C

C H U RC H H I S T O R Y F RO M

N E RO TO C O N S T A NT I N E
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BY
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C . S . CL A R K E , M A . .

Rect o r o
f @ on oo ad S t A n dro w .

Jut o r of E very m an

: B ook ofSai n t:

A . M O W B R A Y CO
R . . LT D .

LO N O N
D 2 8 M a ga t S t t O f r re re e , x o rd Ci r c us , W . I

O X F O R D 9H i g h S t : re e t

M X L WA U K E E U S A
, Th M
. .h . e o re o u se P u b l i s hi n gC o .
 VI RO P RA ECL ARO

B ILNI G NO , DI LEC T I SS I M O

CARO L O GO RE S T P , . . .

G
REG I S FI D L M S U M M O P A STO R "
E IU

H
o c O U SC U LU M D
P E D I C AV I T

P H I L I U S C LA R E A M
PP K , . .

D I S C I P U LU S E T Q U O N A M D M
C U RA R U P AS T O RAL I U M

PA RT I C EI S
I ND I GNU S

AM I C I T I A E ET V E NERAT I O NI S

Q U ANT U L U M C U NQ U E T E STI M ON I U M .
 P RE F A C E

HE modest aim of this book i s to s e t forth

for the benet of the ge neral reade r facts
a l ready known to scholars concerning th e l ife of
t he C hur c h in the age O f persecution .

Th e words facts and l ife are used advised l y .

T he book i s written to i nterest the layman and ,

by t he l ayman I mean not t he unordained but the

non -specialist No w Engl i sh peop l e are not as a
.

rule much i nterested i n opinion s This is perhaps .

, ,

a pit y but i t is so they are as G od made them

,
.

They are not therefore interested i n theology

, , ,

especially if by theo l ogy is meant not t he bare ,

statements of the Creed but the e l aborate explana

,

tions o fsuch statements extracted from theo l ogians

under the pressure of the questionings and de n ials
o f the heretic But they are interested in the
.

C hurch as a l iving and working society and i t is ,

t h e history o f the C hurch under this aspect that

'

1 ha v e attempted to write After a ll the C hurch

.

has always been a way of l ife rather than a system

of thought I t i s a way of life it is true based
.
, ,

on certai n fundamenta l assumptions O f God and

man s re l ation to G od and i n conseque nce of

, , ,

man s re l ation to man but it is a l ways thought

trans l ated into action a way o f l ife t ha t is i n v o l v

, , ,

ing certain assumption s in thought but never a ,

vi P reface

mere school o f philosophy I ha v e therefore .

attempted to show what th e C hurch was like as a

living organization I ha v e tried to describe o n th e
.

,
cers their
o n e han d i t s life i ts organization its o f , ,

duties an d the method o f their appoin tmen t its ,

sacrame nts services its social services and welfare

, ,

work its discipli ne as well as the mai n points o f

, ,

its teaching both moral and doctrinal ; and o n

, ,

the other its relation to the h e athen world its

, ,

persecution its unpopulari ty the rivalry o fpopular

, ,

religions like M ithraism an d th e vain attempts ,

at counter propaganda by em perors and phi lo
sophers .

I nd after writing it with these obj ects in

view that the book seem s to be marked by three
special features .

.I A far more considerable use i s made o f th e

s o -called C hurch Orders those early di sci plinary
,

manuals wh ich D r Frere D o m Conolly and .

, ,

other scholars have done s o much to elucidate ,

than has been done by any existing C hurch history ,

so far as my k nowledge serve s .

.2 T he persecution s are al so described with

some particularity and detail I t i s i mpossible .

to understand the condition s u nder which me n

and wome n professed C hristianity o r th e temper ,

o f their h eathe n contemporarie s o r th e re action

,
o n the C hri stian character unless we understand
,

the ferocity o f the persecutions wh ich we can ,

on l y do by reading the rs t-hand acco unt o f

them o ,r the nearest we ca n get to rs t hand
-
,

W l t h a l l its horrors O n e doesn t write about

.
 P reface vi i

horrors for pleasure but because they are a

,

prominent part of t he history .

The number and length o f the quotations

3
. .

This m ay be considered good o r bad I t was .

adopted de l iberate l y as the obj ect is to give an

,

idea of C hurch life as it was and fo r this some ,

knowledge O f the original documents i s i n di s p e n

sable I t would have been possible to relegate
.

the quotations to notes but that expedient has ,

its drawbacks or they might have been published

i n a separate volume as was done by Professor
,

G watk i n . One friend advised this but added ,

with a ash of candour Of course no one wou l d ,

look at it .On the whole th e m ethod pursued
i s the on l y one likely to bring home to the average
reader what I w anted to bring home T he events .

are so far away the detai l s s o few that o n e cannot

, ,

a fford to lose the least to u ch that helps to lend a

sense o f reality and there i s no doubt t hat a
,

quotation from a contemporary writer does he l p

to do this T o be told once more that th e ear l y
.

C hristians loved on e another o r were kind to ,

widows and orphans o r cared fo r the sick can

, ,

hardly hold th e most alert attention I f one .

could truthfully write that the early Christian s

habitually beat their wives it would be di fferent .

A reference in a footnote would be enough A .

fact so new and startling would arrest attention .

But as it is while the general statement that

,

C hristian s were ki nd t o orphans may be very at

and stale it seem s not unreasonable that the
,

precise directions in the words actually used or ,

viii

at l east a trans l ation O f them may appea l with ,

a certain fres hness an d rea l ity .

T he labours of many scho l ars have l eft me in

their debt I must rst O f a l l acknow l edge th e
.

very great kindness of D r Darwe l l Stone Prin .

,

ci al of the Pusey H ouse a t Oxford who has

p ,

read the proo f-sheets and made many valuab l e

corrections and suggestion s As to p ub li shed .

works I have used the ante -Nicene translation

,

o f the Fathers though I ha v e been at some pain s

,

to compare the trans l ation s with t he origi na l s as ,

pub l ished i n the M igne edition and in most cases ,

have given my o w n Bishop Lightfoot s great .

work o n Tb e Ap o sto li c F at/to rs is a storehouse

o f l earning and has been i nvaluable I have
,
.
,

however u sed Professor K Lake s text in the

,
.

Loeb edition but am myself responsible fo r the

,

translations Th e late D r Bigg s works o n

. .

Ne op lato n i sm the C/z ri sti atz S cho o l of Alexan dri a

, ,

and th e Co u rt /9 5 Task un ae r tb e Ro m an E mp i re

have all been co nsulte d and never in vai n That ,

.

bri ll iant and sugge stive writer send s no on e away

e mpty The volume o f Essays on the E arly
.

Hi sto ry of tlz e Chu rch an d the M i n i stry origin ,

ally edited by th e late Dr Swete has been o f .

,

great help principally because i t i ntrod uced me

,

to that body o f i nteresti ng literature kn own as

the C hurch Orders F o r further enlightenmen t.

on them I am deeply i n debt to th e R e v W H . . .

Frere C R and D o m R H Conolly

,
. .
, . .
,

and to the translations of th e rst Church Or der

by th e Re v G H orner i n his S tatutes of the
. .
 P reface ix

Ap o stle s, and that o f the Syriac version of the

D i das cali a, by Miss Margaret G ibson The latest .

e dition o f Bishop G ore s T/z e C/z u ro /i an d the

M i n i stry, revised by Mr C H Turner , appeared . . .

after the chapter on the mini stry w as written but ,

not too late fo r me to benet by its learning and

i l lustration s F o r the chapter o n Mithraism I
.

am indebted to the monumenta l volumes o f

M Cumont I used Berwick s translation o f
. .

P lz i lo stratus s Ap o llo n i us of Ty an a before 1 dis

covered Professor S P hi ll i m o re s but I have

.

since made considerabl e use o f that scholar s

most learned and suggestive introduction Sir .

Wi l liam Ramsay s works especially T/z e Church

i n tlz e R o m an E mp i re have been of great service

,

so have the Texts an d S tudi es edited by th e Dean

o f We l ls . F o r th e rest I have re l ied mainly
on my own studies o f the F athers and other ,

contemporary documents and drawn my o w n ,

conclusions .

I shou l d like also to acknowledge t h e kindness

and att e nt i on of the Librarian of th e London
Library without which the book cou l d not have
,

been written Mr Gordo n Crosse has give n o n e

. .

more token o f an o ld and valu e d friendship by

reading the book i n proof F inal l y I s hou l d l ike .
,

to express my gratefu l thanks to Miss F lora H i ll

for h e r most valuab l e assistance i n preparing th e
volume fo r the press .

C P S C LA R K E . . . .

DO NHE A SD AN RE W
T . D ,

All Sai n ts D ay ,

1 99 1 .
 I N T R O DU CT I ON

T
H E C hristian religion has been the great
constructive element in th e formation o f
Western civi l ization I t i s tru e t hat R oman law
.

and Greek letters have had an en ormou s i nuence ,

but the e ffect of R oman law and Greek letters

would ha v e been very much diminished without
th e humanizing and preservative forces of the
Church . I f Christ had not been born l ife as we ,

know it to day would have been very di fferent

-

less civi l ized less humane altogether rougher

, ,

and mor e barbarous though possibly in some

,

ways more e i ci e n t at any rate di fferen t Since .

1 7 6 0 another force has c ome in to action T he .

discovery o f the uses to which steam might be

put and th e i nvention o f machinery have a l ready
produced a social and i ndustrial revolution and ,

seem not unlikely to produce a political re v o l u

tion as we ll This new force i n dustri ali sm to
.
, ,

give i t its ug l y but convenient l abel has reached

,

the East and i s domici l ed in I ndia and Japan

,
.

Without it the great European war cou l d not

have been fo u ght o n s o gigantic a sca l e for ,

armies are always limi ted by the power of nations

t o feed and munition them and it is only through
,

industria l ism that i t has been possib l e to feed and

equip mi ll ions at a ti me I n the eye s of t he
.

xi
xii I n tro du cti o n

world it se ems to d ay to be even m o re important

i n its e ffect o n civilization than religion which ,

does i ts work for th e mo st part beneath th e

surface in com parative silence and obscurity .

T he in uence O f re l igion m ust not however be , ,

measured by its apparen t e ffect No w as always .

, ,

unless it speaks through th e megaphone o f loud

and noisy advertisement i t receives little attention ,
.

I t may seem to have no more e ffect to day than it

-

had i n the reign o f M arcus Aurelius o r Philip

th e Arabian and i n R ussia i t i s persec u ted or
, ,

w as r e ce n tl y I
as i n th e days o f Diocletian Yet
, .

i n those days it was religion that h ad the last

word and so i t may be now B ut however we
,
.

may regard i ts presen t importance i t i s not u n ,

worthy o f the att e nt i on o f the inte l ligent person

with a proper scienti fic curiosity i n b e gi n n i n gs to
watch if o t the birth throes at least the i n fan cy
n ,
-
,

and growi ng pai ns o f the C hri stian C hurch wh ich

-
,

has had such a va st and preponderating in fluence

in th e pas t .

I t has b e e n obj ected that C hurch history should

not be separated from secular h istory and that ,

all history is o n e Thi s i s at once a tr u ism and .

T h A hb i h p e f Ca t b y
rc siv d th e f ll w i g
o o n er ur re ce e o o n

t l g am f m P l at
e e r M t p l i ta
ro f Od a D
o n, mb e ro o n o e ss , e ce e r 2 0,

1 918 :

I v l
fe r e n t y b e g Yo u r E m n e n c e to p ro te ct e rtho do x
i th O
i
Ru ss an h u rch C T h e Re o u t o n ary
. v l i
o e rn m e n t i s s u j e c t n g G v b i
i t to cru e t e s b y li th
e s de o f w h c h e p e rse cu t o n s o f e
i i th i th
C i i
hr st an s i n t he firs t t h re e c e n t u r e s p a e M an y arch sho p s, i l . bi
h u n dre ds o f p r e s t s , ave b ee n
i h
m arty re d an d sho t T he .

c h u rch e s are
p ro fan e d an d
p a g ed

i ll .
 I n tro du cti o n xiii
untrue H istory i s one but man s life is a big
.
,

theme and history i s forced to se l ect and dis

,

criminate and i t is convenient to write it i n parts

,
.

On e used to be told that the division between

ancient and modern history was articia l and
unreal for the same reason This also i s true ; .

and Sir Wa l ter Raleigh anticipating this verdict

, ,

wrote a Hi sto ry of tire Wo rld begi n ning with the ,

F l ood ; but h e has had few imitators Most .

o f u s hav e to cabin crib and c onn e ourse l ves

, ,

within a period and wi thin a subj ect One cannot .

have even an adequate gen era l know l edge o f the

who l e unless o n e is i ntimate with at l e ast some
of the parts C hurch hi story after a ll i s only
.
, ,

the history of one o f the biggest if n o t the ,

biggest sing l e factor i n universa l h istory and

, ,

no o n e who wishes to ha v e a grasp of h ow

m odern condition s c ame i nto bei ng can a fford
to neglect i t .

No w the history o f Christian religion at any rate ,

in the rst centuries after C hrist i s the history o f ,

the Church I t is true that some scholars hold

.

that Jesus did not intend to found a C hurch .

But such views can only be regarded as the n u

accountable vagaries o f scholarship I f Jesus did .

not found a society o r C hurch to carry o n H i s

work if He was mere l y a voice a message and a
, , ,

witness i t would seem t hat e i th e r the evangelists

,

woeful l y misunderstood H i m or very much o f

what H e did was besid e the point I t was in that .

case a misdirection O f energy to c on c e ntrate as

H e did on H i s discip l es i nstead of endeavouring
,
xiv I n tro du cti o n

to let His m essage reach as wid e a Ci rcle as p o s

sible T h e preacher or messenger requires a large
.

audience H e desires a platform whether i t be

.
,

a rostrum i n the marke t place a pu l pit or th e -

, ,

column s o f a daily paper by which h e can r e ach ,

as many m in ds as possib l e But th e founder o f .

a society i s i ndi fferent to n umbers Everything .

depends on starting on the right lines and with

th e right people Numbers can be left to the
.

future S O J esus was i ndi ffere nt to n umbers

. .

H e concentrated more and more o n H i s i m me

diate fo l low e rs M uch O f H i s teaching bears on
.

the future problem s that th e society wi l l h ave to

face The power to bind and loose give n to
.

S Pete r was th e regu l ar J ewi sh expression fo r

.

making the rules or bye -l aws o f the synagog u e

i n other words for legi s l ation ; the prob l e m o f
,

the u nworthy member and O f discipline was

touched on i n the parabl e of the eld with wheat
a nd tares growing side by side and i n the parable ,

o f the draw -net A u th ori ty to exercise e ffective

.

discipline was conferred whe n power was given

to the Church to forgive and re tain sins He .

ordained also a formal sacrament o f admis sion to

H i s society and o n e o f union for thos e wh o were
already m embers U n l ess we tear fragments o u t
.

of the text to suit preconceived theories like the ,

Gnostics wh o were ever mending the Gospels
, ,

i t seem s mere l y perverse to accept C hri st and

deny th e C hurch as H i s c reat i on and bequ e st to
the world .

We see the C hristia n society rst as a t i ny

 I n tro du cti o n xv
group o f men and women i n an obscure corner
o f the R oman Empire waiting for the i r Master
,

to reappear and a l most fev e rish l y eager to pro

,

claim H i m as the Saviour O f mankind before that

eve nt should happen and the world i n which they
l ived come to its appointed end That hope .

gradua ll y receded into the dim future but the ,

members of H i s C hurch were non e the l ess fired

with the desire to proc l aim their good news
throughout the world They did not arrive at
.

thi s stage i n a moment I t i s probable that the

.

Apostles remained twelve years in Jerusalem

after Pentecost that is u ntil A D 4 1 and S Paul s
,
. .
, .

first missionary j ourney did not take p l ace be fore

A D
. .
4 6 But
. by the C ouncil O f Jerusalem ,

A D 4 8 when the reports O f S Peter and S Pau l

. .
,
. .

were received and an agreement arrived at abo u t

the treatment o f Genti l e prose l ytes the genera l ,

po l icy o f the Church as a wor l d -wide and not a

nationa l movement was settled At first th e most .

formidab l e opponents were n ot the heathe n but ,

thos e of the i r o w n household the Jews The ,

.

Roman authorities appear rath e r as th e protectors

than persecutors o f the Christian s Ga l lio drove .

the J ews o u t of his court and wou l d n o t l i sten to

the i r charges again st S Paul and S Paul himself
.
,
.

appealed to Caesar whe n accused by his own

nation As far as possible they held aloof from
.

what they regarded as the internal squabbles o f a

fanatical and disagreeable nation But th e Jews .

b e came implacab l e adversaries when they once

real ized th e content o f th e C hristian m essage ,
xvi I n tro ducti o n

name l y that the M essia h had com e already i n

,

the person o f the cruci fied Jesus and that sa l va ,

tion was to be through the C ross and no longer

by the law As soon however as the R o man
.
, ,

govern ment discovered the existence and vita l ity

o f thi s new sect i t began to persecute w i th f i re
and sword w i th torture and all th e terrors
, ,

o f wild beasts The persecutio n sometimes

.
,

more sometimes less e nergetically carri ed o n

, ,

lasted fo r one hundred and forty years I t i s .

easy to exaggerate i ts ferocity Pliny an anxiou s .

,

and over conscientious O ffi cial went to govern

-
,

Bithynia witho ut having informed him se l f

as to how C hri stian s were to b e treated if
brought before him fo r j udgement I t had n o t .

occurred to hi m that their treatment migh t

be an important detail i n the administration
o f his province M oreover wh e n anonym ous
.

accusations were forbidden persecution lost its

chief terrors Th e rOIe o f a n accu s er i s not
.

popular Few people l i ke to com e forward to

.

denounce harmless and in o ffen sive neigh bours ,

and when C hristians grew i n numbers it i s p o s

sible that reprisal s were feared Still th e fa c t .

remain s that C hristian s were outlaws They .

wer e never safe T he writings o f T ertul l ian

.

show plai nly that torture and d eath w e r e possible

contingencies that n o C hristian could safely leave
o u t o f hi s calculations .

Th e persecution s o f Decius and Valerian were

altogether more serious a ffairs They were .

determined attempts engineered from head

 I n tro ducti o n xvii

quarters striking rst O f al l at t he heads of the

,

new re l igion to destroy i t altog e ther They

,
.

fai l ed to be rene wed on a more thorough scale

,

by D iocletian forty years later and with the same ,

result This was the most serious e ffort at

.

suppression t he C hurch e ve r had to face and ,

showed by its failure that no attempt in the

future was l ikely t o be mor e successful and ,

antici pated i n e ffect the words O f a l ater perse

c u to r
the apostate Ju l ian when h e exclaimed

Gal i l e e an thou hast conquered
,
.

Besides the o ffi cial power O f the State th e ,

C hurch had other fo e s to c on t e nd with I t was .

long unpopu l ar as being unsocia l since Chris

, ,

tians were c ut o ff from popular amusements

wh i c h centred i n the theatre and from most ,

social festivities as be i ng i nvolved i n pagan

observances I t was also attacked by the philo
.

sophers who were the self-appointed preachers

,

of their time a function i n som e measure dis

,

charged by j ournalists to -d ay .

U nfortunate l y very little has survived except ,

the great attack o f Celsus preserved for u s by

Origen The e ffect o f these attacks must have
.

been conned to the few wheth e r heathen o r ,

C hristian ; they could have had no more e ffect

on the mu l titude than a leading article i n Tb e
Ti m e s o r the Sp e ctato r would to day
- The more .

ambitious attempt of P h i l o s tratu s to supplan t

C hrist by Apo l lonius of Tyana must ha v e be e n
eve n more ine ffective .

F ar more formidab l e than t h e attacks o f

xviii I n tro du cti o n

philosophers were th e attraction s o f popul ar

religions Besides conventional paganism there
.
,

was the appeal of I sis to the sen suous and the

senti menta l and that of M ithras to those o f
,

a more dour and sombre type T he attraction .

o f both was real enough F o r on e who deliber

.

ate l y rej ected the Gospel through th e arguments

o f F ronto o r C e l su s t her e mu st have been fty
,

who preferred th e worship o f I sis or th e cult o f

M ithras M ithraism alon e was a far more
.

serious danger than al l th e philosophers with

whom the Apologists argue I t i s th erefore .
, ,

rath er puzzling to nd hardly more than a few

i ncidental not ic e s o f M ithraism i n the works o f
the F athers Attacks o n an e ffete paganism
.

abou nd Mockery of idol worshi p i s common

.
-

form But th e l iving and triumphant religion

.

of M ithraism i s left a l one Probably th e reason

.

was that most o f th e apologies were p l eas fo r

toleration addressed to the persecuting Govern
m ent whether emperor or proco n su l ; and th e
,

persecution was based o n the Chri stian atheism
o r rej ectio n of the o i ci al gods C hri stian s were
.

n o t persecuted f o r refusing t o adore M ithra b u t ,

for refusing to sacrice to the em peror and the

god s o f ancient R ome Other apologie s were
.

addressed to philosophers and the ph ilosophers s o

, ,

far as they were anyth ing were pagan s M ithra

,
.

i sm like Christianity was a popular religion ;

, ,

i t appealed to the common man and woman .

I f it attracted a philosopher or ruler i t did so ,

by V irtue of i ts appea l to th e common human i t y

 I n tro du cti o n x x i

i n th e m not to the i r e x tra portion o f brain or

,

cu l tivation I t wou l d have been waste of t i me for

.

Origen t o address e l aborate phi l osophica l treatises

to M ithraists ; they wou l d ne i ther have been
r e ad nor understood The peop l e for that work
.

were the plain m e n wh o talked to the ignorant ,

and rath e r avoid e d phi l osophers than otherwise .

Th e rea l work of conversion was done then as it

always is un l ess as in t he Saracen invasions it is
e ffected by forceb y those who ta l ked t o l ittle
, ,

groups of people at street corners or t o labouring ,

me n at their work or even lowere d themselv e s

,

so far as to carry the good news to wom e n and

chi l dren The C hurch as a l iving society did
.
, ,

not troub l e itse l f specia ll y about philosophers .

I t was more concerned w i th the conventional

and carna l person outside its gates who was
indi fferent and contemptuous to re l igion or i f , ,

inc l ined to take religion serious l y was i n danger ,

of bei ng attracted by I sis or M ithra .

That i s where the real gh t must always go

on The phi l osophers n o w as then have th e i r
.
, ,

work to do They are the s ta ffs of the contend

.

ing armies but the ghting o f wh i c h we hear

,

and read so litt l e i s not done by them but by ,

those who are i n t h e line the men and women

,

i n the home and the streets .

The C hurch had other troubles I t had spiritua l .

an d i nte ll ectual dangers as we ll as those threatened

by the secular arm The great foe o f this sort was
.

Gnosticism that know l edge fa l se l y s o ca ll ed of
,
-

which S Paul wrote Gnosticism seems to us

. .
xx I n tro ducti o n

wild enough considered e i ther as religion or phi l o

,

sophy but i t had an attraction for a certain type

,

o f the more i ntellectual and won over some who

,

were o r m i ght have been Ch ristian s Gnostics

, ,
.

may b e roughly divided i n to two kinds namely , ,

th e pagan Gnostics w ho borrowed as m uch of the

,

C hristian theology as suited them and attacked ,

from outside and the C hristian Gnostics li ke

, ,

Marcion who tried to twist C hristianity i nto con

,

formity w i th Gn ostic ideas T hey probably stood .

i n m uch th e same relation to the C hurch as

Theosophi sts and Spiritualists and the votaries o f
C hristian Science do to -day Some were i n the.

C hurch but most were outside an d nearly all were ,

rather superior and inclined to be contemptuous

and patronizing T he real dange r w as not that
.

any considerab l e n umber of C hristians or pagan s ,

i ncli ned to accept C hristianity should be led away ,

i nto Gnosticism but lest th e authoriti es o f the

,

C h urch should be deceived or bullied by the i n te l

lectual pretensions O f the Gnostics and alter th e
creed to suit the i r fancies .

T he danger was averted and i n s pite of very , ,

considerable intellectual pressure th e mai n d oc ,

t r i n e s o f the C hurch as imbedded i n its baptismal

,

creed were unaltered and remain unaltered to

, ,

th i s day .E xp l an ati o n s o f the doctri nes have

changed but n ot the doctrines themselves Th at
,
.

God created the world t hat Jesu s was God and

also Man that He was born of the Virgin
Mary was crucied rose again from the dead
, , ,

ascended i nto heaven ; that H e will co m e to

 I n tro du cti o n xxi
j udge ; that the H o l y G host is also G od All .

these doctri nes were he l d from the rst They .

ar e found i n the Ne w Testament in th e R oman ,

baptisma l creed and i n the ear l iest Apo l ogy that

,

has surv i ved that of Aristides The e xp l ana

,
.

tion s came later I f Jesus w as God how and

.
,

in what way could H e be a l so M an P Many

exp l anations were evoked by G nostic and Arian
speculations before o n e was accepted 8 0 w i th .

t he doctrine o f the Trinity F rom the begin ning

.

the Church believed that the F ather was G od ,

a nd the Son G od an d the H oly G host G od yet

, ,

not three Gods but one G od ; but to u s e a word
somewha t overworked t o -day i t was long before
the Church found a satis factory formu l a in wh i c h
these apparent contradictions cou l d be reconciled .

Neverth e less the C h u rc h tri umphed I n spite .

o f hti n s within and the fronta l atta c k o f the

g g
R oman Empire the most perfect l y organized
,

instrumen t O f go v ernment on the grand scale

that the world has ever seen i t survived and ,

conquered and the head of the Empire as m u ch

, ,

perhaps o u t o f i nterest as conviction b e came th e ,

o ffi cial patron of the new religion so l ong despised ,

and persecuted The extent and numbers of the

.

Church when the last persecution broke out has

be e n the obj ect of a care ful and exhaustive
examination by Professor H arnack i n his Exp an si o n
o
f C hr i s ti an i
, ty for wh i c h all students owe him
a deep debt o f gratitude I t seems safe to say .

that th e C hurch exte nded as far as the Empire ,

and sometimes further I t was weakest in Ger .

xxii I n tro du cti o n

many wher e we only know of one bishop t he

, ,

Bishop of C o l ogne I t was strongest i n Asia .

M inor where perhaps near l y ha l f the popu l ation

,

was C hristian There the C h ur ch was not on l y

.

strong in the Greek speaking ci tie s o n the coast

-

and the great trade routes b ut was rmly estab ,

l i s he d i n the i nterior F i rm i l i an w as Bishop o f

.

C aesarea i n C appadocia in the very heart o f what ,

i s now A siatic Turkey and exercised a w i de

I
,

in fluence By the midd l e of th e th i rd century

.

Di ony sius of Alexandria was able to write t ha t 2

M esopotamia tog e th e r with the provi nces O f

,

Syria Bithynia Arabia and Pontus was rej oicing

, , , ,

i n the brotherly love the n prevailing I n the .

West bi shops from every province i n Spain were

present a t the Co uncil of Elvira A D 3 0 5 whil e ,
. .
,

th e North sent three bishops to represent the

B r i t i sh C h urch i n t he Synod o f Ar l es A D 3 1 4 ,
. . .

Beyo nd the frontiers O f the Empire the kingdom

o f Arme nia h ad bee n converted by Gregory the

Ill um inator an d was t he rst nation to adopt

,

C hristian ity as its o f cial r e ligion I n the South .

the Ethio pian version O f the H i p p o ly t e an C hurch

Order points to the early spread o f C hristianity
i n that region I n the East Orige n tells u s that
.

S Thomas preached i n I nd i a and S Andrew

. .

in Scythia which at least shows that there were

,

C hristians i n those countri es i n hi s ti me .

S uch a marvellous growth i n the face o f per

s e cu t i o n has n o parallel i n history Gibbon .

has attempted to account for i t in hi s fam ous

1
A g t 1 91 9
u us ,
E b i H E vii 5
.
9
u se u s, . . . .
 In tro du cti o n xxiii
i fteenth
f chapter and has enum e rated ve causes
, ,

n ame l y
. I The zeal O f the Jews .

.2 Th e doctrine of the immorta l ity o f the sou l

and the promised rewards and punishments of
heaven and he ll .

.
3 Miraculous powers real o r pretended
,
.

.
4 The virtues of the rst C hristians .

Their activity in the government o f the

.
5
C hurch .

But i t is not very easy to see what the z e a l of

th e Jews had to do w i th it I t i s true that the .

rst C hristians were J ews but there was soon a ,

preponderating maj ori ty of Gentile Chri stians in

t he C hurch and it is more natural to attr i bute
,

th e i r zeal to their religion than to Jewish i n fe c

t i on or her e d i ty As to the doctrine o f i m m o r
.

tality o f the sou l it i s true that philosophers

,

sco ffed at the resurrection of the body and ,

th e i r views on the immortality o f the sou l were

timid an d l ukewarm compared with the condent
a f rmation s o f the Church B u t Mithrai sm a l so
.

taught the resurrection of the body and the

immorta l ity o f the soul and Mithraism was ,

a far more serious enemy to the Church than

phi l osophy ever was As to the third cause
.
,

miraculous powers no doubt play no sma l l part

, ,

i n accrediting the rst preachers of the Gospel ,

but we hear very little o f them i n th e second and

third centuries when the C hurch was advancing
,

by l eaps an d bou nds The question o f organiza

.

tion was i mportant ; but organization by itself c an

xxiv I n tro du cti o n

accomplish little Four therefore o u t o f th e

.
, ,

v e causes amount to little and we mu st seek ,

further for the real grou nd and root of s o rapid

and overwhelming a success .

I t will be wel l to begi n by reminding o u r

selve s that m e n and women change th ei r dress ,

their ways o f speech their weapon s o f war thei r

, ,

mean s o f tran sport from age to age but n o t their ,

e ssential humanity That i s why th e best litera

.

tur e never grows o l d Take the picture o f

.

Ahab coveting th e vi neyard of Naboth and ,

com i ng ho me heavy and di spleased and refus

i ng to eat while Jezebel a far stronger character
, , ,

regarded him w i th mi ngled pity an d contempt .

How

I f he wants it why doe sn t h e take it ?
,

ever and w i th contemptuous goo d nature

she underta k es to arrange th e m atter fo r hi m and ,

does s o w i th an e ffi ciency and ruthless ness wh ich

would do credit to a twentieth -ce ntur heroi ne
I t i s a wonder that a celebrated mo d
.

ern play
wright has n o t built a play roun d this exponent
o f his favourite theme What co uld there be .

m ore modern
Or take th e poignant farewell o f Andromache
and Hector in th e sixth book o f th e I li ad .

There is rst th e appeal to Hector not to go

o ut to m ee t Achilles but to stay thy folk
,

beside the g-tree wh e r e best th e city may be

,

scaled . H e i s n o t so to speak urge d not to
, ,

j oi n up but to j oi n something comparatively

,

safe H ector s reply would be impossible fo r

.

a tongue -tied self-conscious E nglishman but not

, ,
 I n tro ducti o n xxv
for a F renchman and an Englishman wou l d feel
,

the s ame even if he cou l d not express his fee l ings .

Sure l y I tak e thought fo r a ll these things my ,

wife ; but I have shame o f the Troj ans and the

Troj an women if l ike a coward I shrin k away
,

from battl e . Moreover mine own sou l for ,

biddeth m e seeing I have l earnt ever to be

,

valiant and ght in the forefront o f the Troj ans .

S O spake glorious H ector and stre tched out his ,

arm to h i s b o y But th e child shrunk crying

.

to th e bosom of h i s nurse dismayed at his ,

father s aspect and i n dread at th e bronze and

horse -hair crest that he beheld nodding erce l y

from the helmet s top
Then h i s clear father
.

laughed aloud and h i s l ady moth e r ; forthwith

glorious H ector took the helmet from hi s head
and laid it all gleaming o n the earth then he
kissed his clear so n an d dandled him i n hi s arms
,

and spake i n prayer to Z eus and all the gods .

I n hi s prayer h e asks that m e n may s ay o f hi s

son F ar greater i s h e than h i s father
, .
I

The express ion like the arms i s di fferent but

, , ,

the feeling has not changed in three thousand

years .

The erce unreasoning enthusiasm o f the m o b

,

i n the great towns of th e ancient world for their

favourite charioteers their passionate interest i n
,

the victory of the wh i t e o r the red has its paral l el ,

i n the crowds at a modern footba l l match or the ,

even greater masse s who read the resu l ts i n the

evening pape rs A m o de rn boxing match i s tame
.
-

I l i ad vi T a l at i
. b y W L af r ns o n . e .

d
xxvi I n tro du cti o n

compared with the b l oody spectac l e o f th e Games ,

but it i s doubtful if these combats would be less

popular if th e y should b e come more dangerous
to tho se w h o tak e part i n th em I n spite of .

civi l ization an d educatio n man retain s his strong

a ffections hi s erce desires passions and i n sti ncts
, , , ,

wh ich may be control l ed by p ublic opi nion by ,

l aw o r by religion but are not eliminated T h e

, ,
.

highl y educated may change at least o n the sur

,

face but h uman nature as a whole remains m u ch

,

the same S o that we shall not go far wrong i f

.

we assu me that the raw material w i th which

religion had to do i n th e seco nd century was not
so di fferent from that with which it deals i n th e
twentieth as we sometimes like to think T h e
,
.

conditions o f C hristian success have not altered .

I f th e C hurch i s to wi n its way to day it can

-

only do s o by reason of its i nherent attractiveness ,

because i t can o ffer me n an d women something

that corre sponds to a vital need i n thei r nature .

The C hurch had to draw men almo st i n spite o f

themselves What was there i n i t to attract
.

.1 The l ife of heli eb e rs This is i n e ffect

.

Gibbon s fourth cause Th e Apolo i s t s appeal

.

con dently to the superior morality o C hristian s ,

to their moral purity th eir ino ffen sivenes s th eir

, ,

spirit of broth erhoo d and mutual service They .

relieved the widow and t he orphan th e y nursed ,

the sick ransomed the captive and buried th e

, ,

dead i n a manner n either pagan ism n o r any other

religion could rival The mass o f man ki n d then

.
,

as n o w l ed hard and su ffering lives and craved

, ,
 I n trodu cti o n xxvii
as they do stil l for sympathy and kindn e ss T he .

C hurch gave it as no o t her re l igion did and i t , ,

m ust be admitte d as i t has never done since I t

,
.

was i n fact part of i ts expression work
, ,
We .

s e e i t i n the c l aim s of the Apo l ogi sts in the sneers ,

of Lucian i n the provisions of the C hur c h Orders

, ,

and i n the i nstances that h av e come down of the

practical care for widows orpha n s the sick the , , ,

prisoners and th e dead The present writer

,
.

re members being presen t at a me e ting i n the

East En d o f London of a number of working
men who were members o f the Ch urch of Eng
land Men s Soci e ty when the subj ect of the dis

,

cu s s i o n was What bri ngs men to C hurch ?

No t a man present had been a professing C hurch

man from his youth up A ll had come i n from .

outside some from other religious bodies but

, ,

most from nothing at a ll Every man present .

gave his own personal experience Some said they .

had been drawn by the kind O f religion taught ,

others by the kind o f worship practised No o n e .

said he had come because C hur c h peop l e led better

lives than other fo l k and no one hinted that h e
,

had j oined because the C hur c h believed i n a life

after the grave Most gave as the i r motive some
.

act o f kindness that they o r their fami l ies had

received I t might be a visit during sickness
.
,

o r a f riendly welcome in church or at a social

gathering o r attention to a sick child and i n one
, ,

case the only reason given was Your people

seemed so ki nd to o n e anoth e r There w as no
.

question of bribery or com i ng to c hurch because

xxviii I n tro du cti o n

it paid These were n o t rice -C hristians w ho
.

c ame fo r what they could get The acts O f ki nd .

ness were i n most cases mere acts o f courtesy a nd

brotherhood that had n o expression in currency .

This seem s to give a clue to the attractiveness o f

C hri stianity i n the rst centuries O f o u r era The .

h eart o f man craved fo r a religion o f sympathy

and brotherly love and h e found i t i n th e
,

C h urch

.

2
. Th e do c tr i n e especially the doctrine o f a
G o d o f love that G o d so loved the world that
H e became Man and died on the C ross Thi s .

was anathema to the philosopher but appea l ed ,

to the weak the fal len th e poor i n spirit the

, , ,

broke n i n heart and i n fact to al l t he wayfarers

,

who had to trudge on life s dusty h i gh road ,

though perhaps n o t to the few w ho by reason ,

o f birth or fortunes o r superior abilities were able ,

to make the j ourn ey i n greater comfort .

Why d i d He do it was th e exasperated
cry o f C elsus B ut the bereaved the s u fferers
.
, ,

the hu ngry and the wretched crave fo r that

,

divine sympathy O f w hi ch they can only be

~

assured by belief i n a su ffering God .

3
. Th e di s ci li n e
p Men
. an d wom en who d o

n o t seriously feel the n e ed o f religion on l y as k

that whate v er religion c o n ve nt i on brings i n th eir

way should m ake little demand on them T he .

serious seeker after God desires n o t o n l to

rece ive but also to give I t i s do u b tfu l i I sis

mad e a s u fficient moral demand o n the general

body o f her votaries to attract t h e mor e earnest .
 I n tro du cti o n

It i s certain that pagani sm di d not The Church .

exacted a high mora l standard and though no ,

doubt when persecution s l ackened that standard

co u ld not always be preserved and the crop of ,

tares growing up w i th the wh e at was perilous l y

large t here seems l ittle doubt tha t th ere was
,

a rea l attempt t o e xc l ude insincere person s from

j oining the Church to remove those who fel l
,

back i nto heinous s i n and to spare no e ffort

,

to restore to penitence and com munion those

who had s o fa ll en .

The seeker after Go d in East London to day -

l ooks to see if those who profess to hav e found

H i m show by their l ives the greatness and rea l ity
of their di scovery H e asks fo r much and i s
.

ready to give much There i s n o reason to

.

suppose that such a man would ha v e been very

di fferent then and there i s certainly no comparison
,

between the demands made by I sis or M i thra o r

p aganism and those made by the fol l owers of
Jesus C hrist H e was o ffered th e pear l o f great
.

price but he had to pay the price and he va l ued

,

it accordingly .

No doubt there were other reason s as well .

The organ ization o f the C hurch wa s admirable .

Each local C hurch under i ts bishop preserved

, ,

enough autonomy to give i t the spirit of energy

'

and initiative There was as yet no papa l ism

. .

The idea o f Caesarism had not been transferred

from the Empire to the papacy But regular and .

frequent commu nication w i th distan t C h urches ,

the gather i ngs of bishops the need for the loca l

,
xxx I n tro du cti o n

C hurches to remai n i n communion with the rest

o f th e C atholic C hurch , and th e v a l u e attached

to the Apostolic Scriptures a n d r u l e o f faith were

su f cie nt to preserve the unity of th e whole NO
.

organization however would have h e l ped without

, ,

the antecedent causes of growth .

Finally th e believer to day as then will believe

,
-
, ,

that though Apo l los may s o w and Paul may

water i t is G o d that g iv e t h the increase an d
, ,

that all t he e fforts o f the ear l y C hurch would

have b ee n barren but for the life -giving power
O f the H oly S pirit.
 C O NT E N T S
P AG E

P REF A C E V

I N T R O U C TI ON
D xi

I . T HE P RE A R A TI ON P T HE WO R L D F O R CH R I S T
o r

ND T HE BE I NN I N S O F T H E CHU R C H
A G G

R l i gi
e o n

II . P ER S E C U TIO N F R O M N M A R C U S AURE L I U S n o To

T raj an , A D.
98 -1 1 7

.

H adrai n , A. D . 1 1 7 1 3 8
An to n i Pi
n us u s, A D 1 3 8 1 6 1

re u s, 1 6 1
. .

M arc u s Au l i
1 80

III . G NO STI C S , M o NT A NI sT s
T he n o st c sG i
T h e M o n t an st s i
IV . SO M E CH R I STI AN W R IT ER S FR O M C L E M EN T To

T ER T U LL I AN
T e rt ll i a u n

V . T H CHUR C H ND T H E WO R L D
E A

Fam i l y Li fe
B i u s n e ss

Am u se m e n t s

Ci t i z h i p en s

M i l i ta y S vi r er ce

S l av ry e

C l i o n c us o n

T h W ay f Li g ht
e o

T h Way f D a ke o r n e ss

T H CHU R C H U N DER F O RE I N
E G E M P E RO R s
Sl a k i g f P
c en n ti o e rse c u o n

C mm d o D 1 8 0 -1
o
93u s, A . .

S v e D 1
93
e ru s , A 5 . . 20

C a a all a D 1 1 2 1 7
r c ,
A . . 2

V II . T H C A T E C HE TI CAL S H
E c o o L o r A L E A N DR I A
X

C l m t f Al a d i a
e en o ex n r

O ig r en

X X X ]
xxxii Co n te n ts

P A GE

V III . P A AN A TT E M T S A T RE CON T RU C TI ON
G P S 1 5 2

Ap o ll i f Ty a a
o n us o n I 60

Ne o p l ato n i sm I 6
9
IX . R I VAL REL I G I o Ns I 73
T he W o rsh p i o f Iis s I 74
i i
M thra sm I 77
i X . T H E P S C TI ON
ER E U S o r DE C I U S AND V A L E R I AN
XI . T H E RO M A N CHU R C H
XI I . L I FE I N T H E CHU R C H
B ap t i m s

C m at i
o n r o n

T h E ha i t
e uc r s

T h e Ag ap e
F a ti g
s n

T he S i k
c

M arri age 2
4 2

O rga i z at i o f C hari ty
n n o

Di i p l i
sc ne

XI I I . T H O FF I C E R S O F T H E CHUR C H
E A ND T H E I R DU T I F S
Th Bi h p e s o

Th P e by t rre s e s

T h e De aco n
i
T h e M n o r O i c i al s
T he Su bd
e aco n

Aco l y t e s
T h e W do w i
T h e D e aco n e ss
V i rgi ns

X IV M I N IST ER I AL AU T H O R IT ND ITS Y A T R AN S M IS S I ON
6 0
.

XV . T H T RU C E
E D , 3 3
0A . . 2

D i y i o f Al xa d i a
o n s us e n r

P a l f Sam at a
u o o s

G g ry T ha m at g
re o u u r us

G r g y t h I ll m i at r
e o r e u n o 3 3 1

M an e s an d M an i che e i sm 3 5
1

XVI . T HE FI N AL ST RU G G L E A D 3 0 3 3 1 3 ,
. .
317
L IST o r CH I EF M O D E R N AU T H O R ITI E S CON S U LT E D 335
CH R ON O LO G I CAL T A B L E 3 37
 C H U RC H H I ST O R Y F ROM
NE R O T O C O NS T A NT I NE

TH E - P R EPA R ATI O N O F T H E WO RL D
FOR C H R IST A ND THE BEG I NNI NGS
O F T H E CH U R C H

AI NT Paul says that when the fu l ln ess of

time was come C hrist was born When .

the world was ready There has never been a

.

t i me when the world was more ready for the

com i ng of a Saviour and the founding of a
religion intended to embrace all the nations o f
the earth .

F o r a l most the only t i me i n the world s history

ther e was peace The civilized world and a

.
,

considerable fringe that was not civi l ized owned ,

the R oman power Such wars as there were

.

were a ffairs of outposts . I nternationalism was

a fact There were no hard and fast barriers
.

between country and country All were

.

parts o f the R oman Empire There does not .

seem to have bee n any colour b ar I t was

.

B
 2 Church Hi sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

probably easier fo r S Paul to have go ne o n his .

j ourn eys and at last get a hearing i n R ome whe n

h e did than it would b e to -day o r e v er has been
,

S i nce The mean s o f com mu nicati on whether

.
,

by trave l o r by letter were far better under ,

th e R oman Empire than they were up to the

middle o f the nineteenth century that I S I n a ,

region compri si ng what we mean to -day o r did ,

m ean till lately by I ta l y France Spain Austria

, , , , ,

Western Germany Switzerland E ng l and t he , , ,

Balkan s Turkey i n E urope and i n Asia Egypt

, , ,

and North Africa Over this c o untry there was

.

a net work of roads and s e a ways c on nect i ng

- -

the chief town s an d made reasonably safe fo r

,

travel l ers O n them ther e was a constant tra ffi c

.

Of im perial O i ci al s merchants tour i sts actors , , , ,

musicians athletes i tine rant professors o f rhe t or i c

, ,

or healing and teachers o f religion The scen e

,
.

m ust ha v e been somet hing like that presented

by the great Tru nk R oad i n I nd i a as pictured

in Ki m D u ring Gale n s stay i n R ome ( A D

1 6 2
. . .

1 6 6 ) h e was consulted f o r ophthalmia by

letters from Asia Ga u l Spain and Thrace , , ,

.

Every year h e received parcels o f med i c i nes

from fri ends i n Spain Syria Pa l estine Egypt , , , ,

C appadocia Pontus Macedon ia Gaul and

, , , ,

Mauretan ia 1
.

Day after day says Aristides merchan t

, ,

shi ps and merchants sail both seas the M e di te r

ran e an
and the Atlantic and to B ritai n ; n o t
o nly O ffi cials and troops go but coun tless private ,

F i dl a d
r e R m a L ife a d M a
n e r, o i 3 3 n n n n e rs , . 0 .
 The P rep arati o n of the Wo rld fo r Chri st 3

peo
p l e .
I conned No r was
t o the tra i c

Empire Merchants ha v e l earned the S hortest

.

way and commerce has brought I nd i a near to

us . They got as far east as C hina and as
2
,

far south as Z anzibar 3 .

RE LI G I O N
I t i s sometimes thought that foun d C hristianity
its opportun ity in th e break-u p of paganism ; that '

men had ceased t o be l ieve i n the O l d gods and ,

were r e ady to embrace a n ew re l igion This does .

not seem to ha v e been the case The R oman .

Empire was a very big con cern an d inc l uded a ,

vast number O fw ide ly varying ra c es an even more

-
,

misce l laneous co l l ection than t he British Empire

does to d ay G eneral isations are there fore t o be
.

made w i th caution What m i ht be true of North .

Africa might not be true 0 Britain Sti l l the .

evidence o n the whol e seems to show that the mass

of peop l e everywhere c l ung to their O l d gods .

Unbe l ief there was O f course e special l y am ong ,

the e ducated as inscriptions and l iterature S how

, .

The e l der P l iny w as a convinced materialist .

Sou l s and bodies n o more have fee l ings and

consciousness after death than they had before
birth But h uman v an i ty i m ag i n e s a prolonga
.

tion of existence i nto the fu ture and i nvents a ,

l ife beyond t he grave i t worships departed

spirits and mak e s them gods wh i c h have ceased ,
"
to be even men 4 .

F i dl a d R m a L if a d M a
I
r e n i 3 6
e r, o n e n n n ers , . 0 .

Ibid 3 7
2
Ib id 3 9
.
, I b i d iii 8
0 .
3 .
,
0 .
4 .
,
. 2 2.
4 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

Many inscription s though on l y a small p ro ,

portion o f the who l e have been foun d i n which ,

l ife after death i s dismissed as a delusion .

After ha v i ng vindicated absurdities I l i e h ere

i n a sleep fro m wh i ch there is n o awaking .

T here i s n o boat i n Hades no C haron n o , ,

Aeacus who hold s the keys n o Cerberus All o f , .

u s whom d e ath has carried away are rotten bones

"
and ashes n oth i ng e l se
, .
I

The followers o f Epicurus for th e most part

s hared thes e O pinion s but there i s nothing to ,

show that they were more common th e n than

no w . The elder Pliny may have bee n a sc e pt i c ,

but his n ephew built a temple and o f ciated as a

priest .

Lucian was by b i rth a Syrian ; by education ,

tastes and i nterests a Greek w ho l ived d uring

, ,

th e l ast three quarters o f th e second century

- .

H e was a teacher o f rh e tor i c and a public lec

turer by the ti me he was forty he retired having ,

amassed at l east a c o mpetence and then lived at ,

Athen s u nt i l near th e e nd o f h i s life H e w as .

himself a sce ptic H e sco ffe d at th e tales o f

.

Greek mythology and at the gods and his sar ,

cas m s at the expense of C hri stiani ty have com e

do w n i n the S tory O f Peregrinus B u t h is dia .

l o g u e s do not give the impression o f a widespread

unbelief R ather th e reverse I n the Lover o f
. .

Falsehood h e satirises the credul ity o fthe learned .

T y chi ade s a sceptic has gone to the hou se o f

, ,

E u crate s a man of s i x ty with a full descending
,

F i dl a d R m a Li} a d M a
r e n e r, o i ii 8 3 8 4
n ? n n n e rs , . 2 ,
2 .
 The P rep arati o n o f the Wo rld fo r Chri st 5

beard wh o has l ong rubbed shou l ders with

,

phi l osophy and there meets Cl e o d e m u s the
,

Ari stote l ian and D e i n o m achu s the Stoic and I o n

, ,

the Platonist The ta l k turns o n magical cures

.

and ghosts and Ty chi ade s is amused by the

,

a m azing tales w i th which they cap one another s
stories . T o me at l east i t O ften occurs t o b l ush
for the poets when t hey describe the muti l ation
of Saturn the fetters o f Prometheus the revolt
, ,

of the giants and all the tragic S cene s i n H ades

,

or again wh e n they te ll h o w l ove turned Z eus

, ,

i nto a swan or ho w this o r that woman was

,

changed i nto a b i rd o r a bear T hen there are .

t he beings l ike Pegasus or the Ch imaera o r th e , ,

Gorgon or the Cyclops n ot to mention others o f

, ,

t h e same kind Yet i f any one nds these

.

t h i ngs ridiculous or d i s c red i ts their truth if h e

, ,

exposes them why such a man is thought at ,

on c e impious and sense l ess for throwing suspicion

on facts so we ll known .
I

T h e Go lde n Ass of Apuleiu s also wr i tt e n i n ,

th e second century o f our era g ive s the same ,

impression The h e ro Luciu s i s transformed

.

i nto an ass and in that guise meets w i th many

,

adventures unti l h e i s restored to human shape

by the intervention of the goddess I sis H e i s .

then i n i t i ated i n to the myster i es of her cult and ,

we leave him her devout adherent I n th i s book .

we nd that m agic and witchcraft m eet wi th

almost universa l be l ief I f men are not changed .

into asses or murdered by magic people thin k

, ,

T a b y H W i ll i am r ns . . s .
6 Church H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

they are Thi s i s a warn ing given by a lady to

.

Luci us about his hostess : She i s a n otorious
sorceress and is believed to be a mi stress o f
,

every ki nd o f incantation H e r r ej ected l overs .

s he either turns i n to stones cattl e and ani mals , ,

o f every ki nd or u tter l y annihilates them

,
1

God s there are o f al l sorts and ki nds and belief ,

i n th em i s general There were gods goddesses

.
, ,

daemon s gen i i b e n e ce n t and m ischievous
, ,

s piri ts o f every sort touch i ng th e l ife o f man at

,

every po i nt i n hi s home i n hi s t ra v e l s i n his , ,

S hop hi s h unting h i s farming hi s h e a l th hi s

, , , ,

sickness and i n fact hi s whole life

,
Every .

nation had i ts o w n co l lection s o to speak but , ,

each was ready t o en rich i ts e l f by borrow i ng

from a neighbour Syncretism as this system .
,

o f borrowing and mixing d ivini ties is ca l led ,

was the prevailing tendency I t was the churlish .

refusal of Ch ri stians to worship mo re than o n e

God which made the m so unpopular D espis .

i ng and tramp li ng under foot th e maj esty of

heaven instead o f the tru e religion she a ffected
,

to entertai n some fantastic and sacrilegious

notion o f a God wh om she declared to be th e
,

only o n e was th e sarcastic com ment of Lucius
,
2

o n a woman reputed to be a C hristian .

Lucian and Ap uleius are a h undred years l ater

tha n S Paul and n o doubt opinion e specia ll y
.
, ,

among the educated uctuates an d become s m ore ,

or les s sceptical B ut there c an hardly ha v e been

.

any very n otable revival o f popular re l i gi on i n

Ap l i
G l
u e u s,d A ii 7 o I b
en i d i I 7O
. ss , . 2 .
2
.
,
x . .
 The P rep arati o n f
o the Wo rld fo r Chri st 7

the h u ndred years after S Pau l Th e pagan . .

was not therefore disinc l ined to l isten to the

, ,

preachi n g of a new re l igion H e did not obj e ct .

to C hristianity on re l igious grounds at rs t on l y

later on when he s aw t ha t it waged war o n a l l
,

oth e r re l igions he came to regard it as a k i nd of

,

atheism .

But besides pagan s there wer e Jews and the ,

Jews were very di fferent They were intens e ly .

patriotic and re l igious to the point of fanaticism

,
.

Besid e s t he J e ws in Jerusa l em there wer e Jews

scattered o v er the wor l d I n the Acts we read .

of Jews out of every nation under heave n
h e aring the Apostles speak with tongues on the
D ay of Pentecost Parthians Medes E l am it e s , , ,

dw e llers in Mesopotamia Cappadocia Pontus , , ,

Asia Phrygia Pamphylia Egypt Cyrene R om e

, , , , , ,

Crete and Arabia

,
Outside the R oman Empire
.

the strongest Jewish e l e men t was in the region

we now ca l l M esopotamia where Baby l onia ,

became the centre of Jewish l i fe and wher e ,

I

the i r numbers were reckoned by mi ll ions .

Within the R oman Empire J e ws were m ost

numerous in A s i a M i nor Phoenicia and Syria , , .

Phi l o says that there were a mi l lion i n Egypt o r ,

an eighth of the who l e population T h e syna .

gogue at Al exandria w as so l arge that an o i ci al

had to wa v e a ag as a signa l for th e congrega
t i on to make the i r response s " Th e y were so 2

numerous i n R ome that Claudius ordered their

F i dl a d R m a L if a d M a
r e n iii 7 4
e r, o n e n n n ers, . 1 .

2
I b id 7 6 .
,
1 .
8 Chu rch H i s to ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

expu l sion but w i thout apparen tly being able to

,

carry i t out e ffectua l ly They were organ ized

there i n seve n synagogues ; they a l so had their
o w n synagogue at J erusalem .

Th e J ews wer e t he n eve n to a greater degree

tha n they are to -d ay an i nternational force .

Greater because as we have seen i nternationali sm

, ,

within the Empire was i n so me measure a fact

and because nationalism as we understand it was , ,

a much weaker s e n t i me nt The J ew i n Greece .

or I ta l y was less o f a Greek o r I talian and more

o f a J ew than he would b e t o day At th e .

same time local patriotis m is an i neradicable

human i nsti nct and the Jew was n o doubt
,

attached li ke S Paul to h i s native c i ty Pil

,
.
,
.

grimages to J erusalem as long as the T emple

s urvived ke pt the outlyi ng J ews i n touch w i th

the ce n tre R eturni ng pilgrims must have

.

brough t the news o f the C ruci xio n an d the

alleged Resurrection o f One Who clai med to be
th e M es siah t o every ce ntre o f population in the
known world .

Th e world then withi n and without the Empire

, ,

was con nected by live wires an d ready as never , ,

before o r s i nc e fo r the speedy promul gatio n o f a

,

new teac hi ng The very l i st of nati on s o n th e

.

Day o f Pe ntecost given i n the Acts br i ngs hom e

, ,

to u s i nto ho w many d i stant parts o f th e world

th e ne ws o f the new sect must have pe netrated .

No w the Jew believed that he belonged to a

,

chose n race that h e alo ne possessed the law and

,

was saved by keepi ng i t and that the M essiah ,

 The P rep arati o n o
f the Wo rld fo r Chri s t 9

was to come and restore his nation to i ts rightful

p l ace an d prostrate a ll other nations under his
,

feet The coming o f the Messiah was the hope

.

of I srael The more the pious and patriotic Jew

.

w as humi l iated by the oppression o f the con

q u e ro r the more
,
did he l ook forward to thi s
event w i th a passionate expectation I t was to .

be the great climax of the long history o f h i s

race.

Th e speculation s as to the nature o f the Me s

siah and the manner o f H i s coming were many
and various But among t hem all i t had never
.

occurred to any o n e that H e might come and not

be recognized At the beginning therefore the
.
, ,

outstanding poi nt of di fference between th e Jews

who were followers of Jesus and the rest was
that the discip l es o f Jesus believed that H e was
the Messiah whi l e the bulk o f the nat i on so far
, ,

from recognizing H i m had procured H i s cruci ,

x i o n bu t that God had vindicated H i s c l aims

,

by H i s resurrection .

At rst the C hristians were hated by the

,

rulers who had compassed the death of Jesus ,

but n o t by the mob I t was not unti l 8 Pau l . .

began to l ay stress o n salvation by the Cross

instead of the law and the conseque nt admission
,

o f the Genti l es on equa l ter m s and the loss by ,

the Jew o f h is position o f privilege that the ,

hatr e d became general Moreover the Church .

,

claimed to b e the real I srae l the legitimate ,

heirs of Abraham and of the promises We .

are the circumcision said S Paul and th i s ,
.
,

C
10 Chu rch H i sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co nstan ti n e

unchurch i ng o f the Jews roused their bitt e rest

host i l i ty Everywhere the Jew was the enemy
. .

At Antioch i n Pisidia the J ews stirred up the
devout an d hon ourable women and th e chi e f me n ,

of the c i ty and raised persecu tion agai nst Pau l

,

and Barnabas and expelled the m ou t o f the i r

,

co as t s . I n Iconi um
I the unbe l ievi n g Jews
stirred up the Gentiles and m ade their m i n d s ,

evil a ffected agai nst the brethren At L ystra .
2
,

when th e peop l e could hard l y be restrai ned from

sacrici ng to Paul and Barnabas there cam e ,

th i th e r certain Jews from Antioch and I conium ,

w ho persuaded the people and having stoned , ,

Paul dr e w hi m out of the ci ty supposing h e had

, ,

bee n dead 3 I n Thessalonica the Jews imi tate
.

t he loyalty o f the Jews at J erusalem who said ,

We ha v e no king but Caesar when th e y took ,

Jason an d certain brethre n t o th e ru l ers o f the

city and accused them o f a c t i ng co ntrary to the
decrees o f Caes ar saying that there i s another ,

K ing o n e Jesus 4 And so i t co nti nued
,
. The .

Jews of themselves could not do very much bu t ,

they could and d i d make trouble w i th the Gentile

mob and the Genti l e magistrates .

The new I srae l then consisted as we have , , ,

seen o f th ose w ho accepted Jes us as the

,

M essiah But t his di d not necessarily make

.

them into a visible society a chur c h a body w i th , ,

me mbers Dr I ng e and others have maintained

. .

that the creation o f such a society was an after

A t iii 5 I b id i
c s x . 0 .
2
.
,
x v . 2 .

I bid i 1 9 3 I b i d vi i 7
.
, x v . .
4 .
, x . .
 The P rep arati o n of the Wo rld fo r Chri st 1 1

thought and no part o f the origina l p l an

, .

There i s n o evidence tha t the hi storic Christ

e ver intended to found a new in s titutiona l
re l igion H e was a prophet and l eft no schoo l
.
,

o r church But the evidence i s a ll the other
.
1

way Jesus c l aimed to be the Messiah and a

.

King and to ha v e founded a kingdom

,
He .

took enormous pains to train discip l es who

should be the l eaders i n th i s kingdom I n H i s .

commi ssion to them after the R esurrection H e

gives them the po wer of binding and loosing a ,

pow e r which cou l d only be i nterpreted by those

fami l iar w i th the usages of t h e synagogue as
app l ying to a denite and visib l e so ci ety .

Th e distinctive be l ief of this society di fferen ,

ti at i n g i t from th e rest o f the Jewish natio n was , ,

as we ha v e seen its acc e ptance of Jesus as the ,

Messiah its recognition that H i s C rucixion was

,

part of G od s eternal purpose and t ha t the R esur

rection was the proof o f God s acceptance and

approval of H i s work and c l aims and that the ,

H oly Spirit was sen t by Jesus to H i s Church t o

strength e n cons e crat e and guide Admi ssion
, ,
.

into the soc i e t y was by baptism and m ember ,

sh i p i n i t was reali z ed ceremonia l ly by the

Eucharist origina ll y celebrated after a common
,

meal . At rst the members were known

i ndi fferent l y as the e l ect the brotherhood the , ,

believers the disciples the sa i nts bu t th e C hurch

e ccle si abecame the most conve n ient ter m
, , ,

I t was used to describe the whol e body of believers

D I g i Q a t ly Q i a
r . n O t
e
9n 8 u r er u nt . c .
,
1 1 .
1 2 Chu rch H i sto ry from Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

and also the bre thren belonging to a particular

place as the C hurch at R om e o r th e C hurch at
,

Ph i l ippi I ts mai n fu nction was to w i tn ess to its

.

R i sen Lord I t had n o consciousnes s at rst o f

.

possessing a superior code of moral s or o f being ,

called upo n to impress its o w n i dea o f righteous

nes s on the world That was i ncide n tal and
.

forced upon it by the contrast between t h e life o f

th e world and the life that was i n C hrist W hat .

the Apostle s an d thei r rst disciple s ha d to tell

the world and i n the rst place th e J
,
e ws was , ,

The Jesus whom you crucie d God has ra i sed

up
T hey witnes sed at rst i n Jeru salem And .

then when persecution began they were scattered

, ,

abroad as far as Phoenicia Cyprus and Antioch , ,

and wherever they went they pr e ache d th e Word .

A t Antioch a local C h urch the rst we h ear o f ,

outside Jerusalem soon came i nto be i ng T h e

,
.

Mother Church a t Jerusalem was carefu l to keep

i n touch w i th i t Wh e n the rumo u r comes that
.

a number o f Gree k proselyte s had t u rn e d to the

Lord Barnabas was sent forth by th e C hurch
,

which was at Jerusa l em The term s o f h i s

.

com mission are n o t stated but presumably to ,

i nvestigate and e i ther b l e ss o r ban T o Antioch .

Barnabas brough t Saul and from Antioch th e ,

two accompanied by Mark wen t forth o n th ei r

, ,

missionary o u rn e y th e rst expedition denitely

'

organized o r the purpose of witnessi ng to th e

Mes siah fo r which the spr i ng o f A D 4 6 may
,
. .

be given as a likely date .

 The P rep arati o n f
o the Wo rld fo r Chri st I3
The known history of the C hur c h i s dur i ng th e
n e x t ten years t he history of S Paul s great m i s .

s i o n ar
y campaigns . H e s e t h i mse l f to estab l ish

a strategic position i n as many R o m an provinc e s

as poss i b l e and succee d ed i n p l anti n g a stro n g
,

local Ch urch in Ga l atia ( D erbe Lystra and , ,

Iconium ) i n Asia ( Ephesus) in Macedonia and

, , ,

Achaia .

Beside s this we know that th e C hurch was

estab l ished at R ome Th e actual date o f i ts estab
.

l i s h m e n t i s unknow n But i t i s not unreasonab l e

.

to suppose that S Peter went to R o m e o n h is

escape from prison A D 4 2 44 H e m ust have
.

. . .

gone somewhere an d nowh e re cou l d he have

fou n d a bett e r hiding-p l ace than i n R ome M ore .

o v er we know that there were a number o f Roman

Jews at Jer u sa l em as they were s u i ci e n tly
,

numerous to ha v e their own sy n agogu e the ,

synagogue of th e Libertines and converts from ,

1

among them could have given him commendatory

l etters to their friends i n R ome Neither S Peter . .

or the other Apost l es are lik e l y to have be e n

b l ind to S O great an opportunity I f S O h i s .

visit would n o t b e i nconsistant with t h e very

ancient tradition that h e presided over the C hurch
in Rome as its rst Bishop for a period o f som e
years before h i s martyrdo m Thi s d oes not mean .

o f course that h i s residen ce was continuous o r

his supervision uninterm ittent nor does it com ,

mit us to t he support of Vatican c l aims made

later But whoe v er rst preached i n R ome by
.
,

A t vi 9 c s . .
1 4 Church Hi s to ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

the t i me S Paul s Epistle to the R omans was

.

written about th e year 5 4 we may assume that

, ,

by th e n th e C hurch th e re was fairly strong .

Th eir faith we are told i s spoken o f throughout

, ,

the whole wor l d and he had often meant to vi s i t

,

them but had not had the opportunity We .

hear noth ing o f th e Ch urch at Alexandria but ,

co nsidering the num ber o f Greek -speaking Jews

wh o ocked to Jerusalem fo r th e great feasts
there i s no reason to doubt the statemen t o f
Eusebius wheth e r or no S M ark was the
,
.

founder that i n h i s l ifetim e the C hurch was

,

e stablished there .

T h e Church spread through o i ci al and u n o i ci al

m issionaries The Apostles like Paul an d Bar
.
,

nabas and th e e v ange l i sts li ke Ph ilip the Deacon

, , ,

w e n t with the express mis sion o f preachi ng C hrist ,

though no t all may ha v e b e en so ag re s s iv e a s

S Paul i n i ssu i ng h i s challenge rst 0 all i n the
.

synagogue itself B ut be s i des these o f cial and

.

recognized e v ang e l i sts no do ubt every C hristian

,

was a m issionary I n great ce n tres o f populatio n

.

like R ome and Alexandria C hr i st i an s were there

before the A postle cam e to organize and e stab l i sh
rather than to found .
 II

P E R SE C UTI O NF R O M NE R O TO
MA R CU S AU R ELI US

NT I L A D . the State ha d no o i ci al
. 64
know l edge o f the C hur c h Juda i sm was a .

re li i o l i ci ta that i s a re l igion wh ich was to l erated

g , ,

by the State and C hr i s ti an s were regarded as

,

a mere sect of J ews Of the existence of the .

C hristian C hur c h as a non Jewi sh so c i e t y the

-

State had no know l e dge I n the A cts there are .

two cas e s o f th e C h urch coming into co l lision

with pagans but i n each a pr iv ate person n o t
, ,

t h e Stat e is aggrieved the motiv e i n both cases

, ,

being threatened l oss of m oney There w as .

the s l ave gir l at Philippi when her masters
-
,

saw that the hO p e of their gains was gone and

D emetrius the S i l versmith at Ephesus red the
, ,

mob with the cry This our craft i s i n danger
,

to b e set at nought But u n o i ci ally the
.

C hr i st i an must ha ve foun d himse l f at issue

w i th h i s pagan ne i ghbours at every turn H e .

could not go o u t to din ner or buy in the market , ,

or attend a wedd i ng or take a wife or marry , ,

his son or h i s daughter or give o r receive ,

hospita l ity w i thout comi ng i nto col lision with

,

some heathen c u stom or observance S Paul s . .

I S
1 6 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

advice on marriage by itse l f wou l d be e noug h to

rouse intense bitterness agai nst those who took i t .

His counsel that i s of c e l i bacy as an idea l and

, , ,

h is advice agai nst the marriage o f a C hristian

with a heathe n I n the apocryphal Acts of P au l
.

an d The cla w hich Sir W R amsay attributes

, .

to the ear l y part o f the seco nd c en tury this ,

appears plainly Thecla attracted by the preach

.
,

i ng of S Paul breaks o ff her engage ment w i th

.
,

Thamyris H e questioning as to Paul s teach

.
,

i ng i s told that he deprives yo ung men o f
,

the i r wives and virgins of their husbands by
i nc ulcati ng celibacy Th amyris th e n resolves to .

ge t rid o f Paul an d collects a large m o b and ,

carrie s him o ff to the governor and all the ,

multitude cried ou t Away with th i s i mposter ,

,

for he has perverted th e mind s o f o u r wives an d ,

all the peo ple hearke n unto We are

re minded o f the cry of the Japanese m ob when
8 Francis Xavier and the Jesuit missionaries rst
.

preached the Gospel t he re I T hese th i ngs would .

n o t all happ en to o n e man i n o n e p l ac e bu t th e y ,

were happen ing to di fferent men wh erever C hris

t i an s had a foothold i n any town o f the E mpire .

B ut fo r the m ost part the R oman o fficials appear

as the protectors not the persecutors o f the , ,

C hurc h during the greater part o f the Ne w

T estament period Th e antagonism betwee n .

pagan and C hr i st i an ide al s was so great that

p ersecution was i nevitable H owever th e rst .
,

Th
g t h
ere m w h t l l
o i
e t i w i k d t h
enav m o e us s c e o e o re

w i f C l i dg Fa i Xai

th a n o ne e Li]"q
. o er e, . r nc s v er .
 P e rse cu ti o n F ro m Ne ro to M arcu s Au reli u s 1 7

persecution was due to a cc i denta l circum stances ,

name l y the need Ne ro found for a scapegoat

, ,

and the genera l unpopu l arity of Christian s fo r

reason s a l ready stated .

The re o f R ome occurred A D 6 4 Nero . . .

,

whether j ust l y o r not was suspected o f being the

,

author o f the re According to Tacitus he

.

screened him se l f by putting th e b l ame on the

Christian s The infamy of that horrible trans
.

action still adhered to him I n order if possible .

, ,

to remove t he i mputat i on h e determined to

transfer the gui l t to others F o r th i s purpose he .

punished with exquisite torture a race o f men

detested for their evi l pra c ti c es by a vu l gar ,

appe ll ation common l y known as C hristians The .

name was der i v ed from C hr i st W ho i n th e reign ,

of Tiberius s u e re d under Pontius Pilate the

,

procurator o f J udaea By that e v ent the se c t

.

of wh ic h H e was the founder received a b l ow

which for a time checked the growth o f a danger
ous superstition (ex i ti ali s sup e rsti ti o ) ; but i t
revived soon after an d spread w i th recruited
vigour not only i n Judaea the soi l that gave it
, ,

b i rth but eve n i n the C i ty o f R ome the common

, ,

s i nk i n t o wh i c h everything evil and abominab l e

ows like a torrent from a l l quarters o f the
world Nero proceeded w i th h i s usua l artice
. .

H e found a set o f p ro i g ate and abandoned

wretches w ho were induced to confess them selves
guilty and on the evidence of su c h men a
,

number of C hristians were convicted not s o ,

mu c h o f having set t he city o n re as o f hatred

D
1 8 Church Hi sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

o fthe wh ole human race Some w e re covered .

w i th the sk i ns o f wi l d beasts an d left t o be

devoured by dogs ; oth e rs were nailed to th e
cross ; n umbers were burnt alive ; and many ,

covered w i th i nammab l e matter were l igh ted ,

up when the day dec l ined to serve as torches

d uring the n i ght At l ength th e cruelty o f these.

proceedings lled every br e ast w i th compassion .

The manners o f the Christians were pernicious .

T heir cr i mes called fo r punishme n t Bu t it .

was e vi d en t that they fe l l not fo r th e p u b l i c

good but to glut th e rage an d cruelty o f an
,

i ndividual I
.

T here appear t o be tw o stages in th e p e rs e cu

tion F i rst C hr i st i an s are examined by torture
.
, ,

and some confess t o i ncendi arism and reveal th e

n ames o f oth er C hristians Secondly C hri stians .
,

are pu nished for t he crim e o f being C hri stians

an d the hatred O f th e h uman race that th i s crime
im plied A great n umber o f people were co n
.

v i ct e d n o t s o m uch o n a charge o f i ncendiarism

, ,

as on th at o f hatred to the h uman race that ,

is presumably fo r b ei ng C hri stian s No law o r

,
.

e d i ct w as necessary fo r t heir pun i shment Th ey .

would have come under the head o f sacrilegious

person s disturbers o f the peace an d practisers o f
,

magical arts and their pun ishmen t would have

,

bee n a matter o f po l i c e admi nistrati on .

2

T ac , An n x v 44
. . . .

F o r t he e w t h at t he se co n d s tage w as n o t re ache d u n t l
vi i
2

the re gn o f V e sp as an , se e Ram say , The hurch i n the Ro m an

i i C
Empi re , p 2 4 3 . .
 P e rse cu ti o n F ro m Ne ro to M arcus Au reli us I
9

C hristians evident l y not persecuted for the

are
Name but only for acts of i ll ega l ity dur i ng the
,

t i me covered by the Epistles o f S Jame s and .

S Pau l w i th the possible exception o f 2 Timothy

.
,
.

I n I 3 Peter and in the Apocalypse they are n o

.

less c l earl y punished fo r the Name .

1

Among the victims of Nero s persecution w e r e

S Paul and p oss i b l y 8 Peter Caius of R o m e

.
,
. .
,

a th i rd c entury writer i s quoted by E us e b i us as

-
,

having written
I can S how you the trophies o f
the Apostles F o r i f you wi ll go to the Vatican
.

or to the O s ti an Way you wi l l nd the tro h i e s ,

o f those who ha v e l a i d the foundation 0 th i s

church . The tradition i s that t hey perished
2

on the same day tho u g h t he re is a dii cu l ty I n

,

placing the date o f S Peter s First Epistle early .

'

enough to a l low for this 8 Peter s martyrdo m . .

may have taken p l a c e A D 6 8 S Paul s being . .

,
.

xed A D 6 7 . D ionysius o f Corinth says that

. .

they su ffered about the same time which ,

wou ld cover an interval of two o r three years

but not longer According to a very ear l y
.

tradition they su ffered on the same day though

not i n the sam e year Bishop Lightfoot has .

shown that th i s tradition m ay have arisen from

the fact o f th e i r bodies having been tran sferred
o n the same day from the c e metery i n th e
Appian Way to a temporary re sting place i n the
-

catacombs of S Sebastian p e nd i ng the erection

.
,

of permanent shr i ne s for S Peter a t the Vatican ,

.
,

S P t iv 1 5 1 6 ; R v i 9 i 7
1 . e . .
, e . .
, x . .

E b i H 8 ii 5
9
u se u s, . . . 2 .
20 Chu rch H i sto ry from Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

and fo r S Pau l on the O s ti an Way

. Th is .

tran sference took p l ace 2 9J un e A D 2 5 8 ,

. . .

Jerusa l em w as taken by Ti tus A D 7 0 after ,

. .
,

a siege o f appal ling e rce n e s s and obst i nacy and ,

i ts i nhabi tants were pretty n e ar l y exterm inated .

I t i s u nl ikely that Titus or Vespasian was favour

ably disposed to C hristian s after th i s as they m ust ,

ha v e regarded the m as having a close connectio n

w i th the Je ws Sir William R am say quote s
.

S ulpici us Severus the biograp her o f S M artin a

, .
,

writer o f t he fourth century as attributing to ,

Titus the advice at a C ounci l o f War to destroy

th e T e mple ,
in order that th e religi on o f the
J ews and the C hristian s might be more co m
p l e te l
y exterminated fo r th e religion s though ,

oppose d to each other had the same origi n T he

,
.

C hristians had ari se n from am ong th e Jew s ; and

when the root was torn up the stem wou l d e as il y

be destroyed The im portance o f Sulpicius as
.

a writer i s d u e to h i s ha vi ng used Tacitu s freely ,

and here h e may be quoting fro m that wr i ter s

l ost Hi stories .

I n any c ase there i s good ground fo r th i n k i ng

that the persecutio n begun by Nero did n o t cease
either before o r w i th his death though it w as ,

ce rtai nly relaxed Tacitus i n d e ed te ll s u s that

.
, ,

the p e rse c ut i on aro used gen eral compassion S o .

we may assume t hat the persecution wen t o n

s pasmodically and t fu l ly but never ceasi ng ,

altogether u ntil the second great persec ution

,

under D omitian when i t broke out w i th renewed

,

fury There i s no reason to set aside th e unani

.
 P e rse cu ti o n F ro m Ne ro to M arcus Au re li us 2 1

mous tradition that there w as such a p e rsecution

i n th i s reign I t is supported by the Apocal ypse
i f we may be a ll owed to tak e A D 95 as the
.

. .

approximate da t e of that book which i s p l ainly

wr it ten in t he whit e heat o f persecution by one
who cou l d l ook ba c k o n a considerab l e period o f
i t and who saw no hope in reconciliation w i th
,

the Empire but on l y in its destruction

,
It .

breathes the v ery spiri t of the persecuted I t .

i s written by one who had been present in the

courts when Christians were tried and in the ,

p l ace o f pun ish ment where th e y were tortured

and executed I n th i s reign too the worsh i p
.
, ,

of the emperor became specia ll y prominent .

D o mitian seems to have taken i t very seriously ,

and to have de l ighted i n the tit l e D o m i n us ct

fDe us . H i s p e rs ec ut i on is marked by some
names o f note According to Dion Cassius .
,
x

F l avius Clemen s consu l A D 95 and hi s wife ,

. .
,

D omiti ll a niece o f the emperor were tried o n

, ,

a charg e o f sacri l ege an d atheism The word .

Christian i s not mentioned T hey were sa i d .

to hav e adopted Je w i sh customs Clemens was .

executed and Domitilla banished Many other s .

were put to death o r punished o n the same ,

charge among them Aci l ius Glabrio w ho had

, ,

been cons u l A D 91 Cl emens and Domitil l a

. . .

were a l most certainly Christians and D omitilla ,

2

was reverenced as a martyr Acilius Glabrio .

was probably a C hr i st i a n a l so and was o n e of ,

I
H i st Ro m
. .
, xv ii . I 4 .

2
Ram say , C . in p . 26 1 .
22 Church H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

many R oman
citizen s who perished as C hristian s ,

A D
. .
95 According to . Dion C lemens and ,

Acilius Glabrio were charged w i th sacrilege o r

atheism but according to Suetonius w i th treason
,
.

The explanation may be that the re l igious charg e

aroused D o m i ti an s s u sp i c i ons and h e suspected

them o f plotti n g aga i n st hi s life H is moti ves .

were mo st li ke l y political A C hristian w ho .

refused to worsh ip the emperor was a traitor

and i ncurred punish men t as s u ch .

Domitian was a ssassi nated A D 96 and was . .

,

succeeded by Ne rv a und e r whom there was a lull

,

i n the persecutio n D ion s tates that Nerva

.

release d those who were waiti ng their tr i a l fo r

s acri l e e He also allowed I
the bani shed to
g .

return .

T R AJA N A D 98 - 1 1 7 ,
. . .

Ne rva s short reign cam e t o a n e nd A D 98

. . .

T raj an w ho succeeded reigned until A D I 1 7

, ,
. . .

T he famou s letter of P l iny about the C hr i st i an s

belongs to th i s r e i gn Toge ther wi th Traj an s .

reply it throws a ood o f light o n the relations

,

b e twe e n th e C hurch and the civil power .

Pli ny was the R oman procon sul i n Bithynia ,

A D . I 1 2 and there came acro ss C hristian s fo r the

.
,

rst tim e at any rate in an o ffi cial capacity H e

'

.
,

was puzzled as to h ow they ought to b e treated .

I have never bee n prese nt at the resolutions

take n concern ing the C hri stians he exp l ai ned , ,

there fore I know not fo r what cau se s o r ho w

H i t R m l vii i I s . o ,
x . .
 P e rs e cu ti o n F ro m Ne ro to M arcus Au re li us 23

far t hey may be obj ects of punishment or to ,

wha t degre e our comp l aints may be carried on

against them . Must th e y be punished for
the Name a l though otherwise innocen t ? Or is
,

the Name itse l f s o agi t i o u s as to be puni sh

able
Pliny was a distinguished lawyer and public
man H e had serve d in the Army as a m ili tary
.

tribune i n Syria ; h e had been quae stor tribune , ,

and praetor under D omitian and cons u l under

,

Traj an Yet i t i s possib l e fo r h i m to allege

.

ignorance as to the authorized t reatme n t of the

C hristians I t may be assumed t hat the resolu
.

tions at the tak i ng of wh i c h he had not been

present referred to som e new orders made by
Traj an But the letter s hows that persecution
.

at t hat d ate was a very minor matter i n the

eye of the State I n Rome the C hr i st i ans had
.

seemed s o unimportant that P l iny had n o t

though t i t worth while to i nform h i mse l f as
to the r i ght way o f dealing w i th them before he
went out to B ithynia to take up h i s governor
S hip I t was plain l y a surpr i se t o him to nd
.

how many ther e w e r e and that the hea then

,

temples were empty of worshippers i n con

sequence H i s procedure as given i n l ett e rs
.
,

to Traj an was as fo l lows :

,

I hav e asked them if they were C hristians ,

and to those who ha v e avowed the professio n

I hav e put the same question a second and
a third tim e and h ave enforced i t by t hreats of
,

punishment When they have persevered I

.
24 Chu rch H i sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

ha v e ordered them to execution F o r I did .

not doubt that whatever the i r confession m ight

be their audacio us behaviour and i mmovable
,

obstinacy required punishment Som e who .

were i nfected w i th th e same ki nd o f madnes s ,

but were R oman citize n s have bee n reserved

,

by me to be s e nt to R ome .

The procedure i s plain Those charged with

.

bei ng C hristian s were questioned and if obdurate , , ,

were put to d e ath R oman citizen s were sent to

.

R ome . B ut matters did not stop th ere .

A n information without a name w as put
i nto my hands containing a list o f many per
son s w ho deny that they are o r ever were , ,

C hristian s Others also accused by an

.
,

i nformer adm itted that they were C hristians

, ,

o r rather h a d bee n C hristians but had e n t i re l y

,

renounced the error ; some three years som e ,

more some eve n above twenty All these

,
.

worshipped yo ur i mage and the i mages o f the

god s and th e y even vented i mprecations
,

aga i nst C hrist ; they a frmed that the sum

o f their fault consisted i n assembling upon
a stated day before i t was light to sing alter
n ate l among th e mselves hym n s to C h r i st as
y
to G o d ; bi nding the mselves by oath n ot to
be guilty o f any wickedness not to steal o r to
ro b ; not to com mit adultery nor to break
t he i r faith when plighted ; nor to deny the
deposits in their hands when cal l ed u pon to
restore them .

These cere mo n ies perform ed t hey us u a ll y ,

 P e rs ecu ti o n F ro m Nero to M arcus Au rel i us 25

departed and came together again to take

a repast the meat o f which was i n noc e nt and
,

eaten promiscuously ; b u t they had desisted

from th i s custom since my edict wherein by ,

your commands I had prohibited all pub l ic

,

assemb l ies .

From these circumstances I thought i t
necessary to t ry to gain the truth even by ,

torture from two slave girls who were called

,
-

deaconesses But I cou l d discover on l y an

.

obst i nate kind of superstition carried to great

excess .

H e goes on
To m e an a ffair of this k i nd seems worthy
o f your consideration from th e multitude
i nvolved in danger F o r many persons o f all .

ag e s o f all degrees o f both sexes are a l ready

, , ,

and will be constant l y brought into d anger by

these acc u sat i on s No r i s this superstitiou s
.

contagion conned only to the cities ; it

spreads itself through the villages and the
coun try A s yet I th i n k it may be stopped
.
,

and corrected I t i s very certai n that t he

.

temples wh i ch were a l most deserted n o w begin

t o ll again ; and the sacred rites wh i ch have
been a long time neglected are agai n per
formed The victims wh i ch hitherto had
.

few purchasers are sold everywhere From .

hence we may easi l y infer also that numbers

o f people m i ght be rec l aimed if there was a

proper allowance mad e for re p e n tan ce .
I

L tt ofP li y 97 e e rs n , x . .
26 Chu rch H i s to ry ro m Ne ro Co n stan ti n e
f to

C ertain i nfe rence s may legiti mately be drawn .

There i s no specic law against C hristianity .

Pliny a c t s under the gener al police powers given

to a R oman governor among whose most ,

i mportant fun ctions was that of regu l at i ng a ll

re l igiou s ma tters especia l ly those concerned
,

with the worship of t he e mperor I n doing s o .

h e acted as the emperor s deputy and carried

o u t t he general orders issued from head -quarters

by h i s o w n o r a preceding em peror .

I t i s qu ite plain that neither Traj an n o r Pli ny

makes any new departure in procedure C hr i s .

t i an s were already l iable to death for the

Name . Lax administration h a d left the m alone .

Pli ny revived th e persecution an d Traj an ,

appro ved genera l ly but somewhat modied h i s

,

procedure I f they are brought i nto your
.

pr e sence and co nvicted t hey m ust be punished ; ,

b ut w i th th i s reservation t ha t if any o n e O f the m

,

has de nied himself to be a C hristian a n d makes ,

h i s assertion man i fe st by an i nvo cation o f o u r

gods although h e may ha v e bee n suspected
,

before h i s repentance m ust entitl e h i m to a

,

p ardon But
. anonym ous i nformation s ought
n o t to have the least we i ght again st any cri me

whatever Th ey would n o t on l y be of dan

.

e ro u s conseq uence but are absolutely agai n st

g ,

the principle s o f my govern ment .
I

C hri s tians ar e not t o be h unted out Anony .

mo us accusation s are no more to be received

against th e m than agai n st other people I f th ey .

1
Lette rs f
o P l i n ,
y x .
98 .

P e rse cu ti o n F ro m Ne ro to M arcus Au re li u s 27

are accused they may recant ; but if they o b s ti

n ate l
y refus e to do so they must die .

The nam e s of two men of note are recorded

as having perished u n der Traj an One was .

Simeon sa i d by H e ge s i p p u s to hav e been t he

,

son of the Cl eophas who i s mentioned i n th e

Gospe l s and to have been the s econd Bi sh op
,

of Jerusa l em Being accused by heretics he
.
,

was torm e nted many days and died a martyr ,

w i th su c h rmness tha t a ll were amazed even ,

the president him self that a man o f one hun ,

dred and twen ty years o l d S hould bear su c h

tortures H e was at l ast ordered to be cruci
.

ed .
I

The other was Ignatius Bishop of Antioch ,

.

According to E usebius he was t he second 2

bishop to carry o n the Petrine succession and ,

was s e nt from Syria presumably after being

condemned at Antioch to R ome and was th e re ,

c ast to t he beasts On hi s j ourney through .

A s i a he encouraged the di fferen t C hurch e s i n

the c i t ie s where h e stayed and wrote a number ,

o f l etters H e wrote to the R omans to ask them

.

not to i nterfere on his beha l f and to desire ,

the i r prayers On l y pray for me for strength

.
,

both outward and i nward that I may not only ,

speak but a l so have the wi ll that I may not

, ,

on l y be called a C hr i st i an but found to be o n e , .

Again . I am writing to a l l the C h u r c h e s ,

and I give inj unctions to all men that I am dying

wi ll ingly for G od s sak e i f you do not hinder i t

, .

E b i H 8 iii 3
u se I bid 36
u s, . . . 2 .
2
.
, .
 28 Chu rch H i sto ry f
ro m Nero to Co n stan ti n e

I beseech y o u do me n o t a n unseasonable kind

,

nes s . Su ffer m e to b e eaten by the beasts ,

through who m I can attai n to G o d I am God s .

wheat and I am ground by the teeth o f wild

,

beasts t hat I may b e found pure bread o f Christ .

From Syria to R ome I am gh ting w i th

w i l d b e asts b y land and s e a by night and day
, , ,

bound to ten leopards and they becom e worse

,

fo r ki nd treatment
. No w I becom e the more
.

a disciple fo r their ill deeds but n o t by this am ,

I j u s t i e d I long fo r the beasts that are pre

.

pare d fo r me and I pray that they may be fo und

,

promp t fo r me Grant m e th i s favour I

. .

know what i s expedient fo r m e ; n o w I am begi n

n i ng to b e a disciple May nothing o f things .

seen o r un seen e n vy me my atta i n i ng to J esus

C hrist Let there come upon me re and cros s
.

an d struggle s with wild beas ts cutt i ng and tear ,

ing asunde r rackings o fbones mangling of lim bs

, , ,

crushing o f my whole bo d y cruel torture s o f ,

the devil i f I m ay but attain to Jesu s Christ .

T hese are the words o f an heroic soul i mpa ,

tient and ambitious to drin k th e cup h i s Master

drank o f conscious perhaps o f h i s o wn weakne ss
, , ,

and th e natural shrin king o f the e sh I t is n o t .

t hat h e loves life l e ss but that he loves Je sus ,

m ore .

H A D R I A N A D 1 1 7 -1 3 8 ,
. .

I S o far as the Church was concerned the r eign ,

o f Hadrian was comparatively une v entfu l He .

see m s to have discouraged per s ecuti o n That .

,
 Te rse cu ti o n F ro m Ne ro to M arcus Au rel i u s 2
9
at l e ast is the impression made by h i s rescript
,

t o M i n u ci u s F u n dan u s who was Procons u l O f ,

Asia about A D 1 2 4 tw e l v e years after Traj an

. .
,

dispatched his famous rescript to P l iny Th e .

e ffect of it was decided l y to restrain the ardour

of persecutors C hristian s ma be accused i n
the courts but it m ust be by a fiirm al accusation
.

made by a prosecutor not by a popu l ar outcry ,

by a mob I f the accuser pro v es that the accused

.

has done anything contrary to the l aw he i s to be

punished proportionab l y to his o ffence But if .

the prosecution turns out to be unfounded and

malicious the prosecutor i s to be pun i sh e d
severe l y .

We see by th i s that pro secutions are permitted

rather than encouraged That i n any prosecution .

there has to be a denit e prosecutor who may be ,

p u n i sh e d if h i s cas e fai l s One clause is am .

b ig u o u s perhaps deli berately

,
I f C hri stian s are .

proved to ha ve done anyth i ng contrary to the

l aws they are to be punished but it i s not c l ear
whether being a C hr i s ti an i s i n itse l f an il l egal
act o r n o Probab l y it was left intentionally to
.

the d i s c ret i on o f the mag i strat e .

A NT O N I N U S P l u s, A D
. .

1 38 1 61

A nton i nus Pius seems to ha v e con ti nued the

po l icy o f H adrian E u s e b i u s records that he
.
I

wrote to the L ari s s ae an s Thessalonians At he , ,

n i an s
,
and al l the Greeks forbidding any ,

E u se bi u s, H 8
. . iv . 26 .
3 0 Chu rch H i sto ry from Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

disorderly proc e dure aga i nst the C hr i st i ans I n .

spi te of the imperial po l ic y ou t breaks took

p l ace The martyrdom of Polycarp at Smyrna
.
,

A D
. . 1
55 i
,
s a con spicuo us i nstance .

Polycarp w as born about the year A D 7 0 and . .

,

was said by Irenaeus who saw him i n h i s youth

, ,

to have bee n e stab l i sh e d as Bishop o f Smyr n a

by the Apostles Tertullian add s that the
.

Apos tle who established h im was 8 J oh n . .

Irenaeu s i s quoted by E useb i us as ha vi ng put

down h i s o w n you thful reco l lection o f h i m i n
a l ett e r wr i tte n to th e hereti c F l o ri n u s

I can even de scribe t he place where the
b l e ss e d Polycarp used t o sit and discourse hi s ,

general mode o f life a nd personal appearance

hi s di scourses to th e m u l t i t u de ho w he would ,

speak o f h i s familiar i ntercourse w i th J oh n an d

w ith the rest o f those w ho had see n the Lord
and ho w he would cal l their words to remem

b ran ce .
I

He visited R ome when Anicetus was bishop

t o co nfer with h im o n th e controversy respecting
the righ t day fo r keeping Easter A n i c e tus was .

th e bishop wh o succeeded P i us the broth e r o f ,

Hermas T hey could n o t agree about Easter

.
,

b u t h e turned many h e ret ic s from their error

to th e tr u e faith an d Anicetus conceded to
,

Po l ycarp the Eucharist by way o f showing hi m

re spec t by wh ic h phrase we are to understand
,

that Anicetu s permitted Po l ycarp to ce lebrate

the Eucharist i n h i s presence H i s martyrdom .

E bi H 8 u se u s, . . v
. 20 .
 P e rse cu ti o n F ro m Ne ro to M arcus Au re l i us 3 I

was the l ast act of a persecutio n which took p l ac e

in the year A D 1 5 5 or A D 1 5 6 at Smyrna The
. . . . .

detai l s of h i s passion are given i n a l e tter from

the C hurch at Smyrna to the C hur c h at Phi l o

m e l i u m and ,
to al l the H oly Catho l ic C hurches ,

wr i tten immediate l y after the event from wh i c h

the a cc ount g iv en be l ow i s taken for the most ,

part i n a l i te ral trans l ation of the a c tual words

of t he S m y rn ae an s .

Th e re ha d been severa l martyrs who had

withstood torm ents and the wi ld beasts includ ,

i ng G ermanicus a youth whom the procon sul ,

piti e d and tried to save On l y one apostatized .

Q u i ntus a Phrygian,
wh o had forced himself
,

and some others to come forward of their o w n

accord but whose heart fai l ed him wh e n he s aw
,

the beasts Th e crowd then cried o u t Away
.

w i th th e a t he i sts L e t Po l ycarp be searched fo r l

Polycarp when he heard it wished to remain
,

i n the c it y but the maj ority persuaded h i m t o o

away and he w e n t o u t q u i etl y to a farm not g
,

,
ar
distant and stayed with a few friends doing ,

nothing but pray n ight and day for a ll and for ,

the C hurches throughout the wor l d as was h i s ,

custom The search persisted s o he moved to
.
,

another farm A s l ave under tortur e be t ray e d his

.

hiding p l ace Late in the evening th ey came to

- .

the house H e migh t h av e escaped then but

.
,

would not saying The wil l of God be don e
, ,
.

H e went down and ta l ked w i th them and ord e red ,

food to be s e t before them and ask e d them t o ,

allow him one hour i n wh i ch he m i gh t pray

3 2 Chu rch H i sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n s tan ti n e

undisturbed T o th i s. i n th e words o f the ,

l etter o f the C hurch o f S m yrna they asse n t e d , ,

a nd h e stood a nd prayed being s o lled w i th ,

the grace of God that fo r two hours h e could not

be silent and those who heard were as t on i shed
, ,

and many re pented that they had come against

s uch a ve nerable o l d man
No w when he had .

at last n i shed h is prayer the letter go e s o n , ,

havi ng remembered a l l whom he had ever me t

small and great h i gh and l o w and the whole

, ,

Catholic C hurch throughout the world the

ho u r arrived fo r h i s de parture They s e t hi m .

o n an as s and led him i nto the c i ty i t b ei ng

, ,

a g reat Sabbath day And there m et h im .

H erod the head o f the police an d h i s fathe r

, ,

Ni ce te s T hey placed h i m i n their carriage

.
,

a n d sitti ng by h im began to persuade h i m

, , ,

say i ng What h arm i s ther e i n say i ng Lord

Caesar and o fferi ng sacrice and so forth an d
, ,

saving yourself ? At rs t he did n o t an swer

them b u t wh en t hey persisted h e said I am

, ,

n o t going to d o what you advise S o th e y .

gave u p try i ng to persuade him and began to ,

speak ercely to h i m and turne d him o u t w i th ,

s uch haste that i n getting o u t o f th e carriage

, ,

h e scraped hi s sh in ; and without turn i ng round , ,

as though u nh urt he walked o n at once q u i ck l y

, ,

an d was brough t to the ar e na where th e uproar ,

was s o great that nothing could b e heard When .

P olycarp entered the arena a voice was heard

from heaven saying Be strong Polycarp and

, , ,

play the man 1 No o n e s aw t he speaker but

,
 P e rse cu ti o n Fr m o Ne ro to M arcus Au re li us 3 3

our friends who were present heard the voice .

When he was brought forward there was a great

uproar from those who h eard t hat Po l ycar p had
been arrested The proconsu l asked him if he
.

wer e Polycarp and when he admitted it he tri e d

, ,

to persuade h im to deny saying R espect your ,

ag e and such l ike things as they are a cc us

t o m e d to say Swear by the genius of Caesar

.

Thin k better of it Say Away with the .

athe ists . But Po l ycarp w i t h a stern co u n te n ,

an c e look e d on all the crowd of lawless heathen

, ,

and waving his hand at them groaned and

, , , ,

looking up to hea v en said Away with the ,

athei sts " T he proconsu l pressed h i m an d sa i d

Swear and I re l eas e you C urse C hrist . .

Polycarp sa i d Eighty and s i x years have I

served H i m and H e never did me wrong H o w

, .

c an I blaspheme my King Who saved me P

The proconsul tried threat s I have W ild .

beasts at hand and I wi ll cast you to them ,

unless you C hange your mind H e an swered .

Cal l them The proconsul
. I f you despise

the b e asts I will have you burnt Po l ycarp : .

You thr e aten re that burns for a moment ,

but you know nothing of the j udgement to

c ome and the re that burns for ever Bring .

what you wi l l .

And with these and many other words the ,

account continues he was l led w i th courage ,

and j oy and h i s face was fu ll of gra c e s o that

,

n o t only did i t not fall in troub l e at th e things

said to him but that the proconsu l o n the o th er

, ,
34 Chu rch Hi sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

h and was astounded and sen t his h erald i nto

, ,

the midst of th e are na to announce thre e times

Polycarp has con fessed that he is a C hristian .

When th i s had been sa i d by the herald all th e

m ultitude o f h e athe n and Jews living i n Smyrna
cried o u t w i t h uncontro l lable wra t h an d a loud
shout This i s the teach er o f A s i a th e father

,

o f the C hr i st i an s the destroyer o f our gods

, ,

wh o teache s m ultitudes n either to o f fer sacri ce

nor to worship " A n d whe n they had said th i s

they cried o u t and asked Ph ilip th e Asiarch to

loose a lion o n Polycarp But h e said h e could .

n o t leg al ly d o this since he had closed the games .

Then they cr ie d o u t w i th o n e voice that he

sho u ld burn Polycarp alive ; fo r the vi s i on
which had appeared to him o n h i s pillow must
be fullled wh e n he s aw i t burning while h e
,

w as prayi ng ; and h e turn ed an d said p ro p he t i

cally to those o f the faithful who were with h i m ,

I m ust be b u rn t alive .

T h e se th i ngs h appened m ore quic k ly than i t

takes to t e ll and the crow d gathered im mediately
,

an d go t ready wood and faggots from the work

shop s and bath s the Jews being extremely
,

zealous as i s their c ustom i n assi sting at th i s

, ,
.

When th e re was ready he put o ff h i s clothes ,

loose ned hi s girdle and tried to take o ff h is S hoe s

, ,

wh i ch h e had n o t been accustomed to do befo re

because the faith ful vied with o n e another i n
doing th i s fo r him S o great was th e r e s p e ct
.
'

he h ad been treated w i th even before h i s martyr

,

dom because o f h is noble life When abo ut to

,
.
 P e rs e cu ti o n F ro m Ne ro to M arcus Aureli us 3 5

be nai l ed to the stake he sa i d Leave me thus ,

for H e Who gives me power to endure t he re

wi ll grant m e to remain unmoved in the ame s

e ven w i thout the nails When bound h e looked
.

up to heaven and said O Lord G od A l mighty ,

F ather of Thy be l oved and b l essed C hi l d Jesus ,

Christ through whom we ha ve received know

,

ledge of Thee the G od of angels and powers

,

and al l creatio n and o f the who l e fami l y o f th e

,

righteous who l ive i n T hy s i ght ; I bless Thee

that Thou hast grant e d me th i s day and hour
t hat I may share among the number of the
martyrs i n the cup of Thy C hrist for the resur
re cti o n t o eterna l l ife of soul and bo d y i n the
~

immortal ity o f the H o l y S pirit A nd may I .

be received among th e m before Thee as a r i ch

and acceptab l e sacrice as Thou th e G od Who
,

li es not an d art truth hast prepared beforehand

and S hown forth and fu l ll ed Wherefore I .

praise Thee for al l th i ngs I b l ess Thee I g l ori fy

, ,

T he e through th e eterna l and heaven l y H igh

P r i est Jesus C hrist T hy be l oved C hi l d through
, ,

whom b e gl ory to Thee with H i m and t he H o l y

,

Spirit now and throughout the ages Amen
, . .

The re th e n b l azed up but did not consume

,

h i m and he was dispatched w i th a dagger H i s

, .

discip l es begged for h i s body but were refused ,

Ni ce te s at the request of the J

,
ews ask i ng the ,

governor not to give the body lest they l eave ,

the Cru ci e d and begin to worsh i p this man .

The l etter remarks that th i s was impossib l e .

F o r H i m we worship as the Son o f God but ,

3 6 Chu rch H i sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n s tan ti n e

the martyrs we love as d i sc i p l e s and imitators o f

the Lord .

T he body was burned but the bones were ,

gath ered up and hidde n wher e the Lord wil l .

permit us to meet according to o u r ability i n

g l adnes s and j oy to celebrate the birthday o f h i s

martyrdom .
I

M A RCU S A U R E L I U S ,
1 611 80

Antoni nus P i u s had adopted by the desire ,

o f H adrian a youth o f seventeen already a

, ,

professe d Stoic ph ilosopher who succeeded h i m ,

A D
. I 6 1
. and i s kn own to fame as Marcus
,

Aurelius H e i s th e clas sical i n stan c e o f a

.
,

philosopher on a throne H i s virtue Gibbon s ,

says was th e well earned harvest o f many a
,
-

learned co nference o f many a pat ie nt lec ture , ,

and many a midnight l ucubration I t might

i nde ed seem to ha v e been more congen ial to
the lecture room than to the senate o r the cam p
an d he did in fact lecture publicly o n philosoph y
, ,

i n Greece in Asia and i n R ome Neverthe l e ss

, ,
.
,

he was a conscientiou s and pai nstaking emperor ;

a nd as a general fought se v era l by no means .

i nglor i ous campaign s o n the Danube aga i n st

the Q uadi an d M arco m m an n i .
i.

H e wrote a book o f m editation s called a ,

D i s co u rse w i th hi m se lf which has becom e fam ou s ,

.

1
S th l tt f th e C h h f G d ab i di g i S m y a i
ee e e er o u rc o o n n rn

to th C h h f G d dw ll i g i P h i l m l i m -Bi h p
e u rc o o e n n o e u . s o

L i g htf t Ap t l Fath
o o ,
l iii p a t i i
os o i c e r s , vo .
,
r .
 P e rse cu ti o n F ro m Ne ro to M arcus Au re li us 3 7

and i s s t i l l wide l y so l d I t is perhap s n ot .

beyond the mark to say that hard l y any book

has enj oyed so great a reputat i on among th o se
who ha v e not read it .

Th e austere sta n dard of mor als which the

writer sets before him i n th i s book h e strenuous l y
endeavoured to c arry out and not u nsuccess ,

fu ll y H e has bee n canonized i f the use of t he

.
,

term may be perm itted by the general acc l aim ,

of historians and h e may sa fe l y be regarded as

,

the ne o w er o f pagan V irtue .

H i s character is however v ery unlike that

, , ,

of th e C hristian sa i nt The di fference consi sts

.

main l y i n the fa c t that the p ag an t e n ds more and ,

more to be centred i n himse l f ; the C hr i s ti an

m ak e s it his gr e at ai m to e scape from hi mself .

Both e x er c i se a rigid se l f-di scip l ine but Marcus ,

that h e may be mast e r in hi s own house ; 8 Pau l .

i f 8 Pau l may b e taken as a type of Ch r i st i an

sa i n tl i n e ssthat he may render h i s body an
.

obedient i nstrument to the Spirit ; I n other words

that not himse l f but C hrist may rule there
, ,
.

The author o f the m e ditation s records with

comp l acency a catalogue of h i s own vi rtues .

S Pau l t hough on o n e occasion controversy led

.
,

hi m i nto the foo l i shness as he ca ll ed it o f doing

, ,

the same i s careful to exp l ain that he had n o

,

prid e i n these th i n gs but preferred to glory i n

,

h i s i n rm i t i e s because the strength of G od had

,

its opportunity in his own weakness O ne i s to .

be saved by hi s own unassi sted e fforts The .

other c r i e s out fo r de l i v e ran ce and nds I t i n

3 8 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

Jesus C hrist crucied On e nds his l i fe by .

seeking i t with extraordi nary di l igence and reso

l u ti o n th e other by an a l most reckless r e ad i ne ss
t o cast i t away .

Gibbon nds i n th e mi l dness of Marcus
the only defe ctive part o f h i s chara c ter U n fo r .

t u n at e l y fo r th e C hristians this m ildness though , ,

it covered th e gallantries o f a n err i ng wi fe was ,

not extended to them .

No r i s thi s surprising He was a devo ut .

adherent o f the anc ie nt gods and apparentl y a ,

serious believer i n the worshi p of th e emperors .

A t his request h i s erring wife Faustina was

declared a go d d e ss by the senate and i t was ,

decreed that newly married couples should pay

their vows at her shrine He was to o o f an .

-
over conscientious n o t to say scrupulous and
,

worrying di sposition t o whom the a l most easy,

goi ng tolerance O f h i s predecessors was im possib l e .

Unlike them he could never have rested o n the

i l logical pos i t i on that though i t was criminal to
be a C hr i st i an no ste ps nee d be taken t o stamp
,

o u t the c r i m e that the magistrate was to t urn a

bli nd eye unles s h i s atte ntion w e re cal l ed to it .

C elsus speaks o f the m as bei n g sought out and

p u n i sh e d wi th death .
2

Melito Bi sho p o f Sardi s wrote about A D 1 7 0

, ,
. .

1 7 1,
i n a remon strance t o the emperor

What i n d e e d never happe ned before the ,

race o f the p i ous i s n o w persecuted driven ,

I
Hi t R m l i 3 i
s . o .
,
xx . .

2
O i g Agai t Cel vi ii 6 9
r en ,
ns su s, . .
 P e rse cu ti o n F ro m Ne ro to M arcus Au re li us 3 9

about in A s i a by new and strange decrees For .

the shame l ess inform ers and coveters of other

, ,

men s goods tak i ng opportunity from th e edicts

,

o f the emperor open l y perpe t rate robbery I

Athenagoras (A D 1 7 7 1 8 0 ) a l so remon strated

.
,

. .

wi th the emperor Yo u allow us to be harassed , ,

plundered persecuted for our nam e alone
, ,
.
2

No doubt the c hange was due directly or

indirect l y to the e mperor At the sam e time .

the story o f the s o ca l led Thundering Legion

-

seems t o po i n t to a chang e of att i tude towards

the end o f the r e ign .

The facts see m certa i n Marcus Aure l ius i n .

one campaign probably A D 1 7 4 i n h i s German

,
. .
,

wars was surrounded by his e ne mies and without

,

wat e r when a timely thunderstorm saved him

and h i s troops T he Twe l fth Legion F ulm inata
.
,

( Thund e rstruck
) was presen t and,
th i s legion ,

probably contai ned a l arge n umber o f Christian

soldiers as i t was recruited i n Asia Minor i n the
, ,

Me l itene district where C hristians are known to

,

ha ve been numerous The event was considered .

miracu l ous a t th e time and by Christians was ,

att r i buted to the prayers o f the Christian so l dier s .

Dion Cas s u i s records a rumour that the rain was the

work o f an Egyptian m agician Marcus A ure l i us .

had a medal struck to commemorate the event o n ,

which i t is credited to Jupiter Pluvius Tertullian 3 .

insists that Marcus himse l f ( in a l etter to the

Senate ) gav e the prayers o f h i s C hr i st i an soldiers
E b i H 8 iv 6
u se u s, . . . 2 .

2
P leafo r the Chri sti an s ,
i .
3 Ap .
5 .
4 0 Chu rch H i sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

credit for th i s d e l iverance and that in consequenc e ,

the execution o f the persecuting l aws was relaxed

and unj us t a cc users were se v ere l y punished .

Tertul l ian was we can hard l y doubt wr i t i ng i n

, ,

good faith as he was addressing h i s Apology to

the Senate who must ha v e k nown what had
,

happen ed . I t wo uld hav e been a singularly

use l ess lie fo r hi m to have called the i r attention
to a le tter which M arcus had written to the m i f ,

they knew perfe ctly well tha t h e ha d done nothi ng

o f the ki nd H e may hav e be e n mistaken though
.
,

he wro te only twenty -three year s after the event .

I f he is c orre c t there m ust have been a relaxation

o f persecution for wh ic h we ha v e n o other e vi

de nce M ean t ime p e n d i ng further evidence it

.
, ,

i s b e st to suspend j udgem ent .

The best-known vi ct i m o f th e persecution w as

J usti n M artyr who with s i x companion s perished
,

at R ome early i n the reign when R ust icus was ,

Prefect o f R o me wh i ch o ffi ce he assumed at the

,

end of the year A D I 6 3 and held u ntil A D 1 6 7

. . . . .

T o h i m R usticus said What trai ning and educa

tion have y o u had
Justi n
.

I have endeavoured to acquaint my self
w i th a l l system s o f philosophy an d ev ery branch
o f l e arning But at last I attached mysel f to
.

C hristianity .

R usti cu s . Are y o u pleased w i th that philo

sophy P

Justi n
.

Ye s .

R usti cus. What i s th ei r teaching

Justi n
. T he tr u e teaching that all C hri stians
 P e rsecu ti o n F ro m Ne ro to M arcu s Au re li us 4 1

ho l d i s that we believe there i s o n e G od Maker ,

and Creator of a ll things vi sible and i nvisible , ,

and the Lord Jesus C hr i s t we confe ss to be the

f
Son o G od announced be forehand by the pro
p h e t s Who is come to j udge the human race .

The prefect then asked where they met .

Justi n .

We me e t wherever we can The .

G od of the C hr i st i an s is not conned by p l ace ,

b u t being i n v i s i b l e H e ll s earth and heaven ,

and H e i s adored and H i s glory praised by th e

faithful everywhere .

R usti cus C om e tel l me where you and your
.
,

discip l es meet .

Justi n .

Up to now I have stayed near th e
house of o n e Martin by the T o m o ti an i an baths .

To a ll who have come to me to l earn about

Christianity I have taught th e true doctrine .

R usti cu s . Are you a Christian

Justi n .

I ndeed I am .

The s ame question was asked o f h i s ve com

panions C hariton C hari tan a E v e l p i s to a Cappa
, , ,

do ci an H i e rax a P hryg i an from Iconium and

, ,

Pa e on and the same answer given

,
.

T he n the prefect turned to Justi n and said ,

You are reputed to be eloquent and thin k ,

you ho l d the tr u e teaching ; if you are beaten

to death do you be l ieve you wi l l ascend i nto
heaven
Justi n .

I hope i f ] su ffer the punishment y o u
speak of that I shal l ha ve what they ha ve who

keep the commands o f C hrist .

R usti cus . D o you th i nk that in the future
G
4 2 Church H i sto ry from Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

you wil l ascend the s ky and receive some

reward 9 .

Jus ti n I do n ot thi n k ; I k now I hold i t
. .

so certai n that I have no doubt .

T h e prefect then urged them to sacrice bu t ,

they all re fused .

R usti cus U nle s s you obey my command s

.

o u shal l be punished withou t m ercy
y .

Justi n For the sake o f o u r Lord Je su s C hrist

.

we pray that we may e nd ure punish men t and be

saved .

They were t hen l ed away scourged and after , ,

wards dispatched with the axe Their remains .

w e re col l ected by t he i r friends and b u r ie d secret l y .

Th e pri ncipa l scenes o f martyrdom so far as i s ,

known were Lyon s and Vien ne i n Gau l There

,
.

the C hri stians were rst boycotted so that we

should n o t only be excluded from houses and
bath s and mark ets but everything belonging to ,

us was prohibited fro m a ppearing i n any place

whatever and then mobbed when we r e a d that
, ,

they nobly bore all th e evils that were h eaped

upon them by t he populace clamours an d b l ows , ,

plunderi ng and robberies ston ings and im prison ,

me nts everything that a savage people could

delight to inict upon e nemies T hey were
t h e n brought b efore the governor w ho asked i f ,

they were C hristians and those that confe ssed ,

were condem n ed to torture and death .

O ne o f the brethr e n Vi tti as E p ag at h u s n ot ,

hi m self c harged as ked to be heard i n defe nce o f

,

F ro m Ru i n art , Acta M arty ru rn Si n ce ra .

 P e rse cu ti o n F ro m Ne ro to M arcus Au re li us 43

the accused H e was asked if h e was a Christian

.

h e confessed an d was condemned O f the rst .

martyrs ten we are to l d fel l a way though most

, ,

of them afterwards seem to have w i thdrawn their

denial and su ffered according l y The res t were .

steadfast throughout .

A reign o f terror s e ems now to ha v e set in ,

fresh arrests be i ng made daily unti l a ll the zealous

members o f the t wo C hurche s wer e i n pri son .

Popu l ar frenzy was even further aroused by the

confessions o f some h eathen s l aves belonging to
the brethren who under fear o f torture accused
,

their masters of i nfanticid e i ncest and other , ,

horr i b l e crimes After this we are to l d the

.
, ,

martyrs endured torture s beyond description .

One of the mar t yrs a S lave named Blandina , ,

was conspicuou s fo r her courage and th e heroism

w i th wh i c h s h e deed her tormentors and e n co u r
aged her brethren Whi l e we were al l tremb l ing
.
,

and her earthly mistress who was herself one of ,

the contendi ng martyrs was afraid l e st through ,

the weakness o f h er esh she should not be ab l e

to profess her fa i th w i t h bo l dness Blandina was ,

lled with such power that her i ngenious tormen

tors who re l ieved and succeeded ea c h other all
,

day confe ssed that they were beaten

, But .

this b l essed sa i nt as a nob l e wrestler repeated

, ,

1 am a C hristian ; no wickedness i s committed

by us .

I

Sanctus a deacon of the Church of Lyon s

, ,

rep l ied to every question as to his name city , ,

E bi H 8 v u se u s, . . . 1 .
44 C hu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

n at i on an d statu s
,
I am a Christian and when ,

every other torture had been tried red -hot p l ates ,

were xed to the mo st sensitive part s o f his body ,

but h e remained un shaken .

P oth i n u s the aged Bishop o f Lyon s though

, ,

o ver n inety was brought before the tribunal an d

, ,

died tw o days later i n prison from th e e ffect o f

the vio l ence w i th which h e had been treated .

Whe n th e game s began th e C h r i st i an s were

exhibited i n place o f gladiators Blandina bound .
,

and suspe nded to a stake and exposed as food to

,

the w i ld beasts had the appearance o f bein g

,

crucied and by her example and prayers e n co u r

,

aged greatly the other martyrs F o r as they .

s aw her their s i s t er they contemplated H im that

, ,

was cru ci e d fo r th e m to persuade those that

believe i n Him tha t every o n e who su ffers fo r
C hrist will for ever enj oy com m u nion w i th the

living G o d But as none o f the beast s would
.

to uc h her S he was taken back to prison .

The governor who had condemned Attalu s to

th e beasts had respited h i m o n learn ing that h e
,

was a R oman citize n u nti l he cou l d ge t i n s tru c

tion s from R om e but i n re spon se t o the clamours
,

o f the m o b sent hi m t o th e arena the n e x t day ,

together w i th a Ph rygian physician named Alex

ande r who had declared h i m s e l f by standing at
,

th e tri bunal and encouraging the accused Attal us .

was roasted o n a n iron c hair O n th e last day .

B l andina was bro u gh t forth with P o n ti cu s a ,

youth o f ft een w ho encouraged by her bore

, , ,

t h e worst torture s and gave u p h i s l i fe But .
 P e rs e cu ti o n F ro m Ne ro to M arcus A u re l i u s 45

the b l essed Blandina l ast of a l l a s a nob l e mother

, ,

that had animat e d he r chi l dren an d s e nt them on

befor e her a s victors to the great K ing herself ,

retracing the ground o f al l the conicts her

chi l dren had endured hastened at last to them
,

w it h j oy and exu l tation at the i ssue a s if she were

invited to a marriage feast an d n o t to be cast to
,

wi l d beasts And thus after scourging after

.
, ,

exposure to the b e asts after roasti n g s h e was

, ,

nall y thrown i nto a net and cast before a bul l ,

and was t ossed by him and then dispatched .

Th e su fferings of B l andina as o f oth e r martyrs

seems a l most beyond t h e poss i b ili ty o f h uman
endurance A be l ief seems to ha v e been curren t
.

i n t he Ear l y C hurch that some measure o f

un c onsc i ousness was e r m i tt e d them Eusebiu s
says t hat B l andina a ff
.

er a certain point had no

l onger any consciousness of what was done o n

a ccount of her pious hope condence faith , , ,

and fe ll owship w i th C hrist .

I t i s noteworthy that their per s ecut o rs took

great pains to destroy the bodies G uard was .

kept so that the mang l ed remains shou l d neither

be buried nor carried away and i n the end those,

that were n o t eaten by the wi l d beas t s were burnt

and the ashes c ast i nto the R hone No w we s hal l .

see whether they will r i se aga i n and whether the i r ,

G od i s ab l e to he l p them an d rescue them out of

our hands . Another taunt was Where is the i r
G od and what good has their re l igion b ee n to
,

them wh i c h th ey preferred to their own l ife

,
1

E 1
bi H 8 v I
u se u s, . . . .
 III

G NOS T I C S ,
M O NTA NI STS

THE G N O S T I CS

B
E S I DE S persecution th e C hurc h had to fac e
other and more i ns i d i ous dangers T here .

were per i l s o f the i n te ll e ct an d o f t he sp i r i t as ,

well as of t h e esh The rst wer e due pri nci

.

pally to thos e keen an d s ubt l e inte l lects fo r t h e

most part outside the C hurch wh o scorned the
simplicity of the Gospel dismissed th e statements
,

o f th e C ree d as ch i l d i sh fables to be i nterpreted

i n a n o n -natural sen se and produced e l aborate
,

system s o f their o w n wh i c h are mean i n g l es s

,

to u s but seem to ha ve made a strong appeal

to the i nte ll ectuals of that day T h e se were
.

the Gnostics I n contrast to th e m ther e arose

.

ho t headed zealots w i t h i n the fold who de

-
,

m an d e d a stricter discipline and more sen sible

fr u i ts o f the Spirit than th e C hurch o f their
day could S how a nd threatened disruption i f
,

th ei r demands were n o t granted They were .

the fo l lowers o f M ontanus afterward s kn own

,

as Montanists .

Gnosticism was n ot so m uch a religion as

j a philosophy wh i ch attempted to answer the
4 6
 Gn o sti cs, M o n tan i sts 47

question Why does evi l exist The G n o s 9

tics he l d v ar i ous O pinions but o n one point ,

they a ll seem to ha v e been agreed name l y , ,

tha t matter was essential l y evi l and that if I ,

evi l did not originate i n matter i t was i n e x tri c- i

abl y invo l ved i n it T he materia l world was
.

therefore an evil t h i ng and the Supreme B e ing

,

must be disconnected from it as far as possible .

T h i s was done by i nterposing a who l e series

o f emanations or aeon s between the Supreme
Being and the C reator Who was ge nerally ,

r e garded as a mor e or le ss m al e ce n t de i ty ,

and frequent l y identied with t he G od o f the

O l d Testament .

Simon Magus the Samaritan sorcerer as h e i s

,

described i n th e A cts who was baptized by ,

S Phi l ip the deacon but was afterwards rej ected

.
,

and c ursed by S P eter was l ooked upon by

.
,

Catho l ic wr i ters as the F ather of G nostics He .

gures l arge l y i n the ecc l esiastica l romances o f

the ear l y Ch urch but e x c ep t fo r this brief appear
,

ance in the Acts he remain s for u s a personage

o f romanc e rather than of hi story M enander .
,

another Samaritan his d i s c i p l e sa i d that the

, ,

Supreme B e i ng was unknown and that he him

self was the Saviour .

C e ri n th u s i s one o f the ear l iest o f whom w e

have any real k n o w l e d e H e lived i n As i a and
was a contemporary o fS John Po l ycarp used
.
,

. .

to re l ate that John the d isciple o f the Lord
, ,

went into a bath at Ephesus and seeing Ce ri n thu s ,

within ran o u t wi thout bath i ng and exclai med , ,

4 8 Chu rch H i sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

Le t us ee l e s t th e bath should fa ll in while

,

Ce ri n t hu s that e nemy o f truth i s

, ,

H e taught t hat Jesus was born of Joseph and

M ary i n th e ordinary course o f h uman gen era
tion and that after H i s baptism the C hr i st
,

descended upon H i m i n the for m o f a clove from

the S upre me R uler and th at H e the n proclaimed ,

th e Father and worked miracles W he n Jesus .

s u ffered C hr i st left Him being pure spirit and

, ,

i ncapable O f su ffering .
2

S at u rn i n u s was a native o f the Syrian Antioch .

He taught that th e Saviour was without bir th ,

body o r gure but had the appearance only o f

, ,

a man and came to destroy the G o d o f th e

,

Jews Some at least o f h i s fo ll owers practis e d an

.

e x tre me asceticism absta i n e d from animal food , ,

an d taugh t that marriage and generation are

from Satan .

The Nicolaitanes according to Irenaeus were , ,

th e followers o f Nicolas th e proselyte o f Antioch , ,

w ho was o n e o f th e s eve n T hey w e re sa i d by .

I renaeus to have l ed l ive s o f unrestrained i n du l

gence a charge repeate d by Tertullian They
,
.

appear to have b ee n anoth e r ear l y Gnostic sect ,

and are condem ned i n th e A ) o caly p s e

Tat i an once the di scip l e o fJ ustin se e ms after
.

, ,

wards to ha ve belonged to the school o f the

E ncratite s and preached against marr i age and
,

the use o f animal food .

B as i l i d e s taught at A l exandria i n the reign o f

.

E b i H E i ii 8 u se us , . . . 2 .

I a Agai t H e i i 6
2
re n e u s, ns e r s es, . 2 .
 Gn o sti cs, M o n tan i sts 49

H adrian . Besides t he usua l categories of aeons

he maintained tha t C hr i s t was a man on l y in
appearance tha t C hrist did not su ffer on the
,

Cross but Simon of Cyrene i n H i s l iken ess

, ,

while J e sus asc e nded u nseen to the F ath e r .

Car p o crat e s was another founder of a school .

H i s fo ll owers are accused of practising magical

arts and l eading l ic ent i ous l iv e s and so bri n ging ,

dishonour on th e C hur c h T he heathen s e eing .

the things they practise speak evi l o f us a l l who ,

have i n fa c t no fe ll owship w i th them either i n ,

doctrine or morals .
1

Marc i on perhap s the most formidab l e o f al l

,

the G nost i c s i s said to hav e bee n the s o n o f

,

a Christian b i shop and to have been brought up

as a C hristian H i s system i s perverted C hr i s
.

t i an i ty rather than heathen i sm with Christian

additions . H e was a na ti v e of Pontus and ,

Tertul lian who wrote a t r e at i se against h i m in

,

ve books i ndu l ges in many sarcasm s at the

,

e xpense of the c l imate of Pon tus the manners , ,

t he morals the hab i t s and the civi l ization o f it s

, ,

i nhabitants and conc l udes t ha t
,
nothi n g i n
Pontus i s so barbarous and s ad as the fact that

Marcion was born there H e a l so ca ll s him .

a sh i p -master but tha t i s possib l y o n l y a term of

,

abuse H e tel l s us that Marcion came to R ome

.

i n the time of E l e u t he ru s as a C hristian w i th ,

a l arge sum o f money as a present for the R oman

C hur c h that w i th V a l en t i nus he w as more than
on c e expe ll ed on account o f the i r ever rest l ess .

I a Agai t H i e i 5
re n e u s, ns e res s, . 2 .

H
5 0 Chu rch Hi sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

cur i os i ty with wh ich they in fected th e br e thren

,

and they were na ll y permanently e x co m m u n i

cate d Marcion s m on ey being re t u rn e d They

I
.
,

the n S pread the i r do c tr i ne s abroad .

T e rt u ll i an s d ates are poss i b l y wrong an d i t

i s more probable that M arcion taugh t at R ome

un der Anicetus According to Tertullian h e
.

taught that th e G o d of the Old Testament ,

th e author o f e vi l s de l ighted i n war was , ,

i nrm o f purpose and co ntradicted H imsel f ,
.

T hat Jesus came from the P ro p ato r o r rs t

aeo n an d was manifested i n the for m o f a man
, ,

and t ha t the body was incapable o f sa l vation .

H e m utilated th e Scripture s to make them

t his theories Of th e Gospels h e only recog
.

n iz e d S Luke s and that in a m utilated form

. .
,

Li ke som e later wr i ters he rej ected the rst ,

two chapt e rs entirely beginning t hu s I n the
,

fteenth year of Tiberi us Caesar God descended

i nto Capernaum a ci t y o f Ga l ilee
,
H e treated .

th e r e s t o f the books o f th e Ne w T e sta

m e nt i n the same w ay hi s obj ect throughout ,

being to S how t ha t h i s Christ was not only an

i mproved version o f the Catholic C hrist but had ,

come fr om a previously u nknown Go d ha vi ng n o ,

connection w i t h the Creator the Go d o f the Old ,

T estament .

Marcion has laid down the position that C hr i st ,

W h o i n the days of Ti ber i us was reveal ed fo r th e

salvation of a ll n at i on s by a previously unknown
Go d i s a di f
,
ferent Being from Hi m W ho was
I
T e rt .
, Ag ai n st M arci o n , i v 3 . .
 Gn o sti cs, M o n tan i sts 5 I
ordained by G od the C reator for the restoration
of the Jewish State To show h i s c r i t ic a l m e thod
.

one instance may be given The words a sp i r i t .

hath not bones as ye see M e have are changed

i nto a spirit su c h as ye see Me to be ha t h not
, ,

bones .
IMarcion a l so forbade marriage as
b e i ng impure ; and ordained t hat no one migh t
be admitted to baptism unless l iving i n a state
of ce l ibacy H i s fo ll owers were v ery much in
.

earnest and there were martyrs among them

, .

One o f th e m Asclepius was burned ali v e at

, ,

Caesarea i n the persecution of D ioc l etian .

2

Valentinus c ame from Egypt to R ome an d , ,

according to Tertu ll ian expected to b e made ,

a bishop because he was an able man both i n

,

genius and e l oquence But being passed over for .

a confessor he broke w i th th e C hur c h 3 .

Irenaeus 4 has g i v en a pretty fu ll a c count of

the Va l entinian tenets which were he l d in Gau l
in his day They cal l ed t h e i r dei ties a e ons and
.
,

bel ieved i n a Pleroma or fullness o f th i r t y aeons ,

al l apparent l y deriving the i r descent from one

pre-existent and eternal aeon T he last of the .

aeons who was call ed Sophia o r Achamoth fe ll

, ,

a prey to passion and at l ast gav e birth to the ,

Demiurge who c reat e d the v i s i b l e world and

, ,

i s the F ather and G od of e verything outside the

P l eroma H e i s the G od o f the O l d Testament
. .

T e rt ,
. A g ai n s t M arci o n ,
i v 43
. .

2
E u se b u s, M arty rs of P alesti n e , x
i .

3 T e rt ,. A g ai
. n s t the V a l e n t i n i ans .

4 I re n ae u s, A ai n s t H e re s i es ,
g 1 i . .
5 2 Church H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

The Pleroma i s separated from the rest o f the .

universe by H orus or S tau ro s The D emiurge .

created the materia l part O f man but h i s mother ,

i n fused her spiritual ess e n c e into him unknown

t o th e Demiurge .

M e n were divided i nto t hr ee classes

F irst the ani mal man wh o was i ncapable o f
, ,

salvation seco nd l y th e natural man w ho can be , ,

sa ve d by working We o f th e C hurch are s u ch
.

persons Th irdly spiritual men who can not
.
1
, ,

be lost Li ke gold which h owever m u ch s u b

.
,

merged i i i lth retai ns i ts nature uncorrupted

, ,

so n o conduct can i nj ure their sp i r i tua l substance .

T hey must however be per fected by know

, ,

ledge I renaeus asserts that the m ost perfect
.

am o ng them made n o scruple o f taki ng part i n

idolatrous festivals and do not eve n ke e p away ,

from gladiatorial shows that blood spectacle ,

hatefu l both to God and man hat others .
2

gave th e m se l ve s up to th e lust s of the esh ,

ma i n t a i n i ng that carnal th i ngs shou l d be allowed

to the carnal nature and spiri tual things to the
spiritual C hrist was the Son o f the Demiurge
.

and passed through Mary as water through a

t ube but th e Saviour W ho was the creation o f
, ,

the united Pleroma descended o n H i m at Hi s ,

baptism and left H i m when He appeare d before

Pi l ate .

Th is briefand i mperfect sketch doe s not per haps

represen t so m uch th e t e a c h i ng of Va len tinus as
that o f the Valentinians known to I renaeus i n
I r a Agai nst He e i i 6
1
en e u s, I bid r t cs
,
. .
2
.
 Gn o sti cs, M o n tan i sts 53

G au l T here were many other sects and schools o f

.

G nostics Ophites who paid honour to s e rp e nts ;

,

Cainites who venerated C a i n

,
Sethites who had ,

a devotion for Seth ; and others There i s .

a fami ly l ikeness among a ll their beliefs .

The C hurch l ike the G nostics had to face the

, ,

prob l em of evil Un l ike them i t o ffered n o

.
,

sol ution but he l d out the hope that evil m i gh t

,

be overcome by pr e senting a new r e ve l ation o f

the character of God as shown i n the I ncarnation ,

t he Passion and the R esurrection Like C elsus

,
.

and Porphyry and the pagan philosophers the ,

G nostics found th i s way o f meeting the di f cu l ty

too simple and chi l dish They were the ration .

al i s ts and i nte ll e c tua l s o f their day and tried to ,

work out a s c heme that wou l d meet a l l di i cu l ti e s .

Christians were branded by them as the S imp l e

peop l e T hey taught sa l vation by know l edge
.

rather than by th e Cross o r even by works .

Some of them o f whom Marcion was one

, ,

perhaps made an honest attempt to restate the

G ospe l i n the l igh t of the inte ll ectual n e e d s and
perplexities o f the i r day But most G nostics
.

approach e d the C hristian F aith from outside ,

and were philosophers seeking an e x p l anat i on of

the prob l ems o f life and using as mu c h o f the
,

G ospe l as would serve their purpose heresy

which i s e v er mending the Gospe l as Tertullian ,

put i t .

T he C h u rch defeated them not so much by

argument as by relying o n the p l ai n facts o f
our Lord s life as related i n th e G ospe l s and

,
 54 Church H i sto rv om Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

its doctri ne o f salvation by t he Cross The .

C atho l ic teachers s aw that to rob the I ncarnation

of reality was for th e p l ai n man to evacuate it
, ,

of m e an i ng .

F o r if H e did not tru l y su ffer n o thanks to ,

H i m s i nce there was no su ffering at all ; and

,

whe n we s ha l l begin to su ffer H e will seem to be

leading us astray by exhorting us t o endure ,

bu ffeti n g an d to turn th e other cheek if H e did ,

not Hi m self i n reali ty su ffer th e same and as H e

mi s led those w ho saw H i m by seeming to them
t o b e what He was n ot s o doe s H e a l so m islead ,

us by exhorti ng us to e ndure what H e did not

e n d u re H imself W e shall be even above the
.

Master bec ause we su ffer and su stain what o u r

Mast e r never bore or e n du re d .
I

THE M O NT A N I ST S
Monta nus was a P h rygian and the M ontanists ,

appear as a sect about th e middle o f th e second

century He began whe n a recen t convert by
.
, ,

b ei ng wrough t up i nto a certain k i n d of frenzy

and irregular ecstasy ravi ng and speaking and ,

u tt e r i ng strange th i ngs and proclaiming what ,

was co n trary to the tradition and teaching that

had prevailed i n the Church T h i s state .
2

ment however i s from a hostile pen that o f

, , ,

Ap o ll i n ari u s Bishop of H ierapolis

,
T he P h ry .

gian m i nd was congenial and Montan u s soon ,

I r a Agai t He e i iii 1 8
en e u s, . ns r s es, . .

2E bi H 8 v 1 6
u se u s, . . . .
 Gn o sti cs , M o n tan i sts 55

found fo ll owers among them two wom e n

, ,

M ax i m i ll a and Prisci ll a who prophesied in a
,

k i nd of e c s t at i c frenzy out o f a l l reason i n , ,

a manner strange and nov e l I t w as in the .
I

beg i nn i ng a movement l ike ma n y Protestan t

r e vival s i n the C hurch I t has much in com .

mon both with t he ear l y h i story o f the Society

of F riends and with the begi nnings o f M ethod
ism . The fo l lowing account might a l most have
been written of M o n tan i s m z

The new Society was a co ll ective protes t

against t he presbyterian ( subst it ut e episcopa l )
system as i n e i ci e n t for p urposes of eva n ge l iza
tion F ox s earliest recorded convert w as a
.

e
midd l ag e d widow at Nottingham E l izabeth ,

H orton who became th e rst woman preacher o f

,

the Society H i s ad herents were soon number e d

.

by thousands ranters shakers seekers and , , ,

v i s i onar i es of a l l sorts who brought with them

,

an exuberant emotiona l piety and a mar

vel l o n s unres t ra i n t o f speech T he community .

e xh i b i ted th e signs menta l and physica l o f strong

, ,

religious enthusiasm .
2

R eaders o f D r Bigg s Un i ty i n D i ve rs i ty wi l l

.

remember h i s contrast between Mys t ica l Chris

t i an i t as exemp l ie d by S P au l and D iscip l inary
y .

Christianity as taught and practised by S P eter . .

Both e l ements must e x i s t side by side i n the

Church i f it is to be hea l thy Man has to be .

sober and vigi l ant as we ll as making melody i n

E bi H E v 6
u se u s, . . . 1 .

2
Art . o n G e o rge F o x , N B
. .
 Chu rch Hi sto ry ro m Ne r o Co n stan ti n e
5 6 f to

his heart There m ust be th e be l ief i n the living

.

power o f the Spiri t but its manifestation s must

,

be discip l ined and kept within the bounds o f

C atholic order Excess i n either directio n i s
.

bound t o provoke reaction I t is possib l e that .

w i th the disappearance o f the ear l y C hristian

prophets the C hur c h re l ied too m uch on i ts
regu l ar m i n i st e rs i ts sacraments its traditional
, ,

teaching and i ts apostolic Scripture s and to o

, ,

li t t l e o n th e direct inspiration o f th e Spirit .

H ence th e opening for Montani sm .

The movement spread i n Asia and from A s i a ,

to Thrace and the R hone val l ey I n A D 1 7 7 th e . . .

confessors o f Lyon s and Vi enne sent Irenaeus

with a letter against Montanis m to E l e u the ru s ,

Bishop o f R ome M ontanism probably reached

.

A fr i ca about the same time as Perpetua and h er ,

companion s (A D 2 0 3 ) were probably Montanists

. .
,

an d Tertullian certainly was by that ti me T hey .

were di f cu l t peop l e to contend w i t h a s the i r ,

pecu l iar tenets were supported by the i nfallible

pro nouncements of i nspired prophets M a x i .

milla is quoted by an op ) o n e n t as exclaiming

I am chased like a wo l ffrom the ock
,

I .

am no wolf I am utterance s piri t and p o w e r
.
I
, ,
.

I f th i s is at all characteristic they must have bee n

extravagant to s ay the l e ast Tertullian i t i s
, .
,

true den ies t hat the prophecies contain anyth i ng

,

out of harmony w i th aposto l ic trad i t i on bu t it i s ,

doubtful i f th i s safeguard co u nted for m uch i n

pract i ce .

E bi H E 6
u se u s, . . v . 1 .
 Gn o sti cs , M o n tan i sts 57

The three main ways i n wh i ch they di ffered

from Catholic usage were ( 1 ) in adding to the
fasts o f the C hurch and i nventing a new form of

abstinence called z e ro p hag y an abst i nen c e from
all except dry foods ; ( 2 ) i n di scountenancing
marriage and absolutely forbidding se c ond mar
ri a e s ;
g and (3) in disa l lowing abso l ution for
morta l sin after baptism I t i s on this account
.

that the new prophecies are rej ected ; not that

Montan us and Prisci ll a and M ax i m i ll a preach
another G o d nor that they separate Jesus Christ
,

from God nor that they overturn an y particular

,

rule o f fa i th o r hope but that they p l ainly teach

,

more frequent fast i ng than marrying T h ey .

c harg e u s w i th keeping fasts of o u r own ; w i th

prolonging o u r stations into the evening ; w i th
keeping our food unmoistened by any esh and
by any j uiciness o f an k i nd of succulen t fruit
i
al so w i th abstinence fi 0 m the bath suitable to ,

o u r dry diet .
1

Second marriage i s a kind of adultery I n any .

case celibacy i s preferable to the married state .

Let us see how di fferent a man feels himself

when he chances to be deprived of his wife H e .

savours o f the Spirit I f he i s praying h e i s near

.

heaven I f he is studyi ng the Scriptures h e i s

.

who l ly i n them I f he i s singing a psal m he

.

rej oices i n it I f he i s exorcising a demon he is

.

condent i n himse l f Marriage however was
.
2
, ,

not forbidden We do not rej e ct marriage but

.
,

2
T e rt .
, ou Fasti ng i
,
.

2
T e rt .
,
E x ho rtati on to Cha ti ty
s ,
x .
5 8 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

S imply refrai n from i t No r do we prescribe .

ce li ba c y as the ru l e but o nly recommend i t , ,

observi ng i t as a good yea eve n as the better ,

state .

T he most ser i ous po i n t of di fference was w i th

regard to discipli ne Th e C hurch was inc l ined to .

adopt the teaching of H ermas and a l low one

penance followed by absolution fo r post -baptis
, ,

mal s i n T he M ontani sts would admit n one

. .

This i s n ot to say that th e door of hO p e was to

be shut o n the S i n ner but that he was to be ,

left to the mercies o f God and n o t to b e restored

to com munion The C h urch should no t take the
.

responsibility o f ab s o lv i n man fo r o ffe n ces

which are to be re served o r God by who m th e ,

o ffences have bee n conde m ned withou t di scharge , ,

wh ic h not eve n Apostles o r mar tyrs have j udged

condonab l e .
1

Tertullian wou l d appare n t l y conne the powers

o fab s o l u ti o n to the M o ntanists I t i s to sp i ri tual .

men that th i s power w i ll appertain e i t her to an ,

Apostle o r else to a prophet The Chu rch .

will forg iv e s i n s but it will b e t he C hurch o f the

,

S p i r i t by means of a s piritual m an n o t th e ,

C hurch which c ons i sts of a number o f bishops 2 .

B ut t he C hurch will n ot use i ts power by

direction o f the Spirit As T er t u ll i an expresses .

it But you say t he C hurch has th e power

,

o f forgiving sin s T h i s I acknow l edge who

.
,

have the Parac l ete H i mse l f in t he person s of t h e

n e w prophets saying
,
The C h u rch has the power
I
T t O M d ty
er .
, Ib id i
n o es ,
22 .
2
. xx .
 Gn o sti cs, M o n tan i s ts 59

to forgive si n s ; but I wi ll not do it l est they ,

commit others withal .

I

I t did not fo ll ow that those who became Mon

t an i sts broke o ff comm union w i th the Church .

On the contrary it is p l ain that Perpetua and her

,

companions are i n fu ll com munion T h e y are .

ministered to by a deacon and have vision s o f ,

their bi shop O p tatu s There seems to ha v e

,
.

been no breach o f communion when Tertu ll ian

wrote hi s treat i se On the Vei li ng of Vi rg i n s .

After Tertullian they se e m to have disappeared

i n the W e st Cyprian ca l ls Tertu l lian the Master
.
,

which h e wou l d hardly have done i f h e ha d left

beh i nd an abiding schism I n the East M on .

tanist baptism s were disal lowed by the Co u nci l s

of Laodicea ci rca A D 3 6 7 and Constantinop l e
,
. .
, ,

A D
. .
3 8 1 . I n Phrygia th e y seem t o have b ee n
nally crushed by Justinian when the last r e m ,

nants gathered themselves w i th th ei r w iv es and ,

children i nto the church set re to the buildings

, , ,

and so peri shed .

I t is d i i cu l t to e st i mat e th e ultimate i nuence

and e ffect of the Montanists Professor Gw atki n .
2

would trace the decline o f p r e ach i ng after th e

ft h century to i ts being discredited through
their failure T h i s seem s to g i v e to o long an
.

i nter v a l between cause an d e ffect Montan i sm .

had passed i ts z e n i th by A D 2 5 0 As late as . . .

A D
. .
375 ,
which i s the earliest possib l e date fo r

the Apostolic Constitutions w e nd the sermon ,

2
T e rt , O n M odesty , x i
. .

2
E arly C
hu rch H i sto ry , ii .
94 .
60 Chu rch Hi sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

occupying a recogniz e d and i mportant place i n

the S unday Euchari st There i s i n fact l ittle
.
,

i f any evidence to show what the e ffect o f

,

M ontanism was We may however be fair l y

.
, ,

sur e that its tendency was to screw up the ascetic

discipline o f the C h urch an d give a great i m
,

p e tu s to a moveme n t a l ready begun i n the

direction of celibacy an d more stringent fasting .
 IV
SO M E C H R I STIA N W R ITE R S F R O M
CLE ME NT TO TE RTULLIA N

F the Chri stian writi ngs outside the Canon

o f the Ne w Testament wh i ch belong to the

rst c entury we have th e F i rst Ep i stle of Clem en t ,

a letter addres s ed to the C hur c h at Corinth prob

ab l y between A D 95 and A D 1 0 0 There had
. . . . .

been troub l e i n the Corin thian C hurch certain ,

presbyters had been d epos e d and the Church o f

,

R ome s e n t th i s l etter to prote st against the

abo minable and un holy sedition C lement s .

name is not mentioned but tradition has imputed

,

the authorship to h im Th e early episcopal li sts

. .

make h i m out to have been Bishop of R ome at

the end o f the rst century so the ascr i p t i on o f
,

authorship i s probably well fou nded T h e letter .

i s Paul ine i n style and devout in tone .

T h e Di dach o r Teaching o f the Twelve

,

Apostles was only discovered i n 1 8 7 5 th ough

, ,

there are several reference s to i t (o r some simi l ar

work) in early Christian literature .

I t consists o f two parts

.I

T he Two Ways a manual o f the pr i n
ci l e s of C hristian behaviour to be taught t
p o

catechumens .

6 1
62 Chu rch H i sto ry om Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

2 A series o f i nstructions on worshi p Baptism

.
, ,

fasti ng the Eucharist the treatm e n t of prop hets

, , ,

Apost l es and iti nerant Chri stia ns gen erally

,
.

I ts date i s u nc e rta i n i t may ve ry we l l b e a

l ater compilation from earlier documents The .

eth i c a l part the Two Ways i s found a l so i n
, ,

the Ep i stle of B arn ahas an d e l sewhere and i s prob ,

ably derived origi nally from Jewish sources Th e .

fDi dache i s probably the earliest o f the num erous

C h u rch Orders as they are cal led o r manuals
, ,

o f worship and morals wh i ch have c om e d own

, ,

and of wh ich some account will be given later .

Th e Ep i stle of E arn ahas as it i s called though

, ,

like the Epist l e o f Cl em ent anonym ous may ,

probably be attributed to the e nd o f the rst o r

th e beginning o f the second century I ts aim .

i s to S how that th e O l d Testamen t Scriptures

are t o be understood i n an al l egorical se n se .

For i n stance th e command not t o eat pork is

,

real ly a command no t t o consort w i th m en w ho

are like swine Law and prophets al ike not
.

only are fullled i n C hr i st but apparently were ,

never meant to ha v e any literal fu l lment except ,

so far as they are l iteral l y ful lled i n H im .

T h e writer evidently w i shed t o combat t he

argument that the ex Jewi sh ceremonial law i s
-

literally bi nding o n C hristian s The book co n .

e ludes with the Two Ways very much a s i n ,

the D i dache I t had great authority i n t he early

'

C hurch and was fo r som e time at any rate in

some circles accounted canonical Cleme nt o f .

Alexandria recko ned i t s o O r i gen referred to .

S o m e Chri sti an w ri te rs fro m Cl e m en t to Te rtu lli an 6 3

i t as a C atho l ic Epistle , and i t i s included in the

Co dex S i n ai ti cus among the books of the Ne w
Testament .

Papias Bishop o fH i erapo l i s a contemporary o f

, ,

Ignatius was reported by I renaeus to ha v e been

,

t he author o f a work i n ve books o f which on l y ,

a few fragments remain Eusebiu s says h e was .

very limited i n h i s comprehensio n as i s evi ,

de nt from his discourses but i f not a companion ,

o f the Apost l es he took troubl e to l earn from

,

those who had been .

I f I m e t w i th any o n e who had been a
follo wer of the e l ders an y w h e re l made i t a ,

po i n t to i n q u i re what w e re the d ec l arat i ons o f

the e l ders ? What was said by Andrew Peter , ,

and Phi l ip Wha t by Thomas James John , , ,

Matthew or any other of the disciples o f o u r

,

L o rd P What was sa i d by Ari s ti o n a nd the

'

pr sbyter J ohn discip l es o f the Lord

e 9
1
,

What would we not give now for the col l e e

tio ns of this unva l ued Boswe ll I Eusebius notes
here tha t there are two John s mentioned by

Papias the Apostle and the Presbyter So t ha t .

i t i s proved tha t the statement of those i s true

wh o assert that there were two of the same name
i n Asia and that there were two tombs i n
,

Ephesus and tha t both are cal l ed J ohn s even

,

to t h i s day .F rom wh ic h he conc l udes that
t he R eve l ation i f no t written by the Apost l e was
, ,

wr i tt e n by John t he P re sby t e r H e s e ems to have .

been a mil l ennarian be l ieving there would be a

,

E b i H E iii 3 9
u se u s, . . . .
64 Chu rch Hi sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

m illen nium after the R esurrectio n wh e n Chri st ,

wo u ld reign o n earth ; and E usebius says th i s

was the cause why most o f the eccle siastica l

writers were carried away by a similar opi nion .

Papias records on the authori ty o f John the

,

Presbyter that S Mark was the interpre ter o f

,
.

8 P et e r and
.
,
whatsoever he recorded h e wrote
w i th great accuracy but not i n the order i n wh i ch
,

i t was spoken o r done by our Lord for he n ei ther ,

heard nor followed the Lord ; but as before sa i d , ,

he was in company with P eter who gave hi m s u ch ,

i nstruction as was necessary but n ot t o give o u r ,

Lord s d i s c ourses arranged systematical l y

Of .

S Matthew s Gospel he wrote

.

M atthew wrote
his di s c o u rs e s in the H ebrew dialect and every ,

o n e translated it as he was ab l e H e quoted th e .

First Epist l e of S Joh n and that of Pete r

. .
1

Ignati us the Bishop o f A n ti och who was

, ,

martyr e d during the reign o f Traj an w as the ,

author o f several letters the n u mb e r and gen ,

u in en e ss o f wh i ch has been m uch disputed .

Eusebius says that he wrote seve n while travel

ling from A ntioch to R ome ; four from Smyrn a
to th e E phesians M ag n e s i an s Tra l lians and
, , ,

R omans and three from T roas to the Phila

,
~

d e l p hi an s S m y rn ae an s and Polycarp
, ,
B ut in .

the Western C hurch from the rst half o f

the n i nth century wh e n a L at i n ve rs i on rst
,

appeared the accepted edition contained s i x

,

additio nal l etters Archbi shop Ussher di scovered

.

the Greek manuscripts o f an edition con ta i n i ng

E b i H 8 iii 3 1
1
u se u s, . . . .
S o m e Chri sti an w ri te rs fro m Cl em e n t to Te rtu lli an 6 5

only th e seven mentioned by Eusebius H e was .

able t o prove that the S ix additiona l l etters were

forgeries and that the forger had also mad e
,

considerable additions to the seven gen uin e

l e tt e rs .Ther e the matter rested unti l 1 8 44 ,

when Canon Cureton publis hed a Syriac edition

containing three o f the seven letters only and ,

these i n an abbreviated form Bis hop Lightfoot .

has however shown to the satisfaction of the

, ,

maj ority o f c r i t ic s that the midd l e re s ce n s i o n

of Archbishop U ssher and n o t the abbreviated ,

edition o f Canon Cureton i s correct and that , ,

the add i t i ons of the l ong re s ce n s i o n were th e

work o f a fourth -c entury fo rge r .
I

Of these l etters those to the E ph e s i an s , ,

the M ag n e s i an s the Tra l lians and the Phi l a

, ,

d e l p hi an s were wri tten to acknow l edge deputa

tions consisting of the bishop and a deacon from
each of those Churches which had visited h i m
and brough t h i m messages o f comfort and greet
ing The l etter to the C hurch o f Smyrna i s an
.

acknowledgemen t of h i s stay ther e and so is ,

the letter to Polycarp .

Through all certai n preoccupations run l ike

threads o f a pattern .

I The n e ed o f unity Unity depends o n

I
. .

each Church cleaving to i ts bishop surrounded ,

by his pr e sbyters and deacons No other un i ty .

is possible .

Therefore i t i s neces sary that you should do
Th q e ti i di
u es d at l g th b y B i h p Li gh tf t
o n s scu sse en s o o o ,

A o o stoli c Fathe rs , vo l . i , p t . 2 .

K
66 Church Hi sto ry om Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

n othing w i th o u t the bishop but be a l so i n s u b ,

e cti o n to the presbytery as to the Apostl es o f

j ,

Je sus C hr i st o u r hope Likewi se let all

respect the deaco n s as Je su s C hrist even as th e ,

b i shop is also a type o f the Father and the ,

presbyters as the council o f Go d and the college

p f Apostles .

W ithout these there i s n o t even the na m e o f

C h u rch .
I

2 .Warnings against Docetists These h e r e t i cs .

taught that the su fferi ngs and in some cases ,

the life o f J esus C hrist were u nr e a l and only

, ,

an appear ance .

Be deaf therefore whe n any on e speaks
, ,

to y o u apart from J esus C hr i st Who was o f ,

the family o f David and o f M ary Wh o w as ,

tr uly born both ate and drank was truly per

, ,

s ce n ted under Pontius Pilate was truly cruci ed ,

an d died i n th e s i ght of those i n hea v e n an d on

earth and u n d er the earth W ho al so was truly
raised from the dead wh en His Father rai sed ,

H i m up as i n the sam e manner H is F ather shall

,

raise up i n J esus C hr i st us w ho believ e i n H i m

without w hom we h ave n o tr u e li fe But i f as
some a ffi rm who are without Go dthat i s are
.
,

un believers H i s su fferings were o nly a sem

b l ance ( but it i s they who ar e merely a sem
blance ) why am I a prisoner an d why d o I long
, ,

to ght w i th wild beasts ? I n that case I am

dyi ng i n v a i n Then indee d am I lying con
.
, ,

c e rn i ng the Lord .

T alli a iii 3 r n s, . .
S o m e Cit ri sti an w ri te r: om Cle m e n t to Te rtulli an 6 7

He also protests agai nst J udaizing tenden

cies which he may have associated with the
,

D ocetists .

H mphasizes throughout our Lord s

3 . e e

divinity F o r instance in h is l etter to the

.
,

Ephesian s he wrote

There is one Physician o f a nature at once ,

human and divine both born and wi thout birth , ,

God in man true l ife in death both o f Mary and

, ,

of God rst passib l e and then impassib l e Jesu s

, ,

C hrist our Lord 1
.

4 H.e is concerned fo r the fate of h is own

C h urch at Antioch and asks fo r the prayers o f ,

the Church to whom he wri te s requesting that , ,

i
deputation s may be sent to encourage and
strengthen them .

The outstanding feature o f C hristian literature ,

from Traj an t o Severus w as the apology And ,

.

for an obvious reason D uri ng the rs t part o f .

the period heresy did n ot attract very m uch

attention It may be there had n o t been much
.

time for i t to deve l op or perhaps the Church ,

was too ful l y occupied with dangers from with

out On the other hand the Empire was ruled
.
,

by a succession o f able emperors who had the ,

appearance at l east of relaxing the laws against

C hristianity They were men it was worth ?
.

whi l e to win and whom there was some hope

,

of winning I t was no u s e to addre ss apologie s i

.

to Ne ro or D omitian .

Lat er on at the end of the second century

, ,

Ep h i a vii es ns .
68 C/z u rc/z H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

th e apologies were addressed n o t s o m uch to

the emperor as to the heathen wor l d i n general .

Among the earliest apologists o f whom we

have any knowledge are Aristides and Q uadratus .

They both wrote i n Greek T he Apology of .

Ari stides h as only been discovered in compara

t i v e l y rece nt times He i s said by Eusebiu s
.

to have addr e ssed hi s work to H adrian P ro .

fe s s o r R endel H arris w ho di scovered a Syriac

,

version o f the Apology gives reasons fo r th in k

,

i ng that i t was presented to Antoni nus Pius

during an unrecorded visit of that emperor to
Smyrna and early i n his reign n o t m uch after
, ,

A D
. . I 38 I n the Apology Aristides i s ca l led
.

a philosopher Th ere are said to be four races

o f men Barbarians
.

Greeks Jews Christians

, , ,
.

Th e errors o f the rst three are descri bed and ,

the usual arguments brought forward agai n st

ido l atry and agai n st the heath en gods o n account
o f their immorality H e is particularly sarcastic
.

at the expense o f the Egyptians I n hi s state .

ment o f the C hristian Faith the rudiments o f

a creed can be di scovered

They know and believe i n Go d the Maker ,

o f heaven and earth ,

A n d i n Jesus C hrist Who is named the S o n

,

o f G o d W h o came down from heave n and from

, ,

a H ebrew Virgin clad Himse l f in esh

,
.

H e w as pierced by the J ews .

H e died and was buried .

After three days H e rose an d ascended to
heaven .
S o m e Chri sti an w ri te rs fro m Cl e m e n t to Te rtu l li an 6 9

He
is about to come to j udge .

We live i n expectation of the wor l d to
come .

The C hristians are said to reckon the beginning

of their re l igion from Jesus Christ W h o i s ,

named the Son o f G o d Most H igh ; th e Jews

from Abraham .

It is more than possib l e that Celsus had read

this Apo l ogy when h e made his attack on Christi
an i ty .
1

Q uadratusis quoted by Eusebius as havi ng

stated that some o f those upon whom o u r Lord

worked mirac l es remained l iving a long tim e ,

not on l y wh ilst our Lord was on earth but ,

l ikewise when H e had l eft th e earth S o that .

some of them also l ived to o u r own times .
2

But except the fragment i n Eusebius the work ,

has perished .

Justin Martyr wrote his Apologie s about A D . .

1 0
5 .H e was a P l atonist philosopher who b e

came a C hristian moved by their fortitude under

,

persecution F o r whilst I too was delighted
.
, ,

with the doctrines o f Plato and heard the C hris ,

tians calumniated but at the same time saw them ,

intrepid at the prospect o f death and other

terrors I reected that it was impossib l e they
,

shou l d l ive devoted to vice and vo l uptuousness .

F o r what l over o f pleasure o r l ibertine who

reckons the indu l gence of th e esh as the
suprem e good wou l d embrace death in order
1
S T t a d St di
ee l i
ex s Ed n A m i t ag R b i
u e s, vo . . . r e o n so n .

2
H 8 iv 3 . . . .
 7 o Clz urelz H i sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

to be deprived o f the obj ects of his o wn

desires 9 1

H i s pr i nc i pal extant works are

Th e F i rst Ap o logy addressed to the Emperor
Antoni nus .

The S eco n d p o logy apparently addres sed to

Antoni nus and Marcus Aure l i us .

T he D i alogue w i t/z Tryp lz o n t/z e Je w .

According to Eusebius h e was prosecuted ,

after his Second Apology at the i nstigation o f ,

Crescens the cynic philosopher whom he had

,

attacked Thi s attack was anticipated by J u s ti n

.

i n his Second Apology : I also expect to b e
waylaid by some o n e o f tho se wh o I have named ,

or to be put to th e rack even by Crescen s ,

himself that unphilosop hical and vainglorious

,
"
O ppo nent .
2

H i s martyrdom took place i n the reign o f

Marcus Aureli us .

Athenagoras before his conversion an Athenian

,

philosopher addressed an apology to Marcus

,

Aurelius in the year A D 1 7 7 H e i s said by . . .

Phili p o f Side to have been converted through

re adi ng the Scriptures with a view to their refuta

tion He also wrote a treatise o n the R esurrection

. .

1
Theophil us who becam e Bishop of Antioch in
,

A D
. .I 68 wrote a Defe nce o f C hristiani ty to a
,

heathe n acquaintance named Autolycus appar ,

ently as the result o f a conversation i n which

Theophilus had tried to exp l ain the C hristian
religi o n Afterwards he followed up his oral
.

S d ii e conI b i d iii
x . .
, .
S o m e Chri sti an w ri te rs fro m Cl e m e n t to Te rtul l i an 7 1

explanations with the written Apo l ogy which

has survived H e also wrote anti heretica l and
.
-

other wor k s which have perished .

Melito Bishop of Sardis wro te many works

, ,

of which on l y fragments have come down to u s ,

and among them an Apology addresse d to Marcus

Aure l ius H e i s described after h is death by
.

Pol ycrates of Ephesus as o n e of the great lights

i n Asia whose l ife was altogether under the
,

inue n ce o f the H o l y S p i rl t who now rests at ,

S ard i s
,
Iawaiting the episcopate from heaven ,

when he shal l rise from t he dead .

Among t he Apologi e s t he Octav i us of M i n u ci u s

Felix must be mention e d L actan t i u s makes the .

following allusion to its author

And i f by chance any o f the learned have
made a special study o f Christian truth they ,

have been unequal to i ts defence o f it Of those .

with wh o se writings I am acquainted M i n u ci u s ,

F elix was a distinguished lawyer H i s book .

,

ca ll ed Octav i us s hows that he might have been a

,

competent defender of the truth i f he had con ,

ce n trat e d him self on the subj ect Jerome also .
2

al l udes to him as an advocate and a man of

learning H e was a Latin possibly an African
.
,

Latin wh o practised at Rome H i s Apo l ogy takes

,
.

the form o f a dialogue between two friends o n e ,

a C hristian the other a h e athen while M i n u ci u s

, ,

himself acts as umpire I t is C iceronian in style .

,

and fu ll of classica l al l usions composed by a l

,

scholar for scho l ars This may account fo r the .

l
E bi H 8 v u se I t Di
u s, v
. . .
2
ns . v . .
7 2 Clz u rc/z H i sto ry om Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

line the argument takes I t does not mention .

C hrist hardly quotes from the Scriptures and

, ,

leave s on o n e side the more characteristic C hris

tian doctrines I t meets the ed u cated heathen
.

o n h is o w n ground points o u t the weakne ss o f

,

hi s o s i ti o n and shows that C hristianity has o n

a
the fce o f i t a clai m to the serious c o nsideration
,

o f righ t thinking men

- .

I ts date i s u ncertain I t has poi nts o f re s e m b

.

lance with the Apology o f Tertullian writte n ,

A D
. . 1
97 and,
the question is D id T ert u llian ,

borrow from M i n u ci u s o r M i n u ci u s from T er ,

t ullian I t seem s unli kely that T ertullian shoul d

?

have been a borrower i n a case like this and , ,

pendi ng further evide nce it seems best to date i t ,

.

betwee n the accession of Caracalla A D 2 1 7 and ,

. .

A D
. . 24 9
.

Among writers who were n o t Apologists

H ermas wrote an ap o cal y p se called s Skep
lt e rd n o t later than the year A D 1 4 8 Th e . . .

M uratorian fragment contests its claim to be

canonical Scripture which some had asserted, ,

and states that it w as written quite rece ntly
i n our ti me i n th e city o f R ome while h is brother ,

P ius was sitting o n the stool o f the ch urc h o f th e

C ity o f R ome P ius was Pope A D 1 4 5 s o that
. . .
,

presumably l e Slz ep lz erd was written i n R om e

about that time though some think it w as
,

wri tte n at i ntervals during th e twenty o r thirty

years before I re naeus reckons it as Scripture

.
,

but Tertullian state s that the C hurch had d e

n i te l decided again st i ts cano nicity
y .
S o m e Chri sti an w ri te rs fro m Cl e m en t to Te rtulli an 7 3

Th e book consists of three parts

.I Vi sions .

I I Mandates
. .

I l I Simi l itudes or Parables

. .

The obj ect of the book i s to show that ,

contrary to an opinion common l y he l d re ,

p e n tan ce was possib l e for sin committed after

baptism though on l y once
,
A ll the sins .

which they have former l y comm itted and a ll ,

the si ns o f the saints which they hav e com

m i tt e d against the day sha ll be forgiven them ,

if they repent whole -heartedly and p u t aside

duplicity from their heart But if they sha ll .

sti ll s i n after this day has been xed they sha l l

"
nd no s al v ati o n .
I

The Mandates are instructions on C hristian

ethics and are i nteresting as showing the idea l
,

o f the C hristian life as held in the second century .

The Simi l itudes or Parab l es are sermons given in

an a l legorica l form .

Among other writers whose works have

perished o r of which only a few fragments
,

remain pr e served by Eusebius H e g e s i pp u s ,

2

must be mentioned H e wrote v e books of .

Hyp o m n em ata or Notes con taining

,

the p l ain
,

tradition of the Aposto l ic doctrine apparent l y ,

directed against th e G nostics H e lived i n .

Palestine but came to R om e when Anicetus

,

was bishop H i s i nterest i s due to the impor

.

tance he attaches to the succession o f bishops in

each Church as a guarante e again st heresy for ,

i ii H 8 iv
v s . . 2 .
2
. . . 22 .
74 Church H i sto ty f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

which he rst employs the term

ai ado che, o r
succe ssion H e wrote about A D I 7 5
. . . .

I re naeu s w as a native o f Asia and as a young ,

man was a disciple o f Polycarp ; he w as born ,

therefore probably n o t later than A D I 3 5 H e

,
. . .

left Smy rna at P o ly carp s death and i s n ext

heard o f at Lyons as a presbyter i n the C hurch

there at th e tim e o f the great ) e rs e cu ti o n A D
Later o n h e apolog ize s f
. .
,

I 77 . t " the com pa ra

tive rustici ty o f his style o n the grou nd that ,

I am resident among the Ce l tae and accus ,

t o m e d fo r the most part to use a barbarou s

dialect . At Lyons he w as a presbyter u nder
Pothinus who died in A D 1 7 7 at th e age o f
,
. .

ni nety and was th us lin ked with th e Apostles

,
.

I re naeus succeeded and seem s to have died i n

,

peace twen ty years later Jerome says he was.

martyred bu t neither Eusebius nor Tertullian

,

make mention of any martyrdom Hi s great .

work was his R efu tati o n of Kn o w ledge false ly so

cal le d com monly cited as Ag ai n st He re si e s wh ich
, ,

was directed agai n st the Valentinian school o f

Gnostici sm and i s o n e o f th e pri ncipal sources
,

o f o u r knowledge o f their tenets .

One o f h is arguments has a s pecial i nterest

t o day
- . T he Gnostics maintained that the
Apostles had a secre t doctrine which was n o t
delivered to the C hurch of which they the
Gnostics were the depositaries I r enaeus .

retorts with an argumen t drawn from the

succession o f th e bishops I f the Apost l es
.
,

he says had this secret doctrin e they would

,
S o m e Chri sti an w ri te rs fro m Cle m en t to Te rtulli an 7 5

have imparted it to th ose whom they were
l eaving behind as their successors de l ivering ,

up their own p l ace of governmen t to those to

whom they were committi n g the care of the
C hurches and they in turn wou l d have handed
,

it on to others H e takes . the very great ,

the very ancient and universal ly known C hurch

-

of R ome for an example I t had been founded .

by the Apost l es S Peter and S Pau l and com

. .
,

m i tte d to the care of Lin us after Linus Anan ,

c l et u s and so o n down to hi s own day .

T E RT U L L I A N
The greatest o f the ante -Nicene wri ters was
perhaps Q uintus S e pti m i u s Florens T e r t u ll i an u s ,

commonly known as Tertu l lian w h o is thus ,

described by Jerome in hi s work D e Vi ri s

i ll ustri hus : -
Tertu l lian a presbyter the rst
, ,

Latin writer after Victor and Apo ll oni us was ,

a native of the province o f Africa and city of

Carthage the son o f a proconsular centurion
,
.

H e was a man of sharp an d vehemen t temper ,

ourished under Severus and Antoninus Cara

calla (A D I 1 3
. . and wrote n umerous works .

I saw at C oncordia in I tal y an o l d man , ,

named Pau l us H e said that when young he

.

had met with an aged amanuensis o f the blessed

Cyprian , w ho to l d him that Cyprian never
passed a day without reading some portion o f
T e rtu ll i an s works and used frequently to say

Give me my master meaning Tertu ll ian

,

.
7 6 Chu rch H i s to ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n s tan ti n e

After remai ni ng a presbyter o f the C hurch un ti l

h e had attained middle life Tertu l lian was drive n ,

by the envy and co n tume l ious treatmen t o f th e

R oman clergy to embrace the opinion s o f M o n
tanus whic h h e has mentioned i n several o f h i s
,

works under the title o f The Ne w Prophecy .

H e i s re ported to have lived to a very

advanced age and to h ave composed many other
,

work s which are not extan t H e was born .
1

probab l y not later than A D I 5 5 and was brough t . .

,

up as a heathe n and ed ucated as a lawyer in ,

which professio n h e acquired an accurate know
ledge o f Roman law noteworthy among th e

e mi nen t me n i n R ome He may have been .
2

the great lawyer T e rt u l l i an u s mentioned i n t he ,

Co tgo us but this i s only a guess

, .

The date o f his conversion i s un known b u t ,

it was probably about A D I 95 Afterwards h e . . .

became a presbyter Some time before A D 2 0 7 . . .

,

the date o f the late st form o f hi s treatise again st

Marcion he became a Montanist an d s u b s e
, ,

quently seceded from the C h urch T h ere i s n o .

record that he was ever a martyr .

H e h ad a ery and passionate te mperame n t ,

an a l most unequalled command o f i nvective an d

sarcasm and a wonderful talent o f putti ng hi s
,

oppon e nt s case with an air of reali ty and the n
covering i t with opprobrium and ridicu l e What .

ever made h i m turn to Christiani ty sen t h i m over

with considerable i mpetus He recoi l ed from .

S I
I t d t i t T t ll i a A N C L
ee n ro uc o n o er u n, . . . .

E 2
b i H 8 ii
u se u s, . . . 2 .
S o m e Chri sti an w ri te rs fro m Cl e m e n t to Te rtu ll i an 7 7

heathenism with a bound H i s active mind took .

in the doctrines of C hristianity but without ,

imbibing very deep l y the spirit of Christ H i s .

hot African temperame n t cou l d not brook ha l f

m easures H e had no gent l eness cou l d n o t
.
,

make a ll owanc e for weakne ss and was as hard ,

on the fai l ings o f the sinner as o n the arguments

of an O pponent I n private l ife he may have
.

been the most amiable o f m en but in his writings ,

he has no charity Of thi s weakn ess he seem s

.

to have been aware himself I n his treatise on .

Patience he apo l ogize s for having dared to co m

pose a treatise on Patien ce for practising which ,

he i s quite unt . So I most m iserab l e ever ,

sick with the heats o f im patience must o f n e ce s ,

sit
y sigh after and pray and persistently p l ead

for that hea l th of patience which I possess n o t .
1

I n controversy his tone was o ffensive i n more

senses than one H e was aggressive an d p ro
.

vocative and did n o t disdain the coarsest person

,

al i t i e s
. This is ho w he begin s his polemic against
Marcion

The Euxine Sea as it i s called i s self
, ,

contradictory in i ts nature and deceptive in i ts

name As you would not account it hos i tab l e
.

from its situation s o it has separated i t s e l from

,

o u r more civilized waters by a certai n shame at

its o w n barbarou s character Th e ercest nation s .

inhabit it if it can b e ca l led habitation where life

,

is passed i n waggon s They have n o xed abode

.
,

their l ife is coarse their l ust promiscuous an d

,

O P ati
2
i n en ce , .
7 8 Chu rch H i sto ry from Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

shameless They kill an d eat th eir paren ts at

.

their feasts Those who have n o t died s o as to

.

becom e food fo r others are thought to have died

a n accursed death Their women carry battle
.

axes and prefer warfare to marriage Their .

climate i s always bad The day i s never clear

.
,

the s u n never cheerful the sky i s always cloudy ;

the whole year i s wi ntry the only wind that blows
,

i s th e north All things are torpid and sti ff with

.

cold Noth ing has the g l ow o f l ife Nothing

. .
,

however i n P ontu s i s s o barbaro u s and s ad as

,

t he fact that Marcion was born there fouler than ,

any Scythian
He addressed a vigorous apology (A D 1 97 ) . .

to the R oman Senate protesting again st the

,

i nj ustice that u nlike other o ffenders C hri stians

, ,

were punished not fo r crime s but for their nam e .

H e sco ffs at the rule that Chri stians are n o t to be

hunted o u t but m ust be condemned if arrested .

I f y o u do n o t i nquire why do y o u not absolve

,

Military posts are di strib uted through all the

provi nces fo r tracking robbers Th e C hri stian .

alone m ust n o t be tracked bu t m ay be charged ,
.
1

Hi s tone throughout i s deant and provocative .

Li ke other apologists he pours scorn o n the

i mm oralities o f the pagan gods but goes further , ,

and threaten s hi s persecutors with the res o f the

Day o f Judgement and h urls at th em pro phecies
o f th e triumph o f the C hurch Persecution i s .

u seless . We conquer i n dying ; we g o forth

victorious at the momen t we are s ubdued Call .

Ap l ii o . .
S o m e Chri sti an w ri te rs fro m Cle m e n t to Te rtul li an 7 9

u s, if you l ike S arm e n ti cii and S e m ax i i because

, ,

bound to a half-axle stake we are burn ed i n

a circle of faggots This is the attitude in which
.

we conquer ; i t i s for us a robe o f victory and

tri umpha l car . The oftener we are thrown
down by you the more in number we grow the
,

b l ood of the C hristian i s seed .
1

I n his atti tude to C hristianity he i s a P uritan ,

i f we dene a Puritan as the man who carries to

extremes the princip l e of renunciation R enu n .

ci at i o n i s an essential principle of C hristianity .

The Christian has to renounce sin and the

occasions o f s i n but he has also to live i n the
,

body and in a wor l d in which good and evil are

a l mos t inextricably ming l ed We cannot avoid .

all possible occasion s o f s i n as S Paul saw unless ,

.
,

we go out o f the world altogether Th e Puritan .

is th e man who at the dictates o f logic or a ,

scrupulous conscience o r a morose temper , ,

carries th e renunciation o f the occasions o f sin

to extreme length s and sometimes at the expense
,

o f charity and human ity The Puritan of the

.

seventeenth century banned music dancing and , ,

the most harmless amusements because they

sometimes l ed to si n Tertu ll ian wou l d separate
.

the C hristian as far as possib l e from al l con

tact with idolatry and from a l l secu l ar pleasures
and amusements and r e duce eating and drinking
,

to the barest minimum necessary to support

life H e sometimes reminds us o f Macaulay s
.

P u ri tan w ho obj ected to bear -baiting n o t because

, ,

Ap l i i 5 o . . 0.
 80 Chu rch Hi sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

it gave pai n t o the bear but because it gave ,

p l easure to the spectators The ascetic renounces

.

I
the pleasure s o f li fe for himself because h e fe e ls
God has called him to this kind of life The .

Puritan would deprive others as wel l by maki ng

i t a rule for a l l The attraction Tertullian found
.

i n M ontanism lay perhaps not s o much i n i ts do c

tri nes o f the Ne w Proph e cy as i n its Puritanism .

For Tertu l lian l ife in the world is at best an

evil I n his letter to the confessors i n pri son h e
.

congratulates them o n their i ncarceration You .

have gon e o u t of a p ri son rather than in to o n e .

Y o u have no occasio n to look o n strange gods ;

o u do not run agains t their i mage s ; o u have
y y
no part i n heathe n holidays even by bodily
mingl i ng i n the m ; you are not annoye d by
t he foul fume s o f idolatrous solem nities ; y o u
are n o t pai ned by the noi se o f the public shows ,

n o r by the atrocity o r mad ness o r i m modesty o f

their celebrants yo ur eyes do n o t fall o n

brothels ; y o u are free from causes o f o ffence ,

from temptations from un holy reminiscences
,
.
I

T he ruthlessness o f hi s logic recalls Law s

S e ri o us Call. C hristian s may at any moment be

called to face the prison and th e torture chamber
-

therefore their whole life i s to be a course o f

train i ng for martyrdom This i s o n e o f hi s argu
.

m ents for fasting

That a C hristian may e n ter prison i n like

condition as if he had j ust come o u t o f it ; to

s u ffer there not penalty but discip l ine and n o t ,

T th M a ty e ii

o e r r s, .
S o m e Chri st i an w ri te rs fro m Cle m e n t to Te rtu lli an 8 I

the world s tortures but his o wn habitual o b s e rv

a u ces ; and to go forth out of custody to the

conict with a ll the more condence havi ng ,

nothing o f the esh about h im s o that the ,

tortures may not have even material to work o n ,

si nce he i s cuirassed i n a mere dry skin and cased

i n hor n to meet the claws the succulence of his
,

blood already sent on before him the advance

,

luggage so to speak of hi s soul the soul itse l f

, ,

now hastening after i t havi ng a l ready by frequent

,

fasting gained a most intimate knowle dge o f

d e at h .
I

H e w as very sensitive o n the subj ect o f women s

dress and wrote a treatise about it as he disliked

, ,

i ntensely any unnecessary adorn ment It w as .

probably to warn the frivo l ous o f th e awful

realitie s they might have to face at any moment
that he argued against such adornment o n the ,

ground that it u n tte d the wearer for martyrdom .

Whether that be s o o r not it helps us to under

,

stand the grim background o f the stage on which

the Christian life was set and to sympathize with
,

the i mpatience of s o ery a writer Th i s is what .

he says

I know not wheth er the w rl s t that h as been
wont to be surrounded with the palm -leaf like a ,

bracelet will e ndure ti l l it grow into the n u m b

,

hard ness of i t s own chain I know n o t whether

.

the l eg that has rej oiced in the anklet will su ffer

itself to be squeezed i nto the gyve I fear the .

neck beset with ropes o f pearl and emera l d will

I
On Fasti ng , xii .

M
82 Chu rch Hi sto ry f ro m Nero to Co n stan ti n e

give n o roo m to the broadsword Wherefore .

,

blessed sisters let us meditate o n hardship s

, ,

and we shall not feel them Let us abandon .

pleasures and we shall n o t regret them Let

,
.

us stand ready to endure every violence h aving ,

nothing which we m ay fear to lose Th ese .

are the drags o n o u r hope Let u s cast away .

earthly ornament ; we desire heavenly Love .

n o t gold But C hristia n s always and n o w more

.
,

than ever pass their time n o t in gold but i n

,

iron ; th e stoles o f m artyrdom are n o w prepar

ing ; the angels who are to carry u s o n high are
ready D o y o u go forth to mee t th em a l ready
.

arrayed i n the cosmetic s and ornaments o f p ro

h e ts and Apostles drawing your whiteness ( ro m
p ,

simplicity your ruddy h ue from modesty pai nt

, ,

i ng your eyes with bashfuln ess and your mouth ,

wi th silence i mplanting in your ears th e Word

,

o f G o d tting o n your neck the yoke o f C hrist

,

Submit your head to your h usband and y o u will ,

be e nough adorned B usy your hands with spi n

.

ning keep your feet at hom e and you will ple ase
, ,

bette r than by carrying your silver an d gold .

Clothe yo urselves with the silk o f uprightness ,

the n e l inen o f h oliness the purple o f modesty ,

.

T h u s painted y o u will have G o d as yo ur l o v e r .
I

Though h i m self married he disliked marriage ,

as a state fo r C hristian s and second m arriage s ,

were to h i m anathema .

H is attitude to mi l itary service and public o f ce

has been dealt with elsewhere He wrote a tract .

O W me D e iii
n o n s r ss, x .
S o m e Chri sti an w ri te rs fro m Clem e n t to Tertulli an 8 3

to prove that ight in time o f persecution w as

unlawful for a C hristian Persecution i s the sift
.

ing and j udging o f God Therefore we must .

abide i t With the Montanists h e would a ll ow

.

n o reconciliation for those who committed morta l

si n after baptism On o n e point h e is il l ogical
. .

Laymen may baptize for what i s equa ll y

,

received may be equal l y given But women .

may not .

Tertullian is perhaps the only ante Nicene

,
-
,

C hristian writer who can be read with j l easure

for h is own sake waiving a l l questions o fe di ca
,

tion o r historic i nterest He i s the rst great .

Puritan writer and is the precursor of M ilton

, ,

John Bunyan and William Law if the great non

, ,

j uror may be ca l led a Puritan H i s Latinity i s .

anything but c l assical but h e i s a great writer o f

,

prose though not perhaps o f Latin prose

,
.
 V

TH E C H U R C H A ND TH E W O R LD

T
H EY ( the early C hri stians ) are regard e d
rightly as en emies o f th e h uman race I f .

i t i s po ss ible to endorse any j udgement o f th e

past we may endorse th is o n e o f the authoritie s

o f the R oman E m pire .
1

Th is i s a strong statement I t i s worth while .

t o examine its tru th Were the C hri stian s o f

.

the rst days really the enem ie s o f society s o ,

that society was j ustied i n trying to rid itse l f o f

them o r are we rather to blame a corrupt socie ty
,

wh ich refused t o admi t the regenerating i nuence

as long as it could
T o many o f the usages o f society the C hurch
was u ndoubtedly hostile I ts attitude toward s
.

marriage towards e ntertai nments and most social

,

and convivial custo ms was bound to bring it ,

i nto conict with society as has already been ,

explai n ed Bu t that was to break down i n order

.

to rebuild o n surer foundations I t obj ected to .

marriage with a pagan because i t felt that in such

union th e ideals o f a C hristian marriage w o uld be
unobtai nabl e H usband and wife wou l d n o t
.

devote th em selves t o the C hri stian trai ning o f

2
F C C y b a m m t f Ea ly Ch i ti a i ty p 8 7
. . o n e re , on u en s o r r s n , . 2 .

84
 The Chu rch an d the Wo rld 85

their chi l dr e n or the organizi ng of th eir hous e

,

ho l d o n C hristian l ines There could b e n o true

.

happiness So with entertainmen ts and convivi

.

al i t i e s which wer e intermixed with idolatry

,
.

What we want to kno w i s not D i d the ,

C h urch encourage Christian young women to

break their engagements with young pagans and ,

C hristians in genera l t o stop away from heathen

festivities bu t D i d the C hurch forbid C hris
?
,

tians to marry to take part in socia l festivities as

,

such to earn their dai l y bread to obey the l aws

, , ,

and if necessary help execute them to serv e ,

when re u i re d as so l diers or magistrates t o be ,

good a e cti o n ate fathers mothers h us bands

, , ,

wives sisters brothers 3 Were they in a word

, , , ,

anti -social
F A M I LY L I F E
What was their attitude to wards marriage and
fami l y ties ? T o quote again from M r C ony .

beare There was rst that rej ection of fami l y
ties and re l ationships which accompanied the
belief that th e world w as speedily and any day
coming to an end Young men and maiden s
.

were taught not to marry husbands wives not to

, ,

cohabit and beget any more chi l dren Eunuch .

ism because o f the kingdom of heaven w as even

, ,

tolerated by the very founder o f the re l igion .

We nd l itt l e support for thi s view i n the

Ne w Testament D ivorce i s forbidden marriage
.
,

is regarded as a God made union Ce l ibacy fo r

- .

tho s e w ho can re ce i v e i t is regarded as the idea l if

86 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

purs ued for the sake of the kingdom o f o u r

Lord B ut S Paul wrote
. I f y o u marry y o u
.
,

have n o t si nned The Apostles have power to
.

lead about wives The presbyter b i s ho p s and the

- .
,
I

deacon s are each to be the husband o f on e wife .

Th e younger wom en are ordered to marry and ,

bear children And at the e nd o f th e Apostolic

.
,

period as though feari ng that certain passages i n

,

the Gospel s might be in terpreted as unduly

exalting celibacy the author o f the fourth Gospel
,

makes the miracle at the wedding i n Cana o f

Galilee o u r Lord s b egi n n i ng of s ig n s which could

hardly have been uni n tentional on the part o f

the writer .

Po l ycarp tells the Philippians to te ach t he i r w ives

to walk i n the faith given to th em and in l ove and ,

purity an d te nderly to love their o w n h usban ds

, .

Again I gnatiu s i n his letter to Polyc arp has a

,

passage o n the dutie s o f husband s and wives

Speak to my sisters that th ey love th e Lor d ,

and be conten t wi th their husbands both in the

esh and i n the spirit I n l ike mann er also .

exhort my breth ren i n the Name of J esus C hrist , ,

that they love their wive s even as the Lord th e ,

C hurch I f any o n e can contin u e in a state o f

.

puri ty to the ho nour o f H i m Who is Lord o f

the esh let h i m so remain without boasting I f
,
.

he boas t he is l ost .
2

2
It is assu m e d t h at S . Pa l
u u se s
p re s by t er an d
ho p bi s as
s
y no n
y m o u s t e rm s, an d t he n am e p re s b y t e r- shobi
p r efe rs to
c as
t h e se o f il .

to P o ly carp , iv .
 The Chu rch an d the Wo rld 87

The P asto r f
o H
perhaps the most popu l ar
e rm as,

homiletic work i n t he C hurch during t he second

and third centuries has a disquisition o n the ,

C ommandments As els e where there are stri ct

.
,

warnings again st adultery and impurity of a ll

kinds and the r e m arriage of divorced person s
,

i s forbidden A second marriage after the death

.

of husband or wife is a l lowed There is no .

s in i n marrying again but i f they remai n u n ,

married they gai n greater honour and glory

with t he Lord ; but if they marry they do

n ot sin .
1

J ustin Martyr condem ned the heathen practice

of exposi n g i n fants and though he extols th e ,

virtue of complete chastity has not a word to say

agains t marriage But if we marr ) it is only .
,

that we may bring u p chi l dren o r i f we declin e

"
marriage we live continent l y .
2

Athenagoras wrote to the same e ffect

Each of u s reckons her hi s wife whom he
has m arried according to the l aws laid down by
us and that on l y for the purpose o f havi n g
,

chi l dren Nay y o u woul d nd many among u s

.
, ,

both men and women growing o l d unmarried i n ,

the hope o f l iving i n closer communion with

God 3 .

Like J usti n he regarded the remarriage o f

,

d ivorced persons as adultery and go e s s o far ,

as to cond e mn al l second marriages regarding ,

a widower who marries again as a cloaked

adu l terer .

1
Bk ii Fi t Ap l i
. . Ap l i ii2
rs o . xx x .
3 o . xxx .
88 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

I t may be obj ected that th e early C hurch was

mistaken i n its i d e a l o r at least over -emphasiz e d
,

it and was th us a weakness to the State when the

,

State bad l y n e eded children .

B ut it m u st be remembered that i n such a

time o f licen se the m oral force o f the examp l e of
the me n and wo men living absolute l y chaste lives
was needed m ore than a nything e l se Licentious .

ness and self i ndulgence deprived the State o f

-

ch i l dren n o t th e celibacy of a few m en T er

,
.

tullian l aid down the lawfu l ness o f marriage .

I t is good though celibacy i s better I t is true

,
.

that h e says Why shou l d we be eager t o bear

,

childre n but he i s writing a treatise t o persuade

his wife n o t to marry again o n hi s death and he ,

i s probably biassed .

The C hurch fro m the rs t took the stronge st

li ne agai n st the existing practices o f exposi ng
infants and o f procuring abortion .

Th e most touch ing proof t hat t he m artyrs

were not erce fanatics wh o hated their o w n
esh an d despised human ties i s found in th e
record o f the martyrdom o f S Perpetua S Per . . .

petua was the mother of a babe from wh ich ,

s he was separated when put i n pri son Whe n .

the babe was restored she says ,
the prison

became a palace to me .

M ixed marriages were di scouraged by S Paul .

,

and afterwards T ertullian has s hown i ii wh at

a di i c u l t position such marriages p l aced th e
wife .

I f a station is to be kept the h usband mak e s

,
 The Chu rch an d the Wo rld 89

an appointment with his wi fe to meet him at the

baths ; if there are fasts to be observed the ,

husband that same day gives a din ner ; i f a

procession has to be made never is family bu si ,

ness more urgent F o r who wou l d su f

. fer hi s
wife for the sake o f resisting the h e athen to
, ,

g o round from street to street to other m en s

houses and i nde e d to a l l the poorer cottages ?

, , ,

Who wi ll without suspicion dismiss her to

, ,

attend the Lord s Supper which they al l defam e ?

Who wi l l su ffe r her to creep into prison to kiss

the martyrs bonds
? To bring water to wash
the feet of the holy ones ? To save something
for them from her food or h e r c up ? If a
brother arrives from abroad what hospital ity i s ,

there for h i m ? I f bounty is to be distributed ,

the store room s are c l osed

- Shal l you e scape
.

notice whe n you sign your bed or your body ?

When every night you rise to pray will he ,

n o t think you are working some magic ? Wi ll

not your husband kno w what it i s wh ich y o u
secretly taste before taking any food ? and if
he knows it to be bread wi l l he not believe it i s
that which i t i s said to b e

The handmaid o f God dwel l s i n an a l ie n
atmosphere an d on a ll the festivals o f demons o f
, ,

ki ngs at the beginni ng of the year and month ,

s he will be disturbed by t he sme ll of incense .

She wi ll have to l eave her hous e by a gate

wreathed with l aure l and hung with lanterns in
, ,

order to sit with h er husband at c l ub meetings

and taverns and s he who was once accustome d
,
9 0 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

to minis ter to her husband i n good th ings will

n o w d o so i n evil things .
1

B U S I N ESS
Again what was the attitude of C hristian s
,

towards the work o f the world ? I s there any

fou ndation for the picture that i s sometimes
pain ted o f th e C hurch as a comm unistic society ,

and those who j oined i t handed over to the co n

trol o f i ts o f cers whatever private means they
,

possessed ?2
I t seem s to have been so at J eru
sal e m but e ven t here only partia ll y Ananias
,
.

was plainly a free agent But the example o f .

J e ru s ale m was n o t apparently en couraging S Paul . .

is urgent against th e si n of cove tousness The rich .

are urged to distri bute alms an d the idle to work ,

.

I f a man will n o t work neither let him eat ,
.

Every sentence i n the patri stic writin gs t o the

e ffect that Ch ristians have n o private property
need not be taken l iterally They are rather .

rhe torical expressions showing the extreme c l aim s,

w hich the love o f neighbours created T e rtul l ian .

wrote i n hi s Apology All things are co mm on
,

among u s except o u r w i ves but i n hi s letter to

hi s wife al l udes to th e ma k i ng of wills as commo n
a mong C hristians and i mplied that h e had m ade
,

o n e h imself We who formerly valued above
.

all things o u r wealth and possession s n o w bring ,

what we have i nto a comm on stock and co m ,

T t lli a t hi l l if i i 4- 6
er u n o s
/
e, . .

2
F C C o n y b e are , M o n u m en ts (y 8 arly
. .
Chri sti an i ty , p . 2 85 .
 The Chu rch an d the Wo rld 9 I

to every one in ne e d
m u n i cat e Simi l ar expres .
1

sions abound in Justin s works but they do not

prevent him from praising the honesty with

which C hristians transacted b usi ness I ndeed .
,

he c l aims that many pagans were won over to

C hristianity by the extraordinary forbearance
they have observed i n their fel l ow trave ll ers
wh e n defrauded and by the honesty of those
,

with whom they have transacted business .
2

Thi s certainly points to the fact that C hristians

carried on business l ike other fo l k even thou gh ,

more honestly The wealthy among us help
.

the needy .The frequent exhortation s to alms
giving we meet with and the warnings against ,

covetousness are proof enough if proof were

, ,

needed that C hri stians he l d property and

,

engaged i n business l ike other peop l e I n The .

Tasto r of H e r mas the rich and the poor are said

to be necessary for o n e another The rich .

man has much wea l th but i s poor in matters ,

re l ating to the Lord because he i s distracted,

about his riches ; and he o ffers very few co n fe s

sion s and intercessions to the Lord and those ,

wh ich he does o ffer are small and weak But .

when the rich man refreshes th e poor and assists ,

hi m in his necessities then the rich man helps ,

the poor and the poor man being he l ped of the

,

rich i ntercedes fo r him giving thanks to Go d for ,

hi m who has be stowed gifts upon him Both .

accordingly accomplish their work Th e poor .

man makes intercession and the rich man bestows ,

J t i Fi
us t ni ,
I b i
rsd 1 6 x v.
2
.
, .
92 Chu rch Hi sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

upon th e poor man the riches which he h as

received from the Lord Blessed are they
.

wh o have riches and who understand that they

,

are from the Lord .

I t is true that part o f the busine ss of li fe was

forbidden to the C hristians as being concern ed
with idol s M any converts to the F aith were
.

makers o f idols o r their adj uncts I t was appar .

e nt l y clai med that s u ch m ight be admitted I .

make but I worship n o t Th e claim is utterly .

rej ected by Tertul l ian H e will n o t admit the

.

plea We m ust live H e argue s rst o f all
.

that faith fears n o t famine Further that .
,

th ose w ho make idols o r pai n t and gild them , ,

o r furn ish paint o r gold -leaf o r build temples , ,

can divert their la b o ur to si milar arts harmlessly

em ployed . H o w much more easily does h e
w ho deli neate s a statue overlay a sideboard ?

H o w much sooner does h e who carves a M ars

out o f a l ime -tree fast e n together a chest "

I ndeed Tertullian labo urs at some length to

,

s how the many ways in which Christia n s mi ht

earn a l i v i n g T he only trades absol utely E
.
I
sr

bidden to C hristian converts are those de nitely

bound up with i mm orality idolatry the games and , ,

s hows o f the circus and the theat re and necro ,

mancy . T ertullian i n a well-known passage

, ,

claimed that Chri stian s share the busin ess o f life .

We are n o t I ndian Brah min s o r Gy m n o
sophists who dwell i n woods and exile them selve s
from ordi nary human life we are careful to gi ve
2
On I doh try .
 The Chu rch an d the Wo rld 93
thanks to God our Creator and we rej ect n o ,

creation of H i s hands though we e xercise a

,

restraint upon o urse l ves l est o f any gift of H i s

,

we make an immoderate or sinfu l use S o we .

l ive with you i n the wor l d abj uring neither forum

,

nor shamb l es nor bath nor booth nor workshop

nor i nn nor weekl y market n o r any other p l ace s
o f commerce We sai l with you o r ght with
.

you and ti ll the ground with you trade with ,

you H o w it is we seem use l ess in your ordinary

.

business l iving with you and by you I am not

, ,

able to understand .
I

A M U SE M E N TS
The attitude o f the C h urch to th e stage the ,

games and the g l adiatorial shows was at once its

,

glory and a cause o f o ffence to the h eathen .

T ertu ll ian wh o was a Puritan it is true obj ects

, , ,

to all secular pleasures Th ou art t o o dainty

.
,

C hristian if thou wouldst have pleasure in this

,

l ife as wel l as i n the next Can we n o t .

live without pleasure who with pleasure die ?
But Tertul l ian wou l d not be s o vehem ent if
the natura l human and i n nocent love o f pleasure
had not remained even i n the converted heart ,

and i f for want of innocent pleasures some

were n o t in danger o f being drawn away to the
corrupt enj oyments of the heathen The o i ci al .

attitude o f the Church was u nyielding in its

detestation o f the G ames But we de eming .
,

Ap ] l ii e . x .
94 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

that t o see a man p ut to death i s much the same

as ki l ling him have abj ured such spectac l es
,
.
1

T ertullian condescends to argue : For th e faith
of some either too simp l e or too scrupulous
demands direct authority from Scripture for
giving up the Games an d holds that th e matter ,

is a doubtful one because such absti nence i s n o t

clearly and in words i mposed on God s servants
.

H e make s th e general obj ection that C hri stians

should not mi n gle in heathe n assemb l ies Ble ssed .

is th e man who has n o t gone i nto the assembly o f

th e i mpiou s n o r stood in the way of sinners n o r

s at i n the seat o f the scorner H ere speaks the .

P uritan and perhap s he was right He also

,
.

shows the i ntimate connection between the stage

and idolatry Th e s i n of idolatry cli ngs to the
.

shows i n respect o f their origins their tri e s their , ,

equipments their place of celebration their arts
, , .

I n particular he insi sts that the stage i s h opeless l y

lewd and im moral and the shows cruel an d blood

stained . He w ho looks with h orror o n the
corpse o f o n e w ho has died under the common
law o f nature i n the theatre gazes down with
,

m ost patien t eyes o n bodies mangled and tor n

and sme ared with blood Fina l ly he i nsi sts .
,

o n abstention f ro m the Game s as a part o f th e

C hristian witness Apply to the heathe n the m
.

selves Let them tell u s whether it i s right i n

.

C hristian s t o freque nt the shows W hy th e .

,

rej ection o f these shows i s the chief sign t o them

that a man has adop ted the Christian Faith .
2

2
At h ag a P l a th Ch i ti a
en o r s, e 35 r T
e t d Sp
r s i n s, .
2
er .
, e ec . .
 The Chu rch an d the Wo rld 95

The dress o f C hristians did not di ffer from that

o f pagans except that luxury o r disp l ay was from

th e rst discouraged by the bishops I n spite .

of persecutio n and the fact that every Christian

carried his lifeo r her l ife i n hi s hands the ,

i nvectives of Cl ement o f A l exandria Tertu l lian , ,

and Cyprian seem to show that the C hristian

young women of their day took an interest in
their ap p earance Tertul l ian did not advocate
.

squa l or or sloven l iness o r an e ntire l y uncouth

,

and wild appearance but inveighs against those
,

who rub th e ir skin with l otions rouge their ,

cheeks dye their hair with sa ffron and s pend time

, ,

curl ing i t and dressing it o r adding fal se hair
,
.

CI T I Z E N S H I P

C elsus appealed to Christians to support the

State by undertaking civi l o f ce and serving i n
the Army and implied that they were backward
,

i n fullli n g the duties o f citizenship H e urges .

them to help the king with all our might to ,

labour for h im in the maintenance of j ustice to ,

ght for him ; and if he require s it to ght

, ,

under h im and to lead an army along with him .

T o take o ffi c e in the gov e rnmen t of the country ,

i f that i s required for the maintenance of the

l aw s and the support of re l igion .
2

Were C hristians then bad citizen s

, ,

The C hurch enj oined the duty of civil o b e

di e n ce except when it conicted with the divine
2
O i g Ag ai t C l viii 7 5
r en , ns e sus, . .
96 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

command R ender unto Caesar th e t hings that

.

are Caesar s The powers that be are ordai ned
.

o f God H onour the ki ng
. Th e ruler i s .

God s instrument These ideas are familiar to .

us from the Ne w Testament and the Fathers ,

carry on the tradition Tho u sha l t be s u bj ect to.

the Lord an d to masters as the image o f God .
2

Justi n M artyr claims that taugh t o f C hrist , ,

C hristians were more ready to pay taxes than

he athe n Tertullian claim s that Christia n s were
.
2

better subj ects than the heathen and insists o n

the reverence with which the C hurch regards his

o i ce . B ut why dwe ll on the reverence and
respect o f C hristian s to the emperor w hom we ,

cannot but l ook upo n as called by our Lord to

his o i ce So that I might have good grounds
for saying that Caesar is more ours than yo u rs ,

for o u r God has appoi nted h im 3 .

C h ristians are charged with having con tributed

to the down fall o f the Roman Empire by refusing
to serve in the ad ministration o f the E mpire I t .

wo uld be fairer to s ay that i t was the State wh ich

refused to avail itself o f th e services o f C hri stians ,

fo r it wo uld have bee n di ffi cu l t if n o t impossible , ,

for C h ri stians to have been high R oman o f cials

on accoun t o f the close con nection o f State cere
mon ial with idolatrous O bservances No doubt .

th e Puri tan type of C hristian l ike Tertullian w ho ,

laid special stress o n t he re nunciation i nvolved i n

the Christian profe ssion wo uld in any case have ,

8p f B a aha 1 9 S al T t ll i a Ap l 4
1 2
. o rn s, . ee so er u n ,
o . 2 .

3 Ap ol .
33 .
 The Chu rch an d the Wo rld 97

advised abstention from any high p l ace In .

maintaining the s uperior modesty of C hristians he

asserts : Th e C hristian does not aspire to the

aedi l eship . I n thi s he i s probab l y correct or we
I
,

shou l d have had a ery exhortation warning against

such ambitions H e al l owed the l awfu l ness i n
.

princip l e of o i ce for a Christian but i nsists that ,

i n practice it is too much i nvolved in ido l atry the ,

games and the shedding of b l ood to be perm itted

,
.

But what sh al l be l ieving slaves or chi l dren

do ? O ffi cials likewis e when attending o n the
,

lords o r patrons or superiors when sacricing ?

I f any man hands wine to a s acri ce r or

sha ll help him by any word necessary to the
sacri ce he wi ll be he l d to be a minister o f
,

ido l atry But mi ndful of the rule we can render

.

service even to magistrates and powers after the ,

example o f the patriarchs and the fathers w ho

obeyed ido l atrous kings to the verge o f ido l atry .

There arose l ately a dispute whether a servant

of God should take the administration of any
dignity o r power if he be ab l e to keep him se l f
,

untouched by any tai nt of ido l atry Well .
,

is it possibl e for any one to ho l d an o ffi ce if he

can do s o wi thout either sacricing o r lending
his authority to sacrice ; without farming out
victims o r as s i g n i n g to others the care of temp l es
without looking a fter their tributes and without
giving spectacles at h is own o r the public charge
and presiding over them ; without making pro
cl am at i o n s of any ido l atrous solemnity without
2
Ap ol . 1 3 0 .

o
98 Chu rch Hi sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

sitting i n j u dg e m e n t on any one s l ife o r character

o u m ight bear h i s j udging about money bi nd ing

y ,

no one i m p ri s o m n g no one tortur i ng no o n e

, ,

I f it is credib l e that this i s possib l e then i t may ,

be done . Tertu l lian we must again remind
2
,

ourselves was an extremist b u t the only poi nt

, ,

here where he would come directly into conict

with the modern con science is hi s refusal to perm it
the magistrates to j udge life I t m ust h owever .
, ,

be remember e d that torture was part o fthe normal

procedure o f crim i na l law A magistrate had to .

torture it was part of th e normal procedur e .

The a uthor o f the s o ca l led Egyp ti an Church

Orde r probab l y Hippolytus included among those
, ,

who m ust not be baptized unless they renounce ,

their pro fession a magistrate with the sword or

,

a chief o f prefects and h im w ho is clad i n purple
,
.

But Hippolytus like Tertullian was a rigorist

, ,
.

At any rate this rule was n o t strictly observed .

We certai nly nd that by the time of the perse

cu t i o n o f Diocle tian a considerable number of

C hri stian s were holdi ng o i ce h igh and l o w .

As ear l y as the persecution o f D eci u s ( A D 2 4 9 ) . .

a specia l c l a u se was directed again st the Cae s ari an i ,

an inferior order o f i mperial o ffi cials By A D 3 0 3 . . .

Eusebi us i s able to re fer to the clem ency o f the
emperors towards o u r brethren to whom they ,

even entrusted th e o v e rn m e n t o f provi nces ,

relievi ng the m from I anxiety about sacricing .

2
The man who tore down Dioc l etian s edict
of persecution i s described by Eusebius as highl y
D Id l 1 7
2
e H 8 vii i I
o . .
2
. . . .
 The Chu rch an d the Wo rld 99

esteemed for his temporal dign ities Among .

the Egyptian martyrs w as P h i l o ro m u s who ,

he l d high o f c e in the imperia l di strict o f

A l exandria and who according to hi s rank and
,

R oman dignity w as attended by a military

guard when admi nistering j ustice every day .
I

A dan e t u s who was martyred i n Phrygia about

,

A D 30
. .
5 is
,
described as being of R oman dignity ,

of a noble I talian family a man that had been ,

advanced thro u gh every grade of dignity by th e

emperors and had l led with credit the o ffi ces
,

of ch ief revenue o f cial an d prime minister ,

which o i ce he held at the time o f hi s martyr

do m .It i s p l ain that the numbers of Christians
in the higher ranks o f the imperial service was
increasing due partly to the growing number
,

of Chri stian s and partly to the fact that th e

conditions of o fce were made less i ntol erable
t o a be l ieving C hristian O n the evidence the
.

Christian s can hardly be found gui l ty of shirking

their duties as citizens o f t his wor l d however ,

i ncomparably more important they regarded th e

duties incumbent on them as citizens of another .

M I L I T A R Y S E RV I C E
C oncerning mi l itary service there was some
d e re n ce of opinion , as there is to day
There
'

i - .

were , no doubt , some who were frank l y p aci ci s t,

and re l uctance to serve i n the Army w as a ch arge
against Christians T e rtu ll ian wrote a treatise
.

H E viii 9 2
. . . .
1 00 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n s tan ti n e

De C o ro n a to com mend a s oldier

had w ho ,

through religious scruples refused to wear a ,

chaplet of owers and was denounced as a ,

C hri stian and thrown i nto prison One o f .

them was conspicuous more a so l dier o f G o d , ,

more stead fast than the rest o f hi s brethren ,

wh o imagined they could serve two masters his ,

h ead alone uncovered his crown i n his hand , ,

a nd already by that peculiar ity revealed as a

C hri s t i an H i s arguments against m ilitary
.
I

ser vice are partly based o n its c on nection wi th

idolatry H e regarded the crown s as idolatrou s
.
,

and a C hristian soldier might have to guard

temples o r venerate idolatrou s e mblem s o n the
stan dard s ; but main l y because contrary to th e

Scriptures C hrist i n disarm i ng P e ter had
.
, ,

unbelted e very soldier .

Shall it be he l d l awful to make an occupation
of the sword when the Lord proc l aim s that he
,

who uses the sword shall perish by the sword

H e also argue s that a man can not be a soldier o r
C hrist and a soldier of the emperor .

Origen h eld th e V iew that as heathen priests ,

were exempted from military service i n order

that they migh t o ffer sacrice Christian s sh ou l d ,

be exempted in order to pray fo r those who were

gh ting
. None ght better fo r the king than
we do We do not gh t under h im th ough he
.
,

require i t ; but we ght o n his behalf forming ,

a special army an army o f piety b y o ffering

o u r prayers to God 3 .

D C
e or .I bid l . Agai t C l
2
iii 7 3
.
,
1 0 .
3 ns e sus , v . .
 The Chu rch an d the Wo rld 1 01

took t he ground that ki ll in was

a
L actan t i u s

a l ways un l awfu l . I t wi ll be neith e r l l l for

a j ust man to engage in warfare n or to accuse ,

any o n e of a capita l charge because it makes no

,

di fference whether you put a man to death by

word o r by the sword since i t is t h e act o f
,

putting to death which is prohibited It is

a l ways un l awfu l to put to death a man whom ,

G od wi ll ed to be a sacred animal .
2

I n the Church Orde rs there i s reected th e

unc e rtainty and disagreement that existed in
th e C hurch The Ethiopian text of the E gyptian
.

Chu rch Orde r l ays down A catechumen o r
,

be l iever if they wish to b e so l diers sha l l be

, ,

r ej ected because they are far from G o d But .

in the Arabi c text the so l dier is accepted H e .

must be taugh t not to oppress or accuse false l y ,

and he sha ll b e content with h is pay I f he i s .

pleased to be so l et him be brought i n I n the .

S ai di c text i n one p l ace so l diers are to be rej ected

in another we read A sol dier wh o is i n authority
cause him not to ki ll men ; if he shou l d be co m
m an d e d to do i t cause him not to hasten to the

work . The same contradiction i s to be found
in the s o ca l led Canon s of H ippo l ytus
- .

Whatever may h ave been the attitude o f m en

l ike Tertul l ian and Origen it does not seem to ,

have preven ted l arge numbers o f C hristians from

serving i n the ranks They crop up continua ll y
. .

Tertul lian wou l d hard l y have written hi s

treatise D e Co ro n for the benet of n
a o n
existent
2
I ti t vi
ns . . 20 .
1 02 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

C hristian so l diers The se ntence One more
.
,

a soldier of God more steadfast than the rest of

,

his brethren i mp l ies that there were many
,

others B as i l i de s an o ffi cer i n th e Army wh o

.
, ,

was i n charge o f the soldi ers on d uty at

the marty rdom o f P o tam i ae n a at Al exandria ,

afterwards becam e a C hristian but di d n o t

renounce hi s profession o n that accoun t It .

was on l y whe n afterwards urged to swear

tha t he refused say ing I am a C hri s t i an
,
.
I

Dionysi us records that i n the persecution at

A l exandria under Decius there was a den se

body o f so l diers standing before t he tribunal
wh o encouraged a wavering C hristian to stand
rm . I n J usti n Martyr s supposed l etter o f
2

Marcu s Aure l ius to the Se nate about the

Thundering Legion we read I sum moned ,

those w ho g o by the name o f C hristian s and ,

di scovered a great n um ber and vast host o f

them .Even i f Marcus Aurelius i s innocen t
o f the letter it i s u nlikely that the writer w h o

fathered it on hi m wou l d have i nvented the

great n umber and vast h ost o f C hristian
soldiers if there were n o C hri stian soldiers .

I n the reign o f Gallien us Marinus a C hri stia n

soldier was t o have bee n promoted to the rank
o fcen turion Another soldier cha l lenged his pro
.

motion o n th e ground tha t he was a Christian and

would n o t sacrice to th e em peror Ad m itting .

th is h e was given three h ours i n wh ich to make

,

up his mind whether h e wo uld sacrice or n o t O n .

E b i H 8 vi 5
2
u se u s, I bid 4 1
. . . .
2
. .
 The Chu rch an d the Wo rld I0 3

refusing he was beheaded This incident points .

to the presence of C hri stian o f cers as w e ll as

privates i n the Army and that th e ir re l igion w as
,

connived at as l ong as i t did not attract o f cial

notice E us e bius d e l are d that the persecution of
.

D ioc l etian began with thos e brethren that were

in t he Army .H e a d ds that great numbers
2

of so l diers l e ft the Army in cons e qu e nce and
returned to civi l ian life rather than r e nounc e their
,

religion The martyrdom of t he forty soldiers

.

of S e baste i s another proof that the C hristian

soldier was no i so l ated phenomenon .

The evidence shows that t hough i ndividua l

C hri stians then as since r e garded the profe ssion of
, ,

a Christian as inconsistent with mi l itary service ,

the C hurch did not commit its e l f to this view ,

and l arge numbers of C hristians were to be found

in the Army That there were not more was
.

due not so much to the p aci ci s t views of

C hurchmen as to the di ffi cu l ties put i n the
way of C hri stian so l di e rs by the Army itself ,

which at best connived at th e ir presence and at

worst carried on an active p e rsecution against
them Our Army in I ndia wou l d b e badly o ff for
.

recruits if Mohammedans and H indoos were

treated as were Christians in the Ro m an Army .

S L AV E R Y
As to slavery the Church accepted i t as a
,

matter o f course I t introduc e d no new system

.

H E viii 2
. . .
1 04 Chu rch Hi sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

o f econom icsor social order as such but its doc

trine of brotherh ood and o f love to n eighbours ,

o f the equa l ity o f all i n the sight o f God were ,

bo und i n t i me to destroy the who l e system o f

slavery D uring the p e riod under review i t
.

con te nted itse l f with directing masters to be

h umane in their tre atmen t o f their slaves .

Tho u shalt not i ss ue orders with bitterness

to thy maid servan t o r thy man -servant w ho
-

trust in the same G o d l e st thou shou l dst n o t ,

r e verence that G o d Who i s above both ; fo r

H e came t o call men n o t according to th e ir
outw ard appearan ce but according as the Spirit
,

had prepared t he m C hristian slaves were
.
I

regarded as brethren and share d i n all the

privileges and righ ts o f th e C hurch They .

could be ordained Call i s t u s the Bishop o f ,

R ome had been a slave

,
M artyred slaves were .

honoured i n the same way a s though free .

Blan dina a slave girl i s a notable exam ple

, ,
.

Slave s apparently accordi ng to the Chu rch

,

Orde rs were n o t to be received as catech ume n s

,

without the con sen t o f their masters .

CO NC L U S I O N

T he Ep i stle to D i og n e tus a ffords an i nteresting

glim pse o f th e C hurch i n its relation to socie ty ,

as i t appeared to o n e o f its members perhap s ,

about A D I 5 O . .

For the C hristian s are distingui shed from

T h T w W ay
2
e o b l w p I 07 s, se e e o . .
 The Chu rch an d the Wo rld 1 05

other men neither by country nor l anguag e

nor the custom s which they observe F o r th e y .

neither i nhabit cities o f their o w n nor employ ,

a peculiar form of speech nor l e ad a l ife which,

is marked b y an y singu l arity But inhabit .

,

ing G reek as we ll as barbarian cities and fo ll ow ,

i ng the customs of the nativ e s in respect of food ,

clothing and the rest of their ordinary conduct

, ,

they display to us their wonderful and con

fe s s e dly paradoxica l method of l ife They dwel l .

in their own countries but simply as soj our n ers

,
.

As citizens they share i n a ll thin s with others

and yet endur e a ll things as ffne i g n e rs
,

They marry they beget chi l dren ; but they do

,

not destroy their o ffspring They obey .

the prescribed l aws and at the same time s u r

,

pass the laws by their l ives They love all men .

,

and are persecuted by a ll .
2

We are not to suppose that C hristians always

lived up to their profession but in times of ,

persecution it i s un l ike l y that many j oined the

C hurch without intending to carry out its way
o f l ife ; and the apo l ogists wou l d hardly l ay
c l aim s o hastily to a particular kind of l ife as
exhibited by Christians if their description would
be u nrecognized by thos e who knew the facts .

But among us you wi ll nd uneducated
p e rsons working men and old women if th e y
, ,

are unable in words to prove the truth o f their

doctrine s yet by th eir deeds they show the good
,

o f their be l ief ; they do n o t rehearse speeches ,

v 2
.

P
1 06 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

but exhibit good works ; when struck they do

not strike again when robbed they do not go to
law ; they give to those who as k of them love ,

their neighbours as them selves .
2

There does n o t seem much j ustication fo r

the o i ci al view that C hristian s were the enemi es
o f mankind ; but n o doubt they were sometimes

aggressive The martyrs were not al l as meek

.

as their Master With what face asks T er
.
,

t u l l ian will a C hristian incense -seller if h e shall
, ,

pass through temples with what face will he ,

spit upon the s m o k i n a l tars for which h e hi m ,

self made provisio n But the aggressive
.
2

ness of Tert u llian was a l ien from th e C hristian

spirit and there is n o evidence to show that
,

C hristians as a whole were i ntentionally provo

, ,

cative The truth was that their very exi stence

.
,

their doctri ne th eir words their attitude to the ,

,

business a ffairs the e veryday life and amuse

,

me nts were a c hallenge and a provocation to
heathe n me n and women .

The ideal o f the C hristian life as i t was com

m o nl
y h eld i n th e rst three centuries is t o be
fo und i n the teaching o n the Tw o Ways the
Way of Light and the Way o f Darkness Thi s .

teaching origi nally derived from Jewish source s

, ,

i s foun d i n the D i dache the 8p i stle of B arn ahas , ,

an d e l sewh ere ; i t was u sed fo r the i nstruction

o f catechumen s an d was n o doubt a popular guide
,

or handbook to right Christia n living and a manua l ,

o f ethics for the young i n the F aith .

2
Athe n ago ras xi .
2
On I dolatry .
 The Chu rch an d the Wo rld 10
7

TH E W AY LI GH T OF 1

The Way of Light i s as foll ows Thou sha l t

l ove H i m that created thee : thou sha l t g l orify
H i m that redeemed thee from deat h Thou .

sha l t be simp l e i n heart and rich in spirit .

Thou sha l t not j oin thyse l f to those who

wa l k i n the way of death Thou shalt hate .

doing what is unp l easing to G od thou sha l t ,

hate a ll hypocrisy Thou shal t not forsake

.

the commandments of the Lord Thou sha l t .

not exa l t thyse l f but sha l t be of a l o wl y

,

mind Thou sha l t not take g l ory to thyse l f

. .

Thou sha l t not take evi l cou nse l against thy

neighbour Thou sha l t not a l low over -bol dness
.

to enter thy sou l Thou sha l t not commit for

.

n i cati o n ; thou sha l t not commi t adu l tery ; thou

sha l t not be a corrupter of youth Thou sha l t .

not l et the Word of G od issue from thy l ips if

they are de l e d with any kind of impurity .

Thou shalt not accept praises when thou re p ro v e s t

any one for transgressions Thou sha l t be meek ;
.

thou shalt be p eaceab l e Thou shalt not be .

mindful o f evil against thy brother Thou shal t .

not take the Name of the Lord i n vain Thou .

sha l t l ove thy neighbour as thine own sou l .

Thou sha l t n o t s l ay the chi l d by procuring

abortion ; nor again sha l t thou destroy it after
it i s born Th ou sha l t not withdraw thy hand
.

from thy s o n or thy daughter bu t from their ,

infancy thou sha l t t e ach them the fear of the

2
F ro m t he Ep i stle f
o B arn ahas .
1 08 Chu rch H i s to ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

Lord Thou shalt n o t covet what i s thy neigh

.

bour s n o r shalt thou be avaricious

,
Th ou .

sha l t n o t be j oin ed i n soul with the haughty ,

b u t thou shalt be reckoned with th e righteous

hourly R ecei ve thou as good thi ngs th e tri al s
.

that com e upon y o u Thou sha l t n o t be of

.

a double mind o r of a double tongue Th ou .

sha l t be subj ect to the Lord o r to masters i n ,

the i mage of God with mode sty an d fear Th ou .

sha l t not issue orders with bitterness to thy

maid servant o r thy man servan t w ho trust i n
- -

the sam e Go d lest thou shouldst n o t reverence

,

that God Wh o i s above both for H e cam e to

call men not according to their outward appear
ance b ut according as th e Spirit had prepared
,

them Thou sha l t com municate in a ll thi ngs

.

with thy ne ighbour ; tho u shalt not call thi ngs

thine o w n fo r if y o u are partakers i n comm on
,

o f things in corruptible h o w m uch m ore o f things

corruptib l e Thou sha l t not be hasty with thy

.

tongue fo r the mouth i s a snare o f d eath As

,
.

far a s possib l e thou sha l t be pure i n thy soul .

D o not be ready to stretch forth thy hands to

take while thou s hu t te s t them wh en th ou
,

sh ou l dst give Thou shalt love as the apple

.

o f thine eye every o n e that speaketh to thee

t he Word o f the Lord Thou sha l t remember .

the day o f j udgeme nt nigh t and day Thou .

shalt not h esitate t o give o r m urmur w he n t ho u

'

give st
Give to every o n e that asketh thee
. .

Thou shalt learn who i s the good recom pen ser o t

the reward Thou shalt preserve what thou hast
.
 The Chu rch an d the Wo rld 10
9

received i n trust neither adding to it nor taking

,

from it Thou sha l t j udge righteous l y Thou

. .

sha l t not make a schism but thou shalt pacify ,

the m that contend by bringing th em together .

Thou sha l t confes s thy sins Thou sha l t not go .

to prayer with an evi l conscience This i s the .

Way o f Life .

TH E W AY OF D A R K N E SS

But the way o f darkness i s crooked and fu l l

of cunning for it is the way of eternal death with
,

puni shment i n which way are t he things that

,

destroy the soul ; that is ido l atry over-co n ,

dence the arrogance of power hypocri sy double

, , ,

heartedn ess adu l tery murder rapine haughtiness

, , , , ,

deceit ma l ice se l f su ffi ciency poisoning magic

,
-
, , , ,

avarice wan t o f the fear o f God I n this way

,
.

are those who persecute the good those who

(
,

hat e truth those w ho l ove falsehood those wh o

, ,

know n ot the reward o f righteousness those ,

who c l eave not to that which i s good those who ,

attend n o t with j ust j udgement to the widow

and orphan those wh o watch n o t the fear of
,

G od from whom meekness and patience are far

,

f persons who love vanity fo ll ow after reward

o f , ,

pity not the needy l abour not in aid of h im w ho

,

is overcome with toi l ; who are prone to e vi l

speaking who are m urderers of chi l dren de
, ,

stroyers o f the workmanship of G od wh o turn

away hi m that is i n want who oppress the ,

al i cte d w ho are advocates of the rich who are

, ,
1 10 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

unj ust j udges of the poor and who are i n every ,

respect transgressors .

The Way o f Light far from being o ffensive, ,

seem s wi nning and attractive I ndeed it n o t .

,

only seem s so n o w but did even then o r why

, ,

did C hristian s increase s o rapidly during the

age s o f persecution ? I t seems certain that ,

as C hristian s became m ore numerous and better

kn own they were hated less and th e p e rs e cu
, ,

tio n became more polit ical an d le ss popu l ar .

The following passage from the Book O f

Wisdom may perhaps explain the real motive s
indu l ging such hatred as there was

Let us lie i n wait for the righteous because
he i s n o t fo r o u r turn and i s clean contrary to
,

our doings h e upbraideth us with o u r o ffending

the law H o p ro fe s s e t h to have the knowledge
.

of God a nd he calleth hi mself the ch i l d of the

Lord H e was made to reprove our thoughts
. .

H e i s grievous u nto u s even to beho l d fo r hi s

l ife i s n o t l ike other men s hi s ways are of

another fashion We are esteemed o f him as

.

coun terfeits . H e p ro n o u n ce t h the end o f the

j us t to be blessed and maketh his boast that
,

G o d i s his Father Let us s e e i f hi s words be

.

true : and l et u s prove what shall happen i n

the end o f him . Let us exam ine h i m with
despitefulness and torture that we may k now ,

h i s mee kness and prove his patience L e t us

,
.

condem n him with a shamefu l death : fo r by

hi s own saying he sha ll be respected .
 VI

TH E CH U R C H U ND E R F O R EIG N
E MPE R O R S

S LACK E N I N G OF P E RSE CU T I O N

HE death o f Marcus Aureliu s marked the

close of a denite era in the history of
persecution Under Nero and Domitian perse
.

cu t i o n had been instinctive and spontaneous .

C hristianity was new and u npopu l ar Moreover .

,

Nero wanted a scapegoat whi l e Domitian was ,

a bloodthirsty and s u s i ci o u s tyrant But the

four great emperors ff
.

o m Traj an to Marcus
Aure l ius were men o f a di fferent stamp We .

may not go as far as Gibbon when he declares

that during their reign s the vast extent of the
R oman Empire was governed by abso l ute power

under the guidance of wisdom and virtue o r ,
2

agree that if a man were called to x the period
in the history of the wor l d during which the
c o ndition o f th e human race was most happy and
prosperous he would without hesitation name
,

that which e l apsed from the death of D omitian

to t he accession of Commodus but whatever
2

we think of their genera l po l icy we fee l sure that

2
D li a d Fall h iii I b id 2
ec ne n , c . . .

1 1 1
 1 1 2 Church H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

each of them had a policy towards the C hurch ,

and was strong enough to carry that policy

i nto e ffect That pol icy was i n general o n e o f
.

persecution though from Traj an to Pius the

,

rigour o f persecution was mitigated by th e

dislike o f th ese emperors to anonymous an d
tum ultuar y accusationsan d Christian s generally
were accused ano nymously o r by a mob and
further by t heir natural l y tolerant dispositi ons .

Th ey started with a prej udice i n favour o f tolera

ti on l ess marked however in Traj an than i n
, , ,

his two immediate successors They had three .

principal motives for persecution .

l First from th e side of the law Th e R oman

, .

E mpire always refused very j ealously to admi t , ,

the right o f a ny corporation to exist except by

its o wn sanction B ut the C hurch based its
.

right to exi st o n divi n e sanction and regarded ,

itself as i nde pendent o f the State and eve n ,

refused to take part i n the State religion It .

came i n the end to be regarded m uch as a

gigantic Sin n Fei n o r T rade U nion organiza
tion m ight be as an i ndependent and possibly
,

h ostile state with i n the State an i mp e ri u m i n ,

i mp e ri o Secon dly i t was the policy o f th e State

.
,

to press the worshi p o f the emperor as the

u niversal religio n Other religions were as far
.

as possible tolerated but this was to be practised

,
"

everywhere I t w as t o be the strong reli o u s

.

bon d betwee n the scattered provi nces o the

E mpire Th is worship the C hurch regarded as
.

blasphemous and idolatrous and did n o t hesitate ,

 The Chu rch u n de r F o re ig n E mp e ro rs I I3
to s ay s o Third l y the new re l ig i on w as u n
.
,

sett l ing No prud e n t e mperor with an eye to

.
,

the end l ess possibi l ities of troub l e in his vast

dominio n s cou l d fai l to be apprehensive o f
,

a nyth i n g which seemed l ike l y to cause unsett l e

ment and unr e st A n d the mor e t he emp e ror
.

be l on g e d to the o l d R oman co nservative type

t h e more wou l d he resent chang e s and i nnova
tions i n re l igion .

C ommodus and t he for e ign emperors who s u c

ce e d e d were men of another typ e C ommodus .
,

though not him self a foreigner was a disso l ute ,

boy when he b e came emperor giv e n over to th e ,

gross e st form s of dissipation not su f cient l y ,

interested i n pub l ic a ffairs to have a po l icy or ,

strong enough if he did have one to carry it

, ,

into e ffect H i s foreign successors had no fee l

.

ing against C hristianity any mor e than they had

,

any devotion to t he gods of ancient R ome .

C hristianity was to them o n e among many

re l igions and th e arrogance of C hristian s in
,

refusing to worship the anci e n t gods was not

o ffensive to th e m as it was to R omans Their .

one quarre l with t he Ch urch o n the ground

of r e l igion w as i t s r e fusa l to a ll ow t h e worship
of the emperor F urther they w e r e for e igners
.

and wou l d n o t have had the R oman l ega l

sensitiveness to the statu s of the C hurch as
an un l icensed corporation While exc e pt for .

Severus and possibly M ax i m i n u s and Severus

and M a i m i n u s wer e
x both persecutors they
were not strong m e n and it was beginning ,

Q
1 1 4 Chu rch Hi s to ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

to need a strong m an to wi thstand the owing

tide o f C hristian numbers a nd i n ue nce No r .

had they t he R oman sense o f respon sibi l ity .

They were not l ikely to persecute o u t o f anxiety

fo r the supposed interests o f the State .

CO M M O D U S, A D . . 1 80 93 1

Under C o m mo dus at rst things too k their

course and the persecutions was continued We .

h ear for t he rst ti me of martyrs i n Africa ,

whe n s ix C hristians from Scili were tried and

condem ned at Carthage A D 1 8 0 T h e p ro ,
. . .

consul S at u rn i n u s however behaved with great

, ,

h umanity tried to persuade them to swear by

,

o ur Lords the Emperors and when they ,

refu sed urged them to take a month i n which to

thin k things over I t was only after this o ffer
.

was refused that they were condemned to the

co mparatively lenie n t puni s hment of decapita
tion .
1

The victims h owever showed n o desire t o

, ,

escape their doom They rather gloried in their

.

religion and openly exulted in the prospect o f

,

death I t i s possib l e that they were M on tanists

. .

Their leader S p e rat u s i n reply to a n exhortation

, ,

to swear by the emperor replied wi th an o ffer to ,

exp l ai n t he mystery o f the C hri stian re ligion .

Cy t hi u s protested i n an swer to a threat o f

pu nishment K now proconsu l that we fear n o
, , ,

other except one God our Lord W ho is i n ,

2
Ru i n art , A cta W arty ru rn Si n ce ra .
 The Chu rch u n de r F o re ig n E mp e ro rs 1 1 5

heav e n Another D onata W e giv e hono u r , ,

to Caesar but fear and worshi p we accord to

,

C hrist the true G od
,
V estia an aged woma n .
,

apparent l y Thi s sha ll my heart a l ways meditate

,

and my l ife pronounce that I am a ,

We al s o read of martyrs i n M ada u ra A D 1 8 0 ,

. . .

There was a l so a persecution i n Asia A D 1 8 2 ,

. .
,

under Arri us Antoninus when Tertu ll ian re l ates ,

that a ll the Christians of the provi nce pre sented

th m se l ves before his j udgement seat on wh ich
e -
, ,

ordering a few to be ex e cuted he said to the rest , ,

Unhappy men if you wish to die you have ,

precipices and ha l ters .

2

Obscure provincia l s were not however t he , ,

only C hri stians to su ffer I n t he year 1 8 5 .

Apo ll onius described by E u sebius 3 as a man

,

renowned for h is cu l ture and phi l osophy was ,

s ummoned by Peren ni s Prefect o f the Praetorian ,

Guard to give an account of himse l f before the

,

S e nate a procedure which cou l d hard l y have been

,

fol l owed unless Apo ll onius were a senator or a

man of disti nction From the Armenian acts o f .

thi s martyrdom which have been translated by ,

by Mr F C Co n y b e are 4 we learn that when

. . .
,

brought before the Senate he was questioned

by Pere nnis in the fo ll owing manner .

Asked why he would n ot sacrice h e rep l ied ,

Because I am a C hristian therefore I fear G o d ,

Who made heaven and earth and sacrice not to ,

empty idols Urged to swear by the good for
.

2
Ru i n art , A cts: M arty ru m Si n ce ra To Scap ula, 5 .
2
.

3 H 8 . 2 1
. v 4 M o n u m e n ts o
. .
f E arly hri sti an i t
y C .
1 1 6 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

tun e of the autocrat Commodus he said I am ,

wi ll ing to swear in truth by the true G od that w e

too l ove th e emperor and o ffer u p prayers for his,

maj esty .

Th e prefect said Com e then and sacrice , ,

to Apol l o and t o the other gods and to the

e mperor s i mages
Apo l lonius refused saying
.
, ,

among oth er things But as to sacrice s I and , ,

all C hri stian s o ffer a bloodless sacrice to G o d .

H e was remanded for a day i n th e hope that

he would change hi s m i nd b u t he remained rm ,

and was conde mned The magistrate said I .

would fai n l et thee go but I cannot beca u se of ,

the decree o f the Senate Yet with be nevo l ence .

I pronounce sentence upon thee and h e ordered ,

hi m tO be beheaded with a sword Apo l lonius .

said I thank God for thy sente nce Then .

in the word s of the Acts The executioners ,

straightway led hi m away and beheaded him ,

wh i l e he co nti n ued to glorify the F ather S o n , ,

and H ol y Spirit to whom be g l ory for ever

,
.

Amen .

After A D 1 8 5 persecution s seem to have ceased

. .

in this reign wh ich may hav e been due to the

,

in uence of Marcia the con sort or m organatic ,

wife of Commodus who was herse l f a sy mpathizer

, ,

if no mor e with C hristianity She was i n s tru

,
.

mental i n securing th e re l ease o f the Christian s

working i n the lead mi nes of Sardinia and is ,

li ke l y to have used her inue nce i n favo ur o f

to l eration At any rate from this date the
.

persecutio n was appreciab l y relaxed .

 The Chu rch u nd e r F o re ig n E mp e ro rs 1 1 7

S EV E R U S ,
A D . . 1
93 2 0 5
I n the year A D 1 93 Marcia the consort of
. .
,

Commodus found her own nam e o n a l ist of

,

persons marked for e xecution She thereupon .

arrang e d successfu ll y for her husband s assassina

tion i nstead H i s successor Pertinax was soon

.
, ,

murd e red by the Praetorians who put the ,

E mpire up to auction and knocked it down to ,

D i di u s Ju l ianus as th e highest bidder Septi .

mius Severus a gen era l of the army of the

,

Danube at once invaded I ta l y and w as acc e pted

, ,

as e mperor by the Senate D i di u s was deposed .

and sentenced to death and thus ende d h is ,

dear l y bought reign of sixty six days

- - .

Seve rus w as an African whose native speech

w as Phoenician ; after con sulting the stars he
married a Syrian J ulia D omna and w as with
, ,

out the O ld R oman cons e rvativ e pr ej udice against

Christianity . According to T e rtu ll ian he w as
onc e hea l ed by the anointing of a Chris tian and ,

a C hristian n urse was foster -mother to h i s son .

Both men and women of highest rank whom ,

Severus knew we ll to be C hri stian s he not on l y ,

did n ot inj ure but e ven distinguished them by

,

his t e stimony and gave th em pub l ic l y back to

,

us in spit e of the rag e of the mob
,
Never .
I

the l e s s
,
the l aw was not a l tered and p e rs e cu ,

tions took p l ace notab l y in Africa T e rtu ll i an s

,
.

Apo l ogy (A O 1 97 ) w as provoked by o n e of

. .

them .

2
To Scap ul a, 4 .
1 1 8 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

Severus had troub l e with th e Jews and renewed ,

a law of Anto ninus Piu s forbiddi ng th e circum

ci s i o n o f proselyte s H e also forbade conversion
.

to C hristianity This was i n A D 2 0 2 I t is note

. . . .

worthy as the rst law enacted agai n st C hristian s .

H ith erto t he y m ee n prosecuted under the

o l d laws I t was fol l owed by new outbreaks o f
.

persecution pri nci pa ll y i n Alexandria and Africa

,
.

In Alexandria Leonides the father of Origen

, , ,

was o n e o f the v i ct i m s B as i l i de s o n e o f .
I
,

Orige n s disciple s was an o i ce r i n th e army
, ,

an d was i n charge o f the soldiers wh o led away

o n e P o tam i ae n a to executio n and defended he r ,

from th e violence o f the m o b Noticing h is act .

she bade him be of good che e r for she would ,

i ntercede for him with the Lord Sh e h erself .

was killed by havi ng boili ng pitch poured over

h er body No t long after B as i l i d e s declared
.

himself a Ch ristian and was condem ned to ,

2

su ffer When q uestion ed by one of the brethren

.

he declared that P o tam i ae n a had appeared to h i m

o n three nights after her marty rdom and had ,

placed a crown o n his head sayi ng that she had ,

e ntreated the Lord for him and had obtained her ,

prayer and that soon she would take him with

,

her Whereu pon he was baptized and soon

.

afterward s beheaded .

Th e persecution reached Carthage where Per ,

petua and her companion s su ffered in M arch ,

A D
. .

2
Fo r O ig
r en ,
se e bl w e o , p . 1
4 2 .

2
E u se bi u s, H 8 . . vi 1 . .
 The Chu rch u n de r F o re ig n E m p e ro rs 1 1
9

Perpetua who was twenty-two years o l d was

, ,

married and n ursing an infan t s o n She w as a

,
.

lady of some birth and position H e r father .

,

moth e r and two brothers were l iving O ne

,
.

brother was a catechumen as was Perpetua her ,

self H e r compan ions w ho were arrested at the

.

same time wer e R e v o catu s and F elicitas hi s fel l ow ,

s l ave and consort who was expecting h er con

,
2

n e m e n t S at u rn i n u s and S e cu n d u l u s
, ,
They .

were a l l catechumens T he fo ll owing accoun t .

of thei r su ffe rings is an authe n tic narrative by

Perpetua herse l f down to the point where it i s
taken up by another hand probably T e rtu ll i an s ,

.

When I was in the hands of our persecutors ,

my father for the a ffection h e bore me made

, ,

new e fforts to shake my reso l ution F ath e r .

,

I said do you see this vesse l lying here

,
He
said I s e e it

And I said to h im Can it be

cal l ed by any other name than i ts own ? An d

he said No No r can I ca ll myse l f by any

.

H er

thing e lse than what I am a C hristian ,
.

father then l eft h er for a time and all the accused ,

were baptized Though u nder arrest they had

.

not been taken to p rison .

After a few days we were put i n prison and ,

I was terried because I had never known such

darkness I t was a dreadfu l day T he heat w as
. .

terrible thanks to the crowds there through t he

,

extortions of the so l diers Besides which I was .

distract e d with anxiety for my baby Then Ter .

tius and P o m p o n i u s th e ho l y deacons who were

, ,
2
S l av l d t t a t a l gal m a i ag
e s co u n o co n r c e rr e .
1 20 Chu r ch H i sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

ministering to us arranged by payme nt that for

,

a few hou rs we should be refresh e d by being l et

out into a better part of th e prison My baby .

was brough t to me almo st famished and I nursed ,

h im Being anxio u s for h im I spoke to my

.

mother about h im and encouraged my brother

,
.

I was di stressed becau se I s aw that they were dis

tressed o n my account S uch were t he anxieties .

I su ffered for many days ; and I arranged that

my baby s hould stay i n the prison with me and
at once I grew strong and was relieved o f worry
,

and anxiety about the child my pri son s u ddenly

b e cam e a palace s o that I preferred being there
,

to be ing anywhere else .

Whi l e waiti ng for her trial s he had a vision .

She saw a ladder reaching u p to h eaven very ,

narrow and th e sides garn ished with every kind

,

o f cutting and stabbing weapon Underneath i t .

lay a dragon i n wait to catch any who fell and

, ,

t o deter others from making the attem pt .

S at u ru s who was n o t arrested with the rest

, ,

was th e rst to climb When he got to the top.

he said Perpetua I am supporti ng you,
Per .

petua came next steppi ng on th e dragon s h ead

,

.

When she reac hed the top she s aw an immense

garden and seated in th e midst o n e like a shep
,

herd m i l ki ng his shee p surrounded by many ,

thousands i n white robe s H e ca ll ed her and .

o ffered her curds from the milk which he had

drawn ; this s he ate ; the m ultitude exclaimed

Amen Then s he awoke
. And I told my .

broth e r and we understood that our passion was

,
 The Chu rch u n de r F o re ig n E mp e ro rs 1 2 1

imminent and we ceased to have any mor e hope

,

i n this wor l d After some days a rumour got

.

about that we were to b e examined and my father ,

came from the city to the prison ov e rwhelmed ,

with grief .D aughter have pity on my grey

,

hairs ; have pi ty o n your father if I am worthy ,

to be call ed your father ; if I have brought y o u

up ; if I have preferre d y o u to your brothers .

Think of your brothers thi nk of your mother

thin k of your son who cannot surviv e you Lay .

aside this obstinacy do not d e stroy u s a ll .

As he said this he kissed my hands and threw

himse l f at my feet and ca ll e d me not daughter
,

but mistress I was distr e ssed on my father s

.

account because he alone out of all my family

w o u l d not r ej oice i n my passion I com fort e d .

h im saying What G od wi ll s wi ll be done K now .

that we are not in our own power but i n God s ,

.

And he w e nt away from me sorrowful .

The next day when we were at dinner we
were carried o ff sudden l y for our examination ,

and we came to the forum The rumour ran .

through a ll places near the forum and an ,

imm e nse crowd collected We went up into .

the dock The others w e re q u e s ti o n e d and con

.
e

fess e d Then it was my turn And my father

. .

immediate l y appeared with my s o n and drew

me a l ittl e aside beseeching me H ave pity on
,

thy bab e And H i l ari an u s the procurator who

.

, ,

then acted a s j udge in p l ace of the deceased pro

consu l M i n u ci u s said Spar e your fath e r s grey
,

hair ; spare the infancy of your s o n Sacrice for .

R
1 22 Chu rch Hi sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to C
o n s tan ti n e

the hea l th of the emperor I rep l ied I will n o t .


.

H i l ari an u s said Are you a C h ristian I rep l ied

I am And when my father attempted to draw

.

m e a w ay h e was ordered by H i l ari an u s to be

pul l ed dow n and h e struck him with a rod
,
.

And I was distressed for my father as thou h

I had been beaten my self ; s o unhappy was I gr
h im i n hi s o l d age Then he sen te n ced u s all to
.

the beasts And we return ed j oyfu l ly to the

.

pr i son .

Then because I had been used to n urse my
baby and had had hi m wi th me i n pri son I sent
, ,

at once P o m p o n i u s the deacon to ask my father

for the chi l d But h e would not give hi m to
.

me .

After her return to prison s he had another

vision i n which s he s aw her brother D i n o crate s
, ,

w ho died whe n seven years o l d A few days .

after while we were al l praying suddenly a voice

, ,

reached me and I said D i n o crate s ; and I was

,

asto ni shed because he had not come into my mind

until then And I began to pray ferven tly fo r
.

him O n that night I had the fol l owing vision

.

I s aw D i n o crat e s coming out o f a dark place

where there were many others very h ot and ,

thirs ty hi s face dirty and pale

,
Betwee n him .

and me ther e was a great space so that we could ,

no t get near to each other Near him w as a .

.

vesse l of w ate r j u s t out o f hi s reach up to wh ich

, ,

he was stretching in order to drink I awoke .

and knew my brother was i n trouble But I .

trusted I cou l d re l ieve hi m by prayer An d I .

 The Chu rch un de r F o re ig n E mp e ro rs 1 23

prayed for him e very day and n ight with tears .

On the day we spent in the stocks I s aw t he

same p l ace which I had seen dark to be fu l l o f
l ight and D n o c ate s c l ean we ll dressed and
,
i r -
, ,

refreshed and wher e there had been a wound

,

there was a scar I saw the same vesse l of water

.
,

now l owered to h is midd l e with a cup attached ,

to it out of which he was drinking An d when

, .

his thirst was qu e nched he b e gan to p l ay happi l y

l ike a chi l d .

We are no doubt to understand from this

, ,

vision that D i n o crate s had died unbaptized .

Soon after Pudens the o ffi cer in charge O f

, ,

the prison guards began to make m uc h of u s

, ,

perceiving that there was great virtue i n u s and ,

a l lowed u s to receive visits from the brethren for

our mutua l refreshment When the day of the .

spectac l e was near my father cam e to me over

,

come with grief and be an to tear his beard and

,
g

threw himself o n h is f ace on th e ground and ,

cursed h is years and said e nough to move any

created being I grieved for his unhappy O l d
.

ag e
.

P e rp e tu a recorded another vision from which ,

s he knew sh e wou l d h ave to contend n o t with

beasts b u t the devi l She e nds h er narrative
.

I have to l d thi s story up to th e day before
the G ames Of what takes p l ace at the Games
.

let him write who wi l ls .

Fe l icitas was conned premature l y in an swer ,

to the prayers of her companions as s he feared ,

that O therwis e her execution would be postponed .

1 24 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to C
o n s tan ti n e

Wh en sh e cried out i n he r pains h er guards said , ,

I f y o u cry out n o w what wi l l you do whe n ,

exposed to the beasts She replied No w I ,

bear my su fferings al on e The n there will be .

another i n m e W ho will su ffer fo r me because I

shall be su ffering for H im .

The child l ived and was given t o a sister t o b e

brough t up as her dau hte r .

I t was the custom o r condem ned criminals to

have what was called a free supper on their
last night a supper which s ee m s to have been
,

public as well as free Perpetua and her co m .

panion s turned it i n to an agape and tried t o ,

convert the onlookers remindi ng them o f th e ,

j udgement o f God and al leging their o w n j oy

,

i n su fferi ng S atu ru s said Look at o u r faces
.
,

carefully that y o u may recognize us at the Day

o f J udgement .

They proceeded from prison to the amph i

theatre j oyfu l and rm in demeanour
,
Th e .

me n were in front followed by Perpetua with , ,

Felicitas last o f all When they passed H ilari

.

anus they cried o u t Yo u are o u r j udge ; Go d
, ,

i s yours F o r this they were scourged
. .

T he narrative co nti n ues

H e Who had said Ask and ye s hall re ,

,

ceive gave them the death they de sired F o r

,

.

when they talked about the kind o f m artyrdom

they would prefer S e cu n du l u s used to d eclare
,

that he would like to be exposed to al l the beasts

hat h e m ight wear a more glorious crown .

Accordingly he and R e v o catu s wer e attacked

,
 The Chu rch u n de r F o re ig n E mp e ro rs 1 2
5

rst by a l e opard an d then by a b e ar S at u ru s .

dreaded a bear more than anything e ls e and ther e ,

fore hoped h e wou l d be dispatc h ed by one bi te

from a l eopard H e was exposed to a wi l d boar
.
,

wh ich turned on h is keeper and inicted such a

wound that he died a few days l ater whi l e Satur n s ,

was o n l dragged a l ong the ground ; and when

he was fh s t e n e d near a bear the an i m al would n o t

l eave his cage So that S atu ru s being unhurt

.
, ,

was ca ll ed upon to face a seco nd encounter .

Perpetua and F e l icitas were exposed to a

savage cow . F irst Perpetua was tossed and ,

s he fe l l on her back Then sitting up an d

.
,

p e rceiving that her clothes were torn s he ,

covered hers e l f as we ll as s he could thin king ,

more o f mode sty than pain Then s he did up .

her hair for i t was n ot seem l y for a martyr to

,

su ffer with hair l oose o r she wou l d have l ooked

,

like a mourner Then s he got up and seeing

.
,

that Fe l icitas was hurt sh e took her hand ,

and supported her Both stood up together .

,

and the crowd being moved to pity cried o u t

that they should be l ed to the G ate o f Life
( S an av i v ari a
). There Perpetua was received by
a certain catechumen ca ll ed R ustic u s an d

,

appeared as though j ust woke u p s o far w as

s he gone in ecstasy and i n the spirit and
began to look ro u nd and s ay to the wonder ,

ing bystanders Whe n are we to be exposed

,

to the cow ? When she h eard what had

happened she did not be l ieve i t unti l she s aw

,

the marks o n h er body and her clothes Then .

 1 26 Chu rch H i sto ry h o m Ne ro '
to Co n stan ti n e

she called fo r her brother and the catech umen

and said to th em Stand fast i n the F aith and
,

,

love one another an d do n o t be o ffen ded by ,

our su fferings .

Meanwhile Satur n s was talking to the soldier
,

Puden s at another gate As I anticipated and ,

foretold l have n o t yet been hurt by any beast

, .

May you believe with your whole hear t Beho l d .

,

I go forth and with o n e bite a leopard wil l

take away my life Almost i mmediately j ust at
.

the end of the Games a leopard was l et loose , ,

and with o n e bite covered him with blood s o ,

that the m o b shouted in derision at this second

baptism Well bathed "Well bathed " And
,

saved ind e ed he was w ho had a bath l ike that I

.

T o P udens he said Farewell remem ber my ,

,

faith and do n o t let these th ings disturb but

, ,

rather let them reassure y o u H e al so asked

.

fo r th e ri ng o n hi s nger and dipping it i n h is ,

b l ood retu rned it leaving it as a pledge and a

,

m emorial o f h i s death His lifeless body was .

the n thrown down at the place where the t hroats

o f the woun ded were cut .

T h e people s houte d for them t o be br o ugh t

into the mid dle o f the theatre that their eye s
m igh t be accomplices o f the sword in their
murder An d they g o t up at onc e and moved
.

t o where the people wanted them T hey ki ssed .

o n e another that they might co n s u m m at their

martyrdom with the s ole m n rites o f the ki ss o f

Salt/ u rn lo tu rn , salvu rn lo tu rrt P lane i gue salt/ as

e vat ,
2
. ut

u i l hoc mode lave rat

g .
 The Chu rch un de r F o re ig n E mp e ro rs 1 27

peace The n the others received the death blow

.
-

si l ently without a movement and without a

,

word especiall y S atu ru s who had a l ready given

, ,

up hi s soul as he had been the rst to c l imb the

,

l adder F o r i n the vision h e was supporting

.

Perpetua But Perpetua that s he might l eave

.
,

no woe untasted was left to a raw gl adiator s ,

apprentice and cried out when she fe l t the prick

,

o f the stee l i n her bones and guided h i s u n s k i l ,

ful w e apon to her throat Perhaps s o great a .

woman who was feared by t he unclean spirit

, ,

could not have been ki l led had she not herself

been wi l ling .
2

The story has been given at som e length

because it i s an authen tic and contemporary
account and enab l e s u s to understand much of
what was taking p l ace There was no attempt .

at a general proscription of a ll C hristians .

R ustic u s w as apparently unmolested So was .

Perpetua s brother
The governor tries to .

secure the release o f the accused but when ,

he fai l s to persuade them to recan t j ustice ,

has to take i ts course We s e e the e n t hu s i .

asm o f th e martyrs their su fferings in prison , ,

a ll eviated i n some measure by visits from

their friends perm itted by the gao l er whose,

heart w as touched F ina ll y t h e i r j o y i n su ffer

.

ing their going out to the beasts as to victory

, ,

their treating death as l ife .

Sev e rus was ca ll e d to Britain A D 2 0 8 o n ,

. .
,

2
F th i g i al t t w i th a i t i al i t d t i
o r e o r n ex cr c n ro uc o n ,
se e

Cam h i dg T t a d St di
r e l 1 ex sEd A m i tag R b i
n u es, vo . . . r e o n so n .
1 2 8 Chu rch Hi sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to C
o n st an ti n e

account of a n i nvasion o f that province by the

barbarian s of the north H e led h is army to the .

norther n extremity o f the island and compe l led ,

h i s enemies to submit at least i n ap pearance ,

.

On h is return he fe l l sick a nd died at York ,

F e bruary A D 2 1 1
,
. . .

CA RA C A LL A ,
A D
. . 2 1 1 2 1 7
Severus was s ucceeded by hi s son s Caracal la
an d Geta who began negotiation s for dividing
the E mpire but before they were completed
,

C aracalla had his brother murdered and became

undisputed lord of the whole Under h im an .

era of toleration for th e C hurch may be said to

have begun Neverthe l ess th e re was a p e rs e cu
.
,

tion at Carthage at the beginning of th e reign ,

which provoked T e rt u ll i an s protest addre ssed to

Scapu l a th e proconsul There i s no reason to .

suppose that persecution ceased a l together but ,

the em perors were u nintere sted many provin cial ,

governors disliked i t and C hristians were p ro ,

bably su ffi ciently nu merous to make i t n o t

al together wise o r prudent for private citizen s to
act as prosecutors .

C araca l la was murdered and succeeded by

M acri n u s J ulia Dom na the widow o f Severus
.
, ,

had been the real ruler o f the Empire i n the

reign of Caracalla When he died sh e committed
.

suicide but her sister Julia Mo c sa had two

,

daughters S o ae m i as and M am m ae a each o f

, ,

w hom was a widow and each had an only s o n ,

.
 The Chu rch u n de r F o re ig n 8 mp e ro rs 1 2
9

afterwards kn own as the E mp e ror

B as s i an u s ,
E l agaba l us w as the son of S o ae m i as
,
H e was .

at the time high priest of the Sun and during ,

the reign of M acri n u s m inistered at th e T e m p l e

of the Sun in Emesa Through the machina .

tions o f his grandmother M o c sa sister of Julia ,

D omna he raised t h e troop s in Syria against

,

M acri n u s and succeeded him as emperor

,
.

Apart from his vices hi s main interests seem

,

to have l ain in the ritual o f the worship of the

sun H e was murdered by the Praetorians and
.

was succeeded by hi s cousin Alexander Severus , ,

the son of M am m ae a Alexander Severus l eft

.

to his mother the principal cares of State H i s .

own character was amiab l e enough and he had ,

none of the qua l ities of the persecutor He is .

said to have placed a statue of J esus i n his

oratory by the side of statues o f Abraham ,

Orpheus and Apo l lonius o f Tyana I n a l aw

,
.

suit be tween C hristians and a company of

victua ll ers for the posse ssion o f a piece o f
ground he awarded the site to the Christians
,
.

Better that the land shou l d be devoted to t he

service of G od in any form than that it should

be handed over for the use of cook shops - .

His mother the E mpress Ju l ia M am m ae a

, ,

having heard of the fame of Origen s e n t fo r him ,

when s he was staying i n Antioch With her he .

stayed some time exp l aining i n numerab l e matters

ca l cul ated to promote the g l ory of the Lord and ,

t o show the exce l lence of divine i nstruction .
2

E b i H 8 vi
2
u se u s, . . . 2 1 .
1 3 0 Church Hi sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to C
o n stan t n e i

M ax i m i n u s ,
a Thracian who had attracted the ,

attention o f Severus thirty-two years before by

his gigantic stature an d remarkable strength and
agi l ity became emperor when Alexander was
,

killed by the troops near M ainz i n A D 2 3 5 . . .

H e was a r ude and unlettered barbarian without ,

kn owledge o f Greek o f a erce and sanguinary

,

temper and according to E usebi u s was i n

, , ,

s ti at e d t o persecute the C hurch because o f the

g
n umber o f C hristian s in the government services .

I n am e d with hatred against the o i ci al s o f

Alexan der consisting o f many believers h e
, ,

raised a persecution and commanded at rst o nly

the heads of th e C hurches to be s l ain Th e .
2

heads o f the C hurches probably included presby

ters as well as bishops M ax i m i n u s i s the rst
.

persecutor to single o u t bishops and clergy fo r

destruction Nevertheless the persecution was
.
,

not severe excep t i n Pontus and Cappadocia ,

where an earthquake had cau sed ill -feeling and ,

S e re n i an u s the governor was hostile M axi .

min u s was ki l led by his soldiers A D 2 3 8 . . .

After a rapid s uccession o f emperors Go r

dian I I I w as placed o n the thron e and was ,

s ucce e ded by Phi l ip the Arabian ( A O 2 4 4 . .

w ho n o t only to l erated bu t eve n favoured the ,

C h urch and in later days w as wit h Alexander

, , ,

counted among those em perors w ho were

O penly said to be C hristian Eusebius even
asserts that at Antioch he wished to attend a

public service at Easter but was not permitted ,

H 8 vi 8 2
. . . 2 .
 The Chu rch u n der F o re ign Emp e ro rs 1 3 1

by B ab y l as t he bishop to e nter before he had

confe ssed hi s sins and n umbered hims e lf i n th e
ranks of the penitents F o r otherwise h e never .

shou l d be received by him unless he rst did

this on account o f the many crimes whi ch
he had committed The emperor is said to
.

hav e obeyed wi ll ing l y and exh ibited a genui n e ,

and re l igious disposition and fear o f G o d .
I

Eusebius also states that Origen wrote l etters

t o him and his wife Severa H owever this .
2
,

evidence does n o more than show his friendly

i nterest in the C hurch Th e incident at Antioc h .

need only mean that he wished to be present at

the Easter Eucharist and was permitted t o do so
on l y if p l aced among the catechumens who were ,

probab l y seated close to the penitents I f he .

had been a C hristian we shou l d have much more

,

denite assurances on the point .

Philip was defeated by rebel legions under

D ecius and ki ll ed A O 2 4 9 Since the accession
, . . .

of Severus i n A D 1 93 there had fo r practical

. .

purposes been no R o m an emperors Severus .

was an African and a persecutor but n o t a syste ,

matic o n e C aracalla was ha l f Eastern by his

.

Syrian mother J u l ia D omna Cru e l and brutal .

as he was he had no particu l ar animus against

C hristianity H i s successors with the brief
.
,

i nter l ude of M ax i m i n u s unti l the death of

Phi l i p (A O
. . wer e for the most part , ,

i nc l ined to favour -Christianity and S howed a

friend l y interest i n it .

H E vi 3 4
2
. . I b id 3 6
. .
2
.
, .
1
3 2 Chu rch Hi sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to C i
o n stan t n e

Th e Church had enj oyed something like

toleratio n over th e greater part o f a period
which began A D 1 8 5 and as a result made
. .
,

an enorm ous advance i n numbers and in uence .

C hri stian s began t o buy sites and bui l d ch urches ,

in stead o f w o rhi p p i n g i n private houses an d ,

gai ned som e m easure of popularity and fashion .

I t is im possible to estimate numbers with any

approach to precision but it seem s a n o t unreason
,

ab l e gues s that the number o f C hri stian s was

more than doubled betwee n A D 1 8 5 and 2 4 9
. . .
 VI I

TH E C ATE C H ETI CAL S C H OOL OF

ALEXA ND R IA

CL E M E N T OF A L EX A N D R I A

LEXA ND R IA w as one of the greatest citie s

A of the Empir e I t had been founded
.

by A l exander the Great and after his death ,

became the residence of his companion Ptolemy

and hi s descendants Under this Macedonian
.

i nuence it becam e a centre of H e l lenistic

thought and culture the head-quarters o f phi l o
,

sophers poets and mathematicians from a ll

, ,

over the wor l d I t possessed a wor l d

. fam ous
and we ll endowed University thr e e libraries
-
, ,

and a sta ff o f professors I t fe l l to the

R omans i n the year 3 0 when Octavius ,

afterward s th e Emperor Augustus took p o s ,

session Egypt did not become a R oman pro

.

vince but remained the private property of the

,

emperor I t was the main source of the R oman

.

corn supply which was shipped on board

,

huge corn -shi ps at A l exandria I t w as al s o .

t h e ha l f-way house between R ome and I ndia .

Merchants have learned the shortest way and ,

commerce has brought I ndia near to u s The .

1 33
1 34 Church H i s to r
y f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

ro u te was up the Ni l e to Coptos o r s ome

I
,

i nterm ediate stopping-p l ace then by caravan to ,

M y o s ho rm o s o r Berenice wells and cis tern s ,

being laid along the track From M y o s ho rm o s .

or Berenice they cou l d go to Arabia I ndia , ,

Ethiopia and C hina An d much trade did go

,
. .

Alexandria became also a favourite resort o f

J e ws Accordi ng to Ph ilo there were n ot less
.
,

than a mil l ion i n Egypt and th e se were mostly ,

co ncentrated i n Alexandria Two ou t of the ve .

di stricts i nto which the town was divided were

given over to them There was someth ing li ke .

a rapp ro chem e n t between the J ewish intel l ectual s

and the Hellenic philosophers w h i ch w as h elped ,

co nsiderably by the translation o f the H ebrew

Bible into Greek i n the well k nown Septuagint
-

version Already as early as Philo i n the rst

.
,

cent u ry of our era Plato was claimed as an ,

Attic M oses and the law was fou nd i n Plato

, ,

and P l ato i n th e law I t was the busine ss o f .

Philo to provide a Platon ist i nterpretati on o f

the O l d Testamen t I t was therefore only i n .
, ,

t he nature o f things that the Christian philo

sopher should conti nue i n th e same path and
show that C hristianity was not irreconcilable
with the nobler conception s o f Plato and the
Greek ph ilosophers .

The origi n o f C hristianity in Alexandria is

obscure I t is n ot me ntioned in the Ne w Testa
.

men t though pi l grim s from Alexandria m ust

,

have bee n i n J erusalem o n the Day o f Pentecost ,

F i dl a d R m a Li] a d Ma
2
r e n i 3 6
e r, o n ? n n n e rs , . 0 .
 The Cate che ti cal S cho o l f
o u flexan dri a 1 35

and the four thousand conv e rts m ust have

inc l uded on e wou l d think some from Alexan
, ,

dria Apo ll os is the only A l exandrian C hristian

.

mentioned by S Pau l Acc o rding to a tradition

. .

mention e d by E usebius S Mark w as the founder,

.

o f the Al e xandrian C hurch but thi s tradition i s,

not corroborated Eusebius gives a l ist of

.

eighteen bishops beginning with An n i an u s who

, ,

succeeded S Mark in the eighth y e ar of Nero

. .

The fame of th e Al e xandrian C hurch rests on

its catechetical schoo l which E usebiu s writing
, ,

i n the fourth century t e ll s us had been e stab

,

l i s he d as a schoo l o f l earning from ancient times .

A ll C hurches gave in structions to catech ists and ,

i n any C hurch where numbers were as l arge

something like a r e gul ar catechetica l schoo l must
have aris e n But i n Alexandria there was a
.

demand not on l y for this e l ementary i n struction ,

corresponding to the ordinary Conrmation o r

rst Com munion c l ass but for som e th ing t o,

meet the needs of mor e sophisticated inquirers .

Young Christian s studied phi l osophy an d some ,

fe l l away ; A m m o n i u s S accas became a heathen ,

and Ambrose a Gnostic On t he other hand .

,

pagans l ike Ce l sus and Porphyry studied C hris

t i an i ty
. There was an O bviou s need for that
kind o f teaching which the Oxford Mission has
been giving in Calcutta to much the same kind
of i nquirers The rst head whose name has
.

come down is P an tae n u s a native of Sici l y and,

a Stoic philosopher who became a convert to

,

C hristianity and a missionary to the nations o f

1 3 6 Chu rch H i s to r
y f ro m Ne ro to C o n stan ti n e

the Eas t ; he had penetrat e d to I ndia where he ,

i s sai d to have fo u nd the Gospel o f S Matthew .

i n Hebrew wh ich S Bartholomew left behind

,
.

after he had preached there P an tae n u s after .

wards settled down as the head o f the school .

None o f his writings have com e down .

C leme n t a l so began l ife as a heathen H e was .

a Greek and possibly an Athe nian born about

, ,

A D . .
5
1 0 After
. wandering i n many land s h e

became a disci ple o f P an tae n u s at A l exandria ,

where he settled down as a teacher became ,

a presbyter and eventual l y succeeded his mas ter

, .

When the persecution broke o u t A D 2 0 2 ,

. .
,

th e school was broken up ; he l eft Alexandria ,

and li ttle more i s known o f hi m except that he

was alive i n A D 2 1 1 and at that date assisting
. .
,

Alexander ( who wa s i n pri son ) i n the work o f the

C hurch o f J erusalem o f which Alexander was ,

bisho p He was a bearer o f a le tter fro m Al ex

.

ander to the Ch urch at Antioch i n which he is ,

descri bed as the ble ssed pre sbyter a man e ndued ,

with all virtue and well approved whom y o u ,

already know and wi l l learn still mor e to know

who also being here by the foreknowledge and
,

oversight o f the Master has established and ,

increased the C hurch o f G o d H i s works .
I

that survive are the P ro trep ti cus addressed t o ,

the heathen ; the ?aedagog us or Tuto r a book ,

o f in structio n fo r the ordina ry C hristian ; the

S tro m ata o r M i s ce llan i es for th e Gnostic o r ,

advanced disciple and a practical treatise entitled

, ,

E b i H 8 vi
2
u se u s, . . . 1 1 .
 The Cate che ti cal S cho o l f
o Ale x an dri a
c 1
37

What R i ch M an which Cl e ment

can he sav e d ? in
m aintained that th e right di sposition of the so u l
and not the renunciation o f wor l d l y goods was
the condition of sa l vation .

Though Justin c l aim e d phi l osophy as the

handmai d of religion and continued to w e ar
his phi l osopher s cloak after his conv e rsion to

Cl em e n t be l ongs the credit of being t he rst

to emphasize t he importance of profane l earning
in God s p l an for the wor l d o r in other words to

, ,

c l aim a ll l earning as i n a sense sacred .

I t is not fair to s ay that the leaders of the

C hurch condemned l e arning but some of th e m ,

were certainly shy of it I renaeus has nothing .

to say against it but thought it b e tter to be

,

simple and unlettered than pu ffed up and he ,

quotes with approval the words of S Paul .

,

K now l edge pu f feth up but l ove e di e t h ,
But .

they did not condemn l earning as s uch Tatian .

did but Tatian became a heretic and died a

, ,

Gnostic S Pau l and the C hristians of the next

. .

two centuries had to deal with Gnostics and

Greek phi l osophers who both tended to over,

value knowl edge Man was to be saved by .

knowledge They had to warn their disciples

.

that know l edge was good but might be danger

ous that know l e dge by itse l f cou l d not save
,
.

Some no doubt exaggerated this cautious atti

, ,

tude and it i s quite possib l e that Ce l sus had

,

met Christians who sco ffed at human learning ,

and adopted the attitud e D o not inquire ; only

believe .
1
3 8 Chu rch H i stor
y f ro m Ne ro to C
o n stan ti n e

Tertu l lian was a man of i mmense learning ,

which he used freely enough for controversia l

p urposes though he has n ot m uch to s ay of its
,

p l ace i n the Christian scheme Cl em ent has no .

misgivi ngs He was a learned man himself

.
,

though h i s erudi tion was n ot quit e s o profound

as appe ars at the rst reading o f h is works as ,

he seem s t o have been indebted t o a dictio nary

fo r many o f his quotation s H e c l aim s with .

enth usiasm all learn ing for God God i s the .

cause of a l l good things ; o f some primarily as

the Old and Ne w Testament ; others by co n

sequence as philosophy A l l good things come
.
2

from G o d i nc l uding phi l osop hy which is there

, ,

fore the handmaid o f God and the schoolmaster ,

to bring t he Greeks to C hri st as the law was t o ,

bri ng the J ews Philosophy i s conducive to
.

piety being a kind of preparatory training to

,

those who attai n to faith through demonstration .

Clement in fact carries the war in to the

, ,

enemies camp and c l aim s the title o f Gnostic

, ,

the one who knows for the C hristian S P au l

,
. .

said o f th e C hristian s of hi s day to th e Jews ,

We are the ci rcumcision So Clem ent says .

W e are the Gnostics A s though a believer

.

to day were to s ay We are the R ationalists
-
, ,

and make good hi s c l aim to the title The .

i nstructed C hristian is the true Gnostic and ,

bri ngs all his knowledge to bear o n th e F aith ,

so that from geometry and m usic and grammar

and phi l osophy itse l f culli ng what i s u seful h e
, ,

St m i 5 2
ro . . .
 The Cate che ti cal S cho o l f
o c/ fle xan dri a 1 39

guards the F aith against as s au l t A ll schoo l s .
I

of phi l osophy wer e i ll uminated by rays from the

true Light The G reeks he co n sid e red borrowed
.

from Moses P l ato was Moses in an Attic dress

. .

Ther e is then in phi l osophy thoug h sto l e n as

, , ,

the re of Prometheus a s l ender spark capab l e o f ,

being fann e d into ame a trace of wisdom and , ,

an impul se from G od .
2

H e thought that women ought to phi l osophize

as we ll as m e n 3 and he l d the modern V iew that
,

good i s to be done wi thout the prospect o f reward

or punis hment No twentieth century teacher
.

cou l d be more e mphatic The tru e G nostic i s .

not to abstai n from evi l out o f fear 4 I f he had .

to choose between the know l e dge o f God and

eternal sal vation he wou l d choose w ithout the
,

least h e sitation the knowledge of God He .

does not consider whether any protab l e reward

or enj oyment come s to him ; but drawn by the
l ove of H i m Who i s the true obj ect of l ife and ,

l ed to what i s requisite practises piety ,
.

The sou l of the wis e man and G nostic as ,

soj ourning in the body conducts itse l f towards ,

it grave l y and respectfu ll y he says i n one p l ace ,

but o n the who l e he seems inc l ined to carry

asc e ticism further than this maxim wou l d warrant ,

as the advanced C hristian i s to aim at complete

apathy towards exter n a l things detachment
as we should call it n o w .

Cl ement is a mystic an d his aim is to e nter ,

into immediate and rea l ized com munion with

I
St m i 9
ro . . Ibid 7
. I b i d iv 8
2
.Ibid
,
1 .
3 .
,
. .
4 .
,
22 .
1 4 0 Chu rch H i s to ry f ro m Ne ro to C o n s tan ti n e

God while externa l ru l es si n k into r e l ative i n s i g

,

n i can ce H e lean s towards th e i mmediate

.

apprehension of God and away from rules and ,

externa l s Clemen t fo ll ows S Joh n and S Paul

. . .

rather than S Peter Like all mystics he believed

. .

i n th e prayer o f silence and l ike Brother Laur , ,

ence did n ot need any s e t times o r places for

,

the practice o f t he presence o f G o d I f som e .

assign denite hours for prayer as fo r example ,

the third sixth and n inth yet the Gn ostic prays

, ,

throughout hi s whole life endeavouring by prayer ,

t o have fellowshi p with G o d .
2

Clemen t was righ t i n emphasizing th e need and

possibility o f communio n with G o d and a life ,

l ived o n a high spiritua l plan e H e fe l l i n to .

error when he distinguished to o s harply between

the d i fferent sorts o f C hri stian l i v e s I t i s safer .

for us n o t to j udge o r say which i s h igher o r

,

lower but t o go wherever we are led Th e

, .

Gnostic i n practice mu s t have found it hard

not to be a Pharisee as h e is taught n o t only ,

that there are degree s o f glory i n heaven and ,

the Gnostic w ho has become perfect o n earth will

share the h ighest ran k with the Apostles but ,
2

that to kno w is more than to believe as to be ,

dignied with the highest honour after being

saved is a greater thi ng than being saved In .

other words there was more di fference between

,

a Gnostic and the lowes t category o f the s aved

than betwee n the j ust saved and the lost More .

over th e prayers o f the Gnostic are receiv e d

,

St m vii 7
I
ro .I bid 4
. .
2
.
,
1 .
 The Cate che ti cal S cho o l f
o Al ex an dri a 1 4 1

wi th special favour The Gnostic receives a ll .

that he asks on account of his worthiness for
, ,

God knows those who are and those w ho are

not worthy .

Th e danger o f thi s spiri t i s accentuated by the

u n -Pau l ine stress l aid on a man s own power of

achievement But him who from this has
.

trained himse l f to the summit of know l edg e ,

the e l evated h eight o f the perfect man a ll thi n gs ,

re l ating to time and space he l p on .
2

According to Clement it was only possib l e to

become a true Gnostic after years of arduous
preparation There appear to be three stages
.
2

of preparation
I The sta e o ffaith imp l ying a com prehensive ,

know l edge 0 the essential s .

. 2 Knowledge conveying the sou l to i n fall i

,

b i l i ty science an d comprehension
, ,
.

.
3 Love which,
gives the l oving to th e loved ,

that which knows to that which i s k n own

.

There are two conversions the rst from

heathenism to faith and the second from faith ,

to knowl edge .

We are reminded of the three stages in the

progress of th e mystic th e purgative th e ,

i ll uminative and the un i t i ve

,
.

F ina ll y the perfected Gnostic
,
is equa l to the
ange l s and urges hi s ight to the ancestral b all
,

through the holy septennial of heaven l y abodes

to the Lord s o w n mansion
.

Cl ement did a service to the C hurch by c l aim

St vii 7 I bid 1
ro ut . . .
2
.
,
0 .
1 4 2 Chu rch Hi sto ry f ro m Ne ro to C o n s tan ti n e

i ng the support of phi l osophy and by l ayi ng ,

down the pri ncip l e that a ll good things are from

God includi ng art and l earning Th e devi l i s
,
.

not to have a ll th e be st tunes But his zeal .

carried hi m too far I n hi s eyes phi l osophy

.
,

i nstead of being a respon sibi l ity to its possessor ,

puts hi m into a superior class T here i s a touch .

o f the P harisee i n hi s Gnosticis m H e i s here .

rather Platonist than Pau l ine .

Of hi s other works the Tu to r contains m uch

i nteresting i n formation on th e l ife and man ne rs
of both Christians an d heathens i n Alexandria i n
that day The year o f his death i s uncertain
.
,

bu t it must have occurred before A O 2 1 5 when . .

,

A l exander a l ludes to him i n a l etter to Origen , ,

as having gone before .
I

O RI GE N
One o f Cl e me nt s pu pi l s was a b o y named

Origen a native o f Egypt a Copt born A O 1 8 5

, , , . . .

H i s rst teacher had been h is father w h o had ,

train ed him i n both C hristian and Greek litera

ture Fro m the begi nn ing he had shown great
.

zeal and ability i n his studie s and knew m ost

o f th e Scriptures by heart Z eal w as i n deed .

the key note of hi s life During the p e rs e cu

- .

tion at Alexandria he wo uld have g iv e n hi m s e l f

up and was only deterred by the persuasi on o f

,

his mother who went to the length o f hiding

,

h i s c l othes When h is father was seized h e

.

E b i H 8 vi 1 4
2
u se u s, . . . .
 The Cate che ti cal S cho o l of Al exan dri a 1 43

wrot e him a l etter in which h e encouraged

him to stand rm Take h e ed not to change
.

thy mind on account of us H e was seventeen .

when h i s father w as martyred and he s u p ,

ported h is mother and six younger brothers by

teach ing G reek l iterature When the persecution .

broke out t he catechetica l schoo l cam e to an

end but at t h e r e quest of some who desired
,

instruction he started it again and was accepted ,

by Bishop D e metrius as a catechist Severa l of .

his pupi l s became martyrs and Origen was noted ,

for the fearlessness with which he vi si ted them

i n prison stood by them at their tria l and k issed
, ,

them when l ed away to d i e s o that more than ,

once he was near l y stoned by th e m o b H is .

I

i mmunity from persecution may have bee n due

to t he fact that the l aw w as apparent l y directed
against converts to C hristianity .

The number of his pupils becam e so great that

he gave up hi s schoo l of philosophy and devoted
himse l f entirely to teaching the F aith H e l ived .

a l ife of extreme asceticism and so l d his Greek ,

books so as to secure for himse l f a triing pension

and be abl e to teach without a fee H e l imited .

h i s sleep as we ll as h i s food and always s l ept ,

on the bare ground wor e no shoes drank no , ,

wine and ate on l y such food as w as n ecessary to

,

keep body and sou l together The fame o f his .

asceticism seem s to have attracted many i n ,

c l uding heretic s and even phi l osophers of no

mean acco u nt who w e re prevai l ed upon to
,
2

E2
b i H 8 vi 3
u se u s, I bid 8
. . . .
2
.
, 1 .
1 44 Chu rch H i s to ry fro m Ne ro to C o n s tan ti n e

adopt his doctri ne Many also i mitated h is way .

o f l ife . H i s zeal led him into extremes i n all he

did and his asceticism carried h im t o the length
,

o f se l f-mutilatio n taking the words o f Scripture

, ,

as E usebiu s puts it i n too l i teral and puerile ,

a s ense . D emetrius t h e bishop was inform ed
2
, ,

and bade h i m continue his work H i s school .

became s o popu l ar that h e w as forced to enlist help ,

and e mployed H e racl as to i nstruct the beginners

while h e devoted himself to the more advanced
pupils At the sam e time he found it necessary
.

t o study Greek p hilosophy As he h imself put .

it When I had devoted myse l f wholly to th e

Word and my fame went abroad concern ing my
pro ciency as I was someti me s visited by here
,

tics sometimes by those who were conversant

,

with the studies o f th e Greeks especially those ,

that were purs ui ng p hilosophy I was reso l ved to ,

examin e bot h th e opi nion s o f the heretics and

those works o f the phi l osophers which pretend

t o speak o f truth .
2

Like Ploti nus he attended the lectures o f

,

Am m o n i u s S accas Porphyry the Neoplaton i st

.
,

philosopher attended t he same lectures and

, ,

gives the following account of Orige n whom ,

I happened to meet when I was very young ,

an d who was very celebrated and i s sti l l cele

b rate d by the writings which he has left I .

mean Origen whos e g l ory i s very great -with

the teachers o f those doctrine s F o r this man .
,

having been a h earer of Am m o n i u s who had ,

E2
b i H 8 vi 8
u se u s, I bid 1 9
. . . .
2
.
, .
 The Cate che ti cal S cho o l f
o A lexan dri a 1 45

made the greatest prociency in philosophy

among those of o u r day as to know l edge ,

d e rived great benet from his master but with ,

regard to a correct purpose of life he pursued

a course direct l y O pposit e F o r Am m o n i u s .
,

a Christian and brought up among C hristian s

,

by hi s par e nts wh en equipped with reason and

,

know l edge changed h i s v i e ws and l ived accord

ing to the laws But Origen a Gre ek educated
.
, ,

in G reek literature fe l l away to thi s barbarian

,

fo ll y To which h e both consigned hims e l f and

.

his attainments in l earning l iving l ike a C hristian ,

contrary to the l aws but in regard to his opinions

, ,

both of things and t h e D eity acting the Greek ,

and intermingling Greek l iterature with these

for e ign ctions F o r he was a l ways i n company
.

with P l ato and had the works of Nu m e n i u s and

,

C ran i u s o f A p o ll o p han e s and Longinus of

, ,

M oderatus and Ni co m achu s and others whose ,

writings are valued i n hi s hands H e also read

,
.

th e works o f Chae re n o n the Stoic and thos e of ,

C ornutus . F rom them he derived the a ll egorical

mode of i nterpretation and applied it to the ,

Jewish S cri p t u re s .
I

About A D 2 1 2 he visited R ome being de
. .
,

s i ro u s to s e e this very ancient C hurch H e was .

one of the earliest textua l critics and having ,

learned H ebrew search e d for di fferen t versions in

,

ord e r to compare them with the Septuagint H e .

trave ll ed wide l y and hi s fame steadi l y increased

,
.

H e was sent for by the G overnor of Arabia ,

E b i H 8 vi 9
2
u se u s, . . . 1 .

U
1 4 6 Chu rch H i s to
y
r
f ro m Ne ro to C o n stan ti n e

wh o wishe d to consult h i m about hi s soul .

Later M am m ae a th e mother of the future ,

e mperor Alexander was so impre s sed by h i s

, ,

reputatio n that sh e sum moned him to Antioch ,

and provi ded him with a military escort so ,

desirou s was s he of conversing with him The .

Emperor Philip corresponded with him D uring .

t he sack of Alexandria by the so l diers o f C ara

calla Origen took refuge in Pa l estine and w as
, ,

welcomed by the Bishops of Caesarea an d J eru

salem who i nvited him th ough a layman t o
, , ,

addres s not only t h e catech umen s but the ,

congr e gation i n church This was A O 2 1 5 . . . .

D emetri u s wrote to protest and reca ll ed hi m

t o Alexandria

.

Orige n s rst book D e P ri n cip i i s O n First

Pri nciples
i s the earlie st attemp t to form a
synthetic C hristian theology Th e Apostles h e .
,

argues had handed down certai n facts an d usage s

,

which are to be received leaving how e ver the , , ,

grounds o f their state ments to be examin ed i nto

by those w ho s hould deserve the excellen t gifts

of the Spirit Th e Apostolic tradition co ntain s
.
2

the fo l lowing poi nts

There i s o n e G o d Who created all th ings .

J esus C hrist was bor n of a Virgin and the H oly

Spirit and was I ncarnate although G o d ; did
,

truly die and did truly rise from th e dead ; and

was taken up i nto heaven Thirdly the Holy .
,

Spirit i s associated i n honour and dignity with

the Father and the Son .

2
De P ri n cip i i s, Pr eface .
 The Cate che ti cal S cho o l f
o Al exan dri a 1 47

The sou l has a l ife of its own and w i ll be

rewarded or punished There w i ll be a re s u rre c .

tion of the body E very rational sou l has free

.

wi ll and is opposed by evi l spirits and assisted

,

by angels .

The Scripture s are from the Spirit of God and

have two meanings the l itera l and the hidden o r
, ,

spiritua l .

Origen s business was to dene explain co

, ,

ordinate expand and genera ll y adapt to the

, ,

ne eds o f his conte mporaries thi s Apostolic tradi

tion H e was a daring thin ker and some o f h is
.
,

specu l ations were eventua ll y disa ll owed But in .

this res p ect as i n s o many others he was a pioneer

, , ,

and was sailing over seas as yet uncharted .

H i s l iterary output was prodigious H e is .

said to have produced six thousand works in a ll .

H e l earnt H ebrew and wrote comme ntarie s on

the Scriptures H i s great work was the H exap la
.

o r sixfo l d Bib l e which s e t out i n para l lel

,

columns the H ebrew text in H ebrew the ,

H e brew text i n Gree k characters the S e p tu a ,

gint and three other G reek texts H e was the

,
.

pioneer of textual criticism as app l ied to th e

Bib l e and took e normous pai ns to acquir e texts
,

and version s Those origina l works written i n

.

the H ebrew and in the hands of the J ews he

, ,

procured as his o w n H e also investigated the .

edition s of others who besides the Seventy had , ,

pub l ished trans l ations o f the Scri ptures and some ,

di fferent from the we l l -known tran s l ations of

Aqui l a Symmachus and T he o d o ti o n w hich he
, , ,
1 4 8 Chu r ch H i s to
y
r
f
ro m Ne ro to C o n stan t n ei

h unted up and traced to I know not what ancien t , ,

lurking-places where they h ad lain concealed

,

from re mote times and brough t them to the ,

light I n which when it was doubtful to him

.
,

fro m what author they came he on l y added the ,

remar k that he had found this tran slation at

Nicopolis n ear Actium but this other translation ,

i n such a lace I n the Hex ap la indeed of the
Psalm s aff
.
, ,

er those four noted edition s he adds ,

n o t o nly a fth but a sixth and seventh tran s l a

,

tion and in on e it i s remarked that it was di s

,

covered at Jericho i n a tub i n the time o f

Antoni n us the son o f Severus .
2

His friend Ambrose a ma n o f wealth p ro , ,

v i de d h i m wi th seve n amanue nses wh o re l ieved ,

one another and seven copyists besides girls

, ,

wh o did other writing for him .

About A O 2 3 0 he was on a j ourney to Greece

. .

and went very m uch o u t o f h is way to visit his

frien ds t he Bishops of Jer u salem and Caesarea ,

who or d ain ed him priest I t has n o t been .

sugge sted that the Ordination was arranged

beforehand but i t can hardly have been other
,

wise A seriou s -minded man like Orige n would

.

not be ordai ned casual l y as a n incide nt of a ,

short vi sit On his return to A l exandria he

.

had to face a storm D emetrius according to .

,

E usebius was overcom e by human in rmi ty
, ,

o r ,
i n other words became a prey t o j ealousy , ,

and wrote to traduce h i m to a l l the bishops
o f the C hurch though h e had nothing to
,

E b i H 8 vi 1 6
2
u se u s, . . . .
 The Cate che ti cal S cho o l f
o Ale x an ari a I 49
a ll e g e against hi m beyond t he act done by him

as a boy near l y thirty years b e fo re
,
It .
I

i s not necessary how e ver t o impute j ea l ousy

, ,
.

R ightly or wrongly D emetrius had acted o n a

de l iberate and considered reso l ve in not ordain
ing Origen I f Origen desired Ordination as
.
,

presumably he did his friends must have pressed

,

it upon D emetrius Whether D emetri u s re

.

garded the mutilation as a s u i ci e n t obstacle ,

which w as quite a reasonable view to take o r ,

whether he suspected h i s orthodoxy w ithout fee l

i ng sure enough of his ground to cha l lenge so
redoubtable an opponent o n that gro u nd or ,

whether h e had other reasons good or bad with , ,

which we are not acquainted the decision must ,

have been de l iberate and main tained not withou t

di ffi cu l ty No t unnatural l y he was considerab l y
.

provoked and summoned a Synod of Bishops and

Presbyters which condemned Origen to l eave
,

A l exandria D e metrius then summoned a second

.

Synod by which Origen was excommunicated

, ,

a sentence which was enforced i n Eg y pt and

recognized in the West b ut not in Pa l estine , ,

Arabia o r Greece
,
.

Origen retired to Caesarea where he found ,

she l ter and protection T h e school at Alexan

.

dria was taught rst by H e raclas and when ,

H e racl as succeeded D emetrius as Bishop of

A l exandria by D ionysius I t is s i n i can t that
neither of them though both were f
.

,
ormer pupi l s
of Origen and H e racl as had been h is assistant
, ,

E b i H E vi 8
2
u se u s, . . . .
1
5 0 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to C o n stan ti n e

whe n they i n turn became Bishop of Alexandria

did anythi ng to bring him back .

The famous Al exandrian school was h owever , ,

i n e ffect transferr e d to Caesarea where many ,

cam e n ot only o f th e residents but also i nnu

, ,

m e rab l e oth ers from abroad who l eft their country ,

i n order to attend hi s lectures Thither came .

Gregory afterwards ca ll ed Thaumaturgus and

, ,

his brother At he n o do ru s F i rm i li an u s Bishop o f .

,

C aesarea i n Cap padocia s um moned him t o bene t ,

the churches i n h i s diocese H i s o w n bishop .
,

the B i shop of J erusa l e m we are told attended ,

hi m li ke a pupil his master and al l owed hi m ,

to perform the dutie s o f expoundi n g the sacred

Scriptures and other matters that pertain to the

doctri nes o f the C hurch .

About A O 2 3 0 he wrote hi s work again st

. .

C elsus .

I n A O 2 5 0 during the Decian persecution he

. .
, ,

was seized and put to the torture The nature .

and n u mber o f the bonds which h e e ndured

un de r an iron collar and i n th e deepest recesse s
,

o f the pri son w here fo r many days h e was ex

,

tended and stretched to the distance o f four h oles

o n t he rack besides th e threats of re and oth er
,

su fferings he bore man fully
,
.

H e survived hi s tortures for t w o o r three

years a nd died at Tyre where fo r many centurie s
, ,

hi s tomb was the pri ncipal ornament o f the

cathedral o f the H oly Sepulchre and is still ,

poi nted o u t though n o w on l y ruins re m ai n

,
.
I

C Bi gg Ch i ti a P lat i t f Al a d i a
.

2
.
, r s n on s s 0 ex n r .
 The Cate che ti cal S cho o l f
o Ale xan dri a 1
5 1

He r e ceived no vener ation after h i s death i n

S pit e of his stout confession and the austere
ascetici sm of his who l e l ife I n l abours few
.

scholars of any age have bee n more abundant .

I t may be that s uch l abours did not make th e

popu l ar appea l which was the necessar pre
liminary to the automatic canonization 0 those
days or that his unorthodoxy may have made
,

more impression than appears or hi s rash act,

may have been the bar or there may have been

,

something wanting in h is character But he.

remained uncanoniz e d .H e has never bee n

reputed to be a saint .

Saint o r not he was o n e of the great men of

,

his or indeed of any age and a sh ining examp l e

,

t o a l l students.
 VI I I

PAGA N ATTE MPTS AT RECON

ST R U CT I O N

O R a long time the philosoph ers ignored

C hristianity , treating it as beneath con
tempt W h en they did notice i t, th e y n am ed
.

i t as li ttle as possible Lucian , w ho was more

.

a man o f letters than a philosopher , sco ffe d at

i t i n hi s D eath of P e reg ri n us But the n he sco ffed
.

at a l l religion s i mpartially .

Somewhere toward s the en d o f the second

cen tury a Platoni st ca ll ed C elsus thought i t
worth while to write a book agai n st the C hris
tians ca l led The True Wo rd About the year
, .

A O 2 3 0 whe n C elsus
. .
,
had long since departed ,

Origen wrote a reply and th e original attack sur

,

vives only s o far as i t i s quoted by Origen The .

book is worthy of some examination as i t show s ,

th e obj ection s to Christianity entertained by a

pagan philosopher o f t hat day an d gives som e
.
,

i ndication o f the sort of reconstruction o f the

pagan religion wh ich was to be attempted .

C elsus was well acquainted with th e Scri ptures

o f th e Old Testament with the Four Gospels
, ,

and with some o f the Epistles of S Paul H e . .

probably knew the rest though it did not an swer

,

1 52
 P ag an attemp ts at R e co n stru cti o n 3

his purpose to quote them H e fastens on the .

I ncarnation and the Virgin Birth as the starting

point of C hristianity and furth er dea l s with th e
,

descent i nto he ll the R esurrection the seco n d

, ,

coming to j udge as wel l as the creation an

,

i nteresti ng because independent witness to what

, ,

were the sa l i e nt features of Ch ris tian teaching in

his day .

The I ncarnation h e thought prepost e rous .

H e scorns the thought that G od shou l d hav e

come to earth at al l G od is good and beau
.

tifu l and b l essed But if H e come down

.
2

am ong men H e must undergo a change from ,

good to evi l from virtue to vice from happi n e ss

, ,

to mi sery and from b e st to worst

,
G od .

could not admit of such a change Why .

s hou l d H e do it ? Was it i n order to l earn

what goes o n among me n ? That it shou l d

be to make men righteous he dec l ares a most

sham e l ess assertion H e sees no di ffe rence
.

betw e en men and animals Bees and ants are .

not in ferior to men .

2

Jews and C hristians are compared to a ight

of bats or to a swarm of ants issuing out of thei r
,

nest or to frogs ho l ding counci l in a marsh

, ,

or to worm s craw l ing together in a dung hil l

and quarre l ling with one another as to wh ich of
th e m were th e gr e ater sin ners and asserting that ,

G od shows and announces to u s a ll things

b e forehand ; and that abandoning t he who l e ,

wor l d and the region s O f heaven H e becomes a ,

Agai t C l iv 4
ns I bi d 8
e s us, . 1 .
2
.
,
1 .

X
1 54 Chu rch H i s to r
y f ro m Ne ro to C o n s tan t n ei

citizen among us alone and to us a l on e make s ,

H i s i ntimations and does not cease sending and

,

inquiring in what way we may b e associated with

H i m for ever .
2

H i s account o f the birth of Jes us i s that H e

was born i n a certai n J ewis h vi ll age o f a poor ,

woman of the country wh o gained her living by ,

spi n ning and who was turned out o f doors by

her husban d a carpenter by trade because s he
, ,

w as convicted o f adultery ; that after bei ng ,

driven away by her husband and wandering

about for a time s he disgraceful l y gave birth
,

to Jesus an illegitimate c hild W ho having

, , ,

hired Hi m self o u t as a servant i n Egypt o n

account o f H i s poverty and having then ,

acquire d some m iracu l ous powers returned to ,

H i s own coun try and by mean s of the m pro , ,

claimed H im self a god 2
Celsus even went .

so far as to say that the father w as a soldier

cal l ed Panthera On which story Or i ge n makes
.

the j us t com ment that i t at least admits that

J esus was not the s o n of J oseph and Mary .

The su ffering the lowly station the a ffronts

, ,

t o wh ich H e sub mitted cu l m inating i n the C ros s , ,

were i nexplicable to Ce l su s if Jes us were divine ,

.

H e co mp l ai ns that Jesus received no assistance

from H i s F ather and was unable to h elp H i m
,

self 3 H e considered that the rank o f the

.

Apost l es w as beneath divine dign ity J esu s .

havi ng gathered rou nd H i m ten or eleven

persons of notorious character the very wickedest ,
2
Ag ai t C l
ns iv 3
e sus, I bid i 8 . I bid 5 4
2 .
2
.
, . 2 .
3 .
,
.
 P ag an atte mp ts at R e co n stru cti o n I55
of tax -gatherers and sailors e d in company , ,

wi th th e m from p l ac e to p l ace and obtained

, ,

H i s l iving i n a shamefu l and importunat e

m an n e r . H e asks contemptuous l y :
I
Why
did you not become a king i nstead of wandering
about in s o mean a condition hiding yourse l f ,

through fear and l eading a m iserab l e l ife up

,

and down 2

H e accuses J e sus we do not know o n what ,

ground o f having attempted to hide after H i s

,

condemnation and to escape in a most dis
,

gracefu l manner ; and he goes on to assert

that a god cou l d neither ee nor be l ed away
prisoner ; least o f a ll could h e be deserted and
delivered up by them who had been his asso

ciates 3 The b e traya l was a ve ry sore point
. .

No good genera l or leader was ever betrayed

n or even a wicked captain o f robbers or com
mander of very wicked men who was though t ,

t o be of any use to his associates 4 .

The descen t into H ades an d th e R esurrection

arouse his scorn and incredulity ; but at the
same time he cal led the C hristians si ll y because

they wou l d not acknow l edge that a great
mu l titude of Greeks and barbarians have fre
quent l y seen and sti ll s e e no mere phantom
, , ,

but Aescu l apius himse l f hea l ing and doi n g good ,

and forete ll ing the future 5 .

C hristianity as a w ay of li e he thought as bad

as the Christian religion considered as a philo
2
Ag ai t C l i 6 ns I bid 6
e s u s, . 2 .
2
.
,
1 .

3I b i d ii 9 . I bid 1
, . I b i d iii 4
.
4 .
,
2 .
5 .
, . 2 .
1
5 6 Chu rch H i s to ry
f ro m Ne ro to C o n s tan t n e i

sophy No t only the ignorant b ut the si nfu l

.

are welcom e d Others whe n they i nvit e to thei r

.
,

mysteries proclaim ,
Every one who h as c l ean

hands and a pure tongue approach But the .

Chris tian s s ay Every o n e who i s a sin ner who ,

i s devoid o f u nders tanding who i s a chi l d an d , ,

to speak genera l ly whoever i s unfortunate h im

, ,

wi l l the K i ngdom o f G od receive D o you not .

ca l l h i m a sin ner t hen who i s unj u st and a thief

, , ,

a housebreaker a prisoner a committer o f sacri

, ,

l ege o r a robber of the dead ? What other s

,

wou l d a man i nvite if he were issui n g a pro

c l amatio n for an assemb l y of robbers ? 2

To which Origen rej oins that the C h urch

i nvi te s th e sick that they may be cured .

H e com p l ained that the C h urch made its

appeal to th e foo l ish and ign orant i n other ,

words t o l abouring folk women and children

, , ,
.

I n the market places they avoided philosoph ers ,

but whenever they s e e young men o r a m o b

o f s l aves or a gatheri ng o f u ninte l ligent person s

they thrust them selves i n I n private houses .
2

the manua l workers became C hristian the fullers , ,

the workers in wool and leather and through ,

them the leaven sprea d s The ch ildren are to l d .

,

according t o Ce l sus to go with the women ,

and their playfellows to the wome n s apartmen t

or to the leather shop o r to th e ful l er s shop to

-

be taught 3 .

H e accuse s the C hristians of repeati ng Do

n o t examine ; only believe and Your faith ,
2
Ag ai t C l
ns ii i 5 9
e s us , I bid 5 . I bid 5 3
.
2
.
,
2 .
3 .
, .
 P ag an atte mp ts at Re co n stru cti o n 1
57

wi ll sav e you an d that th e y a l so s ay Th e
,

wisdom of this l ife i s bad but fool ishness is ,

a good thing One can s e e how the words of
.
2

S Pau l about th e wisdom of this world to the

.

C orinthian s might be thus wrested by an adv e r

sary and i t is quite as l ike l y that C e l sus found
,

the ground for this charge i n th e Epist l e as i n

h i s actual experienc e .

H e asserts that C hristian s rep e l every wise
man from the doctrine of their faith and invite ,

on l y the ignorant and vu l gar ; and that they 2

l ay down the fo ll owing ru l es

Let no one come to us who h as been
i nstructed or who i s wise and prudent ( for
such qua l ications are deemed evil by us ) ;
but if there be any ignorant or uninte ll igen t
or foolish or uni nstructed persons let them

come with condence 3 .

Neverthe l ess he has to admi t that others

,

besides the simp l e becam e fo l lowers of C hrist ,

and that there were among them persons o f

moderate inte ll ig e nc e and gentle disposition and ,

possessed o f un derstandi n g and capab l e of com

prehending al l egories 4 .

H e dec l ares that their m iracles are due to

sorcery magic and demoniaca l assistance 5 H e
, ,
.

obj ects to th e sim p l ici ty of the l a n g u ag e o f

Scripture to the existence of h e resies to the
6
, ,

doctrine of the resurr e ction of the body and ,

be l ief i n prayer God i s not to be reached
.

2
Ag ai t C l
ns i 9 I b i d iii 1 8
e su s , . . I b i d 44 2
.
,
. .
3 .
, .

I b id i 7.
,
I b id 6
. 2 . I b i d vi
5 .
,
.
6
.
, . 2 .
1 5 8 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to C o n s tan ti n e

by word But hi s principa l charge against t he
.

followers o f C hrist as against C hris t H imse l f

, ,

i s that of lowness They are an ignorant
.
,

credulou s l ow born and criminal rabble

-
, ,
He .

ca n hardly express the scorn he feels Toward s .

a con structive theory of life and re l igion Celsu s

does n o t give m uch help H e quotes Plato as .

saying I t i s a hard matter to nd o u t the
,

Maker and F ather o f the u niverse and after ,

having found H im it is i m possib l e to make H i m

known to all On l y the wi se i n fact says
.
2
, ,

Celsus are able t o make o u t H i m W ho i s the

,

rst the unapproachable Being

,
And they .

endeavour to convey a notion o f this Body by

synthesi s o r by ana l ysis o r by analogy to those
capab l e o f understandi ng B ut C hristian s he .
,

thinks would be i ncapable being s o comp l etely

,

wedded t o t he e sh as to be i ncapable o f seeing

augh t but what i s i mpure .
2

I t i s right to serve demons and spirits because

they belong to the Most H igh I t i s right to .

sacrice to t hem because Go d is the God o f all

alike ; He is good ; H e s tan ds i n need o fn o thi n g ,

and He is without j e alousy What then i s there .

, ,

to hinder those w ho are most devoted to H i s

service from taking part i n public feasts ? 3

M oreover these d e mons ,
being s e t over the ,

thi ngs o f t his world we must give them than ks,

and rs t-fruits and prayers Th e Supreme .

Being it may be remembered could not be

, ,

reached by the word of prayer I f we fai l to .

2
Agai t C l ns vi i 4e s us ,I bid . 2I bid i.
2
.
3 .
, . 2 1 .
 P ag an atte m
p ts at R e co n stru cti o n I59
do so they wil l be angry and we S hal l su ffer ,
.

Th e satrap of a Persian or R oman monarch

or ru l er o r gen e ra l or governor yea even those , ,

who ll l ow e r O ffi ces of trust and service in the

State wou l d be ab l e to do great i nj ury to those
,

who despised them ; and wi ll the satraps and

ministers of earth and air be insu l ted with
im punity 2

H e defends the worship o ffered by Egyptians

to crocodiles and anima l s o n the ground that ,

such acts o f worship are rea ll y o ffered to eternal

ideas and not as the multitude thi nk to e p he
, , ,

mer al anima l s .

H e beli e ves in rewards and punishment after

death though indignant with the Christian
preaching of them I n one p l ace h e complains
.

that God is made to come with re like a tor

turer and in another burn s up the wor l d l ik e a
,

cook H e he l d that God di d n o t create the world

.

nor the body of man but only hi s soul ,

God .

made no thing mortal but immortal things a l one ;

,

while morta l things are the work of others and ,

the sou l is a work o f G od ; but t he nature of

the body is di fferent and there is no di fference
,

b e tween the body of a man and that o f a hat

or a worm or a frog for the matter i s the same

and the corruptib l e part alike .
2

The origin of evi l was n o t di f cu l t for the

phi l osopher to fathom but u nnec e ssary for the ,

mu l titude to kno w They are to be to l d that
.

evils do n o t proceed from God but c l eave to ,

Ag ai t C l
2
ns viii 3 5 I b i d iv 5 5
e s us , . .
2
.
, . .
1 6 0 Church H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to C o n s tan ti n e

matter and have their abod e among mortal

things ; whi l e the course of m orta l things being
t he same from begin ning to end the same thi ngs ,

must a l ways agreeably to the appoi nted cyc l es

recur in the past presen t a nd future, ,
.
I

B ut Ce lsus though he begi ns with abuse ends

, ,

with an appea l H e i mplores the C hri stian s to

.

ra ll y to the support of the emperor to l abour ,

with him i n the maintenance o f j ustice to ght ,

with him and to take o ffi ce in the govern
,

me nt of the coun try H o w far C hristians did
.
2

thei r duty as citizens is discus sed elsewhere .

H ere i t wi l l be e no ugh to observe that C elsus

admits the great in uence o f m e m bers o f the
C h urch or appea l s to them woul d n o t have bee n
,

worth while .

B u t the work of Cel su s is main l y destructive .

H i s main purpose i s to destroy and ridicule the

C hurch not to im prove pagani sm
,
So far as .

that comes i n at all i t is in cide ntal .

A PO L LO N I U S OF T YA N A
T houghtful pagans whether religio us m inded ,
-

o r not saw the absurdity of the popular re l igion

, ,

o f which Lucian made fun and li ke C elsu s the , , ,

i m portance o f re l igion as a prop of th e Em pire .

C hristianity was im possible becau se i t was ,

excl usive ; but by t he begi n ni ng of t he t hi rd

ce ntury i t was beco m i ng c l ear that persec ution

had failed and that the C hurch must be met by
,

Ag ai t Cel
2
iv 6 5
ns I b i d viii 7 5
su s, . .
2
.
,
. .
 P ag an atte mp ts at Re co n stru cti o n 1 61

a reconstructed paganism I t m ust me e t the .

demands of phi l osophy by postulating One

Supreme Being but at the same time be broad
,

and comprehensive enough to i nclude al l deiti es

or heroes popu l ar with the multitude o f what ,

ever ki nd s o that both popu l ar feeling and

,

phi l osophic honour could be satised There i s .

no harm i n kissing the hand to inferior deities .

A n attempt was made at the suggestion o f

J u l ia D omna the second wi fe of Severu s and
,

the mother of Caraca ll a who l eft to her the,

direction of civil a ffairs whi l e he occupied him

se l f with the Army She w as the power behind
.

the throne throughout his reign and surrounded ,

herself with a coterie of l iterary men and phi l o

sophers .

Severus married her because s he had a royal

nativity Gibbon wrote o f h e r
. Julia D om na
( for t hat was her name ) deserved all t h at the
stars could promi se her She possessed even i n
.
,

an advanced age the attractions o f beauty and

, ,

united to a lively imagination a rmness of mind

and strength of j udgeme nt seldom bestowed o n
her s e x H e r amiab l e qua l ities n ever made any
.

deep impression on the dark an d j e al o u s tem per

of her h usband ; but i n her son s reign s he

administered the principal a ffairs of the Empire

with a prudence that supported his authority
and with a moderation that sometimes corr e cted
.

his wi l d extravagances Ju l ia app l ied herself to

.

l etters and philosophy with so m e success and the

most splendid reputation She was the patroness
.

Y
1 6 2 Chu rch H i sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to C
o n stan t n e i

o f every art and the friend of e very man of

,

genius The gratefu l attery o f th e l earned has

.

ce l ebrated h er vi rtue s but i f w e may credit the ,

scanda l of ancie nt hi stori e s chastity w as not the ,

favourite virtue o f the Empress J u l ia .
2

H e r re l igious sym pathies were n o doubt

Orienta l rath e r than Greek and s he seem s to ,

have wished to promote a grand ama l gama

tio n o f all th e religion s o f the E mpire a ,

super undenomi nationa l i sm i n fact A visit o f

- .

the C o urt to Tyana i n the spri ng o f A D 2 1 5 . .

may have given her the idea of setting u p

Apoll o n ius as a rival to C hrist Among her .
2

circle of li tte rateu rs was P hi l o s t rat u s a you ng ,

s ophis t and he w as give n th e commi ssion h e

,

wrote a book with the t it l e P hi lo stratus o n Ap o l

l o n i u s of Ty an a I n i t he tells u s that o n e Damis
.
,

a disci ple and com panion o f A p dl l o n i u s w ho had

,

played Boswe l l to hi s Dr Joh nson had left .

,

be hi n d h im m emoirs and a person w ho was ,

related to this Dami s brought the originals o f

these mem oirs hi therto undi scovered to the
, ,

knowledge of the E mpress J u l ia and she laid ,

o n me the task of transcribing and editi ng these

papers I t was her wish also that I shou l d be

.

respon sib l e fo r the form o f expressio n ; for th e

Ninevite s language though clear was anything

, ,

b u t a model o f lit e rary art .

O f the real Apollo nius we know little He .

D li a d Fall v
2
ec n e n , .

2
Phi l t at
os r i H us n
] A p ll i T
f y a a
o n our 0 l vi ioS o n us o n , x . ee

T a l at i
r ns a d I t d
o n n ti nby P f
ro S P hill i m
uc o n ro e ss o r . o re .
 P ag an atte mp ts at R eco n stru cti o n 1 63

was born about the time that C hrist di ed an d ,

he died i n the reign of Nerva But he l e ft .

no great name among his contemporaries and

founded no schoo l A l most a l l we know of him
.

we l earn from P hil o s trat u s and P hi lo s tratu s

,

book is a romance written with a purpose H e .

seems to have travel l ed and to have addressed

,

the crowds at markets i n G reek town s i n G reece

and Asia to have had some c l aims to be con
,

s i d e re d a philosopher and a worker of mirac l es .

Whether he was more a serious teacher or a

char l atan and wonder -worker we cannot te ll .

I n readi ng the book in his praise it i s best

to take it as an attempt made A O 2 1 5 by a . .

Greek philosopher to he l p on th e great schem e

favoured by the Court of promoti ng a genera l
ama l gamation of all religion s and to point out the
in feriority o f th e F ounder of Christianitythe
religion that obstinately refused to amal gamate
to Apo l lonius .

According to P hi l o s trat u s the birth of Apol

,

l o n i u s was heralded by swans and tho u gh he , ,

would n ever ack now l edge it the countryside ,

gav e him Jupiter as a father H i s parents were

.

peop l e of rank and fortune H e went to Tars us

.

to be educated and became l earn ed in philosophy ,

and adopted the opi nion s of Pythagoras ; h e l ived

a l ife of ascetici sm refusing to eat meat or wear
,

any ani ma l product and going always barefoot

,
.

H e used according to P hi l o s t rat u s to work

, ,

mirac l es of hea l ing at t h e temple of Aescu l apius .

At the age of twenty three his father died and

-
 1 6 4 Church Hi sto ry f ro m Ne ro to C o n s tan t n e i

left hi m a fortune o f which he gave away half

, .

After that h e kept th e Pythagorean rule by

observi ng a ve years silence T h e silence h e .

fou nd inconvenient but i n spite o f it was o n one

,

occasion able to que l l a tumult save the governor ,

o f a town fro m being burned alive and com p el a ,

n umber o f food -hoarders to disgorge by waving

his hand and writing o n hi s tablets .
2

H e afterwards s e t o u t o n a j ourn ey t o Babylon

and I ndia accompanied by the fai th ful Dami s ;
,

he knew t he languages o f the cou ntries to be

visited without havi ng learnt th em an d was also ,

able t o converse with birds as he told Damis , ,

though these useful accomp l ishments did n o t

make an interpreter u n necessary later o n n o r are ,

hi s conversation s with th e birds o n record T h e .

rest o f th e book i s taken up mai nly with hi s

travels h is m irac l es and his discourse s pri n
, , ,

c i al l
p y hi s discourses H e discoursed . without
pity and improved every occasion D uring a
,
.

prolonged stay i n Babylon o n h i s way to the ,

I ndian s he discoursed t o th e king at length

,

o n religio n and philosophy and i n addition gave ,

him advice o n domestic and foreign po l icy ,

wh ich was gratefully received and acted upon

with docility When the king w as sick h e dis
.
,

coursed with s o much eloquence o n the nature o f

the soul as to e ffect a n i m mediate cure .

Un l ike o u r Lord he was n o t to b e found

,

i n the company of the outcast A t least this .

prayer i s put i n hi s m outh : 0 sun grant ,

P hi l t at
2
Ap ll i
os r Iu s on o o n us, . xv .
 P ag an atte mp ts at R e co n stru cti o n I65
me to know the virtuous on l y : as to the wicked ,

I wish neither to know them o r to be known

by them .

F rom Baby l on h e went to I ndia and spent four

months with the I ndian sages H ere he seems .

to have found philosophers as loquacious as

hi mself They discussed their respective pre
.

incarnation s Apol loni u s describing an adventure

,

with pirates when in a previou s existence he w as

an Egyptian ship master they ta l ked o f creation
-
,

of pygmies who l ived under the earth of dragon s , ,

of gri ffons wi nged anima l s as strong and large

,

as l ion s and of other things and parted with

, ,

expressions of mutual esteem Afterwards h e .

visited the principal towns o f Asia M inor and

Greece di spensi ng advice to their inhabitants
,
.

At Ephesus he drove away a plague by per

s u adi n the inhabitan ts to stone an o l d beggar
g
man who subsequently disappeared in the form
,

o f a hound At Athen s to hi s credit h e

.
, ,

rebuked the Athenian s for their devotion to

g l adiatoria l shows an d at C orinth h e cast out a
,

devi l from o n e M e n i p p u s an exorcism during ,

w h ich the demon i mp l ored n o t to be tormente d ,

l anguage which suggests familiarity with the

G ospe l of S L u k e . .
I

H e found hi s way to R ome i n the reign o f

Nero and meeting a bride being carried o u t to
, ,

buria l raised her to l ife again Towards th e end

, .

of hi s l ife he was imprisoned by D omitian and ,

ta l ked free l y with hi s fe l low prisoners As to .

viii 8 2
. 2 .
1 6 6 Church H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to C o n stan ti n e

Apolloni us say s P hi l o s t rat u s h e n ever ceased
, ,

giving advice .

Before his tria l he dispatched the faithfu l

Damis to wait for hi m at Puteoli Wh en sum .

m o n e d before the tribunal which was presided ,

over by Dom itian and attended by a ll the great

men o f R ome h e treated the emperor with a
,

great degree of superci l iou s contempt No t .

being allowed to make the speech he had written

o u t for his defence after a few word s o f advice
,

t o D omitian h e vanished from th e court and

,

appeared to his despairing compan ions at

P uteoli .

For tw o years afterwards he discoursed t ri u m

ha n tl to admiri ng crowds i n Greece an d Asia
p y
M i nor and was able to announce at Ephesus the
,

assassination o f D omitian at th e mo me nt of its

occurrence Nerva i nvited h i m to come and
.

teach hi m ho w t o rule He refused the request .

,

but sent hi m a long letter by the han d o f Dami s ,

partly to get hi s disciple o u t o f the way as he ,

knew that the hour o f hi s own departure was at

hand and h e wished to have no witne sses
, .

C oncern ing the manner O f his death if he ,

did die says P hi lo s tratu s
,
variou s are the ,

accoun ts O ne says that h e died at Ephesus
.
,

waited on by two handmaid s ; another that h e

e ntered the Te mple o f M inerva at Li n du s and
then disappeared ; a third that he w as la s t see n
going i nto the temp l e o f D i cty m n a i n Crete the ,

gate s o f which were m iraculously opened As .

soon a s he e ntered them they sh ut of them selves ,

 P ag an atte mp ts at R e co n stru cti o n I 67

and the temple resounded with the singing o f

many virgin s the burden of whose song was

,

Leave th e earth com e to heaven come ,

come which seemed as i f they said Proceed

,

from earth to
After his death he appeared to a young man who
wou l d not be l iev e i n the im morta l ity of the sou l ,

and was heard to dec l are for the last time Th e

sou l is i mmorta l I mmorta l ity does not be l ong
.

to y o u but to Providence After the disso l ution

,
.

o f the body the sou l l ik e a m ett l esom e cours e r

, , ,

when freed from al l r e strai n t m ingles in th in air , ,

im patient o f the servi l e state to which it was sub

j e ct
,
with more to t h e same e f
f ect .

At some subs e quen t date he r e ceived divin e

honours Caraca ll a bui l t hi m a shri ne and Aure
.
,

lian refrained from destroying Tyana through a

vision of Apo l lonius having r e cogniz e d him by ,

his li kene ss to t he many statu e s he had seen i n

temples .

The points o fl i ke n e s s with C hrist are so many

that they must have been int e ntional There i s .

before the birth of Apo l loni u s a kind o f A n n u n

ci ati o n and miraculou s si nging attends t h e event
, .

H i s parentage is l e ft in doubt H e was be l ieved .

,

we are told by h i s biographer to be the s o n of ,

Jupiter but he would not himself admi t it T h e

,
.

vu l gar might ho l d th i s opinion but it ne e d ,

not be received by the philosopher There are .

mirac l e s sugg e stive o f the G ospe l mirac l es There .

i s a trial foreknow l edge of death and at l east

, ,

o n e appearance after death .

1 6 8 Chu rch H i sto ry from Ne ro to C o n s tan ti n e

The di ffere nces are fundamenta l P hi l o s trat u s .

and his friends found their stumbling -block i n

the lowlin e s s o fJ
e su s H e was not grand e nough
. .

Hi s h umble and mean birth H i s lowly u p bring ,

ing H i s unacquaintance with the s y stem s o f

,

philosophy i n vogu e the r usticity o f the stage

,

o n which th e scene s o f H i s life were set the ,

falling away of H i s followers the h umiliation o f ,

Hi s las t days and last and greatest the crown

, ,

in f
i nfamy o the Cross a ll these things were
0f ge n ce s and had to co me o u t .

Apollonius worshipped the sun and believed ,

i n o n e supreme being who i s to be worshipped

,

above and through the lower gods and hims e l f ,

needs neither sacrice nor O ffering This supreme .

being gives all but receives no thing The i nferior .

deities might be pro pitiated with sacrices though ,

Apollonius hi mself wo uld o ffer none U nli ke .

the God of the Jews and C hristians it cannot ,

even be said o f his supreme being A broke n

and con trite heart thou wilt not despis e .

I n dian theosophy a natural scienc e drawn
,

chiey from Stoic authorities antiquarian ritualism

,

in certain Greek cults a great copiousne ss o f

,

moral sentiment and certai n ascetici sms are
, , ,

according to Professor P hi l l i m o re the main ,

ingredients i n his religion .

I t may have had a success in Court and literary

circles but it i s i mpossible to think that it ever
,

had much e e ct o f the sort i nte nded Th ere

.

was nothi ng to attract the great mass o f su fferi ng ,

i
striving s n laden men and women
,
- .
 P ag an atte mp ts at R e co n s tru cti o n 1 69

NE O P L A T O N I S M
Thirty years after P hi l o s tratu s began hi s work
P l otinus the founder of Neop l atonism came to
, ,

R ome and began to lecture P l otinus was an .

Egyptian who had studied at A l exandria and

,

taught at R ome from A D 2 4 5 until h is death in . .

A O
. . 2 70 .

He wou l d never te ll the date or p l ace o f his

birth as he did not l ike to dwe ll o n the detai l s of
,

that misfortune the descent of sou l into body

,

We are told that he entered the Univ e rsity at

A l exandria i n orde r to study philosophy and tried ,

teacher after teacher but l eft them a l l with head ,

hanging down At l ast he attended a l ecture
.

by A m m o n i u s Saccus by trade original l y a port e r

, ,

by r e l igion once a C hristian then a Platonist ,

phi l osopher When he heard him he exclaimed

.

This is the man I have been looking for and ,

for ten years he attended his lectures .

U n l ike C elsus and P h i lo s tratu s w ho had other ,

ends in V iew Plotin us was disi nterested H e

,
.

sought the truth for its own sake and not with ,

the ulterior aim o f inj uring the C hurch or but

tressing the Empire or making a l iterary reputa
tion H e was concerned with phi l osophy rather
.

than religion but hi s teaching had the e ffect

,

of showing how ancient be l iefs might be recon

ciled with modern phi l osophy H e allowed .

the existence o f subordinate deities heave n

and the heavenly bodies nature e arth and , , ,

the demon s A ll these i n their degree are

.

2
1 7 0 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

causes and desire wors hip But the supreme .

cause God i n the proper sense o f the word

, , ,

stands far above all these created deities and ,

e m braces i n i tself a unity o f Three H ypostases .

The individual soul has to be puried by virtue

and asceticism and then thro ugh reason to attain
,

commu n ion with the nous o r i ntelligence F i nally .

,

through a ki nd of ecstasy the soul may at tain

com munion with the O ne Plotin us attained this .

four ti me s i n s ix years Porp hyry on l y once in ,

his lifetime .

The te achi n of Plotinus was di ffi cult and h is ,

moral s tan dar h igh and its i n uence m ust have ,

bee n conn e d to a chosen few H e can hardly .

be said to have founded a religio us system m uch ,

less a church B ut so me o f his ideas have been

.

fruitful As his latest com m entator has put it

.
,

the C h urch quietly carried o ff some o f hi s honey

i nto its o w n h ive The theologian s w ho had
.
2

t o form ulate the doctri ne o f the Trin i ty seem to

have been indebted to h im ; and the p hi lo s o
h i cal doctrine o f matter underlying the th eory
p
o f transubstantiation is hi s .

Porphyry w ho was hi s disciple and publis hed

, ,

hi s lecture s wrote a book against the Christians

, ,

which except for a few fragme n ts has perish ed .

I t was the m ost form idable attack o f that sort

that the C hurch had to face No less than four .

re futation s were publish ed i ncluding o n e by ,

E usebius the h istorian but none have sur vived ,

.

After Plotin us Neoplaton ism became more ,

W R I g Th P hi lo p hy f P l ti
2
. . n e,i 67 e so o o n us , . .
 P ag an atte mp ts at R e co n structi o n I7I
and more concerned with demono l ogy and magic ,

and was therefore more popu l ar and its anti ,

C hristian inuence more seriously fe l t .

Porphyry is the most devout be l iever in
H ecate and her hell dogs i n j inns hobgoblins
-
, , ,

spectres amul ets spel l s and can give the most

, , ,

philosophica l reasons for the most ridiculous

superstitions Everything that the Christian
.

alleged against Polytheism h e admits i n the

coole s t way I t was true that the Greek sacri
.

ce d to devi l s not to G od I t was true that

,
.

the demons were corporea l mortal mostly ma l e , ,

ce n t . I t was true that they were deceivers and ,

that philosophy was n o safeguard I t was true .

that they demanded and received human sacri

ce s
. H e tells u s that human blood was regularly
poured o n the altars in his time i n Arcadia and at
Carthage and that even at R ome Jupiter L at i ar i s
,

was annually sprink l ed with the blood of a

l adi ato r What are we to s ay of this man who
found the Ne w Testament incredible and took
.

the Arahi an Nights fo r ospe l 2

Gibbon s description o fthe later Neoplatonists

is not unfair They attered themse l ves that
.

a
th ey possessed the secret o f di s e n g a ing th e soul
from its corporea l prison claimed a f miliar i nter ,

course with demons and spirits and by a singu l ar ,

revolution converted the study o f p hi l o s o p hy i n t o

that o f magic The ancient sages had derided
.

the popular superstition ; after disguising its

extravagance by the thi n pretence o f al l egory ,

C B i g g N p lat i m p 3
2
.
, eo on s ,
. 00 .
1 7 2 Church Hi sto ry f ro m Ne ro to C i
o n s tan t n e

the discip l es o f Plotinus and Porphyry becam e

its most zea l ous defenders As they agreed with
.

th e Christian s i n a few mysteriou s points o f faith ,

they attacked the emainder o f their philosoph ica l

r

sy stem with al l the fury o f civil war .
2

D li a d Fall i ii
2
ec n e n ,
x .
 IX

R I VAL R ELIGI O NS

T
HE o l d re l igion s of the R oman worl d in ,

spite of the reconstruction s of the philo

sophers were never any real menace to Chris
,

t i an i t y
. They could d e stroy by instigating
persecution but they could n ot replace One
, .

can not imagine that the m asses of man kind

can conceivab l y have been attracted by th e
specu l ations o f P l otinus or eve n th e romance ,

of Apo ll onius Very many people perhaps

.
,

the maj ority were conten t with u nreformed

,

paganism wit h l oca l gods to protect th e home

, ,

the camp and th e farm without much i nquiry

, ,

i nto their m ora l s o r any searchings o f heart

as to po l ytheism But these were peop l e t o
.

whom religio n was forma l a matter o f custom ,

and convention which made n o direct appea l

,

to the heart or to the conscience There were .

,

h owever many who did want something better

,

and more satisfyi n g Man who wants a rea l .

,

re l igion wants an O bj ect of devotion he wants

,

to be ab l e to give himself and he demands ,

a response H e give s himself and he asks

.
,

to rece i ve H e is ready to die but h e desires

.
,

to nd l ife through death With all the myriad .

I 73
1 74 Chu rch H i sto r
y f ro m Ne ro to C o n s tan ti n e

calls o f the world sounding i n his ears he

desires to n d o n e voice that he mus t O bey ,

o ne leader h e cannot choose but fol l ow At .

the same time i n the troubles and pai n s and

,

perplexities o f l ife h e l ooks fo r a Being t o whom

,

he may g o fo r comfort and sym pathy and h e l p .

I n times o f bereavemen t the help he feels the

need o f m ost o f all i s som e assurance o f a life
beyond the grave An d often though n o t
.
,

always he needs deliverance from h i s sen se o f

,

guilt the s alvatio n o ffered to si nners by Ch ris t

,
.

I n the face o f suc h n e eds the third -cen tury

philosopher was o f as little u s e as was the ni ne
t e e n t h ce ntury Ration alist a generatio n ag o
- .

T he three rival religion s that seemed m ost

likely to satisfy th ose who really felt the need
o f o n e i n the second and third centuries were

C hristianity th e worship o f I sis a nd M ithraism

, ,
.

THE WO RS H I P o r s s

I sis was an Egyptian goddess Her h usband .

,

the god Osiri s was killed by his brother Typhon

,
.

I sis brokenhearted wandered over th e marshe s

, ,

o f the Delta i n her boat o f papyru s and gathered

the fragments o f hi s dead body Th e son o f .

O siri s wan ted to kill Typhon but I si s cut his ,

bo n ds and let hi m g o O siris then became Lord

.

o f the Spirits o f the Dead I sis m ay be said.

to have furni shed the fe male e l emen t i n the

obj ect o f worsh ip She was ki nd gentle full
.
, ,

o f pity and sympathy Like Jesus an d u nli ke

.
,
 R i v al R elig i o n s 1
75

M ithra s he presented the idea o f a su ffering

,

G od and this no doubt constituted a great

,

p art of her attraction She does not forget .

the sorrows which she e ndured nor h er painful ,

wanderings but ordains most holy rites i n

,

remembrance of her su fferings for instruction ,

i n piety for the comfort o f men and women

,

oppressed by similar misfortune .
2

She had a regu l ar priesthood dai l y services s u r , ,

l i e d choirs gorg e ous ceremonia l and sp l endid

p c , ,

rites ; there were al so r e ligious orders Apuleius .

,

who was a convert gives a descriptio n of a p ro

,
2

ce ssion in her honour The occasion was a festival .

of the goddess F irst came a body of masquera

.

ders dressed as so l diers l adi ato rs magistrates

phi l osophers and in other i n cy costumes There
, , , ,

.
,

was an ape represen ting Ganymede and a don key ,

with wings as Pegasus You would have enj oyed .

your l augh at both said Apuleiu s Then fol ,

l owed the procession proper F irst came women .

gorgeously arrayed in white some scattering ,

owers others sprinkling the street with per

,

fume . Then me n an d women carrying l amp s

and tapers M usicians fo l lowed with a choir
.
,

of youths i n snow-white garments Then a .

body of the initiated men and women clad in ,

white keeping up an incessant tink l ing with

,

their si stra or ratt l es The priests fo l lowed

, .

with the symbols of the goddess There fol .

Q t d b y Bi gg Th Ch h Ta h i th R m a 8 mp i
2
uo e e u rc s s n e o n re ,

P 45
2
The Go lden A ss, Bk . xi .
1 7 6 Chu rch H i s to r
y om Ne ro to C o n stan t n e i

lowed represen tat ions o f the gods i nc l udi ng

a co w borne erect o n th e s houlders o f a man ,

an e i gy of th e divinity bearing no resemblance

to bird o r beast or man and an urn with a ,

live as p embracing its spout After dedicating .

a s hip the proce s sion returned to the temp l e .

One of the priests reci ted prayers and then dis

missed the co n g re gati o n w ho departed after kis sing
,

the fee t o f a golde n i mage o f th e goddess .

Ap ulei us also give s an account o f his o w n

i nitiation which is too long to quote H e passed
, .

ten days i n secl usion i n the tem ple e ating no ,

m eat i n constant i ntercourse with th e priests and

,

attendance at the ser vices H e had also to se ll .

all h e possessed to pay th e fee H e had vi sion s .

o f the goddess and the actual initiatio n was

,

accompanied by a ceremonia l bath and an ecstasy .

I approached the con ne s o f death and ,

having trod o n the threshold o f Proserpi ne I

returned therefrom bei ng borne through all the
,

elem ents At midnight I saw th e s u n shining

.

with i ts brilliant ligh t and I ap proached the ,

presence o f the god s beneath and the gods

above and stood near and worshipped them
, .
2

Th e initiatio n was called a new birth I t was .

celebrated with a banquet and afterwards he ,

returned home .

I si s worship got a footing in R ome as early

as the time of Su l la The Emperor Tiberiu s
.

p ulled down her temple and crucied her pri ests .

J uvenal complai ns o f the attraction s he had for

2
The Golden Ass, Bk . xi .
 R i v al R e l ig i o n s 1
77

the R oman l adies H e r cu l t spread fast and

.
,

traces of it have bee n found as far north as

the R oman Wa l l i n Britain I ts theology l ike
.
,

paganism could be adapted to the phi l osopher

,

o r the p e asant,
but its attractiv e ness l ay in its
e m otiona l appea l which neither paganism nor
,

M ithraism possessed and which in C hristianity

,

was ba l anced and k e pt in check by the stern

d e mand of mora l renunciation Perhaps Isis
.

would hav e b e e n a more serious riva l to C hrist

if she had made mor e demands on her worshippers .

I t l acked the e lement of austerity fou n d both in

M ithraism and C hristianity

M I T H RA I S M
I n the third century after C hri st from C o m ,

modus to Constantine M ithraism was the most

,

dangerous rival of Christianity to which it had ,

many striking resemblances Like C hristianity.

,

it came from the E ast and at about the same

,

time P l utarch tells us that the rites were rst

.

practised in R ome by m e n who had l earnt them

from Ci l ician pirates captur e d by Pompey But
,
.

it w as n ot until th e end of th e rst century after

C hrist that it was fairly estab l ished i n R ome .

Its appearance in the West w as in fact co n , ,

temporaneous with C hristianity I t grew rapidly .

u nd e r the F lavians and the Antonines Co m .

m odus who was himse l f a devot e e av e it an

, ,

enormous im petus and by th e end 0 the cen

,

tury i t may have counted as many adherents as

2 A
1 7 8 Chu rch H i sto r
y f ro m Ne ro to C i
o n s tan t n e

th e Church Both fou nd their opportunity i n

.

the po l itical unity and th e m oral anarchy of the

,

Empire Both mad e their appea l to the world

.

rather than to ph ilosop hers Th ey spread i n .

di ffere n t directions C hri stianity tended to

.

fo l low the trade routes and w as most strong ,

a l ong the coasts o f the M editerranean M i thra .

i s m fo l lowed the cam p and w as stronges t in ,

I taly and on the frontier s o f t he R hi ne and th e

Dan ube I t was strong a l so i n the va ll ey o f the
.

R hone . I t see ms to hav e m ad e a sp e cial appeal

to the Germanic races Nowhere are its mon u
.

men ts m ore n umerous than on the R hin e Th ey .

are near l y as thick i n what i s now H ungary and ,

n ext i n order of frequency i n I taly and th e most ,

romanized o f the provinces the S outh o f

Fran ce and Dalmatia Only one mon ument has
.

been found i n Greece only four i n Spain I n ,

.

France they are almost con n ed to th e val l ey o f

the R hone I n Britai n they have been fou nd in
.

the track O f the legion s .

M ithraism originated i n Pe rsia and n o doubt ,

u nderwe n t many change s but when i t burgeoned ,

i n the West its theolo gy seems to have bee n fairly

e stablished There was O ne S upreme Go d th e
rst prin ciple unknown u nap proachable called
,
.

, ,

som etimes Aion o r Saturn generally represented ,

i n human form with a l ion s head hi s body ,

entwined with a serpent T he rs t pr inciple .

generated the earth and s k y and ocean wh ich ,

could easi l y be identi ed with J uno Jupiter and , ,

Neptune These and their o ffspring in habit

.
 Ri v al R e lig i o ns I 79
heaven A mu l titud e of m al e ce n t demons are
.

how e v e r beneath th e e art h whom it w as necessary ,

to appease The active princip l e s of nature re

.
, ,

water l ight were id e ntied with gods or wer e

, , ,

their manifestations T he sun w as the obj ect of

.

specia l adoration as the giver of l ife s o were ,

the moon and p l ane ts But of a ll the heroes .

and obj ects of worship the mos t popu l ar was

M ithra .

M ithra was the god o f l ight and as such ,

thought to dwe ll between heaven and earth ,

which gave rise to one of his tit l es that of ,

Mesites or Mediator H e i s sometimes re p re

.

sented between two children each carrying a ,

torch one up l ifted the other cast dow n H e

, ,
.

was born of a rock and s hepherds hastened to

,

adore him at his birth H e was born with the .

Phrygian Cap or M ithra from which he took h is ,

name and was armed with a dagger and carried

, ,

a aming torch H i s life began with a conict

.

with the sun wh om he overcam e and with whom

, ,

he afterwards established an eterna l l eague of

friendship and mutua l aid H i s most stri king .

adventure was hi s duel wi th th e bu ll the rst ,

l iving being created by J upiter The bu ll was .

feeding on a mountai n a l p the h ero seized him

by the horn s and bestrode him Thrown by the .

violence of its p l unges he sti ll h e l d its horn s

,
.

When t he an i m al fe ll exhausted he seized it ,

by the hind l egs and dragged it backwards in to

his cave over many O bstac l es
,
This painfu l .

j ourney became an a ll e gory of the pi l grimage

1 8 0 Chu rch H i sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to C o n stan ti n e

of the h uman soul Th e bull escaped and

.

once more roamed the country The s u n sent .

a message by a raven to M ithra t o slay th e

fugitive M i thra th ough much agai nst hi s wil l
.
, ,

obeyed H e pursued the bul l cam e up with

.
,

h im an d seizing his nostri l s with his hand

, ,

plunged hi s knife into his side .

Th en e nsued a prodigy From the body o f .

the dying bull grew the grass and health ful

plants which cover the earth From the spinal .

marrow wheat germinated an d th e vi ne from its ,

blood From it also sprang all kin ds o f usefu l

.

ani mals and its sou l translated to cele stial

, ,

regions became the specia l guard of soldiers

,
.

I n this way the bull by its death became the

, ,

source o f l ife .

Th e rst human pai r n o w appeared o n earth

and were attacked by the powers o f evil and
protected by M ithra Man survived drou gh t
.
,

ood and a devastating re before h e was l e ft i n

,

com parative peace a nd the temporal m issio n o f

,

M ith ra was over Then Mithra m ounted to

.

h eaven i n the chariot o f the sun but from the ,

heave ns co nti n ued to protect his faith ful fo l

lower s o n earth M ithra w as therefore regarded
.

as an emanation from God who acte d rst as ,

creator and the n as protector o f the world and

m ediator betwee n its inhabitants and G o d I n .

this there are poin ts o f rese mblance with the

Logos .

The morals taught were lofty A great point .

was made o f sexual re straint an d absolu te ,

 Ri v al R e lig i o n s 1 81

chastity w as the idea l Man was r e gard e d as .

taking part i n a strugg l e against evi l H i s .

good consisted i n action The ideal virtues .

were strength and courage rather t han l ove and

pity The re l igion was hard I t was above al l
. .

the re l igion O f soldiers and extolled the mi l itary

V i rtues .

M ithra i s the sustain e r o f morta l s i n a ll

di f cu l ties and tria l s H e i s t he defen der of .

truth and j ustic e , the pres e rver o f health the ,

antagonist o f the powers of darkness H e is .

eterna ll y young and vigorous a l ways vigi l ant , ,

a l ways victorious giving victory to morta l s ,

a l ike over their enemies with out and within .

H i s fo l lowers believe i n l ife after death in ,

a na l j udgement i n heaven and he ll and some , ,

ki nd of bodi l y resurrection T h e secret of its .

attraction l ay in its appea l to its votaries to take

up arms agai n st the forces o f evil .

-
M ithraism had its l iturgy and its o i ces its ,

sacred books and its sacrame n ts There were .

even d e grees of initiation the lowest that of the ,

ravens the highest the fathers through which

, ,

al l the initiated passed on the way to attain

perfect puri ty and wisdom On ceremonia l .

occasions the votaries wore vestments suitab l e

to their degree Some ap their wings like
.

birds others roar l ike l i o n s
,
Only those .
I

who attained th e fourth rank that of l ions , ,

were actua l partakers i n th e mysteries which ,

2
C m t T t t M g e l a my t d M i th a
u o n , ex e s e ons .

u r s re . ux s re s e r ,

i p 3 4
,
. 1 .
1 8 2 Chu rch Hi s to ry f ro m Nero to Co n s tan ti n e

wer e presided over by the s e venth order that ,

o f fath ers ,
who also adm itte d the novices .

Ther e w as a p ater p atru m a kin d of bishop , .

A ll the i nitiated were brothers .

The cerem ony o f i nitiation to each order was

known as a sacrament sacram en tu m because
o f the oath th en taken There were th us seven
.

sacraments Lustrations were a promin ent featu re

.

o f mo st of them .

Th ere was al so a so l e m n service i n which

consecrated bread and water with win e added , ,

were the pri ncipa l features The i nitiati on to the .

order o f soldiers inc l udi n g branding o n th e fore

head with a ho t iron and had som e resemblance
,

to the anoi nting and the sign o f the cross i n

Conrmation an d Baptism There was a regular .

order o f priests and eve n orders o f m onks The .

ceremo nial bath s previo u s t o in itiation were

, ,

not para ll el to C hri stian Baptism They were .

for purication only Bu t the cere m ony of the

.

tau ro ho l i u m had m uch m ore in com mo n wi th

the C hristian sacrame nt I n i t a bull standi ng .
,

on a platform had its throat cut and the blood

, ,

poured through th e platform an d bathed a mystic

hidde n i n a ditch underneath by which he was ,

supposed to acquire a new birth .

They had tem ples and festivals of which o n e , ,

on December 2 5 t h celebrated the birth of th e

,

su n ,
and a nother took place about th e time o f
the C hristian Easter .

The sen se o f brotherh ood among the i nitiated

was cu l tivated an d thi s as among Chri stians was
, , ,
 R i v al R e lig i o n s 1 83

no doubt a great attraction especia ll y with t h e ,

poorer peop l e whi l e the degrees of in itiation

,

were a con stant i nterest and stimu l us

.

I t had one fata l defect i t had no place for

women .

F rom the succession of C ommodus for more ,

than a century Mithraism w as active l y patron

,

i z e d by the emperors From the rst years .

of t he third century ther e was a priest of

Mithraism in the pa l ac e I n A D 307 Dio . . .

cl e t i an
,
Licinius an d G al e ri u s consecrat e d a
,

temp l e to M i thra This was due to the con .

v e n i e n t support which i t l ent to t h e imperia l

theory of the divine natur e of emperors Accord .

ing to the Mithraic theory th e emperor w as an ,

emanation or e ffu l g e nce o f the sun an i n car ,

nation i n fact s e l ected by the gods i ndependen t l y

,

of birth fo r that positio n and th e refore the ,

e mp e ror de facto could point to the fact as a

, ,

proof of hi s divini ty .

M ithraism had no quarr e l with the re l igion s

it found in t he Empire or they with i t I t w as ,
.

r e ady to nd a p l ace for their gods i n its pan

th e on and to modi fy its own dogma and ritua l
,

to suit l oca l e xigencies But its essentia l features

.

were unalter e d After a ll no pagan wou l d have

.
,

obj ect e d to C hristianity if room had been made

for his deiti e s a l ongside o f Jesus C hri st I t .

aspir e d to b e univ e rsa l and wou l d have estab ,

l i s h e d the univ e rsal domination of Mithra a ll ied

to the sun but in the process wou l d have assimi
,

lated l oca l and nationa l be l iefs and deities .

1 8 4 Chu rch H i sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

The poi n ts of re semblance between M ithraism

and C hri stianity are some of them rea l others ,

on l y supercial Th e real resem blances are a

.

co mmo n belief i n a mediator i n a j udgement , ,

i n a future life and the resurrection o f the

body ; also in the doctri ne of brotherhood ,

and o f the need o f purity and re n unciation i n

conquest of self M ithraism had n o re de m p
.

tion para l lel to the Cros s Th e n earest approach .

was the slaughter of the bull by M ithra a thing ,

mo nstrous and repulsive The rese mb l ance i n .

ritua l i n festivals an d sacraments i s only sup e r

, ,

ci al though the tau ro ho li um claimed to have the

,

e ffect o f Baptism .

I t i s i nconceivable that the C h u rch should

h ave borrowed from M ithra at t hat early date .

I ts horror of heathenism its se nse o f separa ,

tio n and re n unciati on was far too strong But ,

.

M C u mon t thinks that M ithraism may have

.

borrowed th e Adoration of the S hepherd s the ,

Last Supper and the Asce n sio n from the

,

Gospels I t certai nly refrai ned from borrowi ng

.

the Cross Herein lay i ts weakn ess I t had

. .

little to win weak and su ffering me n and

women I t preached a gospel to the strong
.
,

and had no I nvitation fo r the weary and heavy

laden .
 X
TH E P E R SE C UTI O NS O F D E C I US
AND V ALE R IA N

N Phi l ip c e l ebrated t he thousandth

I
A D
. . 24 8
anniversary o f the foundation o f R om e with
immense pomp Th e twenty years t hat fo ll owed
.

were perhaps the most ca l amitous that the State

had known German armi e s crossed the R hin e
.

and penetrated Spain H ordes of G oth s passed

.

t he D anube and i nvaded I l lyria while others ,

sai l ed down the Euxi n e plundered Trebizond , ,

ravaged Pontus and Bithynia and even the cities

o f G reece and Persian armies crossed the
,

Euphrates And as if these misfortunes were

.

not enough a pestilence of a most dead l y kind

,

ravag e d the Empire from A O 2 5 0 to 2 6 5 . . .

Philip fel l i n A D 2 4 9 and was succeeded by

. .
,

D ecius a R oman genera l of birth and merit

,
.

H e seems to have desired to restor e the virtues

o f the ancient State and went so far as t o r e vive
,

the o ffi ce o f C ensor i n the person of Valerian

. .

One o f his domestic reforms took the form of

a persecution of the Ch u rch o n t he grand scale .

As a soldier and an upholder o f the ancient ways ,

he obj ected n o doubt to C hristianity as a modern

, ,

innovation at deadly enmity with the gods that

,

had made R ome great .

1 85 2 B
1 8 6 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

The exact wording o f the edict is lost but i t s ,

meaning i s p l ain I t s obj ect was to produce .

apostates rather than martyrs All men w e re to .

sacrice to the gods and the genius of the em peror

by a certai n day Bishops w ho refused were to .

be executed Les ser person s to be i mpri son ed

.

and tortured to make th em recant an d to lose ,

their p ro p e rty .
I

Fabian Bishop o f R ome was among the rst

, ,

victims and o n account of the persecutio n a suc

,

c e ssor cou l d not be elected for a year Alexander .

,

Bishop o fJ e ru s al e m died i n pri son as did B ab y l as , , ,

Bishop o f A ntioch .

I n Alexandria the persecution had preceded th e

edict by a y e ar a popular m ovement stirred u p
,

apparen t l y by a loca l prophet o r poet It .

consisted i n outrages by the mob again st the

C hristian s many of whom were ki ll ed and a
, ,

ge neral plunderi ng of their houses A cer .

tai n prophet or poet i nauspiciou s to the city , ,

whoever he was excited the mass of the heathen ,

against u s stirri ng them up to thei r nativ e

,

supersti tion s F irst seizing a n aged man

.

named Metra th ey called o n him to utter

,

blasphemies and as h e did not O bey beat his

, , ,

body with c l ubs and pricked h is face and eyes ;

after which they led h i m away to the suburbs ,

wh ere they stoned him Next they l ed a woman .

named Q uin ta who was a believer to the te m ple

, ,

of an idol and attem pt e d to force her to worship

,

but whe n she turned away i n disgust they tied

Cy p i a O th L ap d
2
r n ,
n e se .
 The P e rse cuti o n s f
o D e ci us an d Vale ri an I 87

her by the fe e t and dragged her by t he hair

through the who l e city ove r the rough ston e s ,

o f t he paved streets The n wi th o n e accord a ll

.

rushed upon th e houses of t h e faithfu l and

despoi l ed and p l undered them setting apart the ,

more va l uab l e article s for thems e l ves ; but the

commoner furniture they burnt i n t he streets ,

making the city l ook l ik e one taken by the

en e my . When the edict arrived there w ere a
2

l arge number of arrests and m any recantations .

Some ed ; others were taken and of them ,

som e he l d out as far as the prison and bonds ,

and some after a fe w days imprisonment abj ured

before they entered the tribuna l Some after ,

enduring the torture for a whi l e renounced their ,

Lord Others however rm and blessed pi ll ars

.
, ,

of the Lord becam e admirab l e witn e sses of H i s

,

kingdom A boy of fteen named D i o s co ru s
.
,

stood rm against both torturer and argument

and was re l eased But near l y all the accused
.
,

though kept in prison for some time and to r

t u re d to make them recant were put to death ,

i n the end many by re Women wer e espe

, .

ci al l prominent i n this persecution and many

y ,

su ffered .T here were also so l dier martyrs .

Some who were p resent at the tria l of a

C hristian encouraged him by gesture s to stand
rm when inclined to waver They then gave .

themse l ves up and dec l ared that they were

C hristians and su ffered i n their turn
,
.

Dionysius Bi shop of Al exandria remained at

, ,

E b i H 8 vi 4
2
u se u s, . . . 1 .
1 8 8 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co nstan ti n e

hom e awaiting arrest The soldiers searched .

every poss b l e hiding place fo r four days think

i -
,

i ng it impossible that h e should not have

attempted to escape At last they thought o f
.

going to hi s house and found him there H e

,
.

was seized and carried O ff According to hi s .

o w n account o n e o f his friends named Timothy

, , ,

came to the house and found i t empty T hen .

a certai n countryman m et Timothy ying and ,

much disturbed and asked the cause o f h is haste

, ,

and was told th e reason When t he countryman .

h eard i t he went his way for he was goi ng to

, ,

a marriage festival and when h e arrived h e told

,

it to those w ho were present These at once .

,

with a single impulse as if by agree ment a l l ,

arose and came as q uick as possible i n a rush

,

u pon u s and as they rushed they rai sed a shout

,
.

The so l diers that guarded us immediately took to

ight and o u r rescuers came upon us lying u pon
,

the bare bedsteads God k nows I too k them at

.

rst to be robbers come to plun der R emaining .

,

therefo re i n my bed o nly covered with a line n

, ,

garment the re st o f my dres s I o ffered the m as

,

it lay beside me But they commanded me to

.

rise and depart a s quickly as possible The n .

,

understandin g fo r what purpose they had com e ,

I began to cry beseeching and prayi ng them to

,

o away and to let u s alone But if they wish ed

g .

t o do us any good to anticipate those w h o had

led me away and t o cut o ff my head When .

I thus cried o u t they tried to raise me by force

, ,

as my compani o n s k now ; I cast myself back o n

 The P e rse cuti o n s f
o D e ci us an d Vale ri an 1 89

the ground But th e y seized m e by the hands

.

and fe et and dra ed m e away whi l st Caius

F austus Peter ang gPau l who were witnesses
, ,

, , ,

o f a ll this fo ll owed behind They taking m e

,
.
,

up bore me away from the town and carried me

, ,

Of f o n an ass bareback The chief interest
,
.
2

of this incident i s that it shows the tide had

turned and that C hristians were no l onger hated
,

by their paga n neighbours un l ess popu l ar hatred ,

had been stirred up as in Alexandria itself ,

.

I n Carthage Cyprian was bishop At the time .

of his conversion h e had been the leader o f the

Carthaginian bar renowned fo r his e l oquence and,

success H e speaks o f the liberal banquets and

.

sumptuous feasts o f his then l ife of g l ittering ,

in go l d and purpl e of bei ng ce l ebrated fo r hi s ,

dre ss and of de l ighting in the attendance o f

,

lictors and civic honours and being accompanied ,

by crowds of c l ients - all of which point to a

considerable position .
2

H e was soon advanced to the rank of presbyter

and in A D 2 4 8 became Bishop or Pope of Car
. .

t hag e . The C h urch had had peace for thirty

seven years since the death of Severus February ,

4 t h
,
A O .2 1 1 . Thirty -seven. years seem s a short
time as we read of it but it meant that no C hris ,

tian under forty kn ew anything o f persecution

except by hearsay They were unmo l ested ; they .

knew their numbers were increasing No doubt .

they l ooked on pers e c u tion as a thing of th e past .

The Church was therefore like the draw net -

,

E2
b i H 8 vi 4
u se u s,T D at . . . 0 .
2
o on us .
1
9 0 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

ful l of all sorts of s hes bad as well as good , ,

m uch as it i s to -day M any no d o u bt w e re .

, ,

faithfu l Many more on l y needed the trumpet

.

ca ll o f persecution to rou se the m from s l umber .

But many others were l eading carel e ss and

world l y lives Cyprian writi ng after the event
.
,

it i s true paints a somewhat black picture o f th e

,

pre persecution C hurch

- .

Among other things he comp l ained that bishops

had so far forgotten their sacred ca l ling as to
become agents in secular business to desert their ,

peop l e an d wander over fore ign countries o n

,

commercial quests and had eve n l en t money o n

,

u sury .
2

Th e Decian Edict o f persec utio n required that

every o n e should give evidence of not being
a C hristian by a certain day Something like .

a panic seized the C hurch Large n umbers .

,

without waiting for the persecution to begin ,

hastened to sacrice They i ndeed did n o t .
, ,

wait to be apprehended ere they ascended or to ,

be interrogated ere they denied Many were .

conquered before the battle prostrated before ,

the attack No r did they permit it to be

.

said o f them that they seemed to sacrice to

idols unwilling l y Th ey ran to the market
.

p l ace o f their o w n accord ; they willingly has

tened to death as if th ey had long wished for
,

it as i f they would e mbrace an O ppor tunity

,

they had fervently desired T he o ffi cials .

could not keep pace with the crowd of wou l d

T D at vi 2
o on us, .
 Th e P e rse cuti o n s f
o D e ci us an d Vale ri an 1 9 1

be i ce rs
s acr . Ho w
many were put o by
th e magistrates at that time when evening ,

was coming on how many asked that their

,

destruction m igh t not be de l ayed .
2

Others on l y brok e down aft e r en d uring many

tort u res who might p l ead as Cyprian suggests :
,

The scourges w e re l acerating my al ready worn

O u t body t h e c l ubs bruised m e the rack strained
, ,

m e t h e c l aw dug i nto me t h e re roast e d me

, , ,

my esh de s erted me i n the strugg l e th e weak ,

ness of my bodi l y frame gave way in the struggl e

not my mind but my body yie l ded in the
, ,

su ffering .

I n som e case s heads of hous e ho l ds obtai ned

a c e rticate as bavin sacriced and so secured
immunity not only If ,
" themse l ves but for their ,

fami l ies and dependants and wer e even able to ,

receiv e fugitive C hri stian s into their houses ,

thus o ffe ri ng to the Lord many sou l s l iving ,

and safe to entr e at for a sing l e wounded o n e .

Others received certicates without actua ll y

sacricing Either i n person or by deputy th e y
.

appeared befor e t he magistrate stat e d that they ,

w e r e C hristian s and were not a ll owed to sacrice ,

but were wi ll ing to pay for a certicate which ,

seems to hav e been granted .

Cyprian himse l f withdrew from t h e storm .

As there i s no reason to qu e stion hi s readiness

to face death or to suppose that he was
,

unwi ll ing to become a martyr his mora l ,

courage in withdrawing i s remarkable I ts .

T D at viii2
o on us , .
1 9
2 Chu rch H i sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

expediency w as undoubted Decius had struck .

princi pal l y at the bishops and it was playing ,

i nto h is hands for bis hops to let them se l ves be

killed to o easily Moreover th e ock needed
.
,

a shepherd ; never had th e need of rule been

greater Besides his presence in Car thage wo uld
.
,

h ave still further excited the already frenzied

m o b . T h e R oman presbyters when B ishop ,

Fabian had been mar tyred wrote a letter o f ,

pai ned sympathy and good advice t o the Cartha

ginian c l ergy o n Cyprian s withdrawal T hey .

were to be good shepherds and not hirelings ,

i n the absence o f their bishop The advice was .

un necessary as Cyprian was discharging hi s func

tion s o f government and oversight with diligence .

H e exhorted the presbyters and deacon s to
discharge your o w n o f ce and m ine that there

be n othing wanti ng to discipli ne or diligence .

They were also to see that nothing i n th e way of

m oney was t o be lacking to those i n pri son or ,

t o the poor and he h i mself had provided mon ey

,

fo r the purpose They were to be careful not

.

to be provocative and were to s e e that the

brethre n did n o t visit the confessors i n crowds ,

and that only o n e presbyter and o n e deacon at

a ti me should celebrate the Euchari st i n the

prisons an d that th ey s hould take turns because
,

by thus changing the person s and vary ing th e

pe ople suspicion i s diminished .
2

T he systematic and thorough nature of the

persecution i s shown by some certicates o f
2
8p 5
. .
 The P e rs e cu ti o n s f
o D e ci us an d Vale ri an 1
93

heathenism recent l y discovered near Al e xandria .

These state that the bear e rs have a l ways sacri
ce d to the gods and have now don e so i n the
,

presence of certain com missioners whose signa ,

tures are ap p e n de d .
I

Decius was s l ain i n battle w i th the G oths in

the D o b ru dj a A O 2 5 1 Ga ll us succe e ded and
,
. . .
,

though the persecution ceas e d for the moment ,

it was renewed i n the following year as a result

of a pesti l ence which beginning in Egypt spread , ,

ov e r the R oman worl d for which the C hristians ,

were b l amed .

Meantime a serious di f culty was brewing i n

the Carthage C hurches The martyrs and con .

fe s s o rs wer e recognized as the saviours o f the

Church . The brethren vi sited them i n crowds ,

and Cyprian addressed them in term s of lyrica l

enthusiasm Every death is to be communicated
.

to him that he might commemorate them i n the

Eucharist and place their names in the calendar
for fut u re obs e rvance H e recognizes that th e .

martyrs have a certain privi l ege ( p re rog ati v a )

with God I t is not surprising that some of
.

them had their heads turned I ndeed Cypr i an .

,

had already written to this e ffect that they were

to be exhorted to be humb l e and modest and
peaceable .

The trouble arose over the lapsed many of ,

whom wished to come back to C ommun ion I t .

had been the custom for martyrs to intercede

with bishops for the restoration o f sin ners Ter .

G wat ki
2
8 a ly Ch H i t ii
n ,5 6 r . s .
, . 2 .

2 c
1 94 Chu rch Hi s t y
or
from Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

tullian protested again st the custo m

N sooner o

has any o n e put o n the bonds than adulterers

beset him fornicators gain access to him prayers
,

echo roun d h im ; p o o l s o f tears from the eyes

o f the polluted s u rrou n d h im Let it su f ce
.

the martyr to have p urged hi s o w n sin s it is the ,

part of in g ratitude o r pride to lavish upon others

what o n e has obtained at s o h igh a price Who .

has redeemed a nother s death by hi s o w n but the
So n o f G o d alon e 2

No w aided and abetted by four di sa ffected

pre sbyters w ho s aw their opportunity o f creating
a formidable factio n the practice threatened to
grow beyond all bounds C yprian laid down.

that those who had received a letter fro m a

martyr and were i n danger o f death after co n
, ,

fe s s i o n and th e i mposition o f hands i n toke n

o f forgiveness might receive Com munion All
,
.

others m ust wait until after the restoration

o f pe ace whe n the bishops with the cl er
i n the presence o f the faithful laity ( the p l ei ii
, ,

who stand fast) would order a l l thi n gs after co n ~

s u l t at i o n .

Thi s did n o t go n e arly far e nough fo r the

frie nds o f the lapsed Great pressure was e v i
.

de n tl y brought to bear o n the bishops and the ,

bishop s remaining rm recourse was had to

,

the confes sors O ne Lucian while i n prison was

.
, ,

asked by Ce l e ri n u s that h e o r o n e o f hi s fellow

martyrs wh ichever i s rst crowned should
, ,

remit this great si n to o u r sisters Num erica

X X II .
 The P e rse cu ti o n s f
o D e ci us an d Vale ri an I
95

and Candida Lucian rep l ied that whi l e th e
.

b l essed martyr Paulus was a l ive he ca ll ed hi m

and said Lucian in the presence of C hrist I

,

say to you if a ny o n e after my summons shal l

,

ask for peace from you grant it in my nam e ,

.

According l y Lucian went o n to gran t peace to

the two women with the proviso the case
,
'

being se t forth before the bishop and confessio n

being made .
2

But that was not the worst The confessors .

appear to have felt that their letters were re ce i v

ing inadequate attention from the bishops At .

any rate they met and sent Cyprian a j oint l etter

, ,

written by Lucian : K now that to a ll concerning
whose conduct since the commission o f their sin ,

has been i n your estimation satisfactory we have ,

granted peace We wish you to i nform the other

.

bishops .
2

H ere we see an advance I t i s not the bi shop .

who grants peace o n the i ntercession of the martyr ,

but the confessors w ho grant peace i f the s u b s e

quent behaviour o f the lapsed has been satisfactory
to the bishop Such a grant o f abso l utions e n
.

hl ao wou l d have reduced the matter to an ab

surdity Cypr i an stood rm and refused to be
.

carried away H i s reply was to repudiate ab s o

.

l u t e ly the abso l ution e n hlo c Each case must be .

considered on i ts merits Peace might be given .

to those who after having sacriced were tried

, ,

a second time and stood rm Others must .

wait unti l a ll the bishops cou l d be gathered

Cy p i a 8p
2
I bid 3
r n , . 22 .
2
.
,
2 .
1
96 Chu rch H i s to r
y f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

together an d each case could be con sidered o n

,

I t s mer i ts .

A schism w as begun by the friend s o f the

laxi ty headed by a presbyter called No v at u s and
,

a deacon F e l i ci s s i m u s .

When at length the Council o f Bishops met ,

i t decided that th ose wh o had actually sacriced

could only be restored at the h our o f death .

Others might be re stored after a proces s varying

i n l ength according to the circumstances Those .

who wou l d n o t undergo their penance were n o t

to be restored even i n the hour o f death .

I n Rome Novatian headed a rigorist schism ,

and g o t himself elected anti pope in opposition t o

the Bishop Corne l ius .

When a fresh persecution seemed to threaten ,

th e African bi shops met May A O 2 5 2 and wrote ,

. .
,

by Cyprian to i nform Cornelius o f their decisions .

We have decided h e wrote that peace i s t o
, ,

be given to those who have undergone penance ,

that th e y may be armed and equipped fo r th e

battle wh ich i s at h and That we may n o t leave
.

those whom we stir u p and exhort to the battle

unarmed and naked but may forti fy them with
,

the protectio n o f C hrist s Body and Blood ; and

as the E ucharist i s appointed fo r this very pur

pose that i t may be a safeguard to th e receivers
, ,

that we may arm them whom we wi sh to b e safe

against the adversary For ho w do we teach o r
.

provoke the m to shed their blood i n confession

o f H i s Name if we deny t o them the Blood o f

C hrist ? Or ho w do we make them t for the

 The P e rsecu ti o n s f
o D e ci us an d Vale ri an 1 97

cup of martyrdom if we do not rst admit them

to drin k in the C hurch the cup of the Lord by
the right of Communion 2

Valerian became emperor A O 2 5 3 and began . .

,

by favouring th e C hristians Never was there .

any emperor before him s o favourably and ben e

vol ent l y disposed towards them No t even those .

who were open l y said to be Christians so p l ai nly

received them with such civility and friendship i n
the beginning of hi s reign A l l h is house was .

ll ed with Christians and was indeed a congrega,

tion (e cclesi a) of the Lord Th e change i s .
2

attributed by D ionysius B ishop o f A l exandria , ,

to M acri an u s hi s prime minister and chief of

, ,

the Egyptian magi whom he accuses of having ,

instigated his master to practise magica l rites to ,

sacrice chi l dre n and s e arch the bowels of new

born babes and to muti l ate and dismember the

creatures of G od 3 We may take i t that Mac
.

ri an u s was an e nemy of th e C hurc h and found ,

his opportunity in the military disasters that

befe ll the Empire o n every frontier to suggest
that t he Christians were to blame .

The persecution began A O 2 5 7 Valerian s . . .

rst edict was directed mainly against bishops

and priests and forbade assemb l ies for worshi p
,

and the entrance of C hristians into their ceme

t e ri e s sti ll used apparently as p l ace s for worship
,

by Christians .

2
Cy p i a 8p 5 7
r n ,
E . b i H 8 vii
.
2
u se u s, . . . 10 .

3 I bid
.
1
98 Chu rch H i s to r
y f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

Cyprian was banished to Cu ru b i s , an d D i o

s i u s t o C e hro , a vill age i n the desert
n
y p .

Dionysi us gives som e particulars of the per

s e cu ti o n i n letters quoted by Eusebius We .

did not k e e p al o o f from assemblies but I athered

'

together all th e more dilige ntly those l e ffi n the

,

city as though I were present
,
At Ce p hro .

at rst we were persecuted and stoned at last

n o t a few o f the h eathen abandoned their idols

and turned t o G o d Agai n I t i s superuous
.
,

to recount o u r breth ren by name as t hey are ,

numerous and unknown t o y o u They are men .

and wom e n young and o ld young virgin s an d

, ,

aged matrons soldiers an d private m en eve ry

, ,

c l ass and every age so me that obtained the vic,

tory u nder stripes and i n the ames some by the ,

edge o f th e sword I n the city M aximus

.
,

De metrius and Lucius presbyters concealed

, , ,

themselves and D i o s cu ru s secretly vi sited th e

,

brethren . I t was Eu sebiu s a deacon wh om , ,

God strengthened from th e rst and prepared

to m inister strenuously to the con fessors i n prison
and to bury the bodie s o f the blessed mar tyrs
made perfect at the risk o f hi s o w n li fe F o r .

u p to the prese nt ti me the governor does n o t

cease killing i n a most cruel manner torturi ng , ,

scourgi ng wasti ng wit h i mprison ment and bonds

, ,

a nd co m manding that n o o n e sha ll go n e ar t he m ,

and looking to s e e i f any one shou l d do s o Yet .

G o d by the alacrity and kindness o f the brethren

, ,

has a fforded some relief to the a ictedf 2 .

E b i H 8 vii I 1
2
u se u s, . . . .
 The P e rse cu ti o n s f
o D e ci u s an d Vale ri an 1
99

C arthage had escaped m ore l ight l y But in .

August A D 2 5 8 Cyprian wrote that Va l erian

,
. .
,

had sent a new rescript to the senator orderi ng ,

that bishops presbyters and deacons be s u m

, ,

mari l y put to death that senators men of rank , ,

and R om an knights be deprived of both their

rank and their property and if afterwards th e y, ,

persisted in b e ing C hristians be executed ; that ,

matrons l ose their property and be banished ;

that a l l imperial o i ci al s who have either con
fessed before o r confess now h ave their property
conscated be reduced to s l avery and sent to
, ,

work on the imperial estates .

I t i s worthy of note that Cyprian s anxiety was
now no longer lest C hristians should fail to co n
fess but only that they should k e ep the peace
, ,

and that none shou l d voluntari l y give them

se lves up .

He returned to Carthage to await arrest and ,

was ordered to conne h imse l f to h is country

house near by as G al e ri u s the governor was
,

detained at Utica H e refused a ll solicitations

.

to seek safety in ight but disappeared when he

,

heard that he was to be tried at Utica H e did .

this because he wished to die i n Carthage because ,

the city i n wh ich he presides over the C h ur ch

o f the Lord is th e place where a bishop ought t o

confess his Lord and to glorify his whole people

by the confession o f their prelate i n their pre

sence . Some years before he had written to
Luc i us that the victim which has to s e t before
the brotherhood the pattern o f man l iness and o f
2 00 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

faith ought to be o ffered up in the pre sence o f

the brethren .

When G al e ri u s came to Carthage Cyprian cam e ,

o u t o f hiding and returned to hi s vil l a O n Sep .

tember 1 3 th two o i ce rs drove up in a chariot

and carrie d hi m o ff to Carthage R ound the .

house where he spent the night a vast crowd

assembled pagan as we l l as C hristian to do him
, ,

honour .

The next day h e was brought before G ale ri u s ,

t he proco n sul w h o began ,

Yo u are T has ci u s Cy p ri an u s .

Cyp ri an I am
. .

Gale ri u s Yo u have given yourself to be a
.

bis hop to people o f sacrilegious views .

Cyp ri an I have
. .

Gale ri us C onsider
. .

Cyp ri an D o what y o u are ordered t o d o
. .

I n such a si m ple matter there is noth ing to

conside r .

G al e ri u s the n assed sente nce Your life has

P
long been o n e O f s acri l e g e you have been asso
ci at e d yourself wi th a great number o f person s i n

a cri minal conspiracy Yo u have constituted .

yourself an antagonist to the gods o f R ome and ,

to their sacred O bservances As y o u have been .

detected as the instigator and stan dard bearer in

-

he i nous o ffences you shall be i n your o w n person

,

a lesson to those w ho have been associated wi th

you O ur pleasure i s that T has ci u s Cy p ri an u s
.

be executed with the sword .

T hi s sente nce Cyprian acknowledged by saying

 The P e rse cu ti o n s f
o D e ci us an d Vale ri an 20 1

Thanks be to G od Th e crowd al l greatly
.
,

moved shout e d Let us a l so die with him
,
.

Accompanied by an immen se crowd he was

taken to the p l ace of execution Arrived at the .

s pot he took o ff his woo ll en cape and kne l t down

and prayed Then h e rose removed hi s da l matic
.
, ,

and i n his white l inen alb prepared for death H e .

p l aced the bandage over h is eyes and his deacon ,

fastened it The executioner tremb l ed s o that

.

he could not perform his task But the centurion .

took the sword and sev e red his neck at one

stroke.

I n R o m e the Pope Sixtus w as found teaching

in the Catacombs and there executed with s i x o f
,

his seven deacons Four days later S Laurence

. .
,

with others met their death S Laurence w as

,
. .

Archdeacon o f R ome Th e story is that when .

he saw Sixtus bei ng led to execution he exc l aimed

W hy do you leave me ho l y father ? Shou l d,

the priest go to the sacrice without his attendant

deacon ? Laurence as keeper of the treasures
,

of the C hurch was ordered by the authorities to

,

produce them H e asked for a day i n which

.

to co l lect them and spent the time i n visiting

,

the poorest quarters of the city The next day .

he appeared at the tribunal attended by a crowd ,

o f b e ggars and cripp l es These he exp l ained
.
, ,

are the treasures of the C hurch " H e was

ordered to be burnt on a gridiron .

The persecution came to an end with the cap

ture of Val erian by the Persian s under Sapor .

G a l lienus w ho succeeded issued an edict of

, ,

2 D
202 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

toleration A D 2 6 0 The edict i s lost but i t

,
. . .
,

allowed the clergy to perfor m their accu stomed

mi ni stration s un molested an d granted permission
,

t o the bishops t o recover the cemeteries I t was .

addressed to them and therefore recogn ized the

,

C hurch as a corporation Thi s edict re mai ned in

.

force u n til the last and greatest persecution under

Diocletian A D 3 0 3
,
. . .

For forty -three years the C h urch had peace .

 XI

TH E R O MA N CH U R C H

OW Christianity was rst i ntroduced into

II R ome we do not know But we know .

that on the day of Pentecost among those

addressed by S Peter there were the soj ourn
.

ing Romans Jews as we ll as prose l ytes that
, ,

is a body of Jews from R ome resident for the

,

time at J erusa l em These Jews may probab l y

.

be identied with the Synagogue O f the Liber

tines O r R oman freedmen to whom in the
, , ,

rst place S Stephen addressed his preaching

,
. .

There can be no reasonab l e doubt th at C hris

ti an i ty found its way to R ome within a year
o r two at most B ut we do n o t know wh o
.

rst organized the C hurch there or who l ai d ,

its foundations We know that S Pa u l had

. .

l eft i t alone because he would n o t build on

another man s foundation and that when h e

wrote A O 5 7 5 8 it was a large and ourishi n g

,

,
. .
,

community Who was the other man
. The
universal tradition of the C hristian Church
answers S Peter and there is no su f cient
.
,

reason for rej ecting this testimony I t has also .

of l ate years received the support o f archae o

l ogica l i nvestigation .

203
2 04 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n s tan ti n e

Mr Edm und son suggests that whe n S Peter

.
2
.

van ishes from S Luke s history i n th e Acts after .

his escape fro m prison i n th e spring of A D 4 4 . .

,

h e we n t to R om e I f s o the suggestion may .

,

have come from Corne l ius who bel onged to ,

th e Co ho rs I tali ca There i s a strong tradition .

that S Peter spe nt some years there though

.
, ,

if s o hi s re sidence would hardly have been con

,

ti n u o u s On th e authority o f J usti n Eusebiu s

.

tell s u s that he followed o n the heels o f Simon

2

Magus wh o had preceded him th ere and was

,

regarded as a g o d H ippolytu s tel l s u s that .

S Peter successfu l ly opposed Simon Magu s i n

.

R ome as he had previous l y in Samaria 3

,
.

I n A D 5 1 o r 5 2 Claudius expe l led the J

. . e w s fro m

R om e and the Acts tell u s that S Paul fou nd

,
.

Aquila and h is wife Pri sci l la in Corinth who had ,

come there i n con sequence of the edict bei ng ,

at the time a l ready C hristians Suetonius gi ve s .

the further i n formatio n that the J ews were

expel l ed o n account o f their continua l tum ults ,

i mp u ls o re Chre sto C hre s t u s bei ng th e i nstigator ,

.

So i t i s n o t unreaso n able to assume that the

disturbances arose through the i ntroduction of
C hristianity

.

S Paul s pent tw o years (

. A O 6 1 6 3 ) as a . .

prisoner at Rome and S Peter probably wrote ,

.

t here hi s F irst Epi stle which ends with a greeting ,

2
E dm u n dso n , The Ch u rch i n Ro m e i n the Fi rst Ce n tury .

2
H 8 .
3, I 4 . ii . 1 .

3 F o r t he w h o e s u
j e ct o f S

l
e t e r s co n n e c t o n wb . P i i th R o m e,

s e e The Chu rch i n Ro m e i n the Fi rs t en tury , e c t u re C L ii .

 The R o m an Chu rch 205

from Babylon and Babyl on i s a l most cer

8

tai n l y a synonym for R ome I t is reasonab l y

.

certain that both Apost l es were martyred there ,

probab l y between A O 6 4 and 6 7 It was there

. . .

fore tted by its Aposto l ic connection s as by ,

i ts centra l position and the associations and g l ory

of its name to become the centr e O f C hristendom
,

when Jerusalem was destroyed R ome was not .

on l y the cap i t al o f the wor l d : it w as the on l y

Apostol ic s e e i n the West .

A great source of inuence may be traced to

its hospita l ity On e of the most e l ementary
.

charitab l e duti es of the C hristian as we have ,

s e en was hospita l ity

,
The wor l d ocked to
.

R om e as th e Eng l ish -speaking wor l d ocks to

London to day and th e R oman C hurch became
-
,

by its position th e hostess of visiting C hristians

from a ll over the Empire and beyond .

Owing perhaps to their e xceptiona l o p p o r

, ,
~

t u n i t i e s of knowing the needs o f other C hurches ,

R oman C hristian s seem to have been distinguished

for their generosity D iony sius who was Bishop
.
,

of Corinth writing t o the R omans addressing
, ,

hi s l ett e r to Soter the bishop of that city i s

, ,

quoted by Eusebius as saying

F o r this practice h as prevai l ed with y o u from
t he beginning to do good to a ll the brethren in
,

every way and to send con tributio ns to many

church e s i n every ci ty thus refresh i ng the needy
,

i n their want and furnishing necessaries to t he

brethren condemned to the mine s you preserve
by these contributions th e practice s of your
206 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co nstan ti n e

ancestors the R omans Which was n o t only .

observed by your Bishop Soter but al so in creased ,

as h e n o t o nly furnished great supplie s to the

sai nts but a l so encouraged the brethren that
,

came from abroad with words o f consolation

as a loving father hi s children .
2

I t i s noteworthy that at rst it i s the Church

rather than the Bi shop o f R om e which i s promi
n ent Clement wrote a letter to the Cori nthians
.

o n certai n disorders i n their C hurch wi th which ,

th e R oman C hurch was closely con nected as ,

Ignatius wrote to C hurches i n Asia M inor an d ,

Dionysius o f C ori nth wrote t o remonstrate with

the Church at Athens I t was a part of the .

general sense o f brotherhood I f your neighbour .

was i n di f cultie s o r si n you had t o try to help .

What was true o f the individual was equally true

o f the C h urch I t was the m ost natural thi ng i n
.

the world that Clemen t should write to the

C ori nth ia n C hurch What does seem strange i s
.

that Clement writes n o t in his O w n name as

,

bis hop but i n the nam e o f th e C hurch of G o d
,

which soj ourn s i n R om e Ag ai n Ignatius th e .
, ,

last man to slight the o ffi ce 0 f a bishop writing ,

about twenty years later addres sed his letter to ,

the C hurch an d n o t to the bishop D ionysius o f .

,

C ori nth also i n acknowledging th e generosi ty o f

,

the R oman Church wrote to th e R oman s i n
,

stead o fto Soter their bishop Ignatius describe s .

2

the R oman C h urch as havi ng the presidency i n

the country o f the land o f the R oman s and as ,

E 2
b i H E iv 3
u se u s, I bid
. . . 2 .
2
.
 The R o m an Chu rch 207

being famous fo r good works Th ere i s no word .

of the bishop and no hint o f more than a presi

,

den e y o f honour among t he l oca l C hurches .

Amo n g the famous Christians who visited R ome

w as Po l ycarp who came in the time of Anicetus
, ,

and disputed with the fo l lowers o f Va l entinus

and Marcion and brought many o f them to the
,

F aith H e and Anicetus had many arguments

.

about the proper date o f Easter but neither ,

cou l d persuade the oth e r H owever they agreed .

,

to di ffer amicab l y and Anicetus al l owed Po l ycarp

,

to celebrate i n h is place .

Soter who succeeded Anicetus wrot e the letter

, ,

to the C orinthians which has already been men

ti o ne d .

We get the rst clear picture o f the R oman

C hurch as a nat u ral guide and arbiter from
I renaeus though he to o speaks of the Church and
,

n o t the bishop I t would b e he says to o tedious

.
, ,

to refute t he Gnostics by reckoning up the suc

cessions o f all the C hurches so it wi l l be enough ,

to show the Apostol ic tradition of the very great ,

the very ancien t and universally known C hurch

,

founded and organized at Rome by the two most

glorious Apostles P eter and Paul F o r to
this Church every C hurch that i s the faithful
.
,

everywhere must needs resort on account o f

its great e r pre -eminence since th e Aposto l ic tradi
,

tion has a l ways been preserved therein by the

faithfu l who resort to i t from everywhere
,
.
2

The words are obscure and the translation d i i

Ag ai t H i III 3
2
ns eres es, . .
208 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

cult b u t the meani ng apparently is that C hristian s

,

looked o n the C h urch o fR ome as an arbiter o n di s

u te d poi nts o ffaith because from her position s h e
p ,

w as i n touch wi th the faith ful everywhere and i n ,

a posi tion to know th e truth generally professed .

I n A D I 7 7 I re naeus was sent with a le tter

. .

from Lyons to bring i ntelligence o f the martyr

doms i n Gaul to E l e u t he ru s w ho was the ,

Bishop of R ome and a l so to protest again st the

,

errors o f the M ontanists E l e u t he ru s seem s to .

have conde m ned the Mo ntanists At l eas t Ter .

tullian clai ms that a s ubsequent Bishop o f R ome

acknowledged the claims o f M ontanus Prisca , ,

and M ax i m i ll a and bestowed h i s peace o n the

,

C h urches o f Asia and Phrygia but afte rwards ,

withdrew his approval at the in stigation o fP rax e as ,

who i n si sted o n the authority o f the bishop s

predecessors i n the see 2

Victor bishop A D 1 8 9 1 99 took a m uch

,
. .
,

stronger li ne than any o f his predecessors T h ere .

had long be en a controversy as to the correct day

fo r keeping Easter T he C hurches i n Asia we re
.

quartodecimans ; that is they ended their fast ,

before Easter o n the fourteenth day o f the

Jewish m onth Nizam s o as to coincide wi th the
,

conclusion o f the Jewish Passover Elsewhere .

Easter was always obse rved o n a Sunday An i .

ce tus an d Polycarp had had as we have seen a , ( ,

friendly di fference o n the subj ect but the feeling ,

o f the C h urch was consolidating against th e

quartodecimans everywhere except i n Asia T he .

T P a i 2
o r x . .
 The Ro m an Chu rch 20 9

question was specially felt at R ome because o f ,

the number o f strangers who kept Easter there ,

and Victor seems to have made up hi s mind to

procure uniformity Counci l s were held in Gaul .
,

i n Pontus i n Pa l estine an d i n Asia Every

, ,
.

where except i n Asia th e quartodecimans were

condem ned Po l ycrates Bi shop o f Ephesus
.
, ,

a nd the Bishops of Asia were alone recalcitrant .

Po l ycrates quoted the exam les o f the great
lights i n Asia whom they o ll o we do f Ph ilip
,

the Apost l e and hi s virgin daughters o f Joh n ,

w ho rested i n the bosom o f o u r Lord and o f ,

other great men Moreover seven of his o wn .

,

relatives had been bishops and they always ,

observed th e day when th e J ews threw away the

leaven . Nothing therefore would induce him , ,

to give way Victor who seem s t o have been

.
,

the chief mover i n promoting these gatherings ,

forthwith endeavoured to cut o ff the C hurche s

o f al l Asia together with the neighbouri ng
,

C hurches as heterodox from the common unity

, ,
.

And he published abroad by l etters that a l l the

brethren there are whol ly excommunicated .
2

But this continues Eusebius was n o t the opin ion

, ,

o f all the bishops O n the contrary they ex .

,

ho rte d Victor with much severity t o promote

peace and unity I renaeus i n particular wrote in
.

the name o f the C hurches i n Gaul admonish ,

ing Victor n o t to cut O ff whole Churches o f

God who observed the tradition o f an ancient
,

custom H e urged the example o f Victor s

.

H 8 v 4
2
. . . 2 .

2 E
2 10 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

predecessors i n a l lowi ng the di fference notably ,

the i n stance o f Anicetus and Po l ycarp Wi th .

all these mai ntained peace a nd we have main ,

tai n e d p e ace w i t h o n e another ; . and the very

di fference i n o u r fasting establish es the unanimity

i n o u r faith .

I t i s probable that Victor afterwards withdrew

from an u ntenable position .

Hip p olytus w ho died A D 2 3 5 o r 2 3 6 is,

. .
,

the outstanding gure i n the R oman C hurch

d uring th e rst quarter of the third century H e .

was a disciple of I renaeus and a man o f immen se ,

learning Under Victor he seem s to have been

.

i n favour but i n the time o f Z ephyri n us A D

,
.
,
.

1
99 7 2 1 he lost i n,
uence Z ephyri nus was .

succeeded by Calli s t u s who had once been a ,

slave Hippolytus had been o n bad term s with

.

Call i s t u s and was i n furiated by th e appoi n tmen t

,

of his enemy The subseque nt h i story is obscure

.
,

but H ippolytus we nt into schism and i s possibly ,

the rst anti -pope At least he never speaks o f .

,

Cal l i s t u s as bish op but as having set up a ,

school and made himself the head o f it I n
,
.

the fol l owing e ntry in the Liberian Catalogue h e

i s referred to as a pre sbyter not as a bi shop At ,
.

that time the Bi shop Pontianus and the Presbyter

Hippolytus were deported to Sardinia a pesti ,

l e n tial island i n the con sulship o f Seve ru s and

,

Q u i n t i an u s A D 2 3 H i s death probably
,
. .

Li b i a C atal g
2
er F th
n vi w th at H i p p ly t w a
o ue . o r e e o us s

Bi h p f P t
s o o Li ghtf t Ap t li Fath I l ii
o r us se e oo ,
os o c e rs , ,
vo . .

4 2
7 36 .
 The R o m an Church 2 1 1

occurred i n this year or the next H e is n ot .

,

however r e ckoned among t he anti popes and he

,
-
,

is counted among the martyrs so it may be that ,

he w as reconci l ed with h is riva l Pon tianus i n the

marshes of Sardinia and his schism forgotten , .

H e was laid to rest i n the time of F abian by

the Via Tiburtina where a statue was found ,

in 1 5 5 1 perfect except for the head He i s

,
.

seated in a chair o n which are inscribed h i s

tab l es for nding Easter As th i s cyc l e went .

wrong fro m A D 2 3 7 the s tatue cannot have

r
. .

been put up later There i s al so a catalogue .

of his writings Among them are a l arge num

.

ber of exegetical works and the Phi lo sop hurn en a ,

a voluminous book against heretics H e also .

wrote a book O f Chro n i cles and i s probab l y ,

the author o f the s o -ca ll e d 8gyp ti an Church

H ippolytus i s the R oman Tertullian at a
distance He . had immense learning and was ,

decient in charity ; but is far below Tertu ll ian

as a writer of vivid and nervous prose H e .

attacked Call i s tu s in the most savage manner

for past scanda l s in his private l ife the truth ,

o f which we have n o means o f j udging but ,

they bear marks of gross exaggeration He .

a l so attacked his policy principa ll y in respect ,

o f his l e niency to S III H CI S H ippo l ytus like '

.
,

Tertull ian was a rigorist and wou l d a l low no

, ,

absolution for grave sins Call i s tu s had issued .

S a ti l i T x t a d St di viii 4 b y D m R H
2
ee r c e n e s n u es , .
,
o . .

C ll y
o no .
21 2 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Nero to Co n s tan ti n e

an edict a l lowing repentance to thos e guilty o f

adultery which ca l led forth one o f T e rtu l l i an s
,

characteristic protests Yo u i ntroduce. he ,

write s addressing the pope
,
i nto the Ch urch ,

i n order t o m e l t the brotherhood by hi s prayers

the penitent adulterer Yo u lead him into th e .

midst and prostrate hi m all i n haircloth and ,

ashes a compound o f disgrace and horror before

, ,

th e widows before the chi l dren suing fo r the

, ,

tears o f all kissing their footpri nts clasping their

, ,

knees M eantime y o u harangue the peop l e and

.

excite their pity fo r the s ad fate o f this suppliant .

O good shepherd O blessed pope y o u re l ate the

, ,

Parable o f the Lost Sheep in or d er that th is goat

may be returned to you .
2

Call i s t u s decreed that if a woman o f h igh

birth married a slave the marriage should be
recognized by the Church The State did n o t .

recognize t he marriag e o f a slave at all .

H i ppolytus accused him o f allowi ng men w ho

had been twice o r thrice married to continue
i n holy orders and of allowing those already
,

ordai ned to marry H e a l so say s that du ri n

h is p o n ti cate a second baptism was atte m p t e cg
.

This mu st mean a re -baptism of h eretics but i f ,

so the attempt was n o t successfu l as n o t long ,

after Stephe n stated that re baptism had n ever
bee n allowed by his predecessors .

After t he death o f H ippolytus his mant l e fell

o n Novatian Like H ippolytus he was a man
.
,

o f real learni ng and like h im was contentious

, , ,

O Cha ti ty iii
2
n s x .
 The R o m an Chu rch 2 1 3

and unru l y According to Corne l ius he had

.
,

been bapti z ed on h i s sick bed and had never

-
,

bee n conrmed ; and fo r this reason obj ection

was made to his ordination as presbyter He .
2

produced a l earned work o n the Trin ity and ,

again according to Corne l ius expect e d to be made
pope But being disappointed he persuaded
.
, ,

three obscure I tal ian bishops to consecrate him ,

and headed a secon d rigorist schi sm during the

troub l es that fo ll owed the D e cian persecution .

H e made common cause with No v atu s o f Car ,

t hag e ,
so we have the surprising resu l t that
Novatian at the head o f a rigorist schism i n
,

R ome was al l ied with No v atu s at the head o f

,

a l axity schism in Carthage I t gave ri se to .

a good deal of correspondence between Cyprian

and the R oman Bishop Corne l ius wh ich has ,

been preserved .

Cyprian wrote to give an account O f hi s own

troub l es with schismatic presbyt e rs and sympa ,

th i z e d with C orne l ius in h is d i i cu l ti e s even ,

going s o far as to write a l etter to t he confessors

at R ome who wer e causi ng them I n reply .

Corne l ius wrote to t e l l him o f the submission

of some of the rebel l ious presbyters in order , ,

he exp l ain s that he may give thanks

,
.

When expecting a second outbreak o f perse

cu t i o n Cyprian and the assemb l ed African
,

bishops decided to admit the penitent lapse d

t o C ommunion that th e y might be armed for

the fray This decision was communicated to
.

E b i H 8 vi 4 3
2
u se u s, . . . .
2 1 4 Chu rch Hi sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

C ornel ius , partly for his information and partly ,

appare n t l y for h is example

,
.

Fortunatu s and F e li ci s s i m u s two o f the ,

African in subordi nate presbyters went to com ,

p l ai n at Ro me Cyprian then wrote to urge

.

C ornelius whom he eviden tly thi nks wanti ng

,

in rmness to have nothin g to do with them

, .

I t had evidently not entered his h ead that th ey

had a righ t to appeal to R ome They had .

wandered about maki ng trouble all over the

province o f Africa and being n o w too well , ,

known there had go ne to try their for tunes

,

at R ome .

Later when Ste phen was pope Marcian

, , ,

Bishop o f Ar l e s ann ounced that he adhered to

,

Novatian and separate d himself from the rest

,

o f the bishops W he reupon Cyprian advised

.

Ste phen now pope to write t o
,
o ur fellow
,

bi shops i n Gau l n ot to su ffer any longer that

M arcian should i nsu l t our asse mbly because
h e does n o t yet seem to be excomm unicated

by us . I n other words Stephen was to write ,

to the bishops o f the provi nce and to th e people

at Arles that Marcian might be excommunicated
and a s uccessor appoi nted Cyprian urge s .

Stephe n t o act in stead o f acting himself pre ,

s u m ab l because R om e was m uch n earer than

y
Carthage to Arles an d i ts co mmunication s with
the province much closer .

H i s letter went on to descant o n the duties o f

bishops and gave S tephen some excellen t advice
, .

Among other thi ngs he wrote : Although we
 The R o m an Chu rch 2 I5
are many bishops we feed one ock and ought ,

to co ll ect and cheri sh a ll th e ock which C hrist

by His B l ood and Passion sought for ; nor ought
we to su ffer our supp l iant and mourning br e thren
to be despised words which show p l ai n l y
enough that any idea of papa l j uri sdiction of the ,

o n e bishop over a ll was n ot i n his mind .

,

I n another case of discipline Steph e n was i n

conict with Cyprian B as i li de s and Martia l two
.
,

Spanish bishops had given way i n the p e rs e cu

,

tion and were expe ll ed by their ock who e l ected ,

S ab i n u s and F e l ix i n the ir p l ace Their deposers

W rote to Cypria n i nforming h i m of what had
,

happened and to be rel ieved by the comfort o r

,

by the help of our j udgement Cyprian and .

hi s fellow bishops war m l y approved th e ir conduct .

B as il i de s had aggravat e d hi s o ffe nce by appea l ing

to Stephen who p l aced at a distance and ignorant
, ,

o f what had been done and of the truth had ,

been induced to canvass that he might be replaced

u nj ust l y in the episcopate from which he had
been righteous l y d e p o s e d .
I

On the question of the re baptism of heretics

there was an acute di fference I n the seco nd .

century such baptism s had be e n administered by

G nostic sects which wer e denite l y outside the
,

C hurch and the refusal to recogniz e th em was

,

a l most a matter of course Later after the rise .

,

o f the Montanists and the Novatianists w ho were ,

schi smatics the question cam e up for decision

,
.

Novatian himse l f had begun by re -baptizing his

Cy p i a Ep 6 7
2
r n , . .
2 1 6 Church H i s to ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

disciples Cyprian adopting the traditional view

.
, ,

refused to recogn ize an baptism given outside

the C hurch He was fhl l o w e d by most o f the
.

Africa n bishops Stephe n Bishop o f R om e was.

, ,

as emphatic o n t he other side Cyprian s position .

was logica l and clear Those outside the C hurch

.
2

are dead No o n e can be made alive by that

.

which i s dead Therefore n o baptism outside

.

the C h urch can be baptism at all H o w can .

dead waters give life ?

T he controversy was acute and lasted fo r ,

some ti me The Eastern C h urch seem s t o have

.

f
bee n i n favour o re bapti sm though Dionysius
-
,

o f Al exandria was rm o n the oth er s ide .

F i r m i l i an B i shop o f Caesarea wrote
,
All ,

powers and grace are established i n the C h urch

when the elders pre side who possess the power ,

both o f baptizing and O f i m p o s i ti o n o f hands an d

o f ordain ing F o r as a heretic may n o t l awfully
.

ordai n o r lay o n hand s s o neither m ay h e bap ,

tiz e .
2
Fro m which we s e e i ncidental l y that n o
o ne mai ntained th e validity o f conrmation o r
ordination i f administered by heretics .

Steph en Bi shop o f R ome strong l y opposed

, ,

Cyprian and those w h o thought with h im and ,

we n t s o far as to excomm u n icate them F i rm i l i an .

was much shocked by thi s breac h o f ch ari ty and ,

poi nted o u t that previously there had been dif

fe re n ce s with the C hurch o f R om e i n res pect
o f the date o f Easter and other matters wi thout

produci ng any breach o f the peace and unity o f

C y p i a Ep 7 1r n I bid 7 7
, . 1 ,
.
2
.
, .
 The R o m an Chu rch 2 I7
the Catho l ic C hurch such as Stephen has n o w ,

dared to make The controversy was for the
.
2

moment ended by the d eath o f Stephen and th e

martyrdom of Cyprian but t h e Eastern C h urch
w as s l ow to give in though the R oman view ,

prevai l ed in t he end .

I t is worthy of note that the C hurch in R ome

was at rst a G reek and not a Latin C hurch .

C lement wrote in G reek and down to H ippo l ytus ,

a ll who wrote at R ome wrote in Greek H ippo .

l y tu s was the l ast great writer o f the R oman

C hurch who wrote i n Greek .
2

2
Cy p i a
r n , Ep .
75 , 6 .

2
NO T E . NO at te m p t
- h as e e n m ade t o d e a w t h the b l i
l
t h e o ry o f P a a S u re m acy , t h o u g h ce rt a n fac t s t h at
p p e ar o n i b
i t ha e e e n g e n
v b iv i
T o go n to t h e q u e s t o n at an y e n g t h
. i l
l
wo u d b e b e o n d t h e sc o e o f th s w o rk F o r t h s re aso n i i
y p .

t he p assag e s i n C i
n s T re at se O n the Un i t f i
h C

r a c th e a t oli c
yp y
C v b i
hu rch, h a e n o t e e n d scu sse d F o r i ts d sc u ss o n , se e e n so n s
. i i B
1 8 0 sqq .
 XI I

LI FE I N T H E C H U R CH

HE ante -Nicen e fathers tell u s litt l e o f th e

C hurch l ife o f their day ; o f i ts i nternal
organization i ts o ffi cers and their d uties the
, ,

m inistry o f its wom en the orderi ng o f its ,

services its social life i ts chari ties and i ts

, , ,

discip l ine though we are able to glean some

,

valuabl e an d int e resting i nformation But .

scholars i n rec e n t years h ave added consider

ably to o u r knowledge o f these things by bring
i ng in to the ligh t what are known as the C h urc h
Orders These are M anuals o f Ch urch Order
.

and Di scipline for the u s e and in struction o f

local bishops The earliest i s probably the
.

D i dachc o n which was afterwards based th e
,

seventh book of the Ap o sto li c Co n sti tu ti o n s Next .

came a manual com monly known as the Eg yp ti an

Chu rch Orde r 2 I t s original see ms to have bee n
.

written i n Greek by H ippolytus and was called ,

the Ap o sto li c Tradi ti o n somewhere duri ng the,

rst quarter o f the third century T he Gre e k .

s

origina l i s lost but we have som e fragments

,

of a Lati n version published by E H au l er and

, .

commonly cal l ed the Verona fragment and four ,

2
See T t a d St di
ex s n viii 4 b y D m R H C ll
u e s, .
,
o . . o no y .

2 1 8
 L i i n the Chu rch 2 1
9

Ori e nta l versions trans l ated from t he Latin two

2
,

of t hem Coptic one Arabian and o n e Ethiopian

, , .

F ourth or ft h-century adaptations of th ese are

found i n the s o ca ll e d Can o n s of Hipp o ly tus Book ,

vii i o f the Ap o sto li cal Co n sti tu ti o n s an d the Testa ,

m e n t of the L o rd Later sti l l came th e 8p i to rn e

.

and the Co n sti tuti o n es p e r H ipp o ly tum derived from

Book viii of the Ap o sto li c Co n sti tu ti o n s We hav e .

al so a third cen tury manua l in Syriac though

-
,

this i s n o t to a ffi rm that Syriac was t he o ri g i n al

language i n which it was wri tt e n ca ll ed the ,

D i dascal i a Ap o sto l o ru m wh ich reappears l ater

, ,

brought u p to date and revised in the rst six ,

books of the Ap o sto li c Co n sti tuti o n s written towar d s ,

the end of the fourth century .

So far as our period is concerned we have to ,

re l y on the D i dache the Egyp ti an Chu rch Orde r

, ,

and the D i dascali a Between them we learn

.

a good deal o f the i nner C hurch l ife o f th e

third -century C hristian .

B A PT I SM
Admission into the Church was by Baptism .

About that there is no doubt We have n o .

very ear ly description o f the service J ustin .

Martyr gives some account i n his F i rst Ap o logy ,

2

but does not enter into details .

2
S e e The Statutes of the Ap ostle s, b y Re v . G . H o rn e r ;
H T at tam , Ap o sto li cal Co n sti tu ti o n s ; a so
. l F k un

s Di dascali a et

Co n sti tu ti on es A o sto loru rn

p .

2
Ix i
.
2 20 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

As many as are persuade d and believe that
what we teach i s tru e and undertak e to l ive ,

accordingly are instructed to pray an d entreat

,

God with fasting fo r th e remission o f their

, ,

past sins we praying and fasting with them

, .

Then they are brought by us where there i s

water and are regenerated i n the same man ner
,

in which we were ourselves regenerated F o r .

i n th e Name of God the Father and Lord o f the,

u niverse and o f o u r Saviour Jesus Chri st and

, ,

o f the H oly S pirit they then rece ive th e wash ing

with water F o r Christ also said Except ye be

.

born again ye shall not enter into the kingdom

o f
I n the D i dach there was a direction to bap
t i z e i n runni n g water i n the Nam e o f th e Father

and of the Son and o f the Holy Spiri t : I f
thou hast n ot runn ing water baptize i n some ,

other water ; and i f t hou canst n o t baptize i n

cold the n in warm water ; but if thou hast

neither ( that is neither a stream o f run ning

water o r a pool o f standing water) pour water ,

three times o n the h ead .
2

By the middle o f the third century the pre

a rat i o n for Baptism and i ts ritual had developed
p
co nsiderably Th e candidates o r catech umens
.
, ,

had to serve a long and arduo u s apprentice shi p .

First o f all they were brought to the te achers
,

before th e peop l e came i n ; and they s ha l l a sk

them fo r what reason they so ught the Faith .
2

2
Di da he vii
c , .

2
H o rn e r, Statutes of the Apostles, p . 1
4 8 .
 L ife i n the Chu rch 22 1

Th e y were also examined as to their trades and

way of l ife A s l ave might not b e admitted
.

un l ess he cou l d bring a good character from

his master Fo u r c l asses of peop l e are to chang e
.

their way o f l ife or to be rej ected

1
. Those leading i mmoral l ives or l iving on
the i mmora l ity of others .

2
. Those havi ng to do with heathen worship ,

whether a priest or a maker of ido l s or a painter

, ,

o r gilder o f them .

3
. Those who have any con nection with the

Shows or Games o f the circus A man or .

a woman who i s concerned i n a theatre o r a ,

charioteer or an O l ympic contender or a chorus

, ,

ute -p l ayer o r a harp -p l ayer or a pip e r or a

, , ,

dancer or o n e who goes to the games or w ho i s

,

a g l adiator or teaches g l adiators to ght .
2

4
. Sorcerers and soothsayers of a l l kinds
star-gazers divi ners serpent -charmers
,
one, ,

who augurs by the birds o f heaven .

I f the catechumens answered the questions

satisfactorily they were admitted by the imposi
tion o f hands They were then placed under
.

instruction and allowed to attend the rst part of

the Eucharistca l led later the Mass of the Cate
,

chu m e n s They stood at the back of the church

.

an d heard the readings of the Scripture and the

sermon but were dismissed before the ce l ebration
,

of the Mysteries .

The teaching was moral and doctrina l The .

moral teaching seem s to have been mainly o n th e

2
Ho m e r, Statutes f the Ap o stles
i , p .
31 2.
222 Church Hi sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

line s o f The Two Ways which are given i n ,

the D i dach as the groundwork o f a catech etica l

,

instruction The teacher might be a l ayman and

.
,

w as appointed for the p urpose H e w as cal l ed .

the D octor After each i nstruction they prayed

.

by them selves the wom en s e parately from the

,

me n the instructor th en laid hi s hands o n them

and di smi ssed them with a prayer .

The preparation lasted norm ally for three

ye ars bu t it varied with the individual candidate
,
.

Yet if he were a good scholar and o n e who

knows good conduct n o l ength o f ti me need be
required of him but the conduct alone shall ,

decide fo r him .
2

Candidates i m pri soned for their religion b e

fore the e n d of their catechumenate were n o t
to be apprehen sive at th e prospect of dying
unbaptized as martyrdo m w as con sidered to
,

have the e ffect o f baptism I f a catech um e n .

i s arrested for h is re l igion he is n ot to fear ,

because if put to death he i s baptized i n hi s

o wn
On the fortieth day before the Easter o n which
they were to be baptized their l ives were ex ,

am i n e d ,
i f they lived in the fear o f G o d i t ,

they honoured the wi dow or visi ted the sick o r , ,

if they did a l l good and if there is wi tn ess i n ,

their favour from those w h o bri ng and

i f the result was satisfactory the Gospe l was read ,

2
H o rn e r, Statutes of the Apo stles, p . 1 5 o .

2
I bid , p 1 5 1 . . .

3 I bid .
, p . 1 5 2.
 L i: i n the Chu rch 223

over them and they were admitted to a more

,

i n tensive pr e paration .

They w e re now dai l y instructed and exorcized

with th e imposition of h ands Some day shortl y .

before E aster they underwen t an e xamination at

th e hands of the bishop An d if o n e i s found .

who i s not pur e they shal l put h im aside by him

s e l f ; for he has not hearken ed to the voice o f

instruction with faith .
2

Those who are accepted are directed to bathe

o n t he Thursday an d to begi n their fast on th e ,

next day On t he Sat u rday they w e re onc e more

.

brought to th e bishop and kn e l t before hi m ,

.

And when h e has l aid h i s hand upon them l et ,

him exorcize a ll al ien spirits to ee away from

them and not to return to them henceforward .

And when he has done exorcizing l et h im breathe ,

i n th eir face At nightfa ll they assemb l e d
.
2

with the faithful for the devotions of the Pascha l

vigi l a pro l onged service o f l esson s hym ns and
, , ,

a sermon I t inc l uded the rst part of th e

.

Euchari st and l asted until dawn

,
They then .

went to the baptistery The baptism began with .

th e blessing of t he water At the hour when .

the cock wi ll crow l et them rst pray over the

wat e r Let the water be owing along into the
.

tank or descending upon it But if there .

be a scarcity then use the water wh ich ye shall

nd 3
.

At the sam e time the oil has t o be b l essed and ,

2
H o rn e r, Statu tes of the Ap o stles, p . I 52 .

2
I b id .
, p .
3 6 1 .
3 I bid .
224 Church H i sto ry from Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

the candidates u ndre ss Le t the bishop give .

thanks over the o i l and p ut i t i nto a vessel and

ca l l it the o i l o f thanksgiving ; and take al s o
other oil and exorcize i t and cal l it the o i l o f
exorcism An d a deacon shall carry th e o i l
.

o f exorcism and stand o n th e left hand o f the

,

pre sbyter And a n other deacon shall take the

.

o i l o f than ksgiving and stand o n the right hand

o f the presbyter .
2

The children are to be baptized rst And .

ye sha l l rst baptize the chi l dren All w ho can .

speak for the mselves l et them speak But fo r ,

.

them who can not speak let the ir paren ts speak ,

for t hem or any other belonging to their

,

family .
2

Then fo ll owed t he renu nciation And when .

the presbyter has take n hold o f each o n e w ho

wi l l be baptized le t him com mand h i m to re ,

nounce saying I renounce thee Satanas and

, ,

, ,

all thy service and all thy I n th e

Can o n s of H ipp o ly tus a l ater work the catechu , ,

me n turns to the west and says I re nounce ,

t h ee Satan and al l thy works 3
, ,
.

The candidate i s then exorcized And when .

he has renounced all these let hi m an oint h im ,

with the oil o f exorcism saying Let every foul , ,

spirit remove far from the e The anointing .

presbyter the n han ds h im over n ake d to the , , ,

presbyter o r bishop who is to baptize Li ke ,

.

2
Ho m e r, Statu tes of the Ap o stles, p .
3I7 .

2
I bid p 3
.
,
6 . 1 .

3 C ab ro l an d L e cl e rcq , M o n u rn en ta E ccl e s i ae Lit

ur
gi ca,
p . 26 7 .
 L ie i n the Chu rch 22 5

wise a l so l et the deacon go with him into th e

water and l et him s ay to him he l ping him to
, ,

say it I be l i e v e in the on l y true G od the

,

,

F ather the A l mighty and H i s on l y Son Jesus

, ,

Christ o u r Lord and Saviour and H i s H oly

, ,

Then t he act of baptism takes p l ace And .

he who gives the baptism sha l l put hi s hand

on the head of him who receives and dip ,

him three times ; and he who is baptized sha ll

make declaration e very sing l e time that he is

dipped .

Afterwards apparen tly he repeats hi s profession

o f faith H e i s asked :
. Dost thou believe in
the Name of our Lord J e sus C hrist the only Son ,

o f G od th e F ather that H e became man in an

,

incomprehensible mirac l e by th e H oly Spirit and

by o u r Lady Mary the V irgin without seed o f
man and that H e was crucied i n the time of
,

Pi l ate the Pontian and H e died ; and H e died

,

by His own w i ll to save us and H e rose from ,

the dead o n the third day and re l eased the cap ,

ti v e s
,
and ascended into t he heavens and sat
down on the right hand of the F ather and H e ,

sha l l come to j udge the l iving and the dead at

H i s appearing an d H i s kingdom ?

D ost thou be l ieve in the Spirit the holy , ,

the good the sanctied i n the ho l y C hurch

, ,

and dost thou believe i n the resurrection of

the body which shal l happen to every man ,

and the kingdom of the heavens and eternal ,

j udgement
2 G
226 Chu rch Hi sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

And h e shal l an swer fo r all these th ings ,

sayi n g Veri l y I believe i n this .
2

After th e act o f baptis m and the professio n o f

faith the candidate is anointed with th e o i l o f
thanksgiving .

CO N F I R M A T I O N

Th ey then dry them se lves and put o n their

clothes and go i nto the ch urch and are im me
,

d i at e ly conrmed .

Let t he bishop lay hi s h and upon them with

great desire saying Lord G o d according as
, ,

T hou hast made thes e worthy of rece iving the

forgiven ess o f their sins unto the future li fe make ,

them worthy o f being lled wi th T hy H oly Spirit ,

and sen d down upon them Thy grace that they

may serve T hee accordi ng t o Thy will because ,

Thine i s the glory Father Son and H oly Spirit

, , , ,

i n the holy C hurch n o w and always and fo r ever

and ever .

H e then anoints the candidate .

And he shall pour som e o i l o fthe than k sgiving
upon h i s hand and lay his hand upon hi s h ead
, ,

sayi ng I anoi nt thee with an unction in h oly o il

by God the Father Alm ighty and Jesus C hrist ,

an d th e H oly S piri t And h e shall seal him

.

upon hi s forehead k issing him and s hall say

, ,

Th e Lord be with thee And he w ho has been
.

sealed shall answer And with thy spirit
.

2

2
H o m e r, Statu te s of the Ap ostle s , p . 2
54 .

2
I b i d , pp 3 1 8 - 1 9
. . .
 L i s i n the Church
'

227

The who l e congregation then pray si l ently and ,

give o n e another th e kiss of peace .

I t shoul d be noticed that the outward sign o f

C onrmation consists o f unction imposition o f ,

hands and signing D r Brightman says that

,
. .

the unction i n the West was probably pecu l iar

to R ome and was not found i n Africa the i m
, ,

po sition o f hands being the essentia l part o f the

rite I n the East the unction was the centra l
.

act Origen does n o t mention th e laying o n o f

.

hands .
2

The Eucharist was n o w continued and the ,

baptized received their rst C ommunion .

E U C H A R I ST THE
When the newly-baptized received their rst
C ommunion a cup containing water and another
containing honey and milk were consecrated at
the same time as the wine The water was to .

symbolize the washing o f the inner man and the ,

honey and mi l k the Promised Land into which

they were now entering They received rst .

the Bread with some such words as Thi s 2

i s the Body o f Christ The com municant .

saying Am en Then t h e cups containing water .

and mi l k and honey The n the W i ne 3

He . .

8 y
a2
l H i t y of t
rh Ch h a d M i i ts or -
y p p 3 49 5 e u rc n n s r , . 0 .

I 2
th E th i p i v
n i H e Stat t foth A p t
cl e rs o n ,
o rn e r, u es o e os e s,

p . 1 7 8 .

3 Th i
i s th e o rd e r i n t he V e ro n a fragm e n t
s . L at e r, by th e
i
t m e o f t h e so -c a e d C an on s c ll
H
f pp y
i o l tus ,
t h e cu
p s o f w at e r,
e tc .
, w e re g e n a e r iv
t h e c h a ce li .
22 8 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to C i
o n s tan t n e

who administers the cup sha ll s ay T his i s

the Blood o f Chri st the communicant agai n ,

saying Am en .

It was the great privilege o f the baptized to

be present at th e Eucharist Sunday by Sunday .

J usti n Martyr record s that on th e day cal led
Sunday all who l ive i n cities or i n th e country
,

gather together i nto one place I n later ti me s .

some C hristian s required urging Th e writer o f .

the D i dascal i a urges th e faith fu l to be regu l ar i n

their atte ndance to s e e tha t n o o n e dim inishes
,

th e C hurch by n o t assemb l ing o r makes smaller ,

by a m ember the Body o f C hrist They are to .
2

leave everything o n the Lord s Day and run

eagerly towards your church fo r this i s your ,

glory I f n o t what excuse wil l you have before

.
,

God fo r those w ho have n ot assembled o n the

Lord s Day to hear the Word of Life and to be
nouri sh ed with th e divine Food wh ich endureth
for ever
I t was the custom for all w ho were present to
receive u nless undergoing penance and i n some
, ,

part s of the C hurch those w ho wi shed could carry

away with them som e portion o f the consecrated
Bread and possib l y o f the consecrated Wi ne
, ,

with which they might com municate themselve s

during th e week Th e Egyp ti an Chu rch Orde r .

gives directions as to i t s safe custody when i n

the house : Every o n e sh all be m ost careful
not to let any but th e faithful receive o f th e
2
Di da aha Ap t l
sc t a l at
e d f m t h Sy i a b M
o s o o ru rn ,
y D r ns e ro e r c . .

Gib so niii,
x .
 L ife in the Chu rch 22 9

Mysteri e s nor a mouse nor any other crea

,

ture and not to l e t any be spi l t and l ost since

, ,

it is the Body of C hrist and H i s Blood an d ,

a ll the faithfu l sha ll eat of i t i t i s not proper

to negl ect it .
2

I t is to this custom that Tertu ll ian a l ludes

when he warns h i s wi fe in speaking of the
i nconveniences of marriage with a heathen that

he wi ll want to know what it is which you

secret l y taste before taking any food D ai l y .

Communion was thus made possible and was no ,

doubt the practice o f many We do not hear .

much of the dai l y celebration though Cyprian ,

a l ludes to it as being apparent l y his custom .

At rst the Eucharist succeeded th e agape .

But by T e rtu l l i an s time it seem s always to

hav e been received fasting Th e C hurch Order .

l ays down that All be l ievers sha ll accep t th e

admon itio n that they shou l d receive of the

M y stery before that they taste anything In .
2

the Can o n s of H ipp o ly tus the faithfu l are to fas t

before Communion especia ll y on the days of ,

the sacred fast 3 .

The seating of the congregation was ordered

with due care I n the east o f the building the
.

seats of the presbyters were to be p l aced and ,

the bishop s throne i n the midd l e The deacons

.
,

when n o t engaged i n guarding the doors or seat

i ng the congregatio n o r keeping watch over th e
2
H o rn e r, S tatutes of the Ap ostle s, p . 26 1 .

2
I bid .
, p . 1 80 .

3 R H
. . C o no ll y ,
Tex ts an d Stu di es , vi i i .
4 p
, . 68 .
2 30 Chu rch H i sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

o fferings stood close at hand

,
The writer o f .
2

the Ap o sto l i cal Co n sti tuti o n s say s they m ust wear

tightly girt garm en ts like th e mariners of a
-
,

ship to which h e compares the C hurch But

,
.

thi s w as later .West o f the clergy sat th e

l ayme n and behind the laymen th e women
, ,

w ho were arranged i n c l asses The o l d wome n .

and widows s at by themselves and virgins and ,

deaconesses no doubt had their special p l ace s n o t

l ong afterwards Tertul lian com p l ain s bitterly
.

that a virgi n was seated among the widows ,

which shows that there were n ot t hen special

p l aces for the m but tha t s uch p l aces were felt
,

t o be required .

C hildren are to s i t with their parents or in ,

a place by them selves Girls are to sit apart .

by them selve s o r if there i s n o t room stand

,

behind the women .

A deacon i s to stand at the e n tries fo r men ,

and l ater on a deaconess at those for women .

Every o n e has his own p l ace and if any o n e ,

si ts o u t o f i t he must be admonished by th e

deacon and put i n his proper p l ace Th e .
2

deacon has to see that they go to their places

and do not s i t at the entrance H e has also .

to keep an eye o n their behaviour lest any
o ne wh isper o r s l eep or laugh o r make signs .

F o r a ch urch i s not a place o f con fabu l ation ,

but of reverent prayer 3 .

Careful arrangemen ts are made fo r the recep

ti on of visitors . I f there com e a person from
D i da 2
ii
sc . x .I b id I b id 2
.
3 .
 L ife i n the Church 23 1

a nother assembly a brother or a sister l e t the

, ,

deacon ask an d l earn if s he be a wife or a b e l i e v

ing widow i f s h e be a daught e r o f the C hur c h
, ,

or if it be o n e of the heresies and then let him ,

conduct her to the p l ace that bets her .

A presbyter i s to be received by presbyters ,

and seated among them a deacon is to sit

with the deacons I f a bishop comes he i s .

to sit with the bishop and is to b e asked to ,

preach for the admonition o f strangers is very

,

acceptab l e and no prophet i s acceptab l e in h is

,

own country H e i s to b e asked to o ffer the
.
2

Eucharist I f he be wise and gives honou r

.

to the l ocal bishop by refusing to o i ci ate yet ,

over the cup l e t hi m speak Later he i s .
2

to give the b l essing .

If after the congregation i s s e t down any
, ,

person arrives who has honour in the world ,

either man o r woman whether he be a stranger ,

o r o n e of your own country neither do thou O , ,

bishop if thou art speaking the Word of G od or

,

hearing hi m that sin g s or reads accep t persons s o ,

far as to leave the ministry o f th e Word that thou ,

mayst appoint a p l ace for him ; but continue

quiet and let the brethren receive h im Let one .

o f the brethren w ho i s fu l l of l o v e and loves his

brethren and would do honour rise and give hi s

place 3 But if no on e rises then O deacon
.
, , ,

look thou at those who are sitting for h im who

i s younger than h is comrades or her who i s
younger make them rise and seat hi m who rose
D i da
2
ii I b id sc . Ibid
x .
2
.
3 .
23 2 Church H i s to ry om Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

and gave up his place Lead him whom tho u .

hast made to rise and put h i m behi nd his co m

rades that others also may be educated and learn
,

to give place to those who are more honourab l e

than they I f a poor man or poor woman o f
.
2

a m ean family come especially o n e of advanced

,

years a plac e must be found I n the D i dascali a

, .

the bishop mu st nd a p l ace eve n i f he himself

has to sit on the oor ; but later this is left to the
deacon i n the case of a man while the deaco nes s ,

has to do it for a woman .

Good behaviour i n church could apparen tly

no more be tak e n for granted then than it can

no w The D i dascali a speaks o f those who n o t
.

eve n in the com m union of the as sembly o n Sun

day when they come are attentive ; the wome n
, ,

and th e men they either sl ee p soundly o r talk

,

about something el se .

THE A GA P E
T he agape was originally a solem n meal which
i m mediately preceded o r followed th e Euchari st .

D uring the second century the agape was

separate d from the Eucharist and becam e a
social meal o n e migh t al most c al l it a sanctied
parish te a I t took place i n the eve ni ng and was
.
,

partly religious and partly social Tertul lian has .

given a vivid accou nt of it i n hi s Ap o lo gy After .

speaking of th e l avish feasting associated with

heathe n worsh ip he goes o n : Yet about the
,
2
Didasc . xi i .
 L ife i n the Chu rch 233

modest supp e r room of the C hristian s a l on e a

great to do i s mad e Our fe ast exp l ains itse l f by
- .

i t s name T h e G re e ks ca ll it l ove
. Whatev e r .

it costs our out l ay in the name of piety i s gain

, ,

sinc e with t he good things o f the feast we benet

t he n e e dy ; not as with you do parasites aspi re
to the g l ory of satisfying their l icentious propen
sities but as it i s with God H imse l f a pecul iar
, ,

respect is shown to the low l y As i t is an act .

o f r e l igious service it permits no vi l eness o r

,

immod e sty The participants before rec l i ni ng

.

rst pray to G od As much is eaten as satises

.

the cravings of hunger ; as much is drunk as

bets the chaste They e at as rememb e ring that
.

during the night they have to worship G od ;

they talk as knowing that the Lord is one o f
th e ir auditors After the washing of hands
.

and bringing i n of lights each o n e i s asked to

stand forth and sing as he can a hymn to G o d , , ,

either one from the ho l y Scriptures o r one o f

hi s own composing a test of the measure o f o u r
drinking The feast is c l osed as it began with
.
, ,

prayer .
2

The agap e seems to have begun with a prayer

of thanksgiving and an address by the bishop ,

if present I n hi s absence a presbyter or i n

.
,

defaul t o f either a deacon would preside and

, ,

say the prayers and distribute the E ulog i a the ,

p a i n hen i t or b
,
l e st bread sometimes cal l ed ,

the bread of exorcism Catech umens were not .

al l owed to s i t down at the feast but were ,

2
Ap o l 3 9
. .

2 H
234 Chu rch Hi sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n s tan ti n e

given a s hare of the E u log i a I n the absence .

of any o f th e clergy a layman m ight pre sid e ,

but i n that case there w as no distribution of

E u log i a
.

I n the Ethiopian C h urch there seem s to h ave

bee n a r ule o f silence the obj ect fo r w hich w as ,

that those pre sent m ight ask the bishop questi on s .

Thos e w ho are i nvited shall eat without con

versing but when the bis hop allows they shall
,

speak an d a sk what is suitable .

The bri nging i n o f l ights at the agape was th e

signal for the Psalm s and hym ns which closed
the feast and was at o n e tim e attended with some
,

ceremony Th e Eth iopic version o f the C h u rch

.

Order has some interesti ng direction s concern

ing the bri nging i n o f lamps at th e supper o f the

congregat i on .

W he n the evening has come the bi shop ,

bei ng there the deacons shall brin g in a lam p

, ,

and the bishop bei ng about to give thanks, ,

s tanding i n the m idst o f the faithful s hall rst ,

g ive us the salutation th us saying The Lord , ,

be with y o u all And the peop l e also shall say

.

With H i s Spiri t And the bi shop shall s ay

.

Let us give thanks to the Lord ; and the

people shall s ay R ight and j ust both greatness ,

and exaltation with g l ory are due to H i m and

th ey shall n o t s ay Lift up your hearts b ecau se ,

that shall be said at the tim e o f the oblation .

And he prays thus sayi ng , ,

We give Thee thanks G o d through Thy , ,

S o n J esus C hrist o u r Lord because T hou hast ,

 L ife i n the Church 235

en l ightened us by r e v e aling the incorruptib l e

Light We having therefore n i shed th e l ength
.

of a day and havi n g com e to the begi n ni ng o f

,

the night and havi ng been satiated with the l ight

,

of th e day which Th ou hast created for o u r

satisfactio n and now since we have n o t been
,

decient of the light o f the evening by Thy ,

grace w e sanctify Thee and we gl orify Thee

through Thine only S o n our Lord Jesus C hri st .

2

A n d th e y shall al l say Amen .

The feast then ends with t he recitation O f

Psa l m s and the solemn o ffering and sharing of
a cu
Tf ie prayer given in the Ap o sto li cal Co n sti tuti o n s
to be used at the lighting of the lamps i n church
after the dismissal of the catechumen s or peni
ten ts is evidently take n from the one u sed here .

Thou Who h as brought us through the l ength

of the day an d has brough t us to the beginning
of the night a fford u s a peaceable evening and a
,

night free from sin preserve us by Thy Chri st ,

through Whom g l ory honour an d worship be to , ,

Thee in the H o l y Spirit for ever With thi s .

may be compared the evening hym n a ll uded to

by S Basi l as bei ng in hi s time a l ready ancient
.

H ai l g l addening Light of the pur e g l ory of

,

the Father Who i s i mmorta l ho l y heaven l y

, , , ,

Jes us C hrist the b l essed ; now having come to ,

the setting of the s u n be h o l ding the l ight of ,

evening we hym n the F ath e r Son and H o l y , ,

Spirit o f G od Worthy art Thou at a ll times

.

2
Ho m e r, S tatu tes f
o the Ap o stle s, p . 1 60 .
23 6 Chu rch Hi sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

to be hym ned wi th holy voices S o n o f G o d , ,

G iver of Life therefore the world shall own ,

Thy g l ory .
2

B ut a l ready th e agape was begin ning to de

ge nerate from the pari sh tea i n which al l meet
o n the basi s of brotherhood i nto the pari sh treat

organized on a basis o f charity I t had become .

a private a ffair Th e partakers are there by .

i nvitation o f a wel l -to-do m ember o f the congre

g a t i o n Th.e feasters mus t eat and drin k with

decency and not with inebriety that he w ho ,

i n v i ted y o u may not b e di stressed T he frag .

ments of th e feast are t o go to the poor and ,

t he feasters are urged t o moderation i n their

repast that th e fragments may be abu ndant .

Eat with m oderation and drink wi th modera

tion that there may be som e left and that that
,

which i s l eft from y o u m ay be sen t by hi m w ho

i nvited y o u to whom h e wi l l : and h e shal l s ay

that thi s m eat i s the leavings of th e h oly ones .
2

2
W i t h t h i m ay b e o m p are d t h m e t i al t a sl ati
s c e r c r n o n by
M r K bl
. e e

H ai l gl add i g Li g ht
,
f H i p r gl ry p r d
en n ,
o s u e o o u e

Wh i t he I m m t al F ath r H e av l y B l t
o s o r e ,
en ,
es ,

H li t f H li
o es
J oC h r i t r L o d e s, e su s s ,
o u o r .

No w w e are co m e to t he su n s

ho ur o f re s t,

T he l i g ht s of e en ngv i ro u nd u s sh n e , i
We hy m n t he F at h e r, So n , an d H o l y S p r i i t D ivi ne .

W o rt h e s t i a t Th r o u i
at al l t m e s t o be su n g
W i th d l un e e d to n gu e ,
So n o f o ur G o d, G e r o f l fe , Al o n e "
iv i
T h e re fo re i n al l t he w o rl d T hy g l o r e s, o rd , i L t he y o wn .

2
D i dasc i x . .
 L ife i n the Chu rch 23 7

The Can o n s of H ipp o ly tus speak o f agap ai

prepared for the poor as we ll as those giv e n to
,

widows Those who entertain e d widows had to

.

send them away before dark I f this could not .

be done the food and wi ne was distribut e d to

them and eaten at hom e I f this i s not
.

possib l e because of t he c l ergy who have been

i nvited he sha ll give to them fo od and wine
, ,

and having given them send them away imme

d i ate l y .

The cessation of persecution ki l le d the agape .

Whe n churches cou l d b e bui l t and used it was

no l ong e r nec e ssary to conduct worship secret l y
in private houses Before i t had been safer
.
,

to meet for a meal and tak e advantage of the

meeting for co mmon prayer and praise But .

when churche s were there and cou l d be used ,

it was equa ll y natura l to use th e churc h for

prayer and the house for food and to separate ,

the two We see by the C hurch O rders that

.

the sparing use o f food and drink was not

easily obtained A l ready i n the fourth century
.

W e nd the beautifu l ceremony an d prayers at

the lighting -u p o f th e l am ps transferred to
church No doubt there were other reasons
. .

The unfortunate tain t of pauperism was on i t .

The gospe l of brother l y l ove and charity can

demora l ize giver and recipien t alike The Ch ris .

tians o f the rst days were as ful l y awake to these

dangers as were the founders of the Charity
Organization Society wh o h ave added little to
,

the warnings against the abuse of charity con

23 8 Chu rch H i sto ry om Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

i n the Ne w Testame nt and th e C hurch

t ai n e d
Orders The l ove fe asts a fforded an irre sistible
.
-

temptation to the spirit of patronage o n the part

of the giver and to greed and deceit o n the part
,

of the receiver Th ey were doom e d . .

There also seems to have bee n a disti nct a ape

wi th a close connection with the memorial o th e
departed
No w when y o u are invited to their
.

me m orials do you feast with good or d er and

the fear of G o d as disposed to intercede for ,

th ose w ho are departed Pre sumably i t .
2

took the sam e form a s the oth e r except that ,

their devotio ns were explicitly for the so u l o f

th e departed I n this case the m e m o ri al began
.

with a E uchari st and was followed by the

memorial agape .

F AST I N G
Fro m the beginning i t is probable that fasting
formed part of the discip l i ne and devotional life
o f the C hu rch .

I renae us writi ng to Victor B i shop o f R ome

, , ,

with reference to the date o f Easter a l ludes to ,

the di fference not only as to the day but also

, ,

as to the fast preceding it Some th i nk they .

ought to fast o n e day some two som e more , ,

days ; some compute their day as con sisting o f

forty hours day and night and thi s d iv ersity i s
not a matter that has j u st sprung up i n o u r time ,

but long ag o among those before u s As .
2

Ap2
C viii 44
os . E
on bi H 8 v 4
. . .
2
u se u s, . . . 2
 L ife i n the Chu rch 23 9

I renaeus had been a discip l e o f Po l ycarp who ,

was the disciple of S John hi s statement poi nts .

,

t o the extr e me antiquity of the practice I t was .

conn e cted with the D eath and Passion of C hrist .

When the Bridegroom shal l be taken away ,

then sha ll ye fast .

Tertu ll ian seems to assume that until the rise

of Montanism on l y th e days i mmediate l y before

Easter were fasti ng days of obligation They .

think that those days were denite l y appointed

for fasts in which the Bridegroom w as taken

away . Other fasts were to be of choice n o t ,

o f command H owever there had sprung
.
,

up the custom of fasting o n Wednesdays and

F ridays up to 3 p m the hour of o u r Lord s

. .
,

death on the Cross the days being chosen as ,

those o f H i s Betraya l and Crucixion They .

were cal l ed station days and those who observed ,

the fast o n them were said to keep a station .

The name seems to have be e n a mi l itary term ,

and i s thus explained by Ambrose : Our fasts

are our encampmen ts (stati o n es) which protect
us from t he devi l s attack ; they are call ed

stations because standing in them we repel

, ,

o u r foes .

I n t he ear l iest Church Orders we nd dir ce ,

tions to fast o n the F riday and Saturday before

Easter . No other fasts are mentioned except ,

for those pr e pari ng for Baptism The fast is .

an abso l ute fast NO food at a l l i s to be taken

.

from Thursday night until after the Easter

C ommunion Sick perso n s need only fast on
.
2 40 Chu rch H i sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

o ne day and o n that day were allowed bread and

,

water . Travellers w ho omitted to fast before

Easter had to make up for i t by fasting after
Pentecost .
2

I n th e D i dascali a C hristians are directed to

fast from M onday i n H o l y We ek u n til Easter .

Fro m the tenth day which is M o nday during , ,

the days o f the Passover ye sha ll fast a nd be , ,

nourished by bread and salt and water at the

n i nth hour ( 3 un ti l Th ursday B ut o n .

Friday and Saturday ye s hall fast com pletely and

eat nothing ; but assemble yourselves and wake
and pray t he whole o f the night wi th prayers and
supplications and with the reading o f th e p ro
,

p h e ts
,
with t h e Gospel a nd the Psalms with ,

revere nce and fear and i ntercession u ntil the

third hour o f th e night after the Sabbath and ,

then ye shall leave your fast pre sumably after ,

the Easter Eucharist .

T h e exten sion o f the Holy Wee k fast s o as

t o become the Lent fast o f forty days was a
l ater development probably arising out o f the
,

custom o f catechumens begin ning their strict

preparatio n for ty days before Easter .

O ne o f the M ontani st innovation s was the

i ntroduction o f novel fasting days T h ey i ntro .

d u ce d two weeks o f abstinence from all except

dry food extended the station from three unti l
,

s ix
p
. m. and
,
make their observance compulsory ,

i nstead o f leaving i t a matter o f fre e choice fo r

the i ndividual .

H o rn e r, Statu tes o f the A oo stle s, p

'

260
2
. .
 L ife i n the Chu rch 24 1

S I CK THE
C are w as taken that the sick should be visited .

They were anointed wit h o i l which had been

blessed by the bishop but m ight be administered
,

by any person c l erica l or l ay

,
in the Egyp ti an 2

Chu rch Order by the deacon

,
A prayer i s giv e n .

for the b l essing of the oil by the bishop in wh ich ,

he prays that for those who shal l be anointed

therewith it may be for hea l ing and safety and
benet in a l l diseases and sicknesses and for

extermination o f the Satanic adversary .

Women who were sick were i n some places

visited by a widow or deaconess I n the .

D i dascal i a we nd rebuke s addressed to the

widows w ho neg l ect this duty Thou seest .

t h e widows thy companions and thy brethren

, ,

in sicknesses and thou carest not to fast and

,

pray for thy memb e rs to put to thy hand and , ,

to visit them .
2

Some Christians were looked on as possessing

the gift o f hea l ing though we do not hear V ery
,

much about it and it does not seem to have l led

,

a very large p l ace i n the popu l ar mind There .

seem s to have been an order o f healers i nto ,

which new members were admitted only after

giving proof of their powers A s for the grace .

of heal ing i f some one says I have acquired the

,

grace of healing and prophecy they shal l n o t lay ,

hand on him unti l h i s deed make evident that he

i s trustworthy 3 .

2
H o rn e r, Statu tes of the Ap o stle s, p 1 5 9 . .

2 3 H o rn e r Statutes o f the A ostles

xv.
, p , p . 1 47 .

2 1
2 42 Chu rch H i s to ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

Th e healer was soon m erged i n the exorcist .

Wh en dead the Christian could be buried i n a

C hri stian ce metery wh ich w as maintai ned by the
bisho p o u t o f the o fferings of the faithful for the
benet o f th e poor members of t h e co m m un ity .

Those who could a fford i t were expected to pay

the wages o f th e gravedigger .

M A RR IAG E
Marriage remai ned thro ughout thi s period th e
business o f the State I t s legality depended on
.

civil and n o t religious sanction But pagan rites .

and religious ceremonies accompani ed i t among

the heathen s o at an early stage C hristian s s u b s ti
,

t u t e d for such ceremonies t hose o f the C hurch .

At marriage C hristian s received the b l essing o f

th e C h urc h o n th eir union T he Church seems to
.

have i n some form al way approved the marriage

through the presence o f its repre sentative at
the betrothal th e legal contract and by a s u b
, ,

sequen t blessing i n the C hurch Whence are .

we to nd words enough fully to tell the happiness

o f that marriage which the C hurch brings about

and th e oblation conrm s and the benediction

sign s and seal s which th e Father holds for
ratied F o r even on earth ch ildren do not
.

rightly and l awfully wed without their father s .

consen t .
2

Ignatius had already writte n eighty years before

th at m en an d women who marry ought to be
T t ll i a T hi Wif i i 8
2
er u n ,
o s e, . .
 L ife i n the Church 2 43

united with t he consent o f t he bishop that t h e ,

marriage be according to th e Lord and not ,

accordi n g to l ust .
2

No t that the marriage wou l d not have been va l id

without for the contracting parties then as now
, , ,

were he l d to be the ministers of t h e Sacrament of

Marriage but the Church gave i ts approva l and
,

afterwards its b l essing in th e communion of the

new l y married .

O RGA N I Z AT I O N OF CH A R I TY

Christ had told H i s disciple s they were to love

one another and their neighbour as themselve s
, ,

and had i nsisted on the necessity of giving .

Brotherly love was not so much an emotion as

practical assistance given to those who were i n
need I t was fe e l ing rea l ized i n action The
. .

ki ndness shown by Christians to one another

excited the attention and aroused the exasperation
and envy of pagan s Th e heathen Cae ci l i u s in
.
,

hi s dialogue with Octavius i s made to assert ,

They know one another by secret marks and

signs and they love one another a l most before
,

they are acquainted To which Octaviu s re
.

to t ted We do not disti nguish o u r people by
some smal l bodi l y mark as y o u suppose but , ,

easi l y enough by the sign of innocency and

modesty We love one another to your regret
.
, ,

because we do not know how to hate We call .

o ne another brethren to your envy as being

, ,

I g at i T T ly a p v
2
n u s, o o c r , .
2 44 Church H i sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

born o f o n e G o d and F ather and companions ,

i n faith and fellow heir s i n hope You ho w .

,

e ver ,
do n o t recognize o n e another and are ,

cruel i n your m utual hatreds ; n o r do you

acknowledg e o n e another as brethren unless fo r ,

the purpose o f parricide .

S o Tertullian they s ay ho w they

.
,

love o n e anoth er fo r they t hemselve s are animated

,

by m utual hatred H o w they are ready to die

.

fo r o n e another fo r they them selve s wil l sooner

put to death An d they are angry with us because

.

we call each other brethren .
2

T he giving o f alm s was a feature o f the

E uchari st o n the rst day o f the week They .

w ho are well t o do and willi ng give what each

thinks t ; and what i s collected i s deposited
with the presiden t w ho succours the orphans and ,

th e widows and those wh o through sickness o r

,

any other cause are i n want and those w ho are i n ,

bonds and the strangers soj ourning amo ng u s

, ,

and i n a word take s care o f all w ho are in

need .
2

Such passages mi ht be multiplied Tertullian

apparently knew o g a month l y n o t a wee kly
.

co l lection .

Even i f there is a C hurch fund it is n o t

m ade up o f fees as though o f a religion wh ich

has its price On the monthly c o llection
.

day each if h e l ikes puts i n a s mall donation ;

, ,

b ut only if willing and able T hese gifts are .

piety s deposit fund F o r they are n o t taken

.

Ap l 3 9
2
J
o t.i M a t
.
y Ap l 6 7
2
us n r r, o .
,
.
 L ife i n the Chu rch 24
5

out to be spent on feasts and drinking bouts

and eating houses but to support and he l p
,

poor people to supply the wants o f boys and

,

gir l s destitute of mean s and of parents and o f ,

o l d persons conned to the house ; such as

hav e b e e n s hi p wre ck e d o r are in the mines o r
\
,

banished to the i slands o r shut up in the prisons

for their del ity to the cause o f God become the ,

nurselings of their co n fe s s i o n .
I

We s e e fro m this and simi l ar passages that the

C hurch took care that none o f i t s sick o r indigen t
o r unfortunate members shou l d su ffer want .

The regu l ar C hurch fund seems to have been

admi nistered by the bishop assisted by th e ,

deacons . H ence the importance attached by

S Paul to the presbyter -bishops not being
.

lovers o f money .

When I was i n prison ye visited Me was ,

a text taken to heart and acted upon with zeal .

The pagan Lucian sco ffs at C hristians fo r visiting

Peregrinus i n pri son and supplying him with
mea l s
. Tertul l ian begins hi s exhortation To
the M arty rs with the words :

B l essed martyrs
designate A l ong with provision that o u r Lady
.

Mother the C hurch makes from her own breasts

, , ,

and e ach brother out of his private means fo r ,

your bodi l y wants i n pri son accept also from me ,

some provision for your spiritual sustenance .

I nstances occur again and again in the acts of

the martyrs The gaoler of Perpetua and her
.

companions allowed them to receive visitors w ho ,

2
T e rt .
, Ap o l 3 9
. .
2 46 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

mi nist red to their needs

e Eu se b iu s records .
I

that Lici n ius wh en he b e came a persecutor

, ,

devi sed i l legal l aws by which prisoners were ,

forbidden to receive visitors or food in prison ,

and those who transgressed the edict were to

receive the same pu nishment as th e prisoners
th e y visited .

Th e care of the C hurch fo r its n eedy m embers

was liable to abuse a fact which did n o t escape
,

Lucian But th e C hurch was ful l y awake to the

.

danger .I f a man receive being i n need he ,

shall be free from guilt ; but he who receiveth

when n ot i n need shall pay a pe na l ty as to why
h e has received and for what p u rpose and when
he i s i n tribulation he shall be exam ined as to
what he has don e and shall n o t depart till he
,

has paid the uttermost farthing For o f a truth .

it has bee n sai d o n these matters Let thy alms

giving abide i n thy hands until tho u knowest
unto whom tho u art
The prophet w ho remains as a guest fo r three
day s an d takes m oney a s well as food fo r hi s

j ourney i s a false prophet Whos o ever shall .

say i n th e spirit Give me money o r things o f

,

that kind liste n n o t to him 3
,

.

Furth er it was laid down that the C hurc h

,

mu st provide work rather than alms for the able

bodied F o r those able to work provide work
.
,

and t o those incapable o fwork be chari table 4 .

Let every o n e that cometh i n the Name o f

the Lord be received I f h e be a wayfarer
.

2
H 8 v 8
. . Dida h i
.

. I bid i
2
C l m H viii
c e, .
3 .
,
x .
4 e .
, o rn . .
 L ife i n the Chu rch 24
7

assist him s o far as ye are ab l e but he wil l not ,

remain more than t w o or thr e e days un l ess there

be a necessity .But if he wish to sett l e with
you being a craftsman let h im work and s o e at
, ,

but if he know not any craft provide ye according

to your own discretio n that a C hristian may not
l ive id l e among you But i f he is not wi ll ing to
.

do s o he is a tra fficker i n C hrist F rom such .

keep a l oof .
2

Cyprian a l so assumes that any one who has

been l iving by an art forbidden by the C hurch
must be provided with work o r if unab l e to work ,

outside his profession with the necessaries of life .

There are dir e ctions i n the C hurch Orders

for the care of orphans and children I n the
. .

D i dascali a the bishop is to persuade the rich and

child l ess members of his ock to adopt orphans .

I f o n e of the chi l dr e n o f the C hristians be an

orphan either a boy o r a gir l it i s wel l that if
, , ,

ther e be any o f the brethren who hath no chi l dre n ,

he take the boy in p l ace of chi l dren .
2

I f they are no t wi ll ing to do this the bishop i s ,

to see to it himse l f Ye therefore O bi shops

.
, ,

take up the burden o f them that they may be

brough t up so that nothing be wanting to them ,

and when i t i s the time for the maiden give her

i n marriage to one of the brethren And l et t he .

boy whe n he i s grown up l earn a handicraft and ,

when h e is a man l et h im take the w age t hat is j

meet for hi s craft and acquire the necessary too l s

,

that he may no longer be a burden o n t he charity

Di da h iic e, x
'

I b i d vii
.
2
.
,
x .
248 Chu rch H i sto ry f
ro m Ne ro to C
o n stan t n e i

o f the brethren Truly blessed i s h e w ho is able

.
,

to help hi m self and does not straiten the place o f

,

the widows and orphan s and the poor .
2

Three i nstances at least are on record o f , ,

ministration s by the C hurch o n the grand scale i n

ti me o f plague .

I n A O 2 5 9 there was p l ague i n Alexandria

. .
,

o f wh ich Bisho

D ionysius wrote M ost o f
p :

o u r brethren by their exceeding great love and

brotherly a ffection n ot spari ng themselves were , ,

constantly superintendi n the sick min istering

t o their wants without g
,

ear and with out cessa

tion . Among the heathen i t w as th e
reverse They both repe l led those w ho began to
.

be sick and avoided their dearest friends They .

would cast them out in to the road s half dead and ,

throw o u t the ir bodie s without burial .
2

D uri ng the plague i n Carthage we are told

by Cyprian s biographe r that when all were

shuddering eeing sh unni ng the contagion and

, , ,

bodies lay about t he who l e city Cyprian sum ,

m o n e d t h e C hri stians and exhorted them to

ministe r to the heathen sick as well as to the

brethre n As a result . good was don e to all ,

men n o t only to such as are o f the household o f

,

faith 3 .

Th e third i n stance is recorded by Eusebius 4

as havi ng occurred i n the govern ment o f Maxi
m in D aza after his defeat by th e Armenian s
, ,

though he does not specify the exact place :

D i da h
2
vii E b i H 8 vi i
'

c e, x .
2
u se u s, . . . 22 .

Cyp L ij i
3 H 8 i
r . 8
,
x .
4 . . x . .
 L ife i n the Chu rch 24
9

The n al so the evidences of the zea l and piety

o f the C h ristians became manifest to a ll for they ,

a l one showed sympathy and humanity amid so

much distr e ss They continued a ll day ; som e in
.

the care and buria l of the dead for number l ess ,

wer e they for whom ther e w as none to care ;

others co ll ected the mu l titude of those wasting
by famine and distributed bread among them al l
, ,

s o that th e fact was cried abroad and m en glori

,

e d the God of the C hristian s .

D I SCI P L I N E

No question caused th e C hurch of th e third

century mor e troub l e than that of disciplin e .

Strict probation and a stern renunciation were

required of the catechum e n befor e he could be
admitted by baptism I t follow e d that if he
.

relapsed i nto immoral ways or pagan practic e s

h e must be disowned and separated from the
communion o f the faithfu l .

W e nd the princip l e e nunciated by C hrist in

t he gospe l .I f he neglect to hear the C hurch ,

let him be unto thee as a heathen man and a

pub l ican
. The commission given by o u r Lord
2

to bind and l oose had a recognized meaning to

frequenters o f the synagogue I t had a denite .

refere nce to exc l u sion from the privi l eges of re l i

i o u s membership and adm ission to them
g .

S Pau l bids the C orin thians not to keep
.

company i f any man that is call ed a brother be

,

S M att 2
viii 7
. . x . I .

2 K
2
5 0 Church H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

a fornicator o r covetous o r an idolater o r a

, , ,

railer o r a drunkard o r an extortioner ; with

, ,

such an o n e n o not to eat 2 They are to put .

away from themselve s that wicked person He .

com mands the Thes s a l onian s in the Name of

C hri st that ye withdraw yourselve s fro m every
brother that wa l keth disorder l y and n o t after ,

the tradition which h e rec e ived from us If .
2

any man obey not o u r word by thi s e pistle note ,

that man and have no com pany with him that

, ,

he may be ashamed 3 .

I t was acted o n from the beginning by the

C hurch and is th us explaine d by Origen to
,

C elsus

An d this i s their method o f pr o ced u re bo th
with those who are si n ners and those w ho l ea d
di ssolute l ives whom th e y exclude from their
,

com munity The venerable school o fP y tha

.

o r e an s used t o erect a cenotaph t those w h o

g o

had apostatized from their system o f ph i l osophy ,

treati ng the m as dead but the C hri stian s lament

as dead those who have been vanqui shed by
licentiousn ess o r any other sin because they are
lost and dead to God and if they change they , ,

receive th em afterwards as risen fro m t he dead ,

though aft e r a greater in terval than was th e ca se

o f those admitted at rs t but n ot p l acing i n any ,

o i ce o r post o f ran k i n the C hurch o f G o d

those who after professing the Gospel lapsed

and fell 4 .

C2
v 1 o rTh iii 6
. . 1 1 .
2
2 e ss . . .

I bid 1 4
3 Ag ai t C l
.
,
ii i 5.
4 ns e s us , . 1 .
 L ife i n the Church 2
5 1

T he si ns which i n curred th e p e n a l ty of e xc l usion

w e re of the sort that t he candidat e for baptism
had to renounce such as ido l atry magic s e rious
, , ,

o ffences against th e l aw o f purity fraud vio l ence , , ,

and fa l se wit n ess a l so heresy and schism .

I n many cases the si nner wou l d excommunicate

himse l f ; either because hi s sin was self-evident
or because his own sen se of shame wou l d n o t

al l ow him to fac e the congregation I f he .

who si nneth see that the bi shop and deacon s

are free from accusation and a ll the ock are ,

pure he wi ll n o t dare to go up to the con

,

r e ati o n
g g because he is reproved by h i s o wn

mind . I f he does ventur e to appear the
2
,

bishop i s to reprove him before the whole con

re at i o n ;
g g he wi l l b l ush therefore and with ,

much shame he will go out quickly weepi n g and

be i n penitence of soul .

When a denite accusation was made and

guilt was denied something like a j udicial prose
,

c u t i o n took p l ace with the bishop as j udge the

,

presbyters and deacons as assessors and the ,

congregation as j ury I f gui l ty the accused was .

excommu nicated .
2

The obj ect of excommunicatio n was to pre

serve the Church from impurity and to a fford an

example to the faithful They al so who see .

them and he ar that they have gone out l ik e

pub l icans may fear and take heed to themse l ves
2
D i da v sc . .

2
I b i d i F E B i g htm a 8 a ly H i t y f th Ch h
.
, x . . . r n , r s or o e u rc

an d M i n i stry , 13 3 6 5 . .
25 2 Church H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to C
o n stan ti n e

that they si n not l est it happen thus to them ,

also and they go o u t o f the C hurch bei ng

,

reproved for sin and for falsehood .
2

I t had for its third obj ect the restorati on o f

the sin ner Th e bi shop i s con stantly exhorted
.

t o kee p thi s end i n view The sin ner i s co m .

pared to a man who has fallen i n the river and ,

the bi shop i s to stretch out his han d s o as to pull

hi m o u t Prayers are to be o ffered in c hurch
.

for th e sin ner an d the bishop i s to try to move

,

him to repe ntance Him that i s aban doned i n

.

si ns o r excom municated as fo r reproof leave n o t

without but teach and admonis h and convert and
,

receive hi m i n to thy ock d o not allow

h im to perish utterly B ut do thou visit him .
,

admonish and teach a nd convert him command ,

h im and e ncourage h im to awaken tell him that

th ere i s hope .
2

Si n ners w ho repen ted were admitted to penance ,

the severity and duration o f the penance v ar ing

according to the C hurch and the nature 0 the
si n The obj ect o f the penance was that the
.

penite nt sinner might bri ng forth fruits o f re ent

ance ; i n oth er words give an earnest o t h e ,

si nceri ty o f h i s penitence By penitence amend s .

are made ; o f penitence repentance is born ; by

penance God is appeased 3 M iriam i s quoted .

as an example o f pe nance I f h er father h ad .

but spit i n her face would she n ot have been

ashamed and separated fo r seve n days without

th e cam p and then she would have come i n ?
,
2
B i da rt I b i d vi i
. x . T t O P a 2
i .
, .
3 er .
,
n en n ce , x .
 L i
in the Chu r ch 25 3

The procedur e s e e ms to hav e b e e n that the

sin ner wh e n wi ll ing to submit to penance rst
, ,

app l ied privat e l y to the bishop and th en sent ,

emissaries to the bishop and assemb l ed congre

a t i o n fo rmal l y asking for their prayers The
g .

bishop then comman de d him to come in and ,

asked if h e repen ted ; if s o h e admitted him to

penance .I f he be worthy to b e received
i nto the C h urch appoint h im days of fasti ng ,

according to hi s fau l t As a penitent he .
2

stood once m ore i n denite re l ation ship to the

C h urch . H e was in fact i n the position of a
, ,

catechumen H e had a special p l ace assigned

.

to him at the back of the church and w as not ,

a ll owed to communicate Thus a l so we do .

not communicate with these unti l they show

the fr u its of repen tance ; for they can certain l y
come in if they wish to hear th e Word that
, ,

they may not perish utter l y but in prayer they ,

take no part but go outside ,
They are not to .
2

be utter l y prevented from hearing the discourse

of the bishop ; but were sent out before th e
Eucharistic prayers Th is w as in Syria . .

I n Africa the p l ace of th e penitents w as outside

the church in the porch or vestibu l e
,
Before .

her doors it stands 3 say s Tertull ian of peni ,

tence B u t they do n o t seem to have been

.

dismissed at any period of the service .

I n Asia Minor there were three or four grad e s

or stages of pen itence The l owest was that of .

t he H earers ; th e se wer e admitted to the
2
D i da vi I b id
sc. O M d ty i ii
.
2
.
,
x .
3 n o es .
25 4 Chu rch H i s to ry om Ne ro to C o n s tan t n e i

Mass o f th e Catech umens and dism issed after

th e serm on Then cam e t he K nee l ers wh o
.
,

were also dis missed before the Eucharistic prayers ,

but only after the faithful had prayed over them

as they lay prostrate o n the ground The nal .

stage was that of the Co n s i s te n ts who stood ,

with the faithfu l throughout th e service but di d ,

not com municate But Dr Brightman thin ks . .

that this system did not extend beyond Asia

M i nor .

The course o f penance o r exomologesi s as i t , ,

was cal l ed i s described i n l ively term s by Ter

,

tu l lian Thi s exomologe si s i s a discipl ine fo r
.

man s prosecution and h umiliation enj oining a ,

demeanour calculated to move mercy Wi th .

regard to the very dress and food i t commands

the pen itent to lie i n sackcloth and ash es to ,

cover h is body i n mourning to lay his s pirit l o w ,

i n sorrows to exchange fo r severe treatme nt the

,

si ns which he has committed ; to know n o food

and dri n k but such as i s plain n o t fo r the
stomach s sake but fo r the soul s ; for the most

part however to feed prayer s with fastings to

, , ,

groan to weep and roar unto the Lord your

, ,

G o d ; to roll before th e feet o f the presbyters

and kneel to God s dear on es to enj oi n o n all

the brethren to be ambassadors to bear h is

supplication to Go d What if he co n 2
,

tin n es besides the h um iliatio n which they make
,

the most account o f they dread the bodily i n ,

conveniences ; i n that unwashen sordidly attire d , ,

2
T e rt .
, O n P en i ten ce , i x .
 L ife i n the Chu rch 2
55

estranged from g l adness they must spend their ,

tim e in th e rough ness of sackc l oth and the horrid

ness of ashes and the s u n k e n n e s s of face caused
by fasting
But after a l l the austeri ties o f the penitent
, ,

are no worse than the an noyances su stained by

seekers of o f ce Why they who go about
.
,

canvassi ng for civil o i ce fee l it neither degrading

nor irksome to struggle for the attainment of
th e ir desires with annoyance to sou l and body
and contume l ies of al l kinds Do we .

hesitate when et e rn ity i s at stake to endure what

the competitor for consu l ship or praetorship puts
up with ? Shall we be tardy in o ffe ring to the
o ffe nded Lord a self chastisemen t in food and
-

raiment which G entiles lay upon themselves

when they have o ffe nded no o n e at all ? 2

So perhaps penance was not s o sever e as i t

sound s
The l e ngth of penance varied from a few
weeks to a lifetime t he penitent in that case
,

being given communion on l y whe n at t he point

o f death . I n Syria apparently the longest term
was seven weeks .
2

At the end of the appointed tim e the penitent

had to appear in the church and make hi s e x o m o
l o g e s i s or confession wh e n he appeared before
,

the c l ergy and congregation confessed his sin s , ,

and imp l ored forgivenes s The congregation .

then implored t he bishop to pronounce abso l u ~

tion which was done I t seems that the bishop

,
.

2
T t O P it
er .
, n i en Dida vi
e n ce , x .
2
sc
. .
25 6 Church H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

had previously satised h im self of the peniten t s

earn e stness .

This confession probably took p l ace i n the

Eucharist after the dismi ssa l o f t he catechumens ,

s o that the penitent could co m municate duri ng

the service This restoration was never granted

.

more than once Tertullian ca l ls penance and .

baptism the two planks of salvation Neither .

cou l d be repeated .

D isciplin e as practised i n th e C hurch n ot u n

natural l y gav e ri se to d i i cu l t i e s Th e system .

w as se vere and i t was pub l ic and especia l ly , ,

duri ng the persecution s produced hard case s ,

.

The rs t controversy was over the q uestion

whether the C hurch h ad any right to grant absolu
tion for cer tai n grave sins The S hep he rd of .

H ermas was written to plead for forgiveness for

all si ns T he question whe ther ce rtai n sins cou l d
.

be forgiv e n was m uch debated Som e o f the .

African bishops we learn from Cyprian had , ,

decided that peace w as not to be granted to
adulterers and wholly closed th e gate o f repen t
,

ance against adul tery .
2

About A D 2 2 0 t he pope Ca l list o s apparent l y

. .
, ,

i ncluded am ong absolvable si ns adu l tery and

fornication I abso l ve such as have discharged
.

th e requireme nts of penitence from the sin s o f

adultery and fornicatio n This drew fu rious .
2

protests from Tertullian now a M o ntanist and , ,

fro m H ippolytus Tertullian i n h is tract On .

2
C y p i a 8p l v
r n ,
. . 2 1 .

2
O P itn i Reh tati f a/l H i i 7
en e n cc, r on o e re s e s , x . .
 Life i n the Church 15 7

P en i ten cemai ntain e d that a ll dead l y sins were

non abso l vab l e That i s while counse ll ing l i fe
- .
,

l ong penance to the gui l ty he dec l ared that ,

the Church had no power to restore them to

comm union but they m ust be l eft to the mercy
,

o f G od .

By a strange perversity the C h u rch h as often

been accus e d of shutting the gates o f mercy o n
mankind by denying the possibility o f forgive
ness to those who were not admitted to penance .

The C hurch did nothing of the kind Even the .

rigorist Tertu ll ian i s far from doing that H i s .

point i s not that such sins as adu l tery are u n fo r

givab l e but that their forgiveness be l ongs to G od
,

a l one and i s beyond the scope of the j udgemen t

o f the C hurch The penance of such S inners
.
,

he dec l ares believ e s not that man s peace i s
,

adequate to its guilt and as far as regards the
, ,

C hurch ,
i t prefe rs the b l ush of shame to the
privilege of com munion F o r before her doors .

it stands and by the examp l e of its own stigma

,

admonishe s a ll others and ca ll s to i ts aid the

b re thre n s tears and return s with their compas

sion merchandise even richer than their com

munion And if it reaps not the harvest of peace
.

here yet it sows the s e ed of it with the Lord

,

nor does it lose but prepares its fruit .
2

Origen seems to have he l d t he same view as to

the o ab so l vab i l i ty of certain deadly sins I t w as
n n - .

based on 1 S John v 1 6 . There i s a s i n unto

.

death for that I do not s ay that he sha ll pray .

O M d ty i ii 2
n o es , .

2 L
25 8 Church Hi sto ry f ro m Ne ro to C i
o n stan t n e

T ertul li an lays down that there are two classes

o f
sins those absolvable by th e C hurch and
those n o n -absolvable .

By the m iddle o f the third century in Africa ,

at least the rigori st view had bee n given up

,
.

At least we nd Cyprian i n a letter about ,

2

Novatian assuming that even to adulterers

,

repentance i s granted and th e hope o f lamen t

i ng and atoning is left T h e persecutions
.

under Decius and Valerian gave rise to bitter

controversies o n thi s vexed question o f which ,

som e account has already bee n given They .

were revived again after the Diocletian p e rs e cu

tion But the inevitable tendency was in the
.

direction o f l e s s e n e d severi ty and eve n o f l ax i ty .

2
Ep iv
. .6 2 .
 XI I I
TH E OF F I CE R S O F T H E C HU RC H
A ND T H E I R D UTI E S

T i s clear that from the very earliest times the

C hurch had its regular o f cials its Apostles , ,

presbyters and bishops its deacons and widows

, , ,

not to mention evangelists prophets and teachers , , ,

whose status an d duties are more disputable .

The C hurch Orders give some interesting

information about their admission to o f ce and ,

their duties when admitted during the third ,

ce ntury by which time some changes i n the

,

procedure had taken place .

TH E BISHOP
The bishop of course comes rst H e is the
, ,
.

source of authority in each diocese H e is the .

high priest the sace rdo s wh o is the customary

, ,

ce l ebrant at the Eucharist ; h e holds the purse

and di spenses the o fferings of the faithful he i s
the teacher of hi s ock and also ho l ds the keys ,

i n other word s admini sters discipline .

H i s duties are s e t down in the Ordinatio n

Prayer to be said at h is consecration by the
,
2

2
H mo Stat t ofth Ap tl
e r, p I 3 9 C
u esm p aet h V a
os es, . . o re e e ro n

F agm t F k D i da ali a t C ti t ti Ap t l
r en . un , sc e on s u on es os o o ru rn .

2
59
2 60 Chu rch H i sto ry f ro m Ne ro to C o n stan t n e i

bishop s present when they pray that h e may

,

feed Thy ock and minister as priest to T hee

,

without b l ame that h e may o ffer Thine Ob l a

tion i n Thy ho l y C hurch i n th e H oly Spirit o f
.
,

the priesthood having authority to forgive s i n

,

according to Thy commandme nt and to give ,

ordination according t o Thy com m and an d ,

loose all bon ds o f i niquity according to th e

authori ty which Thou gavest to Thine Apostles .

The bishop was considered to be chosen by

the Holy Spiri t This choice might be i mme
.

diate as whe n th e l o t fel l o n Matth ias o r the

, ,

prophecies were made over T im othy o r the

2
,

dove alighted o n th e shoulder o f Fabian It .

was generally i ndicated by the personal wo rthi

ness o f the chose n candidate conrmed and ,

ratied by popular assent Ther efore stre ss was .

laid o n hi s election His character al so i s to be

.

carefully examined I f there was n o o n e i n th e

.

diocese com petent to exami ne the proposed bishop

hel p must be go t from outside I f it i s a .

place with few peop l e i n it o f the faithful and ,

the asse m bly n o t large enough to elect a bishop ,

being n o t m ore than twelve men then let them ,

wri te to th e C hurch es o f the neighbourhood to

bring three o f the faithful trustworthy m en , ,

and they shall test carefu ll y as to which i s '

worthy o f the work I f h e has a l ife o f good

.

repute among the peopl es and without sin o r ,

anger a lover o f the poor and kin d n o t a

, ,

drunkard or ad ulterer not a railer o r hypo ,

I T im i 1 8
2
. . .
 T/z e Oi ce rs the (36 1 an d l i mi t fDu tz es 26 1

of 11 7 1 2

cri te .
I
He
sha ll have a share of a ll sound
doctrine and be ab l e to expound the Scripture s
and if he shou l d be one who cannot expound
the S cri p tu re s h e shou l d be h umb l e and abound
,
'

in love to all men that t h e bishop may be con ,

d e m n e d i n nothing whatever nor l et him be ,

reproved in anything H e need no t be u m .

married but it is good that h e be without
,

wife tho u gh i f he have married o n e before he i s

,

ordained bishop he sha ll live with her He ,
.
2

wou l d have a pri ncipal part in disposi ng of the

alms of the faithfu l therefore he must not be ,

a lover of t he greater share for himse l f F rom .

the above quotations we see incidenta l ly that the

n umbers in the diocese might be tiny an d the

bishop a l most i ll iterate .

T h e election was n o t carried out in the exact

modern way I t was rather a n acc l aim o r an
.

assent o f the faithfu l to the person put before

them by their leaders and the neighbouring
bish ops I t was e ffective as i s shown by an
.

instance given by D r F rere 3 At C irta A D . .

,
. .

3 5
0 , Silvanus who had surren d ered books
,
in
the persecution was proposed an d the peop l e , ,

shouted /i us at ,
Le t another be appointed ,

and they had their way .

Cyprian 4 says that i n order to preserve the

divine and Aposto l ic tradition at ordinations a ll ,

1
H m r o e , Statute: f te
o Ap ot tlet , p 2 39
I b id p
. .

2
.
, . 1 33
Early
.

3 H i t to ry o
f Me C u rr an d M i n i t try p 3 0 0
,
. .

4 EA 6 7 , 5 .
262 Church H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

the nearest bishops i n the same province are to

assemble an d the new bishop i s to be chosen i n
,

the presence o f th e people because they are fu l ly

acquainted with the l ife and character o f a l l wh o
are prese n t I t is i n fac t a power o f veto rath er
.
, , ,

than e l ection Th e choice was probably made

.

befo rehand by the presby t ers and deacons o r ,

the i nuen t ial lay people and later o n i n time s ,

s ubsequen t t o t h e pe riod u nder review by the ,

king o r some great civil au thori ty as i s the case ,

t o day
- . Bu t the veto was a real thi ng I t has .

su rvived i n the S i gai s for priests and deacons

a nd t he citation t o obj ectors which i s part o f
the co n rmation ceremony for bishops .

Th e presence of t he neighbou ring bishops was

a guaran t ee to the rest o f the C hurch that t he
ordina t ion was val id and a wi t n es s to the new ,

bi shop and his ock o f t heir participa t io n i n the

unity o f t h e Catholic C hurch .

We have also an account o f the Ordina t io n

S e rv i ce . The bis hop shall be o rdai ned as we
I

have already s poken o n e w ho has been ch ose n

by al l the people together with the presbyters ,

and deacons o n th e Lord s day And al l the

.

bi s hops s hall go wi t h m u tual con s en t a nd lay

t hei r hand s upon h i m ; and the presby t e rs ,

standing by keep quiet and all o f t h em t ogether

, ,

i n silence and praying i n their hearts t hat th e

Holy Spiri t may help them and descend upon
h im And every o n e o f the bishops shall pray
.
,

an d a l l o f them severally s t andi ng up shal l , ,

H o m e r , f
Statute: o t/l : Jp ot tlz t , pp . 1 3 8 -
39 .
 The O ee rs o f the Chu rch an d the i r D uti es 2 63

l ay their hands upon him who i s ordained

bishop and they shal l pray over him th us
,
.

T hen fo ll ows the con secration prayer which , ,

after the exhortation goes on to pray : And ,

now pour out from T hee the migh t of the H o l y

Spiri t which T hou gavest to T hy be l oved Son
,

Jesus C hrist which T hou gran t e s t to u s th e

,

holy A post l es T hy he l pers i n T hy C h urch

, ,

working with the p l ough o f the C ross and in the

place of T hy holiness T hen follows the .

prayer for the graces required for the specia l

duties of the episcopate which has been give n ,

already .

After the consecration prayer came the kis s of

peace. Every o n e of them sha ll sa l ute him
with the mouth kissing him who has become ,

a bishop A deacon the n brought him the
.

ob l ations upon which the other bishops and the

,

presbyters l aid their hands and he then began t he ,

C ommunion Service wi th the S ursu m Co rda .

The consecration prayer wh ich followed imme

di ate l y contai ns in t he Ethiopic version one
, ,

beautiful ph rase which i s worth recordi ng .

Spreading out H i s hands for su ffering that H e

migh t release the su fferers who trust o n T hee I
.

P RESBYT E RS TH E
T h e presbyters were i n the second and third ,

centuries very much oversha dowed by the bishop

,

and the deacons I t i s not unti l in the fourth

.
,

H r r Stat t f the Ap tle p

1
o ne , u es o os s, .
 2 6a
r
Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Nero to Co n stan ti n e

and fth centuries when the organi z ation o f the

,

C hurch made i t necessary for them to have

independent cure s tha t they begi n to assert
,

themselves We n d J erome for i nstance

.
, ,

asking what a bishop can d o that a presby t er

doe s not do except ordain I n the th ird century .

they are still comparatively submerged .

T here i s o n e i nteresting bit o f evidence i n the

C hurch Orders illustrating the ri se of th e pres
b y te rat e be t wee n th e begin ning o f t he third and
the end of the fourth centuries .

I n the Egyp ti an Chu rch Orde r there i s a

direc t ion that the bishop s prayer should be

u s ed over the presbyter I n the form which
.

"
we s aid before he shall pray and then follows ,

the same exo rdi um as that i n the bi shop s prayer

b u t the prayer i t self is di fferent and appropriate

to the presby ter M r C H Turner s uggest s
. . . .

that the direction only means tha t the same

e xo rdi u m should be used

.

H owever tha t may be the Can o n s of H ipp o ,

ly tus ,
2
a fourth o r fth century adaptation o f
the Egyp ti an Chu rch Orae r directs that the same

prayer s hould be used for t he presbyter as fo r

th e bi shop with the exception o f the name and
, ,

adds t he signi can t explanation T he bi s hop is
equal i n a ll things to the presby t er except fo r ,

the t hrone an d ordination F o r t he power o f .

ordaining i s not given to the presbyter T here .

'
i s also the prel imi nary direction that All things
I
Earfy H i t ry ofth Ch h a d M i i try p 2 8 4
s o e u rc n n s , . .

2
C ab ro l et L e cl e rcq , Reli gu i ae Li turg i cae Vetu sti ss i rn ae , p . 2 64 .
 The O h Church an d the i r D u ti es 265

ce rs
of t e

are to be done with t he presbyter as i n the

ordination of a bishop e xcept that h e i s not ,

enthroned This p l ain l y implies an advance i n
.

the posi tion of the presbyter .

I t i s a l so l aid down i n th e Can o n s of Hipp o ly tus

that the deacon is to mi nister to the bishop and
t o th e presbyters But in the Egyp ti an Church
.

Oro e r there i s nothing said about their minis ter

ing to presbyters T hey are the servan ts of .

the bishop a l one T hese changes are al l for

.

the greater glory o f the presbyter an d given ,

the earlier date o f the Egyp ti an Chu rch Orde r ,

which may be con sidered to be estab l i shed by

the researches o f D o m C ono ll y show hi s rise
i n position and prestige between A D 2 2 5 and . .

375 approximate l y .

The C hurch i n t owns was organi z ed on the

plan o f a cathedral and not of a modern diocese
,
.

I nstead o f a l arge number o f sma ll and more

o r less independent parishes there was the o n e

C hurch presided over by the bishop assisted ,

by presbyters and deacons The presbyters .

were in some respects l ike the canon s of a

modern cathedral where the bishop i s also ,

dean They were general ly elder l y always in

.
,

residence always present at the services but

, ,

neither ce l ebrated o r preached i n the presence

of the bishop And the bishop nearly al ways
.

was presen t As to absolution it seem s unlike l y

.
,

t hat they were ever authorized t o give it s o early

as th is They were the bishop s advisers and
.

as s essors his Chapter in fact and n o doubt if

, ,

2 M
266 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

men o f abi l ity found enough to do B ut we .

hear lit tle o f them and it is l ikely that they were

,

general l y ordai n ed when elderly from am ong 1

the more devout and religiou s deaco n s minor ,

o f cia l s o r l aymen and quite possib l y on the

, , ,

analogy o f widows some were ordained i f of u n

, ,

blemished character t hat they m ight receive an

,

h onourable and suitable provision i n their o ld age .

The C hurch Order says that a bi shop i s to

have three always with h im I t also says tha t .

th e proper n umber of presbyters i n a ch urch is

twenty four And it i s p roper fo r the pres

- .

b y t e rs tha t they should be like o l d me n

and they shall partake o f the M ystery wi th the
bishops and help with him in everything what
,

soever an d gather round him wit h love o f their

,

shepherd And the presbyters wh o are o n the

.

righ t shall be carefu l to give assistance at the

altar . And t h e presbyte rs w ho are o n t he
left shall a tt en d t o all the people that t hey may ,

be quiet and n o t i n commotion .
2

At his ordination the bishop shall lay his
hand upon his head ; and a ll t he presbyte rs

shall touch hi m an d pray over h im .

At o n e time th e custom prevailed of allowi n g

con fe ssion involving torture t o take th e place o f
ordina t ion j us t as martyrdom was allowed to
,

coun t as baptism The Ethiopian text o f the

.
.

C hurch Order 3 lays down that if the con fessor
has been i n the place o f p unish ment i n chains , ,

Ho r r ne ,
Statu tes f
o the Ap o stle s, p 1 3 4 . .

2
Ibid p .
, .
3 I bid , p
. 1 46
. .
 The O ce rs o
f the Chu rch an d the i r D u ti es

267

for the Name o f Christ they sha l l not lay ,

hand on him for a ministering for that is the ,

ho nour of a deacon ; but as for the ho n our of

the presbyterate though he hath t he hono ur o f
,

the presbyterate by that which h e hath con

fessed yet the bishop shall ordain him having
, ,

l aid his hand upon him I n the Arab i c and .
I

S ai d i c
2 versions the confessor may be advanced
to the presbytera t e without laying on of hand s ,

but if he is appointed bishop th e hand sh al l

be laid o n him I t i s not c l ear how far this
.

ru l e was carried o u t i n practice We know .

that Cyprian only made the confessor Ce l e ri n u s

a reader tho u gh h e was given the honour
,

and a ll owances o f a presbyter .

T H E D E A CO N

The deacon was a most impor tan t person and , ,

unlike the presbyter whose principal quali cation ,

was age o r at least the chasti ty and sobriety that

,

age shou l d bring a long lis t o f more po s itive

,

qualitie s is required o f him T hey shal l be .

tried concerning all the service having the testi ,

mony o f all the people that they l ive with o n e ,

wife and have reared their chi l dren i n puri ty

, ,

and such as are mercifu l and humble and such ,

as are not murmurers and such as are no t double ,

tongued n or wrathful because wrath depraves a ,

wise man And t hey sha ll not respec t t he person

.

H r r Stat t of th Ap tl p 46
1
o ne , u es e os es , . 2 .

I bid p 3 8
2 .
,
. 0 .
268 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n s tan ti n e

o f the rich nor act u nj u s t ly t o t h e poo r ; n o r

,

dri n k m uch wine and they shall work hard fo r

the M ys teries th e hidden the beau t iful the
, , ,

cheering And they shall honour all with al l

.

'

honour a nd modesty and fear and they shall ,

keep themselves i n all purity A n d some o f .

t hem they shall teach and some o f them t hey ,

shall que s t ion an d some o f the m they sha l l

,

reprove and some t hey shall console A s for t he

, .

rej ec t ed they shall a l so expel th em a t once and

, ,

they shall know that those w ho oppo s e the revile rs , ,

the rej ected are your adversaries
,
.
1

H e was i n fact th e bishop s chaplain secretary

, , , ,

man o f business and almoner ; and as a l l the

,

o fferings o f the C hurch cam e u nder the control

of the bishop the deacon had enough to do He
,
.

had both to make i nquiries and distribu t e t he

alm s H e was al s o responsible for most o f the
.

dutie s i n c hurch which n o w would be d ivided

,

be t ween t he sacri stan the verger t he door

,

keeper and acolyte came later and the o l d

fashioned pa ri sh clerk H e bid the p rayer s . .

F o r i nstance we read The deacon shall s ay
Pray ye for those who gave their names In .

fact he seem s to have combined all these e ccl e s i

as ti cal fu nc t ions with those o f an agent o f th e
C hari t y Orga n ization Socie t y .

I n the deaco n s ordi nation prayer t he bishop

p rays that h e may obtai n the exal t ed pries t
hood so it i s no t unreasonable to as s u me tha t
when t o o o l d t o carry o n the work o f deaco n s
1
Ho m r e ,
S tatutes o f the Jp o st/es , p . 1 35 .
 The O ce rs o
f the Chu rch an d the i r D u ti es 26 9

e f cient l y they were raised to the priesthood if

their l ives were satisfactory j ust as a pari sh priest ,

to-day when getting too o l d for the work o f a

,

big pari sh i s sometimes made the canon of

,

a cathedra l .

At hi s ordination the bishop alone i s to lay his

hand o n his head And why do we s ay that
.

the bishop a l one is h e who l ays h i s hand upo n

him 3 F o r a sign it i s of this thing that he was
not ordained for priesthood but on l y for the ser ,

vice o f the bishop And h e w as n o t ordained to

.

be a teacher of those wh o are i n Orders but t o be ,

o n e who will think of what is proper and to ,

i nform the bishop And he was not ordained .

to acquire the Grea t Spiri t o f which the presbyters

par take b ut to occupy hi mself w ith that which i s
,

proper t ha t t h e bishop may trust him and that

, ,

he may acquaint the bis hop with t hat which is

t t ing for him to know .
1

The a rchdeacon l a t er on was called the o culus

ep i sco i
.
p We see the beginning of it here The .

modern archdeacon s t ript of th e acciden t al and

,

ex t raneous function s wh ich sometimes devo l ve on

him as a canon or pari sh priest i s the descendant ,

o f the ancien t deacon .

T H E M I NO R
O F F I C IA L S
O u t side the Orders of Bishop Pries t and , ,

D eacon the rst o f cia l to appear i s the reader .

H i s duties except so far as they are indicated

,

1
H r ro ne ,
S tatu te s f
o the Jp ostles , p . 1 44 .
2 70 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n s tan ti n e

by his name are ob s cure and he soon lost hi s

, ,

importance We read i n the Church O rde r

.
I

tha t a reader shall be ordai ned aft er he has
been rs t t ried H e shall n o t be o f ma n y
.

words o r a dru n kard o r a sco ffer

, And he .

shall be o f good charac t er an d a lover o f the ,

good ; o n e w ho is quick t o go every day to

the church who re members the j udgem ent ;
,

and h e shall be obedient and o n e w ho reads

well and w ho knows the du t y o f him who read s
, ,

t ha t he should do according to what h e reads ;

and o n e who lls t he ear o f others with h is

word ough t h e no t to do i t him self ?
,

At thi s ti me at any rate he wa s appoi nted

, ,

ra t her than ordained T o th e reader w ho i s .

ordai ned the bishop s hall deliver the Scrip t ure ,

and shall n o t lay hand upon hi m .
2

T H E S U B D E A CO N

Th e s u bdeacon at this period came afte r t he

reader an d apparently afte r the widow and the
,

virgi n H i s dutie s were to as s is t the deaco ns

. .

H e shall n o t lay hand upon a s u bdeaco n bu t ,

he sha ll make m ention over t hem o f t he Name ,

tha t they may mi n iste r t o t he deaco n s Th e .

fou rt h and fth ce ntury witne s s ed a grea t e x p an

sion o f the du t ies of t he deacons and t he impor ,

tance o f t he subdeacon grew accordingly Th e .

reader and su bdeacon were paid an d may have

Ho r e r n , Statu tes f
o the Jpo stles, p . I 55 .

2
I bi d p .
, . 1 74 .
 7 he Oi ce rs f
o the Chu rch an d the i r D u ti es 27 1

ranked as c l ergy but Cyprian says they were

ro xi m i next to the clergy

,

cl e ro
p .

A co L YT E s

We hear l itt l e of aco lytes They are not men .

t i o n e d i n the rst C hurch Order b u t we l earn ,

that i n Rome i n the third century there were

seven deacons one for each ecc l esias t ica l district
, ,

and under each deacon o n e subdeacon and six

aco l ytes .
1

W I Do w TH E

I t is not permitted to a woman t o speak in
the church or to teach o r to baptize or to o ffer , , ,

or to claim to herse l f a l ot in any manly function ,

nor to s ay in any sacerdota l o ffi ce T his .
2

probably represents no t untru l y the negative

attitude o f the Church as a whole Ne ve rthe .

less there had been from t he beginni n g a

,

mi nistry of women .

F rom very early days there was an order of

widows .Let not a widow be enro l led u n der
three score years o f age having been the wife ,

o f o n e man wel l reported o f for good works ;

,

if s he have brought up children if s he have ,

l odged strangers i f s he have washed the saints

,

feet if she have relieved the a f icted if s he have

, ,

di l igently fol l owed every good work But th e .

younger widows refuse 3 T hey are to continue .

1
Early Hi t y of th Ch r h a d M i i try p 3
s or e u c n n s 02

I T i m v 91 1
, . .

2
T t O th V ili g f Vi rgi
er .
,
n eix e n o n s, .
3 . . .
2 72 Chu rch Hi sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

i n prayer nigh t and day They were not h o w .

,

ever to teach appare n tly o r t o usurp authori t y

,

over th e m en .

The widow was e nrolled par t ly as an ac t o f

charity F o r if s he has nephews or children
.
,

they are to support her She i s n ot to be a .

burde n on th e C hurch O nly if she is desola t e .

and without means o f support i n addition t o ,

more spiritual quali cations can she be enrolled ,

.

Later o n the quali ca t ion o f de sti t u t io n seem s t o

h ave tended t o o us t the other .

The agape seem s to have s u rvived la t es t as

a t reat for widows Th e mos t a f ic t ed are to be .

i n vi t e d o fte n e s t .
I

On e o f the reasons fo r n o t appoin ting you n g

widows i s that by reason o f i ndigence t hey migh t
marry again l n the rst C hurch Order t here
.
2

are direction s for t he ordina t ion o f widow s .

Only those whose husbands have been dead

a long time are to be ordained Th ey are to .

be ordai ned by word only They shall n o t .

lay hand upon her because she does n o t o ffer ,

the sacri ce nor has s he a ( sac red ) mi n i s t ry

,
.

F o r the sealing is fo r the priests because o f thei r

mi nistry bu t the duty o f widows i s about
,

prayer 3 A la t er edition adds that a widow
.

m ust remain a l ong ti me keeping apa rt with ,

good works with fasting a nd prayer before

, , .

she i s admi t t ed i nto the order .

I n t he D i aascali a t hey are n o t to b e le s s t han

Di da ix
I
sc. I b i d xiv .
2
.
, .

3 H r er
o n ,
Statutes of the Jp o stles, p . 1 47 .
 The O ce rs o
f the Chu rch an d the i r D u ti es 2 73

fty
. Ter t u l lian gives sixty as t he age l imi t .

T hose w ho contribute t o their support are no t

to give t o the widows with their own hands ,

but are to con t ribute through the bishop w ho ,

knows the circumstances o f each ; and when

t hey receive t he gift they are t o be told the
name of the giver .

T ake care o f them therefore O bishop and , ,

remember also the poor Therefore those .

who bring gifts are not to give to widows with

their o wn hands but are t o o ffer to thee o n thei r
,

behalf . And when thou di s tri b u te s t tell

them the name of the giver tha t they may p ray ,

for h im by his name .
1

Sh e i s to be humble peacefu l and quiet She , ,

.

i s not to be a great ta l ker or l ift up her voice ,

when s he speaks o r t o have a long t ongue or

,

love quarre l s She i s to care for nothing else

.

bu t to pray for h er benefac t ors and th e whole

C hurch .

She is not to teach because if it is declared ,

to them ( heathen under i nstruction ) by a woman

about how o u r Lord became incarnate and about
the Passion o f the C hrist they wi l l mock and
j oke Therefore it is not necessary o r righ t
that women should be teachers especial l y abou t ,

the Name of the Lord and abou t sa l vation by

H i s Passion for women were not appointed to
,

t each especia ll y not a widow ; but that they

,

shoul d make prayer and supplication to the

Lord God .
2

1
I b i d xv 2
.
, .

2 N
2 74 Church H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

As a class t hey do n o t seem to h ave been

satisfac t ory wh ich i s no t altogether s urprising
, .

T here are bitter complai n ts o f widows who gad

about and are grumblers quarrelsom e and have , ,

n o shame for n o t eve n i n an as s emb l y o n
,

Sunday are t hey a tt entive ; they either

sleep soundly o r talk about som ethi ng e l se .
I

By them thei r order is considered a merchandize ,

and they care o n ly for money Sh e who i s .

assiduou s to gad about can no t please G o d .

When s he stands up to pray s he recollect s

where she should go to receive some t hing or ,

that she has forgotte n to s ay some word to

h e r fri e n ds .

But the widow who wi s h es to please Go d
sits wi t hi n her hou s e and medita t es i n the Lord
nigh t and day without ceasing a t all ti mes o ffer ,

i ng prayer and s u pplica t ion She doe s n o t gad

.

about h er prayer is n o t i mpeded and her peace

, ,

fulness quie t n es s an d puri t y are accep t e d o f

, ,

God .
2

This system o f providi n g fo r widows not

unnatu rally fomented j ealousy T h e wise .

widow whe n some o l d widow thy companion

, , ,

has received a garm en t o r a gift tho u O wi dow , , ,

o ugh t es t t o s ay Blessed be God Who co m

fo r t e th t he o l d woman my comrade

Th e .

wom an wh o received the gift will l i k e a wi se .

woma n conceal the name o f th e donor B ut .

if t he recipien t i s without sen se s h e wi l l reveal

t he giver s name and if sh e to whom it i s

D i da xv sc . I bid
.
2
.
 The O ce rs o f the Chu rch an d thei r D u ti es 275

revea l ed is one of those who on l y care to beg

or gad about she grumb l es and b l ames the
,

bishop who made the provision o r th e e l der ,

or h im who gave the gift and says D ost thou

,

not know that I am nearer to thee and I am ,

much more destitute than she ? Some dis
appointed widows seem t o have so far forgot t en
themselves as to curse t he bi s hop who was
responsible .

T h e widows were in fac t an order o f desti t u t e

, ,

persons with a c l ai m on t he charity o f the

faithfu l which they were expected to requite
,

with prayers .

T H E D E A CO N E s s

T he deaconess seems to have been evolved

from the widow We come acros s th e phrase
.

widows who are deaconesses I n som e cases .
,

at any rate they anoi nt the bodies o f women i n

,

baptism and take communion to sick women

, ,

visit women i n houses when men would not be

admitted put women i n their places in ch u rch
, ,

and have ge n eral ly a recogni z ed m inistry to

women . A woman i s required for the service
o f women ; for there are houses where thou canst

not send a deacon on account of the heathen .

Send a deaconess for many thi ngs She was .
1

a l so to visit th e sick and anoint those who were

h eal ed from sicknesses Th e D i dascali a says they
.

are to be appointed T h e compi l er of the Ap o s

.

D i dasc
. xv .
276 Church Hi sto ry fro m M m to Co n stan ti n e

to Books i vi who produced a

li c Co n sti tu ti o n s , ,

revised and amp l i ed edition o f the D i dascal i a ,

says they are to be ordai ned Th e same editor .

l ays down that widows are to be subj ect to

deaconesses By the four t h ce n t ury there are
.

direction s fo r t he bishop to o rdai n h er by laying

o n o f hands an d a S peci al prayer i s provided
,
.

H e r o rdi na t ion follows that o f deacon s and ,

comes before those o f subdeacon s and reader s .

I n t h e Testam en t of o ur L o rd t here are direc t ion s

fo r the appoi n tment o f widow s and also o f

re s b t e re s s e s o r widows w h s it in fron t
p y o ,

w ho are presumably much th e same as deacon

esses and have been evo l ved i n the sam e way
,
.

Th e deacone ss does n o t appear un t il towards

t he lat t er half of th e third cen tury and n o t often ,

then Th e C hurch Order ( i n a la t er edition )

.

speaks o f s u b de aco n e s s e s and women readers but ,

gives no particulars
.

V I R G I NS
The virgin i s th e woman w ho volu n tarily
u n de rtakes to lead a celiba t e life fo r t he sake o f
grea t er devotion to o u r Lord .

The idea i s n o t exclu s ively C hristian Co n s e .

c ra t ed virgin s o f wh om the Vestal Virgi n s o f

,

Rom e are the be s t known example are fo und i n

-
,

hea t he n religions .

I n t he C hurch t here are t hree i dea s u n derl ying

t h e li fe There i s rs t that which i s pro minent
.
,
I
H o rn e t Statu tes of the Jp ostlcs, p
,
. 20 1 .
 The Oi ce rs o
f the Chu rch an d the i r D u ti es 277

i n S Pau l s mind of serving the Lord without

.

distraction i n h i s case emphasi z ed by h i s expecta

tion o f the Second Coming as being i mminent .

T hen there is the idea of a mystica l union with

C hrist Wh o is the bridegroom and the virgin
, ,

may take no other ; an idea wh ich has been

prominen t in ascetic l iterature a nd l ives for cen
t u ri e s
. We n d i t i n T ertu ll ian i n h is treatise ,

de Vi rg i n i hus Ve l an cl i s Y o u do not belie your

.

self i n appearing as a bride for wedded y o u are ,

to C hrist : to H i m you have surrendered your

fl esh to H i m y o u have espoused your maturity .

Cyprian has the same idea T h e third deve l o p .

ment later than our period i s the idea of l eading

this life i n common with others who are i n the

same condition i n other words o f leading the ,

community life .

We n d them mentioned as an order in the

rst C hurch Order when we read t hat he sha l l
not lay hand on a virgi n "
,

in ordination ] but it is ,

with her heart a l on e that she became a virgin .
I

I n the next century we read A virgin is not
ordained for we have no such command from
,

the Lord ; for this i s a state o f vo l untary tria l ,

not for the reproach o f marriage but o n account ,

of leisure for piety Later T hey are to com
.
,

m u n i cate after the deacon esses and before t he

widows .

I n the four t h century the Empress H elena found

a company o f ho l y virgins or C hurch virgins at
Jerusa l em and waited on th em at supper
, .

H o m e r , S tatutes ofthe Ap o stles, p . 1

47 .
278 Chu rch Hi sto ry fro m M m to Co nstan ti n e

But women had m uch ear l ier consecrated the m

se l ves to C hrist with a vow or at l east a reso l ution
o f conti n ence .T ertul l ian wrote to urge them to
wear veils bot h in ch urch and i n the stree t s He .

seem s to urge the veil o n all women married and ,

unmarried th ose l ooki ng t o marriage and t hose

, ,

regarding themselve s as e s poused to Christ ; bu t

h e plai n l y regards th e last as a special cla s s H e .

a l so mentions that h e knew a virgin o f twe nty

placed i n the order o f widows which he n o t ,

unnaturally considered an unsuitab l e arrange

ment I t s eem s to point to the fact tha t women
.

wh o were under a pledge of chastity were regarded

a s a class apart and worthy o f special h o n our
, ,

and fur t her that i n his time in Africa there w as

as ye t no regular order for them t o enter .
 X IV

M I NI S T ERIAL A U T H O RIT Y A ND ITS

TRA NS M I SSI O N
OM E a t tempts m ust be made t o answer th e
much vexed question o f the source from
which the ministers of the Church derived their
authority T here are three theories T h e rst
. .
,

that it came fro m above that i s from the ,

Apostles who were themselves sent from C hri st

, ,

and they i n their turn com missioned others like ,

Timothy and T itus who were given authority

,

to hand on the power of ordaining to their s u c

ce s s o rs T h e second that auth ori t y came from
.
,

below that the Church or at l east the m inistry

, , ,

e l ected to vacan t o f ces and that e l ection , ,

followed by the l aying on o f hands was a ll that ,

was necessary The thi rd theory i s tha t no

.

externa l authority was required ; that each

ministered as moved by the Spiri t and their ,

frui t s as seen i n their prophesying or teaching

,

o r healing were their only and su f cien t

,

credentials P
Al l that will be attempted wi l l be to summari z e
the facts and give such explanations as seem to
,

be necessary .

The last theory may be dealt with rs t It .

27
9
2 80 Church H i sto ry fro m M m to Co n stan ti n e

was evolve d by Professor Harnack from the

D idache and i s som etim es called the chari s m atic
theory o f t he ministry derived from charisma a , ,

Gree k word t ranslated grace gift by t he D ea n o f

-

Wells .

I
I n the D i aach th e local church es are or dered
'

to elect bishops and deacons bishop being ,

apparently used i n i t s Ne w T estamen t sense as

a synonym fo r pre sbyter ; but t he prom inent
mini s ters are the Apostles proph e t s an d teach e rs , ,
-Apostles an d prophets may refer t o the same
order as seems to be imp l ied i n thi s passage
, ,

Le t the Apost l e take n othi ng but bread if h e

as k for money he i s a false p rO p h e t This .
2
,

however is not the u s ual V iew

,
These o f cials .

take precedence o f the bishop o r pre sbyter .

9
They are to celebrate the E ucharis t s o far as

t h ey are willing to do so 3 T he local churches .

are warned not to des pise the bishops and

deacons fo r they a l so render to you the ministry
,

o f the prophets and teachers I t h as t herefore .

bee n suggested that these itinerant Apo s tles ,

prophets and teachers were t he origi nal type o f

min is t er who were replaced later o n by th e
local ministry of presbyter bishop and deacon
-

wh ich was j ust coming i nto prominence The .

chief passage i n the Ne w Testament that

can be urged i n i t s s upport of thi s t h e ory i s
I C orin t hians xii 28 f f: .

And s ome God hath se t i n t he church rs t ,

Apos tles secondarily prophets third l y teachers

, , ,

v
I
I b i d xi
x . I bid x
2
.
, .
3 .
, .
 M i n i ste ri al Autho ri ty an d i ts Tran sm i ssi o n 2 8I

after that mirac l es t hen gifts o f hea l ings helps

, , ,

govern ments diversities o f tongues

,
Are al l .

Apostles are a l l prophe t s are a l l teachers ?

? ?

are al l workers of m irac l es ? H ave a ll the gifts

o f healing ? do a ll speak with tongues ? do all

i nterpret But covet earnestly the best gifts .

H ere it is said we have rst of a l l the three

orders of Apostles prophets and teachers , , ,

and th en S Paul diverges to impersona l gifts

. .

But S Pau l has been speaking of the spiritual

.

gifts o f the Spiri t i n the C hurch and has been ,

exalting edifying gifts such as p rophecy at the

expense of speaking with tongues I t is much .

more natural to take Apost l es prophets teach ers , , ,

as denoting quali cation or function rather than

o f ce God hath sent Apost l es with th e Apos
.

tol ic qua l i cations of being witnesses o f th e

Resurrection ; others they may be presby t ers

,

deacons or laymen with the gift o f pro ph esy

,

ing yet others who have the gift of teaching

, ,

o t hers again wi t h the gift of hea l ing others wh o ,

can work miracles and s o on To -day a bishop ,

.
,

wri t ing a letter i n h is D iocesan M agazine might ,

sa :
y God has given us i n this diocese men
0 f l earning missioners di l igent parish priests
, , ,

others who have the gift o f conducting retreats ,

others who are ski l led i n hearing confessions ,

some even who devote themse l ves to spiritua l

hea l ing T herefore we have every right to be
.

encouraged H e wou l d hard l y s ay :
. We have
a bishop priests and deacons s o take courage
, , ,

and go forward .

2 o
2 82 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

Another passage of S Paul i s also quoted .

i n favour o f thi s charismatic theory And .

he gave so me Apostle s ; and some prophe t s ;

, ,

and some evangelists ; and some pastors and

, ,

teachers .

H ere we note rst of all that the l i st has

developed Evangelists and pastors have been
.

added B u t if i t i s really a l ist o f o f ce -bearers

.
,

i t i s di f cul t to accoun t for t he fact that la t er

o n s till i n the D i aach they have agai n shrun k
,

,

to two or three at the m os t Apos t l es prophets , ,

and teachers Secondly i t m ust be repea t ed

.
,

that an Apostle w as probably a prophet certainly ,

an evangelist and teacher a nd that a presbyte r ,

was probably both pastor and teacher I n the .

Pastoral Epistles the presbyter who teaches i s to

be doubly honoured .

This charismatic theory has l ittle support fro m

the Ne w Tes t amen t and non e from any othe r
,

C hri stian li terature excep t the D i dache Th e .

D i aache appears to belong to som e obscure

'

Palesti nian group o f C hri stian s and may easi l y ,

have bee n i so l ated and peculiar No r i s there .

anythi ng i n i ts pages to sh ow that these itinerant

A po s t le -prophets o r Apostles and prophets were
not ordained and given au t hority to ordain
o t her s i n the ir turn W hatever t h eir positio n
.

was i t seem s to have been very exceptional and

,

irregular .

There were not two forms o f mi nistry th e

f
m inis t ry of gifts and the mi nistry o o ce but
f
E p h iv 1 I . . .
 M i n i ste ri al Autho ri ty an d i ts Tran sm i ssi o n 28
3

one form inc l uding Apost l es bishops or presby

, , ,

ters and deacons any member o f which might

, ,

be endowed with o n e o r more of the many

gifts of the Spirit prophesy miracles teach ing , , , ,

tongues o r any o th e r T h e source of authority

,
.
I

w as n o t then within each minister Was it from .

above o r be l ow
No w when C hurch history opens with the rs t
,

chapter o f the Acts a ll ministerial authority i s ,

centred in the Apost l es T hey are the undis .

u t e d ru l ers o f the C hurch and a ll authority to

p ,

minister in the congregation excep t as regards ,

certain endowments such as speaking with

tongues seems to come from them T here may
,
.

be exceptions but we do not hear o fthem When ,

.

i n the rst days the E uchari st was celebrated

Ira

rli that i s in private houses i t is di f cu l t

o

co u
, ,

to be l ieve that the ce l ebrant was not either an

Apostle or some o n e authorized by an Apost l e .

T hough they are never me ntioned there must

have been many among the seventy mentioned
by S Luke as being appointed by C hrist who
.
,
2

wou l d seem to have been ready to hand for t he

purpose .

T here i s no hin t that t he Apo s tles looked

forward to a distant future and provided a
schem e o f government and a regu l ar ministry to
meet i t s needs T h ey lived and acte d as though .

the Second Coming was imminent and no long

I
S A R bi
ee E ay i i Th E arly Hi t ry of th
. o n so n . ss , e s o e

Ch r h a d m i i try
u c n n s .

2
S L k x I . u e . .
2 84 Chu rch Hi sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

views were required . Whatever o f ces were

e stablished we should expect t o n d provided to
meet the needs o f the m oment as t h ey arose .

Their conviction o f t he nearne s s o f t he e nd made

their Church policy o f necessi ty opp or t u n i s t an d

ha n d-to -mouth . This vi ew is borne o u t by
t he appoin t men t o f t he S even w he t h er we are to
,

t ake t he tradi t ional V i ew t hat the Seve n we re t he

r s t deacons o r to hold t ha t they we re e x ce p
,

t i o n al o f cial s crea t ed t o mee t a need t ha t did

n o t recu r
. Th e Apos t les found tha t t he wo rk o f
supe rin t e nding the distribu t ion o f alm s interfered
with t heir more spiritual function s s o the C h u rch ,

was t old to choo s e seven men and autho rity w as ,

give n t he m by the Apostle s th rough th e i mposi

tion o f hands .

With the dispersion that followed t he dea t h o f

Stephen t he si t uation was alte re d Th e disciple s .

were s ca tt ered abroad and whe rever t hey wen t

,

they p reached t h e Word We know t he re were

.

bodie s o f C h ris t ian s in Samaria and a t An t ioch

we do n o t k n ow whe t her any o f cial mini s t e rs
We re appoi n t ed t o s uperi n t end the s e sca tt e red
congrega t io n s and to p re s ide over t heir Euch aris t s .

We r s t hea r of a body of C hu rch o f cial s

called p reshy tcrs o r e lde rs at Jerusalem whe n t he ,

bre t h ren at A n t ioch de t ermi ned to s end relief

t o the M oth er C hurch

,
sending i t t o the pres

b y te rs by the hand s o f Barnaba s an d P au l .
I

Again when the di s pu t e arose a t Antioch t he

, ,

bre t hren appoin t ed Paul an d Ba rnabas and

Acts xi .
30 .
 M i n i steri al Autho ri ty an d i ts T rans m i ssi o n 285

other delegates to go to Jerusa l e m un t o the

Apostles and presbyters T h e deputation w as
.

received o f the C hurch and the Apostles and

presbyters and later on we read t hat the
,

Apostles and presbyters were gathered toge t her

t o consider of this matter Paul and Barnabas .

on their missionary j ourney appointed presbyte rs

in every city T he title was p robably adopted
.

from the synagogue as every Jewish synagogue

,

was presided over by a council of elders I t no .

more imp l ied ag e than the Roman title senator

o r our alderman .

Later on we come ac ross ep i scop i o r bishops .

The word is Greek and is found both i n the,

Sep t uagin t and i n c l assi cal Greek Bishop Light .

foo t give s inspector as the nearest E ng l i s h
equivalent Though a di fferen t view has been
.

held there seem s no su f cient reason to doub t

,

tha t in the Ne w T es t ament th e t erm s presby t er

and ep i scop us or bishop are iden t ical .

By the death o f S Paul the presby t er o r .

e i sco us
p p with
,
deacons may be considered
,
t o
be everywhere e stablished as the l ocal church
o f cials T h e le t ter to the Philippians i s addressed
.

to the C hurch in Philippi with bishop s and

deacons . S Peter exhorted the elders w ho
.

I
are amo n g y o u to feed the ock o f G o d I n .

I Timo t hy iii S Paul gives directions for the

.

appointment o f bishops and deacons I n h i s .

letter to T i t us he tells him to appoint elders i n

every ci t y We are n o t t o l d explicitly as to
.

I S P t v I . e . . .
2 86 Chu rch H i sto ry from Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

their appoi ntment o r their duties B ut there .

can be no reasonable doubt tha t t hey were

appoin t ed by Apostle s o r Apos t olic delegates .

I t i s unlike l y that s o important a class wou l d

have been formed without Apos t olic appoint
men t and i n the Acts and the Pa s t oral E p istles
,

we n d t hat s uch i s t he case .

As t o their du t ie s we are t old li t tle and it i s ,

easy t o s e e tha t t heir most obviou s and pre s s ing

duties are the lea s t likely to be mentione d .

S Lu ke i n the Acts doe s n o t e x patia t e o n things

.

that we re fam iliar and a mat t er o f course t o h is

reader s T he H oly C om mu nion is only men
.

t i o n e d i ncidentally s o i s Baptism The appoi nt .

men t o f the S even i s mentioned a t some le ngth .

I t represen t ed a new departure The a ppointment .

o f presbyter s followed s o closely upon Jewi s h

u sage that thei r e x i stence was ass u med and t hei r
duties were known t o all .

Th e wri t ers o f t he Reforma t ion period i n

England frequen tly u se the phrase preaching

m inis t ers o r men t ion tha t a particular p rie s t was
,

a preacher No o n e mentions that th ey were

.

celeb rants No o n e writing to day would m e n

.
-

tio n e ither I t i s take n fo r gra n t ed S o with

. .

Ne w Te s tamen t wri t e rs .

S Paul t ells Ti m o t hy t ha t elder s w ho rule
.

well be counted wor t hy o f double h onou r espe ,

ci al l those w h labour i n the Word and i n

y
o

teaching S o i t i s plai n t ha t s ome do no t

.
2

t each .

I I T im . v . 1 7 ,
R V..
 M i n i ste ri al Autho ri ty an d i ts Tran sm i ssi o n 2 87

The candidate fo r episcopal o f ce mus t rul e

his own house wel l if not how wil l he care fo r,

th e C hurch of God They were t o be n o lovers

o f money so probably they were in charge o f the
,

treasury of the Church They were t o be l over s

.

o f hospita l ity and were no doubt the repre s enta

,

ti y es of the congrega t ion whom visi t ing breth ren

would natural l y seek out rst o f a l l .

But there can be l it t le do ubt that their principal

duty was to preside over the E uchari st This .

no doub t accoun t s for their early appearance at

Jerusalem where the nu mber o f Chri s tians w as
,

l arge from t he begi n ning and fo r their appoint

,

ment by Paul a nd Barnabas i n each i nfan t

C hurch .

T h e ques t ion t o be solved i s H o w then were , ,

t he Apostles replaced either as rulers o r as trans

,

m i t te rs o f authority What were the stages to

be traversed before the monarchical and local
bishop took the place o f the equally monarchical
but itinerant Apos tl e ? Was it a descen t by a
regular act o f de v o l u te d authority ? O r was it
an ascent D i d the bishops o r elders compelled ,

by t he needs o f the time choose o n e o f their own

,

number and under God themselves i nves t him

, , ,

wi t h the necessary power o r is the power t ra n s

,

m i tt e d and devo l ved from above

I n the Pastoral Epist l es we n d Timothy and
Titus acting as temporary bishops i n E phesus
and Crete respective l y T h e appointment i s
.

t emporary ; t hey are rather episcopal delega t e s

than bishops but their position and duties are
,
2 88 Church H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

those o f a bishop Their work i s t o rule and

1

t o ordai n M oreover S Timothy is remi nded

.
,
.

to stir up t he gift of G o d which i s in h im

by the putting o n o f my hands I t i s true .

tha t h e i s also warned n o t to neglec t the gi ft

given hi m by prop hecy with the layi n g o n o f

the hands o f the pre s by t ery which migh t appea r ,

to favour a p resbyteral ordinati on i f we did n o t

k n ow t ha t from the earliest times o f which we
have any record i t was th e custom fo r the pres
b y t e rs to be associated wi t h the bishop i n t h e
laying o n o f hand s .

The evidence a fforded by the sub -apos t olic

C hu rch i s scan ty but the r s t epi stle o f C leme n t
,

seem s to bear o u t the theory o f t rans mis sio n

from the Apo stles Th e author o f t h i s epis t le
.
,

addressing the C hu rch o f G o d at Cori nth i n the

n ame o f the C hurc h o f G od wh ich s oj our n s a t

Rome wrote i n order to put an e nd to s t rife
,

which had arisen i n consequence o f the extrusio n

o f cer t ain presby t ers at C orinth by a faction i n

t hat C h u rch The pe rtinen t pa s s ages are as

.

follows
C hr i st t herefore was s e n t forth by G o d t he ,

A po s t les by C hri st .

A n d thu s preaching through cou n tries and
,

cities they appointed th e r t frui t s o f their

,
s -

labours having rst proved them by th e Spirit

, ,

t o be bishops and deacons of those w ho should

afterwards believe Our Apostle s also knew
.
2

through o u r Lord Jesus C hri s t that t here would

I T im
1 iv 1 4 . i 4 . .
2
. 2 .
 M i n i ste ri al Au tho ri ty an d i ts Tran sm i ssi o n 2 89

be strife fo r the o f ce o f the episcopate F o r .

this cau se therefore inasmuch as they had ,

obtained a perfect foreknow l edge of this they ,

appoin t ed those ministe rs a l ready mentioned ,

and afterwards gave instructions that when these

should fall asleep other approved men should
succeed them i n their ministry We are of .

opinion therefore that t hose appointed by them

, , ,

o r afterward s by other emi nent men with the

consent o f the who l e C hurch an d who have ,

b l ameless l y served the ock of Christ can not be

j us t l y dismissed from the ministry F o r o u r sin .

wil l not be smal l if we ej ect from the episcopate

those who have b l ame l essly and h olily fu l ll ed
its duties Blessed are those presbyters who
.
,

havi n g nished their course before now have ,

I
ob t ained a fruitful and perfect departure .

I t i s plain that p reshy te r and hi shop are still

synonymous term s . Also that stress i s laid
o n t heir appointment originally by Apostles .

The controverted point turn s on the a l ternative

method of appointmen t o r afterwards by
other emi nent " approved ]men T he Apostles ,

we are given to understand made arrangements ,

for the future provision of clergy When the .

presen t c l ergy should die others should succeed .

T hose then appoi nted either by Apostle s o r ,

other approved men must not be extruded ,

.

Take n by itse l f th e ,
other approved men
might be prophets and not ordered ministers
,

at a ll Bu t read with the context it can hardly

.
, ,

F i r t ep i tle of Cl me t i 44
1
s s e n , . .

2 P
2
9 0 Chu rch Hi sto ry o rn Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

be 5 0 H i s argu me n t i s t hat God has xed all

.

things belonging to H i s worsh ip C hrist i s .

from G o d the Apostles are from C hrist t he

, ,

pre s by t ers are from the Apo s t le s Th erefore .

their ej ection i s a s i n I f the approved men.

do no t derive their au t hority from the Apo s tles ,

like Timothy and Titus the argume nt falls to ,

the g round C le ment was after all appeal ing

.
, ,

to facts perfectly well known and if t h e o t her ,

approved me n were o f Apo s tolic descen t i t
would be u n necessary to u s e some such clum sy

periphrasis as me n authorized by Apostles to

ordain which wou l d have been the alterna t ive
,
.

T h e D i dache has o n e reference to the subj ect .

Appoi n t for yourselves bishops and deacon s .

The Greek word m e ans properly to elect by

a sho w o f hands but it is used o f the appoi nt
,

men t and ordinatio n o f elders by S Paul and .

S B arnabas So that the writer o f th e D i dache

. .

may well be speaking o f t he electio n o f t

perso n s to serve as bishops and deacon s leaving ,

their formal ordination o n o n e side .

S Ignatiu s is silent on the subj ect o f Apos

.

tolic appointmen t but his co mplete silence if

, ,

it proved anything would prove that Apostolic

,

appoi ntment was unknown to him wh ich is ,

absurd H e probably t ook it for granted No r

. .

d i d he need it fo r the purpose of his argumen t .

Th e bishop i s li ke Go d the presby t ers l ike the ,

Apostles at th e Las t Supper I t would have .

been an anti -climax to have gone o n t o ascribe

the authority o f either to Apos t olic descent I t .
 M i n i ste ri al Au tho ri ty an d i ts Tran sm i ssi o n 2 9
I

is quite possible that Ignatius and o t he rs acce p te d

the fact without attaching any particu l ar import

ance to i t But hi s si l ence certainly does not
.

s how that he was ignorant of th e fact M ore .

over he i mplies the theory of the transmission

,

o f authority i n the fol l owing passage

Let that be held a va l id Eucharist which
is under the bi shop o r one to whom he sha ll

have entrusted it .

I t is noteworthy that there i s no mention of

a hi shop i n the l ater senseeither at Rome o r
C orinth by Ignatius o r Cl ement
,
The evidence .

of the papa l l ists which Bi shop Lightfoot has

,

marsha ll ed with s uch skill i s fairly conclusive ,

proof that there was a Bishop of Rom e though ,

Ignatius writing twenty years l ater seem s to

, ,

ignore his existence T h e case of Corinth is

.

more doubtful I t may be that the Church was

.

ruled by presbyter bishops some at l east wi t h

-
,

the power of ordination or there may be som e,

other exp l ana t ion which has not yet come to

l ight T here is the same ambiguity i n the case
.

of t he Phi l ippian Church as Polycarp writing , ,

to that C hurch about the year A D 1 5 0 makes . .

,

no mention of a bishop .

With these exceptions episcopacy as we , ,

u nderstand it with the possible exception o f

,

Alexandria seems t o have been the rule i n

,

every C hurch from the beginning At least .

we have no evidence o f any other form of

government .

In J erusalem We n d J ames the Lord s ,

2 9
2 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

brother established as ru l er o f the Ch urch ;

,

and H e ge s i p p u s record s that he was succeeded

by Symeon Eusebi us further gives a list o f
.

thirteen bishops w ho s ucceeded T h e Syrian .

1

Antioch had E v o di u s as i ts rs t bishop after ,

the Apostle S Peter and he was succeeded by

.
,

I gnatius I n procon sular Asia Clement o f Alex

.

a n dria dis t inct l y states tha t S Joh n went about .

from city t o ci ty in some places to establish
bishop s in others t o con s olidate whole C hurche s
, ,

i n others t o appoi nt t o t he clerical o f ce some o n e

o f t hose w h o had bee n signi ed by the Spirit .

Polycarp was said by his pupil I renaeus t o have

been es t ablished as bishop by the Apostles in

Asia i n the C hurch at Smyrna .

By the th ird quarter o f the cen t ury the Ch urch

had to face a n ew development o f th e Gnos t ic
heresy T he M arcion ite s made o u t that t hei rs
.

was th e true Apostolic doc t rine an d the Catho l ic

version th e fal s e The peril was grea t and the
.
,

Ch urch m et i t by a f rming the Apostolic char

acter o f i t s Creed i t s Scriptures and its mi n istry
, ,
.

F o r t he r s t tim e the word succes s i on ( di aao che )

i s used .

H e g e s i p p u s o f Pales t ine writing about A D ,

. .

1 75
,
after t ravelling through G reece o n hi s way
t o Rome s t ate s t hat h e
,
conversed with m os t o f
the bi shop s whe n he t ravelled to Rome and that ,

h e received t he same doc t rine from all 3 T hen .

in every succe s sion an d i n every city the preach

i ng o f t he law and the prophets i s faithfully
H E iv 5
1
, . I b i d iv I 4
. .
3 Ib i d
2
.
, . . .
,
22.
 M i n i ste ri al Au tho ri gt an d i ts Tran sm i ssi o n 2 93

fo ll owe d and when h e came to Rome h e began
,

to make out a succession up to Anicetus .

D i aao che i s plain l y a technical term used to describe

th e succession o f the bi shops and though he does ,

n o t say succession from the Apostles it is plainly

implied .

I renaeus was born i n Asia M inor A D 1 2 5 to . .

I 3O,
and was a pupil of Polycarp Bi s hop o f ,

Smyrna H e was i n Rome when Polycarp was

.

martyred A D 1 5 5 1 5 6 and afterwards went to

,
- . .
,

Gaul As bishop he had to contend wi t h Gnos t ics

.
,

and found that they claimed to teach an eso t e ric

doctrine handed down secret l y from t he Apos tl es ,

and t ha t t he Creed o f the C hurch was on l y a

debased and vulgari z ed version o f t h e true
teaching I n h i s grea t work commonly known
.

as Ag ai n st H e resi es h e appeal ed t o the succes

c

sion s of bishops from t he Apostles as a proof

that the Church taugh t the Apostolic doctri n e ,

and that t he Gnostic had no case when he

appealed to an alle g ed sec re t Aposto l ic tra ditio n

as over riding the Scrip t ures
- I t is within the .

competence of a l l therefore i n every Church , , ,

who may wish to see the truth to contemp l ate ,

clearly the tradition o f the Apostl es manifested

throughou t t he whole world ; and we are i n a
position to reckon up those w ho were ins t i t u t ed
bi shops i n C hurches by t he Apostles and the
successions o f these men to o u r o wn times .
I

Since however
, it would be very tedious to
,

reckon up the succession s o f all the Churche s ,

I r a Agai t H r i i ii 4
en e u s, ns e es es , . 1 .
2
94 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m N e ro to Co n stan ti n e

he con t ents himself by i n dicating t hat tradition
derived from the Apostles of the very great the ,

very ancient and universally kn own C hurch

,

founded and orga n ized at Ro me by t he tw o

mo s t glorious Apos t les Peter and Paul as also , ,

th e faith preached to men which come s down to ,

o u r tim e by mean s o f the successions o f the

bishops The blessed Apos t les then , ,

havi ng founded a nd built up t he C hurch co m ,

m i t te d i nto t he hands o f Linus th e o f ce o f the

episcopa t e O f thi s Linu s Paul makes men t ion
.

i n h i s Epis tle to T i mo t hy T o him s ucceeded .

A n e n cl e t u s and afte r him i n th e third place from

, ,

the Apostles Cl ement w as allotted the bishopric

, .

This man as he had seen the bles sed Apo s tles

, ,

and had been conversant with them migh t be ,

s aid t o have t he preaching o f th e Apostles still

ech oing i n his ears To this Clement

.

s ucceeded E v are s t u s Alexande r fol l owed E v ar

.

e s t us ; then sixth from th e Apostles Sixtus was

appoi nted ; after Tele s phorus w ho was gloriously
,

ma rty red ; t h en Hygi nu s ; after him Pius ; then

after him Anicetus Soter having succeeded
.

Anice t u s E l e n t he ru s does now i n t he twelfth

,

place from th e Apo s tles hold the i n heritance

o f t he episcopate I n t hi s order a nd by this
.
,

succession the ecclesiastical trad ition o f the

,

Apos t le s and the p reaching o f th e tr u t h have

come down to u s .

La t er o n dealing with the marks o f th e t rue

,

presby t er he says
,
Wherefore it is i ncumbent
,

to obey t he p re sby t ers wh o are i n the Church

 M i n i ste ri al Au tho ri ty an d i ts Tran sm i ssi o n 2 95

those who as I have shown posses s the succe s

, ,

sion from the Apost l es .
I

Tertu ll ian the grea t African wrote to the

, ,

same e ffect

Let the heretics display the origins o f t heir
churche s ; l et them unro l l the l ists o f their
bishops i n u nbroken succession from the begin
nin g showi ng that their rst bishop was created
,

and preceded by o n e o f the Apost l es or of

the Aposto l ic men who conti nued with the

Apost l es .
2

H ippo l ytus was t h e rst to write o f the

bishops i n genera l as being s uccessors of the
Apost l es H itherto the particu l ar bish op had
.

been spoken o f as the successor of the Apostle

who founded his particular s e e
Cyp rian was Bishop of C arthage A D 1 4 8
.

1
5 8 . . .

H i s l anguage on the authority of bishops r e

semb l es that o f Ignatius H e i s accused o f using .

sacerdotal language ; but he is not more sacer

dotal than T ertu ll ian To Cyprian the bishop is .

the sace rdo s the c l ergy are the sena t ors the l aity
, ,

the plebs H e i s as clear as previous writers on

.

the subj ect o f the succession Writing to .

P u p i an u s w h o had accused him o f unworthy

,

conduct h e says ,
Yo u constitute yourself a
,

j udge o f God and of C hrist w h o says t o the ,

Apostles and therefore to a l l pre l ates w ho

,

succeed to the Apost l es by appoin t men t i n their

room H e that heareth you heare t h M e 3
, , .

I r a s Agai t H r i iv 6
1
en eu ,
ns e es es , . 2 .

O hj ti ag ai t H r ti 1
ec o n Ep 6 8
ns e e cs , 2 .
3 . .
2 96 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m M m to Co n stan ti n e

As agai n st th is body o f t estimony there i s only

t he case o f Ale xandria where according to , ,

Jerome from M ark the Evangeli s t down to t he

times of the bis hops H e racl as A D 2 3 3
,

2 4 7 and .
,

.
,

D io nysius 2 4 7 2 6 5 the presbyters always
, ,

n ominated as bishop o n e cho s en o u t o f their o w n

body a nd p l aced in a h igher grade j ust as if an
,

army were to appoint a general o r deacons were ,

t o choose from their o w n body one whom t hey

knew to be diligent and ca l l him archdeacon ,
.

This however is n o t to say that th e pre sby t e rs

, ,

were n o t endowed with the episcopal authority to

ordain F u rther B i shop Ligh t foot quote s Hilary
.
,

to t he e ffect that I n Egypt the presbyters seal
( i . e .ordain o r consec ra t e
) i f the bishop be no t

present B ut seal undoubtedly m eans con rm
.

n o t ordain and i n t he Eas t to this day t he

,

presby t ers con rm though u si ng o i l previously

blesse d by the bishop .

Bi s hop Gore also quotes Severu s an i n t ruded I

,

Bishop o f Antioch w ho was expelled about A O ,

. .

5 I 8 and
,
settled at Alexandria as saying tha t the ,

Bishop o f Alexandria had i n o l d ti mes been

appoin t ed by presbyters B u t h e th i nks that .

Jerome and Severus a nd those w ho i n m odern ,

times have adopted their view have been led ,

as tray by a bl under fo r which some Arian here ,

t ic s were responsible Th ese he retics visi t ed th e .

Abbot F oemen and disparaged the Archbishop ,

o f Alexandria by saying that he had been

ordained by presby t ers The archbi s hop i n .

Th Ch r h a d the M i i try p I
1
e u c n n s , . 22 .
 M i n i ste ri al Au tho ri ty an d i ts Tran sm i ssi o n 2
97

question however was Athanasius o f whose

, , ,

consecration by bishops we have sa t isfac t ory

evidence I t i s quite possib l e that Jerome and
.

Severus were led astray by this story At any .

rate Origen who had every reason to disparage

,

the position of the Bishop o f A l exandria appears ,

to know nothing of this presbytera l s u ccession ,

and in the rst Church Order which goes back ,

to t he early part o f the third century and ,

survives i n two C optic versions it is very clearly ,

l aid down that the bishop is to be elected by the

people but consecra t ed by o n e of the bishops
,

present Later on this ru l e is altered and th ree

.
,

bishops are required for a consecration .

S o far as the princip l e of su cce ssi o n is concerned

it does not matter whether Jerome was right o r
not I t wou l d on l y mean that the presbyters of
.

Alexandria were all bishops with the right to

ordain but e l ected one of their number to e x e r
,

cise the main functions o f the episcopate .

T here is o n e other fact of history that te ll s

against Bishop Lightfoot s theory that the bishop

rose o u t of the body o f presbyter-bishops by

ascent and received his authori ty from t hem
,

i n stead o f from an Apost l e or bishop and that i s ,

the comparative i n s i g n i can ce of the presbyters

in early days Nowhere are t he presbyters at all
.

promi nent I n the C hurch Order about A D

.
,
. .

22
5 ,they are p l ainly almost ho norary o f cials i n
comparison with the bishop and the deacons as ,

we have seen in the last chap t er I t i s unlikely .

that i f the p resbyters were the real C hurch -ru l ers

Z Q
2 98 Church Hi sto ry fro m N
{ e ro to Co n stan ti n e

early i n the second ce n t ury they sho u l d have been

so comple tely suppressed withi n a h undred years ,

and tha t the fourth and fth ce nturie s should

have wi t nessed their slo w and gradual rise i nto
power .

To s u m up the position seems to be that by

, ,

the middle of the second century episcopacy as ,

we understand it that i s o n e bishop over each

,

diocese wi th authority to rule and ordain was ,

everywhere established with the po ssible e x ce p

tion o f A l exandria T hat i t had bee n established
.

in Apostolic times at l east i n Antioch i n Jeru

, ,

salem i n Asia and in Rome I t i s possib l e

, ,
.
,

though u n l ike l y that in C ori nth P hilippi and

, , ,

possib l y o n e o r two other Greek cities with

democratic prej udic es the C hurch was ru l ed by ,

presbyter-bi shops o f whom some at least had

,

power to ordain I t i s not i mprobable t hat

.

b e twee n the time that the Apostles died and the

time that the bi shops were everywh ere localized
there were itinerant o f cials with powers o f s uper
vi sio n and ordi nation like those co n ferred o n
Ti mothy and Ti t us cal l ed variously Apostles , ,

prophets evangelis t s B ut the eviden ce shows

,
.

pretty clearly that the authority to mini ster was

given by the Apostle s to a c l ass by whatever ,

name called afterwards known as bishops who

, ,

were them s elve s t he on l y authorized tran s m i t ters

thereof .
 C H AP T E R X V

T H E T R U CE , A D . . 2 60
3 3
0

RO M the cap t ure of Va l erian by Sapor

F A D 2 60
. .down to the i ssue o f his rst
,
,

edict of persecution by D ioc l etian in F ebruary ,

A D
. .
3 3
0 the C hurch
,
enj oyed a period of
peace compara t ive which was undoubtedly a
,

time of very considerab l e growth T he Gospe l .

reached new countries and was listened to by

many i n provinces where it had long been
,

preached with an attention n ever show n before

,
.

D ecius and Va l erian had tried a fall with the

C hurch and had been worsted P ersecution may .

very we l l have seemed a thing of the past .

The h istory of the C hurch during thi s period

i s somewhat obscure but some names stand out
,
.

Of these the most n otab l e are D io nysius o f

Alexandria ; Paul of S am o s ata the heretic ; ,

M anes the founder of M an i che e i s m ; Gregory

, ,

the Wo nder -worker and Gregory the I l lumina

,

tor though the last is a very shadowy gure

,
.

D I O NY S I U S OF A L EX A ND R I A
D ionysiu s W e
have already met as the Bishop
of Alexandria duri n g the D ecian and Va l erian
2
99
3 0 0 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Nero to Co n stan ti n e

persecutions H e was a pu pil o f O rigen and

.
, ,

like his m aster o f an inquiring m ind ,
I .

peruse d he wrote the works and tradition s o f
, ,

the here t ics de l i n g my mi nd fo r a little with

,

thei r execrable s e n t ime n t s When a cer t ain .

brother o f the presby t ers a tt empted to dis s uade

m e saying my mind would be corrupted i n
, ,

which as I though t h e spake t h e truth I was

, , ,

con rmed in my origi n al p u rpo s e by a vi s ion

from heaven whe n a voice came to m e and com
,

m an de d m e i n word s as follows : Read all tha t

thou take s t i n hand fo r thou are qua l i ed to co r ,

rect and prove all and t his ve ry thing has bee n ,

the cau se o f thy faith in C hris t fro m t he begin

n ing . I received th e vision as consi s t en t with
the Apo s t olic declaration whic h s ays to t he more

compe t en t Be e skilful money -changers 1

He was o r(yai n e d pre s byter and s u ccee d ed

.

H e racl as as head o f t he Ca t eche t ical School ,

A D
. . 23 2 where he remained un t il h e becam e
,

bis hop A D 2 4 7 , . . .

U nlike m os t o f the Eas t ern bi s hops he allowed ,

heretical bapti s m bu t he O ppo s ed S t ephe n when

,

t hat prelate proceeded t o excom mun ica t e t hose

w ho like Cyprian too k the oppo s ite view
, ,
.

H e al s o had his t roubles co n cern ing the t rea t

m e n t o f the lapsed an d adopted m uc h the sam e ,

meas u res as Cyprian and C ornelius I n a le tt er .

to F abi us Bi shop o f Antioch wh o was inclined

, ,

to j oi n t h e rigorist party o f Nova t ian h e gave ,

some accoun t o f his method s which is worth

E b i H E vi i 7 u se u s, . . . .
 The Tru ce , A D . .

2 60 3 03 3 0 1

repeati n g .T here w as a certai n Serapio n an ,

aged be l iever who had passed his long l ife irre

,

p ro ach ab l
y but as he had sacri ced duri n g the

persecution though he frequently begged "

,

,
to be
ad m itted to penance ] no o n e wou l d listen to him ,
.

H e was taken sick and continued three days in ,

succession speechless and senseless O n the .

fourth day he recovered a litt l e and ca ll ed his ,

grandson I beseech y o u hasten and get me

.

abso l u t ion Call o n e o f t he pre s byters
. The .

boy ran t o t he presby t e r But it was night and .

,

th e presby t er was sick I had already given an .

order that those at th e poin t of death if they ,

desired it and especially if th ey had asked fo r i t

,

before shou l d receive absoluti on that they migh t

, ,

depart from l ife i n comfortable hope I therefore .

gave the boy a sma ll portion o f the Eucharist ,

telling h im to dip it i n water and to drop it i nto

the mouth of th e old man The boy re t urned .

with the morsel Serapion said at once T hou .

hast come my s o n bu t th e presby t er could n o t

, ,

come D o what you are told quickly and le t me

.

go T he boy moistened it and dropped it into
.

the old ma n s mouth And he havi n g s wallowed

.
,

a little immedia t ely expired

,

Though peace was restored to the Church wi t h

the accession of Gal l ienus i n A D 2 6 0 t here was . .
,

l ittle enough of it in Alexandria There was rst .

of a l l civi l war so that D ionysius says he cou l d

,

n o t pass from one side o f the city to th e other .

T his was succeeded by pestilence and fami ne .

E b i H E vi 44 I
u se u s, . . . .
3 0 2 Chu rch Hi s to ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

H e has le ft a vivid accoun t o f the noble cond uc t

o f t he C hristian s during the p l ague which i s ,

give n elsewhere .

H e wa s a wise an d loving ruler full o f the ,

s pirit o f reasonableness and conci l iatio n We .

ge t a vivid picture o f h im i n th is character i n hi s

treatment o f Nepos an Egyp t ian bi shop w ho
,

had promulgated certain chi l iastic heresies .

These views had a tt ained con siderable vogue

i n the neighbourhood o f Arsinoe S o when .
,

I w as at Arsi noe where as y o u know thi s

, , ,

doc t rine was aoat s o that schism s and apos

,

t as i e s o f whole C hurche s fol l owed 1 called the ,

presbyters and teachers o f the brethren i n the

vi l lages and exhorted them t o exam in e the
doctrine pub l ickly Whe n they had produced
.

thi s book o f Nepos as a kind o f armour and

i m p re n ab l e fo rt re s s I sa t with them fo r three

days g
,

ro m morn ing t ill eve ning attem pting to

refute what i t contain ed .

At lengt h hi s moderatio n and reasonableness

carried th e day .

H e rej oiced a t the modera t ion and concili

at o r
y spiri t displayed by all I t i s doubtful
.
,

h owever i f these quali tie s wo uld have been s o

,

promi ne nt if the ma t ter had been handled by a

Ter t ullian o r even a Stephen
,
.

H e was also which i s m o re s urpri sing an

, ,

acute critic o f th e Ne w Te s tament a higher ,

critic before h i s time The fragme nt o f hi s

.

critici sm that has survived concern s th e Apoca

ly p s e
. He tells u s that some had s e t aside
 The Tru ce , A D . . 2 60
3 3
0 3 3
0

the book a l together and attributed it to Ceri n

,

th us. D ionysius wou l d n o t rej ect it but ,

thought it shou l d be understood symbo l ica ll y

and fe l t that he did not himse l f possess the

key to the symbo l ism F o r though I do not
.

understand yet I suspect that som e deeper

,

sense i s enve l oped in the words ; but ,

a ll owi ng more to faith I have regarded them ,

as too l ofty to be comprehende d by me and ,

those things which I do not understand I do

n o t rej ect but I wonder the more that I canno t
,

understand .

H e was o r opinion that the author was Joh n ,

but not the John who wrote the E pist l e and

Gospe l he gives his reasons a ll of them sound , ,

though not necessari l y conc l usive H e ends .

his argument by saying T he attentive reader
wi ll n d the expressions the l ife the lig ht fre , , ,

quent l y occurring i n both ; i n both he wi l l

n d the expressions e ei ng fro m darkn ess the tru th , ,

g race
j y
,
o t
,
he e sh an d hl o o d o
f the L o rd the
j g
u d e ,

m en t
. And throughout it wi l l be obvious
t ha t there i s on e comp l exion and character in
the Gospel and E pist l e Very di fferent and .

remote from al l this is the Apocalypse .

H e remarks that John was a common name

and that many assumed th e name o u t o f devotion
to the Apost l e and that there were two monu
,

ments i n E phesus each bearing the name o f

,

John .

H e died A D 2 6 5 . . .
I

E b i H E vii 5
I
use u s, . . . 2 .
3 4
0 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

PA U L o r S A M O SA T A

Paul had succeeded D emetriu s as Bishop o f

Antioch about A D 2 6 0 He seem s t o have
. . .

bee n o f obscure birth but co n siderable tale n t s ,

and was n o t only bishop but a nancial o f cial

(p ro curato r de ce n ari us
) with a l arge salary H i s .

co nduct gave o ffence and caused scandal H e .

was accused of having amassed im me nse weal th

by b ribes and extortion o f being full o f pride ,

and osten t ati on wishi n g rather to be called
,

a ma is t rate than a bishop s t ru t ti ng through

the g
,

orum and reading letters and repeating

them as he walked i n public escorted by mul ,

t i t u de s
. I n ch urch he prepared him s elf a thro n e
and struck his thigh and stamped o n the oor
wi t h his feet and reproved and insul t ed t ho s e

w ho would n o t clap o r app l aud .

He was said to have stopped the hymn s that

were sung i n honour o f Jesus C hris t as recen t
composition s and prepared a ch oir o f women
,

to si ng hym n s i n his o wn honour a t Eas t e r .

H i s co nduc t i n ano t her respec t gave ri se to

scandal as two beau t iful women accom panied
,

him wherever he went By bribe s and threat s he

.

had every o n e i n his power Beside s all t his .

,

he was accused of the heresy o f A rte m as I t i s .

I

n o t qui te clear what Paul s heresy was but it had

,

t o do with the divi ni t y of C hrist H e en t er .

t ai n e d l o w and degrading no t ion s o f C hrist and ,

t augh t that H e was i n na t ure a com mon man .
2

E
u se b i H E vi i 3
u s, . . I bid 7
. 0.
2
.
,
2 .
 The Tru ce , A D . . 2 6 0-3 0 3 3 5
0

I n A D 2 6 5 a counci l was summ oned to deal

. .

with him I t was attended by F i rm ili an o f

.

Caesarea in Cappadocia Gregory Thauma t urgus ,

from Pontus H ymenaeus Bishop o f Jerusalem

, , ,

and many others D ionysius w as summoned but

.
,

cou l d not come on account o f age and in rmi t y .

T he council seems to have concerned itself

with h is doc t rinal rather than h i s moral i rre g u
l ari ti e s.Possib l y as i s often th e case t o -day
, ,

witnesses are s hy and moral charges very di f cu l t

,

o f proof The doctrinal charges were n o t much

.

e asier to substantiate Pau l was acute and subt l e.

,

and many questions about the person and nature

of Christ were not yet de ned At rst he could .

not be pinned down to any de nite l y h eretica l

statement M ore than one counci l w as held bu t
.
,

at l ast i n the reign of Aurelian the bishops took

, ,

with them a presbyter named M al chi o n who h ad ,

been at th e head of the Sophi st Greek Schoo l at

Athens I t w as a case of setting a sophist to ca t ch
.

a sophi st T his m an i ndeed was the only one

.
, ,

who after opening a discussion wi th him which

,

was taken down by severa l reporters was ab l e to

ferret out hi s cunning and deceitfu l sentiments .

Accordingly the council proceeded to depose

and excommunicate Pau l and appointed another ,

bishop in h is place by name D omnus T hi s , .

was A D 2 6 7 or 2 6 8 Pau l however refused

. . .
, ,

to submit ; he was supported by Z enobia and ,

remained in possession of the church and the

tempora l ities o f the s e e .

Z enobia the celebra t ed queen o f Palmyra and

,

2 R
3 0 6 Chu rch Hi sto ry fro m Nero to Co n stan ti n e

the East w as a remarkable woman Wi t h her

,
.

hu sband O de n at hu s she had driven back the

,

victoriou s Persians and O de n athu s was accepted

,

as a colleague by Gallienus After the death o f .

O de n athu s i n A D 2 6 7 Z enobia ruled alone and

. .
, ,

throwing o ff her allegiance t o Rome defeated the ,

Roman general w ho came again st her B u t i n .

A D
~
. . 272 th e Emperor Aurelian defeated h er
armies shut her u p i n Palmyra and took her
, ,

prisoner O ne o f the b y -products o f his vic t ory

.

was that the C hurch appealed to h i m to recover

the ecclesia stical buildings o f An t ioch from Paul .

Au relian d ecided that the bishop who was i n

communion with the Bishops o f Rome an d I taly
was the rightful possessor o f th e churc h which ,

was accordingly handed over to D om nus Thi s .

i s th e rs t i nstance o f an appeal being made to

the secular arm I t i s a shock t o n d it made to
.

a heathe n em peror at a ti me when Christianity

,

was ra t her con nived a t tha n permi t ted Bu t as .

long as th e C h urch h olds pro perty i t can n ot

entirely escape State control and i n the course of ,

e x ercisi ng t hat con t rol th e S t ate will som e t imes

be fo rced to de ne the faith o r lay down term s
o f com munio n I f i n any given case th e price
.

is to o h igh the C hurch m us t fo rgo its claim to

t he prope rty i n di s pute .

G R E G O R Y T H A U M AT U R G U S
The episcopate o f Theodorus o r G regory after ,

wards named T haumaturgus or the Worker of ,

 The Tru ce , A D . . 2 60 3 0 3 3 7
0

Wonders throws som e l ight on the work of a

,

missionary bishop in a remote and uncivili z ed

region Gregory was born A D 2 1 0 and whi l e
. . .
,

sti l l quite young spent ve years wi th hi s b rother

Ath e n o do ru s as the pupil o f Origen at Cae s area ,

o f which he has left an interesting accoun t H is .

biographer and relative Gregory of Nyssa wri t ing

, ,

about a hundred years afterwards asserts that he ,

spen t some time studying i n Alexandria b u t he

may have studied there wh ile under Origen s

direction .

Somewhere about A D 2 40 Gregory re t u rned

. .

t o Neocaesarea i n the east o f Po n tus his n ative

, ,

city and became as Eusebius t ells u s one of the

, , ,

mos t famous bishops of his age U nfor t unately .

the biography o f Gregory o f Nyssa belongs to

the order of ecclesiastical romances and is a l most ,

con ned to ta l es o f the marve l lous But enough .

may be gl eaned to give some va l uable and inter

esting information .

Before he wou l d consent to be ordained h e

desired time for meditation during which he i s ,

said to have had a vision in which S John was ,

.

told by the M other of our Lord to dec l are to

him the mystery of the F ai t h Thi s declaration .

became t he founda t ion o f his preaching and h is ,

biographer tells u s t hat those who wi sh to be

reassured may refer to t he origina l written down ,

and preserved i n the writing o f tha t ble s sed
hand in the actual church at Neocaesarea i n
,

which he pre ached T h e creed a ll uded to i n thi s

.

story may have been Gregory s but the story o f

,
3 0 8 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Nero to Co n stan ti n e

how it came to hi s knowledge a l most certainly

belongs to a later date F o r one thing far to o
.
,

authori tative a positio n is iven to M ary .

Of hi s adminis t ra t ion 0 h is s e e we know li t tle ,

but can infer a good deal H e seem s t o have .

swept i n the h ea t hen e n m ass e We are t old tha t .

shortly before hi s death A D 2 7 0 th ere were only

, . .
,

seven teen heathen left whereas h e only found

,

seventeen C hristia n s when he cam e The country .

round Neocaesarea was cer t ainly very heathe n

whe n he arrived there Th e ci t y and cou n t ry
.

a l ike were fu l l o f idols and t em ple s ; the whole

natio n was devoted t o heathenism and given over
to an i nsane worship which s t ain ed t heir alta rs

with i mpuritie s and abom i nations .

H i s biographer attribu t e s h is s ucces s t o hi s

miracles O ne may be permi t ted perhaps to
.
, ,

at t ribu t e his mirac l e s i n a great meas u re to his

s uccess . Li ke Aidan he i s credited wi t h the gift
,

o f second sigh t At the begin ning o f h is minis t ry

.

the re was a grea t h eathen festival at Neocae sa rea

the t heatre was crammed and fresh crowds came ,

flocking i n from the country all praying wi t h o n e ,

accor d ,
Z eus m ake room for u s
,
Whe n .

Gregory heard this reiterated p rayer h e exclai med

Y o u shal l have m ore room than y o u pray for

o r have ever kn own .Al most i m mediately t h e
plague broke out with devastati ng re s ul ts I t .

may have bee n already o n som e o f t he s pec t a t ors ,

and if so th e i n fection would have been spread by

the crowd I n any case Gregory s reputatio n seem s
.

t o have been made an d conversions began

,
.
 The Tru ce , A D . . 2 60 3 0 3 3 0 9

On a l ater occasion during the D ecian per

,

s e cu t i o n he foresaw the torture an d death of a

,

martyr a nd to l d his deacon w ho wou l d not

, ,

be l ieve unti l he had gone to the spot and veri ed

the account .

Among his o t her wonders he is said to have

dried up a l ake which was a matter of contention
be t ween two bro t hers diverted the course o f the
,

Lycus which had overrun and devastated fertile

,

an d inhabited country exercised supernatura l

,

powers over demons moved a roc k without ,

touching it and worked many m irac l es o f hea l ing

,
.

Some o f the wonders appear far l ess incredibl e

now than t hey did twenty years ago for modern ,

science has been busy investigating admitted

facts such as cures by faith or suggestion which
, ,

appear to tran scend the h itherto known course

o f nature .

The more i mpossib l e wonders seem rather t o

show that Gregory was a m an o f vivid personality
who had an enormous i nuence over ignorant
peop l e I f he gained a great reputatio n as an
.

arbitrator i t is easy to understand t hat stories

were to l d of his signa l success in o n e case when

a l ake was i n dispute and th e stories grew until
he was credi t ed with drying up the l ake H e .

might even have threatened that G o d would dry

i t up The story of the diversion of t he course
.

o f th e Lycus reminds o n e o f Wilfrid w ho when

,

Bishop of the South Saxon s saved the i n habi t ants

from starving in time of drought by teaching
them to s h Gregory had studied mathematics
.
,
3 10 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

and conceivably the diversion was a feat of

en i neering m iraculous enough to th e pri mitive
su g
,

ere t s from the devastated regions .

One cla s s o f m iracles which impressed hi s

biographe r wi th his powers and would have ,

impressed most p e o l e un t il lately with the

extreme gullibili ty 0 his biographer i s that in ,

which h is powers as an e x orcist were di splayed .

To take an instance H e was o n o n e occasion .

driven by the weather to spend a night in a

heathen temple By hi s prayers t he demons
.

were exorcised s o that wh en the h eathe n priests

,

arrived i n the m orning their customary i n can t a

tion s were in e ffec t ive u ntil Gregory i n answer ,

to t h eir remonstrances gave them a parchment ,

with the words o n i t Gregory to Sa tan en t er
,
.

Thi s would on e i magines be regarded to day

,
-
,

by a large n umber o f people as a commonplace

manifestation o f spiritualism Gregory was ho s .

tile and in hi s pre s ence there co u ld be no mani

,

fe s tati o n s .

Gregory o f Nyssa give s a picture o f hi s work

which has t he air o f truth Whe n ever he arrived .

a t a place and only a few heard h is discourse

over-nigh t by dawn t he next morning a large
,

crowd would have collected The next m o rn i n

again t here would be outside his doors a cro wg
.

o f men with t heir wive s and children with o l d ,

people and those who s u ffered from demons or

ailments o f the body An d according to t h e .

need of each discriminating by the power of

,

the Spiri t he preached argued admoni shed

, , , ,
 a

The Tru ce , A D . . a6 o -0
3 3 3 1 1

taught or heal ed H e used to attract masses

,
.

to his preaching because sight corresponded

with hearing and through both the token s o f
,

th e divine power shone forth upon him F o r .

their hearing was overpowered by his words ,

1
and their eyes by his mirac l es o f healing .

Gregory s converts were possibly made to o

r apid l y and with to o l itt l e real conviction

,
.

Perhaps he tempered the word o f C hristian

discip l ine too tenderly to the shorn lambs o f
hi s fl ock We are to l d that as a wise concession
.

to those wh o had recent l y abandoned heathenism

festivals were instituted on t he anniversaries o f
martyrs to take the place o f t he heathen fes t ivals
to which th ey were accustomed and that this ,

concession was popu l ar and these festiva l s kept

with great re l o i ci n g s T h e principle o f c l aiming

the heathen fe s ti v al s l ike the heathen philosophy

,

for Christ was sound ; but human nature being

,

wha t it i s we may feel quite sure that an ignorant

race made very much the same devotions at
the C hristian festiva l s as they had done before
when they were heathen even if they troub l ed ,

to alter the names of those whose favour they

were supp l icating .

The D ecian persecution tried his ock sore l y .

I t raged in Pontus with especia l fury and s tress ,

is laid on the i nnumerable and exquisite forms o f

torture put in practise Gregory s poor converts .

behaved very much as o n e might expect they

wou l d have done but no worse When it broke
,
.

L if b y G r g ry f Ny s a
e, e o o s .
3 1 2 Chu rch Hi sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

o ut we are told i do l a t rou s worship had ceased ,

and the population was no m ina l ly C hristian .

T here was n o w a divi sion M ost seem to have .

been faithful though many sacri ced

,
The .

prisons were fu l l ho uses were empty and th e

, ,

deser t s and solitary places were crowded with

fugitives Neither age nor s e x w as spared
. .

Gregory advised flight and himself s e t t he ,

example .

I n A D 2 5 7 Gregory returned to Neocaesarea

. .
,

and i n A D 2 5 8 peace was res t ored to the Ch urch

. . .

B u t i t was short lived as it w as soon followed by

,

an invasion o f Goth s who ravaged Po ntus and,

Asia M i n or durin t he reign o f Gallienus An

authentic l ette r 5 0 m him
.

concerning those
who had ea t en things o ffered to idols and com
m i tt e d o ther sin s during the i ncursion of the
barbarians h as s urvived I t appears that som e .

C hristians had taken advantage o f the gen eral

confu sion to enrich themselves with the goods
of their fellow C hristians who we re fu g i ti t i v e s ;
-

others had forcibly detained escaped prisoners ;

and some had eve n j oined the army o f the
barbarian s Gregory in sists that all such mu st
.

be dealt wi t h by t he ecclesiastical discipli ne

appropria t e to their crimes There i s however .
, ,

n o rea s o n to infer as some writers have done

, ,

that t he n u mber o f s uc h backsliders was large ,

o r t hat t h ere was a general collapse of C hri s tian

fai th and morals .

Gregory was present with his b ro t her Athe

n o do ru s at the council which me t at Antioch
 The Tru ce , l m e
. 2 6 0-3 0 3 3 3
1

i n A D 2 6 4 to j udge Paul o f S am o s ata T here

. . .

was a Theodo rus present at the council which

me t in A D 2 6 9 and thi s Theodorus may pos
. .
,
s ib l be Gregory Before he died he exp essed
y . r

great anxiety for the conversion of the seven

teen heathe n who remained i n his diocese and ,

ordered that no l and should be bough t for h i s

grave s o that as he had owned no proper ty in
, ,

l ife he might not o wn any when dead H e

, .

was buried i n the church o f Neocaesa rea which

he had built .

G R E G O RY T HE I LL U M I N A T O R
Nowhe re was grow t h more rapid than in
Arme n ia t he name given to that mountai nous
,

re ion lying be t ween Persia an d Asia M inor Our

in g
.

o rm ati o n is scan t y but it seem s certain that ,

when Gregory t he I l luminator rst went there

the king Ti ri date s (who reigned A D 2 6 1
,
. .

was decided l y hostile and t h e Armenian Chri s ,

tians very few B ut whe n the great persecution

.

took place n o t later than A D 3 0 9 we read that

,
. .
,

M aximin was forced to carry o n a re l igious w ar

against the Armenian king to compel him to ,

pe rsecute his C hristian subj ec t s which he was ,

unwilling to do T his is t he rs t war i n

.
I

h istory i n which t he Christian religion is directly

concerned .

Gregory the principal agent in this conversion

,

o f a who l e peop l e had been brought up in the

,

E b i H E ix 8 u se u s, . . .
,
2 .

2 S
3 4
1 Chu rch Hi sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

Cappadocian Caesarea his o n t he execution o f

parents and all h i s relatives who were people of ,

h igh rank i n Armenia H e was educated as a .

C hristian m arried and had two children o n e O f

, , ,

whom succeeded hi m as Catho l icos o f Armenia ,

but was separated by con sen t fro m h is wife and ,

the n came to the court o f T i ri date s w ho i s said ,

to have con ned him i n a dungeon for twelve

years We may take it t hat he w as at rst
.

unfrie ndly Later o n he became a C hristian

.
,

and hi s people followed him T his i s the rs t .

i nstance o n record of a whole na t ion becoming

o f cially C hristian The Ch urch was e ndowed .

as well as established and the tem ple property ,

was made over to the C hurch Gregory was .

e s corted by a re t inue o f nobles to Caesarea in

Cappadocia where h e was consecrated Cat ho
,

licos o f Arm enia by L e o n ti u s T hi s was A D

2 85
. . .

29O . H e built hi s cathedral at As chti s chat

I
,

not far west o f Lake Van A s chti s chat had been .

the pri ncipal seat o f t he Persian re wor s hip

-
,

wh ic h had bee n i mported into Armenia .

2

Gregory i s said to h ave cons ecrated twelve

s u ffragan s an d was succeeded by his s o n Aris
,

takes . Th e o ffi ce seem s afterwards to have

becom e hereditary an d remai ned s o for a consider
able period He was no t presen t at t he Council
.

of Nicaea A D 3 2 5 and Profe s sor H arn ack says

,
. .
,

that h e was dead but h e is reported to have ,

retired to lead a solitary life i n the wilderness

H ar a k E p a i of Ch i ti a i ty i i
n c , 3x ns on r s n , . 20 .

2
I bid 3 .
,
02 .
 The Tru ce , A D
. .

2 6 0 3 03 3 5
1

after consecrating his son as his successor and ,

this account seems probab l e enough .

M A NE S A ND M A NI C H E E I S M

M anes was born abou t A D 2 40 at Ctesiphon . .

,

and seems t o have derived his doctrines from

Gnostic Buddhist and C hristian sources
, ,
He .

c l aimed to be th e Parac l ete promised by C hrist ,

and l ike C hrist was accompanied by twe l ve

discip l es After extensive trave l s he settled i n
.

Persia taught under Sapor and was nall y put

to death by o n e of his successors A D 2 7 2 2 7 4
, ,

. . .
,

E usebius writing fty years l ater says that hi s

, ,

doctri nes had spread i n Pa l estine l ike a dead l y

pestilence S Augustine as he te ll s us i n hi s
. .
,

Co nf m i o n s was for some ti me a M anichee and

, ,

i t is evident that the teachers of the M an i che e an

tenets were numerous and in fl uentia l in Africa
in his time .

M a n es seems t o have tau g h t a Gno s tic dualism ,

man O wing his body to t he powers of darkness ,

and his soul to the Spirit of Light All matter .

is the body therefore inc l uding the body was

,

evi l I n organi z ing his society h e borrowed from

.

the C hurch At the head were twe l ve apostles

.
,

with a thirteenth person as president the rst ,

being M anes himself Be l ow there was a hier .

archy of bishops presbyters deacons and trave l

, , ,

l ing missionaries H i s fol l owers were divided

.

into H earers consisting o f the main body o f

,

adherents and the Perfect or the inner circ l e

, .
316 Chu rch H i sto ry o rn Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

The H e arers had among their o t her du t ies to

, ,

supply t he Perfect with t he n ece s sar ies o f l i fe .

The Perfec t led l ive s o f ex t reme asce t icism .

They owned n o proper ty nei t he r d ra n k wine ,

nor a t e meat They did n o wo rk bu t we re

.
,

occupied entirely i n religious con t em plation .

They were forbidde n to de s troy life and could ,

only ea t fruit an d vege tables if ga t hered by some

o n e else S Au gus t in e say s t ha t a M an i che e an
. .

s ai n t m igh t only eat a i f some o n e else had

g
com mi tt ed t he s i n o f plucking it They kept .

S u nday as a fa s t day bap t ized with O il in s t ead o f

,

wa t er an d celebrated the Comm u nio n bu t wi t h

, ,

wate r i ns t ead o f wine .

D iocletian issued a dec ree again s t t hem A D . .

2 8 7 addre s sed to t he proco n s u l o f A frica whe re

, ,

M an i che e i s m was especial ly s t ro n g t hen an d ,

afterwards However u p to t he e n d O f t he
.
,

period wi t h which we are im media t ely concerned

it d oes not s eem to have come i n t o co n fl ict with
t he C h u rch to any se riou s e xt e n t .

A g C 2
iii 1 u .
,
on . . 0.
 X VI

TH E F I NAL STR U GGLE

A D -
. .
3 3 3
0 1 3

ORT Y T H RE E years o f peace e n abled t he
F Church to grow in numbers in in fl uence , ,

and in b u i ldi n s bu t re l axed i ts moral s and left

,

it ill prepared or the last an d e rcest pe rsecution

-

i t ever had to face .

C hri s t ians were found in h igh positions in the

i mpe rial service some were even governors o f
,

provinces and the rulers o f t he C hu rch were

,

courted and honoured

W h o could desc ribe .

those huge congrega t ion s which gathered i n every

city and the distinguished crowds in the churches
On whose account not content wi t h t he ancient
,

buildings they erected spaciou s churches i n all

,
I
the ci ti e s . No wonder if some o f t hose w ho
crowded i n were unworthy and if t he heads o f ,

others were t urned By reason O f exce s sive
.

liber t y we san k in t o negligence and slo t h ; we

envied an d reviled o n e another and were almost ,

taking ar m s agains t each o t her prelates inveigh ,

ing agains t prelates and people rising up against

,

peop l e
.
2

D iocletian was the s o n o f D almatian slave s .

E b i H 8 vi ii 1
u se u s, I bi d . . . .
2
.

3 7 1
318 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

He entered the Army a nd ro se to the position of

comman der of the guard i n the army of th e E ast .

When Nu m e ri an died at o r near C halcedon o n

his re t urn from a successful Persian cam paign ,

D iocletian was chose n emperor by the so l diers .

O f a l l his predecessors h e most resemb l ed Augus

t us H e reo rga n ized the E mpire though n o t
.
,

always wi t h the happiest results an d gave i t a ,

new lease o f life H e was pruden t po l i t ic and

.
, ,

more o f a statesman than a soldier S O far as .

we can j udge he was a believing paga n with a

s pecial devotio n to Jupiter as t h e patro n o f his
fortunes and t o Aesculapi u s as th e guardian o f
,

his hea l th he was a believer in soothsaying and

d ivina t ion of many kinds I n A D 2 8 6 he associ . . .

ated another soldier o f for t une a rude and savage ,

peasan t ca l led M ax i m i an with himsel f i n the ,

govern ment of the Empi re both having the ,

ti tl e o f Augus t u s I n A D 2 93 h e added t w o
. . .

subordinate e mperors o r Caesars Con stantius

fo r Gaul Spai n and Britain and G al e ri u s fo r
, , ,

I llyricum ; while h e hi mself retai ned Thrace ,

Egyp t an d A sia and M ax i m i an I taly a nd Africa

, ,
.

H e xed his o w n capi t al at Nicomedia .

F o r many yea rs D i ocletian was ve ry fully

occu pied i n reorga n izing the E mpire and i n
defe nding his frontiers The Per s i an War which .
,

began A D 2 96 wi t h t he defeat o f Gal e ri u s was

. .
,

ended by t he comple t e over t hrow O f Narses the ,

Persian king i n the following year D iocletian

,
.

was n o w for t he rst t ime at lei sure to cope with

the C hristians H itherto h e had let them be
. .
 The F i n al Strugg le, A LI) . 0
3 3 3 3
1 3 1 9

He could not have done any t hing else T O .

destroy t he C h u rch was a much more formidable

task than it had been for D eci us and Val erian ,

and D ecius and Va l erian had fai l ed E ven after .

the termination of the Persian campaign and the

success wh ich attended him everywhere h e may
we ll have hesitated .

M ax i m i an and G al e ri u s hated the C h ristians .

G al e ri u s according to L actan ti u s was egged on

, ,

by his mother who had conceived an i l l will
,
-

again st Christian s because they would not take

part in her sacri ces and whi l e s he feasted with
,

the Gentiles they conti nued in fasting and prayer .

G al e ri u s i s described by the same writer as of
fu ll stature fat and swo ll en to a horrible degree
of corpu l ence by h is speech voice and gestures , ,

a terror to a ll who come n ear T h e weight of .

the soothsayers and Ne o p lato n i s ts like H i e ro cl e s ,

the author and advi ser of the persecution was ,

thrown into th e same s cal e A foretaste O f wha t

.
I

was to happen had been given i n th e E ast a year

o r two before the persecution broke ou t An .

examination of some sacri cial victim s proved

unsatisfactory and the soothsayers attributed
,

th eir failure to the Christians present at the

sacri ce who had made th e s ign o f the Cross .

D ioc l etian i n a rage ordered every o n e i n the

pa l ace at the time to sacri ce or if they refused , , ,

to be scourged H e also ordered t ha t a ll so l diers

.

should sacri ce or l eave the Army T his seems .

to have been i n th e autum n A D 3 0 2 . . .

I
L a ta t i
c n O the Death of th P r
u s, n t r xvi e e secu o s , .
3 2 0 Church H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

L actan ti u s say s t hat he had long wi t hs t ood t he

pe rs ecu t i ng zea l o f G al e ri u s bu t at length gave ,

way .

H i s hesi t a t ion m ay have been due t o
doub t s abou t the succes s o f policy n o t abou t ,

i ts es s e n tial appropria t ene s s The persec u t io n .

when i t came w as evide n tly a deliberately an d

care fu lly lan n e d a t temp t at th e complete a n n i
hi l ati o n o f C h ristianity .

The per s ecution began with t he demoli t io n o f

the g reat c hurch a t Ni co m e di a w h e re the empe ro rs ,

we re s tay i n Nex t day F ebruary 2 4 A D 3 0 3

2

t he edic t o fpe rs ecu t io n was pub l i s hed By this

.
,
.
.
, ,

edict all churches were to be demolished 3 all

sac red w riti n g s burnt ; t he h igher m ini s ter s o f
s t ate if C hri stian to be outlawed and sub
, , ,

o rdina t e o f cials being Christians to be reduced

, ,

to slavery Gal e ri u s wished t o burn all w ho

.

r efu s ed to sacri ce b ut to thi s D iocletia n would

,

n o t con s en t The edict was t aken down and

.

t orn to pieces by a C hristian o f rank said by ,

o n e t radi t io n t o be S George w ho s u f fered t he

.
,

n a t u ral conseque nce s o f t hi s daring ac t 4 .

The pe rsec u tion wen t far beyond the let t e r o f

t he edict from the rst Two ou t break s o f re .

a t the imperial palace in Ni co m e dia a tt ribu t ed by ,

G al e ri u s to t h e C hristian s and by L actan ti u s t o ,

G al e ri u s b rou ht about a holocaust o f vic t im s

O ne example go m E usebius will be eno u gh I t
.
,

is an acco un t o f t he death O f Peter a palace ,

L a ta t i
2
c O th D e ath of th Pe r e t r
n u s, n e e s cu o s, x .

I b i d xii
2
.
,
I b i d xi i i
.
3 .
,
.

E b i H E viii 5
4 u se u s, . . . .
 The F i n al Strugg le , A D . . 0 -
3 3 3 1 3 3 2 1

domestic . H e was led i n t o the middle of
the aforesaid city before those emperors a l ready
mentioned H e was then commanded to sacri
.

ce but as he refused he was ordered to be raised

,

i n mid -air and scourged a ll over his naked body

unti l he wou l d O bey As he w as immovable amid .

a l l these s u fferings hi s bones already appearing,

bared O f the esh they mixed vinegar with salt ,

and poured it upon the ma n g l ed parts o f his

body But as he bore these tortures a gridiron
.
, ,

and re was produced and the rem nants o f his ,

body like pieces of meat for roasting and eating

, ,

were pl aced i n the re not at once s o tha t he ,

might expire but l itt l e by l itt l e H e however

,
.
, ,

persevered i n his purpose and gave up hi s life ,

I
victorious i n the midst of h is torture s .

The demand fo r the Scriptures led to some

divi sion among C hristians I t was generally .

agreed that canonical wri t ings m ust n o t be

given up Those who refused to surrende r
.

them were executed but the magistrates were ,

not particular as a rule abou t what books

, ,

were given up as long as some were handed,

over M e n s u ri u s of Carthage ll ed h i s church

.

library with heretical works which were burn t ,

in stead o f t he Scriptures Others adopted a .

stricter line F elix a bishop near by refused

.
, ,

to give up any books at al l H ahe o se d n o n do ,

he repeated I t is better for me to be burnt
.

than the Scriptures An u l i n u s the proconsul
.
, ,

said Why don t y o u surrender some worthless

,

H E viii 6 . . . .

2 T
3 2 2 Chu rch Hi sto ry f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

books No I will n o t give them up was

, ,

his reply .

A second edic t followed orde ri ng t he imp rison ,

ment O f t he c l ergy Th e prisons were i n co n .

,

sequence so lled with bishops presbyters and

, , ,

deacon s readers a n d exorcists that we are told

, , , ,

there was no r oom left fo r cri minals .

T he second edict was succeeded by a t hird ,

which al l owed prisoners to be liberated o n condi

tion of sacri cing but ordered t h em to be ,

tortured if they refused .

As i n the D ecian persecution there we re at ,

rs t many apostates Eusebius a co ntemporary

.
,

O f these eve n t s tells us t hat vast numbers

,

e ndured the most appal l ing trials but many ,

gave way Roman us a deacon o f the C hurch o f

.
,

C aesarea was at Antioch whe n the church es were

,

demoli s hed and s aw men women and ch ildren

, , ,

approaching the idols i n mas s e s i n order to

sacri ce H e w as moved to reb uke them w as
.
,

seized had h is to n gue cut o u t and died

, ,
.

I t i s al so clear that the Roman o i ci al s n o

longer had much s t omach fo r the work We read .

O f me n being dragged t o th e altar by force and ,

allowed t o go as though they had s acri ced ; ,

t hose w ho p rotes t ed we re fo rced to silence ,

by soldiers s t a t io n ed there for the pu rpose by ,

whom they we re s t r uck and viole ntly driven

away .

D iocletian was incapacitated by sickness

t hroughout A D 3 0 4 M ax i m i an took advantage
. . .

o f his absence to issue a new edic t ordering ,

 The Fi n al S trugg le, A D . .
3 3
0 3 1 3 2
3 3

that al l persons of every city shou l d sacri ce and ,

I
m ake l ibations to the o ds T h e pena l ty of
g .

refusa l was torture and death F o r th e account .

of what fo ll owed we are main l y indebted to

E usebius ; it is con ned pri ncipal ly to E gypt ,

Pa l estine and Syria
,
I n E gypt thousands .
,

men women and chi l dren submitted t o death in

, , ,

Various shapes Some after being tor t ured wi th

.
,

scrapings and the rac k and the most dreadful ,

scourgings and other innumerable agonies were ,

na l ly com mitted to the ames Some were .

cruci ed as crimi nals usually were ; others were

nai l ed with the head downwards and kept a l ive ,

unti l they were destroyed by starving on the ,

cross itse l f .
2

I n T hb ai s as many as a hundred men with

their wives and childre n were s l ain i n one day .

We ourselves have observed when on the spot

many crowded together i n one day som e su ffer ,

ing decapi t ation some b u rning s o tha t the

, ,

weapon was complete l y blunted and having lost ,

its edge broke to pieces and the executioners

, ,

themselves wearied wi t h s l aughter were ob l iged

, ,

to re l ieve one another Then also we were .

, ,

witnesses to the ardour o f those that be l ieved .

As soon as the sentence was pronounced agains t

the rst othe rs rushed forward to the j u dge at
,

the tribuna l and co n fessed t hat th ey were

,

C hristians . T hey received th e sentence of death

with g l adness and exultation s o far as even to ,

2
E b i s O th M arty r f Pal ti iii
u se u ,
n e s o es n e,

H E vii i 8
.

2
. . . .
3 4
2 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

sing and send up hymns of praise and than ks

giving u ntil they breathed their last .
I

T h e victim s i ncluded P h il o ro m u s a high ,

o f cia l in the imperia l service i n A l exandria an d ,

Ph ileas a bis hop di s t inguished for his conduct

,

and the service s re n dered to h i s country as we l l ,

as i n the di fferent branches of ph ilosophy .

At D amascus certain women o f the town were

co mpelled under threat o f torture t o declare that

they had once been Christian s and t ha t they ,

were privy to t he c riminal acts among them ;

that in their very ch urche s t hey commi t ted l i ce n
tiou s deeds an d i nnumerable o t her slanders
,

which he ma d e them ut t er against o u r religi on .
2

T his declara t ion the em peror had published

abroad .

I n Phrygia th e mos t appalling ou t rage was

perpe t rated Soldiers surrounded a certain
.

C hristian town toge t her with the garri son and

, , ,

h urling re in t o it burn t t hem t ogether wi t h ,

women and children calling upon C hris t th e ,

G o d o f all And t his because all th e i nhab itan ts

.

of the tow n together with th e town clerk and

,

the gover n or with all t he magistrates o f ra n k

,

an d the i n habi t an t s o f the surrounding country ,

confessed t hemselves C h ri s t ian s an d would n o t

s acri ce 3 . The town was E u m e n e a and t h e ,

story i s corrobora t ed by the discoverie s o f Sir

Wil l iam Ram s ay 4 .

I n Arabia C hris t ian s were slain with the axe ;

2
E b i H E viii 9
u se u s, I b i d ix 5
. . . I b i d vii i I
.
2
.
, . .
3 .
,
. I .

i i i h i i
p of

C 4
t a d B h es P n
yg i a 5 5 5
s 8
o s r , ,
0 0 .
 The Fi n al S trugg l e , o m) .

3 3 3 3
0 1 3 2
5

some had their limbs fractured as i n Cappa ,

docia ; some were hung up by the feet and

su ffocated with the ascending smoke of a slow
re as in M esopotamia ; som e were m uti l ated
,

by having their noses ears and hands cut o ff and , ,

the rest o f their l imbs and parts of their bodies

cut to pieces as i n M esopotamia ,
.
I

At Antioch they were roasted o n grates over

s l ow res I n Pontus some had their ngers
.

pierced with sharp reeds thrust under the nai l s .

Others had masses o f boiling l ead poured down

th eir necks .

I n M ay A D 3 0 5 the tw o Augusti D io cletian

, . .
, ,

and M ax i m i an abdicated I f we may believe , .

L act an ti u s they did so re l uc t antly under pressure

,

from Gale ri u s D ioc l e t ian retired to Sa l ona i n

.

D a l ma t ia and occupied himself with building

, ,

planting and gardening Gibbon relates that

,
.
,

when pressed by M ax e n ti u s to resume the pu rp l e ,

h e rep l ied that if he could show M ax i m i an the

cabbages which h e had planted with hi s own hand

he should no l onger be u rged to relinquish the
en j oyment of happiness for the pursuit o f

power .

The abdica t ion was fo l lowed by a long period

of civil war Gal e ri u s and Constantius becam e
.

Augusti and Severus and D aza afterwards ca l led

, ,

M aximin were made Caesars

,
T o M aximin .

D aza was given th e char e o f E gyp t an d Syria ;

Severus had I ta l y and A rica Constantius ruled
Britain Gau l and Spain ; w h ile G al e ri u s r e
, ,

E b i H E vii i 1 u se u s, . . . 2 .
3 2 6 Church H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

ser ved for himself the countrie s betwee n I taly

a nd Syria .

T h e arrangemen t was soon upset C onstantius .

died at Y ork i n A D 3 0 6 and was s ucceeded in

. .
, ,

spite o f G al e ri u s by h is son Co nstan tin e I n the

,
.

same year the Romans revolted from Severus ;

and M ax e n t i u s son o f th e ex-em peror M ax i m i an
, ,

with t he assis t ance o f hi s father brought about ,

th e downfa l l an d death o f Severus and s e t

himself up as Lord of I taly and Africa .

These changes had their e ffec t o n the p e rs e cu

tion s T hey had ceased altoge ther i n Spai n Gaul
.
, ,

and Britain whe n Co n stantiu s becam e A u gu s t u s .

And though t o quote Gibbon h e was a ty rant

, ,

as contemptible as h e was odiou s M ax e n t i u s ,

a l lowed them to die out i n I taly and Africa .

Licinius w ho had been given I l lyria was n o t an

, ,

active persecutor and G al e ri u s h i mself seem s to

,

have tired o f this work B ut M aximi n D aza i n .

,

Egypt an d Syria carried o n the persecutio n with

,

the enthusias m o f a neophy t e L actan t i u s say s .

that h e had been tending ca t tle no t long before

hi s elevation and calls h im a person ign oran t
,

ali ke o f war and of civil a ffairs Eusebius w ho ,

had every reaso n for thin king ill o f h im says ,

tha t h e was devo t ed to the pagan gods and ,

had t emple s built fo r th e m i n every city and ,

would unde rt ake n othing without soothsayers

and oracles ; tha t he was a drunkard and ,
:

indulged in every sort o f d is s ipation an d was ,

distinguished fo r hi s innumerable adulteries .

However that may b e and h is acts bear out the ,

 The Fi n al Strugg le , A D . . 0
3 3 3 3
1 3 7
2

descri p t ion h e was both shrewd and energetic

, ,

and perhaps the most formidable persecutor the

C hurch has ever had .

E usebius has l eft a graphic account of h i s

doings in Pa l estine and E gyp t T here i s n o .

reason to doubt its veracity I t would be on l y .

natura l if it were high l y co l oured in places but it ,

is probab l y a case where the co l ours of nature are

vivid enough T h e intenti on as i n ear l ier perse
.
,

cu t i o n s
, w as to produce apostates not martyrs ,

and as compared with former persecution s th is

i ntention was carried o u t with far more l ogic and
perseverance Be fore Christians were torture d
.

as part of the regu l ar proceedings to make them

recant as s l aves w ere tortured to make them
,

confess i n order to overcome thei r obs t inacy

,
.

Whe n it was clear that they intended to remain

obstinate they were pu t to death usua l ly i n som e ,

pai nful manner But now the torture was much

.

more pro l onged Whether death was fe l t to be

.

so ligh t a punishment as t o be use l e s s o r they ,

thought that the stoutes t would break down

under torture if on l y the torture were su f ciently
prolonged we do not know Those whom we
,
.

read of as being sentenced t o death sum marily

are for the most part those who had made
t hemselves con spicuous Ap p h i an u s for ins t ance
.
, ,

o n the day when every o n e i n Caesarea was

crowding to sacri ce in obedience t o the edict ,

crept up behind U rbanus the governor as he , ,

was O fferi ng an d seizing hi s right hand exhor t ed

, , ,

him to desist H e was scourged racked his

.
, ,
3 2 8 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

sides were scraped h e was bea t en o n the face and ,

neck u ntil unrecognizable his fee t were wrapped ,

i n linen bandage s steeped i n O il and then lighted ,

before he was throw n into the s e a and drowned .

H i s brother A e de s i u s met very m uch the same

, ,

fate a t Alexandria When he s aw the j udge .

at Al exandria co ndem ning the C hri stian s there

and going beyond all bounds sometimes i nsult ,

i ng grave and decen t men an d women i n various

ways some t i mes co n s rg m n g V i rtuous women
,

an d co n secrated virgi n s to h ouses o f ill fame ,

he tried to do what hi s brother had done and ,

with his words and acts covered the j udge with

shame The results also fo r h imse l f were no t
.
I

dissimilar .

A t Cae s a rea Theodosia app roached some co n

fe s s o r s arraigned before the j udgeme n t -s eat and
, ,

spoke t o t hem T he j u dg e seems to have regarded .

t his as a provocation He had her t ortured .

with dreadfu l and horri c cruelties furrowing ,

her side s and breast s with i nstru ments to t he very

bones and while ye t breathing and showi n g a
, ,

seren e and cheerful cou ntenance had her t h rown ,

i n t o t he s e a B ut the others were only co n
.

d e m n e d to the mines a t P ho e n o i n Palestine .

B u t o n e D o m n i n u s w ho had m ad e him s elf

, ,

known by his boldnes s was condem ned to be ,

burned Others h e made eunuchs and co n
.

d e m n e d to the mines ; others after dreadful

torture he cast i nto prison P am p hi l u s a .
,

friend o f Eusebius a l earned philosopher was , ,

E b i Th M arty r ofPale ti v
1
u se u s, e s s ne , .
 The F i n al S trugg le , A D . .
3 3
0 3 1 3 3 2
9

tortured with especial malignity and then cast

I nto pr i son .

The intention seem s to be to torture and n o t

to kil l I n the year A D 3 0 8 mutilation was
. . .

substituted for capita l puni s hment E usebiu s .

states that O f a vast number o f t he confessors

of the true re l igion con ned in the porphyry
,

quarry ninety seven men women and chi l dren , ,

were sent to the Governor o f Palestine and had

th e ank l es and sinews of their l eft legs scarred
with a hot iron Besides this they had their
.

righ t eyes cut out T hey were the n committed

.

to the mines i n Pa l estine to drag out a miserable

existence in cons t ant and oppressive toi l .

Late i n the year A D 3 0 8 a new edict appeared

. .

orderi ng the m agistrates i n every city to re store

the decayed templ es ; to compel men women , ,

domestics and even infants at the breast to

,

sacri ce and to cause al l food o ffered fo r sale

,

i n t he markets t o be d e l e d with l i b at i o n s At .
I

Caesarea the bodie s o f mar t yrs were forbidden

buria l. Beasts an d dogs and birds o f prey
scattered the human l imbs in a l l directions ;
and the whole city was spread with the entrails
and bones o f men so that those w h o had been
,

most opposed to us were ou t raged not from ,

an y love o f the mar t yrs but because o f the ,

nuisance to themselves We also read tha t .

some E gyptians who had trave ll ed to Cilicia to

mi nister to their brethren i n the mines and ,

were o n their way home were detected tortured , , ,

E b i Th M arty r f Pal ti ; ix
2
u se u s, e s o es ne .

2 U
33 0 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

an d burnt as were others shor tly a fte rwa rds fo r

,

the same o ffe n ce .

I

I n Apri l A D 3 1 I an Edict o f Tolera t ion was

,
. .
,

i ssued i n the names o f G al e ri u s Constantine and , ,

Licin ius M a x imi n s n am e may h ave appeared

.

i n the origi nal document and been erased after

his fa l l I t an nounced that as persecution h ad
.

fai l ed
i t h as bee n impossible to induce th em
to abandon their obstinate way o f life -in

order t hat men s l ives should n o longer be put
i n peri l the persecu t ion wa s to cease Prisoners
, .

were released and convicts in th e m ines allowed

,

t o g o home Joyous and cheerful they p ro
.

ce e d e d through every city Num erous bod ies .

pursued their j ourney through the public high

ways and markets ce l ebrati ng the praise s o f ,

G o d i n songs and psa l m s Even their enemies .

congratu l ated the m o n t hei r release .

M axim i n was n o w emperor in the East and ,

did n o t issue the edict though h e gave orders ,

fo r persecu t ion to cease ; but before the en d o f

the year a fres h persecu t ion began o n new l ines .

Beginning with Antioch h e stirred up the mu nici ,

p al i t i es to send delegates to hi m aski ng h i s

permission to expel all Ch ristia ns This was .

graciously give n F urther he took step s to

.
,

revive paganism by appoi nting a priesthood .

I n every city priests we re appoin ted fo r the

i mages with high priests over them by M aximin
, ,

himself from among th e m ore distinguished

,

inhabitan t s S O -cal led Acts o f Pilate were forged

.

1
E bi Th M arty r f Tal ti
u se u s, xi e s o es n e, .
 The F i n al S truggle , A D
. . 0
3 3 3 4
1 33 1

and sent t hrough the who l e of the dominion s

subj ect to him T h ese were ordered to be
.

pub l ished broadcast and to be given to school

masters to hand to their pupi l s t o study and
com mit to writing as exercises for de cl am ati o n .
I

We are to l d that schoolboys had the name s
o f Jesus and Pi l ate and the forged Acts i n their

mouth s the whole day .
2

At T yre the letter o f M axi min in answe r to ,

the municipal pe t ition against the C hristian s ,

was engraved o n bron z e H e beg i ns by assum .

ing that Christian ity i s exp l oded H e co n .

gratulates them o n their renewed devo t ion to

the gods and pointed t o the ourishing crops
, ,

the exce l lence o f the season a nd the prevailing ,

peace a s a proof that t heir devo t ion had been

rewarded I t ends by ordering the restitution
.

of apostates and t he expulsion o f those who

remai n O bdurate Only the l eaders of the
.

C hurch seem to have been put to death .

Peter o f Alexandria and several other E gyptian

bishops and Lucian a learned presbyter of ,

Antioch were among the s l ain

, .

But t he end was to come soon C ivil war .

broke o u t between th e emperors Con stantine .

and Licinius combined agains t M ax e n t i u s ruler ,

o f I ta l y and Africa C ons t anti ne who was a t

.
,

C olmar,
moved at once agains t M ax e n ti u s .

Somewhere after leaving Colmar he had hi s

, ,

vision o f the Cross I n October A D 3 1 2 .

,
. .
,

C on stantine defeated M ax e n t i u s at Saxa Rubra ,

E s bi s H 8 ix 5
u e u , Ibid 7
. . . .
2 .
, .
33 2 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

and entered Rom e wi th hi s vic t ori ous army .

M aximin o n heari ng the new s thought it

, ,

pruden t t o s t op hi s persecution and is sued ,

hi s o w n Edic t o f Tole ra t ion Tha t was before .

th e end of A D 3 1 2 I n Ja n uary o f the next

. . .

year Constantine met Licin ius at M ilan and ,

t oge t her they issued the Edict o f M ilan The .

edict i s lost but it seem s to h ave granted

,

u niversal toleration T hi s edict did n o t cover

.

the East Bu t M aximi n was defea t ed by Licinius

.

i n A D 3 1 3 and died Lici nius issued an edict

. . .

from Nicomedia i n J une A D 3 1 3 wh ich repeated

, . .
,

th e provi s ions O f t he Edic t O f M ilan and restored

their lands and buildings t o the C hu rch .

A similar rescript to An u l i n u s Procons ul o f ,

Africa ordered the restoration o f houses and

,

lands to the Catholic C hurch o f the C hri stian s ,

to the exclusion o f heretical bodie s .

The long s trugg l e was over and th e victory

was won The Galilea n had con q uered but at
.
,

a heavy cos t Si r William Ram say j udging by

.
,

the i nscrip t ion s fou nd i n s outh -west Ph rygia

belongi ng to the third cen t ury and th e sudde n
ness with whic h they break O ff thinks that the ,

C hurch and S t ate i n the Eas t never recovered

from the destruction of the e n ergetic an d p ro
re s s i v e elements i n th e popu l atio n wh ich took
g
place H e draw s a poignan t contrast between th e
.

ric h political and in t ellectual life o f C hris t ian s

o f the third century and the pa t he t ic silence
which succeeded There are also moral losses
.

to which Eusebiu s alludes bu t h e very honestly ,

 The Fi n al S truggle , 3 3
0 3 1 3 333

l e t s us know that it i s no part of hi s purpose to

en l arge on scanda l s I t is a travesty o f j ustice
.

on the part of Gibbon to accuse him of de l iber

ately concea l ing the truth We learn that many
.

unsuitab l e persons were ordained during th e

t roub l es t hat ambi t ious people asp i red to o f ce
, ,

and that quarre l s took p l ace among the co n fe s

sors After all this was inevitable T he C hurch
. .

was to a great ex t en t deprived o f i t s rulers and

, , ,

ecc l esias t ica l di scip l ine was re l axed and it must

,

have been very hard fo r those who had endured

m uch not to exhibi t some degree O f pride and
contempt in their attitud e to t hose who had
endured less as we l l as to those w ho had failed
,

a l together These quarrels were to bear their

.

evi l fruits when peace was estab l ished .

I t is not however proposed to carry o n this

history beyond the age o f persecu t ion That .

age form s a distinct epoch during which the

C hurch had to face tria l s and di f cu l ties of an
exceptiona ll y intim idating character though l ess
,

dangerou s to i ts spiritual welfare than the pa t ron

age O f the State and th e inu x o f horde s o f
unconverted barbarians afterwards proved to be .

T o thi s epoch the inquirer must turn who wishes

to know what th e C hurch was like an d for

what principles it s t ood when it was nearer to the

C hurch of the Ne w Testament i n i ts doc t rine
and its l ife than it has ever been sin ce When .

the age of persecution was over the Ne w T esta

men t condition s were altered . T h e C hurch
was no l onger despised and disregarded but ,
334 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

domi nan t and e nvied I ts danger was no long e r

.

i n the e nmity but i n t he friendsh ip o f the world .

There i s no such break i n the history of the

C hurch until we com e t o t he Reformation T he .

point therefore at which i t began to take e ffect

seem s to a fford an app ropriate term inus for this
work .
 B elo w i s a l i st o
f the chi e f m o de rn au tho ri ti e s
co n s u l te d

A n te - Ni c e n e C hr i t i a s n L i brary ,

e dit d e b y A Ro . b rte s an d

JDo n al dso n

An o n T h e W o r ks o f Ap u l e u s , tr an sl at e , p u l h e 1 8 5 3 b y
. .

i d b is d
H G B o hn . . .

B a t i f
f o l ,
P P ri rn i ti u e
. atho li c s m C i .

B e rw ck, E i P hi lo s tratu s Ap o llo n u s of Ty an a

.

~
i .

B n on,
e s E W yp
. r an C i . .

i
B gg, C C i i P
The hr st an lato n sts of A le x an ri a ,1 hi ey A n c e n t
. i d C i
Pi i C
h lo sop h es The hu rch s Tash u n e r the Ro m an mp re

d E i .

i
B r gh tm an , F E
T e rm s o f o m m u n o n
.

.
( i n T h e ar y C i E l
Hi
sto r
y of the h u rch an d the M n str )
y C i i .

C ab ro l , F , L e cl e rcq , H .
M o n u m en ta Eccles ae L tu rg ca, . i i i i .

C o n o ll , R
y H T h e S o -c all e
.
gy p
. t a n h u r ch r er

dE i C Od
( i n Te x ts an d Stu es, di v iii .

C o n y b e are , F C M o n u m e n ts of ar y hr st an ty E l C i i i
D u ch e n e , L
. . .

s 8 arly sto r . of the Hi

hu rch Li he r P o n ti cali s , y C
i
w th I n tro uct o n an d Co m me n tary d i .

F re r e , W H E O di . arly r n at o n S e r ce
.

( Jo u rn al o
f i vi s .

di xvi
The ologi cal Stu es, ar l
y F o rm s o f r na . E O di
it on,

ly Hi
( i n T h e E ar sto r of the Chu rch an d the M n str
y ) ii y
i
.

i d d
F r e l an e r, L -Ro m an L fe an d M an n e rs
id i
. .

F u n k, F X D ascal a e t Co n sti tu ti o n es Ap o sto lo ru m

. . .

G i bb i
o n , E Decl n e an d F all ofthe ? m an
.
Q m re
p E i .

G i bs is
o n , M s M argar e t Du n l o
p
D ascal a A o s to lo ru m , t r an s
p id i
G o re , C
. .

C The hu rch an d the M n stry

. n ew e t o n , re se ii di i vi d
H
by C T u rn e r
. . .

H
G w at ki n , ly C M 8 ar .hu rch sto r . Hi y .

H i
arn ac k, A The Ex an s o n of the Ch u rch
p . .

H id i
au l e r, E D ascal ae Ap osto lo ru m F rag m e n ta Vero n e n si a L at n a i
F
.

i P ii
.

C
H am l t o n , The e op le a f G o d

. . .

i i id di i
.

H arr s, Ap o l o gy o f Ar s t e s, ( i n Tex ts an d Stu es ) ,

R

. .

H o r n e r, G The Statu tes of the Ap ost e s , o r an o n es ccle s ast ci

. l C E i i .

335
33 6 Church H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co nstan ti n e

I n ge , W R Th Thi lo sop hy of Tlo ti n us

e

B
. . .

i
L ght fo o t, D i sse rtati o n o n the
. hri sti an M i n i stry , ( ap C
p en e dd l
t o The Ep i st es to the T hi hpp i ans)

The Ap osto i c l
M acl e an , A J T h e A n ci e n t Chu rch O rde rs

. . .

P h il l i m or e S,
?hi lo strat s i n Ho n o u r of Ap o llo n i u of Ty an a
. u s .

Ram ay S i r W i ll i am Th C h u rch i n the Ro m an E mp i re

s ,
. e

C i ti e s a n d B i sh o
p r i c h s i P h r yg i a n .

R b i so n
o n ,
A
T h e P as i o o f S P e rp e t u a an d h e r Co m
. s n .

i n d Stud ies i e C hr i t i a

p a n o s n
( i T e x t
n s a ) T h ,
. s n

M i i try i t h Ap o to l i c a d su b -Ap o t l i c P e r i o d
n s n e s n

s o s,

( i n T he E a r l y H i s t o ry of th e C h u rch a n d t h e M i i t ry) n s .

T urn e r C H n The E arl H i sto r

, . Ap o sto l i S u cc ss i o
. c
( i e n
y, y
f o t h e C h u rc h a d th e M
n i i s try ) N o t ens i n Th e C h u rch and

the M i i try ( G r ) n s o e .
 C H RO NO L O G I CAL T ABLE

E M PE R O R . P PE
O . W RI TER S . E VE NTS .

Ne ro B ur nin g o f Rom
B g inn i n g o f P rs c u ti o n
. e .

M r tyrdom o f S P u l ?
e e e .

a a
Gal b L i n us M rtyrdom o f S P t r
.

a a
F li gh t of C hur c h o f J ru
. . . e e

s l m t P ll
e
ae o e a
O tho
.

V i t lli us
.

V sp s i n
e .

a a
l l of J rus l m
e
Gosp l o f S
.

e Fa e a e
M rk ( t
. .

a
l t r th n )
n o
a e a
Gosp l o f S
.

75 8 0 e .

L u k e an d Ac ts ?
Ti tus
.

Gosp l o f 8 Bi rth o f Pol ycarp

.

80 An e n c l e tu s e
or C l us M tth w ?
. .

et a
D om i ti n
. e .

81 a
Gosp l a d
.

85 90
E p i stl s o f S
e n

Joh n
e .

Cl m n t
.

91 P
R n w d ou tbr k o n r
e e .

-
94 95 e e e ea e
ti
E x c u t i o n o f F l av i u s
s e cu o n .

C l m n s c o n su l A 95 d
e
D an
b ni shm n t o f h i s w i f
e e , . .
,

a
D om i ti lla o n ch arg o f
e e
e
A th i sm e
A po cal yps P
.

Cl m nt
e .

E p i s tl
e e s
t
Cor in th i an s
e o

rv R cal l o f D m i ti a x il s
.

Ne a

Tr j n Su to ni us a d
. e o n s e e .

a a
T c itus wro t
. e n
a
duri ng th i s
e

r ig n
e
Di d ch
.

E vare s tu s P a
t D c i an Wa T r aj an
. e .

Is r
l av s Rom
e .

R tur n a d T ri umph o f
e e e .

T raj an
e n

I v n al m t M rty rdom o f Sy m o n o f
.

n 3 a
Sati r J rusal m
e e
e . e e .

3 37 2 X
33 8 Chu rch H i sto ry from Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

Y E AR . E MP ER OR . P OP E . W R I TER S . E ENTS V .

1 0 5 -1 07 E pi s tl o f 2nd D c i n Wa T r j n
e a aa
l v s Rom
e r
Bar n bas
.

a ea e
nd r
e
I Al P lin y g s t Bi th y ni
. .

1 1 e xa e a
T r j n s t rts f or E s t d
. oe o .

-1 1 aa a a an
1 1 3 7
W i n t rs t A n ti o h in v d s
e a a e
Arm ni d M sopo tam i
c
e a an e a
an d d v n c s t P rs i n
a a e a
Gu l f P r th i n W a R i s in g
o e
a a r
o f w who m s s c r
. .

a a
in gy p t Gr c Cyr n
e s e
ee e, e e,
suppr ss d by
,

O s rrh e
Lus in s T r j n d i i n
e n e, e
aa es
C ili c i o n w y bac k t
.

a a
I t ly
o
a
Ep i s tl s o f M art yrdom o f I gn ti us 9
.

1 0 7-1 1 6 a
I g n ti us
e
a
E p i s tl o f
.

e
P o l yc arp
dr i n S i x tus or
.

I I 7 Ha a
X y s tus
.

dr i n v i s i ts A th n s
.

1 25 Ha a
B u dd i n g o f A li a C pi tol in
e
a a
o n s i t o f J rusal m b g n
e
e e u
T l sphor
e
R scri pt t M i i
e .

1 27 e e us ? e o n uc us
Fun da n us

1 3 2 -1 35 J w i sh r b ll io n u n d r B a
e e e e r
G oc h h a
C hri sti n s p rs c u t d by
.

a e e e
J ws for r f us in g t j o in
e e o .

S7
An to n n u A po l ogy of
I
1 38 i s Hygi n us M ar tyrdom o f T l sphoru ? e e s
Pi us A r i s ti d s
.

M arc i o n arri v s in Rom

. .

45 e e
Sh ph rd o f Jus tin arr i v s in Rom P
.

1 45 e e e e
H rm s
.

e a
Pi us
.

I 46
A ni c tus v i s i t C or in th
.

I5 0 e P He ge s i p p us s
Rom
.

an d e
A po l ogy o f
.

1 52 I st
Jus tin
Po l y rp v i s i ts Rom
.

1 54 ca e
B g inn i n gs o f Mo n t ni sm
.

a
L u c i n s p r i od
e
I
.

5 0 -1 75 a

e
of gr t st e a e
l i t r r y pro
e a
d uc ti ve n ess
M ar c us
.

161
A ur li u
e s.
1 631 67 P rth i n W
a a ar
C ptur of S l u c i
.

165 a e e e a an d
C t s i pho n
M rty rdom o f Jus ti n
e
S tr
.

1 67 o e a .
 Chro n o logi cal Tahle 33 9

Y ER
A . E PE R R
M O . P PE
O . W RI T E RS . E E TS V N .

W g in s t G rm n s
ar a a a
C m p i g n g in s t t h
e .

a a a a e

Q d ua
I n c i d n t o f th Thu n d rin g
s
.

L gion
e e e
e .

H e ge s i p p u s
T ru W ord
.

Th e
o f C l sus
e

A po l og y o f
e

P rs c u ti o n in Lyo n s d
.

E l e u the ru s
A th n gor s V i nn
.
e e an
e a a e a
M r tyrdoms in M d ur
.
.

a a a a
d Sc i l i
I r n us
an
C ommodus D th of M rcus A ur li us
.

e ae a
g in s t H r
ea
t V i nn M r ch 7 dur in g
.
e
a a e e
sl s
a a, a 1
c mp i g n g in s t M rc om
e ,

Oc t v i us o f
e a a a a a
nni d Qu d i
.

a a an a .

Mi i F li
n uc us e x

P c w i th M r com nni ea e a a
d Qu d i an a
M r tyrdom o f Apo ll o ni us
.

a
t Rom a
Bi rth o f O ri g n d Ph il o
e .

1 85 e an
s tr tus a
A m n s ty t x il d C hri s
.

e
ti n s
e o e

P rtin ax i a
V c tor A s s s s i n t i o n o f C om
.

e , .
a a
modus
P r in x murd r d Emp i r
.

Didi u s
Ju li n us t
e a e e
s l d t D Ju li n us
. e
a .
o o . a .

Se
S v rus
e e .

1
93 1 9
7 A po l ogy o f C i v il Wa
T rtu ll i n
r
S v rus d f ats Ni g r a d
.

e a
arm y o f S y r i a o n t h
. e e e e e n
th
H ll spo n t a d in C ili c i a
e e
e
a d A l b in us th
e n

arm y o f
,

Br i tain at L yo n s B y a
n e

i um surr n d r d forti
. z n
t an d
d i sm n l d
e e e
cati o n s
ph y in u ?
a t e
P r hi ns d f d
.

Ze r s a t a e e ate
C s i pho n n by S v r s
.

te tak e
C l m n t s S trn M r
e e u
o f P rp tu
.

'
e a t rd o m
m t is P
e a
'

comp ni o n s
e e
a e an d
Dio C s s i u s
. er a
2 00 -2 2 2
.

a
H i s tor y w r i t
t en

P rs c u ti o n t A l x n dr i
.

2 02 e e a a a
C l m n t f orc d t
e
e e

O ri g n t k s c h rg o f
e o ee .

2 03 e a e a
C t c h ti c l Sc hoo l
e
a e e a .
34 0 Chu rch H i sto ry fro m Ne ro to Co n s tan ti n e

Y EAR . E M P ER O R . P PE
O . W RI T E RS . E E NT S V .

2 07 T e r tu lli a b c m n e o es 3 Mo n
tam s t
ld i
.

2 08 C a e o n an W ar
D h Sv Y k
.

2 G e ta an d e at o f e e ru s at
G by C a
o r

Caracall a M d
.

ur e r o f e ta ar
.

c ll
a a
D th f Cl m t f A l x
.

ea o e en o e
a d ia
213
n r .

2 1 4-2 1 5 P h i l o s t r atu s
wri s te On
A po l o ni s o f l u
y n T a a

A po ll o ni us o Ju l i a D om n a at A n ti c h
.

M C l l t f o
7 i i
T y n a pu b li sh Murd o f Caracall a
21 a a cr n u s . s us .
.

a er

d at T yr Su i c i d of u lia
.

Sy ri an arm y
e
R vo l t
e e . .

3
21 H l i ga o e

bal us
e
D f at a d d ath o f M a
.

.
e e n e
a
A l an d r S v rus d c lar d
c nu

2 22S v rus eU r ban us ex e e e e e

A l xan d r
e
C a sar
.

e
e e
Murd r o f E l agabal us by
.
.

e
Pra tori an s e
A ppro i mat
.

x e
5
22
d at o f e so
call d E g y p e
t i an Church
Ord r e .

622 A ta f P ia f r x erx e s o e rs o un
f d y a ty f Sa a
,

d er o n s o ss n
i d v th w Pa th i a es , o er re r ns

n n d a d
.

P o ti us A ta l w a r xe rxe s ec re r
t R m a E pi
3 2 0 a
agai
.

ns o n m re
i g
.

O m v f C a r en o es ro m es
a a t A l xa d i a
3 2 1
re o e n r
p h y y b
.

P o r r o rn
332
n i n P i
.

M A ro O r s E t a a d H i '
p l t o us
i i t
il d t Sa d i i w g p o n n us n
a g e x

t at i n t
352 m x n us e s
T hra
.

x h o r o o ex e o r n a

M ar tyrs th y b th d i
.

Al a d a d
e o e
Sv
. .

e e ru s ex n er n

Ma m a a d d by m e m u r e re
l d i at M ai so e rs nz

F abi an
.

362
A ugus t B od i s of Po n ti an s a d
.

u n

i l i i n
e

237 or H p p o y t s b ur d u e

8 Rom
k i l l d by
e
3 2 .

8 M a im i 1 x n us e 80
d i rs
3 2
e

n I D f at a d d ath of Gor
.

8 Gord i a e e n e
3
d i an s
2
d
Murd r o f M xi m in
an
Gord i n II
.

a .
e a
 C/z ro n o logi cal Ta l e

Y EAR . E M P ER O R POP E . W R ITE S R . E ENTS

V .

23 8 Pu p i e n u s M d ur er o f P u p i e n u s an d
an d B al b i n u s .

B al b i n u s
G di
.

o r an I I I
Sp cc d A tax x
.

a o r su ee s
Ki g f P i
2 40 r er e s
as e rs a
P i W
n o .

e rs an ar
V i ct y v P ia
2 42 .

o r o er e rs ns
Ph ili p th P l ti b ga M d f G di III
.

o n us ur er o or an
A bi l ct i
2 44 e e n .

ra an t o e u re n
R
.

o m e
ig gi Di i Bi h p f Al x
.

47 Or e n a a n s t o n y s us,
di
3 s o o
l
e
Ce s u s an r a
D ci iv
.

th A
.

2 48 Iooo f ar
F di g f R
e us .
y n n e rs o
o un n o o m e
Cyp i Bi h p f
.

r an , s o o
C th g
ar a e
P c ti b g F b i
.

25 0 e rse u o n e an a an
ty d
.

m ar re
G ll li D ci d f t d d l i
.

25 1 a us Co rn e us e ea e an an
i b ttl W th G th
. us . e s
a
P c ti c ti d
n e i o s .

e rs e u o n o n
G ll p c w i th
n ue .

252 a us k m a es ea e
G th by p y t f a m en an
l b i dy
o s o
n ua su s
d f t G th
.

25 3 A em ili an u s e ea s
Al d f t d l y G l
o s .

so e ea s an s a s a
l us I t df td d e ea e an
k ill d
. n u rn
e
D i y i B i h p f Al
.

2 47-2 6 4 s u s, s
di
o n o o ex
an r a
Val i a L ci
.

25 3 er n u us
St ph D th f O i g i Ty
. .

254 e en ea o r
P c ti f V l i
en n re
25 8
. .

26 0 e rs e u o n o a e r an
X y t
.

25 7 s us
o r II
S i xt
.

us
25 8 M a ty d r S i xt r o f
m o
S Cyp ia
us
M a ty d
.

om of
Di y i
r r . r n .

25 9 s us
lli
o n
Val i a d f at d a d d
.

260 Ga e n us er n e ma e
pi
e e n
by S p w h
.

r so n e r a o r,
i v d d C pp d c i
o
n a e a a o a
a iv R
.

26 2 P p hy
o r i rr es m e,
l ft P l ti
n o
tt c h
a a i m se
Ed i c t f T l ti
es o o n us .

o o e ra o n
pp i t d A
.

O d ath en us a o n e u
g t by th S t
us us ena e
Al i i v d I tal y
e .

26 5 De ath o fDi o n y em an n a e
i Al x G th i v d G c af t
n .

s ns o f e an o s a e
di av g i g P d B i th
n re e e er
r a t

. r a n o n us an
y n ia .
4 2 C/z u rcb Hi sto i y f ro m Ne ro to Co n stan ti n e

AR . E MPE ROR . P OP E . W R ITE S

R . E ENTS V .

26 7 A i ti fO d th
s sas s n a ena
l di bi l l
o n o us .

2 68 C au Z a ru e s a o n e
F li x D f t fG th by C l d i
us . eno .

26 9 e ea o au
A li
e . o s us .

2 7o u re an
A pp x d Pa l f S t d p d
.

273 at e o f o am o sa a e o se
A li p c w i th
ro u

D id c li
. .

as a a u re k an m a e s ea e

G th za d d f t A l i
.

o s n e ea s e m an n
th D b d t i an u e an e x erm

th i y i It ly
o n e
t a es e r arm a
D th f G g y Th a
n n .

ea o re or au m
t g
A l i tak P l y a
ur us .

u re an es am r
an d capt u re s Zen o bi a
Tac i t
.

2 75 us . E u ty ch i
an u s
2 76 P b
G d f td i G
ro us .

2 77 e rm an s e ea e n au l
by P b w h i v d us, o n a es
G i p
ro
y
e rm d an an m o se s
p c ea e
d f t S ti
.

28 2 C aru s C aru s e ea s arm a an s

C ari n u s and i v d P i wh
n a es e rs a, er e
h di d
.

Nu m e ri an
Gi
. e e .

28 3 a us
D i c l ti a
.

8 4-3 05 o e n .

8 5 -3 0 5 M axi m i an
( i n th e
w e s t) .

- 06 Co n s tan ti u s
93 3
2

(i n G l au
an d B it i
r an)
d A
.

2 86 T i ri date s re s to re to rm e
n ia by R
o m an s b u t r en d iv
gi N ig
.

o ut a a n by ars e s , K n
P i
o f e rs a
Rvl Bi i d
.

28 7-2 94 e o t o f r ta n u n er

Carau s i u s s u re ss e pp d by
Co n s tan t u s i
Ma c lli R b lli E gyp
.

296 r e n us o n in t su p
d by D i c l t a
e e
p
.

o e i n

Ed ct ag t M a i ch
re ss e .

a ms n ee s

Wa w i th P i a G al i
i .

r er s er us
d f at d
.

V ict y v P i a P ac
e e e .

97 er e rs ns e e
i p d Na Ti i
3 o r o .

m o se o n rse s. r

d at t d t A m ia
es re s o re o r en

C h i ti a f c
.

vd
"

r s n o e rs re m o e
f m th a m y b y Gal i
ro e r e r as

29 -
3 3 II G all e ri u s
 Chro n o l og i cal Ta l e 3 43

AR E M P ER O R . POP E . WR ITER S . E ENTS V .

3 00 D ath f P p hy y
A ll C h i ti
e o or r
d d t
.

3 02 r s an s e re o
c i c l
o r
sa r th my e o r e ave ar
D i c l ti t d i c t f
e

3 03 an s
p c ti i d F b 4
o e rs e o
o n 2
S c d d ict d i g i
e rs e u ssu e , e . .

o r m
pi t f th c l gy
e o n e er n
r so n m e n
Th i d d i c t p i tti g
o e er .

r e rm re
l c l gy ci
e n
e as e f sa r
igN
o er o n
ho ov
D i cl ti clb t
n , .

an ra e s
t i
o e e e
r um ph t R a o m e
F th d i c t by M i i
.

3 04 ax m an ,
d i g ll p
o ur e ,

t a e rso n s
c i fi c p i f d th
o r er n o
sa r an o ea

D i c l ti
e o n
S pp
.

3 05 e v e ru s i n o i e an re a e ars n

I t l y Af i
a r ca, M ch f t f tar a
ick
e r o ur een

Sp th
,

ai n m n e ss
D i c l ti bd i c t i M y
s s
Mx i
. o n .

a im an a a es n a
ti t S l
n o e

D i
az a n an d a o na
l bd i c t
re re s o
E gypt d
.

an M i i ax m an a so a a es
Sy bc
.

ri a C t t anA g o m es
c ti
o ns iu s e u
E d fp
.

t o n
i G l d B it i
us us . n o e rs e u
au an an
Sy d f E lvi
n r .

ra
i M a c ll c ti i I t l y
no o
E d fp
.

3 06 Co n s tan t n o e rs e u o n n a
B i tai
ne r e us
Af c
.

in r n an d ri a
S p t t d th
. .

3 07 ea
F f th d i ct i P l ti
e v e ru s u o .

3 08 a es
b ti t ti g m tilati
i e n ne
o n an d
m i f p b li c x c
su s u n u

n es or u e e u ti o n .

3 09 M ax e n ti u s
in I t lya
L ici i i
.

Ill y i ( i
n us n

r a
pl c f
n
a e o
Sv )
E bi
e e ru s .

310
M il ti d Ed i c t f T l
i by G l
u se us .

3I 1 a es . o o e rat o n a
i
c ti i A i
er us
E d fp
.

312 s a
i i i f th
n o e rs e u o n n .

C to ns an t n e s v s o n o e

C ro s s D e e ats M axe n ti u s f
Sx Rb
.

313 at a a u ra
Ed i c M il
.

t of an
M xi i d f
.

En d o f
'
a m n s e e at
p c i Sy
.

e rs e u t o n in r i a an d
E gyp D h M x i i
t e at o f a m n
Ed i c
.

in J Ne w t of
T l i by L i c i i
une .

o e rat o n n u s p ub

3 I4 Silv e s te r . Nic i
l i s h e d at o m ed a .
 IN DE X

Ac u si l i Gl b i
a r o , de ath o f, 2 1 -2 . C al l i stu s, Bi h s o
p o f Ro m e , 2 1 I
l
Aco y te s, 2 7 1 .
1 2 .

Ae de si u s, m arty rdo m o f, 3 2 8 . C a a all a

r c , E m p e ro r, I 28 .

Agap e , 2 3 2 8 C arp o crat e s, 49

A m sg n g , 2 4 3
. .

l ivi 9 . Cle su s, 5 3 , 1
5 2 6 0 .

i
An ce tu s, sho
p Bi
o f Ro m e , 3 0 , C e ri n t hu s, 47 - 8 .

2 07 . C i i
har sm at c th e o ry o f m n stry , i i
An to n i n us Pi u s,
p o li c
y t o w ard s 279 -8
3 .

Ch u rch o f, 2 - 0
93 C i
h ar ty , o rgan z at o n o f, 2 4 3 -9 i i

. .

An u li n u s, 3 3 2 C h u rch : e efo f b li
1 1 1 2 , 5 4,

6 6
.
,

Ap o ll o n u s, m arty rdo m o f, I I 5
i 9 225 cre at o n o f, b
y i
Ap o ll o n u s o f T y an a, 1 6 0
.
,

i e su s, 1 0 l lC
8 J 1 1 o ca h u rche s,
Ap o l o g e s, 6 8
.

i
72 1 2 I t s re at o n t o am u se l i
Ap p h i an u s , m arty r, 3 2 7
. .

8 . m e n ts, 9
3 5; b u s i n e ss , 9
o 3;
Ap u l e u s, Go lde n A1 : o f, 5 - 6 ,
i ii
c t z e n sh
p , 9 9
5
i fam y il
751 . fe , 8 5
li 90 m ar r age , 2
4 2 i
Ar st de s, Ap o l o gy o f, 6 8
i i 9 .
-
3; m i l i ta y r se r vi ce ,
991 03 ;

Arm e n i a, co n ve rs i o n o f, 3 I 3 - 1 5 . lv
s a er
y ,
1 03 4 . Sp re ad o f,
Arr u s An to n n u s, I I 5
i i . l 3
"
1 4;
928 : 3 1 7

Ath e n ago ras, p l e a fo r t he hr s C i Cl e m e n s, F l avi u s, d e ath o f, 2 1 ,

i
t an s b y , 3 9 22

fA e x an dr a, 1 3 3
. .

Au re l an , E m p e ro r, 3 0 6
i . Cl m e en to 42 l i .

Cl m e e n t o f Ro m e , 6 1

B ap ti sm , 2 1
9 2 6 by bl o o d, C mm o o du s , I 1 4
1 6 .

222 . C mm o un o n i
fas t n g, 2 2 9 i
B arn o oar, Ep i rtle of; 6 2 3 . rs t, 2 2 7 fre q u e n cy o f,
B asi l i de s, G 8 - i 2 2 9; o f s c k , 3 0 1 i
n o st c,
4 9 . .

B as i l i de s, m arty r, I 1 8 C o n fe sso rs, c a m s o f 1 -

93 7 l i
7
.
.
,

e g g n g, 2 6 -
B i C rm i
at o n , 2 2 6
4 7 . o n .

Bi sho
p 2 3 1 2 59
6 3 , 2 7 3 ,
27 5, C o n st an ti n e, 3 2 6 ,33 1 .

, ,

27 - 8
99 . C o n stan ti u s, 3 1 8 , 3 5
2 6 .

an d n a, m arty rdo m o f, 4 3
Bl i 5 . C o n y b e are , F C , 8 4, 1 1 5
. . .

B il C i i
ur a, hr s t an , 2 4 2 . C o rn e li u s, Bi sh o
p o fRo m e , 2 1 3 .

345 2 Y
34 6 I n dex

Cy p i a r n, 1 89,
1
99202 ,
2
95 . G r go rye f Ny ss a, 3 0 7 , 3 1 0
o .

6
G g ry re o T hau m at u rgu s , 3 0 6
D ea o c n e ss, 275 .
1 3
D a
.

26
e c o n s,
7 9 .

G re g o r
y t he I ll um i n ato r, 3 3 1
D i e c u s, 1 85
5
.
1 .

Di o do o no , 7 4
'

Didao ne , 6 1 2 , 2 1 8 ,
'

2 80
H adri an , p o l i cy C hri
.

t o w ards s
Di n o crate s, 1 2 3
i 9
.

D i l tia
oc e n,
3 7
1 2
5
t an s, 2 8 .

H e al i n g , g i ft o f, 2 4 1
.

Di y i o n s us o fA l a dri a
ex n I 97
.

3 0 3 H e ge s i p p u s, Hyp o m n em ata
,
o f,
.

D i i p l i 1 93 - 6
sc n e, 2 - 8
49 5 H e racl as, 3 0 0
.
,

D t 2 2
o c o r, 2 .
.

D m i tia
H e rm e s, Snap /l o rd o f, 7 2
0- 2
.

o n ,
2 .

H e ro d , 3 2
D m i ti ll a b a i hm
o n s en t o f, 2 1
.

H i g h e r C ri t i c i s m , an t i c i p at i o n :
.
,

E as te r, date o f, 2 0 7 I o .
f, 3 0 1 , 3 0 2
o .

Eg yp ti an C urrn
n rde r, ro e O H i l ari an u s, 1 2 1 .

O
rde rs, hu rch C .
H i pp o l y tu s, 2 1 0- 1 2 , 2 95 .

l
E ag a a u s, 1 2 9 bl .
H o sp i tal i ty , 20
5 ,
2 6
4 7
- .

E l e u t he ru s , sho
p o f Ro m e , Bi
208 .
Ig n at i u s, m arty rdo m o f, 2 7
8 5
Em p i re , Ro m an : co m m u n i ca l e t te rs o f, 6 47
3
.

i
t o n in , 1 ; re l ig i o n o f, I n te rn at o i n li a sm I 8

, , .

I re n ae u s, Ap o sto l
74 5 o n i c
s u cce ss o n , 2 0 7
.

E u c har i st , 22 7 9; v al i d i ty o f, i
8 , 2 93 - 5 .

9 2 d a l 1
y , 22
9 i .
Ii s s , w o rs h
p o f,
1 -
74 7 i .

E u m e n e s , de stru c t o n i o f, 3 2 4 .

E xo rc sm , 2 2 3 -4 i .

J
ews : n um b e rs o f, 7 8 ; op
F a ti s
g, n 2 3840 p o s i ti o n to C i i i h r s t an ty o f,

.

F e l i c i ss i m 2 1 9 1 0 34 ; t l o e rat e d b y E m
u s, 4 .
,

F l i i ta m arty rdo m f, 9 p i 1 5 re ,
9
e s, 1 1
.
c o

2 7 Jl iua D m na o ,
1 1 7, 1 28 ,

6 1 2
.

F o rt u n at u s,
1
9
.

J l i a M a 1 8 o es 2

u ,
.

G al e ri u s , E m p e ro r, 3 1 8 -2 0 ,
J t
us i m a ty rd m
n ,
f r o o , 4 0 2 :

32 5 w iti g f 69
r 7 0 n s o

.
,

G e rm an i c u s , 3 1 . L ap d t atm t o f
se ,
re en ,
1 93 6 ,

G n o st c s, i 4 0-
54 .
1 .
 I n dex 3 47

La m a ty d m
u re n ce , f 1 r r o o , 20 . Ne rv a 2 2 , .

L t gg t d i g i f
en ,
su es e o r n o ,
Ni ce t e s 3 2 , .

L id I 1 8
eo n e s, . Ni co l ai t an e s, 4 8 .

Li i i 3 6 3 3
c n u s, 2 0 Ni co m e d i a, 3 1 8 , 3 2 0

. .
,

Li ght m ys,f b i g i ce re o n o r n n
g o v i
N at an , 96 1 2 1 2 1 3

.
,

in o f, 2 34 6 No vat u s, 1 96 , 2 1 3 .

L ia
uc n the C f o n e sso r, 1 94 5
1 9
.

L ia
uc n t he Phil o so p h e r, 4 6 , Odr Cr e s, hu rch, 6 2 , 21 8
5 1
.

1 5 2. O ig 1 1 8
r en 1 2 4 9 1 2

, , , .

O rp ha ar n s, c e of,
2 7 8
4 .

M an e s an d M an i che e i sm , 3 1 5
6 1 P aga i n sm , atte m p t s to re viv e,

5 I
.

M arc i o n , 49 33 0 1

M arcu s Au re l i u s , 3 6
. .

40 P ap i a 6 3-4 s,

M arri age , 2 42
. .

3 . P a l f Sam
u o o sata, 3 4
0 6 .

M arty rs, co m m e m o rat i o n o f, P au l , S . : m art rdo m o

y f, 1 920

I
93 . m i i
ss o n ary j o u rn e
y s o f, 1 3 .

M ax e n t i u s 3 2 5 , 3 2 6 P e n an c e , see D i sc i p l i n e

. .
,

M ax i m i an , 3 1 8 , 3 1 9, 3 2 5 . P er
p e t u a, 1 1 9 27 .

M ax i m i l l a, 5 7 . P e rse cu t o n : i cau se s o f, 1
5 17 ,

M ax i m i n u s , 1 3 0 1 1 2 1 3 ; fe ct o
ef f,

.

M ax i m i n Daz a, 3 2 5 , 3 2 6 , In A l e x an dr ia ,
1 86 9 ,
1
93 ,

33 0 -1 .

M e l i to , 7 1 C a th ag
r e, 1 892 0 1 ; E g y p t,

.

M i l an , Ed i c t o f, 3 3 2 32 3 4 L y o s a d V i e n n n n e,

2 ; P hr gi a 3 2
.

M i n e s, C hri st i an s co n de m n e d 4 5 y 4 P o n

to , 3 2 8 , 3 2
9 . t u s, 3 Ro m e , 1 7
1 1 1 2 ;
M i n u ci u s Fel i x , t he O ctavi a : 2 2 , 2 0 1 ; Sy r a, 3 2 4 U n de r i .

f, 7 1
o . An to n n u s P u s, 2 9 3 6 ; Car
i i
M i n u ci u s F u n dan u s, re scr i pt o f ll
aca a, 1 2 8 ; o m m o d u s, I 1 4 C
H adr an to , 2 9 i .
1 6 ; e c u s, 1 8 5 93 ; Di o
D i
i
M thra sm , 1 7 7 -8 4 i . cl e t i an , 3 1 7 25 o m t an , D ii
M o n tan u s an d M o n tan i sts , 5 4 20 2 al i
G e r u s, 3 1 9 3 2
-6 0 H adr an , 2 8 i 9 M a rcu s

Au re u s, 3 6
.

li45 M a x i m i an,

Ne o cae sare a, co n v i e rs o n o f, 3 0 7 3 20
5 ; M ax i m i n Daz a, 3 2 5
~
1 3 .
-
32 Ne ro , 1 7 - 1 9; S e v
Ne o p l ato n i sm ,
1 697 2 . e ru s, 1 1 7
2 8 T raj an , 22

Ne ro , 1 7 1 9 . 8 Va e r l ia n , 1 97 2 02 .
 34 3 I n dex

P e te r, S rst vi i t s to Ro m e S atu rn i n u s, G n o st c, i 4 8

.
.

o f, 1 3 1 4 203
4 ; m arty r S at u rn i n u s, m arty rdo m o f, 1 1 9

,

do m o f, 1 9 2 0 . 28 .

P h i lo m e l i u m , l e t te rfro m Ch u rch i
Se at n g o f co n gre g at o n , 2 2 9 i
0f Sm
y rn a t o h u rc h at,
3 1 C .
3 2 .

Ph i lo strat u s, 1 6 2 , 1 6 8 Se cu n du l u s, m arty rdo m o f, I 1 9

2 8
.

P l agu e , b e ha o u r du r n g, 2 48 vi i .

v
S e e ru s, A e x an de r, 1 2 9 l
g
.

F li n l d e e r, 0n im m o rt a t li y, 3 ; v
S e e ru s, S e p t i m i u s, 1 1 7 1 8,

1 2 7
,

y o un g e r,
as
4 8 .

as p e rs e c u t o r, 22 6 . S c k , care o f, 2 4 1 -2
i .

P l t i u 1 6 97 2
o n s, . i
S m e o n , so n o f eo
p h as, m ar Cl
P l y a p m a ty d
o c r : r r o m o f, 3 1 ty rdo m o f, 2 7 .

6 vi i t to R m s o e, 0
3 , 20
7 i
S m o n M agu s, 4 7 , 2 04 .

y o u t h, 3 0 . i
S x t u s, m arty rdo m o f, 2 0 1 .

P o m po n i u s, 1 2 2 . S l av e s,
p o s t o n ii o f, in t he
P o n t an u s , i Bi s ho p o f Ro m e , Ch u rch , 1 03 4 , 22 1 .

2 1 0 S l di
o e rs , Ch i ti a r s n
319
P p hy ry 1 7 02
. .
,

o r , . So t e r, Bi s ho p o f Ro m e , 2 0 5 -6 ,

P th i u 44
o n s, . 207 .

Pr by t rs 2 6 3- 7
es e , . S te p he n , Bi s ho p o f Ro m e, 2 1
4,
P ri i ll a 5 7
sc , .

Pri s u
pp
o n rt f m art r
y ,
s o o s in , S u de aco n , 2 7 0 1
b .

2
45
6 . i
S u cce ss o n , Apo sto c do c tr n e li i
Pro p h e t s, 54
-6
, 2 6
4 , 2
59
o f, 2
90-8 .

'

2 8 0 -2 . i
S u ffe r n g, n d ffe re n ce o f hr s i i C i
P u de n s, 1 23 . i
t o n s to , 45 .

Q u adrat u s, Apo l o gy o f, 6 8 . i
T at an , 4 8 .

Q u i n tu s, apo stasy o f 3 1 , . T e rt u ll an : Apo l o gy o f, 7 2

i
0 n M o n t an i s m 5 6 -
9 2 0 8
7 0
, , ,

Re ade r, 2 6 9 . 2 39 w r t n gs o f, 7 5 3 83 ii .

Re -b ap t z n g he re t cs, q u e st o n
i i i i T he o p h l u s, 7 0 i .

o f ,
2 1 5 - 1 6 , 3 0 0 . T hu n d r n g
e e g o n , i
39 4
0 L i .

Re l g o n , de m an ds o f, 1 7 3
i i 4 T i ri date s, 3 1 3 1 4 .

hu rc h o f, 2 0 3
.

Ro m e , C 1 7 . T rad e s fo rb dde n t o hr st an s, i C i i
Ru st cu s, ihr st an , 1 2 7 C i i 22 1

Ru st cu s, P re fe ct o fRo m e , 40
. .

i 2 T raj an , p o l cy i t o w ards Ch ri s

S al o n a, 3 2 5 .
 I n dex 3 49

i
U n ct o n , 2 2 4, 2 26, 2 2 7, 2
4 1 . Wi d o w s, de r
o r o f, 2 41 , 27 1 5 .

b
U r an u s, 3 2 7 .

Xy s t u s, see S i x tu s

.

V al t i
en 5 1 2
n u s,

2
.

Val i a E m p
er n ,
1 9 7 01 e ro r, . Z e n o a, 3 0 5
bi 6 .

Vi t
c o r,Bi h p f Ro m s 08
o o e, 2 Z e p hy r n u s, is ho
p Bi o f Ro m e,

1 0 . 2 1 0 .

V i rg i n s, 2 7 6 -8 .
P R I NTE D BY A . R . M O W B R A Y 8c C o . LT D .

LO N DON A ND O FO RD
X
 AD V E R T I S E M E NT

S E COND E D I TI ON , R E VI S E D

A DIC TIO NARY O F

E NG L I S H C HU R C H H I S T O RY
E d i te d b y t h e R e v J L O l l ard . M A

. . . . .

R e cto r o f B ai n to n E x am i n i n g Chapl ai n to t h e A r chbi s hop of Yo r k,

an d Ho n . Can o n 0 Wo rces te r .

A s s i s te d b y G o rd o n C ro s s e , M A . .

Ne w Co l l eg e , Ox fo r d , an d of L i n co l n
s I n n , B ar ri s te r o
at -
L aw .

W i th an A p p e n di x an d T hre e M a p s .

Cl o t h , 1 5 / n e t.

I n th e n e w e d i ti o n s o m e ar ti cle s h a ve b e e n re w ri tte n an d o th e
re v i s e d a n d s u c h e v e n ts a s th e c re a ti o n o n e w d i o ce s e s s i n c e th

, f
D i c ti o n ary w as rs t p u b l i s h e d a re re c o rd e d i n an A D e n d i .

A n e w m ap s h o w s th e e /fe c t o f th e s e ch an g e s o n th e i o ce s a
b o u n d ar i e s .

A M AG NU M O P US Th w a m t at l ati a d t a e r es co n r u o ns re ue o
co n ce rn e d i n t h ep d ti f thi l a a ro ad m i abl
uc b k It i
o n o s r e n r e o o . s
rem a k abl r i ll t ati e f A gli a us r la h p a d a b
o n k f wh
o n c n sc o rs i n o o o ic

h m ay w ll b p d Ch
,

th E g l i h C h

e n s u rc h Ti m e e ro u . u re es .

Th w k h a b w ll d b i g htl y w i tt th

e o r s It i een e o ne . s so r r en
w f l
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n s e . e e o rs e ee o r un e n s e cu r n
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e e r.

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o rs re th l t f th i l ab u
e co n r u e o n e re s u o e r o

h i f m at i a
o
w hi h tai c a m co n ns l d a ab l
s uc n o r o n s o ne co u re so n
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e x e o h aw n k Th a ti l a f t h m t p a t h
n suc o r e r c es re o r e o s r s o r
v i m m d at l y l g ; a d i p t f th fa t th at th
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th y a
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e re ne er o er e o n n n s i e o e c e
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re i a v y m all p a
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ad abl

re -E l
e. i h H i t i al R ni w ev e
g r s or c .

A . R . M O WB RAY CO . LT D .

28 M a ga r re t S tre e t , O xfo r d Ci c L d
r us, on o n, W . 1 9H i g h S tre e t, O x fo rd
 A DV E R T I S E M E NT S
Th e Art o f P u b li c W o rs h i p
B y th e R e v P . e rc y D e ar m e r,
P r ofe s s o r f

E ccl es i as ti cal A r t , K i n g Co l l eg e , L o n do n
'

o s .

Cl o t h , n e t.

S e co n d I m p res s i o n .

L e tte rs o f Ri c h ard M e u x B e n s o n
F o u n de r an d F i r s t S up e r i o r of the S o ci e ty o
f 5 .
j o hn the E van g e l i st, Co w l ey .

Je l e c te d an d A r r a n g e d b t h e l ate R e v G C o n g re ve , M

. .

a n d th e R e v .

H . Lo n g r id ge. M A . .

Wi th M e m o i r an d R e m i n i s ce n ces by B I S H OP H A L L , B I S H O
G OR E , D R D A R WE L L S T ONE , an d o th e rs
. .

Cl o t h , 6 / n e t.

S i x tee n th Th o u s an d .

Hi s t o ry ft h e P ray e r B o

v e ry m an s o o

B y th e R e v . P e rcy D e arm e r,

Wi th Ni n e ty -nine I ll ustrations .

P ap e r b o ard s , n et ; C l o t h b o ard s , 3 / ne t ; Cl o t h
b o ard s , g i l t , n et.

F { y -s i x th Tho u s an d .

Ev e ry Hi s t o ry f th e En g lis

m an s o

C h u rc h
B y th e R e v P . e rcy D e arm e r,

W ith 1 1 2 I ll ustrations .

n e t ; Clo t h , 3 / n e t .

A . R . M OWB R AY CO . LT D .

28 M ai gare t S tre e t, O x fo rd C i i cu s , L o n d o n , W . 1 9H i g h S tre e t O x fo rd ,