Chap. 6.

Eusebius of Nicomedia.

157

tion was over-ruled by the emperor and his Arian favourites; Paul was deposed, and Eusebius of Nicomedia, by the authy of the prince, translated to the metropolitan see in his room. Thus the suffrage of the church was set at nought, and the civil power exercised in is stead.

On the deposition of Paul, Athanasius assembled his friends at Antioch, and a hundred bishops instituted their protest against this act of the emperor. This only produced wrath, and the call of another synod, with the emperor at the head; by which the crafty, worldly Ensebius not only was confirmed in his see, but Athanasius was deposed from his own, and Gregory, a Cappadocian, ordained in his room. This last measure was, from alleged necessity, enforced by arms, for the populace were decidedly in favour of their legally-established and orthodox minister, Athanasius. After a violent struggle, in which there was too much of a worldly spirit on both sides, Athanasius fled to Rome, where he was well received, orthodoxy being in repute there. Here he rested awhile, and appealed to a synod of bishops, by whom he was vindicated from the charges brought against him by his enemies.

Eusebius lived not long to possess the ill-gotten see. Upon his death the people again elected Paul. The Arian party insisted upon the investment of Macedonius; and in order to bring him in, and completely to set aside the rival, an officer of the army was commanded to take Paul into exile. In this struggle, the orthodox lost that spirit which ought always to connect with truth, and the issue terminated in the death of the soldier who arrested Paul. It appears that Paul took no part in this bloody conflict, his real character was averse to such measures; nor could he be answerable for the

158

Dissention.

Cent. 4.

result of a tumult raised through the malice of his enemies.

In 347, imperial authority called a general council. Both princes were present, one at the head of each party. Little was done here but what tended to vex and irritate. Some few canons were made; the spirit of which strongly prove that vital godliness was sadly declined.

Gregory, the Cappadocian, who usurped the see of Alexandria upon the deposition of Athanasius, died in the year 849. Upon which, the entreaties of the people, and the influence of Constans, were employed to bring back the injured and exiled bishop. Constantius complied, and wrote repeated letters to Athanasius, requesting him to return to his charge. At length he acceded, and in his way met the emperor at Antioch, by whom he was graciously received. A circumstance worthy of notice occurred during the stay of Athanasius at Antioch. The bishop of Antioch was Arian; the orthodox there had ventured to withdraw from the church, and had assembled in another place with their own bishop, who had been expelled his see by the reigning powers. With these dissenters, and that in a conventicle too, communed the great Athanasius. He loved truth better than stone walls, and the fellowship of the faithful, though in a meeting-house, rather than a place with the enemies of Christ, though in a cathedral. And what is still farther remarkable, the doxology* now in

"Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end: amen." The Arians, to discover their dislike to the doctrine, avowed in this form, composed another for their own churches: "Glory to the Father, by the Son, in the Holy Ghost." And sometimes it so happened, that when the two parties met in the same church, each would sing his own doxology.

Chap. 6.

Council of Milan.

159

the English liturgy was composed by Flavian, the second bishop of this separation church, and first used in his meeting-house.

The circumstances under which Athanasius returned, afforded no small matter for triumph to the Trinitariaus. But the way in which some of his people testified their joy only discovers the spirit of the times. For instead of joining their restored bishop in works of faith and love, they devoted themselves to a monastic life. With the Alexandrian prelate, many others also were restored to their respective charges.

But this peaceful interval lasted not long, for about two years after, the whole empire falling into the hands of Constantius, his enemies and rivals being defeated, he waxed exceedingly proud, and proceeded again to vex the orthodox. The subtilty of the Arians stirred up bis wrath against Athanasius, and a council was called at Milan but notwithstanding all the power, and all the policy of error were engaged, the Trinitarians remained inflexible, and the Nicene ereed maintained its ground. Athanasius was the chief butt of their rage; therefore the emperor was resolved upon his expulsion: accordingly a writ of condemnation was drawn up, and several of the bishops compelled to subscribe it on pain of immediate banishment. The venerable bishop of Corduba refused, and wrote a most decided remonstrance to the emperor on the subject, for which act of fidelity he was severely chastised, being kept a prisoner at Sirmium a whole year, notwithstanding his great age, having arrived to an hundred years. In this conflict fell Paul; he was first banished, and then murdered; "So that the Christian world now trembled before the sword of heresy, as fearfully as it had done before the malice of paganism.

160

Orthodox condemned.

Cent. 4.

Amidst such scenes as these, the state of Athanasius was truly perilous. He escaped with his life, through the kind office of his clergy and people, who rescued him from the soldiers, and conveyed him away, while George of Cappadocia, a worldly minded and furious Arian, intruded into his office.

In order to bring the ministers of the orthodox party over to the Arian side, no small subtilty was employed. Creeds were so ambiguously and ingeniously drawn up, that many were beguiled. Even the truly pious and veteran bishop of Corduba was prevailed on to subscribe; but on no consideration could he be persuaded to join in the sentence against his brother Athanasius. But of this subscription the godly Hosius dearly repented, and to his dying breath protested against the doctrine, the measures, and the spirit of Arianism.

No means were left untried, by the emperor and his courtly bishops, to bring in a strict Arian uniformity throughout the whole church. This had some good effects -it drove the faithful together, it broke down the barriers which prejudice and bigotry had raised up, and brought the children of God to recognize each other as brethren. The Novatians and the general church embraced each other, in the time of their common affliction, and walked in company, as travellers to the same rest.

The finishing stroke of Constantius deposed the pious Meletius of Antioch from bis see, in order to make room for Euzoius, one of the chief pillars of the Arian cause. From the hands of this man he received baptism, and died; but not washed from his old sins. During the reign of this monarch, died the famous historian, Eusebius of Cæsarea, whose character has already passed in review. It is evident that he possessed more learning than religion, and as he lived, so he died, in the midst of courtly splendour and worldly repute.

CHAPTER VII.

JULIAN, CALLED THE APOSTATE.

THE reign of this prince, which lasted but one year and eight months, would afford but very scanty materials for church history, were it not for his predilection in favour of the old superstition, and his aim to destroy Christianity.

The circle in which Julian had been brought up afforded but a very sorry sample of the Christian religion. All his near relations had been massacred by the late religious emperor, whose chief favourites and associates were men of no better character. Genuine Christianity, at that period, was far from the court, and quite estranged from lordly bishops. Julian had no opportunity of seeing it, though it is asserted, he was in early life, a public reader in the church, and under the immediate care of the clergy. On his accession, he immediately discovered, that whatever might have been his education, or what his publie profession, he had been really a pagan, both in principle and in secret practice. He ordered those heathen temples which had been shut, to be re-opened, and many of those which had been demolished, to be rebuilt. He unhinged Christianity from its eivil establishment, raised paganism from its degradation, and placed both upon equal toleration. Being himself a pagan, that system had the influence of his example, though he enforced nothing with the sword. He laboured hard to raise the dignity of the old priesthood, in point of morality, to what the spirit of Christianity requires in its members. This, doubtless, he had learn