This Sanctus, being put to the rack, and examined by the proconsul, concerning his name, his country, his city and his quality; his answer to all these questions was, "I am a Christian." This he said was to him both name, city and kindred, nor could his persecutors extort any other answer from him.

The first churches distinguished themselves in the most remarkable manner, by their prudence, piety and virtue. They made a proper use of all temporal things fo far as their families were concerned in the enjoyment of them, and that they might imitate the character of their divine Redeemer, they not only forgave their enemies, but they also prayed for them, and in distress relieved their wants; but all these good actions and many more that might be mentioned, could not screen them from the niest cruel persecutions.

The Jews were the first and the most inveterate enemies of the Christians, for as they had crucified the Lord of Glory, so they did not think it any crime to persecute his followers. This they continued to do so long as they had power, and when after that power was taken from them, they used to accomplish their hellish purposes by means far more diabolical than open violence. They preferred false accusations against them to the proconsuls of the provinces, endeavouring to make them. believe that the Christians were enemies to the emperors, and this occasioned the martyrdom of many of the faithful. The same Jews reproached them with idleness, and being a useless race of people, and they charged them with treason, because they called Christ their king. They affirmed that in celebrating their sacred mysteries, they killed a child and eat of its flesh, and these falsehoods were believed by the heathens. But the lives of the Christians in the most striking manner, refuted all those calumnics, and the more they were depressed, the more conspicuous for virtue and piety did their characters shine. This will appear evidently, if we attend to the following passages in the famous letter written by Pliny the younger, to the emperor Trajan, sometime between the years 103 and 105, and this was either before the death of John the Evangelist, or at least within two or three years after it, according to Eusebius and all the ancient ecclesiastical writers.

loss how to act, and therefore wrote the following epistle to the emperor.

"I take the liberty, Sir, to give you an account of every difficulty which arises to me. I have never been present at the examinations of the Christians, for which reason I know not what questions have been put to them, nor in what manner they have been punished. My behaviour towards those who have been accused to me, has been thus: I have interrogated them, in order to know whether they were really Christians. When they have confessed it, I have repeated the question two or three times, threat.. ing them with death if they did not renounce this religion. Those who persisted in their confession that they were Christians, have been by my order led to punishment. I have even met with some Roman citizens, infected with this phrenzy, whom in regard to their quality, I have set aside from the rest, in order to send them to Rome. These persons declare, that their whole crime, if they are guilty, consists in this: That on certain days they assemble together before sunrising, to sing alternately the praises of Christ, whom they call God, and to oblige themselves by their religious rites, not to be guilty of theft or adultery, to observe inviolably their word, and to be faithful in the discharge of every trust reposed in them. This information has obliged me farther to put to the rack two of their women servants whom they call deaconnesses, but I could learn nothing more from them, then that the superstition of these people, is as ridiculous as their attachment to it is prodigious."

In answer to this famous epistle, Trajan, the emperor sent another to Pliny, desiting him not to suffer any persons whatever to give informations against the Christians, but if it should happen that any of these Christians were to come voluntarily into the forum or common-hall of justice, and declare themselves to be Christians while no information was lodged against them, then they were to be put to death. From this circumstance it appears that many of the primitive Christians were imprudently forward in confessing themselves to be Christians, and this will always happen where an intemperate zeal gets the better of prudence.

called

called Atheists, meaning the Christians, they should make them more obstinate than before, instead of changing their opinions; since their religion taught them to suffer with pleasure and resignation for the sake of their God. As for the earthquakes which had happened, he told them, that they themselves were always discouraged, and sunk under such misfortunes, whereas the Christians never discovered more chearfulness and confidence in God, than upon such occasions. He concluded by telling them, that he would not have the Christians injured, for although they did not worship the gods of the empire, yet they had a god of their own, and that they were a peaceable, inoffensive people.

Such were the sentiments of one of the greatest philosophers, and wisest emperors, that ever governed Rome; but notwithstanding the mildness of his government, yet the persecution raged violently, owing to the wickedness of the pro-consuls, who did many things in the absence of the emperor, to which he had never given his consent. It is not a difficult matter to discover the cause which promoted the persecution of the Christians, during the first three centuries. The purity of their morals, the innocency of their lives, and above all, their love of each other, totally opposite to the heathens, was doubtless one of the most powerful motives of the public aversion. To this may be added, the many calumnies spread abroad concerning them by their enemies, particularly the Jews which occasioned so. strong a prejudice against them, that the Pagans condemned them unheard, and without so much as making the least enquiry concerning the truth of the accusation or giving them an opportunity to defend themselves.

To this may be added their worshipping Jesus Christ as God, which was expressly contrary to the fundamental laws of the empire, which forbad any god to be worshipped, that had not been acknowledged by the senate. The Christian doctrine was despised by the profligate Romans, as well as by the superstitious Jews, and when we consider how corrupt both were in their. sentimefits, and profligate in their lives, we need not be much surprised; for wickedness has been an enemy to piety ever since the

fall of man,

in Pannonia, and was accused before the governor Probus, because he derided the gods of wood and stone, which the heathens adored. Being brought before the judge, he confessed that he was a Christian, and one of those, who, in spite of tortures, would persist in his fidelity to the eternal King, and in obedience to the holy commands which Jesus Christ had left him, Probus, upon this, demanded to know what those commands were, to whom Pollio replied: "These commands are they which teach us, that there is but one God in heaven; that images made of wood and stone cannot be called gods; that we must correct our faults by repentance, and persevere inviolably in the good we have embraced; that virgins who maintain their purity, are advanced to a high rank; that married women ought to preserve their conjugal chastity, and attend to the education of their children; that masters ought to rule over their servants with mildness and goodnature; that servants ought to acquit themselves of their duty, rather from motives of love than fear; that we ought to be obedient to the civil power in every thing that is just; that we ought to reverence our parents, love our friends, and forgive our enes mies; we must be tender and affectionate to all our fellow subjects, humane to strangers, charitable to the poor, and live in peace with all men; that we must do no injury to any one, and suffer with patience the wrongs others do to us; that we must bestow our goods with liberality, and not covet those. of others; and that he shall live eternally, who, in the defence of his faith, despises a momentary death, which is the utmost you can inflict." Pure and heavenly as these sentiments were, yet they did not please Probus, the governor, who ordered Pollio to be chained to a stake, and burned to death.

We shall here subjoin the famous story concerning the Christian legion in the army of the emperor Marcus Aurelius,, and we the rather 'do it, because it was not invented by Christians, but attested by heathen authors... That prince, having led his forces agasta people, on the north of the Danube, was surrounded by the enemy, and hemmed in, in a place where they could not procure any water. The Romans were greatly embarrassed, and being pressed by the enemy, were obliged to continue under arms. exposed to the violent heat of the sun, when, on a sudden, the clouds gathered, and the rain fell in great abundance. The soldiers received the water in their bucklers and helmets, and satisfied both themselves and their horses.

The enemy presently after attacked them, and so great was the advantage they had over them, that the Romans must have been totally defeated, had

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not

not heaven once more interposed in their favour, by sending a dreadful storm of hail, lightening, and rain which falling upon the enemy, obliged them to retreat. It was found afterwards, that one of the legions, which consisted wholly of Christians, had, by their prayers, which they offered upon their knees before the battle, obtained this favour from heaven; and from this event that legion was surnamed the Thundering Legion. Some have denied the Christians this honour, but it ought to be remembered, that the emperor in one of his edicts, acknowledged, that they were the procuring cause of his victory over the enemy; and perhaps God interposes more for his people than some are aware of.

Having said so much concerning the purity of the Christian doctrine, and the piety of its professors, we shall now, in the second place, proceed to enquire into the universality of its promulgation before the time of the emperor Constantine the Great; and this is the more necessary, because whatever progress it made during a state of persecution, was wholly owing to divine means; whereas, when it received the sanction of the civil power, things took a very different turn. Compulsion was used instead of persecution, and many of the heathens were forced to acknowledge the truth of what they did not believe.

The apostle Paul (see Rom. x. 18.) says, "their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world." This has generally been considered, as intimating, that the religion of Christ had been taught throughout all the provinces of the Roman empire; and that it was so, is evident from the testimonies of the heathens themselves. For notwithstanding the violence of persecution, the Christian religion daily gained ground; and we are assured, that in the third century, there were Christians in all the public offices under the pagan emperors; and they were to be found in the camp, in the senate, in the palace, and indeed every where but in the heathen temples. Provinces, cities, towns, islands, and villages, were filled with them; men, women and children, even those of the highest rank thought it an honour to embrace the faith; insomuch that the heathen priests made heavy complaints that the revenues of their temples daily decreased, and that unless a stop was put to the propagation of this new docrine, they would be totally ruined. Nay, Tertullian boldly declared, that were the Christians to find an unknown country to retire to, the Roman empire would be left a solitary desart.

We have a list of upwards of twenty churches established during the times of the apostles, and undoubtedly each of these churches added twenty

more to the number. But yet, extensive as the Roman empire was, the gospel was not confined to it; for according to the testimonies of both heathens and Christians, it was preached in the most distant parts of the world where the Roman name was not so much as known. In the East-Indies, in Arabia, in Ethiopia, in the interior parts of Africa, and in many other places, the name of Christ was known, and his gospel believed long before the end of the second century. Tertullian, who lived about the end of the second, and beginning of the third century, tells us, that the gospe lof Christ was preached in the barbarous island of Britain, which the Romans could never subdue. Now as the Romans had long before subdued all that part of Britain which lies south of Northumberland, so by the barbarous island must be meant either Scotland or Ireland, or both; for it was customary with the Romans to call all those barbarians whom they could not subdue. And thus, if the Christian religion made its way among the inhabitants of those parts of Britain and Ireland, which were never subject to the Roman yoke, may we not suppose, that it did the same in other parts of the world; certainly we may; and that the power of God might shine conspicuous, all these events took place before the aid of the civil magistrate was either aske dfor or obtained.

Had not this been the case in those early ages, all the ancient prophesies would have been rendered as it were abortive; for it had been foretold, that the Messiah should be a light to lighten the gentiles; that he should come to give salvation to all the ends of the earth; that he should be the desire of all nations; nay, that he should satisfy the desires of all nations; and that even the heathens being converted should as an obedient people, be willing in the day of his power. Now as these expressions are general, and as the Roman empire did not extend over all the heathen world, so the gospel must have been preached in countries with which they were entirely unacquainted: of this many vestiges are daily discovered by our modern travellers; for although almost all mankind have corrupted their ways, yet it does not import, but they were once well acquainted with the truth. For the whole that has been said, we may draw the following conclusion, that in general, the gospel was preached throughout the greatest part of the world, long before the reign of Constantine the Great; and although in many places the knowledge of it is lost, yet we have the greatest reason to believe, and a well grounded hope to expect, that before the coming of our Lord, it will rise triumphant above every opposition, and shine gloriously, till it is swallowed up in eternity.

An

IT

was a just observation of a wise man, that if no genuine coin was to be found in the world, there would not be any temptations for men to counterfeit it; and to this we may add, that unless truth had been promulgated, many errors would have remained unknown. The promulgation of the Christian religion, was the most memorable event that ever took place on the theatre of this lower world; and as it was new and mysterious, we need not be surprised to find, that many persons embraced it in an external way, whose hearts were strangers to its purity; nor did they chuse to comply with that self-denial and mortification, which must ever distinguish the followers of Jesus from all others. Of this we have a remarkable instance in the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 8. where we are told, that Peter having preached the gospel to the people of Samaria, one Simon, commonly called Simon Magus, professed to believe the gospel, and was baptized: but no sooner had he seen the wonderful signs and miracles which accompanied the doctrine of the apostles, then he offered money to Peter, in order to be endowed with the same power; this shewed that his heart was corrupted, and that he had only embraced the name of the Christian religion, and satisfied himself with the shadow, while he was a stranger to the substance. All the ancient writers in the Christian church acknowledge, that this Simon was the first who broached heresy; and he even went up and down the world propagating his notions, or rather his blasphemies. Several stories have been told concerning him, but many of these are not to be credited; for although there can remain no doubt that he was a bad man, yet it will never serve the cause of truth to call him worse than he was. He gave out that he himself was the Messiah, and the eternal God; and having gathered together a vast number of disciples, he sent them into different proviuces, where they perverted many professing Christians from the faith, by teaching them the most horrid blasphemies, which gave much offence to the real Christians, who in consequence thereof, were accused of teaching notions they abhorred.

Many of those heretics observed the same ceremonies as the catholic Christians, and had their

places of worship, or rather blasphemy; others had no places of worship at all, and some were so few in number, that they were confined to particular places; we shall therefore proceed to treat of them in the most regular manner, by laying before the reader all we have had transmitted to us concening them.

The Abelians, or Abelonians, were a very remarkable sect of heretics, who lived somewhere near Hippo in Africa, but were extinct long before St Austin was bishop of the church in that city. They permitted a man to marry one woman, but they were not to have any carnal knowledge of their wives. They pretended to regulate marriage on the footing of the terrestrial paradise, when Adam and Eve lived together in a state of innocency before the fall. For as Adam and Eve were only, according to their notions, united in heart, so they believed that they were to be so also, without considering that our first parents were sent into the world to propagate their species. They said, that as Abel was married and had no children, so it was probable he never knew his wife. But here was a double absurdity; for first they did not know from any part of the sacred scriptures, that Abel was ever married, and supposing he had been married, which is not in the least improbable, yet how should they know whether he had children, seeing we read nothing concerning them.

When a man and a woman entered into this un

natural society, they adopted two children, a boy and a girl, who were to inherit their goods, on condition of their marrying on the same terms, and living together without carnally knowing each other.. We never read of this sect but in the writings of St.. Austin, and probably they were but of short continuance; for as Mr. Bayle justly observes, it was offering too great a violence to nature to command a man and woman to live together, and have all things in common, except that which was one of the ends, and a principal one, of marriage, to pro-pagate their species, and bring up children as useful. members of society.

Adamites were another set of heretics, who sprang up about the middle of the second century. Their

founder