with the +_voice together shall they sing; for they shall see eye to eye_, when +the Lord shall bring again Zion." [656:3] "And the Lord shall be King +over all the earth; in that day shall there be _one Lord, and His name +one_." [656:4] AMEN. + + + THE END. + + + + + +[ENDNOTES] + + +[3:1] Mr Merivale, in his "History of the Romans under the Empire," +(vol. iv. p. 450,) estimates the population in the time of Augustus +at eighty-five millions, but in this reckoning he does not include +Palestine, and perhaps some of his calculations are rather low. +Greswell computes the population of Palestine at ten millions, and that +of the whole empire at one hundred and twenty millions. ("Dissertations +upon an Harmony of the Gospels," vol. iv. p. 11, 493.) + +[7:1] See the article [Greek: Hetairai] in Smith's "Dictionary of Greek +and Roman Antiquities." + +[8:1] "We despise," says an early Christian writer, "the supercilious +looks of philosophers, whom we have known to be the corrupters of +innocence, adulterers, and tyrants, and eloquent declaimers against +vices of which they themselves are guilty."--_Octavius of Minucius +Felix._ + +[9:1] "De Republ.," ii. + +[9:2] In the "Octavius of Minucius Felix" (c. 25), we meet with the +following startling challenge--"Where are there more bargains for +debauchery made, more assignations concerted, or more adultery devised +than _by the priests_ amidst the altars and shrines of the gods?" This, +of course, refers to the state of things in the third century, but there +is no reason to believe that it was now much better. Tertullian speaks +in the same manner ("Apol". c. 15). See also "Juvenal," sat. vi. 488, +and ix. 23. + +[10:1] "Origen. Contra Celsum," lib. i. c. 49. + +[10:2] Mat. xxii. 23. + +[10:3] Luke ii. 25, 36. + +[11:1] See Matt. v. 18; John v. 39, and x. 35. + +[11:2] See Josephus against Apion, i. Sec. 8. Origen says that the Hebrews +had twenty-two sacred books corresponding to the number of letters in +their alphabet. Opera, ii. 528. It would appear from Jerome that they +reckoned in the following manner: they considered the Twelve Minor +Prophets only one book; First and Second Samuel, one book; First and +Second Kings, one book; First and Second Chronicles, one book; Ezra and +Nehemiah, one book; Jeremiah and Lamentations, one book; the Pentateuch, +five books; Judges and Ruth, one book; thus, with the other ten books of +Joshua, Esther, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Canticles, Isaiah, +Ezekiel, and Daniel, making up twenty-two. The most learned Roman +Catholic writers admit that what are called the apocryphal books were +never acknowledged by the Jewish Church. See, for example, Dupin's +"History of Ecclesiastical Writers," Preliminary Dissertation, section +ii. See also Father Simon's "Critical History of the Old Testament," +book. i. chap. viii. + +[11:3] Matt, xxiii. 15. + +[12:1] Many proofs of this occur in the Acts. See Acts x. 2, xiii. 43, +xvi. 14, xvii. 4. + +[12:2] See Cudworth's "Intellectual System," i. 318, &c. Edition, +London, 1845. Warburton has adduced evidence to prove that this doctrine +was imparted to the initiated in the heathen mysteries. "Divine Legation +of Moses," i. 224. Edit., London, 1837. + +[12:3] Gal. iv. 4. + +[12:4] Gen. xlix. 10; Dan. ix. 25; Haggai ii. 6, 7. + +[12:5] Virgil. Ec. iv. Suetonius. Octavius, 94. Tacitus. Histor. v. 13. + +[13:1] Haggai ii. 7. + +[13:2] Dan. vii. 14. + +[14:1] See Supplementary Note at the end of this chapter on the year of +Christ's Birth. + +[14:2] Luke ii. 6, 7. + +[15:1] Luke i. 11, 19. + +[15:2] Luke. 26, 31. + +[15:3] Luke ii. 13, 14. + +[15:4] Matt. ii. 9. + +[15:5] Matt. ii. 12. + +[15:6] Matt. ii. 3. The evangelist does not positively assert that the +wise men met Herod _at Jerusalem_. On their arrival in the holy city he +was probably at Jericho--distant about a day's journey--for Josephus +states that he died there. ("Antiq." xvii. 6. Sec. 5. and 8. Sec. 1.) We may +infer, therefore, that he "heard" of the strangers on his sick-bed, and +"privily called" them to Jericho. The chief priests and scribes were, +perhaps, summoned to attend him at the same place. + +[16:1] Matt. ii. 16. The estimates formed at a subsequent period of the +number of infants in the village of Bethlehem and its precincts betray a +strange ignorance of statistics. "The Greek Church canonised the 14,000 +innocents," observes the Dean of St Paul's, "and another notion, founded +on a misrepresentation of Revelations (xiv. 3), swelled the number to +144,000. The former, at least, was the common belief of our Church, +though _even in our liturgy the latter has in some degree been +sanctioned_ by retaining the chapter of Revelations as the epistle for +the day. Even later, Jeremy Taylor, in his 'Life of Christ,' admits the +14,000 without scruple, or rather without thought."--_Milman's History +of Christianity_, i. p. 113, note. + +[16:2] Matt. ii. 11. + +[16:3] Luke ii. 38. It is a curious fact that in the year 751 of the +city of Rome, the year of the Birth of Christ according to the +chronology adopted in this volume, the passover was not celebrated as +usual in Judea. The disturbances which occurred on the death of Herod +had become so serious on the arrival of the paschal day, that Archelaus +was obliged to disperse the people by force of arms in the very midst of +the sacrifices. So soon did Christ begin to cause the sacrifice and the +oblation to cease. See Greswell's "Dissertations," i. p 393, 394, note. + +[17:1] Luke ii. 40. + +[17:2] Luke ii. 52. + +[17:3] Mark vi. 3. + +[17:4] John vii. 15. + +[18:1] Luke ii. 46, 47. + +[18:2] Luke iv. 16. + +[18:3] Luke iii. 21-23. "It became Him, being in the likeness of sinful +flesh, to go through these appointed rites and purifications which +belonged to that flesh. There is no more strangeness in His having been +baptized by John, than in His keeping the Passover. The one rite, as the +other, belonged to sinners, and among the transgressors He was +numbered."--ALFORD, _Greek Testament_, Note on Matt. iii. 13-17. + +[18:4] See Greswell's "Dissertations upon an Harmony of the Gospels," +vol. i. p. 362, 363. John probably commenced his ministry about the +feast of Tabernacles, A.D. 27. + +[18:5] See Josephus, "Antiq." xviii, 5, Sec. 2. + +[19:1] Matt. iv. 23. + +[19:2] Matt. iv. 24, 25. + +[19:3] Isaiah xlv. 15. + +[19:4] 1 Kings viii. 10-12. + +[19:5] John v. 13, vi. 15, viii. 59, xii. 36; Mark i. 45, vii. 24. + +[19:6] Mark ii. 1, 2; Matt. xiv. 13, 14, 21, xv. 32, 38, 39. + +[20:1] Matt. iv. 13. Hence it is said to have been "exalted unto heaven" +in the way of privilege. Matt. xi. 23; Luke x. 15. It was the residence +as well of Peter and Andrew (Matt. xvii. 24), as of James, John (Mark i. +21, 29), and Matthew (Mark ii. 1, 14, 15), and there also dwelt the +nobleman whose son was healed by our Lord (John iv. 46). It was on the +borders of the Sea of Galilee, so that by crossing the water He could at +once reach the territory of another potentate, and withdraw Himself from +the multitudes drawn together by the fame of His miracles. See Milman's +"History of Christianity," i. 188. + +[21:1] John i. 46. + +[22:1] Luke xxiv. 32. + +[22:2] Matt. vii. 29. + +[23:1] According to Mr Greswell our Lord adopted this method of teaching +about eighteen months after the commencement of His ministry, and the +Parable of the Sower was the first delivered. "Exposition of the +Parables," Vol. i. p. 2. + +[23:2] Isa. xxxv. 5, 6. + +[23:3] See John v. 13, ix. 1, 6, 25, 36. + +[23:4] Mark ii. 6, 7, 10, 11, iii. 5, 22. + +[24:1] John vi. 9. + +[24:2] Matt. xiv. 24, 25. + +[24:3] Mark iv. 39; Matt. viii. 26, 27. + +[24:4] John ix. 16. + +[24:5] Matt. xxi. 19. Neander has shown that this was a typical action +pointing to the rejection of the Jews. See his "Life of Christ." Bohn's +Edition. + +[24:6] John ii. 9. + +[24:7] Matt. ix. 28, 29; Mark vi. 5, ix. 23, 24. + +[25:1] John viii. 12. + +[26:1] Several of the early fathers imagined that it continued only a +year. Some of them, such as Clemens Alexandrinus, drew this conclusion +from Isaiah lxi. 1, "To preach _the acceptable year_ of the Lord." See +Kaye's "Clement of Alexandria," p. 347. + +[26:2] John ii. 13, v. 1, vi. 4, xii. 1. Eusebius argues from the number +of high priests that our Lord's ministry did not embrace four entire +years. "Ecc. Hist." i. c. x. + +[26:3] He lived, therefore, about thirty-three years. According to Malto +Brun ("Universal Geography," book xxii.), "the _mean duration_ of human +life is between thirty and forty years," and, in the same chapter, he +computes it at thirty-three years. It would thus appear that, at the +time of His death, our Lord was, in point of age, a fitting +representative of the species. + +[26:4] Luke iv. 44, viii. 1; Matt. ix. 35. + +[27:1] John iii. 1, 2. + +[27:2] Matt. xxvi. 63-66. + +[27:3] Matt, xxvii. 38. + +[27:4] Matt, xxvii. 24; John xviii. 38. + +[27:5] Mark xv. 10, 15. + +[28:1] Acts ii. 23. + +[28:2] Matt. xxvi. 38; Mark xiv. 33. + +[28:3] Luke xxii. 44. + +[28:4] Matt, xxvii. 46. + +[28:5] Luke xxii. 43. + +[28:6] Luke xxiii. 44; Mark xv. 33. + +[29:1] Matt, xxvii. 51, 52. + +[29:2] Matt, xxvii. 54. + +[29:3] John x. 18. + +[29:4] Ps. xvi. 10; Acts ii. 31. + +[29:5] John ii. 19; Mark viii. 31; Luke xviii, 33. + +[29:6] John xiv. 19; 1 Thess. iv. 14. + +[29:7] Rom. i. 4; 1 Cor. xv. 14, 17; 1 Pet. i. 3; Rev. i. 18. + +[29:8] John xix. 33, 34. + +[29:9] Matt, xxvii. 60. + +[30:1] Matt, xxvii. 66. + +[30:2] Matt, xxviii. 2, 4. + +[30:3] Matt, xxviii. 11. + +[30:4] Matt, xxviii. 12, 13, 15. + +[30:5] Rev. i. 5. + +[30:6] Acts x. 40, 41. + +[30:7] John xiv. 22. + +[31:1] Acts i. 3. + +[31:2] Luke xxiv. 27. + +[31:3] Matt, xxviii. 19. + +[31:4] Luke xxiv. 50, 51. + +[32:1] John i. 10-12. + +[36:1] Isa. liii. 3. + +[36:2] John vii. 39. + +[36:3] Acts i. 15. + +[37:1] 1 Cor. xv. 6. + +[37:2] See Matt. xv. 31; John ii. 23, vii. 31, viii. 30. + +[37:3] See Joshua xv. 25. + +[37:4] Hence called Iscariot, that is, _Ish Kerioth_, or, a man of +Kerioth. See Alford, Greek Test., Matt. x. 4. + +[37:5] Acts ii. 7. + +[37:6] Compare Matt. ix. 9, 10, and Mark ii. 14, 15. + +[37:7] "As St John never mentions Bartholomew in the number of the +apostles, so the other evangelists never take notice of Nathanael, +probably because the same person under two several names; and as in +John, Philip and Nathanael are joined together in their coming to +Christ, so in the rest of the evangelists, Philip and Bartholomew are +constantly put together without the least variation."--Cave's Lives of +the Apostles. Life of Bartholomew. Compare Matt. x. 3; Acts i. 13; and +John i. 45, xxl. 2. + +[38:1] Compare Matt. x. 3, and Acts i. 13. + +[38:2] John xi. 16, xxi. 2. + +[38:3] Mark xv. 40. He was in some way related to our Lord, and hence +called His brother (Gal. i. 19). But though Mary, the mother of our +Saviour, had evidently several sons (see Matt. i. 20, 25, compared with +Matt. xiii. 55; Mark vi. 3; Matt. xii. 46, 47), they were not disciples +when the apostles wore appointed, and none of them consequently could +have been of the Twelve. (See John vii. 5). The other sons of Mary, who +must all have been younger than Jesus, seem to have been converted about +the time of the resurrection. Hence they are found among the disciples +before the day of Pentecost (Acts i. 14). + +[38:4] Mark iii. 17. + +[38:5] Matt. x. 2. + +[38:6] John i. 42. + +[38:7] Matt. x. 4; Mark iii. 18; Luke vi. 15; Acts i. 13. Some think +that _Kananites_ is equivalent to _Zelotes_, whilst others +contend that it in derived from a village called Canan. See Alford, +Greek Test., Matt. x. 4; and Greswell's; "Dissertations," vol. ii. +p. 128. Some MSS. have [Greek: Kananaios]. + +[38:8] Mark vi. 7. "Although no two of these catalogues (of the Twelve) +agree precisely in the order of the names, they may all be divided into +three quaternions, which are never interchanged, and the leading names +of which are the same in all. Thus the first is always Peter, the fifth +Philip, the ninth James the son of Alpheus, and the twelfth Judas +Iscariot. Another difference is that Matthew and Luke's Gospel gives the +names in pairs, or two and two, while Mark enumerates them singly, and +the list before us (in the Acts) follows both, these methods, one after +the other."--_Alexander on the Acts_, vol. i. p. 19. + +[39:1] Gal. i. 19. + +[39:2] Acts i. 13. See also Jude v. 1. + +[39:3] Upon this subject see the conjectures of Greswell, +"Dissertation," vol. ii. p. 120. + +[39:4] John i. 35, 40. + +[39:5] From the great minuteness of the statements in the passage, it +has been conjectured that the evangelist himself was the second of the +two disciples mentioned in John i. 35-37. + +[39:6] John iii. 30. + +[39:7] Matt. xix. 27. + +[40:1] Mark i. 20. + +[40:2] Luke xix. 2. + +[40:3] Luke xix. 2. + +[40:4] Mark ii. 15. + +[40:5] John vii. 52. + +[40:6] John xi. 16. See also v. 8. + +[41:1] John xx. 25. + +[41:2] John xx. 28. + +[41:3] Some writers have asserted that he is a different person from +James "the Lord's brother" mentioned Gal. i. 19, but the statement rests +upon no solid foundation. Compare John vii. 5; 1 Cor. xv. 7; Acts i. 14, +xv. 2, 13. See also note p. 38 [38:3] of this chapter. + +[41:4] John i. 47. + +[41:5] Mark v. 37, ix. 2; Matt. xxvi. 37. + +[41:6] Acts xii. 2, 3. "It is remarkable that, so far as we know, one of +these inseparable brothers (James and John) was the first, and one the +last, that died of the apostles."--_Alexander on the Acts_, i. 443. + +[41:7] See Greswell's "Dissertations," vol. ii. p. 115. + +[42:1] Matt. xx. 20, 21. + +[42:2] Some writers have asserted that Philip and Nathanael were learned +men, but of this there is no good evidence. See Cave's "Lives of the +Apostles," Philip and Bartholomew. + +[42:3] Greswell makes it nine months. See his "Harmonia Evangelica," p. +xxiv. xxvi. + +[42:4] Matt. x. 5, 6. + +[42:5] See Vitringa "De Synagoga Vetere," p. 577, and Mosheim's +"Commentaries," by Vidal, vol. i. 120-2, note. + +[43:1] This is the calculation of Greswell. "Harmonia Evangelica," p. +xxvi. xxxi. Robinson makes the interval considerably shorter. See his +"Harmony of the Four Gospels in Greek." + +[43:2] They received new powers at the close of their first missionary +excursion. See Luke x. 19. + +[43:3] Selden in his treatise "De Synedriis" supplies some curious +information on this subject. See lib. ii. cap. 9, Sec. 3. See also some +singular speculations respecting it in Baumgarten's "Theologischer +Commentar zum Pentateuch," i. 153, 351. Some of the fathers speak of +seventy-two disciples and of seventy-two nations _and tongues_. See +Stieren's "Irenaeus," i. p. 544, note, and Epiphanius, tom. i. p. 50, +Edit. Coloniae, 1682; compared with Greswell's "Dissertations," ii. +p. 7. + +[43:4] Gen. x. 32. + +[44:1] The following tabular view of the names of the descendants of +Shem, Ham, and Japheth, mentioned in the 10th chapter of Genesis, will +illustrate this statement:-- + + SHEM. | HAM. +Elam.Asshur.Arphaxad, Lud. Aram, |Cush, Mizraim, Phut. Canaan, + Salah, Uz, |Seba, Ludim, Sidon, + Eber, Hul, |Havilah, Anamim, Heth, + Peleg, Gether,|Sabtah, Lehabim, Jebusite, + Joktan, Mash. |Raamah, Naphtuhim, Amorite, + Almodad, |Sabtechab,Pathrusim, Girgasite, + Sheleph, |Sheba, Caslubim, Hivite, + Hazarmaveth, |Dedan, Caphtorim, Arkite, + Jerah, |Nimrod. Philistim. Sinite, + Hadoram, | Arvadite, + Uzal, | Zemarite, + Diklah, | Hamathite. + Obal, | + Abimael, | + Sheba, | + Ophir, | + Havilah, | + Jobab. | + + JAPHETH. + Gomer, Magog. Madai. Javan, Tubal. Meshech. Tiras. + Ashkenaz, Elishah, + Riphath, Tarshish, + Togarmah. Kittim, + Dodanim. + +It often happens that one branch of a family is exceedingly prolific +whilst another is barren. So it seems to have been with the descendants +of the three sons of Noah. Thus, Elam, Ashur, and others, appear each to +have founded only one nation, whilst Arphaxad and his posterity founded +eighteen. + +[45:1] Luke x. 1. + +[45:2] John iv. 39. + +[45:3] Mark vii. 24, 26, 30, 31. + +[45:4] This is the opinion of Dr Robinson. See His "Harmony." See also +Luke ix. 51, 52, x. 33. + +[45:5] Luke x. 13, 17, 18. + +[45:6] Matt. xv. 24. + +[46:1] Rev. xxi. 14. + +[46:2] It is certain that some were called apostles who were not of the +number of the Twelve. See Acts xiv. 4. In 1 Cor. xv. 5, 7, both "the +Twelve," and "all the apostles," are mentioned, and it may be that the +Seventy are included under the latter designation. Such was the opinion +of Origen--[Greek: epeita tois eterois para tous dodeka apostolois pasi, +tacha tois ebdomekoita]. "Contra Celsum," lib. ii. 65. See also "De +Recta in Deum Fide," sec. i., Opera, tom. i. p. 806. + +[46:3] Luke x. 9, 16, 19, 24. + +[46:4] Eph. ii. 20. See also Eph. iii. 5. It is evident, especially from +the latter passage, that the _prophets_ here spoken of belong to the New +Testament Church. + +[47:1] Acts xv. 6, xxi. 18. + +[47:2] 1 Pet. v. 1; 2 John v. 1; 3 John v. 1. It is remarkable that +Papias, one of the very earliest of the fathers, actually speaks of the +apostles simply as _the elders_. See Euseb. book iii. chap. 39. + +[47:3] Thus, Simon Zelotes is said to have travelled into Egypt and +thence passed into Mesopotamia and Persia, where he suffered martyrdom; +whilst, according to others, he travelled through Egypt to Mauritania +and thence to Britain, where he was crucified. See Cave's "Lives of the +Apostles," Life of Simon the Zealot. No weight can be attached to such +legends. Origen states that the Apostle Thomas laboured in Parthia, and +Andrew in Scythia. "In Genesim," Opera, tom. ii. p. 24. + +[47:4] Acts vi. 6. + +[48:1] Matt. vii. 16. + +[48:2] Acts xxvi. 16; Luke x. 2; 1 Tim. i. 12. + +[48:3] Such was Valentine, the most formidable of the Gnostic +heresiarchs, said to be a disciple of Theodas, the companion of Paul. +Clem. Alex. Strom. vii. Paul of Samosata and Arius were able to boast, +at least as much as their antagonists, of their apostolic descent. + +[49:1] 1 John iv. 1, 6. + +[49:2] 2 John 10, 11. + +[49:3] Gal. i. 8, 9. + +[50:1] Luke x. 16. + +[50:2] 2 Cor. iii. 1-3. + +[51:1] Acts i. 3. + +[51:2] Luke xxiv. 46, 47. + +[52:1] Acts ii. 41. + +[52:2] Acts ii. 44, 45. + +[53:1] See Acts iv. 34. Barnabas was probably obliged to go to Cyprus to +complete the sale. + +[53:2] Acts vi. 1. + +[54:1] Acts vi. 2, 3. + +[54:2] Acts i. 15, 23. They selected two, and not knowing which to +prefer, they decided finally by lot. + +[54:3] Acts vi. 6. + +[55:1] Acts iv. 18. + +[55:2] Acts iv. 19. + +[55:3] That is, A.D. 34, dating the crucifixion A.D. 31. Tillemont, but +on entirely different grounds, assigns the same date to the martyrdom of +Stephen. See "Memoires pour servir a L'Histoire Ecclesiastique des six +premiers siecles," tome prem. sec. par. p. 420. Stephen's martyrdom +probably occurred about the feast of Tabernacles. + +[55:4] Daniel ix. 27. A _day_ in prophetic language denotes a _year_. +Ezek. iv. 4, 5. A prophetic week, or seven days, is, therefore, +equivalent to seven years. + +[56:1] "The one week, or Passion-week, in the midst of which our Lord +was crucified A.D. 31, began with His public ministry A.D. 28, and ended +with the martyrdom of Stephen A.D. 34."--_Hales' Chronology_, ii. p. +518. Faber and others, who hold that the one week terminated with the +crucifixion, are obliged to adopt the untenable hypothesis that John the +Baptist and our Lord together preached seven years. The view here taken +is corroborated by the statement in Dan. ix. 27--"_In the midst of the +week_ he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease,"--as +Christ by one sacrifice of Himself "perfected for ever them that are +sanctified." + +[56:2] Matt, xxviii. 19. + +[57:1] Acts viii. 6, 12. + +[57:2] John iv. 9. + +[57:3] Acts viii. 1. + +[57:4] Luke xxiv. 47; Acts i. 4. + +[57:5] Acts i. 8. + +[57:6] Acts viii. 27-38. + +[57:7] Acts x. 19, 30, 32. + +[57:8] Acts x. 1. + +[58:1] Acts x. 2. + +[58:2] Acts xxi. 39. + +[58:3] Strabo, xiv. p. 673. + +[58:4] Rom. xi. 13; 1 Tim. ii. 7; 2 Tim. i. 11. + +[58:5] Matt. x. 5, 6. + +[59:1] 1 Cor. xv. 8. + +[59:2] Rom. i. 1. + +[59:3] Acts xxii. 3. + +[59:4] Acts xxii. 3. + +[59:5] Acts xxvi. 5. + +[59:6] Acts vii. 58. + +[60:1] Acts xxvi. 10. [Greek: psephon]. See Alford on Acts xxvi. 10, and +Acts viii. 1. See also "The Life and Epistles of St Paul" by Conybeare +and Howson, i. 85. Edit., London, 1852. Paul says that "all the Jews" +knew his manner of life _from his youth_--a declaration from which we +may infer that he was a person of note. See Acts xxvi. 4. There is a +tradition that he aspired to be the son-in-law of the high priest. +Epiphanius, "Ad Haer.," 1, 2, Sec. 16 and Sec. 25. + +[60:2] Acts ix. 2, and xxii. 5. + +[60:3] Acts ix. 3-21. + +[60:4] Gal. i. 17, 18. + +[60:5] This date may be established thus:--Stephen, as has been shewn, +was martyred A.D. 34. See note, p. 55 of this chapter. Paul seems to +have been converted in the same year, and therefore, if he returned to +Damascus three years afterwards, he must have been in that city in A.D. +37. It would appear, from another source of evidence, that this is the +true date. The Emperor Tiberius died A.D. 37, and Aretas immediately +afterwards seems to have obtained possession of Damascus. He was in +possession of it when Paul was now there. See 2 Cor. xi. 32, 33. It is +probable that he remained master of the place only a very short time. + +[60:6] Gal. i. 12. + +[60:7] 2 Cor. xi. 5. + +[61:1] Acts ix. 17, 18. + +[61:2] Acts xiii. 1, 2. + +[61:3] Simeon or Niger, according to Epiphanius, was one of the Seventy. +"Haeres," 20, sec. 4. Luke, the writer of the Book of the Acts, is said +to have been one of the Seventy, and some have asserted that he is the +same as Lucius of Cyrene, mentioned Acts xiii. 1. + +[61:4] Ananias, by whom he was baptized, was, according to the Greek +martyrologies, one of the Seventy. See Burton's "Lectures," i. 88, note. +It is evident that Ananias was a person of note among the Christians of +Damascus. + +[62:1] Acts ix. 23. + +[62:2] See Josephus' "Antiquities," xviii. 5. + +[62:3] See Burton's "Lectures," i. 116, 117. + +[62:4] 2 Cor. xi. 32, 33. + +[62:5] Acts ix. 26, 27. + +[62:6] This statement rests on the authority of a monk of Cyprus, named +Alexander, a comparatively late writer. See Burton's "Lectures," i. 56, +note. + +[62:7] Acts xxii. 21. + +[63:1] Acts ix. 29, 30. + +[63:2] Gal. i. 21. + +[63:3] Acts xv. 23, 41. + +[63:4] Acts xi. 25, 26. + +[64:1] Griesbach, Lachmann, Alford, and other critics of great note, +here prefer [Greek: Hellenas] to [Greek: Hellenistas], but the common +rending is better supported by the authority of manuscripts, and more in +accordance with Acts xiv. 27, where Paul and Barnabas are represented, +long afterwards, as declaring to the Church of Antioch how God "had +opened the door of faith _unto the Gentiles_." See an excellent +vindication of the _textus receptus_ in the _Journal of Sacred +Literature_ for January 1857, No. VIII., p. 285, by the Rev. W. Kay, +M.A., Principal of Bishop's College, Calcutta. + +[64:2] Acts xi. 20. + +[65:1] John xix. 19-22. + +[65:2] Acts xi. 27-30. + +[66:1] It is obvious from Acts ix. 31, xxvi. 20, and Gal. i. 22, that +such churches now existed. + +[66:2] Acts xii. 3, 24, 25. + +[66:3] Clem. Alex. Strom, vi. p. 742, note; Edit. Potter. Eusebius, +v. 18. + +[66:4] "Antiquities," xix. c. 8, Sec. 2, xx. c. 2, Sec. 5. + +[66:5] Acts xii. 20-23. + +[66:6] From the comparative table of chronology appended to Wieseler's +"Chronologie des apostolischen Zeitalters," it appears that the date +given in the text is adopted by no less than twenty of the highest +chronological authorities, including Ussher, Pearson, Spanheim, +Tillemont, Michaelis, Hug, and De Wette. It is also adopted by Burton. +Wieseler himself, apparently on insufficient grounds, adopts A.D. 45. + +[67:1] Though Peter was taught, by the case of Cornelius, that "God also +to the Gentiles had granted repentance unto life" (Acts xi. 18), and +though he doubtless felt himself a debtor, both to the Greeks and to the +Jews, yet still he continued to cherish the conviction that his mission +was, primarily to his kinsmen according to the flesh. James and John had +the same impression. See Gal. ii. 9; James i. 1; 1 Pet. i. 1. + +[68:1] Acts xii. 2. + +[68:2] Acts xxii. 17-21. + +[68:3] I here partially adopt the translation of Conybeare and Howson. +Their work is one of the most valuable contributions to sacred +literature which has appeared in the present century. + +[68:4] The Second Epistle to the Corinthians was written about fourteen +years after this, or towards the close of A.D. 57. See Chap. IX. of this +Section. The Jews often reckoned current time as if it were complete. + +[68:5] 2 Cor. xii. 2-4. + +[68:6] Exodus iii. 2-10. + +[68:7] Isaiah vi. 1, 2, 8, 9. + +[70:1] Acts xiii. 1-3. + +[70:2] Acts iv. 36. + +[71:1] Deut. xxxiii. 10. + +[72:1] Rom. i. 1. + +[73:1] Gen. xlviii. 13-15. + +[73:2] Lev. viii. 18, and iv. 4. + +[73:3] Num. xxvii. 18. + +[74:1] 1 Tim. v. 17. + +[74:2] This portion of the apostolic history may illustrate 1 Tim. iv. +14, for Paul had official authority conferred on him "by prophecy," or +in consequence of a revelation made, perhaps, through one of the +prophets of Antioch, "with the laying on of the hands of the +Presbytery." Something similar, probably, occurred in the case of +Timothy. But, in ordinary circumstances, the rulers of the Church must +judge of a divine call to the ministry from the gifts and graces of the +candidate for ordination. + +[75:1] Acts xiii. 4. + +[75:2] Acts xiii. 4. + +[75:3] Acts iv. 36. + +[75:4] Until this date we read of "Barnabas and Saul," now of "Paul and +Barnabas." Paul was the Roman, and Saul the Hebrew name of the great +apostle. His superior qualifications had now full scope for development, +and accordingly, as he takes the lead, he is henceforth, generally named +before Barnabas. + +[75:5] 2 Cor. xi. 26,--[Greek: potamon]. + +[76:1] Acts xv. 38. + +[76:2] Acts xv. 39. + +[76:3] Acts xiv. 6. + +[76:4] Acts xiv. 23. + +[76:5] [Greek: Cheirotonesantes de autois kat' ekklesian +presbuterous].--The interpretation given in the text is sanctioned by +the highest authorities. See Rothe's "Anfange der Christlichen Kirche," +p. 150; Alford on Acts xiv. 23; Burton's "Lectures," i. 150; +Baumgarten's "Acts of the Apostles," Acts xiv. 23; Litton's "Church of +Christ," p. 595. + +[76:6] Acts xiv. 27. + +[76:7] They set out on the mission probably in A.D. 44, and returned to +Antioch in A.D. 50. The Council of Jerusalem took place the year +following. + +[77:1] Acts xiii. 48. + +[77:2] Acts xiv. 13. + +[77:3] Acts xiii. 6-8. + +[77:4] Acts xiii. 50. + +[77:5] Acts xiv. 2. + +[78:1] Acts xiv. 19. + +[78:1] 2 Tim. iii. 10, 11. + +[79:1] Acts xv. 1. + +[79:2] This inference was indeed admitted. See Acts xv. 5, 24. + +[79:3] Gal. v. 2-4, vi. 13, 14. + +[79:4] Acts xvi. 31; John iii. 36. + +[80:1] Luke xxiii. 43. + +[80:2] Ps. ii. 12. + +[80:3] Acts xv. ii. + +[81:1] Acts xv. 2. + +[81:2] Acts xv. 23, 24, 41. + +[81:3] Acts xvi. 4. + +[81:4] Paul and Barnabas, with the other deputies, were sent "to +Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders" (Acts xv. 2); "when they were +come to Jerusalem, they were received of the church, and of the apostles +and elders" (Acts xv. 4); and the decrees are said to have been ordained +"of the apostles and elders which were at Jerusalem" (Acts xvi. 4); but +not one of these statements necessarily implies that these rulers were +exclusively elders _of the Church of Jerusalem_. + +[82:1] It has been argued by Burton ("Lectures," vol. i. p. 122), that +the first visit of Paul to Jerusalem after his conversion took place +about the time of one of the great festivals, as he is said, on the +occasion, to have "disputed against the Grecians" (Acts ix. 29), who +were likely then to have been very numerous in the city. If he arrived +now at the time of the same festival, the interval must have been +precisely fourteen years. + +[82:2] Gal. ii. 1. Some make these fourteen years to include the three +years mentioned Gal. i. 18, but this interpretation does violence to the +languages of the apostle. The system of chronology here adopted requires +no such forced expositions. Paul came to Jerusalem three years after his +conversion, that is, in A.D. 37; and fourteen years after, that is, in +A.D. 51, he was at this Synod. + +[82:3] Acts ix. 26. + +[83:1] Acts xxi. 20. + +[83:2] Acts xxi. 21. + +[83:3] Acts xv. 5. + +[83:4] Gal. ii. 4. It is here taken for granted that the visit to +Jerusalem, mentioned in the second chapter of the Epistle to the +Galatians, is the same as that described in the fifteenth of Acts. Paul +says that he went up "by revelation" (Gal. ii. 2),--a statement from +which it appears that he was divinely instructed to adopt this method of +settling the question. + +[83:5] Gal. ii. 12. + +[83:6] Gal. ii. 2. + +[83:7] Acts xvi. 4, xxi. 25. + +[84:1] Acts xv. 12. + +[84:2] Acts xv. 22. + +[84:3] Acts xv. 23. + +[84:4] The expression here used--"the multitude" ([Greek: to +plethos])--is repeatedly applied in the New Testament to the Sanhedrim, +a court consisting of not more than seventy-two members. See Luke +xxiii. 1; Acts xxiii. 7. There were probably more individuals present +at this meeting. + +[84:5] Acts xv. 2. + +[84:6] 1 Cor. xii. 28; Eph. iv. 11. + +[84:7] In Acts xi. 27, we read of "prophets" who came "from Jerusalem +unto Antioch." + +[84:8] Acts xv. 23. "The apostles, and elders, _and_ brethren." + +[84:9]The context may appear to be favourable to this interpretation, +for the two deputies now chosen--"Judas surnamed Barsabas, and +Silas"--who are said to have been "chief men among _the brethren_" (ver. +22), are likewise described as "_prophets_ also themselves" (ver. 32). +In Acts xviii. 27, "the brethren" appear to be distinguished from "the +disciples." + +[85:1] This reading, which is adopted by Mill in the Prolegomena to his +New Testament, as well as by Lachmann, Neander, Alford, and Tregelles, +is supported by the authority of the Codex Vaticanus, the Codex +Alexandrinus, the Codex Ephraemi, and the Codex Bezae. It is likewise to +be found in by far the most valuable cursive MS. yet known. It is +confirmed also by the early testimony of Irenaeus, and by the Latin of +the Codex Bezae, a version more ancient than the Vulgate, as well as by +the Vulgate itself. The reading in the _textus receptus_ may be +accounted for by the growth of the doctrine of apostolical succession; +as, when the hierarchy was in its glory, transcribers could not +understand how the apostles and elders could be fellow presbyters. + +[85:2] It is worthy of note that Peter, fourteen or fifteen years +afterwards, speaks in the style here indicated. Thus he says--"The +elders which are among you, I exhort, _who am also an elder_" ([Greek: +sumpresbuteros]).--(l Pet. v. 1.) + +[85:3] Acts xv. 28. + +[86:1] Gal. iii. 2. + +[86:2] Acts xv. 8-10. + +[86:3] Acts xi. 15, 17. + +[86:4] This style of speaking was used by councils in after-ages, and +often in cases when it was singularly inappropriate. + +[87:1] Acts xv. 29. + +[87:2] See 1 Cor. x. 23, 31, 32. + +[88:1] "Since the eating of such food, as Paul expressly teaches (1 Cor. +x. 19, 33), was not sinful in itself, and yet to be avoided out of +tenderness to those who thought it so, the abstinence here recommended +must be understood in the same manner."--_Alexander on the Acts,_ ii. +84. + +[89:1] Gal. ii. 12. + +[89:2] Gal. ii. 9. + +[89:3] Gal. ii. 13. + +[90:1] Acts xvi. 9. + +[90:2] Acts xvi. 12. + +[91:1] "The _Jus Italicum_ raised provincial land to the same state of +_immunity from taxation_ which belonged to land in Italy."--_Conybeare +and Howson,_ i. 302, note. + +[91:2] Not the Strymon. See Conybeare and Howson, i. 316. + +[91:3] Acts xvi. 14. + +[91:4] Acts xvi. 14. + +[92:1] Acts xvi. 16-18. + +[92:2] They may have perceptive powers of which we can form no +conception, and may thus discern the approach of particular events as +distinctly an we can now calculate the ebb and flow of the tides, or the +eclipses of the sun and moon. + +[92:3] Matt. viii. 28, 29; Mark i. 24, 25; Luke iv. 34, 35. + +[93:1] Acts xvi. 18. + +[93:2] Acts xvi. 19. + +[93:3] In some parts of the Empire magistrates and men of rank acted +gratuitously, but a large portion of the priests subsisted on the +emoluments of office. + +[94:1] Acts xvi. 24. + +[94:2] Acts xvi. 25. + +[95:1] Acts xvi. 26. + +[95:2] Acts xvi. 28. "By a singular historical coincidence, this very +city of Philippi, or its neighbourhood, had been signalised within a +hundred years, not only by the great defeat of Brutus and Cassius, but +by the suicide of both, and by a sort of wholesale self-destruction on +the part of their adherents."--Alexander on the Acts, ii. 122, 123. + +[96:1] Acts xvi. 29, 30. + +[97:1] Acts xvi. 31. + +[98:1] Acts xvi. 33, 34. + +[98:2] Acts xvi. 35. + +[98:3] Paul says that he was "free born" (Acts xxii. 28). It was +unlawful to scourge a Roman citizen, or even, except in extraordinary +cases, to imprison him without trial. He had also the privilege of +appeal to the Emperor. + +[98:4] Acts xvi. 37. + +[99:1] Acts xvi. 39. + +[99:2] Acts xvi. 40. + +[99:3] Phil. iv. 14-16. + +[100:1] Acts xvii. 4. + +[100:2] Acts xvii. 7. + +[100:3] Acts xvii. 8. [Greek: etaraxan--tous politarchas]. It has been +remarked that the name here given to the magistrates (politarchs), does +not occur in ancient literature; but it is a curious and important fact +that a Greek inscription, on an arch still to be seen at this place, +demonstrates the accuracy of the sacred historian. This arch supplies +evidence that it was erected about the time when the Republic was +passing into the Empire, and that it was in existence when Paul now +preached there. It appears from it that the magistrates of Thessalonica +were called politarchs, and that they were seven in number. What is +almost equally striking is that three of the names in the inscription +are Sopater, Gaius, and Secundus, the same as those of three of Paul's +friends in this district. Conybeare and Howson, i. 360. + +[101:1] Acts xvii. 11. + +[102:1] Acts xvii. 16. + +[102:2] Acts xvii. 17. + +[102:3] See Conybeare and Howson, i. 241. + +[102:4] See Alford on Acts xiii. 9, and xxiii. 1. + +[102:5] 2 Cor. x. 10. + +[102:6] 2 Cor. x. 10. + +[102:7] Acts xvii. 18. + +[103:1] [Greek: Adikei Sokrates--etera de kaina daimonia +eispheron.]--_Xen. Mem._ i. 1. + +[103:2] Acts xvii. 19, 20. It is very evident that he was not arraigned +before the court of Areopagus as our English translation seems to +indicate. + +[104:1] Acts xvii. 22, 23. This translation obviously conveys the +meaning of the original more distinctly than our English version. See +Alford, ii. 178; and Conybeare and Howson, i. 406. + +[104:2] It is a curious fact that the impostor Apollonius of Tyana, who +was the contemporary of the apostle, speaks of Athens as a place "where +altars are raised _to the unknown Gods_." "Life," by Philostratus, book +vi. c. 3. See also Pausanias, Attic, i. 4. + +[105:1] See Cudworth's "Intellectual System, with Notes by Mosheim," i. +513, 111. Edition, London, 1845. + +[105:2] See Mosheim's "Commentaries on the Affairs of the Christians +before Constantine," by Vidal, i. 42. + +[105:3] Acts xvii. 24. + +[105:4] See Alford on Acts xvii. 26. + +[105:5] Acts xvii. 26. + +[105:6] Acts xvii. 25, 26. + +[106:1] Acts xvii. 29. + +[106:2] Acts xvii. 31. + +[106:3] Cudworth, with Notes by Mosheim, ii. 120, and Mosheim's +"Commentaries," by Vidal, i. 42. + +[106:4] Acts xvii. 32. + +[106:5] Acts xvii. 21. + +[107:1] Acts xvii. 34. + +[107:2] These writings, which made their appearance not earlier than the +fourth or fifth century, were held in great reputation, particularly by +the Mystics, in the Middle Ages. + +[107:3] Burton's "Lectures," i. 183. + +[108:1] 1 Cor. ii. 1, 2, 4, 5. + +[109:1] Strabo, lib. viii. vol. i., p. 549; Edit. Oxon. 1807. + +[109:2] Acts xviii. 6. + +[109:3] Acts xviii. 8. + +[109:4] 1 Cor. i. 26. + +[109:5] Rom. xvi. 23. This epistle was written from Corinth. + +[109:6] Acts xviii. 8. + +[109:7] 1 Cor. i. 14; Rom. xvi. 23. + +[109:8] Acts xviii. 2, 26; Rom. xvi. 3; 1 Cor. xvi. 19; 2 Tim. iv. 19. + +[110:1] Acts xviii. 2. + +[110:2] "Rabbi Judah saith, 'He that teacheth not his son a trade, doth +the same as if he taught him to be a thief;' and Rabban Gamaliel saith, +'He that hath a trade in his hand, to what is he like? He is like a +vineyard that is fenced.'"--See _Alford on Acts_, xviii. 3. + +[110:3] Acts xviii. 3. + +[111:1] Epiphanius, "Haer.," xxx. 16. + +[111:2] Acts xviii. 11. + +[112:1] Acts xviii. 9, 10. + +[112:2] See 1 Cor. i. 11, and xi. 20, 21; and 2 Cor. xii. 21, and +xiii. 2. + +[112:3] See 1 Cor. vi. 9-11. + +[112:4] Acts xviii. 12. + +[112:5] Acts xviii. 13. + +[113:1] Acts xviii. 14-16. + +[113:2] Acts xviii. 17. + +[113:3] 1 Thess. v. 12, 13. + +[113:4] 2 Thess. ii. 2. + +[113:5] 2 Thess. ii. 3-12. + +[113:6] 1 Thess. i. 9. + +[114:1] [Greek: Tas paradoseis]. + +[114:2] 2 Thess. ii. 15. Paul is here speaking, not of what had been +handed down from preceding generations, but of what had been established +by his own apostolic authority, so that the rendering "traditions" in +our English version is a peculiarly unhappy translation. + +[115:1] Acts xviii. 18. + +[115:2] See Conybeare and Howson, i. 454. + +[115:3] Acts xviii. 19. + +[116:1] Acts xviii. 24. + +[116:2] Acts xviii. 25. + +[116:3] Acts xviii. 26. + +[116:4] It is worthy of note that she is named before Aquila in Acts +xviii. 18; Rom. xvi. 3; and 2 Tim. iv. 19. + +[116:5] 1 Cor. xiv. 34, 35; 1 Tim. ii. 12. + +[117:1] Acts xviii. 24. + +[117:2] Acts xviii. 27. + +[117:3] Acts xviii. 27, 28. + +[117:4] 1 Cor. iii. 4-6. + +[118:1] Acts xviii. 22. + +[118:2] Acts xviii. 23. + +[118:3] Acts xvi. 6. + +[118:4] Acts xix. 8. + +[118:5] Acts xix. 9. + +[119:1] That this epistle was written after the second visit appears +from Gal. iv. 13. Mr Ellicott asserts that "the first time" is here the +preferable translation of [Greek: to proteron], and yet, rather +inconsistently, adds, that "no historical conclusions can safely be +drawn from this expression alone." See his "Critical and Grammatical +Commentary on Galatians," iv. 13. + +[119:2] Gal. i. 6, iii. 1. + +[120:1] Gal. ii. 16, iv. 1-4, v. 1. + +[120:2] 1 Cor. xvi. 7; 2 Cor. xii. 14, xiii. 1. + +[120:3] The Acts take no notice of various parts of his early career as +a preacher. Compare Acts ix. 20-26 with Gal. i. 17. + +[120:4] 2 Cor. xi. 25. + +[120:5] 2 Cor. xi. 26. + +[120:6] Titus i. 5. + +[120:7] See Titus i. 6-11, ii. 1, 7, 8, 15, iii. 8-11. The reasons +assigned in support of a later date for the writing of this epistle do +not appear at all satisfactory. Paul directs the evangelist (Titus iii. +12) to come to him to Nicopolis, for he had "determined there to +winter." This Nicopolis was in Greece, in the province of Achaia, and we +know that Paul wintered there in A.D. 57-58. Acts xx. 2, 3. See Schaff's +"Apostolic Church," i. 390. + +[120:8] 2 Cor. ii. 13, vii. 6, 13, viii. 6, 16, 23, xii. 18; Gal. ii. +1, 3. + +[121:1] Acts xix. 10. + +[121:2] See Col. iv. 13, 15, 16. These churches were not, however, +founded by Paul. See Col. ii. 1. + +[121:3] "This was the largest of the Greek temples. The area of the +Parthenon at Athens was _not one fourth_ of that of the temple of +Ephesus."--_Smith's Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography, Art._ +EPHESUS. + +[121:4] Conybeare and Howson, ii. 72. + +[121:5] Acts xix. 35. + +[122:1] Conybeare and Howson, ii. 73. Minucius Felix in his Octavius +speaks of Diana as represented "at Ephesus with many distended breasts +ranged in tiers." + +[122:2] Conybeare and Howson, ii. 13. + +[122:3] His Life, written by Philostratus about A.D. 210, is full of +lying wonders. His biographer mentions his visit to Ephesus, book iv. 1. + +[123:1] Acts xix. 11, 12. + +[123:2] Acts xix. 16, 17. + +[123:3] The piece of silver here mentioned was worth about tenpence, so +that the estimated value of the books burned was about L2000. + +[123:4] Acts xix. 19, 20. + +[123:5] It was written not long before Paul left Ephesus, and probably +about the time of the Passover. 1 Cor. v. 7, xvi. 5-8. + +[123:6] 1 Cor. i. 11. + +[123:7] 1 Cor. v. 1. + +[123:8] 1 Cor. xv. 12. This passage supplies evidence that errorists +very soon made their appearance in the Christian Church, and furnishes +an answer to those chronologists who date all the Pastoral Epistles +after Paul's release from his first imprisonment, on the ground that the +Gnostics had no existence at an earlier period. + +[124:1] Acts xix. 24. + +[124:2] Conybeare and Howson, ii. 74. + +[124:3] Acts xix. 25. + +[125:1] Acts xix. 25-27. + +[125:2] Acts xix. 28. + +[125:3] See Conybeare and Howson, ii. 79-81. + +[125:4] Acts xix. 29. + +[125:5] See Hackett's "Commentary on the Acts of the Apostles," p. 273. + +[125:6] Acts xix. 31. + +[126:1] Acts xx. 34. The Asiarchs "derived their title from the name of +the province, as the corresponding officers in Cyprus, Syria, and Lydia, +were called Cypriarchs, Syriarchs, Lydiarchs. Those of Asia are said to +have been ten in number.... As the games and sacrifices over which these +Asiarchs presided, were provided at their own expense, they were always +chosen from the richest class, and may be said to represent the highest +rank of the community."--_Alexander on the Acts_, ii. 210. + +[126:2] 2 Tim. iv. 14. + +[126:3] Acts xix. 34. It has been observed that, according to the ideas +of the heathen, this unintermitted cry was, in itself, _an act of +worship_; and hence we may understand why it was so long continued, but +it is surely a notable example of "vain repetitions." See Hackett, p. +275. + +[127:1] Acts xix. 40. + +[127:2] Acts xix. 32. + +[127:3] Our English version "robbers of _churches_" is obviously +incorrect. + +[127:4] Acts xix. 37. It is plain from this passage that the apostle, +when referring to the Gentile worship, avoided the use of language +calculated to give unnecessary offence. + +[128:1] 1 Cor. xvi. 8. + +[128:2] Acts xx. 1. + +[128:3] Rom. xv. 19. + +[128:4] See Acts xix. 22. + +[128:5] 1 Tim. i. 3. + +[128:6] 1 Tim. i. 2. + +[129:1] According to the chronology adopted in our English Bible, all +the Pastoral Epistles were written after Paul's release from his first +imprisonment, and this theory has recently been strenuously advocated by +Conybeare and Howson, Alford, and Ellicott; but their reasonings are +exceedingly unsatisfactory. For, I. The statement of Conybeare and +Howson that "the three epistles were nearly contemporaneous with each +other" is a mere assertion resting on no solid foundation; as +resemblance in style, especially when all the letters were dictated by +the same individual, can be no evidence as to date. II. There is direct +evidence that heresies, such as those described in these epistles, +existed in the Church long before Paul's first imprisonment. See 1 Cor. +iii. 18, 19, xv. 12; 2 Cor. xi. 4, 13, 14, 15, 22, compared with 1 Tim. +i. 3, 7. III. The early Churches were very soon organised, as appears +from Acts xiv. 23; 1 Thess. v. 12, 13; so that the state of +ecclesiastical organisation described in the First Epistle to Timothy +and the Epistle to Titus is no proof of the late date of these letters. +IV. But the grand argument in support of the early date, and one with +which the advocates of the later chronology have never fairly grappled, +is derived from the fact that Paul never was in Ephesus after the time +mentioned in Acts xx. When he wrote to Timothy he intended shortly to +return thither. See 1 Tim. i. 3, iii. 14, 15. It is evident that when +the apostle addressed the elders of Ephesus (Acts xx. 25) and told them +they should "see his face no more," he considered himself as speaking +prophetically. It is clear, too, that his words were so understood by +his auditors (Acts xx. 38), and that the evangelist, who wrote them down +several years afterwards, was still under the same impression. I agree, +therefore, with Wieseler, and others, in assigning an early date to the +First Epistle to Timothy and the Epistle to Titus. + +[130:1] 2 Cor. xi. 9, 24-28, 32, 33, xii. 2, 7-9. The Second Epistle to +the Corinthians was written late in A.D. 57. + +[130:2] 2 Cor. ii. 4. + +[130:3] [Greek: eis ten Hellada], _i.e._, Achaia. + +[130:4] Acts xx. 2, 3. + +[130:5] Rom. xvi. 1, 2, 23. + +[130:6] Rom. i. 8. + +[130:7] Rom. xvi. 7, 11. + +[130:8] Rom. xvi. 3. + +[130:9] Acts xix. 21; Rom. i. 10, 11, xv. 23, 24. + +[131:1] Acts xx. 3. + +[131:2] Acts xx. 6. + +[131:3] Acts xx. 6. + +[131:4] Acts xx. 17-35. + +[131:5] Acts xx. 36-38. + +[131:6] Acts xxi. 8. + +[131:7] Acts xx. 23, xxi. 10, 11. + +[131:8] [Greek: hepiskeuaramenoi]--the reading adopted by Lachmann and +others. The word "carriages" used in the authorised version for baggage, +or luggage, is now unintelligible to the English reader. The word +"carriage" is also used in our translation in Judges xviii. 21, and 1 +Sam. xvii. 22, for something to be carried. + +[131:9] Acts xxi. 15. + +[132:1] Acts ii. 45. + +[132:2] Rom. xv. 26. + +[132:3] 1 Cor. xvi. 3; 2 Cor. viii. 19. + +[132:4] Acts xx. 4. + +[133:1] Prov. xviii. 10. + +[133:2] Acts xxi. 17. + +[133:3] Acts xxi. 24. + +[133:4] "It was customary among the Jews for those who had received +deliverance from any great peril, or who from other causes desired +publicly to testify their dedication to God, to take upon themselves the +vow of a Nazarite.... No rule is laid down (Numb. vi.) as to the time +during which this life of ascetic rigour was to continue; but we learn +from the Talmud and Josephus that thirty days was at least a customary +period. During this time the Nazarite was bound to abstain from wine, +and to suffer his hair to grow uncut. At the termination of the period, +he was bound to present himself in the temple, with certain offerings, +and his hair was then cut off and burnt upon the altar. The offerings +required were beyond the means of the very poor, and consequently it was +thought an act of piety for a rich man to pay the necessary expenses, +and thus enable his poorer countrymen to complete their vow." +--_Conybeare and Howson_, ii. 250, 251. + +[133:5] Acts xxi. 26. + +[134:1] Acts xxi. 29. + +[134:2] Acts xxi. 30. + +[134:3] Acts xxi. 30. + +[134:4] Acts xxiii. 26. + +[134:5] Acts xxi. 32. + +[134:6] Acts xxi. 33, 34. There were barracks in the tower of Antonia. + +[135:1] Acts xxi. 38. "_Assassins_ is in the original a Greek inflection +of the Latin word _Sicarii_, so called from _Sica_, a short sword or +dagger, and described by Josephus as a kind of robbers who concealed +short swords beneath their garments, and infested Judea in the period +preceding the destruction of Jerusalem."--_Alexander on the Acts_, ii. +289. + +[135:2] Acts xxii. 2. + +[135:3] Acts xxii. 22-24. + +[136:1] Acts xxiii. 6. + +[136:2] Acts xxiii. 7. + +[136:3] Acts xxiii. 10. + +[136:4] Acts xxiii. 12, 21. + +[136:5] Acts xxiii. 16, 23, 30. + +[136:6] "Per omnem saevitiam ac libidinem jus regium servili ingenio +exercuit."--_Hist_. v. 9. + +[136:7] Josephus' "Antiq." xx. c. 7. Sec. 1,2. + +[137:1] Acts xxiv. 25. + +[137:2] Acts xxiv. 27. + +[137:3] See some account of him in Josephus' "Antiq," xx. c. 8, Sec.. 9, 10. + +[138:1] Acts. xxv. 11. + +[138:2] Acts xxv. 12. + +[138:3] Acts xxv. 13. Festus appears to have been Procurator from the +beginning of the autumn of A.D. 60 to the summer of A.D. 62. Felix was +recalled A.D. 60. See Conybeare and Howson, Appendix ii. note (C). + +[139:1] Josephus' "Wars," ii. c. 12, Sec. 8; "Antiq." xx. c. 5, Sec. 2. + +[139:2] Acts xxv. 23. + +[139:3] Acts xxvi. 6. + +[140:1] Acts xxvi. 22. + +[140:2] Acts xxvi. 24. + +[140:3] Acts xxvi. 27. + +[140:4] Acts xxvi. 28. Some would translate [Greek: en oligo] "in +short," instead of "almost." + +[140:5] Acts xxvi. 29. + +[141:1] Acts xxvi. 30-32. + +[141:2] Eph. vi. 22; Phil. ii. 1, 2; Col. i. 24, iv. 8; Philem. 7, +compared with 2 Cor i. 3, 4. + +[141:3] Acts ix. 15, 16. + +[142:1] Acts xxvii. 20. This part of the history of the apostle has been +illustrated with singular ability by James Smith, Esq. of Jordanhill in +his "Voyage and Shipwreck of St Paul." + +[142:2] Acts xxvii. 5, 6. + +[142:3] Acts xxviii. 1. That Melita is Malta has been conclusively +established by Smith in his "Voyage and Shipwreck of St Paul." +"Dissertation," ii. + +[142:4] Acts xxviii. 11. "With regard to the dimensions of the ships of +the ancients, some of them must have been quite equal to the largest +merchantman of the present day. The ship of St Paul had, in passengers +and crew, 276 persons on board, besides her cargo of wheat, and as they +were carried on by another ship of the same class, she must also have +been of great size. The ship in which Josephus was wrecked contained 600 +people."--Smith's _Voyage and Shipwreck of St Paul_, p. 147. + +[143:1] Acts xxviii. 13. + +[143:2] Acts xxvii. 17. + +[143:3] Acts xxvii. 29. "The ancient vessels did not carry, in general, +so large anchors as those which we employ; and hence they had often a +greater number of them. Athenaeus mentions a ship which had eight iron +anchors." Hackett, p. 372. + +[143:4] Acts xxvii. 27. + +[143:5] "When the _Lively_, frigate, unexpectedly fell in with this very +point, the quarter-master on the look-out, who first observed it, +states, in his evidence at the court-martial, that, _at the distance of +a quarter of a mile_ the land could not be seen."--Smith's _Voyage and +Shipwreck of St Paul_, pp. 89, 90. + +[144:1] Hackett, p. 371. + +[144:2] Acts xxvii. 28. + +[144:3] Conybeare and Howson, ii. 351. + +[144:4] Acts xxvii. 39. + +[144:5] Acts xxvii 41. + +[144:6] Smith's "Voyage and Shipwreck of St Paul," p. 102. + +[144:7] Smith's "Voyage and Shipwreck of St Paul," p. 92. + +[144:8] Acts xxvii. 41. + +[145:1] Smith's "Voyage and Shipwreck of St Paul," p. 104. + +[145:2] Conybeare and Howson make the population more than 2,000,000 +(ii. 376). Merivale reduces it to something less than 700,000 (iv. 520). +In Smith's "Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography" it is stated as +upwards of 2,000,000. Greswell makes it about 1,000,000 +("Dissertations," iv. 46). Dean Milman reckons it from 1,000,000 to +1,500,000 ("History of Latin Christianity," i. 23). + +[145:3] Merivale, iv. 391. + +[145:4] Rev. xvii. 1. + +[146:1] Merivale, iv. 412. + +[146:2] Merivale, iv. 414-420. + +[146:3] Rev. xviii. 11. + +[146:4] Acts xxviii. 14. + +[147:1] Acts xxviii. 14. + +[147:2] Acts xxviii. 15. + +[147:3] Acts xxviii. 15. + +[147:4] Called in our English version "the captain of the guard." The +celebrated Burrus was at this time (A.D. 61) the Praetorian Prefect. +Wieseler, p. 393. See also Greswell's "Dissertations," iv. p. 199. + +[147:5] Acts xxviii. 16. + +[148:1] Acts xxviii. 17. + +[148:2] Acts xxviii. 23. + +[148:3] Acts xxviii. 24. + +[148:4] Acts xxviii. 31. + +[148:5] Conybeare and Howson, ii. 296. + +[149:1] Philem. 9. + +[149:2] 2 Cor. x. 10. + +[149:3] See Conybeare and Howson, ii. 428. + +[149:4] Phil. ii. 25; Philem. 2. + +[149:5] Eph. vi. 13, 14, 16, 17. + +[149:6] Phil. iv. 3. When speaking of a "_true_ yoke-fellow," he may +here refer to the way in which he was himself unequally yoked. + +[149:7] See Acts xxvi. 1, 29. + +[149:8] Eph. iv. 1. + +[150:1] [Greek: en olo to praitorio]--"We never find the word employed +for the Imperial house at Rome; and we believe the truer view to +be--that it denotes here, not the palace itself, but the quarters of +that part of the Imperial guards which was in immediate attendance on +the Emperor."-_Conybeare and Howson_, ii. 428. + +[150:2] Phil. i. 12-14. + +[150:3] Philem. 18, 19. + +[150:4] Col. iv. 7. + +[150:5] Col. ii. 8, 16, 18, 23. + +[150:6] Eph. vi. 21, 22. + +[151:1] Eph. i. 1. + +[151:2] Col. iv. 16. + +[151:3] Phil. i. 3-7. + +[152:1] Phil. ii. 24; Philem. 22. + +[152:2] Phil. i. 23-25. + +[152:3] Rom. xv. 24, 28. + +[153:1] [Greek: epi to terma tes duseos]--Epist. to the Corinthians v. +Clement in the same place mentions that Paul was seven times in bonds. +See also Greswell, "Dissertations," vol. iv. p. 225-228. + +[153:2] See Cave's "Fathers," i. 147. Oxford, 1840. + +[153:3] [Greek: ton phelonen]. Some think that he wished for the cloak +to protect him against the cold of winter. See 2 Tim. iv. 21. + +[153:4] In the "Life of St Columba" by Adamnan (Dublin, 1857), the +learned editor, Dr Reeves, has given an interesting account of an +ancient leather book-case in his own possession. See "Life of St +Columba," p. 115. If Paul referred to a case, it was probably to one of +a larger description. + +[153:5] 2 Tim. iv. 13. It is probable that, in the anticipation of his +death, he wished to give the documents as a legacy to some of his +friends. Among them may have been Scripture autographs. + +[153:6] 2 Tim. iv. 20. [Greek: apelipon]. The translation "_they_ left," +instead of "_I_ left," is given up even by Dr Davidson, though he +rejects the idea of a second imprisonment. See his "Introduction to the +New Testament," iii. 53. + +[153:7] Miletum, or Miletus, in Crete, is mentioned by Homer. "Iliad," +ii. 647. + +[154:1] Acts xii. 6-9. + +[154:2] Heb. xiii. 23, 24. In this epistle he apparently refers to his +late imprisonment. Heb. x. 34, but the reading of the _textus receptus_ +is here rejected by many of our highest critical authorities, such as +Griesbach, Lachmann, Tischendorf, and Scholz. Respecting the second +imprisonment, see also Eusebius, ii. c. 22. + +[155:1] 2 Tim. iv. 20. + +[155:2] Phil. ii. 24. + +[155:3] 2 Tim. iv. 13. + +[155:4] Philem. 22. + +[155:5] Heb. xiii. 23. + +[155:6] 2 Tim. iv. 20. + +[155:7] 2 Tim. iv. 16, ii. 9. + +[155:8] This may refer to some powerful defence of Christianity which he +had made before the Gentile tribunal of Nero. + +[155:9] 2 Tim. iv. 16, 17. + +[156:1] 2 Tim. iv. 6-8. + +[156:2] "Euseb. Hist." ii. 25. + +[156:3] Euseb. ii. 25. See the Note of Valesius on the words [Greek: +katha ton auton kairon]. See also Davidson's "Introduction to the New +Testament," iii. 361. + +[156:4] 2 Tim. iv. 11. + +[156:5] Tertullian "De Praescrip," c. 36. Euseb. ii. 25. See also +Lactantius, or the work ascribed to him, "De Mort. Persecutorum," c. 2. + +[156:6] According to Gregory Nazianzen, Judea was the sphere of Peter. +"Oratio." 25, tom. i. 438. If so, Paul when visiting Jerusalem was +likely to meet with him. + +[157:1] 1 Pet. v. 13. + +[157:2] Rev. xvii. 5, xviii. 2, 10, 21. + +[157:3] Euseb. ii. 15. + +[157:4] 1 Pet. iv. 12. + +[157:5] 2 Tim. iv. 11. + +[157:6] 1 Pet. v. 13. + +[157:7] 1 Pet. v. 12. + +[157:8] Acts xv. 40, xvi. 19, 25, xvii. 4, 10, xviii. 5; 1 Thess. i. 1; +2 Thess. i. 1. + +[158:1] 1 Pet. v. 12. + +[158:2] The Jews at this time were wont to call Rome by the name of +Babylon. It was not, therefore, strange that Peter, being a Jew, used +this phraseology. See Wordsworth's "Lectures on the Apocalypse," p. 345, +and the authorities there quoted. + +[158:3] 2 Pet. i. 12, iii. 1. + +[158:4] These words apparently suggest that the preceding letter was +written not long before. + +[159:1] 2 Pet. i. 13. 14. + +[159:2] Gal. iv. 17, 21, vi. 12; Col. ii. 16-18. + +[159:3] 1 Pet. i. 1. + +[159:4] 2 Pet. iii. 16. + +[159:5] As Heb. vi. 4-6, vii. 1-3, ix. 17. + +[160:1] 2 Pet. iii. 16. + +[160:2] Euseb. iii. 1. + +[160:3] Euseb. iii. 1. + +[160:4] Prudentius, "Peristeph. in Pass. Petr. et Paul." Hymn xii. +Augustine, serm. 28. "De Sanctis." The testimony of earlier witnesses +represents them as dying "_about_ the same time." See Euseb. ii. c. 25. + +[161:1] Phil. iv. 22. + +[161:2] Caius, a Roman presbyter who flourished about the beginning of +the third century, refers to the Vatican and the Ostian Way as the +places where they suffered. Routh's "Reliquiae," ii. p. 127. + +[162:1] Hab. ii. 3. + +[163:1] John i. 11. + +[163:2] John xix. 15. + +[163:3] Acts iv. 3, v. 18. + +[164:1] Acts xii. 2, 3. + +[164:2] See Acts xvii. 5, xviii. 12. + +[165:1] Acts xviii. 2. Suetonius in Claud. (c. 25), says--"Judaeos +impulsore Chresto assidue tumultuantes Roma expulit." The words Christus +and Chrestus seem to have been often confounded, and it has been thought +that the historian here refers to some riotous proceedings among the +Jews in Rome arising out of discussions relative to Christianity. These +disturbances took place about A.D. 53. It is remarkable that even in the +beginning of the third century the Christians were sometimes called +_Chrestiani_. Hence Tertullian says--"Sed et cum perperam Chrestianus +pronunciatur a vobis, nam nec nominis certa est notitia penes vos, de +suavitate vel benignitate compositum est." "Apol." c. iii. See also +"Ad Nationes," lib. i. c. 3. + +[165:2] See Greswell's "Dissertations," iv. p. 233. + +[165:3] Eusebius, ii. 23. + +[166:1] "Certi enim esse debemus, si quos latet per ignorantiam +literature secularis, etiam ostiorum deos apud Romanos, Cardeam a +cardinibus appellatam, et Forculum a foribus, et Limentinum a limine, et +ipsum Janum a janua." Tertullian, "De Idololatria," c. 15. See also the +same writer "Ad Nationes," ii. c. 10, 15; and "De Corona," 13. + +[166:2] 2 Tim. iii. 12. Cyprian touches upon the same subject in his +Treatise on the "Vanity of Idols," c. 2. + +[167:1] The Christians were familiar with the idea of the conflagration +of the world, and there is much plausibility in the conjecture that, as +they gazed on the burning city, they may have given utterance to +expressions which were misunderstood, and which awakened suspicion. +"Some," says Dean Milman, "in the first instance, apprehended and +examined, may have made acknowledgments before a passionate and +astonished tribunal, which would lead to the conclusion that, in the +hour of general destruction, they had some trust, some security, denied +to the rest of mankind; and this exemption from common misery, if it +would not mark them out in some dark manner, as the authors of the +conflagration, at all events would convict them of that hatred of the +human race so often advanced against the Jews."--_Milman's History of +Christianity,_ ii. 37, 38. + +[167:2] Tacitus, "Annal." xv. 44. + +[167:3] Heb. xii. 4. + +[167:4] Heb. x. 25. + +[168:1] 1 Pet. iv. 12. + +[168:2] 1 Pet. iv. 17. + +[168:3] Tertullian, "Ad Nationes," i. 7. + +[168:4] See "De Mortibus Persecutorum," c. 2, and Sulpitius Severus, +lib. ii. p. 139; Edit. Leyden, 1635. + +[168:5] Dan. ix. 27. + +[169:1] Matt. xxiv. 2, 15, 16, 34; Mark xiii. 2, 14, 30; Luke xxi. 6, +20, 21, 24, 32. + +[169:2] See Euseb. iii. 31. + +[169:3] Acts xvii. 7. + +[169:4] Euseb. iii. 20. + +[169:5] Matt. xiii. 55. See Greswell's "Dissertations," ii. 114, 121, +122. + +[170:1] Matt, xxvii. 57; Mark xv. 43. + +[170:2] Acts xiii. 7. + +[170:3] Phil. iv. 22. + +[170:4] Dio Cassius, lxvii. 14. + +[170:5] Euseb. iii. 18. + +[171:1] Rev. i. 9. + +[171:2] Tertullian, "De Praescrip. Haeret." c. 36. + +[171:3] See Mosheim, Cent. i. part i. ch. 5. + +[171:4] According to Baronius ("Annal." ad. an. 92, 98) John was six +years in Patmos, or from A.D. 92 to A.D. 98. Other writers think that he +was set at liberty some time before the death of Domitian, or about A.D. +95. According to this reckoning, had he been six years in exile, he must +have been banished A.D. 89. This conclusion derives some countenance +from the "Chronicon" of Eusebius, which represents the tyrant in the +eighth and ninth years of his reign, or about A.D. 89, as proscribing +and putting to death very many of his subjects. If the visions of the +Apocalypse were vouchsafed to John in A.D. 89, the interval between +their revelation and the establishment of the Pope as a temporal prince +is found to be 755-89, or exactly 666 years. See Rev. xiii. 18. There is +another very curious coincidence in this case; for the interval between +the fall of the Western Empire, and the establishment of the Bishop of +Rome as a temporal prince, is 755-476=279 complete, or 280 current +years, that is, 40 prophetic weeks. But it so happens that the period of +human gestation is 40 weeks, and this would lead to the inference that +the Man of Sin was conceived as soon as the Western Empire fell. See 2 +Thess. ii. 7, 8. I am not aware that these remarkable coincidences have +yet been noticed, and I therefore submit them to the consideration of +the students of prophecy. + +[172:1] See Burton's "Lectures," i. 361. + +[172:2] 2 John 1; 3 John 1. + +[172:3] 1 Pet. v. 1; Philem. 1. + +[172:4] Acts xx. 28. + +[172:5] Mark iii. 17. + +[172:6] Jerome, "Comment. on Galatians," vi. 10. + +[172:7] See Vitringa, "Observationes Sacrae," lib. iv. c. 7, 8. + +[173:1] Rev. iii. 16. + +[173:2] Rev. iii. 2. + +[173:3] Rev. ii. 5. + +[173:4] Claudia, the wife of Pudens, supposed to be mentioned 2 Tim. iv. +21, is said to have been a Briton by birth. See Fuller's "Church History +of Britain," vol. i. p. 11; Edit. London, 1837. + +[173:5] Euseb. ii. 16. + +[173:6] Acts ii. 10. + +[174:1] Acts ii. 9, 11. + +[174:2] See in Cave's "Fathers," Bartholomew, Matthew, and Thomas. + +[175:1] 1 Cor. vi. 9-11. + +[175:2] Prov. xviii. 24. + +[177:1] John xiv. 26. + +[177:2] John xvi. 13. + +[177:3] See Irenaeus, "Adv. Haeres.," iii. 1; and Euseb. vi. 14. + +[177:4] It is probable that these three Gospels were written nearly at +the same time. When Luke wrote, he does not seem to have been aware of +the existence of any other Gospel. See Luke i. 4. + +[177:5] Origen, "Dial, de Recta in Deum Fide," sec. i. tom. i. p. 806; +Edit. Delarue. Paris, 1733. See Whitby's "Preface to Luke." There is +good reason to believe that the "young man" mentioned Mark xiv. 51, 52, +was no other than Mark himself (Davidson's "Introduction to the New +Testament," i. 139); and if so, we have thus additional evidence that +the evangelist had enjoyed the advantages of our Lord's ministry. He has +always been reputed the founder of the Church of Alexandria, and the +testimony of Origen to the fact that he was one of the Seventy is +therefore of special value; as the Alexandrian presbyter was, no doubt, +well acquainted with the traditions of the Church of the Egyptian +metropolis. + +[178:1] Acts i. 21. + +[178:2] Luke i. 2. + +[178:3] Matt. ix. 9, x. 3. + +[178:4] Mark xiv. 71. + +[178:5] Luke xxiv. 25. + +[178:6] John xxi. 23. + +[178:7] Matt. xxviii. 19. + +[179:1] Mark ix. 15. + +[179:2] Luke x. 1. + +[179:3] John xiv., xv., xvi., xvii. + +[179:4] See Horne's "Introduction," ii. 173. Sixth Edition. + +[180:1] See Baumgarten on Acts, vii., viii., ix., xiii. + +[180:2] Period i. sec. i. chap. 7, 8, 9. + +[180:3] Horne, iv. 359. + +[181:1] See Wordsworth "On the Canon," Lectures viii. ix. + +[181:2] Prov. xxx. 5. + +[181:3] This designation is not found in the most ancient manuscripts. +Thus, in the very ancient "Recension of the Four Gospels in Syriac," +recently edited by Dr Cureton, we have simply--"Gospel of Mark"--"Gospel +of John," &c. See p. 6, Preface. See also any ordinary edition of the +Greek Testament. + +[181:4] Horne, ii. 174. + +[182:1] Titus iii. 12. + +[182:2] Some, however, assign to it a much earlier date. See Davidson's +"Introduction to the New Testament," iii. 320. + +[182:3] See Period i. sec. i. chap. 10, p. 158. + +[182:4] See Wordsworth "On the Canon," p. 273. + +[182:5] See Davidson's "Introduction," iii. 464, 491. + +[182:6] Irenaeus, v. 30. Euseb. iii. 18. + +[182:7] See Wordsworth "On the Canon," p. 157, 160, 249. + +[182:8] Justin Martyr, ap. i. 67. + +[182:9] 2 Pet. iii. 16 + +[183:1] Wordsworth "On the Canon," p. 205. + +[183:2] "The allusions to the Epistle to the Hebrews are so numerous +that it is not too much to say that it was wholly transfused into +Clement's mind."--_Westcott on the Canon_, p. 32. See also Euseb. iii. +38. + +[183:3] Wordsworth "On the Canon," p. 249. + +[183:4] "The word ([Greek: graphe]) translated _Scripture_, which +properly means simply _a writing_, occurs fifty times in the New +Testament; and in all these fifty places, it is applied to the writings +of the Old and New Testament, and _to no other_."--Wordsworth, p. 185, +186. + +[183:5] Wordsworth, p. 249, 250. + +[184:1] See Davidson's "Introduction," iii. 540-550. + +[184:2] See Horne's "Introduction," ii. 168. The author of the present +division into chapters is said to have been Hugo de Sancto Caro, a +learned writer who flourished about the middle of the thirteenth +century. The New Testament was first divided into verses by Robert +Stephens in 1551. The Geneva Bible was the first English version of the +Scriptures into which these divisions of Stephens were introduced. + +[184:3] Horne, ii. 169. + +[185:1] John v. 39; 2 Tim. iii. 15. + +[185:2] Rev. i. 3. See also 2 Peter i. 19. + +[185:3] Paul's epistles were often written with the hand of another. See +Rom. xvi. 22; 2 Thess. iii. 17. + +[186:1] Ps. xii. 6. + +[186:2] The epistle to Diognetus may have been written in the first +century, but it is commonly referred to a later date. + +[186:3] He speaks of the Church of Corinth at the time as "most ancient" +(Sec. 47), and refers apparently to the Domitian persecution. See Euseb. +iii. 15, 16. + +[186:4] Tertullian also illustrates the resurrection by the story of the +phoenix, "De Resurrec. Carn." c. 13. + +[187:1] Clement's "Epistle to the Corinthians," Sec. 25. The fragment of +the second epistle is not generally considered genuine. + +[189:1] Matt. v. 17. + +[189:2] 2 Tim. i. 10. + +[189:3] Matt. xvi. 16; John i. 41. + +[189:4] Luke xxiv. 19, 21; John i. 49. + +[189:5] Matt. xvi. 21, 22; John xii. 34. + +[189:6] Mark xv. 43; Luke ii. 38. + +[189:7] John iv. 20-25. + +[189:8] John xix. 12. + +[189:9] Matt. ii. 2, 3, xx. 21; John vi. 15. + +[190:1] Acts i. 6. + +[190:2] Luke xxiv. 45. + +[190:3] Luke xxiv. 44. + +[190:4] Acts x. 34, 35. + +[190:5] Acts xi. 3, 17. + +[190:6] Heb. x. 1, 14, 18. + +[190:7] Period i. sec. ii. chap. 1. + +[191:1] Mark vii. 7-9. + +[191:2] Matt. iv. 1-10, xii. 3, 5, 7; Mark xii. 26. + +[191:3] John v. 39. + +[191:4] Acts ii. 14-36. + +[191:5] 2 Tim. iii. 15. + +[191:6] 2 Tim. iii. 16, 17. + +[191:7] Matt. xxii. 43, 45; Gal. iii. 16; Heb. ii. 8, 11. + +[191:8] John x. 34, 35; Heb. viii. 13. + +[191:9] Acts xxviii. 25; Heb. iii. 7. + +[191:10] Heb. i. 1, 2; Matt. i. 22, ii. 15. + +[192:1] 1 Cor. ii. 13. + +[192:2] 2 Tim. iii. 16. + +[192:3] Gen. iii. 15; Ps. cxxx. 7, 8; Dan. ix. 24. + +[192:4] Ps. xcviii. 1-4; Isa. ix. 6. + +[192:5] Rom. iii. 19. + +[192:6] Eph. ii. 1. + +[192:7] John v. 24. + +[192:8] Rev. iii. 20. + +[192:9] Heb. xi. 27. + +[193:1] Heb. xii. 2. + +[193:2] Heb. vi. 18. + +[193:3] 1 Pet. ii. 3. + +[193:4] Rom. v. 1. + +[193:5] Acts xv. 9. + +[193:6] 1 John v. 4. + +[193:7] Rom. v. 2. + +[193:8] Heb. xi. 1. + +[193:9] John xx. 31. + +[193:10] John i. 29. + +[193:11] Rom. x. 4. + +[194:1] Eph. v. 23. + +[194:2] Rev. xvii. 14. + +[194:3] Col. i. 27. + +[194:4] Ps. cxlvi. 8, compared with John ix. 32, 33. + +[194:5] Job ix. 8, compared with Matt. xiv. 25. + +[194:6] Ps. cvii. 29, compared with Luke viii. 24. + +[194:7] Amos iv. 13, compared with Matt. xii. 25, and John ii. 24, 25. + +[194:8] Tit. ii. 14. + +[194:9] Mark ii. 5-10. + +[194:10] Eph. v. 26. + +[194:11] Acts xvi. 14; Luke xxiv. 45. + +[194:12] Rev. ii. 23. + +[194:13] Mal. iii. i. + +[194:14] Isa. xl. 3, and vi. 1, compared with John xii. 38-41. + +[194:15] Isa. xl. 3, 9; Ps. xlv. 6. + +[194:16] Ps. ii. 12. + +[194:17] Ps. lxxii. 15. + +[194:18] Ps. ii. 12, compared with Ps. cxlvi. 3, 5, and Isa. xxvi. 4. + +[194:19] John i. 49; Matt. xvi. 16, 17. + +[194:20] Such as John xx. 28, xxi. 17. + +[195:1] Luke xxiv. 27. + +[195:2] 1 Cor. xii. 3. + +[195:3] Rom. ix. 5. + +[195:4] Eph. i. 12, 13; Matt. xii. 21. + +[195:5] Col. iii. 24. + +[195:6] Acts ix. 14; 1 Cor. i. 2. + +[195:7] Rev. v. 11-13. Though modern criticism has shaken the credit of +some passages usually quoted in support of the Deity of Christ, such as +1 Tim. iii. 16, it is remarkable that it has discovered others equally +strong not now in the received text. See Lachmann's text of Col. ii. 2, +and 1 Pet. iii. 15. + +[196:1] Heb. ii. 14. + +[196:2] Matt. xvi. 22. + +[196:3] Luke xxiv. 46. + +[196:4] Rom. iii. 26. + +[197:1] Heb. ix. 12. + +[197:2] 1 Cor. i. 24. + +[197:3] Phil. ii. 13. + +[197:4] Eph. i. 4-6. + +[197:5] Matt, xxviii. 19; John x. 30, xv. 26. + +[198:1] Eph. iv. 5. + +[198:2] See Bingham, iii. 323-327. + +[198:3] Acts viii. 37; 1 Pet. iii. 21. + +[198:4] Matt. i. 21. + +[199:1] Prov. viii. 11. + +[199:2] Phil. iv. 11-14. + +[200:1] "[Greek: Hairesis] autem Graece, ab electione dicitur: quod +scilicet eam sibi unusquisque eligat disciplinam, quam putat esse +meliorem."--_Hieronymus in Epist. ad Galat._ c. 5. See also Tertullian, +"De Praescrip." c. 6. + +[200:2] "Life," Section 2; "Antiq." xiii. 5, 9. + +[200:3] Acts xxvi. 5. + +[200:4] Acts xxiv. 5. + +[200:5] Gal. v. 20. + +[201:1] Eph. iv. 17, 18; Col. i. 13. + +[201:2] John iii. 18, 19. + +[201:3] Mosheim has overlooked this fact, and has, in consequence, been +betrayed into some false criticism when treating on this subject. + +[201:4] Titus iii. 10. + +[201:5] 2 Pet. ii. 1. + +[202:1] Every one acquainted with the works of Philo Judaeus must be +aware that Jewish literature was now largely impregnated with pagan +philosophy. + +[202:2] Col. ii. 8. + +[202:3] 1 Tim. vi. 20. + +[202:4] See Burton's "Inquiry into the Heresies of the Apostolic Age," +pp. 314, 315. Also Mosheim's "Dissertation" appended to Cudworth, iii. +171. + +[203:1] Col. i. 16, 17. + +[204:1] From [Greek: dokeo], I appear. + +[204:2] John i. 14. + +[204:3] 1 John iv. 3. + +[204:4] 1 John i. 1-3. + +[204:5] 2 John 7. + +[204:6] 1 Cor. xv. 12. + +[204:7] 2 Tim. ii. 16-18. + +[205:1] Acts viii. 9. + +[205:2] Irenaeus, i. 23; Eusebius, ii. 13. + +[205:3] Acts viii. 20-23. + +[205:4] Acts viii. 9. + +[205:5] Justin Martyr, "Apol." ii. 69. Edit. Paris, 1615. + +[205:6] 1 Tim. i. 20; 2 Tim. i. 15, ii. 17, iv. 14. + +[206:1] Irenaeus, i. 25, 26; Tertullian, "De Praescrip. Haeret." 33; +Epiphanius, "Haer." xxx. 2, lxix. 23. + +[206:2] Irenaeus, iii. 3, 4. + +[206:3] Irenaeus, iii. 11. + +[206:4] Rev. ii. 6, 15. + +[206:5] Acts vi. 5. Others conceive, however, that the name Nicolaitanes +is merely equivalent to Balaamites (as Balaam in Hebrew is nearly +equivalent to Nicolas in Greek, each word signifying _Ruler, or +Conqueror of the people_), and that the apostle does not here refer to +any party already known by this designation, but to all who, like +Balaam, were seducers of God's people. See Neander, "General History," +ii. 159. Edinburgh edition, 1847. + +[207:1] Rev. ii. 6, 15. + +[207:2] Acts xxiii. 1, 6. + +[207:3] 1 John ii. 19. + +[207:4] Compare Jude 19, and Heb. x. 25. + +[208:1] 1 Tim. i. 20. + +[208:2] Rev. ii. 15. + +[208:3] Hegesippus in Euseb., iv. 22. + +[208:4] Eusebius, iv. 22. + +[208:5] 1 Cor. xi. 19. + +[209:1] James iii. 17. + +[210:1] Luke xxiv. 21. + +[210:2] Luke xxiv. 17, 22, 23. + +[211:1] Acts xx. 7. + +[211:2] Rev. i. 10, [Greek: he kurtake hemera]. The day was ever +afterwards distinguished by this designation. See a letter from Dionysius +of Corinth in Eusebius, iv. 23. See also Kaye's "Clement of Alexandria," +p. 418. The first day of the week is called "the Christian Sabbath" in +the Ethiopic version of the "Apostolical Constitutions." See Platt's +"Didascalia," p. 99. But these Constitutions are of comparatively late +origin. + +[211:3] Matt. v. 17-19. + +[211:4] Matt. iii. 15. + +[211:5] Matt. xii. 3-5; Mark ii. 25, 26. + +[211:6] Matt. xii. 7. + +[211:7] Gen. ii. 3. + +[212:1] Exod. xx. 1-17. + +[212:2] Mark ii. 27. + +[212:3] Matt. xxiv. 20. + +[212:4] See Heb. xiii. 10, 15, 16; Ps. li. 17. + +[212:5] Isa. lvi. 6, 7. Compare with Isa. ii. 2. + +[212:6] Mark ii. 28. + +[212:7] John xx. 19, 26. According to the current style of speaking," +after eight days" means _the eighth day after_. See Matt, xxvii. 63. + +[213:1] Acts ii. 1. That the day of Pentecost was the first day of the +week appears from Lev. xxiii. 11, 15. The same inference may be drawn +from John xviii. 28, and xix. 31, compared with Lev. xxiii. 5, 6. See +also Schaff's "History of the Apostolic Church," i. p. 230, note, and +the authorities there quoted. + +[213:2] In the same way the Eucharist is called the Lord's Supper: +[Greek: Kuriakon deipnon] (1 Cor. xi. 20). Thus also we speak of the +Lord's house, and the Lord's people. + +[213:3] Heb. x. 25. + +[213:4] 1 Cor. xvi. 1, 2. + +[213:5] Isa. lxv. 17, 18. + +[213:6] [Greek: Sabbatiamos]. See Owen "On the Hebrews," iv. 9. + +[213:7] Heb. iv. 9, 10. + +[213:8] Rom. xiv. 5. + +[214:1] Col. ii. 16, 17. + +[214:2] The ordinary temple service could scarcely be called +congregational. It was almost exclusively ceremonial and typical, +consisting of sacrificing, burning incense, and offering various +oblations. The worshippers generally prayed apart. See Luke i. 10, +xviii. 10, 11. + +[215:1] See these eighteen prayers in Prideaux's "Connexions," i. 375, +and note. Bingham admits (Orig. iv. 194), that these are their _"most +ancient"_ forms of devotion; and, of course, if they were written after +the fall of Jerusalem, it follows that the Jews had no liturgy in the +days of our Lord. Had they then been limited to fixed forms, He would +scarcely have upbraided the Scribes and Pharisees for hypocritically +_"making long prayer"_ Matt, xxiii. 14. + +[215:2] See Palmer's "Origines Liturgicae," i. pp. 44-92; and Clarkson's +"Discourse concerning Liturgies;" "Select Works," p. 342. + +[215:3] Matt. vi. 9-13. + +[215:4] 1 Thess. v. 18. + +[215:5] Eph. vi. 18. + +[215:6] Eph. vi. 18. + +[215:7] Acts i. 24, 25, iv. 24-30. + +[216:1] See Lightfoot's "Temple Service," ch. vii. sec. 2; "Works," ix. +56. + +[216:2] Lightfoot's "Prospect of the Temple," ch. xxxiii.; "Works," ix. +384. + +[216:3] The multitudes who assembled at the great festivals in the +temple could not well unite in one service. The wall of the building was +more than half a mile in circumference. See Lightfoot, ix. 217. There +were various courts and divisions in the building. + +[216:4] Heb. ix. 9-12, x. 1; John ii. 19-21; 1 Pet. ii. 5. + +[216:5] Vitringa, "De Synagoga," p. 203. + +[216:6] Eph. v. 19. According to some, the Psalms were divided into +these three classes. + +[216:7] Heb. xiii. 15. + +[217:1] Bingham, ii. 482-484. + +[217:2] Luke iv. 16, 17. + +[217:3] Col. iv. 16; 1 Thess. v. 27. + +[217:4] 1 Cor. xiv. 29. It would appear from this that only _two_ or +_three_ persons were permitted to speak at a meeting. By him that +"sitteth by" (verse 30), a doctor or teacher is meant. See Vitringa, "De +Synagoga," p. 600, and Matt. v. 1. + +[217:5] 1 Cor. xiv. 27. The gift of "interpretation of tongues" (1 Cor. +xii. 10) was quite as wonderful as the gift of "divers kinds of tongues" +(1 Cor. xii. 10). + +[218:1] Censers were introduced into the Church about the fourth or +fifth century. Bingham, ii. 454, 455. + +[218:2] 1 Cor. xvi. 19; Col. iv. 15; Philem. 2. + +[218:3] Matt. iii. 4. + +[218:4] The rite of confirmation, as now practised, has no sanction in +the New Testament. The "baptisms" and "laying on of hands," mentioned +Heb. vi. 2, are obviously the "divers washings" of the Jews, and the +_imposition of hands on the heads of victims_. The laying on of the +apostles' hands conferred miraculous gifts. Had the apostle referred to +Christian baptism in Heb. vi. 2, he would have used the singular number. + +[218:5] Lightfoot affirms that the use of baptism among the Israelites +was as ancient as the days of Jacob. He appeals in support of this view +to Gen. xxxv. 2. "Works," iv. 278. + +[219:1] Lightfoot's "Works," iv. 409, 410. Edit. London, 1822. + +[219:2] Acts x. 2, 44-48, xvi. 15, 33, xviii. 8; 1 Cor. i. 16. + +[219:3] Acts viii. 37. + +[219:4] Mark xvi. 16; John iii. 18. + +[219:5] Matt. xix. 14; Luke xviii. 15. In the New Testament children are +described as uniting with their Christian parents in prayer (Acts xxi. +5). Were not these children baptized? They were no doubt brought up "in +the _nurture_ and admonition of the Lord" (Eph. vi. 4). + +[220:1] Col. ii. 11, 12, 13. + +[220:2] Col. i. 2, iii. 20; Eph. vi. 1, 4. + +[220:3] 1 John ii. 12. + +[220:4] Acts ii. 38, 39. + +[220:5] 1 Cor. vii. 14. The absurdity of the interpretation according to +which _holy_ is here made to signify _legitimate_, is well exposed by Dr +Wilson in his treatise on "Infant Baptism," p. 513. London, 1848. + +[220:6] This would, indeed, have been almost, if not altogether, +impossible. They would probably act somewhat differently at the river +Jordan and in such a place as the jail at Philippi. + +[220:7] [Greek: Baptizo]. + +[221:1] Dr Wilson has demonstrated the incorrectness of Dr Carson's +statements on this subject. See his "Infant Baptism," p. 96. + +[221:2] Wilson's "Infant Baptism," p. 157. In Titus iii. 5, 6, there is +something like a reference to this mode of baptism: "The washing of +regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost which _he shed_ (or _poured +out_) on us abundantly." [Greek: Ou execheen eph' hemas plousios]. + +[221:3] In some cases, as at Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost, they do +not seem to have had the means of immersing their converts. See also +Acts x. 47. The text John iii. 23, indicates the difficulty of baptizing +by dipping. + +[221:4] Isa. lii. 15; Ezek. xxxvi. 25; I Pet. i. 2; Heb. ix. 10; +Rev. i. 5. + +[221:5] 1 Cor. v. 7, 8. + +[221:6] Acts xx. 7. + +[221:7] Acts xx. 7; 1 Cor. x. 16. + +[222:1] It was in use before the end of the second century. See Kaye's +"Tertullian," p. 431, 451. + +[222:2] 1 Cor. x. 17. + +[222:3] 1 Cor. v. 11. + +[222:4] See Lightfoot's "Works," iii. 242, and xi. 179. Vitringa +"De Synagoga," p. 550. + +[222:5] Acts xx. 28. + +[223:1] Heb. xiii. 17. + +[223:2] Heb. xxi. 17. + +[223:3] 1 Tim. iii. 5. + +[223:4] 1 Tim. v. 19, 20. + +[223:5] Heb. xiii. 17. + +[223:6] 1 Cor. v. 1,13. + +[223:7] 2 Cor. ii. 6. + +[224:1] See Period I. section i. chap. v. p. 88. + +[224:2] 1 Cor. v. 2, 6. + +[224:3] 1 Cor. V. 3-5. + +[224:4] 1 John v. 19, [Greek: en to ponero]. + +[225:1] In the above passage respecting delivering unto Satan there may +be a reference to Job ii. 6, 7, and it may be that some bodily +affliction rested on the offender. In that case there would be here an +exercise of supernatural power on the part of Paul. According to +Tertullian, to deliver to Satan was simply to excommunicate. "De ceteris +dixit qui illis traditis Satanae, id est, extra ecclesiam projectis, +erudiri haberent blasphemandum non esse."--"De Pudicitia," c. xiii. + +[225:2] 1 Cor. i. 11,12. + +[225:3] That the Church of Corinth at this time was organized in the +same way as other Christian communities is evident from various +allusions in the first epistle. See 1 Cor. iv. 15, vi. 5, xii. 27, 28. +Crispus, mentioned Acts xviii. 8, was, no doubt, one of the eldership. +There is a reference to the elders in 1 Cor. xiv. 30. See Vitringa, "De +Synagoga," p. 600. + +[225:4] In the apostolic age, censures were pronounced in presence of +the whole church. See 1 Tim. v. 20. It is to be noted that Paul himself +does not excommunicate the offender. He merely delivers his apostolic +judgment that the thing should be done, and calls upon the Corinthians +to do it; but he expects them to proceed in due order, the rulers and +the people performing their respective parts. + +[227:1] 2 Cor. ii. 7, 8. The mode of proceeding here indicated is +illustrated by what took place in the Church of Rome about the middle of +the third century. There certain penitents first appeared before the +presbytery to express their contrition, and then it was arranged that +"this whole proceeding should be communicated _to the people_, that they +might see those established in the Church, whom they had so long seen +and mourned wandering and straying."--Cyprian, Epist. xlvi. p. 136. +Edit. Baluzius, Venice, 1728. + +[228:1] That "the church" here signifies the eldership, see Vitringa, +"De Synagoga," p. 724. + +[228:2] Matt, xviii. 15, 17. + +[228:3] In our English version the original word [Greek:(paradosin)] is +improperly rendered _tradition_. + +[228:4] Thess. iii. 6. + +[228:5] Matt. v. 45. + +[229:1] 2 Thess. iii. 14, 15. + +[229:2] For an account of the excommunication of the Druids, see Caesar, +"De Bello Gallico," vi. 13. Many things in the Latin excommunication are +doubtless borrowed from paganism. + +[229:3] As an example of this, see an old form of excommunication in +Collier's "Ecclesiastical History," ii. 273. Edit. London, 1840. + +[230:1] Eph. iv. 11, 12. + +[230:2] 1 Cor. xii. 28. + +[230:3] 2 Tim. iv. 5. + +[230:4] Acts xxi. 8, viii. 5. + +[230:5] 1 Tim. i 3, v. 1, 7, 17; Tit. i. 5. + +[231:1] Acts viii. 13; 2 Tim. i. 6. This latter text is often quoted, +though erroneously, as if it referred to the ordination of Timothy. The +ordainer usually laid on only his right hand. See "Con. Carthag." iv. +can. iii. iv. In conferring extraordinary endowments both hands were +imposed. See Acts xix. 6. + +[231:2] John xiv. 26, xvi. 13, xx. 22. + +[231:3] Matt. x. 1, xxviii. 18, 19. + +[231:4] John xx. 26, xxi. 1; Acts i. 3; 1 Cor. ix. 1. + +[231:5] Such is the opinion of Chrysostom and others. See Alford on this +passage. + +[231:6] Acts vi. 2-4. + +[231:7] In the Peshito version helps and governments are translated +_helpers_ and _governors_. + +[232:1] It is remarkable that the lay council of the modern synagogue +are called Parnasim or Pastors. See Vitringa, "De Synagoga," pp. 578, +635. + +[232:2] Mr Alford observes that in 1 Cor. xii. 28, "we must not seek for +a _classified_ arrangement"--the arrangement being "rather suggestive +than logical." Hence "helps" are mentioned _before_ "governments." In +the same way in Eph. iv. 11, "pastors" precede "teachers." + +[232:3] Acts xx. 28; 1 Pet. v. 2. + +[232:4] Acts xx. 17, 28; Titus i. 5, 7; 1 Pet. v. 1, 2. + +[232:5] 1 Tim. iii. 1, 2, 5. + +[232:6] 1 Pet. v. 1, 2, 4 The identity of elders and pastors is more +distinctly exhibited in the original here, and in Acts xx. 17, 28, as +the word translated _feed_ signifies literally _to act as a shepherd_ or +pastor. + +[232:7] 1 Tim. v. 17. Mr Ellicott, in his work on the "Pastoral +Epistles," thus speaks of this passage--"The concluding words, [Greek: +en logo kai didask.], certainly seem to imply _two_ kinds of ruling +presbyters, those who preached and taught and those who did not." + +[233:1] Compare 1 Cor. xii. 28, and Philip, i. 1; 1 Tim. iii. 1-8. + +[233:2] Acts vi. 3, xiv. 23; Titus i. 5; James v. 14. + +[233:3] 1 Cor. xiv. 1, 5, 6, 31. + +[233:4] Section Rom. xii. 6-8. + +[233:5] 1 Tim, iii. 5. Lightfoot says that, "in every synagogue there +was a civil triumvirate, that is, three magistrates who judged of +matters in contest arising within that synagogue."--"Works," xi.179. The +same writer declares that "in every synagogue there were elders that +ruled in civil affairs, and elders that laboured in the word and +doctrine."--"Works," iii. 242, 243. + +[234:1] [Greek: diples times]. Those who adduce this passage to prove +that the apostle here defines the pecuniary remuneration of elders +involve themselves in much difficulty; for, if limited to the matter of +payment, and literally interpreted, it would lead to the inference that, +irrespective of the amount of service rendered, all the elders should +receive the same compensation; and that no church teacher, though the +father of a large family, should be allowed more than twice the gratuity +of a poor widow! Compare I Tim. v. 3, and 17. The "double honour" of I +Tim. v. 17, is evidently equivalent to the "all honour" of 1 Tim. vi. 1. +In the latter case there can be no reference to payment. Paul obviously +means to say that the claims of elders should be fully recognized; and +in the following verse (1 Tim. v. 18) he refers pointedly to the +temporal support to which church teachers are entitled. + +[234:2] 1 Tim. iii. 2-7. + +[234:3] [Greek: didaktikon]. + +[234:4] Matt. iv. 23; Acts v. 42, xv. 35. + +[235:1] Heb. iii. 13. + +[235:2] Col. iii. 16. + +[235:3] 1 Pet. iii. 15. + +[235:4] 2 Tim. ii. 24, 25. + +[235:5] Even a female, though not permitted to speak in the Church, had +often this aptness for teaching. Such was the case with the excellent +Priscilla, Acts xviii. 26. The aged women were required to be "teachers +of good things," Titus ii. 3. + +[237:1] In the Church of Corinth several speakers were in the habit of +addressing the same meeting. 1 Cor. xiv. 26, 27, 29, 31. + +[237:2] 1 Tim. v. 17. + +[237:3] Gal. vi. 6. + +[237:4] 1 Tim. v. 18. + +[237:5] 1 Cor. ix. 14. + +[237:6] Matt. x. 1; 1 Cor. xiv. 18. + +[237:7] "The place which the apostles occupied while they lived is now +filled, not by a living order of ministers, but by their own inspired +writings, which constitute, or ought to constitute, the supreme +authority in the Church of God.... The New Testament Scriptures, as they +are the only real apostolate now in existence, so, are sufficient to +supply to us the place of the inspired Twelve."--_Litton's Church of +Christ_, p. 410. + +[237:1] "While it is clearly recorded that the apostles instituted the +orders of presbyters and deacons, it is not so clearly recorded, _indeed +it is not recorded at all_, that they instituted the order of +bishops."--_Litton_, p. 426. Such a testimony from a Fellow of Oxford is +creditable alike to his candour and his intelligence. + +[237:2] Acts xv. 6, xvi. 4, xxi. 18, 25. + +[237:3] Acts xx. 17, 25. + +[237:4] Acts xx. 29-31. + +[237:5] Acts vi. 4. "Here," says Mr Litton, "no mention is made of +government or of ordination, as the special prerogative of the apostolic +office; _and if it were not dangerous to lay too much stress upon a +single passage_, it might from this one be plausibly inferred that _the +special function of the apostles, as representatives of the ordinary +Christian ministry, has descended_, not to bishops, but to presbyters, +to whom it specially pertains to give themselves to prayer and the +ministry of the Word."--_Litton's Church of Christ_, p. 407. It is +certainly not dangerous to lay as much stress upon any Scripture as it +will legitimately bear, and the inference hero drawn is in accordance +with the rules of the most exact logic. + +[238:1] 1 Cor. i. 17. + +[238:2] Eph. iii. 8. In dealing with individuals, the apostles seldom +challenged obedience on the ground of their divine authority. When they +are represented as directing the movements of ministers, the language +generally implies simply that the parties in question undertook certain +services at their instigation or request, or by their advice. Thus, Paul +says that he _besought_ Timothy to abide in Ephesus, that he _left_ +Titus in Crete, and that he _sent_ Epaphroditus to the Philippians (1 +Tim. i. 3; Titus i. 5; Philip. ii. 25). But Paul himself is said to have +been _sent forth_ to Tarsus _by the brethren_ (Acts ix. 30). When Mark +refused to accompany Paul and Silas into Asia Minor he did not therefore +forfeit his ecclesiastical status (Acts xiii. 13, xv. 37-39). Apart from +their special commission, the apostles were entitled to deference from +other ministers on account of their superior age and experience; and +Paul sometimes refers to this claim. See Philem. 8, 9. On the same +ground all who have recently entered the ministry are bound to yield +precedence to aged pastors, and to respect their advice. See 1 Pet. v. 5. + +[238:3] It can scarcely be necessary to remind the reader that the +postscripts to these epistles setting forth that Timothy was "ordained +the first bishop of the church of the Ephesians," and that Titus was +"ordained the first bishop of the Church of the Cretians," are spurious. +See Period i. sec. ii. chap. i. p. 181. + +[239:1] 1 Tim. i. 3. Paul says (1 Cor. iv. 17) to the _Corinthians_--"I +have sent unto you Timotheus .... who shall bring you into remembrance +of my ways which be in Christ;" and, according to the mode of reasoning +employed by some, we might infer from this text that Timothy was bishop +of Corinth. "It is a suspicious circumstance," says Dr Burton, "that +several persons who are mentioned in the New Testament, are said to have +been bishops of the places connected with their names. Thus Cornelius is +said to have been bishop of Caesarea, and to have succeeded Zacchaeus, +though it is highly improbable that either of them filled such an +office."--"Lectures," i., p. 182. + +[239:2] 1 Tim. vi. 17. + +[239:3] See Period i. sect. i. chap, ix. p. 131. + +[239:4] Acts xx. 30, 31. + +[240:1] The word [Greek: katasteses], here translated "ordain," should +rather be rendered _constitute_, or _establish_. + +[240:2] Titus i. 5. + +[240:3] Titus iii. 13. + +[240:4] Acts vi. 3, xiv. 23; 2 Cor. viii. 19, 23. + +[240:5] Acts xxiii. 3. + +[240:6] "The whole Sanhedrim were the judges, and sitting to judge him +according to the law."--_Alford on Acts_ xxiii. 3. + +[241:1] See Prideaux's "Connections," part ii. books 1 and 8. + +[241:2] Acts xxvi. 17, 18. See also, as another illustration, Matt. xvi. +19. + +[241:3] 2 Cor. xi. 28. + +[241:4] 1 Tim. iv. 12, 13; 2 Tim. ii. 22, 23; Titus ii. 7, 8. + +[241:5] 1 Tim. ii. 1, 2, iv. 16, v. 19, 20, 22; 2 Tim. ii. 2, 15, iv. 2, +5; Titus iii, 8, 9. + +[242:1] 1 Tim. v. 5, 16, vi. 1, 2, 9, 17; Titus ii. 6, 9, 10. + +[242:2] One of the most remarkable instances of an appeal to the sense +of individual obligation in a case where many were concerned may be +found in Gal. vi. 1. + +[242:3] Whitby, in his "Preface to the Epistle to Titus," says candidly +of the allegation that Timothy and Titus were bishops respectively of +Ephesus and Crete--"Now, of this matter, I confess I can find nothing in +any writer of the first three centuries, nor any intimation that they +bore that name." + +[242:4] 1 Tim. i. 3; 2 Tim. iv. 10, 12, 21; Titus i. 5, iii. 12. + +[242:5] Hence Fulgentius speaks of "cathedra Joannis Evangelistae +Ephesi." Lib. "De Trinitate," c. 1. Contradictory traditions sometimes +happily annihilate each other. + +[243:1] Homer, "Iliad," ii. v. 156. + +[243:2] Mark x. 42-45. + +[244:1] 1 Pet. v. 3. + +[244:2] Acts i. 15, 21-23, 26. + +[244:3] 2 Cor. viii. 19, 23. See also 1 Cor xvi. 3. + +[244:4] Acts vi. 3, xiv. 23. See also 1 Tim. iii. 10, compared with 1 +John iv. 1. + +[244:5] Clemens Romanus states that, in the apostolic age, +ecclesiastical appointments were made "with the approbation of the whole +church." "Epist. to Corinthians," Sec. 44. + +[245:1] Acts vi. 6; 1 Tim. v. 22. + +[245:2] See Selden, "De Synedriis," lib. i. c. 14. + +[245:3] Acts xiii. 1-3. + +[245:4] Acts xiv. 23. + +[245:5] 1 Tim. iv. 14. That the preposition [Greek: meta] here indicates +the instrumental cause, see Acts xiii. 17, xiv. 27. + +[245:6] Acts vi. 6. Some have thought it strange that Paul gives no +instructions to Titus respecting the ordination of deacons in Crete. See +Titus i. 8. This was unnecessary, as the elders, when ordained, could +afterwards ordain deacons. + +[245:7] Rom. xvi. 1. + +[245:8] [Greek: diakonon]. + +[246:1] 1 Tim. v. 3, 4, 9. + +[246:2] Rom. xvi 2. + +[247:1] 1 Cor. xii. 12, 21, 26. + +[249:1] Such as we find described in Deut. xxxi. 10-12. + +[249:2] In Greek [Greek: ekklesia]. The reference in the text is to its +ecclesiastical use, for in the New Testament it sometimes signifies a +mob. See Acts xix. 32. + +[249:3] Acts xi. 22, xv. 4. + +[249:4] Acts xxi. 20, [Greek: posai muriades]--literally, "how many tens +of thousands." + +[249:5] One of these is mentioned Acts xii. 12. + +[249:6] Acts xiii. 1. + +[249:7] Acts ix. 31. The true reading here is, "Then had _the church_ +([Greek: ekklesia]) rest throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria." +This reading is supported by the most ancient manuscripts, including +ABC; by the Vulgate, and nearly all the ancient versions; including the +old Syriac, Coptic, Sahidic, Ethiopian, Arabic of Erpenius, and +Armenian; and by the most distinguished critics, such as Kuinoel, +Lachmann, Tischendorf, Alford, and Tregelles. It is likewise sustained +by the authority of what is believed to be by far the most valuable +cursive MS. in existence. See Scrivener's "Codex Augiensis," Introd. +lxviii., and p. 425. Cambridge, 1859. + +[250:1] John xvii. 21. + +[250:2] Eph. iv. 16. + +[250:3] See Col. ii. 19. + +[251:1] Acts viii. 14. + +[251:2] Acts xi. 22. "No notion is more at variance with the spirit of +apostolic Christianity than that of societies of Christians existing in +the same neighbourhood, but not in communion with each other, and not +under a common government."--_Litton_, p. 450. + +[251:3] 2 Cor. viii. 19. + +[251:4] Period I. sec. iii. chap. i. p. 214. + +[251:5] "That the Church did really derive its polity from the synagogue +is a fact upon the proof of which, in the present state of theological +learning, it is needless to expend many words."--_Litton's Church of +Christ_, p. 254. + +[251:6] See Selden, "De Synedriis," lib. ii. c. 5; Lightfoot's "Works," +iii. 242, and xi. 179. Josephus says that Moses appointed only seven +judges in every city. "Antiq." book iv. c. 8, Sec. 14. See also "Wars of +the Jews," ii. c. 20, Sec. 5. + +[252:1] Luke xxii. 66; Acts v. 21, vi. 15. See also Prideaux, part ii. +book vii., and Lightfoot's "Works," ix. 342. + +[252:2] Matt. xvi. 21, xxvi. 59; Mark xv. 1. See also Lightfoot's +"Works," iv. 223. + +[252:3] 1 Chron. xxiv. 4, 7-18. + +[252:4] Acts v. 34. + +[252:5] As they represented the people, and were probably twenty-four in +number, there may be a reference to them in Rev. iv. 4. + +[252:6] Matt. v. 22. + +[253:1] Deut. xvii. 8-10; 2 Chron. xix. 8-11; Ps. cxxii. 5. + +[253:2] Acts ix. 1, 2, 14. + +[253:3] Acts ii. 14, 41, 42, iv. 4, 32, 33, 35, v. 14, 42, vi. 6, 7, +viii. 14. + +[253:4] Acts xiii. 1, 3. + +[253:5] Titus i. 5. + +[253:6] 1 Tim. iv. 14. + +[253:7] In the same way the Puritans, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, +frequently held meetings in London during the sittings of Parliament. +See Collier, vii. 33, 64. + +[254:1] For a more particular account of the constitution of the meeting +mentioned in the 15th chapter of the Acts, see Period I. sec. i. chap. +v. p. 82. + +[255:1] Acts xv. 6. + +[255:2] Acts xv. 19. "James, according to the somewhat pompous rendering +in our English version, says--'Wherefore _my sentence is_'--in the +original--[Greek: dio elo krina]--a common formula by which the members +of the Greek assemblies introduced the expression of their individual +opinion, as appears from its repeated occurrence in Thucydides, with +which may be compared the corresponding Latin phrase (_sic censeo_) of +frequent use in Cicero's orations."--_Alexander on the Acts_, ii. p. 83. + +[256:1] Mark xvi. 15. + +[257:1] See the spurious epistle of Clement to James, prefixed to the +Clementine Homilies. Cotelerius, "Pat. Apost." vol. i. p. 617. + +[258:1] Acts xx. 17. + +[258:2] Acts xx. 16. + +[258:3] The view here taken is corroborated by the authority of +Irenaeus, iii. c. 14, Sec. 2:--"In Mileto enim convocatis episcopis et +presbyteris, qui erant ab Epheso, _et a reliquis proximis civitatibus_," +&c. + +[259:1] Acts xx. 18. + +[259:2] Acts xix. 8, 10. + +[259:3] Acts xx. 31. + +[259:4] Acts xx. 25. Demetrius says to the craftsmen--"Ye see and hear +that _not alone at Ephesus, but almost throughout all Asia_, this Paul +hath persuaded and turned away much people." Acts xix. 26. + +[259:5] See Period I. sec. i. chap. viii. p. 123. + +[259:6] 1 Cor. xvi. 19. + +[259:7] Gal. i. 2. + +[259:8] Gal. v. 13. + +[259:9] Gal. vi. 2. + +[259:10] 1 Pet. i. 1. + +[260:1] 1 Pet. v. i, 2. + +[260:2] In Acts xx. 28, these designations are identical. The +exhortation in 1 Pet. v. 5--"Yea, all of you be _subject one to +another_"--is obviously addressed to _ministers_, and implies their +mutual subordination. This command can be acted upon only by ministers +who are confederated and who hold the same ecclesiastical status. +Lachmann adopts a somewhat different reading of this verse without +changing the sense, for he puts a semi-period after [Greek: allelois]. +According to his Larger Edition of the Greek Testament, the commencement +of the verse should be rendered thus--"Likewise ye younger (presbyters) +submit yourselves unto the elder, AND ALL TO ONE ANOTHER." I here +suppose _presbyters_ to be understood, as the apostle is speaking to +them in all the preceding part of the chapter. + +[260:3] 2 Cor. viii. 5, 18, 22; Phil. ii. 25, 28; Col. iv. 7-9; 2 Tim. +iv. 9-12. + +[260:4] 2 Cor. iii. 1. + +[261:1] 2 John 10. + +[261:2] 1 John iv. 1. + +[261:3] Phil. i. 15-18. + +[263:1] Rev. i. 1. + +[264:1] Rev. i. 11. + +[264:2] Rev. i. 12-16. + +[264:3] Rev. i. 20. + +[264:4] This was the opinion of Gregory Nazianzen, as well as others. +There is an ingenious article on this subject in the "Bibliotheca Sacra" +for April 1855. Its author, the Rev. Isaac Jennings, advocates the view +propounded in this chapter. + +[265:1] This is the opinion of Prideaux, Vitringa, and many others. See +Prid. "Connec." part. i. book vi.; and Vitringa, "De Synagoga," lib. +iii. par. 2, cap. 3. + +[265:2] Acts xiii. 15. + +[265:3] Luke iv. 16. + +[265:4] Luke iv. 20. + +[266:1] Prideaux, part i. book vi. vol. i. p. 385. Edit. London, 1716. + +[266:2] "The hours of public devotions in them on their synagogue days +were, as to morning and evening prayers, the same hours in which the +morning and evening sacrifices were offered up at the temple."--Prideaux, +part i. book vi. + +[266:3] Maurice, in his work on Diocesan Episcopacy in reply to +Clarkson, admits (p. 257) that in our Saviour's time, Laodicea had "but +few inhabitants." Philadelphia is described by Strabo as a place with a +small population. + +[266:4] Acts xix. 20. + +[266:5] Acts xix. 26. + +[267:1] Prideaux speaks of the angel of the synagogue, in relation to +the rulers, as "_next to them_, or perchance one of them."--Part i. book +vi. vol. i. p. 385. + +[267:2] It appears never to have occurred to Tertullian that the angels +of the Churches were bishops. He obviously considered the angel of the +Church an invisible intelligence. Thus he says of Paul--"Lusit igitur et +de suo spiritu, et de ecclesiae angelo, et de virtute Domini, si quod de +consilio eorum pronunciaverat rescidit."--_De Pudicitia_, c. xiv. ad +finem. See also Tertullian "De Baptismo," c. vi. Such, too, was the +opinion of Origen.--"De Principiis," lib. i. c. 8, and "De Oratione," +11. The fact that, _long after the hierarchy was formed_, in two or +three rare cases a bishop is called an angel, in reference to the angels +of the Apocalypse, is nothing to the purpose. See Bingham, i. 79. + +[268:1] Phil. iv. 14, 18. + +[269:1] Phil. ii. 25. + +[269:2] 2 Cor. viii. 23, [Greek: apostoloi ekklesion]. In after-times it +was deemed proper that those messengers should be of the clerical +order.--See Cyprian, epist. xxiv., lxxv., and lxxix. + +[269:3] Luke vii. 27, [Greek: ton angelon mou]. + +[269:4] James ii, 25, [Greek: tous angelous]. + +[269:5] John xxi. 7, 20. + +[270:1] Thus Hippolytus speaks of a certain elder, named Hyacinthus, who +was sent to the governor of Sardinia with a letter for the release of +the Christians banished there. "Philosophumena," p. 288. The _legate_ of +the bishop of Rome is a species of memorial of the angel of the ancient +Church. + +[270:2] Rev. ii. 7, 11, 17, 29, iii. 6, 13, 22. + +[270:3] Rev. i. 11. + +[271:1] Rev. i. 1. + +[271:2] Isa. xlix. 15, 16. + +[271:3] The Christians of Hierapolis are mentioned Col. iv. 13. + +[271:4] Acts xx. 4. + +[272:1] Lev. xxvi. 11, 12. + +[272:2] Rev. i. 16. + +[272:3] Ps. lxvii. 1, 2. + +[275:1] A.D. 96 to A.D. 98. + +[275:2] A.D. 98 to A.D. 117. + +[276:1] Origen, "Contra Celsum," i. Sec. 67. See also i. Sec. 26. + +[276:2] Origen, "Contra Celsum," iii. Sec. 29. + +[277:1] Justin Martyr, "Apol." ii. 61. Edit, Paris, 1615. + +[277:2] The Peshito, or old Syriac version, is supposed to have been +made in the first half of the second century.--Westcott "On the Canon," +pp. 264, 265. There are traces of the existence of a Latin version in +the time of Tertullian, or before the close of the second +century.--Ibid., p. 275. "Two versions into the dialects of Upper and +Lower Egypt--the Thebaic (Sahidic) and Memphitic--date from the close of +the third century."--Ibid. pp. 415, 416. + +[278:1] See Middleton's "Inquiry," pp. 3, 9. + +[278:2] See Kaye's "Tertullian," pp. 98-101. Edition, Cambridge, 1826. + +[278:3] Tertullian states that the Emperor Marcus Aurelius became +friendly to the Christians, in consequence of a remarkable interposition +of Providence in favour of his army, in a war with the Marcomanni and +the Quadi. It was alleged that, in answer to the prayers of a body of +Christian soldiers, afterwards known as the _Thundering Legion_, the +imperial troops were relieved by rain, whilst a thunderstorm confounded +the enemy. It is quite certain that the Roman army was rescued from +imminent peril by a seasonable shower; but it is equally clear that the +emperor attributed his deliverance, not to the God of the Christians, +but to Jupiter Pluvius, and that a certain section of the Roman soldiers +was known long before by the name of the Thundering Legion. There is no +evidence that Marcus Aurelius ever became friendly to the Christians. +See Lardner. "Heathen Testimonies," "Works," vii. 176-188. + +[279:1] See Middleton's "Inquiry," p. 84. Edition, Dublin, 1749. Bishop +Kaye has remarked that, in the writings of Tertullian, "the only power +of the exercise of which specific instances are alleged, was that of +exorcising evil spirits." "Kaye's Tertullian," p. 461. From the symptoms +mentioned it would appear that the individuals with whom the exorcists +succeeded were epileptics. + +[279:2] Irenaeus, who seems to have been not unfavourable to the +Montanists, speaks of the gift of tongues as possessed by some in his +age, and yet he himself, as a missionary, was obliged to struggle with +the difficulties of a foreign language. "Adv. Haeres," v., c. 6, and +"Praef." ad. 1. + +[279:3] When Theophilus of Antioch, towards the end of the second +century, was invited by Autolycus to point out a single person who had +been raised from the dead, he did not accept the challenge. See Kaye's +"Justin Martyr," p. 217. + +[279:4] Middleton's "Inquiry," Preface, p. iv. + +[279:5] Middleton, pp. 22, 23. + +[280:1] Plinii, "Epist." lib. x. epist. 97. + +[280:2] Tertullian, "Ad Scapulam," c. 5. + +[280:3] "Spicilegium Syriacum" by Cureton, p. 31. The correspondence +between Abgar and our Lord, given by Eusebius, is manifestly spurious. + +[281:1] Gregory of Tours, "Hist. Francorum," lib. i. c. 28. + +[281:2] Sozomen, "Hist. Eccles." ii. 6, and Philostorgius, "Hist. +Eccles." ii. 5. + +[281:3] "Adversus Judaeos," c. 7. + +[282:1] Justin Martyr, "Dialogue with Trypho," Opera, p. 345. + +[282:2] Theophilus, "Ad Autolycum," lib. ii. See also Origen, "In +Matthaeum," Opera, tom. iii. p. 858. + +[282:3] "Life of Alexander Severus," by Lampridius. + +[282:4] Euseb. viii. 1. + +[284:1] Cyprian, "De Laude Martyrii," Opera, pp. 620, 621. See also +Tertullian, "Ad Scapulam," c. 5. _ad finem_. + +[285:1] Tertullian, "Apol." 50. + +[287:1] Tertullian, "De Idololatria," c. 17. + +[287:2] Matt. x. 35, 36. + +[287:3] Tertullian, "Apol." c. 3, and "Ad Nationes," i. Sec. 4. + +[287:4] 1 Cor. xv. 19. + +[288:1] The Christians long gloried in the fact that Nero was their +first persecutor. See Tertullian, "Apol." c. 5. + +[289:1] Plinii, "Epist." lib. x. epist. 97. + +[290:1] Matt. xiii. 55; Mark vi. 3. That Simon and Simeon are the same, +see Acts xv. 7, 14. + +[290:2] Trajan died A.D. 117, and if Simeon was born a year after Jesus, +he entered upon the 120th year of his age about the close of this +Emperor's reign. See Greswell's "Dissertations," vol. ii. pp. 127, 128. +It was the opinion of Tertullian that Mary had other sons after she gave +birth to our Lord. See Neander's "Antignostikus," and Tertullian "De +Monogamia," c. 8. + +[293:1] The account of the trial of himself and his companions, as given +in the "Acta Sincera Martyrum" by Ruinart, bears all the marks of truth. + +[293:2] An account of his martyrdom is given in a circular letter of the +Church of Smyrna. See Jacobson's "Patres Apostolici," tom. ii. p. 542. +Euseb. iv. 15. + +[294:1] These places are distant from each other about seventeen miles. + +[296:1] Euseb. v. 1. + +[296:2] Among the Romans a concubine held a certain legal position, and +was in fact a wife with inferior privileges. Converted concubines were +admitted to the communion of the ancient Church. See Bunsen's +"Hippolytus," iii. 7. + +[296:3] Mosheim ("Commentaries" by Vidal. ii. 52, note) and many others, +refer the transaction recorded in the text to the reign of Hadrian, but +without any good cause. Tertullian, who tells the story ("Ad Scapulani," +c. 5), evidently alludes to a transaction which had recently occurred. +In the reign of Commodus there was a proconsul named Arrius Antoninus +who was put to death. See Lamprid, "Vita Commodi," c. 6, 7. See also +Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 146, note; and "Neander's General History" by +Torrey, i. 162, note. + +[296:4] Clemens Alexandrinus apparently refers to the times immediately +following the death of Commodus when he says--"Many martyrs are daily +burned, crucified, and decapitated before our eyes." Strom, lib. ii. p. +414. + +[297:1] Tertullian, "Ad Scapulam," c. 4. + +[297:2] Compare Justin Martyr, "Apol." ii. pp. 70, 71, and "Dial, cum +Tryphone," p. 227, with Tertullian, "Apol." c. 7. + +[297:3] Called _libellos_. + +[297:4] These parties sometimes appealed to Acts xvii. 9, in +justification of their conduct. + +[298:1] The _sacrificati_, or those who had sacrificed, as well as +offered incense, were considered still more guilty. + +[298:2] "Acta Perpetuae et Felicitatis." The martyrs appear to have been +Montanists. See Gieseler, by Cunningham, i. 125, note. Tertullian +mentions Perpetua, and his language countenances the supposition that +she was a Montanist. "De Anima," c. 55. + +[300:1] See the "Chronicon" of Eusebius, par. ii., adnot. p. 197. Edit. +Venet, 1818. + +[301:1] The Roman clergy speak of "the remnants and ruined heaps of the +fallen lying on all sides." Cyp. "Epist." xxxi. p. 99. Cyprian complains +of _"thousands_ of letters given _daily_" in behalf of the lapsed by +misguided confessors and martyrs. "Epist." xiv. p. 59. The writer here +probably speaks somewhat rhetorically, and evidently does not mean, as +some have thought, that all these letters were written at Carthage. He +speaks of what was done "everywhere," including Italy, as well as the +cities of Africa. "Epist." xiv., xxii., xxvi. + +[301:2] Dionysius of Alexandria, quoted by Euseb., vi. 41. + +[302:1] Euseb. vi. 39. + +[302:2] A.D. 249 to A.D. 251. + +[302:3] Cyprian, Epist. 82, ad Successum. + +[302:4] Cyprian, who seems to have been much respected personally by the +high officers of government at Carthage, was, when taken prisoner, +granted as great indulgence as his circumstances would permit; but +Gibbon, who describes his case with special minuteness, most uncandidly +represents it as affording an average specimen of the style in which +condemned Christians were treated. As an evidence of the social position +of the bishop of Carthage we may refer to the testimony of Pontius his +deacon, who states that "numbers of eminent and illustrious persons, men +of rank and family and secular distinction, for the sake of their old +friendship with him, urged him many times to retire." "Life," Sec. 14. + +[303:1] Euseb. vii. 13. + +[303:2] See Bingham, ii. p. 451. + +[304:1] "De Mortibus Persec." c. 10. + +[304:2] Euseb. viii. 2; "De Mort. Persec." c. 13. See also "Neander," by +Torrey, i. 202, note. + +[305:1] Eusebius, "Martyrs of Palestine," c. 4. + +[305:2] Eusebius, "Martyrs of Palestine," c. 9. + +[305:3] The Vatican Manuscript, the oldest in existence, was probably +written shortly after this persecution. It possesses internal evidences +that its date is anterior to the middle of the fourth century. See +Horne, iv. 161, 10th edition. + +[306:1] Eusebius, viii. 6, 9, 10, 12. + +[307:1] Firmilian refers to a noted persecution which "did not extend to +the whole world, _but was local_." Cyprian, "Epist." lxxv. p. 305. + +[308:1] The treatise "De Mortibus Persecutorum" is generally attributed +to Lactantius who flourished in the early part of the fourth century. +The authorship is doubtful. + +[308:2] Ps. ix. 16. + +[308:3] Herodian, iii. 23. This circumstance, as well as some others +here stated, is not mentioned in the work "De Mort. Persec." Tertullian +mentions some other remarkable facts, "Ad Scapulam," c. 3. + +[308:4] "De Mortib. Persec.," c. 49. + +[309:1] Tertullian, "Apol." c. 46. + +[310:1] Tertullian, "Apol." 28. + +[310:2] Tertullian, "Ad Scapulam," Sec. 2. + +[311:1] John xviii. 36. + +[312:1] Phil. iii. 18, 19. + +[313:1] Cyprian, "De Lapsis," p. 374. + +[313:2] Cyprian, "Ad Cornelium," epist. xlix. p. 143. Cyprian also +charges one of his deacons with fraud, extortion, and adultery. Epist. +xxxviii. p. 116. + +[313:3] Cornelius of Rome in Euseb. vi. 43. + +[315:1] See Eusebius, v. 3, vi. 9. + +[315:2] See Neander's "Antignostikus," part ii. sect. ii. at the end. It +appears that the Christian ascetics adopted the dress of the pagan +philosophers. + +[315:3] Cyprian, "De Habitu Virginum," pp. 354, 361. + +[315:4] Still, in the time of Origen, the sons of bishops, presbyters, +and deacons valued themselves upon their parentage.--Origen in +"Matthaeum" xv. opera, tom. in. p. 690. Even Cyprian bears honourable +testimony to certain married presbyters. See "Epist." xxxv. p. 111. See +also "Epist." xviii. p. 67. Cyprian himself was indebted for his +conversion to an eminent presbyter, named Caecilius, who had a wife and +children. "Life of Cyprian," by Pontius the Deacon, Sec. 5. + +[315:1] Cyprian, "Epist." lxii. p. 219. Concerning the _Subintroductae_, +see also the letter relating to Paul of Samosata in Euseb. vii. 30. + +[316:1] Jerome and Athanasius. + +[316:2] See Medhurst's "China," p. 217. The symbol of the cross was +engraved on the walls of the temple of Serapis. "When the temple of +Serapis was torn down and laid bare," says Socrates, "there were found +in it, engraven on stones, certain characters, which they call +hieroglyphics, having the forms of crosses. _Both the Christians and +Pagans on seeing them, thought they had reference to their respective +religions_." "Ecc. Hist." v. 17. + +[316:3] Prescott, "Conquest of Mexico," in. 338-340. See also note, p. +340. Sir Robert Ker Porter mentions a block of stone found among the +ruins of Susa, having, on one side, inscriptions in the cuneiform +diameter; and, on another, hieroglyphical figures with a cross in the +corner. See his "Travels," vol. ii. p. 415. Among the ancient pagans, +the cross was the symbol of eternal life, or divinity. On medals and +monuments of a date far anterior to Christianity, it is found in the +hands of statues of victory and of figures of monarchs. See also +Tertullian, "Apol." c. 16. + +[317:1] Tertullian, "De Praescrip. Haeret." c. 40. See also Kaye's +Tertullian, p. 441. "The ancient world was possessed by a dread of +demons, and under an anxious apprehension of the influence of charms, +sought for external preservatives against the powers of evil, and +accompanied their prayers with external signs and gestures." Bunsen's +"Hippolytus," iii. 351. + +[317:2] See Justin Martyr, "Dialogue with Trypho," pp. 259, 318, and +"Apol." ii. p. 90. Tertullian, "Adv. Judaeos," c. 10. In the "Octavius" +of Minucius Felix, the following remarkable passage occurs:--"What are +your military ensigns, and banners, and standards, but crosses gilded +and ornamented? _Your trophies of victory not only imitate the +appearance of a cross, but also of a man fixed to it_. We discern the +sign of a cross in the very form of a ship, whether it is wafted along +with swelling sails, or glides with its oars extended. When a military +yoke is erected there is a sign of a cross, and, in like manner, when +one with hands stretched forth devoutly addresses his God. _Thus, there +seems to be some reason in nature for it, and some reference to it in +your own system of religion_." The monogram [symbol: Chi-Rho], composed +of the initial Greek capitals [Greek: Chi] and [Greek: Rho] of the name +[Greek: christos], was in use among the heathen long before our era. It +is to be found on coins of the Ptolemies. Aringhus, "Roma Subterranea," +ii. p. 567. + +[318:1] Tertullian maintains ("Ad Jud." c. xi.) that the _mark_ +mentioned Ezekiel ix. 4 was the letter T, or the sign of the cross. See +a Dissertation on this subject by Vitringa, "Observationes Sacrae," lib. +ii. c. 15. See also Origen. "In Ezechielem," Opera, tom. iii. p. 424, +and Cyprian to Demetrianus, Sec. 12. It would appear that the worshippers +of Apollo used to mark themselves on the forehead with the letters +[Greek: CHI ETA]. See Kitto's "Cyclopaedia of Bib. Lit." art. FOREHEAD. + +[318:2] Tertullian, "De Corona." c. 3. By the Romans, crosses were +erected in conspicuous places to intimidate offenders, just in the same +way as the drop is now exhibited in the front of a jail. It is not +improbable that some of these crosses were afterwards worshipped by the +Christians! Aringhi mentions a stone, to be seen in his own time in the +Vatican, which was treated with the same absurd reverence. On this stone +many of the early Christians were said to have suffered martyrdom, +probably by decapitation; but it was afterwards held "in very great +honour" at Rome, and regarded as "a sacred thing!" "Roma Subterranea,'" +i. 219. + +[319:1] Minucius Felix, "Octavius," c. 24. There is a similar passage in +Tertullian, "Apol." c. 12. + +[319:2] Clemens Alexandrinus, "Paedagog." iii. Opera, pp. 246, 247. + +[319:3] Clemens Alexandrinus, "Stromat." v. Opera, p. 559. + +[320:1] Canon 30. The comment of the Roman Catholic Dupin upon this +canon is worthy of note. "To me," says he, "it seems better to +understand it in the plainest sense, and to confess that the Fathers of +this Council did not approve the use of images, no more than that of wax +candles lighted in full daylight."--_History of Ecclesiastical Writers, +Fourth Century_. + +[320:2] Tertullian, "De Pudicitia," c. 7. But all were not so +scrupulous, for Tertullian elsewhere complains that the image-makers +were chosen to church offices. "De Idololatria," c. 7. + +[320:3] Tertullian, "De Idololatria," c. 6. + +[321:1] Cyprian, "Ad Donatum," Opera, p. 5. + +[321:2] Tertullian, "De Spectaculis," c. 4. According to the English +Liturgy the person baptized "renounces the devil and all his works, the +vain pomp and glory of the world." This was originally intended to apply +to such exhibitions as those mentioned in the text. + +[322:1] Tertullian, "De Pudicitia," c. 7. Theophilus to Autolycus, book +iii. + +[322:2] Tertullian "Apol." c. 44. Minucius Felix, in his "Octavius," +makes a similar statement:--"The prisons are crowded with criminals of +your religion, but no Christian is there, unless he is either accused on +account of his faith, or is a deserter from his faith." + +[322:3] Justin Martyr, in his Dialogue with Trypho the Jew, says to +him--"Your blind and foolish teachers even to this day permit every one +of you to have _four or five wives_."--_Opera_, p. 363. + +[323:1] 1 Tim. iii. 2, 12. + +[323:2] Rom. vii. 1-3; 1 Cor. vii. 2. + +[323:3] The Montanists, in their extravagance, insisted that any one who +contracted a second marriage after the death of his first wife should be +excommunicated. + +[323:4] 2 Cor. vi. 14. + +[324:1] Tertullian, "Ad Uxorem," ii. 4. + +[324:2] Gibbon, "Decline and Fall," chap. ii. Some writers, such as +Zumpt and Merivale, consider this estimate quite extravagant. Others +again think it quite too low. See Schaff's "History of the Christian +Church," p. 316. New York, 1859. + +[324:3] Gal. iii. 28. + +[325:1] Onesimus, the slave mentioned Philem. 10, 16, probably became a +Christian minister. + +[325:2] 1 Cor. vii. 21. + +[325:3] 1 Cor. vii. 20-22. + +[325:4] 1 Tim. vi. 1, 2. + +[325:5] Kindness to slaves was particularly enjoined by the early Church +teachers. See Cyprian, "Lib. Tres. Test. adv. Judaeos," lib. iii. Sec. 72, +73. + +[325:6] It is stated in the "Octavius" of Minucius Felix that, in the +estimation of the heathen, "for a slave to be partaker in certain +religious ceremonies is deemed abominable impiety." (c. 25.) + +[326:1] One of the laws made by Constantine shortly after his conversion +sanctioned the manumission of slaves on the Lord's day. + +[326:2] Thus, on one occasion, Cyprian raised a contribution of about +L900 in Carthage to purchase the release of some Christians of Numidia. +Cyprian, Epist. lx. p. 216. Tertullian said to the heathen, "Our charity +dispenses more in every street, than your religion in each +temple."--_Apol._ c. 42. + +[327:1] About A.D. 252. + +[327:2] Cyprian, "Ad Demetrianum," and "De Mortalitate." "Vita Cypriani +per Pontium," c. 9. + +[327:3] Euseb. vii. 22. + +[328:1] Athanasius, "Hist. Arian. ad Monachos," Sec. 64. + +[329:1] Luke xxii. 24-26. + +[329:2] Rom. i. 8, 13. + +[330:1] Gal. ii. 7-9. + +[330:2] Rom. xvi. 3-15. + +[330:3] Acts ii. 10. + +[330:4] Euseb. ii. 22. + +[330:5] Period 1. sec. i. chap. x. + +[331:1] Hegesippus seems to have been the first who attempted to draw up +a list of the bishops, or presiding presbyters of Rome. See Pearson's +Criticism on Euseb. iv. 22, in his "Minor Works," vol. ii. p. 319, +Oxford, 1844; and Routh's "Reliquiae," i. pp. 270, 271. + +[331:2] Thus, Irenaeus (i. 27) speaks of Hyginus as the _ninth_, and +again (iii. 3), as the _eighth_ in succession from the apostles. + +[331:3] Thus, Irenaeus affirms (iii. 3) that Linus was the immediate +successor of the apostles, whilst Tertullian, who was his contemporary, +and who possessed equally good means of information, assigns that +position to Clement. "De Praescrip. Haeret." c. 32. + +[331:4] Euseb. iii. 4. + +[332:1] Irenaeus, "Contra Om. Haer." iii. 3, Sec. 3. Bunsen has justly +remarked that, "with Telesphorus the most obscure period of the Roman +Church terminates."--_Hippolytus_, iv. pp. 209, 210. + +[332:2] Irenaeus, iii. 4, Sec. 3. + +[332:3] This name continued to be given to the Roman bishop until at +least the close of the second century. See Irenaeus quoted in Euseb. v. +24. + +[332:4] [Greek: katholikos]. See this subject more fully illustrated in +Period II. sec. iii. chap. viii. + +[333:1] "Qui absistunt a principali successione, et quocunque loco +colligunt, suspectos habere (oportet) vel quasi haereticos et malae +sententiae; vel quasi scindentes et elatos et sibi placentes; aut rursus +ut hypocritas, quaestus gratia et vanae gloriae hoc operantes." +Irenaeus, iv. 26, Sec. 2. + +[333:2] See Period II. sec. iii. chap. vii. + +[333:3] Blondel's "Apologia pro sententia Hieronymi," p. 18. Under +ordinary circumstances the new president, or bishop, was often elected +before his predecessor was buried. See Bingham, book ii. c. xi. Sec. 2. + +[333:4] See Pearson's "Minor Works," ii. 520. + +[333:5] This method of appointment continued to be observed long +afterwards in some parts of the Church. See Bingham, book iv. chap. i. +sec. i. At Alexandria in the beginning of the fourth century the +presbyters selected three of their senior members, of whom the people +chose one. Cotelerius, ii., app. p. 180. + +[334:1] [Greek: Ton tes episkopes kleron]. "Irenaeus," ed. Stieren, i. +p. 433. + +[334:2] The Paschal feast. Irenaeus admits that this point formed only a +subordinate topic of discussion. See Stieren's "Irenaeus," i. p. 826, +note 6. + +[334:3] See Period II. sec. iii. chap. vii. + +[334:4] Euseb. iv. 14. + +[335:1] Cyprian speaks of sending messengers to Rome "to ascertain and +report as to any rescript published respecting" the Christians. "Epist. +ad Successum." The Roman clergy could at once supply the information. + +[336:1] Extract of a letter from Dionysius of Corinth, preserved in +Eusebius, iv. 23. + +[336:2] The testimonies to this fact may be found discussed in Minter's +"Primordia Eccelesiae Africanae," p. 10. Herodian, who flourished in the +third century, speaks of Carthage as the next city after Rome in size +and wealth. Lib. vii. 6. + +[336:3] In this way we may readily account for various statements in +Tertullian and Cyprian. + +[337:1] We here see how a father who wrote so soon after the apostolic +age, blunders egregiously respecting the history of the Apostolic +Church. + +[337:2] So I understand "his qui sunt undique." See Wordsworth's +"Hippolytus," p. 200. We have thus a remarkable proof that the word +_catholic_ was not in use when Irenaeus wrote, for he here expresses the +idea by a circumlocution. + +[337:3] "Propter potentiorem principalitatem." + +[337:4] Irenaeus iii. 3. See on this passage Gieseler, by Cunningham, i. +97, note. See also Period II. sec. iii. chap. viii. + +[337:5] The circular letter relating to the martyrdom of Polycarp quoted +in Euseb. iv. 15. It was probably written a considerable time after the +death of the martyr, as it speaks of the way in which his _memory_ was +cherished when it was drawn up. Sec. 19. As it uses the word _catholic_ it +must have been written after the appearance of the work of Irenaeus. + +[337:6] Irenaeus quoted in Euseb. v. 24. See Period II. sec. iii. chap. +viii. + +[339:1] We have an extract from them in Euseb. v. 4. + +[339:2] Period II. sec. i. chap. ii. p. 296. + +[339:3] Hippolytus, "Refut. Om. Haeres." book ix. + +[340:1] This probably occurred early in the reign of Septimius Severus, +who at first is said to have been very favourable to the Church. Shortly +before, many in Rome of great wealth and eminent station had become +Christians.--Euseb. v. c. 21. + +[340:2] See a more minute account of this controversy in Period II. sec. +iii. chap. xii. + +[340:3] This is evident from the fact that Hippolytus is scarcely +willing to recognise some of the Roman bishops, his contemporaries. But +meanwhile both parties probably belonged to the same synod. Hippolytus +seems to have been the leader of a formidable opposition. + +[341:1] Matt. xvi. 18. + +[341:2] See the Muratorian fragment in Bunsen's "Analecta Ante-Nicaena," +i. 154, 155. This, according to Bunsen, is a fragment of a work of +Hegesippus, and written about A.D. 165. Hippolytus, i. 314. + +[341:3] "Hermae Pastor," lib. iii. simil. ix. Sec. 12-14. "Petra haec.... +Filius Dei est.... Quid est deinde haec turris? Haec, inquit, ecclesia +est.... Demonstra mihi quare non in terra aedificatur haec turris, sed +supra petram." + +[341:4] Tertullian, "De Praescrip." xxii. "Latuit aliquid Petrum +aedificandae ecclesiae petram dictum?" Tertullian here speaks of the +doctrine as already current. Even after he became a Montanist, he still +adhered to the same interpretation--"Petrum solum invenio maritum, per +socrum; monogamum praesumo per _ecclesiam, quae super illum, aedificata_ +omnem gradum ordinis sui de monogamis erat collocatura."--_De +Monogamia_, c. viii. Again, in another Montanist tract, he says--"Qualis +es, evertens atque commutans manifestam domini intentionem personaliter +hoc Petro conferentem? _Super te_, inquit, _aedificabo ecclesiam +meam_."--_De Pudicitia_, c. xxi. See also "De Praescrip." c. xxii. +According to Origen every believer, as well as Peter, is the foundation +of the Church. "Contra Celsum," vi. 77. See also "Comment in Matthaeum +xii.," Opera, tom. iii. p. 524, 526. + +[342:1] See this subject more fully explained in Period II. sec. iii. +ch. viii. + +[343:1] Even the letters of Victor, which created such a sensation +throughout the Church, are not forthcoming. See Pearson's "Vindiciae +Ignatianae," pars 2, cap. 13, as to the spuriousness of those imputed to +him. + +[343:2] They extend from Clement, who, according to some lists, was the +first Pope, to Syricius, who was made Bishop of Rome A.D. 384. All +candid writers, whether Romanists or Protestants, now acknowledge them +to be forgeries. They may be found in "Binii Concilia." They made their +appearance, for the first time, about the eighth century. + +[344:1] This is the date assigned to its erection by Bunsen, but Dr +Wordsworth argues that it was erected earlier. + +[344:2] 22d August. + +[345:1] The first edition appeared at Oxford in 1851, exactly three +hundred years after the discovery of the statue. + +[345:2] This point has been fully established by Bunsen and Wordsworth. + +[345:3] This is expressly stated by Tertullian, "Adversus Praxeam," c. +i. + +[345:4] See Bower's "History of the Popes." Victor, 13th Bishop. + +[345:5] According to the commonly received chronology, Victor occupied +the papal chair from A.D. 192 to A.D. 201; Zephyrinus from A.D. 201 to +A.D. 219; and Callistus from A.D. 219 to A.D. 223. + +[346:1] [Greek: andros idiotu kai aischrokerdous]. + +[346:2] [Greek: apeiron ton ekklesiakon horon]. + +[346:3] "Philosophumena," book ix. + +[348:1] "Philosophumena," book ix. + +[348:2] 14th October. + +[348:3] "Philosophumena," book i., prooemium. + +[348:4] [Greek: dedoikos eme]. + +[348:5] Bunsen describes Hippolytus as "a member of the Roman +presbytery" ("Hippolytus," i. 313), but he is here evidently mistaken. +Hippolytus was at the head of a presbytery of his own, the presbytery of +Portus. The presbytery of Rome was confined to the elders or presbyters +of that city. The _presbyter_ Hippolytus mentioned by some ancient +writers seems to have been a quite different person from the bishop of +Portus. + +[348:6] "Philosophumena," book ix. + +[349:1] It is probable that the bishop was at first chosen by lot out of +a leet of three selected by the presbytery from among its members. (See +preceding chapter, p. 333, note.) An appointment was now made out of +this leet of three, not by lot, but by popular suffrage. + +[349:2] Euseb. vi. 29. + +[350:1] Evidently from [Greek: kata], _down_, and [Greek: kumbos], _a +cavity_. Mr Northcote, in his work on the "Roman Catacombs," published +in 1857, calculates that the streets in all, taken together, are 900 +miles long! + +[350:2] See "Three Introductory Lectures on Ecclesiastical History," by +William Lee, D.D., of Trinity College, Dublin, p. 27. + +[350:3] It is probable that many were condemned to labour in these mines +as a punishment for having embraced Christianity. See Lee's "Three +Lectures," p. 28. + +[350:4] Maitland's "Church in the Catacombs," p. 24. Dr Maitland visited +Rome in 1841, but his inspection of the Lapidarian Gallery seems to have +been regarded with extreme jealousy by the authorities there. After +having obtained a licence "to make some memoranda in drawing in that +part of the Museum," he was officially informed that "his permission +_did not extend to the inscriptions_", and the communication was +accompanied by a demand that "the copies already made should be given +up." To his refusal to yield to this mandate we are indebted for many +important memorials to be found in his interesting volume. + +[351:1] See Maitland, pp. 27-29. + +[352:1] Maitland, p. 14. + +[352:2] Maitland, pp. 33, 41, 43, 170. + +[352:3] "Philosophumena," book ix. + +[352:4] As Carthage now furnished Rome with marble and granite, it is +probable that the quarrymen and sand-diggers of the catacombs came +frequently into contact with the Carthaginian sailors; and we may thus +see how, in the time of Cyprian, there were such facilities for +epistolary intercourse between the Churches of Rome and Carthage. Under +favourable circumstances, the mariner could accomplish the voyage +between the two ports in two or three days. + +[353:1] "Philosophumena," book ix. Tertullian corroborates the charges +of Hippolytus. See "De Pudicitia," cap. i. + +[353:2] We know, however, that, long after this period, married bishops +were to be found almost everywhere. One of the most eminent martyrs in +the Diocletian persecution was a bishop who had a wife and children. See +Eusebius, viii. c.9. Clemens Romanus, reputed one of the early bishops +of the Western capital, speaks as a married man. See his "Epistle to the +Corinthians," Sec. 21. + +[353:3] Maitland, pp. 191-193. These inscriptions may be found also in +Aringhi, i. 421, 419. + +[353:4] Aringhi, ii. pp. 228; Rome, 1651. + +[354:1] Cyprian to Antonianus, Epist. lii, p. 151. + +[355:1] Cyprian speaks of "the blessed martyrs, Cornelius and Lucius." +Epist. lxvii. p. 250. + +[355:2] See Cyprian's "Epistle to Successus," where it is stated that +"Xystus was martyred in the cemetery [the catacombs] on the eighth of +the Ides of August, and with him four deacons." + +[355:3] This fragment may be found in Euseb. vi. 43. + +[355:4] For an account of their duties see Period II. sec. iii. chap. x. + +[355:5] According to some manuscripts, there were, not forty-six, but +forty-two presbyters, seven deacons, seven sub-deacons, and forty-two +acolyths. At a later period, we find three presbyters connected with +each Roman church. There were fourteen regions in the city, and +supposing a congregation in each, there would now be three presbyters, +one deacon or sub-deacon, and three acolyths belonging to each church. +See Blondel's "Apologia," p. 224. + +[356:1] Cornelius (Euseb. vi. 43) calls him "a malicious beast," but he +evidently writes under a feeling of deep mortification. + +[357:1] Firmilian, "Cypriani Epistolae," lxxv. + +[357:2] Matt. xvi. 16-18. + +[357:3] John i. 42. + +[357:4] See 1 Pet. ii. 5. Peter adds, as if to illustrate Matt. xvi. +18--"Wherefore also it is contained in the Scripture--Behold I lay in +Zion _a chief corner stone_, elect, precious; _and he that believeth on +him shall not be confounded_." 1 Pet. ii. 6. + +[358:1] Matt. vii. 24, 25. + +[358:2] See Tertullian, "De Praescrip." xxii.; and Cyprian to Cornelius, +Epist. lv. p. 178, where he says--"Petrus, tamen, super quem aedificuta +ab eodem Domino fuerat ecclesia." See also the same epistle, pp. 182, +183, and many other passages. + +[358:3] Thus, Cyprian in his letter to Quintus (Epist. lxxi. p. 273) +makes the following awkward attempt to get over the difficulty:--"Nam +nec Petrus, _quem primum Dominus elegit, et super quem aedificavit +ecclesiam suam,_ cum secum Paulus de circumcisione postmodum +disceptaret, vindicavit sibi aliquid insolenter aut arroganter +assumpsit, _ut diceret se primatum tenere et obtemperari a novellis et +posteris sibi potius oportere_." + +[359:1] A.D. 325. + +[359:2] The Suburbicarian Provinces comprehended the three islands of +Sicily, Corsica, and Sardinia, and the whole of the southern part of +Italy, including Naples and nearly all the territory now belonging to +Tuscany and the States of the Church. See Bingham, iii. p. 20. + +[359:3] Basil, Ep. 220. + +[360:1] Euseb. vii. 50. + +[360:2] Thus we read of "the blessed Pope Cyprian," bishop of Carthage. +Cyprian, Epist. ii. p. 25. The name was sometimes given to the head of a +monastery. In the catacombs there was found an inscription probably to +the memory of a Pope of this description. See Maitland, p. 185. See also +Routh's "Reliquiae," iii. pp. 256, 265. + +[360:3] See Bower, "Marcellus," 29th Bishop. + +[360:4] That is, from the autumn of A.D. 304 to the spring of A.D. 308. +See Burton's "Lectures on the Ecc. Hist, of the First Three Cent." ii. +p. 433. + +[361:1] In the life of Marcellus we read of so many places of worship in +Rome. See "Hist. Platinae De Vitis Pontif. Roman," p. 40, Coloniae, +1593. Optatus speaks of forty churches in Rome at this time; but he is +probably mistaken as to the date. There may have been so many after the +establishment of Christianity by Constantine. There were only fifty +churches in the Western capital in the beginning of the fifth century. +See Neander, i. 276; Edit. Edinburgh, 1847. + +[362:1] In Matt. xvi. 18. Opera, tom. ii. p. 344; Edit. Eton, 1612. + +[362:2] In Joh. i. 50. Opera, tom. ii. p. 637; Edit. Eton, 1612. + +[362:3] "In Johann. Evang. Tractat." 124, Sec. 5. Opera, tom. ix. c. 572. +Augustine had before held the more fashionable view. See "Barrow on the +Pope's Supremacy," by Dr M'Crie, p. 78. + +[365:1] The references in this work to the Apostolic Fathers by +Cotelerius are to the Amsterdam Edition, folio, 1724. + +[365:2] This is the date assigned to it by Bunsen. "Hippolytus," i. 309. +It is not probable that Polycarp was at the head of the eldership of +Smyrna much earlier. See Period II. sec. iii. chap, v., note. + +[365:3] According to Ussher in A.D. 169. + +[365:4] See Pearson's "Minor Works," ii. 531. + +[366:1] The original narrative may be found in the Dialogue with Trypho. + +[366:2] The references to Justin in this work are to the Paris folio +edition of 1615. + +[367:1] He afterwards became the founder of a sect noted for its austere +discipline. His followers used water, instead of wine, at the +celebration of the Lord's Supper. They lived in celibacy, and observed +rigorous fasts. + +[367:2] The writer says of the temple (chap. xvi.)--"It is now destroyed +by their (the Jews) enemies, and _the servants of their enemies are +building it up._" Jerusalem was rebuilt by Hadrian about A.D. 135, and +the name Aelia given to it. + +[368:1] Two short letters ascribed to Pius are mentioned Period II. sec. +iii. chap. vii. For a long time Barnabas, the author of the epistle, was +absurdly confounded with the companion of Paul mentioned Acts xiii. 1, +and elsewhere; and Hermas was supposed to be the individual saluted in +Rom. xvi. 14. Hence these two writers have been called, like Polycarp +and others, _Apostolic Fathers_. + +[368:2] Eusebius, who has preserved a few fragments of this author, +describes him as a very credulous person. See his "Hist." iii. 39. + +[368:3] In the text it has not been considered necessary to mention all +the writers, however small their contributions to our ecclesiastical +literature, who appeared during the second and third centuries. Hence, +Melito of Sardis, Caius of Rome, and many others are unnoticed. The +remaining fragments of these early ecclesiastical writers may be found +in Routh's "Reliquiae," and elsewhere. + +[368:4] [Greek: haemon, ton en Keltois diatribonton kai peri barbaron +dialekton to pleiston ascholoumenon].--_Contra Haereses_, lib. i. Praef. + +[369:1] The references to Irenaeus in this work are to Stieren's edition +of 1853. + +[369:2] Wordsworth has remarked that in the "Philosophumena" of +Hippolytus we have some of the lost text of Irenaeus. St Hippolytus, p. +15. + +[369:3] Such is the testimony of Jerome. See Cave's "Life of Irenaeus." + +[369:4] Euseb. "Hist." iii. 39. + +[369:5] Irenaeus adopted the millenarianism of Papias. + +[370:1] This is evident from his own statements. See his "Apology," c. +18, and "De Spectaculis," c. 19. The references to Tertullian in this +work are either to the edition of Oehler of 1853, or to that of +Rigaltius of 1675. + +[370:2] According to some the population of Carthage at this time +amounted to hundreds of thousands. "The intercourse between Carthage and +Rome, on account of the corn trade alone, was probably more regular and +rapid than with any other part of the Empire."--_Milman's Latin +Christianity_, i. p. 47. + +[370:3] See Euseb. ii. 2, 25. + +[370:4] Such is the testimony of Jerome, who asserts farther that the +treatment he received from the clergy of Rome induced him to leave that +city. + +[370:5] Such as the tracts "De Pallio" and "De Jejuniis." + +[371:1] As a choice specimen of his vituperative ability his +denunciation of Marcion may be quoted--"Sed nihil tam barbarum ac triste +apud Pontum quam quod illic Marcion natus est, Scythia tetrior, +Hamaxobio instabilior, Massageta inhumanior, Amazona audacior, nubilo +obscurior, hieme frigidior, gelu fragilior, Istro fallacior, Caucaso +abruptior."--_Adversus Marcionem_, lib. i. c. 1. + +[371:2] Victor of Rome, who was contemporary with Tertullian, is said to +have written in Latin, but the extant letters ascribed to him are +considered spurious. + +[372:1] Such, according to Jerome, was the practice of Cyprian. + +[372:2] He is supposed to have died at an advanced age, but the date of +his demise cannot be accurately determined. Most of his works were +written between A.D. 194 and A.D. 217. + +[372:3] The part of the work "Adversus Judaeos," from the beginning of +the ninth chapter, is taken chiefly from the third book of the Treatise +against Marcion, and has apparently been added by another hand. + +[374:1] "Admonitio ad Gentes," Opera, p. 69. Edit. Coloniae, 1688. + +[374:2] "Stromata," book v. + +[374:3] See Kaye's "Clement of Alexandria," p. 378. + +[374:4] Period II. sec. i. chap. v. p. 344. + +[375:1] Prudentius. See Wordsworth's "Hippolytus," p. 106-112. + +[377:1] He had acted literally as described, Matt, xix. 12. + +[377:2] Euseb. vi. 3. + +[377:3] Euseb. vi. 21. + +[378:1] He says Celsus lived in the reign of Hadrian and afterwards. +"Contra Celsum," i. Sec. 8; Opera, tom. i. p. 327. The references to Origen +in this work are to the edition of the Benedictine Delarue, 4 vols. +folio. Paris, 1733-59. + +[379:1] The three other Greek versions were those of Aquila, of +Symmachus, and of Theodotion. + +[379:2] Origen, in his writings, repeatedly refers to Philo by name. See +Opera, i. 543. + +[379:3] See Euseb. ii. c. 17. + +[380:1] Thus he declares-"The prophets indicating what is wise +concerning the circumstances of our generation, say that sacrifice is +offered for sin, _even the sin of those newly born_ as not free from +sin, for it is written--'I was shapen in wickedness, and in sin did my +mother conceive me.'"--_Contra Celsum_, vii. Sec. 50. + +[380:2] He held, however, that Satan is to be excepted from the general +salvation. See "Epist. ad Amicos Alexandrinos," Opera, i. p. 5. + +[381:1] See Sage's "Vindication of the Principles of the Cyprianic Age," +p. 348. London, 1701. + +[382:1] In the case of these epistles, much confusion arises, in the way +of reference, from their various arrangement by different editors. The +references in this work to Cyprian are to the edition of Baluzius, +folio, Venice, 1728. Baluzius, in the arrangement of the letters, adopts +the same order as Pamelius, but Epistle II. of the latter is Epistle I. +of the former, and so on to Epistle XXIII. of Pamelius, which is Epistle +XXII. of the other. Baluzius here conforms exactly to the numeration of +the preceding editor by making Epistle XXIV. immediately follow Epistle +XXII., so that from this to the end of the series the same references +apply equally well to the work of either. The numeration of the Oxford +edition of Bishop Fell is, with a few exceptions, quite different. + +[382:2] Mr Shepherd has completely failed in his attempt to disprove the +genuineness of these writings. They are as well attested as any other +documents of antiquity. + +[383:1] See Period II. sec. i. chap. ii. p. 302, note. + +[383:2] It has not been thought necessary in this chapter to notice +either _Arnobius_, an African rhetorician, who wrote seven Books against +the Gentiles; or the Christian Cicero, _Lactantius_, who is said to have +been his pupil. Both these authors appeared about the end of the period +embraced in this history, and consequently exerted little or no +influence during the time of which it treats. + +[384:1] His life was written by Gregory Nyssen about a century after his +death. + +[385:1] See a preceding note in this chapter, p. 367. + +[385:2] Matt. x. 29. + +[385:3] Scorpiace, c. ix. + +[385:4] Stromata, book iii. + +[385:5] Matt, xviii. 20. + +[385:6] "For," says he, "from the first hour to the third, a trinity of +number is manifested; from the fourth on to the sixth, is another +trinity; and in the seventh closing with the ninth, a perfect trinity is +numbered, in spaces of three hours."-_On the Lord's Prayer_, p. 426. + +[386:1] "Contra Celsum," v. Sec. 11. + +[386:2] Theophilus to Autolycus, lib. ii. Sec. 24. + +[386:3] In proof of this see his treatise "Contra Celsum," i. 25, also +"Opera," iii. p. 616, and iv. p. 86. + +[386:4] "Contra Haereses," ii. c. xxiv. Sec. 2. See Matt. i. 21. + +[386:5] "Contra Haereses," ii. c. xxxv. 3. He seems to have confounded +_Adonai_ and _Yehovah_. The latter word was regarded by the Jews as the +"unutterable" name. Hence it has been thought that in the Latin version +of Irenaeus we should read "innominabile" for "nominabile." See +Stieren's "Irenaeus," i. 418. + +[386:6] "Paedagogue," book i. See Gen. xxxii. 28. + +[386:7] "Stromata," book v. Sec Gen. xvii. 5. Not a few of these +mistakes may be traced to Philo Judaeus. Thus, this interpretation of +Abraham may be found in his "Questions and Solutions on Genesis," book +iii. 43. + +[386:8] "Apol." ii. p. 88. + +[386:9] "Dialogue with Trypho," Opera, p. 268. + +[386:10] "Apol." ii. p. 76. + +[386:11] "Apol." ii. p. 86. + +[387:1] "Contra Haereses," ii. c. xxii. Sec. 5. + +[387:2] He thus makes His ministry about a year in length. "Adversus +Judaeos," c. viii. + +[387:3] "De Cultu Feminarum," lib. i. c. 2, and lib. ii. c. 10. + +[387:4] See Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 196. See also Warburton's "Divine +Legation of Moses," i. 510. Edit. London, 1837. + +[387:5] "Adversus Hermogenem," c. 35, and "Adversus Praxeam," c. 7. + +[389:1] In 1842, Archdeacon Tattam, who had returned only about three +years before from Egypt, where he had been searching for ancient +manuscripts, set out a second time to that country, under the auspices +of the Trustees of the British Museum, chiefly for the purpose of +endeavouring to procure copies of the Ignatian epistles. On this +occasion he succeeded in obtaining possession of the Syriac copy of the +three letters published by Dr. Cureton in 1845. Shortly before the +Revolution of 1688, Robert Huntingdon, afterwards Bishop of Raphoe, and +then chaplain to the British merchants at Aleppo, twice undertook a +voyage to Egypt in quest of copies of the Ignatian epistles. On one of +these occasions he visited the monastery in the Nitrian desert in which +the letters were recently found. + +[390:1] Of the writers who have taken a prominent part in the Ignatian +controversy we may particularly mention Ussher, Vossius, Hammond, +Daille, Pearson, Larroque, Rothe, Baur, Cureton, Hefele, and Bunsen. + +[390:2] Matt, xviii. 2-4; Mark ix. 36. + +[390:3] There has been a keen controversy respecting the accentuation of +[Greek: Theophoros]. Those who place the accent on the antepenult +([Greek: Theo'phoros]) give it the meaning mentioned in the test; whilst +others, placing the accent on the penult ([Greek: Theopho'ros]), +understand by it _God-bearing_, the explanation given in the "Acts of +the Martyrdom of Ignatius." See Daille, "De Scriptis quae sub Dionysii +Areop. et Ignatii Antioch. nom. circumferuntur," lib. ii. c. 25; and +Pearson's "Vindiciae Ignatianae," pars. sec. cap. xii. + +[391:1] Cave reckons that at the time of his martyrdom he was probably +"above fourscore years old." See his "Life of Ignatius." + +[391:2] See Period II. sec. in. chap. v. Evodius is commonly represented +as the first bishop of Antioch. + +[392:1] "Fuerunt alii similis amentiae: quos, quia cives Romani erant, +annotavi in Urbem remittendos."--_Plinii_, _Epist_. lib. x. epist. 96. + +[392:2] The Greek says the _ninth_, and the Latin the _fourth_ year. +According to both, the condemnation took place _early_ in the reign of +Trajan. See also the first sentence of the "Acts." In his translation of +these "Acts," Wake, regardless of this statement, and in opposition to +all manuscript authority, represents the sentence as pronounced "in the +_nineteenth_ year" of Trajan. + +[392:3] See Jacobson's "Patres Apostolici," ii. p. 504. See also +Greswell's "Dissertations," vol. iv. p. 422. It is evident that the date +in the "Acts" cannot be the mistake of a transcriber, for in the same +document the martyrdom is said to have occurred when Sura and Synecius +were consuls. These, as Greswell observes, were actually consuls "in the +_ninth_ of Trajan." Greswell's "Dissertations," iv. p. 416. Hefele, +however, has attempted to show that Trajan was really in Antioch about +this time. See his "Pat. Apost. Opera Prolegomena," p. 35. Edit. +Tubingen, 1842. + +[393:1] "Acts of his Martyrdom," Sec. 8. + +[393:2] He is said, when at Smyrna, to have been visited by a deputation +from the Magnesians. But had notice been sent to them as soon as he +arrived at Smyrna, the messenger would have required three days to +perform the journey; and had the Magnesians set out instantaneously, +they must have occupied three days more in travelling to him. Thus, +notwithstanding all the precipitation with which he was hurried along, +he could scarcely have been less than a week in Smyrna. See "Corpus +Ignatianum," pp. 326, 327. + +[394:1] "He was _pressed_ by the soldiers to _hasten_ to the public +spectacles at great Rome." "And the _wind continuing favourable_ to us, +in one day and night we were _hurried_ on."--_Acts of his Martyrdom_, Sec. +10, 11. + +[394:2] Philadelphia is distant from Troas about two hundred miles. +"Corpus Ignatianum," pp. 331, 332. Here, then, is another difficulty +connected with this hasty journey. How could a deputation from +Philadelphia meet Ignatius in Troas, as some allege they did, if he did +not stop a considerable time there? See other difficulties suggested by +Dr Cureton. "Cor. Ignat." p. 332. + +[395:1] Such is the opinion maintained by the celebrated Whiston in his +"Primitive Christianity." More recently Meier took up nearly the same +position. + +[395:2] See Preface to the "Corpus Ignatianum," p. 4. + +[395:3] Published in 1849. In 1846 he published his "Vindiciae +Ignatianae; or the Genuine Writings of St Ignatius, as exhibited in the +ancient Syriac version, vindicated from the charge of heresy." + +[396:1] In 1847 another copy of the Syriac version of the three epistles +was deposited in the British Museum, and since, Sir Henry Rawlinson is +said to have obtained a third copy at Bagdad. See "British Quarterly" +for October 1855, p. 452. + +[396:2] Dr Lee, late Regius Professor of Hebrew in Cambridge, Chevalier +Bunsen, and other scholars of great eminence, have espoused the views of +Dr Cureton. + +[396:3] By Archbishop Ussher in 1644, and by Vossius in 1646. + +[396:4] Such was the opinion of Ussher himself. "Concludimus ... nullas +omni ex parte sinceras esse habendas et genuinas." Dissertation prefixed +to his edition of "Polycarp and Ignatius," chap. 18. + +[397:1] Pearson was occupied six years in the preparation of this work. +The publication of Daille, to which it was a reply, appeared in 1666. +Daille died in 1670, at the advanced age of seventy-six. The work of +Pearson did not appear until two years afterwards, or in 1672. The year +following he received the bishopric of Chester as his reward. + +[397:2] "In the whole course of my inquiry respecting the Ignatian +Epistles," says Dr Cureton, "_I have never met with one person who +professes to have read Bishop Pearson's celebrated book_; but I was +informed by one of the most learned and eminent of the present bench of +bishops, that Porson, after having perused the 'Vindiciae,' had +expressed to him his opinion that it was a 'very unsatisfactory +work.'"--_Corpus Ignat._, Preface, pp. 14, 15, note. Bishop Pearson's +work is written in Latin. + +[397:3] The "Three Epistles" edited by Dr Cureton contain only about the +_one-fourth_ of the matter of the seven shorter letters edited by +Ussher. + +[398:1] Dr Cureton has shewn that even the learned Jerome must have +known very little of these letters. "Corpus Ignat.", Introd. p. 67. + +[398:2] Euseb. iii. c. 36. + +[399:1] Euseb. i. c. 13. + +[399:2] "Corpus Ignatianum," Introd. p. 71. + +[399:3] Proleg. in "Cantic. Canticorum," and Homil. vi. in "Lucam." + +[399:4] In the Epistle to the Romans, and the Epistle to the Ephesians. + +[399:5] He quotes the words--"I am not an incorporeal demon," from the +"Doctrine of Peter;" but they are found in the shorter recension of the +seven letters in the "Epistle to the Smyrnaeans," Sec. 3. Had this epistle +been known to him, he would certainly have quoted from an apostolic +father rather than from a work which he knew to be spurious. See Origen, +"Opera," i. p. 49, note. + +[400:1] "Opera," ii. 20, 21; iii. 271. + +[400:2] See Period II. sec. ii. chap. i. p. 367. Origen, "Opera," iv. +473. + +[400:3] Ibid. p. 368. + +[400:4] "Opera," i. 79; iv. 683. + +[400:5] "Contra Haereses," lib. v. c. 28, Sec. 4. "Quidam de nostris dixit, +propter martyrium in Deum adjudicatus ad bestias: Quoniam frumentum sum +Christi, et per dentes bestiarum molor, ut mundus panis Dei inveniar." + +[401:1] Thus he speaks of "Saturninus, who was from Antioch." "Contra +Haereses," lib. i. c. 24, Sec. 1. + +[401:2] It seems to have been soon translated into Syriac. See Bunsen's +"Hippolytus," iv. Preface, p. 8. + +[401:3] See large extracts from this letter in Euseb. v. c. i. Also +Routh's "Reliquiae," i. 329. + +[402:1] Irenaeus, "Contra Haereses," lib. iii. c. 2, Sec. 1, 2. + +[402:2] Lib. iii. c. 3, Sec. 3. + +[402:3] Lib. iii. c. iii. Sec. 4. + +[402:4] Lib. v. c. xxxiii. Sec. 3, 4. + +[402:5] Lib. iv. c. vi. Sec. 2. + +[402:6] In his "Vindiciae," (Pars. i. cap. 6,) Pearson attempts to parry +this argument by urging that Irenaeus does not mention other writers, +such as Barnabas, Quadratus, Aristidus, Athenagoras, and Theophilus. But +the reply is obvious--1. These writers were occupied chiefly in +defending Christianity against the attacks of paganism, so that +testimonies against heresy could not be expected in their works. 2. None +of them were so early as Ignatius, so that their testimony, even could +it have been obtained, would have been of less value. Some of them, such +as Theophilus, were the contemporaries of Irenaeus. 3. None of them held +such an important position in the Church as Ignatius. + +[403:1] He was martyred A.D. 167, at the age of eighty-six. According to +the Acts of his Martyrdom, Ignatius was martyred sixty years before, or +A.D. 107. Polycarp must, therefore, have been now about twenty-six. See +more particularly Period II. sec. ii. chap. v. note. + +[403:2] Sec. 4. + +[403:3] Secs. 5, 6. + +[403:4] Sec. 11. + +[403:5] Sec. 3. + +[404:1] [Greek: ou monon en tois makariois Ignatio, kai Zosimo, kai +Roupho, alla kai en allois tois ex humon].--Sec. 9. + +[404:2] See Baronius, "Annal. ad Annum." 109, tom. ii. c. 48, and +Jacobson's "Pat. Apost." ii. 482, note 6. Edit. Oxon., 1838. + +[405:1] Epist. xxxiv. p. 109. + +[405:2] "Scripsistis mihi, et vos et Ignatius, ut si quis vadit ad +Syriam, deferat literas meas quas fecero ad vos." The Greek of Eusebius +is somewhat different, but may express the same sense. See Euseb. iii. +36. There is an important variation even in the readings of Eusebius. +See Cotelerius, vol. ii. p. 191, note 3. + +[405:3] Thus Bunsen, in his "Ignatius von Antiochen und seine Zeit," +says--"At the present stand-point of the criticism of Ignatius, this +passage can only be a witness against itself." And, again--"The forger +of Ignatius has interpolated this passage." And, again--"The connexion +is entirely broken by that interpolation." (Pp. 108, 109.) Viewed as a +postscript, it is not remarkable that the transition should be somewhat +abrupt. + +[405:4] "Et de ipso Ignatio, et de his qui cum eo sunt, quod certius +agnoveritis, significate." + +[406:1] See the "Acts of his Martyrdom," Sec. 10, 12. + +[406:2] See this "Epistle," Sec. 1, 9. + +[406:3] "Epistolas sane Ignatii, quae transmissae sunt vobis ab eo, et +alias, quantascunque apud nos habuimus, transmisimus vobis." According +to the Greek of Eusebius we should read "The letters of Ignatius which +were sent _to us_ ([Greek: hemin]) by him." Either reading is alike +perplexing to the advocates of the Syriac version of the Ignatian +epistles. See Jacobson, ii. 489, not. 5. + +[406:4] See a preceding note, p. 405. + +[407:1] It would seem that only two Greek copies are known to exist, +both wanting the concluding part. See Cotelerius, vol. ii. p. 186, +note 1. + +[407:2] It is not easy to understand the meaning of the passage--"Si +habuerimus tempus opportunum, sive ego, seu legatus quem misero pro +vobis." Some words seem to be wanting to complete the sense. + +[407:3] [Greek: Smurnan] for [Greek: Surian]. In the beginning of the +Epistle from Smyrna concerning Polycarp's martyrdom, the Church is said +to be--[Greek: he paroikousa Smurnan.] The very same mistake has been +made in another case. Thus, in an extract published by Dr Cureton from a +Syriac work, Polycarp is called Bishop in _Syria_, instead of in Smyrna. +See "Corpus Ignatianum," p. 220, line 5 from the foot. Such mistakes in +manuscripts are of very frequent occurrence. See "Corpus Ignatianum," +pp. 278, 300. A more extraordinary blunder, which long confounded +the critics, has been recently corrected by Dr Wordsworth. See his +"St. Hippolytus," pp. 318, 319, Appendix. + +[409:1] Pearson alleges that the reason why Tertullian does not quote +Ignatius against the heretics was because he did not require his +testimony! He had, forsooth, apostolic evidence. "Quasi vero Ignatii +testimonio opus esset ad eam rem, cujus testem Apostolum habuit." +"Vindiciae," Pars. prima, caput. xi. He finds it convenient, however, to +mention Hermas, Clement of Rome, Justin Martyr, and many others. + +[409:2] See also in Euseb. v. 28, a long extract from a work against the +heresy of Artemon in which various early writers, who asserted that +"Christ is God and man," are named, and Ignatius omitted. + +[409:3] See Neander's "General History," by Torrey, i. 455. Octavo +Edition Edinburgh, 1847. See also Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 415. + +[409:4] The number of spurious writings which appeared in the early ages +was very great. Shortly after the date mentioned in the text it is well +known that an individual named Leucius forged the Acts of John, Andrew, +Peter, and others. See Jones on the "Canon," p. 210, and ii. p. 289. + +[410:1] This is a literal translation of part of the superscription of +the letter as given by Dr Cureton himself in his "Epistles of Saint +Ignatius," p. 17. In the "Corpus Ignatianum" he has somewhat weakened +the strength of the expression by a more free translation--"To her who +_presideth_ in the place of the country of the Romans." "Corp. Ignat." +p. 230. Tertullian speaks ("De Praescrip." c. 36) of the "Apostolic sees +_presiding over their own places_"--referring to an arrangement then +recently made which recognised the precedence of Churches to which +Apostles had ministered. This arrangement, which was unknown in the time +of Ignatius, was suggested by the disturbances and divisions created by +the heretics. Though the words in the text may be quoted in support of +the claims of the bishop of Rome, they do not necessarily imply his +presidency over all Churches, but they plainly acknowledge his position +as at the head of the Churches of Italy. + +[411:1] See Euseb. iii. 36. + +[411:2] See preceding note, p. 406. + +[411:3] "Corpus Ignatianum," Intro, p. 86, note. + +[412:1] See "Corpus Ignatianum," pp. 265, 267, 269, 271, 286. + +[412:2] See Blunt's "Right Use of the Early Fathers." First Series. +Lectures v. and vi. + +[414:1] It would be very unfair to follow up this comparison by speaking +of the Trustees of the British Museum, as the representatives of +hierarchical pride and power, proceeding, like Tarquin at the +instigation of his augurs, to give a high price for the manuscripts. We +believe that these gentlemen have rendered good service to the cause of +truth and literature by the purchase. + +[414:2] Bunsen rather reluctantly admits that the highest literary +authority of the present century, the late Dr Neander, declined to +recognise even the Syriac version of the Ignatian Epistles. See +"Hippolytus and his Age," iv. Preface, p. 26. + +[415:1] See "Corpus Ignat." Introd. p. 51. + +[416:1] Thus, in his "Epistle to the Corinthians," Clemens Romanus, on +one occasion, (Sec. 16,) quotes the whole of the 53d chapter of Isaiah; +and, on another, (Sec. 18,) the whole of the 51st Psalm, with the exception +of the last two verses. + +[416:2] How different from the course pursued by Clement of Rome and by +Polycarp! Thus, Clement says to the Corinthians--"Let us do _as it is +written_," and then goes on to quote several passages of Scripture. Sec. +13. Polycarp says--"I trust that ye are well _exercised in the Holy +Scriptures_" and then proceeds, like Clement, to make some quotations. +Sec. 12. + +[416:3] Phil. iii. 3. + +[416:4] Eph. vi. 17. + +[416:5] Heb. xii. 1, 2. + +[416:6] "Epistle to Polycarp." Lest the plain English reader should +believe that the folly of the original is exaggerated in the +translation, I beg to say that, here and elsewhere, the English version +of Dr Cureton is given word for word. + +[417:1] Sec. 8. + +[417:2] See Period II. sec. ii. chap. ii. p. 403. + +[417:3] Epistle to Philemon, 10. + +[418:1] See Daille, lib. ii. c. 13. p. 316. + +[418:2] According to some accounts, Timothy presided over the Church of +Ephesus until nearly the close of the first century, when he was +succeeded by Gaius. See Daille, ii. c. 13. Some attempt to get over the +difficulty by alleging that there was a _second_ Onesimus in Ephesus, +who succeeded Gaius, but of this there is no evidence whatever. The +writer who thought that Ignatius had been at school with Polycarp, also +believed, and with greater reason, that he was contemporary with the +Onesimus of the New Testament. + +[418:3] "Epistle to the Romans." + +[419:1] Euseb. v. 21. + +[419:2] See Period II. sec. i. chap. v. p. 354. + +[419:3] Paul was certainly at Rome before Peter, and according to the +reading of some copies of Irenaeus, in the celebrated passage, lib. iii. +c. 3. Sec. 2, the Church of Rome is said to have been founded by "Paul and +Peter" (see Stieren's "Irenaeus," i. 428); but Ignatius here uses the +style of expression current in the third century, and speaks of "Peter +and Paul." + +[419:4] In the Epistle to Polycarp, Ignatius says, "If a man be able in +strength _to continue in chastity_, (i.e. celibacy,) _for the honour of +the body of our Lord_, let him continue without boasting." Here the word +in the Greek is [Greek: hagneia]. But this word is applied in the New +Testament to Timothy, who may have been "the husband of one wife." See 1 +Tim. iv, 12, and v. 2. It is also applied by Polycarp, in his Epistle, +to married women. "Let us teach your (or our) wives to walk in the faith +that is given to them, both _in love and purity_" ([Greek: agape kai +hagneia]).--_Epistle to the Philippians_, Sec. 4. See also "The Shepherd of +Hermas," book ii. command. 4; Cotelerius, i. 87. + +[420:1] This is very evident from the recently discovered work of +Hippolytus, as well as from other writers of the same period. See +Bunsen's "Hippolytus," i. p. 312. + +[420:2] Euseb. vii. 30. + +[420:3] Some have supposed that this was the church of Antioch, but it +is not likely that Paul would have cared to retain the church when +deserted by the people. Besides, the building is called, not the church, +but "the house of the Church" ([Greek: tes ekklesias oikos]). + +[420:4] If the reading adopted by Junius, and others, of a passage in +the 4th chapter of his Epistle be correct, Polycarp must have been a +married man, and probably had a family. "Let us teach our wives to walk +in the faith that is given to them, both in love and purity,.... and _to +bring up their children_ in the instruction and fear of the Lord." See +Jacobson's "Pat. Apost." ii. 472, note. + +[421:1] Period II. sec. iii. chap. vii. + +[421:2] See his "Epistle to the Corinthians," c. 42, 44, 47, 54. + +[421:3] See Westcott on the "Canon," pp. 262, 264, 265. + +[421:4] "In the estimation of those able and apostolical men who, in the +second century, prepared the Syriac version of the New Testament for the +use of some of the Oriental Churches, the _bishop and presbyter_ of the +apostolic ordination were _titles of the same individual_. Hence in +texts wherein the Greek word _episcopos_, 'bishop,' occurs, it is +rendered in their version by the Syriac word '_Kashisha_,' +presbyter."--_Etheridge's Syrian Churches and Gospels_, pp. 102, 103. + +[421:5] The use of the word _catholic_ in the "Seven Epistles," edited +by Ussher, is sufficient to discredit them. See "Epist. to Smyrnaeans," +Sec. 8. The word did not come into use until towards the close of the +second century. See Period II. sec. iii, chap, viii., and p. 337, note. + +[422:1] "Epistle to the Ephesians." + +[422:2] Daille has well observed--"Funi Dei quidem verbum, ministerium, +beneficia non inepte comparaveris; Spiritum vero, qui his, ut sic dicam, +divinae benignitatis funiculis, ad nos movendos et attrahendos utitur, +ipsi illi quo utitur, funi comparare, ab omni ratione alienum +est."--Lib. ii. c. 27, pp. 409, 410. + +[422:3] Col. ii. 18. + +[423:1] "Epistle to the Ephesians." + +[423:2] Matt. xxvi. 39. + +[423:3] John xxi. 18. + +[423:4] 2 Tim. iv. 17. + +[424:1] We have here an additional and very clear proof that Polycarp, +in his Epistle, is not referring to Ignatius of Antioch. Instead of +pronouncing the letters now current as treating "of faith and +_patience_, and of all things that pertain to edification," he would +have condemned them as specimens of folly, impatience, and presumption. +Dr Cureton seems to think that, because Ignatius was an old man, he was +at liberty to throw away his life ("Corp. Ignat." p. 321); but Polycarp +was still older, and he thought differently. + +[424:2] Sec. 4. + +[424:3] See "Corpus Ignatianum," p. 253. + +[424:4] The reader is to understand that all the extracts given in the +text are from the Syriac version of the "Three Epistles." + +[425:1] "Epistle to the Ephesians." + +[425:2] "Epistle to the Romans." Pearson can see nothing but the +perfection of piety in all this. "In quibus nihil putidum, nihil +odiosum, nihil _inscite_ aut _imprudenter_ scriptum est." ... "Omnia cum +pia, legitima, praeclara."--_Vindiciae_, pars secunda, c. ix. + +[425:3] From A.D. 208 to A.D. 258. + +[425:4] Thus in the "Acts of Paul and Thecla," fabricated about the +beginning of the third century, Thecla says--"Give me the seal of +Christ, (_i.e._ baptism,) and _no temptation shall touch me_," (c. 18.) +See Jones on the "Canon of the New Testament," ii. p. 312. + +[426:1] "Epistle to Polycarp." + +[426:2] 1 Cor. xiii. 3. + +[426:3] See Blunt's "Early Fathers," p. 237. See also Origen's +"Exhortation to Martyrdom," Sec. 27, 30, 50. + +[426:4] According to Dr Lee, a strenuous advocate for the Syriac version +of the "Three Epistles," _this translation_, as he supposes it to be, +was made "not later perhaps than the close of the second, or beginning +of the _third century_." "Corpus Ignat." Introd. p. 86, note. Dr Cureton +occasionally supplies strong presumptive evidence that the translation +has been made, not from Greek into Syriac, but from Syriac into Greek. +"Cor. Ignat." p. 278. + +[426:5] Though Milner, in his "History of the Church of Christ," quotes +these letters so freely, he seems to have scarcely turned his attention +to the controversy respecting them. Hence he intimates that Ussher +reckoned _seven_ of them genuine, though it is notorious that the +Primate of Armagh rejected the Epistle to Polycarp. (See Milner, cent. +ii. chap, i.) Others, as well as Milner, who have written respecting +these Epistles, have committed similar mistakes. Thus, Dr Elrington, +Regius Professor of Divinity in Trinity College, Dublin, the recent +editor of "Ussher's Works," when referring to the Primate's share in +this controversy, speaks of "the recent discovery of a Syriac version of +_four_ Epistles by Mr Cureton!" "Life of Ussher," p. 235, note. + +[428:1] "Instit." lib. i. c. xiii. Sec. 29. + +[429:1] See Bunsen's "Hippolytus," i. p. 27. + +[430:1] Period I. sec. ii. chap, iii. pp. 202, 203. + +[430:2] See Tertullian, "Adversus Hermogenem," c. x. and iv. + +[430:3] [Greek: gnosis]. + +[431:1] Ps. cxiii. 6. + +[431:2] See Tertullian, "Adversus Marcionem," lib. i. c. 2. About this +time many works were written on the subject. Eusebius mentions a +publication by Irenaeus, "On Sovereignty, or on the Truth that _God is +not the Author of Evil_," and another by Maximus on "_The Origin of +Evil_." Euseb. v. 20, 27. + +[431:3] Irenaeus, "Contra Haeres." lib. i. c. 24, Sec. 7. + +[433:1] Irenaeus, lib. i. c. 24. According to Clemens Alexandrinus, +Basilides flourished in the reigns of Hadrian and Antoninus Pius. +"Stromata," lib. vii. Opera, p. 764. + +[433:2] [Greek: Buthos kai ennoia, nous kai aletheia, logos kai zoe]. + +[433:3] According to some, Valentine was the disciple of Marcion. +Clemens Alexandrinus states that Marcion was his senior. "Strom." lib. +viii. Tertullian says expressly that Valentine was at one time the +disciple of Marcion. "De Carne Christi," c. 1. + +[434:1] See Neander's "General History," by Torrey, ii. pp. 171, 174, +notes. + +[434:2] See Kaye's "Clement of Alexandria," pp. 316, 317. + +[435:1] The Ophites carried this feeling so far as to maintain that the +serpent which deceived Eve was no other than the divine Aeon Sophia, or +Wisdom, who thus weakened the power of Ialdabaoth, or the Demiurge. + +[435:2] See Mosheim, "De Caussis Suppositorum Librorum inter Christianos +Saeculi Primi et Secundi." "Dissert, ad Hist. Eccl. Pertin." vol. i. +221. + +[437:1] His great text was Rev. xx. 6, 7. Hence some now began to +dispute the authority of the Apocalypse. + +[437:2] Others, who do not appear to have been connected with Montanus, +but who lived about the same time, held the same views on the subject of +marriage. Thus, Athenagoras says--"A second marriage is by us esteemed a +specious adultery."--_Apology_, Sec. 33. + +[437:3] "Nam idem (Praxeas) tunc Episcopum Romanum, agnoscentem jam +prophetias Montani, Priseae, Maximillae, et ex ea agnitione pacem +ecclesiis Asiae et Phrygiae inferentem, falsa de ipsis prophetis et +ecclesiis eorum adseverando et praecessorum ejus auctoritates defendendo +coegit et litteras pacis revocare jam emissas et a proposito +recipiendorum charismatum concessare."--_Tertullian, Adv. Praxean._, c. i. + +[438:1] Euseb. v. 16. + +[438:2] It would appear, however, that it maintained a lingering +existence for several centuries. Even Justinian, about A.D. 530, enacts +laws against the Montanists or Tertullianists. + +[438:3] Isaiah xlv. 5, 7. + +[439:1] Augustin, "Contra Epist. Fundamenti," c. 13. + +[439:2] On the ground that their oil is _the food of light_! Schaff's +"History of the Christian Church," p. 249. + +[441:1] We find Tertullian, after he became a Montanist, dwelling on the +distinction of venial and mortal sins. See Kaye's "Tertullian," pp. 255, +339. + +[441:2] Rom. vi. 23. + +[442:1] 1 Thess. v. 22. + +[442:2] James i. 15. + +[442:3] See Cudworth's "Intellectual System," with Notes by Mosheim, +iii. p. 297. Edition, London, 1845. + +[442:4] See Hagenbach's "History of Doctrines," i. p. 218. + +[442:5] See Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 348. + +[442:6] The doctrine of Purgatory, as now held, was not, however, fully +recognised until the time of Gregory the Great, or the beginning of the +seventh century. + +[443:1] See Mosheim's "Institutes," by Soames, i. 166. + +[443:2] Marcion, it appears, declined to baptize those who were married. +"Non tinguitur apud illum caro, nisi virgo, nisi vidua, nisi caelebs, +nisi divortio baptisma mercata."--_Tertullian, Adver. Marcionem_, lib. +i. c. 29. + +[443:3] See Neander's "General History," ii. 253. + +[443:4] In the "Westminster Review" for October 1856, there is an +article on _Buddhism_, written, indeed, in the anti-evangelical spirit +of that periodical, but containing withal much curious and important +information. + +[444:1] Col. ii. 23. + +[446:1] The most remarkable instance of this is the condemnation of the +word [Greek: homoousios], as applied to our Lord, by the Synod of +Antioch in A.D. 269. It is well known that the very same word was +adopted in A.D. 325, by the Council of Nice as the symbol of orthodoxy; +and yet these two ecclesiastical assemblies held the same views. See +also, as to the application of the word [Greek: hupostauis], Burton's +"Ante-Nicene Testimonies," p. 129. + +[446:2] "The inference to be drawn from a comparison of different +passages scattered through Tertullian's writings is, that the Apostle's +Creed in its present form was not known to him as a summary of faith; +but that the various clauses of which it is composed were generally +received as articles of faith by orthodox Christians."--_Kaye's +Tertullian_, p. 324. + +[446:3] These may be found in Routh's "Reliquiae." Eusebius has +preserved many of them. + +[447:1] "Si quis legat Scripturas.....et erit consummatus discipulus, et +similis patrifamilias, qui de thesauro suo profert nova et +vetera."--_Irenaeus_, iv. c. 26, Sec. i. + +[447:2] "Ubi fomenta fidei de scripturarum interjectione?"--_Tertullian, +Ad Uxorem_, lib. ii. c. 6. + +[447:3] As in the case of Origen. In the Didascalia we meet with the +following directions--"Teach then your children the word of the +Lord..... Teach them to write, and to read the Holy Scriptures." +--_Ethiopic Didascalia, by Platt_, p. 130. + +[447:4] Euseb. viii. c. 13. + +[448:1] Clemens Alexandrinus, "Stromata," lib. vii. + +[448:2] Homil. xxxix. on Jer. xliv. 22. + +[448:3] Period I. sec. ii. chap. i. p. 184. + +[448:4] The fathers traced analogies between the four Gospels and the +four cardinal points, the living creatures with four faces, and the four +rivers of Paradise. See Irenaeus, lib. iii. c. xi. Sec. 8; and Cyprian, +Epist. lxxiii., Opera, p. 281. + +[449:1] Such as the Epistle of Barnabas and the Shepherd of Hermas. + +[449:2] See Westcott on the Canon, pp. 452, 453. + +[449:3] "The opinion that falsehood, was allowable, and might even be +necessary to guide the multitude, was," says Neander, "a principle +inbred into the aristocratic spirit of the old world."--_General +History_, ii. p. 72. + +[449:4] Such as the numerous works ascribed to Clemens Romanus, and the +Ignatian Epistles. + +[450:1] Cyprian, Epist. lxxiv. p. 294. + +[450:2] Cyprian, Epist. lxxiv. p. 296. + +[450:3] Cyprian, Epist. lxxiv. p. 294. + +[450:4] The conflicting traditions relative to the time of keeping the +Paschal feast afford a striking illustration of this fact. + +[450:5] See Kaye's "Justin Martyr," p. 75. + +[450:6] "Originis vitium." "Malum igitur animae.... ex originis vitio +antecedit."--_De Anima_, c. 41. Cyprian calls it "contagio antiqua." +"Innovati Spiritu Sancto a sordibus contagionis antiquae."--_De Habitu +Virginum_, cap iv. + +[450:7] "Per quem (Satanan) homo a primordio circumventus, ut praeceptum +Dei excederet, et propterea in mortem datus exinde totum genus de suo +semine infectum suae etiam damnationis traducem fecit."--_De Testimonio +Animae_, c. iii. + +[451:1] "Nothing can be less systematic or less organized than their +notions on this subject; I might say, often even contradictory; such +inconsistency partly, perhaps, arising from the point never having been +canvassed by men with any care, as it eventually was by +controversialists of a later day,... and partly from the embarrassment +of their position; for whilst Scripture and self-experience compelled +them to admit the grievous corruption of our nature, they had +perpetually to contend against a powerful body of heretics, _who made +such corruption the ground for affirming that a world so evil could not +have been created by a good God, but was the work of a Demiurgus_" +--_Blunt's Early Fathers_, pp. 585, 586. + +[451:2] "Paedagogue," lib. i. + +[451:3] See Kaye's "Clement," p. 432. See also the comments of Neander, +"General History," ii. 388. + +[451:4] Pliny's Epistle to Trajan. + +[451:5] See various passages in Justin's Dialogue with Trypho, and in +Origen against Celsus. + +[452:1] Thus Origen says--"We do not pay the _highest worship to Him who +appeared so lately, as to a person who had no previous existence_, for +we believe Him when He says himself--'Before Abraham was, I +am.'"--_Contra Celsum_, viii. Sec. 12. + +[452:1] The origin of this name has been much controverted. It is +probable that it was derived from Ebion, the founder of the sect. See +Period I. sect. ii. chap. iii. p. 206. Among other things the party seem +to have inculcated voluntary poverty. + +[452:3] This passage, which is somewhat obscure as it stands in the +original, has been misinterpreted by Unitarian writers from generation +to generation. The rendering which they commonly give of it makes it +quite inconsistent with the context, and with the statements of Justin +elsewhere. See Kaye's "Justin," p. 51. + +[453:1] Thus Tertullian says, "The only man without sin is Christ, +because Christ is _also God_."--_De Anima_, cap. xli. Justin Martyr +complains that the Jews had expunged from the Septuagint many passages +"wherein it might be clearly shewn that He who was crucified was _both +God and man_."--_Dialogue with Trypho_, Sec. 71. + +[453:2] Euseb. v. 28. + +[454:1] Euseb. v. 27, 30. Epiphanius, "Haer." 65, 1. + +[454:2] The superscription of this epistle is a sufficient refutation of +much of the reasoning of Mr Shepherd against the genuineness of the +Cyprianic correspondence, as here the names of a crowd of bishops are +given without any mention whatever of their sees. + +[454:3] Euseb. vii. 30. + +[454:4] [Greek: trias] or trinitas. + +[454:5] This is, however, by no means clear, as there is nothing in his +works to indicate that he held such a position. + +[454:6] "Ad Autolycum," ii. c. 15. [Greek: tupoi eisin tes Triados]. + +[455:1] Thus Irenaeus says--"There is ever present with Him (the Father) +the Word and _Wisdom_, the Son and _Spirit_."--_Contra Haereses_, iv. +20, Sec. 1. It may here be proper to add that the early Christians +worshipped the third Person of the Trinity. Thus, Hippolytus +says--"Through Him (the Incarnate Word) we form a conception of the +Father; we believe in the Son; _we worship the Holy Ghost_."--_Contra +Noetum_, c. 12. + +[455:2] "Legat. pro. Christianis," c. 10. + +[455:3] "Legat. pro. Christ." c. 12. + +[456:1] "Monarchiam, inquiunt, tenemus."--_Tertullian, Adv. Praxean_, c. +3. + +[456:2] "Athanas de Synodis," c. 7. + +[456:3] Hippolytus, "Philosophumena," book ix. + +[456:4] He flourished about A.D. 220, and was contemporary with +Hippolytus. See Bunsen, i. 131. + +[457:1] Hermias speaks of the Trinity of Plato as "God, and matter, and +example."--Sec. 5. + +[457:2] "Doleo bona fide Platonem omnium haereticorum condimentarium +factum. ... Cum igitur hujusmodi argumento illa insinuentur a Platone +quae haeretici mutuantur, satis haereticos repercutiam, si argumentum +Platonis elidam."--_De Anima_, c. 23. + +[457:3] "Adversus Praxeam," c. 2, 3. + +[458:1] "Paedagogue," book i. c. 5, 6, 11. + +[458:2] Opera, p. 74. + +[458:3] "Paedagogue," book i. c. 1. + +[458:4] "Stromata," book ii. + +[458:5] Justin, Opera, p. 500. + +[459:1] See Kaye's "Clement," pp. 431, 435. + +[459:2] Epist. i. ad Donatum, Opera, p. 3. + +[459:3] The philosophers, according to Justin, maintained a general, but +denied a particular providence. Dial, with Trypho, Opera, p. 218. Some +who call themselves Christians adopt this portion of the pagan theology. + +[460:1] "Non facti solum, verum et voluntatis delicta vitanda, et +poenitentia purganda esse."--_Tertullian, De Paenitentia_, c. iii. + +[460:2] "Hoc enim pretio Dominus veniam addicere instituit."--_Tert. De +Paenit_. c. vi. + +[460:3] Clemens Alexandrinus, "Strom." book vi. + +[460:4] "Sufficiat martyri propria delicta purgasse."--_Tertullian, De +Pudicitia_, c. 22. + +[460:5] See Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 431. Origen speaks of the baptism of +blood (martyrdom) rendering us purer than the baptism of water. Opera, +ii. p. 473. + +[460:6] Epist. lxxvi. Opera, p. 322. + +[460:7] Epist. lv. p. 181. + +[461:1] Ps. cxix 18, 19. + +[463:1] See the Apology of Athenagoras, secs. 3, 10; and Minucius Felix, +c. 10. + +[463:2] "Nostrae columbae etiam domus simplex, in editis semper et +apertis, et ad lucem."--_Tertullian, Advers. Valent._ c. 3. + +[463:3] Life of Alexander Severus, by Lampridius, c. 49. + +[464:1] See Kennett's "Antiquities of Rome," p. 41. + +[464:2] Bingham has proved, by a variety of testimonies, that such was +the order of the ancient service. See his "Origines," iv. 383, 400, 417. +The early Christians thus literally obeyed the commandment--"Come before +his presence with singing;" "_Enter into his gates_ with thanksgiving, +and into his courts with praise."--(Ps. c. 2, 4.). + +[464:3] See 1 Cor. xiv. 26. See also Euseb. v. 28. + +[464:4] At the end of his "Paedagogue." This hymn to the Saviour was +composed by Clement himself. + +[465:1] Euseb. vii. 30. + +[465:2] See Bingham, i. p. 383. Edit. London, 1840. + +[465:3] Chrysostom in Psalm cxlix. See Bingham, ii. 485. + +[466:1] [Greek: hose dunamis.] See Origen, "Contra Celsum," iii. 1 and +57; Opera, i. 447, 485. + +[466:2] "Apol." ii. p. 98. + +[466:3] "Suspicientes Christiani manibus expansis denique sine monitore, +quia de pectore oramus."--_Apol._ c. 30. The omission of a single word, +when repeating the heathen liturgy, was considered a great misfortune. +Chevallier says, speaking of this expression _sine monitore_--"There is +probably an allusion to the persons who were appointed, at the +sacrifices of the Romans, _to prompt the magistrates_, lest they should +incidentally omit _a single word_ in the appropriate formulae, which +would have vitiated the whole proceedings."--_Translation of the +Epistles of Clement_, &c., p. 411, note. + +[466:4] Opera, i. 267. + +[466:5] See Minucius Felix. + +[466:6] Tertullian, "De Oratione," c. 14. + +[466:7] See Bingham, iv. 324. In prayer the Christians soon began to +turn the face to the east. See Tertullian, "Apol." c. 16. This custom +appears to have been borrowed from the Eastern nations who worshipped +the sun. See Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 408. + +[467:1] Thus Prideaux mentions how the Persian priests, long before the +commencement of our era, approached the sacred fire "to read _the daily +offices of their Liturgy_ before it."--_Connections_, part i., book iv., +vol. i. p. 218. This liturgy was composed by Zoroaster nearly five +hundred years before Christ's birth. + +[467:2] See Clarkson on "Liturgies," and Hartung, "Religion der Romer." +It is remarkable that the old pagan Roman liturgy, in consequence of the +change in the language from the time of its original establishment, +began at length to be almost unintelligible to the people. It thus +resembles the present Romish Liturgy. The pagans believed that their +prayers were more successful when offered up in a barbarous and unknown +language. See Potter's "Antiquities of Greece," i. 288. Edit. Edinburgh, +1818. The Lacedaemonians had a form of prayer from which they never +varied either in public or private. Potter i. 281. + +[467:3] "In the persecutions under Diocletian and his associates, though +a strict inquiry was made after the books of Scripture, and other things +belonging to the Church, which were often delivered up by the +_Traditores_ to be burnt, yet we never read of any ritual books, or +books of divine service, delivered up among them."--_Bingham_, iv. 187. + +[467:4] It is worthy of note that, in modern times, when there is any +great revival of religion, forms of prayer fall into comparative +desuetude even among those by whom they were formerly used. + +[468:1] See Tertullian, "De Oratione," c. 9; and Origen, "De Oratione." + +[468:2] 1 Tim. ii. 2. + +[468:3] Tertullian, "Apol." c. 39. + +[468:4] See Tertullian, "De Praescrip." c. 41. + +[468:5] See Guerike's "Manual of the Antiquities of the Church," by +Morrison, p. 214. + +[468:6] Guerike's "Manual," p. 213. + +[469:1] There is reference to this in the "Apostolic Constitutions," +lib. ii. c. 57. Cotelerius, i. 266. + +[469:2] Euseb. vii. 30. + +[470:1] See Bingham, ii. 212. + +[470:2] Letter from Pius of Rome to Justus of Vienne. + +[470:3] Bingham, ii. 451. + +[470:4] See Period II. sec. i. chap. iii. p. 320. + +[472:1] See the "Epistle of the Church of Smyrna," giving an account of +his martyrdom, Sec. 9. + +[472:2] The Latin version of his words, as given by Jacobson, +is--"Octogesimum jam et sextum _annum aetatis_ ingredior."--_Pat. +Apost._ ii. 565. See also the "Chronicum Alexandrinum" as quoted by +Cotelerius, ii. 194; and Gregory of Tours, "Hist." i. 28. + +[472:3] He is represented as _standing_, when offering up a prayer of +about two hours' length (Sec. 7), and as _running_ with great speed (Sec. 8). +Such strength at such an age was extraordinary. The Apostle John is said +to have lived to the age of one hundred; but, towards the close of his +life, he appears to have lost his wonted energy. + +[472:4] "Apol." ii. Opera, p. 62. See Dr Wilson's observations on this +passage in his "Infant Baptism," pp. 447, 448. + +[473:1] Dialogue with Trypho. Opera, p. 261. + +[473:2] There may here be a reference to 1 Cor. vii. 14. + +[473:3] Book ii. c. xxii. Sec. 4. + +[473:4] Thus he says--"Giving to His disciples the power of +_regeneration unto God_, He said to them--Go and teach all nations, +_baptizing_ them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the +Holy Ghost."--Book iii. c. xvii. Sec. 1. Thus, too, he speaks of the +heretics using certain rites "to the rejection of _baptism, which is +regeneration unto God_."--Book i. c. xxi. Sec. 1. Irenaeus here apparently +means that baptism _typically_ is regeneration, in the same way as the +bread and wine in the Eucharist are _typically_ the body and blood of +Christ. + +[474:1] That infant baptism was now practised at Alexandria is apparent +also from the testimony of Clemens Alexandrinus, who, in allusion to +this rite, speaks of "the children that are _drawn up out of the +water_."--Paedag. iii. c. 11. + +[474:2] Hom. xiv. in "Lucam." Opera, iii. 948. See also Opera, ii. 230. +Hom. viii. in "Leviticum." + +[474:3] Comment. in "Epist. ad Roman," lib. v. Opera, iv. 565. + +[475:1] "De Baptismo," c. 18. + +[475:2] Acts ii. 41. + +[475:3] Acts viii. 37, 38; xvi. 31-33. + +[476:1] "_Parents_ were commonly _sponsors for their own children_ ... +and the extraordinary cases in which they were presented by others, were +commonly such cases, where the parent could not, or would not, do that +kind office for them; as when slaves were presented to baptism by their +masters, or children whose parents were dead, were brought, by the +charity of any who would shew mercy on them; or children exposed by +their parents, which were sometimes taken up by the holy virgins of the +Church, and by them presented unto baptism. These are _the only cases_ +mentioned by St Austin in which children seem to have had other +sponsors."--_Bingham_, iii. 552. + +[476:2] Mark x. 14. + +[476:3] Compare Mark x. 13-16 with Luke xviii. 15, 16. + +[477:1] See Acts xvi. 15. + +[477:2] "De Baptismo," c. viii. xvi. + +[477:3] "It would be thought by many a cruelty to place a person +_without his own consent_, and in unconscious infancy, in a situation, +so far, much more disadvantageous than that of those brought up pagans, +that if he did ever--suppose at the age of fifteen or twenty--fall into +any sin, he must remain for the rest of his life--perhaps for above half +a century--deprived of all hope, or at least of all confident hope, of +restoration to the divine favour; shut out from all that cheering +prospect which, if his baptism in infancy _had been omitted_, might have +lain before him."--_Archbishop Whately's Scripture Doctrine concerning +the Sacraments_, p. 11, note. + +[478:1] Acts ii. 38, 39. + +[478:2] Gen. xvii. 12; Lev. xii. 3. + +[479:1] Epist. lix. pp. 211, 212. + +[479:2] Laurentius, a Roman deacon, who flourished about the middle of +the third century, is represented as baptizing one Romanus, a soldier, +in a pitcher of water, and another individual, named Lucillus, by +pouring water upon his head. See Bingham, iii. 599. + +[480:1] Here the validity of the ordinance is made to depend upon the +personal character of the administrator. + +[480:2] Epist. lxxvi. p. 321. + +[480:3] Epist. lxxiv. p. 295. + +[480:4] Epist. lxxvi. p. 317. In like manner Clement of Alexandria +says--"Our transgressions are remitted by one sovereign medicine, the +baptism according to the Word." See Kaye's "Clement," p. 437. + +[480:5] Epist. lxx. p. 269. + +[480:6] Tertullian, "De Baptismo," c. 1. + +[480:7] Cyprian, "Con. Carthag." pp. 600, 602. + +[480:8] See Kaye's "Clement of Alexandria," p. 441, and Tertullian, "De +Corona," c. 3. + +[480:9] Tertullian, "De Baptismo," c. 7. + +[480:10] Tertullian, "De Baptismo," c. 8. + +[481:1] "De Resurrectione Carnis," c. 8. + +[481:2] "In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy +Ghost."--Matt, xxviii. 19. + +[481:3] Bingham, iii. 377. + +[483:1] Rev. xxii. 18, 19. + +[484:1] "Apol." ii. Opera, pp. 97, 98. + +[485:1] In an article on the Roman Catacombs, in the "Edinburgh Review" +for January 1859, the writer observes--"It is apparent from all the +paintings of Christian feasts, whether of the Agapae, or the burial +feasts of the dead, or the Communion of the Holy Sacrament, that they +were celebrated by the early Christians _sitting round a table_." + +[485:2] This calumny created much prejudice against them in the second +century. See Justin Martyr's "Dialogue with Trypho," Sec. 10; and the +"Apology of Athenagoras," Sec. 3. If Pliny refers to the Eucharist when he +speaks of the early Christians as partaking of food together, it is +obvious that they must then have communicated sitting, or in the posture +in which they partook of their ordinary meals. + +[485:3] Tertullian, "De Oratione," c. 14. + +[485:4] See Euseb. vii. 9. + +[485:5] Justin Martyr, "Apol." ii. 98; and Tertullian's "Apol." c. 39. + +[486:1] Epist. lxiii. "To Caecilius," Opera, p. 229. + +[486:2] Larroque's "History of the Eucharist," p. 35. London, 1684. + +[486:3] Cyprian, "De Lapsis," Opera, pp. 375, 381. This was probably the +result of carrying to excess a protest against the Montanist opposition +to infant baptism. Such a reaction often occurs. It was now maintained +that the Lord's Supper, as well as Baptism, should be administered to +infants. + +[486:4] At an earlier period it was dispensed in presence of the +catechumens. See Bingham, iii. p. 380. + +[486:5] "De Oratione Dominica," Opera, p. 421. + +[487:1] See Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 357. + +[487:2] See Gieseler's "Text Book of Ecclesiastical History," by +Cunningham ii. 331, note 3. + +[487:3] "Dialogue with Trypho," Opera, pp. 296, 297. + +[487:4] See Kaye's "Clement of Alexandria," p. 445. + +[487:5] [Greek: akeraioteron], Opera, in. p. 498. + +[488:1] In Mat. tom. xi. Opera, iii. 499, 500. + +[488:2] Epist. lxiii. "To Caecilius," Opera, p. 225. + +[488:3] Epist. lxiii. Opera, 228. + +[488:4] Matt, xviii. 20. + +[489:1] Irenaeus, "Contra Haereses," v. c. 2, Sec. 3. Clement of Alexandria +says that "to drink the blood of Jesus is to partake of the incorruption +of the Lord."--_Paedagogue_, book ii. + +[489:2] "Contra Haereses," iv. c. 18, Sec. 5. + +[489:3] This feeling prevailed in the time of Tertullian. "Calicis aut +panis etiam nostri aliquid decuti in terram auxie patimur."--_De +Corona_, c. 3. + +[489:4] Hom. xiii. in "Exod." Opera, ii. 176. + +[489:5] Ps. xii. 6. + +[490:1] See Kaye's "Justin Martyr," p. 94. Irenaeus, iv. o. 17, Sec. 5. +Tertullian, "De Oratione," c. 14. + +[490:2] "Nonne solemnior erit statio tua, si et ad aram Dei steteris?" +Tertullian, "De Oratione," c. 14, or, according to Oehler, c. 19. + +[491:1] Matt. iii. 5, 6. + +[491:2] Acts xix. 17, 18. + +[493:1] Acts xvi. 33. + +[493:2] "Apol." ii. Opera, p. 93, 94. + +[493:1] "De Paenitentia," c. ix. + +[493:2] Joshua vii. 6; Esther iv. 1; Isaiah lviii. 5; Ezek. xxvii. 30. + +[494:1] See a "Memorial concerning Personal and Family Fasting," by the +pious Thomas Boston. Edinburgh, 1849. + +[494:2] Matt. ix. 15. + +[494:3] Lev. xxiii. 27. + +[494:4] The text Matt. ix. 15 was urged in support of this observance. +See Tertullian, "De Jejun." c. ii. + +[494:5] "Wednesday being selected because on that day the Jews took +counsel to destroy Christ, and Friday because that was the day of His +crucifixion."--_Kaye's Tertullian_, p. 418. As Wednesday was dedicated +to Mercury and Friday to Venus, this fasting, according to Clement, +signified to the more advanced disciple, that he was to renounce the +love of gain and the love of pleasure. Kaye's "Clement," p. 454. + +[495:1] These Xerophagiae, or Dry Food Days, were even now objected to +by some of the more enlightened Christians on the ground that they were +an import from heathenism. Tertullian, "De Jejun." c. ii. + +[495:2] Col. ii. 23. + +[495:3] Thus Cyprian, Epist. liii. p. 169, speaks of a penance of three +years' duration. + +[496:1] Socrates, v. c. 19. + +[497:1] See canon xi. of the Council of Nice. + +[497:2] See Cyprian, Epist. xl., p. 53, and "ad Demetrianum," p. 442. + +[497:3] See p. 419, note Sec.. + +[497:4] See p. 460. + +[498:1] Rom. iii. 28. + +[498:2] Matt. iii. 8. + +[498:3] Isa. lviii. 6-8. + +[499:1] Period II. sec. iii. chap. i. pp. 465, 466. + +[499:2] 1 Tim. v. 17. + +[500:1] Apost. Constit. ii. c. 17. + +[500:2] Phil. iv. 3. + +[500:3] No less than five persons are mentioned as having preceded +Polycarp in the see of Smyrna, viz., Aristo, Strataeas, another Aristo, +Apelles, and Bucolus. See Jacobson's "Patres Apostolici," ii. 564, 565, +note. It is not at all probable that he became the senior presbyter long +before the middle of the second century. Irenaeus, indeed, tells us that +he was constituted bishop of Smyrna _by the apostles_ (lib. iii. c. 3, Sec. +4)--a statement which implies that _at least two_ of the inspired +heralds of the gospel were concerned in his designation to the ministry; +but as he was still only a boy of nineteen when the last survivor of the +twelve died in extreme old age, the words cannot mean that he was +actually ordained by those to whom our Lord originally entrusted the +organization of the Church. The language was probably designed simply to +import that John and perhaps Philip had announced his future eminence +when he was yet a child, and that thus, like Timothy, he was invested +with the pastoral commission "according to the prophecies" which they +had previously delivered. See 1 Tim. i. 18; iv. 14. + +[501:1] Sec. 74. + +[502:1] Sec. 54. + +[502:2] Sec. 44. + +[502:3] Sec. 44. All these quotations attest the late date of the +Epistle. Tillemont places it in A.D. 97. Eusebius had evidently no doubt +as to its late date. See his "History," iii. 16. + +[502:4] Sec. 57. + +[502:5] For many centuries it was considered lost. At length in the +reign of Charles I. a copy of it was discovered appended to a very +ancient manuscript containing the Septuagint and Greek Testament--the +manuscript now known as the Codex Alexandrinus. + +[502:6] Euseb. iii. 16; iv. 23. + +[503:1] See the Romish Breviary under the 23d of November, where a +number of absurd stories are told concerning him. + +[503:2] Sec. 42. + +[503:3] They continued to be so used when the Peshito version of the New +Testament was made. That version is assigned by the best authorities to +the former half of the second century. See p. 421, note. + +[503:4] It is probably of nearly the same date as the first Apology of +Justin Martyr. + +[504:1] [Greek: hoi sun autoi presbuteroi]--evidently equivalent to +[Greek: sumpresbuteroi]. See 1 Pet. v. i. + +[504:2] Phil. i. 1. + +[504:3] Sec. 5. + +[504:4] Sec. 6. + +[504:5] Jerome, "Comment. in Tit." + +[504:6] 1 Cor. xiv. 40. + +[505:1] As in Acts xiv. 23. + +[505:2] I make no apology for employing a word which, even the +Benedictine Editor of Origen has adopted. Thus he speaks of the +"senatores et _moderatores_ ecclesiae Dei."--_Contra Celsum._ iii. 30, +Opera, i. 466. + +[505:3] Such as Acts xxi. 18; Gal. ii. 12. + +[506:1] "At Antioch some, as Origen and Eusebius, make Ignatius to +succeed Peter. Jerome makes him the third bishop, and placeth Evodius +before him. Others, therefore, to solve that, make them contemporary +bishops; the one, of the Church of the Jews; the other, of the +Gentiles.... Come we to Rome, and here the succession is as muddy as the +Tiber itself; for here Tertullian, Rufinus, and several others, place +Clement next to Peter. Irenaeus and Eusebius set Anacletus before him; +Epiphanius and Optatus both Anacletus and Cletus; Augustinus and +Damasus, with others, make Anacletus, Cletus, and Linus all to precede +him. What way shall we find to extricate ourselves out of this +labyrinth?"--_Stillingfleet's Irenicum_, part ii. ch. 7. p. 321. + +[506:2] "Polycarp, and the elders who are with him, to the Church of God +which is at Philippi." + +[506:3] A Roman deacon of the fourth century. His works are commonly +appended to those of Ambrose. + +[507:1] "Primum presbyteri episcopi appellabantur, ut, recedente uno, +sequens ei succederet."--_Comment. in Eph._ iv. + +[507:2] "Ut omnis episcopus presbyter sit, non omnis presbyter +episcopus; hic enim episcopus est, qui inter presbyteros primus +est."--_Comment. in 1 Tim_. iii. According to a learned writer this +arrangement extended farther. "Ita, uti videtur, comparatum fuit, ut +defuncto presbytero, primus ordine diaconus locum occuparet ultimum +presbyterorum, novusque in locum novissimum substitueretur diaconus; +decedente vero episcopo, primus ordine presbyter in ejus locum +sufficeretur, et primus in ordine diaconorum novissimam presbyterii +sedem capesseret."--_Thomae Brunonis Judicium de auctore Can. et Const. +quae apost. dicuntur_. Cotelerius, ii. Ap. p. 179. + +[507:3] 1 Pet. v. 5. It is a curious and striking fact, arguing strongly +in favour of the antiquity of their Church polity, that among the +Vaudois Barbs of old the claims of seniority were distinctly +acknowledged. The following rule of discipline is taken from one of +their ancient MSS. "He that is received the last (into the ministry by +imposition of hands) ought to do nothing without the permission of him +that was received before him."--_Moreland, History of the Evang. Ch. of +the Valleys of Piedmont_, p. 74. + +[507:4] He is speaking immediately before of presbyters. See 1 Pet. +v. 1-4. + +[507:5] Matt. x. 2, "_The first_, Simon, who is called Peter." Mark iii. +16; Luke vi. 14; Acts i. 13. + +[507:6] Jerome in "Jovin," i. 14. + +[508:1] Savigny's "History of the Roman Law," by Cathcart, i. pp. 62, +63, 75. + +[508:2] Euseb. iii. 23. [Greek: ho presbutes]. + +[508:3] In Africa the senior bishop or metropolitan was called _father_. +See Bingham, i. 200. In the second century we find the name given to the +Roman bishop. See Routh's "Reliquiae," i. 287. According to Eutychius, +his predecessor in the see of Alexandria in the early part of the third +century was called "Baba (Papa), that is, grandfather." + +[509:1] Euseb. v. 1. + +[509:2] He was one hundred and sixteen years of age in A.D. 212 (Euseb. +vi. 11), so that in A.D. 196, or about the time of the Palestinian Synod +at which he presided (Euseb. v. 23), he was a century old. + +[509:3] Etheridge's "Syrian Churches," pp. 9, 10. + +[509:4] See 1 Tim. iv. 12. + +[509:5] That is, Anacletus, Evaristus, Alexander, Sixtus, Telesphorus, +and Hyginus; but some consider Anacletus the same as Cletus, who is +supposed to have died before Clement. + +[510:1] Pearson has noticed this fact, and has endeavoured to erect upon +it an argument against the current chronology. See his "Minor Works," +ii. 527. It would appear that the names of the three bishops of Smyrna +next after Polycarp were Thraseas, Papirius, and Camerius. At least two +of these had passed away a considerable time before the Paschal +controversy. See Greswell's "Dissertations," iv. part ii. p. 600, note. + +[510:2] Hist. iv. 5. + +[510:3] According to Eusebius his appointment took place _after_ the +destruction of Jerusalem, or about A.D. 71. He was, therefore, at the +head of the Church forty-five years, as his martyrdom occurred in A.D. +116. According to this reckoning he was in his seventy-fifth year when +made president. + +[510:4] This explanation of the matter approximates to that given by +Tillemont. "Cela peut etre venu de ce qu'on les choisissoit entre les +plus agez du Clerge pour les faire Evesques: car on ne voit pas qu'ils +ayent este plus persecutez que d'autres."--_Mem. pour servir a +l'Histoire Ecclesiastique_, tom. ii. part ii. p. 40. It would appear +from Eusebius (iii. 32), that at the time of the death of Simeon there +were still living a number of very old persons who were relatives of our +Lord. Some of these were, probably, elders in the Church of Jerusalem. + +[511:1] He is said in the "Chronicon" of Eusebius to have presided +sixteen years. + +[511:2] Euseb. v. 12. + +[512:1] In the tenth century, the darkest and most revolting period in +the history of the Popedom, there were _twenty-four_ bishops of Rome. +Some of these reigned only a few days; at least one of them was +strangled; several of them died in prison; and several others were +driven from the see or deposed. There have been only twenty-four Popes +in the last two hundred and fifty years. + +[512:2] There have been only twenty-eight Archbishops of Canterbury +since 1454. + +[512:3] In the middle of the third century we find Firmilian appealing +to it as a witness against the Church of Home. Cyprian, Epist. lxxv. +Opera, p. 303. + +[512:4] "Hist." vi. 20. + +[513:1] "Hist." iv. 5; v. 12. + +[513:2] Such as, after the death of the aged Simeon, when Justus, at the +age of fivescore and ten, was advanced to the presidential chair. + +[514:1] Irenaeus, iii. 2. Tertullian, "De Praescrip. Haeret." Sec. 25. + +[514:2] "Ad eam iterum traditionem, quae est ab apostolis, quae _per +successiones presbyterorum_ in ecclesiis custoditur, provocamus +eos."--Irenaeus, iii. 2. + +[514:3] Irenaeus here speaks in the language of his own times, and +refers to the presidents, or senior ministers, of the presbyteries. In +like manner Hilary says that the change in the mode of appointing the +president of the presbytery was made by the decision of many _priests_ +(multorum _sacerdotum_ judicio), though the title _priest_ was not given +to a Christian minister when the alteration was originally proposed. + +[514:4] Irenaeus, iii. 3. + +[515:1] Period II. sec. i. chap. iv.; and Period II. sect. iii. chap. +vii. + +[515:2] According to a very ancient canon, no one under fifty years of +age could be made a bishop. See Bunsen's "Hippolytus," iii. 56. Even in +the time of Cyprian much stress was still laid upon age. See Cyprian, +Epist. lii. p. 156. + +[515:3] Sec Period II. sect. iii. chap. xi. See also Bingham, i. 198. + +[515:4] Muenter's "Primordia Ecclesiae Africanae," p. 49. See also +Bingham, vi. 377-379. + +[516:1] Bingham, i. 201. + +[516:2] Binius, i. 5. Fourth Council of Toledo, canon 4. + +[516:3] Bingham, i. 204. + +[517:1] Bunsen dates it about A.D. 200. "Hippolytus and his Age," p. +114. The recently discovered treatise of Hippolytus against all heresies +shews that Noetus must have appeared much earlier than most modern +ecclesiastical historians have reckoned. + +[517:2] Routh, "Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Opuscula," tom. i. pp. 49, +50. Oxon, 1858. This extract proves that the Church of Smyrna continued +under presbyterial government long after the time of Polycarp. Other +Churches about this time were in the same position. See Eusebius, v. 16. + +[518:1] During the Paschal controversy the Churches of Jerusalem, +Caesarea, and others sided with Rome, and then probably adopted her +ecclesiastical regimen. It had, perhaps, been generally adopted in Asia +Minor during the Montanist agitation. + +[518:2] Chapter vii. of this section. + +[519:1] The word _catholic_ came now into use. The minister of the Word +was called a _priest_, and the communion table, an _altar_. + +[519:2] Euseb. v. 12. + +[519:3] Euseb. vi. 10. The word [Greek: cheirotonian] here employed is +indicative of a popular choice. See also the "Chronicon" of Eusebius. + +[519:4] Muenter's "Primordia Eccles. Afric.," pp. 25, 26. + +[520:1] Acts x. 1, 45-48; xxi. 8. + +[520:2] "Hist." v. 22. + +[520:3] "Hist." v. 23; v. 25; vi. 19; vi. 23; vi. 46; vii. 14, &c, &c. + +[520:4] "Annal." p. 332. + +[520:5] See Lardner's Works, vii. 99. Edit. London, 1838. + +[521:1] Eusebius, vi. 26. Towards the close of his episcopate Demetrius +held several synods in Alexandria, at which a considerable number of +bishops were present. + +[523:1] It would appear that the "Ecclesiastical History" of Eusebius +was published shortly after Constantine first publicly recognized +Christianity. That event took place in A.D. 324, and with that year the +history terminates. + +[523:2] "Vita Malchi," Opera, iv. pp. 90, 91. Edit. Paris, 1706. + +[524:1] "Antequam _Diaboli instinctu_, studia in religione fierent, et +diceretur in populis, Ego sum Pauli, ego Apollo, ego autem Cephae, +communi presbyterorum consilio ecclesiae gubernabantur. Postquam vero +unusquisque eos quos baptizaverat suos putabat esse, non Christi, in +toto orbe decretum est, ut unus de presbyteris, electus superponeretur +caeteris, ad quem omnis ecclesiae cura pertineret, et _schismatum semina +tollerentur_."--_Comment. in Titum._ The language here used bears a +strong resemblance to that employed by Lactantius long before when +treating of the same subject--"Multae haereses extiterunt, et +_instinctibus daemonum_ populus Dei _scissus est_."--_Instit. Divin._, +lib. iv. c. 30. + +[525:1] 1 Cor. i. 12. + +[525:2] "Hic locus vel maxime adversum Haereticos facit qui pacis +vinculo dissipato atque corrupto, putant se tenere Spiritus unitatem; +quum unitas Spiritus in pacis vinculo conservetur. Quando enim non +idipsum omnes loquimur, et alius dicit _Ego sum Pauli, Ego Apollo, Ego +Cephae_, dividimus Spiritus unitatem, et eam in partes ac membra +discerpimus."-_Comment, in Ephes._, lib. ii. cap. 4. Again, we find him +saying-"Neonon et dissensiones opera carnis sunt, quum quis nequaquam +perfectus, eodem sensu, et eadem sententia dicit. _Ego sum Pauli, et ego +Apollo, et ego Cephae, et ego Christi._ ...Nonnumquam evenit, ut et in +expositionibus Scripturarum oriatur dissensio, _e quibus haereses quoque +quae nunc in carnis opere ponuntur_, ebulliunt."--_Comment, in Epist. ad +Galat._, cap. 5. + +[525:3] Philip, i. 1, 2. + +[526:1] Acts xx. 17, 28. + +[526:2] Our translators, as it would appear acting under instructions +from James I., here render the word "overseers." + +[526:3] The Church of Rome, of which Jerome was a presbyter, long +hesitated to receive the Epistle to the Hebrews. Its opposition to +ritualism seems, in the third and fourth centuries, to have been +offensive to the ecclesiastical leaders in the Western metropolis. In +the first century no such doubts respecting it existed among the Roman +Christians. See Period I. sec. ii. chap. i. p. 183. + +[526:4] Heb. xiii. 17. The reading of Jerome, here, as well as in the +case of other texts quoted, differs somewhat from that of our authorized +version. He seems to have often quoted from memory. + +[527:1] 1 Pet. v. l, 2. + +[527:2] It may suffice to give in the original only the conclusion of +this long quotation. "Paulatim vero, ut dissensionum plantaria +evellerentur, ad unum omnem solicitudinem esse delatam. Sicut ergo +presbyteri sciunt se ex ecclesiae consuetudine ei qui sibi praepositus +fuerit esse subjectos; ita episcopi noverint se magis consuetudine quam +dispositionis dominicae veritate presbyteris esse majores."--_Comment, +in Titum_. + +[527:3] See Period I. sec. i. chap. 10. p. 157. + +[527:4] Thus Dr Burton says that "the Epistles of St John were composed +in the _latter part_ of Domitian's reign."--_Lectures_, i. 382. Jerome +was evidently of this opinion, for he says that, in his First Epistle, +he refers to Cerinthus and Ebion, who appeared towards the close of the +first century. "Jam tunc haereticorum semina pullularent Cerinthi, +Ebionis, et caeterorum qui negant Christum in carne venisse, quos et +ipse in Epistola sua Antichristos vocat."--_Proleg. in Comment, super +Matthaeum_. + +[528:1] 2 John 1. + +[528:2] 3 John 1. + +[528:3] Epist. ci. "Ad Evangelum." + +[528:4] Period II. sec. iii. chap. 5. p. 500. + +[528:5] Sec. 1. + +[528:6] The reader may find the quotations in the preceding chapter, pp. +501, 502. + +[528:7] Thus Milner says that "so far as one may judge by Clement's +Epistle," the Church of Corinth, when the letter was written, had Church +governors "_only of two ranks_," presbyters and deacons.--_Hist. of the +Church_, cent. ii. chap. 1. + +[528:8] As the letter supplies no trace whatever of the existence of a +bishop in the Church to which it is addressed, Pearson is sadly puzzled +by its testimony, and gravely advances the supposition that _the bishop +of Philippi must have been dead_ when Polycarp wrote! "Vindiciae +Ignatianae," pars ii. cap. 13. Rothe is equally perplexed by the Epistle +of Clement. He says that "in the whole Epistle there is never any +reference to a bishop of the Corinthian community," and he admits that, +when the letter was written, "the Corinthian community had no bishop at +all;" but, to support his favourite theory, he contends, like Pearson, +that the bishop of Corinth must also have been dead! "Die Anfange der +Christlichen Kirche," pp. 403, 404. Strange that the bishop of Corinth +and the bishop of Philippi both happened to be dead at the only time +that their existence would have been of any historical value, and that +_no reference_ is made either to them or their successors! + +[529:1] See Euseb. iv. c. 11. + +[529:2] Euseb. in. 32, and iv. 22. + +[529:3] Euseb. iii. 32. It was probably immediately after the election +of Marcus, as bishop of Jerusalem, that Thebuthis became a heretic. See +Euseb. iv. 22. About that time the sect of the Nazarenes originated. + +[530:1] Origen, "Contra Celsum," iii. Sec. 10, Opera, i. 453, 454. + +[530:2] "Dialogue with Trypho," Opera, p. 253. + +[530:3] "Contra Haeres." i. 27, Sec. 1. + +[530:4] "Strom." p. 764. + +[530:5] Epist. lxxiv. Opera, p. 293. The ancient writers speak of all +the early schismatics as heretics. Thus Novatian, though sound in the +faith, is so described. Cyprian, Epist. lxxvi. p. 315. When, therefore, +Jerome speaks of the early schismatics he obviously refers to the +heretics. Irenaeus says of them--"_Scindunt_ et separant unitatem +ecclesiae."--Lib. iv. c. xxvi. Sec. 2. In like manner Cyprian represents +"heresies and schisms" as making their appearance after the apostolic +age, and as inseparably connected. "Cum haereses et schismata postmodum +nata sint, dum conventicula sibi diversa constituunt."--_De Unitate +Eccles._, Opera, p. 400. + +[531:1] The existence of heresy in Gaul in the second century is +established by the fact that Irenaeus spent so much time in its +refutation. Had he not been annoyed by it, he never would have thought +of writing his treatise "Contra Haereses." + +[531:2] Valentine himself seems to have been a presbyter. He at one time +expected to be made bishop. + +[532:1] Such is the statement of Hilary--"Immutata est ratio, +prospiciente concilio, ut non ordo sed meritum crearet episcopum, +multorum sacerdotum judicio constitutum, ne indignus temere usurparet, +et esset multis scandalum."--_Comment. in Eph_. iv. + +[532:2] See Period II. sec. i. chap. iv. pp. 333, 334, 349. + +[533:1] At an early period, out of three elders nominated by the +presbytery, one was chosen by lot; subsequently, out of three elders +chosen by lot, one was elected by the people. See pp. 333, 349. + +[533:2] "Collocatum." + +[533:3] Epist. ci. "Ad Evangelum." + +[534:1] A few passages of the letter may here be given in the original. +"Manifestissime comprobatur eundem esse episcopum atque presbyterum.... +Quod autem _postea_ unus electus est, qui cicteris praeponeretur, in +schismatic remedium factum est, ne unusquisque ad se trahens Christi +ecclesiam rumperet. Nam et Alexandriae a Marco Evangelista usque ad +Heraclam et Dionysium Episcopos, presbyteri semper unum ex se electum in +excelsiori gradu collocatum episcopum nominabant."-Epist. ci. ad +Evangelum. + +[535:1] Matt. xx. 26, 27. + +[535:2] The view here taken is sustained by the verdict of learned and +candid episcopalians. "When elders were ordained by the apostles in +every Church, through every city, to feed the flock of Christ, whereof +the Holy Ghost had made them overseers: they, to the intent that they +might the better do it by common counsel and consent, did use to +assemble themselves and meet together. In the which meetings, for the +more orderly handling and concluding of things pertaining to their +charge, they chose one amongst them to be the president of their company +and moderator of their actions."--_The Judgment of Doctor Rainoldes +touching the Original of Episcopacy more largely confirmed out of +Antiquity, by James Ussher, Archbishop of Armagh._ Ussher's Works, vii. +p. 75. + +[537:1] Pearson has endeavoured to destroy the credit of this +chronology, and has urged against it the authority of the "Annals of +Eutychius!" "De Successione prim. Rom. Episc." He had before laboured to +prove that the testimony of these "Annals" is worthless. "Vindic. +Ignat." pars i. c. xi. + +[537:2] The chronology of Eusebius, as arranged by Bower in his "Lives +of the Popes," stands thus:-- + +Evaristus, A.D. 100 to A.D. 109. +Alexander, A.D. 109 to A.D. 119. +Sixtus (or Xystus), A.D. 119 to A.D. 128. +Telesphorus, A.D. 128 to A.D. 139. +Hyginus, A.D. 139 to A.D. 142. +Pius, A.D. 142 to A.D. 157. +Anicetus, A.D. 157 to A.D. 168. +Soter, A.D. 168 to A.D. 176. +Eleutherius, A.D. 176 to A.D. 192. +Victor, A.D. 192 to A.D. 201. + +[538:1] The following is the chronology of Pearson:-- + +Clement died A.D. 83. +Evaristus, A.D. 83 to A.D. 91. +Alexander, A.D. 91 to A.D. 101. +Xystus, A.D. 101 to A.D. 111. +Telesphorus, A.D. 111 to A.D. 122. +Hyginus, A.D. 122 to A.D. 126. +Pius, A.D. 127 to A.D. 142. +Anicetus, A.D. 142 to A.D. 161. +Soter, A.D. 161 to A.D. 170. +Eleutherius, A.D. 170 to A.D. 185. +Victor, A.D. 185 to A.D. 197. + +--"Minor Works," ii. pp. 570; 571. + +[539:1] I have endeavoured, from the records of the late Synod of +Ulster, to estimate the medium length of the incumbency of a moderator +for life, being the senior minister of a presbytery of from ten to +fifteen members, and have found that the average of thirty-six +successions amounted to between eight and nine years. In these +presbyteries young ministers generally constituted a considerable +portion of the members. Had they all been persons advanced in life, the +average must have been greatly reduced. + +[539:2] During that part of the second century which terminated with the +death of Hyginus, the average duration of the life of a Roman bishop +very little exceeded eight years; whereas, during the remainder of the +century, it amounted to nearly twelve years. According to the chronology +of Pearson the disproportion is still greater, being as eight years and +a fraction to fourteen years. If we insert the episcopate of Anacletus, +it will be nearly as seven to fourteen. + +[539:3] In the verses erroneously attributed to Tertullian, the Church +of Rome is represented as in a flourishing state when visited by Cerdo. + + "Advenit Romam Cerdo, nova vulnera gestans + Detectus, quoniam voces et verba veneni + Spargebat furtim; quapropter ab agmine pulsus, + Sacrilegum genus hoc genuit spirante dracone. + Constabat pietate vigens Ecclesia Romae + Composita a Petro, cujus successor et ipse + Jamque loco nono cathedram suscepit Hyginus." + +[540:1] Euseb. iv. 11. Irenaeus says that Valentine, the most famous and +formidable of the Gnostic teachers, "came to Rome under Hyginus, was in +his prime under Pius, and lived until the time of Anicetus."--_Contra +Haeres._, iii. 4. Sec. 3. Cyprian speaks of "the more _grievous pestilences +of heresy breaking forth_ when Marcion the Pontian emerged from Pontus, +whose master Cerdo came to Rome _during the episcopate of +Hyginus_."--_Epist_. lxxiv. He adds--"But it is acknowledged that +heresies _afterwards became more numerous and worse_."--_Epist_. lxxiv. +Opera, pp. 293, 294. + +[540:2] Euseb. iv. 11. See also a fragment attributed to Irenaeus in +Stieren's edition, i. 938. + +[540:3] See Mosheim, "Commentaries," by Vidal, ii. 266. + +[541:1] Hieronymus, "Comment, in Titum." + +[541:2] Ibid. + +[541:3] "Tamen postquam in omnibus locis ecclesiae sunt constitutae, et +officia ordinata, aliter composita res est, quam coeperat."--_Comment. +in Epist. ad Ephes._ cap. 4. + +[541:4] "Ideo non per omnia conveniunt scripta apostoli ordinationi, +quae nunc in ecclesia est; quia haec _inter ipsa primordia_ sunt +scripta."--Ibid. + +[541:5] "Ut non ordo, sed meritum crearet episcopum."--_Ibid._ Hilary +appears to have believed with Jerome that the Church was originally +governed "by the common council of the presbyters," but that, meanwhile, +_with their sanction_, or under peculiar circumstances, deacons might +preach and even laymen baptize. Such, too, seems to have been the +opinion of Tertullian. See Kaye's "Tertullian," pp. 226, 448. Hilary, +however, maintained that this arrangement was soon abrogated. "Coepit +alio ordine et providentia gubernari ecclesia; quia si omnes eadem +possent, irrationabile esset, et vulgaris res, et vilissima videretur." + +[543:1] Irenaeus, iii. 3, Sec. 3. + +[544:1] See Period II. sec. 1. chap. iv. pp. 334-336. + +[544:2] Irenaeus, i. 24, Sec. 1; i. 28, Sec. 1. + +[544:3] Thus, Valentine travelled from Alexandria to Rome, and +afterwards settled in Cyprus. Marcion, who was originally connected with +Pontus, and who taught in Rome, is said to have also travelled in Egypt +and the East. + +[545:1] "Blondelli Apologia pro Sententia Hieronymi," p. 18. Blondel +makes the vacancy of four years' continuance. + +[545:2] Pearson's "Minor Works," ii. p. 571. + +[546:1] Epiphanius, "Haeres." 42, Opera, tom. i. p. 302. + +[546:2] See Burton's "Lectures," ii. 98. + +[546:3] "Speraverat episcopatum Valentinus, quia et ingenio poterat et +eloquio. Sed alium ex martyrii praerogativa loci potitum indignatus de +ecclesia authenticae regulae abrupit."--_Adv. Valent._ c. iv. + +[546:4] Tertullian states that Valentine at first believed the doctrine +of the Catholics _in the Church of Rome_. "Be Praescrip." c. 30. When he +came to the city he was admitted to communion. He set up a distinct sect +after Pius was made bishop. It is impossible, therefore, to avoid the +inference that he was mortified because he was not himself chosen. +Tertullian here confounds Eleutherius and Hyginus. + +[547:1] The unwillingness even of Tertullian to say anything to its +prejudice has been often remarked. See Neander on a passage in the tract +"De Virg. Veland." in his "Antignostikos," appended to his "History of +the Planting and Training of the Christian Church," in Bohn's edition, +ii. 420. See also the same, p. 429. See also "De Pudicitia," c. 1. + +[547:2] They are quoted as genuine by Binius, Baronius, Bona, Thorndike, +Bingham, Salmasius, and many others. Bishop Beveridge speaks of one of +them as of undoubted authority. "In _indubitata_ illius +epistola."--_Annot. in Can. Ap._ See Cotelerius, i. 459. Pearson rejects +them as spurious, whilst contending so valiantly for the Ignatian +Epistles. + +[547:3] Such as _Missa_ and _Titulus_. But that Pastor really did erect +a place in which the Christians assembled for worship, as stated in one +of these letters, is not improbable. See Routh's "Reliquiae," i. 430. +Pearson objects to them on the ground that Eleutherius is spoken of in +one of them as a _presbyter_, whereas Hegesippus describes him as +_deacon_ afterwards in the time of Anicetus. See Euseb. iv. 22. But it +is not clear that Hegesippus here uses the word deacon in its strictly +technical sense. He may mean by it _minister_ or _manager_, and may +design to indicate that Eleutherius was the most _prominent official +personage_ under Anicetus, occupying the position afterwards held by the +_archdeacon_. + +[548:1] "Presbyteri et Diaconi, non ut majorem, sed ut ministrum Christi +te observent." + +[549:1] That, in the time of Marcion, there were Roman presbyters who +had been disciples of the apostles, see Tillemont, "Memoires," tom. ii. +sec. par. p. 215. Edit. Brussels, 1695. + +[550:1] "Presbyteri illi qui ab apostolis educati usque ad nos +pervenerunt, cum quibus simul verbum fidei partiti sumus, a Domino +vocati in cubilibus aeternis clausi tenentur." + +[550:2] Pearson ("Vindiciae," par. ii. c. 13) has appealed to a letter +from the Emperor Hadrian to the Consul Servianus as a proof that the +terms _bishop_ and _presbyter_ had distinctive meanings as early as A.D. +134. The passage is as follows:--"Illi qui Serapim colunt, Christiani +sunt; et devoti sunt Serapi, qui se Christi episcopos dicunt. Nemo illic +Archisynagogus Judaeorum, nemo Samarites, nemo Christianorum +Presbyter.... Ipse ille Patriarcha, quum Aegyptum venerit, ab aliis +Serapidem adorare, ab aliis cogitur Christum." Such a testimony only +shews that Pearson was sadly in want of evidence. This same letter has +in fact often been adduced to prove that the terms bishop and presbyter +were still used interchangeably, and such is certainly the more +legitimate inference. See Lardner's remarks on this letter, Works, vol. +vii. p. 99. Edit. London, 1838. + +[550:3] "The Philippians appear to have continued to live under the same +aristocratic constitution (of venerable elders) _about the middle of the +second century_, when Polycarp addressed his Epistle to +them."--_Bunsen's Hippolytus_, i. 369. + +[551:1] [Greek: proestos], Opera, pp. 97-99. + +[551:2] "Episcopi, _id est, praesides ecclesiarum_."--Lib. iii. simil. +ix. c. 27. There is a parallel passage to this in Tertullian, "De +Baptismo," c. 17--"Summus sacerdos, _qui est episcopus_." This is, +perhaps, the first instance on record in which a bishop is called the +chief priest. Hence the necessity of the interpretation--"qui est +episcopus." Pastor considered an explanation of the title "episcopus" +equally necessary. + +[551:3] Neander supposes this work to have been written A.D. 156. +"General History," ii. 443. + +[551:4] See Period II. sec. ii. chap. i. p. 368. + +[552:1] So high indeed is its authority that many facts taken from it +are recorded in the "Breviary." Even Bunsen appeals to it. See "Analecta +Antenicaena," iii. 52, 53. + +[552:2] Binius makes the following abortive attempt to explain the +statement-"Quod hierarchicus catholicae ecclesiaeae ordo, quo presbyteri +episcopis, diaconi presbyteris, populus presbyteris et diaconis subditus +est, ab Hygino compositus esse hic dicitur, _non aliter intelligi +potest_, quam quod Hyginus hierarchiae ecclesiasticae jam tempore +apostolorum a Christo Domino constitutae, et a sanctis Patribus ipso +antiquioribus comprobatae, quaedam duntaxat injuria temporum et +scriptorum deperdita addiderit, vel eadem quae Divino jure instituta, et +a patribus comprobata sunt, hac constitutione sua illustraverit." +--_Concilia_, i. 65, 66. + +[552:3] "Hic clerum composuit, et distribuit gradus."--_Binii Concil._ +i. 65. Baronius, ad annum, 158. + +[553:1] When referring to this statement Baronius says--"Porro quod ad +gradus cujusque ordinis in Ecclesia, quo ecclesiastica habetur composita +hierarchia, jam a temporibus apostolorum haec facta esse, _Ignatio +auctore_ et aliis, tomo primo Annalium demonstravimus; verum _aliqua +antiquae formae ab Hyginio fuisse addita_, vel eadem illustrata, _aequum +est aestimare_." + +[554:1] See Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 414. + +[555:1] 1 Tim. v. 17. + +[555:2] Euseb. iv. 11; iv. 19. Dr Burton has well observed that +Alexandria and Antioch were "the hotbeds from which nearly all the +mischief arose, which, under the name of philosophy, inundated the +Church in the second century."--_Lectures_, vol. ii. p. 103. + +[556:1] Period II. sec. iii. chap. v. pp. 516, 517. + +[556:2] "Quanquam sunt inter scriptores ecclesiasticos qui putaverint +Polycarpum Romam venisse, ut quaereret de festo paschatis: ex his +Irenaei verbis luco clarius elucet, _ob alias causas_ Ioannis apostoli +discipulum Romam profectum esse."--_Stieren's Irenaeus_, i. p. 826, +note. + +[557:1] Euseb. v. 24. + +[557:2] Stieren's "Irenaeus," i. 827. + +[557:3] First, as his senior; and secondly, as a disciple of the +apostles. + +[557:4] It was a standing rule of the Church that a strange bishop +should be thus treated. See "Didascalia," by Platt, p. 97. + +[559:1] "_Paulatim_ vero, ut dissensionum plantaria evellerentur, ad +unum omnem solicitudinem esse delatam."--_Comment. in Tit_. + +[560:1] Period II. sec. iii. chap. 5, pp. 510, 512, 516, 520. + +[560:2] But the presiding elders now began generally to be called +bishops. + +[560:3] Thus, though, as we may infer from the testimony of Tertullian, +Christianity was planted in North Britain in the second century, the +universal tradition is that originally there were no bishops in that +country. According to an ancient MS. belonging to the former bishops of +St Andrews, and to be found in the "Life of William Wishart," one of +their number who lived in the thirteenth century, the first bishop +created in Scotland was elected in A.D. 270. See Jamieson's "Culdees," +pp. 101, 101. + +[561:1] Song of Solomon, vi. 9; Ps. xlv. 9. "Sub Apostolis nemo +Catholicus vocabatur.....Cum post Apostolos haereses extitissent, +diversisque nominibus columbam Dei atque reginam lacerare per partes et +scindere niterentur; nonno cognomen suum ecclesia postulabat, quae +incorrupti populi distingueret unitatem?" + +[562:1] Pacian, "Epist. to Sympronian," secs. 5 and 8. Pacian is said to +have been bishop of Barcelona. He died A.D. 392. + +[562:2] Epist. lxix. 265, 266. + +[563:1] Justin Martyr, Opera, p. 99. + +[563:2] According to the "Apostolic Constitutions" the deacons were not +at liberty to baptize. Lib. viii. c. 28. + +[563:3] "De Baptismo," c. 17. + +[563:4] Tertullian thus corroborates the testimony of Jerome. + +[563:5] "In the sixth century the clergy of Italy complained to +Justinian that, _owing to the vacancy of sees_, 'an immense multitude of +people died without baptism.' Even so late as the time of Hinemar (the +ninth century) baptisms were still performed by the bishop, and _they +alone were considered canonical_."--_Palmer's Episcopacy Vindicated_, p. +35, note. + +[564:1] "It appears to have been the custom at Rome and other places to +send from the cathedral church the bread consecrated to the several +parish churches."--_Stillingfleet's Irenicum_, pp. 369, 370. +"Thomassinus shown that in the fifth century the presbyters of Rome did +not consecrate the Eucharist in their respective churches, but it was +sent to them from the principal church."--_Palmer_, p. 35, note. + +[564:2] Thus Rome is called the "principal Church" in regard to +Carthage. Cyprian, Epist. lv. p. 183. + +[564:3] Tertullian apparently refers to this when he says--"Una omnes +probant unitate _communicatio pacis_ et appellatio fraternitatis, et +contesseratio hospitalitatis."--_De Praescrip_. c. 20. + +[564:4] "Ecclesiis apostolicis matricibus et originalibus fidei." + +[565:1] "Cathedrae apostolorum suis locis praesident." These words +clearly indicate that the Churches founded by the apostles were now +recognized as centres of unity for the surrounding Christian +communities. + +[565:2] It is worthy of note that, in the second canonical epistle ever +written by Paul, he warns this Church of the coming of the Man of Sin. +(2 Thess. ii. 3.) It appears from the text that thus early it was +identified with the system which resulted in the establishment of the +Papacy. It is equally remarkable that the bishop of Thessalonica was the +first _Papal Vicar_ ever appointed. See Bower's "History of the Popes," +Damasus, thirty-sixth bishop; and Gieseler, i. 264. + +[565:3] "De Praescrip." xxi., xxxvi. + +[565:4] The tendency of "Church principles" to terminate in the +recognition of a universal bishop has appeared in modern as well as in +ancient times. "What other step," says a noble author, "remains to stand +between those who held those principles and Rome? _Only one:_ that the +priesthood so constituted, invested with such powers, is organized under +one head--a Pope....The space to be traversed in arriving at it is so +narrow, and so unimpeded by any positive barrier, _either of logic or of +feeling_, that the slightest influence of sentiment or imagination, of +weakness or of superstition, is sufficient to draw men across."--_Letter +from the Duke of Argyll to the Bishop of Oxford_, p. 23. London, Moxon, +1851. + +[566:1] Tertullian says that John, as well as Peter and Paul, had been +in Rome. "De Praescrip." xxxvi. + +[567:1] "Contra Haeres." iii. c. iii. Sec. 2. + +[567:2] "Maximae et antiquissimae et omnibus cognitae, a gloriosissimis +duobus apostolis Petro et Paulo Romae fundatae et constitutae +ecclesiae."--_Irenaeus_, iii. c. iii. Sec. 2. + +[567:3] We find this designation in some of the early canons. See +Bunsen's "Hippolytus," iii. 50. + +[567:4] Euseb. v. 24. + +[568:1] See the statement of Cyprian in the Council of Carthage, +"Opera," p. 597; and Jerome, in his Epistle to Evangelus, "Opera," iv. +secund. pars. p. 803. + +[568:2] "Pontifex scilicet Maximus, quod est episcopus episcoporum, +edicit: Ego et moechiae et fornicationis delicta poenitentia functis +dimitto."--_Tertullian, De Pudicitia_, c. 1. "Neque enim quisquam +nostrum episcopum se esse episcoporum constituit."--_Cyprian, Con. Car., +Opera_, 597. + +[569:1] "Ecclesiae catholicae radicem et matricem."--_Epist_. xlv. p. +133. + +[569:2] "Navigare audent et ad Petri cathedram atque ad ecclesiam +principalem unde unitas sacerdotalis exorta est."--_Epist_. lv. p. 183. +"Nam Petro primum Dominus, super quem aedificavit ecclesiam, et unde +unitatis originem instituit et ostendit, potestatem istam +dedit."--_Epist_. lxxiii. p. 280. See also _Epist_. lxx.-"Una ecclesia a +Christo Domino super Petrum origine unitatis et ratione fundata." + +[570:1] The word _catholic_ first occurs in the Epistle of the Church of +Smyrna giving an account of the martyrdom of Polycarp, but that letter +was probably not written until at least twenty years after the event +which it records. See Period II. sec. i. chap. iv. p. 337. It is +remarkable that the word is not found in Irenaeus, or used by his Latin +interpreter. The pastor of Lyons, however, recognizes the distinction +indicated by the word catholic, for he speaks of the _ecclesiastici_ or +churchmen, and of those "_qui sunt undique_." Stieren's "Irenaeus," i. +430, 502, note. The word catholic was obviously quite current in the +time of Tertullian. + +[570:2] Particularly Matt. xvi. 18. Clemens Alexandrinus says that our +Lord baptized Peter only, and that Peter then baptized other apostles. +See Kaye's "Clement," p. 442; and Bunsen's "Analecta Antenic." i. p. +317. See also Origen, "Opera," ii. 245; and Firmilian's "Epistle." + +[571:1] Even Polycrates of Ephesus admits that he had been requested by +Victor to convene a synod. Euseb. v. 24. About sixty years afterwards +Cyprian writes to Stephen of Rome requesting him to send letters into +Gaul that Marcianus the bishop, who had sided with Novatian, "being +excommunicated, another may be substituted in his room."--_Cyprian, +Epist_. lxvii. pp. 248, 249. + +[572:1] Thus he says--"For neither did Peter, _whom the Lord chose +first, and on whom He built His Church_, when Paul afterwards disputed +with him about circumcision, claim or assume anything insolently and +arrogantly to himself, so as _to say that he held the primacy_."--Epist. +lxxi. p. 273. + +[573:1] Gen. xi. 4. + +[573:2] Book I. vision iii. Sec. 3, &c. + +[574:1] Rev. xiv. 6-8. + +[575:1] 1 Tim. v. 17. + +[576:1] See Bunsen's "Hippolytus," ii. 305, and iii. 35, 36. + +[576:2] Bunsen's "Hippolytus," iii. 36. + +[576:3] "Apost. Constit." ii. 57. + +[576:4] [Greek: kai oute ho panu dunatos en logo ton en tais ekklesiais +proestoton, hetera touton erei (oudeis gar huper ton didaskalon) oute ho +asthenes en to logo elattosei ten paradosin].--_Contra Haereses_, i. c. +10. Sec. 2. + +[576:5] "Optatus adv. Donat." vii. 6. + +[576:6] 1 Cor. xiv. 5, 24, 26, 31. + +[577:1] Euseb. vi. 19. It is to be observed that these laymen, having +the sanction of the ecclesiastical authorities, were thus virtually +licensed to preach. + +[577:2] "Apost. Constit." vii. 46. There was a Church at Cenchrea in the +time of the apostles. Rom. xvi. 1. Strabo calls Cenchrea a village, lib. +viii. + +[577:3] See Bingham, iii. 129. + +[577:4] Cyprian, "Council of Carthage." Girba, Mileum, Badias, and +Carpi, the sees of these bishops, were all small places with, no doubt, +a still smaller Christian population. + +[578:1] Cyprian, "Council of Carthage." + +[578:2] Euseb. vii. 30. + +[578:3] See Sage's "Vindication of the Principles of the Cyprianic Age," +p. 348. Edit., London, 1701. + +[578:4] See Period II. sec. i. chap. v. pp. 355, 356. + +[578:5] See Bingham, i. 41, 43. + +[579:1] Bunsen's "Hippolytus," i. 129; and Wordsworth, p. 257. It would +appear from Celsus that not a few of the Church teachers in the second +century supported themselves by manual labour. See Origen, Opera, i. +484. + +[579:2] "Adleguntur in ordinem ecclesiasticum artifices idolorum."--_De +Idololatria_, c. vii. Malchion, one of the presbyters of Antioch in the +time of Paul of Samosata, was the head-master of one of the principal +schools in the place. Euseb. vii. 29. + +[579:3] Cyprian, Epist. lxvi. p. 246. In after times the bishop himself +was the grand-executor, having the charge of all the wills of his +diocese! + +[581:1] Council of Elvira, A.D. 305, 18th canon. + +[581:2] Period II. sec. iii. chap. vi. p. 533. + +[581:3] "Nam et Alexandria a Marco Evangelista usque ad Heraclam et +Dionysium Episcopos, presbyteri semper unum ex se electum, in excelsiori +gradu collocatum Episcopum nominabant; quomodo si exercitus Imperatorem +faciat; aut Diaconi eligant de se quem industrium noverint, et +Archidiaconum vocent."--_Epist. ad Evangelum_. + +[581:1] Heraclas now succeeded him. The immediate successor of Heraclas +was Dionysius. + +[581:2] "_Apud nos_ quoque et _fere_ per provincias universas +tenetur."--_Cyprian_, Epist. lxviii. p. 256. The arrangement of which +Cyprian speaks was now, perhaps, pretty generally established in the +West, but he may have understood, through his intercourse with +Firmilian, that in some parts of the East a different usage still +prevailed. + +[581:3] "Nam _et_ Alexandriae." + +[582:1] Eutychius, the celebrated patriarch of Alexandria who flourished +in the beginning of the tenth century, makes this assertion. According +to this writer there were originally twelve presbyters connected with +the Alexandrian Church; and, when the patriarchate became vacant, they +elected "one of the twelve presbyters, _on whose head the remaining +eleven laid hands_, and blessed him and created him patriarch."--_See +the original passage in Selden's Works_, ii. c. 421, 422; London, 1726. +This passage furnishes a remarkable confirmation of the testimony of +Jerome as to the fact that the Alexandrian presbyters originally made +their bishops, but it is probably not very accurate as to the details. +As to the laying on of hands it is not supported by Jerome. + +[582:2] The case is different with the modern English archdeacon who is +a presbyter. + +[583:1] "A fratribus constitutus et colobio episcoporum vestitus." + +[583:2] "Saluta _omne collegium fratrum_, qui tecum sunt in Domino." + +[583:3] The practice seems to have continued longer at Alexandria than +at Rome and various other places. + +[583:4] The statement of Jerome is not inconsistent with the fact that +the senior elder was originally the president or bishop, for he was +recognized as such by mutual agreement. Neither is it at variance with +the idea that the elders sometimes made a selection _by lot_ out of +three of their number previously put in nomination. There are good +grounds for believing that even after bishops begun to be elected by +general suffrage, the people were in some places restricted to certain +candidates chosen from among the elders by lot. Cyprian apparently +refers to this circumstance when he says that he was chosen _by "the +judgment of God"_ as well as by the vote of the people. Epist. xl. p. +119. The people of Alexandria, towards the close of the third and +beginning of the fourth century, are said to have been restricted to +certain candidates. See p. 333, Period II. sec. i. chap. iv. Cornelius +of Rome is said to have been made bishop by "the judgment of God and of +his Christ" and by the votes of the people. Cyprian, Epist. lii. pp. +150, 151. + +[584:1] Euseb. v. 24. + +[585:1] "Contra Haereses," iv. c. 26, secs. 2, 4. "Quapropter eis qui in +ecclesia sunt, _presbyteris_ obaudire oportet, his qui successionem +habent ab apostolis, sicut ostendimus; qui _cum episcopatus successione_ +charisma veritatis certum secundum placitum Patris acceperunt; reliquos +vero, qui absistunt a principali successione, et quocunque loco +colligunt, suspectos habere vel quasi haereticos et malae sententiae.... +Ab omnibus igitur talibus absistere oportet; adhaerere vero his qui et +apostolorum, sicut praediximus, doctrinam custodiunt, et _cum +presbyterii ordine_ sermonem sanum et conversationem sine offensa +praestant." + +[585:2] This was long the received doctrine. Thus, the author of the +"Questions on the Old and New Testament" says--"Quid est episcopus nisi +_primus presbyter_?"--_Aug. Quaest._ c. 101. + +[585:3] "Onmis potestas et gratia in ecclesia constituta sit, ubi +praesident majores natu, qui et baptizandi et manum imponendi et +ordinandi possident potestatem."--_Firmilian, Epist. Cyprian_, Opera, p. +304. + +[586:1] See Bunsen's "Hippolytus," ii. 351-357. See also Fabricius, +"Biblioth. Graecae," liber v. p. 208. Hamburg, 1723. + +[586:2] The earliest of these canons was probably framed only a few +years before the middle of the third century. They were called +apostolical perhaps because concocted by some of the bishops of the +so-called apostolic Churches. + +[586:3] The collection to which it belongs bears the designation of the +"Canons of _Abulides_,"--the name of _Hippolytus in Abyssinian_, as +their calendar shews. Bunsen, ii. 352. The canons edited by Hippolytus +were, no doubt, at one time acknowledged by the Western Church. + +[586:4] Bunsen's "Hippolytus," iii. 43, and "Analecta Antenicaena," iii. +415. + +[587:1] Eutychius intimates that the Alexandrian presbyters continued to +ordain their own bishop until the time of the Council of Nice. It is not +improbable that, until then, some of them may have continued to take +part in the ordination, and the statement of the Alexandrian patriarch +may be so far correct. + +[587:2] See Bunsen, iii. 45. + +[587:3] Where the bishop, as in the case contemplated in a canon quoted +in the text, had to depend for his official income on the contributions +of twelve families, it is plain that the elders could expect no +remuneration for their services. As the hierarchy advanced these ruling +elders disappeared. Hence Hilary says--"The synagogue, and afterwards +_the Church_, had elders, without whose counsel nothing was done in the +Church, which, by what negligence _it grew into disuse_ I know not; +unless, perhaps, by the sloth, or rather by the pride of the teachers, +while they alone wished to appear something."--_Comment on 1 Tim._ v. 1. +Some late writers have contended that these elders (_seniores_) were not +ecclesiastical officers at all, but civil magistrates of municipal +corporations peculiar to Africa. It must, however, be recollected that +Hilary was a _Roman_ deacon of the fourth century, and that he speaks of +them as belonging _to the Church_ before the civil establishment of +Christianity. + +[590:1] Thus, Firmilian speaks of "seniores et _praepositi_," and of the +Church "ubi _praesident_ majores natu."--_Cyprian_, Opera, p. 302 and +304. + +[590:2] Justin Martyr, Opera, p. 99. + +[590:3] In the days of Origen the episcopal office was not unfrequently +coveted for its wealth. Origen, Opera, iii. p. 501. See also Cyprian, +Epist. lxiv. p. 240. + +[591:1] Comment, in Matt., Opera, iii. p. 723. + +[591:2] See Period II. sec. i. chap. v. p. 354. + +[592:1] Euseb. vi. 43. + +[592:2] Tertullian, "Praescrip. Haeret." c. 41. This office, even in the +fourth century, was often committed to mere children--a sad proof that +the importance of reading the Word effectively was not duly appreciated. + +[592:3] Origen makes mention of them, Opera, ii. p. 453; and Firmilian, +Cyprian, Epist. 1xxv. p. 306. + +[592:4] Cyprian, Epist. lii. p. 150. + +[592:5] As in the case of Fabian of Rome. Euseb. vi. 29. + +[593:1] Bingham, i. 356, 359. + +[593:2] Cyprian, Epist. lv. pp. 177, 178; xl. pp. 119, 120. + +[593:3] Epist. xxxiii. p. 105. + +[594:1] Epist. xxiv. pp. 79, 80. + +[594:2] Epist. xxxiv. pp. 107, 108. + +[594:3] Epist. xxxv. p. 111. + +[595:1] Bishops and presbyters appear to have continued to ordain +bishops in the time of Origen. His "Commentaries on Matthew," written +according to his Benedictine editor in A.D. 245 (see Delarue's "Origen," +iii. Praef.), speak of _bishops and presbyters_ "committing whole +churches to unfit persons and _constituting incompetent +governors_."--_Opera_, iii. p. 753. + +[595:2] It would appear that the five presbyters who opposed Cyprian +constituted the majority of the presbytery. Cyprian, Epist. xl. pp. 119, +120. See also Sage's "Vindication of the Principles of the Cyprianic +Age," p. 348. + +[595:3] Euseb. vi. 29. + +[596:1] Cyprian, Epist. xxxi. pp. 99, 100. + +[596:2] Cyprian, Epist. iv. p. 31. + +[596:3] Cyprian, Epist. xxxiii. p. 106, xxxiv. p. 107, lviii. p. 207, +lxxi. p. 271, lxxvii. p. 327. Euseb. vii. 5. + +[596:4] Thus we find him going so far as to complain that his presbyters +"with contempt and dishonour of the bishop arrogate sole authority to +themselves."--_Epist._ ix. p. 48. + +[596:5] Epist. xlix. p. 143. See Neander's "General History," i. 307, +and Burton's "Lectures on the Ecc. Hist, of the First Three Centuries," +ii. 331. Burton repudiates the attempts of Bingham and others to explain +away this proceeding. + +[597:1] They are called so for the first time in the Council of Ancyra. +They had before always been called simply bishops. It has been remarked +that we never find any _chorepiscopi_ among the African bishops, though +many of them occupied as humble a position as those so designated +elsewhere. + +[597:2] Canon xiii., "Canones Apost. et Concil. Berolini," 1839. + +[598:1] In the case of Novatian. Euseb. vi. 43. + +[599:1] These presbyters were called _Doctores_. Cyprian, Epist. xxxiv. +p. 80. + +[599:2] It would appear that, even at the time of the Council of +Carthage held A.D. 397, a bishop had sometimes only one presbyter under +his care. See Dupin's account of the Council. + +[599:3] Bingham, i. 198; and Beveridge, "Cotelerius," tom. ii. App. p. +17. + +[600:1] See Period II. sec. i. chap. ii. p. 302, and p. 355. + +[601:1] Euseb. vi. 43. + +[601:2] Bunsen's "Hippolytus," iii. 50. Another canon says--"_He who is +worthy out of the bishops_ ... putteth his hand upon him whom they have +made bishop, praying over him."--Bunsen, iii. 42. + +[601:3] See chapter viii. of this section, pp. 565, 567. + +[602:1] Bunsen, iii. 111. + +[602:2] Euseb. viii. 1. + +[603:1] The following observation of a distinguished writer of the +Church of England is well worthy of consideration. "The remains of +ancient ecclesiastical literature, especially those of the Latin Church, +teach us that the corruption of Christianity of which Romanism is the +full development, manifested itself, in the first instance, _not in the +doctrines which relate to the spiriting life of the individual_, but in +those connected with _the constitution and authority_ of the Christian +society."--_Litton's Church of Christ_, p. 12. + +[604:1] "Can. Apost." xiv. "Concil. Nic." xv. + +[604:2] Euseb. "Martyrs of Palestine," c. 12. + +[604:3] Euseb. viii. i. + +[605:1] Acts xxvi. 16-18. + +[605:2] Such was the case with the churches mentioned Acts xiv. 23, and +Titus i. 5. + +[606:1] Trajan regarded with great suspicion all associations, even fire +brigades and charitable societies. See Pliny's "Letters," book x., +letters 43 and 94. + +[607:1] Such as Mosheim, "Instit." i. 149, 150; Neander, "General +History," i. 281. + +[607:2] During the first forty years of the second century Gnosticism +did not excite much notice, and as the Church courts must have been +occupied chiefly with matters of mere routine, it is not remarkable that +their proceedings have not been recorded. + +[607:3] We have no contemporary evidence to prove that _ordinations_ +took place in the former half of the second century, and yet we cannot +doubt their occurrence. + +[608:1] Acts xx. 17. + +[608:2] "In Mileto enim convocatis episcopis et presbyteris, qui erant +ab Epheso et a reliquis proximis civitatibus."--_Contra Haeres_, iii. c. +14. Sec. 2. + +[608:3] Cyprian, Epist. lxviii. Sec. 256. + +[608:4] The new bishop was often chosen before the interment of his +predecessor; and even when the senior elder was the president, it is +probable that the neighbouring pastors assembled to attend the funeral +of the deceased pastor, and to be present at the inauguration of his +successor. + +[609:1] See Chapter vi. of this Section, p. 524. + +[609:2] The old writer called Praedestinatus speaks of several synods +held in reference to the Gnostics before the middle of the second +century. He may have had access to some documents now lost, but the +testimony of a witness who lived in the fifth or sixth century is not of +much value. + +[610:1] "In toto orbe decretum est ut unus de presbyteris electus +superponeretur caeteris."--_Com. in Titum_. + +[610:2] Euseb. v. 16. + +[610:3] See Routh's "Reliquiae," ii. 183, 195. + +[611:1] Mosheim ("Commentaries" by Vidal, ii. 105) has made a vain +attempt to set aside the Latin translation of this passage by Valesius, +as he saw that it completely upsets his favourite theory. But any one +who carefully examines the Greek of Eusebius may see that the rendering +complained of is quite correct. It cannot be necessary to point out to +the intelligent reader the transparent sophistry of nearly all that +Mosheim has written on this subject. + +[611:2] Euseb. v. 23. + +[612:1] See Period II. sec. iii. chap. v. p. 509. + +[612:2] Tertullian, "De Jejun," c. xiii. + +[613:1] "Aguntur praeterea _per Graecias_ illa certis in locis concilia +ex universis ecclesiis." + +[613:2] "Ipsa repraesentatio totius nominis Christiani magna veneratione +celebratur." Mosheim argues from these words that the bishops attended +these assemblies, not by right of office, but as _representatives of the +people_! He might, with more plausibility, have contended that they were +held only once a year. "Ista _sollemnia_ quibus tunc praesens +patrocinatus est sermo." + +[614:1] Euseb. v. 24. Hippolytus complains of a bishop of Rome that he +was "ignorant of the _ecclesiastical rules_,"--a plain proof, not only +that synods were in existence in the West, but also that a knowledge of +canon law was considered an important accomplishment. See Bunsen, ii. +223. + +[614:2] Cyprian (Epist. lxxiii.) speaks of a large council held "many +years" before his time "under Agrippinus," one of his predecessors. This +bishop appears to have been contemporary with Tertullian. + +[614:3] In his book "De Pudicitia," c. 10, he speaks of the "Pastor" of +Hermas as classed among apocryphal productions "_ab omni concilio +ecclesiarum_"--implying that it had been condemned by African councils, +as well as others. + +[614:4] The prevalence of the Montanistic spirit in Asia Minor may +account for this. + +[615:1] See Potter's "Antiquities of Greece," i. 106. + +[615:2] See Mosheim's "Commentaries," cent. ii. sect. 22. + +[616:1] "Per singulos annos seniores et praepositi in unum conveniamus." + +[616:2] Cyprian, Epist. lxxv. pp. 302, 303. + +[616:3] In Africa, however, this arrangement was not established even in +the fifth century. There, the senior bishop still continued president. + +[617:1] This canon somewhat differs from the fifth of the Council of +Nice, as the latter requires the first meeting to be held "before Lent." +It is somewhat doubtful which canon is of higher antiquity. + +[619:1] "Seniores et praepositi."--_Epist. Cypriani, Opera_, p. 302. + +[619:2] "The Councils of the Church," by Rev. E.B. Pusey, D.D., p. 34 +Oxford, 1857. + +[619:3] Pusey, p. 58. + +[619:4] Ibid. p. 66. + +[619:5] Ibid. p. 95. + +[619:6] As in the case of Athanasius at the Council of Nice. + +[619:7] As witnesses and commissioners may still be heard by Church +courts. + +[619:8] "Graviter commoti sumus ego et collegae mei qui praesentes +aderant et _compresbyteri nostri qui nobis assidebant"--Cyprian_, Epist. +lxvi. p. 245. "_Residentibus_ etiam viginti et sex _presbyteris, +adstantibus diaconibus et omni plebe."--Concil. Illiberit_. + +[620:1] Euseb. vii. 30. + +[621:1] Prov. xi. 14. + +[621:2] Mosheim's "Institutes," by Soames, i. 150. + +[624:1] See Mosheim's "Commentaries," cent. ii. sec. 39; American +edition by Murdock. + +[624:2] Acts xxiv. 5. + +[624:3] Euseb. iv. 5. + +[625:1] The English name _Easter_ is derived from that of a Teutonic +goddess whose festival was celebrated by the ancient Saxons in the month +of April, and for which the Paschal feast was substituted. + +[626:1] Pentecost, called Whitsunday or White-Sunday, on account of the +white garments worn by those who then received baptism, was observed as +early as the beginning of the third century. Origen, "Contra Celsum," +book viii. Tertullian, "De Idololatria," c. 14. We have then no trace of +the observation of Christmas. See Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 413. + +[626:2] See Mosheim's "Commentaries," by Murdock, cent. ii. sec. 71. Dr +Schaff seems disposed to deny this, but he assigns no reasons. See his +"Hist. of the Christ. Church," p. 374. + +[626:3] Even as to this point there is not unanimity--some alleging that +our Lord partook of the Paschal lamb on the night preceding that on +which it was eaten by the Jews. + +[627:1] This is distinctly asserted by Irenaeus. "Anicetus and Pius, +Hyginus with Telesphorus and Xystus, neither did themselves observe, nor +did they permit those after them to observe it. And yet though they +themselves did not keep it, they were not the less at peace with those +from churches where it was kept, whenever they came to them, although to +keep it then was so much the more in opposition to those who did +not."--_Euseb._ v. 24. + +[629:1] It would appear that the Armenians, the Copts, and others, still +observe this rite. Mosheim's "Comment." cent. ii. sec. 71. As to the +continuance of this custom at Rome, see Bingham, v. 36, 37. + +[629:2] Socrates, an ecclesiastical historian of the fifth century, has +expressed himself with remarkable candour on this subject. "It appears +to me," says he, "that neither the ancients nor moderns who have +affected to follow the Jews have had any rational foundation for +contending so obstinately about it (Easter). For they have altogether +lost sight of the fact that when our religion superseded the Jewish +economy, the obligation to observe the Mosaic law and the ceremonial +types ceased.... The Saviour and His apostles have enjoined us by no law +to keep this feast: nor in the New Testament are we threatened with any +penalty, punishment, or curse for the neglect of it, as the Mosaic law +does the Jews."--_Ecc. Hist._ v. c. 22. + +[629:3] This system seems to have been in existence in the time of +Tertullian. See Tertullian, "Ad. Martyr." c. 1., and "De Pudicitia," +c. 22. + +[630:1] Cyprian speaks of a confessor spending his time "in drunkenness +and revealing," (_Epist._ vi. p. 37,) and of some guilty of "fraud, +fornication, and adultery." (_De Unit. Ecc._ p. 404.) + +[630:2] Thus Cyprian says--"Lucianus, not only while Paulus was still in +prison, gave letters in his name _indiscriminately_ written with his own +hand, but _even after his decease_ continued to do the same in his name, +saying that he had been ordered to do so by Paulus."--_Epist._ xxii. +p. 77. + +[630:3] Cyprian, Epist. x. p. 52. + +[631:1] Apostasy in time of persecution was considered a mortal sin. +Adultery was placed in the same category. Cyprian, Epist. lii. p. 155. +At one time Cyprian himself held the sentiments of the stricter party. +See his "Scripture Testimonies against the Jews," book iii. Sec. 28, p. 563. + +[633:1] Cyprian, Epist. lxxiii. p. 279, and lxxiv. p. 295. + +[633:2] Cyprian, Epist. lxxiii. p. 277, 278. + +[634:1] In Stieren's "Irenaeus," i. 824, there is a different reading of +this passage, according to which some continued the fast forty days. + +[634:2] Euseb. v. 24. + +[636:1] John x. 11, 27, 28. + +[636:2] Eph. v. 25-27. + +[636:3] Matt, xxviii. 20. + +[636:4] 1 Pet. i. 5. + +[636:5] Matt. xvi. 18. + +[637:1] Eph. iv. 3. + +[637:2] Eph. iv. 13. + +[637:3] Eph. iv. 13. + +[637:4] No writer since the Reformation has discussed the subject of the +Church with more learning and ability than the Rev. Dr Hodge of +Princeton. Those who wish to be thoroughly acquainted with all the +bearings of the question should consult his "Essays and Reviews," New +York, 1857. Also the "Princeton Review." See also an article of his +taken from the "Princeton Review" in the "British and Foreign +Evangelical Review" for Sept. 1854. + +[637:5] Matt. xiii. 47-50. + +[638:1] 1 Cor. i. 11, 12. + +[638:2] Gal. i. 6, iii. 1. + +[638:3] Rev. iii. 1. + +[639:1] Thus, Melito of Sardis is said to have written a work "On the +Church." Euseb. iv. 26. + +[639:2] Apostles' Creed. For another form see Bunsen's "Hippolytus," +iii. 25, 27. + +[640:1] 3 John 9, 10. + +[640:2] He appears, for certain reasons now unknown, to have been +dissatisfied with some disciples who had been engaged in missionary +work; and he had influence sufficient to procure the excommunication of +the brethren who entertained them. + +[640:3] He would be a bold man who would assert that all the pious +members of the Society of Friends are in a hopeless condition. + +[641:1] Heb. xii. 23. + +[641:2] See Rothe's "Anfange der Christlichen Kirche," p. 575. + +[641:3] Cyprian, Epist. lxxvi. p. 316. + +[641:4] Epist. lxix. p. 265. + +[641:5] Epist. lxii. p. 221. + +[642:1] "De Unit. Ecc." p. 397. See also Lactantius, "De Vera +Sapientia," lib. iv. p. 282. + +[642:2] Eph. iv. 12. + +[642:3] Acts xx. 32. + +[643:1] Rev. i. 6. + +[644:1] If our authorized version of the English Bible is to be regarded +as a standard of correct usage, the word priest cannot be properly +employed to designate a Christian minister. In the New Testament, as +stated in the text, a minister of the word is never called a _priest_ +([Greek: hiereus]), and the latter term, when used in reference to an +official personage in our English Bible, always denotes an individual +_who offers sacrifice_. To call a gospel minister a priest is, +therefore, at once to adopt an incorrect expression and to insinuate a +false doctrine. The English word priest is derived, not as some say, +from the Greek [Greek: presbuteros] through the French _pretre_, but +from the Greek [Greek: proestos], in Latin _praestes_, and in Saxon +_preost_. See Webster's "Dictionary of the English Language." + +[644:2] Epist. lxix. p. 264. + +[644:3] Thus, Tertullian speaks of the "ordo sacerdotalis." "De Exhor. +Cast." c. vii. + +[645:1] Cyprian, Epist. lxiii. p. 230; lxiv. p. 239. + +[645:2] Cyprian, Epist. lxix. p. 264. Cotelerius, i. 442. The Eucharist +is called a sacrifice by Justin Martyr (see his Dialogue with Trypho., +"Opera," p. 260) apparently in a figurative sense, but when dispensed by +a minister called a _priest_, such language became exceedingly liable to +misconception. + +[645:3] In proof of this see Cyprian, Epist. lvi. p. 200, and lxiii. +p. 231. In the former place Cyprian says--"Mindful of the Eucharist, +the hand which has received _the Lord's body_ may embrace the _Lord +himself_." + +[645:4] Heb. v. 4; Acts xx. 28, xxvi. 16. + +[646:1] Cyprian, Epist. xlvi. p. 136. + +[646:2] Epist. lxix. p. 262. See also Epist. lv. p. 177. "If any amount +of difference of opinion as to the truth or untruth of the teaching of a +geographical priesthood, will justify separation under another Christian +ministry, then it at once ceases to be true that there _can_ be but one +bishop, or one priest, over any given area in which such differences +exist; there then _may_ obviously be as many bishops, or as many +priests, as there may be different bodies of men differing from each +other's teaching in what they deem sufficiently essential points to +justify separation."--_Letter from the Duke of Argyll to the Bishop of +Oxford_, p. 8. + +[647:1] Epist. lxix. p. 264. + +[647:2] Acts x. 48. + +[648:1] Jerome, "Catalogue of Ecclesiastical Writers." + +[648:2] Some of those called heretics had many martyrs. Euseb. v. 16. + +[648:3] "De Unit. Ecc." Opera, p. 399. + +[648:4] "De Unit. Ecc." p. 401. + +[648:5] "De Unit. Ecc." p. 401. + +[649:1] Jeremiah xxiii. 21, 22. + +[649:2] Phil. i. 15, 18. See also Mark ix. 38, 39. + +[649:3] Cyprian himself makes this admission. Epist. lxxvi. p. 319. + +[649:4] Epist. lii. p. 156. + +[649:5] Epist. lxxvi. p. 319. + +[650:1] Rom. x. 13,17. + +[650:2] Tertullian did not hold the doctrine of her perpetual virginity. +See "De Monog." c. 8, and "De Carne Christi," c. 23. Neither did he +believe in her immaculate conception. See Kaye's "Tertullian," p. 338. + +[652:1] One of the most distinguished and sagacious of modern +missionaries has called attention to this fact. See Livingstone's +"Missionary Travels in South Africa," p. 107. + +[654:1] Maximian, in his famous edict of toleration, lays great stress +on this circumstance. "De Mortibus Persecutorum," c. 34. + +[654:2] Cornelius to Cyprian, Epist. xlvi. p. 136. + +[654:3] "De Unit. Eccles." p. 397. + +[654:4] Epist. lii. p. 156. + +[654:5] Matt. xvi. 18. + +[654:6] Cyprian, Epist. xl. pp. 120, 121. + +[656:1] 2 Cor. iii. 17. + +[656:2] Isa. xl. 4, 5. + +[656:3] Isa. lii. 8. + +[656:4] Zech. xiv. 9. + + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's The Ancient Church, by W.D. [William Dool] Killen + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE ANCIENT CHURCH *** + +***** This file should be named 16700.txt or 16700.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + https://www.gutenberg.org/1/6/7/0/16700/ + +Produced by PG Distributed Proofreaders + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, +set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to +copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to +protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project +Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you +charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you +do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the +rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose +such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and +research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do +practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is +subject to the trademark license, especially commercial +redistribution. + + + +*** START: FULL LICENSE *** + +THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE +PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK + +To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free +distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work +(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project +Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project +Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at +https://gutenberg.org/license). + + +Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic works + +1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to +and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property +(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all +the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy +all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. +If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the +terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or +entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. + +1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be +used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who +agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few +things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works +even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See +paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement +and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. See paragraph 1.E below. + +1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" +or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the +collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an +individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are +located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from +copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative +works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg +are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project +Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by +freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of +this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with +the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by +keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project +Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. + +1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern +what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in +a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check +the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement +before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or +creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project +Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning +the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United +States. + +1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: + +1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate +access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently +whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the +phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project +Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, +copied or distributed: + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + +1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived +from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is +posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied +and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees +or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work +with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the +work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 +through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the +Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or +1.E.9. + +1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted +with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution +must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional +terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked +to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the +permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. + +1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this +work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. + +1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this +electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without +prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with +active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project +Gutenberg-tm License. + +1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, +compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any +word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or +distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than +"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version +posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), +you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a +copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon +request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other +form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. + +1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, +performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works +unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. + +1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing +access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided +that + +- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from + the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method + you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is + owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he + has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the + Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments + must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you + prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax + returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and + sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the + address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to + the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." + +- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies + you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he + does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm + License. You must require such a user to return or + destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium + and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of + Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any + money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the + electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days + of receipt of the work. + +- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free + distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set +forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from +both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael +Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the +Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. + +1.F. + +1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable +effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread +public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm +collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain +"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or +corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual +property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a +computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by +your equipment. + +1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right +of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project +Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all +liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal +fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT +LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE +PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE +TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE +LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR +INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH +DAMAGE. + +1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a +defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can +receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a +written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you +received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with +your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with +the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a +refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity +providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to +receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy +is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further +opportunities to fix the problem. + +1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth +in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER +WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO +WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. + +1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied +warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. +If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the +law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be +interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by +the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any +provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. + +1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the +trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone +providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance +with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, +promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, +harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, +that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do +or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm +work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any +Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. + + +Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm + +Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of +electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers +including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists +because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from +people in all walks of life. + +Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the +assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's +goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will +remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure +and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. +To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation +and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 +and the Foundation web page at https://www.pglaf.org. + + +Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive +Foundation + +The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit +501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the +state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal +Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification +number is 64-6221541. Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at +https://pglaf.org/fundraising. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent +permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. + +The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. +Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered +throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at +809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email +business@pglaf.org. Email contact links and up to date contact +information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official +page at https://pglaf.org + +For additional contact information: + Dr. Gregory B. Newby + Chief Executive and Director + gbnewby@pglaf.org + + +Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation + +Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide +spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of +increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be +freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest +array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations +($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt +status with the IRS. + +The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating +charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United +States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a +considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up +with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations +where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To +SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any +particular state visit https://pglaf.org + +While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we +have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition +against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who +approach us with offers to donate. + +International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make +any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from +outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. + +Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation +methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other +ways including including checks, online payments and credit card +donations. To donate, please visit: https://pglaf.org/donate + + +Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. + +Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm +concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared +with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project +Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. + + +Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. +unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + https://www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. diff --git a/16700.zip b/16700.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..57fc9d0 --- /dev/null +++ b/16700.zip diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..858e72e --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #16700 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/16700) |