AN

ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY,

Ancient anft JWotern,

FROM

THE BIRTH OF CHRIST,

TO THE

BEGINNING OF THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY.

IN WHICH

THE RISE, PROGRESS, AND VARIATIONS OP CHURCH POWER ARE CON- SIDERED IN THEIR CONNEXION WITH THE STATE OF LEARNING AND PHILOSOPHY, AND THE POLITICAL HISTORY OF EUROPE DURING THAT PERIOD.

BY THE LATE LEARNED

JOHN LAWRENCE MOSHEIM, D.D.

AND CHANCELLOR OF THE UNIVERSITY OF GOTTINGEN.

TRANSLATED FROM THE ORIGINAL LATIN, AND ACCOMPANIED WITH NOTES AND CHRONOLOGICAL TABLES,

BY ARCHIBALD MACLAINE, D.D.

TO WHICH IS ADDED,

AN ACCURATE INDEX.

IN SIX VOLUMES. VOL. II.

LONDON:

PRINTED FOR W. BAYNES AND SON, PATERNOSTER-ROW ; T. TEGG., CHEAPSIDE ; G. OFFOR, TOWER HILL : ALSO, H. S. BAYNES AND CO. EDINBURGH, AND R. GRIFFIN AND CO. GLASGOW.

1823.

LONDON:

ViUNTEI) BY THOMAS DAVISON, WHIT£FR1ARS.

THE

FIFTH CENTURY.

PART I.

THE EXTERNAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

CHAPTER I.

Concerning the Prosperous Events that happened to the Church.

I. IN order to arrive at a true knowledge of the CENT. causes to which we are to attribute the outward

state of the church, and the events which happened 1

to it during this century, we must keep in view The state of the civil history of this period of time. It is, there- fore, proper to observe, that, m the beginning of this century, the Roman empire was divided into two distinct sovereignties ; of which the one com- prehended the eastern provinces, the other those of the west. Arcadius, the emperor of the east, reigned at Constantinople; and Honorius, who

foverned the western provinces, chose Ravenna )r the place of his residence. This latter prince, remarkable only for the sweetness of his temper, and the goodness of his heart, neglected the great affairs of the empire; and, inattentive to the weighty duties of his station, held the reins of government with an unsteady hand. The Goths took advantage of this criminal indolence ; made

VOL. II. B

2 The External History of the Church.

CENT, incursions into Italy; laid waste its fairest pro-

PART i vmces? an(l sometimes carried their desolations as

- far as Rome, which they ravaged and plundered

in the most dreadful manner. These calamities,

which fell upon the western part of the empire

from the Gothic depredations, were followed by

others still more dreadful under the succeeding

emperors. A fierce and warlike people, issuing

out of Germany, overspread Italy, Gaul, and

Spain, the noblest of all the European provinces,

and erected new kingdoms in those fertile coun-

tries; and Odoacer, at last, at the head of the

Heruli, having conquered Augustulus, in the

year 476, gave the mortal blow to the western

empire, and reduced all Italy under his domi-

nion. About sixteen years after this, Theodoric,

king of the Ostrogoths, made war upon these bar-

barian invaders, at the request of Zeno, emperor

of the east, conquered Odoacer in several battles,

and obtained, as the fruits of his victories, a king-

dom for the Ostrogoths in Italy, which subsisted

under various turns of fortune from the year 493

to 552 (0).

These new monarchs of the west pretended to acknowledge the supremacy of the emperors who resided at Constantinople, and gave some faint external marks of a disposition to reign in subor- dination to them ; but, in reality, they ruled with an absolute independence, in their respective go- vernments; and, as appears particularly by the dominion exercised by Theocloric in Italy, left nothing remaining to the eastern emperors but a mere shadow of power and authority

(a) See, for a fuller illustration of this branch of history, the learned work of De Bos, intitled, Histoire Critique de la Monarchic Francoise, torn. i. p. 258; as also Mascow's History of the Germans.

(b) Car. du Fresne, Dissert, xxiii. ad Histor. Ludovici S. p. 280, Muratorii Antiq. Ital. torn. ii. p. 578. 832.

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events.

II. These constant wars, and the inexpressible CENT. calamities with which they were attended, were un- PART lt doubtedly detrimental to the cause and progress of Christianity. It must, however, be acknowledged

that the Christian emperors, especially those who idolatry. ruled in the east, were active and assiduous in ex- tirpating the remains of the ancient superstitions. Theodosius the younger distinguished himself in this pious and noble work, and many remarkable monuments of his zeal in this matter are still pre- served (c) ; such as the laws which enjoined either the destruction of the heathen temples, or the dedication of them to Christ and his saints ; the edicts, by which he abrogated the sacrilegious rites and ceremonies of paganism, and removed from all offices and employments in the state such as persevered in their attachment to the absurdities of Polytheism.

This spirit of reformation appeared with less vigour in the western empire. There the feasts of Saturn and Pan, the combats of the gladiators, and other rites that were instituted in honour of the pagan deities, were celebrated with the utmost freedom and impunity ; and persons of the highest rank and authority professed pub- licly the religion of their idolatrous ancestors (d). This liberty was, however, from time to time,

Giannone, Histoire de Naples, torn. i. p. 207. Jo.

Vita Theodorici Ostrogothorum regis, printed in 4to in the

year 1699, with the observations and remarks of Pering-

skiold.

(c) See the Theodosian Code, torn. vi. p. 327.

(d) See the Saturnalia of Macrobius, lib. i. p. 190. edit. Gronov. Scipio Maffei delli Anfiteatri, lib. i. p. 56, 5 7. Pierre le Brun, Hist. Critique des Pratiques Superstitieuses, torn. i. p. 237. and above all, Montfaucon, Diss. de Moribus tempore Theodosii M. et Arcadii, which is to be found in Latin, in the eleventh volume of the works of St. Chrysostom, and in French, in the twentieth volume of the Memoires del' Aca- demic des Inscriptions et des Belles Lettres, p. 197-

B 2

4 The External History of the Church.

CENT, reduced within narrower limits; and all those public sports and festivals, that were more pecu-

*. _ , •*• MI • i i • i •

harly incompatible with the genius and sanctity of the Christian religion, were everywhere abo- lished (e).

Nations HI. The limits of the church continued to

toChifcti- extend themselves, and gained ground daily upon anity- the idolatrous nations, both in the eastern and western empires. In the east, the inhabitants of mount Libanus and Antilibanus being dreadfully infested with wild beasts, implored the assistance and counsels of the famous Simeon the Stylite, of whom we shall have occasion to speak hereafter. Simeon gave them for answer, that the only effec- tual method of removing this calamity was, to abandon the superstitious worship of their ancestors, and substitute the Christian religion in its place. The docility of this people, joined to the extremi- ties to which they were reduced, engaged them to follow the counsels of this holy man. They em- braced Christianity, and in consequence of their conversion, they had the pleasure of seeing their savage enemies abandon their habitations: if we may believe the writers who affirm the truth of this prodigy. The same Simeon, by his influence and authority, introduced the Christian worship into a certain district of the Arabians: some al- lege, that this also was effected by a miracle, which to me appears somewhat more than doubtful (y). To these instances of the progress of the gospel, we may add the conversion of a considerable num- ber of Jews in the isle of Crete; who finding themselves grossly deluded by the impious pre- tensions of an impostor, called Moses Creten-

(e) Anastasius prohibited, towards the conclusion of this century, the combats with the wild beasts, and other shows. Asseman. Biblioth. Orient. Vatic, torn. i. p. 246.

(/) Assemanni Bibl. Orient. Vat. torn. i. p. 246.

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events.

sis (#), who gave himself out for the Messiah, opened their eyes upon the truth, and embraced PART i. the Christian religion of their own accord (h).

C-/ \ '

IV. The German nations, who rent in pieces The conver- the Roman empire in the west, were not all con- J1.011 of the

f^-. .A . , . o (jerman na-

verted to Christianity at the same time, oome tions to of them had embraced the truth before the time christiani- of their incursion; and such, among others, was the case of the Goths. Others, after having erected their little kingdoms in the empire, em- braced the gospel, that they might thus live with more security amidst a people, who, in general, professed the Christian religion. It is, however, uncertain (and likely, to continue so) at what time and by whose ministry the Vandals, Sueves, and Alans were converted to Christianity. With respect to the Burgundians, who inhabited the banks of the Rhine, and who passed from thence into Gaul, we are informed by Socrates (?), that they embraced the gospel of their own accord, from a notion that Christ, or the god of the Romans, who had been represented to them as a most powerful being, would defend them against

Ijgp2"' (g) We shall give the relation of Socrates, concern- ing this impostor, in the words of the learned and estimable author of the Remarks on Ecclesiastical History. "In the time of Theodosius the younger, an impostor arose, called Moses Cretensis. He pretended to be a second Moses, sent to deliver the Jews who dwelt in Crete, and promised to di- vide the sea, and give them a safe passage through it. They assembled together, with their wives and children, and fol- lowed him to a promontory. He there commanded them to cast themselves into the sea. Many of them obeyed, and perished in the waters, and many were taken up and saved by fishermen. Upon this, the deluded Jews would have torn the impostor to pieces, but he escaped them and was seen no more." See Jortin's Remarks, &c. first edition, vol. iii. p. 331 .

(k) Socrates, Hist. Eccles. lib.vii. cap. xxxviii. p. 383.

(i) Idem. Hist. Eccles. lib. vii. cap. xxx. p. 371.

PART

6 The External History of the Church.

CENT, the rapines and incursions of the Huns. They v' afterwards sided with the Arian party, to which also the Vandals, Sueves, and Goths were zeal- ously attached. All these fierce and warlike nations judged a religion excellent, in proportion to the success which crowned the arms of those that professed it, and esteemed, consequently, that doctrine the best, whose professors had gained the greatest number of victories. When there- fore they saw the Romans possessed of an empire much more extensive than that of any other people, they concluded that Christ their God, was of all others the most worthy of religious homage.

OF the V. It was the same principle and the same

lks* views that engaged Clovis (&) king of the Salii, a nation of the Franks, to embrace Christianity. This prince, whose signal valour was accompa- nied with barbarity, arrogance, and injustice, founded the kingdom of the Franks, in Gaul, after having made himself master of a great part of that country, and meditated with a singular eagerness and avidity the conquest of the whole. His con- version to the Christian religion is dated from the battle he fought with the Allemans, in the year 496, at a village called Tolbiacum (/) ; in which when the Franks began to give ground, and their affairs seemed desperate, he implored the assistance of Christ (whom his queen Clothildis, daugh- ter of the king of the Burgundians, had often re- presented to him, in vain, as the Son of the true God), and solemnly engaged himself, by a vow, to worship him as his God, if he rendered him victorious over his enemies. Victory decided in

(k) Besides the name of Clovis, this prince was also called Clodovaeus, Hludovicus, Ludovicus, and Ludicin.

lUI0 (/) Tolbiacum is thought to be the present Zulpick, which is about twelve miles from Cologne.

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 1

favour of the Franks : and Clovis, faithful to his CENT. engagement, received baptism at Rheims (?/z), PAR'T f

towards the conclusion of that same year, after

having been instructed by Remigius, bishop of that city, in the doctrines of the gospel (n). The example of the king had such a powerful effect upon the minds of his subjects, that three thousand of them immediately followed it, and were bap- tized with him. Many are of opinion, that the desire of extending his dominions was that which contributed principally to render Clovis faithful to his engagement; though some influence may also be allowed to the zeal and exhortations of his queen Clothildis. Be that as it will, nothing is more certain than that his profession of Christianity was, in effect, of great use to him, both in con- firming and enlarging his empire.

The miracles, which are said to have been wrought at the baptism of Clovis, are utterly un- worthy of the smallest degree of credit. Among others the principal prodigy, that of the phial full of oil said to be brought from heaven by a milk white dove, during the ceremony of bap- tism, is a fiction, or rather, perhaps, an impos- ture; a pretended miracle contrived by artifice and fraud (o). Pious frauds of this nature were very commonly practised in Gaul and in Spain

(m) See Gregory of Tours, Historia Francorum, lib. ii. cap. xxx. xxxi. Henry count Bunau's Historia Imperii Romano-Germanici, torn. i. p. 588. De Bos' Histoire Cri- tique de la Monarchic Francoise, torn. ii. p. 31-0.

[Up0 (n) The epitomiser of the history of the Franks tells us, that Remigius having preached to Clovis, and those who had been baptized with him, a sermon on the passion of our Saviour ; the king, in hearing him, could not forbear crying out, " If I had been there with my Franks, that should not have happened."

(o) The truth of this miracle has been denied by the learned John James Chiflet, in his book De Ampulla Rhe-

8 The External History of the Church.

CENT, at this time, in order to captivate, with more PART i. facility* the minds of a rude and barbarous peo-

L pie, who were scarcely susceptible of a rational

conviction.

The conversion of Clovis is looked upon by the learned as the origin of the titles of Most Chris- tian King, and Eldest Son of the Church, which have been so long attributed to the kings of France (p). For, if we except this prince, all the kings of those barbarous nations, who seized upon the Roman provinces, were either yet involved in the darkness of paganism, or infected with the Arian heresy.

of the Irish. VI. Celcstine, the Roman pontiff, sent Palla- dius into Ireland, to propagate the Christian re-

mensi, printed in folio at Antwerp, in the year 16.51; and it has been affirmed by Vertot, in the Memoires de 1'Academie des Inscriptions et des Belles Lettres, torn. iv. p. 350. After a mature consideration of what has been alleged on both sides of the question, I can scarcely venture to deny the fact : I am therefore of opinion, that in order to confirm and fix the wavering faith of this barbarian prince, Remigius had pre- pared his measures beforehand, and trained a pigeon, by vast 'application and dexterity, in such a manner, that, during the baptism of Clovis, it descended from the roof of tne church with a phial full of oil. Among the records of this century, we find accounts of many such miracles. (§§* There is one cir- cumstance, which obliges me to differ from Dr. Mosheim upon this point, and to look upon the story of the famous phial ra- ther as a mere fiction, than as a pious fraud, or pretended miracle brought about by artifice ; and that circumstance is, that Gregory of Tours, from whom we have a full account of the conversion and baptism of Clovis, and who from his proximity to this time may almost be called a contemporary writer, has not made the least mention of this famous miracle. This omission, in a writer whom the Roman Catholics them- selves consider as an over-credulous historian, amounts to a proof, that, in his time, this fable was not yet invented.

(/?) See Gab. Daniel et De Camps, Dissert, de Titulo Re- gis Christianissimi, Journal des S9avans, for the year 1720. p. 243. 336. 404. 448. Memoires de 1' Academic des Inscrip- tions, torn. xx. p. 466.

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 9

ligion among the rude inhabitants of that island. CENT.

PART I.

This first mission ((/) was not attended with much fruits ; nor did the success of Palladius bear any proportion to his laborious and pious endea- vours. After his death, the same pontiff em- ployed in this mission, Succathus, a native of Scotland, whose name he changed into that of Patrick, and who arrived among the Irish in the year 432. The success of his ministry, and the number and importance of his pious exploits, stand upon record as undoubted proofs, not only of his resolution and patience, but also of his dexterity and address. Having attacked, with much more success than his predecessor, the errors and superstitions of that uncivilized people, and brought great numbers of them over to the Chris- tian religion, he founded, in the year 472, the archbishoprick of Armagh (r), which has ever since remained the metropolitan see of the Irish na- tion. Hence this famous missionary, though not the first who brought among that people the light of the gospel, has yet been justly entitled, The apostle of the Irish, and the father of the Hiber-

(q) From the fragments of the lives of some Irish bishops, who are said to have converted many of their country- men in the fourth century, Archbishop Usher concludes, that Palladius was not the first bishop of Ireland, (see his Antiqui- ties of the British Church.) But it has been evidently proved, among others by Bollandus, that these fragments are of no earlier date than the twelfth century, and are, besides, the most of them fabulous. Dr. Mosheim's opinion is further confirmed by the authority of Prosper, which is decisive in this matter. (r) See the Acta Sanctor. torn. ii. Martii, p. 517' torn. iii. Februar. p. 131. 179. Jac. Warsei Hibernia Sacra, printed in folio at Dublin, 1717. This latter published at London, in 1656, in 8vo. the Works of St. Patrick. The synods, that were held by this eminent missionary, are to be found in Wilkins's Concilia Magnae Brit, et Hiberniae, torn. i. p. 2. With respect to the famous cave, which is called the Purga- tory of St. Patrick, the reader may consult Le Brun, Histoire Critique des Pratiques superstitieuses,' torn. iv. p. 34.

10

The External History of the Church.

CENT, man church ; and is still generally acknowledged PART i anc^ revered in that honourable character.

VII. The causes and circumstances by which

The causes these different nations were engaged to abandon the superstition of their ancestors, and to embrace the religion of Jesus, may be easily deduced from the facts we have related in the history of their conversion. It would, indeed, be an instance of the blindest and most perverse partiality, not to acknowledge, that the labours and zeal of great and eminent men contributed to this happy pur- pose, and were the means by which the darkness of many was turned into light. But, on the other hand, they must be very inattentive and superfi- cial observers of things, who do not perceive that the fear of punishment, the prospect of honours and advantages, and the desire of obtaining suc- cour against their enemies from the countenance of the Christians, or the miraculous influences of their religion, were the prevailing motives that induced the greatest part to renounce the service of their impotent gods.

How far these conversions were due to real miracles attending the ministry of these early preachers, is a matter extremely difficult to be determined. For though I am persuaded that those pious men, who, in the midst of many dan- gers, and in the face of obstacles seemingly in- vincible, endeavoured to spread the light of Chris- tianity through the barbarous nations, were some- times accompanied with the more peculiar pre- sence and succours of the Most High (s) ; yet I am equally convinced, that the greatest part of

(s) There is a remarkable passage, relating to the miracles of this century, in ^Eneas Gazeus's Dialogue concerning the Immortality of the Soul, &c. intitled, Theophrastus, p. 78. 80, 81. edit. Barthii, See the controversy concerning the time when miracles ceased in the church, that was carried on some years ago, on occasion of Dr. Middleton's Free Inquiry, &c.

CHAP. ii. Calamitous Events. H

the prodigies, recorded in the histories of this age, CENT. are liable to the strongest suspicions of falsehood or imposture. The simplicity and ignorance of the generality in those times furnished the most favourable occasion for the exercise of fraud ; and the impudence of impostors, in contriving false miracles, was artfully proportioned to the credulity of the vulgar (/) ; while the sagacious and the wise, who perceived these cheats, were obliged to silence by the dangers that threatened their lives and fortunes, if they detected the arti- fice (11). Thus does it generally happen in hu- man life, that, when the discovery and profession of the truth is attended with danger, the prudent are silent, the multitude believe, and impostors triumph.

CHAPTER II.

Concerning the calamitous Events which happened to the Church during this Century.

I. IT has been already observed, that the The Chris. Goths, the Heruli, the Franks, the Huns, and ^^^ the Vandals, with other fierce and warlike nations, man empire. for the most part strangers to Christianity, had invaded the Roman empire, and rent it asunder in the most deplorable manner. Amidst these calamities, the Christians were grievous, nay, we may venture to say, the principal sufferers. It is true, these savage nations were much more in- tent upon the acquisition of wealth and dominion,

(f) This is ingeniously confessed by the Benedictine monks, Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. ii. p. 33. and happily expressed by Livy, Hist. lib. xxiv. cap. x. sect. 6. Prodigia midta nuntiata sunt, qucu quo magis credebant sim- pliccs et religiosi homines, eo plura nunliabantur.

(u) Sulpitius Severus, Dial. i. p. 4*38. Ep. i. p. 457- Dial, iii. cap. ii, p. 487.

12 The External History of the Church.

CENT, than upon the propagation or support of the pagan PART i suPerstitions 5 nor did their cruelty and opposition L to the Christians arise from any religious prin- ciple, or from an enthusiastic desire to ruin the cause of Christianity; it was merely by the in- stigation of the pagans who remained yet in the empire, that they were excited to treat with such severity and violence the followers of Christ. The painful consideration of their abrogated rites, and the hopes of recovering their former liberty and privileges by the means of their new masters, in- duced the worshippers of the gods to seize with avidity every opportunity of inspiring them with the most bitter aversion to the Christians. Their endeavours, however, were without the desired effect, and their expectations were entirely disap- pointed. The greatest part of these barbarians embraced Christianity; though it be also true, that, in the beginning of their usurpations, the professors of that religion suffered heavily under the rigour of their government.

II. To destroy the credit of the gospel, and to excite the hatred of the multitude against the Christians, the pagans took occasion, from the calamities and tumults which distracted the em- pire, to renew the obsolete complaint of their ancestors against Christianity, as the source of these complicated woes. They alleged, that be- fore the coming of Christ, the world was blessed with peace and prosperity; but that, since the progress of his religion every where, the gods, filled with indignation to see their worship ne- glected, and their altars abandoned, had visited the earth with those plagues and desolations, which increased every day. This feeble objection was en- tirely removed by Augustin, in his book, Concern- ing the City of God ; a work extremely rich and ample in point of matter, and filled with the most profound and diversified erudition. It also drew

The at- tempts of the pagans to destroy their credit

CHAP. ii. Calamitous Events. 13

a complete confutation from the learned pen of CENT. Orosius, who, in a history written expressly for PAR^ l

that purpose, showed, with the utmost evidence,

that not only the same calamities now complained of, but also plagues of a much more dreadful kind, had afflicted mankind before the Christian reli- gion appeared in the world.

The calamities of the times produced still more pernicious effects upon the religious sentiments of the Gauls. They introduced among that people the most desperate notions, and led many of them to reject the belief of a superintending providence, and to exclude the Deity from the government of the universe. Against these frenetic infidels, Salvian wrote his book Concerning the divine Go- vernment.

III. Hitherto we have given only a general view The perse- of the sufferings of the Christians ; it is, however, proper, that we enter into a more distinct and par- ed. ticular account of that matter.

In Gaul, and the neighbouring provinces, the Goths and Vandals, (whose cruel and sacrilegious soldiery respected neither the majesty of religion nor the rights of humanity,) committed acts of barbarity and violence against a multitude of Christians.

In Britain, a long series of tumults and divi- sions involved the Christians in many troubles. When the affairs of the Romans declined in that country, the Britons were tormented by the Picts and Scots, nations remarkable for their violence and ferocity. Hence, after many sufferings and disasters, they chose in the year 445, Vorti- gern for their king. This prince, finding him- self too weak to make head against the enemies of his country, called the Anglo-Saxons from Germany to his aid, in the year 449. The con- sequences of this measure were pernicious ; and it soon appeared, that this people, who came as auxi-

1.4 The External History of the Church.

CENT. Haries into Britain, oppressed it with calamities PART i. more grievous than those which it had suffered

from its enemies. For the Saxons aimed at nothing

less than to subdue the ancient inhabitants of the country, and to reduce the whole island under their dominion. Hence a most bloody and ob- stinate war arose between the Britons and Saxons, which, after having been carried on, during the space of a hundred and thirty years, with various success, ended in the defeat of the Britons, who were forced to yield to the Anglo-Saxons, and to seek a retreat in Batavia and Cambria. During these commotions, the state of the British church was deplorable beyond expression ; it was almost totally overwhelmed and extinguished by the An- glo-Saxons, who adhered to the worship of the gods, and put an immense number of Christians to the most cruel deaths (re;).

in Persia. iv. In Persia, the Christians suffered grievously by the imprudent zeal of Abdas, bishop of Suza, who pulled down the Pyraeum, which was a temple dedicated to fire. For when this obstinate prelate was ordered by the king (Isdegerdes) to rebuild that temple, he refused to comply ; for which he was put to death in the year 444, and the churches of the Christians were levelled to the ground. This persecution was not however of long dura- tion, but seems to have been extinguished soon after its commencement.

Vararenes, the son of the monarch already mentioned, treated the Christians in a manner yet more barbarous and inhuman in the year 42 1 , to which he was led partly by the instigation of the Magi, and partly by his keen aversion to the Ro- mans, with whom he was at war. For as often

(tu) See besides Bede and Gilda, Jac. Usser. Antiquitat. Ecclesiae Britannicae, cap. xii. p. 415. Rapin Thoyras, His- toire d'Angleterre, torn, i, livr. ii. p. 91.

CHAP. ii. Calamitous Events. 15

as the Persians and the Romans were at variance, CENT. so often did the Christians who dwelt in Persia PA J^, l feel new and redoubled effects of their monarch's _

wrath ; and this from a prevailing notion, not perhaps entirely groundless, that they favoured the Romans, and rendered real services to their republic (#). In this persecution, a prodigious number of Christians perished in the most exqui- site tortures, and by various kinds of punish- ments ( y\ But they were, at length, delivered from these cruel oppressions by the peace that was made in the year 427, between Vararenes and the Roman empire (z).

It was not from the pagans only that the Chris- tians were exposed to suffering and persecution ; they were moreover harassed and oppressed in a variety of ways by the Jews, who lived in great opulence, and enjoyed a high degree of favour and credit in several parts of the east (#). Among these, none treated them with greater rigour and arrogance than Gamaliel, the patriarch of that nation, a man of the greatest power and influ- ence, whose authority and violence were, on that account, restrained, in the year 415, by an express and particular edict of Theodosius the younger (&).

V. It does not appear, from any records of Christianity history now remaining, that any writings against ^cpr°sted by Christ and his followers were published in this enemies. century, unless we consider as such the histories of Olympiodorus (c) and Zosimus, of whom

(a;) Theodoret, Hist. Eccles. lib. v. cap. xxxix. p. 245. Bayle's Dictionary, at the article Abdas. Barbeyrac, De la Morale des Peres, p. 320.

(«/) Jos. Sim. Assemani Biblioth. Oriental. Vatican, torn. i. p. 182. 248.

(z) Socrates, Hist. Eccles. lib. vii. cap. xx. p. 358.

(a) Socrates, Hist. Eccles. lib. vii. cap. xiii. p. 349. cap. xvi. p. 353. Codex Theodos. torn. vi. p. 265.

(b) Codex Theodos. torn. vi. p. 262.

(c) Photius, Biblioth. Cod. Ixxx. p. 178.

V.

PART

16 The External History of the Church.

CENT, the latter loses no opportunity of reviling the Christians, and loading them with the most unjust and bitter reproaches. But though the number of books written against Christianity was so small, et we are not to suppose that its adversaries had aid aside the spirit of opposition. The schools of the philosophers and rhetoricians were yet open in Greece, Syria, and Egypt ; and there is no doubt but that these subtle teachers laboured assiduously to corrupt the minds of the youth, and to instil into them, at least some of the principles of the ancient superstition (d). The history of these times, and the writings of several Christians who lived in this century, exhibit evident proofs of these clandestine methods of opposing the progress of the gospel.

(d) Zacharias Mitylen. De Opificio Dei, p. 165. 200. edit. Barthii.

PART II.

THE INTERNAL HISTORY OF THE CHUKCH,

CHAPTER I.

Concerning the State of Learning and Phi- losophy.

I. THOUGH, in this century, the illiterate and CENT. ignorant were advanced to eminent and important

® . __ i • • i i • «i PART II*

stations, both ecclesiastical and civil, yet we must

not conclude from thence, that the sciences were The state of held in universal contempt. The value of learn- ^ong the ing, and the excellence of the finer arts, were yet Christians. generally acknowledged among the thinking part of mankind. Hence public schools were erected in almost all the great cities, such as Constanti- nople, Rome, Marseilles, Edessa, Nisibis, Car- thage, Lyons, and Treves ; and public instructors of capacity and genius were set apart for the edu- cation of the youth, and maintained at the ex- pense of the emperors. Several bishops and monks contributed also to the advancement of knowledge, by imparting to others their small stock of learn- ing and science. But the infelicity of the times, the incursions of the barbarous nations, and the scarcity of great geniuses, rendered the fruits of these excellent establishments much less than their generous founders and promoters expected.

II. In the western provinces, and especially in in the west. Gaul, there were indeed some men eminently distinguished by their learning and talents, and

every way proper to serve as models to the lower orders in the republic of letters. Of this we have abundant proof from the writing^ of Macrobius, Salvian, Vincentius, bishop of Liris, Ennodius,

VOL, II. C

18 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. Sidonius, Apollinaris, Claudian, Mamertus, Dra- PART n contms' anc^ others, who,' though in some respects 1 inferior to the more celebrated authors of anti- quity, are yet far from being destitute of elegance, and discover in their productions a most labo- rious application to literary researches of various kinds. But the barbarous nations, which either spread desolation, or formed settlements in the Roman territories, choked the growth of those genial seeds, which the hand of science had sowed in more auspicious times. These savage invaders, possessed of no other ambition than that of con- quest, and looking upon military courage as the only source of true virtue and solid glory, beheld, of consequence, the arts and sciences with the utmost contempt. Wherever therefore they ex- tended their conquests, ignorance and darkness followed their steps, and the culture of the sci- ences was confined to the priests and monks alone. And even among these, learning degenerated from its primitive lustre, and put on the most unseemly and fantastic form. Amidst the seduc- tion of corrupt examples, the alarms of perpetual danger, and the horrors and devastations of war, the Sacerdotal and Monastic orders lost gradually all taste for solid science, in the place of which they substituted a lifeless spectre, an enormous phantom of barbarous erudition. They indeed kept public schools, and instructed the youth in, what they called, the seven liberal arts (d) ; but these, as we learn from Augustin's account of them, consisted only of a certain number of dry, subtile, and useless precepts ; and were conse- quently more adapted to load and perplex the memory, than to improve and strengthen the

(d) These seven liberal arts were grammar, rhetoric,

logic, arithmetic, music, geometry, and astronomy. See Cent. VIII Part II. Chap. II. in this volume.

CHAP. r. Learning and Philosophy. 19

judgment. So that, towards the conclusion of CENT. this century, the sciences were almost totally ex- PAR^ir tinguished ; at least, what remained of them was ',

no more than a shadowy form, without either soli- dity or consistence.

III. The few that applied themselves to the The state of study of philosophy in this age had not, as yet, S^J^ embraced the doctrine or method of Aristotle.

They looked upon the system of this eminent phi- losopher, as a labyrinth beset with thorns and thistles (cj) ; and yet, had they been able to read and understand his works, it is probable, that many of them would have become his followers. The doctrine of Plato had a more established reputation, which it had enjoyed for several ages, and was considered, not only as less subtile and difficult than that of the Stagirite, but also as more conformable to the genius and spirit of the Christian religion. Besides, the most valuable of Plato's works were translated into Latin by Vic- torinus, and were thus adapted to general use (y). And Sidonius Apollinaris (g) informs us, that all those among the Latins, who had any inclination to the study of truth, fell into the Platonic no- tions, and followed that sage as their philosophical guide.

IV. The fate of learning was less deplorable in the east, among the Greeks and Orientals than in the west- ern provinces ; and not only the several branches

of polite literature, but also the more solid and profound sciences, were cultivated by them with tolerable success. Hence we find among them more writers of genius and learning than in other

(e) The passages of different writers, that prove what is here advanced, are collected by Launoius, in his book, De varia Aristotelis Fortunu in Academia Parisiensi.

(./*) See Augustini Confessionum lib. i. cap. ii. sect. 1. p. 105, 106. torn. i. opp.

(g) See his Epistles, book Iv. ep. iii. xi. book ix. ep. ix.

20 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, countries. Those, who inclined to the study of PART i. ^aw> resorted generally to Berytus, famous for its

. learned academy (/*), or to Alexandria (z), which

latter city was frequented by the students of physic and chemistry. The professors of eloquence, poetry, philosophy, and the other liberal arts, taught the youth in public schools, which were erected in almost every city. Those however of Alexandria, Constantinople, and Edessa, were looked upon as superior to all others, both in point of erudition and method (&).

Modem V. The doctrine and sect of the modern Pla- riatomcs. tonjcs retained as yet, among the Syrians and Alexandrians, a considerable part of their ancient splendour. Olympiodorus, Hero (/), and other philosophers of the first rank, added a lustre to the Alexandrian School. That of Athens was rendered famous by the talents and erudition of Theophrastus, Plutarch, and his successor Syrian. These were the instructors of the re- nowned Proclus, who far surpassed the Platonic philosophers of this century, and acquired such a high degree of the public esteem, as enabled him to give new life to the doctrine of Plato, and restore it to its former credit in Greece (w). Marinus, of Neapolis, Ammonius the son of Her- mias, Isidorus and Damascius, the disciples of Proclus, followed, with an ardent emulation, the traces of their master, and formed successors that resembled them in all respects. But the im- perial laws, and the daily progress of the Chris-

(Ji) See Haseei Lib. de Academia Jureconsultorum Bery- tensi; as also Mitylenaeus, De Opificio Dei, p. 164.

(i) Zach. Mitylenaeus, De Opificio Dei, p. 179.

(k) ^neas Gazaeus in Theophrasto, p. 6, 7, 16, £c.

(/) Marinus, vita Procli, cap. ix. p. 19. edit. Fabricii.

(m) The life of Proclus, written by Marinus, was published in4to at Hamburg, in the year 1700, by John Albert Fabri- cius, and was enriched by this famous editor, with a great number of learned observations.

CHAP. i. Learning and Philosophy. 21

tian religion, gradually diminished the lustre and CENT. authority of these philosophers (n). And as there PA1^ ir were many of the Christian doctors who adopted the Platonic system, and were sufficiently quali- fied to explain it to the youth, this hindered, na- turally, the schools of these heathen sages from being so much frequented as they had formerly been.

VI. The credit of the Platonic philosophy, and The phiio- the preference that was given to it, as more ex- J5»toSe cellent in itself, and less repugnant to the genius rises. into of the gospel than other systems, did not prevent cr the doctrine of Aristotle from coming to light after a long struggle, and forcing its way into the Christian church. The Platonics themselves in- terpreted, in their schools, some of the writings of Aristotle, particularly his Dialects, and re- commended that work to such of the youth as had a taste for logical discussions, and were fond of disputing. In this, the Christian doctors imi- tated the manner of the heathen schools ; and this was the first step to that universal dominion, which the Stagirite afterward obtained in the republic of letters. A second, and a yet larger stride which the Aristotelian philosophy made towards this universal empire, was, during the controver- sies which Origen had occasioned, and the Arian, Eutychian, Nestorian, and Pelagian dissensions, which, in this century, were so fruitful of cala- mities to the Christian church. Origen, as is well known, was zealously attached to the Pla- tonic system : When, therefore, he was publicly condemned, many, to avoid the imputation of his errors, and to prevent their being counted among the number of his followers, adopted openly the philosophy of Aristotle, which was

(n) See /Eneas Gazaeus, in Thcophrasto, p. 6, 7, 8, 13. edit. Barthii.

PART

%% The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, entirely different from that of Origen. The ' Nestorian, Arian, and Eutychian controversies were managed, or rather drawn out, on both sides, by a perpetual recourse to subtile distinctions, and captious sophisms. And no philosophy was so proper to furnish such weapons, as that of Ari- stotle ; for that of Plato was far from being adapted to form the mind to the Polemic arts. Besides, the Pelagian doctrine bore a striking re- semblance of the Platonic opinions concerning God and the human soul ; and this was an addi- tional reason which engaged many to desert the Platonists, and to assume, at least, the name of Peripatetics.

CHAPTER II.

Concerning the Doctors and Ministers of the Christian Church, and its Form of Government.

Theexter- J. SEVERAL causes contributed to bring about church™o°- a change in the external form of ecclesiastical vemment government. The power of the bishops, particu-

somewhat f , , „ , £r -, L . J

changed, larly those of the first order, was sometimes aug- mented, and sometimes diminished, according as the times and the occasions offered ; and in all these changes the intrigues of the court and the political state of the empire had much more influ- ence, than the rules of equity and wisdom.

These alterations were, indeed, matters of small moment. But an affair of much greater conse- quence drew now the general attention, and this was the vast augmentation of honours and rank, that was at this time accumulated upon the bi- shops of Constantinople, in opposition to the most vigorous efforts of the Roman pontiff. In the preceding century, the council of Constantinople had, on account of the dignity and privileges oi

PART II.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

that imperial city, conferred upon its bishops a CENT. place among the first rulers of the Christian church. This new dignity adding fuel to their ambition, they extended their views of authority and domi- nion, and encouraged, no doubt, by the consent of the emperor, reduced the provinces of Asia, Thrace, and Pontus, under their ghostly juris- diction. In this century, they grasped at still further accessions of power ; so that not only the whole eastern part of Illyricum was added to their former acquisitions, but they were also exalted to the highest summit of ecclesiastical authority. For, by the 28th Canon of the council held at Chalcedon in the year 451, it wras resolved, that the same rights and honours, which had been con- ferred upon the bishop of Rome, were due to the bishop of Constantinople, on account of the equal dignity and lustre of the two cities, in which these prelates exercised their authority. The same coun- cil confirmed also, by a solemn act, the bishop of Constantinople in the spiritual government of those provinces over which he had ambitiously usurped the jurisdiction. Leo the Great, bishop of Rome, opposed, with vehemence, the passing of these decrees, and his opposition was seconded by that of several other prelates. But their efforts were vain, as the emperors threw in their weight into the balance, and thus supported the decisions of the Grecian bishops (o). In consequence then of the decrees of this famous council, the bishop of Constantinople began to contend obstinately for the supremacy with the Roman pontiff, and to crush the bishops of Alexandria and Antioch, so as to make them feel the oppressive effects of his pretended superiority. And none distinguished himself more by his ambition and arrogance in

(o) Le Quien, Oriens Christ, torn. i. p. 36.

4 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, this matter, than Acacius, one of the bishops of

PART ir. that imperial city (p).

II. It was much about this time that Juvenal, Jon of lbi" Bishop of Jerusalem, or rather of ^Elia, attempted Juvenal, to withdraw himself and his church from the juris- diction of the bishop of Cassarea, and aspired after a place among the first prelates of the Christian world. The high degree of veneration and esteem, in which the church of Jerusalem was held among all other Christian societies (on account of its rank among the apostolical churches, and its title to the appellation of mother-church, as having succeeded the first Christian assembly founded by the apo- stles), was extremely favourable to the ambition of Juvenal, and rendered his project much more practicable, than it would otherwise have been. Encouraged by this, and animated by the favour and protection of Theodosius the younger, the aspiring prelate not only assumed the dignity of patriarch of all Palestine (<?), a rank that rendered him supreme and independent of all spiritual authority, but also invaded the rights of the bishop of Antioch, and usurped his jurisdiction over the provinces of Phoenicia and Arabia. Hence there arose a warm contest between Juvenal and

(p) See Bayle's Dictionary in English, at the article Acacius.

ggp0 (?) By all Palestine, the reader is desired to under- stand three distinct provinces, of which each bore the name of Palestine, and accordingly the original is thus expressed, Trium Palaestinarum Episcopum seu Patriarchum. After the destruction of Jerusalem, the face of Palestine was almost to- tally changed ; and it was so parcelled out and wasted by a succession of wars and invasions, that it preserved scarcely any trace of its former condition. Under the Christian em- perors there were three Palestines formed out of the ancient country of that name, each of which was an episcopal see. And it was of these three dioceses that Juvenal usurped and maintained the jurisdiction. See for a further account of the Three Palestines, Spanhemii Geographia Sacra, opp. torn. i. p. 79.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. %5

Maximus, bishop of Antioch, which the council of CENT. Chalcedon decided, by restoring to the latter the FAR? n

provinces of Phoenicia and Arabia, and confirming

the former in the spiritual possession of all Pales- tine (r), and in the high rank which he had as- sumed in the church (Y). By this means there were created, in this century, five superior rulers of the church, who were distinguished from the rest by the title of patriarchs (f). The oriental historians mention a sixth, viz. the bishop of Se- leucia and Ctesiphon, to whom, according to their account, the bishop of Antioch voluntarily ceded a part of his jurisdiction (u). But this addition to the number of the patriarchs is unworthy of credit, as the only proof of it is drawn from the Arabic laws of the council of Nice, which are notoriously destitute of all authority.

III. The patriarchs were distinguished by con- The rights siderable and extensive rights and privileges, that f^fof the were annexed to their high station. They alone patriarch*, consecrated the bishops, who lived in the pro- vinces that belonged to their jurisdiction. They assembled yearly in council the clergy of their re- spective districts, in order to regulate the affairs of the church. The cognizance of all important causes, and the determination of the more weighty controversies, were referred to the patriarch of the province where they arose. They also pro- nounced a decisive judgment in those cases, where accusations were brought against bishops. And,

(r) See also for an account of the Three Palestines, Caroli a S. Paulo Geographia Sacra, p. 307.

(s) See Mich. Le Quien, Oriens Christianus, torn. iii. p. 110.

(t) See the authors who have written concerning the pa- triarchs, which are mentioned and recommended by the learned Fabricius, in his Bibliograph. Antiquar. cap. xiii. p. 453.

(u) Assemanni Biblioth. Orient. Vatican, torn. i. p. 9, 13, &c.

26 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, lastly, they appointed vicars (w\ or deputies, PART ii. closed with their authority, for the preservation of order and tranquillity in the remoter pro- vinces. Such were the great and distinguishing privileges of the patriarchs; and they were ac- companied with others of less moment, which it is needless to mention.

It must, however, be carefully observed, that the authority of the patriarchs was not acknow- ledged through all the provinces without excep- tion. Several districts, both in the eastern and western empires, were exempted from their juris- diction (#). The emperors, who reserved to them- selves the supreme power in the Christian hier- archy, and received with great facility and readi- ness the complaints of those who considered them- selves as injured by the patriarchs; the councils also, in which the majesty and legislative power of the church immediately resided; all these were so many obstacles to the arbitrary proceedings of the patriarchal order.

The incon- IV. This constitution of ecclesiastical govern- that accom. ment was so ^*ar from contributing to the peace paniedthe and prosperity of the Christian church, that it authority81 proved, on the contrary, a perpetual source of and govern, dissensions and animosities, and was productive

ment. /» • i • nni

of various inconveniences and grievances, ihe patriarchs, who, by their exalted rank and exten- sive authority, were equally able to do much good and much mischief, began to encroach upon the rights, and to trample upon the prerogatives of their bishops, and thus introduced, gradually, a

(w) Dav. Blondel. De la Primaute de 1'Eglise, chap. xxv. p. 332. Theod. Ruinart. De Pallio Archi- Episcopal!, p. 44'5, torn. ii. of the posthumous works of Mabillon.

(x) Edward Brerewodius, Dissert, de Veteris Ecclesiae Gubernatione Patriarchal! ; which is printed ut the end of archbishop Usher's book, entitled OpuscuJum de Origine Episcoporum et Metropolitan.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 27

sort of spiritual bondage into the church. And CENT. that they might invade, without opposition, the pA^; ^

rights of the bishops, they permitted the bishops,

in their turn, to trample with impunity upon the ancient rights and privileges of the people. For, in proportion as the bishops multiplied their privileges, and extended their usurpations, the patriarchs gained new accessions of power, by the despotism which they exercised over the episcopal order. They fomented also divisions among the bishops, and excited animosities between the bishops and the other ministers of the church ; nay, they went still further, and sowed the seeds of discord between the clergy and the people, that all these combustions might furnish them with perpetual matter for the exercise of their autho- rity, and procure them a multitude of clients and dependants. They left no artifice unemployed to strengthen their own authority, and to raise oppo- sition against the bishops from every quarter. For this purpose it was, that they engaged in their cause by the most alluring promises, and attached to their interests by the most magnificent acts of liberality, whole swarms of monks, who served as intestine enemies to the bishops, and as a dead weight 011 the side of patriarchal tyranny. These monastic hirelings contributed more than any thing else to ruin the ancient ecclesiastical dis- cipline, to diminish the authority of the bishops, and raise, to an enormous and excessive height, the power and prerogatives of their insolent and ambitious patrons.

V. To these lamentable evils were added the The con. ambitious quarrels, and the bitter animosities, that rose among the patriarchs, themselves, and archs. which produced the most bloody wars, and the most detestable and horrid crimes. The patriarch of Constantinople distinguished himself in these odious contests. Elated with the favour and prox-

28 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, imity of the imperial court, he cast a haughty PART ii. eye on a^ sides, where any objects were to be found on which he might exercise his lordly am- bition. On the one hand, he reduced, under his jurisdiction, the patriarchs of Alexandria and Antioch, as prelates only of the second order ; and, on the other, he invaded the diocese of the Ro- man pontiff, and spoiled him of several provinces. The two former prelates, though they struggled with vehemence, and raised considerable tumults by their opposition, yet they struggled ineffec- tually, both for want of strength, and likewise on account of a variety of unfavourable circum- stances. But the Roman pontiff, far superior to them in wealth and power, contended also with more vigour and obstinacy, and, in his turn, gave a deadly wound to the usurped supremacy of the Byzantine patriarch.

The attentive inquirer into the affairs of the church, from this period, will find, in the events now mentioned, the principal source of those most scandalous and deplorable dissensions, which di- vided first the eastern church into various sects, and afterwards separated it entirely from that of the west. He will find, that these ignominious schisms flowed chiefly from the unchristian con- tentions for dominion and supremacy, which reigned among those who set themselves up for the fathers and defenders of the church. Thepcnyer VI. None of the contending bishops found shop of !" the occurrences of the times so favourable to his Rome. ambition, as the Roman pontiff. Notwithstand- ing the redoubled efforts of the bishop of Con- stantinople, a variety of circumstances united in augmenting his power and authority, though he had not, as yet, assumed the dignity of supreme lawgiver and judge of the whole Christian church. The bishops of Alexandria and Antioch, unable to make head against the lordly prelate of

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

Constantinople, fled often to the Roman pontiff CENT. for succour against his violence ; and the inferior order of bishops used the same method, when their rites were invaded by the prelates of Alex- andria and Antioch. So that the bishop of Rome, by taking all these prelates alternately under his protection, daily added new degrees of influence and authority to the Roman see, rendered it every where respected, and was thus impercep- tibly establishing its supremacy. Such were the means by which the Roman pontiff extended his dominion in the east. In the west its increase was owing to other causes. The declining power and the supine indolence of the emperors left the authority of the bishop who presided in their imperial city almost without control. The in- cursions, moreover, and triumphs of the barba- rians were so far from being prejudicial to his rising dominion, that they rather contributed to its advancement. For the kings, who penetrated into the empire, were only solicitous about the methods of giving a sufficient degree of stability to their respective governments. And when they perceived the subjection of the multitude to the bishops, and the dependence of the bishops upon the Roman pontiff, they immediately resolved to reconcile this ghostly ruler to their interests, by loading him with benefits and honours of various kinds.

Among all the prelates who ruled the church of Rome during this century, there was none who asserted, with such vigour and success, the au- thority and pretensions of the Roman pontiff as Leo, commonly surnamed the Great. It must be, however, observed, that neither he, nor the other promoters of that cause, were able to over- come all the obstacles that were laid in their way, nor the various checks which were given to their ambition. Many examples might be alleged in

30 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, proof of this point, particularly the case of the Africans, whom no threats nor promises could en-

"A Kill. 1*1 i • • r> i * •

_ gage to submit the decision of their controversies, and the determination of their causes, to the Ro- man tribunal (?/).

The vices of VII. The vices of the clergy were now carried the clergy. ^0 ^e most enormous lengths ; and all the writers

o '

of this century, whose probity and virtue render them worthy of credit, are unanimous in their accounts of the luxury, arrogance, avarice, and voluptuousness of the sacerdotal orders. The bishops, and particularly those of the first rank, created various delegates, or ministers, who ma- naged for them the affairs of their dioceses, and a sort of courts were gradually formed, where these pompous ecclesiastics gave audience, and received the homage of a cringing multitude. The office of a presbyter was looked upon of such a high and eminent nature, that Martin, bishop of Tours, was so audacious as to maintain, at a public enter- tainment, that the emperor was inferior, in dignity, to one of that order (z). As to the deacons, their pride and licentiousness occasioned many and grievous complaints, as appears from the decrees of several councils (a).

These opprobrious stains in the characters of the clergy would never have been endured, had not the greatest part of mankind been sunk in superstition and ignorance, and all in general formed their ideas of the rights and liberties of Christian ministers from the model exhibited by the sacerdotal orders among the Hebrews, the

(j/) Lud. El. Da Pin, De Antiqua Ecclesise Disciplina, Diss. ii. p. 166. Melch. Leydeckeri Historia Eccles. Afri- canse, torn. ii. Diss. ii. p. 505.

(z) Sulpitius Severus, De Vita Martini, cap. xx. p. 339. compared with Dialog, ii. cap. vi. p. 4-57.

(«) See Dav. Blondel. Apologia pro Sententia Hieronymi de Episcopis et Presbyteris, p. 14-0.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 31

Greeks, and Romans, during the law of Moses, CENT. and the darkness of paganism. The barbarous PA^, n

nations, also, those fierce and warlike Germans,

who, after the defeat of the Romans, divided among them the western empire, bore, with the utmost patience and moderation, both the domi- nion and vices of the bishops and priests, because, upon their conversion to Christianity, they be- came naturally subject to their jurisdiction ; and still more, because they looked upon the ministers of Christ as invested with the same rights and privileges, which distinguished the priests of their fictitious deities.

VIII. The corruption of that order, who were The sources appointed to promote by their doctrine and ex- gelded06 amples, the sacred interests of piety and virtue, the vices of will appear less surprising when we consider, that the clergy< multitudes of people of all kinds were every where admitted, without examination and without choice, into the body of the clergy, the greatest part of whom had no other view than the enjoyment of a lazy and inglorious repose. Many of these ecclesiastics were confined to no fixed places or assemblies, had no employment of any kind, but sauntered about wherever they pleased, gaining their maintenance by imposing upon the ignorant multitude, and sometimes by mean and dishonest practices.

But if any should ask, how this account is re- concileable with the number of saints, who, ac- cording to the testimonies of both the eastern and western writers, are said to have shone forth in this century ? The answer is obvious ; these saints were canonized by the ignorance of the times. For, in an age of darkness and corruption, those who distinguished themselves from the multitude, either by their genius, their writings, or their eloquence, by their prudence and dexterity in managing matters of importance, or by their

32 The Internal History of the Church.

CKNT. meekness and moderation, and the ascendant they

PART II.

r had gained over their resentments and passions ;

all such were esteemed something more than men ; they were reverenced as gods ; or, to speak more properly, they appeared to others as men divinely inspired and full of the deity.

The monks. JX. The monks, who had formerly lived only for themselves in solitary retreats, and had never thought of assuming any rank among the sacer- dotal order, were now gradually distinguished from the populace, and were endowed with such opulence, and such honourable privileges, that they found themselves in a condition to claim an eminent station among the supports and pillars of the Christian community (£). The fame of their piety and sanctity was at first so great, that bishops and presbyters were often chosen out of their order (c), and the passion of erecting edi- fices and convents, in which the monks and holy virgins might serve God in the most commo- dious manner, was at this time carried beyond all bounds (d).

The monastic orders did not all observe the same rule of discipline, nor the same manner of living. Some followed the rule of Augustin, others that of Basil, others that of Anthony, others that of Athanasius, others that of Pa- chomius ; but they must all have become ex- tremely negligent and remiss in observing the laws of their respective orders, since the licen- tiousness of the monks, even in this century, was

(b) Epiphanius, Exposit. Fidei, torn. i. opp.p. 1094. Mabil- lon, Reponse aux Chanoines Regulieres, torn. ii. of his post- humous works, p. 115.

(c) Sulpitius Severus, De Vita Martini, cap. x. p. 320. Dial. i. cap. xxi. p. 426.

(d) Sulpitius Severus, Dial. i. p. 419. Norisius, Histor. Pelag. lib. i. cap. iii. p. 273. torn. i. opp. Histoire Literaire de la France, torn. ii. p. 35.

writers.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

become a proverb (e\ and they are said to have CENT. excited the most dreadful tumults and seditions fAR^ n in various places. All the monastic orders of all — sorts were under the protection of the bishops in whose provinces they lived, nor did the patriarchs claim any authority over them, as appears with the utmost evidence from the decrees of the councils held in this century (f).

X. Several writers of considerable merit adorned Gr.eek this century. Among the Greeks and Orientals, the first place is due to Cyril, bishop of Alexandria, so famous for his learned productions, and the various controversies in which he was engaged. It would be unjust to derogate from the praises which are due to this eminent man ; but it would betray, on the other hand, a criminal partiality, did we pass uncensured the turbulent spirit, the litigious and contentious temper, and the other defects, which are laid to his charge (g^).

After Cyril, we may place Theodoret, bishop of Cyrus, an eloquent, copious, and learned writer, eminent for his acquaintance with all the branches of sacred erudition, but unfortunate in his attach- ment to some of the Nestorian errors (//).

(e) Sulp. Severus, Dial. i. cap. viii. p. 399.

(f) See Jo. Launoii Inquisitio in Chartam Inimunitatis B. Germani, opp. torn. iii. part II. p. 3. In the ancient records, posterior to this century, the monks are frequently called clerks. (See Mabillon. Przef. ad Ssec. ii. Actor. Sanctor. Ord. Benedicti, p. 14.) And this shows, that they now began to be ranked among the clergy, or ministers of the church.

(g) The works of Cyril, in six volumes folio, were pub- lished at Paris by Aubert, in the year 1638.

(/<) The Jesuit Sirraond gave at Paris, in the year 164-2, a noble edition of the works of this prelate in four volumes in folio ; a fifth was added by Gamier, in J 685. ggg* We must observe in favour of this excellent ecclesias .1, so renowned for the sanctity and simplicity of his manm s, that he aban- doned the doctrines of Nestorius, and thus effaced the stain he had contracted by his personal attachment to that heretic, and to John of Antioch.

VOL. II. D

34 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. Isidore of Pelusium was a man of uncommon

PART ii. learning and sanctity. A great number (T) of his

. epistles are yet extant, and discover more piety,

genius, erudition, and wisdom, than are to be

found in the voluminous productions of many

other writers (&).

Theophilus, bishop of Alexandria, few of whose writings are now extant, acquired an immortal name, by his violent opposition to Origen and his followers (/).

Palladius deserves a rank among the better sort of authors, by his Lausiac history, and his Life of Chrysostom.

Theodore of Mopsuestia, though accused after his death of the greatest errors, was one of the most learned men of his time. Those who have read, with any attention, the fragments of his writings, which are to be found in Photius, will lament the want of these excellent compositions, which are either entirely lost, or, if any remain (m), are only extant among the Nestorians, and that in the Syriac language (ri).

tjjjT (i) The number of these epistles amounts to 2012, which are divided into five books. They are short, but ad- mirably written, and are equally recommendable for the solidity of the matter, and the purity and elegance of their style.

(k) The best edition of Isidore's Epistles is that which was published in folio, by the Jesuit Scott, at Paris, in 1 638.

(/) See Euseb. Renaudotus, Historia Patriarchar. Alex- andrinor. p. 103.

(m) See Jos. Simon Assemani Biblioth. Oriental. Clement. Vatic, torn, iii. part ii. p. 227.

^g33 (n) It appears by this account of the works of Theo- dore, that Dr. Mosheim had not seen the Dissertations of the late Duke of Orleans, in one of which that learned prince has demonstrated, that the Commentary upon the Psalms, which is to be found in the Chain, or collection of Corderius,and which bears the name of Theodore, is the production of Theodore of Mopsuestia. There exists also, besides the fragments that are to be found in Photius, a manuscript commentary of thir illustrious author upon the twelve minor prophets.

V.

PART II.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

Nilus, disciple of Chrysostom, composed several CENT treatises of a practical and pious kind ; but these performances derive more merit from the worthy and laudable intention of their author than from any other circumstance.

We pass over in silence Basilius of Seleucia; Theodotus of Ancyra; and Gelasius of Cyzicum, for the sake of brevity.

XL A Roman pontiff, Leo I. surnamed the The Latin •Great, shines forth at the head of the Latin writers wnters- of this century. He was a man of uncommon genius and eloquence, which he employed however too much in extending his authority ; a point in which his ambition was both indefatigable and ex- cessive (o).

Orosius acquired a considerable degree of re- putation by the history he wrote to refute the cavils of the pagans against Christianity, and by his books against the Pelagians and Priscillian- ists (/?).

Cassian, an illiterate and superstitious man, in- culcated in Gaul, both by his discourse and his writings, the discipline and manner of living which prevailed among the Syrian and Egyptian monks, and was a sort of teacher to those who were called Semi-pelagians (</).

Maximus of Turin published several homilies, which are yet extant ; and, though short, are, for

(o) All the works of Leo were published at Lyons, in two volumes folio, in the year 1700, by the care of the celebrated Quenel of the oratory.

(p) See Bayle's Dictionary, at the article Orosius. A va- luable edition of this author, enriched with ancient coins and medals, was published in 4to, at Leyden, in the year 1738, by the learned Havercamp.

(g) Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. ii. p. 215. Simon, Critique de la Biblioth. Ecclesiastique, par Du Pin, torn. i. p. 156. The works of Cassian were published in folio at Francfort, in the year 1722, with a large Commentary by Alardus Gazaeus.

M The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, the most part, recommendable, both for their PAKT'II. elegance and piety.

' Eucherius of Lyons, and bishop of that city,

was one of the most considerable moral writers that flourished among the Latins in this cen- tury (r).

Pontius of Nola («?), distinguished by his emi- nent and fervent piety, is also esteemed for his poems and other good performances.

Peter, bishop of Ravenna, obtained, by his elo- quence, the title of Chrysologus ; nor are his dis- courses entirely destitute of genius (f).

Salvian was an eloquent, but, at the same time, a melancholy and sour writer, who, in his vehement declamations against the vices of his times, unwarily discovers the defects of his own character (u').

(r) See a large account of this prelate, in the Histoire Lit- teraire de la France, torn. ii. p. 275.

llgp0 (*) This pious and ingenious ecclesiastic is more ge- nerally known by the name of Paulin. See Histoire Litte- raire de la France, torn. ii. p. 179. The best edition of his works is that published by Le Brun, at Paris, in the year 1685, in two volumes, 4to.

(/) Agnelli Liber Pontificalis Ecclesiae Ravennatensis, torn. i. p. 321.

(u) Hist. Litter, de la France, torn. ii. p. 517. ^^ The authors of the history here referred to, give a different ac- count of Salvian's character. They acknowledge, that his declamations against the vices of the age, in his Treatise against Avarice, and his Discourse concerning Providence, are warm and vehement; but they represent him, notwith- standing, as one of the most humane and benevolent men of his time. It is, however, beyond all doubt, that he was ex- travagantly austere in the rules he prescribed for the conduct of life. For what is more unnatural than to recommend to Christians, as a necessary condition of salvation, their leaving their whole substance to the poor, to the utter ruin of their children and relations? It must, however, be confessed, that his austerity in point of discipline was accompanied with the most amiable moderation towards those who differed from him in articles of faith. There is a most remarkable passage to this purpose, in his Treatise concerning Providence, book v. p. 100.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 37

Prosper of Aquitain, and Marius M creator, are CENT. abundantly known to such as have employed any PAR^ llt part of their time and attention in the study of the Pelagian disputes, and the other controversies that were managed in this century.

Vincent of Lerins gained a lasting reputation by his short but excellent treatise against the sects, intitled Commonitorium (w).

Sidonius Apollinaris, a tumid writer, though not entirely destitute of eloquence ; Virgilius of Tapsus ; Arnobius the younger, who wrote a com- mentary on the book of Psalms ; Dracontius, and others of that class, are of too little consequence to deserve a more particular notice.

CHAPTER III.

Concerning the Doctrine of the Church during this Century.

I. MANY points of religion were more largely Many explained, and many of its doctrines determined reiiiond with more accuracy and precision, than they had been in the preceding ages. This was owing to the controversies that were multiplied, at this time, throughout the Christian world, concerning the person and nature of Christ ; the innate cor- ruption and depravity of man ; the natural ability of men to live according to the dictates of the

gg* (w} This work of Vincent, which is commended by our author, seems scarcely worthy of such applause. I see nothing in it, but that blind veneration for ancient opinions, which is so fatal to the discovery and progress of truth, and an attempt to prove that nothing but the voice of tradition is to be consulted in fixing the sense of the Holy Scriptures. An ample account of Vincent Prosper, and Arnobius, is to be found in the Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. ii. p. 305. 312. 369.

38 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, divine law ; the necessity of the divine grace in pAJ' order to salvation; the nature and existence of 1 human liberty ; and other such intricate and per- plexing questions. The sacred and venerable sim- plicity of the primitive times, which required no more than a true faith in the word of God, and a sincere obedience to his holy laws, appeared little better than rusticity and ignorance to the subtile doctors of this quibbling age. Yet, so it happened, that many of the over-curious divines, who at- tempted to explain the nature and remove the difficulties of these intricate doctrines, succeeded very ill in this matter. Instead of leading men into the paths of humble faith and genuine piety, they bewildered them in the labyrinths of controversy and contention, and rather darkened than illustrated the sacred mysteries of religion by a thick cloud of unintelligible subtilties, am- biguous terms, and obscure distinctions. Hence arose new matter of animosity and dispute, of bigotry and uncharitableness, which flowed like a torrent through succeeding ages, and which all human efforts seem unable to vanquish. In these disputes, the heat of passion, and the excessive force of religious antipathy and contradiction, hurried frequently the contending parties into the most dangerous extremes. Supersti- jjg jf before this time, the lustre of religion

tion grows i j i • i •• i • T •

apace. was clouded with superstition, and its divine pre- cepts adulterated with a mixture of human in- ventions, this evil, instead of diminishing, in- creased daily. The happy souls of departed Christians were invoked by numbers, and their aid implored by assiduous and fervent prayers ; while none stood up to censure or oppose this preposterous worship. The question, how the prayers of mortals ascended to the celestial spirits (a question which afterwards produced much wrangling, and many idle fancies), did not as yet

PART II,

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 39

occasion any difficulty ; for the Christians of this CENT. century did not imagine that the souls of the saints were so entirely confined to the celestial . mansions, as to be deprived of the privilege of visiting mortals, and travelling, when they pleased, through various countries. They were further of opinion, that the places most frequented by departed spirits were those where the bodies they had formerly animated were interred; and this opinion, which the Christians borrowed from the Greeks and Romans, rendered the sepulchres of the saints the general rendezvous of suppliant multitudes (#). The images of those who, during their lives, had acquired the reputation of uncommon sanctity, were now honoured with a particular worship in several places; and many imagined, that this worship drew down into the images the propitious presence of the saints or celestial beings they represented; deluded, per- haps, into this idle fancy by the crafty fictions of the heathen priests, who had published the same thing concerning the statues of Jupiter and Mer- cury (y). A singular and irresistible efficacy was also attributed to the bones of martyrs, and to the figure of the cross, in defeating the at- tempts of Satan, removing all sorts of calamities, and in healing, not only the diseases of the body, but also those of the mind (z). We shall not

(:r) Lactantius, Divinar. Institutionum lib. i. p. 164. He- siodus, Opp. et Dier. ver. 122. Compare with these, Sulpi- tius Severus, Epist. ii. p. 371. Dial. ii. cap. xiii. p. 474. Dial. iii. p. 512. .^Eneas Gazaeus, in Theophrasto, p. 65. Macarius in Jac. Tollii Insignibus Itirieris Italici, p. 197. and other writers of this age.

(y) Clementina, Homil. x. p. 697. torn, i. PP. Apostolic. Arnobius, adv. Gentes, lib. vi. p. 254. Casp. Barthius, ad Rutilium Numantian, p. 250.

(z) Prudentius, Hymn. xi. de Coronis, p. 150, 151. Sul- pitius Severus, Ep. i. p. 364. TEneas Gazaeus, in Theo- phrasto, p. 173.

40

The Internal History of the Church.

PART

CENT, enter here into a particular account of the public ii. supplications, the holy pilgrimages, the supersti- tious services paid to departed souls, the multi- plication of temples, altars, penitential garments, and a multitude of other circumstances, that showed the decline of genuine piety, and the corrupt darkness that was eclipsing the lustre of primitive Christianity. As there were none in these times to hinder the Christians from retaining the opinions of their pagan ancestors concerning departed souls, heroes, demons, temples, and such like matters, and even transferring them into their religious services ; and as, instead of entirely abolishing the rites and institutions of ancient times, these institutions were still observed, with only some slight alterations; all this swelled of necessity the torrent of superstition, and deformed the beauty of the Christian religion and worship with those corrupt remains of paganism, which still subsist in a certain church.

It will not be improper to observe here, that the famous pagan doctrine, concerning the puri- fication of departed souls, by means of a certain kind of fire, was more amply explained and con- firmed now than it had formerly been (tf). Every body knows, that this doctrine proved an inex- haustible source of riches to the clergy through the succeeding ages, and that it still enriches the Romish church with its nutritious streams, interpreta- HI. The interpretation of the Holy Scriptures employed fewer pens in this century than in the preceding age, in which the Christian doctors were less involved in the labyrinths of controversy. Yet, notwithstanding the multiplication of reli-

(a) See, particularly concerning this matter, Augustin, his book de viii. Questionibus ad Dulcitium, N. xiii. torn. vi. opp. p. 128. De fide et operibus, cap. xvi. p. 182. De fide, spe, et charitatc, sect. 118, p. '222. Enairationo, Psal. xxxv. sect. :>. &c.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 4

gious disputes, a considerable number of learned CENT. men undertook this useful and important task. We shall not mention those who confined their illustrations to some one, or a few books of the divine word, such as Victor of Antioch, Poly- chronius, Philo, Carpathius, Isidore of Cordoua, Salonius, and Andrew of Caesarea. We must not, however, pass over in silence Theodoret and Theodore, bishops of Cyrus and Mopsuestia, the two most famous expositors of this age, who illustrated a great part of the Holy Scriptures by their pious labours. They were truly emi- nent, both in point of learning and genius ; and, free and unprejudiced in their search after truth, they followed the explications of scripture given by their predecessors, only as far as they found them agreeable to reason. The commen- taries of Theodoret are yet extant, and in the hands of the learned (/>) ; those of Theodore are concealed in the east among the Nestorians, though on many accounts worthy to see the light (c). Cyril, of Alexandria, deserves also a place among the commentators of this century; but a still higher rank, among that useful and learned body, is due to Isidore of Pelusium, whose epistles

(6) See Simon, Histoire Critique des principaux Commen- tateurs du N. Test. chap. xxii. p. 314*; as also his Critique de la Biblioth. Ecclesiast. de Du Pin, torn. i. p. 180. ^° Theo- doret wrote commentaries upon the five books of Moses, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, Samuel, Kings, Chronicles, the Psalms, the Canticles, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Baruch, Lamentations, Eze- kiel, Daniel, the 12 lesser prophets, and S*. Paul's 14 Epistles.

(c) Jos. Sim. Asseman. Biblioth. Orient. Clem. Vatic, torn, iii. sect. 2. p. 227- Simon, Critique de la Biblioth. Eccles. de Du Pin, torn. i. p. 108. 677. fiSp0 We are assured by Fabricius, upon the testimony of Lambecius, that Theodore's commentary upon the twelve prophets is still in being, in MS. in the emperor's library at Vienna. See Fabr. Bibl. Graec. torn. ix. p. 162. See also for an ample and learned account of the writings of this author, Lardner's Credibility, &c. vol. ix. p. 389.

42

CENT.

V. PART II.

Many chi- merical and weak com- mentators.

Some of more wis- dom and judgment.

The Internal History of the Church.

contain many observations, which cast a consider- able degree of light upon several parts of scrip- ture (d).

IV. It is, however, to be lamented, that the greatest part of the commentators, both Greek and Latin, following the idle fancies of Origen, overlooked the true and natural sense of the words, and hunted after subtile and hidden signi- fications, for mysteries (as the Latins then termed them) in the plainest precepts of the Holy Scrip- tures. Several of the Greeks, and particularly Theodoret, laboured with success and precision, in illustrating the books of the New Testament ; and their success here is to be principally at- tributed to their perfect knowledge of the Greek language, which they had learned from their in- fancy. But neither the Greeks nor Latins cast much light upon the Old Testament, which was cruelly tortured by the allegorical pens of almost all who attempted to illustrate and explain it. For nothing is more common than to see the interpreters of the fifth century straining all the passages of that sacred book, either to typify Christ, and the blessings of his kingdom, or Antichrist, and the wars and desolations which he was to bring upon the earth, and that, without the least spark of judgment, or the smallest air of probability.

V. A few chosen spirits, superior to the others in sagacity and wisdom, were bold enough to stand up against these critical delusions, and to point out a safer and plainer way to divine truth. This we learn from the epistles of Isidore of Pe- lusium, who, though he was not himself entirely free from this allegorical contagion, yet censures

(d) See for an account of these two authors, Simon, Histoire des Principaux Commentateurs du Nouveau Testa- ment, ch. xxi. p. 300.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 43

judiciously, in many places, those that abandoned CENT. the historical sense of the Old Testament, and rA JT n

applied, universally, all its narrations and predic-

tions to Christ alone. But none went greater lengths in censuring the fanciful followers of Origen, than Theodore of Mopsuestia, who not only wrote a book concerning allegory and hi- story, against Origen (V), but also, in his com- mentary on the prophets, did not hesitate to apply the most of their predictions to various events in ancient history (jf ). This manner of interpreting scripture was very ill received, and contributed, perhaps, more to raise the general cry against him, than all the erroneous doctrines with which he was charged (g*). The Nestorians followed the example of this remarkable and eminent man (Ji) $ and still continue to consider him as a saint of the first order, and to preserve his writings with the utmost care, as precious monuments of his piety and learning.

VI. The doctrines of religion were, at this Didactic time, understood and represented in a manner theology* that savoured little of their native purity and sim-

(e) Facundus Hermianensis, De Tribus Capitulis, lib. iii. cap. vi. Liberatus, in Breviario, cap. xxiv.

(f) Acta Concilii Constantinopol. II. seu GEcumenici V. torn. iii. Conciliorum, p. 58. edit. Harduini.

[fig*3 (g} Theodore, after his death, was considered as the parent of the Pelagian and Nestorian heresies ; though during his life he was held in the highest esteem, and died in the communion of the church.

(h) This appears by the testimony of Cosmas Indicopleustes, a writer of the sixth century, who was undoubtedly a Nesto- rian. For this author, in the fifth book of his Christian Topo- graphy, which Montfaucon published in his new collection of the Greek fathers, maintains, that of all the Psalms of David, four only are applicable to Christ. And to confirm this his opinion, he affirms boldly, that the writers of the New Tes- tament when they apply to Jesus the prophecies of the Old, do this rather by a mere accommodation of the words, with- out any regard to their true and genuine sense.

The Internal History of the Church.

plicity. They were drawn out by laboured com- mentaries beyond the terms in which the divine wisdom had thought fit to reveal them ; and were examined with that minuteness and subtilty that were only proper to cover them with obscurity. And what was still worse, the theological no- tions that generally prevailed, were proved rather by the authorities, and logical discussions of the ancient doctors, than by the unerring dictates of the divine word. It does not appear that in this century any attempted to form a complete system of theology, unless we give that title to six books of instruction, which Nicaeas is said to have com- posed for the use of the Neophytes (z). But as we have already observed, the principal branches of religion were laboriously explained in the various books that were written against the Nestorians, Eutychians, Pelagians, and Arians.

The mana- VII. The number of those who disputed in Controversy tn^s century against paganism and infidelity was against the very considerable, yet not greater than the exi- gans%nd" gency of the times, and the frequent attacks made sectaries, upon Christianity, rendered necessary. Theodo- ret, in his ingenious and learned treatise, De curandis Gra3corum affectionibus, Orientius, in his Commonitorium, and Evagrius, in his Dispute between Zachaeus and Apollonius, opposed, with fortitude and vigour, those that worshipped images, and offered their religious services to the Pa- gan deities (&). To these we may add Philip Sedetes and Philostorgius, of whom the latter attacked Porphyry, and the former Julian. Ba- silius of Seleucia ; Gregentius, in his Contro- versy with Herbanus ; and Evagrius, in his Dialogue between Theophilus and Judseus, ex-

(i) Gennadius Massiliensis De Scriptor. Ecclesiast. cap. xxii. p. 28. edit. Fabric.

(k) See for an account of Orientius and Evagrius, Histoire Litteraire dc la France, torn. ii. p. 121, and 252.

CHAP, in* The Doctrine of the Church. 45

posed and refuted the errors and cavils of the CENT. Jews. Voconius the African ; Syagrius, in his pA^ n>

Book concerning Faith ; Gennadius of Marseille,

who deserves to be placed in the first rank ; and Theodoret in his Treatise concerning the Fables of the Heretics, opposed all the different sects ; not to mention those who wrote only against the errors of one or other particular party.

VIII. Those who disputed against the Chris- The defects tian sects observed a most absurd and vicious method of controversy. They proceeded rather according to the rules of the ancient sophists, and, what is still more surprising, according to the spirit of the Roman law, than by the examples and instructions of Christ and his apostles. In the Roman courts, matters of a difficult and doubtful nature were decided by the authority of certain aged lawyers, who were distinguished by their abilities and experience. And when they happened to differ in opinion, the point was de- termined either by a plurality of voices, or by the sentiments of the more learned and illustrious members of that venerable body (/). This pro- cedure of the Roman tribunals was, in this cen- tury, admitted as a standing law, both in the de- liberations of councils, and in the management of religious controversy, to the great and un- speakable detriment of truth. For by this, rea- son, and even common sense, were, in some mea- sure, excluded from every question; and that was determined as right and true, which appeared such to the greatest number, or had been approved by doctors of the greatest note in preceding times. The acts of the various councils, which are yet extant, manifestly show that this was the case. And this circumstance, combined with what we

(/) See the Codex Theodos. lib. i. tit. iv. De responsis prudentum, p. 32. edit. Ritterian.

46 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, have already observed with respect to the dispu- PART ii tants °f tne a£e now under consideration, make

' it easy for us to imagine the various defects that

must have prevailed in the methods of defending truth and opposing error.

spurious IX. This absurd imitation of the Roman law, in the management of religious controversy, this preposterous method of deciding truth by human authorities, were fruitful sources of spurious and suppositions productions. For many audacious impostors were hence encouraged to publish their own writings under the names of ancient Christian worthies, nay, under the sacred names of even Christ himself and his holy apostles; that thus, in the deliberations of councils, and in the course of controversy, they might have authorities to oppose to authorities in defence of their respec- tive opinions. The whole Christian church was, in this century, overwhelmed with these infa- mous cheats, these spurious productions. This is said to have engaged Gelasius, the Roman pontiff, to call together a council, composed of the bishops of the Latin church ; in which assem- bly, after a strict examination of those writings which appeared under great and venerable names, the famous decree passed, that deprived so many books of their borrowed authority, it something of this kind really happened, it would be, perhaps, an instance of temerity to deny : but many learned men assert, that the decree attributed to Gelasius labours under the same in- con veniency with the books which it condemns, and was by no means the production of that pon- tiff, but of some deceiver, who usurped clandes- tinely his name and authority (??z).

(m) Pearsonus, Vindiciar. Ignatianar. part. I. cap. iv. p. 189. Cave, Hist. Litter. Scriptor. Ecclesias. p. £60. Urb. Godofr. Siberus, Praefat. ad Enchiridion Sexti, p. 79.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 47

X. Eucherius, Salvian, and Nilus, shine with a CENT. superior lustre among the moral writers of this PAR^, n century. The epistle of Eucherius, concerning

the Contempt of the World, and the secular Phi- Moral losophy, is an excellent performance, both in point of matter and style. The works of Mark the hermit breathe a spirit of fervent piety, but are highly defective in many respects : The matter is ill chosen, and it is treated without order, per- spicuity, or force of reasoning. Fastidius com- posed several discourses concerning moral duties, but they have not survived the ruins of time. The works that are yet extant of Diadochus, Prosper, and Severian, are extremely pleasing, on account of the solidity and elegance which are to be found, for the most part, in their moral sentences, though they afford but indifferent en- tertainment to such as are desirous of precision, method, and sound argumentation. And indeed this want of method in the distribution and ar- rangement of their matter, and a constant neglect of tracing their subject to its first principles, are defects common to almost all the moral writers of this century.

XL Had this, indeed, been their only defect, the candid and impartial would have supported it with patience, and attributed it charitably to the infelicity of the times. But many of the writers and teachers of this age did unspeakable injury to the cause of true piety by their crude and enthu- siastic inventions. The Mystics, who pretended to higher degrees of perfection than other Chris- tians, drew every where to their party, particularly in the eastern provinces, a vast number of the ignorant and inconsiderate multitude, by the striking appearance of their austere and singular piety. It is impossible to describe the rigour and severity of the laws which these senseless fanatics imposed upon themselves, in order, as they al-

48 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, leged, to appease the deity, and to deliver the ce- PART ii. kstial spirit from the bondage of this mortal body.

They not only lived among the wild beasts, but

also lived after the manner of these savage ani- mals ; they ran naked through the lonely deserts with a furious aspect, and with all the agitations of madness and frenzy ; they prolonged the life of their emaciated bodies by the wretched nourish- ment of grass and wild herbs, avoided the sight and conversation of men, remained motionless in certain places for several years, exposed to the ri- gour and inclemency of the seasons, and towards the conclusion of their lives, shut themselves up in narrow and miserable huts ; and all this was considered as true piety, the only acceptable me- thod of worshipping the deity, and rendering him propitious (w). The greatest part of the Mystics were led into the absurdities of this ex- travagant discipline, not so much by the pretended force of reason and argument, as by a natural pro- pensity to solitude, a gloomy and melancholy cast of mind, and an implicit and blind submission to the authority and examples of others. For the diseases of the mind, as well as those of the body, are generally contagious, and no pestilence spreads its infection with a more dreadful rapidity than superstition and enthusiasm. Several persons have committed to writing the precepts of this severe discipline, and reduced its absurdities into a sort of system, such as Julianus Pomerius among the Latins ( o), and many among the Sy- rians, whose names it is needless to mention. The super- XII. Of all the instances of superstitious frenzy

StltlOn Of, -,. !,!• 111-l-T*

theStiiites. that disgraced this age, none was held in higher

(n) See the Pratum Spirituale of Moschus; the Lausiac History of Palladius; as also Sulpitius Severus, Dial. i.

^^° (o) Pomerius wrote a treatise, De Vita Contemplativa, in which the doctrines and precepts of the Mystics were care- fully collected.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church.

veneration, or excited more the wonder of the CENT. multitude, than that of a certain order of men, PAR^ n

who were called Stilites by the Greeks, and Sancti

Columnaris, or Pillar Saints, by the Latins. These were persons of a most singular and extra- vagant turn of mind, who stood motionless upon the tops of pillars, expressly raised for this exercise of their patience, and remained there for several years, amidst the admiration and applause of the stupid populace. The inventor of this strange and ridiculous discipline was Si- meon, a Syrian, who began his follies by changing the agreeable employment of a shepherd for the senseless austerities of the monkish life. But his enthusiasm carried him still greater lengths ; for, in order to climb as near heaven as he could, he passed thirty-seven years of his wretched life upon five pillars, of six, twelve, twenty-two, thirty-six, and forty cubits high, and thus acquired a most shining reputation, and attracted the veneration of all about him (^). Many of the inhabitants of Syria and Palestine, seduced by a false ambition, and an utter igno- rance of true religion, followed the example of this fanatic, though not with the same degree of austerity (?). And what is almost incredible,

(p) See the Acta Sanctorum Monsis Januarii, torn. i. p. 261 — 277. where the reader will find the account we have given of this whimsical discipline. Theodoret, indeed, had before given several hints of it, alleging, among other things, that Simeon had gradually added to the height of his pillar, with a design to approach, by this means, nearer to heaven. See Tillemont Memoires pour servir a PHistoire de 1'Eglise, torn. xv. p. 347. edit. Paris. See also the Acts of Simeon the Stylite, in Steph. Euodii Assemanni A ctis Martyrum, Orient, et Occident, vol. ii. p. 227. published at Rome, in folio, in the year 1748.

^g° (q) The learned Frederic Spanheim, in his Ecclesi- astical History (p. 1154-), speaks of a second Simeon the Sty- lite (mentioned by Evagrius Hist. lib. vi. cap. xxiii.) who

VOL. II. E

50 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, this superstitious practice continued in vogue until PART ii. tne twelfth century, when, however, it was at

length totally suppressed (r).

The Latins had too much wisdom and prudence to imitate the Syrians and Orientals in this whim- sical superstition. And when a certain fanatic, or impostor, named Wulfilaicus, erected one of these pillars in the country of Treves, and pro- posed living upon it after the manner of Simeon, the neighbouring bishops ordered it to be pulled down, and thus nipped this species of superstition in the bud (s). Further de- XIII. The Mystic rules of discipline and man-

fects of the . _ _ J . JF

public in- ners had a bad effect upon the moral writers, and anTradL ^ose wno were set apart for the instruction of cai writers. Christians. Thus, in instructing the catechumens and others, they were more diligent and zealous in inculcating a regard for the external parts of religion, and an attachment to bodily exercise, than in forming jthe heart and the affections to inward piety and solid virtue. Nay, they went so far as to prescribe rules of sanctity and virtue, little different from the unnatural rigour and fa- natical piety of the Mystics. Salvian, and other celebrated writers, gave it as their opinion, that none were truly and perfectly holy, but those who abandoned all riches and honours, abstained from matrimony, banished all joy and cheerful- lived in the sixth century. This second fanatic seems to have carried his austerities still further than the chief of the sect : for he remained upon his pillar sixty-eight years, and from thence, like the first Simeon, he taught, or rather deluded the gazing multitude, declaimed against heresy, pretended to cast out devils, to heal diseases, and to foretel future events.

(r) See Urb. Godofr. Siberi Diss. de sanctis Columnaribus. Carol! Majelli Diss. de Stylitis, published in Assemanni Acta Martyr. Orient, et Occident, torn. ii. p. 246, where may be seen a copper-plate print of Simeon's pillar.

(s) Gregor. Turonens, Histor. Francor. lib. viii. cap. xv. p. 387.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 51

ness from their hearts, and macerated their bodies with various sorts of torments and mortifications. And as all could not support such excessive degrees of severity, those madmen, or fanatics, whose robust constitutions and savage tempers were the best adapted to this kind of life, were distinguished by the public applause, and saw their influence and authority increase daily. And thus saints started up like mushrooms in almost every place.

XIV. A small number of ecclesiastics, ani- The con. mated by the laudable spirit of reformation, ["v7eTje-e~ boldly attempted to pluck up the roots of this rome and growing superstition, and to bring back the de- Vlsilantlus- luded multitude from this vain and chimerical discipline to the practice of solid and genuine piety. But the votaries of superstition, who were superior in number, reputation, and authority, reduced them soon to silence, and rendered their noble and pious efforts utterly ineffectual (/) We have an example of this in the case of Vigi- lantius, a man remarkable for his learning and eloquence, who was born in Gaul, and went from thence to Spain, where he performed the functions of a presbyter. This ecclesiastic, on his return from a voyage he had made into Palestine and Egypt, began, about the beginning of this cen- tury, to propagate several doctrines, and to pub- lish repeated exhortations quite opposite to the opinions and manners of the times. Among other things, he denied that the tombs and the bones of the martyrs were to be honoured with any sort of homage or worship; and therefore censured the pilgrimages that were made to places that were reputed holy. He turned into derision the prodigies which were said to be wrought in the temples consecrated to martyrs, and condemned

(t) Augustin complains of this in his famous epistle to Januarius, No. 119.

The Internal History of the Church.

the custom of performing vigils in them. He asserted, and indeed with reason, that the custom of burning tapers at the tombs of the martyrs in broad day was imprudently borrowed from the ancient superstition of the pagans. He maintained, moreover, that prayers addressed to departed saints were void of all efficacy; and treated with con- tempt fasting and mortifications, the celibacy of the clergy, and the various austerities of the mon- astic life. And, finally, he affirmed that the con- duct of those who, distributing their substance among the indigent, submitted to the hardships of a voluntary poverty, or sent a part of their treasures to Jerusalem for devout purposes, had nothing in it acceptable to the Deity.

There were among the Gallic and Spanish bi- shops several that relished the opinions of Vigi- lantius : But Jerome, the great monk of the age, assailed this bold reformer of religion with such bitterness and fury, that the honest presbyter soon found that nothing but his silence could pre- serve his life from the intemperate rage of bigo- try and superstition. This project then of reform- ing the corruptions, which a fanatical and super- stitious zeal had introduced into the church, was choked in its birth (ii). And the name of good Vigilantius remains still in the list of here- tics, which is acknowledged as authentic by those who, without any regard to their own judgment, or the declarations of scripture, followed blindly the decisions of antiquity.

XV. The controversies, which had been raised in Egypt, concerning Origen and his doctrine, towards the conclusion of the preceding century, were now renewed at Constantinople, and carried on without either decency or prudence. The Nitrian

(u) Bayle's Dictionary, at the article Vigilantius. Bar- beyrac, Dela Morale des Peres, p. 252. Gerhar. Jo. Vossius, Thesibus Historico-Theologicis, p. 170. Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. ii. p, 57.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 53

monks, banished from Egypt, on account of their CENT. attachment to Origen, took refuge at Constanti- PAI^ IT

nople, and were treated by John Chrysostom, the

bishop of that city, with clemency and benignity. This no sooner came to the knowledge of Theo- philus, patriarch of Alexandria, than he formed a perfidious project against the eloquent prelate ; and sent the famous Epiphanius, with several other bishops, to Constantinople, to compass his fall, and deprive him of his episcopal dignity. No time could be more favourable for the execution of this project than that in which it was formed; for Chrysostom, by his austerity, and his vehement declamations against the vices of the people, and the corrupt manners of the ladies of the court, had incurred the displeasure of many, and had also excited, in a more particular manner, the resentment and indignation of the empress Eu- doxia, wife of Arcadius. This violent princess sent for Theophilus and the Egyptian bishops, who, pursuant to her orders, repaired to Constan- tinople; and having called a council, inquired into the religious sentiments of Chrysostom, and examined his morals, and the whole course of his conduct and conversation, with the utmost seve- rity. This council, which was held in the suburbs of Chalcedon, in the year 403, with Theophilus at its head, declared Chrysostom unworthy of his high rank in the church, on account of the favourable manner in which he stood disposed towards Origen and his followers; and, in con- sequence of this decree, condemned him to ba- nishment. The people of Constantinople, who were tenderly attached to their pious and worthy bishop, rose in a tumultuous manner, and pre- vented the execution of this unrighteous sen- tence (w). When this tumult was entirely hushed,

w) This is not quite exact: for it appears, by the

54 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, the same unrelenting judges, in order to satisfy PART n. tneir vindictive rage, and that of Eudoxia, re-

newed their sentence the year following, under

another pretext (>), and with more success; for the pious Chrysostom, yielding to the redoubled efforts of his enemies, was banished to Cucusus, a city of Cilicia, where he died about three years after (y).

The exile of this illustrious man was followed by a terrible sedition of the Johannists (so his vo- taries were called), which was calmed, though with much difficulty, by the edicts of Arcadius (V). It is beyond all doubt, that the proceedings against Chrysostom were cruel and unjust ; in this, how- ever, he was to blame, that he assumed the autho- rity and rank which had been granted by the council of Constantinople to the bishops of that imperial city, and set himself up as a judge of the controversy between Theophilus and the Egyptian monks, which the Alexandrian prelate could not behold without the utmost impatience and re- sentment. These monks, when they lost their protector, were restored to the favour of Theo- philus; but the faction of the Origenists conti-

accounts of the best historians, that this sentence was really executed, and that the emperor confirmed the decree of this first synod, by banishing Chrysostom into Bithynia, or, as others allege, by ordering him to retire to the country. A violent earthquake and a terrible shower of hail, which were looked upon by the multitude as judgments occasioned by the unrighteous persecution of their pious bishop, alarmed the court, and engaged them to recal Chrysostom to his office.

lUg0 (x) This new pretext was the indecent manner in which Chrysostom is said to have declaimed against Eudoxia, on account of her having erected her statue in silver near the church.

(y) See Tillemont and Hermant, who have both written the life of Chrysostom; as also Bayle's Dictionary, in En- glish, at the article Acacius.

(z) See Cyrilli Vitse Sabse in Cotelerii Monument. Eccles. Graec. torn. ii. jp. 274. Jos. Sim. Asseman. Biblioth. Oriental. Vatican, torn. ii. p. 31.

CHAP. iv. Rites and Ceremonies. ^

nued, notwithstanding all this, to flourish in CENT. Egypt, Syria, and the adjacent countries, and PAR^. ir held their chief residence at Jerusalem.

CHAPTER IV.

Concerning the Rites and Ceremonies used In the Church during this Century.

I. To enumerate the rites and institutions that Ceremonies were added, in this century, to the Christian § m

worship, would require a volume of a considerable size. The acts of councils, and the records left us by the most celebrated ancient writers, are the sources from whence the curious may draw a satis- factory and particular account of this matter ; and to these we refer such as are desirous of something more than a general view of the subject under consideration. Several of these ancient writers, uncorrupted by the contagious examples of the times in which they lived, have ingenuously acknow- ledged, that true piety and virtue were smothered, as it were, under that enormous burthen of cere- monies under which they lay groaning in this century. This evil was owing, partly to the igno- rance and dishonesty of the clergy, partly to the calamities of the times, which were extremely un- favourable to the pursuit of knowledge and to the culture of the mind ; and partly, indeed, to the natural depravity of imperfect mortals, who are much more disposed to worship with the eye than with the heart, and are more ready to offer to the Deity the laborious pomp of an outward service than the nobler, yet simple oblation of pious dis- positions and holy affections. A generai

II. Divine worship was now daily rising from view of the one degree of pomp to another, and degenerating SuSat

this time.

56 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, more and more into a gaudy spectacle, only pro- PART ii. P8r to attract the stupid admiration of a gazing populace. The sacerdotal garments were embel- lished with a variety of ornaments, with a view to excite in the minds of the multitude a greater ve- neration for the sacred order. New acts of de- votion were also celebrated. In Gaul, particu- larly, the solemn prayers and supplications, which usually precede the anniversary of Christ's ascen- sion, were now instituted for the first time (a). In other places, perpetual acclamations of praise to God were performed both night and day by singers who succeeded each other, so as that the service suffered no interruption (Z>) ; as if the Supreme Being took pleasure in such noisy and turbulent shouting, or received any gratification from the blandishments of men. The riches and magnificence of the churches exceeded all bounds (c). They were also adorned with costly images, among which, in consequence of the Nestorian controversy, that of the Virgin Mary, holding the child Jesus in her arms, obtained the first and principal place. The altars, and the chests in which the relics were preserved, were in most places made of solid silver. And from this we may easily imagine the splendor and ex- penses that were lavished upon the other utensils which were employed in the service of the church. The feasts HI. On the other hand, the agapas, or feasts my* of charity, were now suppressed on account of the abuses to which they gave occasion, amidst the daily decline of that piety and virtue which

(a) See Sidonius Apollinaris, Epist. lib. v. epist. xvi. lib. vi. epist. i. ; as also Martene Thesaurus Anecdotorum, torn. v. p. 47.

(d) Gervais, Histoire de Suger, torn. i. p. 23.

(c) See Zacharias of MLtylene, De Opificio Mundi, p, 165, 166.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 57

rendered these meetings useful and edifying in the CENT. primitive ages. p^ Ir

A new method also of proceeding with peni-

tents was introduced into the Latin church. For Penitents. grievous offenders, who had formerly been obliged to confess their guilt in the face of the con- gregation, were now delivered from this mortify- ing penalty, and obtained, from Leo the Great, a permission to confess their crimes privately to a priest appointed for that purpose. By this change of the ancient discipline, one of the greatest re- straints upon licentiousness, and the only remain- ing barrier of chastity, was entirely removed, and the actions of Christians were subject to no other scrutiny than that of the clergy ; a change, which was frequently convenient for the sinner, and also advantageous in many respects to the sacred order.

CHAPTER V.

Concerning the Dissensions and Heresies that troubled the Church during this Century.

I. SEVERAL of those sects, which had divided Ancient

heresie vived.

the church in the preceding ages, renewed their ^resies re- efforts at this time, to propagate their respective opinions, and introduced new tumults and ani- mosities among the Christians. We shall say nothing of the Novatians, Marcionites, and Mani- cheans, those inauspicious and fatal names, that disgrace the earlier annals of the church, though it is evident, that as yet their sects subsisted, and were even numerous in many places. We shall confine ourselves to an account of the Donatists and Arians, who were the pests of the preceding century.

58 The Internal History of the Church.

The Donatists had hitherto maintained them- selves with a successful obstinacy, and their affairs were in a good state. But, about the beginning of The Dona- ^njs century, the face of things changed much to their disadvantage, by the means of St. Augus- tin, bishop of Hippo. The catholic bishops of Africa, animated by the exhortations, and con- ducted by the counsels of this zealous prelate, exerted themselves with the utmost vigour in the destruction of this seditious sect, whom they justly looked upon, not only as troublesome to the church by their obstinacy, but also as a nuisance to the state by the brutal soldiery (d) which they employed in their cause. Accordingly deputies were sent, in the year 404, from the council of Carthage to the emperor Honorius, to request, that the laws enacted against heretics, by the pre- ceding emperors, might have force against the Donatists, who denied that they belonged to the heretical tribe; and also to desire, that bounds might be set to the barbarous fury of the Circum- celliones. The first step that the emperor took, in consequence of this request, was to impose a fine upon all the Donatists who refused to return into the bosom of the church, and to send their bishops and doctors into banishment. The year following, new laws, much severer than the former, were enacted against this rebellious sect, under the title of Acts of Uniformity. And as the magistrates were remiss in the execution of them, the council of Carthage, in the year 407, sent a second time deputies to the emperor, to desire that certain persons might be appointed to execute these edicts with vigour and impartiality, and their request was granted.

II. The faction of the Donatists, though much broke by these repeated shocks, was yet far from

(d) The Circumcelliones already mentioned.

CHAP. v. Divisions arid Heresies. 59

being totally extinguished. It recovered a part CENT. of its strength in the year 408, after Stilicho had been put to death by the order of Honorius, and gained a still further accession of vigour the year following, in which the emperor published a law in favour of liberty of conscience, and pro- hibited all compulsion in matters of religion. This law, however, was not of long duration. It was abrogated at the earnest and repeated so- licitations of the council, which was held at Car- thage in the year 410; and Marcellinus the tri- bune was sent by Honorius into Africa, with full power to bring to a conclusion this tedious and unhappy contest. Marcellinus, therefore, held at Carthage, in the year 441, a solemn conference, in which he examined the cause with much atten- tion, heard the contending parties during the space of three days, and, at length, pronounced sentence in favour of the catholics (e). The ca- tholic bishops, who were present at this confer- ence, were 286 in number; and those of the Donatists 279. The latter, upon their defeat, appealed to the emperor, but without effect. The glory of their defeat was due to August in, who bore the principal part in this controversy, and

(e) See Frank. Balduin, Hist. Collationis Carthag. in Op- tat. Milev. Pinian. p. 337. It is proper to observe here, that this meeting, held by Marcellinus, is very improperly termed a conference ( collatio ) . For there was no dispute carried on at this meeting between the catholics and the Donatists ; nor did any of the parties endeavour to gain or defeat the other by superiority of argument. This confer- ence, then, was properly a judicial trial, in which Marcellinus was, by the emperor, appointed judge, or arbiter, of this re- ligious controversy, and accordingly pronounced sentence after a proper hearing of the cause. It appears, therefore, from this event, that the notion of a supreme spiritual judge of controversy, and ruler of the church appointed by Christ, had not as yet entered into any one's head ; since we see the African bishops themselves appealing to the emperor in the present religious question.

60 The Internal History of the Church.

CKNT. who, indeed, by his writings, councils, and admoni- PART ii. ti°ns> governed almost the whole African church,

and also the principal and most illustrious heads of

that extensive province.

III. By this conference the party of the Do- natists was greatly weakened ; nor could they ever get the better of this terrible shock, though the face of affairs changed afterwards in a manner that was proper to revive their hopes. The greatest part of them, through the fear of punishment, sub- mitted to the emperor's decree, and returned into the bosom of the church ; while the severest penal- ties were inflicted upon those who remained obsti- nate, and persisted in their rebellion. Fines, banishment, confiscation of goods, were the ordi- nary punishments of the obstinate Donatists ; and even the pain of death was inflicted upon such as surpassed the rest in perverseness, and were the seditious ringleaders of that stubborn faction. Some avoided these penalties by flight, others by con- cealing themselves, and some were so desperate as to seek deliverance by self-murder, to which the Donatists had a shocking propensity. In the mean time, the Circumcelliones used more violent me- thods of warding off the execution of the sentence that was pronounced against their sect ; for they ran up and down through the province of Africa in the most outrageous manner, committing acts of cruelty every where, and defending themselves by force of arms.

The Donatists, indeed, recovered afterwards their former liberty and tranquillity by the suc- cour and protection they received from the Van- dals, who invaded Africa, with Genseric at their head, in the year 427, and took this province out of the hands of the Romans. The wound, how- ever, that this sect had received from the vigor- ous execution of the imperial laws was so deep, that though they began to revive and multiply by

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 61

the assistance of the Vandals, yet they could never CENT. arrive at their former strength and lustre. pAR^ n.

IV. The Arians, oppressed and persecuted by - the imperial edicts, took refuge among those fierce and savage nations who were gradually overturning the western empire, and found among the Goths, Suevi, Heruli, Vandals, and Burgun- dians, a fixed residence and a peaceful retreat. And as their security animated their courage, they treated the Catholics with the same violence which the latter had employed against them and other heretics ; and they persecuted and vexed in vari- ous ways such as professed their adherence to the Nicene doctrines. The Vandals, who reigned in Africa, surpassed all the other savage nations in barbarity and injustice towards the Catholics. The kings of this fierce people, particularly Gen- seric, and Huneric his son, pulled down the churches of those Christians who acknowledged the divinity of Christ, sent their bishops into exile, and maimed and tormented in various ways such as were nobly firm and inflexible in the profession of their faith (,/'}. They, however, declared, that, in using these severe and violent methods, they were authorized by the example of the emperors, who had enacted laws of the same rigorous nature, against the Donatists, the Arians, and other sects who differed in opinion from the Christians of Constantinople (^).

We must not here omit mentioning the stupen- dous miracle, which is said to have been wrought during these persecutions in Africa, and by which the Supreme Being is supposed to have declared his displeasure against the Arians, and his favour

(/*) See Victor Vitens. lib. iii. De Persequutione Vanda- lica, which Theod. Ruinart published at Paris in the year 1694'j in 8vo. with his History of the same persecution.

(g) See the edict of Huneric, in the history of Victor mentioned in the preceding note, lib. iv. cap. ii. p. 64.

62 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, towards their adversaries. This miracle consisted v* in enabling those Catholics, whose tongues had 'been cut out by the Arian tyrant Huneric, to speak distinctly, and to proclaim aloud the divine majesty of the Saviour of the world. This remarkable fact can scarcely be denied, since it is supported by the testimony of the most credible and respectable witnesses (Ji) ;

(1i) These witnesses, who had themselves ocular de- monstration of the fact, were Victor of Utica, ^Eneas of Gaza (who examined the mouths of the persons in question, and found that their tongues were entirely rooted out), Pro-- copius, Marcellinus the count, and the emperor Justinian. Upon the authority of such respectable testimonies, the learned Abbadie formed a laboured and dexterous defence of the miraculous nature of this extraordinary fact, in his work intitled, La Triomphe de la Providence, &c. vol. iii. p. 255, &c. where all the fire of his zeal, and all the subtilty of his logic, seem to have been exhausted. Dr. Berryman, in his Historical Account of the Trinitarian Controversy, as also in his sermons preached at Lady Moyer's Lectures, in the year 1725, and Dr. Chapman, in his Miscellaneous Tracts, have maintained the same hypothesis. To the former, an answer was published by an anonymous writer, under the following title : " An Inquiry into the Miracle said to have been wrought in the Fifth Century, upon some orthodox Christians, in Favour of the Doctrine of the Trinity, &c. in a Letter to a Friend." We may venture to say, that this answer is utterly unsatisfac- tory. The author of it, after having laboured to invalidate the testimony alleged in favour of the fact, seems himself scarcely convinced by his own arguments; for he acknow- ledges at last the possibility of the event, but persists in denying the miracle, and supposes, that the cruel operation was so imperfectly performed upon these confessors, as to leave in some of them such a share of that organ as was sufficient for the use of speech. Dr. Middleton (to whom some have attributed the forementioned Answer) maintains the same hypothesis, in his Free Inquiry into the Miracu- lous Powers, &c. supposing, that the tongues of the per- sons in question were not entirely rooted out, which he corroborates by the following consideration, that two of the sufferers are said to have utterly lost the faculty of speak- ing. For though this be ascribed to a peculiar judgment of God punishing the immoralities of which they were afterwards guilty, yet this appears to the doctor to be a 'forced and improbable solution of the matter, who imagines

TART II.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 63

but whether it is to be attributed to a super- CENT. natural and miraculous power, is a matter not

he solves it better by supposing that they had not been de- prived of their entire tongues. He goes yet further, and produces two cases from the Memoirs of the Academy of Sciences at Paris, which prove,, in his opinion, " That this pretended miracle owed its whole credit to our ignorance of the powers of nature." The first is, that of " a girl born without a tongue, who yet talked as easily and distinctly as if she had enjoyed the full benefit of that organ;" and the second, that of" a boy, who, at the age of eight or nine years, lost his tongue by a gangrene, or ulcer, and yet retained the faculty of speaking." See Middleton's Free Inquiry, &c. p. 183, 184.

This reasoning of the sceptical doctor of divinity appeared superficial and unsatisfactory to the judicious Mr. Dodwell, who (saying nothing about the case of the two Trinitarians who remained dumb, after their tongues were cut out, and whose dumbness is but indifferently accounted for by their immorality, since gifts have been often possessed without graces) confines himself to the consideration of the two pa- rallel facts drawn from the Academical Memoirs already men- tioned. To show that these facts prove little or nothing against the miracle in question, he justly observes, that though in one or two particular cases a mouth may be so singularly formed as to utter articulate sounds, without the usual in- strument of speech (some excrescence probably supplying the defect), yet it cannot be any thing less than miraculous, that this should happen to a considerable number of persons, whose tongues were cut out to prevent their preaching a dis- countenanced doctrine. To deny the miracle in question, we must maintain, that it is as easy to speak without a tongue as with it. See Mr. Dodwell's Free Answer to Dr. Middle- ton's Free Inquiry, &c. p. 96, 97, &c.

Mr. Toll, who defended Middleton's hypothesis, has pro- posed an objection, hpriori, as it may be justly called, against the truth of this miracle. He observes that the occasion on which it was wrought was not of sufficient consequence or necessity to require a divine interposition; for it was not wrought to convert infidels to Christianity, but to bring over the followers of Arius to the Athanasian faith; it was wrought, in a word, for the explication of a doctrine, which both sides allowed to be founded in the New Testament. Now, as the Holy Scriptures are a revelation of the will of God, " it seems (says Mr. Toll) to cast a reflection on his wisdom, as if he did things by halves, to suppose it necessary for him to work miracles, in order to ascertain the sense of those scriptures. This (continues he) would be multiplying miracles to an in-

4 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, so easily decided, and whieh admits of much dis-

v.

PART

ii. Pute (0-

" finite degree ; — besides, it would destroy the universal truth of that proposition from which we cannot depart, namely, ' That the scriptures are sufficiently plain in all things neces- sary to salvation.' " See Mr. Toll's Defence of Dr. Middle- ton's Free Inquiry against Mr. Dodwell's Free Answer, p. 81, 82. To this specious objection Mr. Dodwell replies, that on the doctrine in dispute between the Arians and the Or- thodox, depend the true notion, as well as the importance and reality of our salvation j that the doctrines, duties, and motives of Christianity are exalted or debased, as we embrace the one or the other of those systems; that on the divinity of Christ the meritoriousness of the propitiation offered by him must entirely rest ; and that, therefore, no occasion of greater consequence can be assigned on which a miracle might be expected. He adds, that the disputes which men have raised about certain doctrines are no proof that these doc- trines are not plainly revealed in scripture, seeing this would prove that no truth is there sufficiently revealed, because, at one time or other, the}' have been all disputed; and he observes, judiciously, that the expediency of interposing by miracles is what we are not always competent judges of, since God only knows the times, seasons, and occasions, in which it is proper to alter the usual course of nature, in order to maintain the truth, to support the oppressed, and to carry on the great purposes of his gospel kingdom. It is enough, that the present interposition be not incredible to remove Mr. Toll's objection, without considering its parti- cular use, and the unexceptionable manner in which it is attested. See Mr. Dodwell's Full and final Reply to Mr. Toll's Defence, &c. p. 270, 271.

We must observe here, that this latter objection and answer are merely hypothetical, i. e. they draw their force only from the different opinions which the ingenious Mr. Toll and his learned antagonist entertain concerning the importance of the doctrine, in favour of which this pretended miracle is said to have been wrought. The grand question, whose decision alone can finish this controversy, is, whether the tongues of these African confessors were entirely rooted out, or no : The case of the two who remained dumb furnishes a shrewd presumption, that the cruel operation was not equally per- formed upon all. The immorality of these two, and the judgment of God, suspending with respect to them the in-

(i) See Ruinarti Histor. Persequut. Vandal, part II. cap. vii. 482. See Bibliotheque Britannique, torn. iii. part II. p. 339. torn. v. part I. p. 171.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 65

V. A new sect, which was the source of most CENT. fatal and deplorable divisions in the Christian church, was formed by Nestorius, a Syrian bishop of Constantinople, a disciple of the celebrated The rise of

1 -. 111 Nestonan-

Theodore of Mopsuestia, and a man "remarkable ism. for his learning and eloquence, which were, how- ever, accompanied with much levity, and with intolerable arrogance. Before we enter into a particular account of the doctrine of this sectary, it is proper to observe, that though, by the de- crees of former councils, it had been clearly and peremptorily determined, that Christ was, at the same time, true God and true man ; yet no coun- cil had hitherto decreed any thing concerning the manner and effect of this union of the two natures in the divine Saviour ; nor was this matter, as yet, become a subject either of inquiry or dispute among Christians. The consequence of this was, that the Christian doctors expressed themselves differently concerning this mystery. Some used such forms of expression as seemed to widen the difference between the Son of God and the son of man, and thus to divide the nature of Christ into two distinct persons. Others, on the contrary, seemed to confound too much the Son of God with the son of man ; and to suppose the nature of Christ composed of his divinity and humanity blended together into one.

The heresy of Apollinaris had given occasion to these different ways of speaking. For he main- tained that the man Christ was not endowed with a human soul, but with the divine nature, which was substituted in its place, and performed its functions ; and this doctrine manifestly sup- posed a confusion of the two natures in the Mes-

fluence of the miracle, do not solve this difficulty entirely, since (as we observed above) many have been possessed of supernatural gifts without graces ; and Christ tells us, that many have ' cast out devils in his name,' whom at the last day he will not acknowledge as his faithful servants. VOL. II. F

66 The Internal History of the Church.

siah. The Syrian doctors, therefore, that they might avoid the errors of Apollinaris, and ex- elude his followers from the communion of the church, were careful in establishing an accurate distinction between the divine and the human na- ture in the Son of God ; and for this purpose they used such forms of expression as seemed to favour the notion of Christ's being composed of two di- stinct persons. The manner of speaking, adopted by the Alexandrians and Egyptians, had a different tendency, and seemed to countenance the doctrine of Apollinaris, and by a confusion of the two na- tures, t'o blend them into one. Nestorius, who was a Syrian, and had adopted the sentiments of the doctors of his nation, was a violent enemy to all the sects, but to none so much as to the Apol- linarian faction, after whose ruin he breathed with an ardent and an inextinguishable zeal. He there- fore discoursed concerning the two natures in Christ after the Syrian manner, and commanded his disciples to distinguish carefully between the actions and perceptions (/<:) of the Son of God, and those of the son of man (/).

The occa- VI. The occasion of this disagreeable contro-

Ne^toriaV versy was furnished by the Presbyter Anastasius,

controversy. a friend of Nestorius. This presbyter, in a

public discourse, delivered A. D. 428, declaimed

(k) The original word perpessio, which signifies pro- perly suffering or passion, we have here translated by the general term perception, because suffering or passion cannot be, in any sense, attributed to the divine nature.

(/) The Jesuit Doucin published at Paris, A. D. 1716, A History of Nestorianism: but it is such a history as might be expected from a writer, who was obliged, by his profession, to place the arrogant Cyril among the saints, and Nestorius among the heretics. The ancient writers, on both side.s of this controversy, are mentioned by Jo. Franc. Buddaeus, in in his Isagoge in Theologiam, torn. ii. p. 1084. The accounts given of this dispute by the Oriental writers are collected by Euseb. Renaudot, in his Historia Patriarch. Alexandrin. p. 108. and by Jos. Sim. Assemannus, in his Biblioth. Orient. Vatican, torn. iii. part II, p, 67.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. G

warmly against the title of 0£o7o>r,r, or mother of CENT. God, which was now more frequently attributed to the Virgin Mary, in the controversy against the Arians, than it had formerly been, and was a favourite term with the followers of Apollinaris. He, at the same time, gave it as his opinion, that the Holy Virgin was rather to be called Xfi<rro7oxof, i. e. mother of Christ, since the Deity can neither be born nor die, and, of consequence, the son of man alone could derive his birth from an earthly parent. Nestorius applauded these sentiments, and explained and defended them in several discourses (m). But both he and his friend Anastasius were keenly opposed by certain monks at Constantinople, who maintained that the son of Mary was God incarnate, and excited the zeal and fury of the populace to maintain this doctrine against Nestorius. Notwithstanding all this, the discourses of the latter were extremely well re- ceived in many places, and had the majority on their side. The Egyptian monks had no sooner perused them, than they were persuaded, by the weight of the arguments they contained, to em- brace the opinions of Nestorius, and accordingly ceased to call the Blessed Virgin the mother of God.

VII. The Prelate, who ruled the see of Alex- andria at this time, was Cyril, a man of a haughty, turbulent, and imperious temper, and

painfully jealous of the rising power and autho- S other. rity of the bishop of Constantinople. As soon as this controversy came to his knowledge, he cen- sured the Egyptian monks and Nestorius; and, finding the latter little disposed to submit to his censure, he proceeded to violent measures, took counsel with Celestine, bishop of Rome, whom

(m) See Harduini Concilia, torn. i. p. 2199. See also Jos. Sim. Assemannus, Biblioth. Orient. Vatican, tom. iii. part II. p. 199.

68 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, he had engaged on his side, assembled a council PART ii at Alexandria, A. D. 430, and hurled no less than 1 twelve anathemas at the head of Nestorius. The

thunderstruck prelate did not sink under this vio- lent shock ; but, seeing himself unjustly accused of derogating from the majesty of Christ, he re- torted the same accusation upon his adversary, charged him with the Apollinarian heresy, with confounding the two natures in Christ, and loaded Cyril with as many anathemas as he had re- ceived from him. This unhappy contest between two bishops of the first order, proceeded rather from corrupt motives of jealousy and ambition, than from a sincere and disinterested zeal for the truth, and was the source of evils and calamities without number.

The coun- VIII. When the spirits were so exasperated on cii of Ephe- both sides, by reciprocal excommunications and polemic writings, that there was no prospect of an amicable issue to this unintelligible contro- versy, Theodosius the younger called a council at Ephesus, A. D. 431, which was the third gene- ral council in the annals of the church. In this council Cyril presided, though he was the party concerned, and the avowed enemy of Nestorius ; and he proposed examining and determining the matter in debate before John of Antioch and the other eastern bishops arrived. Nestorius ob- jected against this proceeding, as irregular and unjust ; but his remonstrances being without effect, he refused to comply with the summons which called him to appear before the council. Cyril, on the other hand, pushing on matters with a lawless violence, Nestorius was judged without being heard ; and, during the absence of a great number of those bishops who belonged to the council, he was compared with the traitor Judas, charged with blasphemy against the di- vine majesty, deprived of his episcopal dignity,

PART;

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies.

and sent into exile, where he finished his days (n). CENT The transactions of this council will appear to the candid and equitable reader in the most unfa vourable light, as full of low artifice, contrary to all the rules of justice, and even destitute of the least air of common decency. The doctrine, however, that was established in it concerning Christ, was that which has been always acknow- ledged and adopted by the majority of Christians, viz. " That Christ was one divine person, in whom two natures were most closely and inti- mately united, but without being mixed or con- founded together."

IX. Nestorius, among other accusations less moment, was charged with dividing the na- ture of Christ into two distinct persons, and with win form having maintained, that the divine nature was superadded to the human nature of Jesus, after it was formed, and was no more than an auxiliary support to the man Christ, through the whole of his life. Nestorius denied this charge even to the last, and solemnly professed his entire dis- approbation of this doctrine (o). Nor indeed

(n) Those that desire a more ample account of this council may consult the Variorum Patrum Epistolas ad Concilium Ephesinum pertinentes, published atLouvain in the year 1682, from some Vatican and other manuscripts, by Christian Lupus. Nestorius, inconsequence of the sentence pronounced against him in this council, was first banished to Petra in Arabia, and afterwards to Oasis, a solitary place in the deserts of Egypt, where he died in the year 435. The accounts given of his tragical death by Evagrius, in his Eccl. Hist. lib. i. cap. vii. and by Theodorus the reader, Hist. Eccl. lib. ii. p. 565. are entirely fabulous. Igp0 Dr. Mosheim's account of the time of Nestorius' death is perhaps unexact; for it appears that Nestorius was at Oasis when Socrates wrote, that is, A. D. 439. See Socrat. lib. vii. cap. xxxiv.

(o) See Gamier *s edition of the works of Marius Mercator, torn. ii. p. 286. See also the fragments of those letters which Nestorius wrote some time before his death, which are to be

70 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, was this opinion ever proposed by him in any of PART ii. h*s writings, but was only charged upon him by

his iniquitous adversaries, as a consequence drawn

from some incautious and ambiguous terms he used, and particularly from his refusing to call the Virgin Mary the Mother of God (p). Hence many, nay, the greatest part of writers, both an- cient and modern, after a thorough examination of this matter, have positively concluded, that the opinions of Nestorius, and the council which condemned them, were the same in effect; that their difference was in words only, and that the whole blame of this unhappy controversy was to be charged upon the turbulent spirit of Cyril, and his aversion to Nestorius (<?).

This judgment may be just upon the whole; but it is, however, true, that Nestorius committed two faults in the course of this controversy. The first was, his giving offence to many Christians by

found in Jos. Sim. Asseman. Biblioth. Oriental. Vatican, torn, ii.p. 40, 41.

Ilg0 (p) It is remarkable, that Cyril would not hear the ex- planations which Nestprius offered to give of his doctrine. Nay, the latter offered to grant the title of Mother of God to the Virgin Mary, provided that nothing else was thereby meant, but that the man born of her was united to the di- vinity. See Socrat. lib. vii. cap. xxxiv.

(q) Luther was the first of the modern writers who thought thus. And he inveighed against Cyril, with the greatest bit- terness, in his book De Conciliis, torn. viii. opp. Altenb. p. 26.5, 266, 273. See also Bayle's Dictionary, at the articles Nesto- rius and Rodon. Christ. August. Salig, De Eutychianismo ante Eutychen, p. 200. Otto Frid. Schutzius, De Vita Chy- traei, lib. ii. cap. xxix. p. 190, 191. Jo. Voigt. Biblioth. Hi- storise Haeresiologiae, torn. i. part III. p. 457. Paul Ernest. Jablonsky, Exerc. de Nestorianismo, published at Berlin, A. D. 1720. Thesaur. Epistolic. Crozianus, torn. i. p. 184. tom.iii. p. 175. La Vie de la Croze, par Jordan, p. 231, and many others. As to the faults that have been laid to the charge of Nestorius, they are collected by Asseman, in his Biblioth. Orient. Vatican, torn. iii. part II. p. 210.

PART II

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 71

abrogating a trite and innocent term (r) ; and CENT. the second, his presumptuously attempting to explain, by uncouth comparisons and improper expressions, a mystery which infinitely surpasses the extent of our imperfect reason. If to these defects we add the despotic spirit, and the excess- ive warmth of this persecuted prelate, it will be difficult to decide who is most to be blamed, as the principal fomenter of this violent contest, Cyril or Nestorius (s).

X. The council of Ephesus, instead of healing The pro- these divisions, did but inflame them more and |feess of

Jestonan-

more, and almost destroyed all hope of restoring ism after concord and tranquillity in the church. John of Antioch, and the other eastern bishops, for whose arrival Cyril had refused to wait, met at Ephesus, and pronounced against him and Memnon, the bishop of that city, who was his creature, as severe a sentence as they had thundered against Nestorius. Hence arose a new and obstinate dis- sension between Cyril and the Orientals, with John the bishop of Antioch at their head. This flame was indeed somewhat abated, A. D. 433, after Cyril had received the Articles of Faith drawn up by John, and abandoned certain phrases

(r) The title of Mother of God, applied to the Vir- gin Mary, is not perhaps so innocent as Dr. Mosheim takes it to be. To the judicious and learned it can present no idea at all, and to the ignorant and unwary it may present the most absurd and monstrous notions. The invention and use of such mysterious terms, as have no place in scripture, are undoubtedly pernicious to true religion.

Ifgp0 (s) There is no difficulty at all in deciding this ques- tion. Nestorius, though possessed of an arrogant and perse- cuting spirit in general, yet does not seem to deserve, in this particular case, the reproaches that are due to Cyril. Ana- stasius, and not Nestorius, was the first who kindled the flame; and Nestorius was the suffering and persecuted party from the beginning of the controversy to his death. His offers of accommodation were refused, his explanations were not read, his submission was rejected, and he was condemned unheard.

72 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, and expressions, of which the litigious might make ART ii a Perrncious use< But the commotions which

, arose from this fatal controversy were more du- rable in the east (£). Nothing could oppose the progress of Nestorianism in those parts. The discipline and friends of the persecuted prelate carried his doctrine through all the Oriental pro- vinces, and erected every where congregations which professed an invincible opposition to the decrees of the council of Ephesus. The Persians, among others, opposed Cyril in the most vigorous manner, maintained that Nestorius had been un- justly condemned at Ephesus, and charged Cyril with removing that distinction which subsists be- tween the two natures in Christ. But nothing tended so much to propagate with rapidity the doctrine of Nestorius, as its being received in the famous school which had for a long time flourished at Edessa. For the doctors of this renowned aca- demy not only instructed the youth in the Nesto- rian tenets, but translated from the Greek into the Syriac language the books of Nestorius, of his master Theodorus of Mopsuestia, and the writings also of Diodorus of Tarsus, and spread them abroad throughout Assyria and Persia (it).

XL Of all the promoters of the Nestorian of cause, there was none to whom it has such weighty - obligations as to the famous Barsumas, who was

lsm* ejected out of his place, in the school of Edessa, and created bishop of Nisibis, A. D. 435. This zealous prelate laboured with incredible assiduity

(t) See Christ. Aug. Salig, De Eutychianismo ante Euty- chem, p. 24<3.

(u) See Jos. Simon. AssemanniBiblioth. Oriental. Clement. Vatican, torn. i. p. 351. torn. iii. part II. p. 69. This learned author may be advantageously used to correct what Eusebius Renaud has said (in the second tome of his Liturgise Orien- tales, p. 99.) concerning the first rise of the Nestorian doc- trine in the eastern provinces. See also the Ecclesiastical History of Theodorus the Reader, book ii. p. 558.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 73

and dexterity, from the year 440 to 485, to pro- CENT. cure for the Nestorians a solid and permanent settlement in Persia ; and he was vigorously se- concled in this undertaking by Manes bishop of Ardascira. So remarkable was the success which crowned the labours of Barsumas, that his fame extended throughout the east ; and the Nestorians, which still remain in Chaldsea, Persia, Assyria, and the adjacent countries, consider him alone, and not without reason, as their parent and founder. This indefatigable ecclesiastic not only persuaded Pherozes, the Persian monarch, to expel out of his dominions such Christians as had adopted the opinions of the Greeks, and to admit the Nesto- rians in their place, but he even engaged him to put the latter in possession of the principal seat of ecclesiastical authority in Persia, the see of Se> leucia, which the Patriarch, or Catholic of the Nes- torians, has always filled even down to our time (w). The zeal and activity of Barsumas did not end here : he erected a famous school at Nisibis, from whence issued those Nestorian doctors, who in this and the following century, spread abroad their tenets through Egypt, Syria, Arabia, India, Tar- tary, and China (JT).

XII. The Nestorians, before their affairs were The divi- thus happily settled, had been divided among Sorian themselves with respect to the method of explain- cease-

tu) The bishop of Seleucia was, by the twenty-third canon of the council of Nice, honoured with peculiar marks of distinction, and among others with the title of Catholic. He was invested with the power of ordaining archbishops (a privilege which belonged to the patriarchs alone), exalted above all the Grecian bishops, honoured as a patriarch, and in the ecumenical councils was the sixth in rank after the bishop of Jerusalem. ' See Acta Concilii Nicaeni Arab. Alphons. Pisan lib.iii. cap. xxiii. xxxiv.

(x) See, for an ample account of this matter, Jos. Sim. Assemanni Biblioth. Oriental. Clement. Vatican, torn. iii. part II. p. 77.

74 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, ing their doctrine. Some maintained, that the PART ii manner m which the two natures were united in

1 Christ was absolutely unknown ; others, that the

union of the divine nature with the man Jesus was only an union of will, operation, and dignity (z/). This dissension, however, entirely ceased when the Nestorians were gathered together into one reli- gious community, and lived in tranquillity under their own ecclesiastical government and laws. Their doctrine, as it was then determined in several councils assembled at Seleucia, amounts to what follows : " That in the Saviour of the world there were two persons, or vrfoavourEis ', of which the one was divine, even the eternal Word ; and the other, which was human, was the man Jesus : that these two persons had only one aspect (2); that the union between the Son of God and the son of of man was formed in the moment of the Virgin's conception, and was never to be dissolved ; that it was not, however, an union of nature or of person, but only of will and affection ; that Christ was, there- fore, to be carefully distinguished from God, who dwelt in him as in his temple ; and that Mary was to be called the mother of Christ, and not the mother of God."

The abettors of this doctrine hold Nestorius in the highest veneration, as a man of singular and eminent sanctity, and worthy to be had in per- petual remembrance: but they maintain, at the same time, that the doctrine he taught was much

(y) Leontius Byzant. adversus Nestorian. et Eutychian. p. 537. torn. i. Lection. Antiquar. Henr. Canisii. Jac. Basnag. Prolegomen. ad Canisium, torn. i. cap. ii. p. 19.

j^g0 (z) This is the only way I know of translating the word barsopa, which was the term used by Nestorius, and which the Greeks render by the term rtgcxrwrfof' The word person would have done better in this unintelligible phrase, had it not been used immediately before in a different sense from that which Nestorius would convey by the obscure term aspect.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 75

older than himself, and had been handed down CENT. from the earliest times of the Christian church ; and for this reason they absolutely refused the title of Nestorians. And, indeed, if we examine the matter attentively, we shall find, that Barsu- mas and his followers, instead of teaching their disciples precisely the doctrine of Nestorius, rather polished and improved his uncouth system to their own taste, and added to it several tenets of which the good man never dreamt.

XIII. A violent aversion to the Nestorian errors The Euty- led many into the opposite extreme. This was chian sect- the case with the famous Eutyches, abbot of a certain convent of monks at Constantinople, and founder of a sect, which was in direct opposition to that of Nestorius, yet equally prejudicial to the interests of the Christian church, by the pes- tilential discords and animosities it produced. The opinions of this new faction shot like light- ning through the east ; and it acquired such strength in its progress, as to create much uneasi- ness both to the Greeks and Nestorians, whose most vigorous efforts were not sufficient to pre- vent its rising to a high degree of credit and splendor. Eutyches began these troubles, A. D. 448, when he was far advanced in years ; and to exert his utmost force and vehemence in opposing the progress of the Nestorian doctrine, he ex- pressed his sentiments concerning the person of Christ in the very terms which the Egyptians made use of for that purpose, and taught, that in Christ there was but one nature, viz. that of the incarnate word (a). Hence he was thought to

(a) That Cyril expressed himself in this manner, and ap- pealed, for his justification in so doing, to the authority of Athanasrus, is evident beyond all possibility of contradic- tion. But it is uncertain whether or no this manner of ex- pression was adopted by Athanasius, since many are of

76 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, deny the existence of the human nature in Christ, PAHT ii. and was accused of this, by Eusebius of Dorylseum,

in the council that was assembled by Flavianus

at Constantinople, probably this same year. By a decree of this council he was ordered to renounce the above-mentioned opinion, which he obstinately refused to do, and was, on that account, excom- municated and deposed ; little disposed, however, to acquiesce in this sentence, he appealed to the decision of a general council.

The council XIV. In consequence of this appeal, the em- caiied Con Peror Theodosius assembled an ecumenical council ventus La- at Ephesus, A. D. 449, at the head of which he tronum. placed Dioscorus, bishop of Alexandria, the successor of Cyril, the faithful imitator of his arrogance and fury, and a declared enemy to the bishop of Constantinople. Accordingly, by the influence and caballing of this turbulent man, matters were carried on in this council with the same want of equity and decency that had dis- honoured a former Ephesian council, and charac- terized the proceedings of Cyril against Nesto- rius. For Dioscorus, in whose church a doctrine almost the same with that of the Eutychians was constantly taught, confounded matters with such artifice and dexterity, that the doctrine of one in- carnate nature triumphed, and Eutyches was ac- quitted of the charge of error that had been brought against him. Flavianus, on the other

opinion, that the book, in which it is found, has been falsely attributed to him. See Mich. Le Quien Dissert, ii. in Da- masenum, p. 31. Christ. Aug. Salig, De Eutychianismo ante Eutychen, p. 1 12. It appears, by what we read in the Biblioth. Oriental. &c. of Assem. torn. i. p. 219, that the Syrians expressed themselves in this manner before Eu- tyches, though without designing thereby to broach any new doctrine, but rather without well knowing what they said. We stand jet in need of a solid and accurate history of the Eutychian troubles ; notwithstanding the labours of the learned Salig upon that subject.

PART

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 77

hand, was, by the order of this unrighteous coun- CENT. cil, publicly scourged in the most barbarous man- ' ner, and banished to Epipas, a city of Lydia, where soon after he ended his days (/?). The Greeks called this Ephesian council, a band, or assembly of robbers, o-woSov A^OY^V, to signify that every thing was carried in it by fraud or vio- lence (c). And many councils, indeed, both in this and the following ages, are equally entitled to the same dishonourable appellation.

XV. The face of affairs soon changed, and T assumed an aspect utterly unfavourable to the party whom the Ephesian council had rendered triumphant. Flavianus and his followers not only engaged Leo the Great, bishop of Rome, in their interests (for the Roman pontiff was the ordinary refuge of the oppressed and conquered party in this century), but also remonstrated to the emperor, that a matter of such an arduous and important nature required, in order to its decision, a council composed out of the church universal. Leo seconded this latter request, de- manded of Theodosius a general council, which no entreaties could persuade this emperor to grant. Upon his death, however, his successor Marcian consented to Leo's demand, and called, in the year 451, the council of Chalcedon (d\ which is reckoned the fourth general or oecumenical council.

(b) See the Concilia Jo. Harduini, torn. i. p. 82. Liberati Breviarium, cap. xii. p. 76. Leonis M. Epist. xciii. p. 625. Nicephori Hist. Ecclesiast. lib. xiv. cap. Ixvii. p. 550, £c.

th<

_ (c) Though Flavianus died soon after the council of Ephesus, of the bruises he had received from Dioscorus and the other bishops of his party in that horrid assembly, yet, before his death, he had appealed to Leo ; and this appeal, pursued by Leo, occasioned the council, in which Eutyches was condemned, and the bloody Dioscorus deposed.

ggp0 (d) This council was, by the emperor's summons, first assembled at Nice, but afterwards removed to Chalcedon ;

78 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. The legates of Leo, who, in his famous letter to PART ii. Flavianiis, had already condemned the Eutychian ' doctrine, presided in this grand and crowded as- sembly. Dioscorus was condemned, deposed, and banished into Paphlagonia, the acts of the council of Ephesus Were annulled, the epistle of Leo re- ceived as a rule of faith (e) ; Eutyches, who had been already sent into banishment, and deprived of his sacerdotal dignity by the emperor, was now condemned, though absent ; and the following doctrine, which is at this time almost generally received, was inculcated upon Christians as the object of faith, viz. " That in Christ two distinct natures were united in one person, and that with- out any change, mixture, or confusion." Warm con- XVI. The remedy applied by this council, to tests sue- heal ^e W0unds of a torn and divided church,

ceed the ., TIT -n

council of proved really worse than the disease. Jb or a great Cbaicedon. numker of Oriental and Egyptian doctors, though of various characters and different opinions in other respects, united in opposing, with the ut- most vehemence, the council of Chalcedon and the epistle of Leo, which it had adopted as a rule of faith, and were unanimous in maintaining an unity of nature, as well as of person, in Jesus Christ. Hence arose deplorable discords and civil wars, whose fury and barbarity were carried

that the emperor, who, on account of the irruption of the Hunns into Illyricum, was unwilling to go far from Constan- tinople, might assist at it in person.

(e) This was the letter which Leo had written to

Flavianus, after having been informed by him of what had passed in the council of Constantinople. In this epistle, Leo approves of the decisions of that council, declares the doc- trine of Eutyches heretical and impious, explains, with great appearance of perspicuity, the doctrine of the Catholic church upon this perplexed subject; so that this letter was esteemed a masterpiece both of logic and eloquence, and was con- stantly read, during the Advent, in the western churches.

r

.rAit 1 Hi

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 79

to the most excessive and incredible lengths. CENT. Upon the death of the emperor Marcian, the

1 111 11* T^

populace assembled tumultuously in J^gypt, mas- , sacred Proterius, the successor of Dioscorus, and substituted in his place Timotheus JElurus, who was a zealous defender of the Eutychian doc- trine of one incarnate nature in Christ. This latter, indeed, was deposed and banished by the emperor Leo ; but, upon his death, was restored by Basilicus both to his liberty and episcopal dignity. After the death of jElurus, the de- fenders of the counci} of Chalcedon chose in his place, Timotheus, surnamed Salophaciolus, while the partisans of the Eutychian doctrine of the one nature, elected schismatically Peter Moggus to the same dignity. An edict of the emperor Zeno obliged the latter to yield. The triumph, however, of the Chalcedonians on this occasion was but transitory ; for, upon the death of Timo- theus, John Talaia, whom they had chosen in his place, was removed by the same emperor (,/) ; and Moggus, or Mongus, by an imperial edict, and the favour of Acacius, bishop of Constanti- nople, was, in the year 482, raised to the see of Alexandria.

XVII. The abbot Barsumas (whom the reader Contests in must be careful not to confound with Barsumas o Nisibis, the famous promoter of the Nestorian doc- trines) having been condemned by the council of Chalcedon (g), brought the Eutychian opinions into Syria, and, by the ministry of his disciple

(f) See Liberati Breviarium, cap. xvi. xvii. xviii. Evagr. Hist. Eccles. lib. ii. cap. viii. lib. iii. cap. iii. Lequien, Oriens Christianus, torn. ii. p. 410.

Ejgl0 (o-) The Barsumas, here mentioned, was he who assisted the bishop of Alexandria (Dioscorus) and the soldiers, in beating Flavianus to death in the council of Ephesus, and to shun whose fury, the orthodox bishops were forced to creep into holes, and hide themselves under benches, in that pious assembly.

80 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. Samuel, spread them amongst the Armenians

PART II.

about the year 460. This doctrine, however, as

it was commonly explained, had something so harsh and shocking in it, that the Syrians were easily engaged to abandon it by the exhortations of Xenaias, otherwise called Philoxenus, bishop of Hierapolis, and the famous Peter Fullo. These doctors rejected the opinion, attributed to Eu- tyches, that the human nature of Christ was ab- sorbed by the divine (Ji), and modified matters so as to form the following hypothesis; " That in the Son of God there was one nature, which, notwithstanding its unity, was double and com- pounded." This notion was not less repugnant to the decisions of the council of Chalcedon than the Eutychian doctrine, and was therefore sted- fastly opposed by those who acknowledged the authority of that council (i).

The trou- XVIII. Peter, surnamed Fullo, from the trade

by6 Peter'the <tf a fu^erj which he exercised in his monastic

Fuller. state, had usurped the see of Antioch, and, after

having been several times deposed and condemned

on account of the bitterness of his opposition

to the council of Chalcedon, was fixed in it, at

last, A. D. 482, by the authority of the emperor

Zeno, and the favour of Acacius, bishop of

Constantinople (A:). This troublesome and con-

_ (h) Eutyches never affirmed what is here attributed to him ; he maintained simply, that the two natures, which existed in Christ before his incarnation, became one after it, by the hypostatical union. This miserable dispute about words was nourished by the contending parties having no clear ideas of the terms person and nature ; as also by an invincible ignorance of the subject in dispute.

(i) J. Sim. Assemanni Biblioth. Orient. Vat. torn. ii. p. 1 — 10. See also the Dissertation of this author, De Monophy- sitis, which is prefixed to this volume.

(k) Valesii Dissertatio de Pet. Fullone, et de Synodis ad- versus eum collectis, which is added to the third volume of the Scriptor. Hist. Ecclesiast. p. 173.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies.

tentious man excited new discords in the church, CENT.

v.

PART II.

and seemed ambitious of forming a new sect under

the name of Theopaschites (/) ; for to the words, •" O God, most holy," &c. in the famous hymn which the Greeks called Trisagium, he ordered the following phrase to be added in the eastern churches, "who hast suffered for us upon the cross." His design in this was manifestly to raise a new sect, and also to fix more deeply in the minds of the people, the doctrine of one nature in Christ, to which he was zealously attached. His adver- saries, and especially Felix, the Roman pontiff, interpreted this addition to the hymn abovj-men- tioned in a quite different manner, and charged him with maintaining, that all the three persons of the Godhead were crucified : and hence those who approved of his addition were called Theo- paschites. The consequence of this dispute was, that the western Christians rejected the addition inserted by Fullo, which they judged relative to the whole Trinity; while the Orientals used it constantly after this period, and that without giving the least offence, because they applied it to Christ alone (w).

XIX. To put an end to this controversy, The Hen°- which had produced the most unhappy divisions, zeno.° both in church and state, the emperor Zeno, by the advice of Acacius, bishop of Constantinople, published, A. D. 482, the famous Henoticon, or decree of union, which was designed to reconcile the contending parties. This decree repeated and confirmed all that had been enacted in the coun- cils of Nice, Constantinople, Ephesus, and Chal-

(/) This word expresses the enormous error of those frantic doctors, who imagined that the Godhea'd suffered in and with Christ.

(»«) See Noris, Lib. de Uno ex Trinitate Carne Passo, torn. iii. opp. Diss. i. cap. iii. p. 782. Assemanni Biblioth. Orient. Vatican, torn. i. p. 518. torn. ii. p. 36. 180.

VOL. II. G

82 The Internal History of the Church,

CENT, cedon, against the Arians, Nestorians, and Euty- PART ii chians> without making any particular mention of

1 the council of Chalcedon (it). For Acacius had

persuaded the emperor, that the present opposition was not carried on against the decrees that had passed in the council of Chalcedon, but against the council itself; with respect to which, therefore, an entire silence was undoubtedly prudent in a proposal, which, instead of reviving, was designed to put an end to all disputes, and to reconcile the most jarring principles.

In the meantime, Mongus and Fullo, who filled the sees of Alexandria and Antioch, and headed the sect of the Monophysites (o), sub- scribed this decree of union, which was also ap- proved by Acacius of Constantinople, and by all those of the two contending parties who were at all remarkable for their candour and moderation. But there were on all sides violent and obstinate bigots, who opposed, with vigour, these pacific measures, and complained of the Henoticon as in- jurious to the honour and authority of the most holy council of Chalcedon (p). Hence arose new contests and new divisions, not less deplorable than those which the decree of union was designed to suppress.

Produces XX. A considerable body of the Monophy- te*tsCamon s^es> or Eutychians, looked upon the conduct of the Euty. Mongus, who had subscribed the decree, as highly criminal, and consequently formed themselves into a new faction, under the title of Acephali, i. e. headless, because, by the submission of Mon-

(n) Evagrius, Hist. Eccl. lib. iii. cap. xiv. Liberati Bre- viariura Hist. cap. xviii.

^g° (o) This word expresses the doctrine of those who believed, that in Christ there was but one nature, and is, in most respects, the same with the term Eutychians.

(p) See Facundus Hermian. Defens. Trium Capitulor. lib. xii. cap. iv.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies.

gus, they had been deprived of their chief (q). CENT. This sect was afterwards divided into three others, pA^ n who were called Anthropomorphites, Barsanu- phites, and Esaianists; and these again, in the following century, were the unhappy occasion of new factions, of which the ancient writers make frequent mention (f). It is, however, necessary to observe here, for the information of those whose curiosity interests them in inquiries of this nature, that these subdivisions of the Eutychian sect are not to be adopted with too much facility. Some of them are entirely fictitious ; others are charac- terised by a nominal, and not by a real difference ; the division is in words and not in things ; while a third sort is distinguished, not by their peculiar doctrines, but by certain rites and institutions, and matters of a merely circumstantial nature. Be that as it will, these numerous branches of the Eutychian faction did not flourish long ; they de- clined gradually in the following century ; and the influence and authority of the famous Barada?us contributed principally to their total extinction by the union he established among the numbers of that sect.

XXI. The Roman pontiff, Felix II. having And also assembled an Italian council, composed of sixty- "^san^of seven bishops, condemned, deposed, and cut off the council from the communion of the church, Acacius, ^ lialce" bishop of Constantinople, as a perfidious enemy to the truth. Several articles were alleged against Acacius, to furnish a pretext for the severity of this sentence; such as his attachment to the Mo-

(q) Evagr. Hist. Eccl. lib. iii, cap. xiii. Leontius Byzant. De Sectis, torn. i. Lection Antiq. Canisii, p. 537. Timoth. in Cotelerii Monument. Ecclesiae Graecae, torn. iii. p. 409.

(r) These sects are enumerated by Basnagc, in his Pro- legom. ad Hen. Canisii Lection. Aritiqu. cap. iii. and by As- seman, in his Dissertatio de Monophysitis, p. 7.

84 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, nophysites, and their leaders Mongus and Fullo, PART ii. tne contempt with which he treated the council

r of Chalcedon, and other accusations of a like

nature. But the true reasons of these proceedings, and of the irreconcileable hatred which the Ro- man pontiffs indulged against Acacius, were his denying the supremacy of the bishop of Rome, his opposing it throughout the whole course of his ministry (s), and his ambitious efforts to en- large, beyond all bounds, the authority and prero- gatives of the see of Constantinople. The Greeks, however, defended the character and memory of their bishop against all the aspersions which were cast upon him by the Romans. Hence arose a new schism, and new contests, which were car- ried on with great violence, until the following century, when the obstinacy and perseverance of the Latins triumphed over the opposition of the oriental Christians, and brought about an agree- ment, in consequence of which, the names of Acacius and Fullo were struck out of the dip-

_ (s) This again is one of the periods of ecclesiastical history, in which we find a multitude of events, which are so many proofs how far the supremacy of the bishop of Rome was from being universally acknowledged. Pope Felix II. deposes and excommunicates Acacius the patriarch of Con- stantinople, who not only receives this sentence with con- tempt, but, in his turn anathematizes and excommunicates the pope., and orders his name to be struck out of the diptychs. This conduct of Acacius is approved by the emperor, the church of Constantinople, by almost all the eastern bishops, nay, by even Andreas of Thessalonica, who was at that time the pope's vicar for East Illyricum. This was the occasion of that general schism, which continued for the space of twenty-five years, between the eastern and western churches. It is here worthy of observation, that the eastern bishops did not adhere to the cause of Acacius, from any other principle, as appears from the most authentic records of those times, than a persuasion of the illegality of his excommunication by the Roman pontiff, who, in their judgment, had not a right to depose the first bishop of the east, without the con- sent of a general council.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies.

tychs, or sacred registers, and thus branded with y perpetual infamy (£). PART n.

XXII. These deplorable dissensions and con- —

tests had for their object a matter of the smallest

importance. Eutyches was generally supposed Eutyches to have maintained, " That the divine nature of M0n Christ had absorbed the human, and that, con- sites, sequently, in him there was but one nature, viz. the divine ; " but the truth of this supposition is as yet destitute of sufficient evidence. How- ever that may have been, this opinion, as also Eutyches, its pretended author, were rejected and condemned by those who opposed the coun- cil of Chalcedon, and principally indeed by Xe- naias and Fullo, who are, therefore, improperly called Eutychians, and belong rather to the class of the Monophysites. They who assumed this latter title held, " That the divine and human nature of Christ were so united, as to form only one nature, yet, without any change, confusion, or mixture of the two natures:" and that this caution might be carefully observed, and their meaning be well understood, they frequently expressed themselves thus ; "In Christ there is one nature ; but that nature is two-fold and compounded (u)." They disowned all relation and attachment to Eutyches ; but regarded, with the highest vene- ration, Dioscorus, Barsumas, Xenaias, and Fullo, as the pillars of their sect ; and rejected, not only the Epistle of Leo, but also the decrees

(I) Hen. Valesius, Dissert, de Synodis Roman, in quibus damnatus est Acacius, ad calcem, torn. iii. Scriptor. Eccl. p. 179. Basnage, Histoire de 1'Eglise, torn. i. p. 301, 380, 381. Bayle's Dictionary in English, at the article Acacius. David Blondel, De la Primaute dans 1'Eglise, p. 2/9. Acta Sancto- rum, torn. iii. Februar. p. 502.

(w) See the passages drawn from the writings of the Mo- nophysites by the most learned, and, frequently, impartial Asseman, in his Biblioth. Orient. Vatic, torn. ii. p. 25, 26, 29, 34, 117, 133, 135, 277, 297, &c.

86 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, of the council of Chalcedon. The opinion of the Monophy sites, if we judge of it by the terms in which it is here delivered, does not seem to

PART II.

differ in reality, but only in the manner of ex- pression, from that which was established by the council of Chalcedon (w). But, if we attend care- fully to the metaphysical arguments and subtil- ties which the former employed to confirm their doctrine (#), we shall, perhaps, be induced to think, that the controversy between the Mono- physites and Chalcedonians is not merely a dis- pute about words.

The Peia- XXIII. A new controversy arose in the church during this century, and its pestilential effects extended themselves through the following ages. The authors of it were Pelagius and Cselestius, both monks ; the former a Briton, and the latter a native of Ireland ( y) : they lived at Rome in the greatest reputation, and were universally esteemed on account of their extraordinary piety and vir- tue (z). These monks looked upon the doctrines,

(w>) Many learned men treat this controversy as a mere dispute about words. Gregory Abulpharaius, himself a Mo- nophysite, and the most learned of the sect, declares this as his opinion. Asseman. Biblioth. Orient. &c. torn. ii. p. 291. Add to this the Biblioth. Italique, torn. xvii. p. 285. La Croze, Histoire du Christianisme des Indes, p. 23. and Histoire du Christianisme de Ethiope, p. 14. Asseman, though a Roman by birth and by religion, seems in a good measure to have adopted the same way of thinking, as appears by p. 297. of the tome quoted above.

(x) See the subtile argumentation of Abulpharaius, in the Biblioth. Orient, of Asseman. torn. ii. p. 288.

fjzjir(y) Nothing very certain can be advanced with respect to the native country of Caelestius, which some say was Scot- land, and others Campania in Italy. We know, however, that he was descended of an illustrious family; and that, after having applied himself to the study of the law for some time, he retired from the world, and embraced the monastic life. See Gennad. De Script. Ecclesiast. cap. xliv.

E|3?p (z) The learned and furious Jerome, who never once thought of doing common justice to those who had the mis-

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies.

which were commonly received, " Concerning the original corruption of human nature, and PART n. the necessity of divine grace to enlighten the un -- derstanding, and purify the heart, as prejudicial to the progress of holiness and virtue, and tending to lull mankind in a presumptuous and fatal se- curity. They maintained, that these doctrines were as false as they were pernicious ; that the sins of our first parents were imputed to them alone, and not to their posterity ; that we derive no corruption from their fall, but are born as pure and unspotted as Adam came out of the forming hand of his Cre- ator; that mankind, therefore, are capable of re- pentance and amendment ; and of arriving to the highest degrees of piety and virtue by the use of their natural faculties and powers; that, indeed, external grace is necessary to excite their endea- vours, but that they have no need of the Internal succours of the divine Spirit." These notions, and some others intimately connected with them (a), were propagated at Rome, though in a private man- ner, by the two monks already mentioned, who, retiring from that city, A. D. 410, upon the ap- proach of the Goths, went first into Sicily, and afterwards into Africa, where they published their

fortune to differ from him in opinion, accused Pelagius of gluttony and intemperance, after he had heard of his errors, though he had admired him before for his exemplary virtue. Augustin, more candid and honest, bears impartial testimony to the truth ; and even while he writes against this heretic, acknowledges that he had made great progress in virtue and piety, that his life was chaste and his manners blameless; and this, indeed, is the truth of the matter.

Ifgp0 (a) The doctrines that were more immediately con- nected with the main principles of Pelagius were, that infant baptism was not a sign or seal of the remission of sins, but a mark of admission to the kingdom of heaven, which was only open to the pure in heart; that good works were meritorious, and the only conditions of salvation ; — with many others too tedious to mention.

88 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, doctrine with more freedom. From Africa PC- PART ii la»ms passed into Palestine, while Cselestius re- mained at Carthage with a view to preferment, desiring to be admitted among the presbyters of that city. But the discovery of his opinions having blasted his hopes, and his errors being condemned in a council held at Carthage, A. D. 412, he de- parted from that city, and went into the east. It was from this time that Augustin, the famous bishop of Hippo, began to attack the tenets of Pelagius and Ca?lestius in his learned and elo- quent writings ; and to him, indeed, is principally due the glory of having suppressed this sect in its very birth

The pro. XXIV. Things went more smoothly with Pe-

gress ot * . . i i , -11

this con- lagius in the east, where he enjoyed the protec-

troversy. ^on and favour of John, bishop of Jerusalem, whose attachment to the sentiments of Origen led him naturally to countenance those of Pe- lagius, on account of the conformity that there seemed to be between these two systems. Under the shadow of this powerful protection, Pela- gius made a public profession of his opinions, and formed disciples in several places. And though, in the year 415, he was accused by Oro- sius, a Spanish presbyter, whom Augustin had sent into Palestine for that purpose, before an as- sembly of bishops met at Jerusalem, yet he was dismissed without the least censure ; and not only

(b) The Pelagian controversy has been historically treated by many learned writers, such as Usher, in his Antiquit. Eccles. IBritannicae ; Laet; Ger. Vossius; Noris; Gamier, in his Supplement. Oper. Theodoreti; JanseniusinAugustino; and others. Longueval also, a French Jesuit, wrote A History of the Pelagians. See the preface to the ninth vol. of his Historia Ecclesiee Gallicanae, p. 4. After all, it must be con- fessed, that of all these learned writers none have exhausted this interesting subject, or treated it with a sufficient degree of impartiality.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 89

so, but was soon after fully acquitted of all errors CENT. by the council of Diospolis (c).

This controversy was brought to Rome, andj_ referred by Caelestius and Pelagius, to the deci-*

PART If.

sion of Zosimus (d), wno was raised to the pon- tificate A. D. 417. The new pontiff, gained over by the ambiguous and seemingly orthodox con- fession of faith, that Caelestius, who was now at Rome, had artfully drawn up, and also by the letters and protestations of Pelagius, pronounced in favour of these monks, declared them sound in the faith, and unjustly persecuted by their adver- saries. The African bishops, with Augustin at their head, little affected with this declaration, continued obstinately to maintain the judgment they had pronounced in this matter, and to strengthen it by their exhortations, their letters, and their writings. Zosimus yielded to the per- severance of the Africans, changed his mind, and condemned with the utmost severity, Pelagius and Caelestius, whom he had honoured with his approbation, and covered with his protection. This was followed by a train of evils, which pur- sued these two monks without interruption. They were condemned by that same Ephesian council which had launched its thunder at the head of Nestorius : in short, the Gauls, Britons, and

(c) See Daniel, Histoire du Concile de Diospolis, which is to be found in the Opuscula of that eloquent and learned Je- suit, published at Paris in the year 1724, in three volumes quarto. Diospolis was a city of Palestine, known in scripture by the name of Lydda; and the bishop who presided in this council was Eulogius of Csesarea, Metropolitan of Palestine.

fjgjj0 (d} To preserve the thread of the history here, and prevent the reader's being surprised to find Pelagius and Ccdestius appealing to Rome, after having been acquitted at Diospolis, it is necessary to observe, that after the council of Diospolis, these two monks were condemned anew, A. D.4I6, by the African bishops assembled at Carthage, and those of Numidia assembled at Milevum; upon which they appealed to Rome.

90 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. Africans, by their councils, and the emperors, by PART ii their edicts and penal laws, demolished this sect 1 in its infancy, and suppressed it entirely before it

had acquired any tolerable degree of vigour or

consistence (<?). The Pro XXV. The unhappy disputes about the opi-

destinarians. • r n i • • i ni

nions 01 Jrelagms occasioned, as usually happens, other controversies equally prejudicial to the peace of the church, and the interests of true Christian- ity. In the course of this dispute, Augustin had delivered his opinion, concerning the necessity of divine grace in order to our salvation, and the decrees of God with respect to the future condi- tions of men, without being always consistent with himself, or intelligible to others. Hence cer- tain monks of Adrumetum, and others, were led into a notion, " That God not only predestinated the wicked to eternal punishment, but also to the guilt and transgression for which they are punished ; and that thus both the good and bad actions of all men were determined from eternity by a divine decree, and fixed by an invincible necessity." Those who embraced this opinion were called Predestinarians. Augustin used his utmost in- 'fluence and authority to prevent the spreading of this doctrine, and explained his true sentiments with more perspicuity, that it might not be at- tributed to him. His efforts were seconded by the councils of Aries and Lyons, in which the doctrine in question was publicly rejected and

(e) See Gerard. Jo. Vossius, in his Historia Pelagiana, lib. i. cap. Iv. p. 130; as also the learned observations that have been made upon this controversy, in the Bibliotheque Ita- lique, torn. v. p. 74. The writers on both sides are men- tioned by Jo. Franc. Buddeus, in his Isagoge ad Theologiam, torn. ii. p. 1071. The learned Wall, in his History of Infant Baptism, vol. i. chap. xix. has given a concise and elegant account of the Pelagian controversy ; an account which, though imperfect in several respects, abounds with solid and useful erudition.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies.

condemned (/). But we must not omit ob- CENT. serving, that the existence of this Predestinarian

11 I'll 1 1 i t A It 1 J I «

sect has been denied by many learned men, ana _ looked upon as an invention of the Semi- Pelagians, designed to decry the followers of Augustin, by attributing to them unjustly this dangerous and pernicious error (g).

XXVI. A new and different modification was

given to the doctrine of Augustin by the monk lasians- Cassian, who came from the east into France, and erected a monastery neap Marseilles. Nor was he the only one who attempted to fix upon a certain temperature between the errors of Pelagius and the opinions of the African oracle ; several persons embarked in this undertaking about the year 430, and hence arose a new sect, which were called, by their adversaries, Semi- Pelagians.

The opinions of this sect have been misrepre- sented, by its enemies, upon several occasions ; such is generally the fate of all parties in religi-

(f) See Jac. Sermondi Historia Praedestinatiana, torn. iv. opp.|p. 271. Basnage, Histoire de 1'Eglise, torn. i. livr. xii. cap. ii. p. 698. Dion. Petavius, Dogmat. Theol. torn. vi. p. 168, 174, &c.

(g) See Gilb. Mauguini Fabula Praedestinatiana confutata, which he subjoined to the second tome of his learned work intitled, Collectio variorum Scriptorutn qui Ssec. ix. de Prae- destinatione et Gratia scripserunt. Fred. Spanhemius, Introd. ad Historiam Eccles. torn. i. opp. p. 993. Jac. Basnag. AdnoU ad Prosperi Chronicon et Prsef. ad Faustum Regiensem, torn. i. Lection. Antiqu. Hen. Canisii, p. 315, 348. Granet (who wrote the life of Launoy) observes, that Sirmond had solicited Launoy to write against Mauguin, who denied the existence of the Predestinarian sect j but that the former having exa- mined the matter with care and application, adopted the sentiment of Mauguin. The whole dispute about the existence of this sect will, when closely looked into, appear to be little more, perhaps, than a dispute about words. Elgrf^It may be very true, that, about this time, nay, from the time of St. Paul, certain persons embraced the Predestinarian opinions here mentioned. But there is no solid proof, that the abettors of these opinions ever formed themselves into a sect. See Busmige, Hist, de 1'Eglise, torn. i. p. 700.

93 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, ous controversies. Their doctrine, as it has been PART ii generally explained by the learned, amounted to this : " That inward preventing grace was not necessary to form in the soul the first beginnings of true repentance and amendment ; that every one was capable of producing these by the mere power of their natural faculties, as also of ex- ercising faith in Christ, and forming the pur- poses of a holy and sincere obedience." But they acknowledged, at the same time, " That none could persevere or advance in that holy and virtuous course which they had the power of beginning, without the perpetual support, and the powerful assistance of the divine grace (A)." The disciples of Augustin, in Gaul, attacked the Semi- Pelagians, with the utmost vehemence, without being able to extirpate or overcome them (z). The doctrine of this sect was so suited to the capacities of the generality of men, so conformable to the way of thinking that prevailed among the monastic orders, so well received among the gravest and most learned Grecian doc- tors, that neither the zeal nor industry of its adver- saries could stop its rapid and extensive progress.

(h) The leading principles of the Semi-Pelagians were the five following: 1. That God did not dispense his grace to one, more than another, in consequence of Predes tination, i. e. an eternal and absolute decree ; but was willing to save all men, if they complied with the terms of his gospel. 2. That Christ died for all men. 3. That the grace purchased by Christ, and necessary to salvation, was offered to all men. 4. That man, before he received grace, was capable of faith and holy desires. 5. That man, born free, was consequently capable of resisting the influences of grace, or complying with its suggestions. See Basnage, Histoire de PEglise, torn. i. livr. xii. cap. i. p. 696, &c.

'(i) Jac. Basnage, Hist, de 1'Eglise, torn. i. livr. xii. cap. i. Hist. Litteraire de la France, torn. ii. Praef. p. 9. Vossii Histor. Pelagiana, lib. v. p. 538. Scipio Maft'ei (under the fictitious name of Irenaeus Veroriensis) De Haeresi Pelagiana in tomo xxix. Opuscul. Scientif. Angeli Calogerae, p. 399.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 93

Add to its other advantages, that neither Augus- CENT. tin, nor his followers, had ventured to condemn it in all its parts, nor to brand it as an impious and pernicious heresy.

XXVII. This was the commencement of those Various unhappy contests, those subtile and perplexing disputes concerning grace, or the nature and ope- ration of that divine power, which is essentially gl required in order to salvation, that rent the church into the most deplorable divisions through the whole course of the succeeding age, and which, to the deep sorrow and regret of every true and generous Christian, have been continued down to the present time. The doctrine of Augustin, who was of opinion, that, in the work of conver- sion and sanctification, all was to be attributed to a divine energy, and nothing to human agency, had many followers in all ages of the church ; though his disciples have never been entirely agreed about the manner of explaining what he taught upon that head (A*). The followers of Cassian were, however, much more numerous, and his doctrine, though variously explained, was received in the greatest part of the monastic schools in Gaul, from whence it spread itself far and wide through the European provinces. As to the Greeks, and other eastern Christians, they had embraced the Semi- Pelagian doctrine before Cassian, and still adhere firmly to it. The gene- rality of Christians looked upon the opinions of

(k) It is well known that the Jansenists and Jesuits both plead the authority of St. Augustin, in behalf of their opposite systems with respect to predestination and grace. This knotty doctrine has exercised severely the pretended infallibility of the popes, and exposed it to the laughter of the wise upon many occasions; and the famous Bull Unigenitus, which of late years has made such noise, set Clement XI. in direct opposition with several of the most celebrated Roman pontiffs. Which are we to believe ?

94 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. Pelagius as daring and presumptuous; and even PART n to tn°se wno adopted them in secret, they ap-

1 peared too free and too far removed from the

notions commonly received, to render the public profession of them advisable and prudent. Cer- tain, however, it is, that in all ages of the church there have been several persons, who, in confor- mity with the doctrine attributed to this heretic, have believed mankind endowed with a natural power of paying to the divine laws a perfect obedience.

THE

SIXTH CENTURY

PART 1.

THli EXTERNAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

CHAPTER I.

Concerning the Prosperous Events which hap- pened to the Church during this Century.

I. THE zeal of the bishops of Constantinople, CENT. seconded by the protection and influence of the Grecian emperors, increased the number of Chris-

PART I,

tians in the east, and contributed to the conver- The pro- sion of some barbarous nations ; of those, parti- ch^sti cularly, who lived upon the borders of the Euxine religion in sea, as appears by the most authentic records of Ul Grecian history. Among these nations were the Abasgi, who inhabited the country lying between the coasts of the Euxine sea, and mount Caucasus, and who embraced Christianity under the reign of Justinian (a) ; the Heruli, who dwelt beyond the Danube, and who were converted under the same reign (£); as also the Alans, Lazi, and Zani, with other uncivilized countries, whose situation, at this time, is only known by vague and imper-

(a) Procopius, De Bello Gothico, lib. iv. cap. iii. Le Quien, Oriens Christianas, torn. i. p. 1351. (6) Procopius, 1. c. lib. ii. cap. xiv.

96 The External History of the Church.

CENT, feet conjectures. These conversions, indeed, pA*ttT i however pompously they may sound, were ex- - tremely superficial and imperfect, as we learn

from the most credible accounts that have been given of them. All that was required of these darkened nations amounted to an oral profession of their faith in Christ, to their abstaining from sacrificing to the gods, and their committing to memory certain forms of doctrine ; while little care was taken to enrich their minds with pious sentiments, or to cultivate in their hearts vir- tuous affections. So that, even after their con- version to Christianity, they retained their pri- mitive ferocity and savage manners, and conti- nued to distinguish themselves by the most horrid acts of cruelty and rapine, and the practice of all sorts of wickedness. In the greatest part of the Grecian provinces, and even in the capital of the eastern empire, there were still multitudes who preserved a secret attachment to the pagan religion. Of these, vast numbers were brought over to Christianity under the reign of Justin, by the ministerial labours of John, bishop of Asia (c).

in the west. II. In the western parts, Remigius, or Remi, bishop of Rheims, who is commonly called The Apostle of the Gauls, signalized his zeal in the conversion of those who still adhered to the an- cient superstitions (cT) ; and his success was con- siderable, particularly after that auspicious period when Clovis, king of the Franks, embraced the gospel.

In Britain, several circumstances concurred to favour the propagation of Christianity. Ethel - bert, king of Kent, and the most consider-

(c) Jos. Sim, Assemannus, Biblioth. Orient. Vatic, torn, ii. p. 85.

(d) Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. iii. p. 155.

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 97

able of the Anglo-Saxon monarchs, among whom CFNT that island was at this time divided, married vi. Bertha, daughter of Cherebert, king of Paris, to- PAR- wards the conclusion of this century. This prin- "" cess, partly by her own influence, and partly by the pious efforts of the clergy who followed her into Britain, gradually formed in the mind of Ethelbert a certain inclination to the Christian religion. While the king was in this favourable disposition, Gregory the Great sent into Britain, A. D. 596, forty Benedictine monks, with Au- gustin at their head (<?), in order to bring to perfection what the pious queen had so happily begun. This monk, seconded by the zeal and assistance of Bertha, converted the king, and the greatest part of the inhabitants of Kent, and laid anew the foundations of the British church (,/)•

The labours of Columbas, an Irish mouk, were attended with success among the Picts and Scots, many of whom embraced the gospel of Christ (g~).

In Germany, the Bohemians, Thuringians, and Boii, are said to have abandoned, in this century, their ancient superstitions (/z), and to have re-

_ (e) This British apostle was prior of the monastery of St. Andrew, of the order of St. Benedict at Rome. After his arrival in England, he converted the heathen temples into places of Christian worship, erected Christ-Church into a cathedral, opened a seminary of learning, founded the Abbey of St. Augustin, received episcopal ordination from the pri- mate of Aries, was invested by Pope Gregory with power over all the British bishops and Saxon prelates, and was the first archbishop of Canterbury.

(f) Bede, Histor. Eccles. Gentis Anglor. lib. i. cap. xxiii. p. 55. edit. Chifleti. Rapin's History of England, Acta Sanctor. torn. iii. Februar. p. 4/70.

(g) Bede, Histor. Eccles. lib. iii. cap. iv. p. 134.

(h) Henr. Canisii Lection. Antiquae, torn. iii. part II. p. 208. Aventinus, Annal. Boiorum.

VOL. II. H

98 The External History of the Church.

CENT, ceived the light of divine truth ; though this fact VL appears extremely doubtful to many.

PART I. **»!! J J -i -i • .-i-i

. All these conversions and sacred exploits will

lose much of their importance in the esteem of such as examine with attention the accounts which have been given of them by the writers of this and the succeeding ages. For by these ac- counts it appears, that the converted nations now mentioned retained a great part of their former impiety, superstition, and licentiousness ; and that, attached to Christ by a mere outward and nominal profession, they, in effect, renounced the purity of his doctrine, and the authority of his gospel, by their flagitious lives, and the superstitious and ido- latrous rites and institutions which they continued to observe (t).

The jews UJ. A vast multitude of Jews, converted to Several Christianity in several places, were added to the places. church during the course of this century. Many in the east, particularly the inhabitants of Borium, a city of Lybia, were brought over to the truth by the persuasion and influence of the emperor Justinian (#). In the west, the zeal and autho- rity of the Gallic and Spanish monarchs, the ef- forts of Gregory the Great, and the labours of Avitus, bishop of Vienna, engaged numbers of that blinded nation to receive the gospel. It must, however, be acknowledged, that of these conver- sions, the greatest part were owing to the libe- rality of Christian princes, or to the fear of pu- nishment, rather than to the force of argument,

(i ) This is ingenuously confessed by the Benedictine monks, in the Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. iii. Introduc. p. 8. 11. 13. See also the orders given to the Anglo-Saxons by Gregory the Great, in his Epist. lib. xi. Ixxvi. p. 1176. torn. ii. opp. edit. Benedict, where we find him permitting them to sacrifice to the saints, on their respective holidays, the victims which they had formerly offered to the gods. See also Wilkins' Concilia Magna? Britanniae, torn. i. p. 1 8.

(k) Procopius, De jEdificiis Justiniani, lib. vi. cap. ii.

CHAP. r. Prosperous Events. 99

or to the love of truth. In Gaul, the Jews were CENT. compelled by Childeric to receive the ordinance T** i

of baptism ; and the same despotic method of

converting was practised in Spain (/). This method, however, was entirely disapproved by Gregory the Great, who, though extremely severe upon the heretics, would suffer no violence to be offered to the Jews (m).

IV. If credit is to be given to the writers ofThemira- this century, the conversion of these uncivilized c**** lhls nations to Christianity was principally effected by the prodigies and miracles which the heralds of the gospel were enabled to work in its behalf. But the conduct of the converted nations is suffi- cient to invalidate the force of these testimonies ; for certainly had such miracles been wrought among them, their lives would have been more suitable to their profession, and their attachment and obedience to the doctrines and laws of the gospel more steadfast and exemplary than they appear to have been. Besides, as we have already had occasion to observe, in abandoning their ancient superstitions, the greatest part of them were more influenced by the example and autho- rity of their princes, than by force of argument, or the power of a rational conviction. And, indeed, if we consider the wretched manner in which many of the first Christian missionaries per- formed the solemn task they had undertaken, we shall perceive that they wanted not many argu- ments to enforce the doctrines they taught, and the discipline they recommended ; for they re- quired nothing of these barbarous people that was

(/) Greg. Turon. Histor. Francor. lib. vi. cap. xvii. Lau- noius, De veteri more baptizandi Judaeos et Infideles, cap. i. p. 700. 704% torn. ii. part II. opp.

(m) See his Epistles, book i. ep. xlvii. torn. ii. opp. p. 544. edit. Benedict, particularly those which he wrote to Virgi- lius of Aries, Theodoras of Marseilles, and Peter of Tara- cina.

100

The External History of the Church.

CENT, difficult to be performed, or that laid any re- VI- markable restraint upon their appetites and pas-

PA RT I. . rr*-i • .•*•-,.. , • .1 - i

._ sions. Ihe principal injunctions they imposed

upon these rude proselytes were, that they should get by heart certain summaries of doctrine, and pay to the images of Christ and the saints the same religious services which they had formerly offered to the statues of the gods. Nor were they at all delicate or scrupulous in choosing the means of establishing their credit ; for they looked upon it as lawful, nay, even meritorious, to deceive an ignorant and inattentive multitude, by representing to them as prodigies things that were merely natural, as we learn from the most authentic records of these times.

CHAPTER II.

Some re.

tury

Concerning the Calamitous Events which hap- pened to the Church during this Century.

I. THOUGH the abjuration of paganism was, the imperial laws, made a necessary step to are to be preferment, and to the exercising all public offices ; yet several persons, reputed for their erudition and gravity of manners, persisted in their adherence to the ancient superstition. Tribonian, the famous compiler of the Roman law, is thought by some, to have been among the number of those who continued in their prejudices against the Christian religion ; and such also, in the opinion of many, was the case of Procopius, the celebrated historian. It is at least undoubtedly certain, that Agathias, who was an eminent lawyer at Smyrna, and who had also acquired a considerable reputation as an hi- storical writer, persevered in his attachment to

CHAP. ir. Calamitous Events.

the pagan worship. These illustrious Gentiles CENT. were exempted from the severities which were

PART I.

employed frequently to engage the lower orders to abandon the service of the gods. The rigour of the laws, as it usually happens in human life, fell only upon those who had neither rank, for- tune, nor court-favour to ward off their execu- tion.

II. Surprised as we may be at the protection Several granted to the persons now mentioned, and that ^inst at a time when the gospel was, in many instances, Christianity. propagated by unchristian methods ; it will ap- pear still more astonishing, that the Platonic phi- losophers, whose opposition to Christianity was universally known, should be permitted, in Greece and Egypt, to teach publicly the tenets of their sect, which were absolutely incompatible with the doctrines of the gospel. These doctors indeed affected, generally speaking, a high degree of moderation and prudence ; and, for the most part, modified their expressions in such a manner, as to give to the pagan system an evangelical aspect, extremely adapted to deceive the unwary ; as the examples of Chalcidius (n\ and Alexander of

(n) The religion of Chalcidius has been much dis- puted among the learned. Cave seems inclined to rank him among the Christian writers, though he expresses some un- certainty about the matter. Huet, G. J. Vossius, Fabri- cius, and Beausobre, decide with somewhat more assurance that Chalcidius was a Christian. Some learned men have maintained, on the contrary, that many things in the writings of this sage entitle him to a place among the pagan philoso- phers. Our learned author, in his notes to his Latin transla- tion of Cudworth's Intellectual System, and in a Dissertation DeturbataperrecentioresPlatonicosEccIesia,laysdownanhy- pothesis, which holds the middle way between these two ex- tremes. He is of opinion, that Chalcidius neither rejected nor embraced the whole system of the Christian doctrine, but se- lected out of the religion of Jesus and the tenets of Plato, a body of divinity in which, however.Platonism was predominant; and that he was one of those Synchretist or Eclectic philoso-

The External History of the Church.

Lycopolis, abundantly testify (o). Some of them, i. however, were less modest, nay, carried their audacious efforts against Christianity so far as to revile it publicly. Damascius, in the life of Isodorus, and in other places, casts upon the Christians the most ignominious aspersions ( p) ; Simplicius, in his illustrations of the Aristotelian philosophy, throws out several malignant insinua-

phers, who abounded in the fourth and fifth centuries, and who attempted the uniting paganism and Christianity into one mot- ley system. This account of the matter, however, appears too vague to the celebrated author of the Critical History of Phi- losophy, M. Brucker. This excellent writer agrees with Dr. Mosheim in this, that Chalcidius followed the motley method of the eclectic Platonists, but does not see any thing in this in- consistent with his having publicly professed the Christian re- ligion. For the question is not whether this philosopher was a sound and orthodox Christian, which M. Brucker denies him to have been, but whether he had abandoned the pagan rites, and made a public profession of Christianity j and this our philosophical historian looks upon as evident. For though in the commentary upon Plato's Timaeus, Chalcidius teaches se- veral doctrines, that seem to strike at the foundations of our holy religion, yet the same may be said of Origen, Clemens Alexandrinus, Arnobius, and others, who are, nevertheless, reckoned among the professors of Christianity. The reader will find a most excellent view of the different opinions con- cerning the religion of Chalcidius, in the Hist. Critica Philo- sophies Bruckeri, torn. iii. p. 472 — 485. The truth of the matter seems to be this, that the Eclectics, before Christianity became the religion of the state, enriched their system from the gospel, but ranged themselves under the standards of Plato; and that they repaired to those of Christ without any considerable change of their system, when the examples and authority of the emperors rendered the profession of the Christian religion a matter of prudence, as well as its own ex- cellence rendered it most justly a matter of choice.

fj^ (o) Alexander wrote a treatise against the Manichae- ans, which is published by Combefis, in the second tome of his Auctor. Noviss. Biblioth. PP. Photius, Combefis, and our learned Cave looked upon Alexander as a proselyte to Chris- tianity. But Beausobre has demonstrated the contrary. See Histoire de Manicheisme, part II. Discours Preliminaire, sect. 13. p. 236.

(p) Photius, Bibliothecae Cod. ccxlii. p. 1027.

CHAP. ii. Calamitous Events. 103

tions against the doctrines of the gospel ; and the CENT. Epicheiremata of Proclus, written expressly against PART' ,

the disciples of Jesus, were universally read, and

were, on that account, accurately refuted by Phi- loponus (<7). All this shows, that many of the magistrates who were witnesses of these calumni- ous attempts against the gospel were not so much Christians in reality, as in appearance, otherwise they would not have permitted the slanders of these licentious revilers to pass without correction or restraint.

III. Notwithstanding the extensive progress of The suffer- the gospel, the Christians, even in this century, "S^T suffered grievously, in several places, from the in severai savage cruelty and bitterness of their enemies. In p Britain, the Anglo-Saxons, who were masters of that kingdom, involved a multitude of its ancient inhabitants, who professed Christianity, in the deepest distresses, and tormented them with all that variety of suffering, which the injurious and malignant spirit of persecution could invent (r). The Huns, in their irruption into Thrace, Greece, and the other provinces, during the reign of Jus- tinian, treated the Christians with great barba- rity; not so much, perhaps, from an aversion to Christianity, as from an hostile spirit of hatred against the Greeks, and a desire of overturning and destroying their empire. The face of affairs was totally changed in Italy, about the middle of this century, by a grand revolution which hap- pened under the reign of Justinian I. This em- peror, by the arms of Narsus, overturned the kingdom of the Ostrogoths, which had subsisted ninety years ; and subdued all Italy under his do- minion. The state of things, however, which this revolution introduced, was not of a very long

(q) See J. A. Fabricii Bibliotheca Graeca, vol. iii. p. 522. (r) Usserii Index Chronol. Antiquit. Eccles. Brittann. sub- jectus ad a. 508. p. 1123.

104 The External History of the Church.

CENT, duration ; for the Lombards, a fierce and warlike people, headed by Alboinus their king, and joined by several other German nations, issued forth from Pannonia, in the year ,568, under the reign of Justin, invaded Italy, and having made them- selves masters of the whole country, except Rome and Ravenna, erected a new kingdom at Tacinum. Under these new tyrants, who, to the natural ferocity of their characters, added an aversion to the religion of Jesus, the Christians, in the beginning, endured calamities of every kind. But the fury of these savage usurpers gra- dually subsided; and their manners contracted, from time to time, a milder character. Autha- ris, the third monarch of the Lombards, em- braced Christianity, as it was professed by the Arians, in the year 587. But his successor Agi- lulf, who married his widow Theudelinda, was persuaded by that princess to abandon Ari- anism, and to adopt the tenets of the Nicene Catholics (Y).

But the calamities of the Christians, in all other countries, were light and inconsiderable in com- parison of those which they suffered in Persia under Chosroes, the inhuman monarch of that nation. This monster of impiety aimed his auda- cious and desperate efforts against heaven itself; for he publicly declared, that he would make war not only upon Justinian, but also upon the God of the Christians; and, in consequence of this blas- phemous menace, he vented his rage against the followers of Jesus in the most barbarous manner, and put multitudes of them to the most cruel and ignominious deaths (7).

(s) Paul. Diacon. De Gestis Longobardorum, lib. ii. cap. ii. xxvii. p. 219. 231. edit. Lindenbrogii. Muratorii Antiq. Italite, torn. i. p. 14. torn. ii. p. 297. Giannone Histoire de Naples, torn. i. p. 302.

(t) Procopius, De Bello Persico, lib. ii. cap. xxvi.

PART II.

THE INTERNAL HISTORY OF THE CHUiiCH.

CHAPTER I.

Concerning the State of Letters and Philosophy, during this Century.

I. THE incursions of the barbarous nations CENT. into the greatest part of the western provinces were extremely prejudicial to the interests of

learning and philosophy, as must be known to all The state of

VI, ,0, -U- ... f letters in

who have any acquaintance with the history or the west. those unhappy times. During those tumultuous scenes of desolation and horror, the liberal arts and sciences would have been totally extinguished, had they not found a place of refuge, such as it was, among the bishops, and the monastic orders. Here they assembled their scattered remains, and received a degree of culture which just served to keep them from perishing. Those churches, which were distinguished by the name of cathe- drals, had schools erected under their jurisdiction, in which the bishop, or a certain person appointed by him, instructed the youth in the seven liberal arts, as a preparatory introduction to the study of the scriptures (#). Persons of both sexes, who had devoted themselves to the monastic life, were obliged, by the founders of their respective or- ders, to employ daily a certain portion of their time in reading the ancient doctors of the church,

(a) Fleury, Discours sur 1'Histoire Eccles. depuis Pan 600, &c. sect. 21. p. 56. torn. xiii. de 1'Histoire Eccles.— Histoire Litter, de la France, torn. iii. Intr. sect. 32. p. 12. Herm. Conringii Antiq. Academics, p. 66—167. edit. Heumann.

106 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, whose writings were looked upon as the rich re- PART ii Pertories of celestial wisdom, in which all the

— 1 treasures of theology were centred (Z>). Hence

libraries were formed in all the monasteries, and the pious and learned productions of the Christian and other writers were copied and dispersed by the diligence of transcribers appointed for that purpose, who were generally such monks as, by weakness of constitution, or other bodily infirmi- ties, were rendered incapable of harder labour. To these establishments we owe the preservation and possession of all the ancient authors, sacred and prophane, who escaped, in this manner, the savage fury of Gothic ignorance, and are happily transmitted to our times. It is also to be observed, that, besides the schools that belonged to the cathedrals, there were others opened in the mona- steries, in which the youth who were set apart for the monastic life were instructed by the ab- bot, or some of his ecclesiastics, in the arts and sciences (c).

Thesci- jj^ gu^ these institutions and establishments, taught very however laudable, did not produce such happy imperfectly. effects as might have been expected from them. For, not to speak of the indolence of certain ab- bots and bishops, who neglected entirely the duties of their stations, nor of the bitter aversion which others discovered towards every sort of learning and erudition, which they considered as pernicious to the progress of piety (W) ; not to

(b) Benedict. Anianensis Concordia Regularum, lib. ii. p. 55. 64. 75. 77. 80. 100. lib. iii. p. 16—41, &c. edit. Hug. Menardi. Jo. Mabillon, Praef. ad Saec. i. Actor. SS. Ord. Bened. p. 44.

(c) Benedict. Concord. Reg. lib. ii. p. 232. Mabillon, Actor. SS. Ord. Bened. torn. i. p. 314.

(d) Gregory the Great is said to have been of this num- ber, and to have ordered a multitude of the productions of pagan writers, and among others Livy's Roman History, to be

CHAP. i. Learning and Philosophy. 107

speak of the illiberal ignorance which several pre- CENT. lates affected, and which they injudiciously con- pA^*Ir<

founded with Christian simplicity (e) ; even those 1

who applied themselves to the study and propa- gation of the sciences were, for the most part, extremely unskilful and illiterate ; and the branches of learning taught in those schools were inconsiderable, both as to their quality and their number (f\ Greek literature was almost every where neglected ; and those who by profession had devoted themselves to the culture of Latin erudition, spent their time and labour in gram- matical subtilties and quibbles ; as the pedantic examples of Isodorus and Cassiodorus abundantly show. Eloquence was degraded into a rhetorical bombast, a noisy kind of declamation, which was composed of motley and frigid allegories and bar- barous terms ; as may even appear from several parts of the writings of those superior geniuses who surpassed their contemporaries in precision and elegance, such as Boethius, Cassiodorus, En- nodius, and others. As to the other liberal arts, they shared the common calamity ; and as they were now cultivated, had nothing very liberal or elegant in their appearance, consisting entirely in a few dry rules, which, instead of a complete and finished system, produced only a ghastly and life- less skeleton.

III. Philosophy fared still worse than litera- The study ture ; for it was entirely banished from all the seminaries which were under the inspection and cried. government of the ecclesiastical order. The great- est part of these zealots looked upon the study of philosophy not only as useless, but even perni-

committed to the flames. See Gabriel Liron, Singularites Histor. et Litter, torn. i. p. 166.

(e) Mabillon, Praef. ad Saec. i. Benedict, p. 46.

(/) See M. Aur. Cassiodori Liber de septem Disciplinis, which is extant among his works.

108 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, cious to those who had dedicated themselves to PART ii *ke service °f religion. The most eminent, nay,

1 almost the only Latin philosopher of this age, was

the celebrated Boethius, privy counsellor to Theo- doric, king of the Ostrogoths in Italy. This illus- trious senator had embraced the Platonic phi- losophy (g*), but approved also, as was usual among the modern Platonics, the doctrine of Aristotle, and illustrated it in his writings. And it was undoubtedly owing to the diligence and zeal with which he explained and recommended the Aristotelian philosophy, that it arose now among the Latins to a higher degree of credit than it had hitherto enjoyed.

The state of IV. The state of the liberal arts among the Im'ongthe Greeks was, in several places, much more flou- Greeks. rishing than that in which we have left them among the Latins ; and the emperors raised and nourished a spirit of literary emulation, by the noble rewards and the distinguished honours which they attached to the pursuit of all the va- rious branches of learning (Ji). It is, however, certain, that, notwithstanding these encourage- ments, the sciences were cultivated with less ar- dour, and men of learning and genius were less numerous than in the preceding century.

In the beginning of this, the modern Plato- nics maintained as yet their credit, and their philosophy was in vogue. The Alexandrian and Athenian schools flourished under the direction of Damascius, Isidorus, Simplicius, Eulamius,

(g) This will appear evident to such as, with a competent knowledge of modern Platonism, read attentively the books of Boethius, De Consolatione, £c. See also, on this subject, Renat. Vail. p. 10. 50. Holstenius in Vita Porphyrii, p. 7. edit. Cantabr. See also Mascov. Histor. Germanor. torn. ii. p. 102.

(h) See the Codex Theodos. torn. ii. lib. vi. p. 113. Herm. Conringius, De Studiis urbis Roma? et Constantinop. in a Dissertation subjoined to his Antiquitates Academics.

CHAP. i. Learning and Philosophy.

Hermias, Priscianus, and others, who were placed on the highest summit of literary glory. But when the emperor Justinian, by a particular edict, prohibited the teaching philosophy at Athens (&), (which edict, no doubt, was levelled at the modern Platonism already mentioned), and when his re- sentment began to flame out against those who refused to abandon the Pagan worship, then all these celebrated philosophers took refuge among the Persians, who were, at that time, the enemies of Rome (&). They, indeed, returned from their voluntary exile when the peace was concluded between the Persians and the Romans, A. D. 533 (/) ; but they could never recover their former credit, and they gradually disappeared in the public schools and seminaries of learning, which ceased, at length, to be under their direction.

Thus expired that famous sect, which was di- stinguished by the title of the Modern or Later Platonic ; and which, for a series of ages, had produced such divisions and tumults in the Chris- tian church, and been, in other respects, preju- dicial to the interests and progress of the gospel. It wras succeeded by the Aristotelian philosophy, which arose imperceptibly out of its obscurity, and was placed in an advantageous light by the illustrations of the learned ; but especially and principally by the celebrated commentaries of Philoponus. And, indeed, the knowledge of this philosophy was necessary for the Greeks ;

(?) Johannes Malela, Historia Chronica, part II. p. 187. edit. Oxon. Another testimony concerning this matter is cited from a certain Chronicle, not yet published, by Nic. Alemannus, ad Procopii Histor. Arcanam, cap. xxvi. p. 377. edit. Venet.

(£) Agathias, De Rebus Justiniani, lib. ii. p. 49. edit. Venet. torn. ii. Corpor. Byzant.

(/) See Wesselingii Observat. Variar. lib. i. cap. xviii. p.

ii

'

110 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, since it was from the depths of this peripatetical wisdom, that the Monophy sites and Nestorians drew the subtilties with which they endeavoured to overwhelm the abettors of the Ephesian and Chalcedonian councils. in the east V. The Nestorians and Monophysites, who lived in the east, turned equally their eyes towards Aristotle ; and, in order to train their respective followers to the field of controversy, and arm them with the subtilties of a contentious logic, transla- ted the principal books of that deep philoso- pher into their native languages. Sergius, a Monophysite and philosopher, translated the books of Aristotle into Syriac (m). Uranius, a Syrian, propagated the doctrines of this philosopher in Persia; and disposed in their favour Chosroes, the monarch of that nation, who became a zealous abettor of the peripatetic system (n). The same prince received from one of the Nestorian faction (which, after having procured the exclusion of the Greeks, triumphed at this time unrivalled in Per- sia) a translation of the Stagirite into the Persian language (o).

It is, however, to be observed, that among these eastern Christians there were some who re- jected both the Platonic and Aristotelian doc- trines; and, unwilling to be obliged to others for their philosophical knowledge, invented sys- tems of their own, which were inexpressibly chi- merical and pregnant with absurdities. Of this class of original philosophers was Cosmas, a Nes-

(m) Georgius Abulpharaius, Historia Dynastiar. published by Dr. Tocock, p. 94. 172.

(n) See Agathias, De Rebus Justiniani, lib. ii. p. 48. That Uranius made use of the Aristotelian philosophy in the Euty- chian controversy, is evident even from this single circum- stance, that Agathias represents him disputing concerning the possibility and immiscibility of God (KOLI ro itaQyTov KOH

(o) Agathius, 1. c. lib. ii. p. 48. edit. Venet.

PART n

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, £c.

torian, commonly called Indicopleustes, whose doc- trines are extremely singular, and resemble more ' the notions of the Orientals than the opinions of the Greeks (p). Such also was the writer, from whose Exposition of the Octateuch, Photius has drawn several citations <.

CHAPTER II.

Concerning the Doctors and Ministers of the Church.

I. THE external form of church government Disputes continued without any remarkable alteration during J^p^o the course of this century. But the bishops of Rome and Rome and Constantinople, who were considered as the most eminent and principal rulers of the Chris- tian church, were engaged in perpetual disputes about the extent and limits of their respective juris- dictions, and seemed both to aspire at the supreme authority in ecclesiastical matters. The bishop of Constantinople not only claimed an unrivalled sovereignty over the eastern churches, but also maintained that his church was, in point of dig- nity, no way inferior to that of Rome. The Ro- man pontiffs beheld, with impatience, these lordly pretensions, and warmly asserted the pre-eminence of their church, and its undoubted superiority over that of Constantinople. Gregory the Great distinguished himself in this violent contest ; and the following event furnished him with an op- portunity of exerting his zeal. In the year 588, John, bishop of Constantinople, surnamed the Faster, on account of his extraordinary abstinence

(p} Bernard de Montfaucon, Praefat. ad Cosman, p. 10. torn. ii. Collectionis Novae Patrum Grgecorum. (q) Biblioth. Codic. xxxvi. p. 22, 23.

1 12 The Internal History of the Church .

CENT, and austerity, assembled, by his own authority, a PART ii. council at Constantinople, to inquire into an ac-

cusation brought against Peter, patriarch of An-

tioch ; and, upon this occasion, assumed the title of ecumenical or universal bishop (r). Now, although this title had been formerly enjoyed by the bishops of Constantinople, and was also sus- ceptible of an interpretation that might have pre- vented its giving umbrage or offence to any (s), yet Gregory suspected, both from the time and the occasion of John's renewing his claim to it, that he was aiming at a supremacy over all the Chris- tian churches ; and therefore he opposed his claim in the most vigorous manner, in letters to that purpose, addressed to the emperor, and to such persons as he judged proper to second his opposi- tion. But all his efforts were without effect; and the bishops of Constantinople continued to assume the title in question, though not in the sense in which it had alarmed the Roman pontiff (7).

(r] We cannot avoid taking notice of some mistakes which have slipped from the pen of Dr. Mosheim in his nar- ration of this event. First, The council here mentioned was held under the pontificate of Pelagius II. and not of Gregory the Great, who was not chosen bishop of Rome before A. D. 590. Secondly, The person accused before this council was not Peter, but Gregory, bishop of Antioch. Thirdly, it does not appear, that the council was summoned by John of Constantinople, but by the emperor Mauricius, to whom Gregory had appealed from the governor of the east, before whom he was first accused.

llgf0 (*) The title of universal bishop, which had been given by Leo and Justinian to the patriarchs of Constan- tinople, was not attended with any accession of power.

(t) Gregor. Magni Epist. lib. iv. v. vii. All the passages in these epistles that relate to this famous contest have been extracted and illustrated by Launoius, in his Assertio in Privileg. S. Medardi, torn. iii. opp. part II. p. 266. See also Lequien, Oriens Christianus, torn. i. p. 67. Pfaffii Disser- tatio de Titulo QEcumenicus, in the Tempe Helvetica, torn, iv. p. 99.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.'

II. This pontiff, however, adhered tenaciously CENT. to his purpose, opposed with vehemence the bishop PART'ir>

of Constantinople, raised new tumults and dis- .

sensions among the sacred order, and aimed at no The Ro-

" , . . , i m . man pontiff

less than an unlimited supremacy over the Chris- struggles tian church. This ambitious design succeeded hafd for

.. , . universal

m the west ; while, in the eastern provinces, his dominion. arrogant pretensions were scarcely respected by any but those who were at enmity with the bishop of Constantinople ; and this prelate was always in a condition to make head against the progress of his authority in the east. How much the opinions of some were favourable to the lordly demands of the Roman pontiffs, may be easily imagined from an expression of Ennodius, that infamous and extravagant flatterer of Symmachus, who was a prelate of but ambiguous fame. This parasitical panegyrist, among other impertinent assertions, maintained, that the Roman pontiff was consti- tuted judge in the place of God, which he filled as the vicegerent of the Most High (ii). On the other hand, it is certain, from a variety of the most authentic records, that both the emperors and the nations in general were far from being disposed to bear with patience the yoke of servi- tude, which the see of Rome was arrogantly im- posing upon the Christian church (w). The Go- thic princes set bounds to the power of the bishop of Rome in Italy, permitted none to be raised to

(M) See his Apologeticum pro Synodo, in the xvth volume of the Bibliotheca Magna Patrum, p. 24-8. edit. Paris. Ijgl* One would think that this servile adulator had never read the 4th verse of the 2d chapter of St. Paul's 2d Epistle to the Thessalonians, where the Anti-Christ, or man of sin, is described in the very terms in which he represents the autho- rity of the pontiff Symmachus.

(to) See particularly the truth of this assertion, with respect to Spain, in Geddes' Dissertation on the Papal Supremacy, chiefly with relation to the ancient Spanish church, which is to be found in the second volume of his Miscellaneous Tracts.

VOL. II. I

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, the pontificate without their approbation, and PART ii reserved to themselves the right of judging con-

cerning the legality of every new election (#).

They enacted spiritual laws, called the religious orders before their tribunals, and summoned coun- cils by their legal authority (?/). In consequence of all this, the pontiffs, amidst all their high pre- tensions, reverenced the majesty of their kings and emperors, and submitted to their authority with the most profound humility ; nor were they, as yet, so lost to all sense of shame, as to aim at the subjection of kings and princes to their ghostly dominion (z).

vices and III. The rights and privileges of the clergy of tKer- were Vei7 considerable before this period, and the gy- riches, which • they had accumulated, immense ;

and both received daily augmentations from the growth of superstition in this century. The arts of a rapacious priesthood were practised upon the ignorant devotion of the simple ; and even the remorse of the wicked was made an instrument of increasing the ecclesiastical treasure. For an opinion was propagated with industry among the people, that the remission of their sins was to be purchased by their liberalities to the churches and monks, and that the prayers of departed saints, whose efficacy was victorious at the throne of God, were to be bought by offerings presented to the temples, which were consecrated to these celestial mediators. But, in proportion as the riches of the church increased, the various orders

(JP) See Jo. Jac. Mascovii Histor. Germanor. torn. ii. not. p. 113.

(y} Basnage, Histoire des Egllses Reformes, torn. i. p. 381.

(z) See the citations from Gregory the Great collected by

'Launois, De regia potestate in matrimon. torn. i. opp. part If.

p. 691 . and in his Assertio in Privilegium S. Medardi^ p. 272.

torn. iii. opp. part II. See also Giannone, Hist, de Naples,

torn. ii. p. 282.

CHAP. ir. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

of the clergy were infected with those vices that CENT. are too often the consequences of an affluent PART'IK

prosperity. This appears, with the utmost evi- ,

dence, from the imperial edicts and the decrees of councils, which were so frequently levelled at the immoralities of those who were distinguished by the name of clerks. For whence so many laws to restrain the vices, and to preserve the morals of the ecclesiastical orders, if they had fulfilled even the obligations of external decency, or shown, in the general tenor of their lives, a cer- tain degree of respect for religion and virtue ? Be that as it will, the effect of all these laws and edicts was so inconsiderable as to be scarcely per- ceived ; for so high was the veneration paid, at this time, to the clergy, that their most flagi- tious crimes were corrected by the slightest and gentlest punishments ; an unhappy circumstance which added to their presumption, and rendered them more daring and audacious in iniquity.

IV. The bishops of Rome, who considered them- Tf16 bis1l°Ps selves as the chiefs and fathers of the Christian „<* except- church, are not to be excepted from this censure, ed- any more than the clergy who were under their jurisdiction. We may form some notion of their humility and virtue by that long and vehement contention, which arose in the year 498, between Symmachus and Laurentius, who were on the same day elected to the pontificate by different parties, and whose dispute was, at length, de- cided by Theodoric king of the Goths. Each of these ecclesiastics maintained obstinately the validity of his election ; they reciprocally accused each other of the most detestable crimes ; and to their mutual dishonour, their accusations did not appear, on either side, entirely destitute of foundation. Three different councils, assembled at Rome, endeavoured to terminate this odious

11G The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, schism (#), but without success. A fourth was AY** ;_ summoned, by Theodoric, to examine the accusa-

• 1 * O 1 1 1 •

tions brought against JSymmachus, to whom this

prince had, at the beginning of the schism, ad- judged the papal chair. This council was held about the commencement of this century, and in it the Roman pontiff was acquitted of the crimes laid to his charge. But the adverse party refused to acquiesce in this decision ; and this gave occa- sion to Ennodius of Ticinum, now Pavia, to draw up his adulatory apology for the council and Symmachus (/;). In this apology, which disguises the truth under the seducing colours of a gaudy rhetoric, the reader will perceive that the founda- tions of that enormous power, which the popes of Rome afterwards acquired, were now laid ; but he will seek in vain in this laboured production any satisfactory proof of the injustice of the charge brought against Symmachus (c).

The growth V. The number, credit, and influence of the monks. nionks augmented daily in all parts of the Chris- tian world. They multiplied so prodigiously in the east, that whole armies might have been raised out of the monastic order, without any sensible

_ («) This schism may be truly termed odious, as it was carried on by assassinations, massacres, and all the cruel proceedings of a desperate civil war. See Paul Diaconus, lib. xvii.

(b) This apology may be seen in the fifteenth volume of the Magn. Bibl. Patrum, p. 248.

Sgp* (c) That Symmachus was never fairly acquitted, may be presumed from the first, and proved from the second, of the following circumstances: First, That Theodoric, who was a wise and equitable prince, and who had attentively examined the charge brought against him, would not have referred the decision to the bishops, if the matter had been clear, but would have pronounced judgment himself, as he had formerly done concerning the legality of his election. The second circumstance against Symmachus is, that the council acquitted him without so much as hearing those who accused him ; and he himself did not appear, though frequently summoned.

CHAP. IT. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

diminution of that enormous body. The mon- CENT. astic life was also highly honoured, and had an PART* Ui

incredible number of patrons and followers in all

the western provinces, as appears from the rules which were prescribed in this century, by various doctors, for directing the conduct of the cloistered monks, and the holy virgins, that had sacrificed their capacity of being useful in the world, to the gloomy charms of a convent (d). In Great Bri- tain, a certain abbot, named Congall, is said to have persuaded an incredible number of persons to abandon the affairs, obligations, and duties of social life, and to spend the remainder of their days in solitude, under a rule of discipline, of which he was the inventor (e). His disciples travelled through many countries, in which they propagated with such success the contagion of this monastic devotion, that, in some time, Ire- land, Gaul, Germany, and Switzerland, swarmed with those lazy orders, and were, in a manner, covered with convents. The most illustrious dis- ciple of the abbot now mentioned was Colum- ban, whose singular rule of discipline is yet ex- tant, and surpasses all the rest in simplicity and brevity (jQ. The monastic orders, in general, abounded with fanatics and profligates ; the latter were more numerous than the former in the western convents, while in those of the east the fanatics were predominant.

VI. A new order of monks, which in a manner Tfae rise of absorbed all the others that were established in the

der.

(d) These are in Holstenius' Codex Regularum, part II. which work was published at Rome in three volumes 4to, in the year 1661. See also Edm. Martene et Ursin. Durand. Thesaur. Anecdot. Nov. torn. i. p. 4.

(e) Jac. Usserii Antiq. Eccles. Britan.

(f) Usserii Sylloge Antiquar. Epistolar. Hibernicar. p. 5 — 15. Holstenii Codex Regularum, torn. ii. p. 48. Ma- billon, Prcef. ad Saeculum ii. Benedictinum, p. 4-.

118 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, west, was instituted, A. D. 529, by Benedict of PART ii Nursia, a man of piety and reputation, for the age

' he lived in. From his rule of discipline, which is

yet extant, we learn that it was not his intention to impose it upon all the monastic societies, but to form an order whose discipline should be milder, their establishment more solid, and their manners more regular, than those of the other monastic bodies ; and whose members, during the course of a holy and peaceful life, were to divide their time between prayer, reading, the education of youth, and other pious and learned labours (#). But, in process of time, the fol- lowers of this celebrated ecclesiastic degenerated sadly from the piety of their founder, and lost sight of the duties of their station, and the great end of their establishment. Having acquired immense riches from the devout liberality of the opulent, they sunk into luxury, intemperance, and sloth, abandoned themselves to all sorts of vices, extended their zeal and attention to worldly affairs, insinuated themselves into the cabinets of princes, took part in political cabals and court factions, made a vast augmentation of supersti- tious rites and ceremonies in their order, to blind the multitude, and supply the place of their ex- piring virtue ; and, among other meritorious en- terprizes, laboured most ardently to swell the ar- rogance, by enlarging the power and authority, of the Roman pontiff. The good Benedict never dreamt that the great purposes of his institution were to be thus perverted, much less did he give any encouragement or permission to such flagrant abuses. His rule of discipline was neither fa- vourable to luxury nor ambition : and it is still

(g) See Mabillon, Acta Sanctor. Ord. Bened. Saec. i. and Annales Ordin. Benedict, torn, i. See also Helyotus and the other writers who have given accounts of the monastic orders.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. H9

celebrated on account of its excellence, though it CENT. has not been observed for many ages. PART* n<

It is proper to remark here, that the institution

of Benedict changed, in several respects, the obligations and duties of the monastic life as it was regulated in the west. Among other things, he obliged those who entered into his order to promise, at the time of their being received as noviciates, and afterwards, at their admission as members of the society, to persevere in an obedi- ence to the rules he had laid down, without at- tempting to change them in any respect. As he was extremely solicitous about the stability of his institution, this particular regulation was wise and prudent ; and it was so much the more necessary, that, before his time, the monks made no scruple of altering the laws and rules of their founders as often as they thought proper (7z).

VII. This new order made a most rapid pro- its rapid gress in the west, and, in a short space of time, Pr°sress- arrived at the most flourishing state. In Gaul, its interests were promoted by Maurus; in Sicily and Sardinia, by Placidus; in England, by Au- gustin and Mellitus; in Italy, and other coun- tries, by Gregory the Great, who is himself re- ported to have been for some time a member of this society (?) ; and it was afterwards received in Germany by the means of Boniface (&). This

(h) See Mabillon, Praef. ad Saec. iv. Benedict, part I. p. 18.

(i) See Mabillon, Diss. de Vita Monastica Gregorii M. ad Hadr. Valesium, torn. ii. Analect. Veter. as also his Prsef. ad Saec. Benedict, p. 29. This circumstance, however, is de- nied by some writers ; and among others by Gallonius, con- cerning whose book upon that subject, see Simon's Lettres Choisies, torn. iii. p. 63.

(&) Anton. Dadini Alteserrse Origines Rei Monastics, lib. i. cap. ix. p. 33. The propagation of the Benedictine order, through the different provinces of Europe, is related by Ma- billon, Praef. ad Saec. i, Benedictinum, et ad Saec. iv. part I. p. 62.

120 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, sudden and amazing progress of the new order

IT was ascribed by the Benedictines to the wisdom

PART II.

. xi i . i . . i . i i . ,

and sanctity or their discipline, and to the miracles which were worked by their founder, and his fol- lowers. But a more attentive view of things will convince the impartial observer, that the protec- tion of the Roman pontiffs, to the advancement of whose grandeur and authority the Benedictines were most servilely devoted, contributed much more to the lustre and influence of their order than any other circumstances, nay, than all other considerations united together. But, however universal their credit was, they did not reign alone; other orders subsisted in several places until the ninth century, when the Benedictine absorbed, indeed, all the other religious societies, and held, unrivalled, the reins of the monastic empire (/).

The princi- VIII. The most celebrated Greek and Oriental pai Greek writers that flourished in this century, were those

and Oriental . . , „ ,, J '

writers. which follow :

Procopius of Gaza, who interpreted successfully several books of scripture (m).

Maxentius, a monk of Antioch, who, besides several treatises against the sects of his time, com- posed Scholiums on Dionysius the Areopagito.

Agapetus, whose Scheda Regia, addressed to the emperor Justinian, procured him a place among the wisest and most judicious writers of this century.

Eulogius, a presbyter of Antioch, who was the terror of heretics, and a warm and strenuous de- fender of the orthodox faith.

John, patriarch of Constantinople, who, on ac-

(l) I/enfant, Histoire du Concile de Constance, torn. ii. p. 32, 33.

(m) See Simon, Critique de la Bibliotheque Ecclesiastique tie M. Du Pin, torn. i. p. 197.

CHAP. IT. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

count of his austere method of life, was surnamed the Faster, and who acquired a certain degree of reputation by several little productions, and more particularly by his Penitential.

Leontius of Byzantium, whose book against the sects, and other writings, are yet extant.

Evagrius, a scholastic writer, whose Ecclesias- tical History is, in many places, corrupted with fabulous narrations.

Anastasius of Sinai, whom most writers con- sider as the author of a trifling performance, written against a sort of heretics called Acephali, of whom we shall have occasion to speak after- wards (ji).

IX. Among the Latin writers the following are Latin wri- principally worthy of mention : ters*

Gregory the Great, bishop of Rome, who united the most inconsistent and contradictory qualities; as in some cases he discovered a sound and penetrating judgment, and in others the most shameful and superstitious weakness ; and in ge- neral manifested an extreme aversion to all kinds of learning, as his Epistles and Dialogues suf- ficiently testify (o).

Caesarius of Aries, who composed some moral writings, and drew up a rule of conduct and dis- cipline for the Holy Virgins (p).

Fulgentitis, bishop of Ruspina, who attacked, with great warmth, the Arians and Pelagians in Africa; but whose style and manner were harsh

(w) See for an account of this book, Simon, 1. c. torn. i. p. 232 j as also Barat. Bibliotheque Choisie, torn. ii. p. 21.

(o) A splendid edition of the works of Gregory was pub- lished at Paris, in the year 1705, in four volumes folio, by father St. Marthe, a Benedictine monk. See an account of this pontiff, Acta Sanctor. torn. ii. Martii, p. 121.

(p) Of this writer the Benedictine monks have given a learned account in their Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. iii. p. 190.

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, and uncouth, as was generally the case of the PA RT n. African writers (?).

Ennodius, bishop of Ticinum, now Pavia, who

was none of the meanest authors of this century, whether we consider his compositions in prose or in verse; though he disgraced his talents, and dishonoured his eloquence, by his infamous adu- lation of the Roman pontiff, whom he exalted so high above all mortals, as to maintain that he was answerable to none upon earth for his conduct, and subject to no human tribunal (r).

Benedict of Nursia, who acquired an immortal name, by the rule he laid down for the order which he instituted, and the multitude of reli- gious societies that submitted to his discipline.

Dionysius, who was surnamed the Little, on account of his extraordinary humility, and was deservedly esteemed for his Collection of the An- cient Canons ; and also for his Chronological Re- searches.

Fulgentius Ferrandus, an African, who acquired a considerable degree of reputation by several treatises, but especially by his Abridgment of the Canons; though his style and diction were en- tirely destitute of harmony and elegance.

Facundus, a strenuous defender of the Three Chapters, of which we shall give an account in their place.

Arator, who translated, with tolerable success, The Acts of the Apostles, into Latin verse.

Primasius of Adrumetum, whose Commentary upon the Epistles of St. Paul, as also his book Con- cerning Heresies, are yet extant.

Liberatus, whose Compendious History of the Nestorian and Eutychian Controversies, intitle him

(q) See, for an account of Fulgentius, the Acta Sanctorum, torn. i. Januar. p. 32, &c.

(r) Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn, iii. p. 96.

CHAP. IT. Doctors,Church-Government, £c.

to an eminent rank among the writers of this CENT.

century. PART n,

Fortunatus, a man of various erudition, and

whose poetic compositions are far from being de- stitute of genius (s).

Gregory of Tours, who is esteemed the father of Gallic history; and who would have de- scended with honour to posterity, did not his An- nals of the Francs, and the rest of his writings, carry so many marks of levity, credulity, and weakness (f).

Gildas, the most ancient of the British writers, who composed a book Concerning the Destruc- tion of Britain, in which there are several things not altogether unworthy of the curiosity of the learned.

Columbanus, a native of Ireland, who became famous on account of the monastic rules he pre- scribed to his followers, his zeal for establishing religious orders, and his poetical productions (u).

Isidore, bishop of Seville, whose grammatical, theological, and historical productions discover more learning and pedantry, than judgment and taste.

We may conclude this enumeration of the Latin writers with the illustrious names of Boe- thius and Cassiodorus, who far surpassed all their contemporaries in learning and knowledge; the former shone forth with the brightest lustre in the republic of letters, as a philosopher, an ora-

(s) Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. iii. p. 464.

(t) The life of Gregory of Tours is to be found in the Histoire Litteraire de la France; and his faults are men- tioned by Pagi, in his Dissert, de Dionysio Paris, sect. 25. p. 16. which is added to the fourth tome of the Breviarium Pontif. Romanor. Launois defends this historian in many things in his works, torn. i. part II. p. 131.

(M) None have given more accurate accounts of Gildas and Columban than the learned Benedictines, Histoire Litterair^ de la France, torn. iii. p. 279. 505.

The Internal History of the Church.

tor, a poet, and a divine, and both in elegance PART ii. and subtilty of genius had no superior, nor indeed

— any equal in this century ; the latter, though in

many respects inferior to him, was nevertheless far from being destitute of merit (w). Several pro- ductions of these writers have been transmitted down to our times.

CHAPTER III.

Concerning the Doctrine of the Church during this Century.

I. WHEN once the ministers of the church had departed from the ancient simplicity of religious worship, and sullied the native purity of divine truth by a motley mixture of human inventions, it was difficult to set bounds to this growing corruption. Abuses were daily mul- tiplied, and superstition drew from its horrid fecundity an incredible number of absurdities, which were added to the doctrine of Christ and his apostles. The controversial writers in the eastern provinces continued to render perplexed and obscure some of the principal doctrines of Christianity, by the subtile distinctions which they borrowed from a vain and chimerical philosophy. The public teachers and instructors of the peo- ple degenerated sadly from the apostolic charac- ter. They seemed to aim at nothing else than to sink the multitude into the most opprobrious ignorance and superstition, to efface in their minds all sense of the beauty and excellence of genuine piety, and to substitute, in the place of religious principles, a blind veneration for the clergy, and

(10 ) See Simon, Critique de la Bibliotheque de M, Du ,Pin, totn.i. p. 211.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church.

a stupid zeal for a senseless round of ridiculous CENT. rites and ceremonies. This, perhaps, will appear PART'ir less surprising, when we consider, that the blind ..

led the blind ; for the public ministers and teachers of religion were, for the most part, grossly igno- rant ; nay, almost as much so as the multitude whom they were appointed to instruct.

II. To be convinced of the truth of the dismal Proved by representation we have here given of the state of eJ< religion at this time, nothing more is necessary than to cast an eye upon the doctrines now taught concerning the worship of images and saints, the fire of purgatory, the efficacy of good works, i. e. the observance of human rites and institutions, to- wards the attainment of salvation, the power of relics to heal the diseases of body and mind ; and such like sordid and miserable fancies, which are inculcated in many of the superstitious produc- tions of this century, and particularly in the epi- stles and other writings of Gregory the Great. No- thing more ridiculous on the one hand than the solemnity and liberality with which this good, but silly pontiff, distributed the wonder-working relics ; and nothing more lamentable on the other, than the stupid eagerness and devotion with which the deluded multitude received them, and suffered themselves to be persuaded, that a portion of stinking oil, taken from the lamps which burned at the tombs of the martyrs, had a supernatural efficacy to sanctify its possessors, and to defend them from all dangers, both of a temporal and spiritual nature (>).

III. Several attempts were made in this cen- The state tury to lay down a proper and judicious method J^*8611" of explaining the scriptures. Of this nature JLato"" were the two books of Junilius the African, theol°gy.

(x) See the list of sacred oils which Gregory the Great sent to queen Theudelinda, in the work of Ruinartus, intitled, Acta Martyrum sincera et selecta, p. 619.

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, Concerning the various Parts of the divine Law (j/) : PART ii a W01'k destitute of precision and method, and by which it appears that the author had not suffi- cient knowledge and penetration for the task he undertook.

Cassiodorus also, in his two books Concerning the divine Laws, has delivered several rules for the right interpretation of the Holy Scriptures.

Philoxenus the Syrian, translated, into his na- tive language, the Psalms of David, and the Books of the New Testament (#).

The number of interpreters was considerable in this century. Those, who made the greatest figure among the Greeks in this character, were Procopius of Gaza, Severus of Antioch, Julian, and a few others ; the first was an expositor of no mean abilities (a). The most eminent rank among the Latin commentators is due to Gregory the Great, Cassiodorus, Primasius (b\ Isidore of Se- ville (c), and Bellator.

IV- Jt must> however, be acknowledged, that these writers scarcely deserve the name of expo- sitors, if we except a small number of them, and among these the eastern Nestorians, who, fol- lowing the example of Theodore of Mopsuestia, were careful in exploring the true sense and the native energy of the words employed in the Holy Scriptures. So that we may divide the commen- tators of this age into two classes. In the first,

(y) See Simon, Critique de la Bibliotheque cle Du Pin, torn, i, p. 229.

(z) Jo. Sim. Assemannus, Biblioth. Orient. Vatican, torn, ii. p. 83.

(a) See Simon. Lettres Choisies, torn. iv. p. 120. of the new- edition.

(b) Simon Hist. Critique des principaux Commentateurs du N. T.chap.xxiv. p. 337; as also his Critique de la Biblio- theque des Auteurs Eccl. de Du Pin, torn. i. p. 226.

(c) Simon, Critique de la, &c. de M. Du Pin, torn. i. p. 259.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 127

we rank those who did nothing more than collect CENT.

PART II.

the opinions and interpretations which had been

received by the ancient doctors of the church ; which collections were afterwards called chains by the Latins (d). Such was the Chain of Olympi- odorus on Job ; the Chain of Victor of Capua upon the Four Gospels ; and the Commentary of Primasius on the Epistle to the Romans, which was compiled from the works of Augustin, Jerome, Ambrose, and others. Even Procopius of Gaza may be ranked in this class, though not with so much reason as the mere compilers now men- tioned ; since, in many cases, he has consulted the dictates of his own judgment, and not fol- lowed, with a servile and implicit submission, the voice of antiquity. To the second class belong those fanciful expositors, who, setting up Ori- gen as their great model, neglect and overlook entirely the sense of the words employed by the sacred writers, lose themselves in spiritual refine- ments and allegorical digressions, and, by the succour of a lively and luxuriant imagination, draw from the scriptures arguments in favour of every whim they have thought proper to adopt. Such was Anastatius the Sinaite, whose Mysterious Contemplations upon the six Days Creation (e\ betray the levity and ignorance of their author ; and Gregory the Great, whose Moral Observations upon the Book of Job, have formerly met with unmerited commendations. Such also were Isidore of Seville, and Primasius, as manifestly appears by the Book of Allegories upon the Holy Scrip- tures (f\ which was invented by the former, and

(d) See Steph. Le Moyne, Prolegomena ad varia Sacra,, p. 53. Jo. Albert, Fabricii Biblioth. Graecae, lib. v. cap. xvii. or vol. vii. p. 727.

(e) The title is Contemplationes Anagogicae in Hexae- meron.

(f) Liber Aliegoriarum in Scripturam Sacratn.

128 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, the Mystical Exposition of the Book of the Reve- VI* lation (^), which was imagined by the latter.

V. It would be needless to expect from the di- vines of this century an accurate view, or a clear and natural explanation of the Christian doctrine. the Christ The greatest part of them reasoned and disputed trine which concerning the truths of the gospel, as the blind now pre- would argue about light and colours ; and imagined that they had acquitted themselves nobly, when they had thrown out a heap of crude and indigested notions, and overwhelmed their adversaries with a torrent of words.

We may perceive, however, in the writers of t this age, some evident marks of the three differ- ent methods of explaining and inculcating the doctrines of religion, which are yet practised among the Greeks and Latins. For some col- lected together a heap, rather than a system of theological opinions, from the writings of the ancient doctors, from the decrees of councils, and from the Holy Scriptures, such were Isidore of Seville among the Latins, whose three books of sentences or opinions are still extant; and Leon- tius the Cyprian among the Greeks, whose Loci- communes, or common-place book of divinity, which he had compiled from the writings of the ancients, have been much esteemed. These au- thors gave rise to that species of divinity, which the Latins distinguished afterwards by the name of positive theology.

Others endeavoured to explain the various doctrines of Christianity by reasoning upon their nature, their excellency, and fitness ; and thus it was, even with the weapons of reason and argu- ment, that the most of the Christian doctors disputed against the Nestorians, the Eutychians, and the Pelagians. These metaphysical divines

(g) Expositio Mystica in Apocalypsin.

CHAP, in* The Doctrine of the Church.

were called schoolmen, and their writings were CENT. afterwards characterized under the general term of PART'ir scholastic divinity. %

A third class of theological teachers, very dif- ferent from those already mentioned, compre- hended a certain species of fanatics, who main- tained that the knowledge of divine truth was

only to be derived from inward feeling, and men- ; tal contemplation. This class assumed the appel- lation of mystics. These three methods of de- ducing and unfolding the doctrines of the go- spel have been transmitted down to our times. No writer of this century composed a judicious or complete system of divinity ; though several branches of that sacred science were occasionally illustrated.

VI. Those who consecrated their pious labours The state to the advancement of practical religion and moral ^ToT3 virtue aimed at the fulfilling this good purpose, and virtue, partly by laying down precepts, and partly by ex- hibiting edifying examples. They who promoted the cause of piety and virtue in the former way modified their precepts according to the state and circumstances of the persons for whoin they were designed. One sort of precepts were addressed to those who had not abandoned the connexions of civil society, but lived amidst the hurry of worldly affairs. A different set of rules was ad- ministered to those who aspired after higher de- grees of perfection, and lived in a retirement from the contagion and vanities of the world. The precepts, addressed to the former, represent the Christian life, as consisting in certain external virtues, and acts of religion ; as appears from the Homilies and Exhortations of Cassarius ; the Capita Panenetica of Agapetus ; and especially from the Formula honestae Vitas, i. e. the Summary of. a virtuous Life, drawn up by Martin, archbi-

VOL. II. K

ISO The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, shop of Braga (/*). The rules administered to the PART*n latter sort of Christians were more spiritual and sublime : they were exhorted to separate, as far as was possible, the soul from the body by divine contemplation ; and for that purpose, to enervate and emaciate the latter by watching, fasting, per- petual prayer, and singing of psalms, as we find in the Dissertation of Fulgentius, upon Fasting, and those of Nicetius, Concerning the Vigils of the Servants of God, and the Good Effects of Psalmody. The Greeks adopted for their leader, in this mystic labyrinth, Dionysius, falsely called the Areopagite, whose pretended writings John of Scythopolis illustrated with annotations in this century. We need not be at any pains in point- ing out the defects of these injudicious zealots ; the smallest acquaintance with that rational reli- gion, which is contained in the gospel, will be suf- ficient to open the eyes of the impartial upon the absurdities of that chimerical devotion we have now been describing.

The lives of VII. They who enforced the duties of Chris- the samts. tiaiiity, by exhibiting examples of piety and virtue to the view of those for whom their instructions were designed, wrote, for this purpose, the Lives of the Saints ; and there was a considerable number of this kind of biographers both among the Greeks and Latins. Ennodius, Eugippius, Cyril of Scythopolis, Dionysius the Little, Co- gitosus, and others, are to be ranked in this class. But, however pious the intention of these biographers may have been, it must be acknow- ledged, that they executed it in a most contempt- ible manner. No models of rational piety are to be found among those pretended worthies, whom they propose to Christians as objects of imitation. They amuse their readers with gigan- (h) See the Actor Sanctor. Martii. torn. iii. p. 86.

PARTn>

CHAP. iii. The Doctrine of the Church.

tic fables and trifling romances ; the examples they exhibit are those of certain delirious fanatics, whom they call saints, men of a corrupt and per- verted judgment, who offered violence to reason and nature by the horrors of an extravagant auste- rity in their own conduct, and by the severity of those singular and inhuman rules which they pre- scribed to others. For, by what means were these men sainted ? By starving themselves with a fran- tic obstinacy, and bearing the useless hardships of hunger, thirst, and inclement seasons, with sted- fastness and perseverance; by running about the country like madmen, in tattered garments, and sometimes half naked, or shutting themselves up in a narrow space, where they continued motion- less ; by standing for a long time in certain pos- tures, with their eyes closed, in the enthusiastic expectation of divine light. All this was saint- like and glorious ; and the more that any ambi- tious fanatic departed from the dictates of reason and common sense, and counterfeited the wild gestures, and the incoherent conduct of an idiot, or a lunatic, the surer was his prospect of obtain- ing an eminent rank among the heroes and demi- gods of a corrupt and degenerate church.

VIII. Many writers laboured with diligence to Polemic terminate the reigning controversies, but none dmnity* with success. Nor shall we be much surprised, that these efforts were ineffectual, when we con- sider how they were conducted ; for scarcely can we name a single writer, whose opposition to the Eutychians, Nestorians, and Pelagians, was car- ried on with probity, moderation, or prudence. Primasius and Philoponus wrote concerning all the sects, but their works are lost ; the treatise of Leontius, upon the same extensive subject, is still extant, but is scarcely worth perusing. Isi- dore of Seville, and Leontius of Neapolis, dis- puted against the Jews, but with what success and

KO m

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, dexterity will be easily imagined by those who are P\RT ii ac(luamted with the learning and logic of these ' times. We omit, therefore, any further mention of the miserable disputants of this century, from a persuasion that it will be more useful and enter- taining to lay before the reader a brief account of the controversies that now divided and troubled the Christian church.

The con- IX. Though the credit of Origen and his system trovers seemed to lie expiring under the blows it had re-

concerning .-,/> I1!/*! IT IT

Origen and ceived from the zeal of the orthodox, and the re- peated thunder of synods and councils, yet it was very far from being totally sunk. On the contrary, this great man and his doctrine were held by many, and especially by the monks, in the highest venera- tion, and cherished with a kind of enthusiasm which became boundless and extravagant. In the west, Bellator translated the works of Origen into the Latin language. In the eastern provinces, and particularly in Syria and Palestine, which were the principal seats of Origenism, the monks, seconded by several bishops, and chiefly by Theodore of Caesarea in Cappadocia, defended the truth and authority of the doctrines of Origen against all his adversaries with incredible vehemence and con- tention of mind (j). The cause was, at length, brought before Justinian, who, in a long and ver- bose edict, addressed to Mennas, patriarch of Con- stantinople (7t), passed a severe condemnation upon Origen and his doctrine, and ordered it to be entirely suppressed (/). The effects of this edict

(*) Cyrillus, Scythopolis, in Vita Sabse, which is to be found in Cotelerius, Monumenta Ecclesiae Graecse, p. 370. Henr. Noris, Dissertat. De Synodo Quinta, cap. i. ii. p. 554. torn. i. opp.

(&) This edict is published in Harduin's Concilia, torn. iii. p. 243.

Ifgp0 (/) This edict was procured by the solicitation of Pelagius, who was legate of Vigilius at the court of Con-

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 133

were more violent than durable ; for, upon the CENT. breaking out of the controversy concerning the PART"II§ three chapters (rn\ soon after this time, Origenism was not only revived in Palestine, but even reco- vered new vigour, and spread itself far and wide. Hence many commotions were raised in the church, which were, however, terminated by the fifth general council, assembled at Constantinople, by Justinian, A. D. 553, and in which Origen and his followers were again condemned (/?).

X. This controversy produced another, which The con. continued much longer, was carried on with still comSnfog more excessive degrees of animosity and violence, the three and the subject of which was of much less mo- c ment and importance. The emperor Justinian was eagerly bent upon extirpating that violent branch of the Monophysites, which was distin- guished by the name of Acephali ; and consulted upon this matter Theodore, bishop of Caesarea, who was a Monophysite, and at the same time extremely attached to the doctrine of Origen. The artful prelate considered this as a favourable opportunity of procuring repose to the followers of Origen by exciting a new controversy, as also of casting a reproach upon the council of Chal- cedon, and giving a mortal blow to the Nestorians

stantinople, with a view to confound the Acephali, who were admirers of Origen, and particularly to vex Theodore, of whose credit with the emperor, Pelagius was extremely jea- lous. It was to return this affront, as well as to effect the pur- poses mentioned in the following section, that Theodore set on foot the controversy concerning the three chapters, which produced such tedious, cruel, and fatal dissensions in the church. See Basnage, Histoire de 1'Eglise, livr. x. ch. vi. p. 520.

(m) For an explication of what is meant by the three chapters, see note (o) of the Xth section.

(») See Harduini Concilia, torn. iii. p. 283. Evagrius, Hist. Eccl. lib. iv. cap. xxxviii. Basnage, Hist, cle 1'Eglise, livr. x. chap. vi. p. 517, &c. Pet. Dan. Huetii Origeniana, lib.ii. 224. Doucin's Singular. Diss. which is subjoined to his Historia Origeniana, p. 315.

The Infernal History of the Church. CENT, and their cause. In order, therefore, to effect PART ii. t"ese t^iree nilPortant purposes, he persuaded the

1 emperor, that the Acephali would return to the

bosom of the church, under the following easy and reasonable conditions ; namely, " That those passages in the acts of the council of Chalcedon, in which Theodore of Mopsuestia, Theodoret of Cyrus, and Ibas of Edessa, had been pro- nounced orthodox, should be effaced ; and that the productions of these prelates, which were known by the appellation of the three chap- ters (o), as also other writings of theirs which discovered a manifest propensity towards the Ne- storian errors, should be condemned and pro- hibited." The emperor lent a propitious ear to the counsels of this prelate ; and, by an edict, published A. D. 544, ordered the three chapters to be condemned and effaced, without any prejudice, however, to the authority of the council of Chalcedon (p). This edict was warmly opposed by the African and western bishops, and particularly by Vigilius, the Roman pontiff, who considered it as highly injurious not only to the authority of the council now mentioned, but also

Ifgp*" (o) The pieces that were distinguished by the appella- tion of the three chapters, were, l.The writings of Theodore of Mopsuestia. 2. The books which Theodoret of Cyrus wrote against the twelve Anathemas, which Cyril had pub- lished against the Nestorians. 3. The letter which Ibas of Edessa had written to one Maris a Persian, concerning the council of Ephesus and the condemnation of Nestorius. These writings were supposed to favour the Nestorian doctrine, and such indeed was their tendency. It is, however, to be ob- served, that Theodore of Mopsuestia lived before the time of Nestorius, and died, not only in the communion of the church, but also in the highest reputation for his sanctity. Nor were the writings of the other two either condemned or censured by the council of Chalcedon; nay, the faith of Theodoret and Ibas was there declared entirely orthodox. The decision of the council of Constantinople, in opposition to this, shows that councils, as well as doctors, differ.

(p) See Harduini Concilia, torn. iii. p. 287. Evagrius, Hist. Ecclesiast. lib. iv. cap. xxxviii. p. 412.

PART n

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church.

to the memory of those holy men whose writings and characters it covered with reproach (</). Upon this, Justinian ordered Vigilius to repair im mediately to Constantinople, that, having him in his power, he might compel him with more facility to acquiesce in the edict, and reject the three chapters ; and this method was attended with suc- cess, for the pontiff yielded. On the other hand, the bishops of Africa and Illyricum obliged Vigi- lius to retract his judicatum, by which, in a coun- cil of seventy bishops, he had condemned the three chapters; in obedience to the emperor. For they separated themselves from the communion of this pope, and refused to acknowledge him as one of their brethren ; nay, treated him as an apostate, until he approved what he had been obliged to condemn. The effect of this retracta- tion redoubled the zeal and violence of Justinian, who, by a second edict, published A. D. 551, condemned anew the three chapters.

XL After many cabals, commotions, and dis- The cecu* sensions, which were occasioned by this trifling controversy, it was thought proper to submit the final decision of it to an assembly of the universal church. This assembly was accordingly sum- moned, by Justinian, to meet at Constantinople, A. D. 553, and is considered as the fifth oecume- nical or general council. The emperor gained his point here ; for, besides the doctrines of Ori- gen (r), the three chapters, the condemnation of

(q) Hen. Noris. De Synodo quinta, cap. x. p. 579. torn. i. opp. Basnage, Histoire de 1'Eglise, torn. i. livr. x. cap. vi. p. 523.

Ifgp0 (r) We do not find in the acts of this council any one which condemns the doctrines of Origen. It is, however, ge- nerally imagined, that these doctrines were condemned by this assembly; and what gave rise to this notion was probably the fifteen Greek canons yet extant, in which the principal errors of Origen are condemned, and which are intitled, The canons of the 160 fathers assembled in the council of Constantinople. The tenets of Origen, which gave the most offence, were

136 The Internal History of the Church.

*T> which he had solely in view, were, by the bishops

PART II.

of the east (for there were very few western pre-

lates present at this council), declared heretical and pernicious. Vigilius, who was now at Con- stantinople, refused his assent to the decrees of this council; for which reason, after having re- ceived various affronts, he was sent into exile, from whence he was not permitted to return be- fore he had acquiesced in the decisions of this as- sembly (s) ; and, changing his sentiments for the fourth time, had declared the opinions contained in the three chapters to be execrable blasphemies. His successor, Pelagius, and all the Roman pon- tiffs that have since lolled in the papal chair, ad- hered to the decrees of this council ; but neither their authority, nor that of the emperor, could prevail upon the western bishops to follow their example in this respect. Many of these, on the contrary, carried matters so far as to separate themselves from the communion of the pope on this account ; and divisions, that aro.se from hence/ in the church, were too violent to admit of an ex- peditious or easy reconciliation, and could only be healed by length of time (f).

the following : 1. That in the Trinity, the Father is greater than the Son, and the Son than the Holy Ghost. 2. The pre-existence of souls, which Origen considered as sent into mortal bodies for the punishment of sins committed in a former state of being. 3. That the soul of Christ was united to the tcord before the incarnation. 4. That the sun, moon, and stars, &c. were animated and endowed with rational souls. 5. That after the resurrection all bodies will be of a round figure. 6. That the torments of the damned will have an end ; and that as Christ had been crucified in this world to save mankind, he is to be crucified in the next to save the devils.

(s) See Petr. de Marca, Dissert, de Decreto Vigilii pro Confirmatione Synodi V. which is to be found among the Dissertations subjoined to his learned work, De Concordia Sacerdotii et Imperii.

(t) The best account of this matter is to be found in Noris, De Synodo Quinta JEcuroenica, though even this excellent

CHAP. iir. The Doctrine of the Church.

XII. Another controversy of much more im- CENT. portance had been carried on before this period among the Greeks ; it was first kindled in the

year 519, and it arose upon the following ques- The q«es-

J. -T-.V. • i -i • , tlon whe-

tion ; Whether it could be said with propriety, ther one of that one of the Trinity suffered on the cross? This the Trinity

* 1 ._ _ . , may be said

was designed to embarrass the JNestonans, who to have seemed to separate too much the two natures in Christ; and the Scythian monks, who seconded this design, and to whom the rise of this contro- versy is principally to be imputed, maintained the affirmative of this nice and difficult question. Others asserted, on the contrary, that this manner of speaking was by no means to be adopted, since it bordered upon the erroneous expressions and tenets of the Theopaschites, who composed one of the sects into which the Eutychians were sub- divided (u). This latter opinion was confirmed by Hormisdas the Roman pontiff, to whom the Scythian monks had appealed in vain ; but this, instead of allaying the heat of the present con- troversy, only added new fuel to the flame. John II. who was one of the successors of Hor- misdas, approved the proposition which the latter had condemned ; and confirming the opinion of the Scythian monks, exposed the decisions of the papal oracle to the laughter of the wise ; his sentence was afterwards approved by the fifth ge- neral council ; and thus peace was restored in the

author cannot be vindicated from the imputation of a certain degree of partiality. See also Christ. Lupus, Not. ad Con- cilium quintum, in his Ad Concilia Adnotat.

Ejgg0 (u) The deacon Victor, and those who opposed the Scythian monks, expressed their opinion in the following pro- position : viz. One person of the Trinity suffered in the flesh. Both sides received the council of Chalcedon, acknowledged two natures in Christ, in opposition to Eutyches, and only one person in opposition to Nestorius; and yet, by a torrent or' jargon, and a long chain of unintelligible syllogisms, the Scythian monks accused their adversaries of Nestorianism, and were accused by them of the Eutychian heresy.

138 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, church by the conclusion of these unintelligible

AW ii. Disputes (a>).

With the question now mentioned, there was

another closely and intimately connected, namely, Whether the person of Christ could be considered as compounded? Of this question the Scythian monks maintained the affirmative, and their ad- versaries the negative.

CHAPTER IV.

Concerning the Rites and Ceremonies used in the Church during this Century.

Rites muiti- I. IN this century the cause of true religion plied. sunk apace, and the gloomy reign of superstition extended itself in proportion to the decay of ge- nuine piety. This lamentable decay was supplied by a multitude of rites and ceremonies. In the east the Nestorian and Eutychian controversies gave occasion to the invention of various rites and external institutions, which were used as marks to distinguish from each other the con- tending parties. The western churches were loaded with rites by Gregory the Great, who had a marvellous fecundity of genius in inventing, and an irresistible force of eloquence in recom- mending superstitious observances. Nor will this appear surprising to those who know, that in the opinion of this pontiff, the words of the sacred writings were images of mysterious and invisible

(to) See Norisii Historia Controverske de uno ex Trinitate passo, torn. iii. opp. p. 771 . The ancient writers who mention this controversy call the monks, who set it on foot, Scythians. But La Croze, in his Thesaur. Epist. torn. iii. p. 189. imagines, that the country of these monks was Egypt, and not Scythia ; and this conjecture is supported by reasons which carry in them at least a high degree of probability.

CHAP. iv. Rites and Ceremonies. 139

things ; for such as embrace this chimerical system CENT. will easily be led to express all the doctrines and PAR^ n

precepts of religion by external rites and symbols.

Gregory, indeed, is worthy of praise in this, that he did not pretend to force others to the observance of his inventions ; though this, perhaps, was as much owing to a want of power, as to a principle of moderation.

II. This prodigious augmentation of rites and The occa- ceremonies rendered an augmentation of doctors J^ °nfyes and interpreters of these mysteries indispensably tigated. necessary. Hence a new kind of science arose, which had for its object, the explication of these ceremonies, and the investigation of the causes

and circumstances from whence they derived their origin. But the most of those, who entered into these researches, never went to the fountain-head, to the true sources of these idle inventions. They endeavoured to seek their origin in reason and Christianity ; but in this they deceived themselves, or, at least, deluded others, and delivered to the world their own fancies, instead of letting them into the true causes of things. Had they been acquainted with the opinions and customs of re- mote antiquity, or studied the pontifical law of the Greeks and Romans, they had come at the true origin of many institutions, which were falsely looked upon as venerable and sacred.

III. The public worship of God was as yet ce- Public- lebrated by every nation in its own language; but worshiP> was enlarged, from time to time, by the addition

of various hymns, and other things of that nature, which were considered as proper to enliven devotion by the power of novelty. Gregory the Great prescribed a new method of admi- nistering the Lord's Supper, with a magnificent as- The admi- semblage of pompous ceremonies ; this institution nwtmtion of his was called the canon of the mass ; and, if char e any are unwilling to give it the name of a new

irist.

1 40 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, appointment, they must at least acknowledge, that PART ii ^ was a considerable augmentation of the ancient

1 canon for celebrating the eucharist, and occasioned

a remarkable change in the administration of that ordinance. Many ages, however, passed before this Gregorian canon was adopted by all the Latin churches (V).

Baptism. Baptism, except in cases of necessity, was ad- ministered only on great festivals. We omit men- tioning, for the sake of brevity, the Litanies that were addressed to the saints, the different sorts of supplications, the stations, or assemblies of Gre- gory, the forms of consecration, and other such in- stitutions, which were contrived, in this century, to excite a species of external devotion, and to en- gage the outward senses, in religious worship. An inquiry into these matters would of itself deserve to be made the subject of a separate work.

IV. There was an incredible number of temples erected in honour of the saints, during this cen- tury, both in the eastern and western provinces. The places set apart for public worship were al- ready very numerous ; but it was now that Chris- tians first began to consider these sacred edifices as the means of purchasing the favour and protection of the saints, and to be persuaded that these de- parted spirits defended and guarded, against evils and calamities of every kind, the pro- vinces, lands, cities, and villages, in which they were honoured with temples. The number of these temples was almost equalled by that of the festivals, which were now observed in the Chris- tian church, and many of which seem to have been instituted upon a pagan model. To those that were celebrated in the preceding century were now added the festival of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin, invented with a design

(x) See Theod. Chr. Lilienthal, De Canone missa Grego- riano.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies.

to remove the uneasiness of the heathen converts CE^T- on account of the loss of their lupercalia, or feasts PART II(

of Pan, which had been formerly observed in the

month of February, the festival of the Immaculate Conception, the day set apart to commemorate the birth of St. John, and others less worthy of mention.

CHAPTER V.

Concerning the Divisions and Heresies that troubled the Church during this Century.

I. THE various sects which had fomented di- The re- visions among Christians in the early ages of^'"nc° the church were far from being effectually sup- heresies pressed or totally extirpated. Though they had been persecuted and afflicted with an infinite diversity of trials and calamities, yet they still subsisted, and continued to excite dissensions and tumults in many places. The Manicheans are said to have gained such a degree of influence among the Persians, as to have corrupted even the son of Cabades, the monarch of that nation, who repaid their zeal in making proselytes with a terrible massacre, in which numbers of that impious sect perished in the most dreadful man- ner. Nor was Persia the only country which was troubled with the attempts of the Manicheans to spread their odious doctrine; other provinces of the empire were, undoubtedly, infected with their errors, as we may judge from the book that was written against them by Heraclian, bishop of Chalcedon (z/). In Gaul and Africa, dissensions of a different kind prevailed ; and the controversy between the Semi -Pelagians and the disciples sfa

(y) See Photius, Bibliotb. Cod. cxiv. p. 291.

142 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, of Augustin, continued to divide the western

PART IT. churches.

1 II. The Donatists enjoyed the sweets of free-

Donatists. (jom an(j tranquillity, as long as the Vandals reigned in Africa; but the scene was greatly changed with respect to them, when the empire of these barbarians was overturned in the year 534. They, however, still remained in a sepa- rate body, and not only held their church, but, towards the conclusion of this century, and par- ticularly from the year 591, defended them- selves with new degrees of animosity and vigour, and were bold enough to attempt the multiplica- tion of their sect. Gregory, the Roman pontiff, opposed these efforts with great spirit and as- siduity ; and, as appears from his epistles (z\ tried various methods of depressing this faction, which was pluming its wings anew, and menacing the re- vival of those lamentable divisions which it had formerly excited in the church. Nor was the opposition of the zealous pontiff without effect ; it seems, on the contrary, to have been attended with the desired success, since, in this century, the church of the Donatists dwindled away to no- thing, and after this period no traces of it are any where to be found.

Arians. III. Towards the commencement of this cen-

tury, the Arians were triumphant in several parts of Asia, Africa, and Europe. Many of the Asiatic bishops favoured them secretly, while their opi- nions were openly professed, and their cause main- tained, by the Vandals in Africa, the Goths in Italy, the Spaniards, the Burgundians, the Suevi, and the greatest part of the Gauls. It is true, the Greeks, who had received the decrees of the council of Nice, persecuted and oppressed the

(z) See his Epistles, lib. iv. ep. xxxiv. xxxv. p. 7 14-, 7 1 a. lib. vi. ep. Ixv. p. 84-1 . ep. xxxvii. p. 821 . lib. ix. ep. liii. p. 972. Jib. ii. ep. xlviii. p. 611. torn. ii. opp.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 143

Arians, wherever their influence and authority CENT. could reach; but the Nicenians, in their turn, P^RT Hi

were not less rigorously treated by their adver-

saries, particularly in Africa and Italy, where they felt, in a very severe manner, the weight of the Arian power, and the bitterness of their resent- ment (a).

The triumphs of Arianism were, however, but transitory; and its prosperous days were entirely eclipsed, when the Vandals were driven out of Africa, and the Goths out of Italy, by the arms of Justinian (&). For the other Arian princes were easily induced to abandon, themselves, the doctrine of that sect ; and not only so, but to em- ploy the force of laws and the authority of coun- cils to prevent its further progress among their subjects, and to extirpate it entirely out of their dominions. Such was the conduct of Sigismund king of the Burgundians ; Theodimir king of the Suevi, who had settled in Lusitania ; and Reccared king of Spain. Whether the change wrought in these princes was owing to the force of reason and argument, or to the influence of hopes and fears, is a question which we shall not pretend to determine. One thing, however, is certain, and that is, that from this period, the Arian sect declined apace, and .could never after recover any considerable degree of stability and consistence.

IV. The Nestorians, after having gained a firm The state of footing in Persia, and established the patriarch, or head of their sect at Seleucia, extended their

(a) Procopius, De Bello Vandal, lib. i. cap. viii. and De Bello Gothico, lib. ii. cap. ii. Evagrius, Hist. Ecclesiast. lib. iv. cap. xv.

(£) See Mascovii Historia German, torn. ii. p. 76. 91. See also an account of the barbarian kings, who abandoned Arianism, and received the doctrines of the Nicene council, in the Acta Sanctorum, torn. ii. Martii, p. 275. and April, p. 134.

144 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, views further, and spread their doctrines, with a PART ii success e(lual to tne ardour of their zeal, through

L the provinces that lay beyond the limits of the

Roman empire. There are yet extant authentic records, from which it appears, that throughout all Persia, as also in India, Armenia, Arabia, Sy- ria, and other countries, there were vast numbers of Nestorian churches, all under the jurisdiction of the patriarch of Seleucia (c). It is true, indeed, that the Persian monarchs were not all equally favourable to this growing sect, and that some of them even persecuted, with the utmost 'severity, all those who bore the Christian name throughout their dominions (cT) ; but it is also true, that such of these princes, as were disposed to exercise mo- deration and benignity towards the Christians, were much more indulgent to the Nestorians, than to their adversaries who adhered to the coun- cil of Ephesus, since the latter were considered as spies employed by the Greeks, with whom they were connected by the ties of religion. Eutychian V. The Monophysites, or Eutychians, flou- rished also in this century, and had gained over to their doctrine a considerable part of the eastern provinces. The emperor Anastasius was warmly attached to the doctrine and sect of the Ace- phali, who were reckoned among the more rigid Monophy sites (e) ; and in the year 513, created patriarch of Antioch, in the room of Flavian, whom he had expelled from that see, Severus, a learned

(c) Cosmas Indicopleustes Topographiae Christianse, lib. ii. p. 125. which is to be found in Montfaucon's Collectio Nova PP. Graecorum.

(d) Jos. Sim. Asseman. Biblioth. Orient. Vatic, torn. iii. part I. p. 109. 407. 411. 441. 449. torn. iii. part II. cap. v. sect. ii. p. 83.

(e) Evagrius, Hist. Ecclesiast. lib. iii. cap. xxx. xliv, &c. Theodorus the Reader, Hist. Ecclesiast. lib. ii, p. 562. See also the Index Operum Severi, as it stands collected from ancient MSS. in Montfaucon's Bibliotheca Coistiniana, p. 53.

sies

CHAP. v. Divisions ancTHeresies.

monk of Palestine, from whom the Monophysites CENT. were called Severians (/'). This emperor ex- erted all his influence and authority to destroy the credit of the council of Chalcedon in the east, and to maintain the cause of those who adhered to the doctrine of one nature in Christ; and, by the ardour and vehemence of his zeal, he excited the most deplorable seditions and tumults in the church (#). After the death of Anastasius, which happened A. D. 518, Severus was expelled in his turn ; and the sect which the late emperor had maintained and propagated with such zeal and assiduity was every where opposed and de- pressed by his successor Justin, and the following emperors, in such a manner, that it seemed to be upon the very brink of ruin, notwithstanding that it had created Sergius patriarch in the place of Se- verus

VI. When the affairs of the Monophysites were Jacob Bara in such a desperate situation, that almost all hope of their recovery was vanished, and their bishops were reduced, by death and imprisonment, to a sltes> very small number, an obscure man, whose name was Jacob, and who was distinguished from others so called, by the surname of Baradaeus, or Zan- zalus, restored this expiring sect to its former prosperity and lustre (&'). This poor monk, the

( /) See Jo. Sim. Asseman. Biblioth. Orient. Vatican, torn. ii. p. 47. 321. Euseb. Renaudot, Historia Patriarch. Alexan- drinor. p. 127. 129, 130. 135. 138, &c.

(£•) Evagrius, Hist. Ecclesiast. lib. iii. cap. xxxiii. Cy- rillus, vita Sabae in Jo. Bapt. Cotelerii Monument. Ecclesiae Graecse, torn. iii. p. 312. Bayle's Dictionary, at the article Anastasius.

(/*) See Abulpharaii Series Patriarch. Antiochen. in Asse- man. Biblioth. Orient. Vatican. &c. torn. ii. p. 323.

(j) See Asseman. Biblioth. Orient. &c. torn. ii. cap. viii. p. 62. 72. 326. 331. 414. Eusebii Ilenaud. Hist. Patriarch. Alexandr. p. 119. 133. 425. and the Liturgiae Orient, toin. ii. p, 333. 342. Faustus Naironus, Euoplia Fidei Catholicse ex Syrorum monumentis, part I. p. 40. il.

VOL. II. L

146 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, grandeur of whose views was much above the ob- scurity of his station, and whose fortitude and pa- tience no dangers could daunt, nor any labours exhaust, was ordained to the episcopal office by a handful of captive bishops, travelled on foot through the whole .east, established bishops and presbyters every where, revived the drooping spirits of the Monophysites, and produced such an astonishing change in their affairs by the power of his elo- quence, and by his incredible activity and diligence, that when he died bishop of Edessa, A. D. 588, he left his sect in a most flourishing state in Syria, Mesopotamia, Armenia, Egypt, Nubia, Abyssinia, and other countries (Ji). This dexterous monk had prudence to contrive the means of success, as well as activity to put them in execution ; for he almost totally extinguished all the animosities, and reconciled all the factions, that had divided the Monophysites ; and when their churches grew so numerous in the east, that they could not all be conveniently comprehended under the sole juris- diction of the patriarch of Antioch, he appointed, as his assistant, the primate of the east, whose resi- dence was at Tagritis, on the borders of Ar- menia (/). The laborious efforts of Jacob were seconded in Egypt, and the adjacent countries, by Theodosius bishop of Alexandria ; and he became so famous, that all the Monophysites of the east considered him as their second parent and founder, and are to this day called Jacobites, in honour of their new chief.

(/&) Concerning the Nubians and Abyssinians, see Asse- man. Biblioth. Orient. &c. torn. ii. p. 330. Lobo, Voyage d'Abyssinie, torn. ii. p. 36. Ludolph. Commentar. ad Histo- riam ^Ethiopicam, p. 4-51. 461. 466.

(/) Asseman. Biblioth. Orient. Vatican, torn. ii. 410. 414. 4-18. See also this learned writer's Dissertatio de Mono- physitis, which is prefixed to the second volume of the work now cited.

PARTir,

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 147

VII. Thus it happened, that by the imprudent CENT. zeal and violence which the Greeks employed in * defending the truth, the Monophysites gained con- siderable^ advantages, and, at length, obtained a

solid and permanent settlement. From this Physit«. period their sect has been under the jurisdiction of the patriarchs of Alexandria and Antioch, who, notwithstanding the difference of opinion which subsists, with respect to some points, between the Syrian and Egyptian Monophysites, are extremely careful to maintain communion with each other, both by letters, arid by the exchange of good of- fices. The primate of the Abyssines is subject to the patriarch of Alexandria ; and the primate of the east, who resides at Tagritis, is under the jurisdiction of the patriarch of Antioch. The Ar- menians are ruled by a bishop of their own, and are distinguished by certain opinions and rites from the rest of the Monophysites.

VIII. The sect of the Monophysites, before it Controver- was thus happily established, was torn with fac- the* Mono? tions and intestine disputes, and suffered, in aPh>sites- particular manner, from that nice and subtle controversy concerning the body of Christ, which

was kindled at Alexandria. Julian, bishop ,of Halicarnassus, affirmed, A. D. 519, that the divine nature had so insinuated itself into the body of Christ, from the very moment of the Virgin's conception, that the body of our Lord changed its nature, and became incorruptible. This opinion was also embraced by Caianus, bishop of Alexandria ; from whom those who adopted it were called Caianists. They were, however, divided into three sects, two of which debated this question, Whether the body of Christ was created or increated? While the third asserted, that our Lord's body was indeed corruptible, but never actually corrupted, since the energy of the divine nature must have prevented its dissolution.

148 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. This sect was warmly opposed by Severus of PART ii Antioch, and Damianus, who maintained that the

body of Christ, before his resurrection, was truly

corruptible, i. e. subject to the affections and changes with which human nature is generally at- tended. Those who embraced the opinion of Ju- lian were called Aphthartodocetas, Doceta?, Phan- tasiasts, and even Manicheans, because it was sup- posed to follow from their hypothesis, that Christ did not suffer 'in reality, but only in appearance, hunger and thirst, pain and death ; and that he did not actually assume the common affections and properties of human nature. On the other hand, the votaries of Severus were distinguished by the names Phthartolatras, Ktistolatrae, and Creaticola?. This miserable controversy was car- ried on with great warmth under the reign of Jus- tinian, who favoured the Aphthartodocetae ; soon after, it subsided gradually; and, at length, was happily hushed in silence (rti). Xenaias of Hiera- polis struck out an hypothesis upon this knotty matter, which seemed equally remote from those of the contending parties ; for he maintained that Christ had, indeed, truly suffered the various sensations to which humanity is exposed ; but that he suffered them not in his nature, but by a sub- missive act of his will (ii).

The Agno- IX. Some of the Corrupticolas (for so they were called who looked upon the body of Christ to be corruptible), particularly Themistius, a dea- con of Alexandria, and Theodosius, a bishop of that city, were carried by the inconsiderate heat

(m) Timotheus, De Receptione Haereticorum in Cotelerii Monumentis Ecclesiast. Graecae, tom.iii. p. 409. Libertates in Breviario Controv. cap. xx. Forbesii Jnstructiones Histo- rico-Theologicae,lib. iii. cap.xviii. p. 108. Asseman. Biblioth. Oriental, torn. iii. part II. p. 457.

(n) Asseman. Biblioth. Orient. Vatican, torn. ii. p. 22. and 168.

etae.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 149

of controversy into another opinion, which pro- CENT. duced new commotions in the church towards the conclusion of this century. They affirmed, that to the divine nature of Christ all things were known ; but that from his human nature many things were concealed. The rest of the sect charged the au- thors of this opinion with imputing ignorance to the divine nature of Christ; since they held, in common with them, that there was but one nature in the Son of God. Hence the votaries of this new doctrine were called Agnoetse (o) ; but their sect was so weak and ill-supported, that, notwith- standing their eloquence and activity, which seemed to promise better success, it gradually declined, and came to nothing.

X. From the controversies with the Monophy- The T sites arose the sect of the Tritheists, whose chief theists- was John Ascusnage, a Syrian philosopher, and, at the same time, a Monophysite (p). This man imagined in the Deity three natures, or substances, absolutely equal in all respects, and joined together by no common essence ; to which opinion his ad- versaries gave the name of Tritheism. One of the warmest defenders of this doctrine was John Phi- loponus, an Alexandrian philosopher and gram- marian of the highest reputation ; and hence he has been considered by many as the author of this sect, whose members have consequently derived from him the title of Philoponists (</).

(o) Jo. Bapt. Cotelerius, Ad Monumenta Ecclesise Grsecse, torn. iii. p. 641. Mich. Le Quien, Ad Damascenum de Haere- sibus, torn. i. p. 107. Forbes, Instruction. Historico-Theolog. lib. iii. cap. xix. p. 119. Photius, Biblioth. Cod. 230. p. 882.

(;;) See Gregor. Abulpharaius, in Asseman. Biblioth. Orient, torn. i. p. 328.

(q) See Fabricii Biblioth. Graec. lib. v. cap. xxxvii. p. 358. Harduini Concilia, torn. iii. p. 1288. Timotheus, De Recep- tione Hscreticorum in Cotelerii Monumenta Ecclesiae Grascae, torn. iii. p. 414. Jo. Damascenus, De Hseresibus, torn. i. opp. p. 103. edit. Lc Quien.

150 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. This sect was divided into two parties, the Phi- irii l°P°msts an^ tne Cononites; the latter of whom 1 were so called from Conon, bishop of Tarsus, their chief (r). They agreed in the doctrine of three persons in the Godhead, and differed only in their manner of explaining what the scriptures taught concerning the resurrection of the body. Phi- loponus maintained, that the form, as well as the matter, of all bodies, was generated and corrupted, and that both therefore were to be restored in the resurrection. Conon held, on the contrary, that the body never lost its form ; that its matter alone was subject to corruption and decay, and was con- sequently to be restored when "this mortal shall put on immortality."

A third faction was that of the Damianists, who were so called from Damian, bishop of Alex- andria, and whose opinion concerning the Trinity was different from those already mentioned. They distinguished the divine essence from the three persons, viz. the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. They denied that each person was God, when con- sidered in itself, and abstractedly from the other two; but they affirmed, at the same time, that there was a common divinity, by the joint partici- pation of which each person was God. They therefore called the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, hypostases, or persons, and the Godhead, which was common to them all, substance or nature (,?),

(r) Photii Biblioth. Cod. xxiv. Asseman. Biblioth. Orient. Vatican, torn. ii. p. 329.

(s) Jos. Sim. Asseman. Biblioth. Orient. Vatican, torn. ii. p. 78. 332, &c.

THE

SEVENTH CENTURY.

PART I.

THE EXTERNAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH,

CHAPTER I.

Concerning the Prosperous Events which hap- pened to the Church during this Century.

I. IN this century the progress of Christianity CENT was mightily accelerated both in the eastern and western hemispheres, and its divine light was dif- fused far and wide through the darkened nations. The Nestorians, who dwelt in Syria, Persia, and India, contributed much to its propagation in the east, by the zeal and diligence, the laborious efforts and indefatigable assiduity, with which they preached it to those fierce and barbarous nations, who lived in the remotest borders and deserts of Asia, and among whom, as we learn from authentic records, their ministry was crowned with remarkable success. It was by the labours of this sect, that the light of the gospel first pene- trated into the immense empire of China, about the year 637, when Jesuiabas of Gadala was at the head of the Nestorians, as will appear proba- ble to those who look upon as genuine the famous Chinese monument, which was discovered at

The External History of the Church.

CENT. Siganfu, by the Jesuits during the last century (a).

PART i Some, indeed, look upon this monument to be a mere forgery of the Jesuits, though, perhaps, with- out reason : there are, however, other unexception- able proofs, that the northern parts of China, even before this century, abounded with Christians, who, for many succeeding ages, were under the in- spection of a metropolitan sent them by the Chal- dean or Nestorian patriarch (Z>).

(a) This celebrated monument has been published and ex- plained by several learned writers, particularly by Kircher, in his China Illustrata, p. 53 ; by Muller, in a treatise pub- lished at Berlin in 1672; by Eusebe Renaudot, in his Rela- tions anciennes des Indes et de la Chine, de deux Voyageurs Mahometans, p. 228 — 271, published at Paris in the year 1718, in 8vo: and by Assemanni Biblioth. Orient. Clement. Vatican, torn. iii. part II. cap. iv. sect. 7. p. 538. We were promised a still more accurate edition of this famous monu- ment by the learned Theoph. Sigifred Bayer, the greatest proficient of this age in Chinese erudition ; but his death has blasted our expectations. For my part, I see no reason to doubt of the genuineness of this monument, nor can I under- stand what advantage could redound to the Jesuits from the invention of such a fable. See Liron, Singularites Historiques et Litteraires, torn. ii. p. 500.

(6) See Renaudot, 1. c. p. 56. 68, &c. Assemanni Biblioth. &c. cap. ix. p. 522.: the learned Bayer, in his preface to his Museum Sinicum, p. 84. assures us that he has in his hands such proofs of the truth of what is here affirmed,, as puts the matter beyond all doubt. fgp° See on this subject a very learned dissertation published by M. de Guignes in the thirtieth volume of the Memoires de Litterature tires des Registres de 1'Academie Royale des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres, in which he proves that the Christians were settled in China so early as the seventh century. He remarks, in- deed, that the Nestorians and other Christians were for a long time confounded in the Chinese annals with the wor- shippers of Fo, an Indian idol, whose rites were introduced into China about sixty-five years after the birth of Christ ; and that this circumstance has deceived De la Croze, Beau- sobre, and some other learned men, who have raised specious objections against the hypothesis that maintains the early in- troduction of Christianity into this great empire. A reader, properly informed, will lend little or no attention to the ac-

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events.

II. The attention and activity of the Greeks CENT were so entirely occupied by their intestine divi- * sions, that they were little solicitous about the

PART

progress of Christianity. In the west, Augustin laboured to extend the limits of the church, and to verted" spread the light of the gospel among the Anglo- Saxons ; and, after his death, other monks were sent from Rome, to exert themselves in the same glorious cause. Their efforts were attended with the desired success, and the efficacy of their la- bours was manifested in the conversion of the six Anglo-Saxon kings, who had hitherto remained under the darkness of the ancient superstitions, to the Christian faith, which gained ground by degrees, and was, at length, embraced universally throughout all Britain (c). We are not, how- ever, to imagine, that this universal change in favour of Christianity was wholly due to the dis- courses of the Roman monks and doctors ; for other causes were certainly instrumental in ac- complishing this great event. And it is not to be doubted, that the influence which some Chris- tian queens and ladies of high distinction had over their husbands, and the pains they took to convert them to Christianity, as also the severe and rigorous laws that were afterwards enacted against idolaters (d\ contributed much to the progress of the gospel.

III. Many of the British, Scotch, and Irish ^s a,lso !he

i • • ni i -r» • -r» i • Gauls, the

ecclesiastics travelled among the Batavian, Belgic, Suevi, the and German nations, with the pious intention of frgestjfend"

Franks, and

count given of this matter by Voltaire in the first volume of the Helve- his Essai sur 1'Histoire Generale, &c. A poet, who recounts lii- facts, or denies them, without deigning to produce his au- thorities, must not expect to meet with the credit that is due to a historian.

(c) Bedae Historia Ecclesiast. Gentis Anglor. lib. ii. cap. iii. p. 91. cap. xiv. p. 116. lib. iii. cap. xxi. p. 162, &c. edit. Chifleti. Kapin T noyras, torn. i. p. 227.

(d) Wilkins* Concilia Magnae Britannia?, torn. i. p. 222.

154 The External History of the Church.

CENT, propagating the knowledge of the truth, and of VIIt erecting churches and forming religious establish-

PART I. ! »-m • &

§ inents every where. 1ms was the true reason

which induced the Germans, in after-times, to found so many convents for the Scotch and Irish, of which some are yet in being (e).

Columban, an Irish monk, seconded by the labours of a few companions, had happily extir- pated, in the preceding century, the ancient super- stitions in Gaul, and the parts adjacent, where idolatry had taken the deepest root ; he also car- ried the lamp of celestial truth among the Suevi, the Boii, the Franks, and other German na- tions (f\ and persevered in these pious and useful labours until his death, which happened A. D. 615. St. Gal, who was one of his companions, preached the gospel to the Helvetii, and the Suevi (g). St. Kilian set out from Scotland, the place of his nativity, and exercised the ministerial function with such success among the eastern Franks, that vast numbers of them embraced Christianity (/*). Towards the conclusion of this century, the famous Willibrord, by birth an Anglo-Saxon, accompanied with eleven of his countrymen, viz. Suidbert, Wigbert, Acca, Wilibald, Unibald, Lebwin, the two Ewalds, Werenfrid, Marcellin, and Adalbert, crossed over into Batavia, which lay opposite to Britain, in order to convert the Frieslanders to the religion of Jesus. From thence, in the year 692, they

(e) See the Acta Sanctorum, torn. ii. Febr. p. 362.

(/) Mabillon, Acta Sanctor. Ordinis Benedicti, torn. ii. p. 560. torn. iii. p. 72. 339. 500. Adamanni lib. iii. De S. Columbano, in Canisii Lection. Antiq. torn. i. p. 674.

(g) Walafridi Strabonis Vit. S.Galli in Mabillon, Actis SS. Ord. Benedict, torn. ii. p. 228. Canisii Lection. Antiq. torn, i. p. 783.

(k) Vita S. Kiliani in Canisii Lection. Antiq. torn. iii. p, 171. Jo. Pet. de Ludewig, Scriptores Rerum Wurzburgens. p. 966.

form

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 155

went into Fosteland, which most writers look upon CENT. to have been the same with the isle of Helgoland, PART' or Heiligland ; but being cruelly treated there by Radbod, king of the Frieslanders, who put Wig- bert, one of the company, to death, they departed hence for Cimbria, and the adjacent parts of Den- mark. They, however, returned to Friesland, A. D. 693, and were much more successful than they had formerly been in opposing the ancient superstitions, and propagating the knowledge of the truth. Willebrord was ordained, by the Roman pontiff, archbishop of Wilteburgh, now Utrecht, and died among the Batavians in a good old age ; while his associates continued to spread the light of the gospel among the Westphalians, and the neighbouring countries (T).

IV. These voyages, and many others, under- The judg. taken in the cause of Christ, carry, no doubt, a specious appearance of piety and zeal ; but the of these impartial and attentive inquirer after truth will aP°stles- find it impossible to form the same favourable judgment of them all, or to applaud, without di- stinction, the motives that animated these labori- • ous missionaries. That the designs of some of them were truly pious, and their characters with- out reproach, is unquestionably certain. But it is equally certain, that this was neither the case of them all, nor even of the greatest part of them. Many of them discovered, in the course of their ministry, the most turbulent passions, and disho- noured the glorious cause in which they were en- gaged, by their arrogance and ambition, their avarice and cruelty. They abused the power which they had received from the Roman pon- tiffs, of forming religious establishments among the superstitious nations ; and, instead of gaining

(?) Alcuini Vita Willibrordi in Mabillon. Actis SS. Ord. Benedict. Saec. iii. part I. p. 603. Jo. Molleri Cimbria Lit- tcrata, torn. ii. p. 980.

156 The External History of the Church.

CENT, souls to Christ, they usurped a despotic dominion r>iVJ!'r over their obsequious proselytes; and exercised a

• 1 1* S\ • 1 1*

princely authority over the countries where their

ministry had been successful. Nor are we to con- sider as entirely groundless, the suspicions of those who allege that many of the monks, desirous of rule and authority, concealed their vices under the mask of religion, and endured for a certain time the austerities of a rigid mortification and absti- nence, merely with a view to rise in the church to the episcopal dignity.

The jews V. The conversion of the Jews seemed at a to^mtlace stand in this century ; few or none of that obsti- Christiani- nate nation embraced the gospel in consequence of an inward conviction of its truth, though in many places they were barbarously compelled, by the Christians, to make an outward and feigned profession of their faith in Christ. The emperor Heraclius, incensed against that miserable people by the insinuations, as it is said, of the Christian doctors, persecuted them in a cruel manner, and ordered multitudes of them to be inhumanly dragged into the Christian churches, in order to be baptized by violence and compulsion (//). The same odious method of converting was practised in Spain and Gaul, by the monarchs of those na- tions, against which even the bishops of Rome ex- pressed their displeasure and indignation. Such were the horrid and abominable practices to which an ignorance of the true spirit of Christianity, and the barbarous genius of this age, led the heralds of that divine religion, which was designed to spread abroad charity upon earth, and to render mankind truly and rationally free.

(k) Eutychii Annales Ecclesiast. Alexandr. torn. ii. p. 212.

CHAP. ii. Calamitous Events.

CHAPTER II.

Concerning the Calamitous Events that happened to the Church during this Century.

I. THE Christians suffered less in this than CENT. in the preceding centuries. They were some- p^",

times persecuted by the Persian monarchs, but !

still recovered their former tranquillity after tran- sitory scenes of violence and oppression. In Eng- land, the new converts to Christianity suffered various calamities under the petty kings, who governed in those boisterous times; but these kings embraced the gospel themselves, and then

the sufferings of the Christians ceased. In the eastern countries, and particularly in Syria and Palestine, the Jews, at certain times, attacked the Christians with a merciless fury (/); but, how- ever, with so little success, that they always had reason to repent of their temerity, which was se- verely chastised. It is true, the church had other enemies, even those who, under the treacherous profession of Christianity, were laying secret schemes for the restoration of Paganism ; but they were too weak and too inconsiderable to form any attempts that could endanger the Christian cause.

II. But a new and most powerful enemy to the Mahomet Christian cause started up in Arabia, A. D. 612, appears> under the reign of Heraclius. This was Ma- homet, an illiterate man (jn\ but endowed by

(/) Eutychii Annales, torn. ii. p. 236. Jo. Henr. Hottingeri Historia Orientalis, lib. i. cap. iii. p. 129.

(»*) Mahomet himself expressly declared, that he was to- tally ignorant of all branches of learning and science, and was even unable either to write or read : and his followers have drawn from this ignorance an argument in favour of the divi- nity of his mission, and of the religion he taught. It is, how- ever, scarcely credible, that his ignorance was such as it is

158 The External History of the Church.

nature with the most flowing and attractive elo- quence, and with a vast and penetrating ge- nius (ri), distinguished also by the advantages he enjoyed from the place of his birth, which added a lustre to his name and his undertakings. This adventurous impostor declared publicly, that he was commissioned, by God, to destroy polytheism and idolatry, and then to reform, first the religion of the Arabians, and afterwards the Jewish and Christian worship. For these purposes he deli- vered a new law, which is known by the name of the Koran (o), or Alcoran ; and having gained se-

here described, and several of his sect have called in question the declarations of their chief relating to this point. See Char- din, Voyages en Perse, torn. iv. p. 33, 34. If we consider that Mahomet carried on, for a considerable time, a successful commerce in Arabia, and the adjacent countries, this alone will convince us, that he must have been, in some measure, in- structed in the arts of reading, writing, and arithmetic, with the knowledge of which a merchant cannot dispense.

(ri) The writers to whom we are indebted for the accounts of the life and religion of Mahomet, are enumerated by Fa- bricius. in his Delectus et Syllabus Argumentor. pro Veri- tate Relig. Christianas, cap.l. p. 733. To which we may add, Boulainvilliers, Vie de Mahomet, published at London, in 8vo. in the year 1730, and which deserves rather the character of a romance than of a history ; Gagnier, Vie de Mahomet, printed at Amsterdam in two volumes 8vo. in 1732, and commend- able both for the learning and candour with which it appears to have been composed; and above all, the most learned and judicious Sale's Preliminary Discourse, prefixed to his English Translation of the Koran, sect. ii. p. 37.

(o ) For an account of the Koran, see principally the learned Sale's Preface to his English translation of that work. See also, Vertot's Discours sur 1'Alcoran, which is subjoined to the third volume of his History of the Knights of Malta, and Chardin's Voyages en Perse, torn. ii. p. 281. The book which the Mahometans call the Koran, or Alcoran, is com- posed of several papers and discourses of Mahomet, which were discovered and collected after his death, and is by no means that same law whose excellence Mahomet vaunted so highly. That some parts of the true Koran may be copied in the modern one, is indeed very possible ; but that the Koran,

met.

CHAP. ii. Calamitous Events. 159

veral victories over his enemies, he compelled an CENT. incredible multitude of persons, both in Arabia PART'J<

and the neighbouring nations, to receive his doc- .

trine, and range themselves under his standards. Elated with this rapid and unexpected success, he extended yet farther his ambitious views, and formed the vast and arduous project of founding an empire. Here again success crowned his ad- venturous efforts ; and his plan was executed with such intrepidity and impudence, that he died master of all Arabia, besides several adjacent pro- vinces.

III. It is, perhaps, impossible, at this time, to What judg- form such an accurate judgment of the character, "^olbrm views, and conduct of Mahomet, as would en- of Maho- tirely satisfy the curiosity of a sagacious inquirer after truth. To give entire credit to the Grecian writers in this matter is neither prudent nor safe, since their bitter resentment against this hostile invader led them to invent, without scruple or hesitation, fables and calumnies to blacken his character. The Arabians, on the other hand, are as little to be trusted to, as their historians are destitute of veracity and candour, conceal the vices and enormities of their chief, and represent him as the most divine person that ever appeared upon earth, and as the best gift of God to the world. Add to this, that a considerable part of Mahomet's life, and, indeed, that part of it that would be the most proper to lead us to a true

or Law, given by Mahomet to the Arabians, is entirely di- stinct from the modern Alcoran, is manifest from this, that in the latter, Mahomet appeals to, and extols the former, and therefore they must be two different compositions. May it not be conjectured that the true Koran was an Arabic poem, which Mahomet recited to his followers without giving it to them in writing, ordering them only to commit it to their memory ? Such were the laws of the Druids in Gaul, and such also those of the Indians, which the Bramins receive by oral tradition, and get by heart.

160 The External History of the Church.

CENT, knowledge of his character, and of the motives PART i. fr°m which he acted, is absolutely unknown. It

. is highly probable, that he was so deeply affected

with the odious and abominable superstition which dishonoured his country, that it threw him into a certain fanatical disorder of mind, and made him really imagine that he was supernaturally com- missioned to reform the religion of the Arabians, and to restore among them the worship of one God. It is, however, at the same time, un- doubtedly evident, that, when he saw his enter- prize crowned with the desired success, he made use of impious frauds to establish the work he had so happily begun, deluded the giddy and credu- lous multitude by various artifices, and even forged celestial visions to confirm his authority, and remove the difficulties that frequently arose in the course of his affairs. This mixture of im- posture is by no means incompatible with a spirit of enthusiasm ; for the fanatic, through the unguided warmth of zeal, looks often upon the artifices that are useful to his cause as pious and acceptable to the Supreme Being ; and therefore deceives when he can do it with impunity (//). The religion which Mahomet taught, is cer- tainly different from what it would have been, if he had met with no opposition in the propagation of his opinions. The difficulties he had to en- counter obliged him to yield, in some respects, to the reigning systems ; the obstinate attachment of the Arabians to the religion of their ancestors, on the one hand, and the fond hope of gaining over to his cause both the Jews and Christians on

(/>) This, methinks, is the best way of adjusting the con- troversy that has been carried on by some learned men upon this curious question, viz. Whether Mahomet was a fanatic, or an impostor? See Bayle's Dictionary, at the article Ma- homet. Ockley's Conquest of Syria, Persia, and Egypt, by the Saracens, vol. i.p. 62. Sale's Preface to his Translation of the Alcoran, sect. 2. p. 39.

CHAP. ii. Calamitous Events. 161

the other, engaged, no doubt, this fanatical im- CP:NT. poster to admit into his system several tenets, which PAm?' l

he would have rejected without hesitation, had he ,

been free from the restraints of ambition and arti- fice.

IV. The rapid success which attended the pro- The causes pagation of this new religion was owing to causes ^^" that are plain and evident, and must remove, or the rapid rather prevent our surprise, when they are atten- tively considered. The terror of Mahomet's arms, and the repeated victories which were gained by gl°" him and his successors, were, no doubt, the irre- sistible argument that persuaded such multitudes to embrace his religion, and submit to his dominion. Besides, his law was artfully and marvellously adapted to the corrupt nature of man ; and, in a more particular manner, to the manners and opi- nions of the eastern nations, and the vices to which they were naturally addicted ; for the articles of faitli which it proposed were few in number, and extremely simple ; and the duties it required were neither many nor difficult, nor such as were in- compatible with the empire of appetites and pas- sions (q). It is to be observed further, that the gross ignorance, under which the Arabians, Syrians, Persians, and the greatest part of the eastern na- tions, laboured at this time, rendered many an easy prey to the artifice and eloquence of this bold adventurer. To these causes of the progress of Mahometism, we may add the bitter dissensions and cruel animosities that reigned among the Christian sects, particularly the Greeks, Nesto- rians, Eutychians, and Monophysites, dissensions that filled a great part of the east with carnage, assassinations, and such detestable enormities, as rendered the very name of Christianity odious to

(g) See Reland, De Religione Mahumedica. Sale's pre- liminary Discourse. VOL. n.

The External History of the Church. CENT. many. We might add here that the Monophy- PA^T i s*tes an^ Nestorians, full of resentment against the

. * Greeks, from whom they had suffered the bitterest

and most injurious treatment, assisted the Arabians in the conquest of several provinces (r), into which, of consequence, the religion of Mahomet was after- wards introduced. Other causes of the sudden progress of that religion will naturally occur to such as consider attentively its spirit and genius, and the state of the world at this time. The treat- V. After the death of Mahomet, which hap- theChris- pened A. D. 632, his followers, led on by an tians receiv- amazing intrepidity, and a fanatical fury, and as-

ed from the . . -, fe i i J j i

Mahome- sisted, as we have already observed, by those tans. Christians whom the Greeks had treated with such severity, extended their conquests beyond the limits of Arabia, and subdued Syria, Persia, Egypt, and other countries under their dominion. On the other hand, the Greeks, exhausted with civil discords, and wholly occupied by intestine troubles, were unable to stop these intrepid con- querors in their rapid career.

For some time these enthusiastic invaders used their prosperity with moderation, and treated the Christians, and particularly those among them who rejected the decrees of the councils of Ephe- sus and Chalcedon, with the utmost indulgence and lenity. But as an uninterrupted course of success and prosperity renders, too generally, cor- rupt mortals insolent and imperious, so the modera- tion of this victorious sect degenerated by degrees into severity ; and they treated the Christians, at length, rather like slaves than citizens, loading them with unsupportable taxes, and obliging them to submit to a variety of vexatious and oppressive measures.

(r) See Ockley's Conquest of Syria, Persia, and Egypt, by the Saracens, the first part of which was published at London in the year 1708, and the second in 1717-

CHAP. ii. Calamitous Events. 163

VI. The progress, however, of this triumphant C^T. sect received a considerable check by the civil dissensions which arose among them immediately after the death of Mahomet. Abubeker and Ali, the former the father-in-law, and the latter the son-in-law, of this pretended prophet, aspired both to succeed him in the empire which he had erected. Upon this arose a tedious and cruel contest, whose flame reached to succeeding ages, and produced that schism which divided the Ma- hometans into two great factions, whose separa- tion not only gave rise to a variety of opinions and rites, but also excited the most implacable hatred, and the most deadly animosities. Of these factions, the one acknowledged Abubeker as the true calif, or successor of Mahomet, and its mem- bers were distinguished by the name of Sonnites ; while the other adhered to Ali, and were known by the title of Schiites (s). Both, however, ad- hered to the Alcoran as a divine law, and the rule of faith and manners ; to which, indeed, the former added, by way of interpretation, the sonna, i. e. a certain law which they looked upon as descended from Mahomet by oral tradition, and which the Schiites refused to admit. Among the Sonnites, or followers of Abubeker, we are to reckon the Turks, Tartars, Arabians, Africans, and the greatest part of the Indian Mahometans ; whereas the Persians, and the subjects of the grand Mogul, are generally considered as the followers of Ali ; though the latter indeed seem rather to observe a strict neutrality in this contest.

Besides these two grand factions, there are other subordinate sects among the Mahometans, which

(*) See Reland, De Religione Turcica, lib. i. p. 36. 70. 74. 85. Chardin, Voyages en Perse, torn. ii. p. 236.

M 2

External History of the Church.

CENT, dispute with warmth concerning several points of PART i. re%i°n> though without violating the rules of

L mutual toleration (/). Of these sects there are

four, which far surpass the rest in point of re- putation and importance.

(t) For an account of the Mahometan sects, see Hottin- ger, Histor. Orient, lib. ii. cap. vi. p. 340. Ricaut, Etat de 1'Empire Ottoman, livr. ii. p. 242. Chardin's Voyages en Perse, torn. ii. p. 236. Sale's Preliminary Discourse, sect. viii. p. 151.

PART II.

THE INTERNAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH,

CHAPTER I.

Concerning the State of Letters and Philosophy, during this Century.

I. NOTHING can equal the ignorance and dark- CENT. ness that reigned in this century ; the most impar- PA^'H>

tial and accurate account of which will appear in- _

credible to those who are unacquainted with the The state productions of this barbarous period. Any re- of letrnm* mains of learning and philosophy that yet survived were, a few particular cases excepted, to be found principally among the Latins, in the obscure re- treats of cloistered monks. The monastic institu- tions prohibited the election of any abbot to the head of a convent, who was not a man of learning, or, at least, endowed with a tolerable measure of the erudition of the times. The monks were obliged to consecrate certain hours every day to reading and study : and, that they might improve this appointment to the most advantageous pur- poses, there were, in most of the monasteries, stated times marked out, at which they were to assemble, in order to communicate to each other the fruits of their study, and to discuss the matters upon which they had been reading (a). The youth also, who were destined for the service of the church, were obliged to prepare themselves for their ministry by a diligent application to study ; and in this they were directed by the monks,

(a) See Mabillon, Acta SS. Ord. Benedict!, torn. ii. p. 479.

166 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, one of whose principal occupations it was to pre- TART ii. s*de over the education of the rising priesthood.

It must, however, be acknowledged, that all

these institutions were of little use to the advance- ment of solid learning, or of rational theology, because very few in these days were acquainted with the true nature of the liberal arts and sciences, or with the important ends which they were adapted to serve ; and the greatest part of those wlio were looked upon as learned men threw away their time in reading the marvellous lives of a parcel of fanatical saints, instead of employ- ing it in the perusal of well-chosen and excellent authors. They, who distinguished themselves most by their taste and genius, carried their stu- dies little farther than the works of Augustin, and Gregory the Great ; and it is of scraps col- lected out of these two writers, and patched to- gether without much uniformity, that the best productions of this century are entirely com- posed.

II. The sciences enjoyed no degree of protec- at ^s tmie> fr°m kmgs alld princes, nor did they owe any thing to men of high and emi- nent stations in the empire. On the other hand, the schools which had been committed to the care and inspection of the bishops, whose ignorance and indolence were now become enormous, began to decline apace, and were, in many places, fallen into ruin (&). The bishops in general were so illiterate, that few of that body were capable of composing the discourses which they delivered to the people. Such of them as were not totally destitute of genius composed out of the writings of Augustin and Gregory, a certain number of insipid homilies, which they divided between themselves and their stupid colleagues, that they might not be obliged through incapacity to dis-

(6) Histoirc Litteraire de la France, torn. iii. p. 428.

CHAP. i. Learning and Philosophy. 167

continue preaching the doctrines of Christianity C^T- to their people, as appears evident by the exam- PART'II( pies of Ca3sarius bishop of Aries, and Eloi bishop - of Noyon (c). There is yet extant a summary of theological doctrine, which was unskilfully compiled by Taion bishop of Saragossa, from the writings of Augustin and Gregory ; and which was so highly exalted in this illiterate age, that its author was called, by the rest of the bishops, the true salt of the earth, and a divine light that was sent to illuminate the world (d). Many such instances of the ignorance and barbarity of this century will occur to those who have any ac- quaintance with the writers it produced. Eng- land, it is true, was happier in this respect than the other nations of Europe, which was principally owing to Theodore of Tarsus, of whom we shall have occasion to speak afterwards, who was ap- pointed archbishop of Canterbury, and contri- buted much to introduce, among the English, a certain taste for literary pursuits, and to excite in that kingdom a zeal for the advancement of learning (e).

III. In Greece, the fate of the sciences truly lamentable. A turgid eloquence, and an

affected pomp and splendor of style, which cast a ing sunk perplexing obscurity over subjects in themselves ^^ba~ the most clear and perspicuous, was now the high- corruption. est point of perfection to which both prose writers and poets aspired. The Latin eloquence was still vastly below that of the Greeks ; it had not spirit

lUg0 (c) In the original we read Eligius Noviomagensis, which is a mistake either of the author, or printer. It is pro- bable that Noviomagensis has slipt from the pen of Dr. Mo- sheim, in the place of Noviodunensis ; for Eloi was bishop of Noyon, and not of Nimeguen.

(rf) Mabillon, Analecta Veteris ^Evi, torn. i. p. 4-2.

(e) Wilkin's Concilia Magnae Britanniae, torn. i. p. 42. Conringii Antiquitat. Academics, p. 277.

168 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, enough even to be turgid, and, a few composi* YART ii. ti°ns excepted, was sunk to the very lowest degree _ 1 of barbarity and corruption. Both the Greek and Latin writers, who attempted historical com- positions, degraded most miserably that important science. Moschus and Sophronius among the former ; and among the latter Braulio, Jonas an Hibernian, Audoenus, Dado, and Adamannus, wrote the lives of several saints ; or rather a heap of insipid and ridiculous fables, void of the least air of probability, and without the smallest tinc- ture of eloquence. The Greeks related, without discernment or choice, the most vulgar reports that were handed about concerning the events of ancient times; and hence that multitude of ab- surd fables, which the Latins afterwards copied from them with the utmost avidity. T^ffat1of IV. Among the Latins philosophy was at its

philosophy. . » J .

lowest ebb. If there were any that retained some faint reluctance to abandon it entirely, such con- fined their studies to the writings of Boetius and Cassiodorus, from which they committed to me- mory a certain number of phrases and sentences ; and that was all their philosophical stock. The Greeks, abandoning Plato to the monks, gave themselves entirely up to the direction of Ari- stotle, and studied, with eagerness, the subtilties of his logic, which were of signal use in the con- troversies carried on between the Monophysites, the Nestorians, and Monothelites. All these dif- ferent sects called the Stagirite to their assistance, when they were to plead their cause, and to de- fend their doctrines. Hence it was, that James, bishop of Edessa, who was a Monophysite, trans- lated^ in this century, the dialectics of Aristotle into the Syriac language (/")•

See Assernanni Biblioth. Oriental. Vatican, torn. i. p. 498.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 169

CHAPTER II.

Concerning the Doctors and Ministers of the Church, and its Form of Government during this Century.

I. THE disputes about pre-eminence, that had so long subsisted between the bishops of Rome PART and Constantinople, proceeded, in this century to such violent lengths, as laid the foundations o that deplorable schism, which afterwards separated

the Greek and Latin churches. The most learned " the

writers, and those who are most remarkable for bishops of their knowledge of antiquity, are generally agreed that Boniface III. engaged Phocas, that abomi- nable tyrant, who waded to the imperial throne through the blood of the emperor Mauritius, to take from the bishop of Constantinople the title of oecumenical or universal bishop, and to confer it upon the Roman pontiff. They relate this, how- ever, upon the sole authority of Baronius, for none of the ancient writers have mentioned it. If, in- deed, we are to give credit to Anastasius, and Paul Deacon (^), something like what we have now re- lated was transacted by Phocas ; for when the bi- shops of Constantinople maintained that their church was not only equal in dignity and authority to that of Rome, but also the head of all the Christian churches, this tyrant opposed their pretensions, and granted the pre-eminence to the church of Rome ; and thus was the papal supremacy first introduced.

II. The Roman pontiffs used all sorts of me- The supre- thods to maintain and enlarge the authority and ™acy°fthe

, . , , , . * former op-

pre-emmence which they had acquired by a grant posed by from the most odious tyrant that ever disgraced

(g) Anastasius, De Vitis Pontificum. Paul. Diacon. De Rebus Gestis Longobard. lib. iv. cap. xxxvii. in Muratorii Scriptor. Rerum Italicar. torn, i, part I. p. 4-6.

170 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, the annals of history. We find, however, in the most authentic accounts of the transactions of

PART 1 1. . a>m£

this century, that not only several emperors and princes, but also whole nations, opposed the ambi- tious views of the bishops of Rome. The Byzan- tine history, and the Formulary of Marculfus, contain many proofs of the influence which the civil magistrate yet retained in religious matters, and of the subordination of the Roman pontiffs to the regal authority. It is true, the Roman writers affirm, that Constantine Pogonatus ab- dicated the privilege of confirming, by his appro- bation, the election of the bishop of that city; and, as a proof of this, they allege a passage of Anastasius, in which it is said, that according to an edict of Pogonatus, the pontiff, who should be elected, was to be ordained immediately, and with- out the least delay (/?). But every one must see, that this passage is insufficient to prove what these writers assert with such confidence. It is how- ever certain, that this emperor abated, some say remitted, the sum, which, since the time of Theo- doric, the bishops of Rome had been obliged to pay to the imperial treasury before they could be ordained, or have their election confirmed (e).

The ancient Britons and Scots persisted long in the maintenance of their religious liberty ; and

(h) Anastasii Vit. Pontif. in Bened. p. 146. in Muratorii Scriptor. Rerum Italicar. torn. iii.

(i) Anastas. Vit. Pontif. in Agathone, p. 144. compared with Mascovii Hist. German, torn. ii. p. 121. in the annota- tions. liSP0 It will not be amiss to observe here, that by the same edict, which diminished the ordination money paid by the bishops of Rome to the emperor, Constantine resumed the power of confirming the election of the pope, which his predecessors had invested in the exarchs of Ravenna; so that the bishop elect was not to be ordained till his election was notified to the court of Constantinople, and the imperial decree confirming it was received by the electors at Rome. See Anastasius, in his life of Agatho.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, £c. 171

neither the threats nor promises of the legates of CENT. Rome could engage them to submit to the decrees PART*H>

and authority of the ambitious pontiff, as appears

manifestly from the testimony of Bede. The churches of Gaul and Spain attributed as much authority to the bishop of Rome, as they thought suitable to their own dignity, and consistent with their interests; nay, even in Italy, his supreme authority was obstinately rejected, since the bi- shop of Ravenna, and other prelates, refused an implicit submission to his orders (&). Besides all this, multitudes of private persons expressed pub- licly, and without the least hesitation, their ab- horrence of the vices, and particularly of the lordly ambition of the Roman pontiffs : and it is highly probable, that the Valdenses or Vaudois had already, in this century, retired into the val- leys of Piedmont, that they might be more at their liberty to oppose the tyranny of those imperious prelates (/).

III. The progress of vice among the subordi- Vices of nate rulers and ministers of the church was, attheclergy* this time, truly deplorable ; neither bishops, pres- byters, deacons, nor even the cloistered monks, were exempt from the general contagion, as ap- pears from the unanimous confession of all the writers of this century that are worthy of credit. In those very places, that were consecrated to the advancement of piety, and the service of God, there was little else to be seen than ghostly ambi- tion, insatiable avarice, pious frauds, intolerable pride, and a supercilious contempt of the natural rights of the people, with many other vices still more enormous. There reigned also in many places the most bitter dissensions between the bi- shops and the monks. The former had employed

(k) See Geddes* Miscellaneous Tracts, torn. ii. p. 6. (1) See Antoine Leger, Histoire des Eglises Vaudoises, livr. i. p. 15.

172 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, the greedy hands of the latter to augment the

VII ' i i i «i

PART'H. ePlsc°Pal treasure, and to draw contributions

from all parts to support them in their luxury, and the indulgence of their lusts. The monks perceiv- ing this, and also unwilling to serve the bishops in such a dishonourable character, fled for refuge to the emperors and princes, under whose civil juris- diction they lived ; and afterwards, for their fur- ther security, had recourse to the protection of the Roman pontiff (in). This protection they readily obtained, and the imperious pontiffs, always fond of exerting their authority, exempted, by de- grees, the monastic orders from the jurisdiction of the bishops. The monks, in return for this important service, devoted themselves wholly to advance the interests, and to maintain the dignity of the bishop of Rome. They made his cause their own, and represented him as a sort of god to the ignorant multitude, over whom they had gained a prodigious ascendant by the notion that generally prevailed of the sanctity of the monastic order. It is, at the same time, to be observed, that this immunity of the monks was a fruitful source of licentiousness and disorder, and occa- sioned the greatest part of the vices with which they were afterwards so justly charged. Such, at least, is the judgment of the best writers upon this subject (n).

The state o IV. In the mean time the monks were every the monirs. where m high repute, and their cause was accom- panied with the most surprising success, particu- larly among the Latins, through the protection

(m) See Launoii Assertio Inquisitionis in Chartam Immu- nitatis S> Germani, opp. torn, iii, part I. p. 50. Baluzii Mis- cellan. torn. ii. p. 159. torn. iv. p. 108, Muratorii Antiq. Italic, torn. ii. p. 944. 949.

(w) See Launoii Examen Privilegii S. Germani, torn. iii. part I. p. 282. Wilkins Concilia Magnse Britannia, torn. i. p. 43, 44. 49, &c.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &e. 173

and favour of the Roman pontiff, and their pha- CENT. risaical affectation of uncommon piety and devo- p^i^ii

tion. The heads of families, striving to surpass 1

each other in their zeal for the propagation and advancement of monkery, dedicated their chil- dren to God, by shutting them up in convents, and devoting them to a solitary life, which they looked upon as the highest felicity (o) ; nor did they fail to send with these innocent victims a rich dowry. Abandoned profligates, who had passed their days in the most enormous pursuits, and whose guilty consciences filled them with terror arid remorse, were comforted with the delusive hopes of obtaining pardon, and making atonement for their crimes, by leaving the greatest part of their fortune to some monastic society. Multi- tudes, impelled by the unnatural dictates of a gloomy superstition, deprived their children of fertile lands and rich patrimonies, in favour of the monks, by whose prayers they hoped to render the Deity propitious. Several ecclesiastics laid down rules for the direction of the monastic or- ders. Those among the Latins, who undertook this pious task, were Fructuosus, Isidore, Johan- nes Gerundinensis, and Columba (p). The rule of discipline, prescribed by St. Benedict, was not as yet so universally followed as to exclude all others.

V. The writers of this age, who distinguished The Greek themselves by their genius or erudition, were very wnters> few in number. • Among the Greeks the first rank is due to Maximus, a monk, who disputed with great obstinacy and warmth against the Mo- nothelites, composed some illustrations upon the Holy Scriptures, and was, upon the whole, a man of no mean capacity, though unhappy through the impatience and violence of his natural temper.

(o) Gervnis, Histoire de 1'Abbe Suger, torn. i. p. 9—16. (/?) Lucae Holstenii, Codex Regular, torn. ii. p. 225.

1T4» The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. Isychius, bishop of Jerusalem, explained several PART ii. books of Scripture (</) ; and left behind him se- veral Homilies, and some productions of less im- portance.

Dorotheus, abbot of Palestine, acquired a con- siderable name by his Ascetic Dissertations, in which he laid down a plan of monastic life and manners.

Antiochus, a monk of Saba in Palestine, and a monk of a very superstitious complexion, com- posed a Pandect of the Holy Scriptures, i. e. a summary or system of the Christian doctrine, which is by no means worthy of the highest com- mendation.

Sophronius, bishop of Jerusalem, was rendered illustrious, and attracted the veneration of suc- ceeding ages, by the controversies he carried on against those who, at this time, were branded with the name of Heretics ; and particularly against the Monothelites, of whose doctrine he was the first opposer, and also the fomenter of the dispute which it occasioned (r).

There are yet extant several Homilies, attri- buted to Andrew, bishop of Crete, which are de- stitute of true piety and eloquence, and which are, moreover, considered by some writers as entirely spurious.

Gregory, surnamed Pisides, deacon of Con- stantinople, besides the History of Heraclius and the Avares, composed several poems, and other pieces of too little moment to deserve mention.

Theodore, abbot of Raithu, published a book, which is still extant, against those sects who seemed to introduce corrupt innovations into the Christian religion, by their doctrine relating to the person of Christ.

(g) See Simon, Critique de la Bibliotheque des Auteurs Ecclesiastiques de M. Du Pin, torn. i. p. 261.

(r) See the Acta Sanctorum, torn, ii. Martii ad d. xi. p. 65.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 175

VI. Among the Latin writers, a certain man- CENT. ber were distinguished from the rest by their su- perior abilities. Ildefonse, archbishop of Toledo,

was reputed for his learning ; the Spaniards, how- The Latin ever, attribute to him, without foundation, certain Wl treatises concerning the Virgin Mary (s).

We have yet extant Two Books of Epistles, written by Desiderius, bishop of Cahors, and pub- lished by the learned Canisius.

Eligius, or Eloi, bishop of Limoges, left behind him several Homilies, and some other productions.

Marculf, a Gallic monk, composed Two Books of ecclesiastical Forms, which are highly valuable, as they are extremely proper to give us a just idea of the deplorable state of religion and learning in this century (£).

Aldhelm, an English prelate, composed several poems Concerning the Christian life, which exhibit but indifferent marks of genius and fancy (u).

Julian Pomerius confuted the Jews, and acquired a name by several other productions, which are neither worthy of much applause nor of utter con- tempt. To all these we might add Cresconius, whose Abridgment of the Canons is well known ; Fredegarius the historian, and a few others.

(#) See the Acta Sanctorum, Januar. torn. ii. p. 535.

(t) Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. iii. p. 565.

S^p* (u) This prelate certainly deserved a more honour- able mention than is here made of him by Dr. Mosheim. His poetical talents were by no means the most distinguish ing part of his character. He was profoundly versed in the Greek, Latin, and Saxon languages. He appeared also with dignity in the paschal controversy, that so long divided the Saxon and British churches. See Collier's Ecclesiastical Hist. vol. i. p. 121.

The Internal History of the Church.

CHAPTER III.

Concerning the Doctrine of the Christian Church, in this Century.

CENT. I. IN this barbarous age, religion lay expiring r under a motley and enormous heap of super-

J I . .. . f f Til • i i

stitious inventions, and had neither the courage

Thedqrfo- nor the force to raise her head, or to display ° 1. her native charms, to a darkened and deluded world. In the earlier periods of the church, the worship of Christians was confined to the one Su- preme God, and his Son Jesus Christ ; but the Christians of this century multiplied the objects of their devotion, and paid homage to the re- mains of the true cross, to the images of saints, and to bones, whose real owners were extremely dubious (w). The primitive Chris- tians, in order to excite men to a course of piety and virtue, set before them that heavenly state, and those mansions of misery, which the gospel has revealed as the different portions of the

(w>) It will not be amiss to quote here a remarkable passage out of The Life of St. Eligius, or Eloi, bishop of Noyon, which is to be found in Dacherius' Spicilegium veter. Scriptor. torn. ii. p. 92. This passage, which is very proper to give us a just idea of the piety of this age, is as follows: " Huic sanctissimo viro inter cetera virtutum suarum miracula id etiam a Domino concessum erat, ut sanctorum martyrum cor- pora, quae per totsaecula abdita populis hactenus habebantur, eo investigante ac nimio ardore fidei indagante, patefacta pro- derentur." It appears by this passage, that St. Eloi was a zealous relic-hunter, and if we may give credit to the writer of his life, he was very successful at this kind of game, for he smelt and unkennelled the carcases of St. Quintin, St. Plato, St. Crispin, St. Crispinian, St. Lucian, and many more. The bishops of this age, who were either ambitiously de- sirous of popular applause, or intent upon accumulating riches, and filling their coffers with the oblations of a super- stitious people, pretended to be endowed with a miraculous sagacity in discovering the bodies of saints and martyrs.

PART II.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 177

righteous and the wicked ; while the Christians of CENT. this century talked of nothing else but a certain fire, which effaced the stains of vice, and purified souls from their corruption. The former taught that Christ, by his sufferings and death, had made atonement for the sins of mortals ; the latter seemed, by their superstitious doctrine, to exclude from the kingdom of heaven such as had not contributed, by their offerings, to augment the riches of the clergy or the church (>). The former were only studious to attain to a virtuous simplicity of life and manners, and employed their principal zeal and diligence in the culture of true and genuine piety ; while the latter placed the whole of religion in external rites and bodily ex- ercises. The methods also of solving the diffi- culties, and dissipating the doubts, that often arose in inquisitive minds, were of a piece with the rest of the superstitious system that now prevailed. The two great and irresistible argu-

(x) St. Eligius, or Eloi, expresses himself upon this matter in the following manner : " Bonus Christianas est, qui ad ecclesiam frequenter venit, et oblationem, quse in altari Deo offeratur, exhibet; qui de fructibus suis non gustat, nisi prius Deo aliquid offerat j qui, quoties sanctse solemni- tates adveniunt, ante dies plures castitatem etiam cum pro- pria uxore custodit, ut secura conscientia Domini altare accedere possit; qui postremo symbolum vel orationem Do- minicam memoriter tenet. — Redimite animas vestras de poena, dum habetis in potestate remedia — oblationes et de- cimas ecclesiis offerte, luminaria sanctis locis, juxta quod habetis, exhibite — ad ecclesiam quoque frequentius conve-. nite, sanctorum patrocinia humiliter expetite — quod si ob- servaveritis, securi in die judicii ante tribunal aeterni Judicis venientes dicetis: Da, Domine, quia dedimus." I^^We see here a large and ample description of the character of a good Christian, in which there is not the least mention of the love of God, resignation to his will, obedience to his laws, or of justice, benevolence, and charity towards men; and in which the whole of religion is made to consist in coming often to the church, bringing offerings to the altar, lighting candles in consecrated places, and such like vain services. VOL. II. N

178 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, ments against all doubts, were the authority of the 1AY?' church, and the working of miracles: and the

JfAKl II. . pi i« • •

production or these prodigies required no extra- ordinary degree of dexterity in an age of such gross and universal ignorance.

The exposi- jj. ]?ew either of the Greeks or Latins applied H™iy Scrip- themselves to the interpretation of the Holy tures. Scriptures during this century. There are yet extant some commentaries of Isychius bishop of Jerusalem, upon certain books of the Old Testa- ment, and upon the Epistle to the Hebrews. Maximus published a solution of Ixv questions re- lating to the Holy Scriptures, and other produc- tions of the same nature. Julian Pomerius at- tempted, but without success, to reconcile the seeming contradictions that are to be found in the sacred writings, and to explain the prophecy of Nahum. All these writers were manifestly in- ferior to the meanest expositors of modern times. The Grecian doctors, particularly those who pre- tended to be initiated in the most mysterious depths of theology, were continually hunting after fan- tastic allegories, as is evident from the Questions of Maximus already mentioned. The Latins, on the contrary, were so diffident of their abilities, that they did not dare to enter these allegorical labyrinths, but contented themselves with what flowers they could pluck out of the rich collections of Gregory and Augustin. Of this we see a manifest example in Paterius' Exposition of the Old and New Testament, which is entirely com- piled from the writings of Gregory the Great (#). Among the interpreters of this century, we must not forget Thomas, bishop of Heraclea, who gave

(y) This useless production has been usually published with the works of Gregory the Great : in consequence of which, the Benedictine monks have inserted it in their splendid edition of the works of that pontiff, torn. iv. part II.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 179

a second Syriac version of all the books of the CENT. New Testament (*).

PART II.

III. While philosophy and theology had scarcely any remains of life, any marks of existence among the Latins, the Greeks were wholly occupied with l controversies about certain particular branches of religion, and never once thought of reducing all the doctrines of Christianity into one regular and rational system. It is true, Antiochus, a monk of Palestine, composed a short summary of the Christian doctrine, which he entitled, The Pandect of the Holy Scriptures. It is, however, easy to perceive what sort of an author he was, how void of dignity and true judgment, from many circumstances, and particularly from that rueful poem which is subjoined to his work ; in which he deplores, in lamentable strains, the loss of that precious fragment of the true cross, which is said to have been carried away by the Persians, among other spoils. The most elegant and judi- cious summary of theology that appeared among the Latins in this century was the Treatise of Ildefonse, De Cognitione Baptismi, which was saved, by Balusius, from the ruins of time ; a work, indeed, which is not extremely necessary, since the impious frauds of superstition have been so fully brought to light, though it contains re- markable proofs, that many of the corrupt addi- tions and inventions, which disfigure Christianity in the popish churches, were not contrived till after this period (a). The dry and insipid body

(2) Jos. Sim. Assemanni Biblioth. Orient. Vatican, torn. ii. p. 93, 94.

(a) See Baluzii Miscellanea, torn. vi. p. 1. From the work of Ildefonsus it appears evident, that the monstrous doctrine of Transubstantiation was absolutely unknown to the Latins in this century; see C. 137. p. 99 ; that the Holy Scrip- tures were in the hands of all Christians, and were perused

180 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, of divinity, composed by Taio, or Tago, bishop of PART ii Saragossa, under the title of Five Books of Sen- 1 tences, and compiled from the writings of Gre- gory and Augustin, is scarcely worthy of mention, though, in this century, it was considered as an admirable and immortal work (&).

Several particular branches of doctrine were treated by the theological writers of this age: Thus Maximus wrote concerning the Nature of Theology, and the Manifestation of the Son in the Flesh, and also concerning the Two Natures in Christ ; and Theodore Raithu composed a treatise concerning Christ's Incarnation. But a small ac- quaintance with the state of learning and religion at this period will enable us to form a just, though disadvantageous idea of the merit of these per- formances, and also of their authors.

Moral \vri- IV. The moral writers of this century, and their miserable productions, show too plainly to what a wretched state that noble and important science was now reduced. Among these moral- ists, the first rank is due to Dorotheus, author of the Ascetic Dissertations ; Maximus ; Aid- helm ; Hesychius ; Thalassius ; and some others ; yet, even in their productions, what groveling notions do we find ! what rubbish ! what a heap of superstitious fancies ! and how many marks of extravagance, perplexity, and doubt ! Besides, the laity had little reason to complain of the severity of their moral directors, whose custom it was to reduce all the obligations of

by them without the least molestation or restraint, C. 80. p. 59. Ildefonsus, it is true, is zealous in banishing reason and philosophy from religious matters ; he, however, establishes the Holy Scriptures and the writings of the ancient doctors as the supreme tribunals before which all theological opinions are to be tried, p. 14. 22.

(6) See Mabillon, Analecta Veteris JEvi, torn. ii. p. 68.

ters.

HAP. m. The Doctrine of the Church. 181

Christianity to the practice of a small number CENT. of virtues, as appears from Aldhelm's Treatise P™u.

concerning the eight principal Virtues. Nor was .

the neglect of these duties attended with such pe- nalties as were proper to restrain offenders. The false notions also, which prevailed in this age, tended much to diminish a just sense of the nature and obligation of virtue ; for the solitude of the monastic life, though accompanied with no marks of solid and genuine piety, was deemed sufficient to atone for all sorts of crimes, and was therefore honoured among the Latins with the title of the second baptism ; which circumstance alone may serve to show us the miserable state of Christianity at this time. The greatest part of the Grecian and Oriental monks laboured to arrive at a state of perfection by mere contemplation, and studi- ously endeavoured to form their temper and cha- racters after the model of Dionysius, the chief of the Mystics.

V. Theodore of Tarsus, a Grecian monk, re- The renew- stored among the Latins the discipline of penance, as it is commonly termed, which had been for a «] long time almost totally neglected, and enforced it by a body of severe laws borrowed from the Grecian canons. This zealous prelate, being raised beyond his expectation to the see of Canter- bury, A. D. 668, formed and executed several pious and laudable projects ; and among other things reduced to a regular science that branch of ecclesiastical law, which is known by the name of penitential discipline. He published a Peniten- tial, which was entirely new to the Latin world, by which the clergy were taught to distinguish sins into various classes, according as they were more or less heinous, private or public ; to judge of them and determine the degrees of their guilt by their nature and consequences ; the intention of the offender ; the time and place in which they

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, were committed ; and the circumstances with wn^cn tnev were ^tended. This new Penitential 1 contained also the methods of proceeding with respect to offenders ; pointed out the penalties that were suitable to the various classes of trans- gressions ; prescribed the forms of consolation, ex- hortation, and absolution ; and described, in an ample and accurate manner, the duties and obliga- tions of those who were to receive the confessions of the penitent (V). This new discipline, though of Grecian origin, was eagerly adopted by the Latin churches ; and in a short space of time, passed from Britain into all the western provinces, where the book of Theodore became the model of all other penitentials, and was multiplied in a vast number of copies. The duration of this discipline was but transitory ; for, in the eighth century, it began to decline, and was, at length, entirely sup- planted by what was called the new canon of in- dulgences.

The state of VI. The doctors who opposed the various sects theology. are scarcely worthy of mention, and would de- serve still less an attentive perusal, did not their writings contribute to illustrate the history of the times in which they lived. Nicias composed two books against the Gentiles ; and Photius in- forms us, that a certain writer, whose name is unknown, embarked in the same controversy, and supported the good cause by a prodigious number of arguments drawn from ancient records and monuments (d). Julian Pomerius exerted his polemic talent against the Jews. The views

(c) The Penitential of Theodore is yet extant, though maimed and imperfect, in an edition published at Paris in the year 1679, in 4to. by Petit; and enriched with learned dissertations and notes of the editor. We have also the cxx Capitula Ecclesiast. Theodor. published in Dacherius' Spicile- gium, torn. ix. and in the Concilia Harduini, torn. iii. p. 1771.

(d) Biblioth. Cod. clxx. p. 379.

CHAP. in. T/ie Doctrine of the Church.

of Timotheus were yet more extensive ; for he CENT gave an ample description and a laboured con- futation of all the various heresies that divided the church in his book Concerning the Reception of Heretics.

As to the dissensions of the Catholic Christians among themselves, they produced, at this time, few or no events worthy of mention. We shall, therefore, only observe, that in this century were sown the seeds of those fatal discords, which rent asunder the bonds of Christian communion be- tween the Greek and Latin churches ; nay, these seeds had already taken root in the minds of the Greeks, to whom the Roman power became in- supportable, and the pretensions of the sovereign pontiff odious.

In Britain, warm controversies concerning bap- tism, the tonsure, and particularly the famous dispute concerning the time of celebrating the Easter festival, were carried on between the an- cient Britons, and the new converts to Chris- tianity which Augustin had made among the Anglo-Saxons (e). The fundamental doctrines of Christianity were not at all affected by these controversies, which, on that account, were more innocent, and less important than they would have

(e) Cummani Epistola in Jac. Usserii Sylloge Epistolar. Hibernicar. p. 23. Bedae Historia Ecclesiast. gentis Anglor. lib. iii. cap. xxv. Wilkins' Concilia Magnse Britann. tom.i. p. 37. 42. Acta Sanctor. Februar. torn. iii. p. 21. 84. Elg0 See also Dr. Warner's Ecclesiastical History of England, books II. and III. This history, which has lately appeared, de- serves the highest applause, on account of that noble spirit of liberty, candour, and moderation, that seems to have guided the pen of the judicious author. It were, at the same time, to be wished, that this elegant historian had less avoided citing authorities, and been a little more lavish of that erudi- tion which he is known to possess : for then after having sur- passed Collier in all other respects, he would have equalled him in that depth and learning, which are the only meritorious circumstances of his partial and disagreeable history.

184 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, otherwise been. Besides, they were entirely ter- PART *n. mniated in the eighth century, in favour of the

Anglo-Saxons, by the Benedictine monks

CHAPTER IV.

Concerning the Rites and Ceremonies used in the Church during this Century.

Religious I. IN the council of Constantinople, which was tnied™1" ca^e^ Quinisextum (»'), the Greeks enacted se- veral laws concerning the ceremonies that were to be observed in divine worship, which rendered their ritual, in some respects, different from that of the Romans. These laws were publicly re- ceived by all the churches, which were established in the dominions of the Grecian emperors ; and also by those which were joined with them in com- munion and doctrine, though under the civil jurisdiction of barbarian princes. Nor was this all : for every Roman pontiff added something new to the ancient rites and institutions, as if it was an essential mark of their zeal for religion, and of their pious discharge of the ministerial function, to divert the multitude with new shows and new spectacles of devout mummery. These superstitious inventions were, in the time of Charle- magne, propagated from Rome among the other Latin churches, whose subjection to the Roman ritual was necessary to satisfy the ambitious de- mands of the lordly pontiff.

(/) Mabillon,Praef.adSaec.iii. Benedictinum,p.2. also Dr. Warner's Ecclesiast. Hist, book III.

Efgg^g) This council was called Quinisextum, from its being considered as a supplement to the fifth and sixth councils of Constantinople, in which nothing had been decreed concern- ing the morals of Christians, or religious ceremonies,

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 185

II. It will not be improper to select here a few CENT. out of the many instances we could produce of the PART'II< multiplication of religious rites in this century. The number of festivals under which the church already groaned was now augmented ; a new addtion festival was instituted in honour of the true cross to the rituaL on which Christ suffered, and another in comme- moration of the Saviour's ascension into heaven. Boniface V. enacted that infamous law, by which the churches became places of refuge to all who fled thither for protection ; a law which procured a sort of impunity to the most enormous crimes, and gave a loose rein to the licentiousness of the most abandoned profligates. Honorius employed all his diligence and zeal in embellishing churches, and other consecrated places, with the most pom- pous and magnificent ornaments ; for as neither Christ, nor his apostles, had left any injunctions of this nature to their followers, their pretended vicar thought it but just to supply this defect by the most splendid display of his ostentatious bene- ficence. We shall pass in silence the riches and variety of the sacerdotal garments that were now used at the celebration of the eucharist, and in the performance of divine worship, as this would lead us into a tedious detail of minute and unimportant matters.

CHAPTER V.

Concerning the Divisions and Heresies that troubled the Church during this Century.

I. THE Greeks were engaged, during this The re- century, in the most bitter and virulent contro- ^™nf the versy with the Paulicians, whom they considered sects. as a branch of the Manichean sect, and who were settled in Armenia and the adjacent coun-

186 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, tries. This dispute was carried to the greatest PART ii. height under the reigns of Constans, Constan-

' tine Pogonatus, and Justinian II. ; and the

Greeks were not only armed with arguments, but were also, seconded by the force of military le- gions, and the terror of penal laws. A certain person, whose name was Constantine, revived, under the reign of Constans, the drooping fac- tion of the Paulicians, which was now ready to expire; and propagated with great success its pestilential (Ji) doctrines. But this is not the place to enlarge upon the tenets and history of this sect, whose origin is attributed to Paul and John, two brothers, who revived and modified the doctrine of Manes. As it was in the ninth

Paulicians. century that the Paulicians flourished most, and acquired strength sufficient to support the rigours of an open and cruel war with the Greeks, we shall reserve a more particular account of them for our history of that period.

Arians. II. In Italy, the Lombards preferred the opi-

nions of the Arians to the doctrine which was established by the council of Nice. In Gaul and

Pelagians, in England, the Pelagian and Semi-pelagian con- troversies continued to excite the warmest animo- sities and dissensions. In the eastern provinces, the ancient sects, which had been weakened and oppressed by the imperial laws, but neither totally extirpated nor destroyed, began, in many places, to raise their heads, to recover their vigour, and to gain proselytes. The terror of penal laws had obliged them, for some time, to seek their safety in their obscurity, and therefore to conceal their opinions from the public eye ; but as soon as they saw the fury or the power of their

(h) Photius, lib. i. contra Manich. p. 61. Petri Siculi Hi- storia Manich. p. 41. Georg. Cedrenus, Compend. Hist, p. 431. edit. Venet.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 187

adversaries diminish, their hopes returned, and CENT. their courage was renewed.

III. The condition, both of the Nestorians and Monophysites, was much more flourishing under the Saracens, who were now become lords of the east, than it had been hitherto under the Christian emperors, or even the Persian monarchs. These two sects met with a distinguished protection from their new masters, while the Greeks suffered under the same sceptre all the rigours of persecu- tion and banishment. Jesuiabas, the sovereign pontiff of the Nestorians, concluded a treaty, first with Mahomet, and afterwards with Omar, by which he obtained many signal advantages for his sect (i). There is yet extant a Testamentary Diploma of Mahomet, in which he promises and bequeaths to the Christians in his dominions, the quiet and undisturbed enjoyment of their reli- gion, together with their temporal advantages and possessions. Some learned men have, indeed, called in question the authenticity of this deed ; it is, however, certain, that the Mahometans una- nimously acknowledge it to be genuine (&). Ac- cordingly, the successors of Mahomet in Persia, employed the Nestorians in ,the most important

(i) Jos. Simon. Assemanni Biblioth. Orient. Vatican, torn, iii. part II. p. 94.

(&) This famous Testament of Mahomet was brought from the east, daring the last century, by Pacificus Scaliger, a Capuchin monk, and was published first in Arabic and Latin at Paris, by Gabriel Sionita, A. D. 1630, afterwards in Latin by the learned Fabricius, A. D. 1633; and also by Hinckelman, A. D. 1690. See Henr. Hottinger. Hist. Orient, lib. ii. cap. xx. p. 237. Assemanni Bib!. Orient. Vat. torn. iii. part II. p. 95. Renaudot, Histor. Patriar- char. Alexandr. p. 168. They who, in conformity with the opinion of Grotius, reject this Testament, suppose it forged by the Syrian and Arabian monks, with a view to soften the Mahometan yoke under which they groaned, and to render their despotic masters less severe. Nor is this representation of the matter at all incredible; for it is certain, that the monks of mount Sinai formerly showed an edict of Mahomet of the same nature with the one now under consideration,

!88 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, affairs, both of the cabinet and of the provinces, TART'II. anc^ suffered the patriarch of that sect only to re- side in the kingdom of Babylon (/). The Mono- physites enjoyed in Syria and Egypt an equal degree of favour and protection. Amrus, having made himself master of Alexandria, in the year 644, fixed Benjamin, the pontiff of the Monophy- sites, in the episcopal residence of that noble city ; and from this period, the Melchites (772) were with- out a bishop for almost a whole century (n).

which they pretend was drawn up by him while he was yet in a private station. This edict was extremely advantageous to them, and was undoubtedly an artful piece of forgery. The fraud was plain; but the Mahometans, in consequence of their ignorance and stupidity, believed it to be a genuine production of their chief, and continue still in the same opi- nion. There is an account of this fraud given by Cantimir in his Histoire de 1'Empire Ottoman, torn. ii. p. 269. The argu- ment therefore which Renaudot and others draw in favour of the Testament in question, from the acknowledgment which the Mahometans make of its authenticity, is of little or no weight; since the Mahometans of all others are the most liable to be deceived in things of this nature by their gross and unparalleled ignorance. On the other hand, several of the arguments used by those who deny the authenticity of this Testament, are equally unsatisfactory ; that particu- larly, which is drawn from the difference that there is be- tween the style of this deed and that of the Alcoran, proves absolutely nothing at all: since it is not essential to the genuineness of this Testament to suppose it penned by Ma- homet himself, because the impostor might have employed a secretary to compose it. But let this Testament be ge- nuine or spurious, it is undeniably certain that its contents were true, since many learned men have fully proved that Mahomet, at his first setting out, prohibited, in the strongest manner, the commission of all sorts of injuries against the Christians, and especially the Nestorians.

(/) Assemanni. 1. c. p. 97. Euseb. Renaud. Histor. Patri- arch. Alexandr. p. 163. 169.

|§|rj (m) The Melchites were those Christians in Syria, Egypt, and the Levant, who, though not Greeks, followed the doctrines and ceremonies of the Greek church. They were called Melchites, i. e. Royalists, by their adversaries, by way of reproach, on account of their implicit submission to the edict of the emperor Marcian, in favour of the coun- cil of Chalcedon.

(n) Euseb* Renaud. Hist. Patriarch. Alexandr. p. 168.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 189

IV. Though the Greek church was already CENT. torn asunder by the most lamentable divisions, yet its calamities were far from being at an end. A

PART

new sect arose, A. D. 630, under the reign of the ^°snothe" emperor Heraclius, which, in a short space of ' time, excited such violent commotions as engaged the eastern and western churches to unite their forces in order to its extinction. The source of this tumult was an unseasonable plan of peace and union. Heraclius, considering, with pain, the detriment which the Grecian empire had suf- fered by the migration of the persecuted Nesto- rians, and their settlement in Persia, was ardently desirous of reuniting the Monophysites to the bosom of the Greek church, lest the empire should receive a new wound by their departure from it. Pursuant to this idea, he held a conference during the Persian war, A. D. 622, with a certain per- son named Paul, a man of great credit and au- thority among the Armenian Monophysites; and another, at Hierapolis, in the year 629, with Athanasius, the Catholic or bishop of that sect, upon the methods that seemed most proper to re- store tranquillity and concord to a divided church. Both these persons assured the emperor, that they who maintained the doctrine of one nature might be induced to receive the decrees of the council of Chalcedon, and thereby to terminate their con- troversy with the Greeks, provided that the latter would give their assent to the truth of the follow- ing proposition, viz. " that in Jesus Christ there was, after the union of the two natures, but one will and one operation." Heraclius communicated this matter to Sergius, patriarch of Constantinople, who was a Syrian by birth, and whose parents ad- hered to the doctrine of the Monophysites. This prelate gave it as his opinion, that the doctrine of one will and one operation after the union of the

190 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, two natures, might be safely adopted without the PART ii 'east mJury to truth, or the smallest detriment to the authority of the council of Chalcedon. In con- sequence of this, the emperor published an edict, A. D. 630, in favour of that doctrine, and hoped, by this act of authority, to restore peace and con- cord, both in church and state (o).

The pro. V. The first reception of this new project was Si^doc- promising, and things seemed to go on smoothly, trine. For though some ecclesiastics refused submitting to the imperial edict ; yet Cyrus and Athana- sius, the patriarchs of Alexandria and Antioch, received it without hesitation ; and the see of Je- rusalem was at that time vacant (p). As to the Roman pontiff, he was entirely overlooked in the matter, as his consent was not considered as at all necessary in an affair that related only to the east- ern church. In the mean time, Cyrus, who had been promoted by Heraclius from the see of Phasis to that of Alexandria, assembled a council, by the seventh decree of which, the doctrine of Monothelitism, or one will, which the emperor had introduced by the edict already mentioned, was solemnly confirmed. This new modification of the doctrine of the council of Chalcedon, which seemed to bring it nearer to the Eutychian sy- stem, had the desired effect upon the Monothe- lites, and induced great numbers of them, who were dispersed in Egypt, Armenia, and other re- mote provinces, to return into the bosom of the church. They, however, explained the per- plexed and ambiguous doctrine of one will in

(o) The authors, who have written concerning this sect, are mentioned by Jo. Alb. Fabricius, in his Biblioth. Graec. vol. x. p. 204. The account which I have here given of them is drawn from the fountain head, and is supported by the best authorities.

(p) See Lequien, Orlens Christianus, torn. iii. p. 264.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 191

Christ, in a manner peculiar to themselves, and CENT. not quite conformable to the true principles of PART'ir> their sect.

VI. This smiling prospect of peace and con- T1!6 °w°~ .

» * . , sitson it met

cord was, however, but transitory, and was un- with. happily succeeded by the most dreadful tumults, excited by a monk of Palestine, whose name was Sophronius. This monk, being present at the council assembled at Alexandria by Cyrus, in the year 633, had violently opposed the decree, which confirmed the doctrine of one will in Christ. His opposition, which was then treated with con- tempt, became more formidable the following year ; when, raised to the patriarchal see of Je- rusalem, he summoned a council, in which the Monothelites were condemned as heretics, who revived and propagated the Eutychian errors con- cerning the mixture and confusion of the two natures in Christ. Multitudes, alarmed at the cry of heresy raised by this seditious monk, adopted his sentiments ; but it was Honorius, the Roman pontiff, that he laboured principally to gain over to his side. His efforts, however, were vain : for Sergius, the patriarch of Constan- tinople, having informed Honorius, by a long and artful letter, of the true state of the question, determined that pontiff in favour of the doctrine, which maintained one will and one operation in Christ (</). Hence arose those obstinate con-

(q) The Roman Catholic writers have employed all their art and industry to represent the conduct of Honorius in such a manner as to save his pretended infallibility from the charge of error in a question of such importance. (See among others, Harduin, De Sacramento Altaris, which is published in his Opera Selecta, p. 255.) And, indeed, it is easy to find both matter of accusation and defence in the case of this pontiff. On the one hand, it would appear that he himself knew not his own sentiments, nor attached any precise and definite meaning to the expressions he used in the course of this con- troversy. On the other hand, it is certain, that he gave it

193 . The Internal History of the Church. CENT, tests which rent the church into two sects, and

PAR* ii ^6 state *nto two Actions.

VII. In order to put an end to these commo-

Thecon- tions, Heraclius issued out, in the year 639, ikmedby the famous edict composed by Sergius, and the Ecthesis called the Ecthesis, or exposition of the faith, in

and the , . , ,, . , ,

Type. which all controversies, upon the question, whether in Christ there was one or . two operations, were strictly prohibited, though in the same edict the doctrine of one will was plainly inculcated. A considerable number of the eastern bishops de- clared their assent to this new law, which was also submissively received by their chief Pyrrhus, who, upon the death of Sergitis in the year 639, was raised to the see of Constantinople. In the west, the case was quite different. John, the fourth Roman pontiff of that name, assembled a council at Rome, A. D. 639, in which the Ecthesis was rejected, and the Monothelites condemned. Nor was this all : for, in the progress of this con- test, a new edict, known by the name of Type, or Formulary, was published in the year 648, by the emperor Constans, by the advice of Paul of Constantinople (r), by which the Ecthesis was suppressed, and the contending parties com- manded to terminate their disputes concerning the

as his opinion, that in Christ there was but one will and one operation. It was for this that he was condemned in the council of Constantinople, and he must of consequence be undoubtedly a heretic, if it is true that general councils cannot err. See Bossuet, in his Defence of the Declara- tion made by the G?llican Clergy, in the year 1682, con- cerning Ecclesiastical Power, part II. lib. xii. cap. xxi. p. 182. See also Basnage, Histoire de 1'Eglise, torn. i. p. 391. EfsH"3 (r) It is proper to observe here, that Paul, who was a Monothelite in his heart, and had maintained the Ecthesis with great zeal, fell upon this prudent measure with a view to appease the Roman pontiff and the African bishops, who were incensed against him to the highest degree, on account of his attachment to the doctrine of one will.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies.

one will, and the one operation in Christ, by ob- serving a profound silence upon that difficult and PART'n< ambiguous subject. This silence, which was so --- wisely commanded in a matter which it was im- possible to determine to the satisfaction of the contending parties, appeared highly criminal to the angry and contentious monks. They, there- fore, excited Martin, bishop of Rome, to oppose his authority to an edict which hindered them from propagating strife and contention in the church; and their importunities had the desired effect ; for this prelate, in a council of an hun- dred and five bishops assembled at Rome, A. D. 649, condemned both the Ecthesis and the Type, though without any mention of the names of the emperors who had published those edicts, and thundered out the most dreadful anathemas against the Monothelites and their patrons, who were so- lemnly consigned to the devil and his angels.

VIII. The emperor Constans, justly irritated ™e sixth at these haughty and impudent proceedings of Council. Martin, who treated the imperial laws with such contempt, ordered him to be seized and carried into the isle of Naxos, where he was kept prisoner a whole year. This order, which was followed with much cruel treatment, was executed by Calliopas, exarch of Italy, in the year 650 ; and at the same time, Maximus, the ringleader of the seditious monks, was banished to Bizyca ; and other rioters of the same tribe were differently punished in proportion to the part they acted in this rebellion. These resolute proceedings ren- dered Eugenius and Vitalianus, the succeeding bishops of Rome, more moderate and prudent than their predecessor had been ; especially the latter, who received Constans, upon his arrival at Rome in the year 663, with the highest marks of distinc- tion and respect, and used the wisest precautions

VOL. II. Q

194 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, to prevent the flame of that unhappy controversy PART it. fr°m breaking out a second time. And thus, for

• several years it appeared to be extinguished ; but

it was so only in appearance ; it was a lurking flame, which spread itself secretly, and gave rea- son to those who examined things with attention, to dread new combustions both in church and state. To prevent these, Constantine Pogonatus, the son of Constans, pursuant to the advice of Agatho, the Roman pontiff, summoned, in the year 680, the sixth general, or oecumenical council, in which he permitted the Monothelites and Pope Honorius himself to be solemnly condemned in presence of the Roman legates, who represented Agatho in that assembly, and confirmed the sen- tence pronounced by the council, by the sanction of penal laws enacted against such as pretended to oppose it.

A short jx. It is difficult to give a clear and accurate

doctrine of account of the sentiments of those who were called teiites°n°~ Monothelites ; nor is it easy to point out the objections of their adversaries. Neither of the contending parties express themselves consistently with what seem to have been their respective opinions ; and they both disavow the errors with which they reciprocally charge each other. The following observations contain the clearest notion we can form of the state of this subtile controversy. 1. The Monothelites declared, that they had no connexion with the Eutychians and Monophy- sites ; but maintained, in opposition to these two sects, that in Christ there were two distinct na- tures ; which were so united, though without the least mixture or confusion, as to form by their union only one person. 2. They acknowledged that the soul of Christ was endowed with a will, or faculty of volition, which it still retained after its union with the divine nature. For they taught

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 195

that Christ was not only perfect God, but also CENT.

VJUu PART II.

perfect man: from whence it followed, that his soul was endowed with the faculty of volition. . 3. They denied that this faculty of volition in the soul of Christ, was absolutely unactive, maintain- ing, on the contrary, that it co-operated with the divine will. 4. They, therefore, in effect, attri- buted to our Lord two wills, and these, moreover, operating and active. 5. They, however, affirmed, that, in a certain sense, there was in Christ but one will and one manner of operation.

X. We must not indeed imagine, that all, who Different were distinguished by the title of Monothelites, were unanimous in their sentiments with respect sect. to the points now mentioned. Some, as appears from undoubted testimonies, meant no more than this, that the two wills in Christ were one, i. e. in perfect harmony ; that the human will was in perpetual conformity with the divine, and was, consequently, always holy, just, and good ; in which opinion there is nothing reprehensible. Others, approaching nearer to the sentiment of the Monophysites, imagined that the two wills or faculties of volition in Christ were blended into one, in that which they called the personal union ; acknowledging, at the same time, that the di- stinction between these two wills was perceivable by reason, and that it was also necessary to distin- guish carefully in this matter. The greatest part of this sect, and those who were also the most re- markable for their subtilty and penetration, were of opinion, that the human will of Christ was the instrument of the divine ; or, in other words, never operated or acted of itself, but was always ruled, influenced, and impelled by the divine will ; in such a manner, however, that when it was once set in motion, it decreed and operated with the ruling principle. The doctrine of one

196 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, will and one operation in Christ, which the , A^n< Monothelites maintained with such invincible obs-

JfAKT II. . .

tmacy, was a natural consequence of this hypo- thesis ; since the operation of an instrument and of the being who employs it, is one simple operation, and not two distinct operations or energies. According to this view of things, the Eutychian doctrine was quite out of the question ; and the only point of controversy to be deter- mined, was, whether the human will in Christ was a self-moving faculty determined by its own internal impulse ; or whether, on the contrary, it derived all its motion and operations from the divine ?

In the mean time, we may learn from this con- troversy, that nothing is more precarious, and no- thing more dangerous and deceitful, than that religious peace and concord which are founded upon ambiguous doctrines, and cemented by ob- scure and equivocal propositions, or articles of faith. The partisans of the council of Chalcedon endeavoured to ensnare the Monophy sites, by pro- posing their doctrine in a manner that admitted of a double explication ; and by this imprudent piece of cunning, that showed so little reverence for the truth, they involved both church and state Their fate in tedious and lamentable divisions, funcnof XL The doctrine of the Monothelites, con- Constan- demncd and exploded by the council of Constan- Inople' tinople, found a place of refuge among the Mar- daites, a people who inhabited the mounts Liba- nus and Antilibanus, and who, about the conclu- sion of this century, were called Maronites, after Maro their first bishop, a name which they still retain. None of the ancient writers give any cer- tain account of the first pei*son who instructed these Mountaineers in the doctrine of the Mono- thelites ; it is probable, however, from several

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 197

circumstances, that it was John Maro, whose CENT. name they had adopted (V). One thing, indeed PART'n

we know, with the utmost certainty, from the

testimony of Tyrius and other unexceptionable witnesses, as also from the most authentic records, and that is, that the Maronites retained the opi- nions of the Monothelites until the twelfth cen- tury, when abandoning and renouncing the doc- trine of one will in Christ, they were re-admitted, in the year 1182, to the communion of the Ro- man church. The most learned of the modern Maronites have left no method unemployed to defend their church against this accusation ; they have laboured to prove, by a variety of testimo- nies, that their ancestors always persevered in the Catholic faith, in their attachment to the Roman pontiff, without ever adopting the doctrine either of the Monophy sites or Monothelites. But all their efforts are insufficient to prove the truth of these assertions to such as have any acquaintance with the history of the church, and the records of ancient times ; for to all such, the testimonies they allege will appear absolutely fictitious and desti- tute of authority (f).

(s) This ecclesiastic received the name of Maro, from his having lived in the character of a monk in the famous con- vent of St. Maro, upon the borders of the Orontes, before his settlement among the Mardaites of mount Libanus. For an ample account of this prelate, see Jos. Simon. Assemanni Bibliothec. Orient. Clement. Vatic, torn. i. p. 496.

(t) The cause of the Maronites has been pleaded by the writers of that nation, such as Abraham Echellensis, Gabriel Sionita, and others, but the most ample defence of their unin- terrupted orthodoxy was made by Faust. Nairon, partly in his Dissertatio de Origine, Nomine, ac Religione Marionitarum, published at Rome, A. D. 1679, and partly in his Euoplia Fidei Catholicae ex Syrorum et Chaldaeorum Monumentis, published in the same city in 1C24. None of the learned, however, were persuaded by his arguments, except Pagi* and La Rocque, of whom the latter has given us in his Voyage de Syrie et de Montliban, torn. ii.p. 28 — 128. a long

* See Critica Baroniana ad a 694.

198 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. XII. Neither the sixth general council, in Monothelites were condemned, nor the fifth, which had been assembled in the preceding

The council century, had determined any thing concerning ecclesiastical discipline, or religious ceremonies. To supply this defect, a new assembly of bishops was held, pursuant to the order of Justinian II. in a spacious hall of the imperial palace called Trullus, /. e. Cupola, from the form of the build- ing. This council, which met A. D. 692, was called Quinisextum, as we had occasion to observe formerly, from its being considered, by the Greeks, as a supplement to the fifth and sixth 03cumenical councils, and as having given to the acts of these assemblies the degree of perfection which they had hitherto wanted. There are yet extant an hundred and two laws, which were en- acted in this council, and which related to the ex- ternal celebration of divine worship, the govern- ment of the church, and the lives and manners of Christians. Of these there are six which are dia- metrically opposite to several opinions and rites of the Romish church ; for which reason the Ro- man pontiffs have refused to adopt, without re- striction, the decisions of this council, or to reckon it in the number of those called ecumenical, though

dissertation concerning the origin of the Maronites. Even the learned Assemannus, himself a Maronite, and who has spared no pains to defend his nation * against the reproach in question, acknowledges ingenuously, that among the argu- ments used by Nairon and others in favour of the Maronites, there are a great many destitute of force. See Jo. Morinus, De Ordinat. Sacris, p. 380. Rich. Simon, Histoire Critique des Chretiens Orientaux, chap. xiii. p. 146. Euseb. Renau- dot, Historia Patriarchar. Alexandrinor. p. 149. and Praef. ad Litturgias Orientales. Le Brun, Explication de la Messe, torn. ii. p. 626. Paris, 1726. The arguments of the contend- ing parties are enumerated impartially, in such a manner as leaves the decision to the reader by Le Quien, in his Oriens Christianus, torn. iii. p. 10.

* See Biblioth. Oriental, Vatican, torn. i. p. 496.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies.

they look upon the greatest part of its decrees as worthy of applause (u}. PART u.

(u) See Franc. Pagi Breviar. Pontif. Roman, torn. i. p. 486. Christ. Lupus, Dissertat. de Concilio Trullano, in Notis et Dissertat. ad Concilia, torn. iii. opp. p. 168. The Roman catholics reject the following decisions of this council: l.The fifth canon, which approves of the eighty-five apostolical canons commonly attributed to Clement. 2. The thirteenth canon, which allows the priests to marry. 3. The fifty-fifth canon, which condemns the sabbath fast, that was an insti- tution of the Latin church. 4. The sixty-seventh canon, which prescribes the most rigorous abstinence from blood and things strangled. 5. The eighty-second canon, which prohibits the representing Christ under the image of a lamb. 6. The thirty-sixth canon, concerning the equal rank and authority of the bishops of Rome and Constantinople.

AN

ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY.

BOOK THE THIRD.

CONTAINING THE

HISTORY OF THE CHURCH,

FROM

CHARLEMAGNE

TO

THE REFORMATION BY LUTHER.

THE

EIGHTH CENTURY.

PART 1.

THE EXTERNAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

CHAPTER I.

Concerning the Prosperous Events which hap- pened to the Church during this Century.

I. WHILE the Mahometans were infesting with CENT. their arms, and adding to their conquests, the n™*\

f\ * 1 * * r* A • "II • PART I.

most nourishing provinces of Asia, and obscuring

as far as their influence could extend, the lustre The gospel and glory of the rising church, the Nestorians of f^H^cania Chaldea were carrying the lamp of Christianity andTartary. among those barbarous nations, called Scythians by the ancients, and by the moderns, Tartars, who, independent on the Saracen yoke, had fixed their habitations within the limits of mount Imaus #.

-ir^r (fl) The southern regions of Scythia were divided by the ancients (to whom the northern were unknown) into three parts, namely, Scythia within, and Scythia beyond Imaus, and Sarmatia. It is of the first of these three that Dr. Mosheim speaks as enlightened at this time with the knowledge of the gospel ; and it comprehended Turkestan and Mongal, the Usbek or Zagata, Kalmuc and Nogaian Tartary, which were peopled by the Bactrians, Sogdians, Gandari, Sacs, and Massagetes, not to mention the land of Siberia, Samoiedes, and Nova Zembla, which were uninhabited in ancient times.

204 The External History of the Church.

CENT. It is now well known, that Timotheus, the Nes- ' pontiff, who had been raised to that dig-

nity, A. D. 778, converted to the Christian faith, by the ministry of Subchal Jesu, whom he had consecrated bishop, first the Gelae and Dailamites, by whom a part of Hyrcania was inhabited ; and afterwards, by the labours of other missionaries, the rest of the nations, who had formed settle- ments in Hyrcania, Bactria, Margiana, and Sog- dia (&). It is also certain, that Christianity en- joyed, in these vast regions, notwithstanding the violent attacks of the Mahometans to which it was sometimes exposed, the advantages of a firm and solid establishment for a long course of ages ; while the bishops, by whose ministry it was propa- gated and supported, were all consecrated by the sole authority of the Nestorian pontiff.

1 1. If we turn our eyes towards Europe, we fm& HI any nations that were as yet unenlightened with the knowledge of the gospel. Almost all the Germans (if we except the Bavarians, who had embraced Christianity under Theodoric, or Thierry, the son of Clovis, and the eastern Franks, with a few other provinces) lay buried in the grossest darkness of pagan superstition. Many attempts were made, by pious and holy men, to infuse the truth into the minds of these savage Germans ; and various efforts were used for the same purpose by kings and princes, whose interest it was to propagate a religion that was so adapted to mitigate and tame the ferocity of these warlike nations ; but neither the attempts of pious zeal, nor the efforts of policy, were attended with success. This great work was, however, effected in this century, by the ministry of Winfrid, a

(b) Thomas Margensis, Historian Monastics? lib. Hi. in Jos. Sim. Assemanni Bibliotheca Orient. Vatic, torn. iii. pars I. p. 491. See also this latter work, torn. iii. pars II. cap. ix. sect. 5. p. 478.

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events.

Benedictine monk, bora in England of illustrious CENT. parents, and afterwards known by the name of PART'^

Boniface. This famous ecclesiastic, attended by

two companions of his pious labours, passed over into Friesland, A. D. ^15, to preach the gospel to the people of that country, but this first at- tempt was unsuccessful ; and a war breaking out between Radbod, the king of that country, and Charles Martel, our zealous missionary returned to England. He resumed, however, his pious undertaking in the year 719 ; and being so- lemnly impowered by the Roman pontiff, Gre- gory II. to preach the gospel not only in Fries- land, but all over Germany, he performed the functions of a Christian teacher among the Thu- ringians, Frieslanders, and Hessians, with con- siderable success (V).

III. This eminent missionary was, in the year other Piou* 723, consecrated .bishop by Gregory II. who ffi£ changed the name of Winfrid into that of Bo- missionary, niface ; seconded also by the powerful protec- van^ment tiori, and encouraged by the liberality of Charles in the Martel, mayor of tfre palace to Chilperic, king ° of France, he resumed his ministerial labours among the Hessians and Thuringians, and finished with glory the task he had undertaken, in which he received considerable assistance from a number of pious and learned men, who repaired to him from England and France. As the Christian churches erected by Boniface were too numerous to be governed by one bishop, this prelate was ad- vanced to the dignity of archbishop, in the year 738, by Gregory III. by whose authority, and the auspicious protection of Carloman and Pepin, the

(c) An ample account of this eminent man is to be found in a learned dissertation of Gudenius, De S. Bonifacio Ger- manorum Apostolo, published in 4to at Helmstad in the year 1722. See also Jo. Al.Fabricii Biblioth. Latina Medii ./Evi, torn. i. p. 709. Hist. Litter, de la France, torn. iv. p. 92. Mabillon, in Annalibus Benedictinis, &c.

206 The External History of the Church.

CENT, sons of Charles Martel, he founded, in Germany, PART" i

" bishoprics of Wurtzburg, Burabourg, Erfurt,

and Aichstadt : to which he added, in the year 744, the famous monastery of Fulda. His last promotion, and the last recompense of his assiduous labours in the propagation of the truth, was his advancement to the archiepiscopal see of Mentz, A. D. 746, by Zachary, bishop of Rome, by whom he was, at the same time, created primate of Ger- many and Belgium. In his old age, he returned again to Friesland, that he might finish his mini- stry in the same place where he had entered first upon its functions ; but his piety was ill rewarded by that barbarous people, by whom he was mur- dered in the year 7^5, while fifty ecclesiastics, who accompanied him in this voyage, shared the same unhappy fate.

. IV. Boniface, on account of his ministerial la-

ment we°are bours and holy exploits, was distinguished by the tofo.rmc°n- honourable title of the Apostle of the Germans;

cernmg the . , ,- n i

apostieship nor, it we consider impartially the eminent ser- ofB°"iface- vices he rendered to Christianity, will this title appear to have been undeservedly bestowed. But it is necessary to observe, that this eminent pre- late was an apostle of modern fashion, and had, in many respects, departed from the excellent model exhibited in the conduct and ministry of the primitive and true apostles. Besides his zeal for the glory and authority of the Roman pontiff, which equalled, if it did not surpass his zeal for the service of Christ, and the propagation of his religion (d\ many other things unworthy of a

(d) The French Benedictine monks ingenuously confess that Boniface was an over zealous partizan of the Roman pontiff, and attributed more authority to him than was just and fitting. Their words, in their Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. iv. p. 106, are as follows : " II exprime son de- vouement pour le S. Siege en des termes qui ne sont pas assez proportiones a la dignite du caractere episcopal."

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 207

truly Christian minister are laid to his charge. CENT.

PART I.

In combating the pagan superstitions, he did not

always use those arms with which the ancient he- . raids of the gospel gained such victories in behalf of the truth; but often employed violence and terror, and sometimes artifice and fraud, in order to multiply the number of Christians. His epi- stles, moreover, discover an imperious and arro- gant temper; a cunning and insidious turn of mind ; an excessive zeal for increasing the honours and pretensions of the sacerdotal order; and a profound ignorance of many things of which the knowledge was absolutely necessary in an apostle, and particularly of the true nature and genius of the Christian religion.

V. The famous prelate, of whom we have been other apo- now speaking, was not the only Christian minister who attempted to deliver the German nations from to the the miserable bondage of pagan superstition ; se- veral others signalized their zeal in the same laudable and pious undertaking. Corbinian, a French Benedictine monk, after having laboured with vast assiduity and fervour in planting the gospel among the Bavarians, and other countries, became bishop of Friesingen (e). Firmin, a Gaul by birth, preached the gospel under various kinds of suffering and opposition in Alsatia, Bavaria, and Helvetia, now Switzerland, and had inspection over a considerable number of monasteries (y). Lebuin, an Englishman, laboured with the most ardent zeal and assiduity to engage the fierce and warlike Saxons, and also the Frieslanders, Belgse, and other nations, to receive the light of Christi- anity ; but his ministry was attended with very

(e) Baronius, Annal. Eccles. torn. viii. ad an. 716. sect. 10. Car. Maichelbeck, Histories Frisingensis torn. i.

(/) Herm. Bruschii Chronologia Monaster. German, p. 30. Anton. Pagi Critica in Annales Baronii, torn. ii. ad an. 759, sect. ix. Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. iv. p. 124.

SOS

The External History of the Church.

PART I. f

The expedi- tion of Charle- magne against the Saxons.

CENT, little fruit (g*). We pass over in silence several vm* apostles of less fame ; nor is it necessary to men- tion Willibrord, and others of superior reputation, who persisted now with great alacrity and con- stancy in the labours they had undertaken in the preceding century, in order to the propagation of divine truth.

VI. A war broke out, at this time, between Charlemagne arid the Saxons, which contributed much to the propagation of Christianity, though not by the force of a rational persuasion. The Saxons were, at this time, a numerous and formi- dable people, who inhabited a considerable part of Germany, and were engaged in perpetual quarrels with the Franks concerning their boun- daries, and other matters of complaint. Hence Charlemagne turned his arms against this power- ful nation, A. D. 77^, with a design not only to subdue that spirit of revolt with which they had so often troubled the empire, but also to abolish their idolatrous worship, and engage them to em- brace the Christian religion. He hoped, by their conversion, to vanquish their obstinacy, imagining that the divine precepts of the gospel would as- suage their impetuous and restless passions, miti- gate their ferocity, and induce them to submit more tamely to the government of the Franks. These projects were great in idea, but difficult in execution ; accordingly, the first attempt to convert the Saxons, after having subdued them, was unsuccessful, because it was made, without the aid of violence, or threats, by the bishops and monks, whom the victor had left among that con- quered people, whose obstinate attachment to ido- latry no arguments nor exhortations could over- come. More forcible means were afterwards used

(g) Huchbaldi Vita S. Lebuini in Laur. Surii Vitis Sane- tor, d. 12. Nov. p. 277. Jo. Mollei Cimbria Litterata, torn. ii. p. 464.

CHAP. I. Prosperous Events. -09

to draw them into the pale of the church, in the CENT. wars which Charlemagne carried on, in the years PART"Ia

775, 776, and 780, against that valiant people,

whose love of liberty was excessive, and whose aversion to the restraints of sacerdotal authority was inexpressible (A). During these wars, their attachment to the superstition of their ancestors was so warmly combated by the allurements of reward, by the terror of punishment, and by the imperious language of victory, that they suffered themselves to be baptized, though with inward reluctance, by the missionaries, which the empe- ror sent among them for that purpose («"). These

(h) It will be proper here to transcribe, from the epistles of the famous Alcuin, once abbot of Canterbury, a remark- able passage, which will show us the reasons which contri- buted principally to give the Saxons an aversion to Christianity, and, at the same time, expose the absurd and preposterous manner of teaching used by the missionaries, who were sent to convert them. This passage in the 104th epistle, and the 1647th page of his works, is as follows: " Si tanta instantia leve Christ! jugum et onus, ejus leve durissimo Saxonum po- pulo praedicaretur, quanta Decimarum redditi vel legalis, pro parvissimis quibuslibet culpis edictis necessitas exigebatur, forte baptismatis sacramenta non abhorrerent. Sint tandem aliquando Doctores fidei apostolicis eruditi exemplis: sint pra^dicatores, non praedatores." Here the reader may see a lively picture of the kind of apostles that flourished at this time ; apostles who were more zealous in exacting tythes, and extending their authority, than in propagating the sub- lime truths and precepts of the gospeL And yet these very apostles are said to have wrought stupendous miracles.

(i) Alcuinus apud Wilhelmum Malmesbur. De Gestis Re- gum Anglorum, lib. i. cap. iv. p. 23. inter Rerum Anglican Scriptores, Francofurti, A. D. 1601. editos. In this work we h'nd the following passage, which proves what we have said with respect to the unworthy methods that were used in con- verting the Saxons: " Antiqui Saxones et omnes Fresonum populi, instante Rege Carolo, alios prsemiis et alios minis sollicitantes ad fidem Christi conversi sunt." See also two passages in the Capitularia Regum Francor. torn, i. p. 246. and 252. From the first of these passages we learn, that those of the Saxons who abandoned the pagan supersti-

VOL. II. P

210 The External History of the Church.

CENT, seditions, indeed, were soon after renewed, and f°mente(i by Widekind and Albion, two of the 1 most valiant among the Saxon chiefs, who at- tempted to abolish the Christian worship by the same violent methods which had contributed to its establishment. But the courage and liberality of Charlemagne, alternately employed to suppress this new rebellion, engaged these chiefs to make a public and solemn profession of Christianity in the year 7&5, and to promise an adherence to that divine religion for the rest of their days (&). To prevent, however, the Saxons from renouncing a religion which they had embraced with re- luctance, several bishops were appointed to reside among them, schools also were erected, and mo- nasteries founded, that the means of instruction might not be wanting. The same precautions were employed among the Huns in Pannonia, to maintain in the profession of Christianity that fierce people whom Charlemagne had converted

tions were " restored to the liberty they had forfeited by the fate of arms, and freed from the obligation of paying tribute ;" and, in the second, we find the following severe law, that " every Saxon who contemptuously refused to receive the sacrament of baptism, and persisted in his adherence to paganism, was to be punished with death.*' While such rewards and punishments were employed in the cause of religion, there was no occasion for miracles to advance its progress, for these motives were sufficient to draw all man- kind to an hypocritical and external profession of the gospel ; but it is easy to imagine what sort of Christians the Saxons must have been, who were dragooned into the church in this abominable manner. Compare with the authors mentioned in this note, Launoius De veteri more baptizandi Judaeos et Infideles, cap. v, vi. p. 703. torn. ii. opp. part II. This author assures us, that Adrian, the first Roman pontiff of that name, honoured with his approbation Charlemagne's method of con- verting the Saxons.

(k) Eginartus, De Vita Caroii M. Adam Bremensis, lib. i. cap. viii. See also the writers of the history and exploits of Charlemagne, which are mentioned by Jo. Alb. Fabricius, in his Bibliotheca Latina medii aevi, torn. i. p. 959.

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events.

to the faith, when exhausted and dejected by various defeats, they were no longer able to make head against his victorious arms, and chose rather to be Christians than slaves (/).

VII. Succeeding generations, filled with a The judg. grateful sense of the famous exploits which Char- ^^0 lemagne had performed in the service of Christi- form of the

. J • i i • j j .1 • conversions

amty, canonized his memory, and turned this maae by bloody warrior into an eminent saint. In the Charie- twelfth century, Frederic I. emperor of the Ro- m mans, ordered Paschal II. whom he had raised to the pontificate, to enrol the name of this mighty conqueror among the tutelary saints of the church (m). And indeed Charlemagne merited this honour, according to the opinions which pre- vailed at that period of time; for to have en- riched the clergy with large and magnificent dona- tions (w), and to have extended the boundaries of the church, no matter by what methods, was then considered as the highest merit, and as a sufficient pretension to the honour of saintship. But in the esteem of those who judge of the nature and cha- racters of sanctity by the decisions of the gospel upon that head, the sainted emperor will appear utterly unworthy of that ghostly dignity. For, not to enter into a particular detail of his vices, whose number counterbalanced that of his virtues, it is undeniably evident, that his ardent and ill- conducted zeal for the conversion of the Huns, Frieslanders, and Saxons, was more animated by the suggestions of ambition, than by a principle

(/) Vita S. Rudberti in Henric. Canisii Lectionibus anti- quis, torn. iii. part II. p. 340. Pauli Debreceni Historia Ec- clesia; Reformat, in Hungar. et Transilvania a Lampio edita, part I. cap. ii. p. 10.

(m) Vid. Henr. Canisii Lectiones Antiques, torn. iii. pars II. p. 207. Walchii Dissert, de Caroli Magni Canoni- zatione.

(») Vid. Caroli Testamentum in Steph. Balusii Capitulari- bus Regum Francor. torn. i. p. 487.

The External History of the Church.

CENT, of true piety; and that his main view in these I-ART'I re%i°us exploits was to subdue the converted

1 nations under his dominion, and to tame them to

his yoke, which they supported with impatience, and shook off by frequent revolts. It is, more- over, well known, that this boasted saint made no scruple of seeking the alliance of the infidel Saracens, that he might be more effectually en- abled to crush the Greeks, notwithstanding their profession of the Christian religion (o). And of the VIII. The many and stupendous miracles, whkhTre wnicn are sa^ to have been wrought by the said to have Christian missionaries, who were sent to convert fomie^in tne barbarous nations, have lost, in our times, this century, the credit they obtained in former ages. The corrupt discipline that then prevailed admitted of those fallacious stratagems, which are very im- properly called pious frauds ; nor did the heralds of the gospel think it at all unlawful to terrify or allure to the profession of Christianity, by ficti- tious prodigies, those obdurate hearts, which they could not subdue by reason and argument. It is not, however, to be supposed, that all those, who acquired renown by their miracles, were charge- able with this fanatical species of artifice and fraud. For as, on the one hand, those ignorant and super- stitious nations were disposed to look upon, as miraculous, every event which had an unusual aspect ; so, on the other, the Christian doctors themselves were so uninstructed and superficial, so little acquainted with the powers of nature, and the relations and connexions of things in their ordinary course, that uncommon events, however natural, were considered by them as miraculous interpositions of the Most High. This will ap- pear obvious to such as, void of superstition and

(o) See Basnage, Histoire des Juifs, torn. ix. cap. ii. p. 40.

CHAP. ir. Calamitous Events.

partiality, read the Acts of the Saints who flourish- CENT.

VIII. PART I

ed in this and the following centuries.

CHAPTER II.

Concerning the Calamitous Events that happened to the Church during this Century.

I. THE eastern empire had now fallen from its The Sara. former strength and grandeur, through the re- cens be- peated shocks of dreadful revolutions, and the t°™ h™he consuming power of intestine calamities. The east> throne was now become the seat of terror, in- quietude, and suspicion j nor was any reign attend- ed with an uninterrupted tranquillity. In this century three emperors were dethroned, loaded with ignominy, and sent into banishment. Under Leo the Isaurian, and his son Constantine, sur- named Copronymus, arose that fatal controversy about the worship of images, which proved a source of innumerable calamities and troubles, and weakened, almost incredibly, the force of the em- pire. These troubles and dissensions left the Sara- cens at liberty to ravage the provinces of Asia and Africa, to oppress the Greeks in the most barbar- ous manner, and to extend their territories and do- minion on all sides, as also to oppose every where the progress of Christianity ; and, in some places, to extirpate it entirely. But the troubles of the empire, and the calamities of the church did not end here : for about the middle of this century, they were assailed by new enemies, still more fierce and inhuman than those whose usurpations they had hitherto suffered. These were the Turks, The incur. a tribe of the Tartars, or at least their descend- " the ants, who, breaking forth from the inaccessible wilds about mount Caucasus, overspread Colchis, Iberia, and Albania, rushed from thence into Ar- menia, and, after having subdued the Saracens,

The External History of the Church.

CENT, turned their victorious arms against the Greeks, 1 w^lom» m Process of time, they reduced under 1 their dominion.

Their pro- 1 1. In the year 714, the Saracens crossed the sea, grass u ic ^'^ separates Spain from Africa, dispersed the army of Roderic king of the Spanish Goths (p), whose defeat was principally due to the treachery of their general Julian, and made themselves masters of the greatest part of the territories of this vanquished prince. About the same time the empire of the Visigoths, which had subsisted in Spain above three hundred years, was totally overturned by these fierce and savage invaders, who also took possession of all the maritime coasts of Gaul, from the Pyrenean mountains to the river Rhone, from whence they made frequent excursions, and ravaged the neighbouring countries with fire and sword.

The rapid progress of these bold invaders was, indeed, checked by Charles Martel, who gained a signal victory over them in a bloody action near the city of Poictiers, A. D. 732 (?). But the vanquished spoilers soon recovered their strength and their ferocity, and returned with new violence to their devastations. This engaged Charlemagne to lead a formidable army into Spain, with a design to deliver that whole country from the oppressive yoke of the Saracens; but this grand enterprize, though it did not entirely miscarry, was not, however, attended with the signal success that was expected from it (r). The inroads of

(p) Jo. Mariana, Rerum Hispanicarum lib. vi. cap. xxi. Eusebe Renaudot. Histoire Patriarch. Alexandrin. p. 253. Jo. de Ferreras, Hist. d'Espagne, torn. ii. p. 425.

(g) Paulus Diaconus, De Gestis Longobard. lib. vi. cap. xlvi. liii. Jo. Mariana, Rerum Hispan. lib. vii. cap. iii. Bayle's Dictionary, at the article Abderamus, Ferreras, Hist. d'Espagne, torn. ii. p. 463.

(r) Henr. deBunau,TeutscheKeyser-und Reich's Histoire, torn. ii. p. 392. Ferreras, Hist. d'Espagne, torn. ii. p. 506.

CHAP. ii. Calamitous Events.

this warlike people were felt by many of the western provinces, besides those of France and PART *r. Spain. Several parts of Italy suffered from their incursions; the island of Sardinia was reduced under their yoke ; and Sicily was ravaged and op- pressed by them in the most inhuman manner. Hence the Christian religion in Spain and Sardinia suffered inexpressibly under these violent usurpers. In Germany, and the adjacent countries, the Christians were assailed by another sort of ene- mies; for all such as adhered to the pagan super- stitions beheld them with the most inveterate hatred, and persecuted them with the most unre- lenting violence and fury (s). Hence, in several places, castles and fortresses were erected to re- strain the incursions of these barbarian zealots.

(s) Servati Lupi Vita Wigberti, p. 304.

216 PART II.

THE INTERNAL HISTORY OF THE CHUItCH,

VIII. PART

CHAPTER I.

Concerning the State of Letters and Philosophy during this Century.

CENT. I. THERE were not wanting among the Greeks n men of genius and talents, who might have con- —1 tributed to prevent the total decline of literature ; The state but their zeal was damped by the tumults and de- amo^the solations that reigned in the empire; and while Greeks. both church and state were menaced with ap- proaching ruin, the learned were left destitute of that protection which gives both vigour and success to the culture of the arts and sciences. Hence, few or none of the Greeks were at all famous, either for elegance of diction, true wit, copious erudition, or a zealous attachment to the study of philosophy, and the investigation of truth. Frigid homilies, insipid narrations of the exploits of pre- tended saints, vain and subtle disputes about un- essential and trivial subjects, vehement and bom- bastic declamations for or against the erection and worship of images, histories composed without method or judgment ; such were monuments of Grecian learning in this miserable age. The pro- II. It must, however, be observed, that the Aristotelian Aristotelian philosophy was taught every where philosophy, in the public schools, and was propagated in all places with considerable success. The doctrine of Plato had lost all its credit in the schools, after the repeated sentences of condemnation that

CHAP. i. Letters and Philosophy.

had been passed upon the opinions of Origen, CENT. and the troubles which the Nestorian and Euty- p^"1*,

chian controversies had excited in the church ; i

so that Platonism now was almost confined to the solitary retreats of the monastic orders. Of all the writers in this century, who contributed to the illustration and progress of the Aristotelian philosophy, the most eminent was John Damas- cenus, who composed a concise, plain, and com- prehensive view of the doctrines of the Stagirite, for the instruction of the more ignorant, and in a manner adapted to common capacities. This little work excited numbers, both in Greece and Syria, to the study of that philosophy, whose pro- selytes increased daily. The Nestorians and Ja- cobites were also extremely diligent in the study of Aristotle's writings, from whence they armed themselves with sophisms and quibbles, which they employed against the Greeks in the con- troversy concerning the nature and person of Christ.

III. The literary history of the Latins exhibits The revival innumerable instances of the grossest ignorance (#), °|^rn|{| which will not, however, appear surprising to Latins by such as consider, with attention, the state Europe, in this century. If we except some poor remains of learning, which were yet to be found at Rome, and in certain cities of Italy (&), the sciences seemed to have abandoned the conti- nent, and fixed their residence in Britain and Ire- land (c). Those, therefore, of the Latin writers, who were distinguished by their learning and genius, were all (a few French and Italians

(a) Vicl Steph. Baluz. Observat. ad Reginonem Prumi- ensem, p. 540.

(b) Lud. Ant. Muratorii Antiq. Italicae Medii JEvi, torn. Hi. p. 811.

(c) Jac. Usserius, Praef. ad Syllogeu Epistolarum Hiber- nicarum.

318 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, excepted) either British or Scotch, such as Alcuin,

VIII. PART II.

VIir* Bede, Egbert Clemens, Dungallus, Acca, and

others. Charlemagne, whose political talents were embellished by a considerable degree of learning, and an ardent zeal for the culture of the sciences, endeavoured to dispel the profound ig- norance that reigned in his dominions ; in which excellent undertaking he was animated and di- rected by the councils of Alcuin. With this view he drew, first from Italy, and afterwards from Bri- tain and Ireland, by his liberality, eminent men, who had distinguished themselves in the various branches of literature; and excited the several orders of the clergy and monks, by various en- couragements, and the nobility, and others of eminent rank, by his own example, to the pur- suit of knowledge in all its branches, human and divine.

Cathedral IV. In the prosecution of this noble design, stic^hoois the greatest part of the bishops erected, by the erected. express order of the emperor, cathedral schools (so called from their lying contiguous to the prin- cipal church in each diocese), in which the youth, which were set apart for the service of Christ, received a learned and religious education. Those also of the abbots, who had any zeal for the cause of Christianity, opened schools in their monaste- ries, in which the more learned of the fraternity instructed such as were designed for the monastic state, or the sacerdotal order, in the Latin lan- guage, and other branches of learning, suitable to their future destination. It was formerly believed that the university of Paris was erected by Char- lemagne ; but this opinion is rejected by such as have studied, with impartiality, the history of this age ; though it is undeniably evident, that this great prince had the honour of laying, in some measure, the foundation of that noble insti- tution ; and that the beginnings from which it

CHAP. i. Letters and Philosophy. 219

arose were owing entirely to him (d). However CENT. this question be decided, it is undeniably certain, that the zeal of this emperor for the propagation and advancement of letters, was very great, and manifested its ardour by a considerable number of excellent establishments ; nor among others must we pass in silence the famous Palatine school, which he erected with a view to banish ignorance from his court; and in which the princes of the blood, and the children of the nobility, were edu- cated by the most learned and illustrious masters of the times (e}.

V. These excellent establishments were not, But not at- however, attended with the desired success ; nor ^desired* was the improvement of the youth, in learning success. and virtue, at all proportioned to the pains that were taken, and the bounty that was bestowed to procure them a liberal education. This, in- deed, will not appear surprising, when we con- sider, that the most learned and renowned masters of these times were men of very little genius and abilities, and that their system of erudition and philosophy was nothing more than a lean and ghastly skeleton, equally unfit for ornament and use. The whole circle of the sciences was com- posed of what they called the seven liberal arts, viz. grammar, rhetoric, logic, arithmetic, geome- try, music, and astronomy (jf) ; the three former

(d) The reasons that have been used, to prove Charle- magne the founder of the university of Paris, are accurately collected in Du Boulay, Historiae Academise Paris, torn. i. p. 91 . But they have been refuted by the following learned men in a victorious manner, viz. Mabillon, Act. Sanct. Ord. Benedict, torn. v. Praef. sect. 181, 182. Launoy. Claud. Joly, De Scholis.

(<?) Boulay, Histor. Academ. Paris, torn. i. p. 281. Mabil- lon, 1. c. sect. 179.

(f) Herm. Conringii Antiquitat. Academicae, Diss. iii. p. 80. Jac. Thomasii Programmata, p. 368. Observation. Ha- lensium, torn. vi. Observ. xiv. p. 118.

220 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, of which they distinguished by the title of tri- pA^inMri vmm> an(^ the f°ur ^tter by that of quadrivium. - Nothing can be conceived more wretchedly bar-

barous than the manner in which these sciences were taught, as we may easily perceive from Al- cuin's treatise concerning them (^) ; and the dis- sertations of St. Augustin on the same subject, which were in the highest repute at this time. In the greatest part of the schools, the public teachers ventured no further than the trivium, and confined their instructions to grammar, rhe- toric, and logic : they, however, who, after passing the trivium, and also the quadrivium, were de- sirous of rising yet higher in their literary pursuits, were exhorted to apply themselves to the study of Cassiodore and Boethius, as if the progress of hu- man knowledge was bounded by the discoveries of those two learned writers.

CHAPTER II.

Concerning the Doctors and Ministers of the Church, and its Form of Government during this Century.

The vices of L THAT corruption of manners, which dis- the clergy, honoured the clergy in the former century, in- creased, instead of diminishing, in this, and dis- covered itself under the most odious characters, both in the eastern and western provinces. In the east there arose the most violent dissensions and quarrels among the bishops, and doctors of the church, who, forgetting the duties of their stations, and the cause of Christ in which they were en- gaged, threw the state into combustion by their

(g) Alcuini Opera, part II. p. 124-5, edit. Quercetani. It is, however, to be observed, that the treatise of Alcuin, here referred to, is not only imperfect, but is also almost entirely transcribed from Cassiodore.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

outrageous clamours, and their scandalous divisions ; CENT. and even went so far as to embrue their hands p^^"

in the blood of their brethren who differed from , 1

them in opinion. In the western world, Chris- tianity was not less disgraced by the lives and k actions of those who pretended to be the lumi- naries of the church, and who ought to have been so in reality, by exhibiting examples of piety and virtue to their flock. The clergy abandoned themselves to their passions without moderation or restraint ; they were distinguished by their luxury, their gluttony, and their lust ; they gave themselves up to dissipations of various kinds, to the pleasures of hunting, and, what was still more remote from their sacred character, to military studies (/*) and enterprizes. They had also so far extinguished every principle of fear and shame, that they became incorrigible ; nor could the va- rious laws enacted against their vices by Carloman, Pepin, and Charlemagne, at all contribute to set bounds to their licentiousness, or to bring about their reformation (i).

II. It is, indeed, amazing, that, notwithstanding The Vene- the shocking nature of such vices, especially in "^ ^e a set of men whose profession obliged them to clergy were display to the world the attracting lustre of vir- he tuous example ; and notwithstanding the perpe- tual troubles and complaints which these vices occasioned ; the clergy were still held, corrupt as they were, in the highest veneration, and were honoured, as a sort of deities, by the submissive multitude. This veneration for the bishops and clergy, and the influence and authority it gave them over the people, were, indeed, carried much higher in the west than in the eastern pro-

(7i) Steph. Baluzius, ad Reginon. Prumiensem, p. 563. Wilkins, Concilia Magnae Britanniae, torn. i. p. 90.

(i) Steph. Baluz. Capitular, llegum Francor. torn. i. p. 189. 208.275. 493, &c.

west.

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, vinces ; and the reasons of this difference will PART ii. aPPear manifest to such as consider the customs - r and manners that prevailed among the barbarous nations, which were, at this time, masters of Europe, before their conversion to Christianity. All these nations, during their continuance under the darkness of paganism, were absolutely enslaved to their priests : without whose counsel and autho- rity they transacted nothing of the least import- ance, either in civil or military affairs (&). Upon their conversion to Christianity, they, therefore, thought proper to transfer to the ministers of their new religion, the rights and privileges of their

(k) Julius Caesar, De Bello Gallico, lib. vi. cap. 13. "Druides magno sunt apud eos honore: nam fere de omnibus contro- versiis, publicis privatisque, constituunt ; et, si quod est ad- missum facinus, si caedes facta, si de hsereditate, si de finibus controversia est, iidem decernurit, praemia poenasque consti- tuunt : si qui aut privatus aut publicus eorum decreto non ste- tit, sacrifices interdicunt. — Druides a bello abesse consueve- runt, neque tributa una curareliquis pendunt; militiae vacatio- nem, omniumque rerum habent immunitatem. Tantis excitati praemiis, et sua sponte multi in disciplinam conveniunt, et a pa- rentibus propinquisque mittuntur." Tacitus (De mor. Germa- norum, cap. 7. p. 384. edit. Gronov.) expresses also the power and authority of the priests or Druids in the following terms : " Neque enim animadvertere, neque vincire, neque verberare quidem, nisi sacerdotibus permissum, non quasi in poenam, nee dusis jussu, sed velut Deo imperante." And again cap. ii. " Silentium per sacerdotes, quibus et turn coercendi jus est, imperatur." Helmoldus, Chron. Sclavorum, lib. i. cap. xxxvi. p. 90. expresses himself to the same purpose, " Major Flami- nis, quam Regis, apud ipsos veneratio est." And again, lib. ii. cap. xii. p. 235. " Rex apud eos modicae aestimationis est comparatione Flaminis. llle enim responsa perquirit — Rex et populus ad illius nutum pendent." This ancient custom of honouring their priests, and submitting, in all things, to their decisions, was still preserved by the Germans, and the other European nations, after their conversion to Christianity; and this furnishes a satisfactory answer to that question, viz. How it came to pass that the Christian priesthood obtained in the west that enormous degree of authority, which is so contrary to the positive precepts of Christ, and the nature and genius of his divine religion.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

former priests : and the Christian bishops, in their CENT. turn, were not only ready to accept the offer, but p^™'u

used all their diligence and dexterity to secure and 1

assert to themselves and their successors, the do- minion and authority which the ministers of pa- ganism had usurped over an ignorant and brutish people.

III. The honours and privileges, which the Their riches western nations had voluntarily conferred upon increase.d»

11*1 11 T r i 11 a their

the bishops, and other doctors of the church, privileges were now augmented with new and immense ac- mult'Plled- cessions of opulence and authority. The endow- ments of the churches and monasteries, and the revenues of the bishops, were hitherto consider- able; but in this century a new and ingenious method was found out of acquiring much greater riches to the church, and of increasing its wealth through succeeding ages. An opinion prevailed universally at this time, though its authors are not known, that the punishment which the right- eous judge of the world has reserved for the trans- gressions of the wicked, was to be prevented and annulled, by liberal donations to God, to the saints, to the churches and clergy. In conse- quence of this notion, the great and opulent, who were, generally speaking, the most remarkable for their flagitious and abominable lives, offered, out of the abundance which they had received by inheritance, or acquired by rapine, rich donations to departed saints, their ministers upon earth, and the keepers of the temples that were erected in their honour, in order to avoid the sufferings and penalties annexed by the priests to transgression in this life (/), and to escape the misery de-

(/) The temporal penalties here mentioned were rigorous fasts, bodily pains and mortifications, long and frequent prayers, pilgrimages to the tombs of saints and martyrs, and such like austerities. These were the penalties which the

224 TJie Internal History of the Church.

CENT, nounced against the wicked in a future state. PART ii. This new and commodious method of making

atonement for iniquity was the principal source

of those immense treasures, which, from this period, began to flow in upon the clergy, the churches, and monasteries, and continued to en- rich them through succeeding ages down to the present time (m).

They are jy. J}ut here it is highly worthy of observation, whhVrin- that the donations which princes and persons of amfro^ai ^e ^rst YSLU^ Presented, m order to make expia- domains. tion for their sins, and to satisfy the justice of God, and the demands of the clergy, did not only consist in those private possessions, which every citizen may enjoy, and with which the churches and convents were already abundantly enriched : no ; these donations were carried to a much more extravagant length, and the church was endowed with several of those public grants, which are peculiar to princes and sovereign states, and which are commonly called regalia, or royal domains. Emperors, kings, and princes, signa- lized their superstitious veneration for the clergy, by investing bishops, churches, and monasteries, in the possession of whole provinces, cities, castles, and fortresses, with all the rights and prerogatives of sovereignty that were annexed to them under the dominion of their former masters. Hence it

priests imposed upon such as had confessed their crimes ; and as they were singularly grievous to those who had led volup- tuous lives, and were desirous of continuing in the same course of licentious pleasure, effeminacy, and ease; the richer sort of transgressors embraced eagerly this new method of expiation, and willingly gave a part of their substance to avoid such severe and rigorous penalties.

(m) Hence by a known form of speech, they who offered donations to the church or clergy were said to do this for the redemption of their souls, and the gifts themselves were generally called the price of transgression. See Lud. Ant. Muratorii Diss. de Redemptione Peccatorum, in his Antiqui- tates Italics medii aevi, torn. v. p. 712.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

came to pass that they, who, by their holy pro- CENT. fession, were appointed to proclaim to the world the vanity of human grandeur, and to inspire into the minds of men, by their instructions and their example, a noble contempt of sublunary things, became themselves scandalous spectacles of worldly pomp, ambition, and splendor ; were created dukes, counts, and marquises, judges, le- gislators, and sovereigns ; and not only gave laws to nations, but also, upon many occasions, gave battle to their enemies, at the head of numerous armies of their own raising. It is here that we are to look for the source of those dreadful tu- mults and calamities that spread desolation through Europe in after-times, particularly of those bloody wars concerning investitures, and those obstinate contentions and disputes about the regalia.

V. The excessive donations that were made to The causes the clergy, and that extravagant liberality that ^JjJ,^. augmented daily the treasures of the European raiity to the churches (to which these donations and this libe- clergy' raiity were totally confined) began in this cen- tury; nor do we find any examples of the like munificence in preceding times. From hence we may conclude, that these donations were owing to customs peculiar to the European nations, and to the maxims of policy that were established among those warlike people. The kings of these nations, who were employed either in usurpation or self-defence, endeavoured, by all means, to at- tach warmly to their interests those whom they considered as their friends and clients ; and, for this purpose, they distributed among them exten- sive territories, cities, and fortresses, with the various rights and privileges belonging to them, reserving to themselves no more than the supreme dominion, and also the military service of their powerful vassals. This then being the method of

VOL, II. Q

PART II,

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, governing customary in Europe, it was esteemed VIIL by princes a high instance of political prudence to distribute among the bishops, and other Chris- tian doctors, the same sort of donations that they had formerly made to their generals and clients ; for it is not to be believed, that superstition alone was always the principle that drew forth their li- berality. They expected more fidelity and loy- alty from a set of men, who were bound by the obligations of religion, and consecrated to the service of God, than from a body of nobility, composed of fierce and impetuous warriors, and accustomed to little else than bloodshed and ra- pine. And they hoped also to check the sedi- tious and turbulent spirits of their vassals, and maintain them in their obedience, by the in- fluence and authority of the bishops, whose com- mands were highly respected, and whose spiritual thunderbolts, rendered formidable by ignorance, struck terror into the boldest and most resolute hearts (n).

(n) The account here given of the rise of the clergy to such enormous degrees of opulence and authority, is corroborated by the following remarkable passage of William of Malmes- bury (lib. v. De Rebus Gestis Regum Angliae), " Carolus Mag- nus, pro contundenda gentium illarum ferocia, omnes pene terras ecclesiis contulerat, conciiiosissime perpendens, nolle sacri ordinis homines, tarn facile quam laicos, fidelitatem Domini rejicere: praeterea si laici rebellarent, illos posse excommunicationis auctoritate etpotentiae severitatecompes- cere." This is doubtless the true reason why Charlemagne, who was far from being a superstitious prince, or a slave to the clergy, augmented so vastly the jurisdiction of the Ro- man pontiffin Germany, Italy, and the other countries, where he had extended his conquests, and accumulated upon the bishops such ample possessions. He expected more loyalty and submission from the clergy than from the laity ; and he augmented the riches and authority of the former, in order to secure his throne against the assaults of the latter. As the bishops were universally held in the highest veneration, he made use of their influence in checking the rebellious spirit of his dukes, counts, and knights, who were frequently

Particularl the R<

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government^ &c. -27

VI. This prodigious accession to the opulence CENT. and authority of the clergy in the west began at PART jr their head, the Roman pontiff, and spread gradu- ally from thence among the inferior bishops, and Par1tl

J P , . *• ' to th^, +„,-

also among the sacerdotal and monastic orders. man pontiff. The barbarous nations, who received the gospel, looked upon the bishop of Rome as the successor of their chief druid, or high priest. And as this tremendous druid had enjoyed, under the darkness of paganism, a boundless authority, and had been treated with a degree of veneration, that, through its servile excess, degenerated into terror ; so the barbarous nations, upon their conversion to Chris- tianity, thought proper to confer upon the chief of the bishops the same honours and the same authority that had formerly been vested in their arch-druid (o). The Roman pontiff received, with

very troublesome. Charlemagne, for instance, had much to fear from the dukes of Benevento, Spoleto, and Capua, when the government of the Lombards was overturned: he therefore made over sL considerable part of Italy to the Ro- man pontiff, whose ghostly authority, opulence, and threaten- ings, were so proper to restrain those powerful and vindic- tive princes from seditious insurrections, or to quell such tumults as they might venture to excite. Nor was Charle- magne the only prince who honoured the clergy from such political views ; the other kings and princes of Europe acted much in the same manner, and from the same, principles, as will appear evident to all who consider, with attention, the forms of government, and the methods of governing, that took place in this century. So that the excessive augmenta- tion of sacerdotal opulence and authority, which many look upon as the work of superstition alone, was, in many in- stances, an effect of political prudence. We shall consider, presently, the terrors of excommunication, which William of Malmesbury touches but cursorily in the latter words of the passage above quoted.

(o) Caesar speaks thus of the chief or arch-druid ; " Plis omnibus druidibus prae est unus, qui summam inter eos ( Celtas) habet auctoritatem. Hoc mortuo, si qui ex reliquis excellit dignitate, succedit. At si sunt plures pares, suffragio Druidum adlegitur : nonnunquam etiam armis de principatu conten- dunt." Vide Jul. Caesar, De Bello Gallico, lib. vi. c. 13.

228 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, something more than a mere ghostly delight, these PART*!!, august privileges : and lest, upon any change of affairs, attempts might be made to deprive him of them, he strengthened his title to these extraordi- nary honours, by a variety of passages drawn from ancient history, and, what was still more astonish- ing, by arguments of a religious nature. This con- duct of a superstitious people swelled the arrogance of the Roman druid to an enormous size ; and gave to the see of Rome that high pre-eminence, and that despotic authority, in civil and political matters, that were unknown to former ages. Hence, among other unhappy circumstances, arose that most monstrous and most pernicious opinion, that such persons as were excluded from the commu- nion of the church by the pontiff himself, or any of the bishops, forfeited thereby not only their civil rights and advantages as citizens, but even the common claims and privileges of humanity. This horrid opinion, which was a fatal source of wars, massacres, and rebellions without number, and which contributed more than any thing else to augment and confirm the papal authority, was, unhappily for Europe, borrowed by Christians, or rather by the clergy, from the pagan supersti- tions (p).

(p) Though excommunication, from the time of Constan- tine the Great, was, in every part of the Christian world, at- tended with many disagreeable effects, yet its highest terrors were confined to Europe, where its aspect was truly formidable and hideous. It acquired also, in the eighth century, new accessions of terror : so that, from that period, the excommu- nication practised in Europe differed entirely from that which was in use in other parts of Christendom. Excommunicated persons were indeed considered, in all places, as objects of aversion both to God and men ; but they were not, on this account, robbed of the privileges of citizens, nor of the rights of humanity; much less were those kings and princes, whom an insolent bishop had thought proper to exclude from the communion of the church, supposed to forfeit, on that ac- count, their crowns or their territories. But, from this cen-

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, Sec.

VII. We see in the annals of the French nation CENT.

VIII. PART II.

the following remarkable and shocking instance of the enormous power that was, at this time, vested in the Roman pontiff. Pepin, who was The Roman mayor of the palace to Childeric III. and who, in Swan ad- the exercise of that high office, was possessed, in dition .to hi* reality, of the royal power and authority, not contented with this, aspired to the titles and ho- nours of majesty, and formed the design of de- throning his sovereign. For this purpose, the states of the realm were assembled by Pepin, A. D. 7^1 ; and though they were devoted to the interests of this ambitious usurper, they gave it as their opinion, that the bishop of Rome was previously to be consulted, whether the execution

tury, it was quite otherwise in Europe ; excommunication re- ceived that infernal power which dissolved all connexions; so that those whom the bishops, or their chief, excluded from church communion, were degraded to a level with the beasts. Under this horrid sentence, the king, the ruler, the husband, the father, nay, even the man, forfeited all their rights, all their advantages, the claims of nature, and the privileges of society. What then was the origin of this unnatural power which excommunication acquired? It was briefly as follows : Upon the conversion of the barbarous nations to Christianity, these new and ignorant proselytes confounded the excommu- nication in use among Christians, with that which had been practised in the times of paganism by the priests of the gods, and considered them as of the same nature and effect. The Roman pontiffs, on the other hand, were too artful not to countenance and encourage this error; and, therefore, em- ployed all sorts of means to gain credit to an opinion so pro- per to gratify their ambition, and to aggrandize, in general, the episcopal order. That this is the true origin of the ex- tensive and horrid influence of the European and Papal ex- communication, will appear evident to such as cast an eye upon the following passage of Caesar, De Bello Gallico, lib. vi. cap. 13. " Si qui aut privatus aut publicus Druidum de- cretio non stetit, sacrificiis interdicunt. Haec pcena est apud eos gravissima. Quibus ita est interdictum, ii numero impi- orum et sceleratorum habentur, iis omnes decedunt, aditum eorurn sermonemque defugiunt, ne quid ex contagione in- commodi accipiant : neque iis pctentibus jus redditur, neque

honos ullus communicator,''

' *>'

27/6' Internal History of the Church.

Cvm' °^ suc^ a Pr°Ject was lawful °r not- In conse- . quence of this, ambassadors were sent by Pepin to Zachary, the reigning pontiff, with the following question : Whether the divine law did not permit a valiant and warlike people to dethrone a pusil- lanimous and indolent monarch, who was incapa- ble of discharging any of the functions of royalty, and to substitute in his place one more worthy to rule, and who had already rendered most impor- tant services to the state ? The situation of Zachary, who stood much in need of the succours of Pepin against the Greeks and Lombards, rendered his an- swer such as the usurper desired. And when this favourable decision of the Roman oracle was pub- lished in France, the unhappy Childeric was stripped of his royalty without the least opposition ; and Pepin, without the smallest resistance from any quarter, stepped into the throne of his master and his sovereign. Let the abettors of the papal authority see, how they can justify in Christ's pre- tended vicegerent upon earth, a decision, which is so glaringly repugnant to the laws and precepts of the divine Saviour (<7). This decision was so- lemnly confirmed by Stephen II. the successor

(</) See Le Cointe Annal. Franciae Eccles. Mezeray, Daniel, and the other Gallic and German historians, con- cerning this important event; but particularly Bossuet De- fens. Declarations Cleri Gallicani, part 1. p. 225. Petr. Ri- val Dissertationis Histor. et Critiques sur divers Sujets, Diss. ii. p. 70. Diss. iii. p. 156. Lond. 1726, in 8vo. Henr. de Bunau, Historia [mperii Germanici, torn. ii. p. 288. This remarkable event is not, indeed, related in the same manner by all historians, and it is generally represented under the falsest colours by those, who, from a spirit of blind zeal and excessive adulation, seize every occasion of exalting the dig- nity and authority of the bishops of Rome. Such writers assert, that it was by Zachary's authority, as pontiff, and not in consequence of his opinion as a casuist or divine, that the crown was taken from the head of Childeric, and placed upon that of Pepin. But this the French absolutely and justly deny. Had it, however, been so, the crime of the pon- tiff would have been much greater than it was in reality.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, £c.

of Zachary, who undertook a journey into France, in the year J54<, in order to solicit as- sistance against the Lombards ; and who, at the same time, dissolved the obligation of the oath of fidelity and allegiance which Pepin had sworn to Childeric, and violated by his usurpation, in the year 751. And to render his title to the crown as sacred as possible, Stephen anointed and crowned him, with his wife and two sons, for the second time (r).

VIII. This compliance of the Roman pontiffs The adva«- proved an abundant source of opulence and ere- SSi to'the dit to the church, and to its aspiring ministers, see of Rome

TTTI i r» T i i • i i • irom the

When that part of Italy which was as yet subject attachment to the Grecian empire was involved in confusion ^'{j^'^J and trouble, by the seditions and tumults which Of France?8 arose from the imperial edicts (s) against the erec- tion and worship of images, the kings of the Lombards employed the united influence of their arms and negotiations in order to terminate these

(r) Pepin had been anointed, by the legate Boniface at Soissons, soon after his election; but thinking that cere- mony performed by the pope would recommend him more to the respect of his subjects, he desired that it should be performed anew by Stephen. Pepin is the first French mo- narch who received this unction as a ceremony of coronation, at least according to the reports of the most credible histo- rians. His predecessors were proclaimed by being lifted up on a shield, and the holy phial of Clovis is now universally regarded as fabulous. The custom of anointing kings at their coronation was, however, more ancient than the time of Pepin, and was observed long before that period both in Scotland and Spain. See Edmund Martene, De Antiq. Ec- cles. Ritib. torn. iii. cap. x. As also Bunau, Historia Imperii Germanici, torn. ii. p. 301. 366.

Ifgg* (*) The author has here in view the edicts of Leo Isauncus and Constantine Copronymus. The former pub- lished in the year 726, a famous edict against the worship of images, which occasioned many contests and much disturb- ances both in church and state; and the latter assembled at Constantinople, in the year 754, a council of 338 bishops, who unanimously condemned, not only the worship, but also the use of images.

232 The Internal History oj the Church.

CENT, contests. Their success, indeed, was only advan- PARTJI. tageous to themselves; for they managed mat-

ters so as to become, by degrees, masters of the

Grecian provinces in Italy, which were subject to the exarch, who resided at Ravenna. Nay, one of these monarchs, named Aistulphus, carried his views still further. Elated with these new ac- cessions to his dominions, he meditated the con- quest of Rome and its territory, and formed the ambitious project of reducing all Italy under the yoke of the Lombards. The terrified pontiff, xStephen II. addresses himself to his powerful patron and protector Pepin, represents to him his deplorable condition, and implores his assistance. The French monarch embarks, with zeal, in the cause of the suppliant pontiff; crosses the Alps, A. D. 7«54, with a numerous army ; and having defeated Aistulphus, obliged him, by a solemn The dona- treaty, to deliver up to the see of Rome the ex- * hTufttat arcnate °f Ravenna, Pentapolis, and all the cities, see. castles, and territories which he had seized in

the Roman dukedom. It was not, however, long before the Lombard prince violated, without re- morse, an engagement which he had entered into with reluctance. In the year ^55 he laid siege to Rome for the second time, but was again obliged to sue for peace by. .the victorious arms of Pepin, who returned into Italy, and forcing the Lombard to execute the treaty he had so audaciously vio- lated, made a new grant of the exarchate (£), and

(t) See Gar. Sigonius De Regno Italiae, lib. iii. p. 202. torn. ii. opp. Bunau, Historia Imperil Germanici, torn. ii. p. .301. 366. Muratori Annali d'ltaliae, torn. iv. p. 310. The real limits of the exarchate, granted by Pepin to the Roman pontiff, have been much controverted among the learned, and have, particularly in our times, employed the researches of several eminent writers. The bishops of Rome extend the limits of this exarchate as far as they can with any appearance of decency or probability : while their ad- versaries are as zealous in contracting this famous grant

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

of Pentapolis to the Roman pontiff and his sue- CENT. cessors in the apostolic see of St. Peter. And thus was the bishop of Rome raised to the rank of a temporal prince.

IX. After the death of Pepin, a new attack Charie- was made upon the patrimony of St. Peter, by^"et'os Dideric king of the Lombards, who invaded the the see of territories that had been granted by the French R monarch to the see of Rome. In this extremity, Adrian I. who was pontiff at that time, fled for succour to Charles, the son of Pepin, who, on account of his heroic exploits, was afterwards distinguished by the name of Charlemagne. This prince, whose enterprising genius led him to seize with avidity every opportunity of extending

within narrower bounds. See Lud. Ant. Murator. Droits de 1'Empire sur 1'Etat Ecclesiastique, cap. i, ii. As also his Antiquitat.Ital. Medii ^Evi, torn. i. p. 64. 68. 986, 987. The same author treats the matter with more circumspection, torn. v. p. 790. This controversy can only be terminated with facility by an inspection of Pepin's grant of the territory in question. Fontanini, in his First Defence of the temporal Jurisdiction of the See of Rome over the City of Commachio, written in Italian, intimates, that this grant is still in being, and even makes use of some phrases that are contained in it (see the pages 242 and 346 of that work). This, however, will scarcely be believed. Were it indeed true that such a deed is yet in being, its being published to the world would be, undoubtedly, unfavourable to the pretensions and interests of the church of Rome. It is at least certain, that in the recent dispute between the emperor Joseph and the Roman pontiff concerning the city of Commachio, the partisans of the latter, though frequently called upon by those of the emperor to produce this grant, refused constantly to comply with this demand. On the other hand, it must be confessed, that Blanchinus, in his Prolegom. ad Anastasium de Vitis Pontif. Rom. p. 55. has given us, from a Farnesian manu- script, a specimen of this grant, which seems to carry the marks of remote antiquity. Be that as it may, a multitude of witnesses unite in assuring us, that the remorse of a wounded conscience was tfoe source of Pepin's liberality, and that his grant to the Roman pontiff was the superstitious remedy by which he hoped to expiate his enormities, and particularly his horrid perfidy to his master Childeric.

The Internal History of the Church.

his conquests, and whose veneration for the Ro- PART'H. nian see was carried very far, as much from the dictates of policy as superstition, adopted imme- diately the cause of the trembling pontiff. He passed the Alps with a formidable army A. D. 774, overturned the empire of the Lombards in Italy, which had subsisted above two hundred years, sent their exiled monarch into France, and pro- claimed himself king of the Lombards. These conquests offered to Charlemagne an occasion of visiting Rome, where he not only confirmed the grants which had been made by his father to that see, but added to them new donations, and made to the Roman pontiffs a cession of several cities and provinces in Italy, which had not been contained in Pepin's grant. What those cities and pro- vinces were, is a question difficult to be resolved at this period of time, as it is perplexed with much obscurity, from the want of authentic re- cords, by which alone it can be decided with cer- tainty (u).

(«) See Car. Sigonius, De Regno Italiae, lib. iii. p. 223. torn. ii. opp. Bunau Historia Imperil Germanic!, torn. ii. p. 368. Petr. de Marca De Concordia Sacerdotii et Imperii, lib. i. cap. xii. p. 67. Lud. Anton. Muratori Droits de PEmpire sur 1'Etat Ecclesiastique, cap. ii. p. 147- Conrin- gius, De Imperio Roman. German, cap. vi. The extent of Charlemagne's grant to the see of Rome, is as much disputed as that of Pepin's between the partisans of the pope, and those of the emperors. They who plead the cause of the Ro- man see maintain that Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily, the territory of Sabino, the duchy of Spoleto, and several other places, were solemnly granted, by Charlemagne, to St. Peter and his successors. They, on the other hand, who assert the rights of the emperor, diminish as far as they can the munificence of Charles, and confine this new grant within narrow limits. The reader may consult upon this subject the authors of the present age, who have published their opinions concerning the pretensions of the emperors and the popes to the cities of Com- machio and Florence, and the duchies of Parma andPlacentia; but, above all, the learned Berret's excellent treatise, in-

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

X. By this act of liberality, which seems to carry in it the contradictory characters of policy and imprudence, Charlemagne opened for him- self a passage to the empire of the west, and to jj| the supreme dominion over the city of Rome and which it is its territory, upon which the western empire £j, , seemed then to depend (w). He had, no doubt,

titled Dissertatio Chorographica de Italia Medii ^vi, f. 33. The spirit of party seems, in this controversy, as in many others, to have blinded the disputants on both sides of the question j and this, together with the difficulty of avoiding mistakes upon a point involved in such deep obscurity, has, in many cases, rendered the truth invisible to both the con- tending parties. With respect to the motives that induced Charlemagne to make this grant, they are much less doubtful than the extent of the grant itself. Adrian affirms, that the monarch's view was to atone for his sins by this act of libe- rality to the church, as we see in a letter from that pontiff to Charlemagne, which is published in Muratori's Scriptores rerum Italicar. torn. iii. part II. p. 265. and of which the fol- lowing passage is remarkable: " Venientes ad nos de Capua, quam beato Petro apostolorum principi pro mercede animae vestrae atque sempiterna memoria, cum ceteriscivitatibus, ob- tulistis." It is not indeed unlikely, that Charlemagne, who affected that kind of piety which was the characteristic of this barbarous age, mentioned this superstitious motive in the act of cession by which he confirmed his donation to the church ; but such as are acquainted with the character of this prince, and the history of this period, will be cautious in attributing his generosity to this religious principle alone. His grand motive was, undoubtedly, of an ambitious kind; he was ob- stinately bent upon adding the western empire to his domi- nions; and the success of this grand project depended much upon the consent and assistance of the Roman pontiff, whose approbation, in those times, was sufficient to sanctify the most iniquitous projects; so that Charlemagne lavished gifts upon the bishops of Rome, that, by their assistance, he might as- sume, with a certain air of decency, the empire of the west, and confirm his new dominion in Italy. This policy we have taken notice of already, and it must appear manifest to all who view things with the smallest degree of impartiality and attention.

(wj) Charles, in reality, was already emperor of the west, that is, the most powerful of the European monarchs. He wanted, therefore, nothing more than the title of emperor, and the supreme dominion in Rome and its territory, both of which he obtained by the assistance of Leo III.

VIII. PART

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, been meditating for a considerable time this ar- n duous project, which his father Pepin had pro- ._ bably formed before him, but the circumstances of the times obliged him to wait for a favourable occasion of putting it in execution. This was offered him in the year 800, when the affairs of the Greeks were reduced to the utmost extremity after the death of Leo III. and the barbarous murder of his son Constantine, and while the impious Irene held the reins of empire. This favourable opportunity was seized with avidity by Charles, who set out for Rome, where he was received with the utmost demonstrations of zeal by the sovereign pontiff (#), who had entered into his views, and persuaded the people, elated at this time with high notions of their indepen- dency and elective power, to unite their suffrages in favour of this prince, and to proclaim him em- peror of the west (#).

The nature XI. Charles, upon his elevation to the em- the Ro'mJf P*1"6 °f tne west an^ the government of Rome, pontiff's seems to have reserved to himself only the supreme iiction. Dominion, an(j fae unalienable rights of majesty, and to have granted to the church of Rome a sub- ordinate jurisdiction over that great city, and its

(*) Leo III.

(y) See the historians who have transmitted to us accounts of this century, and more especially Bunau, Historia Imperii Romano German, torn. ii. p. 537. The partisans of the Ro- man pontiffs generally maintain, that Leo III. by a divine right, vested in him as bishop of Rome, transported the western empire from the Greeks to the Franks, and conferred it upon Charlemagne, the monarch of the latter. From hence they conclude that the Roman pontiff, as the vicar of Christ, is the supreme Lord of the whole earth, and, in a particular manner, of the Roman empire. The temerity of these pre- tensions, and the absurdity of this reasoning, are exposed with much learning and judgment by the celebrated Fred. Spanheim, De ficta translatione Imperii in Carolum M. per Leonem III, torn. ii. opp. p. 557.

PART n

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 237

annexed territory (2). This grant was imdoubt- edly suggested to him by the ambitious pontiff as a matter of sacred and indispensable obliga- tion, and many fictitious deeds were probably

(z) That Charlemagne, in effect, preserved entire his su- preme authority over the city of Rome and its adjacent ter- ritory, gave law to the citizens by judges of his own appoint- ment, punished malefactors, enjoyed the prerogatives, and exercised all the functions of royalty, has been demonstrated by several of the learned in the most ample and satisfactory manner, and confirmed by the most unexceptionable and authentic testimonies. To be convinced of this, it will be sufficient to consult Muratori's Droits de 1'Empire sur TEtat Ecclesiastique, cap. vi. p. 77. And, indeed, they must have a strange power of resisting the clearest evidence, who are absurd enough to assert, as does Fontanini, in his treatise, en- titled Dominio S. della Sede sopra Comachio, Diss. i. c. 95, 96. that Charles sustained at Rome the character of the ad- vocate of the Roman church, and not that of its sovereign or its lord, the dominion of the pontiffs being unlimited and universal. On the other hand, we must acknowledge inge- nuously, that the power of the pontiff, both in the city of Rome and its annexed territory, was very great, and that, in several cases, he seemed to act with a princely authority. But the extent and the foundations of that authority are matters hid in the deepest obscurity, and have thereby given occasion to endless disputes. Muratori maintains, in his work above cited, p. 102, that the bishop of Rome dis- charged the function of exarch, or vicar, to the emperor, an opinion which Clement XI. rejected as injurious to the papal dignity, and which, indeed, does not appear to have any solid foundation. After a careful examination of all the circumstances that can contribute towards the solution of this perplexed question, the most probable account of the matter seems to be this : That the Roman pontiff possessed the city of Rome and its territory by the same right that he held the exarchate of Ravenna, and the other lands of which he received the grant from Charlemagne ; that is to say, that he possessed Rome as a feudal tenure, though charged with less marks of dependence than other fiefs generally are, on account of the lustre and dignity of a city which had been so long the capital of the empire. This opinion derives much strength from what we shall have occasion to observe in the following note, arid it has the peculiar advantage of recon- ciling the jarring testimonies of ancient writers, and the various records of antiquity relating to this point.

238 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, produced to make out the pretensions, and justify PARTII. ^e damls °f tne church to this high degree of

temporal authority and civil jurisdiction. In

order to reconcile the new emperor to this grant, it was no doubt alleged, that Constantine the Great, his renowned predecessor, when he re- moved the seat of the empire to Constantinople, delivered up Rome, the old metropolis, with its adjacent territories, commonly called the Roman dukedom, to be possessed and governed by the church, and that with no other restriction, than that this should be no detriment to his supreme dominion ; and it was insinuated to Charles, that he could not depart from the rule established by that pious emperor, without incurring the wrath of God, and the indignation of St. Peter (a).

(a) Most writers are of opinion, that Constantino's pre- tended grant was posterior to this period, and was forged in the tenth century. It appears to me, on the contrary, that this fictitious grant was in being in the eighth century, and it is extremely probable, that both Adrian and his successor Leo III. made use of it to persuade Charlemagne to that donation. In favour of this opinion we have the unexcep- tionable testimony of Adrian himself in his letter to Charle- magne, which is published in M uratori's Rerum Italicarum Scriptores, torn, iii. part II. p. 194. And which is extremely worthy of an attentive perusal. In this letter, Adrian ex- horts Charles before his elevation to the empire, to order the restitution of all the grants and donations that had formerly been made to St. Peter, and to the church of Rome. In this demand also he distinguishes, in the plainest manner, the donation of Constantine from those of the other princes and emperors, and, what is particularly remarkable, from the exarchate which was the gift of Pepin, and even from the additions that Charles had already made to his father's grant; from whence we may justly conclude that by the donation of Constantine, Adrian meant the city of Rome, and its annexed territory. He speaks first of this grant in the following terms: " Deprecamur vestrarn Excellentiam...pro Dei amore et ipsius clavigeri regni ccelorum...ut secundum promissionem quam polliciti estis eidem Dei apostolo pro animae vestrae mercede et stabilitate regni vestri, omnia nostris temporibus adimplere jubeatis...et sicut temporibus beati

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 239

XII. While the power and opulence of the CENT. Roman pontiffs were rising to the greatest height by the events which we have now been relating, they received a mortifying check, in consequence of a quarrel which broke out between these haughty pontiffs and the Grecian emperors. Leo the Isaurian, and his son Constantine Copro- pontiffs, and nymus, incensed at the zeal which Gregory II. and III. discovered for the worship of images, not nues. only confiscated the treasures and lands which the

Silvestri Romani pontificis, a sanctae recordationis piissimo Constantino M. Imperatore, per ejus largitatem (here Con- stantine's donation is evidently mentioned) sancta Dei ca- tholica et apostolica Romana ecclesia elevata atque exal- tata est, et potestatem in his Hesperiae partibus largiri dignatus est: ita et in his vestris felicissimis temporibus atque nostris sancta Dei ecclesia germinet . . . et amplius atque amplius exaltata permaneat . . . quiaeece novusChris- tianissimus Dei gratia Constantinus imperator (here we see Charles, who at that time was only a king, styled emperor by the pontiff, and compared with Constantine) his tem- poribus surrexit, per quern omnia Deus sanctae suae ecclesiae . . . largiri dignatus est." So much for that part of the letter that relates to Constantine's grant: as to the other donations which the pontiff evidently distinguishes from it, observe what follows: " Sed et cunctaalia quae per diversos imperatores, patricios, etiam et alios Deum timentes, pro eorum animae mercede etvenia delictorum, in partibus Tus- ciae, Spoleto, seu Benevento, atque Corsica, simul et Pavi- nensi patrimonio, beato Petro apostolo concessa sunt, et per nefandam gentem Longobardorum per annorum spatia abs- tracta et ablata sunt vestris temporibus, restituantur." (The pontiff intimates further, that all these grants were carefully preserved in the office of the Lateran, and that he sends them to Charles by his legates.) " Unde et plures donationes in sacro nostro scrinio Lateranensi reconditas habemus, tamen et pro satisfactione Christianissimi regni vestri, per jam fatos viros ad demonstrandum eas vobis direximus, et pro hoc petimus eximiam praecellentiam vestram, ut in integro ipsa patrimonia beato Petro et nobis restituere j ubeatis." By this it appears that Constantine's grant was now in being among the archives of the Lateran, and was sent to Charlemagne with the other donations of kings and princes, whose ex- amples were made use of to excite his liberality to the church.

240 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, church of Rome possessed in Sicily, Calabria, and PART1! i. Apulia, but moreover withdrew the bishops of

1 these countries, and also the various provinces and

churches of Illyricum, from the jurisdiction of the Roman see, and subjected them to the spiritual dominion of the bishop of Constantinople. And so inflexibly were the Grecian emperors bent upon humbling the arrogance of the Roman pontiffs, that no intreaties, supplications, nor threats could engage them to abandon their purpose, or to re- store this rich and signal portion of St. Peter's patrimony to his greedy successors (Z>). It is here that we must look for the original source, and the principal cause of that vehement contest be- tween the Roman pontiff and the bishop of Con- stantinople, which, in the following century, di- vided the Greek and Latin churches, and was so pernicious to the interests and advancement of true Christianity. These lamentable divisions, which wanted no new incident to foment them, were, nevertheless, augmented by a controversy which arose, in this century, concerning the deri- vation of the Holy Spirit, which we shall have occasion to mention more largely in its proper place. But it is more than probable that this controversy would have been terminated with the utmost facility had not the spirits of the contend- ing parties been previously exasperated by disputes founded upon avarice and ambition, and carried on, without either moderation or decency, by the holy patriarchs of Rome and Constantinople, in defence of their respective pretensions. Themona- XIII. The monastic discipline was extremely pHnefiSen relaxed at this time both in the eastern and west- into decay. ern provinces, and, as appears by the concurring

(b) See Mich. Lequien's Oriens Christianus, torn. i. p. 96. Among the Greek writers also Theophanes and others ac- knowledge the fact ; but they are not entirely agreed about the reasons to which it is to be attributed.

VIII.

PART II.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, £c.

testimonies of the writers of this century, was fallen into a total decay. The only monks who escaped this general corruption, were they who passed their days in the deserts of Egypt, Syria, and Mesopotamia, amidst the austerities of a wretched life, and remote from all the comforts of human society: yet the merit of having pre- served their discipline was sadly counterbalanced by the gross ignorance, the fanatical madness, and the sordid superstition that reigned among these miserable hermits. Those of the monastic orders who lived nearer cities and populous towns, troubled frequently the public tranquillity by the tumults and seditions they fomented among the multitude, so that it became necessary to check their rebellious ambition by the severe laws that were enacted against them by Constantine Co- pronymus, and other emperors. The greatest part of the western monks followed, at this time, the rule of St. Benedict ; though there were every where convents which adopted the discipline of other orders (c). But as they increased in opu- lence they lost sight of all rules, and submitted, at length, to no other discipline than that of intemperance, voluptuousness, and sloth (cT). Charlemagne attempted, by various edicts, to put a stop to this growing evil ; but his efforts were attended with little success (e).

XIV. This universal depravity and corruption The origin of the monks gave rise to a new order of priests °f ^0°nrsd.er

(c) See Mabillon, Praef. ad Acta SS. Ord. Benedict!, Saec. i. p. 24. and Saec. iv. part I. p. 26.

(d) The author mentioned in the preceding note, dis- courses with a noble frankness and courage concerning the corruption of the monks, and its various causes in the same work, Praef. ad Saec. iv. part I. p. 64.

(e) See the Capitularia Caroli, published by Baluzius, torn. i. p. 148. 157. 237. 355. 366. 375. 503. Laws so severe, and so often repeated, show evidently that the corruption of the monks must have been truly enormous.

VOL. II. R

The Internal History of the Church.

GVUI m ^ne wes^> which was a sort of middle order PART ii. between the monks or regulars, and the secular — : - clergy. This new species of ecclesiastics adopted the monastic discipline and manner of life, so far as to have their dwelling and their table in common, and to assemble themselves at certain hours for divine service ; but they entered not into the vows which were peculiar to the monks, and they were also appointed to discharge the ministerial func- tions in certain churches which were committed to their pastoral direction. These ecclesiastics were at first called Fratres Dominici, but soon after received the name of canons (/). The common opinion attributes the institution of this order to Chrodegangus, bishop of Metz ; nor is this opi- nion destitute of truth (g). For though before this time, there were in Italy, Africa, and other provinces, convents of ecclesiastics, who lived after the manner of the canons (/?) ; yet Chrode- gangus, who, towards the middle of this century,

(f) See Le Baeuf Memoires sur 1'Histoire d'Auxerre, torn. i. p. 174. the Paris edition, published in 1743, in 4to.

(g-) See for an account of Chrodegangus, the Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. iv. p. 128. Calmet, Histoire de Lorraine, torn. i. p. 513. Acta Sanctor. torn. i. Martii, p. 452. The rule which he prescribed to his canons, may be seen in Le Coint's Annales Francor. Eccles. torn. v. ad a. 757. sect. 35 ; as also in the Concilia Labbei, torn. vii. 1444. He is not, however, the author of the rule which is published in his name, in the Spicilegium veter. Scriptor. torn. i. p. 565. Longueval, in his Histoire de 1'Eglise Gallicane, torn. iv. p. 435. has given a neat and elegant abridgment of the rule of Chrodegangus.

(A) See Lud. Ant. Murator. Antiq. Italicar. Medii JEvi, torn. v. p. 185; as also Lud. Thomassin. Disciplina Ecclesise Vet. et Nov. part I. lib. iii. The design of this institution was truly excellent. The authors of it, justly shocked at the vicious manners of a licentious clergy, hoped that this new in- stitution would have a tendency to prevent the irregularities of that order, by delivering them from the cares, anxieties, and occupations of this present life. But the event has shown how much these pious hopes have been disappointed.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 243

subjected to this rule the clergy of Metz, not only CENT. added to their religious ceremonies the custom of _._„

. . 1 , ^-~ -. . "A l\ I Hi

singing hymns and anthems to God, at certain

hours, and probably a variety of rites, but also, by his example, excited the Franks, the Italians, and the Germans, to distinguish themselves by their zeal in favour of the canons, to erect mona- steries for them, and to introduce their rule into their respective countries.

XV. The supreme dominion over the church The autho. and its possessions was vested in the emperors and Rom°afntllc kings, both in the eastern and the western world, pontiffs The sovereignty of the Grecian emperors, in this a^ubor- respect, has never been contested ; and though dinate to, the partisans of the Roman pontiffs endeavour to render dubious the supremacy of the Latin mo- narchs over the church, yet this supremacy is too manifest to be disputed by such as have considered the matter attentively (z), and it is acknowledged by the wisest and most candid writers, even of the Romish communion. Adrian I. in a council of bishops assembled at Rome, conferred upon Charlemagne, and his successors, the right . of election to the see of Rome (&) ; and though nei- ther Charlemagne, nor his son Lewis, were willing to exercise this power in all its extent, by naming and creating the pontiff upon every vacancy, yet they reserved the right of approving and con- firming the person that was elected to that high dignity by the priests and people : nor was the consecration of the elected pontiff of the least validity, unless performed in presence of the em-

(?) For an accurate account of the rights of the Grecian emperors in religious matters, we refer the reader to Le- quien's Oriens Christianus^ torn. i. p. 136.

(£) This act is mentioned by Anastasius ; it has been pre- served by Yvo and Gratian, and has been the subject of a multitude of treatises.

R 2

PART II.

244 The External History of the Church.

CENT, peror's ambassadors (/). The Roman pontiffs obeyed the laws of the emperors, received their judicial decisions as of indispensable obligation, and executed them with the utmost punctuality and submission (m). The kings of the Franks appointed extraordinary judges, whom they called envoys, to inspect into the lives and manners of the clergy, superior and inferior, to take cogni- zance of their contests, to terminate their disputes, to enact laws concerning the public worship, and to punish the crimes of the sacred order, as well as those of the other citizens (n). All churches also, and monasteries, were obliged to pay to the public treasury a tribute proportioned to their respective lands and possessions, except such as, by the pure favour of the supreme powers, were graciously exempted from this general tax (o).

XVI. It is true, indeed, that the Latin em- row imits." perors did not assume to themselves the admini- stration of the church, or the cognizance and decision of controversies that were purely of a religious nature. They acknowledged, on the con- trary, that these matters belonged to the tribunal of the Roman pontiff and of the ecclesiastical

(/) See Mabillon, Comm. in Ordinem Romanum Musei Italic!, torn. ii. p. 113. Muratori Droits de 1'Empire sur 1'Etat Ecclesiastique, p. 87.

(»») This has been amply demonstrated by Baluzius, in his Prsef. ad Capitularia Regum Francorum, sect. 21.

(n) See Muratori Antiq. Ital. Medii 7£vi, torn. i. Diss. ix. p. 470. Franc, de Roye, De Missis Dominicis, cap. x. p. 44. cap. viii. p. 118. 134. 168. 195.

(o) See Muratori Antiq. Ital. Medii ^Evi, torn. i. Diss. xvii. p. 926. See also the collection of the various pieces that were published on occasion of the dispute between Lewis XV. and his clergy, relating to the immunities of that order in France. These pieces were printed at the Hague in the year 1751, in seven volumes, 8vo, under the following title : Ecrits pour et contre les immunites pretendues par le Clerge de France.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 245

councils Qf?). But this jurisdiction of the pontiff CENT. was confined within narrow limits ; he could VIIL

-i . ! . . i • i PART II.

decide nothing by his sole authority, but was ..

obliged to convene a council when any religious differences were to be terminated by an authorita- tive judgment. Nor did the provinces, when any controversy arose, wait for the decision of the bishop of Rome ; but assembled by their own authority, their particular councils, in which the bishops gave their thoughts, with the utmost free- dom upon the points in debate, and voted often in direct opposition to what was known to be the opinion of the Roman pontiff; all which is evi- dent from what passed in the councils assembled by the Francs and Germans, in order to deter- mine the celebrated controversy concerning the use and worship of images. It is further to be observed, that the power of convening councils, and the right of presiding in them, were the pre- rogatives of the emperors and sovereign princes, in whose dominions these assemblies were held ; and that no decrees of any council obtained the force of laws, until they were approved and con- firmed by the supreme magistrate (^). Thus was the spiritual authority of Rome wisely bounded by the civil power; but its ambitious pontiffs fretted under the imperial curb, and eager to break loose their bonds, left no means unemployed for that purpose. Nay, they formed projects, which seemed less the effects of ambition than of phrenzy : for they claimed a supreme dominion not only over the church, but also over kings themselves,

(p) See the Dissertation of Charlemagne, De Imaginibus, lib. i. cap. iv. p. 48. edit. Heumann.

^ (q) All this is fully and admirably demonstrated by Balu- zius, in his preface to the Capitularia, or laws of the kings of the Francs, and is also amply illustrated in that work. See also J. Basnage, Histoire de 1'Eglise, torn. i. p. 270.

246 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, and pretended to reduce the whole universe under PAIITH ^eir ghostly jurisdiction. However extravagant

1 these pretensions were, they were followed by the

most vigorous efforts, and the wars and tumults that arose in the following century, contributed much to render these efforts successful. Grecian XVII. If we turn our eyes towards the writers

and eastern « , . in 01 n T

writers. of this century, we shall find very few that stand distinguished in the lists of fame, either on account of erudition or genius. Among the Greeks, the following only seem worthy of mention.

Germanus, bishop of Constantinople, the greatest part of whose high renown was due to his violent zeal for image worship (r).

Cosmas, bishop of Jerusalem, who acquired some reputation by his Lyric vein, consecrated to the service of religion, and employed in composing hymns for public and private devotion.

George Syncellus and Theophanes, who are not the least considerable among the writers of the Byzantine history, though they be in all respects infinitely below the ancient Greek and Latin historians.

But the writer, who surpassed all his contempo- raries among the Greeks and Orientals, was John Damascenus, a man of genius and eloquence, who, in a variety of productions full of erudition, explained the Peripatetic philosophy, and illus- trated the main and capital points of the Christian doctrine. It must, however, be acknowledged, that the eminent talents of this great man were tainted with that sordid superstition and that excessive veneration for the ancient fathers, that were the reigning defects of the age he lived in, not to mention his wretched method of explaining \

(r) See Rich. Simon, Critique de la Bibliotheque Eccle- >- siastique de M. Du Pin, torn. i. p. 270.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 247

the doctrines of the gospel according to the prin- CENT. ciples of the Aristotelian philosophy (Y).

XVIII. The first place among the Latin writers

writers.

is due to Charlemagne, whose love of letters Western

Pjl i • i , f i • • i and Latin

was one of the bright ornaments or his imperial dignity. The laws which are known by the title of Capitularia, with several Epistles, and a Book concerning Images, are attributed to this prince; though it seems highly probable, that the most of these compositions were drawn up by other pens (t\

After this learned prince, we may justly place venerable Bede, so called from his illustrious vir- tues (M) ; Alcuin (w\ the preceptor of Charle- magne ; Paulinus of Aquileia (#), who were all distinguished by their laborious application, and their zeal for the advancement of learning and science, and who treated the various branches of literature, that were known in this century, in such a manner as to convince us, that it was the infelicity of the times, rather than the want of genius, that hindered them from arising to higher degrees of perfection than what they at- tained to. Add to these, Boniface, of whom we

(s) Bayle Diction, torn. ii. p. 950; as also the account of the writings of John Damascenus, which is published in Le Quien's edition of his works,, and was composed by Leo Al- latius.

(t) See Jo. A. Fabricii Bibliotheca Medii ^Evi3 Lat. torn. i. p. 936. Histoire Litteraire de France, torn. iv. p. 378.

(M) See the Acta Sanctorum, torn. April, p. 866. Gen. Dic- tionary, at the article Bede. A Ust of the writings of this vener- able Briton, composed by himself, is published by Muratori, in his Antiq. Italic. Medii .ZEvi, torn. iii. p. 825.

(tu) Hist. Litter, de la France, torn. iv. p. 295. Gen. Dic- tionary, at the article Alcuin. Catelinot, who has discovered the treatise of Alcuin, De Processione Spiritus S. which has never been published, is preparing an edition of all the works of that learned writer. See the Hist. Litteraire de la France, torn. viii. Praef. p. 10.

(x) See Hist. Litteraire, &c. torn. iv. p. 286. Acta Sanct. torn. i. Januar. p. 713.

248

The Internal History of the Church.

PART

CENT, have already spoken ; Eginard, the celebrated TH author of the Life of Charlemagne, and other productions; Pual, the deacon, who acquired a considerable and lasting reputation by his History of the Lombards, his Book of Homilies, and his miscellaneous labours ; Ambrose Authpert, who wrote a commentary on the Revelations; and Theodulphus, bishop of Orleans ; and thus we shall have a complete list of all the writers who acquired any degree of esteem in this century by their literary productions, either sacred or profane.

CHAPTER III.

Concerning the Doctrine of the Christian Church during this Century.

The Chris- I. THE fundamental doctrines of Christianity trine sadly were, as yet, respected and preserved in the corrupted, theological writings both of the Greeks and La- tins, as seems evident from the discourse of John Damascenus concerning the orthodox faith, and the confession of faith which was drawn up by Charlemagne (#). The pure seed of celestial truth was, however, choked by a monstrous and incredible quantity of noxious weeds. The ra- tional simplicity of the Christian worship was corrupted by an idolatrous veneration for images, and other superstitious inventions, and the sacred

(y} See the treatise of this prince, Concerning Images, book III. p. 259. ed. Heumanni. Of the Greek writers, the reader may consult Mich. Syncellus's Confession of Faith, published by Montfaucon, in his Bibliotheca Coisliniana, p. 90: and among the Latins, An Exposition of the princi- pal Doctrine of the Christian Religion, composed by Bene- dict, abbot of Aniane, and published by Balusius, in his Miscellanea, torn. v. p. 56 ; as also the Creed of Leo III. published in the same work, torn. vii. p. 18.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 249

flame of divine charity was extinguished by the CENT. violent contentions and animosities which the PART 'n

progress of these superstitions occasioned in the

church. All acknowledged the efficacy of our Saviour's merits : and yet all, one way or another, laboured, in effect, to diminish the persuasion of this efficacy in the minds of men, by teaching, that Christians might appease an offended Deity, by voluntary acts of mortification, or by gifts and oblations lavished upon the church, and by ex- horting such as were desirous of salvation to place their confidence in the works and merits of the saints. Were we to enlarge upon all the absur- dities and superstitions which were invented to flatter the passions of the misguided multitude, and to increase, at the expense of reason and Christianity, the opulence and authority of a li- centious clergy; such an immense quantity of odious materials would swell this work to an enor- mous size.

II. The piety in vogue during this and some ^/j^y succeeding ages consisted in building and em- bellishing churches and chapels, in endowing mo- nasteries, erecting basilics, hunting after the re- lics of saints and martyrs, and treating them with an excessive and absurd veneration, in procuring the intercession of the saints by rich oblations or superstitious rites, in worshipping images, in pil- grimages to those places which were esteemed holy, and chiefly to Palestine, and such like absurd and extravagant practices and institutions. The pious Christian, and the profligate transgressor, showed equal zeal in the performance of these supersti- tious services, which were looked upon as of the highest efficacy in order to the attainment of eternal salvation; they were performed by the latter as an expiation for their crimes, and a mean of appeasing an offended Deity ; and by the for- mer with a view to obtain, from above, the good

250 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, things of this life, and an easy and commodious PART-1!! Passage to life eternal. The true and genuine reli-

L gion of Jesus, if we except a few of its doctrines

contained in the creed, was utterly unknown in this century, not only to the multitude in general, but also to the doctors of the first rank arid eminence in the church, and the consequences of this cor- rupt ignorance were fatal to the interests of virtue. All orders of men, regardless of the obligations of morality, of the duties of the gospel, and of the culture and improvement of their minds, rushed headlong with a perfect security into all sorts of wickedness, from the delusive hopes, that by the intercession and prayers of the saints, and the credit of the priests at the throne of God, they would easily obtain the remission of their enormi- ties, and render the Deity propitious. This dismal account of the religion and morals of the eighth century is confirmed by the unanimous testimony of all the historians who have written concerning that period.

Exegeticai HI* The Greeks were of opinion, that the holy orexpiana- scriptures had been successfully interpreted and logy? e explained by the ancient commentators, and therefore imagined, that they rendered a most important service to the students in divinity, when, without either judgment or choice, they extracted and compiled from the works of these admired sages their explanatory observations on the sacred writings. The commentary of John Damascenus upon the epistles of St. Paul, which was taken from the writings of Chrysostom, is alone sufficient to serve as a proof of the little discernment with which these compilations were generally made.

The Latin expositors may be divided into two classes, according to the different nature of their productions. In the first, we place those writers who, after the example of the Greeks, employed

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 251

their labour in collecting into one body the interpre- CENT. tations and commentaries of the ancients. Bede distinguished himself among the expositors of this class, by his explication of the epistles of St. Paul, drawn from the writings of Augustin and others (#). Still more estimable are the writers of the second class, who made use of their own penetration and sagacity in investigating the sense of the holy scriptures. Such as Alcuin, Ambrose Authpert, the expositors of the Revelations, nay, and Bede also, who belongs, in reality, to both classes. It must, however, be acknowledged, that all these commentators were destitute of the qualities that are essential to the sacred critic ; for we find them in their explications neglecting entirely the natural sense of the words of scripture, and running blind- fold after a certain hidden and mystical meaning, which, to use their jargon, they usually divided into allegorical, anagogical, and tropological (#); and thus they delivered their own rash fictions and crude fancies, as the true and genuine sentiments of the sacred writers. Of this we are furnished with many examples in Alcuin's Commentary on St. John; Bede's Allegorical Illustrations of the Books of Samuel; and Charlemagne's book concerning images, in which various passages of the holy scriptures are occasionally explained according to the taste of the times (&).

IV. The veneration of Charlemagne for the charie-

sacred writings was carried to such an excessive mafn/ i i /• \ 11 111 zea* *or "

length (c)9 as to persuade that monarch that they study of the

contained the latent seeds and principles of all scriPtures-

(#) See, for an account of the commentaries of Bede, Rich. Simon, Critique de la Biblioth. Ecclesiast. de M Du Pin, torn. i. p. 280. See also Bedae Explicatio Geneseos ex Patribus, in Martene's Thesaur. Anecdot. torn. v. p. 1 1 1. 116. HO. and his interpretation of Habakkuk, ibid. p. 295.

(a) See Carolus Magnus, De Imaginibus, lib. i. p. 138.

(b) See the same imperial author, book I. p. 84-. 91. 123. 127. 131. 133. 136. 138. 145. 160. 164-, 165, &c.

(c) See Carolus Magnus, De Imagin. lib. i. p. 231. 236.

The Internal History of the Church.

°vm' arts anc* sc*encesS an opinion, no doubt, which PART ii. ne earty imbibed from the lessons of his pre- ceptor Alcuin, and the other divines who fre- quented his court (d). Hence the zeal with which that prince excited and encouraged the more learned among the clergy to direct their pious labours towards the illustration of the holy scriptures. Several laws which he published to encourage this species of learning are yet extant, as also various monuments of his deep solicitude about the advancement and propagation of Chris- tian knowledge (e~). And lest the faults that were to be found in several places of the Latin transla- tion of the scriptures should prove an obstacle to the execution and accomplishment of his pious views, he employed Alcuin in correcting these errors, and is said, in the last years of his life, to have spent a considerable part of his time in the same learned and pious work (jf ). It is also to his encouragement and direction, that some writers attribute the first German translation of the sacred writings, though others contend, that this honour is due to his son and successor Lewis, surnamed the Meek.

zea^ an(^ industry °f the emperor con- some im- tributed, no doubt, to rouse from their sloth a PointementPs" ^Ez^ an^ ignorant clergy, and to raise up a spirit of that em- of application to literary pursuits. We cannot, peror. however, help observing, that this laborious prince imprudently established certain customs, and con- firmed others, which had a manifest tendency to defeat, in a great measure, his laudable designs of promoting Christian knowledge. He confirmed the practice already in use, of reading and explain-

(d) Jo. Frickius, De Canone Scripturae Sacrae, p. 184.

(e) Baronius, Annal. ad a. DCCLXXVIII. n. xxvii. Jo. A. Fabricius, Biblioth. Lat. Medii JEvi, torn. i. p. 950. Jac. Usserius, De Sacris et Scripturis Vernacul. p. HO.

(/) J. A. Fabricii Bib. Lat. Medii yEvi, torn. i. p. 950. Usserius, De Sacris et Scripturis Vernacul. p. 110.

PART II.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 253

ing to the people, in the public assemblies, certain CENT. portions only of the scriptures ; and reduced the different methods of worship followed in different churches into one fixed rule, which was to be ob- served with the most perfect uniformity in all (£').

(g) They who imagine that the portions of scripture which are still explained, every year, to Christians in their religious assemblies, were selected for that purpose by the order of Charlemagne, are undoubtedly mistaken ; since it is manifest, that in the preceding ages there were certain portions of scripture set apart for each day of worship in the greatest part of the Latin churches. See Jo. Henri Thameri, Sche- diasma de Origine et Dignitate Pericoparum quse Evangelia et Epistolse Vulgo Vocantur. See also J. Franc. Buddei, Isagoge ad Theologiam, torn. ii. p. 1640. It must,, however, be confessed, that Charlemagne introduced some new regu- lations into this part of divine service ; for whereas, before his time, the Latin churches differed from each other in several circumstances of the public worship, and particularly in this, that the same portions of scripture were not read and ex- plained in them all, he published a solemn edict, command- ing all the religious assemblies within his territories to con- form themselves to the rule of worship and divine service esta- blished in the church of Rome. With respect to the portions of scripture which we call the epistles and gospels, and which, from the time of Charlemagne down to us, continue to be used in divine worship, it is certain that they were read in the church of Rome so early as the sixth century. It is also cer- tain, that this prince was extremely careful in reforming the service of the Latin churches, and appointed the form of wor- ship used at Rome to be observed in them all. Hence the churches, which did not adopt the Roman ritual, have different epistles and gospels from those which are used by us and the other western churches, who were commanded by Charle- magne to imitate the Roman service. The church of Cor- betta is an example of this, as may be seen in Muratori's Antiq. Ital. torn. iv. p. 836; and also the church of Milan, which follows the rite of St. Ambrose. If any are desirous to know what epistles and gospels were used by the Franks and other western churches before the time of Charlemagne, they have only to consult the Calendars published by Mar- tene, in his Thesaur. Anecdot. torn. v. p. 66. the Discourses of Bede, published in the same work, torn. v. p. 339. and Mabillon, De Antiqua Liturgia Gallicana ; to all which may be added Peyrat, Antiquites de la Chapelle du Roi de France, p. 566.

The Internal Histori/ of the Church.

Persuaded also that few of the clergy were capable PART ii °f explaining with perspicuity and judgment the

portions of scripture which are distinguished in the

ritual by the name of epistle and gospel, he ordered Paul Deacon and Alcuin to compile, from the an- cient doctors of the church, homilies, or discourses upon the epistles and gospels, which a stupid and ignorant set of priests were to commit to memory, and recite to the people. This gave rise to that famous collection, which went by the title of the Homilarium of Charlemagne (/*), and which being followed as a model by many productions of the same kind, composed by private persons from a principle of pious zeal, contributed much to nou- rish the indolence, and to perpetuate the igno- rance of a worthless clergy (&). The zeal and ac- tivity of this great prince did not stop here ; for he ordered the lives of the principal saints to be written in a moderate volume, of which copies were dispersed throughout his dominions, that the people might have in the dead, examples of piety and virtue, which were no where to be found among the living. All these projects and designs were certainly formed and executed with upright and pious intentions, and, considering the state

(h) See, for an account of this book of Homilies, the learned Seelen's Selecta Litteraria, p. 252.

(i) Alan, abbot of Farfa in Italy, wrote in this century an enormous Book of Homilies, the preface to which is pub- lished by Bernard Pezius, in the Thesaur. Anecdot. torn. vi. part I. p. 83. In the following age several works under the same title were composed by learned men ; one by Hagmo, of Halberstadt, which is still extant; another by Rabanus Maurus, at the request of the emperor Lothaire; and a third by Hericus, mentioned by Pezius in the work above quoted, p. 93. All these were wrote in Latin. The famous Ottfrid of Weissenbourg, was the first who composed a Book of Homilies in the Teutonic language ; for an account of this work, which was written in the ninth century, see Lambecius, De Bibliotheca Vindobon. Augusta, torn. ii. cap. v. p. 419.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 255

of things in this century, were, in several respects, CENT. both useful and necessary ; they, however, con- PART*J,

trary to the emperor's intention, contributed,

undoubtedly, to encourage the priests in their criminal sloth, and their shameful neglect of the study of the scriptures. For the greatest part of them employed their time and labour only upon those parts of the sacred writings, which the em- peror had appointed to be read in the churches, and explained to the people ; and never at- tempted to exercise their capacities upon the rest of the divine word. The greatest part of the clergy also, instead of composing themselves the discourses they recited in public, confined themselves to their book of homilies, that was published by the authority of their sovereign, and thus let their talents lie uncultivated and un- employed.

VI. None of the Latins carried their theolo- The state gical enterprizes so far as to give a complete,

connected, and accurate system of the various doctrines of Christianity. It would be absurd to comprehend, under this title, the various dis- courses concerning the person and nature of Christ, which were designed to refute the errors of Felix (/:) and Elipand, or to combat the opinions which were now spread abroad concern- ing the origin of the Holy Ghost (/), and several other points ; since these discourses afford no proofs either of precision or diligence in their

ffgT (k) The doctrine taught by Felix, bishop of Urgella, and his disciple Elipand, archbishop of Toledo, was, that Jesus Christ was the Son of God, not by nature, but by adop- tion. This doctrine was also intimately connected with the Nestorian hypothesis, and was condemned,, in this century, by the synoa of Ratisbon, and the councils of Francfort and Frioul.

^ Bii* (0 The error now published relating to the Holy Ghost was, that it proceeded from the Father only, and not from the Father and the Son.

256 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, authors. The labours and industry of the di- PARTM vmes °f tn*s a£e were totally employed in col-

. 1 lecting the opinions and authorities of the fathers,

by whom are meant the theological writers of the first six centuries ; and so blind and servile was their veneration for these doctors, that they re- garded their dictates as infallible, and their writings as the boundaries of truth, beyond which, reason was not permitted to push its researches. The Irish, or Hibernians, who in this century were known by the name of Scots, were the only divines who refused to dishonour their reason by sub- mitting it implicitly to the dictates of authority. Naturally subtile and sagacious, they applied their philosophy, such as it was, to the illustration of the truth and doctrines of religion ; a method which was almost generally abhorred and exploded in all other nations (m).

(m) That the Hibernians, who were called Scots in this century, were lovers of learning, and distinguished themselves, in these times of ignorance, by the culture of the sciences beyond all the other European nations, travelling through the most distant lands, both with a view to improve and to com- municate their knowledge, is a fact with which I have long been acquainted, as we see them, in the most authentic re- cords of antiquity, discharging, with the highest reputation and applause, the function of doctors in France, Germany, and Italy, both during, this and the following century. But that these Hibernians were the first teachers of the scholastic theo- logy in Europe, and so early as the eighth century illustrated the doctrines of religion by the principles of philosophy, I learned but lately from the testimony of Benedict, abbot of Anianein the province of Languedoc,who lived in this period, and some of whose productions are published by Baluzius, in the fifth volume of his Miscellanea. This learned abbot, in his Letter to Guarnanius, p. 54. expresses himself thus : "Apud modernos scholasticos,(z.e. public teachers, or school- masters) maxime apud Scotos, est syllogismus delusionis, ut dicant Triuitatem, sicut personarum, ita esse substantiarum ;" (by this it appears, that the Irish divines made use of a cer- tain syllogism, which Benedict calls delusive, i. e. fallacious and sophistical, to demonstrate that the persons in the God-

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. £57

The Greeks were not so destitute of systema- CENT. tical divines as the Latins. John Damascenus

composed a complete body of the Christian doctrine in a scientifical method, under the title of Four Books concerning the Orthodox Faith. The two kinds of theology, which the Latins termed scho- lastic and didactic, were united in this laborious performance, in which the author not only explains the doctrines he delivers by subtile and profound reasoning, but also confirms his explications by the authority of the ancient doctors. This book was received among the Greeks with the highest applause, and was so excessively admired, that at length it came to be acknowledged among that people as the only rule of divine truth. Many, however, complain of this applauded writer, as having consulted more, in his theological system, the conjectures of human reason, and the opinions

head were substances : a captious syllogism this, as we may see from what follows, and also every way proper to throw the ignorant into the greatest perlexity) " quatinus si ad- senserit illectus auditor, Trinitatem esse trium substantiarum Deum, trium derogetur cultor Deorum : si autem abnuerit, personarum denegator culpetur." It was with this miser- able piece of sophistry that these subtile divines puzzled and tormented their disciples and hearers, accusing those of Tri- theism who admitted their argument, and casting the re- proach of Sabellianisrn upon those who rejected it. For thus they reasoned, or rather quibbled : " You must either affirm or deny that the three Persons in the Deity are three sub- stances. If you affirm it, you are undoubtedly a Tritheist, and worship three Gods : if you deny it, this denial implies that they are not three distinct persons., and thus you fall into Sabellianism." Benedict condemns this Hibernian sub- tilty, and severely animadverts upon the introduction of it into theology ; he also recommends in its place that amiable simplicity that is so conformable to the nature and genius of the gospel : " Sed hsec de fide (says he) et omnis calidi- tatis versutia simplicitate fidei catholicse est puritate vitanda, non captiosa interjectione linguarum saeva impactione in- terpolanda." From hence it appears, that the philosophical or scholastic theology among the Latins, is of more ancient date than is commonly imagined.

VOL. II. S

258 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, of the ancients, than the genuine dictates of the D A^T'TT sacred oracles, and of having, in consequence of this

PART II. ill* IP 1 '

method, deviated from the true source and the

essential principles of theology (n). To the work of Damascenus now mentioned, we may add his Sacred Parallels, in which he has collected, with uncommon care and industry, , the opinions of the ancient doctors concerning the various points of the Christian religion. We may, therefore, look upon this writer as the Thomas and Lombard of the Greeks.

Moral wri- VII. None of the moral writers of this centuiy ters. attempted forming a complete system of the duties and virtues of the Christian life. John, surnamed Carpathius, a Greek writer, composed some exhortatory discourses, in which there are scarcely any marks of judgment or genius. Among the monastic orders nothing was relished but the enthusiastic strains of the Mystics, and the doc- trines of Dionysius the Areopagite, their pre- tended chief, whose suppositions writings were interpreted and explained by Johannes Darensis out of complaisance to the monks (o). The Latin writers confined their labours in morality to some general precepts concerning virtue and vice, that seemed rather destined to regulate the ex- ternal actions of Christians, than to purify their inward principles, or to fix duty upon its proper foundations. Their precepts also, such as they were, and their manner of explaining them, had now imbibed a strong tincture of the Peripatetic philosophy, as appears from certain treatises of Bede, and the treatise of Alcuin, concerning

(n) Jo. Henr. Hottinger. Bibliothecar. Quadripart. lib. iii. cap. ii. sect. iii. p. 372. Mart. Chemnitius, De Usu et Uti- litate Locor. Commun. p. 26.

(o) Jos. Simon Assemanni Biblioth. Oriental. Vatican, torn. ii. p. 129.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 259

n

virtue and vice (JP). That the people, however, CENT. might be animated to the pursuit of virtue by the commanding power of example, Bede, Florus, Alcuin, Marcellinus, Ambrose, Authpert, and others employed their pious industry in writing the lives of such as had been eminent for their piety and worthy deeds.

VIII. The controversies that turned upon the Controver- main and essential points of religion were, during S1C

this century, few in number, and scarcely any of them managed with tolerable sagacity or judg- ment. The greatest part of the Greeks were in- volved in the dispute concerning images, in which their reasonings were utterly destitute of precision and perspicuity; while the Latins em- ployed their chief zeal and industry in confuting and extirpating the doctrine of Elipand concern- ing the person of Christ. John Damascenus exposed the errors of all the different sects in a short but useful and interesting treatise ; he also attacked the Manichaeans and Nestorians with a particular vehemence, and even went so far in his polemic labours, as to combat the erroneous doc- trine of the Saracens. In these compositions we find several proofs of subtilty and genius, but very little of that clearness and simplicity that consti- tute the chief merit of polemic writings. The Jews were left almost unmolested, as the Chris- tians were sufficiently employed by the contro- versies that had arisen among themselves: Ana- statius, abbot of Palestine, made, however, some attempts to subdue the infidelity of that obstinate people.

IX. Of all the controversies which agitated and The or>g'n perplexed the Christian church during this cen- pute con!" tury, that which arose concerning the worship of cemingthe

images.

(p) This treatise is extant in the works of Alcuin, pub- lished by Quercetanus, torn. ii. p. 1218.

S 2

260 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, images in Greece, and was carried from thence 1 1 into k°tn the eastern and western provinces, was the most unhappy and pernicious in its conse- quences. The first sparks of this terrible flame, that had liked to have proved fatal both to the interests of religion and government, had already appeared under the reign of Philippicus Bardanes, who was created emperor of the Greeks a little after the commencement of this century. This prince, with the consent of John, patriarch of Constantinople, ordered a picture, which repre- sented the sixth general council, to be pulled down from its place in the church of St. Sophia, A. D. 712; because this council had condemned the Monothelites, whose cause the emperor espoused with the greatest ardour and vehemence. Nor did Bardanes stop here ; but sent immediately an order to Rome to remove all images of that nature from the churches and other places of worship. His orders, however, were far from being received with submission, or producing their designed effect ; on the contrary, Constan- tine, the Roman pontiff, not only rejected, by a formal protest, the imperial edict, but resolved to express his contempt of it by his actions as well as his words : he ordered six pictures, repre- senting the six general councils, to be placed in the porch of St. Peter's church ; and, that no act of rebellion or arrogance might be left unemployed, he assembled a council at Rome, in which he caused the emperor himself to be condemned as an apostate from the true religion. These first tumults were quelled by a revolution, which, the year following, deprived Bardanes of the imperial throne (</).

(17) See Fred. Spanhemii Historia Imaginum Restituta, which is published in the second volume of his works, and also printed apart. Maimbourg's history of this controversy, which is full of the most absurd and malignant fictions. Mu- ratori Annali d'ltalia, torn. iv. p. 221.

PART Ir>

CH AP. in. The Doctrine of the Church.

X. The dispute, however, broke out with re- doubled fury under Leo the Isaurian, a prince of the greatest resolution and intrepidity, and the new tumults it excited were both violent and durable. Leo, unable to bear any longer the the isau- excessive height to which the Greeks carried their nan* superstitious attachment to the worship of images, and the sharp railleries and serious reproaches which this idolatrous service drew upon the Christians from the Jews and Saracens, deter- mined, by the most vigorous proceedings, to root out at once this growing evil. For this purpose he issued out an edict, A. D. 7$6, by which it was ordered, not only that the worship of images should be abrogated and relinquished, but also that all the images, except that of Christ's crucifixion, should be removed out of the churches (r). In this proceeding the em- peror acted more from the impulse of his natural character, which was warm and vehement, than from the dictates of prudence, which avoids pre- cipitancy where prejudices are to be combated, and destroys and mines inveterate superstitions rather by slow and imperceptible attacks, than by open and violent assaults. The imperial edict produced such effects as might have been ex- pected from the frantic enthusiasm of a supersti-

_ (r) In this account of the imperial edict, Dr. Mosheim followsthe opinions of BaroniuSjFleury, andLe Sueur. Others affirm, with more probability, that this famous edict did not enjoin the pulling down images every where, and casting them out of the churches, but only prohibited the paying to them any kind of adoration or worship. It would seem as if Leo was not, at first, averse to the use of images, as orna- ments, or even as helps to devotion and memory : for at the same time that he forbid them to be worshipped, he ordered them to be placed higher in the churches, say some, to avoid this adoration; but afterwards finding that they were the occasion of idolatry, he had them removed from the churches, and broken.

262 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, tious people. A civil war broke out in the islands VIIL of the Archipelago, ravaged a part of Asia, and

1 afterwards reached Italy. The people, partly

from their own ignorance, but principally in con- sequence of the perfidious suggestions of the priests and monks, who had artfully rendered the worship of images a source of opulence to their churches and cloisters, were led to regard the emperor as an apostate, and hence they considered themselves as freed from their oath of allegiance, and from all the obligations that attach subjects to their lawful sovereign.

The con- XI. The Roman pontiffs, Gregory I. and II.

tests be- , i • i i & n i • -i

tweenthe were the authors and ringleaders of these civil of 'images commotions and insurrections in Italy. The who were former, upon the emperor's refusing to revoke his iconoduii, e^ict against images, declared him, without hesi- and their' tation, unworthy of the name and privileges of who°were a Christian, and thus excluded him from the com- ico- munion of the church ; and no sooner was this formidable sentence made public, than the Ro- mans, and other Italian provinces, that were sub- ject to the Grecian empire, violated their allegi- ance, and rising in arms, either massacred or banished all the emperor's deputies and officers. Leo, exasperated by these insolent proceedings, resolved to chastise the Italian rebels, and to make the haughty pontiff feel, in a particular manner, the effects of his resentment ; but he failed in the attempt. Doubly irritated by this disappointment, he vented his fury against images, and their worshippers, in the year 7§0, in a much more terrible manner than he had hitherto done ; for, in a council assembled at Constantinople, he degraded from his office Germanus, the bishop of that imperial city, who was a patron of images, put Anastasius in his place, ordered all the images to be publicly burnt, and inflicted a va- riety of severe punishments upon such as were at-

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 265

tached to that idolatrous worship. These rigo- CENT. rous measures divided the Christian church into '

two violent factions, whose contests were carried on with an ungoverned rage, and produced no- thing but mutual invectives, crimes, and assassi- nations. Of these factions, the one adopted the adoration and worship of images, and were on that account called Iconoduli or Iconolatrae ; while the other maintained that such worship was un- lawful, and that nothing was more worthy of the zeal of Christians, than to demolish and destroy those statues and pictures that were the occasions and objects of this gross idolatry, and hence they were distinguished by the titles of Iconomachi and Iconoclastae. The furious zeal which Gregory II. had shown in defending the odious superstition of image worship was not only imitated, but even surpassed, by his successor, who was the third pontiff of that name ; and though, at this distance of time, we are not acquainted with all the cri- minal circumstances that attended the intemperate zeal of these insolent prelates, yet we know with the utmost certainty, that it was owing to their extravagant attachment to image-worship that the Italian provinces were torn from the Grecian em- pire (s).

(*) The Greek writers tell us, that both the Gregories carried their insolence so far as to excommunicate Leo and his son Constantine, to dissolve the obligation of the oath of allegiance, which the people of Italy had taken to these princes, and to prohibit their paying tribute to them, or showing them any marks of submission and obedience. These facts are also acknowledged by many of the partisans of the Roman pontiffs, such as Baronius, Sigonius De Regno Italiae, and their numerous followers. On the other hand, some learned writers, particularly among the French, alleviate considerably the crime of the Gregories, and positively deny that they either excommunicated the emperors above-men- tioned, or called off the people from their duty and alle- giance. See Launoius, Epistolar. lib. vii. Ep. vii. p. 456. torn. v. opp. par. II. Nat. Alexander. Select. Histor. Eccle-

The Internal History of the Church. CENT. XII. Constantine, to whom the furious tribe PAUT ii. °^ t^ie *mage worshippers had given by way of

derision the name of Copronymus (Y), succeeded

Their pro- his father Leo in the empire, A. D. 741, and, ani-

gress under 1-^1 11 i •

Constan- mated with an equal zeal and ardour against tine Copro- the new idolatry, employed all his influence in

nymus. . . J . , . *-. J . .

extirpating and abolishing the worship of images, in opposition to the vigorous efforts of the Ro- man pontiffs, and the superstitious monks. His manner of proceeding was attended with greater marks of equity and moderation than had ap- peared in the measures pursued by Leo ; for, knowing the respect which the Greeks had for the decisions of general councils, whose authority they considered as supreme and unlimited, in religious matters, he assembled at Constantinople, A. D. 7^4, a council composed of the eastern bishops, in or- der to have this important question examined with the utmost care, and decided with wisdom, seconded by a just and lawful authority. This

siast. Capit. Saec. viii. Dissert, i. p. 456. Petr. de Marca, Con- cordia Sacerdotii et Imperii, lib. iii. cap. xi. Bossuet, De- fens. Declarationis Cleri Gallic, de Potestate Eccles. par. I. lib. vi. cap. xii. p. 197. Giannone, Histoire Civile de Naples, torn. i. p. 4-00. All these found their opinions, concerning the conduct of the Gregories, chiefly upon the authority of the Latin writers, such as Anastasius, Paul Deacon, and others, who seem to have known nothing of that audacious insolence, with which these pontiffs are said to have opposed the emperors, and even represent them as having given several marks of their submission and obedience to the im- perial authority. Such are the contrary accounts of the Greek and Latin writers ; and the most prudent use we can make of them is, to suspend our judgment with respect to a matter, which the obscurity that covers the history of this period renders it impossible to clear up. All that we can know with certainty is, that the zeal of the two pontiffs above-mentioned for the worship of images, furnished to the people of Italy the occasion of falling from their allegiance to the Grecian emperors.

Ijgg0 (t) This nick-name was given to Constantine, from his having defiled the sacred font at his baptism.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 265

assembly, which the Greeks regard as the seventh CENT. ecumenical council, gave judgment, as was the PART *n

custom of those times, in favour of the opinion 1

embraced by the emperor, and solemnly con- demned the worship and also the use of images (u). But this decision was not sufficient to vanquish the blind obstinacy of superstition ; many adhered still to their idolatrous worship, and none made a more turbulent resistance to the wise decree of this council than the monks, who still continued to excite commotions in the state, and to blow the flames of sedition and rebellion among the people. Their malignity was, however, chastised by Constantine, who, filled with a just indigna- tion at their seditious practices, punished several of them in an exemplary manner, and by new laws set bounds to the violence of monastic rage. Leo IV. who, after the death of Constantine, was declared emperor, A. D. 77«5, adopted the sentiments of his father and grandfather, and pur- sued the measures which they had concerted for the extirpation of idolatry out of the Christian church ; for having perceived that the worshippers of images could not be engaged by mild and gentle proceedings to abandon this superstitious practice, he had recourse to the coercive influence of penal laws.

XIII. A cup of poison, administered by the Under impious counsel of a perfidious spouse, deprived Irene< Leo IV. of his life, A. D. 780, and rendered the idolatrous cause of images triumphant. The pro- fligate Irene, after having thus accomplished the death of her husband, held the reins of em- pire during the minority of her son Constan- tine; and, to establish her authority on more

ggp° (u) The authority of this council is not acknowledged by the Roman Catholics, no more than the obligation of the second commandment,, which they have prudently struck out of the decalogue.

266 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, solid foundations, entered into an alliance with rARTLn Adrian, bishop of Rome, A. D. 786, and sum-

1 moned a council at Nice in Bithynia, which is

known by the title of the second Nicene council. In this assembly the imperial laws concerning the new idolatry were abrogated, the decrees of the council of Constantinople reversed, the worship of images and of the cross restored, and severe pu- nishments denounced against such as maintained that God was the only object of religious adora- tion. It is impossible to imagine any thing more ridiculous and trifling than the arguments upon which the bishops, assembled in this council, founded their decrees (w). The authority, how- ever, of these decrees was held sacred by the Ro- mans, and the Greeks considered in the light of parricides and traitors all such as refused to sub- mit to them. The other enormities of the flagi- tious Irene, and her deserved fate, cannot, with propriety, be treated of here.

The coun- XIV. In these violent contests, the most of the Francfort. Latins, such as the Britons, Germans, and Gauls, seemed to steer a middle way between the oppo- site tenets of the contending parties. They were of opinion that images might be lawfully pre- served, and even placed in the churches, but, at the same time, they looked upon all worship of them as highly injurious and offensive to the Su- preme Being (#). Such, particularly, were the sentiments of Charlemagne, who distinguished himself in this important controversy. By the advice of the French bishops, who were no friends to this second council of Nice, he ordered some

(iu) Mart. Cheranitius, Examen Concilii Tridentini, par. iv. loc. ii. cap. v. p. 52. Lenfant, Preservatif centre la Reunion avec le Siege de Rome, par. iii. lettre xvii. p. 446.

(#) The aversion the Britons had to the worship of images, may be seen in Spelman ad Concilia Magnae Britanniee, torn, i. p. 73.

PART II.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 267

learned and judicious divine to compose Four CENT. Books concerning Images, which he sent, in the year 790, to Adrian, the Roman pontiff, with a view to engage him to withdraw his approbation of the decrees of that council. In this perform- ance the reasons alleged by the Nicene bishops to justify the worship of images are refuted with great accuracy and spirit (j/). They were not, however, left without defence ; Adrian, who was afraid of acknowledging even an emperor for his master, composed an answer to the Four Books mentioned above, but neither his arguments, nor his authority, were sufficient to support the super- stition he endeavoured to maintain ; for, in the year 794, Charlemagne assembled, at Francfort on the Maine, a council of three hundred bishops, in order to re-examine this important question; in which the opinion contained in the Four Books was solemnly confirmed, and the worship of images unanimously condemned (V). From hence we may conclude, that in this century the Latins

(y) The books of Charlemagne concerning Images, which deserve an attentive perusal, are yet extant; and when they were become extremely scarce, were republished at Hanover, in 8vo, in 1731, by the celebrated Christopher. Aug. Heu- man, who enriched this edition with a learned preface. These books are adorned with the venerable name of Charle- magne; but it is easy to perceive that they are the production of a scholastic divine, and not of an emperor. Several learned men have conjectured, that Charlemagne composed these books with the assistance of his preceptor Alcuin -, see Heumanni Praef. p. 51. and Bunau Historia Imperii German, torn. i. p. 490. This conjecture, though far from being con- temptible, cannot be admitted without hesitation ; since Al- cuin was in England when these books were composed. We learn from the history of his life, that he went into England A. D. 789, and did not return from thence before 792.

(2) This event is treated with a degree of candour not more laudable, than surprising, by Mabillon, in Prsef. ad Sae- culum iv. Actorum SS. Ord. Benedict, part V. See also Jo. Georg. Dorscheus, Collat. ad Concilium Francofordiense Argentor. 1649, in 4to.

268 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, deemed it neither impious, nor unlawful, to dis-

VIII.

PART II.

VIIL sent from the opinion of the Roman pontiff, and

even to charge that prelate with error.

The con- XV. While the controversy concerning images abouTtL was at its height, a new contest arose among the derivation Latins and Greeks about the source from whence Ghost. ° y the Holy Ghost proceeded. The Latins affirmed, that this divine Spirit proceeded from the Father and the Son : the Greeks, on the contrary, as- serted, that it proceeded from the Father only. The origin of this controversy is covered with perplexity and doubt. It is, however, certain, that it was agitated in the council of Gentilli, near Paris, A. D. 767, in presence of the emperor's legates (a\ and from this we may conclude, with a high degree of probability, that it arose in Greece at that time when the contest about images was carried on with the greatest vehemence. In this controversy the Latins alleged, in favour of their opinions, the creed of Constantinople, which the Spaniards and French had successively cor- rupted (upon what occasion is not well known), by adding the word Jilioque in that part of it which contained the doctrine concerning the Holy Ghost. The Greeks, on the other hand, made loud complaints of this criminal attempt of the Latins to corrupt by a manifest interpolation a creed, which served as a rule of doctrine for the church universal, and declared this attempt im- pudent and sacrilegious. Thus, the dispute changed at length its object, and was transferred from the matter to the interpolated word above- mentioned (Z>) ; in the following century it was

(a) See Le Cointe, Annales Eccles. Francorum, torn. v. p. 698.

(b) Learned men generally imagine that this controversy began about the wordjilioque, which some of the Latins had added to the creed that had been drawn up by the council of

CHAP. iv. Rites and Ceremonies. 269

carried on with still greater vehemence, and added CENT. new fuel to the dissensions which already por- PART*n. tended a schism between the eastern and western churches (c).

CHAPTER IV.

Concerning the Rites and Ceremonies used in the Church during this Century.

I. THE religion of this century consisted al- Ceremonies most entirely in a motley round of external rites m and ceremonies. We are not, therefore, to won- der that more zeal and diligence were em- ployed in multiplying and regulating these out- ward marks of a superstitious devotion than in

Constantinople, and that from the word the dispute proceeded to the doctrine itself; see Mabillon, Act. Sanctor. Ord. Bened. Saec. iv. part I. Prsef. p. iv. who is followed by many in this opinion. But this opinion is certainly erroneous. The doc- trine was the first subject of controversy, which afterwards extended to the wordjilioque, considered by the Greeks as a manifest interpolation. Among other proofs of this, the council of Gentilli shows evidently, that the doctrine con-^ cerning the Holy Spirit had been, for a considerable time, the subject of controversy when the dispute arose about the word now mentioned. Pagi, in his Critica in Baronium, torn, iii. p. 323. is of opinion, that this controversy had both its date and its occasion from the dispute concerning images : for, when the Latins treated the Greeks as heretics, on ac- count of their opposition to image worship, the Greeks in their turn charged the Latins also with heresy, on account of their maintaining that the Holy Ghost proceeded from the Father and the Son. The learned critic has, however, ad- vanced this opinion without sufficient proof, and we must therefore consider it as no more than a probable conjecture. (c) See Pithoei Hist. Controv. de Processione Spiritus S. at the end of his Codex Canon. Eccles. Roman, p. -355. Le Quien, Oriens Christian, torn. iii. p. 354?. Ger. J. Vossius, De Tribus Symbolis, Diss. iii. p. 65; and above all, Jo. Georg. Walchius, Histor. Controv. de Processione Spiritus S. published in 8vo. at Jena, in 1751.

270 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, correcting the vices and follies of men, in en- VIIL lightening their understandings, and forming their

^ hearts. The administration of the sacrament of

the Lord's Supper, which was deemed the most solemn and important branch of divine worship, was now every where embellished, or rather de- formed, with a variety of senseless fopperies, which destroyed the beautiful simplicity of that affecting and salutary institution. We also find manifest traces in this century, of that supersti- tious custom of celebrating what were called so- litary masses (d\ though it be difficult to decide whether they were instituted by a public law, or introduced by the authority of private persons (e). Be that as it may, this single custom is sufficient to give us an idea of the superstition and darkness that sat brooding over the Christian church in this ignorant age, and renders it unnecessary to enter into a further detail of the absurd rites with which a designing priesthood continued to disfigure the religion of Jesus.

Charie- II. Charlemagne seemed disposed to stem

zearfo/the this torrent of superstition, which gathered force rites of the from day to day ; for, not to mention the zeal Rome*! Oi with which he opposed the worship of images, there are other circumstances that bear testimony to his intentions in this matter, such as his pre- venting the multiplication of festivals, by re- ducing them to a fixed and limited number, his prohibiting the ceremony of consecrating the

iSir (d) Solitary or private masses were those that were celebrated by the priest alone in behalf of souls detained in purgatory, as well as upon some other particular occasions. These masses were prohibited by the laws of the church, but they were a rich source of profit to the clergy. They were condemned by the canons of a synod assembled at Mentz under Charlemagne, as criminal innovations, and as the fruits of avarice and sloth.

(e) See Charlemagne's book concerning Images, p. 245 ; as also George Calixtus, De Missis Solitariis, sect. 12.

CHAP. iv. Rites and Ceremonies. 271

church bells by the rite of holy aspersion, and CENT. other ecclesiastical laws of his enacting, which redound to his honour. Several circumstances, however, concurred to render his designs abortive, and to blast the success of his worthy purposes, and none more than his excessive attachment to the Roman pontiffs, who were the patrons and protectors of those who exerted themselves in the cause of ceremonies. This vehement passion for the lordly pontiff was inherited by the great prince of whom we are now speaking, from his father Pepin, who had already commanded the manner of singing, and the kind of church-music in use at Rome, to be observed every where in all Chris- tian churches. It was in conformity with his ex- ample, and in compliance with the repeated and importunate solicitation of the pontiff Adrian, that Charlemagne laboured to bring all the La- tin churches to follow, as their model, the church of Rome, not only in the article now mentioned, but also in the whole form of their worship, in every circumstance of their religious service (jf). Several churches, however, among which those of Milan and Corbetta distinguished themselves emi- nently, absolutely rejected this proposal, and could neither be brought, by persuasion nor violence, to change their usual method of worship.

(f) See Charlemagne's Treatise concerning Images, Book I. p. 52. Eginard, De Vita Caroli Magni, cap. 26. p. 94. edit. Besseiii.

272 The Internal History of the Church.

CHAPTER V.

Concerning the Divisions and Heresies that troubled the Church during this Century.

CENT. I. THE Arians, Manicheans, and Marcionites, PART ii. tnough °ften depressed by the force of penal

1 laws and the power of the secular arm, gathered

The an. strength in the east, amidst the tumults and di-

cient sects • • •, i i • i ,1 /-i

recover visions with which the Grecian empire was per- strength, petually agitated, and drew great numbers into the profession of their opinions (g). The Mono- thelites, to whose cause the emperor Philippicus, and many others of the first rank and dignity were most zealous well-wishers, regained their credit in several places. The condition also of both the Nestorians and Monophysites was easy and agree- able under the dominion of the Arabians; their power and influence was considerable; nor were they destitute of means of weakening the Greeks, their irreconcileable adversaries, and of spreading their doctrines, and multiplying every where the number of their adherents.

Clemens H. Jn the church which Boniface had newly b"rt. erected in Germany, he himself tells us, that there were many perverse and erroneous reprobates, who had no true notion of religion, and his friends and adherents confirm this assertion. But the testimony both of the one and the others is un- doubtedly partial, and unworthy of credit; since it appears from the most evident proofs, that the persons here accused of errors and heresies were Irish and French divines, who refused that blind submission to the church of Rome, which Boni- face was so zealous to propagate every where.

(g) In Europe also Arianism prevailed greatly among the barbarous nations that embraced the Christian faith.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 273

Adalbert, a Gaul, and Clement, a native of Ire- CENT.

PART II.

land, were the persons whose opposition gave the

most trouble to the ambitious legate. The former got himself consecrated bishop, without the con- sent of Boniface, excited seditions and tumults among the eastern Francs, and appears, indeed, to have been both flagitious in his conduct, and erroneous in his opinions ; among other irregulari- ties, he was the forger (h*) of a letter to the human race, which was said to have been written by Jesus Christ, and to have been carried from heaven by the arch-angel Michael (z). As to Clement, his character and sentiments were maliciously misre- presented, since it appears, by the best and most authentic accounts, that he was much better ac- quainted with the true principles and doctrines of Christianity, than Boniface himself; and hence he is considered by many as a confessor and suf- ferer for the truth in this barbarous age (&). Be that as it will, both Adalbert and Clement were condemned, at the instigation of Boniface, by the pontiff Zachary, in a council assembled at Rome, A. D. 748 (/), and in consequence thereof were

(k) See the Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. iv. p. 82.

(t) There is an edition of this letter published by the learned Stephen Baluzius, in the Capitularia Regum Fran- corum, torn. ii. p. 1396.

(£) We find an enumeration of the erroneous opinions of Clement in the letters of Boniface Epistol. cxxxv. p. 189. See also Usserii Sylloge Epistolarum Hrbernicarum, p. 12. NouveauDictionnaire Histor. Critic, torn. i. p. 133. Ijg0 The zealous Boniface was too ignorant to be a proper judge of heresy, as appears by his condemning Virgilius for believing that there were antipodes. The great heresy of Clement seems to have been his preferring the decisions of scripture to decrees of councils and the opinions of the fathers, which he took the liberty to reject when they were not conformable to the word of God.

^^ (/) This is the true date of the council assembled by Zachary for the condemnation of Adalbert and Clement,

VOL. II. T

274 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, committed to prison, where, in all probability, they ym- concluded their days.

III. Religious discord ran still higher in Spain,

Felix and France, and Germany, towards the conclusion of Ebpand. ^ig century ; and the most unhappy tumults and commotions were occasioned by a question pro- posed to Felix bishop of Urgella, by Elipand, archbishop of Toledo, who desired to know in what sense Christ was the Son of God ? The answer which the former gave to this question, was, that Christ, considered in his divine nature, was truly and essentially the Son of God ; but that, con- sidered as a man, he was only so, nominally and by adoption. This doctrine was spread abroad by the two prelates ; Elipand propagated it in the different provinces of Spain, and Felix through- out Septimania, while the pontiff Adrian, and the greatest part of the Latin doctors, looked upon this opinion as a renovation of the Nestorian heresy, by its representing Christ, as divided into two distinct persons. In consequence of this, Felix was successively condemned by the councils of Narbonne, Ratisbon, Francfort on the Maine, and Rome : and was finally obliged, by the coun- cil of Aix-la-Chapelle, to retract his error, and to change his opinion (m). The change he made was, however, rather nominal than real, the com-

and not the year 745, as Fleury * and Mabillon f have pre- tended, in which error they are followed by Mr. Bower in the third volume of his History of the Popes, p. 325. The proof is, that the letter of Boniface, in consequence of which this council was assembled, must have been wrote in the year 748 ; since he declares in that letter, that he had been near thirty years legate of the holy see of Rome, into which com- mission he entered, as all authors agree, about the year 719. Ijgp* (m) The council of Narbonne that condemned Felix was held in the year 788, that of Ratisbon in 792, that of Francfort in 794, that of Rome in 799.

* Hist. Ecclesiast. torn, ix, p, 296. f Annal. Ord, Benedict, lib. xxii. n. 8.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 275

mon shift of temporising divines ; for he still re- CENT.

^ •** VJ.AX*

PART II.

tained his doctrine, and died in the firm belief of

it at Lyons, where he had been banished by Charle- magne (n). Elipand, on the contrary, lived secure in Spain under the dominion of the Saracens, far removed from the thunder of synods and coun- cils, and out of the reach of that coercive power in religious matters, whose utmost efforts can go no further than to make the erroneous hypocrites or martyrs. Many are of opinion, that the disciples of Felix, who were called Adoptians, departed much less from the doctrine generally received among Christians, than is commonly imagined ; and that what chiefly distinguished their tenets was the term they used, and their manner of ex- pression, rather than a real diversity of senti- ments (o). But as this sect, together with their chief, thought proper to make use of singular, and sometimes of contradictory expressions ; this fur- nished such as accused them of Nestorianism with very plausible reasons to support their charge.

(n) The authors, who have written concerning the sect of Felix, are mentioned by J. Alb. Fabricius, Biblioth. Lat. Medii JLvi, torn. ii. p. 482. Add to these Petrus de Marca, in his Marca Hispanica, lib. iii. cap. xii. p. 368. Jo. de Ferreras, Histoire Generate d'Espagne, torn. ii. p. 518. 523. 528. 535. 560. Jo. Mabillon, Prsef. ad Ssec. iv. Actor. SS. Ord. Benedict!, par. ii. There are also very particular ac- counts given of Felix by Dora. Colonia, Histoire Litteraire de la Ville de Lyon, torn. ii. p. 79. and by the Benedictine monks in their Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. iv. p. 434.

(o) Jo. George Dorscheus, Collat. ad Concilium Franco- furt. p. 101. Werenfels, De Logomachiis Eruditor. p. 459. Opp. Jac. Basnagius, Praef. ad Etherium in Henr. Canisii Lection, antiquis, torn. ii. part. I. p. 284-. George Calixtus, Singul. Diss.

THE

NINTH CENTURY.

PART I.

THE EXTERNAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

CHAPTER I.

Concerning the Prosperous Events which hap- pened to the Church during this Century.

CENT. I. THE reign of Charlemagne had been sin- PA^T i. gularty auspicious to the Christian cause ; the life of that great prince was principally employed in

The the most zealous efforts to propagate and establish rUnes^'and the religion of Jesus among the Huns, Saxons, f imbrtedS Frieslanders, and other unenlightened nations , but his piety was mixed with violence, his spiritual conquests were generally made by the force of arms, and this impure mixture tarnishes the lustre of his noblest exploits. His son Lewis, unde- servedly surnamed the Meek, inherited the de- fects of his illustrious father without his virtues, and was his equal in violence and cruelty, but vastly his inferior in all 'worthy and valuable ac- complishments. Under his reign a very favoura- ble opportunity was offered of propagating the gospel among the northern nations, and particu- larly among the inhabitants of Sweden and Den- mark, A petty king of Jutland, named Harald

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events.

Klack, being driven from both his kingdom and CENT country, in the year 826, by Regner Lodbrock, threw himself at the emperor's feet, and implored his succours against the usurper. Lewis granted his request, and promised the exiled prince his protection and assistance, on condition, however, that he would embrace Christianity, and admit the ministers of that religion to preach in his domi- nions. Harald submitted to these conditions, was baptized with his brother at Mentz, A. D. 826, and returned into his country attended by two eminent divines, Ansgar or Anschaire, and Auth- bert ; the former a monk of Corbey in West- phalia, and the latter belonging to a monastery of the same name in France. These venerable mis- sionaries preached the gospel with remarkable suc- cess, during the space of two years, to the inha- bitants of Cimbria and Jutland.

II. After the death of his learned and pious The pro- companion Authbert, the zealous and indefa- j^™ * tigable Ansgar made a voyage into Sweden, Ansgar. A. D. 828, where his ministerial labours were also crowned with a distinguished success. As he re- turned from thence into Germany in the year 831, he was loaded by Lewis the Meek with ecclesi- astical honours, being created archbishop of the new church at Hamburgh, and also of the whole north, to which dignity the superintendance of the church at Bremen was afterwards added in the year 84-4. The profits attached to this high and honourable charge were very inconsiderable ; while the perils and labours, in which it involved the pious prelate, were truly formidable. Accordingly Ansgar travelled frequently among the Danes, Cimbrians, and Swedes, in order to promote the cause of Christ, to form new churches, and to confirm and establish those which he had already gathered together; in all which arduous enter- prizes he passed his life in the most imminent

278 The External History of the Church.

CENT, dangers, until he concluded his glorious course,

ix. • -~ - "• - -

PARTI.

[x> A. D. 865 (a).

III. About the middle of this century the jion Moesians (&), Bulgarians, and Gazarians, and after them the Bohemians and Moravians, were M°d Mora"' converte(^ to Christianity by Methodius and vians. Cyril, two Greek monks, whom the empress Theodora had sent to dispel the darkness of those idolatrous nations (c). The zeal of Charlemagne, and his pious missionaries, had been formerly exerted in the same cause, and among the same people (d\ but with so little success, that any faint notions which they had received of the Christian doctrine were entirely effaced. The instructions of the Grecian doctors had a much better, and also a more permanent effect; but as they recommended to their new disciples the forms of worship, and the various rites and cere- monies used among the Greeks (e\ this was the occasion of much religious animosity and conten-

(a) The writers to whom we are indebted for accounts of this pious and illustrious prelate, the founder of the Cimbrian, , Danish, and Swedish churches, are mentioned by Jo. Albert. Fabricius, in his Biblioth. Latin. Medii JEvt, torn. i. p. 292 : as also in his Lux Evangelii Orbi Terrarum exoriens, p. 425. Add to these the Benedictine monks, in their Histoire Lit. de la France, torn. v. p. 277. Acta Sanctor. Mens Februar. torn. i. p. 391. Erici Pontoppidani Annales Eccles. Danicae Diplomatici, torn. i. p. 18. Jo. Mollerus, Cimbriae Litterata, torn. iii. p. 8. These writers give us also circumstantial ac- counts of Ebbo, Withmar, Rembert, and others, who were either the fellow -labourers or successors of Ansgar.

EfSlf3 (b) We have translated thus the term Mysi, which is an error in the original. Dr. Mosheim, like many others, has confounded the Mysians with the inhabitants of Mcesia, by giving the latter, who were Europeans, the title of the former, who dwelt in Asia.

(c) Jo. George Stredowsky, Sacra Moravian Historia, lib. ii. cap. ii. p. 94. compared with Pet. Kohlii Introduc. in Hi- storiam et rem Litter. Sclavorum, p. 124.

(d) Stredowsky, loc. cit. lib. i. cap. ix. p. 55.

(e) Lenfant, Histoire de la Guerre des Hussites, livr. i. ch. i. p. 2.

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 279

tion in after-times, when the lordly pontiffs exerted CENT. all their vehemence, and employed every means, PART* , though with imperfect success, of reducing these nations under the discipline and jurisdiction of the Latin church.

IV. Under the reign of Basilius, the Mace- or the sia- donian, who ascended the imperial throne of the Greeks in the year 867, the Slavonians, Aren- tani, and certain provinces of Dalmatia, sent a solemn embassy to Constantinople, to declare their resolution of submitting to the jurisdiction of the Grecian empire, and of embracing, at the same time, the Christian religion. This proposal was received with admiration and joy, and it was also answered by a suitable ardour and zeal for the conversion of a people, which seemed so inge- nuously disposed to embrace the truth : accord- ingly, a competent number of Grecian doctors were sent among them to instruct them in the knowledge of the gospel, and to admit them by baptism into the Christian church (/*). The warlike nations of the Russians were converted under the same emperor, but not in the same manner, nor from the same noble and rational motives. Having entered into a treaty of peace with that prince, they were engaged by various presents and promises to embrace the gospel, in consequence of which they received not only the Christian ministers that were appointed to instruct them, but also an archbishop, whom the Gre- cian patriarch Ignatius had sent among them, to perfect their conversion and establish their

C/) We are indebted for this account of the conversion of the Slavonians to the treatise De Administrando Iraperio, composed by the learned emperor Constantine Porphyrogen, which is published by Bandurius in ImperiumOrientale, torn. i. p. 72, 73. Constantine gives the same account of this event in the life of his grandfather Basilius, the Macedonian, sect. 54-, published in the Corpus Byzantinum, torn. xvi. p. 133, 134.

280 The External History of the Church.

C?xT* cnurcn (£*)• Such were the beginnings of Chris- PART i. tianity among the bold and warlike Russians, who

.. were inhabitants of the Ukraine, and who, a little

before their conversion, fitted out a formidable fleet, and setting sail from Kiovia for Constanti- nople, spread terror and dismay through the whole empire (/?). The nature V. It is proper to observe, with respect to the

of these • *. i • i i_

conversions, various conversions which we have now been re- lating, that they were undertaken upon much better principles, and executed in a more pious and rational manner, than those of the preceding ages. The ministers, who were now sent to in- struct and convert the barbarous nations, em- ployed not, like many of their predecessors, the terror of penal laws, to affright men into the profes- sion of Christianity ; nor, in establishing churches upon the ruins of idolatry, were they principally

(g) Constantinus, Porph. Vita Basilii Macedonis, sect. 96. p. 157. Corp. Byzant. See also the Narratio de Ruthenorum Conversione, published both in Greek and Latin by Ban- durius, in his Imperium Orientale, Notis ad Porphyrogenetam de Administrando Imperio, p. 62. torn. ii.

(h) The learned Lequien, in his Oriens Christianus, torn, i. p. 1257, gives a very inaccurate account of these Russians who were converted to Christianity under the reign of Basilius the Macedonian, and in this he does no more than adopt the errors of many who wrote before him upon the same subject. Nor is he consistent with himself, for in one place he affirms, that the people here spoken of were the Russians that lived in the neighbourhood of the Bulgarians ; while in another he maintains, that by these Russians we are to understand the Gazarians. The only reason he alleges to support this latter opinion is, that among the Christian doctors sent to instruct the Russians, mention is made of Cyril, who converted the Gazari to Christianity. This reason shows, that the learned writer had a most imperfect knowledge both of these Russians and the Gazari. He is also guilty of other mistakes upon the same subject. There is a much better explanation of this matter given by the very learned Theoph. Sigifred. Bayer, in his Dissert, de Russorum prima Expeditione Constanti- nopolitana, which is published in the sixth volume of the Commentaria Acad. Scientiar. Petropolitanae.

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 281

attentive to promote the grandeur and extend the CENT.

PART I.

authority of the Roman pontiffs ; their views were

more noble, and their conduct more suitable, to the genius of the religion they professed. They had principally in view the happiness of mankind, endeavoured to promote the gospel of truth and peace by the methods of a rational persuasion, and seconded their arguments by the victorious power of exemplary lives. It must, however, be con- fessed, that the doctrine they taught was far from being conformable to that pure and excellent rule of faith and practice laid down by our divine Sa- viour and his holy apostles j their religious system was, on the contrary, corrupted with a variety of superstitious rites, and a multitude of absurd in- ventions. It is further certain, that there remained among these converted nations too many traces of the idolatrous religion of their ancestors, notwith- standing the zealous labours of their Christian guides : and it appears also, that these pious mis- sionaries were contented with introducing an ex- ternal profession of the true religion among their new proselytes. It would be, however, unjust to accuse them on this account of negligence or cor- ruption in the discharge of their ministry; since, in order to gain over these fierce and savage nations to the church, it may have been absolutely neces- sary to indulge them in some of their infirmities and prejudices, and to connive at many things, which they could not approve, and which, in other circumstances, they would have been careful to correct.

The External History of the Church.

CHAPTER II.

Concerning the Calamitous Events that happened to the Church during this Century.

CENT. I. THE Saracens had now extended their PART i. usurpations with an amazing success. Masters

of Asia, a few provinces excepted, they pushed

The pro- their conquests to the extremities of India, and

gress 01 the i i • i i /»*/»•

Saracens obliged the greatest part of Africa to receive universal ^^ Y0^6 5 n°r were their enterprizes in the west empire. without effect, since Spain and Sardinia submitted to their arms, and fell under their dominion. But their conquests did not end here ; for in the year 827, by the treason of Euphemius, they made themselves masters of the rich and fertile island of Sicily ; and towards the conclusion of this century, the Asiatic Saracens seized upon several cities of Calabria, and spread the terror of their victorious arms even to the very walls of Rome, while Crete, Corsica, and other adjacent islands, were either joined to their possessions, or laid waste by their incursions. It is easy to compre- hend that this overgrown prosperity of a nation accustomed to bloodshed and rapine, and which also beheld the Christians with the utmost aver- sion, must have been every where detrimental to the progress of the gospel, and to the tranquillity of the church. In the east, more especially, a prodigious number of Christian families embraced the religion of their conquerors, that they might live in the peaceful enjoyment of their possessions. Many, indeed, refused this base and criminal compliance, and with a pious magnanimity ad- hered to their principles in the face of perse- cution : but such were gradually reduced to a miserable condition, and were not only robbed of the best part of their wealth, and deprived of

CHAP. ii. Calamitous Events. 283

their worldly advantages, but, what was still more CENT. deplorable, they fell by degrees into such incredible PA^ x

ignorance and stupidity, that, in process of time,

there were scarcely any remains of Christianity to be found among them, besides the mere name, and a few external rites and ceremonies. The European Saracens, particularly those who were settled in Spain, were of a much milder disposition, and seemed to have put off the greatest part of their native ferocity; so that the Christians, generally speaking, lived peaceably under their dominion, and were permitted to observe the laws, and to enjoy the privileges of their holy profession. It must, however, be confessed, that this mild and tolerating conduct of the Saracens was not without some few exceptions of cruelty (i).

II. The European Christians had the most cruel The Nor- sufferings to undergo from another quarter, even mans' from the insatiable fury of a swarm of barbarians that issued out from the northern provinces. The Normans, under which general term are compre- hended the Danes, Norwegians, and Swedes, whose habitations lay along the coasts of the Baltic sea, were a people accustomed to carnage and rapine. Their petty kings and chiefs, who subsisted by piracy and plunder, had already, during the reign of Charlemagne, infested with their fleets the coasts of the German ocean, but were restrained by the opposition they met with from the vigilance and activity of that warlike prince. In this century, however, they became more bold and enterprising, made frequent irruptions into Germany, Britain, Friesland, and the Gauls, and carried along with them, wherever they went, fire and sword, desola-

(i) See, for an example, the account that is given of Eu- logius, who suffered martyrdom at Cordoua, in the Acta Sanctorum ad d. xi. Martii, torn. ii. p. 88 ; as also of Ro- derick and Salomon, two Spanish martyrs of this century. Ibid, ad d. xiii. Martii, p. 238.

284 The External History of the Church.

CENT, tion and horror. The impetuous fury of these

PART i sava£e barbarians not only spread desolation through

- the Spanish provinces (&), but even penetrated into

the very heart of Italy ; for, in the year 857, they sacked and pillaged the city of Luca in the most cruel manner; and, about three years after, Pisa, and several other cities of Italy, met with the same fate (/). The ancient histories of the Francs abound with the most dismal accounts of their horrid exploits.

Form new III. The first views of these savage invaders ex- ent& tended no further than plunder ; but charmed at length with the beauty and fertility of the pro- vinces which they were so cruelly depopulating, they began to form settlements in them ; nor were the European princes in a condition to oppose their usurpations. On the contrary, Charles the Bald was obliged, in the year 850, to resign a considerable part of his dominions to this pow- erful banditti (?w); and a few years after, under the reign of Charles the Gross, emperor and king of France, the famous Norman chief Godo- fred entered with an army into Friesland, and obstinately refused to sheath his sword before he

(&) Jo. de Ferreras, Histoire Gener. d'Espagne, torn. ii. p. 583. Piracy was esteemed among the northern nations a very honourable and noble profession; and hence the sons of kings, and the young nobility, were trained up to this species of robbery, and made it their principal business to perfect themselves in it. Nor will this appear very sur- prising to such as consider the religion of these nations, and the barbarism of the times. See Jo. Lud. Holberg, Historia Danorum et Norvegorum Navalis, in Scriptis Societatis Scientiar. Hafniensis, torn. iii. p. 349. in which there are a multitude of curious and interesting relations concerning the ancient piracies, drawn from the Danish and Norwegian annals.

(I) See fche Scriptores Rerum Italicarum, published by Muratori.

(m) Annales Incerti Auctoris, in Pithoei Scriptor. Francic. p. 46.

PART

CHAP. n. Calamitous Events. 285

was master of the whole province (ft). Such, CENT. however, of the Normans as settled among the Christians, contracted a gentler turn of mind, and gradually departed from their primitive brutality. Their marriages with the Christians contributed, no doubt, to civilize them ; and engaged them to abandon the superstition of their ancestors with more facility, and to embrace the gospel with more readiness than they would have otherwise done. Thus the proud conqueror of Friesland solemnly embraced the Christian religion after that he had received in marriage, from Charles the Gross, Gisela, the daughter of Lothaire the younger.

(n) Reginonis Prumiensis Annal. lib. ii. f. 60. in Pistorii Scriptor. German.

286 PART II.

THE INTERNAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

CHAPTER I.

Concerning the State of Letters and Philosophy during this Century.

CENT. I. THE Grecian empire, in this century, was in PART ii. circumstances every way proper to extinguish all taste for letters and philosophy, and all zeal for

The state ^he cultivation of the sciences. The liberality,

of letters „ , /» i_

among the however, of the emperors, some of whom were Greeks. men 0£ learnmg an(i taste, and the wise precau- tions taken by the patriarchs of Constantinople, among whom Photius deserves the first rank in point of erudition, contributed to attach a certain number of learned men to that imperial city, and thus prevented the total decline of letters. Ac- cordingly we find in Constantinople, at this time, several persons who excelled in eloquence and poetry; some who displayed, in their writings against the Latins, a considerable knowledge of the art of reasoning, and a high degree of dexterity in the management of controversy; and others who composed the history of their own times with accuracy and with elegance. The controversy with the Latins, when it grew more keen and animated, contributed, in a particular manner, to excite the literary emulation of the disputants, rendered them studious to acquire new ideas, and a rich and copious elocution, adorned with the graces of elegance and wit ; and thus roused and invigorated talents that were ready to perish in indolence and sloth.

CHAP. i. Learning and Philosophy. 287

II. We learn from the accounts of Zonaras, CENT. that the study of philosophy lay for a long time neglected in this age ; but it was revived, with a

zeal for the sciences in general, under the emperor Theophilus, and his son Michael III. This re- p y vival of letters was principally owing (o) to the encouragement and protection which the learned received from Bardas, who had been declared Caesar, himself a weak and illiterate man, but a warm friend of the celebrated Photius, the great patron of science, by whose council he was, un- doubtedly, directed in this matter. At the head of all the learned men to whom Bardas committed the culture of the sciences, he placed Leo, sur- named the Wise, a man of the most profound and uncommon erudition, and who afterwards was consecrated bishop of Thessalonica. Photius ex- plained the Categories of Aristotle, while Michael Psellus gave a brief exposition of the other works of that great philosopher.

III. The Arabians, who, instead of cultivating The state the arts and sciences, had thought of nothing oflearni"g

... „ ... ., . & . . & among the

hitherto, but ot extending their territories, were Arabians. now excited to literary pursuits by Almamunis, otherwise called Abu Gaafar Abdallah, whose zeal for the advancement of letters was great, and whose munificence towards men of learning and genius was truly royal. Under the auspicious protection of this celebrated caliph of Babylon and Egypt, the Arabians made a rapid and astonishing progress in various kinds of learning. This ex- cellent prince began to reign about the time of the death of Charlemagne, and died in the year 833. He erected the famous schools of Bagdad, Cufa, and Basora, and established seminaries of learning in several other cities ; he drew to his court men of eminent parts by his extraordinary

(o) Annalium torn. ii. lib. xvi. p. 126. torn. x. Corporis Byzantin.

288 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, liberality, set up noble libraries in various places, tlx' had translations made of the best Grecian pro-

PART II. ... . i A i • i

ductions into the Arabic language at a vast ex- pense, and employed every method of promoting the cause of learning, that became a great and generous prince, whose zeal for the sciences was attended with knowledge (p). It was under the reign of this immortal caliph, that the Arabians began to take pleasure in the Grecian learning, and to propagate it, by degrees, not only in Syria and Africa, but also in Spain and Italy; and from this period they give us a long catalogue of cele- brated philosophers, physicians, astronomers, and mathematicians, who were ornaments to their na- tion through several succeeding ages (^). And in this certainly they do not boast without reason, though we are not to consider, as literally true, all the wonderful and pompous things which the more modern writers of the Saracen history tell us of these illustrious philosophers.

After this period the European Christians pro- fited much by the Arabian learning, and were highly indebted to the Saracens for the improve- ment they made in the various sciences. For the mathematics, astronomy, physic, and philosophy, that were taught in Europe from the tenth century, were, for the most part, drawn from the Arabian schools that were established in Spain and Italy, or from the writings of the Arabian sages. And from hence the Saracens may, in one respect, be justly considered as the restorers of learning in Europe. The state of IV. In that part of Europe, that was subject to dtrCharie- the dominion of the Francs, Charlemagne la-

magne, and

sors.UCC (?) Abulpharaius, Historia Dynastiar. p. 246. Georg.

Elmacin. Histor. Saracen, lib. ii. p. 139. Barthol. Herbelot, Biblioth. Orient. Article Mamun, p. 545.

(q) See the treatise of Leo Africanus, De Medicis et Phi- losophis Arabibus, published a second time by Fabricius, in the twelfth volume of his Bibliotheca Graeca, p. 259.

CHAP. i. Learning and Philosophy. 289

boured with incredible zeal and ardour for the CENT.

IX. PART II.

advancement of useful learning, and animated

his subjects to the culture of the sciences in all their various branches. So that, had his succes- sors been disposed to follow his example, and capable of acting upon the noble plan he formed, the empire, in a little time, would have been en- tirely delivered from barbarism and ignorance. It is true, this great prince left in his family a certain spirit of emulation, which animated his immediate successors to imitate, in some mea- sure, his zeal for the prosperity of the republic of letters. Lewis the Meek both formed and exe- cuted several designs that were extremely condu- cive to the progress of the arts and sciences (r) ; and his zeal in this respect was surpassed by the ardour with which his son Charles the Bald ex- erted himself in the propagation of letters, and in exciting the emulation of the learned by the most alluring marks of his protection and favour. This great patron of the sciences drew the lite- rati to his court from all parts, took a particular delight in their conversation, multiplied and em- bellished the seminaries of learning, and protected, in a more especial manner, the Aulic school, of which mention has been formerly made, and which was first erected in the seventh century, in order to the education of the royal family, and the first nobility (s). His brother Lothaire en- deavoured to revive in Italy the drooping sciences, and to restore them from that state of languor and decay into which the corruption and indo- lence of the clergy had permitted them to fall.

(r) See the Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. iv. p. 583.

(*) Herman. Conringii Antiquit. Academicae, p. 320. Caes. Eg. du Boulay, Hist. Acad. Paris, torn. i. p. 178. Launoius, De Scholis Caroli M. cap. xi, xii. p. 4-7- Histoire Litter, de la France, torn. v. p. 4<83.

VOL. JI. U

290 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. For this purpose he erected schools in the eight ii Prmcipal cities °f Itaty> A. D. 823 (/), but with ' little success, since it appears that that country was entirely destitute of men of learning and ge- nius during the ninth century (u).

In England learning had a better fate under the auspicious protection of King Alfred, who has acquired an immortal name, not only by the ad- mirable progress he made in all kinds of elegant and useful knowledge (w\ but also by the care he took to multiply men of letters and genius in his dominions, and to restore to the sciences, sacred and profane, the credit and lustre they so emi- nently deserve (x).

y. But the infelicity of the times rendered the the progress effects of all this zeal, and all these projects, for the of learning, advancement of learning, much less considerable than might have otherwise been expected. The

(0 See the edict for that purpose among the Capitularia in Muratorii Rerum Italicar. torn. i. part II. p. 151.

(u) See Muratori's Antiq. Ital. Medii ^Evi, torn. iii. p. 829.

(to) See Ant. Wood. Hist, et Antiquit. Academ. Oxoniens. lib. i. p. 13. Boulay, Hist. Acad. Paris, torn. i. p. 211. Ge- neral Dictionary, at the article Alfred. (This prince, among other pious and learned labours, translated the Pastoral of Gregory I. Boetius, De Consolatione, and Bede's Ecclesias- tical History.)

g§p° (x) This excellent prince not only encouraged by his protection and liberality such of his own subjects as made any progress in the liberal arts and sciences, but invited over from foreign countries men of distinguished talents, whom he fixed in a seminary at Oxford, and, of consequence, may be looked upon as the founder of that noble university. Jo- hannes Scotus Erigena, who had been in the service of Charles the Bald, and Grimbald, a monk of St. Berlin in France, were the most famous of those learned men who came from abroad; Asserius, Werefrid, Plegmund, Dunwuf, Wulfsig, and the abbot of St. Neot's, deserve the first rank among the English literati, who adorned the age of Alfred. See Collier's Ecclesiastical History, vol. I. book iii. p. 165, 166, &c. Rapin Thoyras, in the reign of this illustrious monarch.

CHAP. i. Learning and Philosophy. 291

protectors and patrons of the learned were them- CENT. selves learned; their authority was respectable, PART ' llt

and their munificence was boundless ; and yet the '.

progress of science towards perfection was but slow, because the interruptions arising from the troubled state of Europe were frequent. The dis- cords that arose between Lewis the Meek, and his sons, which were succeeded by a rupture between the latter, retarded considerably the progress of letters in the empire ; and the incursions and victories of the Normans, which afflicted Europe during the whole course of this century, were so fatal to the culture of the arts and sciences, that, in most of the European provinces, and even in France, there remained but a small number who truly deserved the title of learned men (#). The wretched and incoherent fragments of erudition that yet remained among the clergy were con- fined to the monasteries, and to the episcopal schools ; but the zeal of the monkish and priestly orders for the improvement of the mind, and the culture of the sciences, diminished in proportion as their revenues increased, so that their indolence and ignorance grew with their possessions.

VI. It must, however, be confessed, that se- Examples veral examples of learned men, whose zeal for {jfeiTwho the sciences was kindled by the encouragement flourished and munificence of Charlemagne, shone forth "^ cen" with a distinguished lustre through the darkness of this barbarous age. Among these, the first rank is due to Rabanus Maurus, whose fame was great through all Germany and France, and to whom the youth resorted, in prodigious numbers, from all parts, to receive his instructions in the liberal arts and sciences. The writers of history, whose works have deservedly preserved their

(y] Servati Lupi Epistolae xxxiv. p. 69. Conringii Antiq. Acad. p. 322. Histoire Litter, de la France, torn. iv. p. 251 .

U 2

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, names from oblivion, are Eginhard, Freculph, * ii Thegan, Hamo, Anastasius, Ado, and others of

less note. Elorus, Walafridus, Strabo, Ber- tharius, and Rabanus, excelled in poetry. Sma- ragdus and Bertharius were eminent for their skill in grammar and languages, as was also the celebrated Rabanus already mentioned, who ac- quired a very high degree of reputation by a learned and subtile treatise concerning the causes and the rise of languages. The Greek and He- brew erudition was cultivated with considerable success by William, Servatus Lupus, Scqtus, and others. Eginhard, Agobard, Hincmar, and Ser- vatus Lupus, were much celebrated for the elo- quence which appeared both in their discourses and in their writings (s).

johanr.es VII. The philosophy and logic that were taught in the European schools during this century scarcely deserved such honourable titles, and were little better than an empty jargon. There were, however, to be found in various places, particularly among the Irish, men of acute parts, and extensive knowledge, who were perfectly well entitled to the appellation of philosophers. The chief of these wras Johannes Scotus Erigena (Y/), a native of Ireland, the friend and companion of Charles the Bald, who delighted so much in his conversation as to honour him with a place at his table. Scotus was endowed with an excel-

(2) Such as are desirous of a more circumstantial account of these writers, and of their various productions, may con- sult the Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. iv. p. 251, to 271. Or the more ample account given of them by the cele- brated Le Beuf, in his Etat des Sciences en France depuis Charlemagne jusqu'au Roi Robert, which is published in his Recueil de divers Ecrits pour servir d'Eclaircissement a 1'Histoire de France, torn. ii. p. 1. Paris 1738. en 8vo.

Ijgg13 (a) Erigena signifies properly a native of Ireland, as Erin, or Irin, was the ancient name of that kingdom.

CHAP. i. Learning and Philosophy.

lent and truly superior genius, and was consider- CENT ably versed both in Greek and Latin erudition. PARTn He explained to his disciples, the philosophy of - Aristotle, for which he was singularly well qua- lified by his thorough knowledge of the Greek language ; but as his genius was too bold and aspiring to confine itself to the authority and deci- sions of the Stagirite, he pushed his philosophical researches yet farther, dared to think for himself, and ventured to pursue truth without any other guide than his own reason. We have yet extant of his composition, Five Books concerning the Di- vision of Nature, an intricate and subtile produc- tion, in which the causes and principles of all things are investigated with a considerable degree of sagacity, and in which also the precepts of Christianity are allegorically explained, yet in such a manner as to show, that their ultimate end is the union of the soul with the Supreme Being. He was the first who blended the scholastic theology with the mystic, and formed them into one system. It has also been imagined, that he was far from rejecting the opinions of those who consider the union of God and nature, as similar to the union that subsists between the soul and the body, a no- tion much the same with that of many ancient philosophers, who looked upon the Deity as the soul of the world. But it may, perhaps, be alleged, and not without reason, that what Scotus said upon this subject amounted to no more than what the Realists (£), as they are called, maintained

(6) The Realists, who followed the doctrine of Ari- stotle with respect to universal ideas, were so called in oppo- sition to the Nominalists, who embraced the hypothesis of Zeno and the Stoics uponthatperplexed and intricate subject. Aristotle held, against Plato, that previous to, and inde- pendent of matter, there were no universal ideas or essences; and that the ideas, or exemplars, which the latter supposed to have existed in the divine mind, and to have been the models of all created things, had been eternally impressed upon matter, and were coeval with, and inherent in, their objects.

PART

294 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, afterwards, though it must be allowed that he V1It has expressed himself in a very perplexed and — obscure manner (c). This celebrated philosopher formed no particular sect, at least as far as is come to our knowledge ; and this will be con- sidered, by those who are acquainted with the spirit of the times he lived in, as a proof that his immense learning was accompanied with meekness and modesty.

About this time there lived a certain person named Macarius, a native of Ireland, who pro- pagated in France that enormous error, which was afterwards adopted and professed by Averroes, that one individual intelligence, one soul, per- formed the spiritual and rational functions in all the human race. This error was confuted by Ratram, a famous monk of Corbey ((/). Before these writers flourished, Dungal, a native of Ireland also, who left his country, and retired into a French monastery, where he lived during the reigns of Charlemagne and Lewis the Meek, and taught philosophy and astronomy with the greatest reputation (e). Heric, a monk of Aux-

Zeno and his followers, departing both from the Platonic and Aristotelian systems, maintained that these pretended uni- versals had neither form nor essence, and were no more than mere terms and nominal representations of their particular objects. The doctrine of Aristotle prevailed until the eleventh oentury, when Roscelinus embraced the Stoical system, and founded the sect of the Nominalists, whose sentiments were propagated with great success by the famous Abelard. These two sects differed considerably among themselves, and explained, or rather obscured, their respective tenets in a variety of ways.

(c) The work here alluded to was published at Oxford by Mr. Thomas Gale, in 1681. The learned Heuman has made several extracts from it, and given also an ample and learned account of Scotus, in his Acts of the Philosophers, written in German, torn. iii. p. 858.

(d) Mabilion, Praef. ad Saec. iv. part II. Actor. SS. Ord, Benedicti. sect. 156. p. 53.

(e) Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. iv. p. 493.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 295

erre, made likewise an eminent figure among the CENT. learned of this age ; he was a man of uncommon PART'IIi

sagacity, was endowed with a great and aspiring 1

genius, and is said, in many things, to have an- ticipated the famous Descartes in the manner of investigating truth (,/).

CHAPTER II.

Concerning the Doctors and Ministers of the Church, and its Form of Government during* this Century.

I. THE impiety and licentiousness of the The cor- greatest part of the clergy arose, at this time, to an enormous height, and stand upon record, in the unanimous complaints of the most candid and impartial writers of this century (g~). In the east, tumult, discord, conspiracies, and trea- sons, reigned uncontrolled, and all things were carried by violence and force. These abuses appeared in many things, but particularly in the election of the patriarchs of Constantinople. The favour of the court was become the only step to that high and important office ; and as the patriarch's continuance in that eminent post depended upon such an uncertain and precarious foundation, nothing was more usual than to see a prelate pulled down from his episcopal throne by an imperial decree. In the western provinces, the bishops were become voluptuous and effemi- nate to a very high degree. They passed their lives amidst the splendour of courts, and the plea-

(/) Le Boeuf, Memoires pour 1'Histbire d'Auxerre, torn, ii. p. 481. Acta Sanctorum, torn. iv. M. Junii ad d. xxiv. p. 829. & ad d. xxxi. Jul. p. 24-9. For this philosopher has obtained a place among the saintly order.

(#•) See Agobardus, De Privileges et Jure Sacerdotii, sect. 13. p. 137. torn. i. opp. ed. Baluzii.

296 , The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, sures of a luxurious indolence, which corrupted tx* their taste, extinguished their zeal, and rendered

PAR/l* II •

them incapable of performing the solemn duties of

their function (^) ; while the inferior clergy were sunk in licentiousness, minded nothing but sensual gratifications, and infected with the most heinous vices the flock, whom it was the very business of their ministry to preserve, or to deliver from the contagion of iniquity. Besides, the ignorance of the sacred order wras, in many places, so deplorable, that few of them could either read or write ; and still fewer were capable of expressing their wretched notions with any degree of method or perspicuity. Hence it happened, that when letters were to be penned, or any matter of consequence was to be committed to writing, they had commonly re- course to some person who was supposed to be en- dowed wdth superior abilities, as appears in the case of Servatus Lupus (t).

The causes jj^ ]\|any circumstances concurred, particularly

of this cor- , -,-, J *

ruption. in the European nations, to produce and augment this corruption and licentiousness, so shameful in an order of men, who were set apart to exhibit examples of piety to the rest of the world. Among these we may reckon, as the chief sources of the evil under consideration, the calamities of the times, even the bloody and perpetual wars that wrere carried on between Lewis the Meek and his family, the incursions and conquests of the bar- barous nations, the gross and incredible ignorance of the nobility, and the affluence and riches that

(h) The reader will be convinced of this by consulting Agobard, passim, and by looking over the laws enacted in the Latin councils for restraining the disorders of the clergy. See also Servatus Lupus, Epist. xxxv. p. 73. 281. and Steph. Baluz. in Adnot. p. 378.

(j) See the works of Servatus Lupus, Epist. xcviii, xcix. p. 126. 142. 148. as also his Life. See also Rodolphi Bitu- ricensis Capitula ad Clerum suum, in Baluzii Miscellaneis, torn. vi. p. 139. 148.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 297

flowed in upon the churches and religious semi- naries from all quarters. Many other causes also PAR1' n< contributed to dishonour the church, by intro --- ducing into it a corrupt ministry. A nobleman, who, through want of talents, activity, or courage, was rendered incapable of appearing with dignity in the cabinet, or with honour in the field, imme- diately turned his views towards the church, aimed at a distinguished place among its chiefs and rulers, and became, in consequence, a contagious example of stupidity and vice to the inferior clergy (/<:). The patrons of churches, in whom resided the right of election, unwilling to submit their dis- orderly conduct to the keen censure of zealous and upright pastors, industriously looked for the most abject, ignorant, and worthless ecclesiastics, to whom they committed the cure of souls (/). But one of the circumstances, which contributed in a particular manner to render, at least, the higher clergy wicked and depraved, and to take off their minds from the duties of their station, was the obligation they were under of performing certain services to their sovereigns, in consequence of the possessions they derived from the royal bounty. The bishops and heads of monasteries held many lands and castles by a feudal tenure ; and being thereby bound to furnish their princes with a certain number of soldiers in time of war, were obliged also to take the field themselves at the head of these troops (w), and thus to act in a

(k) Hincmarus, Oper. Posterior, contra Godeschalcum, cap. xxxvi. torn. i. Opp. p. 318. Servatus Lupus, Epist. Ixxix. p. 120.

(/) Agobardus, De Privilegiis et Jure Sacerdotum, cap. xi. p. 341. torn. i. Opp.

(m) Steph. Baluzii Appendix Actor, ad Servatum, p. 508. Muratori Antiq. Ital. Medii JEvi, torn. ii. p. 44*6. Mabillon. Annal. Benedic. torn. vi. p. 587. Fresne ad Joinvillii Hist. Ludovici S. p. 75, 76.

298 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, sphere that was utterly inconsistent with the nature PART ii an^ duties OJf their sacred character. Besides all

, this, it often happened that rapacious princes, in

order to satisfy the craving wants of their soldiers and domestics, boldly invaded the possessions of the church, which they distributed among their armies ; in consequence of which the priests and monks, in order to avoid perishing through hunger, abandoned themselves to the practice of violence, fraud, and all sorts of crimes, which they looked upon as the only means they had left of procuring themselves a subsistence (n).

The Roman HI. The Roman pontiffs were raised to that pontiffs. j^gh dignity by the suffrages of the sacer- dotal order, accompanied by the voice of the people; but, after their election, the appro- bation of the emperor was necessary, in order to their consecration (o). There is, indeed, yet extant, an edict, supposed to have been published in the year 817, by Lewis the Meek, in which he abolishes this imperial right, and grants to the Romans, not only the power of electing their pon- tiff, but also the privilege of installing and conse- crating him when elected, without waiting for the consent of the emperor (p). But this grant will deceive none who inquire into this matter with any degree of attention and diligence, since

(n) Agobardus, De Dispens. Rerum Ecclesiast. sect. 4. p. 270. torn. i. opp. Flodoardus, Histor. Eccles. Rhemensis, lib. iii. cap. ix. Servatus Lupus, Epist. xlv. p. 87. 437, &c. Muratori, torn. vi. Antiq. Ital. Medii ^Evi, p. 302. Lud. Thomassin, Discipliria Ecclesiae Vet. et Novae circa Bene- ficia, part II. lib. iii. cap. xi. These corrupt measures pre- vailed also among the Greeks and Lombards, as may be seen in the Oriens Christianus of Lequien, torn. i. p. 14?2.

(o) See De Bunau, Histor. Imper. German, torn. iii. p. 28. 32.

(p) Harduini Concilia, torn. iv. p. 1236. Le Cointe, Annales Eccles. Francor. torn. vii. ad a. 817. sect. 6. Baluzii Capitular. Regum Francor. torn. i. p. 591.

CHAP. IT. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 299

several learned men have proved it spurious by CENT. the most irresistible arguments (^). It must, however, be confessed, that, after the time of Charles the Bald, a new scene of things arose; and the important change above mentioned was really introduced. That prince having obtained the imperial dignity by the good offices of the bishop of Rome, returned this eminent service by delivering the succeeding pontiffs from the obli- gation of waiting for the consent of the emperors, in order to their being installed in their office. And thus we find that, from the time of Euge- nius III. who was raised to the pontificate, A. D. 884, the election of the bishops of Rome was carried on without the least regard to law, order, and decency, and was generally attended with civil tumults and dissensions, until the reign of Otho the Great, who put a stop to these disorderly proceedings.

IV. Among the prelates that were raised to the The frauds pontificate, in this century, there where very few S^Roma who distinguished themselves by their learning, pontiffs to prudence, and virtue, or who were at all careful about acquiring those particular qualities that are essential to the character of a Christian bishop. On the contrary, the greatest part of them are only known by the flagitious actions that have transmitted their names with infamy to our times ; and they all, in general, seem to have vied with each other in their ambitious efforts to extend their authority, and render their dominion unli- mited and universal. It is here that we may

(q) Muratori Droits de 1'Empire sur TEtat Ecclesiast. p. 54?. and Antiq. Ital. Medii jEvi, torn. iii. p. 29, 30. in which that learned man conjectures, that this edict was forged in the eleventh century. Bunau, Hist. Imper. German, torn. iii. p. 34. The partisans, however, of the papal authority, such as Fontanini and others, plead strenuously, though ineffec- tually, for the authenticity of the edict in question.

300 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, place with propriety, an event, which is said to Airrn nave interrupted the much vaunted succession of 1 regular bishops in the see of Rome, from the first foundation of that church to the present times. Between the pontificate of Leo IV. who died in the year 855, and that of Benedict III. a cer- tain woman, who had the art to disguise her sex for a considerable time, is said, by learning, ge- nius, and dexterity, to have made good her way to the papal chair, and to have governed the church with the title and dignity of pontiff about two years. This extraordinary person is yet known by the title of Pope Joan. During the five suc- ceeding centuries this event was generally be- lieved, and a vast number of writers bore testi- mony to its truth ; nor, before the reformation undertaken by Luther, was it considered by any, either as incredible in itself, or as ignominious to the church (r). But in the last century, the ele- vation, and indeed the existence of this female pontiff, became the subject of a keen and learned controversy ; and several men of distinguished abilities, both among the Roman catholics and protestants, employed all the force of their genius and erudition to destroy the credit of this story, by invalidating, on the one hand, the weight of the testimonies on which it is founded, and by showing, on the other, that it was inconsistent with the most accurate chronological computa- tions («?). Between the contending parties, some

(r) The arguments of those who maintained the truth of this extraordinary event are collected in one striking point of view, with great learning and industry, by Fred. Span- heim, in his Exercitatio de Papa Fcemina, torn. ii. opp. p. 577- This dissertation was translated into French by the celebrated L'Enfant, who digested it into a better method, and enriched it with several additions.

(s) The arguments of those who reject the story of Pope Joan as a fable, have been collected by David Blondel, and after him with still more art and erudition by Bayle, in

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 301

of the wisest and most learned writers have judi- CENT. ciously steered a middle course; they grant that many fictitious and fabulous circumstances have been interwoven with this story; but they deny that it is entirely destitute of all foundation, or that the controversy is yet ended, in a satisfac- tory manner, in favour of those who dispute the truth. And, indeed, upon a deliberate and impar- tial view of this whole matter, it will appear more than probable, that some unusual event must have happened at Rome, from which this story derived its origin ; because it is not at all credible, from any principles of moral evidence, that an event should be universally believed and related in the same manner by a multitude of hi- storians, during five centuries immediately suc- ceeding its supposed date, if that event was abso- lutely destitute of all foundation. But what it was that gave rise to this story is yet to be discovered, and is likely to remain so (f).

the third volume of his Dictionary, at the article Papesse. Add to this Jo. Georg. Eccard, Histor. Francise Oriental. torn. ii. lib. xxx. sect. 119. p. 436. which author has adopted and appropriated the sentiments of the great Leibnitz, upon the matter in question. See also Lequien's Oriens Christian. torn. iii. p.777. and Heuman's Sylloge Dissert. Sacr. torn. i. part II. p. 352. The very learned Jo. Christoph. Wagense- lius has given a just and accurate view of the arguments on both sides, which may be seen in the Amcenitates Litterariae of Schelhornius, part I. p. 146. and the same has been done by Basnage, in his Histoire de 1'Eglise, torn. i. p. 408. A list of the other writers, who have employed their labours upon this intricate question, may be seen in Gasp. Sagittarius's Introd. in Hist. Eccles. torn. i. cap. xxv. p. 676. and in the Biblioth. Bremens. torn. viii. part V. p. 935.

(t) Such is the opinion of Paul Sarpi, in his Lettere Ita- liane, Lett.lxxxii. p. 452; ofLenfant, Biblioth. Germanique, torn. x. p. 27 ; of Theod. Hasseus, Biblioth. Bremens. torn. viii. part V. p. 935; and of the celebrated Pfaff Instit. Histor. Eceles. p. 402; to whom we might add Wernsdorf, Boeder, Holberg, and many others, were this enumera- tion necessary. Without assuming the character of a judge

302 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT V. The enormous vices, that must have CO- PART ii verec^ so many pontiffs with infamy in the judg-

1 ment of the wise, formed not the least obstacle

Their zeal- to their ambition in these miserable times, nor menftoVe hindered them from extending their influence, kings of an(J augmenting their authority, both in church whonTthey an(l state. It does not, indeed, appear from any are favour- authentic records, that their possessions aug- mented in proportion to the progress of their au- thority; nor that any new grants of land were added to what they had already obtained from the liberality of the kings of France. The donations, which Lewis the Meek is reported to have made to them, are mere inventions, equally destitute of truth and probability (u) ; and nothing is more groundless than the accounts of those writers who affirm that Charles the Bald divested himself, in the year 875, of his right to the city of Rome, and its territory, in favour of the pontiffs, whom he, at the same time, enriched with a variety of noble and costly presents, in return for the good services of John VIII. by whose succours he was raised to the empire. But be that as it may, it is certain, that the authority and affluence of the bishops of Rome increased greatly from the time of Lewis the Meek, but more especially from the accession of Charles the Bald to the imperial throne, as all the historical records of that period abundantly testify (w).

They gain VI. After the death of Lewis II. a fierce and bfeshtehat°U" dreadful war broke out between the posterity of

arise in the

empire. jn this intricate controversy, concerning which so many false decisions have been pronounced, I shall only take the liberty to observe,' that the matter in debate is as yet dubious, and has not, on either side, been represented in such a light as to bring conviction, (w) See above, sect. 3.

(w) Bunau, Histor. Imperii Rom. German, tom.iii. p. 482. Jo. George Eccard, Histor. Franciae Orient, torn. ii. lib. xxxi. p. 606.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

Charlemagne, among which there were several CENT. competitors for the empire. This furnished the PART'n. Italian princes, and the Roman pontiff John VIII. with a favourable opportunity of assuming to themselves the right of nominating to the imperial throne, and of excluding from all part in this election the nations who had formerly the right of suffrage ; and if the opportunity was favourable, it was seized with avidity, and improved with the utmost dexterity and zeal. Their favour and in- terest was earnestly solicited by Charles the Bald, whose entreaties were rendered effectual by rich presents, prodigious sums of money, and most pompous promises, in consequence of which he was proclaimed, A. D. 876, by the pontiff John VIII. and by the Italian princes assembled at Pa- via, king of Italy, and emperor of the Romans. Carloman and Charles the Gross, who succeeded him in the kingdom of Italy, and in the Roman empire, were also elected by the Roman pontiff, and the Italian princes. After the reigns of these princes the empire was torn in pieces; the most deplorable tumults and commotions arose in Italy, France, and Germany, which were governed, or rather subdued and usurped, by various chiefs, and in this confused scene of things, the highest bidder was, by the succour of the greedy pontiffs, generally raised to the government of Italy, and to the imperial throne («r).

VII. Thus the power and influence of the pon- The e tiffs, in civil affairs, arose in a short time to an enormous height through the favour and protec- tion of the princes, in whose cause they had em- ployed the influence which superstition had given p°wer of the them over the minds of the people. The increase of"hebi-and of their authority, in religious matters, was not sh°Ps dimi-

nislied.

(x) This matter is amply illustrated by Sigonius, in' his famous book De Regno Italiae, and by the other writers of German and Italian history.

304 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, less rapid nor less considerable, and it arose from PART ii. the same causes. The wisest and most impartial . among the Roman catholic writers not only ac- knowledge, but are even at pains to demonstrate, that, from the time of Lewis the Meek, the ancient rules of ecclesiastical government were gradually changed in Europe by the counsels and instigation of the court of Rome, and new laws substituted in their place. The European princes suffered themselves to be divested of the supreme autho- rity in religious matters, which they had derived from Charlemagne ; the power of the bishops was greatly diminished, and even the authority of both provincial and general councils began to de- cline. The Roman pontiffs, elated with their overgrown prosperity, and become arrogant, be- yond measure, by the daily accessions that were made to their authority, were eagerly bent upon persuading all, and had, indeed, the good fortune to persuade many, that the bishop of Rome was constituted and appointed, by Jesus Christ, su- preme legislator and judge of the church universal; and that, therefore, the bishops derived all their authority from the Roman pontiff, nor could the councils determine any thing without his permis- sion and consent (j/). This opinion, which was inculcated by the pontiffs with the utmost zeal and ardour, was opposed by such as were acquainted with the ancient ecclesiastical constitutions, and the government of the church in the earlier ages ; but it was opposed in vain.

(y) See the excellent work of an anonymous and unknown author, who signs himself D. B. and whose book is entitled, Histoire du Droit Ecclesiastique Public Francois, published first at London, in two volumes 8vo, in the year 1737, and lately republished in a larger and more splendid edition. The author of this performance shows, in a judicious and concise manner, the various steps by which the papal au- thority arose to such a monstrous height. His account of the ninth century may be seen in the first volume of his work, at the 160th page.

CHAP. ir. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 305

VIII. In order to gain credit to this new ec- CENT. clesiastical code, so different from the ancient ^

_._ _ - lr A lv X 1 1 •

rules of church government, and to support the

haughty pretensions of the pontiffs to supremacy Forged me-

1 • i -i •, j morials and

and independence, it was necessary to produce acts pro_ the authority of ancient deeds, to stop the mouths cured by the

« T J T Ai . pontiffs to

of such as were disposed to set bounds to their establish usurpations. The bishops of Rome were aware of their suPre- this ; and as those means were looked upon as the m °y' most lawful that tended best to the accomplish- ment of their purposes, they employed some of their most ingenious and zealous partisans in for- ging conventions, acts of councils, epistles, and such like records, by which it might appear, that, in the first ages of the church, the Roman pontiffs were clothed with the same spiritual majesty and supreme authority which they now assumed (#). Among these fictitious supports of the papal dig- nity, the famous Decretal Epistles, as they are called, said to have been written by the pontiffs of the primitive times, deserve chiefly to be stig- matised. They were the production of an ob- scure writer, who fraudulently prefixed to them

(z) There is just reason to imagine, that these Decretals, and various other acts, such as the grants of Charlemagne and Lewis the Meek, were forged with the knowledge and consent of the Roman pontiffs; since it is utterly incredible, that these pontiffs should, for many ages, have constantly appealed, in support of their pretended rights and privileges, to acts and records that were only the fictions of private per- sons, and should, with such weak arms, have stood out against kings, princes, councils, and bishops who were unwilling to receive their yoke. Acts of a private nature would have been useless here, and public deeds were necessary to ac- complish the views of papal ambition. Such forgeries were in this century esteemed lawful, on account of their supposed tendency to promote the glory of God, and to advance the prosperity of the church : and therefore, it is not surprising, that the good pontiffs should feel no remorse in imposing upon the world frauds and forgeries, that were designed to enrich the patrimony of St Peter, and to aggrandize his successors in the apostolic see.

VOL. II. X

306 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. the name of Isidore, bishop of Seville (a), to PART ii. make the world believe they had been collected

by that illustrious and learned prelate. Some of

them had appeared in the eighth century (£), but they were now entirely drawn from their obscu- rity, and produced, with an air of ostentation and triumph, to demonstrate the supremacy of the Roman pontiffs (c). The decisions of a certain Roman council, which is said to have been held during the pontificate of Sylvester, were like- wise alleged in behalf of the same cause ; but this council had never been so much as heard of before the present century, and the accounts now given of it proceeded from the same source with the decretals, and were equally authentic. Be that as it may, the decrees of this pretended coun- cil contributed much to enrich and aggrandize the

(a) It is certain that the forger of the decretals was ex tremely desirous of persuading the world that the}' were col- lected by Isidore, the celebrated bishop of Seville, who lived in the sixth century. See Fabricii Biblioth. Latin. Medii ./Evi, torn. v. p. 561. It was a custom among the bishops to add, from a principle of humility, the epithet Peccator, i. e. sinner, to their titles; and, accordingly, the forger of the De- cretals has added the word Peccator after the name of Isi- dore: but this, some ignorant transcribers have absurdly changed into the word Mercator; and hence it happens that one Isidorus Mercator passes for the fraudulent collector, or forger of the decretals.

(6} See Don Calmet, Histoire de Lorraine, torn. i. p. 5C28. B. Just. Hen. Bohmer. Praef. ad novum Edit. Juris Canon, torn. i. p. x. xix. Not.

(c) Beside the authors of the Centurise Magdeburgenses, and other writers, the learned Blondel has demonstrated, in an ample and satisfactory manner, the spuriousness of the decretals, in his Pseudo-Isidorus et Turianus vapulantes; and in our time the cheat is acknowledged even by the Roman Catholics, at least by such of them as-are possessed of any tolerable degree of judgment and impartiality. See Buddeus, Isagoge in Theologiam, torn. ii. p. 762 j as also Petr. Con- stantius, Prolegom. ad Epistolas Pontificum, torn. i. p. 130 j and a Dissertation of Fleury, prefixed to the sixteenth vo- lume of his Ecclesiastical History.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 307

Roman pontiffs, and exalt them above all human CENT. authority and jurisdiction (</). PARTII.

IX. There were not, however, wanting among .

the Latin bishops, men of prudence and sagacity, The success

, , . r . r -. ° J ' of these

who saw through these impious frauds, and per- frauds, ceived the chains that were forging both for them and for the church. The French bishops distin- guished themselves, in a particular and glorious manner* by the zeal and vehemence with which they opposed the spurious decretals, and other like fictitious monuments and records, and protested against their being received among the laws of the church. But the obstinacy of the pontiffs, and particularly of Nicholas I., conquered this oppo- sition, and reduced it to silence. And as the em- pire, in the periods that succeeded this contest, fell back into the grossest ignorance and darkness, there scarcely remained any who were capable of detecting these odious impostures, or disposed to support the expiring liberty of the church. The history of the following ages shows, in a mul- titude of deplorable examples, the disorders and calamities that sprung from the ambition of the aspiring pontiffs ; it represents these despotic lords of the church labouring, by the aid of their impious frauds, to overturn its ancient govern- ment, to undermine the authority of its bishops, to engross its riches and revenues into their own hands ; nay, what is still more horrible, it repre- sents them aiming perfidious blows at the thrones of princes, and endeavouring to lessen their power, and to set bounds to their dominion. All this is unanimously acknowledged by such as have looked, with attention and impartiality, into the history of the times of which we now write, and is ingenu-

(d) See Jo. Launoius, De Cura Ecclesiae erga Pauperes et Miseros, cap. i, Observat. i. p. 576. torn. ii. par. II. opp.

X 2

308 The Internal History of the Church.

C^T* ously confessed by men of learning and probity, PART ii. that are well affected to the Romish church and its sovereign pontiff (e).

monastic life was now universally in

in high " the highest esteem, and nothing could equal the repute* veneration that was paid to such as devoted them- selves to the sacred gloom and indolence of a con- vent. The Greeks and Orientals had been long accustomed to regard the monkish orders and dis- cipline with the greatest admiration ; but it was only since the beginning of the last century, that this holy passion was indulged among the Latins to such an extravagant length, In the present age it went beyond all bounds : kings, dukes, and counts, forgot their true dignity, even the fulfilling with zeal the duties of their high sta- tions, and affected that contempt of the world and its grandeur, which they took for magnani- mity, though it was really nothing else but the result of a narrow and superstitious spirit. They abandoned their thrones, their honours, and their treasures, and shut themselves up in monasteries, with a view of devoting themselves entirely to God. Several examples of this fanatical extrava- gance were exhibited in Italy, France, Germany, and Spain, both in this and the preceding cen- tury. And if the allurements of worldly pleasures and honours had too much power over the minds of many, to permit their separating themselves from human society, during their lives, such en- deavoured to make amends for this in their last hours ; for when they perceived death approach- ing, they demanded the monastic habit, and ac- tually put it on before their departure, that they

(e) See the above-mentioned author's treatise, entitled Regia Potestas in Causis Matrimonial, torn. i. par. II. opp. p. 764; as also Petr. Constantius, Prsef. ad Epist. Romanor. Pontiff, torn. i. p. 127.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 209

might be regarded as of the fraternity, and be of CENT

consequence entitled to the fervent prayers and

other spiritual succours of their ghostly brethren. ^1

But nothing affords such a striking and re- Monks and markable proof of the excessive and fanatical ve- ^yedTn" neration that was paid to the monastic order, as civil affairs, the treatment they received from several kings ^courts of and emperors, who drew numbers of monks and princes. abbots from their cloisters, and placed them in stations entirely foreign to their vows and their character, even amidst the splendour of a court, and at the head of affairs. The transition, indeed, was violent, from the obscurity of a convent and the study of a liturgy, to sit at the helm of an em- pire, and manage the political interests of nations. But such was the case ; and pious princes alleged, as a reason for this singular choice, that the go- vernment of a state could never be better placed than in the hands of such holy men, who had sub- dued all irregular appetites and passions, and were so divested of the lust of pleasure and am- bition, as to be incapable of any unworthy designs ; any low, sordid, or selfish views. Hence we find in the history of these times frequent examples of monks and abbots performing the functions of ambassadors, envoys, and ministers of state, and displaying their talents with various success in these high and eminent stations.

XI. The morals, however, of the monks, were A reforma- far from being so pure as to justify the reason al- ^"^J" leged above for their promotion. Their patrons order at- and protectors, who loaded them with honours temPted- and preferment, were sensible of the irregular and licentious lives that many of them led, and used their utmost efforts to correct their vices and to reform their manners. Lewis the Meek distin- guished his zeal in the execution of this virtuous and noble design ; and, to render it more effec- tual, he employed the pious labours of Benedict,

310 The Internal History of the Church. -

CENT, abbot of Aniane, in reforming the monasteries, first in Aquitaine, and afterwards throughout the whole kingdom of France ; and in restoring, by new and salutary laws, the monastic discipline, which was absolutely neglected and fallen into decay. This worthy ecclesiastic presided, in the year 817, in the council of Aix-la-Chapelle, where several wise measures were taken for removing the disorders that reigned in the cloisters ; and in consequence of the unlimited authority he had received from the emperor, he subjected all the monks, without exception, to the rule of the fa- mous Benedict, abbot of Mount Cassim, annulled that variety of rites and customs that had obtained in the different monasteries, prescribed to them all one uniform method of living, and thus united, as it were, into one general body or society, the various orders which had hitherto been connected by no common bond (jQ. This admirable dis- cipline, which acquired to Benedict of Aniane the highest reputation, and made him be revered as the second father of the western monks, flou- rished during a certain time, but afterwards de- clined through various causes, until the conclu- sion of this century, when, under the calamities that oppressed both the church and the empire, it almost entirely disappeared. Canons and XII. The same emperor, who had appeared

rannrtpsspc- ._ 1 _ .J- . i •*- •

with such zeal both in protecting and reforming the monks, gave also distinguished marks of his favour to the order of canons, which Chrode- gangus had introduced in several places during

(/) Jo. Mabillon, Acta Sanctor. Ord. Benedict. Saec. iv. par. I. Praef. p. xxvii. and Prsef. ad Saec. v. p. xxv. Ejusdem, Annales Ordin. S. Benedict, torn. ii. p. 430. Calmet. Hist, de Lorraine, torn. i. p. 596. For a particular account of Benedict of Aniane, and his illustrious virtues, see the Acta Sanctor. torn. ii. Febr. p. 606 : and the Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. iv. p. 447.

canonesses.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 311

the last century. He distributed them through CENT. all the provinces of the empire, and instituted also PA an order of canonesses, which was the first female

PART II.

convent known in the Christian world («). For each of these orders the zealous emperor had a rule drawn up, A. D. 817, in the council of Aix- la-Chapelle, which he substituted in the place of that which had been appointed by Chrodegangus ; and this new rule was observed in most of the monasteries and convents of the canons and ca- nonesses in the west until the twelfth century, notwithstanding that it was disapproved of by the court of Rome (Ji). The author of the rule that was appointed for the canons was, undoubtedly, Amalarius, a presbyter of Metz ; but it is not so certain whether that which was drawn up for the canonesses was composed by the same hand (j). Be that as it may, the canonical order grew into

(g) See Mabillon, Annal. Ordin. S. Benedicti, torn. ii. p. 428.

(k) This rule was condemned in a council held at Rome, A. D. 1059, under the pontiff' Nicholas II. The pretexts used by the pontiff' and the assembled prelates to justify their disapprobation of this rule, were, that it permitted the canons to enjoy the possessions they had before their vows, and allowed to each of them too large a portion of bread and wine ; but the true reason was, that this order had been instituted by an emperor without either the consent or know- ledge of the Roman pontiff. For an account of the rule and discipline of these canons, see Fleury's Eccles, Hist, torn. x. p. 163. 164, &c. Brussels edition in 12mo.

(i) Lud. Thomassin, Disciplin. Eccles. Vet. et Novae, par. I. lib. iii. cap. xlii, xliii. Muratori, Antiq, Ital. Medii ^vi, torn. v. p. 186.540. No accounts of the canons are less worthy of credit than those that are given by writers who have been themselves members of that order, such as Ray- mond Chapponel's Histoire des Chanoines, published at Paris in 8vo, in the year 1699 ; for these writers, from fond preju- dices in favour of their institution, and an ambitious desire of enhancing its merit, and rendering it respectable, derive the origin of canonical order from Christ and his apostles, or trace it up, at least, to the first ages of the Christian church.

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, high repute; and from this time a great number P\RT ii. °f convents were erected for them through all

1 the western provinces, and were richly endowed

by the liberality of pious and opulent Christians. But this institution degenerated in a short time, like all others, from its primitive purity, and ceased to answer the laudable intention and design of its worthy founders

The princi- XIII. Of the theological writers that flourished among the Greeks, the following are the most re- markable :

Photius, patriarch of Constantinople, a man of most profound and universal erudition, whose Bibliotheca (/) Epistles, and other writings, are yet valuable on many accounts.

Nicephorus, also a patriarch of the above-men- tioned city, who, among other productions, pub- lished a warm defence of the worship of images against the enemies of that idolatrous service (jn).

Theodores Studites, who acquired a name chiefly by his warm opposition to the Iconoclasts, and by the zeal with which he wrote in favour of image worship (ii).

The same cause has principally contributed to transmit to after-ages the names of Theodorus Graptus, Methodius, who obtained the title of Confessor for his adherence to image-worship in

(£) Calmet, Hist, de Lorraine, torn. i. p. 591. Hist. Litte- raire de la France, torn. iv. p. 536..

(/) See Camusat, Histoire des Journaux, torn. i. p. 87.

(m) Acta Sanctor. torn. ii. Martii ad d. xiii. p. 293. Ou- dinus, Scriptor. Eccles. torn. ii. p. 2.

tIJp0 (n) Theodore Studites was one of the most volumi- nous writers of this century, and would certainly have been known as a man of genius and learning to after-ages, though the controversy concerning images had never existed. There are of his writings, yet extant, 265 letters, several treatises against the Iconoclasts, 124 epigrams in Iambics, and a large manuscript, which contains a course of catechetical instruc- tion concerning the duties of the monastic life.

writers.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

the very face of persecution, Theodorus Abu- CENT, cara (o), Petrus Siculus, Nicetas, David, and others, who would probably have been long since buried in oblivion, had not the various contests between the Greek and Latin churches, and the divisions of the former among themselves upon the question concerning images, excited the ve- hemence of these inconsiderable writers, and fur- nished them with an occasion of making some noise in the world.

Moses Barcepha, a Syrian bishop, surpassed by far all whom we have now been mentioning, and deserved the shining reputation which he has ob- tained in the republic of letters, as what we have yet extant of his works discover several marks of true genius, and an uncommon acquaintance with the art of writing (p).

XIV. Rabanus Maurus, archbishop of Mentz, Latin is deservedly placed at the head of the Latin wri- ters of this age ; the force of his genius, the ex- tent of his knowledge, and the multitude of pro- ductions that flowed from his pen, entitle him to this distinguished rank, and render improper all comparison between him and his contemporaries. He may be called the great light of Germany and France, since it was from the prodigious fund of knowledge he possessed, that these nations derived principally their religious instruction. His wri- tings were every where in the hands of the learned (g), and were held in such veneration, that, during four centuries, the most eminent of the Latin divines appealed to them as authority in

(o) See Bayle's Dictionary, vol. i. at the article Abu- gara.

(p) Jos. Sim. Assemanni Biblioth. Orient. Vatican, torn, ii. p. 127.

(q) See, for a particular account of the life and writings of Rabanus Maurus, the Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. v. p. 151 ; as also the Acta Sanctor. torn. i. Febr. p. 500.

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, religious matters, and adopted almost universally Ix' the sentiments they contained. After this illus-

PART II. . i i • i i /»

- tnous prelate, the writers that are most worthy of

mention are :

Agobard, archbishop of Lyons, a man of wis- dom and prudence, and far from being destitute of literary merit ; but whose reputation has deservedly suffered by his justifying, and even fomenting, the rebellion of Lothaire and Pepin against Lewis the Meek, their father and their sovereign (r).

Hilduin, abbot of St. Dennis, who acquired no small reputation by a work, entitled Areopagi- tica (s).

Eginhard, abbot of Selingestat, the celebrated author of the Life of Charlemagne, remarkable for the beauty of his diction, the perspicuity and elegance of his style, and a variety of other lite- rary accomplishments (£).

Claudius, bishop of Turin, whose Exposition of several Books of Scripture (u), as also his Chro- nology, gained him an eminent and lasting repu- tation (ze>).

(r) See Colonia, Hist. Litter, de la Ville de Lyon, torn. ii. p. 93. General Dictionary, at the article Agobard. Hist. Litteraire de la France, torn. iv. p. 567. [Agobard opposed with great zeal both the worship and the use of images, in his famous book, De Picturis et Imaginibus, a work which has greatly embarrassed the doctors of the Romish church.]

(s) Hist. Litteraire de la France, torn. iv. p. 607.

(t) Hist. Litteraire de la France, torn. iv. p. 550. See also the Life of Charlemagne, of which the best of fourteen edi- tions is that published by Schminkius, at Utrecht, in the year 1711.

(u) [This prelate, who was famous for his knowledge of the holy scriptures, composed three books of commentaries upon Genesis, four upon Exodus, and several upon Leviticus. He wrote also a commentary upon the Gospel of St. Mat- thew, in which there are many excellent things, and an ex- position of all the Epistles of St. Paul. His commentary on the Epistle to the Galatians is printed, but all the rest are in manuscript.]

(u>) See Simon, Critique de la Biblioth. Eccles. de M. Du Pin, tonj.i. p. 284.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, £c. 315

Freculf, bishop of Lysieux, whose Chronicle, CENT. which is no more than a heavy compilation, is yet PART*Il4 extant.

Servatus Lupus, of whose composition we have several epistles and treatises ; and who, though a copious and subtile writer, is yet defective in point of elegance and erudition (<r).

Drepanius Florus, who left behind him se- veral Poems, An Exposition of certain Books of Scripture, and other performances less worthy of attention (#).

Christian Druthmar, the author of A Commen- tary upon St. Matthew's Gospel (z).

Godeschalc, a monk of Orbais, who rendered his name immortal by the controversy which he set on foot concerning Predestination and Free Grace.

Paschasius Radbert («), a name famous in the contests concerning The real Presence of Christ's Body in the Eucharist ; and who, to pass in silence his other writings, composed a book upon this very subject, which furnished abundant matter of dispute throughout this century.

Bertramn, or Retramn, a monk of Corby, who deserves the first rank among the writers that re- futed the doctrine of Radbert; and whose book concerning The Sacrament of the Lord's Supper, which was composed by the order of Charles the Bald, gave also occasion to many contests among learned divines (&).

Haymo, bishop of Halberstadt, the laborious author of several treatises upon various subjects,

(x) Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. v. p. 255.

(y) Colonia, Histoire Litter, de Lyon, torn. ii. p. 135. Hist. Litter, de la France, torn. v. p. 213.

(z) Hist. Litter, de la France, torn. v. p. 84.

fa) For an account of Radbert, see the Histoire Litter, de la France, torn. v. p. 287.

(6) We shall have occasion to speak more particularly of Bertramn, and his book, in the following chapter.

316 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, and who is more to be esteemed for his industry TART* ii anc^ diligence than for his genius and learning (c). 1 Walafridus Strabo, who acquired no mean re- putation by his Poems, his Lives of the Saints, and his Explications of many of the more difficult passages of Scripture (oQ.

Hincmar, archbishop of Rheims, a man of an imperious and turbulent spirit ; but who deserves, notwithstanding, a distinguished place among the Latin writers of this century, since his works dis- cover an aspiring genius, and an ardent zeal in the pursuit of truth ; and tend, moreover, in a sin- gular manner, to throw light, both upon the civil and ecclesiastical history of the age in which he lived (e).

Johannes Scotus Erigena, the friend and com- panion of Charles the Bald, an eminent philoso- pher, and a learned divine, whose erudition was accompanied with uncommon marks of sagacity and genius, and whose various performances, as well as his translations from the Greek, gained him a shining and lasting reputation (f).

It is sufficient barely to name Remigius Ber- tharius, Ado, Aimoin Heric, Regino, abbot of Prum, and others, of whom the most common writers of ecclesiastical history give ample ac- counts.

(c) It is proper to observe, that a great part of the writings that are attributed to Haymo, bishop of Halberstadt, were composed by Remi, or Remigius, of Auxerre. See Cassimir Oudinus, Comment, de Scriptor. Eccles. torn. ii. p. 330. Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. v. p. 111. torn, vi, p. 106. Le Beuf, Recueil de Diss. sur 1'Histoire de la France, torn. i. p. 278.

(d) See the Histoire Litter, de la France, torn. v. p. 544.

(e) Ibid. torn. v. p. 416.

(/) See Herm. Conringius, Antiq. Academicae, p. 309. Hist. Litter, de la France, torn. v. p. 416.

CHAP. in. The Doctrme of the Church. 317

CHAPTER III.

Concerning the Doctrine of the Christian Church during this Century.

I. THE zeal of Charlemagne for the interests CENT. of Christianity, and his liberality to the learned, encouraged many to apply themselves diligently

PART II.

to the study of the scriptures, and to the pursuit The miser- of religious truth ; and as long as this eminent set ' of divines remained, the western provinces were anity. happily preserved from many errors, and from a variety of superstitious practices. Thus we find among the writers of this age several men of emi- nent talents, whose productions show that the lustre of true erudition and theology was not, as yet, totally eclipsed. But these illustrious lumi- naries of the church disappeared one after the other, and barbarism and ignorance, encouraged by their departure, resumed their ancient seats, and brought, in their train, a prodigious multi- tude of devout follies, odious superstitions, and abominable errors. Nor did any encourage and propagate with more zeal and ardour these super- stitious innovations, than the sacerdotal orders, the spiritual guides of a deluded people. And if we inquire how it came to pass that the clergy were so zealous in such an inglorious cause, we shall find that this zeal was, in some, the effect of igno- rance, and, in others, the fruit of avarice and am- bition; since much was to be gained, both in point of authority and opulence, from the progress of superstition. Christianity among the Greeks and Orientals was almost in the same declining and deplorable state; though there arose, from time to time, in the eastern provinces, men of

318 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, superior abilities, who endeavoured to support the PAITT ii cause °f true religion, and to raise it from the

pressures under which it laboured.

The causes jj. The causes of this unhappy revolution, that \ covered the Christian church with superstition and darkness, will appear evident to such as are at all acquainted with the history of these times. The Oriental doctors, miserably divided among them- selves, and involved in the bitterest contentions and quarrels with the western churches, lost all notion of the true spirit and genius of Christianity, and, corrupted and biassed by the prejudices and passions that are generally excited and nourished by ill-managed controversy, became incapable of promoting the true and essential interests of reli- gion. Intent also upon defending the excellence and divine authority of their doctrine and disci- pline against the Latin doctors, and in maintain- ing among themselves the worship of images, which began to be warmly opposed, they ad- vanced many things in the course of these dis- putes that were highly erroneous ; and as one error follows another, their number increased from day to day. The savage and unnatural lives of the monks and hermits, whose number was prodi-

fious, and whose authority was considerable, who aunted the woods and deserts, the gloomy scenes of their extravagant devotion, contributed much, among other causes, to the decay of solid and ra- tional piety. Add to all this, the irruptions of the barbarous nations into the west, the atrocious exploits of usurping princes, the drooping and neglected condition of all the various branches of learning, the ambitious frenzy of the Roman pontiffs, who were incessantly gaping after new accessions of authority and dominion, the frauds and tricks of the monastic orders carried on under the specious mask of religion, and then we shall

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 319

see the true causes that founded the empire of su- CENT. perstition and error, upon the ruins of virtue, PART'n. piety, and reason.

III. The ignorance and corruption that disho- £n • • i • i •

n • • i • i • -

noured the Christian church, in this century, ranee and

were great beyond measure ; and were there no JjJJ^}1 '°"d other examples of their enormity upon record in this than the single instance of that stupid veneration p^e£,nap" that was paid to the bones and carcasses of de- in the sin- parted saints, this would be sufficient to convince (;JetheSfooi!? us of the deplorable progress of superstition. This ish venera- idolatrous devotion was now considered as the ^°" ^ to most sacred and momentous branch of religion, the sain.ts nor did any dare to entertain the smallest hopes of finding the Deity propitious, before they had assured themselves of the protection and inter- cession of some one or other of the saintly order. Hence it was, that every church, and indeed every private Christian, had their particular patron among the saints, from an apprehension that their spiritual interests would be but indifferently ma- naged by those who were already employed about the souls of others ; for they judged, in this re- spect, of the saints as they did of mortals, whose capacity is too limited to comprehend a vast va- riety of objects. This notion rendered it neces- sary to multiply prodigiously the number of the saints, and to create daily new patrons for the de- luded people : and this was done with the utmost zeal. The priests and monks set their invention at work, and peopled, at discretion, the invisible world with imaginary protectors. They dispelled the thick darkness which covered the pretended spiritual exploits of many holy men ; and they in- vented both names and histories of saints (g*) that never existed, that they might not be at a loss to

(§•) [See Dr. Middleton's Letter from Rome, passim, in which we find the names of St. Baccho, St. Viar, St. Amphi- bolus, Euodia, &c.]

320 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, furnish the credulous and wretched multitude PAIIT ii w^ °bJects pr°Per to perpetuate their supersti-

1 tion, and to nourish their confidence. Many chose

their own guides, and committed their spiritual interests either to phantoms of their own creation, or to distracted fanatics, whom they esteemed as saints, for no other reason than their having lived like madmen.

The saints IV. The ecclesiastical councils found it neces- !ed* sary, at length, to set limits to the licentious su- perstition of those ignorant wretches, who, with a view to have still more friends at court, for such were their gross notions of things, were daily adding new saints to the list of their celestial mediators. They accordingly, declared by a so- lemn decree, that no departed Christian should be considered as a member of the saintly order, before the bishop in a provincial council, and in presence of the people, had pronounced him worthy of that distinguished honour (A). This re- medy, feeble and illusory as it was, contributed, in some measure, to restrain the fanatical temerity of the saint-makers ; but, in its consequences, it was the occasion of a new accession of power to the Roman pontiff. Even so early as this century many were of opinion, that it was proper and expedient, though not absolutely necessary, that the decisions of bishops and councils should be confirmed by the consent and authority of the Roman pontiff, whom they considered as the supreme and universal bishop ; and this will not appear surprising to any who reflect upon the enormous strides which the bishops of Rome made towards unbounded dominion in this barbarous

(h) Mabillon, Act. Sanctor. Ord. Benedict!, Ssec. v. Prrcf. p. 4-4-. Launoy, De Lazari, Magdalenae, et Marthse in Pro- vinciam appulsu, cap. i. sect. 12. p. 342. torn. ii. par. I. opp. Franc. Pagi Breviarium Pont if. Homanor. torn ii. p. 259. torn, iii. p. 30.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church.

and superstitious age, whose corruption and dark- CENT ness were peculiarly favourable to their ambitious pretensions. It is true, we have no example of any person solemnly sainted by the bishop of Rome alone, before the tenth century (?'), when Udal- ric, bishop of Augsburg, received this dignity in a formal manner from John XV. It is, however, certain, that before that time the Roman pontiffs were consulted in matters of that nature,, and their judgment respected in the choice of those that were to be honoured with saintship (&) ; and it was by such steps as these, that the church of Rome engrossed to itself the creation of these tu- telary divinities, which at length was distinguished by the title of Canonization.

V. This preposterous multiplication of Saints Lives of was a new source of abuses and frauds. It was the saints* thought necessary to write the lives of these ce- lestial patrons, in order to procure for them the veneration and confidence of a deluded multi- tude ; and here lying wonders were invented, and all the resources of forgery and fable ex- hausted, to celebrate exploits which had never been performed, and to perpetuate the memory of holy persons who had never existed. We have yet extant a prodigious quantity of these trifling legends, the greatest part of which were, un- doubtedly, forged after the time of Charle- magne, by the monastic writers, who had both

(i) See Dan. Papebrochius, De Solennium Canonisationum Initiis et Progress, in Propylseo Actor. SS. mens. Maii, p. 171 : and the other authors who have written upon this sub- ject, of which there is an ample list in the Bibliographia An- tiquar. of Fabricius, cap. vii. sect. 25. p. 270.

(K) See the candid and impartial account that is given of this matter by the late pope Benedict XIV. in his laborious work, De Servorum Dei Beatificatione et Beatorum Canoniza- tione, lib. i. cap. 7. p. 50. torn. i. opp. edit. Roman. It were to be wished, that historians of the church of Rome would learn to imitate the prudence, moderation, and equity of that illustrious pontiff*.

VOL. II. Y .

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, the inclination and leisure to edify the church by PART ii. t*iese pi°us frauds. The same impostors, who

1 peopled the celestial regions with fictitious saints,

employed also their fruitful inventions in embel- lishing with false miracles, and various other im- pertinent forgeries, the history of those, who had been really martyrs or confessors in the cause of Christ ; these fictions, however, did not pass with impunity, but were severely censured by some of the most eminent writers of the times in which they were imposed upon the credulity of the public (/). Various were the motives that engaged different persons to propagate, or coun- tenance, these impostors. Some were excited to this by the seductions of a false devotion, which reigned in this perverse and ignorant age, and made them imagine, that departed saints were highly delighted with the applauses and venera- tion of mortals, and never failed to crown with peculiar marks of their favour and protection such as were zealous in honouring their memories, and in celebrating their exploits. The prospect of gain, and the ambitious desire of being reve- renced by the multitude, engaged others to mul- tiply the number, and to maintain the credit of the legends, or saintly registers. For the churches that were dedicated to the saints were perpe- tually crowded with supplicants, who flocked to them with rich presents, in order to obtain succour

(1) See Servatus Lupus, Vita Maximini, p. 275, 276. and the candid and learned observations upon this subject that are to be found in various places of the works of the cele- brated Launoy: e.g. in his Dispunctio Epistolae Petri de Marca, de tempore quo in Gallia Christi fides recepta, cap. xiv. p. 110. in his Dissertationes de Primis Christianas Relig. in Gallia Initiis, Diss. ii.p.142,144,145,147, 168, 169,181.— De Lazari, Magdal. et Marthae in Galliam Appulsu. p. 340. — De Duobus Dionysiis, p. 527, 529, 530. torn. ii. part I. opp. — See also Martene, Thesaurus Anecdotor. torn. i. p. 151. — Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. iv. p. 273.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church.

under the afflictions they suffered, or deliverance CENT.

IX. PART II.

from the dangers which they had reason to appre-

hend. And it was esteemed also a high honour to be thamore immediate ministers of these tute- lary mediators, who, as it is likewise proper to observe, were esteemed and frequented in propor- tion to their antiquity, and to the number and importance of the pretended miracles that had rendered their lives illustrious. This latter cir- cumstance offered a strong temptation to such as were employed by the various churches in writing the lives of their tutelar saints, to supply by in- vention the defects of truth, and to embellish their legends with fictitious prodigies; nay, they were not only tempted to this imposture, but were even obliged to make use of it in order to swell the fame of their respective patrons (ni).

VI. But even all this was insufficient to satisfy A the demands of superstition, nourished by the stra- tagems of a corrupt and designing priesthood, and relics Pre fomented by the zeal of the more ignorant and va stupid sons of the church. It was not enough to reverence departed saints, and to confide in their intercession and succours; it was not enough to clothe them with an imaginary power of healing diseases, working miracles, and delivering from all sorts of calamities and dangers; their bones, their clothes, the apparel and furniture they had possessed during their lives, the very ground which they had touched, or in which their putri- fied carcasses were laid, were treated with a stupid veneration, and supposed to retain the marvellous virtue of healing all disorders both of body and mind, and of defending such as possessed them against all the assaults and devices of Satan. The

(m) Of all the lives of the saints written in this century, none are more liable to suspicion than those drawn up by the Britons and Normans. See Mabillon, Praef. ad Sasc. i« Bene- dictin. sub init.

The Internal History of the Church. CENT, consequence of this wretched notion was, that PART ii eveiT one was eager to provide himself with these 1 salutary remedies, for which purpose great num- bers undertook fatiguing and perilous voyages, and subjected themselves to all sorts of hardships ; while others made use of this delusion to accu- mulate their riches, and to impose upon the mi- serable multitude by the most impious and shocking inventions. As the demand for relics was prodigious and universal, the clergy em- ployed all their dexterity to satisfy these demands, and w7ere far from being nice in the methods they used for that end. The bodies of the saints were sought by fasting and prayer instituted by the priest in order to obtain a divine answer, and an infallible direction, and this pretended direction never failed to accomplish their desires ; the holy carcass was always found, and that always in con- sequence, as they impiously gave out, of the sug- gestion and inspiration of God himself. Each discovery of this kind was attended with excessive demonstrations of joy, and animated the zeal of these devout seekers to enrich the church still more and more with this new kind of treasure. Many travelled with this view into the eastern provinces, and frequented the places which Christ and his disciples had honoured with their presence, that with the bones and other sacred remains of the first heralds of the gospel, they might comfort dejected minds, calm trembling consciences, save sinking states, and defend their inhabitants from all sorts of calamities. Nor did these pious tra- vellers return home empty ; the craft, dexterity, and knavery of the Greeks found a rich prey in the stupid credulity of the Latin relic-hunters, and made a profitable commerce of this new devo- tion. The latter paid considerable sums for legs and arms, skulls and jaw-bones (several of which were pagan, and some not human), and

CHAP. nr. The Doctrine of the Church. 325

other things that were supposed to have belonged CENT. to the primitive worthies of the Christian church; PART'II

and thus the Latin churches came to the possession

of those celebrated relics of St. Mark, St. James, St. Bartholomew, Cyprian, Pantaleon, and others, which they show at this day with so much osten- tation. But there were many, who, unable to procure for themselves these spiritual treasures by voyages and prayers, had recourse to violence and theft ; for all sorts of means, and all sorts of at- tempts in a cause of this nature were considered, when successful, as pious and acceptable to the Supreme Being (n).

VII. The study of the holy scriptures languished The ^P08*-

, J ^ , . J , . r & ™ tlon °f the

much among the Greeks in this century, rho- scriptures

tius, who composed a book of Questions (o), relat- ing to various passages of scripture, An Exposi- tion of the Epistles of St. Paul, and other produc- tions of the same nature (jp), was one of the few that employed their talents in the illustration of the sacred writings. He was a man of great sagacity and 'genius, who preferred the dictates of reason to the decisions of authority ; notwithstanding all which, he cannot be recommended as a model to

(u) See Muratorii Antiq. Ital. Medii JEvi9 torn. v. p. 6. who gives examples of the truth of this assertion.

lUlf (o) This work, which is entitled Amphilochia, from its having been addressed to Amphilochius, bishop of Cyzicum, consists of 308 questions, and answers to them; a sixth part of which, at least, are to be found in the Epistles of Photius, published at London in 1651, by bishop Montague. The most of these questions relate to different texts of the Old and New Testament ; but these are interspersed with others of a philosophical and literary kind. This work is still extant in MSS. in the Vatican, Barberinian, and Bavarian libraries.

{j§ir(p) Such as a catena, or chain, of commentaries on the book of Psalms, compiled from the writings of Athanasius, Basil, Chrysostom, &c. and a commentary upon the Pro- phets, both of which are yet extant in MSS. the former in the Bibliotheca Scgueriana, or Coisliniana, and the latter in the Vatican library.

326 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, other commentators. The other Greek writers, PART* 1 1. who attempted to explain the holy scriptures, did

, little more than compile and accumulate various

passages from the commentators of the preceding ages ; and this method was the origin of those catenae, or chains of commentaries, so much in vogue among the Greeks during this century, of which a considerable number have come down to our times, and which consisted entirely in a col- lection of the explications of scripture that were scattered up and down in the ancient writers. The greatest part of the theological writers, find- ing themselves incapable of more arduous under- takings, confined their labours to this compil- ing method, to the great detriment of sacred criticism. Defects of VIII. The Latin commentators were vastly su-

the Latin . J

commen- perior m number to those among the Greeks, tators. which was owing to the zeal and munificence of Charlemagne, who, both by his liberality and by his example, had excited and encouraged the doctors of the preceding age to the study of the scriptures. Of these expositors there are two, at least, who are worthy of esteem, Christian Druthmar, whose Commentary on St. Matthew, is come down to our times (jf) ; and the abbot Bertharius, whose two books concerning Funda- mentals, are also said to be yet extant. The rest seem unequal to the important office of sacred critics, and may be divided into two classes, which we have had already occasion to mention in the course of this history; the class of those, who merely collected and reduced into a mass the opi- nions and explications of the ancients, and that

(q) See R. Simon, Histoire Critique des Principaux Com- mentateurs du Nouv. Testament, chap. xxv. p. 34-8 ; as also his Critique de la Bibliotheque Ecclesiastique de M. Du Pin, torn. i. p. 293. who, in his xxvith and xxviith chapter, gives an account of most of the writers mentioned here.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 327

of a fantastic set of expositors, who were always CENT. hunting after mysteries in the plainest expressions, and labouring to deduce a variety of abstruse and hidden significations from every passage of scrip- ture, all which they did, for the most part, in a very clumsy and uncouth manner. At the head of the first class was Rabanus Maurus, who ac- knowledges that he borrowed from the ancient doctors the materials he made use of in illustrating the Gospel of St. Matthew, and the Epistles of St. Paul ; Walafrid Strabo, who borrowed his explications chiefly from Rabanus; Claudius of Turin, who trod in the footsteps of Augustin and Origen ; Hincmar, whose Exposition of the Four Books of Kings, compiled from the fathers, are yet extant ; Remigius of Auxerre, who de- rived from the same source his illustrations on the Psalms, and other books of sacred writ ; Sedulius, who explained in the same manner the Epistles of St. Paul; Florus, Haymo bishop of Halber- stadt, and others, whom, for the sake of brevity, we pass in silence.

IX. Rabanus Maurus, whom we introduced Allegories. above at the head of the compilers of the fathers, deserves also an eminent place among the allego- rical commentators, on account of his diffuse and tedious work, entitled Scripture Allegories. To this class also belong Smaragdus, Haymo, Scotus, Paschasius Radbert, and many others, whom it is not necessary to mention. The fundamental and general principle, in which all the writers of this class agree, is, that, besides the literal signi- fication of each passage in scripture, there are hidden and deep senses which escape the vulgar eye; but they are not agreed about the number of these mysterious significations. Some attri- bute to every phrase three senses; others four; others again five ; nay, their number is carried to seven by Angel ome, a monk of Lysieux, an acute,

328 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, though fantastic writer, and who is far from de- PART'H servmg the meanest rank among the expositors of this century (r).

Ifhdidactic ^* ^ie teacners of theology were still more con- theoiogy'0 temptible than the commentators, and the Greeks as well as the Latins were extremely negligent both in unfolding the nature, and proving the truth of the doctrines of Christianity. Their method of inculcating divine truth was dry and unsatisfactory, and more adapted to fill the me- mory with sentences, than to enlighten the under- standing, or to improve the judgment. The Greeks, for the most part, followed implicitly Damascenus, while the Latins submitted their hoodwinked intellects to the authority of Au- gustin. Authority became the test of truth, and supplied in arrogance what it wanted in argument. That magisterial decisions were employed in the place of reason appears manifestly from the Col- lectaneum de tribus Qusestionibus of Servatus Lupus; and also from a Treatise of Remigius, concerning the Necessity of holding fast the Truths of the Gospel, and of maintaining inviolable the sacred Authority of the holy and orthodox Fathers. If any deigned to appeal to the authority of the scriptures in defence of their systems, they either explained them in an allegorical manner, or un- derstood them in the sense that had been given to them by the decrees of councils, or in the writings of the fathers ; from which senses they thought it both unlawful and impious to depart. The Irish doctors alone, and particularly Johannes Scotus, had the courage to spurn the ignomini-

(r) See the preface to his Commentary on the Book of Kings, in the Bibliotheca Pat-rum Maxima, torn. xv. p. 308. The commentary of Angelome upon the book of Genesis was published by Bernard Pezius, in his Thesaurus Anec- dptorum, torn. i. part I.; but, indeed, the loss would not have been great had it never seen the light.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church.

ous fetters of authority, and to explain the sub- CENT. lime doctrines of Christianity in a manner con- PART' Ut

formable to the dictates of reason, and the prin-

ciples of true philosophy. But this noble attempt drew upon them the malignant fury of a super- stitious age, and exposed them to the hatred of the Latin theologists, who would not permit either reason or philosophy to meddle themselves in reli- gious matters (s).

XL The important science of morals suffered, Of Christian like all others, in the hands of ignorant and un- m skilful writers. The labours of some were wholly employed in collecting from the fathers an indi- gested heap of maxims and sentences concerning religious and moral duties : and such, among others, was the work of Alvarus, intitled Scin- tillse Patrum. Others wrote in a more systematic manner concerning virtue and vice, such as Ha- litgarius, Rabanus Maurus, and Jonas, bishop of Orleans; but the representations they gave of the one and the other were very different from those which we find in the gospel of Christ. Others again fell into that most absurd and delusive method of instructing the ignorant in the will of God by a fantastic combination of figures and alle- gories; and several of the Greeks began to turn their studies towards the resolving cases of con- science (£), in order to remove the difficulties that arose in scrupulous and timorous minds. We pass in silence the writers of homilies and books of penance, of which there was a considerable number in this century.

(«) For an account of the persecution and hatred that Jo- hannes Scotus suffered in the cause of reason and liberty, see Du Boulay, Hist. Academ. Paris, torn. i. p. 182; as also Ma- billon, Acta Sanctor. Ord. Bened. Ssec. v. p. 392.

(0 See Nicephori Chartophylac. Epistola; Duae, in the JBibliotheca Magna Patrum, torn. in. p. 413.

330 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. XII. The doctrine of the mystics, whose origin PA*~ n is falsely attributed to Dionysius the Areopagite, _ '„ and whose precepts were designed to elevate the The pro- soul above all sensible and terrestrial objects, and mysticism. to unite it to the Deity in an ineffable manner, had been now for a long time in vogue among the Greeks, and more especially among the mo- nastic orders. And to augment the credit of this fanatical sect, and multiply its followers, Mi- chael Synchellus and Methodius composed the most pompous and eloquent panegyrics upon the memory of Dionysius, in which his virtues were celebrated with the utmost exaggeration. The Latins were not as yet bewitched with the spe- cious appearance, and the illusory charms of the mystic devotion, which was equally adapted to affect persons of a lively fancy and those of a more gloomy turn of mind. They lived in a happy ignorance of this contagious doctrine, when the Grecian emperor, Michael Balbus, sent to Lewis the Meek, in the year 824, a copy of the pre- tended works (u) of Dionysius the Areopagite, which fatal present kindled immediately the holy flame of mysticism in the western provinces, and filled the Latins with the most enthusiastic admi- ration of this new religion. The translation of these spurious works into Latin by the express order of the emperor (?#), who could not be easy

• (u) Usserii Sylloge Epp. Hibernicar. p. 54-, 55. jgp* The spuriousness of these works is now universally granted by the most learned and impartial of the Roman Catholic writers, as they contain accounts of many events that happened several ages after the time of Dionysius, and were not at all men- tioned until after the fifth century. See Fleury, Hist. Eccles. livr. liv. torn. xi. p. 520. edit. Bruxelles.

(w) That these books were translated by the order of Lewis appears manifestly from the Epistle to that emperor, which Hilduin prefixed to his Areopagetica, and in which (p. 66. edit. Colon. 1563.) we find the following passage : "De notitia libro- rum, quos (Dionysius) patrio sermone conscripsit, et quibus

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 331

while his subjects were deprived of such an inesti- CENT. mable treasure, contributed much to the progress PA^f n<

of mysticism. By the order of the same emperor, !

Hilduin, abbot of St. Denys, composed an account of the life, actions, and writings of Dionysius, under the title of Areopagitica, in which work, among other impudent fictions, usual in those times of superstition and imposture, he maintain- ed, in order to exalt the honour of his nation, that Dionysius the Areopagite, and Dionysius the bishop of Paris, were one and the same per- son (#). This fable, which was invented with unparalleled assurance, was received with the most perfect and unthinking credulity, and made such a deep and permanent impression upon the minds of the French, that the repeated demonstrations of its falsehood have not as yet been sufficient to ruin its credit entirely. As the first translation of the works of Dionysius that had been done by the order of Lewis the Meek was probably in a barbarous and obscure style, a new and more elegant one was given by the famous Johannes Scotus Erigena, at the request of Charles the

petentibus illos composuit, lectio nobis per Dei gratiam et ves- tram ordinationem, cujus DISPENSATIONS INTERPRETATOS, scrinianostra eos petentibus reserat, satisfacit." Fromthispass- age, it is evident that they are mistaken, who affirm that the Latin translation of the works of Dionysius was not made be- fore the time of Charles the Bald. And they err also, who, with Mabillon, Annal. Benedict, torn. ii. lib. xxix. sect. 59. p. 488. and the authors of the Hist. Lit. de la France, torn. v. p. 425. inform us, that Michael Balbus sent these works al- ready translated into Latin to the emperor Lewis. It is amazing how men of learning could fall into this latter error, after reading the following passage in the Epistle above quoted : " Authenticos namque eosdem (Dionysii) libros Graeca lingua conscriptos, cum echonomus ecclesiae Constan- tinopolitanae et ceteri missi Michaelis legatione — functi sunt — pro munere magno suscepimus."

(x) Launoy, Diss. de Discrimine Dionysii Areopag. etPa- risiensis, cap. iv. p. 38. torn. ii. p. I. opp. as also the other writings of this great man concerning the Two Dionysiuses.

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. Bald, the publication of which increased consider- PARTII. ably the partisans of the mystic theology among 1 the French, Italians, and Germans. Scotus him- self was so enchanted with this new doctrine, that he incorporated it into his philosophical system, and upon all occasions either accommodated his philosophy to it, or explained it according to the principles of his philosophy.

The state of XIII. The defence of Christianity against the comroveiT Jews and pagans was greatly neglected in this siai theo- century, in which the intestine disputes and dis- sensions that divided the church, gave sufficient employment to such as had an inclination to con- troversy, or a talent of managing it with dex- terity and knowledge. Agobard, however, as also Amulo and Rabanus Maurus, chastised the inso- lence and malignity of the Jews, and exposed their various absurdities and errors, while the em- peror Leo, Theodorus Abucara, and other writers, whose performances are lost, employed their po- lemic labours against the progress of the Saracens, and refuted their impious and extravagant system. But it may be observed in general of those who wrote against the Saracens, that they reported many things, both concerning Mahomet and his religion, which were far from being true; and if, as there is too much reason to imagine, they did this designedly, and knowing the falsehood, or at least the uncertainty of what they alleged against these infidels, we must look upon their writings rather as intended to deter the Christians from apostasy, than to give a rational refutation of the Saracen doctrine.

Thecontro- XIV. The contests of the Christians among versy con- themselves were carried on with greater eagerness

ccrnin^ 9 % 9 ^ 9 _. *p -

images and animosity than the disputes in which they

Greeks.the were engaged with the common enemies of their

faith : and these contests were daily productive of

new calamities and disorders which dishonoured

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church.

their profession, and cast a heavy, though uncle- CENT.

PART II.

served reproach upon the cause of true religion. After the banishment of Irene, the controversy concerning images broke out anew among the Greeks, and was carried on by the contending parties, during the half of this century, with various and uncertain success. The emperor Ni- cephorus, though he did not abrogate the decrees of the council of Nice, nor order the images to be taken out of the churches, yet deprived the patrons of image-worship of all power to molest or injure their adversaries, and seems upon the whole to have been an enemy to that idolatrous service. But his successor Michael Curopalates, surnamed Rhangebe, acted in a very different manner. Feeble and timorous, and dreading the rage of the priests and monks that maintained the cause of images, he favoured that cause during his short reign, and persecuted its adversaries with the greatest bitterness and cruelty. The scene changed again, upon the accession of Leo, the Armenian, to the empire, who abolished the de- crees of the Nicene council relating to the use and worship of images, in a council assembled at Constantinople, A. D. 814 (?/) ; without however enacting any penal laws against their idolatrous worshippers. This moderation, far from satisfy- ing the patriarch Nicephorus, and the other par- tisans of image-worship, only served to encourage their obstinacy, and to increase their insolence ; upon which the emperor removed the haughty pre- late from his office, and chastised the fury of se- veral of his adherents with a deserved punishment. His successor Michael, surnamed Balbus, or the Stammerer, was obliged to observe the same con- duct, and to depart from the clemency and in- dulgence, which, in the beginning of his reign,

lisp* (y) Fleury and some other writers place the meeting of this council in the year 815.

IX.

PART

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, he had discovered towards the worshippers of T n images, whose idolatry, however, he was far from — approving ; the monks more especially provoked his indignation by their fanatical rage, and forced him to treat them with particular severity. But the zeal of his son and successor Theophilus, in discouraging this new idolatry, was still more ve- hement ; for he opposed the worshippers of images with great violence, and went so far as to put to death some of the more obstinate ringleaders of that impetuous faction.

XV. Upon the death of Theophilus, which happened in the year 842, the regency was en- trusted with the empress Theodora during her son's minority. This superstitious princess, fa- tigued with the importunate solicitations of the monks, deluded by their forged miracles, and not a little influenced also by their insolent threats, assembled, in the year above mentioned, a council at Constantinople, in which the decrees of the second Nicene council were reinstated in their lost authority, and the Greeks were indulged in their corrupt propensity to image-worship by a law which encouraged that wretched idolatry (#). So that after a controversy, which had been car- ried on during the space of a hundred and ten years, the cause of idolatry triumphed over the dic- tates of reason and Christianity ; the whole east, the Armenians excepted, bowed down before the victorious images ; nor did any of the succeeding emperors attempt to cure the Greeks of this su- perstitious frenzy, or restrain them in the per- formance of this childish worship. The council that was held at Constantinople under Photius, in the year 879, and which is reckoned by the Greeks

(2) See Fred. Spanheim, Historia Imaginum, sect. viii. p. 845. torn. ii. opp. — Lenfant, Preservatif centre la Reunion avec le Siege de Rome, torn. iii. lett. xiv. p. 147. lett. xviii. xix. p. 509.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 335

the eighth general council, gave a farther degree CENT.

1 X. • PART II.

of force and vigour to idolatry, by maintaining the

sanctity of images, and approving, confirming, and renewing the Nicene decrees. The supersti- tious Greeks, who were blind-led by the monks in the most ignominious manner, esteemed this council as a most signal blessing derived to them from the immediate interposition of heaven, and accordingly instituted in commemoration thereof an anniversary festival, which was called the Feast of Orthodoxy (a).

XVI. The triumph of images, notwithstanding Among the the zealous efforts of the Roman pontiffs in their Latms* favour, was obtained with much more difficulty among the Latins, than it had been among the Greeks ; for the former maintained as yet that invaluable, and indeed inalienable privilege of judging for themselves in religious matters, and were far from being disposed to submit their rea- son implicitly to the decisions of the pontiff, or to look upon any thing as infallible and true, which had authority for its only foundation. The most of the European Christians, as we have seen al- ready, steered a middle course between the ido- laters and the Iconoclasts, between those who were zealous for the worship of images on the one hand, and those who were averse to all use of them on the other. They were of opinion, that images might be suffered as the means of .aiding the memory of the faithful, and of calling to their re- membrance the pious exploits and the virtuous actions of the persons they represented ; but they detested all thoughts of paying them the least

(a) See Gretser, Observat. in Codinum de Officiis Aulae et Eccles. Constantinopolitanse, lib. iii. cap. viii. as also the Ce- remoniale Byzantinum, lately published by Reisk, lib. i. c. xx viii. p. 92.

836 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, marks of religious homage or adoration. MI- PART ii cnael Balbus, when he sent, in the year 824, a

solemn embassy to Lewis the Meek, to renew and

confirm the treaties of friendship and peace that had been concluded between his predecessors in the empire and Charlemagne, charged his mi- nisters, in a particular manner, to bring over the king of the Franks (&) to the party of the Icono- clasts, that they might gradually suppress, by their united influence, the worship of images, and thus restore concord and tranquillity to the church. Lewis, upon this occasion, assembled a council at Paris, A. D. 824 (c), in order to examine the proposal of the Grecian emperor, in which it was resolved to adhere to the decrees of the council of Frankfort, which allowed the use of images in the churches, but severely pro- hibited the treating them with the smallest marks of religious worship. But in process of time the European Christians departed gradually from the observance of this injunction, and fell impercep- tibly into a blind submission to the decisions of

(b) So Michael and his son Theophilus style Lewis in their letter to him, refusing him the title of emperor, to which, however, he had an undoubted right in consequence of the treaties which they now desired to renew.

EJSP*3 (c) Fleury, Le Sueur, and other historians, place unanimously this council in the year 825. It may be proper to observe here, that the proceedings of this council evi- dently show, that the decisions of the Roman pontiff were by no means looked upon at this time either as obligatory or in- fallible. For when the letter of pope Adrian, in favour of images , was read in the council, it was almost unanimously rejected, as containing absurd and erroneous opinions. The decrees of the second council of Nice relating to image worship, were also censured by the Gallican bishops ; and the authority of that council, though received by several popes as an oecu- menical one, absolutely rejected. And what is remarkable is, that the pope did not, on this account, declare the Galli- can bishops heretics, nor exclude them from the communion of the apostolic see. See Fleury, liv. xlvii.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 337

the Roman pontiff, whose influence and authority CENT. grew more formidable from day to day; so that PART'n. towards the conclusion of this century, the Galli- can clergy began to pay a certain kind of reli- gious homage to the saintly images, in which their example was followed by the Germans and other nations (d).

XVII. Notwithstanding this apostasy, the Ico- Several noclasts were not destitute of adherents among ^n^the the Latins. The most eminent of these was Latins. Claudius, bishop of Turin, by birth a Spaniard, and also a disciple of Felix, bishop of Urgel. This zealous prelate, as soon as he had obtained the episcopal dignity through the favour of Lewis the Meek, began to exercise the duties of his function in the year 823, by ordering all images, and even the cross, to be cast out of the churches, and committed to the flames. The year follow- ing he composed a treatise, in which he not only defended these vehement proceedings, and de- clared against the use, as well as the worship, of images, but also broached several other opinions, that were quite contrary to the notions of the multitude, and to the prejudices of the times. He denied, among other things, in opposition to the Greeks, that the cross was to be honoured with any kind of worship ; he treated relics with the utmost contempt, as absolutely destitute of the virtues that were attributed to them, and cen- sured with much freedom and severity those pil- grimages to the holy land, and those voyages to the tombs of the saints, which, in this century, were looked upon as extremely salutary, and par- ticularly meritorious. This noble stand, in the defence of true religion, drew upon Claudius a

(d) Mabillon, Aunal. Benedictin. torn. ii. p. 488 — Id. Praef. ad Saec. iv. Actor. SS. Ord. Benedict!. Saec. iv. part I. p. 7, 8. — Le Cointe, Annal. Eccles. Francor. torn. iv. ad h. a. 824.

VOL. II. Z

338 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, multitude of adversaries ; the sons of superstition

PART If.

rushed upon him from all quarters ; Theodemir

Dungallus, Jonas of Orleans, and Walafridus Strabo (e) united to overwhelm him with their voluminous answers. But the learned and ve- nerable prelate maintained his ground (jO, and supported his cause with such dexterity and force, that it remained triumphant, and gained new credit. And hence it happened, that the city of Turin and the adjacent country were, for a long time after the death of Claudius, much less in- fected with superstition than the other parts of Europe.

Continua- XVIII. The controversy that had been carried controversy °n m the preceding century concerning the pro- concerning cession (if we may be allowed that term) of the ticfn oT p™. Holy Ghost from the Father and the Son, and theSHoi°f a^so concernmg tne word filioque, foisted by the Ghost? y Latins into the creed of Constantinople, broke out now with redoubled vehemence, and from a pri- vate dispute became a flaming contest between the Greek and Latin churches. The monks of Je- rusalem distinguished themselves in this contro- versy, and complained particularly of the interpo- lation of the words filioque, i. e. and from the son, in the abovementioned symbol ; nor did they stop here, but despatched to Charlemagne, in the year 809, a certain ecclesiastic of their order, whose name was John, to obtain satisfaction in this matter (g). The affair was debated in due

BS* (e) In order to do justice to the adversaries of Clau- dius here mentioned, it is necessary to observe, that they only maintained the innocence and usefulness of images, without pretending to represent them as objects of religious worship.

(/*) Mabillon, Annal. Benedictin. torn. ii. p. 488. — Praef. ad Saec. iv. Actor. SS. Ord. Benedict, p. 8. — Histoire Litter. de la France, torn. iv. p. 4*91. et torn. v. p. 27. 64-. — Jaq. Basnage, Histoire des Eglises Reformees, torn. i. periodeiv. p. 38. ed. in 4to.

(g) See Steph. Balusii Miscellanea, torn. vii. p. 14-.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church.

form, both in a council assembled this same year CENT. at Aix-la-Chapelle and at Rome, in presence of PARTII.

the sovereign pontiff Leo III. to whom the em

peror had sent ambassadors for that purpose. Leo adopted the doctrine which represented the Holy Ghost as proceeding from the Father and the Son, but he condemned the addition that had been made to the symbol (//), and declared it as his opinion, that the word filioque, or from the son, as it was a glaring interpolation, ought to be omitted in reading the symbol, and at length struck out of it entirely, not every where at once, but in such a prudent manner, as to prevent dis- turbance. His successors were of the same opi- nion ; the word, however, being once admitted, not only kept its place in opposition to the Roman pontiffs, but was by degrees added to the symbol in all the Latin churches (i).

XIX. To these disputes of ancient origin were The contro added controversies entirely new, and particularly that famous one concerning the manner in which the body and blood of Christ were present in the eucharist. It had been hitherto the unanimous opinion of the church, that the body and blood of Christ were administered to those who received the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, and that they were consequently present at that holy institution ; but the sentiments of Christians concerning the nature and manner of this presence were various and contradictory, nor had any council determined with precision that important point, or prescribed the manner in which this pretended presence was

Hgp13 (h) This addition of the word filioque to the symbol of Nice and Constantinople, was made in the fifth and sixth centuries by the churches of Spain, and their example was followed by most of the Gallican churches, where the symbol was read and sung with this addition.

(i) See Le Cointe, Annal. Eccles. Francor. torn. iv. ad a. 809. — Longueval, Histoire de 1'Eglise Gallicane, torn. v. p. 151.

PART ii

340 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, to be understood. Both reason and folly were RT ii mtherto 1^ free i*1 tnis matter, nor had any im- perious mode of faith suspended the exercise of the one, or restrained the extravagance of the other. But in this century, Pascasius Radbert, a monk, and afterwards abbot of Corbey, pretended to ex- plain with precision, and to determine with cer- tainty, the doctrine of the church on this head ; for which purpose he composed, in the year 831, a treatise Concerning the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ (&). A second edition of this treatise, revised with care, and considerably aug- mented, was presented in the year 845 to Charles the Bald, and gave principally occasion to the warm and important controversy that ensued. The doctrine of Pascasius amounted in general to the two following propositions : First, that after the consecration of the bread and wine in the Lord's Supper, nothing remained of these symbols but the outward figure, under which the body and blood of Christ were really and locally present ; and, secondly, that the body of Christ thus pre- sent in the eucharist was the same body that was born of the Virgin that suffered upon the cross, and was raised from the dead. This new doctrine, and more especially the second proposition now mentioned, excited, as might well be expected, the astonishment of many. Accordingly, it was opposed by Rabanus Maurus, Heribald, arid others, though they did not all refute it in the same method, nor upon the same principles. Charles the Bald, upon this occasion, ordered the famous

(K) See Mabillon, Annales Benedict, ii. p. 539. An ac- curate edition of Radbert's book is published by Martene, in the ixth tome of his Ampliss. Collect. Veter. Scriptor. p. 378. The life and actions of this wrong-headed divine are treated of at large by Mabillon, in his Acta Sanctor. Ord. Benedict. Saec. iv. part II. p. 126. and by the Jesuits in the Acta SS. Antwerp, ad d. xxvi. Aprilis.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. - 341

Ratramn and Johannes Scotus to draw up a clear CENT. and rational explication of that important doctrine PAHT*ir.

which Radbert seemed to have so egregiously cor-

rupted (/). These learned divines executed with zeal and diligence the order of the emperor. The treatise of Scotus perished in the ruins of time, ,

but that of Ratramn is still extant (m\ and furnished ample matter of dispute, both in the last and present century (n).

XX. It is remarkable that in this controversy And earned each of the contending parties were almost as much divided among themselves as they were at variance with their adversaries. Radbert, who began the dispute, contradicts himself in many places, departs from his own principles, and maintains in one part of his book conclusions that he had disavowed in another. His principal adversary Bertramn, or Ratramn, seems in some respects liable to the same charge ; he appears to follow in general the doc- trine of those who deny that the body and blood of Christ are really present in the holy sacrament, and affirm, on the contrary,' that they are only represented by the bread and wine as their signs or symbols. There are, however, several passages in his book which seem inconsistent with this just and rational notion of the eucharist, or at least are susceptible of different interpretations, and have

(/) For an account of Ratramn, or Bertramn, and his fa- mous book which has made so much noise in the world, see Fabricius, Biblioth.Lat. Medii ^Evi, torn. i. p. 1661.

Ifgg23 (m) A new English translation of the book of Ber- tramn, priest and monk of Corbey, Concerning the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ in the Sacrament, was published in Dublin in the year 1753 ; to which is prefixed a very learned and judicious Historical Dissertation concerning this famous author and his works, in which both are ably defended against the calumnies and fictions of the Roman Catholic writers.

(») There is an account, but a partial one, of this contro- versy in Mabillon's Praef. ad Saec. iv. part II. Benedict, p. viii. which the curious reader will therefore do well to com- pare with Basnage's Histoire de 1'Eglise, torn. i. p. 909.

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, therefore given rise to various disputes. Johannes PART ii. Scotus, whose philosophical genius rendered him more accurate, and shed through his writings that logical precision so much wanted, and so highly desirable in polemical productions, was the only disputant in this contest who expressed his senti- ments with perspicuity, method, and consistency, and declared plainly that the bread and wine were the signs and symbols of the absent body and blood of Christ. All the other theologists of his time fluctuate and waver in their opinions, ex- press themselves with ambiguity, and embrace and reject the same tenets at different times, as if they had no fixed or permanent principles con- cerning the matter in question. From all this, however, it evidently appears, that there was not as yet in the Latin church any fixed or universally received opinion concerning the manner in which the body and blood of Christ are present in the eucharist.

XXI. The disputants in this controversy charged each other reciprocally with the most

founded odious doctrines, which each party drew by way

upon the p ' « , r i -i

imputation of consequences from the tenets they opposed, a ofmon- method of proceeding as unjust as it is common

strouscon- . n i • i p i i TT

sequences, in all kinds of debate. Hence arose that imagi- nary heresy, that, upon the triumphant progress of the doctrine of transubstantiation in the eleventh century, was branded with the title of Stercora- nism, and of which the true origin was as follows : They who, embracing the opinion of Pascasius Radbert, believed that the bread and wine in the sacrament were substantially changed after the consecration, and preserved only their external figure, drew a most unjust conclusion from the opinion of their adversaries, who maintained, on the contrary, that the bread and wine preserved their substance, and that Christ's body and blood were only figuratively and not really present in

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 34-3

the eucharist. They alleged that the doctrine of CENT. the latter implied, that the body of Christ was PA^'n

digested in the stomach, and was thrown out with

the other excrements. But this consequence was quickly retorted upon those that imagined it ; for they who denied the metamorphosis of the bread and wine into the real body and blood of Christ, charged the same enormous consequence upon their antagonists who believed this transmutation ; and the charge was much more applicable cer- tainly to the latter than to the former. The truth of the matter is, that it was neither truly appli- cable to the one nor to the other, and their mu- tual reproaches, most wretchedly founded, show rather a spirit of invective than a zeal for the truth. The charge of Stercoranism is but a ma- lignant invention ; it can never, without the most absurd impudence, be brought against those who deny the transmutation of the bread into the body of Christ ; it may indeed be charged upon such as allow of this transmutation, though it be a con- sequence, that none of them, who were not frene- tic, did perhaps ever avow (o).

XXII. While this controversy was at its The com™- greatest height, another of a quite different cernhig0pre- kind and of much more importance arose, whose destination unhappy consequences are yet felt in the reformed g^o^foot churches. The subject of this new contest was i>y Godes- the doctrine of predestination and divine grace, c and its rise is universally attributed to Godeschal- cus, an illustrious Saxon, who had entered involun- tarily into the monastic order in the convent of Fulda, from whence he removed to the monastery of Orbais, in the diocese of Soissons, where he pro- secuted his theological studies with great assiduity,

(o) For an account of the Stercoranists, see Mabillon, Prsef. ad Saec. iv. Benedict, part II. p. 21. — J. Basnage, Hi- stoire de 1'Eglise, torn. i. p. 926. and a treatise of the learned Dr. Pfaft', published at Tubingue in 1750.

344 The Infernal History of the Church.

CENT, but also with an insatiable desire of sounding* the

IX.

PART II

Ix- deepest mysteries, and of being wise above^what .is written* This eminent ecclesiastic, upon his return from Rome in the year 847, took up his lodging for some time with Count Eberald, one of the first noblemen at the court of the emperor Lothaire, where he discoursed largely concern- ing the intricate doctrine of predestination in presence of Nothingus, bishop of Verona, and maintained that God, from all eternity, had pre- ordained some to everlasting life, and others to everlasting punishment and misery. Rabanus Maurus, who was by no means his friend, being informed of his propagating this doctrine, opposed him with all his might. To render his opposition more successful, he began by representing Go- deschalcus as a corrupter of the true religion, and a forger of monstrous heresies, in some letters addressed to Count Eberald, and to the bishop of Verona. And when the accused monk came from Italy into Germany to justify himself against these clamours, and for that purpose appeared at Mentz, of which Rabanus his accuser was arch- bishop, he was condemned in a council assem- bled by the latter in that city, A. D. 848, and sent from thence to Hincmar, archbishop of Rheims, in whose diocese he had received the order of priesthood. Hincmar, who was devoted to the interests of Rabanus, assembled a council at Quiercy, A. D. 849, in which Godeschalcus was condemned a second time, and was also treated in a manner equally repugnant to the principles of religion and the dictates of humanity. Because he was firm in maintaining his doctrine, which he affirmed, and indeed with truth, to be the doc- trine of St. Augustin, the imperious Hincmar degraded him from the priesthood, and was so barbarous as to order him to be whipped with the utmost severity, until the force of his pain over.

PART II.

test.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 345

powering his constancy, obliged him, according to CENT. the commands of his reverend executioners, to burn with his own hands the justification of his opinions which he had presented to the council of Mentz. After these barbarous proceedings, the unfortunate monk was cast into prison in the monastery of Hautvilliers, where he ended his misery and his days in the year 868, or the year following, maintaining with his last breath the doctrine for which he had suffered.

XXIII. While Godeschalcus lay in prison, The history his doctrine gained him followers, his sufferings of thls con" excited compassion, and both together produced a considerable schism in the Latin church. Ra- tramn, monk of Corbey, Prudentius, bishop of Troyes, Loup, or Lupus, abbot of Ferrieres, Florus, deacon of Lyons, Remi, archbishop of the same city, with his whole church, all these eminent and illustrious ecclesiastics, with many others, whom it would be tedious to mention, pleaded with the utmost zeal and vehemence, both in their writings and in their discourse, the cause of this unhappy monk, and of his condemned opinions. Some, indeed, confined themselves principally to the defence of his person and con- duct ; while others went farther, and employed all their zeal and all their labour, in the vindica- tion of his doctrine. On the opposite side of the question were Hincmar, his unrighteous judge, Amalarius, the celebrated Johannes Scotus, and others, who all maintained, that Godeschalcus and his opinions had received the treatment they deserved. As the spirit of controversy ran high between these contending parties, and grew more vehement from day to day, Charles the Bald sum- moned a new council, or synod, which met at Quiercy, A. D. 853, in which, by the credit and influence of Hincmar, the decrees of the former council were confirmed, and of consequence Go-

346 The Internal History of the Church.

deschalcus again condemned. But the decrees of this council were declared null, and decisions of a different kind, by which Godeschalcus and his doctrine were vindicated and defended, were sub- stituted in their place in a council assembled at Valence in Dauphiny, A. D. 855. This council was composed of the clergy of three provinces, Lyons, Vienne, and Aries, with Remi, arch- bishop of Lyons, at their head, and its decrees were confirmed, in the year 859, by the council of Langres, in which the same clergy were assem- bled, and in 860, by the council of Tousi, in which the bishops of fourteen provinces supported the cause of the persecuted monk, whose death diminished considerably the heat of this intricate controversy (p).

Whatjudg- XXIV. If we attend to the merits of this ™efonTofre cause, we shall find that the debate subsists still this con- jn an ^s force, and that the doctrine of Godes- ersy' chalcus has in our days both able defenders and powerful adversaries. He, undoubtedly, main- tained a twofold predestination, one to everlasting life, and the other to eternal death. He held also, " that God did not desire or will the salva- tion of all mankind, but that of the elect only ; and that Christ did not suffer death for the whole human race, but for that part of it only whom God has predestinated to eternal salvation." These decisions, which carry a severe and rigor- ous aspect, are softly and favourably interpreted

(p) Besides the common writers, who speak of this con- troversy, the curious reader will do well to consult the more learned and impartial accounts he will find of it in Caesar Egasse de Boulay's Hist. Acad. Paris, torn. i. p. 178. — Mabillon, Praef. ad Ssec. iv. Benedict, part II. p. xlvii. — Hist. Litteraire de la France, torn. v. p. 352. — Usserii Hi- stoire Godeschalci, Hanoviae 1662, in 8vo, et Dublini 1661, in 4to. — Gerhard. Joh. Vossii Historia Pelagiana, lib. vii. cap. iv. — Add Jo. Alb. Fabricii Biblioth. Latin. Medii JEvi, tom.4ii. p. 210.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 347

by the followers of Godeschalcus. They deny, CENT. for example, that their leader represents God as predestinating to a necessary course of iniquity those whom he has previously predestinated to eternal misery, and, according to them, the doc- trine of Godeschalcus amounts to no more than this : " That God has, from all eternity, doomed to everlasting misery such as he foresaw would go on impenitent in a sinful course, and has decreed their ruin in consequence of their sins freely com- mitted and eternally foreseen : that the salutary effects of the mercy of God, and the sufferings of Christ, extend indeed only to the elect, and are made good to them alone ; though this mercy and these sufferings, considered in themselves, belong equally to all mankind." But this contradictory jargon did not satisfy the adversaries of the Pre- destinarian monk ; they maintained, on the con- trary, that under ambiguous terms and perplexed sentences Godeschalcus had concealed the most enormous errors, propagating it assiduously as an article of faith, " That God had not only by an original decree predestinated one part of mankind to eternal damnation, but had also pushed them on by an irresistible necessity, by a prepollent force, to those crimes and transgressions which were proper to render that damnation just (</)." Without

(q) The cause of Godeschalcus has been very learnedly defended by the celebrated Maguin, who published alscj a valuable edition, which is yet extant, of all the treatises that were composed on both sides of this intricate controversy. This interesting collection, which was printed at Paris in the year 1650, in two volumes 4to, bears the following title: Ve- tcrum auctorum qui Nono Saeculo de Predestinatione et Gratia scripserunt, Opera et Fragmenta, cum Historia et ge- mina Praefatione. Cardinal Noris maintained also the cause of the Predestinarian monk with more brevity,, but less mo- deration than Maguin. This brief vindication may be seen in the Synopsis Historiae Godeschalcanae, which is inserted

348

The Internal History of the Church.

PAIITII

words Tri- na Deltas,

CENT, determining any thing upon such an intricate and incomPrenensible subject, with respect to which silence is the truest wisdom, we shall only observe, that the private quarrels, and mutual hatred, that prevailed between Rabanus Maurus and Godes- chalcus, \vere the real source of the Predestinarian controversy, and of all the calamities in which it involved that unfortunate monk (/•).

XXV. Another, though less important con- troversy arose about this time, concerning the concluding words of a very ancient hymn, which runs thus ; te, trina Deltas unaque, poscimus, ^j^ may ^e tnus translated, " O God, who art three, and at the same time but one, we beseech thee, &c." Hincmar wisely prohibited the singing these words in the churches that were under his jurisdiction, from a persuasion that they tended to introduce into the minds of the multi- tude notions inconsistent with the unity and sim-

in the 4th volume of the works of that cardinal, p. 677. All the Benedictines, Jansenists, and Augustin monks main- tain, almost without exception, that Godeschalcus was most unjustly persecuted and oppressed by Rabanus Maurus. The Jesuits are of a different opinion ; they assert in gene- ral, and Louis Cellot, one of their order, has in a more par- ticular manner laboured to demonstrate in his Historia Gc- deschalci Predestinationis, published at Paris in 1655, that the monk in question was justly condemned, and deservedly punished.

(r) The parents of Godeschalcus consecrated him to God, by devoting him from his infancy, as was the custom of the times, to the monastic life in the monastery of Fulda. The young monk, however, being arrived at a certain age, seemed much disposed to abandon his retreat, to shake off his reli- gious fetters, and return again into society ; but he was pre- vented from the execution of this purpose by Rabanus Maurus, who kept him, against his will, in his monastic bonds. Hence a violent contest arose between these two ecclesias- tics, in which Lewis the Meek was obliged to interpose, and hence the furious disputes concerning predestination and grace. See Centuriae Magdeb. Cent. ix. c. 10. — Mabillon, Annal. Bened. torn. ii. ad a. 829. p. 523.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 349

plicity of the Supreme Being, and might lead CENT. them to imagine that there were three Gods. But PAK1; n

the Benedictine monks refused to obey this man- —

date, and Bertramn, who was one of the most eminent of that order, wrote a large book to prove the expression trina Deltas, or threefold Deity, orthodox, from the authority of fathers, which was esteemed the only criterion of truth in these miserable times. Godeschalcus, who now lay in prison, heard of this dispute, entered warmly into it, and in a laboured dissertation sup- ported the cause of his Benedictine Brethren, on which account Hincmar accused him of tritheism, and drew up a treatise to prove the charge, and to refute that impious and enormous heresy. This controversy, however, was but of a short duration, and the exceptionable passage of the hymn in question maintained its credit, notwithstanding all the efforts of Hincmar, and continued, as be- fore, to be sung in the churches (s).

XXVI. A vain curiosity, and not any design The manner

r A.' f 1 1 1 1 1 - f of Christ's

of promoting useful knowledge and true piety, binh be- was the main source of the greatest part of the comes a .

, .' f ,r. subject of

controversies that were carried on in this century, debate. And it was more especially this idle curiosity, car- ried to an indecent and most extravagant length, that gave rise to the controversy concerning the manner in which Christ was born of the Virgin, which began in Germany, and made its way from thence into France. Certain Germans maintained, that Jesus proceeded from his mother's womb in a manner quite different from those general and uniform laws of nature that regulate the birth of the human species ; which opinion was no sooner known in France, than it was warmly opposed by the famous Ratramn, who wrote a book ex-

(s) There is an account of this controversy given by the writers of the life, actions, and doctrines of Godeschalcus,

350 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, pressly to prove that Christ entered into the [X' world in the very same way with other mortals, land that his Virgin-mother bare him, as other women bring forth their offspring. Pascasius Radbert, who was constantly employed, either in inventing or patronising the most extravagant fancies, adopted the opinion of the German doc- tors, and composed an elaborate treatise to prove that Christ was born, without his mother's womb being opened, in the same manner as he came into the chamber where his disciples were assembled after his resurrection, though the door was shut. He also charged those who held the opinion of Ratramn with denying the virginity of Mary. This fruitless dispute was soon hushed, and gave place to controversies of superior mo* ment (t).

The first XXVII. Of all the controversies that divided controversy Christians in this century, the most interesting,

oetween tne • f i i -11

Greeks and though at the same time the most lamentable, uieTccount was tnat w^ich occasioned the fatal schism be- of Photius. tween the Greek and Latin churches. A vindic- tive and jealous spirit of animosity and conten- tion had, for a long time, prevailed between the bishops of Rome and Constantinople, and had sometimes broke out into acts of violence and rage. The ambition and fury of these contending prelates grew still more keen and vehement about the time of Leo the Isaurian, when the bishops of Constantinople, seconded by the power and autho- / rity of the emperors, withdrew from the jurisdic-

tion of the Roman pontiffs many provinces, over which they had hitherto exercised a spiritual do- minion (11). But in this century they arose to an

(t) See Lucas Dacherius, his Spicilegium Veterum Scrip- tor, torn. i. p. 396. Mabillon, Prsef. ad Ssec. iv, Benedict, part. II. p. 51.

(u) See Giannone, Histoire de Naples, torn. i. p. 535. G46. — Petr. de Marca, De Concordia Sacerdotii et Imperii, lib. i. cap. i. p. 6. — Lequien, Oriens Christianus, torn. i. p. 96.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 351

enormous height, and broke forth into a most CENT. dreadful flame, in the year 858 (V), when the learned Photius was chosen patriarch of Constan- tinople, by the emperor Michael, in the place of Ignatius, whom that prince drove from his see and sent into exile. For this violent proceeding, though it was justified and applauded by a coun- cil assembled at Constantinople in the year 861, was far from being attended with a general ap- probation. Ignatius appealed from this council to the Roman pontiff Nicolas I. who espoused his interests ; and in a council assembled at Rome, A. D. 862, excommunicated Photius as unlaw- fully elected, and his abettors for having been concerned in such an unrighteous cause. The new patriarch, however, was so far from being terrified or dejected by this excommunication, that he returned the compliment to the Roman pontiff, and in a council assembled at Constanti- nople, in the year 866, he declared Nicolas un- worthy both of the place he held in the church, and also of being admitted to the communion of Christians.

XXVIII. The Roman pontiff alleged a specious pretext for his appearing in this matter with such violence, and exciting such unhappy commotions in the church. This pretext was the innocence of Ignatius, whom, upon an accusation of trea- son, whether true or false, the emperor had de- graded from his patriarchal dignity. This, how- ever, was but a mere pretext ; ambition and in- terest were the true, though secret springs, that directed the motions of Nicolas, who would have born with patience, nay, beheld with indiffer- ence, the unjust sufferings of Ignatius, could he

(to) In the original, there stands 852, but as this is probably an error of the press, the translator has taken the liberty to correct it in the text.

352 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, but have recovered from the Greeks the pro- PART'II vinces of Illyricum, Macedonia, Epirus, Achaia,

Thessaly, and Sicily, which the emperor and Pho-

tius had removed from the jurisdiction of the Ro- man pontiff. Before he engaged in the cause of Ignatius, he sent a solemn embassy to Constanti- nople, to demand the restitution of these pro- vinces ; but his demand was rejected with con- tempt. And hence, under pretence of avenging the injuries committed against Ignatius, he in- dulged without restraint his own private resent- ment, and thus covered with the mask of justice the fury of disappointed ambition and avarice. A second XXIX. While things were in this troubled contest state, and the flame of controversy was growing

concerning . , „ , i -r» •!• TV/T

the same more violent from day to day, Joasiims the Ma- iPhotius de cedonian, wno> by the murder of his predecessor, graded. had paved his way to the imperial throne, calmed at once these tumults, and restored peace to the church, by recalling Ignatius from exile to the high station from which he had been degraded, and by confining Photius in a monastery. This imperial act of authority was solemnly approved and confirmed by a council assembled at Constan- tinople, in the year 869, in which the legates of the Roman pontiff Adrian II. had great influence, and were treated with the highest marks of di- stinction (>). The Latins acknowledge this as- sembly as the eighth oecumenical council, and in it the religious contests between them and the Greeks were concluded, or at least hushed and suspended. But the controversy concerning the authority of the Roman pontiffs, the limits of their ghostly empire, and particularly their jurisdiction in Bulgaria, still subsisted ; nor could all the

(x) The writers on both sides of this controversy are enu- merated by Fabricius, in his Bibl. Graeca, vol. iv. c. xxxviii. p. 372.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 353

efforts of papal ambition engage either Ignatius or CENT. the emperor to give up Bulgaria, or any other pro- vince to the see of Rome.

XXX. The contest that had arisen between the Greeks and Latins, concerning the elevation of Photius, was of such a nature as to admit of an easy and effectual remedy. But the haughty and ambitious spirit of this learned and ingenious 'pa- triarch fed the flame of discord instead of extin- guishing it, and, unhappily, perpetuated the troubles and divisions of the Christian church. In the year 866, he added to the see of Constantinople the province of Bulgaria, with which the pontiff Nicolas had formed the design of augmenting his own spiritual dominions, and was most bit- terly provoked at missing his aim. Photius went yet farther, and entered into measures every way unworthy of his character and station ; for he not only sent a circular letter to the orien- tal patriarchs to engage them to espouse his pri- vate cause, as the public and momentous cause of the church, but drew up a most violent charge of heresy against the Roman bishops, who had been sent among the new converted Bulgarians, and against the church of Rome in general. The articles of corrupt doctrine, or heresy, which this imperious and exasperated prelate brought against the Romans were as follows : First, That they fasted on the Sabbath, or seventh day of the week. Secondly, That in the first week of Lent they per- mitted the use of milk and cheese. Thirdly, That they prohibited their priests to marry, and sepa- rated from their wives such as were married, when they went into orders (#). Fourthly, That they

(y) Photius attributes to this forced and unnatural celi-

bacy of the clergy that multitude of children whose fathers

were unknown. Remarkable to this purpose is the follow-

ing passage from a book of Alvarus Delagius, bishop of

VOL. II. A A

354- The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, maintained that the bishops alone were authorized **' to anoint with the holy chrism baptized persons,

PAlvl XI* ill /» 11 1

— , and that they, of consequence, who had been

anointed by presbyters were obliged to receive that unction a second time from the hand of a bishop. Lastly, That they had adulterated the symbol or creed of Constantinople, by adding to it the words filioque, i. e. and from the son, and were therefore of opinion that the Holy Spirit did not proceed from the Father only, but also from the Son (*). Nicolas I. finding the Roman church thus attacked, sent the articles of this ac- cusation to Hincmar, and the other Gallican bishops in the year 867, desiring them to assemble their respective suffragans in order to examine and answer the reproach of Photius. Pursuant to this exhortation of the pontiff, Odo, Aeneas, and Ado, bishops of Beauvais, Paris, and Vienne, as also the celebrated Ratramn, stept forth gallantly into the field of controversy against the Greeks, answered one by one the accusations of Photius, and employed the whole force of their erudition and zeal in maintaining the cause of the Latin churches (#).

Sylva in Portugal, De Planctu Ecclesiae; " It were to be wished/' says he, " that the clergy had never vowed chas- tity, especially the clergy of Spain, where the sons of the laity are not much more numerous than the sons of the clergy."

(z) See the letter of Photius in the collection published by bishop Montague, N. II. p. 47. Other writers mention ten heads of accusation brought against Photius, but such do not distinguish between the first and second controversy that arose between the Greeks and Latins, and they add to the articles, with which this patriarch was charged, those that were drawn up in the time of Michael Cerularius. Certain it is, that in the epistle of Photius, which relates only to the first controversy, and is the only criterion by which we ought to judge of it, there are no more heads of accusation than the five which we have enumerated in the text.

(a) Mabillon, Praef. ad Saec. iv. Bened. part II. p. 55.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 855

XXXI. Upon the death of Ignatius, which CENT. happened in the year 878, the emperor took PAR*' n

Photius into favour, and placed him again at

the head of the Greek church in the patriarchal Restored to dignity from whence he had fallen. This restora- tion of the degraded patriarch was agreed to by the Roman pontiff John VIII. , upon condition, however, that Photius would permit the Bulga- rians to come under the jurisdiction of the see of Rome. The latter promised to satisfy in this the demands of the pontiff, to which the emperor also seemed to consent (Z>) ; and hence it was that John VIII. sent legates to the council which was held at Constantinople, A. D. 879, by whom he declared his approbation of the acts of that assem- bly, and acknowledged Photius as his brother in Christ. The promises, however, of the emperor and the patriarch were far from being accom- plished ; for after this council, the former, most probably by the advice, or at least with the con- sent, of the latter, refused to transfer the province of Bulgaria to the Roman pontiff; and it must be confessed that this refusal was founded upon most weighty and important reasons. The pontiff, notwithstanding, was highly irritated at this dis- appointment, and sent Marinus to Constantinople in the character of legate, to declare that he had changed his mind concerning Photius, and that he entirely approved of the sentence of excom- munication that had been formerly given against him. The legate, upon delivering this disa- greeable message, was cast into prison by the em- peror, but was afterwards set free ; and being raised to the pontificate upon the death of John VIII., recalled the remembrance of this injurious treatment, and levelled a new sentence of con- demnation against Photius.

(b) Mich, le Quien, Oriens Christianus, torn. i. p. 103.

A A 2

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. XXXII. This sentence was treated with con- p \RTII. tempt by tne haughty patriarch: but about six

years after this period, he experienced anew the

fragility of sublunary grandeur and elevation, by a fall which concluded his prosperous days. For in the year 886, Leo, surnamed the Philosopher, the son and successor of Basilius, deposed him from the patriarchal see, and confined him in an Armenian monastery, where he died in the year 891. The death of Photius, who was the only author of the schisms that divided the Greeks and Latins, might have been an occasion of removing these unhappy contests, and of restoring peace and concord in the church, if the Roman pon- tiffs had not been regardless of the demands of equity as well as of the duty of Christian modera- tion. But these imperious lords of the church in- dulged their vindictive zeal beyond all measure, and would be satisfied with nothing less than the degradation of all the priests and bishops who had been ordained by Photius. The Greeks, on the other hand, were shocked at the arrogance of these unjust pretensions, and would not submit to them on any conditions. Hence a spirit of resent- ment and irritation renewed the spirit of dispute, which had been happily declining ; religious as well as civil contests were again set on foot ; new controversies were added to the old, until the fatal schism took place which produced a lasting and total separation between the Greek and Latin church.

CHAP. Iv. Rites and Ceremonies. 357

CHAPTER IV.

Concerning the Rites and Ceremonies used in the Church during this Century.

I. THAT religious rites and ceremonies were CENT. multiplied from day to day, appears evidently IX-

r i 1 i /• 1 • -L. U • PART II.

from the labours of those writers who began in

this century to explain to the ignorant multitude Several their origin, their nature, and the purposes they ™$*™h served; for the multiplicity alone of these reli- origin of the gious rites could render the explication of them ^reesma0nndies necessary. Johannes Scotus, Angelome, Remi, now used in or Remigius, bishop of Auxerre, and Walafridus the ° Strabo, were the principal authors who distin- guished themselves in this species of sacred lite- rature, to whom we may add Amalarius, many of whose explanations were, however, refuted by Agobard and Florus. Their works are generally entitled, De Officiis Divinis, for in the style of this age religious ceremonies were called by that name. The labours of these pious and learned men in illustrating the ritual were undoubtedly undertaken with good intentions ; but their utility may be well called into question ; and it would be bold to affirm that they were not as prejudicial to the church in some respects, as they might be ad- vantageous to it in others. Their books afforded, indeed, a certain sort of spiritual nourishment to the minds of Christians in their attendance upon public worship; but this nourishment was both coarse and unwholesome. The reasons alleged for the ceremonies in vogue at this time in the church, and the purposes they were supposed to answer, were, for the most part, not only far fetched, childish, and ridiculous, but also bore the strongest marks of forgery and fiction. It is also

PART II.

358 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, farther observable, that these illustrations not only encouraged, but augmented prodigiously, and that to the detriment of real piety, the veneration and zeal of the multitude for external rites and cere- monies. For who would dare to refuse their ad- miration and reverence to institutions which they were taught to consider as full of the most my- sterious wisdom, and founded upon the most pious and affecting reasons ?

~^' ^ would be endless to enter into an exact enumeration of the various rites and ceremonies which were now introduced, for the first time, and of which some were adopted by the whole body of Christians, and others only by certain churches. We shall therefore dismiss this matter with the general account which follows, and point out in the notes the sources from whence the cu- rious reader may derive a more particular know- ledge of the absurdities of this superstitious age. The carcasses of the saints transported from foreign countries, or discovered at home by the industry and diligence of pious or designing priests, not only obliged the rulers of the church to augment the number of festivals or holidays already esta- blished, but also to diversify the ceremonies in such a manner that each saint might have his peculiar worship. And as the authority and cre- dit of the clergy depended much upon the high notion which was generally entertained of the virtue and merit of the saints they had canonized, and presented to the multitude as objects of reli- gious veneration, it was necessary to amuse and surprise the people by a variety of pompous and striking ceremonies, by images, and such like in- ventions, in order to keep up and nourish their stupid admiration for the saintly tribe. Hence the splendor and magnificence that were lavished upon the churches in this century, and the prodi- gious number of costly pictures and images with

H

CHAP. iv. Rites and Ceremonies. 359

which they were adorned ; hence the stately altars, CENT. which were enriched with the noblest inventions of painting and sculpture, and illuminated with innumerable tapers at noon-day ; hence the mul- titude of processions, the gorgeous and splendid garments of the priests, and the masses that were celebrated in honour of the saints (c). Among other novelties, the feast of All Saints was added, in this century, by Gregory IV. to the Latin ca- lendar (d) ; and the festival of St. Michael, which had been long kept with the greatest marks of de- votion and respect by the Orientals and Italians, began now to be observed more zealously and uni- versally among the Latin Christians (e).

III. Nor was it only in the solemn acts of reli- Superstition gious worship that superstition reigned with an ietn^thl unlimited sway ; its influence extended even to transactions the affairs of private life, and was observable in ° the civil transactions of men, particularly among the Latin Christians, who retained with more obstinacy than the Greeks a multitude of cus- toms, which derived their origin from the sacred rites of paganism. The barbarous nations, which were converted to Christianity, could not support the thoughts of abandoning altogether the laws and manners of their ancestors, how- ever inconsistent they might be with the in- dispensable demands of the gospel ; nay, they persuaded, on the contrary, the Christians among whom they lived to imitate their extravagant superstition in this respect. And this was the true and original source of those barbarous in-

(c) See Jo. Fechtii Liber Singularis de Missis in honorem Sanctorum.

(d) See Mabillon, De Re Diplomatica, p. 537.

(e) The holidays or festivals of the saints were as yet but few in number among the Latins, as appears from a poem of Florus, published by Martene in the fifth volume of his Thesaurus Anecdotor. p. 595.

S60

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, stitutions that prevailed among the Latins, during *his and the following century: such as the vari- ous methods by which it was usual for persons accused to prove their innocence in doubtful cases, either by the trial of cold water (/'), by

I^^T" (jf) All these were presumptuous attempts to force the divine providence to declare itself miraculously in favour of the truth. In the trial of cold water, the person accused had the right foot and left hand bound together, and was, in this posture, thrown naked into the water. If he sunk, he was acquitted; but if he floated upon the surface, this was considered as an evidence of guilt. The most respectable authors, ancient and modern, attribute the invention of this superstitious trial to Pope Eugenius II. ; and it is somewhat surprising that Mr. Bower has taken no notice of it in his history of that pontiff. Baluzius has inserted in the second volume of his Capitularia the solemn forms of prayer and protestation, that Eugenius had caused to be drawn up as an introduction to this superstitious practice ; and Fleury and Spanheim look upon that pontiff as its first inventor. On the other hand, father Le Brun, a priest of the oratory, main- tains, in his Histoire Critique des Pratiques Superstitieuses, torn. ii. p. 140, &c. edit, d' Amsterdam, that this custom was much more ancient than Eugenius, and his reasons are not unworthy of attention. Be that as it may, this custom was condemned and abrogated at the request, or rather by the authority, of Lewis the Meek, about the year 829. It was, however, revived afterwards, and was practised in the tenth, eleventh, and twelfth centuries, as we shall see in the progress of this history. For an account of the trial of cold water, Dr.Mosheim refews us, in a note, to Mabillon's Analecta Vete- ris ^Evi, torn. i. p. 47. and Roye's De Missis Dominicis, p. 152.

The trial by duel, or single combat, was introduced towards the conclusion of the fifth century by Gondebaud, king of the Burgundians, after that the abuse of oaths had occasioned the most horrible perjuries, and opened a door to all sorts of injustice. The duel was then added to the oath by Gonde- baud ; the successful combatant was supposed to be in the right, and this barbarous test of truth and justice was, in spite of humanity and common sense, adopted by the Lombards, French, and Germans, and derived from them to other na- tions. Jt was prohibited first in the year 855, in the third council of Valence in Dauphiny.

The fire ordeal was practised in various ways. The accused either held a burning ball of iron in his hand, or was obliged to walk barefoot upon heated plough-shares^ whose number

CHAP. iv. Rites and Ceremonies. 361

single combat (#), by the fire ordeal (A), and by CENT. the cross (i). It is no longer a question in our days, from whence these methods of deciding du-

was increased in proportion to the number or enormity of the crimes imputed to him ; and sometimes a glove of red-hot iron was used on this occasion, as we see in the tenth book of the history of Denmark, by Saxon the Grammarian. If in these trials the person impeached remained unhurt, and discovered no signs of pain, he was discharged as innocent; otherwise he was punished as guilty. The first account we have of Christians appealing to this kind of trial as a proof of their innocence, is that of SimpliciuSj bishop of Autun, who lived in the fourth century. This prelate, as the story goes, before his promotion to the episcopal order, had mar- ried a wife who loved him tenderly, and who, unwilling to quit him after his advancement, continued to sleep in the same chamber with her spouse. The sanctity of Simplicius suffered, at least in the voice of fame, by the constancy of his wife's affection, and it was rumoured about, that the holy man, though a bishop, persisted in opposition to the eccle- siastical canons to taste the sweets of matrimony. Upon which the dame, in presence of a great concourse of people, took up a considerable quantity of burning coals, which she held in her clothes, and applied to her breast, without the least hurt to her person or damage to her garments, as the legend says, and her example being followed by her husband, with like success, the silly multitude admired the miracle, and proclaimed the innocence of the loving pair. Bricius, or St. Brice, (whom Mr. Collier, in his Ecclesiastical History of England, vol. i. p. 231. represents by mistake as the first Christian who endeavoured to clear himself in this way) played a trick of much the same nature in the fifth century.

The trial by the cross was made by obliging the contending parties to stretch out their arms, and he that continued the longest in this posture gained his cause.

(g) Jo. Loccenii Antiquit. Sueo-Gothicae, lib. ii. cap. vii. viii. p. 144. This barbarous method of deciding contro- versies by duel was practised even by the clergy. See Just. Hen. Boemeri Jus Eccles. Protestantium, torn. v. p. 88.

(h) Petr. Lambecius, Rerum Hamburg, lib. ii. p. 39. — Usserii Sylloge Epistol. Hibernic. p. 81. — Johnson, Leges Eccles. Britanniae. — Michael de la Roche, Memoires Litter, de la Grande Bretagne, torn. viii. p. 391.

(i) See Agoberdus, Contra Judicium Dei, torn. i. opp. et Contra Legem Gundobadi, cap. ix. p. 114. Hier. Bignonius, Ad Formulas Murculphi, cap. xii. Baluzius, Ad Agobardum, p. 104.

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, bious cases and accusations derived their origin ;

TAUT ii a^ agree tnat tneY were mere delusions^ drawn from the barbarous rites of paganism (&), and not only opposite to the precepts of the gospel, but absolutely destructive of the spirit of true religion. The pontiffs, however, and the inferior clergy encouraged these odious superstitions, and went so far as to accompany the practice of them with the celebration of the Lord's Supper and other rites, in order to give them a Christian aspect, and to recommend them to the veneration and confidence of the multitude.

CHAPTER V.

Concerning the Divisions and Heresies that troubled the Church during this Century.

'1Jiesande!It I. THE sects that had sprung up in the earlier being. ages of the church subsisted still, without almost any change in their situations or circumstances that is worthy of mention. Such of them as were considerably numerous, fixed their settlements be- yond the limits both of the Greek and Latin em- pires, and thus out of the reach of their enemies. The Nestorians more especially, and the Mono- physites, secure under the protection of the Ara- bians, were extremely industrious in maintaining their credit, and also discovered a warm and active

(k) Strabo tells us in the fifth book of his Geography, that while the sacred rites of the goddess Feronia were cele- brated in a grove not far from mount Soracte, several persons, transported with the imaginary presence of this pretended divinity, fell into fits of enthusiasm, and walked bare-footed over heaps of burning coals without receiving the least damage. The historian adds, that a spectacle so extraordi- nary drew a prodigious concourse of people to this annual solemnity. Pliny relates something of the same nature con- cerning the Hirpii. See his Nat. Hist, book vii. chap. ii.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 363

zeal in the propagation of Christianity among those CENT. who were yet unacquainted with that divine reli- gion. Some learned men are of opinion, that it was only in this century that the Abyssinians or Ethiopians embraced the sentiments of the Mono- physites, in consequence of the exhortations ad- dressed to them by the doctors of that sect who resided in Egypt. But this is undoubtedly a wrong account of the matter ; for it is certain, that the Abyssinians, who were accustomed to re- ceive their spiritual guide from the bishop of Alexandria, commenced Monophysites in the seventh century, if not sooner. For in that period the Arabians made themselves masters of Egypt, oppressed the Greeks, and granted to the Mono- physites such a powerful protection, as enabled them to reduce under their jurisdiction almost all the churches that had been established in Egypt (/).

II. The Greeks, during the greatest part of this The Pauiu century, were engaged in a most bitter contro- ' versy ; or, to speak more properly, in a bloody and barbarous war with the Paulicians, a sect that may be considered as a branch of the Manichaeans, and which resided principally in Armenia. This pernicious sect is said to have been formed in Armenia by two brothers, Paul and John, sons of Callinices, and inhabitants of Samosatena, from the former of whom it derives its name : though others are of opinion, that the Paulicians were so called from another Paul, an Armenian by birth, who lived under the reign of Justinian II (rri). Be that as it may, a certain zealot called Con- stantine revived, in the seventh century, under

(/) Nouveaux Memoires des Missions de la Compagnie de Jesus dans le Levant, torn. iv. p. 283, 284-. — Le Grand, Dissert, iv. — Lobo, Voyage Historique de 1'Abyssinie, torn, ii. p. 18.

(m) Photius, lib. i. Contra Manichaeos, p. 74-, in B.Wolfii Anccdotis Graccis, torn. i.

cians.

364 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, the government of Constans, this drooping fac- IX- tion, which had suffered deeply from the vio-

PART II. | r . , . J J

lence of its adversaries, and was ready to expire

under the severity of the imperial edicts, and of those penal laws which were executed against its adherents with the utmost rigour. Constans, Justinian II., and Leo the Isaurian, exerted their zeal against the Paulicians with a peculiar de- gree of bitterness and fury, and left no method of oppression unemployed, no means of accom- plishing their ruin that were not put in execution ; but their efforts were ineffectual, nor could all their power, nor all their barbarity, exhaust the patience nor conquer the obstinacy of that in- flexible people, who, with a fortitude worthy of a better cause, made light of the calamities to which their erroneous doctrine exposed them. The face of things changed, however, to their advantage towards the commencement of this century, and their affairs carried a more prosperous aspect under the protection of the emperor Nicephorus, who favoured them in a particular manner, and restored to them their civil privileges, as well as their reli- gious liberty (n).

Persecuted III. Their tranquillity, however, was but of short duration ; it was a transient scene that was soon to be succeeded by yet more dreadful suffer- ings than they had hitherto experienced. The cruel rage of persecution, which had for some years been suspended, broke forth with redoubled violence under the reigns of Michael Curopa- lates, and Leo the Armenian, who caused the strictest search to be made after the Paulicians in all the provinces of the Grecian empire, and in- flicted capital punishment upon such of them as refused to return to the bosom of the church.

(«) See Georg. Cedrenus, Compend. Historiar. torn. ii. p. 180. Edit. Paris, p. 379.

anew.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies.

This rigorous decree turned the affliction of the Paulicians, who dwelt in Armenia, into vengeance, and drove them into the most desperate measures. They massacred Thomas, bishop of New Csesarea, and also the magistrates and judges which the emperors had established in Armenia: and after avenging themselves thus cruelly, they took refuge in the countries that were governed by the Sara- cens, and from thence infested the neighbouring states of Greece with perpetual incursions (o). After these reciprocal acts of cruelty and venge- ance, the Paulicians, as it would seem, enjoyed an interval of tranquillity, vand returned to their habitations in the Grecian provinces.

IV. But the most dreadful scene of persecution The fate of and bloodshed that was exhibited against these ^nfu^der wretched heretics arose from the furious and in- Theodora. considerate zeal of the empress Theodora. This impetuous woman, who was regent of the empire during the minority of her son, issued out a de- cree, which placed the Paulicians in the perplex- ing alternative either of abandoning their prin- ciples, or of perishing by fire and sword. The decree was severe, but the cruelty with which it was put in execution by those who were sent into Armenia for that purpose was horrible beyond expression ; for these ministers of wrath, after con- fiscating the goods of above an hundred thousand of that miserable people, put their possessors to death in the most barbarous manner, and made them expire slowly in a variety of the most ex- quisite tortures. Such as escaped destruction fled for protection and refuge to the Saracens, who re- ceived them with compassion and humanity, and permitted them to build a city for their residence, which was called Tibrica. Upon this they entered

(o) Photius, lib. i. Contra Manichaeos, p. J25. Petri Siculi Historia Manichaeorum, p. 71.

PART

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, into a league with the Saracens; and, choosing for tx' n their chief an officer of the greatest resolution and _ valour, whose name was Carbeas, they declared against the Greeks a war which was carried on with the utmost vehemence and fury. This bloody war continued during this whole century ; the victory seemed often doubtful, but the slaugh- ter was terrible, and the numbers that perished on both sides prodigious. Many of the Grecian provinces felt, in a more particular manner, the dire effects of this cruel contest, and exhibited the most moving scenes of desolation and mi- sery (^9). During these commotions, some Pau- licians, towards the conclusion of this century, spread abroad among the Bulgarians their pesti- lential doctrines, which were received with do- cility, and took root speedily, as might naturally be expected among a barbarous people that were

(p) Georg. Cedrenus^ Compend. Hist. p. 541. edit. Paris, p. 425. edit. Venet. p. 547, et 4-29, &c. Zonaras, Annal. lib. xvi. torn. ii. p. 122. edit. Venet. The principal authors who have given accounts of the Paulicians are Photius, lib. i. Contra Manichaeos, and Petrus Siculus, whose history of the Manicheeans was published in Greek and Latin at Ingolcl- stadt, in 1604, by Matth. Raderus. By the account of Pe- trus Siculus that is given by himself, we learn that in the year 870, under the reign of Basilius the Macedonian, he was sent ambassador to the Paulicians at Tibrica, to treat with them concerning the exchange of prisoners, and lived among them during the space of nine months ; this is sufficient to give us a high idea of the power and prosperity of the Pauli- cians at that time. It is from this eminent writer that Cedre- nus seems to have taken what he has advanced in his Com- pend. Hist. p. 431. What we learn concerning the Paulicians from more modern writers, such as Bayle, in his Dictionary, and B. Jo. Christ. Wolfius, in his Manichaeismus ante Mani- chaeos, p. 247, seems to be derived from Bossuet's Histoire des Variations des Eglises Protestantes, torn. ii. p. 129. But this authority is highly exceptionable : for Bossuet himself did not consult the true sources of knowledge upon this point; and what is still worse, the spirit of party seems manifestly to have led him into voluntary errors.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 367

but lately made converts to the Christian CENT.

V. The Greeks treated the Paulicians, of_

whom we have been now speaking, as Manicha?- Whether ans; though, if we may credit the testimony ofp^V^ Photius, the Paulicians expressed the utmost were Ma- abhorrence of Manes and his doctrine (r). Most nich3eans- evident it is that they were not altogether Mani- chseans, though they embraced some opinions that resembled certain tenets of that abominable sect. They had not, like the Manich'aeans, an ecclesiastical government administered by bishops, priests, and deacons : they had no sacred order of men distinguished by their manner of life, their habit, or any other circumstance from the rest of the assembly; nor had councils, synods, or such like institutions any place in their religious po- lity. They had certain doctors whom they called Sunecdemi, L e. companions in the journey of life, and also Notarii. Among these, there reigned a perfect equality, and they had no peculiar rights, privileges, nor any external mark of dignity to distinguish them from the people (s). The only singularity that attended their promotion to the rank of doctors was, that they changed their lay- names for scripture ones, as if there had been something peculiarly venerable in the names of the holy men, whose lives and actions are recorded

(q) It is not improbable that there are yet in Thrace and Bulgaria, Paulicians, or Paulians, as they are called by some. It appears at least certain, that in the last century some of that sect still subsisted, and dwelt at Nicopolis, as we learn from the testimony of Urb. Cerri, in his Etat Present dcl'Eglise Romaine, p. 72. who tells us, that Peter Deodati, archbishop of Sophia, caused them to abandon their errors, and return to the catholic faith; but whether this latter part of the account be true or false, is more than we shall pretend to determine:

(r) Photius, lib. i. Contra Manichaeos, p. 17. 56. 65.— Petr. Siculus, Hist. Manich. p. 4-3.

(s) Photius, 1. c. p. 31, 32. Petr. Sicul. p. 44. Cedrenus, 1. c. p. 431.

PART

368 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, in the sacred writings. They received all the ii books of the New Testament, except the Two 1 Epistles of St Peter, which they rejected for reasons unknown to us; and their copies of the gospel were exactly the same with those used by all other Christians, without the least interpola- tion of the sacred text ; in which respect also they differed considerably from the Manichaeans (Y). They moreover recommended to the people with- out exception, and that with the most affecting and ardent zeal, the constant and assiduous pe- rusal of the holy scriptures, and expressed the ut- most indignation against the Greeks, who allowed to the priests alone an access to these sacred foun- tains of divine knowledge (M). In explaining, however, the doctrines of the gospel, they often departed from the literal sense, and the natural signification of the words, and interpreted them in a forced and allegorical manner, when they opposed their favourite opinions and tenets (w): and such more especially were the delusive and erroneous explications, which they gave of what is said in the gospel concerning the institutions of baptism and the Lord's Supper, and the divine authority of the Old Testament, all which they obstinately rejected. Besides the books of the New Testament, they treated with a particular veneration certain epistles of Sergius, the most eminent and illustrious doctor of their sect. f the VI. None of the Greek writers have given a complete view of the Paulician system, which was undoubtedly composed of a great variety of tenets; they content themselves with mentioning six monstrous errors, which, in their estimation, rendered the Pauiicians unworthy of enjoying either the comforts of this world, or the happi-

(/) Photius, 1. c. p. 11.— Petr. Sicul. p. |9. («) Photius, 1. c. p. 101.— Petr. Sicul. pi 57. (w) Photius, 1. c. p. 12.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies.

ness of the next. These errors are as follows : CENT.

IX.

PART IT.

1. " They deny that this inferior and visible

world is the production of the Supreme Being, and they distinguish the Creator of this world, and of human bodies, from the most high God, who dwells in the heavens." It was principally on account of this odious doctrine, which was, however, adopted by all the Gnostic sects, that the Paulicians were looked upon as Manichgeans by the Greeks. But what their sentiments were concerning the Creator of this world, and whe- ther or not they considered him as a Being distinct from the evil principle, are matters that no writer has hitherto explained in a satisfactory manner. We learn only from Photius, that according to the Paulician doctrine, the evil principle was en- gendered by darkness and fire : from whence it plainly follows that he was neither self-originated, nor eternal (,v). 2. " They treated contemptu- ously the Virgin Mary;" that is to say, ac- cording to the manner of speaking usual among the Greeks, they refused to adore and worship her. They maintained, indeed, that Christ was the Son of Mary, and was born of her (al- though they maintained, as appears from the ex-

(x) Photius, lib. ii. Contra Manichaeos, p. 14-7. It is evi- dent, beyond all contradiction, that the Paulicians, in imitation of the Oriental philosophers from whom the Gnostics arid Ma- nichaeans derived their origin, considered eternal matter as the seat and source of all evil; but they believed, at the same time, like many of the Gnostics, that this matter, endued from all eternity with life and motion, had produced an active prin- ciple, which was the fountain of vice, misery, and disorder. This principle, according to them, is the author of all material substances j while God is the Creator and Father of spirits. These tenets resemble, no doubt, the Manichsean doctrine ; yet they differ from it in several points. It appears most pro- bable, that the Paulicians were a branch of some of the an- cient Gnostic sects, which were extremely numerous and di- versified, and which, though persecuted and oppressed from age to age in the most rigorous manner by many emperors, could never be entirely suppressed, nor totally extirpated.

VOL. II, 13 B

370 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, press testimony of their adversaries, that the di- ii vme Savi°ur brought with him from heaven his 1 human nature, and that Mary, after the birth of Christ, had other children by Joseph) ; they only fell into the sentiments of the Valentinians, and held, that Christ passed through the womb of the Virgin as the pure stream of limpid water passes through a conduit, and that Mary did not preserve her virginity to the end of her days ; all which assertions the Greeks rejected with the ut- most antipathy and abhorrence. 3. " They re- fused to celebrate the holy institution of the Lord's Supper ;" for as they looked upon many precepts and injunctions of the gospel to be of a merely figurative and parabolical nature, so they understood by the bread and wine which Christ is said to have administered to his disciples at his last supper, the divine discourses and exhortations of the Saviour, which are a spiritual food and nourishment to the soul, and fill it with repose, satisfaction, and delight (#). 4. " They loaded the cross of Christ with contempt and reproach;'* by which we are only to understand, that they refused to follow the absurd and superstitious practice of the Greeks, who paid to the pretended wood of the cross a certain sort of religious homage. As the Paulicians believed that Christ was clothed with an etherial, impassible, and celestial body, they could by no means grant that he was really nailed to the cross, or that he expired, in effect, upon that ignominious tree : and hence naturally arose that treatment of the

(y) The Greeks do not charge the Paulicians with any error concerning baptism; it is, however, certain, that the accounts of that sacred institution, which are given in scrip- ture, were allegorically explained by this extravagant sect; and Photius, in his First Book against the Manichasans, p. 29. expressly asserts, that the Paulicians treated baptism as a mere allegorical ceremony, and by the baptismal water understood the gospel.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 371

cross, of which the Greeks accused them. 5. " They CENT.

IX.

PART II.

rejected, after the example of the greatest part of

the Gnostics, the books of the Old Testament, and looked upon the writers of that sacred history as inspired by the Creator of this world, and not by the supreme God. 6. They excluded presby- ters and elders from all part in the administration of the church." By this, however, no more can be meant than that they refused to call their doctors by the name of presbyters ; a name which had its origin among the Jews, and was peculiar to that odious people, who persecuted Jesus Christ, and attempted, as the Paulicians speak, to put him to death (z).

(z) These six famous errors of the Paulicians I have taken from the Manichaean history of Petrus Siculus, with whom Photius and Cedrenus agree, although their accounts of these opinions be less perspicuous and distinct. The explanatory remarks that I have added are the result of my own reflec- tions upon the Paulician system, and the doctrine of the Greeks.

THE

TENTH CENTURY.

PART I.

THE EXTERNAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

CHAPTER I.

Concerning the Prosperous Events which hap- pened to the Church during this Century.

X>T* I. THE deplorable state of Christianity in this

PART i. century, arising partly from that astonishing

Z" ignorance that gave a loose rein both to su-

Thepro- 3 .-,• i » T, i ^ r

pagationof perstition and immorality, and partly from an the Chris- unhappy concurrence of causes of another kind,

tian reli- . ?•>. , , , , ,

is unanimously lamented by the various writers, who have transmitted to us the history of these miserable times. Yet amidst all this darkness, some gleams of light were perceived from time to time, and several occurrences happened, which deserve a place in the prosperous annals of the church* The Nestorians in ChaldaBa extended their spiritual conquests beyond mount Imaus, and in- ' troduced the Christian religion into Tartary, pro- perly so called, whose inhabitants had hitherto lived in their natural state of ignorance and fero- city, uncivilized and savage. The same success- ful missionaries spread, by degrees, the knowledge of the Gospel among that most powerful nation of the Turks, or Tartars, which went by the

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 373

name of Karit, and bordered on Kathay, or on CENT. the northern part of China (a). The laborious industry of this sect, and their zeal for the pro- pagation of the Christian faith, deserve, no doubt, the highest encomiums ; it must, however, be ac- knowledged, that the doctrine and worship which they introduced among these barbarians were far from being in all respects conformable to the pre- cepts of the gospel, or to the true spirit and genius of the Christian religion.

II. The prince of that country, whom the

Nestorians converted to the Christian faith, as- John- sumed, if we may give credit to the vulgar tradition, the name of John after his baptism, to which he added the surname of Presbyter, from a principle of modesty. Hence it was, as some learned men imagine, that the successors of this monarch retained these names until the time of Gengis Kan, wlio flourished in the fourteenth century, and were each of them called Prester John (#). But all this has a very fabulous air ; at least it is advanced without any solid proof; nay, it appears evident, on the contrary, that the famous Prester John, who made so much noise in the world, did not begin to reign in that part of Asia before the conclusion of the eleventh cen- tury. It is, however, certain, beyond all contra- diction, that the monarchs of the nation called Karit, which makes a large part of the empire of the Mogul, and is by some denominated a pro- vince of the Turks, and by others a tribe of the Tartars, embraced Christianity in this century; and that a considerable part of Tartary, or Asia- tic Scythia, lived under the spiritual jurisdiction

(a) Jos. Sim. Assemanni Bibliotheca Oriental. Vatic, torn. iii. part. II. p. 482. — Herbelot, Bibliotheque Oriental, p. 256.

(b) See Assemanni Biblioth. Oriental. Vatic, torn. iii. part. II. p. 282.

The External History of the Church.

CENT, of bishops, who were sent among them by the

PART i. Nestorian pontiff (c).

1 III. If we turn our jeyes to the western world,

Roiio first we shall find the gospel making its way with

duke of 1 •J-.L ,1 i ,1 T i

Normandy more or less rapidity through the most rude and converted, uncivilized nations. The famous arch-pirate Hollo, son of a Norwegian count, being banished from his native land (5), had, in the preceding century, put himself at the head of a resolute band of Nor- mans, and seized upon one of the maritime pro- vinces of France, from whence he infested the whole country round about with perpetual incur- sions and depredations. In the year 912, this valiant chief embraced, with his whole army, the Christian faith, and that upon the following oc- casion; Charles the Simple, who wanted both resolution and power to drive this warlike and intrepid invader out of his dominions, was obliged to have recourse to the method of negotiation. He accordingly offered to make over to Hollo a considerable part of his territories, upon condi- tion that the latter would consent to a peace, espouse his daughter Gisela (e\ and embrace Christianity. These terms were accepted by Rollo without the least hesitation ; and his army,

(c) The late learned Mr. B. Theophilus Sigefred Bayer, in his Preface to the Museum Sinicum, p. 145, informed us of his design to give the world an accurate account of the Nestorian churches established in Tartary and China, drawn from some curious ancient records and monuments, that have not been as yet made public. His work was to have been entitled Historia Ecclesiarum Sinicarum, et Septen- trional is Asiae; but death prevented the execution of this in- teresting plan, and also of several others, which this great man had formed, and which would have undoubtedly cast a new light upon the history of the Asiatic Christians.

(d) Holbergi Historia Danorum Navalis in Scriptis So- cietat. Scient. Hafniens. part. III. p. 857.

gg* (e) Other writers more politely represent the offer of Gisela as one of the methods that Charles employed to ob- tain a peace with Rollo.

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 375

following the example of their leader, professed CENT. a religion of which they were totally ignorant (/ ). PAR'T These Norman pirates, as appears from many authentic records, were absolutely without reli- gion of every kind, and therefore were not re- strained, by the power of prejudice, from em- bracing a religion which presented to them the most advantageous prospects. They knew no distinction between interest and duty, and they estimated truth and virtue only by the profits with which they were attended. It was from this Rollo, who received at his baptism the name of Robert, that the famous line of Norman dukes derived its origin ; for the province of Bretagne, and a part of Neustria, which Charles the Simple conveyed to his son-in-law by a solemn grant, were, from this time, known by the name of Normandy (£*), which they derived from their new possessors.

IV. The Christian religion was introduced into The con- Poland by the zealous efforts of female piety. Dambrowka, daughter of Bolislaus, duke of Bo- nation hernia, persuaded, by the force of repeated ex- hortations, her husband Micislaus, duke of Po- land, to abandon paganism, in consequence of which he embraced the gospel, A. D. 695. The account of this agreeable event was no sooner brought to Rome, than the pontiff, John XIII. sent into Poland ^Egidius, bishop of Tusculum, attended with a numerous train of ecclesiastics, in order to second the pious efforts of the duke and duchess, who desired with impatience the conversion of their subjects. But the exhortations and endeavours of these devout missionaries, who were unacquainted with the language of the

(/) Boulay, Hist. Acad. Paris, torn. i. p. 296.— Daniel, Hist, de France, torn. ii. p. 587.

Efg0 (g) It was Neustria properly, and not Bretagne, that received the name of Normandy, from the Normans who chose Rollo for their chief.

376 The External History of the Church.

CENT, people they came to instruct, would have been en- PAUT i tireV without effect, had they not been accom- 1 panied with the edicts and penal laws, the pro- mises and threats of Micislaus, which dejected the courage, and conquered the obstinacy, of the reluctant Poles. When, therefore, the fear of pu- nishment, and the hope of reward, had laid the foundations of Christianity in Poland, two na- tional archbishops and seven bishops were conse- crated to the ministry, whose zeal and labours were followed with such success, that the whole body of the people abandoned, by degrees, their ancient superstitions, and made public profession of the religion of Jesus (^). It was, indeed, no more than an external profession; for that inward change of affections and principles, which the gospel requires, was far from being an object of attention in this barbarous age.

The Chris. V. The Christian religion was established in estaWislSin Russia by means every way similar to those that in Muscovy, had occasioned its propagation in Poland; for we must not lay any stress upon the proselytes that were made to Christianity among the Russians in the preceding century ; since these conversions were neither permanent nor solid, and since it appears evidently, that such of that nation, as, under the reign of Basilius the Macedonian, had embraced the doctrine of the Greek church, relapsed soon after into the superstition of their ancestors. Wlodomir, duke of Russia and Mus- covy, married, in the year 961, Anne, sister of Basilius, the second Grecian emperor of that name ; and this zealous princess, by her repeated entreaties, and her pious importunity, persuaded at length her reluctant spouse to receive the Chris-

(h) Duglossi Historia Polonica, lib. ii. p. 91. lib. iii. p. 95. 239. — Regenvolscii Historia Eccles. Slavon. lib. i. cap. i. p. 8. — Henr. Canisii Lectiones Antiques, torn. iii. par. I. p. 41. — Solignac, Hist, de Pologne, torn. i. p. 71.

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 377

tian faith, and he was accordingly baptized, A. D. CENT. 987, assuming upon that occasion the name of pA^ r

Basilius. The Russians followed spontaneously 1

the example of their prince; we have, at least, no account of any compulsion or violence being employed in their conversion (i) ; and this is the true date of the entire establishment of Chris- tianity among that people. Wlodomir and his duchess were placed in the highest order of the Russian saints, and are still worshipped at Kio- via, where they lie interred, with the greatest devo- tion. The Latins, however, paid no such re- spect to the memory of Wlodomir, whom they represent as absolutely unworthy of saintly ho- nours (/<:).

VI. The Hungarians and Avari had received and in some faint notions of Christianity under the reign of Charlemagne, and in consequence of the measures that had been taken by that zealous prince for the propagation of the gospel. These notions, however, were soon and easily extin- guished by various circumstances, which took their rise from the death of Charlemagne : and it was not before the century of which we now write that the Christian religion obtained a fixed settlement among these warlike nations (/). To- wards the middle of this century, Bulosudes and Gyvla or Gylas, two Turkish chiefs, whose go- vernments lay upon the banks of the Danube (m\ made public profession of Christianity, and were baptized at Constantinople. The former aposta- tized soon after to the religion of his ancestors,

(i) See Anton. Pagi Critica in Baron, torn. iv. ad a. 987. p. 55. et ad a. 1015, p. 110. Car. du Fresne, Familiae By- zantinae, p. 143. ed. Paris.

(&) Ditmarus, Merseb. lib. vii. Caronic. p. 417. torn. i. Scriptor. Brunsvic. Leibnitii.

(1) Pauli Debrezeni Historia Eccles. Keformator. in Un- garia, part. I. cap. iii. p. 19. ,

(m) The Hungarians and .Transylvanians were, at this time, known .to. the Grecians by the name of Turks.

The External History of the Church. CENT, while the latter not only persevered stedfastly PAHT i. m ms new profession, but also showed the most

zealous concern for the conversion of his subjects ;

who, in consequence of his express order, were instructed in the doctrines and precepts of the gospel by Hierotheus, a learned prelate, by whom he had been accompanied in his journey to Constantinople. Sarolta, the daughter of Gy- las, was afterwards given in marriage to Geysa, the chief of the Hungarian nation, whom she persuaded to embrace the divine religion in which she had been educated. The faith, however, of this new-converted prince was feeble and un- steady, and he retained a strong propensity to the superstition which he had been engaged to forsake ; but his apostasy was prevented by the pious remonstrances of Adalbert, archbishop of Prague, who came into Hungary towards the conclusion of this century, and by whom also Ste- phen, the son of Geysa, was baptized with great pomp and solemnity. It was to this young prince that the gospel was principally indebted for its propagation and establishment among the Hunga- rians, whose entire conversion was the fruit of his zeal for the cause of Christ. For he perfected, what his father and grandfather had only begun ; fixed bishops, with large revenues, in various places ; erected magnificent temples for divine worship ; and by the influence of instructions, threatenings, rewards, and punishments, he brought his subjects, almost without exception, to aban- don the wretched superstition of their idola- trous ancestors. These vigorous proceedings, by which Stephen introduced the religion of Jesus among the Hungarians, procured him the most distinguished honours of saintship in succeeding ages (ri).

(n) The Greeks, Germans, Bohemians, and Poles, claim each for themselves the peculiar honour of having been the

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 379

VII. The Christian religion was in a very un- CENT. settled state among the Danes, under the reign of Gormon ; and, notwithstanding the protection it received from his queen, who professed it pub- In licly, was obliged to struggle with many difficul-m ties, and to encounter much opposition. The face of things changed, indeed, after the death of Gormon. His son Harald, surnamed Blaatand, being defeated by Otho the Great, A. D. 949, em- braced the gospel, and was baptized, together with his consort and his son Sueno or Swein, by Adal- dagus, archbishop of Hamburgh ; or, as others allege, by Poppon, a pious ecclesiastic, who at- tended the emperor in this expedition. It is pro- bable that Harald, educated by his mother Tyra, who was a Christian, was not extremely averse to the religion of Jesus ; it appears, however, certain, that his conversion was less the effect of his own choice, than of the irresistible com- mands of his victorious enemy. For Otho, per- suaded that the Danes would never desist from

founders of the Christian religion in Hungary, and their re- spective pretensions have introduced not a little obscurity into this matter. The Germans allege, that the Christian religion was brought into Hungary by Gisela, sister to their emperor Henry II., who being given in marriage to Stephen, the king of that nation, persuaded that prince to embrace the gospel. The Bohemians tell us, on the other hand, that it was by the ministry of Adalbert, archbishop of Prague, that Stephen was converted. The Poles affirm, that Geysa, having married a Christian princess of their nation, viz. Adel- heid, sister to Micislas, duke of Poland, was induced by her remonstrances and exhortations to make profession of Chris- tianity. In consequence of a careful examination of all these pretensions, we have followed the sentiments and decisions of the Greek writers, after having diligently compared them with the Hungarian historians ; and we are encouraged in this by the authority of the learned Gabriel de Juxta Hornad, who, in his Initia Religionis Christianas inter Hungaros Ec- clesiae orientali adserta, published atFranckfort in 174*0, de- cides this question in favour of the Greeks. All other ac- counts of the matter are extremely imperfect, and subject to many doubts and difficulties.

FART I.

380 The External History of the Church.

CENT, their hostile incursions and rapines, as long as x* they persevered in the religion of their ancestors, which was so proper to nourish a ferocity of tem- per, and to animate to military exploits, made it the principal condition of the treaty of peace, which he concluded with Harald, that both he and his subjects should receive the Christian faith (o). Upon the conversion of this prince, Adaldagus and Poppon employed their ministerial labours among the Cimbrians and Danes, in order to engage them to imitate such an illustrious ex- ample ; and their exhortations were crowned with remarkable success, to which the stupend- ous miracles performed by Poppon are said to have contributed in a particular manner. These miracles, indeed, were of such a kind, as mani- festly shows that they derived their origin from hu- man art, and not from a divine interposition (p^). As long as Harald lived, he used every wise and probable method of confirming his subjects in the religion they had embraced. For this pur- pose he established bishops in several parts of his dominions, enacted excellent laws, abrogated superstitious customs, and imposed severe re- straints upon all vicious and immoral practices. But after all these pious efforts, and salutary mea- sures, which promised such fair prospects to the rising church, his son Sueno, or Swein, apostatized from the truth, and, during a certain time, in- volved the Christians in the deepest calamity

(o) Adam. Brem. Hist. lib. ii. cap. ii. iii. p. 16. cap. xv. p. 20. in Lindenbrogii Scriptoribus Rerum Septentrional.— Alb. Kranzii Wandalia, lib. iv. cap. xx.— Ludwigii Reliquiae Manuscriptor. torn. ix. p. 10. — Pontoppidani Annales Ec- clesiae Danicae Diplomatic}, torn. i. p. 59.

(p) Jo. Adolph. Cupraei Annales Episcopor. Slesvic. cap. xiii. p. 78. — Adam. Bremens. lib, ii. cap.xxvi. p. 22. cap. xliv. p. 28. — Jo. Stephan. ad Saxonem Grammat. p. 207. — Molleri Introduct, ad Historian! Chersones. Cimbric. part. II. cap. iii. sect. 14.

X.

PART

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 381

and distress, and treated them with the greatest GENT. cruelty and injustice. This persecuting tyrant felt, however, in his turn, the heavy strokes of adversity, which produced a salutary change in his conduct, and happily brought him to a better mind; for being driven from his kingdom, and obliged to seek his safety in a state of exile among the Scots, he embraced anew the religion he had abandoned, and upon his restoration to his domi- nions, exerted the most ardent and exemplary zeal in the cause of Christianity, which he endea- voured to promote to the utmost of his power (</).

VIII. It was in this century that the first dawn in Norway, of the gospel arose upon the Norwegians, as we learn from the most authentic records. The con- version of that people was attempted, in the year 933, by their monarch, Hagen Adelsteen, who had been educated among the English, and who employed certain ecclesiastics of that nation to in- struct his subjects in the doctrines of Christianity. But his pious efforts were rendered fruitless by the brutal obstinacy with which the Norwegians per- severed in their ancient prejudices, and the assi- duity and zeal with which his successor Harald Graufeldt pursued the same plan of reforma- tion were also without effect (r). The succeed- ing princes, far from being discouraged by these obstacles, persisted firmly in their worthy purpose, and Haco, among others, yielding to the entrea- ties of Harald, king of Denmark, to whom he was indebted for the Norwegian crown, embraced himself the Christian religion, and recommended it, with the greatest fervour, to his subjects, in an assembly of the people that was held in the

(q) Saxon. Gramm. Histor. Dan. lib. x. p. 186. — Pontop- pidan, De Gestis et Vestigiis Danorum extra Daniam, toui. ii. cap. i. sect. 1, 2.

(r) Eric. Pontoppidan, Annales Eccles. Danicse Diplomat, torn. i. p. 66.

882 The External History of the Church.

CENT, year 945 (Y). This recommendation, notwith- PART i standing the solemnity and zeal with which it was

-1 1 accompanied, made little impression upon the

minds of this fierce and barbarous people ; nor were they entirely gained over by the zealous en- deavours of Olaus to convert them to Christianity, though the pious diligence of that prince, which procured him the honour of saintship, was not al- together without effect (/). But that which gave the finishing stroke to the conversion of the Nor- wegians was their subjection to Suenon, or Swein, king of Sweden, who having defeated their mon- arch Olaus Tryg-gueson, became master of Nor- way, and obliged its inhabitants to abandon the gods of .their ancestors, and to embrace universally the religion of Jesus (u). Among the various

(*) Torm. Torfaei HistoriaNorwegica, torn. ii. p. 183.214.

(*) Torfseus, 1. c. p. 457.

llgp*1 (u) Dr. Mosneim attributes here to Swein the ho- nour which is due to his predecessor Olaus Tryg-gueson ; if it can be esteemed an honour to have promoted a rational and divine religion by compulsion and violence, by fire and sword. Olaus, who had abjured paganism in England, dur- ing his youth, in consequence of a warm and pathetic dis- course which he had heard from a British priest, returned to Norway with a firm resolution to propagate Christianity throughout his dominions. For this purpose he travelled from one province to another, attended by a chosen band of soldiers, and, sword in hand, performed the functions of mis- sionary and apostle. His ministry, thus enforced, was fol- lowed with the desired success throughout all the provinces, except that of Drontheim, which rose in rebellion against him, and attacked Christianity with the same kind of argu- ments that Olaus employed in establishing it. This opposi- tion occasioned several bloody battles, which ended, how- ever, in the defeat of the rebels, and of the god Thor, their tutelar deity, whose statue Olaus dragged from its place, and burnt publicly in the sight of his worshippers. This event dejected the courage of the inhabitants of Drontheim, who submitted to the religion and laws of their conqueror. And thus, before the reign of Suenon, at least before the defeat of Olaus by that prince, Norway was Christian. See The Hi- story of Denmark, lately published in French by Mr. Mallet, Professor in Belles Lettres at Copenhagen, vol. i. p. 52, 53.

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 383

doctors that were sent to instruct this barbarous CE^T- people, the most eminent, both in merit and au- PART lm

thority, was Guthebald, an English priest (w). .

From Norway, Christianity spread its salutary light though the adjacent countries, and was preached with success in the Orkney islands, which were, at this time, subject to the Norwegian kings, and also in Iceland and Old Greenland ; for it is evident, from many circumstances and records of undoubted authority, that the greatest part of the inhabitants of these countries had re- ceived the gospel in this century (V).

IX. In Germany the pious exploits of Otho the The zeal Great contributed, in a signal manner, to pro- Great in the mote the interest of Christianity, and to fix and caus.e ?f . establish it upon solid foundations throughout the ty.ns empire. This truly great prince, whose pious magnanimity clothed him with a lustre infinitely superior to that which he derived from his imperial dignity, was constantly employed in extirpating the remains of the ancient superstitions, and in sup- porting and confirming the infant church, which in several provinces had not yet arrived to any considerable degree of consistence and vigour. That there might be rulers and pastors to govern the church, and to contribute, both by their doc- trine and example, to the reformation and im- provement of an unpolished and illiterate people, he established bishops in several places, and ge-

(w) Chron. Danicum a Ludewigio editum in Reliquiis MS. torn. ix. p. 11. 16, 17.

(x) Concerning the conversion of the inhabitants of the Orkneys, see Torm. Torfaei Historia Rerura Orcadens. lib. i. p. 22. and for an account of the Icelanders, the reader may consult Arngrim Jonas' Cynogseae, lib. i. and Arius Multisc. in Schedis Islandiae ; as also Torfseus, his Histor. Norveg. torn. ii. p. 378, 379. 417. and Gabriel Liron's Singularite* Historiques et Litteraires, torn. i. p. 138. — The same Torfaeus gives a full account of the introduction of Christianity into Greenland, in his Histor. Norveg. torn. ii. p. 374-. and also in his Groenlandiac Antiqua, c. xvii. p. 127.

384 The External History of the Church.

CENT, nerously erected and endowed the bishoprics of PART i. Brandenburgh, Havelberg, Meissen, Magde- burgh, and Naumburg ; by which excellent esta- blishments the church was furnished with eminent doctors from various parts, whose instructions were the occasion of raising up new labourers in the go- spel harvest, and of thus multiplying the ministers of Christ from time to time. It was also through the munificence of the same prince that many convents were erected for those who, in confor- mity with the false piety of the times, chose to finish their Christian course in the indolent sanc- tity of a solitary life ; and it was by his express or- der that schools were established in almost every city for the education of the youth. All this may serve to show us the generosity and zeal of this illustrious emperor, whose merit would have sur- passed the highest encomiums, had his prudence and moderation been equal to the fervour of his piety, and the uprightness of his intentions. But the superstition of his empress (#), and the deplorable ignorance of the times, deluded this good prince into the notion, that he obliged the Deity in pro- portion as he loaded the clergy with riches and honours, and that nothing was more proper to draw down upon him the divine protection than the exercise of a boundless liberality to his mini- sters. In consequence of this idle and extravagant fancy, Otho opened the sources of his opulence, which flowed into the church like an overgrown torrent, so that the bishops, monks, and religious houses wallowed in wealth and abundance. But succeeding ages perceived the unhappy effects of this excessive and ill-judged munificence; when the sacred orders employed this opulence, which they had acquired without either merit or labour,

(y) See the life of this empress, whose name was Adelaid, in the Lectiones Antiquoe of Henry Canisius, torn. iii. part I. p. 69.

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 385

in gratifying their passions, in waging war against CENT. all who opposed their ambitious pretensions, and PART r

in purchasing the various pleasures of a luxurious .

and effeminate life.

X. It was no doubtful mark of the progress The plan of and strength of the Christian cause, that the Eu- J0^Jd^r ropean kings and princes began so early as this this century. century to form the project of a holy war against the Mahometans, who were masters of Palestine. They considered it as an intolerable reproach upon Christians, that the very land in which the divine author of their religion had received his birth, exercised his ministry, and made expiation for the sins of mortals, should be abandoned to the enemies of the Christian name. They also looked upon it as highly just, and suitable to the ma- jesty of the Christian religion, to avenge the cala- mities and injuries, the persecution and reproach, which its professors had suffered under the Maho- metan yoke. The bloody signal was accordingly given towards the conclusion of this century, by the Roman pontiff Sylvester II. and that in the first year of his pontificate. And this signal was an epistle, wrote in the name of the church of Je- rusalem, to the church universal throughout the world (z\ in which the European powers are solemnly exhorted and entreated to succour and deliver the Christians in Palestine. The ex- hortations of the pontiff were, however, without effect, except upon the inhabitants of Pisa, who are said to have obeyed the papal summons with the utmost alacrity, and to have prepared them- selves immediately for a holy campaign (a).

(z) This is the xxviiith Epistle in the first part of the col- lection of the letters of Sylvester II. that is published by Du Chesne, in the third volume of his Scriptor. Histor. Franc.

(a) See Muratori Scriptores Rerum Italicarum, torn, Hi. p. 400.

VOL. II. C C

386 The External History of the Church.

CHAPTER II.

Concerning the Calamitous Events that happened to the Church during this Century.

CENT. I. THE Christian religion suffered less in this PART i. century from the cruelty of its enemies than from

the defection of its friends. Of all the pagan

TressPofthe monarcfts> under whose government the Chris- Turks°ande tians lived, none behaved to them in a hostile Saracens. manner, nor tormented them with the execu- tion of compulsive edicts or penal laws, except Gormon and Swein, kings of Denmark. Not- withstanding this, their affairs were far from being either in a fixed or flourishing state ; nay, their situation was full of uncertainty and peril, both in the eastern and western provinces. The Saracens in Asia and Africa, amidst the intestine divisions under which they groaned, and the ca- lamities that overwhelmed them from different quarters, were extremely assiduous in propa- gating every where the doctrines of Mahomet, nor were their efforts unsuccessful. Multitudes of Christians fell into their snares; and the Turks, a valiant and fierce nation, who inhabited the northern coast of the Caspian sea, received their doctrine. The uniformity of religion did not, however, produce a solid union of interests between the Turks and Saracens ; on the contrary, their dissensions and quarrels were never more violent than from the time that Mahomet became their common chief in religious matters. The succours of the former were implored by the Persians, whose country was a prey to the ambitious usur- pations of the latter, and these succours were granted with the utmost alacrity and readiness. The Turks accordingly fell upon the Saracens in a

CHAP. ii. Calamitous Events.

furious manner, drove them out of the whole ex- CENT. tent of the Persian territories, and afterwards, PART i. with incredible rapidity and success, invaded, , seized, and plundered the other provinces that belonged to that people, whose desolation, in reality, came on like a whirlwind. Thus the powerful empire of the Saracens, which its ene- mies had for so many years attempted in vain to overturn, fell at last by the hands of its allies and friends. The Turks accomplished what the Greeks and Romans ineffectually aimed at ; they struck suddenly that dreadful blow, which ruined at once the affairs of the Saracens in Persia, and then deprived them by degrees of their other dominions ; and thus the Ottoman empire, which was still an object of terror to the Christians, was established upon the ruins of the Saracen domi- nion (&).

II. In the western provinces, the Christians The wes- had much to suffer from the hatred and cruelty of Brians per those who remained under the darkness of pa- secute the ganism. The Normans, during a great part of this Chnstians- century, committed, in several parts of France, the most barbarous hostilities, and involved the Christians, wherever they carried their victorious arms, in numberless calamities. The Samaritans, Sclavonians, Bohemians, and others, who had either conceived an aversion for the gospel, or were sunk in a stupid ignorance of its intrinsic excellence and its immortal blessings, not only endeavoured to extirpate Christianity out of their own territories by the most barbarous efforts of cruelty and violence, but infested the adjacent countries, where it was professed, with fire and sword, and left, wherever they went, the most

(b) For a more ample account of these revolutions, see the Annales Turcici of Leunclavius ; as also Georgii Elmacini Historia Saracenica, p. 190. 203.210.

388 The External History of the Church.

CENT, dreadful marks of their unrelenting fury. The PART i Danes, moreover, did not cease to molest the

1 Christians, until they were subdued by Otho

the Great, and thus, from being the enemies, became the friends of the Christian cause. The Hungarians also contributed their part to the suf- ferings of the church, by their incursions into se- veral parts of Germany, which they turned into scenes of desolation and misery ; while the fierce Arabs, by their tyranny in Spain, and their depre- dations in Italy and the neighbouring islands, spread calamity and oppression all around them, of which, no doubt, the Christians established in these parts had the heaviest portion. Tteeffects in. Whoever considers the endless vexations, calamities, persecutions, and calamities, which the Chris- tians suffered from the nations that continued in their ancient superstitions, will easily perceive the reason of that fervent and inextinguishable zeal, which Christian princes discovered for the conversion of these nations, whose impetuous and savage fury they experienced from time to time. A principle of self-preservation, and a prudent regard to their own safety, as well as a pious zeal for the propagation of the gospel, engaged them to put in practice every method that might open the eyes of their barbarous adver- saries, from a rational and well grounded hope that the precepts of Christianity would mitigate, by degrees, the ferocity of these nations, and soften their rugged and intractable tempers. Hence it was that Christian kings and emperors left no means unemployed to draw these infidels within the pale of the church. For this purpose, they proposed to their chiefs alliances of mar- riage, offered them certain districts and territo- ries, auxiliary troops to maintain them against their enemies, upon condition that they would

CHAP. IT. Calamitous Events. 389

abandon the superstition of their ancestors, which CENT.

~~ x.

PART I.

was so proper to nourish their ferocity, and to

increase their passion for blood and carnage. These offers were attended with the desired suc- cess, as they induced the infidel chiefs not only to lend an ear themselves to the instructions and exhortations of the Christian missionaries, but also to oblige their subjects and armies to follow their examples in this respect.

390 PART II.

THE INTERNAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

CHAPTER I.

Concerning the State of Letters and Philosophy during this Century.

CENT. I. THE deplorable ignorance of this barba-

pAirrii rous a£e' *n wnicn tne drooping arts were

» 1 totally neglected, and the sciences seemed to

The state be upon the point of expiring for want of amongThe encouragement, is unanimously confessed and Greeks. lamented by all the writers who have transmitted to us any accounts of this period of time. Nor, indeed, will this fatal revolution, in the re- public of letters, appear astonishing to such as consider, on the one hand, the terrible vicissi- tudes, tumults, and wars that turned all things into confusion both in the eastern and western world, and on the other, the ignominious stu- pidity and dissoluteness of those sacred orders who had been appointed as the guardians of truth and learning. Leo, surnamed the Philosopher, who ascended the imperial throne of the Greeks towards the commencement of this century, was himself an eminent lover of learning, and an auspicious and zealous protector of such as di- stinguished themselves in the culture of the sciences (c). This noble and generous disposi- tion appeared with still a greater lustre in his son Constantine Porphyrogeneta, who not only

(c) See Jo. Alb. Fabricii Biblioth. Graec. lib. v. part. II. cap. v. p. 36.3.

CHAP. i. Learning and Philosophy. 391

discovered the greatest ardour for the revival of CENT. the arts and sciences in Greece (d\ but also em- PAR~T* Jr ployed the most effectual measures for the ac- complishment of this excellent purpose. It was with this view that he spared no expense in draw- ing to his court, and supporting in his domi- nions, a variety of learned men, each of whom excelled in some of the different branches of literature, and in causing the most diligent search to be made after the writings of the ancients. With this view, also, he became himself an au- thor (tf), and thus animated by his example, as well as by his protection, men of genius and abilities to enrich the sciences with their learned productions. He employed, moreover, a consi- derable number of able pens, in making valuable extracts from the commentaries and other com- positions of the ancients ; which extracts were preserved in certain places for the benefit and satisfaction of the curious ; and thus, by va- rious exertions of liberality and zeal, this learned prince restored the arts and sciences to a cer- tain degree of life and vigour (f). But few of the Greeks followed this great and illustrious example ; nor was there any among the succeeding

(d) Fabricius, Biblioth. Graec. lib. v. part. II. cap. v. p. 486.

gglf^e) We have yet remaining of Constantine Porphyro- geneta, son of Leo the philosopher, the following produc- tions :

The Life of the Emperor Basilius.

A Treatise upon the Art of Governing, in which he inves- tigates the origin of several nations, treats of their power, their progress, their revolutions, and their decline, and gives a series of their princes and rulers.

A Discourse concerning the manner of forming a Land Army arid Naval Force in Order of Battle.

Two Books concerning the Eastern and Western Provinces. Which may be considered as an account of the state of the empire in the time of this prince.

(f) All this appears evident from the accounts left upon record by Zonaras, in his Annales, torn. iii. p. 155. edit. Paris.

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, emperors who equalled these two excellent princes PART ii. m zeal f°r tne advancement of learning, or in

lending, by their protection and encouragement,

an auspicious hand to raise out of obscurity and dejection neglected and depressed genius. But what is still more remarkable, Constantine Porphyrogeneta, whom we have now been re- presenting as the restorer of letters, and whom the Greeks unanimously admire in this character, is supposed by some to have done considerable prejudice to the cause of learning by the very means he employed to promote its advancement. For by employing learned men to extract from the writers of antiquity what they thought might contribute to the improvement of the various arts and sciences, he gave too much occasion to ne- glect the sources, and flattered the indolence of the effeminate Greeks, who confined their studies to these extracts, and neglected, in effect, the perusal of the writers from whom they were drawn. And hence it unfortunately happened, that many of the most celebrated authors of anti- quity were lost, at this time, through the sloth and negligence of the Greeks. Fewemi- jj This method, as the event manifestly

Kent wn- n i • i f>

ters among showed, was really detrimental to the progress or the Greeks. true learnmg an^ genius. And accordingly we find among the Greek writers of this century but a small number who acquired a distinguished and shining reputation in the republic of letters ; so that the fair and engaging prospects which seemed to arise in the cause of learning from the munifi- cence and zeal of its imperial patrons, vanished in a short time ; and though the seeds of science were richly sown, the natural expectations of an abundant harvest were unhappily disappointed. Nor did the cause of philosophy succeed better than that of literature. Philosophers indeed there were ; and, among them, some that were not

CHAP. i. Learning and Philosophy. 393

destitute of genius and abilities ; but none who CENT. rendered their names immortal by productions that pARl^ n

were worthy of being transmitted to posterity : a . .

certain number of rhetoricians and grammarians : a few poets who were above contempt ; and several historians, who, without deserving the highest en- comiums, were not, however, totally void of merit: such were the members which composed at this time the republic of letters in Greece, whose in- habitants seemed to take pleasure in those kinds of literature alone, in which industry, imagination, and memory are concerned.

III. Egypt, though at this time it groaned The state of under a heavy and exasperating yoke of oppres- amonggthe sion and bondage, produced writers, who in genius Saracens. and learning were no wise inferior to the most eminent of the Grecian literati. Of the many examples we might mention to prove the truth of this assertion, we shall confine ourselves to that of Eutychius, bishop of Alexandria, who cultivated the sciences of physic and theology with the greatest success, and cast a new light upon them both by his excellent writings. The Arabians, during this whole century, preserved that noble passion for the arts and sciences, which had been kindled among them in the preceding age ; and hence they abounded with physicians, mathematicians, and philosophers, whose names and characters, together with an account of their respective abilities and talents, are given by Leo Africanus and other literary historians.

IV. The Latins present to us a spectacle of a in the very different kind. They were almost without western Pr°- exception sunk in the most brutish and barbarous^' ignorance; so that, according to the unanimous accounts of the most credible writers, nothing could be more melancholy and deplorable than the darkness that reigned in the western world during this century, which, with respect to learn-

The Internal History of the Church. CENT, ing and philosophy at least, may be called the

PART ii. Iron ASe of the Latins (#)• Some learned men

1 of modern times have, we confess, ventured to

call this in question : but their doubts are certainly without foundation, and the matter of fact is too firmly established by unquestionable authori- ties to lose any part of its credit in consequence of the objections they allege against it (//). It is true, there were public schools founded in most of the European provinces, some of which were erected in the monasteries, and the rest in those cities where the bishops resided. It is also true, that through this dismal night of ignorance there shone forth from time to time, and more espe- cially towards the conclusion of this century, some geniuses of a superior order, who eyed with ardour the paths of science, and cast some rays of

(g) The testimonies that prove the ignorance which pre- vailed in the tenth century are collected hy Du Boulay, in his Historia Acad. Paris, torn. i. p. 288; and also by Lud. Ant. Muratori, in his Antiquitat. Ital. Medii JEvi, torn. iii. p. 831. et torn. ii. p. 141, &c.

(h) The famous Leibnitz, in his Prsefatio ad Codicem Juris Nat. et Gentium Diplomat, affirms, that there were more know- ledge and learning in the tenth century than in the succeed- ing ages, particularly in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. But this is washing the Ethiopian ; it is also an extravagant assertion, and savours much of paradox. We shall be better directed in our notions of this matter by Mabillon, in his Praefatio ad Actor. SS. Ordin. Bened. Quint. Ssec. p. 2. by the authors of the Histoire Litteraire de la France, and by Le BeuPs Dissertat. de Statu Litterarum in Francia, a Carolo M. ad Regem Robert, who all agree in acknowledging the gross ignorance of this century, though they would engage us to believe that its barbarism and darkness were not so hideous as they are commonly represented. There are, in- deed, several considerations that render the reasons and tes- timonies even of these writers not a little defective ; but we nevertheless agree with them so far, as to grant that all learn- ing and knowledge were not absolutely extinguished in Europe at this time, and that, in the records of this cen- tury, we shall find a few chosen spirits, who pierced through the cloud of ignorance that covered the multitude.

CHAP. i. Learning and Philosophy.

light upon the darkness of a barbarous age. But CENT. they were very few in number, and their extreme PAR^ n>

rarity is a sufficient proof of the infelicity of the

times in which they appeared. In the seminaries of learning, such as they were, the seven liberal sciences were taught in the most unskilful and miserable manner, and that by the monks, who esteemed the arts and sciences no further than as they were subservient to the interests of religion, or, to speak more properly, to the views of super- stition.

V. They who were the most learned and judi- Monkish cious among the monastic orders, and who were learmns- desirous of employing usefully a part of their lei- sure, applied themselves to the composition of annals and histories, which savoured of the igno- rance and barbarism of the times. Such were Abo, Luitprand, Wittekind, Fulcuin, Johannes Capuanus, Ratherius, Flodoard, Notker, Ethel- bert, and others, who, though very different from each other in their respective degrees of merit, were all in general ignorant of the true nature and rules of historical composition. Several of the poets of this age gave evident marks of true genius, but they were strangers to the poetic art, which was not indeed necessary to satisfy a people utterly destitute of elegance and taste. The grammarians and rhetoricians of these unhappy times are scarcely worthy of mention; their method of instructing was full of absurdities, and their rules trivial, and for the most part, injudicious. The same judg- ment may be formed in general of the geometry, arithmetic, astronomy, and music, which were more or less taught in the public schools, and of which a more particular account would be uninstructing and insipid.

VI. The philosophy of the Latins extended no The state of farther than the single science of logic or dialectics, PhllosoPhy- which they looked upon as the sum and substance

396 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, of all human wisdom. But this logic, which was so highly admired, was drawn without the least perspicuity or method from a book of Categories, which some have unjustly attributed to Augus- tin, and others to Porphyry. It is true, indeed, that the Timseus of Plato, the Topica of Cicero and Aristotle, and the book of the latter, De Interpretatione, with other compositions of the Greeks and Latins, were in the hands of several of the doctors of this century, as we learn from credible accounts; but the same accounts inform us, that the true sense of these excellent authors was understood by almost none of those that per- used them daily (i). It will appear, no doubt, surprising, that in such an ignorant age such a subtle question as that concerning universal ideas should ever have been thought of; true however it is, that the famous controversy, Whether uni- versal ideas belonged to the class of objects, or of mere names ; a controversy which perplexed and bewildered the Latin doctors in succeeding times, and gave rise to the two opposite sects of the Nominalists and Realists; was started for the first time in this century. Accordingly we find in several passages of the writers of this period, the seeds and beginnings of this tedious and intricate dispute (/?).

(i) Gunzo, Epistola, adMonachos Augienses, in Martene Collect. Ampliss. Monumentor. Veter. torn. iii. p. 304.

(k) This appears evident from the following remarkable passage, which the reader will find at the 304-th page of the work cited in the preceding note, and in which the learned Gunzo expresses himself in the following manner: Aristoteles, genus, speciern, differentiam, proprium et accidens subsistere denegavit, quae Platoni subsistentia persuasit. Aristoteli an Platoni magis credendum putatis? Magna est utriusque auc- toritas, quatenus vix audeat quis alterum alteri dignitate praeferre. Here we see plainly the seeds of discord sown, and the foundation laid for that knotty dispute which puzzled the metaphysical brains of the Latin doctors in after-times.

CHAP. i. Learning and Philosophy. 397

VII. The drooping sciences found an eminent CENT. and illustrious patron, towards the conclusion of PAR^ IIt this century, in the learned Gerbert, a native of France, who, upon his elevation to the pon-

tificate, assumed the title of Sylvester II. The ters in EU- genius of this famous pontiff was extensive and sublime, embracing all the different branches of literature ; but its more peculiar bent was turned towards mathematical studies. Mechanics, geo- metry, astronomy, arithmetic, and every other kind of knowledge that had the least affinity to these important sciences, were cultivated by this restorer of learning with the most ardent zeal, and not without success, as his writings abundantly testify ; nor did he stop here ; but employed every method that was proper to encourage and animate others to the culture of the liberal arts and sci- ences. The effects of this noble zeal were visible in Germany, France, and Italy, both in this and in the following century ; as by the writings, ex- ample, and encouraging exhortations of Ger- bert, many were excited to the study of physic, mathematics, and philosophy, and in general to the pursuit of science in all its various branches. If, indeed, we compare this learned pontiff with the mathematicians of modern times, his merit, in that point of view, will almost totally disap- pear under such a disadvantageous comparison; for his geometry, though it be easy and perspi- cuous, is but elementary and superficial (/). Yet such as it was, it was marvellous in an age of barbarism and darkness, and surpassed the com- prehension of those pigmy philosophers, whose eyes, under the auspicious direction of Gerbert,

Gunzo was not adventurous enough to attempt a solution of this intricate question, which he leaves undecided; others were less modest, without being more successful.

(/) This geometry was published by B. Pezius, in his Thesaurus Anecdotorum, torn. iii. part. II. p. 7.

398

Who de- rived his knowledge and erudi- tion from the Arabi-

The Internal History of the Church.

were but just beginning to open upon the light. Hence it was, that the geometrical figures, de- scribed by this mathematical pontiff, were regarded by the monks as magical operations, and the pon- tiff himself was treated as a magician and a dis- ciple of Satan (wi).

VIII. It was not, however, to the fecundity of his genius alone, that Gerbert was indebted for the knowledge with which he now began to en- lighten the European provinces ; he had derived a part of his erudition, particularly in physic, mathematics, and philosophy, from the writings and instructions of the Arabians who were settled in Spain. Thither he had repaired in pursuit of knowledge, and had spent some time in the se- minaries of learning at Cordua and Seville, with a view to hear the Arabian doctors (n) ; and it was perhaps, by his example, that the Europeans were directed and engaged to have recourse to this source of instruction in after-times. For it is undeniably certain, that from the time of Ger- bert, such of the Europeans as were ambitious of making any considerable progress in phy- sic, arithmetic, geometry, or philosophy, enter- tained the most eager and impatient desire of re- ceiving instruction either from the academical .lessons, or from the writings of the Arabian phi- losophers, who had founded schools in several parts of Spain and Italy. Hence it was, that the most celebrated productions of these doctors were translated into Latin, their tenets and systems adopted with zeal in the European schools, and that numbers went over to Spain and Italy to re- ceive instruction from the mouths of these famous

(wz) See Hist. Litter, de la France, torn. vi. p. 558. — Du Boulay, Hist. Acad. Paris, torn. i. p. 314. 319. — Naude, Apologie pour les Grands Hommes faussement accuses de la Magie, chap. xix. sect. iv.

(re) See Du Boulay, Histor. Acad. Paris, torn. i. p. 314-.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 399

teachers, which were supposed to utter nothing CENT. but the deepest mysteries of wisdom and know-

li TT i • n i PART If.

ledge. However excessive this veneration for the Arabian doctors may have been, it must be owned, nevertheless, that all the knowledge, whether of physic, astronomy, philosophy, or mathematics, which* flourished in Europe from the tenth cen- tury, was originally derived from them ; and that the Spanish Saracens, in a more particular manner, may be looked upon as the fathers of European philosophy.

CHAPTER II.

Concerning the Doctors and Ministers of the Church, and its Form of Government during this Century.

I. To those who consider the primitive dignity The and the solemn nature of the ministerial character, clergy! tb< the corruptions of the clergy must appear deplor- able beyond all expression. These corruptions were mounted to the most enormous height in that dismal period of the church which we have now before us. Both in the eastern and western pro- vinces, the clergy were, for the most part, com- posed of a most worthless set of men, shamefully illiterate and stupid, ignorant more especially in religious matters, equally enslaved to sensuality and superstition, and capable of the most abomina- ble and flagitious deeds. This dismal degeneracy of the sacred order was, according to the most credible accounts, principally owing to the pretend- ed chiefs and rulers of the universal church, who indulged themselves in the commission of the most odious crimes, and abandoned themselves to the lawless impulse of the most licentious passions without reluctance or remorse, who confounded.

400 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. jn short, all difference between just and unjust, PART ii. to satisfy their impious ambition, and whose spi- * ritual empire was such a diversified scene of ini- quity and violence, as never was exhibited under any of those temporal tyrants, who have been the scourges of mankind. We may form some no- tion of the Grecian patriarchs from the single ex- ample of Theophylact, who, according to the testi- monies of the most respectable writers, made the most impious traffic of ecclesiastical promotions, and expressed no sort of care about any thing but his dogs and horses (o). Degenerate, however, and licentious as these patriarchs might be, they were, generally speaking, less profligate and inde- cent than the Roman pontiffs.

rfuJ^Sl7 IL The history of the Roman pontiffs, that raanpon- lived in this century, is a history of so many tlffs* monsters, and not of men, and exhibits a horrible series of the most flagitious, tremendous, and complicated crimes, as all writers, even those of the Romish communion, unanimously confess. The source of these disorders must be sought for principally in the calamities that fell upon the greatest part of Europe, and that afflicted Italy in a particular manner, after the extinction of the race of Charlemagne. Upon the death of the pontiff Benedict IV. which happened in the year 903, Leo V. was raised to the pontificate, which

Hjj^ (o) This exemplary prelate, who sold every eccle- siastical benefice as soon as it became vacant, had in his stable above 2000 hunting horses, which he fed with pig- nuts, pistachios, dates, dried grapes, figs steeped in the most exquisite wines, to all which he added the richest perfumes. One Holy Thursday, as he was celebrating high-mass, his groom brought him the joyful news that one of his favourite mares had foaled ; upon which he threw down the Liturgy, left the church, and ran in raptures to the stable, where having expressed his joy at that grand event, he returned to the altar to finish the divine service, which he had left in- terrupted during his absence. See Fleury, Hist. Ecclcsiast. livr. Iv. p. 97. edit. Bruxelle.

PARTII.

CHAP. ir. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

he enjoyed no longer than forty days, being de- CENT. throned by Christopher, and cast into prison. Christopher, in his turn, was deprived of the pontifical dignity the year following by Sergius III. a Roman presbyter, seconded by the pro- tection and influence of Adalbert, a most power- ful Tuscan prince, who had a supreme and un- limited direction in all the affairs that were trans- acted at Rome. Anastasius III. and Lando, who, upon the death of Sergius, in the year 911, were raised successively to the papal dignity, enjoyed it but for a short time, and did nothing that could contribute to render their names illus- trious.

III. After the death of Lando, which hap- John x. pened in the year 914, Alberic (_p), marquis, or count of Tuscany, whose opulence was prodigious, and whose authority in Rome was despotic and unlimited, obtained the pontificate for John X. archbishop of Ravenna, in compliance with the solicitation of Theodora, his mother-in-law, whose lewdness was the principle that interested her in this promotion (^). This infamous elec- tion will not surprise such as know that the laws of Rome were at this time absolutely silent ; that the dictates of justice and equity were overpowered and suspended ; and that all things were carried on in that great city by interest or corruption,

It was Albert or Adalbert, and not Alberic, who was the son-in-law of the elder Theodora, of whom Dr. Mosheim here speaks. Alberic was grandson to this Theo- dora, by her daughter Marozia, who was married to Albert. See Spanheim, Eccl. His. Secul. x. p. 1432. — Fleury, Hist. Eccles. livre liv. p. 571. edit. Bruxelle. - This latter histo- rian is of opinion, that it was the younger Theodora, the sister of Marozia, who, from an amorous principle, raised John X. to the pontificate.

S^^Cy) Theodora, mistress of Rome, had John X. raised

to the pontificate, that she might continue that licentious

co-Timerce in which she had lived with that carnal ecclesias-

tic for many years past. See Fleury, and other writers, &o.

VOL. II. D D

PART II.

402 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, by violence or fraud. John X. though in other x> respects a scandalous example of iniquity and

|>rp T« A . !!• ' 1

lewdness in the papal chair, acquired a certain degree of reputation by his glorious campaign against the Saracens, whom he drove from the settlement they had made upon the banks of the Garigliano (r). He did not, however, enjoy his glory long ; the enmity of Marozia, daughter of Theodora, and wife of Alberic, proved fatal to him. For this bloody-minded woman having espoused Wido, or Guy, marquis of Tuscany, after the death of her first consort, engaged him to seize the wanton pontiff, who was her mother's lover, and to put him to death in the prison where he lay confined. This licentious and un- lucky pontiff was succeeded by Leo VI. who sat but seven months in the apostolic chair, which was filled after him by Stephen VII. The death of this latter, which happened in the year 931, presented to the ambition of Marozia an object worthy of its grasp ; and accordingly she raised to the papal dignity John XL who was the fruit of her lawless amours with one of the pretended suc- cessors of St. Peter, Sergius III. whose adulterous commerce with that infamous woman gave an in- fallible guide to the Romish church (s).

_ '(r) In the original we have Montem Garilianum, which is, undoubtedly, a mistake, as the Garigliano is a river in the kingdom of Naples, and not a mountain.

(s) The character and conduct of Marozia are acknow- ledged to have been most infamous by the unanimous testi- mony both of ancient and modern historians, who affirm, with one voice, that John XI. was the fruit of her carnal com- merce with Sergius III. Eccard, alone, in his Origines Guel- phicse, torn. i. lib. ii. p. 131. has ventured to clear her from this reproach, and to assert, that Sergius, before his elevation to the pontificate, was her lawful and first husband. The at- tempt, however, is highly extravagant, if not impudent, to pretend to acquit, without the least testimony or proof of her innocence, a woman who is known to have been entirely de- stitute of every principle of virtue.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &e. 403

IV. John XL who was placed at the head of CENT. the church by the credit and influence of his mo- PAIX[,' n

ther, was pulled down from this summit of spiri- " 1

tual grandeur A. D. 933, by Alberic his half-bro- J^n XL ther, who had conceived the utmost aversion arl against him. His mother Marozia had, after the

death of Wido, entered anew into the bonds of matrimony with Hugo, king of Italy, who having offended his step-son Alberic, felt severely the weight of his resentment, which vented its fury upon the whole family \ for Alberic drove out of Rome not only Hugo, but also Marozia and her son the pontiff, and confined them in prison, where the latter ended his days in the year 936. The four pontiffs, who, in their turns, succeeded John XL and filled the papal chair until the year 956, were Leo VII. Stephen VIII. Maririus II. and Agapet, whose characters were much better than that of their predecessor, and whose govern- ment, at least, was not attended with those tu- mults and revolutions that had so often shook the pontifical throne, and banished from Rome the in- estimable blessings of peace and concord. Upon the death of Agapet, which happened in the year 956, Alberic II. who to the dignity of Roman consul joined a degree of authority and opulence which nothing could resist, raised to the pontifi- cate his son Octavian, who was yet in the early bloom of youth, and destitute, besides, of every quality that was requisite in order to discharge the duties of that high and important office. This unworthy pontiff assumed the name of John XII. and thus introduced the custom, that has since been adopted by all his successors in the see of Rome, of changing each their usual name for another upon their accession to the pontificate.

V. The fate of John XII. was as unhappy as The fate of his promotion had been scandalous. Unable toJolmXI1' bear the oppressive yoke of Berenger II. king

404 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, of Italy, he sent ambassadors, in the year 960, to x* Otho the Great, entreating him to march into

1 Italy at the head of a powerful army, to deliver

the church and the people from the tyranny un- der which they groaned. To these entreaties the perplexed pontiff added a solemn promise, that, if the German monarch came to his assistance, he would array him with the purple and the other ensigns of sovereignty, and proclaim him emperor of the Romans. Otho received this embassy with pleasure, marched into Italy at the head of a large body of troops, and was accordingly sa- luted by John with the title of emperor of the Romans. The pontiff, however, soon perceiving that he had acted with too much precipitation, repented of the step he had taken ; and, though he had sworn allegiance to the emperor as his lawful sovereign, and that in the most solemn manner, yet he broke his oath, and joined with Adalbert, the son of Berenger, against Otho. This revolt was not left unpunished. The em- peror returned to Rome in the year 964 ; called a council, before which he accused and convicted the pontiff of many crimes ; and after having de- graded him, in the most ignominious manner, from his high office, he appointed Leo VIII. to fill his place. Upon Otho's departure from Rome, John returned to that city, and in a council, which he assembled in the year 964, condemned the pontiff whom the emperor had elected, and soon after died in a miserable and violent manner. After his death the Romans chose Benedict V. bishop of Rome, in opposition to Leo : but the emperor annulled this election, restored Leo -to the papal chair, and carried Benedict to Ham- burgh, where he died in exile (/).

(t) In the account I have here given of the pontiffs of this century, I have consulted the sources, which are to be found for the most part, in Muratori's Scriptores Rerum Italic.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 405

VI. The pontiffs who governed the see of Rome CENT.

PART II,

from Leo VIII. who died A. D. 965, to Ger-

bert or Sylvester II. who was raised to the pon- tificate towards the conclusion of this century, John were more happy in their administration, as well vii. as more decent in their conduct, than their infa- mous predecessors ; yet none of them so exem- plary as to deserve the applause that is due to eminent virtue. John XIII. who was raised to the pontificate in the year 965, by the authority of Otho the Great, was driven out of Rome in the beginning of his administration ; but, the year following, upon the emperor's return to Italy, he was restored to his high dignity, in the calm possession of which he ended his days A. D. 9?2- His successor Benedict VI. was not so happy ; cast into prison by Crescentius, son of the famous Theodora, in consequence of the hatred which the Romans had conceived both against his person and government, he was loaded with all sorts of ignominy, and was strangled in the year 974, in the apartment where he lay con- fined. Unfortunately for him, Otho the Great, whose power and severity kept the Romans in awe, died [in the year 973, and with him expired that order and discipline which he had restored in Rome by salutary laws executed with impartiality and vigour. The face of things was entirely

as also Baronius, Peter de Marca, Sigonius De Regno Italiae, with the learned annotations of Ant. Saxius, Muratori, in his Annales Italian, Pagi, and other writers, all of whom have had access to the sources, and to several ancient manuscripts, which have not as yet been published. The narrations I have here given are most certainly true upon the whole. It must, however, be confessed, that many parts of the papal history lie yet in great obscurity, and stand much in need of farther illustration; nor will I deny that a spirit of partiality has been extremely detrimental to the history of the pontiffs, by corrupting it, and rendering it uncertain in a multitude of places,

406 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, changed by that event ; licentiousness and dis- P4UTH order, seditions and assassinations resumed their

former sway, and diffused their horrors through

that miserable city. After the death of Benedict, the papal chair was filled by Franco, who assumed the name of Boniface VII. but enjoyed his dig- nity only for a short time ; for scarcely a month had passed after his promotion, when he was de- posed from his office, expelled the city, and suc- ceeded by Donus II. (u}9 who is known by no other circumstance than his name. Upon his death, which happened in the year 97 5 > Bene- dict VII. was created pontiff; and, during the space of nine years, ruled the church without much opposition, and ended his days in peace. This peculiar happiness was, without doubt, principally owing to the opulence and credit of the family to which he belonged ; for he was nearly related to the famous Alberic, whose power, or rather despotism, had been unlimited in Rome.

John xiv. . VII. His successor John XIV. who, from the and xv. bisnOpric of Pavia, was raised to the pontifi- cate, derived no support from his birth, which was obscure, nor did he continue to enjoy the protection of Otho III. to whom he owed his pro- motion. Hence the calamities that fell upon him with such fury, and the misery that concluded his transitory grandeur ; for Boniface VII. who had usurped the papal throne in the year 974, and in a little time after had been banished Rome, returned from Constantinople, whither he had fled for refuge, and, seizing the unhappy pontiff, had him thrown into prison, and afterwards put to death. Thus Boniface resumed the government of the church ; but his reign was also transitory,

IjgjT (u) Some writers place Donus II. before Benedict VI. See the Tabulae Synopticae Hist. Eccles. of the learned Pfaff.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 407

for he died about six months after his restora- CENT.

x.

PART II.

tion (sr). He was succeeded by John XV. whom some writers call John XVI. because, as they al- lege, there was another John, who ruled the church during the space of four months, and whom they consequently call John XV. (V). Leaving it to the reader's choice to call that John of whom we speak, the XV. or the XVI. of that name, we shall only observe that he possessed the papal dignity from the year 985 to 996 ; that his administration was as happy as the troubled state of the Roman affairs would permit ; and that the tranquillity he enjoyed was not so much owing' to his wisdom and prudence, as to his being a Ro- man by birth, and to his descent from noble and illustrious ancestors. It is certain, at least, that his successor Gregory V. who was a German, and who was elected pontiff by the order of Otho III. A. D. 996, met with a quite different treatment ; for Crescens, the Roman consul, drove him out of the city, and conferred his dignity upon John XVI. formerly known by the name of Phila- gathus. This revolution was not, however, permanent in its effects, for Otho III. alarmed by these disturbances at Rome, marched into Italy, A. D. 998, at the head of a powerful army; and casting into prison the new pontiff, whom the soldiers, in the first moment of their fury, had maimed and abused in a most barbarous manner, he reinstated Gregory in his former ho- nours, and placed him anew at the head of the church. It was upon the death of this latter pon-

$5!^ (iu) Fleury says eleven months.

ggp13 (x) Among these writers is the learned Pfaff, in his Tabula? Synopticae, &c. But the Roman catholic writers, whom Dr. Mosheim follows with good reason, do not count among the number of the pontiffs that John who governed the church of Rome during the space of four months after the death of Boniface VII. because he was never duly in- vested, by consecration, with the papal dignity.

408 The Internal History of the. Church.

CENT, tiff, which happened soon after his restoration,

PART ii tnat t^ie same emperor raised to the papal dignity _ his preceptor and friend, the famous and learned Gerbert, or Sylvester II. whose promotion was at- tended with the universal approbation of the Ro- man people

The influ- VIII. Amidst these frequent commotions, and authority of even amidst the repeated enormities and flagitious the pontiffs crimes of those who gave themselves out for daily!18' Christ's vicegerents upon earth, the power and authority of the Roman pontiffs increased imper- ceptibly from day to day ; such were the effects of that ignorance and superstition that reigned without control in these miserable times. Otho the Great had indeed published a solemn edict, prohibiting the election of any pontiff without the previous knowledge and consent of the emperor ; which edict, as all writers unanimously agree, re- mained in force from the time of its publication to the conclusion of this century. It is also to be observed, that the same emperor, as likewise his son and grandson, who succeeded him in the empire, maintained, without interruption, their right of supremacy over the city of Rome, its ter- ritory, and its pontiff, as may be demonstrably proved from a multitude of examples. It is, moreover, equally certain, that the German, French, and Italian bishops, who were not igno- rant of the nature of their privileges, and the ex- tent of their jurisdiction, were, during this whole century, perpetually upon their guard against every attempt the Roman pontiff might make to

(^) The history of the Roman pontiffs of this period is not only extremely barren of interesting events, but also obscure, and uncertain in many respects. In the accounts I have here given of them,, I have followed principally Lud. Ant. Mura- tori's Annales Italiae, and the Conatus Chronologico-Histo- ricus de Romanis Pontificibus, which the learned Papebro- chius has prefixed to his Acta Sanctorum, Mensis Maii.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 409

assume to himself alone a legislative authority in CENT. the church. But, notwithstanding all this, the bishops of Rome found means of augmenting their influence, and partly by open violence, partly by secret and fraudulent stratagems, encroached, not only upon the privileges of the bishops, but also upon the jurisdiction and rights of kings and em- perors (#). Their ambitious attempts were se- conded and justified by the scandalous adulation of certain mercenary prelates, who exalted the dignity and prerogatives of, what they called, the apostolic see, in the most pompous and extravagant terms. Several learned writers have observed, that in this century certain bishops maintained publicly that the Roman pontiffs were not only bishops of Rome, but of the whole world, an asser- tion which hitherto none had ventured to make (a) ; and that even among the French clergy it had been affirmed by some, that the authority of the Bishops, though divine in its origin, was conveyed to them by St. Peter, the prince of the apostles (#).

IX. The adventurous ambition of the bishops The w. of Rome, who left no means unemployed to ex- abbotsTn- tend their jurisdiction, exhibited an example large also which the inferior prelates followed with the most £« and zealous and indefatigable emulation. Several preroga- bishops and abbots had begun, even from thetlves" time that the descendants of Charlemagne sat on the imperial throne, to enlarge their preroga- tives, and had actually obtained, for their tenants and their possessions, an immunity from the ju- risdiction of the counts and other magistrates, as also from taxes and imposts of all kinds. But in this century they carried their pretensions still

(z) Several examples of these usurpations may be found in the Histoire duDroit Eccles. Frangois, torn. i. p. 217. edit, in 8vo.

(a) Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. vi. p. 98.

(6) Ibid. p. 186.

PART II.

4*10 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. farther ; aimed at the civil jurisdiction over the cities and territories in which they exercised a • spiritual dominion, and aspired after nothing less than the honours and authority of dukes, mar- quises, and counts of the empire. Among the principal circumstances that animated their zeal in the pursuit of these dignities, we "may reckon the perpetual and bitter contests concerning juris- diction and other matters, that reigned between the dukes and counts, who were governors of cities, and the bishops and abbots who were their

thostly rulers. The latter, therefore, seizing the ivourable opportunity that was offered them by the superstition of the times, used every me- thod that might be effectual to obtain that high rank, that hitherto stood in the way of their am- bition. And the emperors and kings to whom they addressed their presumptuous requests ge- nerally granted them, either from a desire of pa- cifying the contentions and quarrels that arose between civil and military magistrates, or from a devout reverence for the sacred order, or with a view to augment their own authority, and to con- firm their dominion by the good services of the bishops, whose influence was very great upon the minds of the people. Such were the different motives that engaged princes to enlarge the au- thority and jurisdiction of the clergy ; and hence we see from this century downwards so many bishops and abbots invested with characters, em- ployments, and titles so foreign to their spiritual offices and functions, and clothed with the ho- nours of dukes, marquises, counts, and vis- counts (c).

(c) The learned Louis Thomassin, in his Disciplina Ecclesiae Veteri et Novae, torn. iii. lib. i. cap. xxviii. p. 89. has collected a multitude of examples to prove that the titles and prerogatives of dukes and counts were conferred

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &e. 411

X. Besides the reproach of the grossest igno- CENT. ranee, which the Latin clergy in this century so PART* u justly deserved (d), they were also chargeable, in

a very heinous degree, with two other odious and f enormous vices, even concubinage and simony, nage the which the greatest part of the writers of these un- happy times acknowledge and deplore. As to the clergy first of these vices, it was practised too openly to admit of any doubt. The priests, and what is still more surprising, even the sanctimonious monks, fell victims to the triumphant charms of the sex, and to the imperious dominion of their carnal lusts ; and, entering into the bonds of wedlock or concubinage, squandered away in a most luxuri- ous manner, with their wives or mistresses, the revenues of the church (e). The other vice above- mentioned reigned with an equal degree of impu- dence and licentiousness. The election of bishops and abbots was no longer made according to the laws of the church ; but kings and princes, or

upon certain prelates so early as the ninth century; nay, some bishops trace even to the eighth century the rise and first beginnings of that princely dominion which they now enjoy. But notwithstanding all this, if I be not entirely and grossly mistaken, there cannot be produced any evident and indisputable example of this princely dominion, previous to the tenth century.

(d) Ratherius, speaking of the clergy of Verona in his Iti- nerarium, which is published in the Spicilegium of Dache- rius, torn. i. p. 381. says, that he found many among them who could not even repeat the Apostles' Creed. His words are, Sciscitatus de fide illorum, inveni plurimos neque ipsum sapere Symbolum, qui fuisse creditur Apostolorum.

(e) That this custom was introduced towards the com- mencement of this century is manifest, from the testimony of Ordericus Vitalis and other writers, and also from a let- ter of Mantio, bishop of Chalons in Champagne, which is published by Mabillon, in his Analecta Veterum, p. 429. edit. nov. As to the charge brought against the Italian monks of their spending the treasures of the church upon their wives or mistresses, see Hugo, De Monasterii Farfensis Destructione, which is published in Muratori's Antiq. Ital. Medii TEvi, torn. vi. p. 278.

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, their ministers and favourites, either conferred x* these ecclesiastical dignities upon their friends and

PART II.

ill -11

creatures, or sold them, without shame, to the highest bidder (jf). Hence it happened, that the most stupid and flagitious wretches were fre- quently advanced to the most important stations in the church ; and that, upon several occasions, even soldiers, civil magistrates, counts, and such like persons, were, by a strange metamorphosis, converted into bishops and abbots. Gregory VII. endeavoured, in the following century, to put a stop to these two growing evils.

The monk- XL While the monastic orders, among the pUne'de- Greeks and Orientals, maintained still an external ciinesto appearance of religion and decency, the Latin monks, towards the commencement of this cen- tury, had so entirely lost sight of all subordina- tion and discipline, that the greatest part of them knew not even by name the rule of St. Benedict, which they were obliged to observe. A noble Frank, whose name was Odo, a man as learned and pious as the ignorance and supersti- tion of the times would permit, endeavoured to remedy this disorder ; nor were his attempts to- tally unsuccessful. This zealous ecclesiastic being created, in the year 9^7, abbot of Clugni, in the province of Burgundy, upon the death of Berno, not only obliged the monks to live in a rigorous observance of their rules, but also added to their discipline a new set of rites and cere- monies, which, notwithstanding the air of sanc- tity that attended them, were, in reality, in- significant and trifling, and yet, at the same time,

Many infamous and striking examples and proofs of this simoniacal practice may be found in the work entitled Gallia Christiana, torn. i.p. 23, 37. torn. ii. p. 173, 179. Add to this Abbonis Apologeticum, which is published at the end of the Codex Canon. Pithoei, p. 398. as also Mabillon, Annal. Benedict, torn. v.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &e. 413

severe and burthensome . This new rule of CENT.

j*j,

discipline covered its author with glory, and, in * a short time, was adopted in all the European convents : for the greatest part of the ancient monasteries, which had been founded in France, Germany, Italy, Britain, and Spain, received the rule of the monks of Clugni, to which also the convents, newly established, were subjected by their founders. And thus it was, that the order of Clugni arrived to that high degree of eminence and authority, opulence and dignity, which it exhibited to the Christian world in the following century (Ii).

(#•) See Mabillon, Annal. Benedict, torn. iii. p. 386. and Praef. ad Acta Sanct. Ord. Benedict. Saec. v. p. 26. See also the Acta Sanctor. Bened. SECC. v. p. 66. in which he speaks largely concerning Berno, the first abbot of Clugni, who laid the foundations of that order, and of Odo (p. 122). who gave it a new degree of perfection. The learned Helyot, in his Histoire des Ordres Religieuses, torn. v. p. 184. has given a complete and elegant history of the order of Clugni, and the present state of that famous monastery is described by Mar- tene, in his Voyage Litter, de deux Benedict, part I. p. 227.

(h) If we are not mistaken, the greatest part of ecclesias- tical historians have not perceived the true meaning and force of the word order in its application to the Cistertian monks, those of Clugni, and other convents. They imagine that this term signifies a new monastic institution, as if the order of Clugni was a new sect of monks never before heard of. But this is a great error, into which they fall by confounding the an- cient meaning of that term with the sense in which it is used in modern times. The word order, when employed by the writers of the tenth century, signified no more at first than a certain form or rule of monastic discipline ; but from this primi- tive signification, another, and a secondary one, was gradually derived. So that by the word order is also understood an association or confederacy of several monasteries, subjected to the same rule of discipline under the jurisdiction and in- spection of one common chief. Hence we conclude, that the order of Clugni was not a new sect of monks, such as were the Carthusian, Dominican, and Franciscan orders ; but signified only, first, that new institution, or rule of dis- cipline, which Odo had prescribed to the Benedictine monks,

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. XII. The more eminent Greek writers of this PART ii. century are easily numbered ; among them was

Simeon, high treasurer of Constantinople, who, Greek- wri. from his giving a new and more elegant style to the Lives of the Saints, which' had been origi- nally composed in a gross and barbarous lan- guage, was distinguished by the title of Meta- phrast, or Translator (i). He did not, however, content himself with digesting, polishing, and embellishing the saintly chronicle ; but went so far as to augment it with a multitude of trifling fables drawn from the fecundity of his own ima- gination.

Nicon, an Armenian monk, composed a treatise Concerning the Religion of the Armenians, which is not altogether contemptible.

Some place in this century Olympiodorus and Oecumenius (&), who distinguished themselves by those compilations which were known by the name of Catenae, or Chains, and of which we have had occasion to speak more than once in the course of this history. But it is by no means certain, that these two writers belong to the tenth century, and they are placed there only by conjec- ture.

It is much more probable, that the learned Suidas, author of the celebrated Greek Lexicon, lived in the period now before us.

Among the Arabians, no author acquired a higher reputation than Eutychius, bishop of"

who were settled at Clugni, and afterwards, that prodigious multitude of monasteries throughout Europe, which received the rule established at Clugni, and were formed by associa- tion into a sort of community, of which the abbot of Clugni was the chief.

(z) See Leo Allatius, De Symeonum Scriptis, p. 24. — Jo. Bollandus, Praef. ad Acta Sanctorum. Antwerp, sect. iii. p. 6.

(k) For an account of Oecumenius, see Montfaucon, Bib- lioth. Corsliniana, p. 274.

ters.

' CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 415

Alexandria, whose Annals, with several other pro- CENT ductions of his learned pen, are still extant (7). PAHT n

XIII. The most eminent of the Latin writers

of this century was Gerbert, or Sylvester II., Latin who has already been mentioned with the applause due to his singular merit. The other writers of this age were far from being eminent in any respect.

Odo, who laid the foundations of the celebrated order of Clugni, left behind him several produc- tions, in which the grossest superstition reigns, and in which it is difficult to perceive the smallest marks of true genius or solid judgment (ni).

The learned reader will form a different opi- nion of Ratheir, bishop of Verona, whose works, yet extant, give evident proofs of sagacity and judgment, and breathe throughout an ardent love of virtue (n).

Atto, bishop of Vercelli, composed a treatise, De Pressuris Ecclesiasticis, i. e. Concerning the Sufferings and Grievances of the Church, which shows in their true colours the spirit and com- plexion of the times (o).

Dunstan, the famous abbot of Glassenbury, and afterwards archbishop of Canterbury, composed in favour of the monks a book, De Concordia Regu- larum, i. e. Concerning the Harmony of the Mo- nastic Rules (7?).

Elfric, archbishop of Canterbury, acquired a considerable reputation among the Anglo-

(/) See Jo. Albert. Fabricii Bibliographia Antiquaria, p. 179. — As also Eusebii Renaudoti Historia Patriarch. Alex- andr. p. 347.

(ra) Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. vi. p. 229.

(n) Id. ibid. p. 339.

(o) Id. ibid. p. 281.

llgp^ (p) See the ample account that is given of this emi- nent prelate in Collier's Ecclesiastical History of England, vol. i. cent. x. p. 181. 1S33 184, 185. 197. 203.

416 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. Saxons established in Britain, by various pro-

x.

PART

n ductions (<?).

_1 Burchard, bishop of Worms, Is highly esteemed among the Canonists on account of his celebrated Decreta, which he has divided into XX books; though a part of the merit of this collection of Canons is due to Olbert, with whose assistance it was composed (r).

Odilo, archbishop of Lyons (s\ was the author of some insipid discourses, and other productions, „ whose mediocrity has almost sunk them in a total oblivion.

As to the historical writers and annalists who lived in this century, their works and abilities have been already considered in their proper place.

CHAPTER III.

Concerning the Doctrine of the Christian Church during this Century.

The state I. THE state of religion in this century was religion. ^^ ^ might be expected in times of prevail- ing ignorance and corruption. The most im- portant doctrines of Christianity were disfigured and perverted in the most wretched manner, and

J§3f° (<?) We have a Grammar and a Dictionary composed by this learned prelate ; as also an Anglo-Saxon translation of the First Books of the Holy Scripture, A History of the Church, and 180 Sermons. See Fleury, Hist. Eccl. livre Iviii. p. 384. edit, de Bruxelles.

(r) See the Chronicon Wormatiense in Ludwig's Reliquiae Manuscriptorum, torn. ii. p. 43. — Histoire Litter, de la France, torn. vii. p. 295.

IfgJ0 (s) Odilo was abbot of Clugni, and not archbishop of Lyons, which latter eminent station he obstinately re- fused, notwithstanding the urgent entreaties employed both by pontiffs and emperors to engage him to accept it. See Fleury, Hist. Eccl. livre lix. p. 520. edit, de Bruxelles.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church.

such as had preserved, in unskilful hands, their CENT. primitive purity, were nevertheless obscured with PAIIT Ir. a multitude of vain opinions and idle fancies, so that their intrinsic excellence and lustre were little attended to ; all this will appear evident to those who look with the smallest degree of attention into the writers of this age. Both Greeks and Latins placed the essence and life of religion in the worship of images and departed saints; in searching after with zeal, and preserving with a devout care and veneration, the sacred relics of holy men and women, and in accumulating riches upon the priests and monks, whose opulence in- creased with the progress of superstition. Scarcely did any Christian dare to approach the throne of God, without rendering first the saints and images propitious by a solemn round of expiatory rites and lustrations. The ardour also with which re- lics were sought, surpasses almost all credibility; it had seized all ranks and orders among the people, and was grown into a sort of fanaticism and frenzy ; and if the monks are to be believed, the Supreme Being interposed in a special and extraordinary manner, to discover to doating old wives and bareheaded friars, the places where the bones or carcasses of the saints lay dispersed or in- terred. The fears of purgatory, of that fire that was to destroy the remaining impurities of de- parted souls, were now carried to the greatest height, and exceeded by far the terrifying appre- hensions of infernal torments ; for they hoped to avoid the latter easily, by dying enriched with the prayers of the clergy, or covered with the merits and mediation of the saints ; while from the pains of purgatory they knew there was no exemption. The clergy, therefore, finding these superstitious terrors admirably adapted to increase their autho- rity and to promote their interest, used every me- thod to augment them, and by the most pathetic

VOL. II. E E

418 The Internal History of the Church.

discourses, accompanied with monstrous fables and fictitious miracles, they laboured to establish the doctrine of purgatory, and also to make it appear that they had a mighty influence in that formidable region.

The dis- U. The contests concerning predestination and cerdng0"" grace, as also concerning the eucharist, that had predestina- agitated the church in the preceding century, were

tion and . ° , . , - ., T -. r ., mi •

the Lord's in this happily reduced to silence. 1ms was supper. owing to the mutual toleration that was practised by the contending parties, who, as we learn from writers of undoubted credit, left it to each other's free choice to retain or to change their former opinions. Besides, the ignorance and stupidity of this degenerate age were ill suited to such deep inquiries as these contests demanded ; nor was there almost any curiosity among an illiterate multitude to know the opinions of the ancient doctors concerning these and other knotty points of theology. Thus it happened, that the fol- lowers of Augustin and Pelagius flourished equally in this century ; and that if there were many who maintained the corporal presence of the body and blood of Christ in the holy sacrament, there were still more who either came to no fixed deter- mination upon this point, or declared it publicly as their opinion, that the divine Saviour was really absent from the eucharistical sacrament, and was received only by a certain inward impulse of faith, and that in a manner wholly spiritual (/).

(t) It is certain, that the Latin doctors of this century dif- fered much in their sentiments about the manner in which the body and blood of Christ were present in the eucharist ; this is granted by such of the Roman Catholic writers as have been ingenuous enough to sacrifice the spirit of party to the love of truth. That the doctrine of Transubstantiation, as it is commonly called, was unknown to the English in this century, has been abundantly proved from the public Homi- lies, by Rapin de Thoyras, in his History of England, vol. i.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 419

This mutual toleration, as it is easy to conclude CENT. from what has already been observed, must not be attributed either to the wisdom or virtue of an age, which was almost totally destitute of both. The truth of the matter is, that the divines of this century wanted both the capacity and the in- clination to attack or defend any doctrine, whose refutation or defence required the smallest portion of learning or logic.

III. That the whole Christian world was co- vered, at this time, with a thick and gloomy veil rished°by of superstition, is evident from a prodigious num- a multitude ber of testimonies and examples, which it is need- idle opu less to mention. This horrible cloud, which hid nions* almost every ray of truth from the eyes of the multitude, furnished a favourable opportunity to the priests and monks of propagating many absurd and ridiculous opinions, which contributed not a little to confirm their credit. Among these opi- nions, which dishonoured so frequently the Latin church, and produced from time to time such vio- lent agitations, none occasioned such a universal panic, nor such dreadful impressions of terror or dismay, as a notion that now prevailed of the im- mediate approach of the day of judgment. This notion, which took its rise from a remarkable passage in the Revelations of St. John (u), and had

p. 463. It is, however, to be confessed, on the other hand, that this absurd doctrine was already adopted by several French and German divines. Hj^j° For a judicious account of the opinions of the Saxon-English church concerning the eucharist, see Collier's Ecclesiastical History of Great Bri- tain, vol. i. cent. x. p. 204. 266.

ggp° (M) The passage here referred to, is in the twentieth chapter of the Book of Revelations, at the 2d, 3d, and 4th verses : " And he laid hold of the dragon, that old Serpent, which is the devil and Satan, and bound him a thousand years ; — and cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the na- tions no more till the thousand years should be fulfilled; and after that he must be loosed a little season. — And I

EE 2

420 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, been entertained by some doctors in the preceding PART ii centurv> was advanced publicly by many at this time, and spreading itself with an amazing rapi- dity through the European provinces, it threw them into the deepest consternation and anguish. For they imagined that St. John had clearly fore- told that after a thousand years from the birth of Christ, Satan was to be let loose from his pri- son, Antichrist to come, and the destruction and conflagration of the world to follow these great and terrible events. Hence prodigious numbers of people abandoned all their civil con- nexions and their parental relations, and giving over to the churches or monasteries all their lands, treasures, and worldly effects, repaired with the utmost precipitation to Palestine, where they ima- gined that Christ would descend from heaven to judge the world. Others devoted themselves by a solemn and voluntary oath to the service of the churches, convents, and priesthood, whose slaves they became in the most rigorous sense of that word, performing daily their heavy tasks ; and all this from a notion that the Supreme Judge would diminish the severity of their sentence, and look upon them with a more favourable and propitious eye, on account of their having made themselves the slaves of his ministers. When an eclipse of the sun or moon happened to be visible, the cities were deserted, and their miserable inhabitants fled for refuge to hollow caverns, and hid themselves among the craggy rocks, and under the bending summits of steep mountains. The opulent at-

saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them ; and I saw the souls of them that were be- headed for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands ; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thou- sand years."

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church.

tempted to bribe the Deity, and the saintly tribe, CENT. by rich donations conferred upon the sacerdotal PAKTH and monastic orders, who were looked upon as - the immediate vicegerents of heaven. In many places, temples, palaces, and noble edifices, both public and private, were suffered to decay, nay, were deliberately pulled down, from a notion that they were no longer of any use, since the final dissolution of all things was at hand. In a word, no language is sufficient to express the confusion and despair that tormented the minds of miserable mortals upon this occasion. This general delu- sion was, indeed, opposed and combated by the discerning few, who endeavoured to dispel these groundless terrors, and to efface the notion from which they arose, in the minds of the people. But their attempts were ineffectual ; nor could the dreadful apprehensions of the superstitious multitude be entirely removed before the conclu- sion of this century. Then, when they saw that the so much dreaded period had passed without the arrival of any great calamity, they began to understand that St. John had not really foretold what they so much feared (w).

(t«) Almost all the donations that were made to the church during this century, carry evident marks of this groundless panic that had seized all the European nations, as the reasons of these donations are generally expressed in the following words : Appropinquante mundi termino, &c. i. e. The end of the world being now at hand, &c. Among the many undeniable testimonies that we have from ancient records of this universal delusion, that was so profitable to the sacerdotal order, we shall confine ourselves to the quo- tation of one very remarkable passage in the Apologeticum of Abbo, abbot of Fleury, adversus Arnulphum, i. e. Arnoul bishop of Orleans, which apology is published by the learned Francis Pithou, in the Codex Canonum Ecclesiae Romanae, p. 401. The words of Abbo are as follow: " De fine quo- que mundi coram populo sermonem in Ecclesia Parisiorum adolescentulus audivi, quod statim finito mille annorum immcro Antichristus ad venire*, et noil longo post tempore

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. IV. The number of the saints, who were looked PART ii uPon as ministers of the kingdom of heaven,

1 and whose patronage was esteemed such an un-

The saints speakable blessing, was now multiplied every

multiplied. r, -, , , { P ,. i fill j vt.

where, and the celestial courts were piled with new legions of this species of beings, some of which, as we have had formerly occasion to observe, had no existence but in the imagination of their de- luded clients and worshippers. This multiplica- tion of saints may be easily accounted for, when we consider that superstition, the source of fear, was grown to such an enormous height in this age, as rendered the creation of new patrons necessary to calm the anxiety of trembling mortals. Be- sides the corruption and impiety that now reigned with a horrid sway, and the licentiousness and dis- solution that had so generally infected all ranks and orders of men, rendered the reputation of sanc- tity very easy to be acquired ; for, amidst such a perverse generation, it demanded no great efforts of virtue to be esteemed holy, and this, no doubt, contributed to increase considerably the number of the celestial advocates. All those, to whom nature had given an austere complexion, a gloomy temper, or enthusiastic imagination, were, in con- sequence of an advantageous comparison with the profligate multitude, revered as the favourites of heaven, and as the friends of God.

The Roman pontiff, who before this period had pretended to the right of creating saints by his sole authority, gave, in this century, the first spe- cimen of this ghostly power ; for in the preceding

universale judicium succederet : cui praedicationi ex Evan- geliis, ac Apocalypsi, et libro DanieJis qua potui virtute restiti. Denique et errorem, qui de fine mundi inolevit, Abbas meus beat® memoriae Richardus, sagaci animo pro- pulit, postquam literas a Lothariensibus accepit, quibus me respondere jussit. Nam fama pasne totum mundum imple^ verat, quod, quando Annunciatio Dominica in Parasceve contigisset, absque ullo scrupulo finis sseculi esset."

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 423

ages there is no example of his having exercised CENT. this privilege alone. This specimen was given in pA^; u

the year 993, by John XV. who, with all the for- !

malities of a solemn canonization, enrolled Udalric, bishop of Augsburgh, in the number of the saints, and thus conferred upon him a title to the worship and veneration of Christians («r). We must not, however, conclude from hence, that after this period the privilege of canonizing new saints was vested solely in the Roman pontiffs (#) ; for there are several examples upon record, which prove, that not only provincial councils, but also several of the first order among the bishops, advanced to the rank of saints such as they thought worthy of that high dignity, and continued thus to augment the celestial patrons of the church, without ever consulting the Roman pontiff, until the twelfth century (V). Then Alexander III. abrogated this privilege of the bishops and councils, and placed canonization in the number, of the more important acts of authority (#), which the sovereign pontiff alone, by a peculiar prerogative, was en- titled to exercise.

V. The expositors and commentators, who at- The merit tempted in this century to illustrate and explain m^tatcr^" the sacred writings, were too mean in their abili- of this cen- ties, and too unsuccessful in their undertakings, dered!°n to deserve almost any notice : for it is extremely uncertain, whether or no the works of Olympi- odorus and Oecumenius are to be considered as

(x] Franc. Pagi Breviar. Pontif. Roman, torn. ii. p. 259.

(j/) i This" absurd opinion has been maintained with warmth by Phil. Bonnanus, in his Numismata Pontif. Ro- manorurn, torn. i. p. 41.

(s),,See Franc. Pagi Breviar. Pontif. Roman, torn. ii. p. 260. torn. iii. p. 30. — Arm. de la Chapelle, Biblioth. An- gloise, torn. x. p. 105. — Mabillon, Praefat. ad Saec. v. Bene- dict.-p. 53.

(a) These were called the Causse Majores.

The Internal History of the Church. CENT, the productions of this age. Among the Latins PART ii Reim> or Remigius, bishop of Auxerre, continued

, 1 the exposition of the holy scriptures, which he had

begun in the preceding century ; but his work is highly defective in various respects ; for he takes very little pains in explaining the literal sense of the words, and employs the whole force of his fantastic genius in unfolding their pretended my- stical signification, which he looked upon as in- finitely more interesting than their plain and literal meaning. Besides, his explications are rarely the fruit of his own genius and invention, but are, generally speaking, mere compilations from ancient commentators. As to the Moral Observations of Odo upon the Book of Job (b\ they are transcribed from a work of Gregory the Great, which bears the same title. We mention no more ; if, how- ever, any are desirous of an ample account of those who were esteemed the principal commentators in this century, they will find it in a book wrote pro- fessedly upon this subject by Notkerus Balbulus. The state of VI. The science of theology was absolutely ind°morais abandoned in this century ; nor did either the in this CCIN Greek or Latin church furnish any writer who attempted to explain in a regular method the doctrines of Christianity. The Greeks were con- tented with the Works of Damascenus, and the Latins with those of Augustin and Gregory, who were now considered as the greatest doctors that had adorned the church. Some added to these the writings of venerable Bede and Rabanus Mau- rus. The important science of morals was still more neglected than that of theology in this wretched age, and was reduced to a certain num- ber of dry and insipid homilies, and to the lives of the saints, which Simeon among the Greeks*

(6) Moralia in Jobum,

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 425

and Hubald, Odo, and Stephen (c), among the CENT. Latins, had drawn up with a seducing eloquence PARTU.

that covered the most impertinent fictions. Such

was the miserable state of morals and theology in this century ; in which, as we may further observe, there did not appear any defence of the Christian religion against its professed ene- mies.

VII. The controversies between the Greek and The co.n- Latin churches, were now carried on with less between* noise and impetuosity than in the preceding cen- the, ?re?k

» < , t Si P« ^a°d Latin

tury, on account 01 the troubles and calamities 01 churches. the times ; yet they were not entirely reduced to silence (d}. The writers therefore who affirm, that this unhappy schism was healed, and that the contending parties were really reconciled to each other for a certain space of time, have grossly mistaken the matter (e) ; though it be, indeed, true, that the tumults of the times produced now and then a cessation of these contests, and occa- sioned several truces, which insidiously concealed the bitterest enmity, and served often as a cover to the most treacherous designs. The Greeks were, moreover, divided among themselves, and disputed with great warmth concerning the law- fulness of repeated (y) marriages, to which vio- lent contest the cause of Leo, surnamed the Philo- sopher, gave rise. This emperor having buried successively three wives without having had by them any male issue, espoused a fourth, whose

( c) Bishop of Liege.

(rf) Mich. Lequien, Dissert, i. Damascenica de Proces- sione Spiritus Sancti. sect. xiii. p. 12. — Fred. Spanheim, De Perpetua Dissensione Ecclesiae Oriental, et Occidental. part. IV. sect. vii. p. 529. torn. ii. qpp.

(e) Leo Allatius, De Perpetua Consensione Ecclesiae Orient, et Occident, lib. ii. cap. vii, viii. p. 600.

^g° (/) Fourth marriages, our author undoubtedly means, since second and third nuptials were allowed upon certain conditions.

426 The Internal History of the Church.

CE^NT. name was Zoe Carbinopsina, and who was born in PART ii. the obscurity of a mean condition. As marriages • repeated for the fourth time were held to be im- pure and unlawful by the Greek canons, Nicolas, the patriarch of Constantinople, suspended the emperor, upon this occasion, from the communion of the church. Leo, incensed at this rigorous proceeding, deprived Nicolas of the patriarchal dignity, and raised Euthymius to that high office, who, though he re-admitted the emperor to the bosom of the church, yet opposed the law which he had resolved to enact in order to render fourth marriages lawful. Upon this a schism, attended with the bitterest animosities, divided the clergy, one part of which declared for Nicolas, the other for Euthymius. Some time after this, Leo died, and was succeeded in the empire by Alexander, who deposed Euthymius, and restored Nicolas to his eminent rank in the church. No sooner was this warm patriarch reinstated in his office, than he began to load the memory of the late emperor with the bitterest execrations and the most opprobrious invectives, and to maintain the unlawfulness of fourth marriages with the utmost obstinacy. In order to appease these tumults which portended numberless calamities to the state, Constantine Porphyrogeneta, the son of Leo, called together an assembly of the clergy at Constantinople in the year 920, in which fourth marriages were absolutely prohibited, and mar- riages for the third time were permitted, on cer- tain conditions ; and thus the public tranquillity was restored (g).

Several other contests of like moment arose among the Greeks during this century ; and they

(g) These facts are faithfully collected from Cedrenus Leunclavius, De Jure Graeco-Rom. torn. i. p. 1 04, from Leo the Grammarian, Simeon the Treasurer, and other writers of the Byzantine history.

pAR,r

CHAP. iv. Rites and Ceremonies.

serve to convince us of the ignorance that pre- CENT. vailed among that people, and of their blind ve- ' neration and zeal for the opinions of their an- cestors.

CHAPTER IV.

Concerning the Rites and Ceremonies used in the Church during this Century.

I. IN order to have some notion of the load of J ceremonies under which the Christian religion groaned during this superstitious age, we have only to cast an eye upon the acts of the various councils which were assembled in England, Ger- many, France, and Italy. The number of cere- monies increased in proportion to that of the saints, which multiplied from day to day ; for each new saintly patron had appropriated to his service a new festival, a new form of worship, a new round of religious rites ; and the clergy, notwithstanding their gross stupidity in other matters, discovered, in the creation of new cere- monies, a marvellous fertility of invention, at- tended with the utmost dexterity and artifice. It is also to be observed, that a great part of these new rites derived their origin from the various errors which the barbarous nations had received from their ancestors, and still retained, even after their conversion to Christianity. The clergy, instead of extirpating these errors, either gave them a Christian aspect by inventing certain re- ligious rites to cover their deformity, or by ex- plaining them in a forced allegorical manner ; and thus they were perpetuated in the church, and devoutly transmitted from age to age. We may also attribute a considerable number of the rites and institutions, that dishonoured religion in this

428 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, century, to foolish notions both concerning the

PART ii. Supreme Being and departed saints; for they

- 1 imagined that God was like the princes and great

ones of the earth, who are rendered propitious by

costly presents, and are delighted with those

cringing salutations, and other marks of venera-

tion and homage, which they receive from their

subjects ; and they believed likewise, that departed

spirits were agreeably affected with the same kind

of services.

Festivals. 1 1. The famous yearly festival that was cele- brated in remembrance of all departed souls, was instituted by the authority of Odilo, abbot of Clugni, and added to the Latin calendar towards the conclusion of this century (K). Before this time, a custom had been introduced in many places of putting up prayers on certain days, for the souls that were confined in purgatory ; but these prayers were made by each religious society, only for its own members, friends, and patrons. The pious zeal of Odilo could not be confined within such narrow limits ; and he therefore ex- tended the benefit of these prayers to all the souls that laboured under the pains and trials of purga- tory 0'). This proceeding of Odilo was owing to the exhortations of a certain Sicilian hermit, who pretended to have learned, by an immediate revelation from heaven, that the prayers of the monks of Clugni would be effectual for the deli- verance of departed spirits from the expiatory flames of a middle state (&). Accordingly this

(Ji) In the year 998.

(I) See Mabillon, Acta SS. Ord. Bened. Saec. vi. part. I. p. 584. where the reader will find the Life of Odilo, with the decree he issued forth for the institution of this festival.

(/<;) The late pontiff Benedict XIV. was artful enough to ob- serre a profound silence with respect to the superstitious and dishonourable origin of this anniversary festival, in his treatise DC Festis J. Christi, Mariae, ct Sanctorum, lib. iii. cap. xxii.

CHAP, iv. Rites and Ceremonies. 429

festival was, at first, celebrated only by the con- CENT. gregation of Clugni : but having received after- wards the approbation of one of the Roman pon- tiffs, it was, by his order, kept with particular de- votion in all the Latin churches.

III. The worship of the Virgin Mary, which, The office before this century, had been carried to a very virgin °y high degree of idolatry, received now new acces- Mury. sions of solemnity and superstition. Towards the conclusion of this century, a custom was intro- duced among the Latins of celebrating masses, and abstaining from flesh, in honour of the blessed Virgin, every Sabbath-day. After this was insti- tuted what the Latins called the lesser office, in honour of St. Mary, which was, in the follow- ing century, confirmed by Urban II. in the council of Clermont. There are also to be found institution in this age manifest indications of the institution of the rosary and crown of the Virgin, by which her worshippers were to reckon the number of prayers that they were to offer to this new divi- nity ; for though some place the invention of the Rosary in the xiiith century, and attribute it to St. Dominic, yet this supposition is made without any foundation (/). The Rosary consists in fifteen repetitions of the Lord's prayer, and an hundred and fifty salutations of the blessed Virgin : while the crown, according to the different opinions of the learned concerning the age of the blessed Virgin, consists in six or seven repetitions of the Lord's prayer, and six or seven times ten saluta- tions, or Ave Marias.

p. 671. torn. x. oper. and by his silence he has plainly shown to the world what he thought of this absurd festival. This is not the only mark of prudence and cunning that is to be found in the works of that famous pontiff.

(/) This is demonstrated by Mabillon, Praef. ad Acta SS. Ord. Bened. Saec. v. p. 58.

430

The Internal History of the Church,

Ancient heresies continue.

CHAPTER V.

Concerning the Divisions and Heresies that trotibled the Church during this Century.

CENT. I. THE profound ignorance and stupidity, that PART ii were Pr°ductive °f s° many evils in this century,

1 had at least this advantage attending them, that

they contributed much to the tranquillity of the church, and prevented the rise of new sects and new commotions of a religious kind. But though no new inventions were broached, the ancient errors still remained. The Nestorians and Mono- physites lived still under the Arabian government, where, however, they were much more rigorously treated than in former times, and were often per- secuted with the utmost injustice and violence. But as some of them excelled in medical know- ledge, which was highly esteemed among the Ara- bians, while others rendered themselves acceptable to the great, by the dexterous management of their domestic affairs, as overseers and stewards, all this contributed to diminish the violence of the storms that arose against them from time to time. II. The Manichaeans or Paulicians, whose er- rors have been already pointed out, gathered con- siderable strength in Thrace under the reign of John Tzimisces. A great part of this sect had been transported into this province, by the order of Constantine Copronymus, so early as the seventh century, to put an end to the troubles and tumults they had excited in the east ; but a still greater number of them were left behind, especially in Syria, and the adjacent countries. Hence it was, that Theodore, bishop of Antioch, from a pious apprehension of the danger to which his flock lay exposed from the neighbourhood of

The Pauli- cians.

CHAJ>. v. Divisions and Heresies. 431

such pernicious heretics, engaged the emperor, by CENT. his ardent and importunate solicitations, to send

PART II.

a new colony of these Manichaeans from Syria to

Philippi (in). From Thrace this restless and tur- bulent sect passed into Bulgaria and Sclavonia, where they resided under the jurisdiction of their own pontiff, or patriarch, until the time of the council] of Basil, /. e. until the fifteenth century. From Bulgaria the Paulicians removed to Italy, and spreading themselves from thence through the other provinces of Europe, they became extremely troublesome to the Roman pontiffs upon many occasions (n).

III. In the very last year of this century arose Troubles a certain teacher, whose name was Leutard, who lived at Vertus, in the diocese of Chalons, and, in a short time, drew after him a considerable num- ber of disciples. This new doctor could not bear the superstitious worship of images ; which he is said to have opposed with the utmost vehemence, and even to have broke in pieces an image of Christ, which he found in a church where he went to perform his devotions. He, moreover, exclaimed with the greatest warmth against pay- ing tythes to the priests, and in several other re- spects showed that he was no cordial friend to the sacerdotal order. But that which showed evidently that he was a dangerous fanatic, was his affirming that in the prophecies of the Old Testa- ment there was a manifest mixture of truth and falsehood. Gebouin, bishop of Chalons, examined the pretensions which this man made to divine in- spiration, and exposed his extravagance to the view of the public, whom he had so artfully se-

(m) Jo. Zonaras, Annal. lib. xvii. p. 209. edit. Paris, p. 164v edit. Venet.

(n) It is extremely probable, as we have already had oc- casion to observe, that the remains of this sect are still ta be found in Bulgaria.

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, duced : upon which he threw himself into a well, PART ji an^ ended his days, as many fanatics have done 1 after him (o). It is highly probable, that this up- start doctor taught many other absurd notions be- sides those which we have now mentioned, and that, after his death, his disciples made a part of the sect that was afterwards known in France under the name of the Albigenses, and which is said to have adopted the Manichaean errors.

The An- IV. There were yet subsisting some remains of $££"*'*' the sect of the Arians in several parts of Italy, and particularly in the territory of Padua ; but Ratherius, bishop of Verona, had a still more enormous heresy to combat in the system of the Anthropomorphites, which was revived in the year 939. In the district of Vicenza, a consider- able number, not only of the illiterate multitude, but also of the sacerdotal order, fell into that most absurd and extravagant notion, that the Deity was clothed with a human form, and seated, like an earthly monarch, upon a throne of gold, and that his angelic ministers were men arrayed in white garments, and furnished with wings, to render them more expeditious in executing their sovereign's orders. This monstrous error will ap- pear less astonishing, when we consider that the stupid and illiterate multitude had constantly be- fore their eyes, in all the churches, the Supreme Being and his angels represented in pictures and images with the human figure.

The superstition of another set of blinded wretches, mentioned also by Ratherius, was yet more unaccountable and absurd than that of the Anthropomorphites ; for they imagined that every Monday, mass was performed in heaven by St. Michael in the presence of God ; and hence

(o) All this is related by Glaber Radulphus, Hist. lib. ii. cap. xi.

PAT

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 433

on that day they resorted in crowds to all the CENT. churches which were dedicated to that highly * honoured saint (/?). It is more than probable, that the avarice of the priests, who officiated in the church of St. Michael, was the real source of this extravagant fancy ; and that in this, as in many other cases, a rapacious clergy took advan- tage of the credulity of the people, and made them believe whatever they thought would contri- bute to augment the opulence of the church.

(p) Ratherii Epist. Synodica in Dacherii Spicilegio Script. Veter. torn. ii. p. 294. — Sigebertus Gemblac. Chronol. ad a. 939.

VOL. IT. F F

THE

ELEVENTH CENTURY.

PART 1.

THE EXTERNAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

CHAPTER I.

Concerning the prosperous Events which hap- pened to the Church during this Century.

CENT. I. IN the preceding century some faint notions PA^RT i °f ^ie Christian religion, some scattered rays of that divine light which it administers to mortals,

1 -• i • -| m -I TV • T~^V

Christianity had been received among the Hungarians, Danes, Poles, and Russians ; but the rude and savage spirit of these nations, together with their de- plorable ignorance and their violent attachment to the superstitions of their ancestors, rendered their total conversion to Christianity a work of great difficulty, and which could not be accom- plished all of a sudden. The zeal, however, with which this important work was carried on, did much honour to the piety of the princes and go- vernors of these unpolished countries, who united their influence with the labours of the learned men whom they had invited into their dominions, to open the eyes of their subjects upon the truth (a).

(a) For an account of the Poles, Russians, and Hungari- ans, see Romualdi Vita in Actis Sanctor. torn. ii. Februar. p. 113, 114.117.

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 435

In Tartary (&), and the adjacent countries, the CENT. zeal and diligence of the Nestorians gained over PARi; l

daily vast numbers to the profession of Christia- • ,

nity. It appears also evident from a multitude of unexceptionable testimonies, that metropolitan prelates, with a great number of inferior bishops under their jurisdiction, were established at this time in the provinces of Casgar, Nuacheta, Tur- kestan, Genda, and Tangut (c) ; from which we may conclude, that, in this and the following cen- tury, there was a prodigious number of Christians in those very countries which are at present over- run with Mahometanism and idolatry. All these Christians were undoubtedly Nestorians, and lived under the jurisdiction of the patriarch of that sect, who resided in Chaldea.

II. Among the European nations that lay yet The conver- sion of cer- tain nations

(6) Tartary is taken here in its most comprehensive sense ; attempted for between the inhabitants of Tartary, properly so called, in vain* and the Calmucs, Mogols, and the inhabitants of Tangut, there is a manifest difference.

(c) Marcus Paul. Venetus De Regionibus Orientalibus, lib. i. cap. 38. 40. 45. 47, 48, 49. 62, 63, 64. lib. ii. cap. 39.— Euseb. Renaudot, Anciennes Relations des Indes et de la Chine, p. 420. — Jos. Simon. Assemanni Bibliotli. Orient. Va- tican, torn. iii. part. II. p. 502, &c. The successful propaga- tion of the gospel, by the ministry of the Nestorians, in Tar- tary, China, and the neighbouring provinces, is a most im- portant event, and every way worthy to employ the researches and the pen of some able writer, well acquainted with orien- tal history. It must, indeed, be acknowledged, that, if this subject be important, it is also difficult on many accounts. It was attempted, however, notwithstanding its difficulty, by the most learned Theoph. Sigifred. Bayer, who had collected a great quantity of materials relative to this interesting branch of the history of Christianity, both from the works that have been published upon this subject, and from manuscripts that lie yet concealed in the cabinets of the curious. But, unhappily for the republic of letters, the death of that excellent man interrupted his labours, and prevented him from executing a design, which was worthy of his superior abilities, and his well known zeal for the interests of religion.

PART

436 The External History of the Church.

CENT, grovelling in their native darkness and supersti- XL r tion, were the Sclavonians, the Obotriti (d\ the

Venedi (e\ and the Prussians, whose conversion

had been attempted, but with little or no suc- cess, by certain missionaries, from whose piety and zeal better fruits might have been expected. Towards the conclusion of the preceding century, Adalbert, bishop of prague, had endeavoured to instil into the minds of the fierce and savage Prussians, the salutary doctrines of the gospel ; but he perished in the fruitless attempt, and re- ceived, in the year 996, from the murdering lance of Siggo, a pagan priest, the crown of martyrdom (,/). Boleslaus, king of Poland, re- venged the death of this pious apostle by enter- ing into a bloody war with the Prussians, and he obtained by the force of penal laws and of a vic- torious army, what Adalbert could not effect by exhortation and argument (g). He dragooned this savage people into the Christian church ; yet besides this violent method of conversion, others of a more gentle kind were certainly practised by the attendance of Boleslaus, who seconded the military arguments of their prince, by the more persuasive influence of admonition and instruc- tion. A certain ecclesiastic of illustrious birth, whose name was Boniface, and who was one of the disciples of St. Romuald, undertook the con- version of the Prussians, and was succeeded in this

fjj^ (d) The Obotriti were a great and powerful branch of the Vandals, whose kings resided in the country of Meck- lenburgh, and whose domination extended along the coasts of the Baltic from the river Pene in Pomerania to the Duchy of Holstein.

Ifgp0 (<?) The Venedi dwelt upon the banks of the Weissell, or Vistula, in, what is at present called, the Palatinate of Marienburgh.

(f) See the Acta Sanctor. ad d. xxiii. Aprilis, p. 174.

(g) Solignac, Hist. Pologne, torn. i. p. 133.

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 437

pious enterprise by Bruno (h\ who set out from CENT.

PAHT I.

Germany with a company of eighteen persons,

who had entered with zeal into the same laudable design. These were, however, all barbarously massacred by the fierce aud cruel Prussians, and neither the vigorous efforts of Boleslaus, nor of the succeeding kings of Poland, could engage this rude and inflexible nation to abandon totally the idolatry of their ancestors (z).

III. Sicily had been groaning under the domi- The ?a.ra-

n , X, • i • i cens driven

nion of the Saracens since the ninth century; nor had the repeated attempts of the Greeks and La- tins to dispossess them of that rich and fertile country, been hitherto crowned with the desired success. But in this century the face of affairs changed entirely in that island; for in the year 1059, Robert Guiscard, who had formed a settle- ment in Italy, at the head of a Norman colony, and was afterwards created duke of Apulia, en- couraged by the exhortations of the Roman pon- tiff Nicolas II. and seconded by the assistance of his brother Roger, attacked with the greatest vigour and intrepidity the Saracens in Sicily ; nor did this latter sheathe the victorious sword before he had rendered himself master of that island, and cleared it absolutely of its former tyrants. As soon as this great work was accomplished, which was not before the year 1090, Count Roger not only restored to its former glory and lustre the

(k) Fleury differs from Dr. Mosheim in his account of Bruno, in two points. First, he maintains, that Boniface and Bruno were one and the same person, and here he is mani- festly in the right ; but he maintains farther, that he suffered martyrdom in Russia, in which he is evidently mistaken. It is proper farther to admonish the reader to distinguish care- fully the Bruno here mentioned, from a monk of the same name, who founded the order of the Carthusians.

(i) Ant. Pagi Critica in Baronium, torn. iv. ad annum 1008. p. 97. — Christ. Hartknoch's Ecclesiastical History of Prussia, book I. ch. i. p. 12.

438 The External History of the Church.

CENT. Christian religion, which had been almost totally PART extinguished under the Saracen yoke, but also esta- Lblished bishoprics, founded monasteries, erected magnificent churches throughout that province, and bestowed upon the clergy those immense revenues and those distinguished honours which they still enjoy (A-). It is in the privileges con- ferred upon this valiant chief, that we find the origin of that supreme authority in matters of re- ligion, which is still vested in the kings of Sicily, within the limits of their own territories, and which is known by the name of the Sicilian mon- archy; for the Roman pontiff Urban II. is said to have granted, A. D. 1097, by a special diploma, to Roger and his successors, the title, authority, and prerogatives of hereditary legates of the apo- stolic see. The court of Rome affirms, that this diploma is not authentic ; and hence those warm contentions, about the spiritual supremacy, that have arisen even in our times between the bishops of Rome and the kings of Sicily. The successors of Roger governed that island, under the title of dukes, until the twelfth century, when it was erected into a kingdom (/).

*^* The R°man pontiffs, from the time of Sylvester II. had been forming plans for extend- Saracensin jng fae limits of the church in Asia, and espe-

Palestme. .» .. . . /> TT. i

dally for driving the Mahometans out of .Pale- stine; but the troubles in which Europe was so long involved prevented the execution of these arduous designs. Gregory VII. the most enter- prising and audacious pontiff that ever sat in the apostolic chair, animated and inflamed by the repeated compkints which the Asiatic Christians

(k) See Burigni, Histoire Generate de la Sicile, torn. i. p. 386.

(/) See Baronii Liber de Monarchia Siciliae, torn. xi. Annal. as also Du Pin, Traite de la Monarchic Sicilienne.

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 489

made of the cruelty of the Saracens, resolved to CENT. undertake in person a holy war for the deliver- PAR^. , ance of the church, and upwards of fifty thousand men were already mustered to follow him in this bold expedition (?ii). But his quarrel with the emperor Henry IV. of which we shall have oc- casion to speak hereafter, and other unforeseen occurrences, obliged him to lay aside his intended invasion of the holy land. The project, however, was renewed towards the conclusion of this cen- tury, by the enthusiastic zeal of an inhabitant of Amiens, who was known by the name of Peter the Hermit, and who suggested to the Roman pontiff Urban II. the means of accomplishing what had been unluckily suspended. This famous hermit, in a voyage which he had made through Palestine, A. D. 1093, had observed with inex- pressible anguish, the vexations and persecutions, which the Christians who visited the holy places suffered from the barbarous and tyrannic Saracens. Inflamed, therefore, with a holy indignation and a furious zeal, which he looked upon as the effects of a divine impulse, he implored the succours of Symeon, patriarch of Constantinople, and Urban II. but without effect. Far from being discou- raged by this, he renewed his efforts with the utmost vigour, went through all the countries of Europe sounding the alarm of a holy war against the infidel nations, and exhorting all Christian princes to draw the sword against the tyrants of Palestine ; nor did he stop here ; but with a view to engage the superstitious and ignorant multi- tude in his cause, he carried about with him a letter, which he said was written in heaven, and addressed from thence to all true Christians, to animate their zeal for the deliverance of their

(>») Gregorii VII. Epist. lib. ii. p. 3. in Harduini Conciliis, torn. vi. part. I. p. 1285.

440 The External History of ike Church.

CENT, brethren, who groaned under the oppressive bur- PART i ^en °^ a Mahometan yoke (n).

L V. When Urban II. saw the way prepared by

The pro- the exhortations of the hermit who had put the war! * spirits of the people every where in a ferment, and had kindled in their breasts a vehement zeal for that holy carnage which the church had been meditating so long, he assembled a grand and numerous council at Placentia, A. D. 1095, and recommended warmly, for the first time, the sa- cred expedition against the infidel Saracens (o). This arduous enterprise was far from being ap- proved of by the greatest part of this numerous assembly, notwithstanding the presence of the emperor's legates, who, in their master's name, re- presented most pathetically how necessary it was to set limits to the power of the victorious Turks, whose authority and dominion increased from day to day. The pontiff's proposal was, however, re- newed with the same zeal, and with the desired success, some time after this, in the council assembled at Clermont, where Urban was pre- sent. The pompous and pathetic speech which he delivered upon this occasion made a deep and powerful impression upon the minds of the French, whose natural character renders them much su- perior to the Italians in encountering difficulties, facing danger, and attempting the execution of the most perilous designs. So that an innumer- able multitude, composed of all ranks and orders

(«) This circumstance is mentioned by the abbot Dode- chinus, in his Continual. Chronici Mariani Scoti Scriptor. Germanicor. Jo. Pistorii, torn. i. p. 462. For an account of Peter, see Du Fresne, Notae ad Annae Comnenae Alexiadem, p. 79. edit. Venet.

^g13 (o) This council was the most numerous of any that had been hitherto assembled, and was, on that account,, held in the open fields. There were present at it two hundred bishops, four thousand ecclesiastics, and three hundred thou- sand laymen.

PA^T'

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 441

in the nation, offered themselves as volunteers in CENT. this sacred expedition Q;). This numerous host was looked upon as formidable in the highest de- gree, and equal to the most glorious enterprises and exploits, while, in reality, it was no more than an unwieldy body without life and vigour, and was weak and contemptible in every respect. This will appear sufficiently evident, when we consider that this army was a motley assemblage of monks, prostitutes, artists, labourers, lazy trades- men, merchants, boys, girls, slaves, malefactors, and profligate debauchees, and that it was prin- cipally composed of the lowest dregs of the multi- tude, who were animated solely by the prospect of spoil and plunder, and hoped to make their for- tunes by this holy campaign. Every one will per- ceive how little either discipline, counsel, or for- titude were to be expected from such a miserable rabble. This expedition was distinguished, in the French language, by the name of a croisade, and all who embarked in it were called croises, or cross-bearers ; not only because the end of this holy war was to wrest the cross of Christ out of the hands of the infidels, but also on account of the consecrated cross of various colours, which every soldier wore upon his right shoulder (q).

VI. In consequence of these grand preparations, The hi-

. i , i i -, \ j , -,. story of this

eight hundred thousand men, in separate bodies, holy war. and under different commanders, set out for Con- stantinople, in the year 1096 ; that having re-

(p) Theod. Ruinart, in Vita Urbani II. sect, ccxxv. p. 224. 299. 240. 272. 274. 282. 296, torn. iii. opp. posthum. — J. Mabilloni et Theod. Ruinarti, Jo. Harduini, Concilior. torn. xi. part II. p. ] 726. — Baronius, Annal. Eccl. torn. xi. ad a. 1095, n. xxxii. p. 648.

(q) See Abrah. Bzovius, Continuat. Annal. Baronii, torn. xv. ad a. 1410. n. ix. p. 322. edit. Colon. L'Enfant, Histoire du Concile de Pise, torn. ii. lib. v. p. 60. — The writers who have treated of this holy war are mentioned by Jo. Alb. Fabricius, in his Lux Evangelii toto orbe exoriens, cap. xxx. p. 518.

The External History of the Church.

CENT, ceived there both assistance and direction from PART i Alexis Comnenius the Grecian emperor, they

might pursue their march into Asia. One of

the principal divisions of this enormous body was led on by Peter the Hermit, the author and fo- menter of the war, who was girded with a rope, and continued to appear with all the marks ^of an austere solitary. This first division, in their march through Hungary and Thrace, committed the most flagitious crimes, which so incensed the inhabitants of the countries through which they passed, particularly those of Hungary and Turco- mania, that they rose up in arms and massacred the greatest part of them. A like fate attended several other divisions of the same army, who, under the conduct of weak and unskilful chiefs, wandered about like an undisciplined band of robbers, plundering the cities that lay in their way, and spreading misery and desolation where- ever they came. The armies that were headed by illustrious commanders, distinguished by their birth and their military endowments, arrived more happily at the capital of the Grecian empire. That which was commanded by Godfrey of Bouillon, duke of Lorrain, who deserves a place among the greatest heroes, whether of ancient or modern times (r), and, by his brother Baldwin, was composed of eighty thousand well chosen troops, horse and foot (s), and directed its march

(r) The Benedictine monks have given an ample account of this magnanimous chief, whose character was a bright as- semblage of all Christian, civil, and heroic virtues, in their Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. viii. p. 598.

Efgg13 (s) The engaging and illustrious virtues of Godfrey had drawn from all parts a prodigious number of volunteers, who were ambitious to fight under his standards. This enor- mous multitude perplexed, however, the valiant chief, who, on that account, divided it into several bodies, and finding in Peter the Hermit the same ambitious and military spirit that had prevailed in him before his retreat from the world, declared him the general of the first division, which was de-

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 443

through Germany and Hungary. Another, which CENT.

-A. I*

PART I.

was headed by Raimond, earl of Toulouse, passed

through the Sclavonian territories. Robert, earl of Flanders, Robert, duke of Normandy (7), Hugo, brother to Philip I. king of France, embarked their respective forces in a fleet which was as- sembled at Brundisi and Tarento, from whence they were transported to Durazzo or Dyrrachium, as it was anciently called. These armies were followed by Boemond, duke of Apulia and Cala- bria, at the head of a chosen and numerous body of valiant Normans.

VII. This army was the greatest, and, in out- ward appearance, the most formidable, that had been known in the memory of man ; and though before its arrival at Constantinople, it was dimi- nished considerably by the difficulties and opposi- tions it had met with on the way ; yet such as it was, it made the Grecian emperor tremble, and filled his mind with the most anxious and terrible apprehensions of some secret design against his do- minions. His fears, however, were dispelled, when he saw these legions pass the streights of Galli- polis, and direct their march towards Bithynia (u).

tached from the rest, and ordered to march immediately to Constantinople. By this means Godfrey got rid of the dregs of that astonishing multitude which flocked to his camp. Father Maimbourg, notwithstanding his immoderate zeal for the holy war, and that fabulous turn which enables him to represent it in the most favourable points of view, acknow- ledges frankly, that the first divisions of this prodigious army committed the most abominable enormities in the countries through which they passed, and that there was no kind of insolence, injustice, impurity, barbarity, and violence of which they were not guilty. Nothing perhaps in the annals of hi- story can equal the flagitious deeds of this infernal rabble. See particularly Maimbourg, Histoire des Croisades, torn. i. livre i. p. .57, 58, 59, 60, 61,62. 2d ed. in 12mo.

Egg* (t) Eldest son of William the Conqueror.

Ifgf0 (u) Our author, for the sake of brevity, passes over the contests and jealousies that subsisted between the chief of the crusade and the Grecian emperor. The character of the

444 The External History of the Church.

CENT. 'phg first successful enterprise (&>) that was formed against the Infidels, was the siege of Nice, the capital of Bithynia, which was taken in the year 1097 ? from thence the victorious army pro- ceeded into Syria, and in the following year sub- dued Antioch, which, with its fertile territory, was granted, by the assembled chiefs, to Boemond, duke of Apulia. Edessa fell next into the hands of the victors, and became the property of Bald- win, brother to Godfrey of Bouillon. The con- quest of Jerusalem, which, after a siege of five weeks, submitted to their arms in the year 1099, seemed to crown their expedition with the desired success. In this city were laid the foundations of a new kingdom, at the head of which was placed the famous Godfrey, whom the army saluted king of Jerusalem with an unanimous voice.

But this illustrious hero, whose other eminent qualities were adorned with the greatest modesty, refused that high title (<r), though he governed

latter is differently painted by different historians. The warm defenders of the crusade represent him as a most perfidious prince, who, under the show of friendship and zeal, aimed at nothing less than the destruction of Godfrey's army. Others consider him as a wise, prudent politician, who, by artifice and stratagem, warded off the danger he had reason to ap- prehend from these formidable legions that passed through his dominions; and part of which, particularly the army commanded by Peter the Hermit, ravaged his most fruitful territories in the most barbarous manner, and pillaged and plundered even the suburbs of the capital of the empire. The truth of the matter is, that if Alexis cannot be vindicated from the charge of perfidy, the holy warriors are, on the other hand, chargeable with many acts of brutality and injustice. See Maimbourg, Histoire des Croisades, livre i. et ii.

|§gp° (to) Before the arrival of Godfrey in Asia, the army, or rather rabble, commanded by Peter the Hermit in such a ridiculous manner as might be expected from a wrong- headed monk, was defeated and cut to pieces by the young Soliman.

gg" (a?) All the historians, who write concerning this holy war, applaud the answer which Godfrey returned to the offer

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 44o

Jerusalem with that valour, equity, and prudence CENT. that have rendered his name immortal. Having PAU^ ,

chosen a small army to support him in his new

dignity, he permitted the rest of the troops to re- turn into Europe. He did not, however, enjoy long the fruits of a victory, in which his heroic valour had been so gloriously displayed, but died about a year after the conquest of Jerusalem, leaving his dominions to his brother Baldwin, prince of Edessa, who assumed the title of king without the least hesitation.

VIII. If we examine the motives that engaged The mo- the Roman pontiffs, and particularly Urban II. ^e* ^J to kindle this holy war, which in its progress and bishops of issue was so detrimental to almost all the coun- JJemrincel tries of Europe, we shall probably be persuaded pf Europe that its origin is to be derived from the corrupt ^1S ^ notions of religion, which prevailed in these bar- barous times. It was thought inconsistent with the duty and character of Christians, to suffer that land, that was blessed with the ministry, distin- guished by the miracles, and consecrated by the blood of the Saviour of men, to remain under the dominion of his most inveterate enemies. It was also looked upon as a very important branch of true piety to visit the holy places in Palestine ; which pilgrimages, however, were extremely dangerous, while the despotic Saracens were in possession of that country. Nor is it to be denied, that these motives of a religious kind were accompanied and rendered more effectual by an anxious apprehension of the growing power of the Turks, who had already subdued the greatest part of the Grecian empire,

that was made him of a crown of gold, as a mark of his ac- cession to the throne of Jerusalem ; the answer was, that " he could not bear the thoughts of wearing a crown of gold in that city, where the King of kings had been crowned with thorns." This answer was sublime in the eleventh century.

446 The External History of the Church.

CENT, and might soon carry into Europe, and more par- ticularly into Italy, their victorious arms.

There are, it must be confessed, several learned men who have accounted otherwise for this pious, or rather fanatical expedition. They imagine that the Roman pontiffs recommended this sacred campaign with a view to augment their own au- thority, and to weaken the power of the Latin emperors -and princes; and that these princes countenanced and encouraged it in hopes of get- ting rid, by that means, of their more powerful and warlike vassals, and of becoming masters of their lands and possessions (#). Those conjectures,

(j/) The part of this hypothesis that relates to the views of the Roman pontiffs has been adopted as an undoubted truth, not only by many protestant historians, but also by several writers of the Roman communion. See Bened. Accoltus, De Bello Sacro in Infideles. lib. i. p. 16. — Basnage, Histoire des Eglises Reformees, torn, i, periode v. p. 235. — Vertot, Histoire des Chevaliers de Malthe, torn. i. livre iii. p. 302. 308. livre iv. p. 428. — Baillet, Histoire des Demelez du Boniface VIII. avec Philippe le Bel, p. 76. — Histoire du Droit Ecclesiastique Fransois, torn. i. p. 296. 299. To such, however, as consider matters attentively, this hypothesis will appear destitute of any solid foundation. Certain it is, that the Roman pontiffs could never have either foreseen, or ima- gined, that so many European princes, and such prodigious multitudes of people, would take arms against the infidels and march into Palestine ; nor could they be assured be- forehand, that this expedition would tend to the advance- ment of their opulence and authority. For all the accessions of influence and wealth, which the Roman pontiffs and the clergy in general derived from these holy wars, were of a much later date than their first origin, and were acquired by degrees, rather by lucky hits, than by deep laid schemes ; and this alone is sufficient to show, that the bishops of Rome, in forming the plan, and exhorting to the prosecution of these wars, had no thoughts of extending thereby the limits of their authority. We may add to this consideration, an- other of no less weight in the matter before us, and that is, the general opinion which prevailed at this time, both among the clergy and the people, that the conquest of Palestine would be finished in a short time, in a single campaign ; that the Di- vine Providence would interpose, in a miraculous manner, to accomplish the ruin of the infidels ; and that, after the taking

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 447

however plausible in appearance, are still no more CENT. than conjectures. The truth of the matter seems to be this ; that the Roman pontiffs and the Eu-

of Jerusalem, the greatest part of the European princes would return home with their troops, which last circumstance was by no means favourable to the views which the pontiffs are sup-- posed to have formed of increasing their opulence and ex- tending their dominion. Of all the conjectures that have been entertained upon this subject, the mostimprobableandground- less is that which supposes that Urban II. recommended, with such ardour, this expedition into Palestine, with a view to weaken the power of the emperor Henry IV. with whom he had a violent dispute concerning the investiture of bishops. They who adopt this conjecture must be little acquainted with the history of these times ; or at least they forget, that the first armies that marched into Palestine against the infi- dels were chiefly composed of Franks and Normans, and that the Germans, who were the enemies of Urban II. were, in the beginning, extremely averse to this sacred expedition. Many other considerations might be added here to illustrate this matter, which, for the sake of brevity, I pass in silence.

That part of the hypothesis, which relates to the kings and princes of Europe, and supposes that they countenanced the holy war to get rid of their powerful vassals, is as groundless as the other, which we have been now refuting. It is, indeed, adopted by several eminent writers, such as Vertot (Hist, de Malthe, livre iii. p. 309). Boulainvilliers, and others, who pretend to a superior and uncommon insight into the policy of these remote ages. The reasons, however, which these great men employed to support their opinion, may be all comprehended in this single argument, uz«. " Many kings, especially among the Franks, became more opulent and powerful by the number of their vassals, who lost their lives and fortunes in this holy war ; therefore, these princes not only permitted, but warmly countenanced the prosecution of this war from selfish and ambitious principles." The weak- ness of this conclusion must strike every one at first sight. We are wonderfully prone to attribute both to the Roman pontiffs, and the princes of this barbarous age, much more sagacity and cunning than they really possessed ; and we de- duce from the events, the principles and views of the actors, which is a defective and uncertain manner of reasoning. With respect to the Roman pontiffs, it appears most proba- ble that their immense opulence and authority were acquired, rather by their improving dexterously the opportunities that were offered them, than by the schemes they formed for extending their dominion, or filling their coffers.

i

448 The External History of the Church.

CENT, ropean princes were engaged at first in these cru- sades by a principle of superstition ouly ; but when, in process of time, they learned by experi- ence, that these holy wars contributed much to increase their opulence and to extend their autho- rity, by sacrificing their wealthy and powerful ri- vals, then new motives were presented to encou- rage these sacred expeditions into Palestine, and ambition and avarice seconded and enforced the dictates of fanaticism and superstition. its unhappy jx. Without determining any thing concerning

consequen- , .. ... +\ X ,1 11

ces, and the the justice or injustice (z) of these holy wars,

innumerable

evils that fy I do not pretend to decide the question concerning the attended it lawfulness of the crusades ; a question which, when it is con- sidered with attention and impartiality, will appear not only extremely difficult, but also highly doubtful. It is, however, proper to inform the reader, that in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries the justice of this holy war was called in question, and warmly disputed among Christians. The Waldenses and Albigenses, who were distinguished by the name of Cathari, or Puritans, considered these expeditions into Palestine as absolutely unlawful. The reasons they alleged were collected and combated by Francis Moneta, a Dominican friar of the thirteenth century, in a book entitled Summa contra Catharos et Waldenses, lib. v. cap. xiii. p. 531. which was published some years ago at Rome, by Richini. But neither the ob- jections of the Waldenses, nor the answers of Moneta, were at all remarkable for their weight and solidity, as will appeal- evidently from the following example. The former objected to the holy war the words of St. Paul, 1 Cor. x. 32. " Give none offence, neither to the Jews nor to the Gentiles." By the Gentiles, said they, are to be understood the Saracens. And therefore the European Christians are to abstain from making war upon the Saracens, lest they give offence to the Gentiles. WTe shall give Moneta's answer to this argument in his own words: '* We read, (says he), Gen. xii. 7. that God said unto Abraham, Unto thy seed will I give this land: Now we (Christians who dwell in Europe) are the seed of Abraham, as the apostle affirms, Galat. iii. 29. Therefore we are heirs of the promise, and the holy land is given to us by the covenant as our lawful possession. From all which it appears, that it is the duty of civil and temporal rulers to use their most zealous efforts to put us in possession of the promised land, while it is, at the same time, incum- bent upon the church and its ministers to exhort these rulers

CHAP. r. Prosperous Events.

we may boldly affirm, that they were highly pre- judicial both to the cause of religion, and to the civil interests of mankind ; and that, in Europe, more especially, they were fruitful of innumerable evils and calamities, whose effects are yet perceiv- able in our times. The European nations were deprived of the greatest part of their inhabitants by these ill-judged expeditions ; immense sums of money were exported into Asia for the support of

in the most urgent manner to the performance of their duty. A rare argument this truly ! but let us hear him out : " The church has no design to injure or slaughter the Saracens, nor is such the intention of the Christian princes engaged in this war. Yet the blood of the infidels must of necessity be shed, if they make resistance and oppose the victorious arms of the princes. The church of God therefore is entirely inno- cent and without reproach in this matter, and gives no offence to the Gentiles, because it does no more, in reality, than main- tain its undoubted right." Such is the subtile reasoning of Moneta, on which it is not necessary to make any reflections. ^g° Dr. Mosheim seems too modest, nay even timorous in his manner of expressing himself concerning the justice of this holy war, which was so absurd in its principle, and so abomin- able in the odious circumstances that attended it. His re- spect, perhaps, for the Teutonic crosses which abound in Germany, and are the marks of an order which derives its origin from these fanatical expeditions into Palestine, may have occasioned that ambiguity and circumspection in his ex- pressions, through which, however, it is easy to perceive his disapprobation of the crusades. The holy place profaned by the dominion of infidels, was the apparent pretext for this fa- natical war. What holy place? Jerusalem, say the knights errant of Palestine. But they forget that Jerusalem was a city, which, by the conduct of its inhabitants and the cruci- fixion of Christ, was become most odious in the eye of God; that it was visibly loaded with a divine malediction, and was the miserable theatre of the most tremendous judgments and calamities that ever were inflicted upon any nation. Had the case been otherwise, we know of no right which Christianity gives its professors to seize upon the territories, and invade the possessions of unbelievers. Had the Jews attempted the con- quest of Palestine, they would have acted conformably with their apparent rights ; because it was formerly their country ; and consistently also with their religious principles ; because they expected a Messiah who was to bind the kings of the Gen- tiles in chains, and to reduce the whole world under the Jewish yoke.

449

CENT. XL

ART I.

VOL. If.

G G

450 The External History of the Church.

CENT, the war ; and numbers of the most powerful and PART i 0Pulent families became either extinct, or were __ 1 involved in the deepest miseries of poverty and want. It could not well be otherwise ; since the heads of the most illustrious houses either mort- gaged or sold their lands and possessions in order to pay the expenses of their voyage (a) ; while others imposed such intolerable burthens upon their vas- sals and tenants, as obliged them to abandon their houses, and all their domestic concerns, and to en- list themselves, rather through wild despair than religious zeal, under the sacred banner of the cross. Hence the face of Europe was totally changed, and all things thrown into the utmost confusion. We pass in silence the various enormities that were occasioned by these crusades, the murders, rapes, and robberies of the most infernal nature, that were every where committed with impunity by these holy soldiers of God and of Christ, as they were impiously called; nor shall we enter into a detail of the new privileges and rights to which these wars gave rise, and which were often attended with the greatest inconveniences

(a) We find many memorable examples of this in the an- cient records. Robert, duke of Normandy, mortgaged his duchy to his brother William, king of England, to defray the expenses of his voyage to Palestine. See the Histor. Major of Matthew Paris, lib. i. p. 24. — Odo, viscount of Bourges, sold his territory to the king of France. Gallia Christian. Benedictinorum, torn. ii. p. 45. See, for many examples of this kind, Car. du Fresne, Adnot. ad Joinvilli Vitam Ludovici S. p. 52. Boulainvilliers, sur FOrigine et les Droits de la No- blesse in Molet's Memoires de Litterature et de FHistoire, torn. ix. part. I. p. 68. — Jo. George Cramer. De Juribus et Prarogativis Nobilitatis, torn. i. p. 81. 409. From the com- mencement, therefore, of these holy wars, a vast number of estates, belonging to the European nobility, were either mort- gaged, or totally transferred, some to kings and princes, others to priests and monks, and not a few to persons of a private condition, who by possessing considerable sums of ready money, were enabled to make advantageous purchases.

(b) Such persons as entered into these expeditions, and were distinguished by the badge of the military cross, acquired

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 451

X. These holy wars were not less prejudicial to CENT.

the cause of religion, and the true interests of the AXL Christian church, than they were to the temporal

concerns of men. One of their first and most per- ^ unhapp nicious effects was the enormous augmentation of ridw^wUh the influence and authority of the Roman pontiffs : resPcct to they also contributed, in various ways, to enrich re%ion? ° the churches and monasteries with daily acces- sions of wealth, and to open new sources of opu- lence to all the sacerdotal orders. For they who assumed the cross disposed of their possessions as if they were at the point of death ; and this on account of the imminent and innumerable dangers they were to be exposed to in their passage to the holy land, and the opposition they were to en- counter there upon their arrival (c). They there- fore, for the most part, made their wills before their departure, and left a considerable part of their possessions to the priests and monks, in order to obtain, by these pious legacies, the favour and protection of the Deity (W). Many examples of these donations are to be found in ancient records. Such of the holy soldiers as had been engaged in suits of law with the priests or monks renounced their pretensions, and submissively gave up what-

thereby certain remarkable rights, which were extremely prejudicial to the rest of their fellow-citizens. Hence it happened, that when any of these holy soldiers contracted any civil obligations, or entered into conventions of sale, purchase, or any such transactions, they were previously required to renounce all privileges and immunities, which they had obtained or might obtain in time to come by taking on the cross. See Le Boeuf, Memoires sur 1'Histoire d'Aux- erre, Append, torn. ii. p. 292.

Hg^ (c) The translator has here inserted into the text the note (r) of the original, as it is purely historical, and makes

very interesting part of the narration.

(d) See Plessis, Hist, de Meaux, torn. ii. p. 76. 79. 141.— Gallia Christiana, torn. ii. p. 138, 139. — Le Bceuf, Me- moires pour 1'Histoire d'Auxerre, torn. ii. Append, p. 31.— Du Fresne, Notae ad Vitam Ludovici Sancti, p. 52.

G G%

The External History of the Church.

CENT, ever it was that had been the subject of debate. PAR1! lt And others, who had seized upon any of the pos-

sessions of the churches or convents, or had heard

of any injury that had been committed against the clergy, by the remotest of their ancestors, made the most liberal restitution, both for their own usurpations and those of their forefathers, and made ample satisfaction for the real or pretended injuries they had committed against the church by rich and costly donations (e).

Nor were these the only unhappy effects of these holy expeditions, considered with respect to their influence upon the state of religion, and the affairs of the Christian church. For while whole legions of bishops and abbots girded the sword to their thigh, and went as generals, volunteers, or chaplains into Palestine, the priests and monks, who had lived under their jurisdiction, and were more or less awed by their authority, threw off all restraint, lived the most lawless and profligate lives, and abandoned themselves to all sorts of licentiousness, committing the most flagitious and extravagant excesses without reluctance or re- morse. The monster superstition, which wras al- ready grown to an enormous size, received new accessions of strength and influence by this holy war, and exercised with more vehemence than ever its despotic dominion over the minds of the Latins. For the crowd of saints and tute- lary patrons, whose number was prodigious be- fore this period, was now augmented by fictitious saints of Greek and Syrian origin ( jO> which had

(e} Du Fresne, 1. c. p. 52.

(f ) The Roman catholic historians acknowledge, that, during the time of the crusades, many saints, unknown to the Latins before that period, were imported into Europe from Greece and the eastern provinces, and were treated with the utmost respect and the most devout veneration. Among these new patrons there were some whose exploits, and even their

CHAP. i. Prosperous Events. 453

hitherto been unknown in Europe, and an incredi- CENT. ble quantity of relics, the greatest part of which PAR1! , were ridiculous in the highest degree, were im -- ported into the European churches. The armies, that returned from Asia after the taking of Jeru- salem, brought with them a vast number of these saintly relics, which they bought at a high price from the cunning Greeks and Syrians, and which they considered as the noblest spoils that could crown their return from the holy land. These they committed to the custody of the clergy in the churches and monasteries, or ordered them to be most carefully preserved in their families from ge- neration to generation

existence, were called in question. Such, among others, was St. Catharine, whom Baronius and Cassander represent as having removed from Syria into Europe. See Baronius, Ad Marty rol. Roman, p. 728 — .George Cassander, Schol. ad Hym- nos Ecclesiae, p. 278, 279. opp. Paris. 1616. f'ol. It is, how- ever, extremely doubtful, whether or no this Catharine, who is honoured as the patroness of learned men, ever existed.

(g) The sacred treasures of musty relics, which the French, Germans, Britons, and other European nations, preserved formerly with so much care, and show even in our times with such pious ostentation, are certainly not more ancient than these holy wars, but were then purchased at a high rate from the Greeks and Syrians. These cunning traders in supersti- tion, whose avarice and fraud were excessive, imposed upon the credulity of the simple and ignorant Latins, and often .sold them fictitious relics. Richard, king of England, bought in the year 1191, from the famous Saladin, all the relics that were to be found in Jerusalem, as appears from the testi- mony of Matthew de Paris, Hist. Major, p. 138. who tells us also, p. 666. of the same work, that the Dominicans brought from Palestine a white stone, in which Jesus Christ had left the print of his feet. The Genoese pretend to have received from Baldwin, second king of Jerusalem, the very dish in which the paschal lamb was served up to Christ and his dis- ciples at the last supper ; though this famous dish excites the laughter of even Father Labat, in his Voyages en Espagne et en Italie, torn. ii. p. 63. For an account of the prodigious quantity of relics which St. Louis brought from Palestine into France, we refer the reader to the life of that prince, composed by Joinville, and published by Du Fresne; as also

454 The External History of the Church.

CHAPTER II.

Concerning the Calamitous Events that happened to the Church during this Century.

CENT. I- THE greatest opposition the Christians met

XI- with in this century was from the Saracens

FARTI< and Turks. To the latter the Christians and

The suffer. Saracens .were equally odious, and felt equally

church unl ^e ^ata^ conse(luences of their increasing domi- the do- nion. The Saracens, notwithstanding their bloody contest with the Turks, which gave them con-

of the Sara stant occupation, and the vigorous, though in- Turksnd effectual efforts they were continually making to set limits to the power of that fierce nation, which was daily extending the bounds of its empire, persisted still in their cruelty towards their Chris- tian subjects, whom they robbed, plundered, maimed, or murdered in the most barbarous man- ner, and loaded with all sorts of injuries and ca- lamities. The Turks, on the other hand, not only reduced the Saracen dominion to very narrow bounds, but also seized upon the richest provinces of the Grecian empire, those fertile countries that lay upon the coasts of the Euxine sea, and sub-

to Plessis, Histoire de 1'Eglise de Meaux, torn. i. p. 120. and Lancelot, Memoires pour la Vie de 1'Abbe de St. Cyran, torn. ii. p. 175. Christ's handkerchief, which is worshipped at Be- zancon, was brought there from the holy land. See Jo. Jac. Chiflet, Visontio, part. II. p. 108. and De Linteis Christ! Se- pulchralibus, c. ix. p. 50. Many other examples of this mi- serable superstition may be seen in Anton. Mattha3i Analecta Veteris ^Evi, torn. ii. p. 677. — Jo. Mabillon, Annal. Bened. torn. vi. p. 52. and principally Chiflet's Crisis Historica de Linteis Christi Sepulchralibus, c. ix, x. p. 50. and also 59. where we find the following passage: " Sciendum est, vigenti immani et barbara Turcarum persecutione, et imminente Christiana religionis in Oriente naufragio, educta e sacrariis et per Christianos quovismodo recondita Ecclesiae pignora ...Hisce plane divinis opibus illecti prae aliis, Sacra Aefyam vi, quo pretio, a detinentibus hac iliac extorserunt."

CHAP. ii. Calamitous Events. 455

jected them to their yoke, while they improve- CENT. rished and exhausted the rest by perpetual incur- ,

• TIT i • P 1 "ART I.

sions, and by the most severe and unmerciful ex- __

actions. The Greeks were not able to oppose this impetuous torrent of prosperous ambition. Their force was weakened by intestine discords, and their treasures were exhausted to such a degree as ren- dered them incapable of raising new troops, or of paying the armies they had already in their service.

II. The Saracens in Spain opposed the progress And in the of the gospel in a different, yet still more perni- west?rn

fe 1 > J provinces.

clous, way. I hey used all sorts of methods to al- lure the Christians into the profession of Maho- metanism : alliances of marriage, advantageous contracts, flattering rewards, were employed to seduce them with too -much success ; for great numbers fell into these fatal snares, and aposta- tized from the truth (A). And these allurements would have, undoubtedly, still continued to seduce multitudes of Christians from the bosom of the church, had not the face of affairs been changed in Spain by the victorious arms of the kings of Arragon and Castile, and more especially Ferdi- nand I. ; for these princes, whose zeal for Chris- tianity was equal to their military courage, de- feated the Saracens in several battles, and deprived them of a great part of their territories and pos- sessions (/').

The number of those among the Danes, Hun- garians, and other European nations, who retained their prejudices in favour of the idolatrous religion of their ancestors, was as yet very considerable ;

(h) Jo. Henr. Hottingeri Histor. Ecclesiast. Saec. xi. § ii, p. 4*52. Michael Geddes' History of the Expulsion of the Moriscoes out of Spain, which is be found in the Miscellane- ous Tracts of that Author, torn. i. p. 104.

(i) For an account of these wars between the first Chris- tian kings of Spain and the Mahometans or Moors, see the Spanish histories of JTo, Mariana and Jo. Ferrera.

456 The External History of the Church.

CENTT. and they persecuted, with the utmost cruelty, the pAirr i neighbouring nations, and also such of their fellow-

citizens as had embraced the gospel. To put a stop to this barbarous persecution, Christian princes exerted their zeal in a terrible manner, proclaim- ing capital punishment against all who persisted in the worship of the pagan deities. This dread- ful severity contributed much more towards the extirpation of paganism than the exhortations and instructions of ignorant missionaries, who were unacquainted with the true nature of the gospel, and dishonoured its pure and holy doctrines by their licentious lives, and their superstitious prac- tices.

The Prussians, Lithuanians, Sclavonians, Obo- triti, and several other nations, who dwelt in the lower parts of Germany, and lay still groveling iu the darkness of paganism, continued to vex the Christians, who lived in their neighbourhood, by perpetual acts of hostility and violence, by fre- quent incursions into their territories, and by put- ting numbers of them to death in the most inhu- man manner

(k) Helmoldi Chron. Slavorum. lib. i. cap. xvi. p. 52.— Adam. Bremens. Histor. lib. ii. cap. xxvii.

457 PART II.

THE INTERNAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

CHAPTER I.

Concerning the State of Letters and Philosophy during this Century.

I. THE declining condition of the Grecian em- pire was fatal to the progress of letters and philo- sophy. Its glory and power diminished from day PART' IK

to day under the insults and usurpations of the

Turks and Saracens ; and while the empire suf- jjj^ing fered by these attacks from without, it was con- among the sumed gradually by the internal pestilence of civil Greeks* discord, by frequent seditions and conspiracies, and by those violent revolutions which shook from time to time the imperial throne, and were attended with the sudden fall and elevation of those that held the reigns of government (a). So many foreign invasions, so many internal troubles, so many emperors dethroned, deprived the political body of its strength and consistence, broke in upon the public order, rendered all things precarious, and dejecting the spirits of the nation, damped the fire of genius, and discouraged the efforts of literary ambition. There were, however, some emperors, such as Alexius Comnenus, who seemed to cherish and encourage the drooping sciences, and whose zeal was seconded by several prelates, who were .

(a) The sentence which begins with the words, so

many foreign, and ends with the words, literary ambition, is added by the translator to render the connexion with what follows more evident.

458

CENT. XI.

PART II

The princi- pal Greek writers.

Tlie state of letters in the west.

The Internal History of the Church.

willing to lend a supporting hand to the cause of letters. The controversies also that subsisted be- . tween the Greeks and Latins obliged the former, amidst all their disadvantages, to a certain degree of application to study, and prevented them from abandoning entirely the culture of the sciences. And hence it is, that we find among the Greeks of this century some writers, at least, who have deserved well of the republic of letters.

II. We pass in silence the poets, rhetoricians, and philologists of this century, who were neither highly eminent, nor absolutely contemptible. Among the writers of history, Leo the gramma- rian, John Scylizes, Cedrenus, and xa few others, deserve to be mentioned with a certain degree of approbation ; notwithstanding the partiality with which they are chargeable, and the zeal they dis- cover for many of the fabulous records of their nation. But the greatest ornament of the re- public of letters at this time was Michael Psellus, a man illustrious in every respect, and deeply versed in all the various kinds of erudition that were known in this age. This great man recommended warmly to his countrymen the study of philo- sophy, and particularly the system of Aristotle, which he embellished and illustrated in several learned and ingenious productions (&). If we turn our eyes towards the Arabians, we shall find that they still retained a high degree of zeal for the culture of the sciences ; as appears evidently from the number of physicians, mathematicians, and astronomers, who flourished among them in this century(c).

III. The arts and sciences seemed, in some measure, to revive in the west, among the clergy,

(5) Leo Allatius, Diatriba De Psellis, p. 14. edit. Fabricii. (c) Elmacini Historia Saracen, p. 281. — Jo. Henr. Hot- tingeri Histor. Eccles. Saec. xi, p. 449.

CHAP. i. Learning and Philosophy. 459

at least, and the monastic orders ; they were not, CENT.

A zv. PART II.

indeed, cultivated by any other set of men, and

the nobility, if we except such of them as were designed to fill certain ecclesiastical dignities, or had voluntarily devoted themselves to a religious solitude, treated all sorts of learning and erudi- tion with indifference and contempt. The schools of learning flourished in several parts of Italy about the year 1050 ; and of the Italian doctors, who acquired a name by their writings or their academical lessons, several removed afterwards into France, and particularly into Nonnandy, where they instructed the youth who had consecrated themselves to the service of the church (cT). The French also, though they acknowledge their obli- gations to the learned Italians who settled in their provinces, yet give us, at the same time, a con- siderable list of their countrymen, who, with- out any foreign succours, cultivated the sciences, and contributed not a little to the advancement of letters in this century ; they mention also several schools erected in different parts of that kingdom, which were in the highest reputation, both on account of the fame of their masters, and the multitude of disciples that resorted to them (e). And, indeed, it is certain, beyond all contradic- tion, that the liberal arts and sciences were culti- vated in France, which abounded with learned men, while the greatest part of Italy lay as yet covered with a thick cloud of ignorance and dark- ness. For Robert, king of France, son and suc- cessor of Hugh Capet, disciple of the famous

(c?) See Muratori, Antiquitates Ital. Medii ^Evi, torn. iii. p. 871. — Giannone, Histoire de Naples, torn. ii. p. 148.

(«?) Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. vii. at the Intro- duction.—Du Boulay, Hist. Academ. Paris, torn. i. p. 355.— Le Boouf, Diss. sur 1'Etat des Sciences en France depuis la Mort du Roi Robert, which is published among his Dis- sertations sur 1'Histoire Ecclesiastique et Civile de Paris, torn. ii. part. I.

460 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. Gerbert, afterwards Sylvester II. and the great PART ii Protector °f the sciences, and friend of the learned,

1 reigned so early as the year 1031 (/), and

exerted upon all occasions the most ardent zeal for the restoration of letters ; nor were his gene- rous efforts without success (g). The provinces of Sicily, Apulia, Calabria, and other south- ern parts of Italy, were indebted, for the intro- duction of the sciences among them, to the Nor- mans, who became their masters, and who brought with them from France the knowledge of letters to a people that sat benighted in the darkest ignorance. To the Normans also was due the restoration of letters in England. William the Conqueror, a prince of uncommon sagacity and genius, and the great Maecenas of his time, upon his accession to the throne of England in the year 1066, engaged, by the most alluring solicitations, a considerable number of learned men from Nor- mandy, and other countries, to settle in his new dominions, and exerted his most zealous endea- vours to dispel that savage ignorance, that is al- ways a source of innumerable evils (Ji). The re- ception of Christianity had polished and civilized, in an extraordinary manner, the rugged minds of the valiant Normans ; for those fierce warriors, who, under the darkness of paganism, had mani- fested the utmost aversion to all branches of know- ledge and every kind of instruction, distinguished themselves, after their conversion, by their ardent

fjjjj* (/) Robert died in the year 1031, after a reign of thirty-five years.

(g) Daniel, Histoire de la France, torn. iii. p. 58. — Du Boulay, Hist. Academ. Paris, torn. i. p. 636, et passim.

(K) See Hist. Litter, de la France, torn. viii. p. 1/1. — " The English," says Matthew Paris, " were so illiterate and ignorant before the time of William the Conqueror, that a man who understood the principles of grammar was uni- versally looked upon as a prodigy of learning.*'

CHAP. i. Learning and Philosophy. 461

application to the study of religion and the pur- CENT. suit of learning.

IV. This vehement desire of knowledge, that

increased from day to day, and became, at length, Schools

-. . • /» ,1 T -i-< opened in

the predominant passion of the politest .European severai nations, produced many happy effects. To it, Places- more particularly, we must attribute the consi- derable number of public schools that were opened in various places, and the choice of more able and eminent masters than those who had formerly presided in the seminaries of learning. Towards the conclusion of the preceding age, there were no schools in Europe but those which belonged to monasteries, or episcopal residences, nor were there any other masters, except the Benedictine monks, to instruct the youth in the principles of sacred and profane erudition. But, not long after the commencement of this century, the face of things was totally changed, and that in a manner the most advantageous to the cause of letters. In many cities of France and Italy, learned men, both among the clergy and laity, undertook the weighty and important charge of instructing the youth, and succeeded much better in this worthy undertaking than the monks had done ; not only by comprehending in their course of instruction more branches of knowledge than the monastic doctors were acquainted with, but also by teach- ing in a better method, and with more perspi- cuity and success, many of the same branches of science, which the others had taught before them. The most eminent of these new masters were such as had either travelled into Spain with a view to study in the schools of the Saracens (which was extremely customary in this age among those that were ambitious of a distinguished reputation for wisdom and knowledge), or had improved their stock of erudition and philo- sophy by a diligent and attentive perusal of the

46£ The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, writings of the Arabians, of which a great num- p ART" ii ^er were translated into Latin. For with these 1 foreign succours they were enabled to teach phi- losophy, mathematics, physic, astronomy, and the other sciences that are connected with them, in a much more learned and solid manner than the monks, or such as had received their education from them alone. The school of Salernum, in the kingdom of Naples, was renowned above all others for the study of physic in this century, and vast numbers crowded thither from all the pro- vinces of Europe to receive instruction in the art of healing: but the medical precepts which ren- dered the doctors of Salernum so famous were all derived from the writings of the Arabians, or from the schools of the Saracens in Spain and Africa (t). It was also from the schools and writ- ings of the Arabian sages that the absurd and puerile tricks of divination, and the custom of foretelling future events from the position of the stars, the features of the face, and the lines of the hand, derived their origin. These ridiculous practices, proceeding from so respectable a source, and moreover adapted to satisfy the idle curiosity of impatient mortals, were carried on in all the European nations ; and in process of time the pretended sciences of astrology and divi- nation acquired the highest reputation and au- thority.

The sci- V. The seven liberal arts, as they were now wre'uught styled, were taught in the greatest part of the in these schools that were erected in this century for the schools. education of youth. The first stage of these sci- ences was grammar, which was followed succes-

(i) Muratori, Antiq. Ital. torn. iii. p. 935. — Giannonc, Hist, de Naples, torn. ii. p. 151. — Freind's History of Physic.— It is well known that the famous precepts of the school of Salernum, for the preservation of health, were composed in this century, at the request of the king of England.

CHAP. i. Learning and Philosophy. 463

sively by rhetoric and logic. When the disciple, CENT.

ILL,

PART II.

having learned these three branches, which were

generally known by the name of trivium, extended his ambition farther, and was desirous of new im- provement in the sciences, he was conducted slowly through the quadrivium (/«?) to the very summit of literary fame. But this method of teaching, which had been received in all the western schools, was considerably changed towards the latter end of this century. For as the science of logic, under which metaphysics were in part comprehended, received new degrees of perfection from the deep meditations and the assiduous industry of certain acute thinkers, and was taught with more detail and subtilty than in former times, the greatest part of the studious youth became so enamoured of this branch of philosophy, as to abandon gram- mar, rhetoric, and all the other liberal arts, that they might consecrate their whole time to the dis- cussion of logical questions, and the pursuit of metaphysical speculations. Nor was this surpris- ing, when we consider, that, according to the opinion which now prevailed in the republic of letters, a man who was well versed in dialectics, i. e. in logical and metaphysical knowledge, was reputed sufficiently learned, and was supposed to stand in need of no other branches of erudition (/). Hence that contempt of languages and eloquence,

^g° (k) The trivium was a term invented in the times of barbarism to express the three sciences that were first learned in the schools, viz. Grammar, rhetoric, and logic; and the schools, in which these sciences alone were taught, were called triviales. The quadriviugi comprehended the four mathemati- cal sciences, viz. arithmetic, music, geometry, and astronomy.

(/) See Boulay, Hist. Acad. Paris, torn. i. p. 408, 409. 51 Ij 512. — This is too likely to become the prevailing taste even in our times : but it is an ancient taste, as we may easily perceive by casting an eye upon the literary history of the ele- venth century. And to confirm still farther the truth of that vulgar saying, that there is nothing new under the sun, we shall

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, of the more elegant sciences, and the finer arts, PART' ii wn^cn spread its baneful influence through the

1 Latin provinces ; and hence that barbarism and

pedantic sophistry that dishonoured, in succeeding ages, the republic of letters, and corrupted, in a most hideous manner, the noble simplicity of true theology, and the purest systems of philosophical wisdom.

Dialectic VI. The philosophy of the Latins, in this cen- or logic in tury, was absolutely confined within the circle of

high repute. / ' ., J , , ., , . ,

dialects ; while the other philosophical sciences were scarcely known by name(w). This dialectic,

quote the following passage from the Metalogicum of John of Salisbury, a writer of no mean abilities, lib. i. cap. iii. p. 741. edit. Lugdun. Bat. 1639. "Poeta?, Historiographi, habeban- tur infames, et si quis incumbebat laboribus antiquorum, no- tabatur ut non modo asello Arcadiae tardior, sed obtusior plumbo vel lapide, omnibus erat in risum. — Suis enim, aut magistri sui, quisquis incumbebat inventis. — Fiebant ergo summi repente philosophi : nam qui illiteratus accesserat, fere non morabatur in scholis ulterius quam eo curriculo temporis, quo avium pulli plumescunt. — Sed quid docebant novi doc- tores, et qui plus somniorum quam vigiliarum in scrutinio philosophise consumserant ? Ecce nova fiebant omnia : inno- vabatur grammatica, immutabatur dialectica, contemnebatur rhetorica, et novas totius quadrivii vias, evacuatis priorum regulis, de ipsius philosophise adytis proferebant. Solam con- venientiam, sive rationem loquebantur, argumentum sonabat in ore omnium — ac ineptum nimis aut rude et a philosopho alienum, impossibile credebatur convenienter et ad rationis normam quicquam dicere aut facere, nisi convenientis et rationis mentio expressim erat inserta." Many more pass- ages of this nature are to be found in this author.

(m) We shall, indeed, find many, in the records of this century, honoured with the title of Philosopher. Thus we hear of Manegoldus the Philosopher, Adalardus the Phi- losopher, &c. But we must not attribute to the term philo- sopher, when applied to these grammarians, the sense which it bore among the ancient Greeks and Latins, and which it still bears in our times. In the style of, what we call, the middle age, every man of learning, of whatever kind his erudition might be, was called a philosopher, and this title was also given to the interpreters of scripture, though that set of men were, generally speaking, destitute of true philosophy. See the

CHAP. I. Learning and Philosophy. 465

indeed, was miserably dry and barren, as long as CENT. it was drawn from no other source than the ten PART'jr categories falsely attributed to St. Augustin, or from the explications of the Aristotelian philo- sophy, composed by Porphyry and Averroes. These, however, were the only guides which the schools had to follow in the beginning of this century ; nor had the public teachers either ge- nius or courage enough to enlarge the system, or to improve upon the principles of these dictators in philosophy, whose authority was treated as in- fallible, and their productions, for a long time, regarded as perfect, to the great detriment of true science. But, about the year 1050, the face of philosophy began to change, and the science of logic assumed a new aspect. This revolution began in France, where several of the books of Aristotle had been brought from the schools of the Saracens in Spain, and it was effected by a set of men highly renowned for their abilities and ge- nius, such as Berenger, Roscellinus, Hildebert, and after them by Gilbert de la Porre, the famous Abelard, and others. These eminent logicians, though they followed the Stagirite as their guide, took, nevertheless, the liberty to illustrate and model anew his philosophy, and to extend it far beyond its ancient limits.

VII. The philosophers of this age, who were most famous for their zealous and successful en- deavours to improve the science of logic, and ac- commodate it to general use, were Lanfranc, an Italian by birth, who was abbot of St. Stephens at Caen in Normandy, and was called from thence,

Chronicon Salernitanum in Muratorii Scriptor. Rerum ItaKcar. torn. ii. part. II. cap. cxxiv. p. 265. where we are told, that in the tenth century, in which the sciences were almost totally extinguished in Italy, there were thirty-two philosophers at Benevento. We learn, however, by what follows, that these philosophers were partly grammarians, and partly persons who were more or less versed in certain liberal arts. VOL. II. H H

466 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, by William the Conqueror to the see of Canter- PART'H bury, Anselm his successor, and Odo, whose last ' promotion was the bishopric of Cambray. Lan- franc was so deeply versed in this science, that he was commonly called the Dialectician ; and he employed with great dexterity the subtilties of logic in the controversy which was carried on between him and the learned Berenger, against whom he maintained the real presence of Christ's body and blood in the holy sacrament. Anselm, in a very learned dialogue De Grammatico, throws much light upon the darkness and perplexity in which the science of logic had lain so long in- volved ; and, among other things, investigates, with no small sagacity, the nature of substance, and mode or quality, in order to convey juster no- tions of these metaphysical entities than had been hitherto entertained (n). This great prelate, who shone with a distinguished lustre in several branches of literature, both sacred and profane, was the first of the Latin doctors who dispelled the clouds of ignorance and obscurity that hung over the important sciences of metaphysic and na- tural theology, as appears from two books of his composition, wherein the truths concerning the Deity, which are deducible from the mere light of nature, are enumerated and explained with a degree of sagacity, which could not well be ex- pected from a writer of this century. He was the inventor of that famous argument, vulgarly and erroneously attributed to Descartes, which demonstrates the existence of God from the idea of an infinitely perfect Being naturally implanted in the mind of man, and which is to be found, without exception, in the breast of every mortal. The solidity of this argument was, indeed, called

(n) This dialogue is to be found in the works of Anselm? published by father Gerberon, torn. i. p. 143.

CHAP. i. Learning and Philosophy. 467

* i*

in question, almost as soon as it was proposed, by CENT. Gaunilo, a French monk, whose objections were answered by Anselm, in a treatise professedly written for that purpose (o). Odo, the third re- storer of logic, whom we mentioned above, taught that science with the greatest applause, and illus- trated it in three learned productions, which have not survived the ruins of time (p).

VIII. The restoration of logic was immediately Disputes followed by a vehement dispute between its re- ^"faa storers and patrons, concerning the object of that Nominal! science ; such was the term employed by the con- Res;uas"sd. tending parties. This controversy, which was long agitated in the schools, was in its nature ex-

(o) Gaunilo's Treatise is to be found in the works of An- selm, with the answer of that learned prelate, ggj* As Anselm makes such a shining figure in the literary history of England, it will not be improper to add here a more ample account of his character and writings than that which is given by Dr. Mosheim. His life and manners were without re* proach, though his spiritual ambition exposed him }ustly to censure. His works are divided into three parts. The first contains his dogmatical tracts, and begins with a discourse concerning the Existence of God, the Divine Attributes, and the Trinity. This discourse is called Monologia, because it is drawn up in the form of a soliloquy. In this first part of the works of Anselm, there are many curious researches upon subjects of a very difficult and mysterious nature, such as the Fall of Satan, the Reason why God created Man, the Doc- trine of Original Sin, and the Manner of its Communication to Adam's Posterity, the Liberty of the Will, and the Con- sistency of Freedom with the Divine Prescience. The second and third parts of the writings of this eminent prelate contain his practical and devotional performances, such as Homilies, Poems, Prayers, &c. and his Letters, which are divided into four books.

(p) The titles of these three treatises are as follows, De Sophista, De Complexionibus, DeReetEnte. The learned Heriman, in his Narratio Restaurationis Abbatiae Sti. Martini Tornacensis, which is published in Dacherius' Spicilegium Scriptor. Veter. torn. ii. p. 889. speaks of Odo in the follow- ing honourable manner : ' < Cum Odo septem liberalium artium esset peritus, prsecipue tamen in dialectica eminebat, et pro ipsa maxime clericorum frequentia eum expetebat."

H H 2

'

468 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, tremely trivial and unimportant ; but, considered in its consequences, it became a very serious and weighty affair : since the disputants on both sides made use of their respective opinions in explain- ing the doctrines of religion, and reciprocally loaded each other with the most odious invectives and the most opprobrious accusations. In one point only they were unanimous, acknowledging that logic or dialectic had for its essential object the consideration of universals in their various re- lations and points of comparison, since particular and individual things, being liable to change, could not be the objects of a sure and immutable science. But the great question was, whether these universals, which came within the sphere of logical inquiries, belonged to the class of real things, or to that of mere denominations? One set of these subtile disputants maintained, that univer- sals were undoubted realities, and supported their hypothesis by the authority of Plato, Boetius, and other ancient sages ; the other affirmed, that they were mere words and outward denominations, and pleaded in behalf of their cause the respect- able suffrages of Aristotle and Porphyry. The former were called Realists, on account of their doctrine, and the latter Nominalists, for the same reason. Each of the contending parties were, in process of time, subdivided into various sects, on account of the different ways in which many ex- plained the doctrine that was the badge and cha- racteristic of their sect (^). This controversy

(q} The learned Brucker, in his Historia Critica Philoso- phise, torn. iii. p. 904". gives an ample account of the sect of the Nominalists, and enlarges a good deal upon the nature and circumstances of this logical contest : he also mentions the various writers, who have made this sect and its doctrine the object of their researches. Among these writers, the princi- pal was John Salabert, presbyter in the diocese of Agen, who published at Paris, in the year 1651, in Svo. a treatise en-

CHAP. i. Learning and Philosophy. 469

made a prodigious noise in all the schools through- CENT. out Europe during many succeeding ages, and produced often unhappy contentions and animosi- ties between philosophers and divines. Some are of opinion, that it derived its origin from the dis- putes that were carried on between Berenger and his adversaries, concerning the eucharist (r) ; a notion which, though it be advanced without au- thority, is yet by no means destitute of probability, since the hypothesis of the Nominalists might be very successfully employed in defending the doc- trine of Berenger, concerning the sacrament of the Lord's Supper.

IX. The sect of the Nominalists had for their chief a certain person called John, who, on ac- count of his logical subtilty, was surnamed the Sophist, which is the only circumstance we know of his history («s). His principal disciples were

titled Philosophia Nominalium Vindicata. This book, which is extremely rare, has been seen by none of the authors who have written professedly concerning the sect of the Nominal- ists. A copy of it, taken from a manuscript in the French king's library, was communicated to me, from which it ap- pears, that Salabert, who was certainly a very acute and in- genious logician, employed his labour rather in defending the doctrine of the Nominalists, than in giving an accurate ac- count of their sect. There are, however, several things to be found in his book, which are far from being generally known, even among the learned,

(r) Du Boulay, Histor. Acad. Paris, torn. i. p. 443. — Gerh. du Bois, Histor. Ecclesias. Paris, torn. i. p. 770.

(s) This account we have from the unknown author of the Fragmentum Historiae Francicae a Roberto rege ad mortem Philippi I. which is published in Du Chesne's Scriptores Historiae Francicae, torn. iv. p. 90. whose words are as follows : " In Dialectica hi potentes extiterunt Sophistse, Johannes, qui artem Sophisticam vocalem esse disseruit," &c. — Du Boulay (Hist. Academ. Paris, torn. i. p. 44-3. et 612). con- jectures that this John the Sophist was the same person with John of Chartres, surnamed the Deaf, who was first physi- cian to Henry I. king of France, and had acquired a great degree of renown by his genius and erudition. The same author (p. 377). tells us, that John had for his master Gi-

470

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. Robert of Paris, Roscelin of Compeigne, and PART ii. Arnoul of Laon, who propagated his doctrine

with industry and success, to whom we may add,

with some probability, Raimbert, the master of a famous school at Lisle in Flanders, who is said, according to the quibbling humour of the times, to have read nominal logic to his disciples, while Odo, whom we have already had occasion to men- tion, instructed his scholars in reality (/). The most renowned of all the nominal philosophers of this age was Roscelin ; and hence it is that many have considered him as the chief and founder of that sect, and that he is still considered as such by several learned men.

CHAPTER II.

Concerning the Doctors and Ministers of the Church, and its Form of Government during this Century.

The cor. I. ALL the records of this century loudly com- thfciergy. plain of the vices that reigned among the rulers of the church, and, in general, among all the sacerdotal orders ; they also deplore that universal decay of piety and discipline, that was the consequence of this corruption in a set of men, who were bound to

raldus of Orleans, who was an incomparable poet, and an ex- cellent rhetorician, but he advances this without any proof. Mabillon, on the other hand, in his Annal. Benedict, torn. v. lib. Ixvii. sect. Ixxviii. p. 261. supposes, that John the Nomi- nalist was the same person who made known to Anselm the error of Roscelinus concerning the Three Persons in the Godhead.

(#) The passage in the original is : " Qui dialecticam cle- ricis suis in voce legebat, quum Odo in re discipulis legeret." See Herimannus, Histor. Restaurationis Monasterii Sti. Marr tini Tornacens. in Dacherii Spicilegio Veter. Scriptor. torn, ii. p. 889.

CHAP. ii. Jj >ctors, Church-Government, &c.

support, by their example, their authority, and CENT. their instructions, the sacred interests of religion PA*T* n

and virtue. The western bishops were no sooner

elevated to the rank of dukes, counts, and nobles, and enriched with ample territories, than they gave themselves up entirely to the dominion of pleasure and ambition, and wholly employed in displaying the magnificence of their temporal sta- tions, frequented the courts of princes, accom- panied always with a splendid train of attendants and domestics (u). The inferior orders of the clergy were also licentious in their own way ; few among them preserved any remains of piety and virtue, we might add, of decency and discretion. While their rulers were wallowing in luxury, and basking in the beams of worldly pomp and splen- dour, they were indulging themselves, without the least sense of shame, in fraudulent practices, in impure and lascivious gratifications, and even in the commission of the most flagitious crimes. The Grecian clergy were somewhat less chargeable with these shocking irregularities, as the calamities un- der which their country groaned imposed a re- straint upon their passions, and gave a check to their licentiousness. Yet, notwithstanding these salutary restraints, there were few examples of piety and virtue to be found among them.

II. The authority and lustre of the Latin r^Q.™~

, , ,J thonty of

church, or, to speak more properly, the power the Roman and dominion of the Roman pontiffs, arose in this Pontiff; century to the highest period, though they arose by degrees, and had much opposition and many difficulties to conquer. In the preceding age the

(M) See among other examples of this episcopal grandeur, that of Adalbert, in Adam. Bremens. lib.iii. cap. xxiii. p. 38. lib. iv. cap. xxxv. p. 52. that of Gunther, in the Lectiones Antiquse of Canisius, torn. iii. part. I. p. 185. and that of Ma- nasses, in the Museum Italicum of Mabillon, torn. i. p. 114. Add to all these Muratorii Antiq. Ital. Medii ^vi, torn. vi. p. 72.

472 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, pontiffs had acquired a great degree of authority PAR-T'II *n religi°us matters, and in every thing that re-

1 lated to the government of the church ; and their

credit and influence increased prodigiously towards the commencement of this century. For then they received the pompous titles of masters of the world, and popes, i. e. universal fathers ; they presided also every where in the councils by their legates ; assumed the authority of supreme arbiters in all controversies that arose concerning religion or church discipline ; and maintained the pretended rights of the church against the encroachments and usurpations of kings and princes. Their authority, however, was confined within certain limits ; for, on the one hand, it was restrained by sovereign princes, that it might not arro- gantly aim at civil dominion ; and on the other, it was opposed by the bishops themselves, that it might not arise to a spiritual despotism, and utterly destroy the liberty and privileges of sy- nods and councils (w). From the time of Leo IX. the popes employed every method which the most artful ambition could suggest, to remove these limits, and to render their dominion both de- spotic and universal. They not only aspired to the character of supreme legislators in the church, to an unlimited jurisdiction over all synods and councils, whether general or provincial, to the sole distribution of all ecclesiastical honours and benefices as divinely authorised and appointed for that purpose, but they carried their insolent pretensions so far as to give themselves out for

(w) The very learned Launoy (in his Assertio contra Pri- vilegium Sti. Medardi, part. II. cap. xxxi. opp. torn. iii. part. II. p. 307), has given us an accurate account of the ecclesi- astical laws, and of the power of the hierarchy, during this century, which he collected from the letters of Pope Gre- gory VII. from which account it appears, that Gregory, am- bitious as he was, did not pretend to a supreme and despotic authority in the church.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 473

lords of the universe, arbiters of the fate of king- CENT.

XI.

PART II.

doms and empires, and supreme rulers over the

kings and princes of the earth. Before Leo IX. no pope was so enormously impudent as to claim this unbounded authority, or to assume the power of transferring territories and provinces from their lawful possessors to new masters. This pontiff gave the example of such an amazing pretension to his holy successors, by granting to the Nor- mans, who had settled in Italy, the lands and ter- ritories which they had already usurped, or were employed in forcing out of the hands of the Greeks and Saracens (#). The ambition, however, of the aspiring popes was opposed by the emperors, the king of France, by William the Conqueror, who was now seated on the throne of England, and was the boldest assertor of the rights and pri- vileges of royalty against the high claims of the apostolic see ( y\ and also by several other princes.

(x} See Gaufr. Malaterra Hist. Sicula, lib. i. cap. xiv. p. 553. torn. v. Scriptor. Ital. Muratorii. ^g° The translator has here incorporated the note (s) of the original into the text.

(«/) See Eadmeri Historia Novorum, lib. i. p. 29., which is published at the end of the works of Anselm, archbishop of Canterbury, It is proper to observe here, that if it is true on the one hand, that William the Conqueror opposed, on many occasions, with the utmost vehemence and zeal, the growing power of the Roman pontiffs, and of the aspiring bishops ; it is no less certain, on the other, that, to accomplish his ambi- tious views, he, like many other European princes, had re- course to the influence of the pontiffs upon the minds of the multitude, and thereby nourished and encouraged the pride and ambition of the court of Rome. For while he was prepar- ing all things for his expedition into England, he sent ambas- sadors to Pope Alexander II., " in order (as Matthew Paris says, Hist. Major, lib. i. p. 2.) to have his undertaking ap- proved and justified by apostolical authority; and the pope having considered the claims of the contending parties, sent a STANDARD to William as the omen of his approaching royalty." It is highly probable, that the Normans in Italy had made the same humble request to Leo IX., and demanded his confirma-

474 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. Nor did the bishops, particularly those of France PART ii an^ Germany, sit tamely silent under the papal

1 yoke ; many of them endeavoured to maintain

their rights arid the privileges of the church : but as many seduced by the allurements of interest or the dictates of superstition, sacrificed their liber- ties, and yielded to the pontiffs ; hence it hap- pened, that these imperious lords of the church, though they did not entirely gain their point, nor satisfy to the full their raging ambition, yet ob- tained vast augmentations of power, and extended their authority from day to day.

III. The see of Rome, after the death of Syl- vester II. which happened in the year 1003, was filled successively by John XVII. John XVIII. and Sergius IV. none of whose pontificates were distinguished by any memorable events ; it is, however, proper to observe, that these three popes were confirmed in the see of Rome by the approbation and authority of the emper- ors under whose reign they were elected to that high dignity. Benedict VIII. who was raised to the pontificate in the year 1012, being obliged by his competitor Gregory to leave Rome, fled into Germany for succour, and threw himself at the feet of Henry II. by whom he was reinstated in the apostolic chair, which he possessed in peace until the year 1024. It was during his pontificate, that those famous Nor- mans, who make such a shining figure in history, came into Italy, and reduced several of its richest provinces under their dominion. Benedict was succeeded by his brother John XIX. who ruled

tion both of the possessions they had acquired, and of those they designed to usurp. And when we consider all this, it will not appear so surprising that the popes aimed at universal empire, since they were encouraged to this by the mean sub- missions and servile homage of the European princes.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 475

the church until the year 1033. The five pontiffs CENT. we have now been mentioning were not charge- p/VRTl*II

able with dishonouring their high station by that !

licentiousness and immorality that rendered so many of their successors infamous ; their lives were virtuous ; at least their conduct was de- cent. But their examples had little effect upon Benedict IX. a most abandoned profligate, and a wretch capable of the most horrid crimes, whose flagitious conduct drew upon him the just resent- ment of the Romans, who in the year 1038 de- graded him from his office. He was afterwards indeed restored, by the emperor Conrad, to the papal chair; but instead of learning circumspec- tion and prudence from his former disgrace, he grew still more scandalous in his life and man- ners, and so provoked the Roman people by his repeated crimes, that they deposed him a second time, A. D. 1044, and elected in his place John, bishop of Sabina, who assumed the name of Syl- vester III. About three months after this new revolution, the relations and adherents of Bene- dict rose up in arms, drove Sylvester out of the city, and restored the degraded pontiff to his forfeited honours, which, however, he did not enjoy long ; for perceiving that there was no possibility of appeasing the resentment of the Ro- mans, he sold the pontificate to John Gratian, arch-presbyter of Rome, who took the name of Gregory VI. Thus the church had, at the same time, two chiefs, Sylvester and Gregory, whose rivalry was the occasion of much trouble and confusion. This contest was terminated in the year 1046, in the council held at Sutri by the emperor Henry III. who so ordered matters, that Benedict, Gregory, and Sylvester were de- clared unworthy of the pontificate, and Suid- ger, bishop of Bamberg, was raised to that dig-

476 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, nity, which he enjoyed for a short time under the PART ii title of Clement II. (*)•

_ IV. After the death of Clement II. which

happened in the year 1047, Benedict IX. though twice degraded, aimed anew at the papal dig- nity, and accordingly forced himself into St. Peter's chair for the third time. But the year following he was obliged to surrender the ponti- ficate to Poppo, bishop of Brixen, known by the name of Damasus II. whom Henry II. elected pope in Germany, and sent from thence into Italy to take possession of that dignity. Upon the death of Damasus, who ruled the see of Rome but three and twenty days, the same emperor, in the diet held at Worms, A. D. 1048, appointed Bruno, bishop of Toul, to succeed him in the pontificate. This prelate is known in the list of the popes by the name of Leo IX. and his pri- vate virtues, as well as his public acts of zeal and piety in the government of the church, were deemed meritorious enough to entitle him to a place among the saintly order. But if we deduce from these pretended virtues his vehement zeal for augmenting the opulence and authority of the church of Rome, and his laudable severity in cor- recting and punishing certain enormous vices (#), which were common among the clergy during his

(z) In this compendious account of the popes, I have fol- lowed the relations of Francis and Anthony Pagi, Papebrock, and also those of Muratori, in his Annaies Italias, persuaded that the learned and judicious reader will justify my treating with the utmost contempt what Baronius and others have alleged in favour of Gregory VI.

j^g^ (a) In several councils which he assembled in Italy, France, and Germany, he proposed rigorous laws against simony, sodomy, incestuous and adulterous marriages, the custom of carrying arms that was grown universal among the clergy ; the apostasy of the monks, who abandoned their habit and renounced their profession, &c.

CHAP. ir. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 477

pontificate, there will remain little in the life and CENT. administration of this pontiff, that could give him

\ -,. ^ A. 1Attl

any pretension to such a distinction, it is, at least, certain, that many, who industriously con- ceal or excuse the numerous infirmities and fail- ings of the pontiffs, censure, with the utmost free- dom, the temerity and injustice of the measures he took towards the conclusion of his days. Such, among others, was the war which he inconsider- ately entered into, in the year 1053, with the Normans, whose neighbourhood he did not like, and whom he was grieved to see in the possession of Apulia. His temerity, indeed, was severely punished by the issue of this war, from which he derived the bitterest fruits, being taken prisoner by the enemy, and led captive to Benevento. Here dismal reflections upon his unhappy fate preyed upon his spirits, and threw him into a dangerous fit of sickness ; so that after a year's imprisonment he was sent to Rome, where he concluded his days on the 19th of April, A. D. 1054 (6).

V. After the death of Leo the papal chair was filled, in the year 1055, by Gebhard, bishopv of Eichstadt, who assumed the name of Victor II. and after governing the church about three years, was succeeded by Stephen IX., brother to God- frey, duke of Lorrain, who died a few months after his election. Nothing memorable happened under the administration of these two pontiffs. Gerrard, bishop of Florence, who obtained the papacy, A. D. 1058, and took the name of Ni- colas II., makes a greater figure in history than several of his predecessors (c). We pass in silence

(b) See the Acta Sanctorum ad d. xix. Aprilis, torn. iii. p. 64*2. — Hist. Litteraire de la France, torn. vii. p. 459. — Gian- none, Hist, de Naples, torn. ii. p. 52.

(c) Besides the accounts given of Nicolas II. by the writers of the papal history, there is a particular and accurate history of this pontiff drawn up by the Benedictine monks,, in the Hist. Litter, de la France, torn. vii. p. 515.

PART

478 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. John, bishop of Veletri, who usurped the ponti- ficate, as also the title of Benedict X. after the . death of Stephen, and who was deposed with ignominy, after having possessed about nine months the dignity, to which he had no other title, than what he derived from lawless violence. Nicolas, upon the removal of this usurper, as- sembled a council at Rome, A. D. 1059, in which, among many salutary laws designed to heal the inveterate disorders that had afflicted the church, one remarkable decree was passed for changing the ancient form of electing the Roman pontiff; this alteration was designed to prevent the tu- mults and commotions which arose in Rome, and the factions which divided Italy, when a new pope was to be elected. The same pontiff received the homage of the Normans, and solemnly created Robert Guiscard duke of Apulia, Calabria, and Sicily, on condition that he should observe, as a faithful vassal, an inviolable allegiance to the Ro- man church, and pay an annual tribute in ac- knowledgment of his subjection to the apostolic see. By what authority Nicolas confirmed the Norman prince in the possession of these pro- vinces, is more than we know; certain it is, that he had no sort of property in the lands which he granted so liberally to the Normans, who held them already by the odious right of conquest (d). Perhaps the lordly pontiff founded this right of cession upon the fictitious donation of Constan- tine, which has been already taken notice of in the course of this history ; or, probably, seduced by the artful and ambitious suggestions of Hil- debrand, who had himself an eye upon the pon- tificate, and afterwards filled it, in effect, under the adopted name of Gregory VII. he imagined

(d) See Muratori Annali d'ltalia, torn. vi. p. 186. — Baro- nius, Annal. ad a. 1060.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 479

that, as Christ's vicegerent, the Roman pontiff CENT. was the king of kings, and had the whole uni- PART"IIa

verse for his domain. It is well known that Hil- — ,

debrand had a supreme ascendant in the coun- sels of Nicolas, and that the latter neither under- took nor executed any thing without his direc- tion. Be that as it may, it was the feudal grant made to Guiscard by this pope, that laid the foundation of the kingdom of Naples, or of the two Sicilies, and of the sovereignty over that kingdom which the Roman pontiffs constantly claim, and which the Sicilian monarchs annually acknowledge.

VI. Before the pontificate of Nicolas II., the The p™- popes were chosen not only by the suffrages of Snaisthe the cardinals, but also by those of the whole ™ the elec- Roman clergy, the nobility, the burgesses, and the ° assembly of the people. An election, in which such a confused and jarring multitude was con- cerned, could not but produce continual factions, animosities, and tumults. To prevent these, as far as was possible, this artful and provident pon- tiff had a law passed, by which the cardinals, as well presbyters as bishops, were empowered, upon a vacancy in the see of Rome, to elect a new pope, without any prejudice to the ancient privileges of the Roman emperors in this important mat- ter (e). Nor were the rest of the clergy, with the

_ (<?) It does not appear that Nicolas was at all soli- citous about the privileges of the emperor, and his authority in the election of the bishop of Rome ; for the words of the decree in all the various copies of it are to this import: " The cardinals shall first deliberate concerning the election of a pontiff, and the consent of the other clergy and of the people shall be required to confirm their choice. The pope shall be chosen out of the members that compose the church of Rome, if a proper person can be found among them : if not, he shall be elected elsewhere. All this without any prejudice to the honour of our dear son Henry (who is now king, and shall be soon emperor, as we have already promised

480 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, burgesses and people, excluded from all part in ,AXI* this election, since their consent was solemnly de-

'. manded, and also esteemed of much weight (jf).

In consequence, however, of this new regulation, the cardinals acted the principal part in the crea- tion of the new pontiff; though they suffered for

him), or to the honour of his successors on whom the apostolic see shall confer personally and successively the same high pri- vilege." Here we see the good pontiff taking manifestly advan- tage of the minority of Henry IV. to depreciate and diminish the ancient prerogatives of the imperial crown, and to magnify the authority of the papal mitre; for he declares as a personal right granted by the Roman see to each emperor for himself, the privilege of confirming the pope's election ; whereas it is well known that that privilege had been vested in the em- perors of Germany during many preceding ages. See Fleury, Eccles. Hist. vol. xiii. livre Ix. p. 64, 65. Brussels edition. — It is proper to observe here, that the cringing and ignoble submission of Charles the Bald, who would not accept of the title of emperor before it was conferred upon him by the Ro- man pontiff, occasioned, in process of time, that absurd no- tion, that the papal consecration was requisite in order to qualify the kings of Germany to assume the title of Roman emperors, though, without that consecration, these kings had all Italy under their dominion, and exercised in every part of it the various rights and prerogatives of sovereignty. Hence the kings of Germany were first styled kings of the Franks and Lombards, afterwards kings of the Romans until the year 1508, when Maximilian I. changed the title of king into that of emperor.

(/") The decree of Nicolas concerning the election of the Roman pontiff is to be found in many authors, and particu- larly in the Concilia. But upon comparing together several copies of this famous decree, I found them in many respects very different from each other. In some copies the decree appears abridged ; in others it is long and prolix. In some it seems favourable to the rights and privileges of the Roman emperors ; in others, it appears to have the contrary ten- dency. The most ample copy is that which we find in the Chronicon Farfense in Muratori's Scriptores Rerum Italica- rum, torn. ii. part. II. p. 645, which differs however, in va- rious circumstances, from that which is published by Hugo Floriacensis, in his book De Regia Potestate et Sacerdotali Dignitate, in Baluzii Miscellaneis, torn. iv. p. 62. Notwith- standing the diversity that there is in the copies of this fa- mous decree, they all agree in confirming the accounts we have given of the plans and pontificate of Nicolas.

CHAP. ir. Doctors, Church-Government, Sec. 481

a long time much opposition both from the sacerdotal CENT. orders and the Roman citizens, who were con- pART'ir< stantly either reclaiming their ancient rights, or abusing the privilege they yet retained of con- firming the election of every new pope by their approbation and consent. In the following cen- tury there was an end put to all these disputes by Alexander III. who was so lucky as to finish and complete what Nicolas had only begun, and who transferred and confined to the college of cardi- nals the right of electing to the apostolic see, ex- cluding the nobility, the people, and the rest of the clergy, from all concern in this important matter (g').

It may not be improper here to give some ac- count of the origin of the cardinals (Ji), and the nature of their privileges and functions. Many witers (i) have treated this subject in an ample manner, and have shed upon it a profusion of erudition, which deserves, no doubt, the highest applause ; but they are, generally speaking, de- fective in perspicuity and precision ; nor do I kn6w of any, who have confined themselves to the true state of the question, and investigated, in a satis-

( g) See Mabillon, Comm. in Ord. Roman, torn. ii. Musei Italici, p. 1 14-. — Constant. Cenni Prsef. ad Concilium Lateran. Stephani. iii. p. 18. Rom. 1735, in 4to. — Franc. Pagi Bre- viarium Pontif. Romanor. torn. ii. p. 374.

^g° (A) The translator has here incorporated into the text the long and important note (c) of the original concern- ing the cardinals. The citations and references only are thrown into the notes.

(i) The authors who have written concerning the name, origin, and rights of the cardinals, are enumerated by Jo. Alb. Fabricius, in his Bibliogr. Antiquar. p. 4-55., 456. — Casp. Sa- gittarius, Introd. ad Historiam Ecclesiast. cap.xxix. p. 771. et Jo. And. Schmidius in Supplement, p. 644. — Christ. Gry- phius, Isagoge ad Historiam Saeculi xvii. p. 430. add to these Ludov. Thomassini, Disciplina Ecclesiae Vetus et Nova, torn, i. lib. ii. cap. 115, 116. p. 616. et Lud. Ant. Muratori, whose learned dissertation De Origine Cardinalatus is published in his Antiq. Ital. Medii ,/Evi, torn. v. p. 156.

VOL. II. I I

482 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, factory manner, the true origin of the office of P<\KT ii cai'dinal, and the reasons that occasioned the insti- tution of that order of ecclesiastics. Several learned men have employed much time and labour in fixing the sense of the word cardinal, and in illustrating its meaning from ancient monuments and records ; but, however worthy of a curious philologist these researches may be, yet they contribute little or nothing to clear up the point in question, or to convey an accurate and satisfactory notion of the true origin of the college of cardinals, and the na- ture of that ecclesiastical dignity. It is certain, that the word cardinal, when applied to persons or things, or more especially to the sacred order, was, according to the language of the middle age, a term of dubious signification, and was susceptible of various -senses. It is also well known, that in former times this title was by no means peculiar to the priests and ministers of the church of Rome, but was in use in all the Latin churches, and that not only the secular clergy, but also the regular, such as abbots, canons, and monks, were capable of this denomination, and were styled cardinals, though in different senses. But after the pontifi- cate of Alexander III. the common use of the term cardinal was gradually diminished, and it was confined to such only as were immediately concerned in the election of the pope, and who had the right of suffrage in this weighty matter. So that when we inquire into the origin of the college of cardinals at Rome, the question is not, who they were that in the remoter periods of the church were distinguished, among the Latins in general, or at Rome in particular, from the rest of the clergy, by the name of cardinals ; nor do we inquire into the proper signification of that term, or into the various senses in which it was formerly employed ; the true state of the question is this : Who the persons were that Nicolas II.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &e. 483

comprehended under the denomination of cardinals, CENT.

JLJu PART II.

when he vested in the Roman cardinals alone the

right of electing the new pontiff, and excluded from that important privilege the rest of the clergy, the nobility, the burgesses, and the people ? When this is known with certainty, then we shall have a just notion of the college of cardinals in its first rise, and shall also perceive the difference there is be- tween the first cardinals and those of our times. Now this may easily be learned from the edict of Nicolas II. which sets the matter in the clearest light. " We have thought proper to enact (says the pontiff), that, upon the decease of the bishop of the Roman catholic, or universal church, the affair of the election be treated principally and pre- viously to all other deliberations, among the car- dinal bishops alone, who shall afterwards call into their council the cardinal clerks, and require finally the consent of the rest of the clergy, and the people to their election (&)•" Here we see, that the pontiff divides into two classes the cardinals who were to have the right of suffrage in the election of his successors, one of which he calls cardinal bishops, and the other cardinal clerks. By the former we are manifestly to understand the seven bishops, who belonged to the city and terri- tory of Rome, whom Nicolas calls, in the same edict, Comprovinciales Episcopi (an epithet which had been used before by Leo L), and who had been distinguished by the title of cardinal bishops long before the present century. The words of Nicolas confirm this account of the matter, and place it beyond all possibility of contradiction ; for

fj^jr (k) The passage of the edict (which we have here translated from Hugo Floriacus in Baluzii Misceli. torn. iv. p. 62.) runs thus in the original : <f Constituimus ut, obe- unte hujus Romanae universalis Ecclesiae Pontifice, imprimis, Cardinales Episcopi diligentissimasimul consideratione trac- tantes,mox sibi Clericos Cardinales adhibeant,sicque,reliquus Clerus et Populus ad consensum novae electionis acaedant. "

484 The Internal History of the Chtwch.

CENT, he declares, that by cardinal bishops he understands PART ii tnose to wnom -it belonged to consecrate the pon-

1 tiff elect; " Since the apostolic see," observes the

papal legislator, " cannot be under the jurisdiction of any superior or metropolitan (/), the cardinal bishops must necessarily supply the place of a me- tropolitan, and fix the elected pontiff on the sum- mit of apostolic exaltation and empire (m')." Now it is well known, that the seven bishops of Rome, above mentioned, had the privilege of consecrating the Roman pontiff.

All these things being duly considered, we shall immediately perceive the true nature and meaning of the famous edict, according to which it is mani- fest, that, upon the death of a pontiff, the cardi- nal bishops were first to deliberate alone con- cerning a proper successor, and to examine the respective merit of the candidates that might pre- tend to this high dignity, and afterwards to call in the cardinal clerks, not only to demand their counsel, but also to join with them in the elec- tion. The word clerk here bears the same sense with that of presbyter, and it is undeniably cer- tain that the name of cardinal presbyters was given to the ministers of the eight-and-twenty Roman parishes, or principal churches. All the rest of the clergy, of whatever order or rank they might be, were, together with the people, expressly ex- cluded from the right of voting in the election of the pontiff, though they were allowed what is called a negative suffrage, and their consent was required to what the others had done. From all which it

_ (I) In the consecration of a new bishop in any pro- vince, the metropolitan always bore the principal part; as therefore there was no metropolitan to instal the pope, the cardinal bishops performed that ceremony.

(m) Such are the swelling and bombastic terms of the edict: " Quia sedes1 apostolica super se metropolitanum habere non potest; cardinales episcopi metropolitani vice procul dubio f ungantur , qui electum antistatem ad apostolici culminis apicem provehant."

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 485

appears, that the college of electors, who chose the CENT. Roman pontiff, and who after this period were PART'ir

called cardinals in a new and unusual acceptation

of that term, consisted, according to their original establishment, by Nicolas II. of only two orders, namely, cardinal bishops and cardinal clerks, or presbyters (n).

It is necessary to observe, before we finish this digression, that the famous decree of Nicolas could not obtain the force of a law. "It is evi- dent/' says Anselm, bishop of Lucca, (o), "that the edict of Nicolas is, and always has been, without the smallest degree of weight or autho- rity. But in affirming this, I have not the least design to cast any reflection upon the blessed memory of that pontiff, or to derogate

from the applause that is due to his virtues

As a man, however, he was fallible, and, through the weakness that is inseparable from humanity, was liable to be seduced into measures that were inconsistent with equity and justice." It is true,

(n) We must therefore take care that we be not misled by the error of Onuphr. Panvinius, who affirms, * that the cardi- nal bishops were not added to the college of cardinals before the pontificate of Alexander III. Nor are we to listen to the supposition of those writers, who imagine that certain deacons were, from the beginning, members of that college of cardinals, by whom the popes were elected. There were indeed, in the Roman church long before the edict of Nicolas, and there still remain, cardinal deacons, t. e. superintendants of those churches, which have hospitals annexed to them, and whose revenues are appropriated to the support of the poor ; but they were evidently excluded from the election of the pope, which, by the edict of Nicolas, was to be made by the cardinal bishops and clerks alone. Hence we find the cardinals plainly distinguished from the deacons in the diploma that was drawn up for the election of Gregory VII. to the pontificate.

(o) Anselmi Luccensis lib. ii. contra Wibertum, Anti- papam, et sequaces ejus, in Canisii Lectionib. Antiquis, torn, iii. part. I. p. 383.

* -See Mabillon, Comment, in Ordinem Horn. p. 1 15. torn ii. Musei Italic!.

486 T/:e Internal His lory of the Church.

CENT, the prelate has here principally in view that part °^ ^ie e^c^ m which Nicolas acknowledges and 1 confirms the right of the emperors to ratify the election of the Roman pontiff; yet what he says is undoubtedly true of the whole edict in all its parts. For the seven Palatine judges (p), who were excluded by this decree from the important privilege they had formerly enjoyed of voting in the election to the apostolic see, complained loudly of the injury that was done them, and, seconded in their complaints by the various orders of the clergy, and by the clamours of the army, the citizens, and the multitude, they declared their opposition to the execution of this edict, and gave much trouble and uneasiness to the cardinals, who. had been constituted electors by Nicolas. To appease these tumults, Alexander III. aug- mented the college of the electing cardinals, by conferring that dignity upon the prior, or arch- presbyter, of St. John Lateran, the arch-presby- ters of St. Peter's and St. Mary Maggiore, the abbots of St. Paul's and St. Laurence with- out the wall, and lastly, upon the seven Pala- tine judges (</). By this dexterous stratagem, the higher order of the clergy was defeated, and ceased to oppose the measures of the cardinal electors ; nor, indeed, could their opposition be of any significancy, since their chiefs and leaders were become members of the sacred college instituted by Nicolas. The inferior clergy continued yet obstinate ; but their oppo- sition was vanquished in the same manner, and they were reduced to silence by the promotion of

(p) These judges were the Primicerius, Secundicerius, Arcarius, Saccellarius, Protoscriniarius, Primicerius Defen- sorura, et Adminiculator: for a particular account of whose respective offices, services, and privileges, see Grsevii The- saurus Antiquit. Du Cange, &c.

(q) Cenni Prsef. ad Concil. Lateran. Stephan. iii. p. 19. — Mabillon, Comment, ad Ord. Roman, p. 115, ex Panvinio.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 4*87

their chiefs, the cardinal deacons, to the dignity CENT. of electors. Who it was, whether Alexander III., or some other pontiff, that raised the principal Ro- _ man deacons to the rank of cardinals, is not certain ; but nothing is more evident than that the design of this promotion was to put an end to the mur- murs and complaints of the inferior clergy, who resented highly the violation of their privileges.

When the various orders of the clergy were drawn off from the opposition, it was no difficult matter to silence the people, and to exclude them from all part in the election of the pontiff. And accordingly, when, upon the death of Alexan- der III. it was proposed to choose Lucius III (r), as his successor, the consent and approbation of the clergy and people, which had hitherto been always esteemed necessary to ratify the elec- tion, were not so much as demanded, and the affair was transacted by the college of cardinals alone, who have continued to maintain that exclusive and important privilege even to our times. Some writers affirm, that Innocent II. had been elected in the same manner, by 'the cardinals alone, without the consent of the clergy or the people, several years before the pontificate of Lucius (s) ; this may be true, but it is nothing to the purpose ; for as the election of Innocent II. was irregular, it cannot be alleged in the case before us.

VII. From what has been observed in the pre- ceding section, we may conclude, that the college of cardinals, and the extensive authority and im- portant privileges they enjoy at this day, de- rive their origin from the edict published at the request and under the pontificate of Nicolas II. ;

ggf0 (r) In the original, instead of Lucius III. we read Victor III. which was certainly a mistake of inadvertency in the learned author.

(s) See Pagi Breviar. Pontif. Romanor. torn. ii. p. 615.

488 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, that, under the title of cardinals, this pontiff com- P*KT'H prehended the seven Roman bishops, who were

. considered as his suffragans, and of whom the

bishop of Ostia was the chief, as also the eight and twenty ministers, who had inspection over the principal Roman churches ; and that to these were added, in process of time, under Alexan- der III. and other pontiffs, new members, in order to appease the resentment of those who looked upon themselves as injured by the edict of Nicolas, and also to answer other purposes of ecclesiastical policy. We see, also, from an at- tentive view of this matter, that though the high order of purpled prelates, commonly called cardinals, had its rise in the eleventh century, yet it does not seem to have acquired the stable and undisputed authority of a legal counsel before the following age and the pontificate of Alex- ander III.

VIII. Though Nicolas II. had expressly ac- knowledged and confirmed in his edict the right of the emperor to ratify by his consent the elec- tion of the pontiff; his eyes were no sooner closed, than the Romans, at the instigation of Hildebrand, archdeacon, and afterwards bishop of Rome, violated this imperial privilege in the most presumptuous manner. For they not only elected to the pontificate Anselm, bishop of Lucca, who assumed the name of Alexander II., but also solemnly installed him in that high office without so much as consulting the em- peror Henry IV., or giving him the least in- formation of the matter. Agnes, the mother of the young emperor, no sooner received an ac- count of th^s irregular transaction by the bishops of Lombardy, to whom the election of Anselm was extremely disagreeable, than she assembled a council at Basil, and, in order to maintain the authority of her son, who was yet a minor,

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 489

caused Cadolaus, bishop of Parma, to be created CENT. pontiff under the title of Honorius II. Hence PA**'ir

arose a long and furious contest between the two '.

rival pontiffs, who maintained their respective pre- tensions by the force of arms, and presented a scene of bloodshed and horror in the church of Christ, which was designed to be the centre of charity and peace. In this violent contention Alexander triumphed, though he could never en- gage his obstinate adversary to desist from his pretensions (£).

IX. This contest, indeed, was of little con- Hiidebrand sequence when viewed in comparison with the dreadful commotions which Hiidebrand, who succeeded Alexander, and assumed the name of Gregory VII. excited both in church and state, and nourished and fomented until the end of his days. This vehement pontiff, who was a Tuscan, born of mean parents, rose by various steps, from the obscure station of a monk of Clugni, to the rank of archdeacon in the Roman church, and from the time of Leo IX. who treated Kim with peculiar marks of distinction, was accus- tomed to govern the Roman pontiffs by his coun- sels, which had acquired the highest degree of in- fluence and authority. In the year 1073, and the same day that Alexander was interred, he was raised to the pontificate by the unanimous suffrages of the cardinals, bishops, abbots, monks, and people, and, consequently, without any re- gard being paid to the edict of Nicolas II. and his election was confirmed by the approbation and consent of Henry IV. king of the Romans, to whom ambassadors had been sent for that pur- pose. This prince, indeed, had soon reason to

(t) Ferdin. Ughelli Italia Sacra, torn. ii. p. 166. — Jo. Jac. Mascovius, De Rebus Imperii sub Henrico IV. et V. lib. i. p. 7. — Franc. Pagi Breviar. Pontificum Romanor. torn. ii. p. 385. — Muratori Annali d'ltalia, torn, vi. p. 214.

490 y/^ Internal History of the Church.

CENT, repent of the consent he had given to an election, PART ii wnicn became so prejudicial to his own authority,

1 so fatal to the interests and liberties of the church,

and so detrimental, in general, to the sovereignty and independence of kingdoms and empires (ti). Hildebrand was a man of uncommon genius, whose ambition in forming the most arduous pro- jects was equalled by his dexterity in bringing them into execution ; sagacious, crafty, and in- trepid, nothing could escape his penetration, defeat his stratagems, or daunt his courage ; haughty and arrogant beyond all measure ; obsti- nate, impetuous, and intractable ; he looked up to the summit of universal empire with a wishful eye, and laboured up the steep ascent with unin- terrupted ardour, and invincible perseverance ; void of all principle, and destitute of every pious and virtuous feeling, he suffered little restraint in his audacious pursuits, from the dictates of reli- gion or the remonstrances of conscience. Such was the character of Hildebrand, and his conduct was every way suitable to it ; for no sooner did he find himself in the papal chair, than he dis- played to the world the most odious marks of his tyrannic ambition. Not contented to enlarge the jurisdiction, and to augment the opulence of the see of Rome, he laboured indefatigably to render the universal church subject to the despotic go-

(w) The writers who have given the amplest accounts of the life and exploits of Gregory VII. are enumerated by Casp. Sagittarius, in his Introd. ad Hist. Ecclesiast. torn. i. p. 687. and by And. Schmidius, in his Supplement, torn. ii. p. 627. — See also the Acta Sanctor. torn. v. Maii ad d. xxv. p. 568. and Mabillon, Acta Sanctor. Ordin. Benedicti Saecul. vi. p. 406. Add to these the Life of Gregory VII. published at Francfort in the year 1710, by Just. Christopher Dithmar, as also the authors who have written the history of the con- tests that arose between the Empire and the Hierarchy of Rome, and of the wars that were occasioned by the disputes concerning Investitures.

CHAP. IT. Doctors, Church-Government, Sec. 491

vernment and the arbitrary power of the pontiff CENT. alone, to dissolve the jurisdiction which kings and ' emperors had hitherto exercised over the various orders of the clergy, and to exclude them from all part in the management or distribution of the revenues of the church. Nay, this outrageous pontiff went still farther, and impiously attempted to submit to his jurisdiction the emperors, kings, and princes of the earth, and to render their do- minions tributary to the see of Rome. Such were the pious and apostolic exploits that employed the activity of Gregory VII. during his whole life, and which renders his pontificate a continual scene of tumult and bloodshed. Were it necessary to bring any further proofs of his tyranny and arro- gance, his fierce impetuosity and boundless ambi- tion, we might appeal to those famous sentences, which are generally called, after him, the dictates of Hildebrand, and which show, in a lively man- ner, the spirit and character of this restless pon- tiff .

(u>) Dictatus Hildebrandini. By these are understood twenty-seven apophthegms, or short sentences, relating to the supreme authority of the Roman pontiffs over the uni- versal church, and the kingdoms of the world, which are to be found in the second book of the Epistles of Gregory VII. between the fifty-fifth and the fifty-sixth Epistle, under the title of Dictatus Papae, i. e. Dictates of the Pope. See Har- duini Concilia, torn. vi. part. I. p. 1304, and the various writers of Ecclesiastical History. Baronius Lupus,* and other historians, who have signalized, upon all occasions, their vehement attachment to the Roman pontiffs, maintain, ^hat these Dictates were drawn up by Gregory VII. and pro- posed as laws in a certain council ; and hence the Protestant writers have ventured to attribute them to Hildebrand. But the learned John Launoy, Natalis Alexander, Anthony f and Francis Pagi, J Elias du Pin, and other authors of note,

* Lupus, in his Notse et Dissertationes in Concilia, torn. vi. opp. p. 164. has given us an ample commentary on the Dictates of Hildebrand, which he looks upon as both authentic and sacred.

f See Anton. Pagi Critica in Baronium.

t See Franc. Pagi Breviar, Pontif. Roman, torn. ii. p. 473.

492 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. X. Under the pontificate of Hildebrand, the

PART ii ^ace °^ tne -^a^n cnurcn was entirely changed, _ 1 its government subverted, and the most impor- His exploits, tant and valuable of those rights and privileges that had been formerly vested in its councils, bi- shops, and sacred colleges, were usurped by the greedy pontiff. It is, however, to be observed, that the weight of this tyrannic usurpation did not fall equally upon all the European provinces; several of these provinces preserved some remains of their ancient liberty and independence, in the

affirm in the most positive manner that these sentences, or dictates, were a downright forgery imposed upon the world under the name of Gregory, by some perfidious impostor, who proposed thereby to flatter the Roman pontiffs in their ambitious pretensions. As a proof of this assertion,, they ob- serve, that while some of these sentences express indeed in a lively manner the ambitious spirit of Gregory, there are others which appear entirely opposite to the sentiments of that pontiff, as they are delivered in several parts of his Epistles. The French writers have important reasons (which it is not necessary to mention here) for affirming that no Roman pontiff ever presumed to speak of the papal power and jurisdiction in such arrogant terms as are here put into the mouth of Gregory. It may be easily granted, that these sentences, in their present form, are not the composition of this famous pontiff; for many of them are obscure, and they are all thrown together without the least order, method, or connexion, and it is not to be imagined, that a man of such genius, as Gregory discovered, would have neglected either perspicuity or precision, in describing the authority? and fix- ing what he looked upon to be the rights and privileges of the bishops of Rome. But, notwithstanding all this, if we consider the matter of these sentences, we shall be entirely persuaded that they belong originally to Hildebrand, since we find the greatest part of them repeated word for word in several places in his Epistles, and since such of them as appear inconsistent with some passages in these Epistles are not so in reality, but may be easily explained in perfect conformity with what they are said to contradict. The most probable account of the matter seems to be this : That some mean author extracted these sentences, partly from the epistles of Gregory that are yet extant, partly from those that have perished in the ruins of time, and published them in the form in which they now appear, without judgment or method.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 493

possession of which a variety of circumstances CENT. happily concurred to maintain them. PART n.

But, as we insinuated above, the views of Hil- debrand were not confined to the erection of an absolute and universal monarchy in the church ; they aimed also at the establishment of a civil monarchy equally extensive and despotic; and this aspiring pontiff, after having drawn up a sy- stem of ecclesiastical canons for the government of the church, would have introduced also a new code of political laws, had he been permitted to execute the plan he had formed. His purpose was to engage in the bonds of fidelity and allegiance to St.- Peter, I. e. to the Roman pontiffs, all the kings and princes of the earth, and to establish at Rome an annual assembly of bishops, by whom the con- tests that might arise between kingdoms or sove- reign states were to be decided, the rights and pretensions of princes to be examined, and the fate of nations and empires to be determined. This ambitious project met, however, with the warmest opposition, particularly from the vigilance ancf re- solution of the emperors, and also from the Bri- tish and French monarchs (#).

That Hildebrand laid this audacious plan is undoubtedly evident, both from his own epistles, and also from other authentic records of anti- quity. The nature of the oath which he drew up for the king or emperor of the Romans, from whom he demanded a profession of subjection and allegiance (?/) shows abundantly the arrogance of

IUP0 (#) The long note (g) in the original, which contains the ambitious exploits of Hildebrand, is inserted in the fol- lowing paragraph, except the citations, which are thrown into notes.

(z/) See the ninth book of his epistles, Epist. iii. The form of the oath runs thus : " Ab hac hora et deinceps fidelis ero per rectam fidem B. Petro Apostolo, ej usque vicario Papas Gregorio . . . . et quodcunque ipse Papa praeceperit sub his videlicet verbis : PER VERAM OBEDIENTIAM, fideliter, sicut

494« The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, his pretensions. But his conduct towards the 1 ii kingdom of France is worthy of particular notice. 1 It is well known, that whatever dignity and do- minion the popes enjoyed was originally derived from the kingdom of France, or, which is the same thing, from the princes of that nation ; and yet Hildebrand, or (as we shall hereafter entitle him) Gregory VII. pretended that the kingdom of France was tributary to the see of Rome, and commanded his legates to demand yearly, in the most solemn manner, the payment of that tri- bute (#) ; their demands, however, were treated with contempt, and the tribute was never either acknowledged or offered. Nothing can be more insolent than the language in which Gregory ad- dressed himself to Philip I. king of France, to whom he recommended an humble and obliging carriage, from this consideration, that both his kingdom and his soul were under the dominion of St. Peter (i. e. his vicar the Roman pontiff), who had the power to bind and to loose him, both in heaven and upon earth (a). Nothing escaped the all-grasping ambition of Gregory ; he pre- tended that Saxony was a feudal tenure held in subjection to the see of Rome, to which it had been formerly yielded by Charlemagne as a

oportet Christianum, observabo. Et eo die, quando eum primitus videro, fideliter per manus meas miles Sancti Petri et ILLIUS efficiat." What is this else than a formal oath of allegiance?

(z) Epist. lib. viii. ep. xxiii. in Harduin's Concilia, torn. vi. p. 14-76. " Dicendum autem est omnibus Gallis et per veram obedientiam preecipiendum, ut unaquaeque domus saltern unum denarium annuatim solvat Beato Petro, si eum recog- noscant patrem et pastorem suum more antique." Every one knows that the demand that was made with the form, per veram obedientiam, was supposed to oblige indispensably.

(a) Lib. vii. epist. xx. in Harduin's Concilia, torn. vi. p. 1468. « Maxime enitere ut B. Petrum, in cujus potestate est regnum tuum et anima tua, qui te potest in ccelo et in terra ligare et absolvere, tibi facias debitorem."

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church -Government, &c. 495

pious offering to St. Peter. He extended also CENT. his pretensions to the kingdom of Spain, main- taining, in one of his letters (Z>), that it was the property of the apostolic see from the earliest times of the church, yet acknowledging in an- other (c), that the transaction by which the suc- cessors of St. Peter had acquired this property, had been lost among other ancient records. His claims, however, were more respected in Spain than they had been in France ; for it is proved most evidently by authentic records, that the king of Arragon, and Bernhard, count of Be* salu, gave a favourable answer to the demands of Gregory, and paid him regularly an annual tri- bute (cT) ; and their example was followed by other Spanish princes, as we could show, were it necessary, by a variety of arguments. The de- spotic views of this lordly pontiff were attended with less success in England than in any other country. William the Conqueror was a prince of great spirit and resolution, extremely jealous of his rights, and tenacious of the prerogatives lie enjoyed as a sovereign and independent monarch ; and accordingly, when Gregory wrote him a letter demanding the arrears of the Peter-pence (<?),

(I) Lib.x. ep. vii. " Regnum Hispaniae ab antiquo proprii juris S.Petri fuisse et soli Apostolicae sedi ex aequo pertinere."

(c) Lib. x. epist. xxviii.

(d) See Petrus de Marca, Histoire de Beam, lib. iv. p. 331, 332.

Ifglf5 (e) Peter-pence (so called from its being collected on the festival of St. Peter in Vinculis) was an ancient tax of a penny on each house, first granted in the year 725, by Ina, king of the West Saxons, for the establishment and support of an English college at Rome, and afterwards extended, in the year 794, by Offa, over all Mercia and East Anglia. In process of time it became a standing and general tax through- out all England ; and though it was for some time applied to the support of the English college, according to its original design, the popes found means to appropriate it to themselves. It was confirmed by the laws of Canute, Edward the Con-

496 The Internal History of the Church.

C1xiT' anc^ at ^e same tmle summoning him to do ho- PART'II. mage for the kingdom of England, as a fief of the

• apostolic see. William granted the former, but

refused the latter (y) with a noble obstinacy, de- claring that he held his kingdom of God only and his own sword. Obliged to yield to the ob- stinacy of the English monarch, whose name struck terror into the boldest hearts, the restless pontiff addressed his imperious mandates where he imagined they would be received with more facility. He wrote circular letters to all the most powerful German princes (g), to Geusa, king of Hungary (A), and Sueno, or Swein, king of Denmark (&'), soliciting them to make a solemn grant of their kingdoms and territories to the prince of the apostles, and to hold them under the jurisdiction of his vicar at Rome, as fiefs of the apostolic see. What success attended his de- mands upon these princes, we cannot say ; but certain it is, that in several places his efforts were

fessor, William the Conqueror, £c. and was never totally abolished till the reign of Henry VIII.

( f) The letter of William is extant in the Miscellanea of Baluzius, torn. vii. p. 127. as also in Collier's Ecclesiastical History, in the Collection of Records, at the end of the first volume, p. 713. No. 12. " Hubertus legatus tuus (says the resolute monarch to the audacious pontiff) admonuit me, quatenus tibi et successoribus tuis fidelitatem facerem, et de pecunia, quam antecessores mei ad ecclesiam mittere sole- bant, melius cogitarem. Unum admisi, alterum non admisi. FIDELITATEM FACERE, NOLUI NEC VOLO/' &c.

(g) See in Harduin's Concilia, his famous letter (lib. ix. epist. iii.) to the bishop of Padua, exhorting him to engage Welpho, duke of Bavaria, and other German princes, to sub- mit themselves and their dominions to the apostolic jurisdic- tion. " Admonere te volumus (says the pontiff) Ducem Welphonem, ut fidelitatem B. Petro faciat . . . Ilium enim totum in gremio Beati Petri collocare desideramus et ad ejus servitium specialiter provocare. Quam voluntatem si in eo, vel etiam in aliis potentibus viris amore B. Petri ductis cognoveris, ut perficiant elabora."

(h) Lib. ii. ep. Ixx. (z) Lib. ii. ep. li.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

effectual, and his modest proposals were received CENT. with the utmost docility and zeal. The son of PART'ILt

Demetrius, king of the Russians, set out for

Rome, in consequence of the pontiff's letter (/:), in order to obtain, as a gift from St. Peter, by the hands of Gregory, after professing his subjection and allegiance to the prince of the apostles, the kingdom, wrhich was to devolve to him upon the death of his father ; and his pious request was readily granted by the officious pope, who was ex- tremely liberal of what did not belong to him. Demetrius Suinimer, duke of Croatia and Dalma- tia, was raised to the rank and prerogatives of royalty by the same pontiff in the year 1076, and solemnly proclaimed king by his legate at Salona, upon condition that he should pay an annual tri- bute of two hundred pieces of gold to St. Peter at every Easter festival (/). This bold step was in- jurious to the authority of the emperors of Con- stantinople, who, before this time, comprehended the province of Croatia within the limits of their sovereignty. The kingdom of Poland became also the object of Gregory's ambition, and a favour-' able occasion was offered for the execution of his iniquitous views ; for Basilaus II. having assassi- nated Stanislaus, bishop of Cracow, the pontiff not only excommunicated him with all the cir- cumstances of infamy that he could invent, but also pulled him from his throne, dissolved the oath of allegiance which his subjects had taken, and, by an express and imperious edict, prohibited the nobles and clergy of Poland from electing a new king without the consent of the Roman pon- tiff (m). Many more examples might be alleged of the phrenetic ambition of Gregory, but those

(k) Lib. ii. ep. Ixxiv.

(/) See Du Mont, Corps Diplomatique, torn. i. part. I. n. 88. p. 53. ...Jo. Lucius, De Regno Dalmatiae, lib. ii. p. 85. (m) See Dlugossi Histor. Polon. torn. i. p. 295. VOL. II. KK

XL

PA RT

498 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, which have been already mentioned are sufficient ', n to excite the indignation of every impartial reader. Had the success of that pontiff been equal to the extent of his insolent views, all the kingdoms of Europe would have been this day tributary to the Roman see, and its princes the soldiers or vassals of St. Peter, in the person of his pretended vicar upon earth. But though his most important pro- jects were ineffectual, yet many of his attempts were crowned with a favourable* issue ; for, from the time of his pontificate, the face of Europe un- derwent a considerable change, and the preroga- tives of the emperors and other sovereign princes were much diminished. It was, particularly, un- der the administration of Gregory, that the em- perors were deprived of the privilege of ratifying, by their consent, the election of the Roman pon- tiff; a privilege of no small importance, and which as yet they have never recovered.

XI. The zeal and activity which Gregory em- ployed in extending the jurisdiction of the Roman see, and enriching the patrimony of St. Peter, met, no where, with such remarkable success as in Italy. His intimate familiarity with Mathilda, the daughter of Boniface, duke of Tuscany, and the most powerful and opulent princess in that country (who found by experience that neither ambition nor grace had extinguished the tender passions in the heart of Gregory), contributed much to this success ; for he engaged that prin- cess, after the death of her husband Godfrey, duke of Lorrain, and her mother Beatrix, which happened in the years 1076 and 1077, to settle all her possessions in Italy and elsewhere upon the church of Rome, and thus to appoint St. Peter and his pretended vicar the heirs of her immense treasures. This rich donation was, indeed, con- siderably invalidated by the second marriage, which Mathilda contracted, in the year 1089,

CHAP. IT. Doctors, Church-Government, £c. 499

with Welph, or Guelpli, the son of the duke of CENT. Bavaria, and that with the consent of the Roman PART' ir

pontiff, Urban II. She, however* renewed it in

a solemn manner in the year 1102, about seven years after her separation from her second husband, by which she became again sole mistress of her vast possessions (n). But, notwithstanding this new act, the Roman pontiffs did not remain in the peaceful possession of this splendid inheritance. It was warmly and powerfully disputed, first by the emperor Henry V. and afterwards by several other princes ; nor were the pontiffs so successful in this contest as to preserve the whole inherit- ance, though, after various struggles and efforts, they remained in the possession of a considerable part of it, which they still enjoy (o).

(n) The life and exploits of this heroic princess (who was one of the strongest bulwarks of the Roman church against the power of the emperors, and the most tender and obedient of all the spiritual daughters of Gregory VII.) has been written by Bened. Luchinus, Domin. Mellinus, Felix Center lorius, Julius de Puteo, but more amply by Francis Maria Florent, in his Records concerning the Countess Mathilda, written in Italian, and Bened. Bachmius, in his Historia Mo- nasterii Podalironensis. The famous Leibnitz, in his Scrip- toris Brunsvic. torn. i. p. 629. and Lud. Ant. Muratori, in his Scriptores Rerum Italic, torn. v. p. 335, have published, with annotations, the ancient histories of the life of Mathilda, composed by Donizo, and another writer, whose name is un- known, together with the copy of the second act of cession, by which that princess confirmed her former grant to the church of Rome. We may add here, that nothing re- lating to this extraordinary woman is more worthy of perusal than the accounts that we find of her, and her second hus- band, in the Origines Guelphica?, torn. i. lib. iii. cap. v. p. 44-4-. et torn. ii. lib. vi. cap. iii. p. 303.

(o) Many learned men conclude from the very act by which this donation was confirmed to the see of Rome, that Mathilda comprehended in this donation only her allodial possessions, and not the territories which she held as fiefs of the empire, such as the marquisate of Tuscany, and the duchy of Spoleto. For the words of the act run thus: " Ego Mathildis . . . dedi et obtuli ecclesise S. Petri . . . omnia mea bona jure proprietario, tarn quae tune habueram, quam

K K 2

500 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. XII. The plan that Gregory had formed for PART' ii rai§inS ^ne cnurcn above all human authority, to

. a state of perfect supremacy and independence,

The decrees na(l many kinds of opposition to encounter, but

of Gregory * rf , -, - , i • i

vii. none more unsurmountable than that which arose from the two reigning vices of concubinage and

ea, qua? in antea acquisitura eram, sive jure successionis, sive alio quocunque jure ad me pertineant." See the Origines Guelphicse, torn. i. lib. iii. p. 448. But it is much to be ques- tioned, whether this distinction is so evident as is pretended. For the words "jure proprietario," from which it is inferred that Mathilda disposed of only her allodial possessions in fa- vour of St. Peter, do not, in my opinion, relate to the pos- sessions of the testatrix, but to the nature of the gift, and must be interpreted in conjunction with the preceding verbs, " dedi et obtuli.*' For the princess does not say, " dedi om- nia bona qua? jure proprietario possideo et habeo," i. e. " I have granted that part of my property which I hold by a su- preme and independent right," in which case the opinion of the learned men above-mentioned would be well founded, but she says, " dedi omnia bona mea ecclesiae jure proprie- tario," i. e. fi my will is, that the church shall possess as its own property the inheritance I have left it." Besides,, the following words manifestly show that the opinion of these learned men is destitute of all foundation ; since Mathilda could not pessibly add, " sive jure successionis, sive alio quo- cunque jure ad me pertineant," i. e. '* I grant all my posses- sions, under whatever title I enjoy them, whether by right of succession, or by any other right," &c. had she designed to confine her donation to her allodial possessions. Certain it is, that in this ample grant she excepts no particular part of her property, but evidently comprehends in it her whole substance. If it be objected to this, that the Roman pontiffs never affirmed that the fiefs of the empire, which Mathilda possessed, were comprehended in this grant to their church, and that they only claimed her allodial and independent pos- sessions ; I answer, by questioning the fact, since many cir- cumstances concur to prove, that these pontiffs claimed the whole substance of Mathilda, all her possessions, without ex- ception, as their undoubted right. But suppose for a moment that the case was otherwise, and that the Roman church had never made such an universal claim, this would, by no means, invalidate the opinion I here maintain ; since the question under consideration is not, how far the Roman pontiffs may have moderated their pretensions to the territories of Ma- thilda, but what is the true and genuine sense of the words in which her donation is expressed.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 501

simony, that had infected the whole body of the CENT. European clergy. The Roman pontiffs from the time of Stephen IX. had combated, with zeal and vehemence, these monstrous vices (p), but

(p) Monstrous vices we may justly call them. For though it be true, that in the methods Gregory took to ex- tirpate these vices, he violated not only the laws of religion, but also the dictates of natural equity and justice, and, under the mask of a pious zeal, committed the most crying and abominable enormities 5 yet it is certain, on the other hand, that these vices produced the most unhappy effects both in church and state, and that the suppression of them was now become absolutely necessary. There were, indeed, among the clergy several men of piety and virtue, who lived in the bonds of wedlock, and these Gregory ought to have spared. But there was also a prodigious number of ecclesiastics throughout Europe, not only of priests and canons, but also of monks, who lived in the bonds of a criminal love, kept, under the title of wives, mistresses, which they dismissed at pleasure, to enjoy the sweets of a licentious variety, and who not only spent, in the most profuse and scandalous manner, the revenues and treasures of the churches and convents to which they belonged, but even distributed a great part of them among their bastards. As to the vice of simony, its universal extent and its pernicious fruits appear evidently from those records, which the Benedictine monks have pub- lished in several places of their Gallia Christiana, not to men- tion a multitude of other ancient papers to the same purpose. One or two examples will be sufficient to give the reader an idea of this matter. We find in the first volume of the ad- mirable work now mentioned (in the Append. Document, p. 5). a public act by which Bernard a viscount, and Froterius bi- shop of Alby, grant, or rather sell, openly to Bernard Aimard and his son the bishopric of Alby, reserving to themselves a considerable part of his revenues. This act is followed by another, in which count Pontius bequeaths to his wife the same bishopric of Alby in the following terms : " Ego Pontius dono tibi dilectas sponsae meae episcopatum Albiensem — cum ipsa ecclesia et cum omni adjacentia sua — et medietatem de episcopatuNcmauso — et medietatem de abbatia Sti.^Egidii — post obitum tuum remaneat ipsius alodis ad infantes qui de me erunt creati." — In the second volume of the same learned work, (in the Append. Document, p. 173.) there is a letter of the clergy of Limoges, beseeching William, count of Aqui- tain, not to sell the bishopric, but to give them a pastor, and not a devourer of the flock. " Rogamus tuam pietatem, ne propter mundiale lucrum vjndas Sti. Stcphani locum, quia

502 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, without success, as they were become too invete- P \RTII rate an(^ to° universal to be extirpated without

_! 1 the greatest difficulty and the most extraordinary

efforts. Accordingly Gregory, in the year 1074, which was the second of his pontificate, exerted himself with much more vigour than his prede- cessors had done in opposition to the vices already mentioned. For this purpose he assembled a council at Rome, in which all the laws of the for- mer pontiffs against simony were renewed and con- firmed, and the buying or selling ecclesiastical be- nefices prohibited in the strictest and severest manner. It was also decreed in the same council, that the sacerdotal order should abstain from mar- riage ; and that such of them as had already wives, or concubines, should immediately dismiss them, or quit the priestly office. These decrees were accompanied with circular letters, wrote by the pontiff to all the European bishops, enjoining the strictest obedience to the decisions of this so-? lemn council, under the severest penalties. Gre- gory did not stop here, but sent ambassadors into Germany to Henry IV. king of the Romans, in

si tu vendis episcopalia, ipse nostra manducabit communia.... Mitte nobis ovium custodem, non devoratorem." Ademar, viscount of Limoges, laments (torn. ii. p. 179.) that " he himself had formerly made traffic of the cure of souls by selling benefices to simoniacal abbots." The barefaced im- pudence of the sacerdotal orders, in buying and selling benefices, exceeded all measure, and almost all credibility. And they carried matters so far as to justify that abominable traffic, as may be seen in a remarkable passage in the Apo- logeticum of Abbo, which is added by Pithou, to the Codex. Can. Ecclesiae Romanae ; this passage, which deserves to be quoted, is as follows : " Nihil pene ad ecclesiam pertinere videtur, quod ad pretium non largiatur, scilicet episcopatus, presbyteratus, diaconatus, et aliqui minores gradus, archidia- conatus quoque, decania, prsepositura, thesauri custodia, baptisterium — et hujusmodi negotiators, subdola respon- sione solent astruere, non se emere benedictionem, qua peiv cipitur gratia Spiritus Sancti, sed res ecclesiarum vel pos- sessipnes episcopi." An acute distinction truly !

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, 8$c. 503

order to engage that prince to summon a council C^NT- for the trial and punishment of such ecclesiastics PART n. as had been hitherto guilty of simoniacal practices.

X/-TTT rTTi i-i • "A The severe

Xiil. ihese decrees, which were in part equit- proceed. able and just, and which were, in every respect, i conformable with the notions of religion that prevailed in this age, were looked upon by the concubi-

• • ii naSe Pro~

people as highly salutary, since they rendered a duce much free election, and not a mercenary purchase, the trouble- way to ecclesiastical promotion, and obliged the priests to abstain from marriage, which was ab- surdly considered as inconsistent with the sanc- tity of their office. Yet both these decrees were attended with the most deplorable tumults and dissensions, and were fruitful, in their conse- . quences, of innumerable calamities. No sooner was the law concerning the celibacy of the clergy published, than the priests, in the several pro- vinces of Europe, who lived in the bonds of mar- riage with lawful wives, or of lasciviousness with hired concubines (</), complained loudly of the

{q) All the historians who give an account of this century mention the tumults excited by such priests as were resolved to continue with their wives or concubines. For an account of the seditions which arose in Germany, upon this occasion, see Sigonius De Regno Italiae, lib. ix. p. 557. torn ii. as also Tengnagel's Collectio Veter. Monument, p. 4*5. 47. 54. Those that the priests excited in England are mentioned by M.Paris, in his Histor. Major, lib. i. p. 7. The tumults occasioned by the same reason in the Belgic and Gallic provinces are de- scribed in the Epistola Clericorum Cameracensium ad Re- menses pro uxoribus suis, published in Mabillon's Annal. Benedictin. torn. v. p. 634, and in the Epistola Noviomensium Clericorum ad Cameracenses, published in Mabillon's Mu- seum Italicum, torn. i. p. 128. Great was the flame which the laws of Gregory excited in Italy, and particularly in the pro- vince of Milan, of which we have an ample relation, given by Arnulph and Landulph, two Milanese historians, whose works are published with annotations, by Muratori, in his Scriptores Rerum Italicarum, torn. iv. p. 36. Both these historians main- tain, against Gregory and his successors, the cause of the in- jured priests, and the lawfulness of their marriages.

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, severity of this council, and excited the most PART ii. Dreadful tumults in the greatest part of the Eu- ropean provinces. Many of these ecclesiastics, especially the Milanese priests, choose rather to abandon their spiritual dignities than their sen- sual pleasures, and to quit their benefices that they might cleave to their wives. They went still farther : for they separated themselves en- tirely from the church of Rome, and branded with the infamous name of Paterini (r), z". e. Mani-

(r) Paterinus is one of the names by which the Paulicians or Manichseans (who came during this century from Bulgaria into Italy, and were also known by the title of Catheri or Pure) were distinguished among the Italians. But in process of time the term Paterinus became a common name for all kinds of heretics, as we might show by many examples taken from the writers of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. There are various opinions concerning the origin of this word, the most probable of which is, that which supposes it derived from a certain place called Pataria, in which the heretics held their assemblies ; and it is well known, that a part of the city of Milan is, to this very day, called Pataria, or Contrada de Pa- tarri. See Adnotat. ad Arnulphum Mediolanens. in Muratori's Scriptores Rerum Italicar. torn. iv. p. S9.see also Saxius ad Si- gonium de Regno Italiae, lib. ix. p. 536. tom.ii. opp. Sigonii. An opinion (of which, if I am not mistaken, Sigonius was the author) prevailed, that the name in question was given to the Milanese priests, who separated from the church of Rome, and retained their wives in opposition to the laws of the pontiffs. But this opinion is without foundation ; and it appears evi- dently from the testimony of Arnulph and other historians, that it was not the married priests, but the faction of the pon- tiffs, who condemned their conjugal bonds, that were branded with the opprobrious name of Paterini. See Arnulph. lib. iii. c. x. — Anton. Pagi Grit, in Ann. Bar. torn. iii. ad. a. 1057, sec. iii. Lud. Ant. Muratori Antiq. Ital. Medii Mvi, torn. v. p* 82. who have demonstrated this in the most ample, learned, and satisfactory manner. Nor need we, indeed, look any where else for the origin of this word. It is abundantly known, that the Manichaeans and their brethren the Pauli- cians, were extremely averse to marriage, which they looked upon as an institution invented by the evil principle ; they, of consequence, who considered the marriages of the clergy as lawful, employed the ignominious name of Paterini, to show that the pontiffs, who prohibited these marriages, were fol- lowers of the odious doctrine of the Manichaeans.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 505

chasans, the pontiff and his adherents, who con- CENT. demned so unjustly the conduct of such priests as PAR^ 1If

entered into the bonds of a lawful and virtuous

wedlock. The proceedings of Gregory appeared to the wiser part, even of those who approved of the celibacy of the clergy, unjust and criminal in two respects : First, in that his severity fell indiscriminately, and with equal fury, upon the virtuous husband and the licentious rake ; that he dissolved, with a merciless hand, the chastest bonds of wedlock, and thus involved husbands and wives, with their tender offspring, in disgrace, perplexity, anguish, and want (.9). The second thing criminal in the measures taken by this pon- tiff was, that, instead of chastising the married priests with wisdom and moderation, and ac- cording to the laws of ecclesiastical discipline, whose nature is wholly spiritual, he gave them over to the civil magistrate, to be punished as

(s) We must always remember that the priests, to whom their wives or mistresses were mucli dearer than the laws of the pontiffs, were not all of the same character; nor were such of them as might be justly esteemed criminal, all cri- minal in the same degree. The better sort of these ecclesi- astics (among which we may count the Belgic and Milanese clergy) desired nothing more than to live after the manner of the Greeks, maintaining that it was lawful for a priest, before his consecration, to marry one virgin, though a plu- rality of wives was justly prohibited; and they grounded this their opinion upon the authority of St. Ambrose. See Jo. Petri Puricelli Dissertatio utrum S. Ambrosius clero suo Mediohan. permiserit, ut virgini semel nubere possent, repub- lished by Muratori, in his Scriptores Italic, torn. iv. p. 123. Gregory and his successors ought to have dealt more gently with this kind of ecclesiastics (as the warmest admirers of the pontiffs acknowledge) than with those priests who were either the patrons of concubinage, or who pretended to justify their espousing a plurality of wives. It was also un- just to treat in the same manner the monks, who by the na- ture of their profession and vows, were necessarily excluded from the nuptial state ; and the priests,, who could not bear the thoughts of being torn from the chaste partners of their bed, whom they had espoused with virtuous sentiments and upright intentions,, nor from the tender offspring which were the fruit of virtuous love.

506 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, disobedient and unworthy subjects, with the loss PART'H °^ their substance, and with the most shocking

marks of undeserved infamy and disgrace (/).

The dispute XIV. This vehement contest excited great tu- Sn vestures mults and divisions, which, however, were gradu- bCCthe°laws a^ ca^me(^- through length of time, and also againJt si^ by the perseverance of the obstinate pontiff; nor mony- did any of the European kings and princes con- cern thamselves so much about the marriages of the clergy as to maintain their cause, and there- by to prolong the controversy. But the troubles that arose from the law that regarded the extir- pation of simony were not so easily appeased ; the tumults it occasioned grew greater from day to day ; the methods of reconciliation more difficult ; and it involved both state and church during several years in the deepest calamities, and in the most complicated scenes of confusion and dis- tress (ti). Henry IV. received indeed graciously

(t) Theodoricus, Verdun. Epistola ad Gregiorum VII. in Martene Thesauro Anecdotorum, torn. i. p, 218. — "Faciem meam in eo vel maxime confusione perfundunt, quod legem de Clericorum incontinentia per Laicorum Insanias cohibenda unquam susceperim. — Nee putetis eos qui ita sentiant...ec- clesiasticorum graduum incontinentiam talibus defensionibus fovere velle. Honestam conversationem in desiderio habent, nee aliter, quam oportet, ecclesiasticae ultionis censurani in- tcntari gaudent."

(w) We have extant a great number both of ancient and modern writers who have related the circumstances of this dispute concerning investitures, which was begun by Gre- gory VII. was carried on by him and his successors on the one side, and the emperors Henry IV. and V. on the other, and became a source of innumerable calamities to the greatest part of Europe. But few or none of these writers have treated this weighty subject with an entire impartiality. They all pleaded either the cause of the pontiffs, or that of the emperors, and decided the controversy, not by the laws then in being (which ought, no doubt, to be principally con- sulted), nor by the opinions that generally prevailed at the time of this contest, but by laws of their own invention, and by the opinions of modern times. The famous Gretser, in his Apologia pro Gregorio VII. which is published in the sixth volume of his works, and also separately, has collected the

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 507

the legates of Gregory, and applauded his zeal CENT. for the extirpation of simony; but neither this prince nor the German bishops would permit these legates to assemble a council in Germany, or to proceed judicially against those, who, in time past, had been chargeable with simoniacal practices. The pontiff, exasperated at this re- straint in the execution of his designs, called an- other council to meet at Rome, in the year 107«5, in which he pursued his adventurous project with greater impetuosity and vehemence than ever ; for he not only excluded from the communion of the church several German and Italian bishops, and certain favourites of Henry, whose counsels that prince was said to make use of in the traffic of ecclesiastical dignities, but also pronounced, in a formal edict, Anathema against whoever received the investiture of a bishopric or abbacy from the

principal of the ancient writers who maintained the cause of the pontiff : in opposition to whom, they who defended the cause of Henry IV. are collected by Melchior Goldastus* in his Replicatio contra Gretserum et Apologia pro Henrico IV. Hanov. 1611, 4to. Among the modern writers who have treated this subject, we may count the Centuriatores Mag- deburgenses, Baronius, the German and Italian historians, and those who have wrote the life of the famous Mathilda. But, besides these, it will be highly proper to consult Jo. Schilterus, De Libertate Ecclesiee Germanicae, lib. iv. p. 481. — Christ. Thomasius, Historia Contentionis inter Imperium et Sacerdotium — Hen. Meibomius, Lib. de Jure Investitures Episcopalis, torn. iii. Scriptorum Rer.Germanicar. — Just.Chr. Dithmarus, Historia Belli inter Imperium et Sacerdotium, published at Francfort, in 1741, in 8vo; and, above all, the famous Cardinal Noris, who far surpasses, in point of erudi- tion, those whom we have mentioned, and whose Istoria delle Investiture della dignita Ecclesiastiche, which was published at Mantua, after his death, in the year 174-1, is a most learned work, though it be imperfect and probably maimed, and also extremely partial in favour of the pontiffs ; which is not surprising from the pen of a cardinal. See also Jo. Jac. Mascovii Commeritarii de Rebus Imperil Germanici sub Henrico IV. et V. published at Leipsic, in 4to. in the year 1749.

508 The Internal History of the Church.

°xf T' nands °f a layman, as also against those by whom PART ii. the investiture should be performed (w). This decree was every way proper to surprise the em- perors, kings, "and princes of Europe ; who, in con- sequence of a prevailing custom, had the right of conferring the more important ecclesiastical digni- ties, and the government of monasteries and con- vents, of which they disposed, in a solemn manner, by the well-known ceremony of the ring and the staff, or crosier, which they presented to the can- didate on whom their choice fell. This solemn investiture was the main support of that power of creating bishops and abbots, which the European princes claimed as their undoubted right, and the occasion of that corrupt commerce called simony, in consequence of which, ecclesiastical promotion was impudently sold to the highest bidder ; and hence the zeal and ardour of Gregory to annul these investitures, that he might extirpate simony on the one hand, and dimmish the power of princes in ecclesiastical matters on the other.

A short Digression concerning Investitures (#).

IT will not be improper to cast some illustra- tions upon the custom now mentioned of invest- ing bishops and abbots in their respective dig- nities by the ceremony of the ring and crosier, since this custom has been ill understood by some, and but imperfectly explained by others. Even the learned Cardinal Noris appears highly defec- tive here ; for though, in his History of Investi- tures (#), there are many pertinent reflections upon the reasons which engaged Gregory to pro- hibit investitures altogether, yet that learned pre-

(w) Ant. Pagi Critica in Baronium, torn. iii. ad a. 1075. — Hen. Noris, Hist. Investiturarum, p. 39. Christ. Lupus, Scholia et Dissertation, ad Concilia, torn. vi. opp. p. 39 — 44.

(#) Here the translator has transposed the note (r) of the original text, under the form of a dissertation.

(y) Chap. iii. p. 56.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 509

late does not seem to have had a complete notion CENT. of this important matter, since he omits in his history certain points that are necessary to the understanding it thoroughly. The investiture of bishops and abbots commenced, undoubtedly, at that period of time, when the European emperors,- kings, and princes made grants to the clergy of certain territories, lands, forests, castles, &c. Ac- cording to the laws of those times (laws which still remain in force) none were considered as lawful possessors of the lands or tenements which they derived from the emperors or other princes, be- fore they repaired to court, took the oath of alle- giance to their respective sovereigns, as the su- preme proprietors, and received from their hands a solemn mark, by which the property of their re- spective grants was transferred to them. Such was the manner in which the nobility, and those who had distinguished themselves by military ex- ploits, were confirmed in the possessions which they owed to the liberality of their sovereigns. But the custom of investing the bishops and ab- bots with the ring and the crosier, which are the ensigns of the sacred function, is of a much more recent date, and was then first introduced, when the European emperors and princes, annulling the elections that were made in the church accord- ing to the ecclesiastical laws that had been from the earliest times established for that purpose, as- sumed to themselves the power of conferring on whom they pleased the bishoprics and abbeys that became vacant in their dominions, nay, even of selling them to the highest bidder. This power, then, being once usurped by the kings and princes of Europe, they at first confirmed the bishops and abbots in their dignities and possessions, with the same forms and ceremonies that were used in investing the counts, knights, and others, in their feudal tenures, even by written contracts,

510 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, and the ceremony of presenting them with a wand PART ii. or bough (*). And this custom of investing the clergy and the laity with the same ceremonies would have, undoubtedly, continued, had not the clergy, to whom the right of electing bishops and abbots originally belonged, eluded artfully the usurpation of the emperors and other princes by the following stratagem. When a bishop or abbot died, they who looked upon themselves as autho- rised to fill up the vacancy, elected immediately some one of their order in the place of the de- ceased, and were careful to have him consecrated without delay. The consecration being thus per- formed, the prince, who had proposed to himself the profit of selling the vacant benefice, or the pleasure of conferring it upon some of his favourites, was obliged to desist from his purpose, and to con- sent to the election, which the ceremony of conse- cration rendered irrevocable. Many examples of the success of this stratagem, which was practised both in chapters and monasteries, and which disap- pointed the liberality or avarice of several princes, might here be alleged ; they abound in the records of the tenth century, to which we refer the cu- rious reader. No sooner did the emperors and princes perceive this artful management, than they turned their attention to the properest means of

(z) This appears from a passage in Cardinal Humbert's third book, Adversus Simoniacos, which was composed be- fore Gregory had set on foot the dispute concerning In- vestitures, and which is published in Martene's Thcsaur. Anecd. torn. v. p. 787. The passage is as follows : " Po- testas secularis primo ambitiosis ecclesiasticarum dignitatum vel possessionum cupidis favebat prece, dein minis, deinceps verbis concessivis: in quibus omnibus cernens sibi contra- dictorem neminem, nee qui moveret pennam, vel apenret os et ganniret, ad majora progreditur, et jam sub nomine In- vestiture dare primo tabellas vel qualescumque porrigere virgulas, dein baculos. — Quod maximum nefas sic inolevit, ut id solum canonicum credatur, nee quae sit ecclesiastica regula sciatur aut attendatur."

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, c§r. 511

rendering it ineffectual, and of preserving the CENT. valuable privilege they had usurped. For this pA^; ir

purpose they ordered, that as soon as a bishop !

expired, his ring and crosier should be transmitted to the prince to whose jurisdiction his diocese was subject. For it was by the solemn delivery of the ring and crosier of the deceased to the new bishop that his election was irrevocably confirmed, and this ceremony was an essential part of his consecration ; so that, when these two badges of the episcopal dignity were in the hands of the sovereign, the clergy could not consecrate the person whom their suffrages had appointed to fill the vacancy. Thus their stratagem was de- feated, as every election that was not confirmed by the ceremony of consecration might be law- fully annulled and rejected; nor was the bishop qualified to exercise any of the episcopal functions before the performance of that important cere- mony. As soon, therefore, as the bishop drew his last breath, the magistrate of the city in which he had resided, or the governor of the province, seized upon his ring and crosier, and sent them to court (a). The emperor or prince conferred the vacant see upon the person whom he had chosen by delivering to him these two badges of the episcopal office, after which the new* bishop, thus invested by his sovereign, repaired to his

(a) We see this fact confirmed by the following passage in Ebbo's Life of Otho, bishop of Bamberg, lib. i. sect. 8, 9. in Actis Sanctor. mensis Julii, torn. i. p. 426. " Nee multo post annulus cum virga pastorali Bremensis episcopi ad aulam regi- am translata est. Eo siquidem tempore ecclesia liberam electi- onem non habebat...sedcum quilibet antistes viam universse carnis ingressus fuisset, mox capitanei civitatis illius annulum et virgam pastoralem ad Palatium transmittebant, sicque regia auctoritate, communicate cum aulicis consilio, orbatae plebi idoneum constituebat praesulem .. . Post paucos vero dies, rur- sum annulus et virga pastoralis Bambenbergensis episcopi Domino imperatori transmissa est. Quo audito, multi nobiles ad aulam regiam confluebant, qui alteram harum prece vel pretio sibi comparare tentabant."

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, metropolitan, to whom it belonged to perform the XL ceremony of consecration, and delivered to him

PART II. , J t . 1-1111 -IP

the ring and crosier which he had received from

his prince, that he might receive it again from his hands, and be thus doubly confirmed in his sacred function. It appears, therefore, from this account, that each new bishop and abbot received twice the ring and the crosier ; once from the hands of the sovereign, and once from those of the metropolitan bishop, by whom they were con- secrated (£).

It is highly uncertain by what prince this cus- tom of creating the bishops by the ceremonies of the ring and crosier was first introduced. If we may believe Adam of Bremen (c), this privilege was exercised by Lewis the Meek, who, in the ninth century, granted to the new bishops the use and possession of the episcopal revenues, and confirmed this grant by the ceremony now under consideration. But the accuracy of this historian is liable to suspicion ; and it is extremely pro- bable that he attributed to the transactions of ancient times the same form that accompanied similar transactions in the eleventh century in which he lived. For it is certain, that in the ninth century the greatest part of the European

(6) This appears from a variety of ancient records. See particularly Humbert, lib. iii. contra Simoniacos, cap. vi. in Martene's Thesaur. Anecdot. torn. v. p. 779, in which we find the following passage : " Sic encceniatus (i. e. the bishops invested by the emperor) violentus invadit clerum, plebem et ordinem prius dominaturus, quam ab eis cognoscatur, quaera- tur, petatur. Sic metropolitanum aggreditur, non ab eo judi- candus, sed ipsum judicaturus. — Quid enim sibi jam pertinet aut prodest baculum et annulum, quos portal reddere ? Num- quid quia laica persona dati sunt? Cur redditur quod habetur, nisi ut aut denuo res ecclesiastica sub hac specie jussionis vel donationis vendatur, aut in priore venditione corroboranda a metropolitano, suisque suffraganeis subscribatur, aut certe ut presumptio laicae ordinationis pallietur colore et velamento quodam discipline clericalis."

(c) In his Historia Ecclesiastica, lib. i. cap. xxxii. p. 10. xxxix. p. J2. published in the Scriptorcs Septentrionales of Lindenbrogius.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

princes made no opposition to the right of electing CENT.

A. i .

PART II.

the bishops, which was both claimed and exer-

cised by the clergy and the people, and of con- sequence there was then no occasion for the in- vestiture mentioned by Adam of Bremen (cT). We therefore choose to adopt the supposition of Cardinal Humbert (e\ who places the commence- ment of the custom now under consideration in the reign of Otho the Great ; for though this opinion has not the approbation of Lewis Thomas- sin and Natalis Alexander, yet these learned men, in their deep researches into the origin of in- vestitures^/), have advanced nothing sufficient to prove it erroneous. We learn also from Hum- bert (»"), that the emperor Henry III. the son of Conrad II. was desirous of abrogating these investitures, though a variety of circumstances concurred to prevent the execution of his design ; but he represents Henry I. king of France in a different point of light, as a turbulent prince, who turned all things into confusion, and indulged himself beyond all measure in simoniacal practices, and loads him, of consequence, with the bitterest invectives.

In this method of creating bishops and abbots, by presenting to them the ring and crosier, there were two things that gave particular offence to the Roman pontiffs. The first was, that by this the ancient right of election was totally changed, and the power of choosing the rulers of the church was usurped by the emperors and other sovereign princes, and was confined to them alone. This,

(d) Add to this, the refutation of Adam of Bremen, by Daniel Papebroch, in the Acta Sanctorum, torn. i.Febr. p. 557.

(e) Humbert, lib. iii. contra Simoniacos, cap. vii. p. 780. & cap. xi. p. 787.

(y) See Ludov. Thomassini DisciplinaEccles. circa Benef. torn. ii. lib. ii. p. 434. and Natal. Alexander, Select. Histor. Eccl. Capit. Saec. xi., xii. Diss. iv. p. 725.

(g) L. c. cap. vii. p. 780.

VOL. II. L L

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CENT, indeed, was the most plausible reason of complaint, when we consider the religious notions of these times, which were by no means favourable to the conduct of the emperors in this matter. An- other circumstance that grievously distressed the pretended vicars of St. Peter was to see the ring and crosier, the venerable badges of spiritual au- thority and ghostly distinction, delivered to the bishop elect by the profane hands of unsanctified laymen ; an abuse this, which they looked upon as little better than sacrilege. Humbert, who, as we already observed, wrote his book against simony before the contest between the emperor and Gregory had commenced, complains (/*) heavily of this supposed profanation, and shudders to think, that that staff which denotes the ghostly shepherd, and that ring which seals the mysteries of heaven (z), deposited in the bosoms of the epis- copal order, should be polluted by the unhal- lowed touch of a civil magistrate ; and that em- perors and princes, by presenting them to their favourites, should thereby usurp the preroga- tives of the church, and exercise the pastoral au- thority and power. This complaint was entirely consistent, as we have already observed, with the opinions of the times in which it was made ; for as the ring and the crosier were generally esteemed

(k) See Humbert, lib. iii. contra Simoniac. cap. vi. p. 779. 795. His words are: " Quid ad laicas pertinet personas sa- cramenta ecclesiastica et pontificalem seu pastoralem gratiam distribuere, camyros scilicet baculos et annulos, quibus prae- cipue perficitur, militat et innititur tota episcopalis conse- cratio? Equidem in camyris baculis — designatur, quae eis committitur cura pastoralis. — Porro annulus signaculum se- cretorum coelestium indicat, praemonens praedicatores, ut secretara Dei sapientiam cum apostolo dissignent. — Quicum- que ergo his duobus aliquem initiant, procul dubio omnem pastoralem auctoritatem hoc praesumendo sibi vendicant."

(z) Humbert mistook the spiritual signification of this holy ring, which was the emblem of a nuptial bond between the bishop and his see.

EAjt^

CHAP. ir. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 515

the marks and badges of pastoral power, and CENT. spiritual authority, so he who conferred these sacred badges was supposed to confer and com- municate with them the ghostly authority of which they were the emblems.

All these things being duly considered, we shall immediately perceive what it was that rendered Gregory VII. so averse to the pretensions of the emperors, and so zealous in depriving them of the privilege they had assumed of investing the bishops with the ceremony of the ring and crosier. In the first council which he assembled at Rome, he made no attempt, indeed, against investitures, nor did he aim at any thing farther than the abo- lition of simony, and the restoration of the sacer- dotal and monastic orders to their ancient right of electing their respective bishops and abbots. But when he afterwards came to know that the affair of investitures was inseparably connected with the pretensions of the emperors, and indeed supposed them empowered to dispose of the higher ecclesiastical dignities and benefices, he was then persuaded that simony could not be extirpated as long as investitures were in being : and, therefore, to pluck up the evil by the root, he opposed the custom of investitures with the utmost vehemence. All this shows the true rise of the war that was carried on between the pontiff and the emperor with such bitterness and fury.

And to understand still more clearly the merits of this cause it will be proper to observe, that it was not investitures, considered in themselves, that Gregory opposed with such keenness and obsti- nacy, but that particular kind of investitures which were in use at this time. He did not pre- tend to hinder the bishops from swearing alle- giance to kings arid emperors, nor even to become their vassals ; and so far was he from prohibit- ing that kind of investiture that was performed

L L 2

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CENT, by a verbal declaration or a written deed, that, ore PART ii. the contrary, he allowed the kings of England and • -- France to invest in this manner, and probably consented to the use of the sceptre in this cere- mony, as did also after him Callixtus II. But he could not bear the ceremony of investiture that was performed with the ensigns of the sacerdotal order, much less could he endure the performance of the ceremony before the solemn rite of con- secration ; but what rendered investitures most odious to this pontiff was their destroying entirely the free elections of bishops and abbots. It is now time to resume the thread of our history. History of XV. The severe law that had been enacted against investitures, by the influence and autho-

Of Gregory, made very little impression upon

about in- TT- TT i i j j • j j i ^i_ L •

vestitures. Henry. He acknowledged, indeed, that in ex- posing ecclesiastical benefices to sale he had done amiss, and he promised amendment in that re- spect ; but he remained inflexible against all at- tempts that were made to persuade him to re- sign his power of creating bishops and abbots, and the right fo investiture, which was intimately connected with this important privilege. Had this emperor been seconded by the German princes, he might have maintained this refusal with dig- nity and success ; but this was far from being the case ; a considerable number of these princes, and among others the states of Saxony, were the secret or declared enemies of Henry; and this furnished Gregory with a favourable opportunity of extending his authority, and executing his ambi- tious projects. This opportunity was by no means neglected ; the imperious pontiff took occasion, from the discords that divided the empire, to in- sult and depress its chief ; he sent, by his legates, an insolent message to the emperor at Goslar, ordering him to repair immediately to Rome, and clear himself before the council that was to

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

be assembled there of the various crimes that were laid to his charge. The emperor, whose high PART JI spirit could not brook such arrogant treatment, was filled with the warmest indignation at the view of that insolent mandate ; and in the vehe- mence of his just resentment, assemblec3 without delay a council of the German bishops at Worms, where Gregory was charged with several flagi- tious practices, deposed from the pontificate, of which he was declared unworthy, and an order issued out for the election of a new pontiff. Gre-

fory opposed violence to violence ; for no sooner ad he received by the letters and ambassadors" of Henry an account of the sentence that had been pronounced against him, than, in a raging fit of vindictive frenzy, he thundered his anathemas at the head of that prince ; excluded him both from the communion of the church and from the throne of his ancestors, and impiously dissolved the oath of allegiance which his subjects had taken to him as their lawful sovereign. Thus war was declared on both sides ; and the civil and ecclesi- astical powers were divided into two great factions, of which one maintained the rights of the emperor, while the other seconded the ambitious views of the pontiff. No terms are sufficient to express the complicated scenes of misery that arose from this deplorable schism.

XVI. At the entrance upon this war, the Swa- bian chiefs, with duke Ilodolph at their head, re- volted against Henry; and the Saxon princes, whose former quarrels with the emperor had been lately terminated by their defeat and submission (k\

(k) This same Rodolph had, the year before this re- volt, vanquished the Saxons, and obliged them to submit to the emperor. Beside the Svvabian and Saxon chiefs, the dukes of Bavaria and Carinthia, the bishops of Wurtzbourg and Worms, and several other eminent personages, were con- cerned in thib revolt.

518 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, followed their example. These united powers, PART ii being solicited by the pope to elect a new emperor

in case Henry persisted in his obstinate disobedi- ence to the orders of the church, met at Tribur in the year 1076, to take counsel together concern- ing a matter of such high importance. The re- sult of their deliberations was far from being fa- vourable to the emperor ; for they agreed, that the determination of the controversy between him and them should be referred to the Roman pon- tiff, who was to be invited for that purpose to a congress at Augsburg the year following ; and that, in the meantime, Henry should be suspended from his royal dignity, and live in the obscurity of a private station ; to which rigorous conditions they also added, that he was to forfeit his king- dom, if, within the space of a year, he was not restored to the bosom of the church, and delivered from the anathema that lay upon his head. When things were come to this desperate extremity, and the faction which was formed against this un- fortunate prince grew more formidable from day to day, his friends advised him to go into Italy, and implore in person the clemency of the pontiff. The emperor yielded to this ignominious counsel, without, however, obtaining from his voyage the advantages he expected. He passed the Alps, amidst the rigour of a severe winter, arrived in the month of February 1077, a^ the fortress of Canusium, where the sanctimonious pontiff resided at that time with the young Mathilda, countess of Tuscany, the most powerful patroness of the church, and the most tender and affectionate of all the spiritual daughters of Gregory. Here the suppliant prince, unmindful of his dignity, stood, during three days, in the open air at the entrance of this fortress, with his feet bare, his head un- covered, and with no other raiment but a wretched piece of coarse woollen cloth thrown over his

FAjlT

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 519

body to cover his nakedness. The fourth day he CENT. was admitted to the presence of the lordly pontiff, who, with a good deal of difficulty, granted him the absolution he demanded ; but as to what re- garded his restoration to the throne, he refused to determine that point before the approaching con- gress, at which he made Henry promise to ap- pear, forbidding him, at the same time, to assume, during this interval, the title of king, as also to wear the ornaments, or to exercise the functions, of royalty. This opprobrious convention excited, and that justly, the indignation of the princes and bishops of Italy, who threatened Henry with all sorts of evils, on account of his base and pusilla- nimous conduct, and would, undoubtedly, have deposed him, had not he diminished their resent- ment by violating the convention which he had been forced to enter into with the imperious pon- tiff, and resuming the title and other marks of royalty which he had been obliged to lay down. On the other hand, the confederate princes of Swabia and Saxony were no sooner informed of this un- expected change in the conduct of Henry, than they assembled at Forcheim in the month of March, A. D. 1077) and unanimously elected Ro- dolph, duke of Swabia, emperor in his place (/).

XVII. This rash step kindled a terrible flame in Germany and Italy, and involved for a long time those unhappy lands in the calamities of war. In Italy, the Normans, who were masters of the lower parts of that country, and the armies

(/) The ancient and modern writers of Italian and German history have given ample relations of all these events, though not all with the same fidelity and accuracy. In the brief ac- count I have given of these events, I have followed the ge- nuine sources, and those writers whose testimonies are the most respectable and sure, such as Sigonius, Pagi, Muratori, Mascovius, Noris, &c. who, though they differ in some mi- nute circumstances^ are yet agreed in those matters that are of the most importance.

The Internal History of the Church.

c^Nr. of the powerful and valiant Mathilda, maintained PART ii. successfully the cause of Gregory against the

Lombards, who espoused the interests of Henry ;

while this unfortunate prince, with all the forces he could assemble, carried on the war in Germany against Rodolph and the confederate princes. Gregory, considering the events of war as ex- tremely doubtful, was at first afraid to declare for either side, and therefore observed, during a cer- tain time, an appearance of neutrality; but, en- couraged by the battle of Fladenheim, in which Henry was defeated by the Saxons, A. D. 1080, he excommunicated anew that vanquished prince, and sending a crown to the victor Rodolph, de- clared him lawful king of the Germans. The injured emperor did not let this new insult pass r unpunished ; seconded by the suffrages of several of the Italian and German bishops, he deposed Gregory a second time in a council which met at Mentz, and, in a synod that was soon after assem- bled at Brixen, in the province of Tirol, he raised to the pontificate Guibert, archbishop of Ravenna, who assumed the title of Clement III. when he was consecrated at Rome, A. D. 1084, four years after his election.

XVIII. This election was followed soon after by an event which gave an advantageous turn to the affairs of Henry ; this event was a bloody battle fought upon the banks of the river Elster, where Rodolph received a mortal wound, of which he died at Mersburgh. The emperor, having got rid of this formidable enemy, marched di- rectly into Italy the following year (1081), with a design to crush Gregory and his adherents, whose defeat he imagined would contribute effec- tually to put an end to the troubles in Germany. Accordingly, he made several campaigns, with various success, against the valiant troops of Ma- thilda ; and, after having raised twice the siege

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

of Rome, he resumed a third time that bold enter- prise, and became, at length, master of the greatest part of that city, in the year 1084. The first step that Henry took after this success was to place Guibert in the papal chair ; after which he re- ceived the imperial crown from the hands of the new pontiff, was saluted emperor by the Roman people, and laid close siege to the castle of St. Angelo, whither his mortal enemy, Gregory, had fled for safety. He was, however, forced to raise this siege by the valour of Robert Guiscard, duke of Apulia and Calabria, who brought Gre- gory in triumph to Rome ; but, not thinking him safe there, conducted him afterwards to Salernum. In this place the famous pontiff ended his days the year following, A. D. 1085, and left Europe involved in those calamities which were the fatal effects of his boundless ambition. He was cer- tainly a man of extensive abilities, endowed with a most enterprising genius, and an invincible firmness of mind ; but it must, at the same time, be acknowledged, that he was the most arrogant and audacious pontiff that had hitherto sat in the papal chair. The Roman church worships him as a saint, though it is certain that he was never placed in that order by a regular canonization. Paul V. about the beginning of the seventeenth century, appointed the twenty-fifth day of May as a festival sacred to the memory of this pre- tended saint (rri) ; but the emperors of Germany, the kings of France, and other European princes, have always opposed the celebration of this festi- val, and have thus effectually prevented its be- coming universal. In our times, Benedict XIII. zealous to secure to Gregory the saintly honours,

(m) See the Acta Sanctor. Antwerp, ad d. xxv. Maii, and Jo. Mabillon, Acta Sanct. Ord. Benedict. Seec. vi. part. II.

522 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, occasioned a contest, whose issue was by no means XI- favourable to his superstitious views (n).

( ^1 XIX. The death of Gregory neither restored

peace to the church, nor tranquillity to the state; the tumults and divisions which he had excited still continued, and they were augmented, from day to day, by the same passions to which they owed their origin. Clement III. who was the emperor's pontiff (o), was master of the city of Rome, and was acknowledged as pope by a great part of Italy. Henry carried on the war in Ger- many against the confederate princes. The fac- tion of Gregory, supported by the Normans, chose for his successor, in the year 1086, Diderick, ab- bot of mount Cassin, who adopted the title of Victor III. and was consecrated in the church of St. Peter, in the year 1087, when that part of the city was recovered by the Normans from the do- minion of Clement. But this new pontiff was of a character quite opposite to that of Gregory ; he was modest and timorous, and also of a mild and gentle disposition ; and finding the papal chair beset with factions, and the city of Rome under the dominion of his competitor, he retired to his monastery, where soon after he ended his days in peace. But, before his abdication, he held a coun- cil at Benevento, where he confirmed and renewed the laws that Gregory had enacted for the aboli- tion of investitures.

(«) The reader will find an ample and curious account of this matter in a French book published in Holland in the year 1743, in three volumes, under the following title : L'Avocat du Diable, ou Memoires Historiques et Critiques sur la Vie et sur la Legende du Pape Gregoire VII.

(o) The very learned Jo. Gottl. Hornius engaged himself, in the Miscell. Lips. torn. viii. p. 609. to publish the Life of Clement III. This pontiff died in the year 1 100, as appears evidently from the Chronicon Beneventanum, published by Muratori, in his Antiq. Ital. torn. i. p. 262. See also Rubei Historia Ravennat. lib. v. p. 307-

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

XX. Otho, bishop of Ostia, and monk of Clugni, CENT. was, by Victor's recommendation, chosen to sue- XL ceed him. This new pontiff was elected at Terra- cina in the year 1088, and assumed the name of Urban II. Inferior to Gregory in fortitude and resolution, he was, however, his equal in arrogance and pride, and surpassed him greatly in temerity and imprudence (p). The commencement of his pontificate had a fair aspect, and success seemed to smile upon his undertakings ; but upon the em- peror's return into Italy, in the year 1090, the face of affairs was totally changed ; victory crowned the arms of that prince, who, by redoubled efforts of valour, defeated, at length, Guelph, duke of Bavaria, and the famous Mathilda, who were the formidable heads of the papal faction. The abo- minable treachery of his son Conrad, who, yielding to the seduction of his father's enemies, revolted against him, and, by the advice and assistance of Urban and Mathilda, usurped the kingdom of Italy, revived the drooping spirits of that faction, who hoped to see the laurels of the emperor blasted by this odious and unnatural rebellion. The con- sequences, however, of this event were less fatal to Henry than his enemies expected. In the meantime the troubles of Italy still continued, nor could Urban, with all his efforts, reduce the city of Rome under his lordly yoke. Finding all his ambitious measures disconcerted, he assembled a council at Placentia in the year 1095, where he confirmed the laws and the anathemas of Gregory ;

(p) We find in the Posthumous Works of Mabillon, torn, iii. p. 1. the Life of Urban II., composed by Theod. Ruinart, with much learning and industry, but with too little imparti- ality and fidelity, as we may naturally suppose even from the name of its author, since it is well known that no monkish writer dare attempt to paint the Roman pontiffs in their true colours. — See also, for an account of Urban, the Hist. Litt. de la France, torn, viii. p. 514,

The Internal History of the Church.

afterwards undertook a journey into France, PART ii. where he held the famous counciljof Clermont,

and had the pleasure of kindling a new war against

the infidel possessors of the holy land. In this council, instead of endeavouring to terminate the tumults and desolations that the dispute concern- ing investitures had already produced, this un- worthy pontiff added fuel to the flame, and so exasperated matters by his imprudent and arro- gant proceedings, as to render an accommodation between the contending parties more difficult than ever. Gregory, notwithstanding his insolence and ambition, had never carried matters so far as to forbid the bishops and the rest of the clergy to take the oath of allegiance to their respective so- vereigns. This rebellious prohibition was reserved for the audacious arrogance of Urban, who pub- lished it as a law in the council of Clermont (</). After this noble expedition, the restless pontiff returned into Italy, where he made himself master of the castle of St. Angelo, and soon after ended his days in the year 1099 ; he was not long sur- vived by his antagonist Clement III. who died the following year, and thus left Raynier, a Bene- dictine monk, who was chosen successor to Urban, and assumed the name of Pascal II. sole pos- sessor of the papal chair at the conclusion of this century.

The state of XXI. Among the eastern monks in this cen- turv» t*iere happened nothing worthy of being consigned to the records of history, while those of

(<?) To the fifteenth canon of this council the following words were added : " Ne episcopus vel saoerdos regi vel alicui laico in manibus ligiam fidelitatem fapant," i.e. " It is enacted, that no bishop or priest shall promise upon oath liege obedience to any king or any layman." They are en- tirely mistaken who affirm that Gregory prohibited the bishops from taking oaths of allegiance to their respective sovereigns, as Cardinal Noris has sufficiently demonstrated in his Istoria delle Investiture, chap. x. p. 279.

XL

PART II.

CHAP. IT. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

the west were concerned immediately in transac- CENT tions of great consequence, and which deserve the attention of the curious reader. The western monks were remarkable for their attachment to the Roman pontiffs ; this connexion had been long formed, and it was originally owing to the ava- rice and violence of both bishops and princes, who, under various pretexts, were constantly en- croaching upon the possession of the monks, and thus obliged them to seek for security against these invasions of their property in the protection of the popes. This protection was readily granted by the pontiffs, who seized, with avidity, every occasion of enlarging their authority; and the monks, in return, engaged themselves to pay an. annual tribute to their ghostly patrons. But in this century things were carried still farther; and the pontiffs, more especially Gregory VII. who was eagerly bent upon humbling the bishops, and transferring their privileges to the Roman see, enlarged their jurisdiction over the monks at the expense of the episcopal order. They advised and exhorted the monks to withdraw themselves and their possessions from the jurisdiction of the bishops, and to place both under the inspection and dominion of St. Peter (r). Hence it hap- pened that, from the time of Gregory, the num- ber of monasteries that had received immuni- ties, both from the temporal authority of the so- vereign and the spiritual jurisdiction of the bi- shops, were multiplied beyond measure through- out all Europe, and the rights of princes, toge-

(r) A specimen of this may be seen in the seventh epistle of Gregory, in which he reduces the monks of Redon under the jurisdiction of the Roman see, by a mandate conceived in terms that had never been used before his time ; see Martene, Thesaur, Anecdot. torn. i. p. 204. We may add to this, se- veral like mandates of Urban II. and the succeeding pontiffs, which are to be found in the collection now cited, and in others of that kind.

PART II.

526 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, ther with the interests and privileges of the epis- XL copal order, were violated and trampled upon, or rather ingrossed, to swell the growing despotism of the all grasping pontiffs (i).

XXII. All the writers of this age complain of the ignorance, licentiousness, frauds, debauche- ries, dissensions, and enormities, that dishonoured by far the greatest part of the monastic orders, not to mention the numerous marks of their dis- solution and impiety that have been handed down to our times (t). However astonished we may be at such horrid irregularities among a set of men whose destination was so sacred, and whose pro- fession was so austere, we shall still be more sur- prised to learn that this degenerate order, so far from losing aught of their influence and credit on account of their licentiousness, were promoted, on the contrary, to the highest ecclesiastical dig- nities, and beheld their opulence and authority increasing from day to day. Our surprise, in- deed, will be diminished, when we consider the gross ignorance and superstition, and the un- bounded licentiousness and corruption of manners, that reigned in this century among all ranks and orders of men (u). Ignorance and corruption

(s) There is not, perhaps, in Germany, one single instance of this pernicious immunity before the time of Gregory VII.

(t) See Jo. Launoy, Assert, in Privileg. S. Medardi, cap. xxvi. sect. vi. opp. torn. iii. part. II. p. 4-99. and Simon, Bib- lioth. Critique, torn. iii. cap. xxxii. p. 331.

(u) For an account of the astonishing corruption of this age, see Blondel, De Formula, regnante Christo, p. 14. — Boulainvilliers, De 1'Origine et des Droits de la Noblesse in Molet's Memoires de Litterature et d'Histoire, torn. ix. part. I. p. 63. The corruption and violence that reigned with im- punity in this horrid age gave occasion to the institutions of chivalry or knighthood, in consequence of which a certain set of equestrian heroes undertook the defence of the poor and feeble, and particularly of the fair sex, against the insults of powerful oppressors and ravishers. This order of knights- errant was certainly of great use in these miserable times,

CHAP. IT. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

pervert the taste and judgment of even those who CENT. are not void of natural sagacity, and often pre- vent their being shocked at the greatest inconsist- encies. Amidst this general depravation of sen- timents and conduct, amidst the flagitious crimes that were daily perpetrated, not only by the laity, but also by the various orders of the clergy, both secular and regular, all such as respected the com- mon rules of decency, or preserved in their exter- nal demeanor the least appearance of piety and virtue, were looked upon as saints of the highest rank, and considered as the peculiar favourites of heaven. This circumstance was, no doubt, fa- vourable to many of the monks who were less pro- fligate than the rest of their order, and might con- tribute more or less to support the credit of the whole body. Besides, it often happened, that princes, dukes, knights, and generals, whose days had been consumed in debauchery and crimes, and distinguished by nothing but the violent ex- ploits of unbridled lust, cruelty, and avarice, felt at the approach of old age, or death, the inexpress- ible anguish of a wounded conscience, and the gloomy apprehensions and terrors it excites. In this dreadful condition, what was their resource ? What were the means by which they hoped to disarm the uplifted hand of divine justice, and render the governor of the world propitious? They purchased, at an enormous price, the prayers of the monks to screen them from judgment, and devoted to God and to the saints a large portion of the fruits of their rapine, or entered themselves into the monastic order, and bequeathed their possessions to their new brethren. And thus it

when the majesty of laws and government was fallen into contempt, and they who bore the title of sovereigns and magistrates had neither resolution nor power to maintain their authority, or to perform the duties of their stations.

528 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, was that monkery received perpetually new acces- PART ii si°ns °f opulence and credit. XXIII. The monks of Clugni in France sur-

The monks passed all the other religious orders in the renown they had acquired, from a prevailing opinion of their eminent sanctity and virtue. Hence their discipline was universally respected, and hence also their rules were adopted by the founders of new monasteries, and the reformers of those that were in a state of decline. These famous monks arose, by degrees, to the very highest summit of worldly prosperity, by the presents which they received from all quarters; and their power and credit grew, with their opulence, to such a height, that, towards the conclusion of this century, they were formed into a separate society, which still subsists under the title of the order, or congrega- tion of Clugni (w). And no sooner were they thus established than they extended their spiritual do- minion on all sides, reducing, under their juris- diction, all the monasteries which they had re- formed by their counsels, and engaged to adopt their religious discipline. The famous Hugo, sixth abbot of Clugni, who was in high credit at the court of Rome, and had acquired the peculiar protection and esteem of several princes, laboured with such success, in extending the power and jurisdiction of his order, that before the end of this century, he saw himself at the head of five- and-thirty of the principal monasteries in France, besides a considerable number of smaller convents that acknowledged him as their chief. Many other religious societies, though they refused en-

(w) For a particular account of the rapid and monstrous strides which the order of Clugni made to opulence and do- minion, see Steph. Baluzius, Miscellan. torn. v. p. 343. and torn. vi. p. 436. as also Mabillon, Annal. Benedict, torn. v. passim.

CHAP. ti. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

tering into this new order, and continued to choose CENT. their respective governors, yet showed such respect PART*Il4 for the abbot of Clugni, or the arch-abbot, as he styled himself, that they regarded him as their spiritual chief (#). This enormous augmentation of opulence and authority was, however, fruitful of many evils ; it increased the arrogance of these aspiring monks, and contributed much to the pro- pagation of the several vices that dishonoured the religious societies of this licentious and superstitious age. The monks of Clugni degenerated soon from their primitive sanctity, and in a short space of time were distinguished by nothing but the pecu- liarities of their discipline from the rest of the monastic orders.

XXIV. The example of these monks excited several pious men to erect particular monastic fraternities, or congregations, like that of Clugni, the consequence of which was, that the Benedic- tine order, which had been hitherto one great and universal body, was now divided into separate so- cieties, which, though they were subject to one general rule, yet differed from each other in va- rious circumstances, both of their discipline and manner of living ; and rendered their division still more conspicuous by reciprocal exertions of ani- mosity and hatred. In the year 1023, Romuald, an Italian fanatic, retired to Camaldoli (#), on the mount Apennine, and in that solitary retreat founded the order or congregation of the Camal- dolites, which still remains in a flourishing state, particularly in Italy. His followers were distin- guished into two classes, of which the one were Coenobites, and the other Eremites. Both ob-

O) Mabillon, Praef. ad Seec. v. Actor. 'SS. Orel. Bened. p. 26. — Hist. Generate de Bourgogne par les Moines Bene- dictins, torn. i. p. 151. published at Paris in folio, in the year 1739. — Hist. Litter, de la France, torn. ix. p. 470.

(y) Otherwise called Carnpo Mnlduli.

VOL. II. M M

530 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, served a severe discipline ; but the Coenobites PART ii na<^ degenerated much from their primitive au-

1 sterity (z).

Some time after this, Gualbert, a native of Flo- rence, founded at Val-Ombroso, situated in the Apennines, a congregation of Benedictine monks, who, in a short space of time, propagated their dis- cipline in several parts of Italy (a). To these two Italian monasteries we may add that of Hirsauge in Germany (£), erected by William, an eminent abbot, who had reformed many ancient convents, and was the founder of several new establishments. It is, however, to be observed, that the monastery of Hirsauge was rather a branch of the congrega- tion of Clugni, whose laws and manner of living it had adopted, than a new fraternity.

Gstertian XXV. Towards the conclusion of this cen- tury (c), Robert, abbot of Moleme in Burgundy, having employed in vain his most zealous efforts to revive the decaying piety and discipline of

(z) The writers, who have given any satisfactory accounts of the order of the Camaldolites, are enumerated by Jo. Alb. Fabricius, in his Bibliotheca Lat. Medii ^Evi, torn. i. p. 895. Add to these Romualdi Vita, in Actis Sanctor. Fe- bruar. torn. ii. p. 101. and in Mabillon's Acta Sanctor. Ord. Bened. Saec. vi. part. I. p. 24<7. — Helyot, Hist, des Ordres, torn. v. p. 236. — Mabillon, Annal. Ord. Bened. torn. v. p. 261. — Magnoaldi Zeigelbaver, Centifolium Camaldulense, sive Notitia Scriptor. Camaldulensium, published at Venice in the year 1750.

(a) See the life of Gualbert in Mabillon's Acta Sanctor. Ord. Bened. Saec. vi. part. II. p. 273. Helyot, Hist, des Or- dres, torn. v. p. 298. Many interesting circumstances re- lating to the history of this order have been published by the learned Lami, in the Deliciae Eruditorum, published at Florence, torn. ii. p. 238. as also p. 272. 279. where the an- cient laws of the order are enumerated ; see also torn. iii. of the same work, p, 177. 212.

(b) See Mabillon, Acta Sanctor. Bened. Saec. vi. part. ii. p. 716.— Helyot, Hist, des Ordres, torn. v. p. 332.

(c) In the year 1098.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 531

his convent, and to oblige his monks to observe, CENT. with more exactness, the rule of St. Benedict, re- PA^L tired with about twenty monks, who had not been infected with the dissolute turn of their brethren, to a place called Citeaux, in the diocese of Cha- lons. In this retreat, which was at that time a miserable desert, covered on all sides with bram- bles and thorns, but which bears, at present, a quite different aspect, Robert laid the foundations of the famous order, or congregation of Cister- tians, which, like that of Clugni, made a most rapid and astonishing progress, was propagated through the greatest part of Europe in the follow- ing century, and was not only enriched with the most liberal and splendid donations, but also ac- quired the form and privileges of a spiritual re- public, and exercised a sort of dominion over all the monastic orders (d). The great and funda- mental law of this new fraternity was the rule of St. Benedict, which was to be solemnly and rigor- ously observed; to this were added several other institutions and injunctions, which were designed to maintain the authority of this rule, to ensure its observance, and to defend it against the dangerous effects of opulence, and the restless efforts of human corruption to render the best establish- ments imperfect. These injunctions were exces- sively austere, grievous to nature, but pious and laudable in the esteem of a superstitious age. They did not, however, secure the sanctity of this holy congregation ; since the seducing charms of opu- lence, that corrupted the monks of Clugni much sooner than was expected, produced the same effect among the Cistertians, whose zeal, in the rigorous observance of their rule, began gradually

(cl) In about a hundred years after its first establish- ment, this order boasted of 1800 abbeys, and was become so powerful, that it governed almost all Europe, both in spi- rituals and temporals.

M M 2

532 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, to diminish, and who, in process of time, grew PART ii. as negligent and dissolute as the rest of the Bene-

dictines (e).

Newmona- XXVI. Besides these convents, that were founded upon the principles, and might be con- sidered as branches of the Benedictine order, se- veral other monastic societies were formed, which were distinguished by peculiar laws, and by rules of discipline and obedience which they had drawn up for themselves. To many of those gloomy and fanatical monks, whose austerity was rather the fruit of a bad habit of body than the result of a religious principle, the rule of Benedict appeared too mild ; to others it seemed incom- plete and defective, and not sufficiently accom- modated to the exercise of the various duties we owe to the Supreme Being. Hence Stephen, a nobleman of Auvergne (who is called by some Stephen de Muret, from the place where he first erected the convent of his order) obtained, in the year 1073, from Gregory VII. the privilege of instituting a new species of monastic dis- cipline. His first design was to subject his fra- ternity to the rule of St. Benedict ; but he changed his intention, and composed himself the body of laws, which was to be their rule of life, piety, and manners. In these laws there were many injunctions, that showed the excessive

(e) The principal historian of the Cistertian order is Ang. Manriques, whose Annales Cistertienses, an ample and learned work, were published in four volumes folio, at Lyons, in the year 1642. After him we may place Piere le Nain, whose Essai de 1'Histoire de TOrdre des Citeaux, was printed in the year 1696, at Paris, in nine volumes in 8vo. The other historians, who have given accounts of this famous order, are enumerated by Fabricius, in his Biblioth. Latina Medii a^Evi, torn. i. p. 1066. Add to these Helyot's Hist. ^ des Ordres, torn. v. p. 341. and Mabillon, who, in the fifth and sixth volumes of his Annales Benedictini, has given a learned and accurate account of the origin and progress of the Cistertians. \

CHAP, ii." Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 533

austerity of their author. Poverty and obedience CKNT. were the two great points which he inculcated PAjlT n.

with the warmest zeal, and all his regulations were

directed to promote and secure them in this new establishment; for this purpose it was solemnly enacted, that the monks should possess no lands beyond the limits of their convent ; that the use of flesh should be allowed to none, not even to the sick and infirm ; and that none should be permitted to keep cattle, that they might not be exposed to the temptation of violating their frugal regimen. To these severe precepts many others, of equal rigour were added ; for this gloomy legislator im- posed upon his fraternity the solemn observance of a profound and uninterrupted silence, and insisted so much upon the importance and necessity of so- litude, that none but a few persons of the highest eminence and authority were permitted to pass the threshold of his monastery. He prohibited all in- tercourse with the female sex, and, indeed, ex- cluded his order from all the comforts and enjoy- ments of life. His followers were divided into two classes, of which the one comprehended the clerks, and the other what he called the converted bre- thren. The former were totally absorbed in the contemplation of divine things, while the latter were charged with the care and administration of whatever related to the concerns and necessities of a present life. Such were the principal circum- stances of the new institution founded by Stephen, which arose to the highest pitch of renown in this and the following century, and was regarded with the most profound veneration as long as its laws and discipline were observed ; but two things con- tributed to its decline, and at length brought on its ruin ; the first was, the violent contest which arose between the clerks and the converts, on ac- count of the pre-eminence which the latter pre- tended over the former ; and the second was the

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, gradual diminution of the rigour and austerity of PART ii Stephen's rule, which was softened and mitigated

from time to time, both by the heads of the order,

and by the Roman pontiffs. This once famous monastic society was distinguished by the title of the Order of Grandmontains, as Muret, where they were first established, was situated near Grammont, in the province of Limoges (jf). The order XXVII. In the year 1084 (#), was instituted ?hfusians.ar" the famous order of Carthusians, so called from Chartreux, a dismal and wild spot of ground near Grenoble in Dauphine, surrounded with barren mountains and craggy rocks. The founder of this monastic society, which surpassed all the rest in the extravagant austerity of their manners and discipline, was Bruno, a native of Cologn, and canon of the cathedral of Rheims in France. This zealous ecclesiastic, who had neither power to reform, nor patience to bear, the dissolute man- ners of his archbishop Manasse, retired from his church with six of his companions, and, hav- ing obtained the permission of Hugh, bishop of Grenoble, fixed his residence in the miserable de- sert already mentioned (h). He adopted at first

(/ ) The origin of this order is related by Bernard Guidon, whose treatise upon that subject is published in the Bibliotheca Manuscriptorum Phil. Labbei, torn. ii. p. 275. For an ac- count of the history of this celebrated society, see Jo. Mabil- lon, Annal. Bened. torn. v» p. 65. s. p. 99. torn. vi. p. 116. and Prsef. ad Actor. SS. Ord. Bened. Saec. vi. part. II. p. 34. Helyot, Hist, des Ordres, torn. vii. p. 409.— Gallia Christ. Monachor. Bened. torn. ii. p. 645. — Baluzii Vitae Pontif. Ave- nionens. torn. i. p. 158. et Miscellanea, torn. vii. p. 486. — ^g° The life and ghostly exploits of Stephen, the founder of this order, are recorded in the Acta Sanctorum, torn. ii. Febr. p. 199.

(g*) Some place the institution of this order in the year 1080, and others in the year 1086.

(h) The learned Fabricius mentions, in his Bibl. Lat. Medii i, torn. ii. p. 784, several writers who have composed the

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, £c. 585

the rule of St. Benedict, to which he added a CENT. considerable number of severe and rigorous pre- PAllT'lr cepts ; his successors, however, went still farther, and imposed upon the Carthusians new laws, much more intolerable than those of their founder, laws which inculcated the highest degrees of au- sterity that the most gloomy imagination could invent (t). And yet, notwithstanding all this, it is remarkable, that no monastic society dege- nerated so little from the severity of their pri- mitive institution and discipline as this of the Car- thusians. The progress of their order was indeed less rapid, and their influence less extensive in

history of Bruno and his order, but his enumeration is incom- plete; since there are yet extant many histories of the Carthu- sians, that have escaped his notice. See Innocent. Massoni Annales Carthusian, published in the year 1687. — Petri Or- landi Chronicon. Carthusianum, and the elegant, though im- perfect history of the order in question, which is to be found in Heylot's Hist, des Ordres, torn. vii. p. 366. Many impor- tant illustrations on the nature and laws of this famous society have been published by Mabillon, in his Annal. Benedict, torn. vi. p. 638. 683. A particular and accurate account of Bruno has been given by the Benedictine monks in their Hist. Litter, de la France, torn. ix. p. 233; but a yet more ample one will be undoubtedly given by the compilers of the Acta Sanctorum, when they shall have carried on their work to the sixth of October, which is the festival consecrated to the memory of Bruno. It was a current report in ancient times, that the occasion of Bruno's retreat, was the miracu- lous restoration of a certain priest to life, who, while the fu- neral service was performing, raised himself up and said, By the just judgment of God I am damned, and then expired anew. This story is looked upon as fabulous, by the most respectable writers, even of the Roman church, especially since it has been refuted by Launoy, in his treatise De Causa Sscessus Brunonis in Desertum. Nor does it seem to pre- serve its credit among the Carthusians, who are more inte- rested than others in this pretended miracle. Such of them, at least, as affirm it, do it with a good deal of modesty and diffidence. The arguments on both sides are candidly and accurately enumerated by Caes. Egass. du Boulay, in his Hi- stor. Academ. Paris, torn. i. p. 467.

(i) See Mabillon, Prsef. ad Ssec. vi. part. II.^Actor. SS. Ord, Bened. p. 37.

536

PART II.

The order of St. An- thony of Vienne.

The Internal History of the Church.

the different countries of Europe, than the pro- gress and influence of those monastic establish- ments, whose laws were less rigorous, and whose manners were less austere. It was a long time before the tender sex could be engaged to submit to the savage rules of this melancholy institution ; nor had the Carthusian order ever reason to boast of a multitude of females subjected to its jurisdic- tion ; it was too forbidding to captivate a sex, which, though susceptible of the seductions of en- thusiasm, is of a frame too delicate to support the severities of a rigorous self-denial (&).

XXVIII. Towards the conclusion of this cen- tury (/), the order of St. Anthony of Vienne in Dauphine was instituted for the relief and sup- port of such as were seized with grievous disor- ders, and particularly with the disease called St. Anthony's fire. All who were infected with that pestilential disorder repaired to a cell built near Vienne by the Benedictine monks of Grammont, in which the body of St. Anthony was said to

(Jt) The Carthusian nuns have not sufficiently attracted the attention of the authors who have written concerning this fa- mous order ; nay, several writers have gone so far as to main- tain, that there was not in this order a single convent of nuns. This notion, however, is highly erroneous ; as there were for- merly several convents of Carthusian virgins, of which, indeed, the greatest part have not subsisted to our times. In the year 1368, there was an extraordinary law passed, by which the establishment of any more female Carthusian convents was expressly prohibited. Hence there remain only five at this day ; four in France, and one at Bruges in Flanders. See the Varietes Historiques Physiques et Litteraires, torn. i. p. 80. published at Paris in 8vo. in the }^ear 1 752. Certain it is, that the rigorous discipline of the Carthusians is quite inconsis- tent with the delicacy and tenderness of the female sex ; and, therefore, in the few female convents of that ordar that still subsist, the austerity of that discipline has been dimi- nished, as well from necessity as from humanity and wisdom ; it was more particularly found necessary to abrogate those severe injunctions of silence and solitude, that are so little adapted to the known character and genius of the sex. (/) In the year 1095.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 537

repose, that, by the prayers and intercessions of this eminent saint, they might be miraculously PART'n. healed. Gaston, an opulent nobleman of Vienne, — - and his son Guerin, pretended to have expe- rienced, in their complete recovery, the marvel- lous efficacy of St. Anthony's intercession, and, in consequence thereof, devoted themselves and their possessions, from a principle of pious gratitude, to the service of St. Anthony, and to the per- formance of generous and charitable offices to- wards all such as were afflicted with the miseries of poverty and sickness. Their example was fol- lowed, at first, but by eight persons ; their com- munity, however, was afterwards considerably augmented. They were not bound by particular vows like the other monastic orders, but were consecrated, in general, to the service of God, and lived under the jurisdiction of the monks of Grammont. In process of time, growing opulent and powerful by the multitude of pious donations they received from all parts, they withdrew them- selves from the dominion of the Benedictines, propagated their order in various countries, and, at length, obtained, in the year 1297> from Bo- niface VIII. the dignity and privileges of an in- dependent congregation, under the rule of St. Augustin (ni).

XXIX. The licentiousness and corruption that The order had infected all the other ranks and orders of the ofcanons' clergy were also remarkable among the canons, which was a middle sort of order between the monks and secular priests, and whose first esta-

(m) See the Acta Sanctor. tom.ii. Januarii, p. 160. — He- lyot, Hist, des Ordres, torn. ii. p. 108. — Gabr. Penott, Histor. Canonicorum regular, lib. ii. cap. 70. — Jo. Erh. Kapii Diss. de Fratribus S. Anton, published at Leipsick, in the year 1737. — For an account of the present state of the principal hospital, or residence of this order where the abbot remains, see Martene and Durand, Voyage Litter, de deux Benedic- tins de la Congreg. de St. Maur, torn. i. p. 260.

538 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, blishment was in the eighth century. In certain -ART1 ii Provmces °f Europe the canons were corrupted to " a very high degree, and surpassed, in the scan- dalous dissolution of their manners, all the other ecclesiastical and monastic orders. Hence several pious and virtuous persons exerted their .zeal for the reformation of this degenerate body ; some pontiffs appeared in this good cause, and more especially Nicolas II. who, in a council held at Rome in the year 1059, abrogated the ancient rule of the canons, which had been drawn up at Aix-la-Chapelle, and substituted another in its place (72). These laudable attempts were attended with considerable success, and a much better rule of discipline was established in almost all the ca- nonical orders than that which had been formerly in use. It was not, however, possible to regulate them all upon the same footing, and to subject them to the same degree of reformation and dis- cipline ; nor indeed was this necessary. Accord- ingly, a certain number of these canonical col- leges were erected into communities, the respec- tive members of which had one common dwell- ing, and a common table, which was the point chiefly insisted upon by the pontiffs, as this alone was sufficient to prevent the canons from entering into the bonds of matrimony. It did not, how- ever, exclude them from the possession or enjoy- ment of private property ; for they reserved to themselves the right of appropriating to their own use the fruits and revenues of their benefices, and of employing them as they thought expedient. Other canonical congregations subjected them- selves to a rule of life less agreeable and commo-

(n) This decree of Nicolas II. by which the primitive rule of the canons was changed, is published by Mabillon among the papers, which serve as proofs to the fourth volume of his Annales Bened. and also in the Annals themselves. See torn. iv. Annal. Bened. p. 748. as also lib. Jxi. sect. xxxv. jy. 586.

CHAP. ii. Doctors, Church-Government, &c. 539

dious, in consequence of the zealous exhortations of Ivo or Ives, bishop of Chartres, renouncing all their worldly possessions and prospects, all private property, and living in a manner that resembled the austerity of the monastic orders. Hence arose the well-known distinction between the secular and the regular canons ; the former of which ob- served the decree of Nicolas II. while the latter, more prone to mortification and self-denial, com- plied with the directions and jurisdictions of Ivo ; and as this austere prelate imitated St. Augustin (0), in the manner of regulating the conduct of his clergy, his canons were called, by many, the re- gular canons of St. Augustin (p).

SS^f (o) St. Augustin committed to writing no particular rule for his clergy ; but his manner of ruling them may be learned from several passages in his epistles.

(p) See Mabillon, Annal. Bened. torn. iv. p. 586. et Opera Posthuma, torn. ii. p. 102. 115. — Helyot, Hist, des Ordres, torn. ii. p. 11. — Lud. Thomassini Disciplina Ecclesias circa Beneficia, torn. i. part. 1. 1. iii. c. xi. p, 657. — Muratori Antiq. Ital. Medii ^Evi, torn. v. p. 257.— In the Gallia Christiana of the Benedictine monks, we find frequent mention made both of this reformation of the canons, and also of their division into seculars and regulars. The regular canons are much dis- pleased with all the accounts that render the origin of their community so recent; they are extremely ambitious of appear- ing with the venerable character of an ancient establishment, and therefore trace back their first rise, through the darkness of the remotest ages, to Christ himself, or, at least, to St. Au- gustin. But the arguments and testimonies, by which they pretend to support this imagined antiquity of their order are a proof of the weakness of their cause, and of the vanity of their pretensions, and are not, therefore, worthy of a serious refutation. It is true, the title of canons is, undoubtedly, of much more ancient date than the eleventh century, but not as applied to a particular order or institution, for at its first rise it was used in a very vague general sense, (See Claud, de Vert, Explications des Ceremonies de la Messe, torn. i. p. 58.) and therefore the mere existence of the title proves nothing. At the same time, it is evident, beyond all pos- sibility of contradiction, that we find riot the least mention made of the division of the canons into regular and secular before the eleventh century. And it is equally certain, that

540 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. XXX. The most eminent Greek writers in this PART ii. century, were,

Theophanes Cerameus, i. e. the potter, of whom

is yet extant a volume of Homilies, that are

writers not altogether contemptible ;

Nilus Doxopatrius, who was remarkable for his knowledge in matters relating to ecclesiastical polity ;

Nicetas Pectoratus, who was a most strenuous defender of the religious sentiments and customs of the Greek church ;

Michael Psellus, whose vast progress in various kinds of learning and science procured him a most distinguished and shining reputation ;

Michael Cerularius, bishop or patriarch of Con- stantinople, who imprudently revived the contro- versy between the Greeks and Latins, which had been for some time happily suspended ;

those canons who had nothing in common but their dwelling and table, were called secular; while those who had divested themselves of all private property, and had every thing, with- out exception, in common with their fraternity, were di- stinguished by the title of regular canons.

fjfsjj0 To Dr. Mosheim's account of the canons, it may not be improper to add a few words concerning their introduction into England, and their progress and establishment among us. The order of regular canons of St. Augustin was brought into England by Adelwald, confessor to Henry I. who h'rst erected a priory of his order at Nostel in Yorkshire, and had influence enough to have the church of Carlisle converted into an epis- copal see, and given to regular canons, invested with the pri- vilege of choosing their bishop. This order was singularly favoured and protected by Henry I. who gave them, in the year 1107, the priory of Dunstable, and by Queen Maud, who erected for them, the year following, the priory of the Holy Trinity in London, the prior of which was always one of the twenty-four aldermen. They increased so prodigiously, that besides the noble priory of Merton, which was founded for them in the year 1117, by Gilbert, an earl of the Norman blood, they had, under the reign of Edward I. fifty-three priories, as appears by the catalogue presented to that prince, when he obliged all the monasteries to receive his protection, and to acknowledge his jurisdiction.

writers.

CHAP. n. Doctors, Church-Government, &c.

Simeon, the Younger, author of a book of Medi- CENT. tations on the Duties of the Christian Life, which PA*T'IIt is yet extant; •

Theophylact, a Bulgarian, whose illustrations of the sacred writings were received with universal approbation and esteem (<?).

XXXI. The writers, who distinguished them- La:^ selves most among the Latins, were they that follow :

Fulbert, bishop of Chartres, eminent for his love of letters, and his zeal for the education of youth; as also for various compositions, particu- larly his epistles, and famous for his excessive and enthusiastic attachment to the Virgin Mary (r) ;

Humbert, a Cardinal of the Roman church, who far surpassed all the Latinspboth in the vehe- mence and learning which appeared in his contro- versial writings against the Greeks (s) ;

Petrus Damianus, who, on account of his genius, candour, probity, and various erudition, deserves to be ranked among the most learned and estima- ble writers of this century ; though he was not altogether untainted with the reigning prejudices and defects of the times (f) ;

Marianus Scotus, whose Chronicle, with several other compositions, is yet extant ;

Anselm, archbishop of Canterbury, a man of great genius and subtilty, deeply versed in the dialectics of this age, and most illustriously di- stinguished by his profound and extraordinary knowledge in theology («) ;

(a) For a more ample account of these Greek writers, the reader may consult the Bibliotheca Grseca of Fabricius.

(r) For a farther account of this eminent man, see the Hist. Litter, de la France, torn. vii. p. 26J .

(*) See Martene, Thesaurus Anecdot. torn. v. p. 629.— Hist. Litter, de la France, torn. vii. p. 527.

(t) See the Acta Sanctor. Febr. torn. iii. p. 4-06. — General Dictionary, at the article Damien. — Casim. Oudini Diss. in torn. ii. Comm. de Scriptor. Eccles. p. 686.

(«) See the Hist. Litter, de la France, torn. ix. p. 393. —

PART II.

542 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. Lanfranc, also archbishop of Canterbury, who acquired a high degree of reputation by his Com- mentary upon the Epistles of St. Paul, as also by several other productions (w), which, considering the age in which he lived, discover an uncommon measure of sagacity and erudition (tr) ;

Bruno of mount Cassin, and the other famous ecclesiastic of that name, who founded the mo- riastery of the Carthusians ;

Ivo, bishop of Chartres, who was so eminently distinguished by his zeal and activity in maintain- ing the rights and privileges of the church ;

Hildebert, archbishop of Tours, who was a phi- losopher and a poet, as well as a divine, without being either eminent or contemptible in any of these characters (#) ; but upon the whole, a man of considerable learning and capacity ;

Gregory VII. that imperious and arrogant pon- tiff, of whom we have several productions, beside his Letters.

Rapin Thoyras, Hist. d'Angleterre, torn. ii. p. 65. 166. de 1'ed. en 4to. — Colonia, Hist. Litter, de Lyon, torn. ii. p. 210. — We have already given a more ample account of the eminent abilities and learned productions of Anselm.

SUp33 (to) Among those productions we may reckon Lan- franc's Letters to Pope Alexander II. to Hildebrand, while archdeacon of Rome, and to several bishops in England and Normandy ; as also a Commentary upon the Psalms, a Trea- tise concerning Confession, an Ecclesiastical History, which is not extant, and a remarkable Dissertation concerning the Body and Blood of Christ in the Eucharist. In this last per- formance, Lanfranc endeavours to prove, against Berenger, the reality of a corporal presence in the eucharist ; though it is manifest that this opinion was not the doctrine of the church of England, in the conclusion of the tenth, or the commencement of the following century. See Collier's Ec- cles. History of Great Britain, vol. i. p. 260.263.

(x) Hist. Litter, de la France, torn. viii. p. 260.

(y) The Benedictine monks published in folio, at Paris, in the year 1708, the Works of Hildebert, illustrated by the observations of Beaugendre.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 548

CHAPTER III.

Concerning the Doctrine of the Christian Church in this Century.

I. IT is not necessary to draw at full length CENT.

PART II.

the hideous portrait of the religion of this age. It may easily be imagined, that its features were full of deformity, when we consider that its guar- The *ta.te dians were equally destitute of knowledge and0 virtue, and that the heads and rulers of the Chris- tian church, instead of exhibiting models of piety, held forth in their conduct scandalous examples of the most flagitious crimes. The people were sunk in the grossest superstition ; and employed all their zeal in the worship of images, and re- lics, and in the performance of a trifling round of ceremonies, which were imposed upon them by the tyranny of a despotic priesthood. The more learned it is true, retained still some notions of the truth, which, however, they obscured and cor- rupted by a wretched mixture of opinions and precepts, of which some were ludicrous, others pernicious, and the most of them equally desti- tute of truth and utility. There were, no doubt, in several places, judicious and pious men, who would have willingly lent a supporting hand to the declining cause of true religion ; but the vio- lent prejudices of a barbarous age rendered all such attempts not only dangerous, but even de- sperate : and those chosen spirits who had escaped the general contagion lay too much concealed, and had therefore too little influence, to combat, with success, the formidable patrons of impiety and superstition, who were extremely numerous, in all ranks and orders, from the throne to the cottage.

The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. II. Notwithstanding all this we find, from the PART n time of Gregory VII. several proofs of the zeal-

, _ ous efforts of those, who are generally called, by

Witnesses the Protestants, the witnesses of the truth : by

of the truth. i -, . i • i • • ™ • ^

whom are meant, such pious and judicious Chris- tians, as adhered to the pure religion of the gospel, and remained uncorrupted amidst the growth of superstition ; who deplored the miserable state to which Christianity was reduced, by the alteration of its divine doctrines, and the vices of its profli- gate ministers ; who opposed, with vigour, the tyrannic ambition, both of the lordly pontiff, and the aspiring bishops ; and in some provinces pri- vately, in others openly, attempted the reforma- tion of a corrupt and idolatrous church, and of a barbarous and superstitious age. This was, in- deed, bearing witness to the truth in the noblest manner, and it was principally in Italy and France that the marks of this heroic piety were exhibited. \J$z§* Nor is it at all surprising that the reigning superstition of the times met with this opposition ; it is astonishing, on the contrary, that this oppo- sition was not much greater and more univer- sal, and that millions of Christians suffered them- selves to be hoodwinked with such a tame sub- mission, and closed their eyes upon the light with so little reluctance.] For, notwithstanding the darkness of the times, and the general ignorance of the true religion, that prevailed in all ranks and orders, yet the very fragments of the gospel (if we may use that term) which were still read and explained to the people, were sufficient, at least, to convince the most stupid and illiterate, that the religion, which was now imposed upon them, was not the true religion of Jesus ; that the dis- courses, the lives, and morals of the clergy were directly opposite to what the divine Saviour re- quired of his disciples, and to the rules he had laid down for the direction of their conduct ,

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church.

that the pontiffs and bishops abused, in a scan- dalous manner, their power and opulence; and PART'n.

that the favour of God and the salvation exhibited

in his blessed gospel, were not to be obtained by performing a round of external ceremonies, by pompous donations to churches and priests, or by founding and enriching monasteries, but by real sanctity of heart and manners.

III. It must, indeed, be acknowledged, that they who undertook, with such zeal and ardour, the reformation of the church, were not, for the most part, equal to this arduous and important enter- prise, and that, by avoiding, with more vehe- mence than circumspection, certain abuses and defects, they rushed unhappily into the opposite extremes. They all perceived the abominable nature of those inventions with which supersti- tion had disfigured the religion of Jesus; but they had also lost sight of the true nature and genius of that celestial religion, that lay thus disfigured in the hands of a superstitious and dis- solute priesthood. They were shocked at the ab- surdities of the established worship ; but few of them were sufficiently acquainted with the sub- lime precepts and doctrines of genuine Chris- tianity, to substitute in the place of this supersti- tious worship, a rational service. Hence their attempts of reformation, even where they were successful, were extremely imperfect, and pro- duced little more than a motley mixture of truth and falsehood, of wisdom and indiscretion ; of which we might allege a multitude of exam- ples. Observing, for instance, that the corrup- tion and licentiousness of the clergy were, in a great measure, occasioned by their excessive opu- lence and their vast possessions, they conceived rashly the highest ideas of the salutary effects of indigence, and looked upon voluntary poverty as the most eminent and illustrious virtue of a

VOL. ii. N N

546 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. Christian minister. They had also formed to XL themselves a notion, that the primitive church \ was to be the standing and perpetual model, ac- cording to which the rites, government, and wor- ship of all Christian churches were to be regu- lated in all the ages of the world; and that the lives and manners of the holy apostles were to be rigorously followed, in every respect, by all the ministers of Christ. [83" These notions, which were injudiciously taken up, and blindly enter- tained (without any regard to the difference of times, places, circumstances, and characters, with- out considering that the provident wisdom of Christ and his apostles left many regulations to the prudence and piety of the governors of the church) were productive of many pernicious ef- fects, and threw these good reformers, whose zeal was not always according to knowledge, from the extreme of superstition into the extreme of enthusiasm.] Many well-meaning persons, whose intentions were highly laudable, fell into great errors in consequence of these ill-grounded no- tions. Justly incensed at the conduct of the su- perstitious multitude who placed the whole of re- ligion in external services, and hoped to secure their salvation by the performance of a laborious round of unmeaning rites and ceremonies, they rashly maintained, that true piety was to be con- fined entirely to the inward motions and affections of the soul, and to the contemplation of spiritual and divine things. In consequence of this speci- ous, yet erroneous principle, they treated with the utmost contempt all the external parts of reli- gious worship, and aimed at nothing less than the total suppression of sacraments, churches, religious assemblies of every kind, and Christian ministers of every order.

SoTa'nd IV. Several of both the Greek and Latin writers expositors, employed their learned and pious labours in the

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 547

exposition and illustration of the holy scriptures. CENT. Among the Latins, Bruno wrote a commentary PART'n.

on the Book of Psalms, Lanfranc upon the Epi

sties of St. Paul, Berenger upon the Revelations of St. John, Gregory VII. upon the Gospel of St. Matthew, and others, upon other parts of the'sa- cred writings. But all these expositors, in com- pliance with the prevailing custom of the times, either copied the explications of the ancient com- mentators, or made such whimsical applications of certain passages of scripture, both in explaining the doctrines, and in inculcating the duties of re- ligion, that it is often difficult to peruse them without indignation or disgust. The most eminent of the Grecian expositors was Theophylact, a na- tive of Bulgaria; though he also is indebted to the ancients, and, in a particular manner, to St. Chrysostom, for the greatest part of his most judicious observations (V). Nor must we pass in silence the Commentary upon the Book of Psalms and the Song of Solomon, that was composed by the learned Michael Psellus : nor the Chain of Commentaries upon the Book of Job, which we owe to the industry of Nicetas.

V. All the Latin doctors, if we except a few Scholastic Hibernian divines, who blended with the beauti- theology' ful simplicity of the gospel, the perplexing subtil- ties of an obscure philosophy, had hitherto de- rived their system of religion, and their explica- tions of divine truth, either from the holy scrip- tures alone, or from these sacred oracles explained by the illustrations, and compared with the theo- logy of the ancient doctors. But in this century, certain writers, and, among others, the famous

(z) For an account of Theophylact, see Rich. Simon. Hist. Critique des Principaux Commentateurs du N. T. ch. xxviii. p. 390. and Critique de la Bibliotheque des Auteurs Ecclesi- astiques, par Du Pin, torn. i. p. 310. where he also speaks largely concerning Nicetas and CEcumenitis.

NN 2

548 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. Berenger (a\ went much farther, and employed PART TT tne rules °f logic and the subtilties of meta-

physical discussions, both in explaining the doc- trines of scripture, and in proving the truth of their own particular opinions. Hence Lanfranc, the antagonist of Berenger, and afterwards arch- bishop of Canterbury, introduced into the field of religious controversy the same philosophical arms, and seemed, in general, desirous of employ- ing the dictates of reason to illustrate and con- firm the truths of religion. His example, in this respect, was followed by Anselm, his disciple and successor in the see of Canterbury, a man of a truly metaphysical genius, and capable of giving the greatest air of dignity and importance to the first philosopher. Such were the beginnings of that philosophical theology, which grew after- wards, by degrees, into a cloudy and enormous system, and from the public schools in which it was cultivated, acquired the name of scholastic divinity (£). It is, however, necessary to ob- serve, that the eminent divines, who first set on foot this new species of theology, and thus laudably maintained that most noble and natural connexion of faith with reason, and of religion with philosophy, were much more prudent and moderate than their followers, in the use and application of this conciliatory scheme. They kept, for the most part, within bounds, and wisely

_ (a) Otherwise called Berengarius, and famous for the noble opposition he made to the doctrine of Transubstantra- tion, which Lanfranc so absurdly pretended to support upon philosophical principles. The attempt of this latter to intro* duce the rules of logic into religious controversy would have been highly laudable, had not he perverted this respectable science to the defence of the most monstrous absurdities.

(b} See Chr. August. Heumanni Prsefat. ad Tribbechovii Librum de Doctoribus Scholasticis, p. 14. — The sentiments of the learned, concerning the first author or inventor of the scholastic divinity, are collected by Jo. Franc* Buddeus, in his Isagoge ad Theolog. torn. i. p. 358.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 549

reflected upon the limits of reason ; their language CENT. was clear ; the questions they proposed were in- structive and interesting; they avoided all dis- cussions that were only proper to satisfy a vain and idle curiosity ; and, in their disputes and de- monstrations, they made, generally speaking, a wise and sober use of the rules of logic, and of the dictates of philosophy (V). [ElS^ Their fol-

(c) We shall here transcribe a passage from the works of Lanfranc, who is considered by many as the father of the scho- lastic system, that the reader may see how far the first school- men surpassed their disciples and followers in wisdom, mo- desty, and candour. We take this passage from that prelate's book concerning The Body and Blood of Christ*, and it is as follows : " Testis mihi Deus est et conscientia mea, quia in tractatu divinarum literarum nee proponere nee ad propositas respondere cuperem dialecticas quaestiones, vel earum solu- tiones. Et si quando materia disputandi talis est, ut hujus artis regulis valeat enucleatius explicari, in quantum possum, per aequipollentias propositionum tego artem, ne videar magis arte, quam veritate, sanctorumque patrum auctoritate confi- dere." Lanfranc here declares in the most solemn manner, even by an appeal to God and his conscience, that he was so far from having the least inclination to propose or to answer logical questions in the course of his theological labours, that, on the contrary, when he was forced to have recourse to the science of dialectic, in order the better to illustrate his subject, he concealed the succours he derived from thence with all possible care, lest he should seem to place more confidence in the resources of art than in the simplicity of truth and the au- thority of the holy fathers. These last words show plainly the two sources from whence the Christian doctors had hitherto derived all their tenets, and the arguments by which they maintained them, viz. from the holy scriptures, which Lanfranc here calls the truth, and from the writings of the ancient fa- thers of the church. To these two sources of theology and argumentation, a third was added in this century, even the science of logic, which, however, was only employed by the managers of controversy to repulse their adversaries, who came armed with syllogisms, or to remove difficulties which were drawn from reason and from the nature of things. But, in succeeding times, the two former sources were either en- tirely neglected or sparingly employed, and philosophical demonstration, or, at least, something that bore that name, was regarded as a sufficient support to the truths of religion.

* Cap. vii. p. 23(5. Opp. ed. Luc. Dacherii.

550 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, lowers, on the contrary, ran with a metaphysical PART ii. frenzy mto tne greatest abuses, and by the most

unjustifiable perversion of a wise and excellent

method of searching after, and confirming truth, they banished evidence out of religion, common sense out of philosophy, and erected a dark and enormous mass of pretended science, in which words passed for ideas, and sounds for sense.]

VI. No sooner was this new method introduced, than the Latin doctors began to reduce all the doctrines of religion into one permanent and con- nected system, and to treat theology as a science ; an enterprize which had hitherto been attempted by none but Taio of Saragossa, a writer of the seventh century, and the learned Damascenas, who flourished among the Greeks in the follow- ing age. The Latin doctors had hitherto con- fined their theological labours to certain branches of the Christian religion, which they illustrated only on certain occasions. The first production which looked like a general system of theology was that of the celebrated Anselm ; this, however, was surpassed by the complete and universal body of divinity, which was composed, towards the conclusion of this century, by Hildebert, arch- bishop of Tours, who seems to have been re- farded both as the first and the best model in this ind of writing, by the innumerable legions of system -makers, who arose in succeeding times (cT). This learned prelate demonstrated first the doc- trines of his system by proofs drawn from the holy scriptures, and also from the writings of the

(d) This body of divinity, which was the first complete theological system that had been composed among the Latins, is inserted in the Works of Hildebert, published by Beau- gendre, who shows evidently, in his Preface, that Peter Lombard, Pullus, and the other writers of theological sy- stems, did no more than follow servilely the traces of Hil- debert.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 551

ancient fathers of the church ; and in this he CENT.

"VT

followed the custom that had prevailed in the p

T 11 f 1 1 Att J. 11,

preceding ages ; but he went yet farther, and an- swered the objections, which might be brought against his doctrine, by arguments drawn from reason and philosophy ; this part of his method was entirely new, and peculiar to the age in which he lived (e).

VII. The moral writers of this century, who Moral undertook to unfold the obligations of Chris- wnters< tians, and to delineate the nature, the extent, and the various branches of true virtue and evangelical obedience, treated this most excellent of all sci- ences in a manner quite unsuitable to its dignity , and importance. We find sufficient proofs of this in the moral writings of Peter Damien (,/), and even of the learned Hildebert (g)» The moralists of this age generally confined them- selves to a jejune explication of what are com- monly called, the four cardinal virtues, to which they added the Ten Commandments, to complete their system. Anselm, the famous prelate of Can- terbury, surpassed, indeed, all the moral writers of his time j the books which he composed with a design to promote practical religion, and more especially his Book of Meditations and Prayers, contain many excellent things, several happy

(e} It may not be improper to place here a passage which is taken from a treatise of Anselm's, entitled, Cur Deus Homo ? since this passage was respected, by the first scho- lastic divines, as an immutable law in theology ; '* Sicut ] rectus ordo exigit," says the learned prelate, '* ut profunda j fidei Christianse credamus, priusquam ea prsesumamus ratione \ discutere : ita negligentia mihi videtur, si, postquam con- firmati sumus in fide, non studemus quod credimus intelli- gere :" which amounts to this, That we must first believe without examination, but must afterwards endeavour to understand what we believe.

(/) See Petrus Damianus, De Virtutibus.

(g) See Hildeberti Philosophia Moralis, et Libellus de IV. Virtutibus Honestae Vitac.

552 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, thoughts expressed with much energy and unc- PART ii. ti°n- [^& Nor ^d tne mystic divines satisfy

themselves with piercing, by ecstatic thought, and

feeling, into the sublime regions of beauty and love ; they conceived and brought forth several productions that were destined to diffuse the pure delights of union and communion through enamoured souls. ] Johannes Johannellus, a Latin mystic, wrote a treatise concerning Divine Con- templation (/?) ; and Simeon the younger, who was a Grecian sage of the same visionary class, composed several discourses upon subjects of a like nature. Th<? state VIII. Among the controversial writers of this veSdu century, we see the effects of the scholastic vinity. method that Berenger and Lanfranc had intro- duced into the study of theology. We see di- vines entering the lists armed with syllogisms, which they manage awkwardly, and aiming rather to confound their adversaries by the subtilties of logic, than to convince them by the power of evidence ; while those who were unprovided with this philosophical armour, made a still more wretched and despicable figure, fell into the grossest and most perverse blunders, and seem to * have written without either thinking of their sub-

ject or of the manner of treating it with success. Damianus, already mentioned, defended the truth of Christianity against the Jews ; but his suc- cess was not equal either to the warmth of his zeal, or to the uprightness of his intentions. Samuel, a convert from Judaism to Christianity, wrote an elaborate treatise against those of his na- tion, which is still extant. But the noblest cham- pion that appeared at this period of time in the cause of religion, was the famous Anselm, who attacked the enemies of Christianity, and the audacious contemners of all religion, in an in-

(h) See the Histoire Litteraire de la France, tom.viii. p. 48.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 553

genious work (t), which was perhaps, by its depth CENT.

- -• • •« •• xi.

PART II.

and acuteness, above the comprehension of those

whom it was designed to convince of their errors. \JOT For it happened, no doubt, in these earlier times, as it frequently does in our days, that many gave themselves out for unbelievers, who knew not the first principles of reasoning, and whose in- credulity was the fruit of ignorance and presump- tion, nourished by licentiousness and corruption of heart.]

IX. The famous contest between the Greek The contro- and Latin churches, which, though not decided, ^^^e had, however, been suspended for a considerable Greeks and time, was imprudently revived, in the year 1053, by Michael Cerularius, patriarch of Constanti- nople, a man of a restless and turbulent spirit, who blew the flame of religious discord, and widened the fatal breach by new invectives and new accusations. The pretexts that were em- ployed to justify this new rupture, were zeal for the truth, and an anxious concern about the in- terests of religion; but its true causes were the arrogance and ambition of the Grecian patriarch and the Roman pontiff. The latter was con- stantly forming the most artful stratagems to re- duce the former under his imperious yoke ; and, for this purpose, he left no means unemployed to gain over to his side the bishops of Alexandria and Antioch, by withdrawing them from the juris- diction of the see of Constantinople. The tumul- tuous and unhappy state of the Grecian empire was singularly favourable to his aspiring views, as the friendship and alliance of the Roman pontiff was highly useful to the Greeks in their struggles with the Saracens and the Normans, who were settled in Italy. On the other hand, the Grecian

(i) This work was entitled, Liber adversus Insipientem, f . c. The Fool Refuted.

554 § The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, pontiff was not only determined to refuse obsti- p ART ii natety tne least mark °f submission to his haughty

1 rival, but was also laying schemes for extending

his dominion, and for reducing all the Oriental patriarchs under his supreme jurisdiction. Thus the contending parties were preparing for the field of controversy, when Cerularius began the charge by a warm letter written in his own name, and in the name of Leo, bishop of Achrida, who was his chief counsellor, to John, bishop of Tram, in Apulia, in which he publicly accused the Latins of various errors (&). Leo IX. who was then in the papal chair, answered this letter in a most im- perious manner ; and, not satisfied with showing his indignation by mere words, assembled a council at Rome, in which the Greek churches were solemnly excommunicated (/).

X. Constantine, surnamed Monomachus, who was now at the head of the Grecian empire, en- deavoured to stifle this controversy in its birth, and, for that purpose, desired the Roman pontiff to send legates to Constantinople, to concert mea- sures for restoring and confirming the tranquillity of the church. Three legates were accordingly sent from Rome to that imperial city, who brought with them letters from Leo IX • not only to the emperor, but also to the Grecian pontiff. These legates were cardinal Humbert, a man of a high and impetuous spirit, Peter, archbishop of Amalfi, and Frederic, archdeacon and chancellor of the church of Rome. The issue of this congress was unhappy in the highest degree, notwithstanding the propensity which the emperor, for political

(k) See an account of those errors, sect. xi.

(/) These letters of Cerularius and Leo are published in the Annals of Baronius, ad an. 1053. — The former is also inserted by Canisius, in his Lection. Antiq. torn. iii. p. 281. ed. nov. — Leonis' Concilia, &c.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 555

reasons (#2), discovered to the cause of the bishop CENT. of Rome. The arrogance of Leo IX. and his insolent letters, excited the highest indignation in the breast of Cerularius, and produced a per- sonal aversion to this audacious pontiff, which inflamed instead of healing the wounds of the church ; while, on the other hand, the Roman legates gave many and evident proofs that the design of their embassy was not to restore peace and concord, but to establish among the Greeks the supreme authority and the ghostly dominion of the Roman pontiff. Thus all hopes of a happy conclusion of these miserable divisions entirely vanished ; and the Roman legates finding their efforts ineffectual to overcome the vigorous resist- ance of Cerularius, they, with the highest inso- lence, as well as imprudence, excommunicated publicly, in the church of St. Sophia, A. D. 1054, the Grecian patriarch, with Leo of Achrida, and all their adherents ; and leaving a written act of their inhuman imprecations and anathemas upon the grand altar of that temple, they " shook the dust off their feet," and thus departed. This vio- lent step rendered the evil incurable, which it was before not only possible, but perhaps easy, to re- medy. The Grecian patriarch imitated the vehe- mence of the Roman legates, and did from resent- ment what they had perpetrated from a principle of ambition and arrogance. He excommunicated these legates with all their adherents and followers in a public council, and procured an order of the emperor for burning the act of excommunication which they had pronounced against the Greeks (ri).

fgp0 (m) He stood greatly in need of the assistance of the Germans and Italians against the Normans, and hoped to obtain it by the good offices of the pope, who was in high credit with the emperor Henry III.

(») Besides Baronius and other writers, whose accounts of this period of time are generally known, and not always

PART

556 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. These vehement measures were followed on both XI'n sides with a multitude of controversial writings, that were filled with the most bitter and irritating invectives, and served no other purpose than to add fuel to the flame.

XL Cerularius added new accusations to the ancient charge, which had been brought by Pho- tius against the Latin churches, of which the principal was, that they used unleavened bread in the celebration of the Lord's Supper. This ac- cusation (such were the times!) was looked upon as a matter of the most serious nature, and of the highest consequence ; it was, therefore, de- bated between the Greeks and Latins with the ut- most vehemence, nor did the Grecian and Roman pontiffs contend with more fury and bitterness about the extent of their power, and the limits of their jurisdiction, than the Greek and Latin churches disputed about the use of unleavened bread. The other heads of accusation that were brought against the Latins by the Grecian pontiff, disco- vered rather a malignant and contentious spirit, and a profound ignorance of genuine Christianity, than a generous zeal for the cause of truth. He complains, for instance, in the heaviest manner, that the Latins do not abstain from the use of blood, and of things strangled ; that their monks eat lard, and permit the use of flesh to such of the brethren as are sick or infirm ; that their bishops adorn their fingers with rings, as if they were

exact, see Mabillon, Annal. Bened. torn. v. lib. Ix. ad a. 1053, et Praef. ad Saec. vi. Actor. SS. Benedict!, part. II. p. 1. — Leo Allatius, De Libris Graecor. Ecclesiast. Diss. ii. p. 160. ed. Fabricii, et De perpetua Eccles. Orient, et Occident. Consensione, lib. ii. cap. ix. p. 614. — Mich, le Quien, Oriente Christiano, torn. i. p. 260. et Diss. Damascena Prima, sect. xxxi. p. 16. — Hermann! Historia Concertationum de Pane Azymo et Fermentato, p. 59. published at Leipsic in the year 1739. — Jo. Bapt. Cotelerius, Monum. Ecclesiae Graecae, torn. ii. p. 108.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 557

bridegrooms ; that their priests are beardless ; CENT. and that in the right of baptism they confined PA^'n>

themselves to one single immersion (0). Such .

were the miserable and trifling objects that ex- cited a fatal schism, and kindled a furious war between the Greeks and Latins, who carried their animosities to the greatest lengths, and loaded each other with reciprocal invectives and impre- cations. The attentive reader will form from hence a just idea of the deplorable state of reli- gion both in the eastern and western world at this period, and will see, in this dreadful schism, the true origin of the various sects that multiplied the different forms of superstition and error in these unhappy times.

XII. This vehement dispute, which the Greeks Anew con- had to carry on against the Latin churches, was cTnce^ning well nigh followed by a fatal division among the sanctity themselves. Amidst the straits and difficulties to of which the empire was now reduced by the ex- penses of war, and the calamities of the times, Alexius not only employed the treasures of the church, in order to answer the exigencies of the state, but ordered also the plates of silver, and the figures of that metal that adorned the portals of the churches, to be taken down and converted into money. This measure excited the indigna- tion of Leo bishop of Chalcedon, a man of austere morals, and of an obstinate spirit, who main- tained that the emperor, in this step, was guilty of sacrilege ; and, to prove this charge, published a treatise, in which he affirmed, that in the images of Jesus Christ, and of the saints, there resided a

(o) See Cerularii Epistola ad Johannem Tranensem in Canisii Lection. Antiq. torn. iii. p. 281. where the reader will also find the refutation of this letter by Cardinal Humbert. — See likewise Cerularii Epistola ad Petrum Antiochens. in Cotelerii Monumentis Ecclesise Grsec. torn. ii. p. 138. add to these Martene, Thesaur. Anecdot. torn. v. p. 847.

558 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, certain kind of inherent sanctity, that was a pro- PAR/T ii Per °bject of religious worship ; and that, there- ' fore, the adoration of Christians ought not to be confined to the persons represented by these images, but extended also to the images themselves. This new controversy excited various tumults and se- ditions among the people, to suppress which the emperor assembled a council at Constantinople, in which the question was terminated by the follow- ing decisions : " that the images of Christ and of the saints were to be honoured only with a relative worship (p), which was to be offered, not to the substance or matter of which these images were composed, but to the form and features of which they bore the impression ; that the representations of Christ, and of the saints, whether in painting or sculpture, did in no sense partake of the nature of the divine Saviour, or of these holy men, though they were enriched with a certain communication of divine grace ; and, lastly, that invocation and worship were to be ad- dressed to the saints, only as the servants of Christ, and on account of their relation to him, as their master." These decisions, absurd and superstiti- ous as they were, were not enough so for Leo, the idolatrous bishop of Chalcedon, who maintained his monstrous system with obstinacy, and was, for that reason, sent into banishment ((7). %

ver- XIII. The famous dispute concerning the pre- the sence of Christ's body and blood in the eucharist was revived about the middle of this century in e the Latin church. Hitherto the disputants on

(p) 2

(q) An ample account of this whole matter is given by Anna Comnena, in her Alexiad. lib. v. p. 104. lib. vii. p. 158. edit. Venet. — The acts of this council, the very men- tion of which is omitted by several historians of considerable note, are published by Montfaucon, in his Bibliotheca Cois- liniana, p. 103.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 559

both sides had proposed their jarring opinions CENT. with the utmost freedom, unrestrained by the de- spotic voice of authority, since no council had given a definitive sentence upon this matter, nor prescribed a rule of faith to terminate all inquiry and debate (r). Hence it was, that, in the be- ginning of this century, Leutheric, archbishop of Sens, affirmed, in opposition to the general opinion of the times, that none but the sincere and upright Christian, none but saints and real believers, received the body of Christ in the holy sacrament. This opinion, which was broached in the year 1004, was every way proper to ex- cite rumours among the people ; but these its na- tural effects were happily prevented by the in- fluence of Robert, king of France, and the wise counsels of some prudent friends who hindered the fanatical prelate from disseminating this whimsical invention (s). It was not so easy to extinguish the zeal, or to stop the mouth of the famous Berenger, principal of the public school of Tours, and afterwards archbishop of Angers, a man of a most acute and subtile genius, and highly renowned both on account of his extensive learning, and the exemplary sanctity of his life and manners (t). This eminent ecclesiastic main- tained publicly, in the year 1045, the doctrine of Johannes Scotus, opposed warmly the mon-

(r) The various opinions concerning the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, that were embraced during this century, are collected by Martene from an ancient manuscript, and pub- lished in his Voyage Litteraire de deux Benedictins de la Congregation de S. Maur, torn. ii. p. 126.

(s) See Du Boulay, Histor. Acad. Paris, torn. i. p. 354.

(t) See the Life of Berenger: in the Works of Hildebert, archdeacon of Mans, p. 1324. — See also Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. viii. p. 197- — Boulay, Hist. Acad. Paris, torn. i. p. 304*. and the authors mentioned by Fabricius, Bib- lioth. Lat. Medii JEvi. torn. i. p. 570. It is probably by a press error, that Hildebert is styled Archbishop instead of Archdeacon, by Paris Hist. lib. i. p. 10. edit. Watts.

530

CENT. XI.

PART II.

The pon- tiffs strive, in vain, to put an end to this de- bate.

The Internal History of the Church.

strous opinions of Paschasius Radbert, which were adapted to captivate a superstitious multitude by exciting their astonishment, and persevered with a noble obstinacy in teaching, that the bread and wine were not changed into the body and blood of Christ in the eucharist, but preserved their natural and essential qualities, and were no more than figures and external symbols of the body and blood of the divine Saviour. — This wise and rational doctrine was no sooner published, than it was opposed by certain doctors in France and Germany; but the Roman pontiff Leo IX. attacked it with peculiar vehemence and fury in the year 1050; and in two councils, the one as- sembled at Rome, and the other at Vercelli, had the doctrine of Berenger solemnly condemned, and the book of Scotus, from which it was drawn, committed to the flames. This example was fol- lowed by the council of Paris, which was sum- moned the very same year by Henry I. and in which Berenger, and his numerous adherents, were menaced with all sort of evils, both spiritual and temporal. These threats were executed, in part, against this unhappy prelate, whom Henry deprived of all his revenues ; but neither threaten- ings, nor fines, nor synod ical decrees, could shake the firmness of his mind, or engage him to re- nounce the doctrine he had embraced.

XIV. After these proceedings, the controversy was for some years happily suspended, and Be- renger, whose patrons were as numerous as his enemies were formidable (u), enjoyed, for a while, the sweets of liberty and peace. His ene- mies, however, after the death of Leo IX. re- kindled the flame of religious discord, and per- suaded his successor Victor II. to examine anew

(w) His most formidable enemy and rival was Lanfranc, archbishop of Canterbury.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 561

the doctrine of Berenger. The pontiff complied, CENT. and sent his legates to two different councils that pART"IIe

were assembled at Tours, in the year 1054 (w),

for that purpose. In one of these councils the famous Hildebrand, who was afterwards pontiff under the title of Gregory VII. appeared in the character of legate, and opposed the new doctrine with the utmost vehemence. Berenger was also present at this assembly, and, overpowered with threats, rather than convinced by reason and ar- gument, he not only abandoned his opinions, but (if we may believe his adversaries, to whose testimony we are confined in this matter,) abjured them solemnly, and in consequence of this hum- bling step, made his peace with the church. — This abjuration, however, was far from being sincere, and the docility of Berenger was no more than an act of dissimulation ; for soon after this period, he taught anew, though with more circumspection and prudence, the opinions he had formerly professed. That this conduct here appears mean and dishonest, is indeed evident ; but we are not sufficiently acquainted with the transactions of these councils to fix precisely the degree of his crime.

XV. The account of Berenger 's perfidy being brought to Nicolas II. the exasperated pontiff summoned him to Rome, A. D. 1058, and terri- fied him in such a manner in the council held there the following year, that he declared his readiness to embrace and adhere to the doctrines which that venerable assembly should think pro- per to impose upon his faith. Humbert was ac- cordingly appointed unanimously by Nicolas and the council to draw up a confession of faith for Berenger, who signed it publicly, and confirmed

_ (w) Other historians mention but one council, and place it in the year 1055.

VOL. II. O O

562 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT; his adherence to it by a solemn oath. In this

XI.

PART ir. confession there was, among other tenets equally

1 absurd, the following declaration, that "the bread

atid wine, after consecration, were not only a sacrament, but also the real body and blood of Jesus Christ ; and that this body and blood were handled by the priests and consumed by the faith- ful, and not in a sacramental sense, but in reality and truth, as other sensible objects are." This doctrine was so monstrously nonsensical, and was such an impudent insult upon the very first prin- ciples of reason, that it could have nothing al- luring to a man of Berenger's acute and philo- sophical turn, nor could it possibly become the object of his serious belief, as appeared soon after this odious act of dissimulation ; for no sooner was he returned into France, than taking refuge in the countenance and protection of his ancient pa- trons, he expressed the utmost detestation and abhorrence of the doctrines he had been obliged to profess at Rome, abjured them solemnly both in his discourse and in his writings, and returned zealously to the profession and defence of his former, which had always been his real opinion. Alex- ander II. employed the seducing influence of soft and friendly expostulation to engage Berenger to dissemble anew, or, in other words, to return from his pretended apostasy ; but his remon- strances were ineffectual, and that perhaps, in a great measure, because this rebellious son of a superstitious church was powerfully supported in the maintenance of his opinions. Hence the con- troversy was prolonged, during many years, by a multitude of writings on both sides of the ques- tion, and the followers of Berenger increased from day to day.

XVI. Gregory VII. whose enterprising spirit no difficulties nor oppositions could discourage, was no sooner raised to the pontificate than he un-

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 503

dertook to terminate this important controversy, CENT. and, for that purpose, sent an order to Berenger, pARTIfl in the year 1078, to repair to Rome. Consider- ing the natural character of this pontiff, his con- duct in this affair was highly laudable, and disco- vered a degree of impartiality and candour, which his proceedings upon other occasions gave little reason to expect. He seems to have had a high esteem for Berenger ; and, in the particular points in which he was obliged to oppose him, he did it, with all possible mildness, and with a ten- derness which showed that he acted rather from a forced compliance with the clamours of his adver- saries, than from inclination or principle. In the council that was held at Rome towards the con- clusion of the year 1078, he permitted Berenger to draw up a new confession of his faith, and to renounce that which had been composed by Hum- bert, though it had been solemnly approved and confirmed by Nicolas II. and a Roman coun- cil. The sagacious pontiff perceived clearly the absurdity of Humbert's confession, and therefore revoked it, though it had been rendered sacred by papal authority (.r). In consequence of this, the persecuted prelate made a second declaration, confirmed by an oath, that he would adhere for the future to the following propositions: That " the bread laid upon the altar became, after con- secration, the true body of Christ, which was born of the Virgin, suffered on the cross, and now sits at the right hand of the Father : and that the wine

(#) It is worthy of observation, that Gregory VII. whose zeal in extending the jurisdiction, and exalting the authority of the Roman pontiffs, surpassed that of all his predecessors, acknowledged, at least tacitly, by this step, that a pope and council might err, and had erred in effect. How otherwise could he allow Berenger to renounce a confession of faith, that had been solemnly approved and confirmed by Nicolas II. and a Roman council ?

002

564 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, placed upon the altar became, after consecration, PART ii ^ie true blood, which flowed from the side of > 1 Christ." The pontiff was satisfied with this de- claration, which was far from producing the same effect upon the enemies ofBerenger: they showed that it was ambiguous, and so it was in reality ; and they insisted that Berenger should be obliged not only to sign another declaration, less vague and equivocal, but should also be required to prove his sincerity by the fiery trial. Gregory refused absolutely this latter demand, and would have equally refused the other, had not his fa- vourable intentions towards Berenger yielded to the importunate clamours of his enemies and per- secutors.

XVII. The pontiff, therefore, granted that part of their demand that related to a new declara- tion ; and in a council held at Rome, A. D. 1079, had a third confession of faith drawn upr which was somewhat less absurd than the first, though much more harsh than the second, and to which Berenger, after reading and subscribing it in the midst of the assembly, was obliged to declare his assent by a solemn oath. By this assent, he pro- fessed to believe, " That the bread and wine were, by the mysterious influence of the holy prayer, and the words of our Redeemer, substantially changed into the true, proper, and vivifying body and blood of Jesus Christ :" and to remove all grounds of suspicion, to dispel all doubt about the reality of his attachment to this ridiculous system, he added to his second confession (?/) a solemn declaration, that " the bread and wine, after consecration, were converted into the real body and blood of Christ, not only in quality of external signs and sacramen- tal representations, but in their essential proper- ties, and in substantial reality." No sooner had

(y) Mentioned in the preceding section.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 565

Berenger made this strange declaration, than the CENT.

.X.1* PART II,

pontiff redoubled the marks of esteem which he

had formerly shown him, and sent him back to his country loaded with the most honourable tes- timonies of his liberality and friendship. The double-minded doctor did not, however, think himself bound by this declaration, solemn as it was ; and therefore retracted publicly, upon his return to his residence, what he had subscribed as his real sentiments in the council of Rome, and went even so far as to compose an elaborate re- futation of the doctrine to which he had been en- gaged to profess his assent. This new change ex- cited a warm and vehement controversy, in which Lanfranc and Guitmund endeavoured to perplex Berenger with their sophistry, and to overwhelm him with their invectives. Gregory VII. to whose papal thunder the affronted council looked with impatience, seemed neither surprised nor offended by the inconstancy of Berenger, nor did he take any step which could testify the smallest mark of resentment against this pretended apostate. From hence it appears more than probable that the se- cond confession of Berenger had entirely satisfied that pontiff; and that the violent imposition of the third was by no means agreeable to Gregory, who seems to have adopted, in a great measure, if not wholly, the sentiments of Berenger (2).

(z) A remarkable treatise of Berenger's composition, which has been published by Martene, in his Thesaur. Anecdot. torn. iv. p. 99, 100. will contribute to cast a satisfactory light upon this whole affair, and will fully unfold the real sentiments of Gregory concerning the eucharist. For from this piece it is undoubtedly evident, 1st. That Berenger was esteemed and favoured in a singular manner by Gregory VII. 2dly, That this pontiff was of the same opinion with Berenger concerning the eucharist ; it is certain, at least, that he was for adhering to the words of scripture in this matter, and was eager in suppressing all curious researches, and all positive decisions concerning the manner of Christ's

566 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. XVIII. Amidst the clamours of his incensed

XI

PART

XI*H adversaries, Berenger observed a profound silence,

Berenger s presence jn the ilo}v sacrament. This appears evidently from fate, and the *,,-,, . , * , . , , , , . * l _ . J

progress of tne followmgwords which he addressed to Berenger before the

his doctrine, meeting of the last council of Rome, and in which he speaks of his design to consult the Virgin Mary concerning the conduct which it was proper for him to observe in the course of this controversy: " Ego plane te" (says the pontiff in the 108th page of the work cited in the beginning of this note) " de Christi sacrificio secundumscripturasbene sentire non dubito; tamen quia consuetudinis mihi est, ad B. Mariam de his qua? movent recurrere — imposui religiose cuidam amico — a B. Maria obtinere, ut per eum mihi non taceret, sed verbis commendaret, quorsum me de negotio quod in manibus ha- bebam de Christi sacrificio reciperem, in quo immotus per- sisterem." We see here, plainly, that Gregory expresses the strongest propensity to the sentiments of Berenger, not, however, without some hesitation concerning the manner in which he was to conduct himself, and also concerning the precise doctrine which it was necessary to embrace in rela- tion to the presence of Christ in the eucharist. It was this hesitation which led him to consult the Virgin Mary, whose answer the pontiff gives in the following words: " A. B. Maria audivit et ad me retulit, nihil de sacrificio Christi co- gitandum, nihil esse tenendum, nisi quod tenerent authen- tic^ scriptures, contra quas Berengarius nihil habebat. Hoc tibi manifestare volui, ut securiorem ad nos fiduciam et alacriorem spem habeas." Here we see an answer of the Virgin pronouncing that it was necessary to adhere to the express declarations of scripture concerning the presence of Christ in the sacrament ; and whether Gregory was fana- tical enough to confide in this answer as real, or rogue enough to forge it, it is still certain, that he confined his belief con- cerning the point in debate to the language of scripture, and held that the true body and blood of Christ were ex- hibited in the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, though it was neither necessary nor expedient to inquire into the nature or manner of this mysterious presence. Sdly, It appears manifest from the treatise already mentioned, that the as- sembling the second council, and the imposition of another confession of faith, upon the conscience of Berenger, were measures into which Gregory was forced by the enemies of that ecclesiastic. " Dejectus est," says Berenger, speaking of that pontiff,'" importunitate Paduani scurrae, non episcopi, et Pisani non episcopi, sed antichrist! . . . ut permitteret ca- lumniatoribus veritatis in posteriori quadragesimali concilio scriptum a se firmatum in priori mutari.'' 4thly, We see here

XI.

PART II.

CHAP. m. The Doctrine of the Church. 567

and was prudent enough to return no answer CENT. to their bitter and repeated invectives. Fa- tigued with a controversy, in which the first prin- ciples of reason were so impudently insulted, and exhausted by an opposition which he was unable to overcome, he abandoned all his worldly con- cerns, and retired to the isle of St. Cosme, in the neighbourhood of Tours, where he spent the re- mainder of his days in fasting, prayer, and pious exercises. In the year 1088, death put an end to the affliction he suffered in his retirement, from a bitter reflection upon the dissimulation he had been guilty of at Rome, and to the penitential acts of mortification and austerity, to which he seems to have submitted with a design to expiate the enormity of his criminal compliance, and the guilt of his perjury (a). He left behind him in

the true reason why Gregory showed' not the smallest mark of resentment against Berenger, when, upon his return to his own country, he violated the promise by which he had so solemnly bound himself at the last council, and refuted the confession to which had sworn his assent. For the pontiif was very far from adopting the sentiments of those who had drawn up or suggested that monstrous confession, and esteemed it sufficient to believe with Berenger, that the body and blood of Jesus Christ were exhibited to Christians in the eucharist. Hence he left the violent adversaries of his per- secuted friend to murmur, scribble, bawl, and refute, while he himself observed a profound silence, and persisted in his reso- lution to put that unhappy man to no farther trouble. It is, however, proper to observe, that in the same book from whence these particulars are taken, we find Berenger addressing him- self, with the utmost humility, to the divine mercy, for the par- don of the crime of dissimulation and perjury he had committed at Rome : and confessing that the fear of death had extorted from him oaths and declarations diametrically opposite to his real sentiments, and engaged him to subscribe to a set of tenets which he abhorred. *• Deus omnipotens,'' says he, " mise- rere, fons misericordiarum, tantum sacrilegium agnosceriti." (a) This will appear evident to such as peruse the treatise of his composition, which we have mentioned in the preced- ing note, as published in Martene's Thesaur. Anecdot. torn, iv. p. 109,

568 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, the minds of the people a deep impression of his PART ii. extraordinary sanctity ; and his followers were as

. numerous as his fame was illustrious (Z>). There

have been disputes among the learned about the real sentiments of this eminent man : yet not- withstanding the art which he sometimes used to conceal his opinions, and the ambiguity that is often remarkable in his expressions, whoever exa- mines with impartiality and attention such of his writings as are yet extant, will immediately per- ceive, that he looked upon the bread and wine in the sacrament as no more than the signs or sym- bols of the body and blood of the divine Sa- viour (c). In this opinion Berenger persevered to the last ; nor have we any authentic proof of

(b) The canons of the cathedral of Tours continue to ho- nour the memory of Berenger by an annual procession, in which they perform a solemn service at his tomb in the isle of St. Cosme. See Moleon, Voyages Liturgiques, p. 130.

(c) Mabillon and other Roman catholic writers, as also a few Lutheran divines, are of opinion that Berenger denied only the doctrine of Transubstantiation, while he maintained, at the same time, the real presence of the body and blood of Christ in the eucharist. And this opinion will, indeed, appear plausible to such as consider only the declaration he signed in the first council at Rome, to which he was sum- moned by Gregory VII. afad which he never retracted, with- out comparing this declaration with the rest of his writings. On the other hand, Usher, Basnage, and almost all the writers of the reformed church maintain, that the doctrine of Berenger was exactly the same with that which Calvin afterwards adopted; and I cannot help joining with them in this opinion, when I peruse attentively the following words of his Letter to Almanus, published in Martene's Thesaur. torn. iv. p. 109. " Constat," says Berenger in express terms, " verum Christi corpus in ipsa mensa proponi, sed spiritualiter interiori homini verum in ea Christi corpus ab his duntaxat, qui Christi membra sunt, incorruptum, intaminatum., inattri- tumque spiritualiter manducari.'* These words demonstrate so clearly, that, by the presence of Christ's body in the eucharist, Berenger meant no more than a spiritual pre- sence, that they dispel all doubt about his real sentiments, though, upon other occasions, he concealed these senti- ments under dubious expressions, to deceive his adversaries.

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 569

his having departed from it before his death, as CENT. some of the Roman catholic writers vainly pre- PART*ir. tend (</).

(d) It is well known what laborious efforts the Roman catholic writers have employed to persuade us, that Berenger, before his death, abandoned the opinion he had so long and so warmly defended, and returned to the doctrine of the church of Rome concerning the corporal presence of Christ in the eu- charist. But when we enquire into the reasons on which this assertion is founded, we shall immediately perceive their weakness and insufficiency. They allege, in the first place, that Berenger gave an account of his doctrine and belief in the council of Bourdeaux, A. D. 1087 ; and add to this, that the ancient writers applaud his penitential sentiments, and affirm that he died in the catholic faith. In all this, how- ever, we see no proof of Berenger's retractation. He ad- hered, indeed, to the confession of faith, which he had sub- scribed and adopted in the first of the two Roman councils, to which he had been summoned by Gregory VII. and which that pontiff judged sufficient to clear him from the imputation of heresy ; and they who confined their attention to the literal sense of the words of that confession, without considering their spirit, and the different meanings of which they were susceptible, might easily imagine that Berenger's confession was agreeable to the doctrine of the church. Gregory, in order to pacify matters, confirmed them in this notion ; and though he was well informed of Berenger's having retracted the confession which he had signed in the last Roman coun- cil before which he appeared, and of his opposing, with the utmost warmth, the opinion he had there so solemnly pro- fessed, yet he let the inconstant doctor remain unmolested, and thereby tacitly acquitted him of the crime and the error that were laid to his charge.

It is of the utmost importance to observe here, that the Ro- man church was not come, in this century, to a fixed deter- mination concerning the nature and manner of Christ's pre- sence in the eucharist. This appears most evidently from the three confessions which Berenger signed by the order of three councils, which confessions differed from each other, not only in the terms and the turn of expression, but also in the opinions and doctrines they contained. Pope Nicolas II. and the council he assembled at Rome, A. D. 1059, obliged him to subscribe, as the true and orthodox doctrine of the church, the first of these confessions, which was composed by Cardinal Humbert. This confession was however rejected, not only as harsh in point of expression, but also as erroneous

570 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT. XIX. It is not rare to find, in the history of xr.

PART II.

XL the church, the most trifling objects exciting the

anj unsoun(l} by Gregory and the two Roman councils, which ^e ^a(^ expressly summoned to enquire into that matter; for had Humbert's declaration appeared to the pontiff to be a just expression of the doctrine and sense of the church con- cerning the eucharist, neither he nor the succeeding councils would have permitted other forms of doctrine to be substi- tuted in its place. Gregory, as we have already seen, was of opinion, that it was highly improper to pry with too much curiosity into the mysteries of the eucharist, and that, laying aside all disputes concerning the manner of Christ's presence in that holy institution, it was safest to adhere to the plain words of scripture j and as this was also the opinion of Be- renger, and was plainly expressed in his confession of faith, the judicious pontiff pronounced him innocent. But a fol- lowing council departed from this equitable sentence of Gre- gory, who, though with much reluctance, was induced to confirm their rigorous decision ; and hence arose a third con- fession, which was extremely different from the two preceding ones. We may remark, by the by, that in this controversy the councils seem plainly to have swayed the pontiffs, since we see the obstinate, the invincible Gregory, yielding, against his will, to one of these clamorous assemblies. Berenger had no sooner got out of the hands of his enemies, than he re- turned to the second confession, which the pontiff had ap- proved, and publicly declaimed against that which had been imposed upon him in the last Roman council before which he had appeared, without receiving the least mark of disappro- bation from Gregory. — From this it was natural to conclude, that although he opposed the decree of that council, he adopted nevertheless the opinion of the pope and of the church.

In the account which I have here given of this memorable controversy, I have not only consulted the ancient records re- lating to that matter, which have been made public (for se- veral of them lie as yet in MSS. in the cabinets of the curi- ous), but have also been assisted by the labours of those among the learned, who have treated that important branch of Ecclesiastical History in the most accurate and ample manner : such as first, Franc, de Roye's book, published at Angers in the year 1656; " Ad Can. Ego Berengarius 41. de consecrat, distinct. 2. Ubi Vita, Haeresis, et Poenitentia Be- rengarii Andegavensis Archidiaconi, et ad Josephi Locum de Christo" (a book which is extremely curious and very little known). Mabillon's Praef. ad torn. ix. Act. SS. Ord. Bened, seu Ssec. vl part. II. p. 4. et Dissert, de multiplier

CHAP. in. The Doctrine of the Church. 571

warmest and most vehement controversies. Such CENT.

XL

PART If.

was the dispute that arose in France, in the year 1023, between the priests and monks of Limoges, concerning the place that was to be assigned in the public liturgy to Martial, the first bishop of that diocese. One party, headed by Jordan, bishop of Limoges, were for placing him among the confessors ; while Hugo, abbot of the mona- stery of St. Martial, maintained, that the prelate in question was to be ranked among the apostles, and branded, with the opprobrious and heretical title of Ebionites, all such as adhered to the pro- posal of Jordan. This momentous affair was de- bated first, in a council held at Poitiers in the year 1023, and in another assembled at Paris the year following : in which latter it was determined that Martial was to be honoured with the title of an apostle, and that all who refused him this eminent rank were to be considered as Ebionites, who, as is well known, confined the number of the apo- stles to twelve, that they might exclude St. Paul from that sacred order. The decree, however, of this council did not produce the effects that were expected from it; for it exasperated, instead of calming the zeal and animosity of the contending parties, so that this miserable dispute became daily more universal, and spread like a contagion through all the provinces of France. The matter

damnatione, fidei professione et lapsu, which is published in his Analecta Veteris y£vi, torn. ii. p. 456. De Boulay, Histor. Acad. Paris, torn. i. p. 304?. torn. ii. p. 452. The authors of the reformed church, which I have fpllowed in this contro- versy, are, Usserius, De Successione Ecclesiar. Christianar. in occidente, cap. vii. sec. 24. p. 195. — Basnage, Hist, des Eglises Reformees, torn. i. p. 105, and Hist, de 1'Eglise, torn, ii. p. 1391. — Cas. Oudin, Dissert, de Doctrina et Scriptis Berengarii in Comment, de Scriptor. Ecclesiast. torn. ii. p. 624-. There appears more or less a certain spirit of par- tiality in all these writers j but this spirit is particularly no- torious among those of the church of Rome.

572 The Internal History of the Church.

was at length brought before the tribunal of the Roman pontiff, John XIX. who decided it '. in favour of the monks ; and, in a letter addressed to Jordan and the other bishops of the nation, pronounced Martial worthy of the title and ho- nours of an apostle. This decision produced the most substantial and permanent effects : for in a council assembled at Limoges, A. D. 1029, Jor- dan declared his acquiescence in the papal sentence : in a provincial council at Bourges, two years after, Martial was associated to the company of the apo- stles with great solemnity, in consequence of the decision of the Roman see, and about the same time this controversy was completely and finally terminated in a numerous council assembled at Limoges, in which the prayers that had been con- secrated to the memory of the apostle Martial, by the zealous pontiff, were publicly recited (e). The warm contenders for the apostleship of Martial as- serted, that he was one of the seventy disciples of Christ, from whence they concluded, that he had an equal title with Paul and Barnabas to the ho- nour of an apostle.

(e) See Boulay, Hist. Acad. Paris, torn. i. p. 372. 101. — J. Longeval, Histoire de 1'Eglise Gallicane, torn. vii. p. 188, 189. 231. — The Benedictine monks, in their Gallia Christiana, torn. ii. Append. Documentor, p. 162. have published the Letter of Jordan to Pope Benedict VIII. against the Apostle- ship of Martial. The decrees of the councils of Bourges and Limoges concerning this matter are published by Labbe, in his Biblioth. Nova Manuscriptor. torn. ii. p. 766. Mabillon has given an ample account of Ademar, a monk of St. Cybar, the first promoter of this ridiculous controversy, in his An- nal. Ord. S. Benedict, torn. iv. p. 318. and among the original papers subjoined to that volume has published a letter wrote by that monk in favour of the apostleship of Martial. See also the Histoire Litteraire de la France, torn. vii. p. 301.

•

CHAP. iv. Rites and Ceremonies.

CHAPTER IV.

Concerning the Rites and Ceremonies used in the Church during this Century.

I. THE form of public worship which was esta- CENT. blished at Rome had not, as yet, been universally pA^T' H

received in the western provinces. This was looked _

upon by the imperious pontiffs as an insult upon their authority, and therefore they used their utmost efforts to introduce the Roman ceremonies every where, and to promote a perfect uniformity of worship in every part of the Latin world. Gre- gory VII. employed all his diligence, activity, and zeal, in this enterprise, as appears from several passages in his letters, and he, perhaps, alone was equal to the execution of such an arduous attempt. The Spaniards had long distinguished themselves above all other nations, by the noble and resolute resistance they made to the despotic attempts of the popes upon this occasion ; for they adhered to their ancient Gothic liturgy (jQ with the utmost obstinacy, and could not be brought to change it for the method of worship established at Rome. Alexander II. had indeed proceeded so far, in the year 1068, as to persuade the inhabitants of Ar- ragon into his measures («*), and to conquer the aversion which the Catalonians had discovered for the Roman worship. But the honour of finishing this difficult work, and bringing it to perfection, was reserved for Gregory VII. who, without in- terruption, exhorted, threatened, admonished, and

(/} See Mabillon, De Liturgia Gallicana, lib. i. cap. ii. p. 10. — Jo. Bona, Rerum Liturgicarum lib. i. cap. xi. p. 220. opp. — Petr. Le Brim, Explication des Ceremonies de la Masse, torn. ii. Diss. v. p. 272.

(g) Petr. de Marca, Histoire de Beam, liv. ii. cap. ix.

ii

574 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, intreated Sancius and Alphonso, the kings of Ar- ra£on anc^ Castile, until, fatigued with the impor- tunity of this restless pontiff, they consented to abolish the Gothic service in their churches, and to introduce the Roman in its place. Sancius was the first who complied with the request of the pontiff, and, in the year 1080, his example was followed by Alphonso. The methods which the nobles of Castile employed to decide the matter were very extraordinary. First, they chose two champions, who were to determine the contro- versy by single combat, the one fighting for the Roman liturgy, the other for the Gothic. The first trial ended in favour of the latter ; for the Gothic hero proved victorious. The fiery trial was next made use of to terminate the dispute ; the Roman and Gothic liturgies were committed to the flames, which, as the story goes, consumed the former, while the latter remained unblemished and entire. Thus were the Gothic rites crowned with a double victory, which, however, was not sufficient to maintain them against the authority of the pope, and the influence of the queen Con- stantia, who determined Alphonso in favour of the Roman service (Ji).

II. The zeal of the Roman pontiffs for intro- ducing the uniformity of worship into the western

, / ._

churches may be, in some measure, justified ; j^ their not permitting every nation to celebrate

.... ,.r.,.e ,<

divine worship in their mother tongue was abso- lutely inexcusable. While, indeed, the Latin language was in general use amongst the western nations, or, at least, was unknown to but a very small number, there was no reason why it should not be employed in the public service of the church. But when the decline of the Roman em-

(Ji) Bona, Rerum Liturgicar. lib. i. cap. xi. p. 216. — Le Brun, loc.citat. p. 292. — Jo. de Ferreras, Hist. del'Espagne, torn. iii. p. 237. 24-1.246.

CHAP. iv. Rites and Ceremonies. 575

pire drew on by degrees the extinction of its Ian- CENT. guage in several places, and its decay in all the pj^'n

western provinces, it became just and reasonable 1

that each people should serve the Deity in the language they understood, and which was peculiar to them. This reasoning, however evident and striking, had no sort of influence upon the Roman pontiffs, who, neither in this nor in the following centuries, could be persuaded to change the esta- blished custom, but persisted, on the contrary, with the most senseless obstinacy, in retaining the use of the Latin language in the celebration of divine worship, even when it was no longer under- stood by the people (z). This strange conduct has been variously accounted for by different writers, who have tortured their inventions to find out its secret reasons, and have imagined many that seem extremely improbable and far-fetched. A superstitious and extravagant veneration for whatever carried the hoary aspect of a remote an- tiquity was undoubtedly the principal reason that rendered the pontiffs unwilling to abolish the use of the Latin language in the celebration of divine worship. The same absurd principle produced a similar effect in the eastern churches ; thus the Egyptian Christians perform their religious ser- vice in the language of the ancient Copts, the Jacobites and the Nestorians in the Syriac, and the Abyssinians in the old Ethiopic, though all these languages have been long since obsolete, and are thereby become absolutely unintelligible to the multitude (&).

III. It would be tedious to enumerate, in a Ceremonies circumstantial manner, the new inventions that multlillied-

(z) Usserius, Historia Dogmatica de Scripturis et Sacris Vernaculis ab Hen. Whartono edita et aucta, Londini, 1690, in 4to.

(It) See Euseb. Renaudot, Dissertat. de Liturgiarum Ori- ental. Origine et Antiquitate, cap, vi. p. 40.

576 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, were imposed upon Christians, in this century, PART ii un(^er tne specious titles of piety and zeal, by the

1 superstitious despotism of an imperious clergy. It

would be also endless to mention the additions that were made to former inventions, the multi- plication, for example, of the rites and ceremo- nies that were used in the worship of saints, re- lics, and images, and the new directions that were administered to such as undertook pilgrimages, or other superstitious services of that nature. We shall only observe, that during the whole of this century, all the European nations were most dili- gently employed in rebuilding, repairing, and adorning their churches (/). Nor will this appear surprising, when we consider, that, in the pre- ceding century, all Europe was alarmed with a dismal apprehension that the day of judgment was at hand, and that the world was approaching to its final dissolution ; for among the other effects of this panic terror, the churches and monasteries were suffered to fall into ruin, or at least to re- main without repair, from a notion that they would soon be involved in the general fate of all sublunary things. But when these apprehensions were removed, things immediately put on a new face ; the tottering temples were rebuilt, and the greatest zeal, attended with the richest and most liberal donations, was employed in restoring the sacred edifices to their former lustre, or rather in giving them new degrees of magnificence and beauty. %

(/) Glaber Rodulphus, Hist. lib. iii. cap. iv. in Duchesne's Scriptor. Franc, torn. iv. p. 217. " Infra millesimum tertio jam fere imminente anno contigitin universe pacne terrarum orbe, prccipuc tamen in Italia et in Galliis, innovari Ecclesia- rum basilicas."

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 677

CHAPTER V.

Concerning the Divisions and Heresies that troubled the Church, during this Century.

I. THE state of the ancient sects, and par- CENT. ticularly of the Nestorians and Monophysites, PA^J."n

who resided in Asia and Egypt, under the Ma-

hometan government, was now much the same Ancient that it had been in the preceding century, se neither extremely prosperous, nor absolutely mi- serable. The case of the Manichseans, or Pauli- cians, whom the Grecian emperors had banished from the eastern provinces into Bulgaria and Thrace, was much more unhappy, on account of the perpetual conflicts they had to sustain with the Greeks, who persecuted and oppressed them with much keenness and animosity. The Greeks, as usually happens upon like occasions, laid the blame of their violent measures upon the Mani- cha3ans, whom they represented as a turbulent, perfidious, and sanguinary faction, and as the de- clared and inveterate enemies of the Grecian em- pire (m). This, however, is by no means to be received as an impartial state of the case ; at least, it appears from many circumstances, that if the Manichaeans were exasperated against the Greeks, their resentment was owing to the violent and in- jurious treatment they had received from them. The Grecian pontiffs and clergy were far from being destitute of the odious spirit of persecution ; and it is certain that the emperors, instigated and set on by them, had exhausted the patience of the Paulicians by repeated cruelties and vexations, and alienated their affections by inflicting upon

(m) Anna Comnena Alexiados, lib. v. p. 105. lib. vi. p. 124. 126. 145.

VOL. II. P P

578 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, them, without interruption, a variety of punish- p VHT ii ments» such as banishment, confiscation of goods,

_! 1 and other such marks of severity and violence.

Alexius Comnenus, who, by his learning, was an ornament to the imperial sceptre, perceiv- ing that the Manichaeans were not to be van- quished, without the greatest difficulty, by the force of arms, and observing also that their num- bers increased from day to day both in Thrace and in the adjacent provinces, had recourse to the power of reason and argument to conquer their obstinacy, and spent whole days at Philippopolis, in disputing with the principal doctors of that per- nicious sect. Many of them yielded to the vic- torious arguments of this royal disputant, and his learned associates ; nor is this to be so much won- dered at, since their demonstrations were accom- panied and enforced by rewards and punishments. Such of the Manichaeans as retracted their errors, and returned to the bosom of the Greek church, were loaded with gifts, honours, and privileges, according to their respective stations ; while such as stood firm against the reasoning of the emperor, were inhumanly condemned to perpetual impri- sonment (n).

An account 1 1. Many of the Paulicians, either from a prin- ScuJfsln"" ciple °f zeal f°r tne propagation of their opi- Europe. nions, or from a desire of getting rid of the per- secution and oppression they suffered under the Grecian yoke, retired from Bulgaria and Thrace, and formed settlements in other countries. Their first migration was into Italy; from whence, in process of time, they sent colonies into almost all the other provinces of Europe, and formed gra- dually a considerable number of religious assem-

(n) There is an ample and circumstantial account of this controversy between the emperor and the Manichaeans in the work mentioned in the preceding note, lib. xiv. p. 357.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 579

blies, who adhered to their doctrine, and who CENT. were afterwards persecuted with the utmost vehe- PAXI' mence by the Roman pontiffs (o). It is difficult _ \ to fix the precise period of time when the Pauli- cians began to take refuge in Europe ; it is, how- ever, undoubtedly certain, from the most authen- tic testimonies, that a considerable number of that sect were, about the middle of this century, settled in Lombardy, Insubria, and principally at Milan ; and that many of them led a wandering life in France, Germany, and other countries, where they captivated the esteem and admiration of the

(o) See Lud. Ant. Muratori, Antiquitat. Ital. Medii torn. v. p. 83. — Limborch, Historia Inquisitionis, p. 31. — Thorn. Aug. Richinii Dissertatio de Catharis, which is pre- fixed to the Summa B. Monetae contra Catharos, p. 17, 18. We might also refer, upon this occasion, to Glab. Rodulph. Histor. lib. iii. cap. viii. to Matth. Paris, and other ancient writers. Certain Italian authors, and among others Richini, seem unwilling to acknowledge that the Paulicians arrived first in Italy, and proceeded from thence into other pro- vinces of Europe ; and maintain, on the contrary, that their first settlement was in France, and that from thence they came into Italy. These writers look upon it as ignominious to their country, to be considered as the first European na- tion which fostered such a pernicious and impious sect in its bosom. Be that as it may, their hypothesis is favoured by Petr. de Marca himself, a Frenchman, who, in his Hi- stoire de Beam, livr. viii. cap. xiv. p. 728. declares it as his opinion, that the Paulicians joined themselves to the Gallic armies that returned from the holy war in Palestine, by the province of Bulgaria, and were thus conducted into France. But that learned author alleges no proof to support this opinion : it appears, on the contrary, from the records of the Inquisition of Thoulouse, published by Limborch, and from other authentic pieces, that the Paulicians settled first in Sicily, Lombardy, Liguria, and the Milanese, and sent from thence their doctors and missionaries into France. See the Codex Tolosanus, p. 13, 14. 32. 68, 69, et passim. We learn also from the Code of Thoulouse, that the French Paulicians, who were called Albigenses, had no bishop to consecrate their Anciani (such was the title they gave to their presbyters), so that such of them as were desirous of being placed in the order of presbyters, were obliged to re- pair to Italy, in order to their being regularly installed.

580 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, multitude, by their sanctimonious looks and the un- ^ rr common air of piety which they put on with much

T T 1 1 111 T» * *

affectation. In Italy they were called ratermi and Cathari, or rather Gazari, which latter appellation the Germans have preserved, with a small altera- tion only, which was proper to adapt it to the genius of their language (/>). In France they were called Albigenses, from the town of Alby, in the Upper Languedoc, in Latin Albigia (^). They were like- wise called Bulgarians in France, because they came from Bulgaria, and because the head of their sect resided in that country; as also Publicans, which was probably a corrupt pronunciation of Paulicians, and boni homines, or good men, with several other titles and epithets (r).

(/?) The title of Paterini, which was given to this sect in Italy, has been already explained in the second chapter of the second part of this century, sect 13, note (r). As to the term Catharus, it was undoubtedly, when applied to the Paulicians, the same with Gazarus, as I have elsewhere de- monstrated. See Hist. Ord. Apostol. p. 367. The country which bore, in this century, the name of Gazaria, was what we now call the Lesser Tartary.

(y) That the Paulicians were called Albigenses in France, and were a sect entirely distinct from the Waldenses and other heretics, appears evidently from the Codex Inquisitionis To- losana?, already mentioned. They received this name from a town in Aquitain, called Albigia, or Alby, where their errors were condemned in a council held in the year 1176. See Chatel, Memoires de 1'Histoire de Languedoc, p. 305. It is, therefore, a mistake to consider the Albigenses as a sect so called from Alby's being the place of their birth, their resi- dence, or the seat of their principal assembly; since that name was given them for no other reason than their having been condemned in a council held in that town. There were, in- deed, several Paulicians among the various sects of dissenters from the church of Rome, that inhabited the country about Alby; and it is also true, that the title of Albigenses is usually extended to all the heretics, of whatever sect or denomina- tion they were, who dwelt in these parts.

(r) The learned Du Fresne, in his Glossarium Latin. Medii JEvi, torn. i. p. 1338, has proved, in an ample manner, that the Paulicians were called in France, Bulgares, and, by a cor-

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies.

III. The first religious assembly which the CENT. Paulicians had formed in Europe, is said to have been discovered at Orleans, in the year 1017, under the reign of Robert. A certain Italian lady is said to have been at the head of this sect ; its Orleans principal members were twelve canons of the ca- J**™^ thedral of Orleans, men eminently distinguished Mystics. by their piety and learning, among whom Liso- sius and Stephen held the first rank ; and it was composed, in general, of a considerable number of citizens, who were far from being of the meanest condition. The impious doctrines, pro- fessed by these canons, were discovered by a cer- tain priest named Heribert, and by Arifastus, a Norman nobleman, upon which Robert assem- bled a council at Orleans, and employed the most effectual methods that could be thought of to bring these heretics to a better mind. But all his endeavours were to no purpose ; this pernici- ous sect adhered obstinately to their principles, and hence they were at length condemned to be burnt alive (V).

It is difficult to come to a fixed determination with respect to the character and doctrine of these

rupt pronunciation of'thatword, Bougres. The same author in his ObservationesadVilleharduini Historiam Constantinopolit. p. 169. has fully demonstrated, that the names Popolicana and Publicani, that were imposed upon these Manichaeans, were no more than a corruption of the term Pauliciani, ill pro- nounced. The appellation of Boni Homines, or Los bos Homes, as the southern French spoke at that time, was a title which the Paulicians attributed to themselves. See the Co- dex Inquisit. Tolosanae, p. 22. 84. 95, &c. and more especi- ally p. 131.

(s) The accounts that the ancient writers have given of these heretics are collected by Boulay, in his Hist. Acad. Paris, torn. i. p. 364-. — Chari. Plessis D'Argentre, Collectio. Judicior. de novis Erroribus, torn. i. p. 5. — Jo. Launoy, De Scholis celebrioribus Caroli Magni, cap. xxiv. p. 90. — The history of the synod of Orleans, in which this sect was con- demned, is given by Luc. Dacherius, in his Spicileg. Veter. Scriptor. torn. i. p. 604'.

582 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, people ; for when we examine matters attentively, XI- we find that even their enemies acknowledged the ^ sincerity of their piety ; but they were blackened by accusations which were evidently false ; and that the opinions for which they were punished differ widely from the Manichasan system (/). As far as we can see into the case, it appears to us, that these pretended Manichaeans of Orleans were a set of Mystics, who looked with contempt upon all external worship, rejected all rites and ceremonies, and even the Christian sacraments, as destitute of any, even the least spiritual efficacy or virtue, placed the whole of religion in the in- ternal contemplation of God, and the elevation of the soul to divine and celestial things : and in their philosophical speculations concerning God, the Trinity, and the human soul, soared above the comprehension of the age in which they lived. A like set of men proceeded in vast numbers out of Italy in the following ages, spread like an inun- dation through all the European provinces, and were known in Germany under the name of the Brethren of the Free Spirit, while they were di- stinguished in other countries by the appellation of Beghards (u).

(t) Basnage, in his Histoire des Eglises Reformees, torn. i. period, iv. p. 97. and in his Hist, de 1'Eglise, torn. ii.p. 1388. pleads the cause of the canons of Orleans ; but this learned and worthy man seems to have been carried too far by his zeal for augmenting the number of those who have been martyrs to the truth.

(u) We shall have occasion to give a fuller account of these fanatics in the history of the thirteenth century, in which they were first drawn from their obscurity, and condemned in many 'councils, especially in Germany. It is, however, certain, that they had a clandestine existence long before that period, and that they propagated their tenets secretly in several places. Their doctrine resembles, in some particulars, that of the Manichaeans; and hence it was natural for the ignorant divines of the age in which they lived, to consider them as a branch of that pernicious sect.

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies.

IV. We find in history another branch of this CENT.

XI.

PART II.

numerous sect, whose errors were not accompa-

nied with the crimes that were laid to the charge of their brethren, and who were converted by a pathetic discourse that was addressed to them by Gerhard, bishop of Cambray and Arras, in an converted by

i i /» -i i 111-1 i Gerhard.

assembly of the clergy that was held in the last of these two cities, A. D. 1030. Th«se honest Mystics, who were equally remarkable for their docility and their ignorance, had received the doctrine they professed from the Italians, and par- ticularly from a certain chimerical doctor, whose name was Gundulf. They maintained, in ge- neral, according to their own confession, that the whole of religion consisted in the study of prac- tical piety, and in a course of action conform- able to the divine laws, and treated all external modes of worship with the utmost contempt. Their particular tenets may be reduced to the following heads: 1. They rejected baptism, and in a more especial manner the baptism of infants, as a ceremony that was in no respect essential to sal- vation. 2. They rejected, for the same reason, the sacrament of the Lord's Supper. 3. They de- nied that the churches were endowed with a greater degree of sanctity than private houses, or that they were more adapted to the worship of God than any other place. 4. They affirmed that the altars were to be considered in no other light than as heaps of stones, and were there- fore unworthy of any marks of veneration or re- gard. 5. They disapproved of the use of incense and consecrated oil in services of a religious na- ture. 6. They looked upon the use of bells in the churches as an intolerable superstition. 7- They denied that the establishment of bishops, presbyters, deacons, and other ecclesiastical dig- nities, was of divine institution, and went so far

584 The Internal Histor?/ of the Church.

CENT, as to maintain that the appointment of stated TARTU mimsters in the church was entirely needless.

, 8. They affirmed, that the institution of funeral

rites was an effect of sacerdotal avarice, and that it was a matter of indifference whether the dead were buried in the churches, or in the fields. 9. They looked upon those voluntary punish- ments, called penance, which were so generally practised in this century, as unprofitable and ab- surd. 10. They denied that the sins of departed spirits could be, in any measure, atoned for by the celebration of masses, the distribution of alms to the poor, or a vicarious penance (w) ; and they treated, of consequence, the doctrine of purga- tory as a ridiculous fable. 11. They considered marriage as a pernicious institution, and absurdly condemned, without distinction, all connubial bonds (#). 12. They looked upon a certain sort of veneration and worship as due to the apostles and martyrs, from which, however, they excluded such as were only confessors, in which class, they comprehended the saints, who had not suffered death for the cause of Christ, and whose bodies, in their esteem, had nothing more sacred than any other human carcass. 13. They declared the use of instrumental, music in the churches, and other religious assemblies, superstitious and un- lawful. 14. They denied, that the cross on which Christ suffered was in any respect more sacred than other kinds of wood, and, of conse-

jjjg* (to) By a vicarious penance is understood the course of mortification and voluntary suffering, that one person un- dergoes in order to procure absolution for another.

(x) This eleventh article is scarcely credible, at least as it is here expressed. It is more reasonable to suppose, that these Mystics did not absolutely condemn marriage, but only held celibacy in higher esteem, as a mark of superior sanctity and virtue.

CHAT. v. Divisions and Heresies. 585

quence, refused to pay to it the smallest degree of CENT. religious worship. 15. They not only refused all acts of adoration to the images of Christ, and of the saints, but were also for having them removed out of the churches. 16. They were shocked at the subordination and distinctions that were esta- blished among the clergy, and at the different de- grees of authority that were conferred upon the different members of that sacred body (#).

When we consider the corrupt state of religion in this century, and particularly the superstitious notions that were generally adopted in relation to outward ceremonies, the efficacy of penance and the sanctity of churches, relics, and images, it will not appear surprising that many persons of good sense and solid piety, running from one extreme to another, fell into the opinions of these Mystics, in which, among several absurdities, there were many things plausible and specious, and some highly rational.

V. A controversy, of a much more subtile and The contro- difficult nature, arose in France, about the year Jbot^Ro0^ 1089 ; and had for its principal author Roscel- cellinus- linus, a canon of Compeigne, a profound dialecti- cian, and the most eminent doctor of the sect called Nominalists, which we have already had occasion to mention in the course of this history. This subtile doctor held it inconceivable and im- possible that the Son of God should take on the human nature alone, i. e. without the Father and the Holy Ghost becoming incarnate also, unless by the three persons in the godhead were meant three distinct objects, or natures existing separately (such as three angels, or three distinct spirits),

(y) See an account of the synod of Arras in Dacherius, Spicilegium Scriptor. Veter. torn. i. p. 607—624. Car. Pies- sis D'Argentre, Collectio Judiciorum de Novis Erroribus, torn. i. p. 7-

586 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, though endowed with one will, and acting by one

•KJfi PART II.

XL power. When it was insinuated "to Iloscellinus,

that this manner of reasoning led directly to Tri- theism, or the doctrine of three gods, he answered boldly, that the existence of three gods might be asserted with truth (z), were not the expression

(z) Such is the account given by John,, the accuser of this metaphysical ecclesiastic, in a letter to Anselm, archbishop of Canterbury, published by Baluzius, in his Miscellanea, torn. iv. p. 478. The same account is confirmed by Anselm himself, in the book De Fide Trinitatis which he wrote against Iloscellinus, see Oper. torn. i. p. 41. 43. and lib. ii. Epistolar. ep. xxxv. p. 335. torn. ii. opp. — And also by Fulco, bishop of Beauvais, as may be seen in the second book of the Epistles of Anselm, ep. xli. lib. ii. torn. ii. opp. p. 357- — It must, how- ever, be considered, that the learned men now mentioned were the inveterate enemies of Roscellinus, and that they perhaps comprehended his meaning imperfectly, or perverted it willingly. Several circumstances prove, that some of his adversaries were in one or the other of these two cases. Anselm himself furnishes sufficient grounds for this suspicion, since, notwithstanding his aversion to the Nominalists, of whom Roscellinus was the chief, he grants, in his book De Fide Trinitatis, cap. iii. p. 44. that the opinion of his antago- nist may be admitted, or at least tolerated, in a certain sense ; and even frequently intimates, that he is not perfectly assured of his understanding fully the meaning of Roscellinus, and that he believes the sentiments of that ecclesiastic less perni- cious than his accusers have represented them. " Sed forsi- tan," says Anselm, " ipse (Roscellinus) non dicit, sicut sunt tres animae aut tres Angeli: sed ille, qui mihi ejus mandavit quaestionem, hanc ex suo posuit similitudinem : sed solum- modo tres personas affirmat esse tres RES, sine additamento alicujus similitudinis." The same Anselm (Epistolar. lib. ii. ep. xli. p. 357). declares, that the account which he had re- ceived of the opinions of Roscellinus appears to him extremely dubious, "Quodtamen," says he, " absque dubietate credere non possum." From all this it is evident, that Anselm was far from having an entire confidence in the equity and im- partiality of the accusers of Roscellinus, or from looking upon that ecclesiastic as so black, as his enemies had endeavoured to make him.

As to the merits of the cause, it appears manifest to me, that this subtiledispute was a consequence of the warm controversy that subsisted in this century, between the Realists and the

CHAP. v. Divisions and Heresies. 587

harsh and contrary to the phraseology generally CENT. received. He was, however, obliged to retract this error in a council assembled at Soissons, in the year 1092 ; but he resumed it when the council was dismissed, and the danger over. Per- secuted anew on account of this doctrine, he took refuge in England, and excited there divisions and contests of another kind, by maintaining, among other things, that persons born out of law- ful wedlock ought to be deemed incapable of ad- mission to holy orders. This doctrine, which was by no means suited to the times, procured Ros- cellinus many enemies, and was in a great mea- sure the occasion of his involuntary removal from England. Banished thence, he returned to France, and taking up his residence at Paris, he fomented again the old dispute concerning the Trinity. This, however, succeeded not according to his hopes, but exposed him to much trouble and vexation from the redoubled attacks of his adver- saries, who pressed hard on him from all quarters. Fatigued with their persecutions, he retired at last to Aquitain, where he acquired universal esteem

Nominalists. The former attacked the latter by the danger- ous conclusions that seemed deducible from their principles, and reasoned thus : " If, as your doctrine supposes, universal substances are no more than mere sounds or denominations, and the whole science of logic is only conversant about words, it must of necessity follow, that the three persons in the Godhead are only three names, and not three realities or things. We deny the conclusion, replied Roscellinus; the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, are not placed by us in the rank of denominations, but in the class of realities, or things." The subtile doctor here, as all must more or less do after him, by avoiding Scylla fell into Charybdis, and was charged by his adversaries, with the introduction of tritheism, by holding an opinion, that supposed the existence of three divine substances. Were any of the writings of Roscellinus now extant, they would help us, no doubt, to form a juster notion of this controversy than we can have at present.

588 The Internal History of the Church.

CENT, by his eminent piety, and passed the rest of his n days in tranquillity and repose (a).

XI.

PART

(a) Boulay, Histor. Acad. Paris, torn. i. p. 485. 489. — Mabillon, Annal. Benedict, torn. v. p. 262. — Histoire Litte- raire de la France, torn. ix. p. 358. — Anton. Pagi Critica in Baroniura ad a. 1094. torn. iv. p. 317. — Jaques Longueval, Hist, de 1'Eglise Gallicane, torn. viii. p. 59.

END OF VOL. II.

LONDON J PRINTED BY THOMAS DAVISCW, WHITEFRIARS,

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