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1 ..  ( i . 

LIBRARY    OF    THE    THEOLOGICAL    SEMINARY 

PRINCETON,     N.    J. 
PRESENTED  BY 

PRINCETON  UNIVERSITY 


BR  1705  .N48  1889 

Newton,  Richard,  1813-1887. 

Heroes  of  the  early  church 


/  (^  JUL  :  1  iss-i 

HEROES      V%£22^_^ 
OF  THE  EARLY  CHURCH. 


BY  THK 


Rev.  Richard  Newton,   D.D. 

AUTHOR  OF 

"Hkroes  of  the  Reformation,"  "Illustrated  Rambles  in  Bible 
Lands,"  "Pearls  from  the  East."  etc.,  etc. 


PHILADELPHIA  : 

THE    AMERICAN    SUNDAY-SCHOOL    UNION, 
1122  CHESTNUT  STREET. 


8  &  10  Bible  House,  New  York. 
[Copyright  by  The  American  Sunday-School  Union,  1888.] 


PREFATORY  NOTE. 


These  graphic  sketches  of  the  "Heroes  of  the 
Early  Church  "  are  the  latest  series  penned  by  the 
distinguished  author,  whom  Spurgeon  fittingly  called 
"  The  Prince  of  Children's  Preachers."  The  sketches 
are  in  many  respects  the  best  work  of  the  gifted  man. 
As  he  ripened  in  saintship  for  heaven,  his  literary 
style  became  even  more  rich  with  the  aroma  of  the 
gospel,  and  so  more  forcible,  simple  and  crisp  than  in 
his  earlier  writings. 

The  articles  were  originally  prepared  for  The 
Youth's  World,  and  were  issued  in  that  periodical. 
The  revision  and  preparation  of  them  for  publica- 
tion in  this  form  has  been  an  easy  and  delightful 
task.  Indeed,  so  carefully  did  Dr.  Newton  prepare 
his  copy  for  the  press  that  little  was  required  to  be 
done  beyond  the  omission  of  some  repetitions  of  state- 
ment, necessarily  incident  to  serial  articles  in  a  peri- 
odical. •  Dr.  Newton  had  planned  another  series  on 
the  "  Heroes  of  the  Modern  Church,"  to  follow  these, 
but  was  compelled  by  ill  health  to  give  up  writing 
them.  Yet  he  continued  to  work  so  diligently  that 
the  last  article  from  his  pen  was  written  for  the  num- 
ber of  The  Youth's  Wo7'ld  which  appeared  the  month 
after  his  death.     He  was  conscious  that  the  "Mas- 


vi  Prefatory  Note. 

ter's  call "  might  come  suddenly  to  hira.  In  view  of 
this  sudden  "  translation,"  he  committed  to  me  the 
work  of  revising  and  issuing  these  sketches  in  a  per- 
manent form.  With  great  regret  he  gave  up  the 
continuance  of  the  series  he  had  intended,  as  this  note 

shows : 

"Chestnut  Hill,  Philadelphia, 

"  April  9,  1887. 
"Eev.  E.  W.  Eice,  D.D.: 

"  My  Dear  Brother — I  return  the  enclosed  papers  to  you,  and  am  very- 
sorry  to  be  obliged  to  say  that  it  will  not  be  in  my  power  to  go  on  with 
the  new  course  of  articles  on  '  The  Heroes  of  the  Modern  Church.'  .  .  , 
I  am  greatly  interested  in  this  work,  and  should  like  nothing  better  than 
to  go  on  with  it  if  I  could.    But  this  is  impossible." 

A  week  later  came  another  letter : 

"  Your  kind  letter  of  yesterday  is  received.  I  never  did  anything  in 
my  life  more  reluctantly  than  to  write  the  letter  sent  you  the  other  day 
about  discontinuing  the  articles  on  '  The  Heroes  of  the  Modern  Church.' 
I  have  always  considered  it  one  of  my  highest  privileges  to  be  connected 
with  the  American  Sunday-School  Union  in  the  noble  work  it  is  doing 
for  the  glory  of  God  and  for  the  good  of  men. 

"And  nothing  but  a  sense  of  absolute  necessity  would  ever  have  in- 
duced me  to  take  this  step." 

Two  weeks  later  there  came  another  letter,  show- 
ing the  sweet  submission  and  strong  hoj)e  of  the 
Christian  in  the  deepest  sorrow : 

"  April  30, 1887. 
"My  Dear  Brother  Rice: 

"...  I  have  been  passing  through  deep  waters  for  the  last  few  weeks 

in  the  loss  of  my  dear  wife,  after  we  had  journeyed  on  together  in  the 

pilgrimage  of  life  for  half  a  century.    All  life's  other  trials  seemed  light 

in  comparison  with  this.    And  yet  I  never  felt  the  power  and  precious- 

ness  of  the  gospel  as  I  have  done  in  going  through  this  trial." 

Then  came  a  final  note,  in  his  own  hand,  written 
from  his  bed  of  sickness,  from  whence  he  soon  after 
passed  to  the  better  land. 


Prefatory  Note.  vii 

ua\^  \UyuL  tjdr  (T  ^  c^n^!tcyJ::i  ^ 
a3  oavs^  O-tt/K.  W^-  ^<^(/C  ^e  &-r7>^ 


viii  Prefatory  Note, 

A  few  days  later  on,  May  25,  1887,  in  his  seventy- 
fifth  year,  Dr.  Newton  departed  to  be  with  Christ. 

The  gifted  author  has  sketched  the  characters  of 
these  "  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church  "  with  a  loving, 
vigorous  and  graphic  pen,  which  will  give  young 
Christian  readers  of  to-day  a  vivid  impression  of  the 
greatness  and  goodness  of  the  men  who  labored  and 
sacrificed  their  lives  in  the  early  extension  and 
strengthening  of  our  common  evangelical  faith. 

Edwin  AV.  Rice. 
Philadelphia,  Sept.  1, 1888. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER.  p^GE. 

I.     Clement  of  Rome H 

11.  Ignatius  of  Antioch.        .    °    .        ,        ,        .25 

III.  Polycarp  of  Smyrna 40 

IV.  Justin  Martyr 59 

V.     Irenaeus  of  Lyons 74 

VI.     Clement  of  Alexandria 91 

VII.     Tertullian  of  Carthage 105 

VIII.     Origen  of  Alexandria 120 

IX.     Cyprian  of  Carthage, 136 

X.    Eusebius  of  Csesarea 149 

XI.     Athanasius  the  Great 165 

XII.     Julian  the  Apostate. 188 

XIII.  Basil  the  Great 200 

XIV.  Ambrose  of  Milan 213 

XV.     John  Chrysostom 228 

XVI.  Jerome 241 

XVII.  Augustine  of  Numidia.  ."        .        .        ,      255 

XVIII.  Patrick,  the  Apostle  of  Ireland.        .        .        .271 

XIX.  Columba,  the  Apostle  of  Scotland.        .        .      281 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE. 

Antioch.  ......  Frontispiece. 

S.  Clemens  Romanus,  .  .  .  .  13 

Eoman  Scourging  and  Beating  with  Rods,  .  .      22 

S.  Ignatius  Antiochenus,  ....  24 

Antioch  in  Syria,  (After  Cassas.)  .  .  .29 

S.  Polycarpus,  .....  41 

Smyrna,  the  home  of  Polycarp,  .  .  .  .47 

S.  Justinus  Martyr,      .....  58 

Shechem  in  Palestine.     The  birthplace  of  Justin  Martyr,  63 
S.  Irenseus,  .  .  .  .  .  .77 

S.  Clemens  Alexandrinus,       .  .   '         .  .  90 

Ancient  Alexandria  (Map),  .  .  .  .97 

Tertullianus,  .  .  .  .  .109 

Origen,       .  .  .  .  .  .  .127 

Coliseum  at  Pome,       .....  137 

View  of  Pome  from  the  slope  of  the  Capitoline  Hill,  .     141 
Puins  of  Csesarea,        .....  150 

Obelisks  as  they  were  at  Alexandria,      .  .  .     177 

Modern  Athens,  .....  189 

Acropolis  at  Athens,  as  it  was,     .  .  .  .189 

Work  on  the  Temple  at  Jerusalem  stopped,  .  197 

Constantinople  and  the  Bosphorus,  ,  .  .     240 

View  of  Bethlehem,    .....  244 


HEROES 
OF  THE  EARLY  CHURCH. 


CHAPTER  I. 

CLEMENT  OF  ROME. 

BORN   A.  D.    30    (?);      DIED   A.  D.    100    (?). 

We  now  propose  to  study  the  histor}/ 

and  character  of  some  of  the  Heroes  in 

the  earHest  ages  of  the  Christian  Church. 

We  will  begin  with  the  first  century  of 

the  Christian  era.     The  good  man  whose 

name  stands  at  the  head  of  this  chapter 

was    the    friend   and   companion    of    the 

great  apostles   Peter  and   Paul.     Origen 

says  he  is  mentioned  by  Paul  in  his  epistle 

to  the  Philippians.     In  the  fourth  chapter 

and   the    third   verse    of  this    epistle  the 

(11) 


1 2  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

apostle  Is  sending  a  message  to  some 
member  of  that  church,  and  he  beseeches 
him  to  *'  help  those  women  which  labored 
with  me  in  the  gospel,  with  Clement  also, 
and  with  other  my  fellow  laborers,  whose 
names  are  in  the  book  of  life."  Here, 
perhaps,  we  have  the  good  man  whose 
story  we  are  now  sketching  brought  be- 
fore us. 

As  we  study  the  principal  facts  in  his 
life  he  comes  before  us  as  an  example  of 
four  important  practical  lessons. 

I.  Clement  of  Rome  was  an  example  of 
earnestness  i7t  seeking  for  the  truth.  He 
was  born  in  the  first  century  of  the  Chris- 
tian era.  Of  course  in  his  early  education 
he  was  only  taught  about  the  gods  whom 
the  heathen  worshipped.  But  this  teach- 
ing did  not  satisfy  him.  The  great  ques- 
tion which  troubled  him  was,  "  Will  my 
soul  live  after  the  death  of  my  body?" 
He  wished  to  know  if  there  was  any  au- 
thority for  believing  in  the  immortality  of 
the  soul.  He  made  up  his  mind  never  to 
rest  till  this  question  was  settled.  But  his 
heathen  teachers  could  give  him  no  satis- 


hnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn'flnnnnnn' 


tllllllilllllllllllllliUi!iiiii(^ii:^H«ciaEiiii)g|iHiiseiihiiMiHM"iJ>iiti»aHii>iiMiHHi 


"KirtMmi^  ROMAmrs, 


Clement,  i  c 

faction  upon  this  subject.  After  hearing 
all  they  had  to  say,  he  studied  diligently 
the  teachings  of  the  Roman  and  Egyptian 
philosophers  ;  but  they  had  nothing  to  tell 
that  gave  him  any  help  in  settling  this 
important  question.  Still  he  determined 
not  to  give  the  matter  up. 

Then  he  heard  that  the  Son  of  God  had 
come  down  from  heaven  to  give  light  on 
these  great  subjects.  This  encouraged 
him  to  go  on  with  his  Inquiries,  in  the  hope 
that  he  should  at  last  find  out  the  truth 
about  this  matter. 

Soon  after  this,  tradition  says  that  he 
became  acquainted  with  the  apostle  Bar- 
nabas at  Rome.  He  followed  him  to 
Alexandria,  and  then  to  Judaea.  At  Jer- 
usalem, Barnabas  introduced  him  to  the 
apostle  Peter.  Peter  gave  him  all  the 
Information  he  had  so  loner  been  seeklno- 

o  & 

for,  about  the  soul  and  its  salvation.  The 
true  doctrine  of  eternal  life  was  made 
clear  to  him.  Thus  he  was  brought  to  the 
Saviour,  and  was  baptized  and  joined  the 
church. 

2.  Clement  of  Rome  comes  before  us  as 


1 6  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

an  example  of  humility.  And  here  let  me 
say  that  in  handling  these  far-off  histories, 
it  is  often  very  difficult  to  get  the  actual 
facts.  Outside  the  Bible  there  is  no  au- 
thentic history  of  this  early  age  of  the 
Church.  It  is  only  the  voice  of  tradition 
that  speaks  to  us  on  the  part  of  Clement's 
career  now  before  us.  What  this  voice 
says  is  that  when  the  apostle  Peter  knew 
that  his  days  were  drawing  to  an  end,  and 
that  the  time  of  his  departure  was  at  hand, 
he  was  very  anxious  to  have  a  suitable 
person  selected  to  take  his  place  as  the 
head  of  the  church  at  Rome.  His  inti- 
mate acquaintance  with  Clement  satisfied 
him  that  he  was  better  adapted  for  that 
position  than  any  one  else  he  knew.  So 
he  called  a  council  of  the  church  and 
urp-ed  Clement  on  their  attention  as  the 

o 

best  person  to  occupy  the  important  office 
of  bishop  of  their  church. 

The  iQxmbishop  is  used  in  these  sketches, 
in  the  New  Testament  sense,  where  the 
word  episcopos  or  overseer  is  applied,  and 
not  as  implying  all  that  in  these  modern 
days  is  connected  with  the  term  bishop. 


Clement.  1 7 

3.  We  have  In  Clement  of  Rome  aii  ex- 
ample of  activity  in  doijig  good.  He  did 
good  by  promoting  peace.  When  the 
Christian  church  was  first  estabHshed  at 
Rome,  it  was  a  divided  church.  There 
was  one  branch  known  as  the  Jewish 
church  and  another  as  the  Gentile  church; 
but  under  the  influence  of  the  peace-loving 
spirit  of  this  good  bishop,  the  prejudices 
then  existing  were  softened  down,  and  the 
two  parties  became  one. 

Clement  had  been  intimately  connected 
with  the  church  at  Corinth.  After  he  was 
made  bishop  he  heard  that  there  was  a 
very  bitter  strife  in  that  church,  growing 
out  of  the  parties  into  which  it  had  been 
divided.  This  distressed  him  very  much; 
and  here  his  love  of  peace  came  into  play 
again.  In  the  hope  of  allaying  that  bitter 
strife,  and  bring  the  opposing  parties  there 
together  in  unity,  he  wrote  his  famous 
epistle  to  the  Corinthian  church.  This 
epistle  was  written  in  such  an  humble,  gen- 
tle, loving  spirit  that  it  subdued  the  bitter- 
ness of  the  strife  existincr  there,  and  acted 
on  the  disturbed   church  of  Corinth  very 


1 8  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

much  as  oil  acts  when  poured  on  the  sur- 
face of  the  troubled  waters. 

This  epistle  in  its  language  and  spirit  is 
so  very  much  like  the  epistle  to  the  He- 
brews that  the  members  of  the  early 
Church  regarded  it  as  almost  equal  to  the 
inspired  writings,  and  for  the  first  three 
centuries  of  the  Christian  era  it  used  to 
be  read  in  the  churches,  very  much 
as  the  Scriptures  were.  Then  it  was  lost 
to  the  Church  for  many  centuries,  but  was 
discovered  again  between  two  hundred 
and  three  hundred  years  ago.  Let  us  all 
follow  the  example  of  Clement  as  a  lover 
of  peace. 

Again  he  did  good  by  trying  to  spread 
abroad  the  gospel,  as  well  as  by  making 
peace.  Tradition  tells  us  that  he  sent 
ministers  to  preach  the  gospel  in  distant 
regions,  where  the  glad  tidings  of  salva- 
tion had  never  been  heard ;  and  the 
amount  of  good  which  he  accomplished  in 
this  way  will  nev^r  be  known  till  the  great 
day  of  final  judgement. 

4.  We  have  in  this  '*  hero  of  the  early 
Church"  an  example  of  indoiJtitable  courage. 


Cleme7it.  1 9 

There  are  no  historical  facts  on  which  we 
can  draw  to  illustrate  this  part  of  our  sub- 
ject. It  is  only  a  late  tradition  that 
speaks  to  us  here.  But  the  story  thus 
given  affords  a  good  illustration  of  the 
courage  of  this  good  man.  And  what 
tradition  has  to  say  here  is  that  Clement 
was  always  trying  to  use  his  personal  in- 
fluence in  such  a  way  as  to  bring  those 
about  him  who  were  not  Christians  to  a 
knowledge  of  Jesus  as  their  Saviour.  In 
this  way  he  was  the  means  of  the  conver- 
sion of  a  noble  lady  named  Theodora, 
and  also  of  her  husband.  He  was  a  kins- 
man of  the  emperor  Nerva,  and  a  great 
favorite  with  him.  This  led  the  emperor 
to  begin  a  very  severe  and  cruel  perse- 
cution. Clement  of  Rome  did  not  escape 
this  persecution.  He  was  seized  and  cast 
into  prison.  When  the  time  of  his  trial 
came,  he  had  to  make  his  choice  between 
sacrificinor  to  the  idols  of  Rome  and  beingf 
sent  into  banishment.  And  here  the  cour- 
age of  this  brave  man  was  well  shown  :  he 
refused  to  sacrifice  to  the  idols.  Then  the 
sentence  of  banishment  was  issued  against 


20  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

him.  He  was  sent  away  from  Rome,  to  a 
far-off  place  called  Cherson.  This  was  a 
little  town  beyond  the  Pontic  Sea.  On 
arriving  there,  he  found  those  banished 
like  himself  were  compelled  to  labor  in 
the  mines.  They  had  to  endure  the  se- 
verest labor  and  the  most  terrible  hard- 
ships. They  were  whipped  and  beaten 
and  chained  ;  their  heads  were  half  shaved, 
their  right  eyes  bored  out,  their  left  legs 
disabled,  and  disgraceful  marks  were  bran- 
ded on  their  foreheads  ;  and  in  addition  to 
all  this,  they  were  exposed  to  hunger  and 
thirst  and  cold  and  nakedness.  Clement 
found  great  numbers  of  Christians  there 
condemned  to  all  these  miseries  with  him- 
self. They  were  delighted  to  have  so 
noble  a  Christian  as  he  was  to  be  their 
companion  in  suffering.  Then  he  began 
to  hold  services  and  to  preach  the  gospel 
to  them  after  their  day's  work  was  done. 
Many  of  the  heathen  people  from  the 
surrounding  country  attended  these  ser- 
vices. Great  numbers  of  them  were  con- 
verted. Before  long  the  heathen  temples 
in  that  region  were  deserted. 


Clement,  2 1 

V/hen  the  emperor  heard  of  this,  he 
sent  an  officer  to  stop  this  Christian  work 
by  persecution.  But,  finding  that  putting 
the  common  people  to  death  did  not  stop 
the  work  from  going  on,  he  resolved  to 
to  make  an  example  of  one  of  the  leading 
men  amoncf  them  ;  so  Clement  was  chosen 
for  this  purpose.  He  had  to  make  his 
choice  between  renouncing  his  religion 
and  being  put  to  death.  Here  again  he 
displayed  the  same  courage  which  had  an- 
imated him  before.  He  refused  to  give 
up  his  religion.  Then  he  was  condemned 
to  death.  He  was  put  on  board  a  small 
vessel  and  carried  far  off  from  the  shore. 
A  heavy  stone  (or,  according  to  another 
account,  an  anchor)  was  fastened  to  his 
feet,  and  he  was  plunged  into  the  depths 
of  the  sea.  Such,  tradition  says,  was  the 
end  of  this  ''hero  of  the  early  Church." 

But  when  we  think  of  Clement  of  Rome, 
let  us  remember  the  four  good  lessons 
tauglit  us  by  his  example — the  lesson  of 
earnestness  in  seeking  for  the  truth,  the 
lesson  of  humility,  the  lesson  of  usefulness, 
and  the  lesson  of  courage— and  let  us  try 


2  2  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

to  imitate  his  example  in  these  respects, 
and  then  God's  blessing  will  rest  upon  us, 
and  we  shall  be  successful  in  our  life- 
work. 


ROMAN  SCOURGING  AND  BEATING  WITH  RODS. 


luuuiiunHuiuiiiuuiiiuuuiuiiuiiiiiniiiiiuniiiiiniiiiiHniinuuiuiiiuiniiHiiiiiuuiiuwuiiiiiiiiiiiuuiiiiiiinn 


^.  IGWATIUS  AKTIOCHEWUS. 


CHAPTER  II. 

IGNATIUS    OF    ANTIOCH. 

BORN   A.  D.    80    (?);      DIED   A.  D.    107    TO    117    (?). 

We  come  now  to  consider  Ignatius  the 
second  in  our  list  of  heroes  of  the  early 
Church. 

About  the  exact  time  and  place  of  the 
birth  of  Ignatius,  and  his  parentage,  we 
have  no  certain  knowledge,  and  therefore 
on  these  points  we  shall  not  attempt  to 
say  anything.  Only  this  remark  may  be 
made:  that  if  the  statement  is  correct 
which  represents  him  to  have  been  about 
eighty  years  of  age  when  he  died,  and  If 
that  event  took  place  in  the  year  ii6or 
1 1  7,  then  he  must  have  been  born  between 
the  years  30  and  40  of  the  Christian  era. 

Ignatius  always  used  to  speak  of  him- 
self as  Ignatius  Theophoi^its.  This  is  a 
Greek  word  which  means  being  borne  or 

(25) 


2  6  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

carried  by  God.  And  every  one  who  is 
trying  to  be  a  true  Christian  may  well  be 
thus  spoken  of.  For  we  are  clearly  taught 
in  the  Bible  that  God's  everlasting  arms 
are  under  all  his  followers,  and  his  shelter- 
ing wings  are  over  them. 

It  has  been  reported  that  Ignatius  was 
the  very  child  that  our  Saviour  took  up  In 
his  arms  when  he  wished  to  teach  his  dis- 
ciples the  great  lesson  that  they  must  be 
converted  and  become  as  little  children  if 
they  wished  to  be  his  true  followers.  It 
would  be  an  Interesting  circumstance  in 
the  history  of  this  good  man  if  we  could 
know  that  this  w^as  a  fact;  but  this  cannot 
be  known,  and  so  we  merely  refer  to  the 
circumstance  and  pass  it  by. 

Ignatius  in  his  earlier  years  had  the 
privilege  of  receiving  instruction  from 
the  apostles  Peter  and  Paul.  He  not  only 
heard  them  preach  In  public,  but  was  also 
favored  with  their  more  familiar  teachlnofs 
In  private.  While  thus  Intimate  with  the 
apostles  just  mentioned,  he  tells  us  him- 
self, that  he  was  the  disciple  of  the  apostle 
John.      Under   the    instruction    of    these 


Ignatius  of  Antioch.  27 

great  and  good  men  he  was  taught  "  the 
truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus";  and  then,  in  view 
of  the  thorough  knowledge  he  had  of  the 
gospel,  as  well  as  of  his  great  piety  and 
the  excellent  gifts  which  God  had  be- 
stowed upon  him,  he  was  chosen  by  the 
apostles  to  be  the  head  and  ruler  of  the 
church  in  the  city  of  Antioch.  This  is  a 
city  which  has  had  a  very  interesting  and 
important  history.  It  was  founded  about 
three  hundred  years  before  Christ,  and  is 
situated  on  the  river  Orontes,  sixteen 
miles  from  the  Mediterranean  Sea.  It 
stands  on  a  beautiful  plain  surrounded  by 
ranges  of  mountains.  The  temples  and 
palaces  of  Antioch  were  of  the  very  finest 
kind.  A  wide  avenue  ran  through  the 
centre  of  the  city,  about  four  miles  long, 
on  either  side  of  which  was  a  covered  way 
supported  by  marble  columns.  Antioch 
was  one  of  the  most  famous  cities  of  the 
East.  The  rulers  and  great  men  of  Syria 
made  it  their  headquarters.  It  was  at  the 
height  of  its  prosperity  in  the  days  of  Ig- 
natius, and  we  are  told  that  it  then  had 
a   population   of  four  hundred  thousand 


28  Heroes  of  the  Ea74y  Church, 

inhabitants.  One  of  the  things  of  great- 
est interest  to  us  In  the  history  of  this  city 
is  that  the  disciples  of  our  blessed  Lord 
"were  first  called  Christians  at  Antioch." 

It  has  been  nearly  destroyed  a  number 
of  times  by  earthquakes,  and  is  now  only 
a  small  city,  with  a  population  of  not  over 
ten  thousand. 

But  this  famous  city  was  the  scene  of 
the  labors  of  Ignatius  for  about  forty 
years ;  and  in  the  studying  of  the  history 
of  this  good  man's  life,  we  find  illustra- 
tions of  four  lessons  which  it  is  very  im- 
portant for  us  all  to  learn. 

I.  The  iessojt  of  practical  wisdom.  To 
know  just  what  to  do  and  how  to  do  it,  is 
the  grand  secret  of  success  in  all  our  life- 
work.  This  secret  Ignatius  posessed. 
The  times  in  which  he  lived  were  times  of 
persecution,  trial,  and  difficulty.  His  po- 
sition, at  the  head  of  the  church  at  Anti- 
och, was  like  that  of  a  pilot  steering  his 
vessel  through  a  dangerous  channel, 
where  rocks  on  one  hand  and  shoals  on  the 
other  are  constantly  presenting  the  danger 
of  shipwreck.     When  false  teachers  were 


Ignatius  of  Antioch.  3 1 

engaged  in  efforts  to  spread  abroad  erro- 
neous doctrines,  he  sought  in  every  way  to 
guard  his  people  against  these  dangers  by 
simple,  earnest  and  untiring  statements  of 
the  truth  as  God  had  revealed  it  in  his 
word.  Thus  the  members  of  his  church 
were  preserved  from  the  dangers  to  which 
they  were  exposed,  and  were  helped  to 
cling  faithfully  to  the  truths  of  the  gospel 
in  spite  of  the  errors  that  were  then  pre- 
vailing. And  when  the  days  of  persecu- 
tion came  upon  the  church,  he  was  untir- 
ing in  his  efforts  to  strengthen  those  who 
were  weak,  to  encourage  those  who  were 
depressed,  to  point  them  all  to  that  Al- 
mighty Arm  on  which  they  were  permitted 
to  lean,  and  to  tell  them  of  that  omnipo- 
tent grace  which  would  be  sufficent  for 
them  in  every  time  of  need,  and  would 
bring  them  off  at  last  more  than  conquer- 
ors through  him  who  had  loved  them  and 
given  himself  for  them. 

And  when  we  think  how  successful  this 
hero  of  the  early  Church  was  in  finding 
out  just  what  he  ought  to  do  amidst  the 
perplexities  that  attended  his  path,  and  in 


32  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

securing  the  help  and  guidance  which  en- 
abled him  for  so  many  years  to  do  all  that 
his  important  and  responsible  position 
made  It  his  duty  to  do,  we  may  learn  a 
useful  lesson  for  ourselves  ;  for  the  same 
wisdom  which  guided  him  to  see  what  he 
ought  to  do,  and  the  same  grace  which  en- 
abled him  to  do  it.  Is  just  what  we  need, 
and  just  what  God  will  give  us  if  we  seek 
it  from  him,  as  Ignatius  did. 

2.  The  life  of  this  good  man  teaches  us 
the  lesson  of  patient  endurance.  Trajan, 
the  Roman  emperor,  visited  Antloch  early 
in  the  second  century  of  the  Christian  era. 
He  had  just  gained  a  great  victory  over 
the  Scythians  and  the  Daclans,  and  was 
preparing  for  a  war  with  the  Parthlans 
and  the  Armenians.  He  entered  the  city 
with  great  pomp  and  parade.  One  of  his 
armies  had  been  defeated  by  the  Chris- 
tians in  another  part  of  his  empire.  This 
made  him  very  angry.  He  began  to  per- 
secute the  Christians  in  different  places ; 
and  while  staying  In  Antloch,  he  made 
special  Inquiries  about  what  the  Christians 
there    were    doing.     Ignatius    thought    it 


Ignatius  of  Antioch.  2iZ 

best  to  call  on  the  emperor  and  converse 
with    him    on   this   subject.     They  talked 
freely  about  the  different  religions  of  the 
world.     Ignatius  was  honest  and  faithful 
in   what   he   said.     He   told   the  emperor 
what  the  Christian  reliction  was  and  where 
it  came   from.      He   said   there    was  but 
one  true  God,  and  that  is  the  God  whom 
the  Christians  worship.     He  declared  that 
the  Christian  religion   would  surely  In  the 
end   overturn  all  other  religions,  and  fill 
the  whole  world.     This  made  the  emperor 
very  angry.     He  resolved  at  once  to  per- 
secute  the   Christians  In  Antioch  and  all 
through  Syria.     He  began  this  persecution 
by  ordering  Ignatius  to  be  cast  Into  prison. 
This  was  done  at  once,  and  the  good  man 
was   subject  to  the  most  severe  and  un- 
merciful    treatment.       He    was    whipped 
with  scourges  which  had  leaden  bullets  at 
the  end  of  them.     He  was  forced  to  hold 
fire   in  his  naked  hands,  while  the  sides  of 
his  body  were  burnt  with  paper  dipped  In 
oil.     His    feet    were    placed    on    burning 
coals,  while  the  flesh  was  torn  off  from  his 
limbs  with  red-hot  pincers. 

3 


34  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

But  he  bore  all  this  without  a  murmur,. 
His  tormentors  looked  on  with  astonish- 
ment at  his  perfect  endurance.  They  could 
not  understand  it.  But  when  the  emperor 
saw  that  no  amount  of  torture  could  make 
any  impression  on  this  heroic  man,  he 
pronounced  the  sentence  of  death  upon 
him,  and  ordered  that  he  should  be  bound 
in  chains ;  and  appointed  a  company  of 
ten  soldiers  to  conduct  him  to  Rome, 
where  he  was  to  be  thrown  as  a  prey  to 
the  wild  beasts. 

And  now  some  of  our  readers  may  be 
ready  to  ask,  ''Well,  how  did  Ignatius 
bear  all  this?  Did  his  patient  endurance 
continue?"  It  did  ;  for  when  he  heard  of 
the  cruel  decree  which  the  emperor  had 
pronounced  against  him,  these  were  the 
words  he  uttered :  "  I  thank  thee,  O  Lord, 
that  thou  hast  been  pleased  thus  perfectly 
to  honor  me  with  thy  love,  and  hast 
thought  me  worthy,  with  thy  holy  apostle 
Paul,  to  be  bound  with  iron  chains." 
Then  we  are  told  that  he  cheerfully  em- 
braced his  chains,  and  having  prayed  ear- 
nestly for  his  church,  and  commended  it 


Ignatius  of  Antioch.  35 

with  tears  to  the  divine  care  and  protec- 
tion, he  deHvered  himself  into  the  hands 
of  the  soldiers  appointed  to  transport  him 
to  the  place  of  execution. 

Surely  Ignatius  was  a  hero!  How 
wonderful  the  grace  of  God  was  that 
could  enable  him  to  exer'clse  such  patient 
endurance  !  Let  us  all  seek  that  grace, 
and  it  will  enable  us  to  endure  with  the 
same  patience  any  trials  that  we  may 
have  to  meet. 

3.  The  third  lesson    we    find    illustrated 
in  the  history  of  Ignatius    is    the  lessojt  of 
untiring  diligence.     It  is    a    long  journey 
from  Antioch  to  Rome,  even  In  our  days; 
but  it  was    much    longer    in    the    days    of 
which  we    are    speaking.      The    question 
has  often  been  asked  why  Ignatius   should 
have  been  sent  so  far  just  to  be  put  to 
death.     Many  reasons  have  been  sugges- 
ted for  it.     The  most  probable  motive  for 
it  may  have  been  that  the  sight  of  such  a 
well-known  person  being  carried  in  chains 
to  Rome  to  be   devoured  by  wild  beasts, 
for  the  single  reason  that  he  was  a  Christ- 
ian, might  make  the  people  in  the  coun- 


36  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

tries  through  which  he  passed  unwilHngto 
think  of  becoming  Christians,  lest  they 
might  meet  with  such  an  end. 

The  journey  of  Ignatius  from  Antioch 
to  Rome  was  attended  with  many  inci- 
dents which  helped  to  make  it  interesting. 
In  the  different  towns  where  he  stopped, 
the  ministry  and  members  of  the  churches 
there  and  from  the  country  around  would 
meet  together  to  see  and  talk  with  this 
aged  servant  of  Christ  who  was  going  to 
meet  a  martyr's  death.  They  would  have 
religious  exercises  together;  they  would 
ask  his  prayers  and  his  blessing,  and  he 
would  ask  them  to  remember  his  much- 
loved  church  at  Antioch  in  their  prayers. 
Ignatius  was  an  aged  man  at  this  time; 
and  when  we  think  of  the  many  years  of 
hard  labor  which  had  occupied  him,  we 
should  hardly  have  expected  that  while 
pursuing  such  a  long  journey,  and  bound 
in  chains,  he  would  still  keep  busily  at 
work.  Yet  this  was  what  he  did.  When 
they  stopped  on  their  journey,  he  was 
busy  writing  all  t«he  time.  He  wrote  to 
his  friends  at  home,   the   members   of  the 


Ignatius  of  Antioch,  2>7 

church  for  which  he  had  labored  so  long 
and  so  faithfully.  Then  he  wrote  to  the 
churches  in  the  regions  of  country 
through  which  he  passed,  exhorting  them 
to  be  faithful  to  their  Christian  calling, 
and  entreating  them  to  pray  for  his 
church  at  Antioch.  Some  six  or  more  of 
these  epistles  have  come  down  to  us. 
This  Is  the  way  in  which  Polycarp,  a  dear 
friend  of  Ignatius,  who  lived  at  the  same 
time,  speaks  of  these  epistles.  "  They 
contain,"  says  he,  ''  instructions  and  ex- 
hortations to  faith  and  patience,  and  what- 
ever is  necessary  to  build  us  up  in  the 
religion  of  our  Lord  and  wSaviour  Jesus 
Christ." 

And  when  we  think  of  this  ''  hero  of  the 
early  Church"  working  in  this  way  while 
on  his  last  journey  to  meet  a  martyr's 
death,  we  may  well  speak  of  him  as  illus- 
trating beautifully  for  us  the  lesson  of  un- 
tiring diligence.  And  this  is  a  lesson 
which  we  should  all  try  to  learn  and 
practice. 

4.  The  closing  scenes  of  the  life  of  this 
good  man  illustrate  the  trmmph  of  faith. 


38  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

When  he  was  approaching  Rome,  the 
Christians  of  that  city  came  out  to  meet 
him.  They  met  him,  naturally  enough, 
with  mingled  feelings  of  joy  and  sorrow. 
They  were  delighted  to  have  the  presence 
and  company  of  so  great  and  good  a 
man  ;  but  this  pleasure  was  greatly  mar- 
red when  they  thought  how  soon  and  by 
how  painful  a  death  he  was  to  be  taken 
from  them. 

The  authorities  of  Rome  concluded  that 
his  martyrdom  should  take  place  on  one 
of  their  great  festivals,  so  that  his  punish- 
ment might  be  more  public.  Accordingly 
on  the  29th  of  December,  in  the  year  1 16 
or  117,  he  was  brought  out  into  the 
amphitheatre  and  the  lions  were  let  loose 
upon  him.  They  were  not  long  in  doing 
their  work,  but  quickly  devoured  him,  and 
left  nothing  but  his  bones.  These  the 
friends  who  came  with  him  on  his  journey 
gathered  up  and  carried  back  to  Antioch. 

And  thus,  as  a  martyr,  Ignatius  gave 
the  highest  testimony  to  his  fidelity  to  the 
truth  of  that  religion  which  he  had  preach- 
ed and  practiced.     He  gloried  in  his    suf 


Ignatius  of  Antioch.  39 

ferlngs.  When  he  looked  upon  the  chains 
that  bound  him,  he  called  them  his  jewels 
and  ornaments  ;  and  he  laid  down  his  life 
with  as  much  ease  and  comfort  as  another 
man  would  put  off  his  clothes.  And 
though  the  death  he  had  to  undergo  was 
cruel  and  barbarous,  yet  the  thought  of  it 
had  no  more  effect  upon  his  mind  than  the 
dashing  of  the  ocean's  waves  upon  the 
solid  rock.  These  were  the  last  words 
that  he  spoke,  before  he  was  led  out  to 
the  lions :  "  Let  the  fire,  and  the  cross, 
and  the  assaults  of  the  wild  beasts,  and 
the  breaking  of  bones,  come  upon  me,  so 
that  I  may  be  with  Jesus  my  blessd 
Saviour.  I  would  rather  die  for  Christ 
than  live  and  reign  the  sole  monarch  of 
the  whole  world." 

Surely  in  the  death  of  this  *'  hero  of  the 
early  Church  "  we  have  a  splendid  illus- 
tration of  the  triumph  of  faith. 


CHAPTER  III. 

POLYCARP    OF    SMYRNA. 

BORN  A.  D.  60  TO  80  (?);  DIED  A.  D.  1G7  TO  169  (?). 

We  come  now  to  study  the  history  of 
the  third  of  our  heroes  of  the  early 
Church;  and  in  considering  it  our  atten- 
tion may  be  given  to  two  leading  points : 
these  are  the  facts  of  Polycarps  life  and 
the  truths  illustrated  in  them. 

The  place  of  Polycarp's  birth  is  no- 
where definitely  stated.  It  is  generally 
supposed,  however,  that  he  was  born  at 
Smyrna,  which  was  the  scene  of  his  life's 
labors.  The  time  of  his  birth  is  not 
distinctly  stated  either.  At  the  time  of 
his  martyrdom,  which  is  said  to  have 
taken  place  about  the  year  167  of  the 
Christian  era,  he  declared  that  he  had 
been  serving  Christ  for  eighty-six  years. 
This  doubtless  referred  not  to  the    years 

(40) 


S.  POLYCARPILS'. 


Polycarp  of  Smyrna.  43 

of  his  natural  life,  but  to  his  Christian  life, 
or  to  the  years  in  which  he  had  been 
working  for  his  Saviour.  And  if  we  sup- 
pose that  he  was  fifteen  to  twenty  years 
old  when  he  became  a  Christian  and 
joined  the  church,  then  he  must  have  been 
over  a  hundred  years  old  at  the  time  of 
his  death ;  and  according  to  this  he  must 
have  been  born  between  the  years  60  and 
70  in  the  first  century  of  the  Christian 
era.  Early  in  life  he  became  a  disciple  of 
the  apostle  John,  and  was  taught  the 
truths  of  the  gospel  by  him  and  other 
apostles  who  had  seen  and  conversed  with 
our  blessed  Lord  in  the  flesh. 

By  the  apostle  John  he  was  put  in  charge 
of  the  church  at  Smyrna  ;  and  he  spent  the 
years  of  his  long  life  in  earnest  and  suc- 
cessful labors  for  its  welfare. 

Smyrna,  the  scene  of  Polycarp's  minis- 
try, is  a  famous  city  in  Asia  Minor.  It 
lies  at  the  head  of  a  gulf  of  the  same 
name.  It  is  an  ancient  city,  founded  by 
Theseus  in  b.  c.  131 2,  who  named  it  after 
his  wife.  It  has  a  population  of  130,000. 
It  is  situated  on  a  beautiful  plain  surround- 


44  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

ed  by  mountains.  Its  domes  and  minar- 
ets and  tall  cypress  trees  give  It  a 
splendid  appearance.  It  Is  generally 
supposed  to  be  the  birthplace  of  Homer, 
the  famous  Greek  poet.  Here  Polycarp 
lived  and  labored  all  the  days  of  his  life, 
and  here,  when  the  persecution  broke  out 
under  the  emperor  Marcus  Antoninus,  he 
ended  his  course  by  a  martyr's  death, 
being  burned  at  the  stake,  It  is  said.  In  the 
year  167  of  the  Christian  era. 

Such  are  the  leading  facts  In  the  history 
of  this  noble  hero  of  the  early  Church. 

And  now  let  us  look  at  some  of  the 
lessons  which  we  find  illustrated  In  this 
history. 

There  are  four  of  these  of  which  we 
wish  to  speak. 

I.  We  have  in  Poly  car fs  Ufe  a  good 
illustration  of  the  way  in  which  Gods 
providence  takes  cai^e  of  his  people, 
Polycarp  was  born  in  povety.  When  he 
was  a  mere  child,  he  was  sold  to  some 
one  for  a  trifling  sum.  Now,  If  you  or  I 
had  seen  this  poor.  Ignorant  child  when 
he  was  sold  Into    slavery,  how   little    we 


Polycarp  of  Smyrna,  45 

should  ever  have  expected  to  hear  of  him 
as  becoming"  a  great  and  useful  man  in 
the  world  !  Yet  so  it  was.  But  how  was 
this  unexpected  result  brought  about? 
By  the  wonderful  working  of  God's  prov- 
idence. There  was  a  noble  Christian 
woman  then  living  in  Smyrna  whose  name 
was  Callisto.  She  had  a  dream  one  night 
in  which  an  angel  appeared  to  her.  The 
tradition  is  that  the  anorel   told   her  about 

o 

this  child   Polycarp,  and  directed  her,  in 
the  name  of  God,  to  send  for  the  child,  to 
redeem  him  from  slavery  and  then  take 
him  into   her  own    house    and    have    him 
educated.     She  did  so,   and  in  that  good 
Christian  home  Polycarp  was  brought  up 
and    received   his    education.      There    he 
was  taught  about  Jesus    and   his    mission 
Into  our  world.  There  he  became  acquaint- 
ed   with    the    apostle     John.       Through 
John's  influence  he  was  brought  Into  the 
Church,  and  was  prepared  for  his  great 
life  work  as  the    head   or    bishop    of  the 
church  at  Smyrna. 

We  could  not  wish  for  a  better  illustra- 
tion of  the  way  in  which  God's  providence 


46  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

works  In  taking  care  of  his  people,  and  in 
preparing  them  for  what  he  has  for  them 
to  do,  than  Polycarp's  Hfe  affords.  And 
it  would  be  easy  enough  to  find  illustra- 
tions of  the  same  kind  on  every  hand. 
The  lives  of  such  men  as  William  Carey 
or  John  Newton,  or  John  Williams  "the 
martyr  missionary  of  Erromanga,"  and  of 
other  Christian  laborers  would  furnish 
illustrations  of  just  the  same  kind. 

2.  We  have  in  the  histo7y  of  Poly  carp  a 
good  illustratio7i  of  earnestness  in  learning 
the  truth  aud  of  diligence  in  teaching  it  to 
others.  The  two  points  now  before  us — 
earnestness  in  seeking  the  truth  and 
diligence  in  teaching  it — are  matters  of 
the  greatest  importance  to  us  all.  In  the 
case  of  Polycarp,  the  first  of  these  points 
is  well  brought  out  by  a  pupil  of  his, 
named  Irenaeus.  He  is  one  of  the  heroes 
who  will  soon  come  before  us.  In  writing 
to  a  friend  of  his  about  Polycarp,  he  says, 
"  I  remember  seeing  you  when  yet  a  boy, 
with  Polycarp  in  Asia  Minor.  I  could 
even  now  point  out  the  place  where  he 
used  to  sit  and  talk  to  us.      I  could  des- 


Poly  carp  of  Sfnyrna.  49 

scrite  his  going  out  and  his  coming  in,  his 
manner  of  Hfe,  his  personal  appearance 
and  how  he  used  to  tell  us  of  his  inter- 
course with  the  apostle  John  and  with 
others  who  had  seen  the  Lord,  and  the 
pleasure  with  which  he  used  to  repeat  all 
that  he  had  heard  them  say  about  Jesus, 
about  his  miracles  and  his  teachings. 
Polycarp  told  it  all  to  us  as  one  who  had 
received  it  from  the  lips  of  those  who  had 
seen  the  blessed  Lord  with  their  own 
eyes."  Here  we  see  the  earnestness  with 
which  Polycarp  listened  to  the  words  of 
those  who  could  tell  him  about  Jesus  and 
the  truths  which  he  taught. 

God  says  to  each  of  us  by  Solomon 
(Prov.  2  :  3-6),  ''If  thou  criest  after  know- 
ledge, a7id  liftest  up  thy  voice  for  under- 
standing; if  thou  seekest  her  as  silver, 
and  searchest  for  her  as  for  hid  treasures  ; 
then  shalt  thou  understand  the  fear  of  the 
Lord,  and  find  the  knowledge  of  God." 
This  was  just  what  Polycarp  did.  He 
sought  the  knowledge  of  God  in  the  way 
here  pointed  out,  and  he  found  it  accord- 
ing to  the  promise  here  given.     And  if  we 


50        Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

follow  his  example  we  shall  be  rewarded 
as  he  was. 

And  then,  when  Polycarp  had  gained 
the  knowledge  of  the  truth  in  the  earnest 
way  here  spoken  of,  he  was  diligent  in 
teaching  it  to  others.  One  way  in  which 
he  did  this  was  by  the  faithful  preaching 
which  he  kept  up  through  all  the  years  of 
his  long  life.  Another  way  in  which  he 
did  it  was  by  the  earnestness  with  which 
he  opposed  the  prevailing  errors  of  that 
day.  As  our  Saviour  opposed  the  temp- 
tations of  Satan  in  the  wilderness,  by 
simply  saying,  "It  is  written,"  and  then 
quoting  God's  written  word,  so  did  Polycarp 
in  his  contests  with  the  heretics  of  his 
day. 

And  then  he  showed  the  same  dilip-ence 

o 

in  teaching  the  truth  in  his  writings,  which 
have  come  down  to  us.  His  epistle  to  the 
Philippians  is  genuine  and  the  most  Impor- 
tant of  his  writings.  In  speaking  of  this 
episde,  one  of  the  early  writers  calls  it 
"a  most  perfect  episde."  Another  writer 
says,  ''It  is  an  admirable  epistle.  From  it 
those  who  are  anxious  about  their  salva- 


Poly  carp  of  Smyrna.  51 

tion  may  learn  about  the  gospel  of  Jesus 
and  the  truth  which  it  teaches."  It  is  full 
of  short  and  useful  precepts  and  rules  of 
life,  all  of  which  are  sustained  and  urged 
by  quotations  from  different  portions  of 
the  word  of  God.  This  epistle  was  so 
highly  prized  by  the  early  Christians  that 
they  used  to  have  it  read  in  their  church- 
es, just  as  they  did  the  canonical 
Scriptures.  Thus  we  see  how  diligent 
Polycarp  was  in  teaching  the  truth  which 
he  had  been  so  earnest  to  learn.  And 
this  is  what  we  should  all  try  to  do. 

3.  We  have  i7i  the  life  of  this  good  man 
an  illustration  of  the  honor  which  God  puts 
upon  his  faithful  servants.  God  says  to 
his  people,  "  Them  that  honor  me  I  will 
honor."  Polycarp  honored  God  by  the 
readiness  with  which  he  received  his  truth 
and  the  faithfulness  with  which  he  obeyed 
his  commands.  And  God  honored  him  in 
a  very  peculiar  way  by  the  message  which 
he  sent  to  him  from  heaven. 

In  the  opening  chapter  of  the  book  of  the 
Revelation,  the  seven  churches  then  exist- 
ing in  Asia  Minor  are    mentioned.     The 


52  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

apostle  John  was  directed  by  God  to  write 
a  letter  or  epistle  to  the  head  of  each  of 
those  seven  churches.  The  second  of 
those  churches  was  that  of  Smyrna.  This 
epistle  begins  thus:  *'Unto  the  angel  of 
the  church  in  Smyrna  write;  These  things 
says  the  first  and  the  last,  which  was  dead 
and  is  alive ;  I  know  thy  works,  and 
tribulation,  and  poverty,  (but  thou  art 
rich).  .  .  Fear  none  of  those  things  which 
thou  shalt  suffer  ...  Be  thou  faithful  unto 
death,  and  I  will  give  thee  a  crown  of 
life."  Now  think  what  an  honor  it  was 
for  God  to  call  Polycarp  ''  the  angel  of  the 
church  in  Smyrna."  To  be  called  the 
king  or  the  emperor  of  the  mightiest 
kingdom  in  the  world  would  be  nothing 
in  comparison  with  this.  The  king  would 
soon  be  obliged  to  put  off  his  crown  and 
lay  aside  his  sceptre  and  L  t  his  kingdom 
pass  into  the  hands  of  another;  but  the 
Church  of  Christ,  of  which  Polycarp  was 
one  of  the  angels,  is  an  everlasting 
Church.  And  Polycarp's  connection  with 
it  will  be  everlasting  too.  No  change  will 
come  over  that  Church  or  over  those  who 


Poly  carp  of  Smyrna.  53 

are  the  angels,  the  ministers  or  the  ser- 
vants of  it,  but  that  which  is  involved  in 
their  everlasting  march  from  glory  to 
glory.  And  then  think  of  the  honor  of 
receiving  such  a  promise  as  God  here 
gave  to  Polycarp.  It  was  the  promise  of 
"a  crown  of  life"  if  he  proved  faithful 
unto  death.  In  all  the  world  there  is  no 
honor  to  be  compared  to  the  ''crown  of 
life  "  here  referred  to.  Let  us  all  try  to 
"be  faithful  unto  death,"  as  Polycarp  was, 
and  then  we  shall  share  the  honor  which 
God  gave  him. 

4.  The  closing  scene  in  the  life  of 
Polycarp  illustrates  very  strikingly  the 
sMstainiizg  power  of  the  grace  of  God. 
Under  the  reign  of  the  emperor  Marcus 
Antoninus  a  very  severe  persecution 
broke  out  aorainst  the  Christians.  As  the 
most  prominent  man  in  the  Church, 
Polycarp  was  seized  and  put  in  prison. 
On  the  breaking  out  of  the  persecution 
his  friends  advised  him  to  leave  Smyrna, 
and  try  to  save  his  life  by  retiring  to  a 
small  country  town.  He  did  so,  but  the 
servants    of    the    emperor   followed    him 


54  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

there.  They  found  out  the  house  In  which 
he  was  staying,  and  called  there  late  at 
night.  He  had  gone  to  bed  before  they 
came;  but  when  he  understood  who  the 
men  were  and  what  they  had  come  for,  he 
rose  and  dressed  himself  Then  he  went 
down  stairs  and  received  them  as  kindly 
and  pleasantly  as  though  they  had  come 
to  save  his  life  instead  of  to  destroy  it. 
Then  he  had  a  supper  prepared  for  them 
and  insisted  on  their  partaking  of  it,  which 
they  did  with  the  greatest  surprise  and 
wonder.  After  this  he  gave  himself  up 
Into  their  hands,  and  they  took  him  back 
to  Smyrna  and  delivered  him  to  the 
officers  of  the  goverment.  Now,  how 
wonderful  the  power  of  God's  grace  must 
be  which  could  lead  a  man  to  act  in  this 
way  toward  those  who  were  seeking  his 
destruction  ! 

The  proconsul  or  chief  officer  of  the 
goverment  then  tried  very  hard  to  per- 
suade Polycarp  to  renounce  Christianity 
and  swear  by  the  gods  of  Rome. 
Polycarp  listened  attentively  to  all  he 
had  to  say,  and  then  gave  this  as  his  noble 


Poly  carp  of  Smyi^na.  55 

answer :  "  Eighty  and  six  years  I  have 
served  my  blessed  Saviour.  He  has  done 
nothing  but  bless  me  all  the  time ;  then 
how  can  I  forsake  him  now?"  Then  he 
was  led  forth  to  execution.  The  officers 
had  determined  that  he  should  be  burned 
to  death.  When  they  reached  the  place 
the  soldiers  were  about  to  nail  him  to  the 
stake.  He  begged  them  not  to  do  that, 
assuring  them  that  his  God,  who  gave 
strength  to  endure  the  fire,  would  enable 
him'  to  stand  there  without  being  nailed. 
Then  they  only  tied  him  to  the  stake. 
And  as  he  stood  there  patiently  waiting 
for  the  fire  to  be  kindled,  the  words  of  his 
prayer  were  the  last  he  ever  spoke:  **  O 
Lord  God  Almighty,  the  Father  of  thy 
well-beloved  Son  Jesus  Christ,  by  whom 
we  received  the  knowledge  of  thee,  the 
God  of  anofels  and  of  all  creatures!  I 
bless  thee  that  thou  hast  graciously  brought 
me  to  this  day  and  hour,  that  I  may 
receive  a  portion  among  the  number  of 
thy  martyrs  and  drink  of  Christ's  cup. 
Wherefore  I  praise  thee  for  all  thy 
mercies ;  I  bless    thee    and    glorify    thee 


56  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

through  thy  beloved  Son  Jesus  Christ, 
through  whom  to  thee  and  the  Holy  Ghost 
be  glory  both  now  and  forever.  Amen." 
Then  the  fire  was  kindled  and  the  flames 
rose ;  but  instead  of  wrapping  themselves 
about  him,  tradition  says  that  they  formed 
an  arch  of  fire  over  him  and  left  his  body 
untouched.  Then  the  officer  in  charge 
ordered  one  of  the  soldiers  to  thrust  him 
through  with  his  spear,  which  he  did. 
After  his  body  was  burned,  his  Christian 
friends  gathered  up  his  bones  and  buried 
them  in  a  tomb,  over  which  a  little  chapel 
has  been  built,  on  the  southeastern  side  of 
the  city.  That  spot  has  ever  been  regard- 
ed as  sacred  to  the  memory  of  this  hero 
of  the  early  Church. 

And  when  we  think  of  the  calm,  triumph- 
ant way  in  which  Polycarp  was  able  to 
meet  his  painful  death,  we  have  a  splendid 
illustration  of  the  sustaining  power  of  the 
grace  of  God. 


UIWUiniUUUIIIUIIIlinHlllUllllllllllHHiniiiiiiimiiiiiiimiiiiniuiMiiiiiMiiiiiipiii^^^^ 


-^^__^-__,_™_™ 


CHAPTER  IV. 

JUSTIN    MARTYR. 

BORN   A.  P.    105    (?);      DIED   A.  D.    165    (?). 

Justin  the  Martyr  is  among  the  earHest 
of  these  good  men  coming  before  us  for 
our  study.  The  exact  year  of  his  birth  is 
not  certainly  known,  but  it  was  some- 
where towards  the  close  of  the  first  cen- 
tury of  the  Christian  era.  The  date  of 
his  death  is  said  to  have  been  in  the  year 
165.  He  was  born  in  the  city  of  Shechem 
in  Palestine.  At  one  time  this  city  was 
called  Neapolis.  It  is  now  known  as 
Nabulus  or  Nablus ;  but  in  the  time  of 
Justin,  it  was  known  as  Shechem.  It  is  one 
of  the  most  ancient  cities  of  Palestine. 
When  Abraham  first  came  into  this  land, 
he  pitched  his  tent  and  built  an  altar  to 
God  under  an  oak  in  Shechem.  After  the 
ten  tribes  separated  from  the  kingdom    of 

(59) 


6o  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

Judah,  Shechem  was  for  some  time  the 
capital  of  the  kingdom  of  Israel.  The 
tomb  of  Joseph  is  near  this  city,  and  so  is 
Jacob's  well,  where  our  Saviour  met  the 
woman  of  Samaria  and  had  that  interest- 
ing conversation  with  her,  of  which  we 
read  in  the  fourth  chapter  of  John's  Gos- 
pel. 

Shechem  is  one  of  the  most  interestinof 
towns  of  the  Holy  Land,  in  its  situation. 
It  lies  in  a  beautiful  valley  between  the 
celebrated  mountains  of  Gerlzim  and 
Ebal.  When  Joshua  brought  the  tribes 
of  Israel  into  Canaan,  he  assembled  them 
in  this  valley,  and  from  the  top  of  Mount 
Gerizim  he  read,  in  the  hearing  of  the 
people,  all  the  blessings  which  God  had 
promised  should  attend  them  if  they 
obeyed  his  voice.  And  then  from  the  top 
of  Mount  Ebal  he  read  the  fearful  curses 
which  were  to  come  upon  them  if  they 
were  not  obedient  to  the  commands  of 
God. 

When  going  through  the  Holy  Land  we 
spent  two  days  at  Shechem,  being  detain- 
ed there  by  a  heavy  rain.     On  the  second 


yustin  Martyr.  6 1 

day  when  the  rain  had  ceased,  we  went 
up  to  the  top  of  Mount  Gerizlm.  The 
prospect  was  most  charmuig  ;  and  while 
standing  there  I  tried  to  picture  to  myself 
what  a  sieht  it  must  have  been  when  all 
the  tribes  of  Israel  were  assembled  in  the 
valley  below  to  hear  the  blessings  pro- 
nounced upon  them  from  one  of  these 
mountains  and  the  curses  from  the  other. 

With  this  Interesting  town  in  Palestine 
the  name  of  Justin  Martyr  is  intimately 
connected.  He  was  a  man  possessed  of 
unusual  talents  as  a  writer  and  a  speaker  ; 
and  although  he  did  not  enter  the  minis- 
try, he  was  yet  one  of  the  most  useful 
men,  among  those  of  whom  we  are  now 
speaking,  in  helping  to  build  up  and  de- 
fend the  cause  of  Christ  in  the  world. 
And  in  studying  the  leading  facts  of  his 
history,  we  find  in  him  an  example  worthy 
of  our  imitation   in  four  respects. 

I .  He  is  so  when  we  see  what  an  earnest 
SEEKER  after  the  truth  he  zuas. 

The  father  of  Justin  was  not  a  Chris- 
tian, and  so  in  his  early  years  he  was  not 
taught  anything  about  Christ  and  his    re- 


62  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

llglon.  But  he  had  a  very  inquiring  mind, 
and  he  resolved,  when  he  was  quite 
young,  to  find  out  the  truth. 

There  were  then  four  different  schools 
of  philosophy  known  among  men.  These 
were  the  Stoics,  the  Peripatetics,  the  Pyth- 
agoreans and  the  Platonists.  Justin  de- 
termined   to   find    out    the     teachino^s     of 

o 

these  different  schools  and  see  which  was 
the  most  satisfactory.  He  began  with  the 
Stoics.  This  school  was  founded  by  Zeno 
in  the  third  century  before  Christ.  They 
taught  that  there  were  gods,  but  that  they 
took  no  interest  in  the  affairs  of  men ; 
and  that  these  affairs  were  all  ruled  by  a 
fate  which  nothing  could  resist.  Justin 
soon  gave  up  this  school.  He  next  ex- 
amined the  teachings  of  the  Peripatetics. 
This  school  was  founded  by  the  famous 
Aristotle  in  the  fourth  century  before 
Christ.  The  meaning  of  the  name  is 
walkers ;  and  they  were  so  called  because 
Aristotle  always  used  to  walk  about  when 
he  was  teaching  his  pupils.  They  taught 
a  great  deal  about  the  dignity  of  human 
n3tu.re,  and  that  all    real    happiness   was 


yustin  Martyr.  65 

only  to  be  found  In  the  proper  use  of  our 
moral  and  mental  faculties.  This  did  not 
satisfy  Justin,  and  then  he  went  to  the 
Pythagoreans.  This  school  was  estab- 
lished by  Pythagoras,  a  Greek  philos- 
opher, in  the  sixth  century  before  Christ. 
They  taught  the  doctrine  of  the  trans- 
migration of  souls,  or  that  after  death 
the  souls  of  men  go  Into  the  bodies  of 
animals  and  then  into  vegetables  and' 
minerals.  This  did  not  satisfy  Justin,  and 
so  he  turned  to  the  Platonlsts.  This  was 
a  school  founded  by  Plato,  a  Greek  philos- 
opher, In  the  fifth  century  before  Christ. 
The  teachlnofs  of  this  school  came  nearer 
to  the  Christian  religion  than  any  of  the 
others.  Plato  had  probably  got  some  of 
his  ideas  from  what  the  Jews  In  Egypt  had 
told  him  about  the  Old  Testament.  Justin 
found  the  teachings  of  this  school  more 
satisfactory  than  those  of  any  of  the 
others,  and,  as  he  knew  nothing  about 
Christ  and  the  truth  which  he  taught,  he 
became  a  Platonist.  He  had  gone  as  far 
as  he  could  go,  and  proved  himself  an 
earnest  seeker  after  the  truth. 


66        Helloes  of  the  Early  Church, 

2.  We  see  i7i  Justin  Martyr  a  successful 
FINDER  of  the  truth. 

When  we  go  as  far  as  we  can  In  seeking 
for  the  truth  and  yet  have  not  succeeded, 
we  may  be  sure  that  God  will  help  us,  and 
then  we  shall  succeed.  This  Is  just  what 
God  teaches  us  when  he  says,  "  Ye  shall 
seek  me,  and  find  me,  when  ye  shall  search 
for  me  with  all  your  heart"  (Jer.  29  :  13). 

After  Justin  became  a  Platonlst,  he 
made  up  his  mind  to  retire  from  the  busy 
world,  and,  choosing  a  place  by  the  sea- 
side, he  gave  himself  up  to  quiet  medita- 
tion, and  to  find  out  more  of  that  truth 
which  he  had  sought  so  earnestly. 

One  day  as  he  was  walking  up  and 
down  the  seashore,  rapt  In  earnest 
thought,  he  was  met  by  a  grave-looking, 
venerable  man,  who  asked  him  some 
questions  about  the  important  subject 
which  was  occupying  his  mind.  They 
were  soon  engaged  in  earnest  conversa- 
tion together.  Justin  told  the  stranger 
that  he  was  a  believer  in  the  philosophy 
of  Plato.  He  then  stated  some  of  the 
leading  doctrines  of  that  system  and  went 


Justin  Martyr.  67 

on  to  defend  them.  The  meek  old  man, 
who  was  a  Christian,  Hstened  attentively 
to  all  he  had  to  say.  Then  he  told  him 
that  the  great  truth  for  which  he  was 
seeking  never  could  be  found  In  the  way 
in  which  he  was  then  seeking  it.  ''The 
schools  of  philosophy  of  which  you  have 
spoken,"  said  the  old  man,  "  know  nothing 
about  this  truth.  And  what  they  have 
not  found  themselves,  they  never  can  give 
to  others.  The  pearl  of  great  price  does 
not  lie  within  their  ran^e.  The  thine  for 
you  to  do.  If  you  wish  to  find  this  pearl, 
is  to  *  search  the  Scriptures.'  Study  the 
Hebrew  prophets.  They  were  taught  by 
the  Spirit  of  God.  They  saw  and  reveal- 
ed the  truth  on  which  our  salvation  de- 
pends. Pray  God  to  guide  you  into  the 
knowledge  of  that  truth.  He  will  hear 
your  prayer  and  answer  it,  and  in  his  light 
you  will  see  light." 

This  was  the  turning  point  In  Justin 
Martyr's  history.  He  followed  that 
strange  old  man's  advice.  He  went  home 
and  procured  a  copy  of  the  scriptures. 
Giving  up  the  teaching  of  Plato,  he    stud- 


68  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

led  carefully  what  the  prophets  of  God 
had  written.  He  prayed  to  God  for  guid- 
ance. His  prayer  was  heard.  The  light 
of  truth  shone  in  upon  the  darkness  of  his 
mind.  He  was  led  to  repentance  and 
faith  in  Christ.  He  turned  his  back  on 
the  teachings  of  the  philosophers,  and 
found  that  it  was  only  *'  the  truth  as  it  is 
in  Jesus "  which  met  all  the  wants  and 
satisfied  all  the  lonorincrs  of  his  soul.     And 

o       o 

thus  the  earnest  seeker  of  the  truth  be- 
came the  successful  finder  of  it.  And 
what  was  true  then  is  true  now,  for  God's 
promise  is,  "I  will  be  found  of  them  that 
seek  me."  Earnest  seeking  and  success- 
ful finding  of  saving  truth  always  go 
together. 

3.  We  have  in  the  history  of  this  good 
man  the  example  of  a  faithful  follower 
of  the  truth. 

Justin  was  a  man  with  intellectual  abili- 
ties of  an  unusual  character.  He  had 
stood  very  high  among  the  followers  of  the 
Platonic  school  of  philosophers,  and  was 
one  of  their  most  influential  members. 
They  were  very  much  troubled  to  think  of 


yustin  Martyr,  69 

losing  from  their  ranks  one  who  had 
been  so  eminently  useful,  and  were  quite 
at  a  loss  to  understand  what  could  have 
led  him  to  make  such  a  change.  Then  he 
wrote  a  long  letter  to  them,  explaining 
the  reasons  which  had  led  to  his  conver- 
sion. In  commencing  this  letter  he  uses 
these  words : 

"  Think  not,  O  ye  Greeks,  that  I  have 
rashly  and  without  deliberate  judgment 
departed  from  the  rites  of  your  religion. 
I  was  obliged  to  make  this  change, 
because  I  could  find  nothlnof  in  the  teach- 
Ing  of  your  philosophy  which  could  meet 
the  longings  of  my  soul,  and  give  me  that 
rest  and  peace  of  mind  without  which  I 
never  could  be  happy.  Your  wisest 
teachers  never  can  give  satisfactory 
answers  to  the  questions  of  those  who  are 
anxious  to  find  rest  and  peace  for  their 
souls. 

Then  he  went  on  to  show  the  folly  of 
all  that  their  philosophy  taught.  And  he 
wound  up  his  letter  in  such  words  as 
these : 

"  Come  now,  O  ye  Greeks,  and  listen  to 


JO  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

the  voice  of  heavenly  wisdom ;  be  in- 
structed in  a  divine  religion,  and  acquaint 
yourselves  with  a  King  who  is  immortal. 
Become  as  I  am,  for  I  was  once  as  you 
are.  These  are  the  reasons  which  led  to 
my  conversion.  The  doctrine  of  the 
Christian  religion  is  divine  and  satis- 
factory. It  subdues  the  corruption  of  our 
fallen  nature  and  gives  us  the  victory  over 
our  evil  passions,  and  when  these  are  sub- 
dued, the  soul  experiences  a  joy  and 
happiness  which  can  be  found  nowhere 
else.  It  is  reconciled  to  its  Creator,  and 
finds  all  it  can  need  in  him." 

This  was  the  way  in  which  Justin 
Martyr  followed  out  the  truth  which  he 
had  found  in  the  religion  of  the  gospel. 
And  though  he  was  not  a  minister,  and 
preaching  was  not  his  life  work,  yet  we 
can  readily  understand  how  much  good  he 
must  have  done  to  all  about  him  by  speak- 
ing and  writing  of  the  gospel  of  Jesus  in 
such  a  way  as  this.  God  said  to  Abra- 
ham, ''  I  will  bless  thee,  and  thou  shalt  be  a 
blessingT  And  what  God  said  to  him  he 
says  to  you  and  to  me,  and  to  all  who  are 


yustin  Martyr.  71 

successful  finders  and  faithful  followers  of 
the  truth,  as  Justin  was.  By  the  words 
we  speak,  by  the  prayers  we  offer,  by  the 
works  we  do  and  by  the  example  we  set, 
we  may  be  blessings  to  all  about  us,  as 
this  hero  of  the  early  Church  was. 

4.    We  find  in  this  good  man  the  example 

of  A  BRAVE    DEFENDER  OF   THE    TRUTH  wMch 

he  had  sought  and  found  and  followed. 

He  was  not  satisfied  with  explaining  the 
gospel  to  his  friends,  but  was  always  ready 
to  stand  up  in  its  defence  against  all  its 
enemies  wherever  he  met  with  them.  In 
one  of  his  visits  to  Rome  he  encountered 
a  prominent  Jewish  teacher  named  Try- 
phon,  who  was  a  great  enemy  of  Christ- 
ianity, and  went  about  teaching  that  Jesus 
of  Galilee  was  a  deceiver,  and  his  religion 
a  cheat.  Justin  had  a  two-days  debate 
with  him  in  the  presence  of  a  large 
assembly  of  people ;  and  the  end  of  it 
was  that  Tryphon  confessed  that  he  had 
been  entirely  mistaken  about  the  Christian 
religion,  and  that  Justin  had  taught  him  to 
understand  the  Old  Testament  prophets 
better  than  he  had  ever  done  before. 


72  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

And  then  Justin  defended  the  truth  In 
another  way.  Antoninus  was  the  emperor 
of  Rome  at  that  time.  He  was  a  mild 
and  excellent  prince,  and  did  not  perse- 
cute the  Christians  himself;  but  their 
enemies  falsely  charged  them  with  crimes 
which  they  had  never  committed,  and  so, 
in  different  parts  of  the  empire,  they  were 
persecuted  and  put  to  death  under  the 
edicts  of  former  emperors,  which  had 
never  been  repealed. 

Justin  resolved  to  try  to  stop  this  ;  so 
he  wrote  a  defence  of  Christianity,  or,  as 
it  is  called,  an  apology  for  it,  and  sent  it 
to  the  emperor.  This  had  such  a  good 
effect  upon  him  that  he  published  a  decree 
forbidding  that  the  Christians  should  be 
persecuted  anywhere,  unless  it  could  be 
proved  that  they  were  teaching  or  doing 
something  against  the  welfare  of  the 
Roman  empire. 

Some  years  after  this,  when  Antoninus 
was  dead  and  his  son  Marcus  Aurelius 
had  succeeded  him  as  emperor,  the 
Christians  were  again  persecuted.  Then 
Justin  wrote  another  apology    for    Christ- 


y us  tin  Martyr,  73 

ianity  and  sent  it  to  the  emperor.  But 
this  was  not  so  successful  as  his  former 
effort  had  been.  It  made  the  emperor 
angry.  He  issued  a  decree  for  persecu- 
ting the  Christians  and  putting  them  to 
death.  Then  Justin  and  six  of  his  com- 
panions were  taken  prisoners  and  brought 
before  the  prefect  of  the  city  of  Rome. 
He  called  on  them  to  sacrifice  to  the  gods 
of  Rome.  This  they  refused  to  do.  Then 
they  were  sentenced  to  be  scourged  and 
beheaded.     This  was  done. 

And  thus  we  see  in  Justin  Martyr  an 
example  of  an  earnest  seeker  of  the  truth, 
a  successful  finder  of  it,  a  faithful  follower 
and  a  brave  defender  of  it.  Let  us  ask 
God  to  give  us  grace  to  follow  his  ex- 
ample, and  then  it  will  be  our  privilege  to 
be  heroes  of  the  Church  in  this  nineteenth 
century,  as  Justin  Martyr  was  in  the 
second  century. 


CHAPTER  V. 

IREN^US    OF    LYONS. 

BORN  A.  D.    120  TO   140   (?);      DIED   A.  D.   202   (?). 

Irenaeus  of  Lyons  is  the  next  hero  that 
comes  before  us  for  our  consideration. 
The  facts  of  his  history  that  have  come 
down  to  us  are  few.  There  are  various 
points  connected  with  his  Hfe  on  which  it 
would  be  interesting  to  dwell,  if  we  could 
only  obtain  further  imformation.  But  this 
cannot  be  had,  and  so  we  must  make  the 
best  of  such  knowledo^e  as  we  have.  We 
find  this  difficulty  at  the  very  beginning  of 
our  subject.  How  natural  it  is  to  pause 
just  here  and  ask  the  question,  when  and 
where  was  Irenaeus  born  ?  It  is  easy 
enough  to  ask  these  questions,  but  it  Is 
not  so  easy  to  answer  them.  Indeed 
positive  answers  to  them  cannot  be  given. 

It  is  believed  that  he  was  born  between 

(74) 


Irenceus  of  Lyons,  75 

the  years  120  and  140  of  the  Christian 
era.  And  the  place  of  his  birth  is  just  as 
uncertain  as  the  time  of  it.  It  is  generally 
supposed  that  he  was  born  in  the  city  of 
Smyrna,  in  Asia  Minor,  or  somewhere  in 
that  neio^hborhood.  There  he  became 
acquainted  with  the  good  Polycarp,  whose 
history  and  character  we  have  already 
considered.  From  him  he  received  the 
instruction  that  he  needed  to  mould  his 
character  and  fit  him  for  the  life  of  emi- 
nent usefulness  which  he  spent  in  the 
cause  of  Christ. 

Irenaeus  was  sent  by  Polycarp  to  Lyons 
in  France  to  do  missionary  work  there, 
and  that  became  the  scene  of  his  life's 
labors. 

Lyons  is  the  second  city  of  France  for 
its  size  and  its  importance.  It  is  an 
ancient  city,  having  been  founded  in  the 
first  century  before  Christ.  It  is  beauti- 
fully situated  on  the  rivers  Rhone  and 
Saone.  Its  present  population  is  between 
three  hundred  thousand  and  four  hundred 
thousand.  On  a  hill  back  of  the  town, 
about  five   hundred   feet   high,    stands    a 


"]()  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

famous  church,  which  Is  visited  every  year 
by  a  milHon  and  a  half  of  pilgrims. 

Lyons  is  especially  famous  for  the  silk 
goods  which  are  manufactured  there. 
Seventy  thousand  looms  are  occupied  in 
carrying  on  this  work,  and  these  give  em- 
ployment to  140,000  weavers.  The  silk 
goods  manufactured  in  Lyons  are  sent  to 
almost  every  part  of  the  world.  And  for 
the  purchase  of  the  raw  materials  for  those 
goods,  for  the  wages  of  the  workmen  em- 
ployed thereon  and  for  the  sale  of  the 
goods  when  finished,  not  less  than  ^200, 
000,000  are  expended  every  year. 

This  famous  city  was  the  scene  of  the 
great  life  work  of  the  "  hero  of  the  early 
Church  "  whose  history  is  now  before  us. 
And  in  dwelling  on  this  history,  Irenaeus 
comes  before  us  as  an  example  worthy  of 
our  imitation  In  three  different  views  that 
we  may  take  of  him. 

I .  He  is  a  good  example  for  zcs  to  follow 
when  we  consider  him  as  a  true  mission- 
ary. 

It  was  his  friend  and  teacher  Polycarp, 
the  head    or    bishop     of  the     church    of 


jiiiiiiiiii!(uiyuiniuiiii[Uii|iiiniiiiu{iMiiiii!iiiiuiiiiiuiiiiiiuiuiiuuiiH^^^^^ 


^.  IREmSJJS. 


IrencEUs  of  Lyons.  79 

Smyrna,  who  sent  him  to  France.  Smyrna 
was  then  the  great  centre  of  communica- 
tion with  all  the  eastern  part  of  the 
world.  And  Lyons  was,  no  doubt,  a  place 
of  considerable  business  importance  even 
then.  And  its  business  must  have 
brought  it  into  connection  with  the  leading 
people  of  Smyrna  in  that  early  day. 
Thus  Polycarp  would  learn  about  the 
state  of  things  in  Lyons  and  in  Gaul  or 
France,  the  country  of  which  it  was  so 
important  a  city.  It  is  supposed  that 
some  of  the  merchants  of  Lyons,  while 
trading  in  Smyrna,  may  have  heard  Poly- 
carp preach,  and  being  converted  by  his 
preaching,  may  have  begged  him  to  send 
some  one  to  preach  the  gospel  to  the  peo- 
ple of  their  country.  And  this  was 
probably  the  reason  why  he  sent  Irenaeus 
to  them.  Irenaeus  was  then  a  minister  of 
the  gospel.  He  had  been  thoroughly 
educated ;  was  a  man  of  fine  ability  and 
an  eloquent  preacher.  There  he  labored 
for  years  as  a  devoted  missionary.  The 
church  of  Lyons  grew  and  prospered  un- 
der his  influence.     Pothinus,  a   venerable 


8o  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

and  devoted  man  of  God,  was  the  head  or 
bishop  of  that  church.  In  connection 
with  him,  Irenaeus  spent  all  his  time  and 
strength  and  energy  in  trying  to  make  the 
gospel  known,  and  to  build  up  the  church 
in  Lyons  and  through  all  that  part  of 
France. 

After  Irenaeus  had  been  thus  at  work 
for  some  years,  a  fierce  persecution 
against  the  Christians  in  France  broke  out 
under  the  emperor  Antoninus.  Great 
numbers  of  all  ranks  were  put  to  death. 
Pothinus,  the  venerable  head  of  the  church 
at  Lyons,  in  his  ninetieth  year,  was  seized 
and  tortured.  Then  he  was  thrown  into 
prison,  and  it  was  arranged  to  have  him 
put  to  death  the  next  day.  But  before 
the  morning  dawned  he  died  in  prison. 
Irenaeus  was  chosen  to  take  his  place  as 
the  head  of  the  church  in  Lyons. 

And  thus  he  carried  out  his  mission. 
It  involved  great  sacrifice  and  self-denial 
on  his  part;  for  there  was  little  or  nothing 
of  the  education  and  refinement  in  France 
then  that  he  had  been  accustomed  to 
among  his  own  people.     But  he    took    up 


Irenceus  of  Lyons,  8 1 

the  work  appointed  for  him  in  the  spirit 
of  a  true  missionary,  and  he  devoted  his 
Hfe  to  that  work  in  the  exercise  of  the 
same  spirit.  And  the  result  of  his  faith- 
ful labor  was  seen  in  the  growth  and 
prosperity  of  the  church  in  Lyons  and  all 
the  surrounding  country.  When  we  think 
of  this  we  cannot  wonder  to  find  him 
spoken  of  by  those  who  knew  him  best  as 
"  the  light  of  the  ive stern  Church T 

And  this  is  just  the  spirit  which  we 
should  all  have  and  exercise.  Our  blessed 
Saviour  expects  us  to  be,  as  the  apostle 
Paul  expressed  it,  "  workers  together  with 
him."  There  is  missionary  work  for  us 
all  to  do  wherever  we  may  be  placed ;  and 
our  happiness  here  and  our  reward  here- 
after will  depend  very  much  on  the  faith- 
fulness with  which  we  carry  out  this 
missionary  spirit. 

2.  We  find  IrencEUs  setting  us  a  good 
example  for  our  imitation^  when  we  consider 
him  as  a  real  peacemaker. 

There  are  two  Incidents  In  his  history 
which  illustrate  this  peace-loving  element 
of  his  character.     One  of  these  we  see  in 


82  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

the  efforts  which  he  made  to  counteract 
the  errors  of  the  sect  called  the  Montan- 
ists.  These  men  professed  to  have  re- 
ceived the  Spirit  of  God  in  a  miraculous 
way,  and  that  they  had  visions  and  dreams 
by  which  they  were  led  and  taught  without 
any  regard  to  the  word  of  God.  The  re- 
sult of  their  teachings  was  that  the  Scrip- 
tures were  set  aside  and  men  were  led 
into  all  sorts  of  erroneous  doctrines  and 
practices. 

Eleutherus,  who  was  the  bishop  or  pope 
of  Rome  at  that  time,  had  fallen  under  the 
influence  of  this  sect,  and  was  about  to 
give  his  public  sanction  to  the  support  of 
their  erroneous  views.  This  was  likely  to 
break  up  the  harmony  and  unity  of  the 
Church  and  lead  to  the  bitterest  strife  and 
contention.  The  Christians  in  Lyons  and 
the  martyrs  who  were  then  in  prison 
awaiting  their  death  in  defence  of  the 
gospel  were  greatly  distressed  by  this 
state  of  things.  They  wrote  earnest 
letters  to  the  bishop  of  the  Church  of 
Rome,  begging  that  the  influence  of  that 
Church  should  not  be  used  in   support   of 


IrencBus  of  Lyons,  '^i^ 

this  false  teaching,  and  pointing  out  the 
endless  strife  and  contention  which  would 
thus  be  brought  upon  the  whole  Church. 
Irenaeus  was  sent  to  carry  these  letters  to 
Rome.  For  the  sake  of  the  peace  of  the 
Church  he  was  willing  to  undertake  that 
long  journey.  His  efforts  and  influence 
there  were  successful.  The  errors  of  the 
Montanists  were  not  endorsed  as  the 
teaching  of  the  Christian  Church,  and  this 
had  much  to  do  widi  preserving  the  peace 
and  purity  of  the  Church. 

The  Church  of  Rome  in  these  days 
claims  to  be  infallible  in  its  teachings  ;  but 
certainly  it  was  not  infallible  when  its  head, 
the  pope,  was  ready  to  hold  and  teach  the 
erroneous  doctrines  of  the  sect  of  the 
Montanists. 

Some  years  after  this  there  was  another 
occasion  when  the  Church  was  in  danger 
of  strife  and  division,  but  when  the  in- 
fluence of  Irenaeus  was  again  exerted  to 
preserve  its  peace.  This  was  when  the 
controversy  arose  about  the  proper  time 
for  keeping  Easter.  Victor,  who  was  then 
at  the  head  of  the  Church  of    Rome,    had 


84  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

made  up  his  mind  that  all  who  did  not  hold 
the  same  views  which  he  held  on  this  sub- 
ject should  be  excommunicated  or  cut  off 
from  connection  with  the  Church.  This 
course,  if  persisted  in,  would  have  led  to 
bitter  and  endless  conflict.  A  council  was 
called  of  the  principal  churches  of  France 
to  consider  this  matter.  After  a  careful 
examination  of  it,  they  recommended 
Irenseus  to  write  a  letter  to  Victor, 
earnestly  remonstrating  against  the  ground 
he  had  taken,  and  entreating  him,  for  the 
sake  of  the  prosperity  and  peace  of  the 
Church,  to  change  his  course  and  to  allow 
the  members  of  the  Church  everywhere 
to  hold  their  own  opinions  about  keeping 
Easter,  as  there  was  no  authoritative 
teaching  on  the  subject  in  the  Scriptures, 
and  it  was  not  a  matter  on  which  any  one's 
salvation  depended.  Here  his  efforts  were 
again  successful,  and  thus  he  proved  him- 
self to  be  a  true  peacemaker.  And  this 
is  what  w^e  should  all  try  to  be.  Jesus 
our  Saviour  came  to  bring  "peace  on 
earth."  He  is  the  **  Prince  of  peace;"  his 
gospel  is  the  gospel  of  peace ;  and  all  his 


IrencBics  of  Lyons.  85 

people  should  strive  so  to  live  and  act 
that  the  precious  promise  may  be  theirs 
which  says,  "  Blessed  are  the  peace- 
makers :  for  they  shall  be  called  the  chil- 
dren of  God." 

3  Ii^encEus  comes  before  tcs  as  the  example 

of  AN    EARNEST   WORKER. 

We  might  find  in  his  history  various 
illustrations  of  this  point  of  our  subject; 
but  the  work  he  did  with  his  pen  is  that  of 
which  we  desire  especially  to  speak. 

Many  different  sects,  teaching-  erroneous 
doctrines,  sprang  up,  in  connection  with 
the  Church,  in  the  latter  part  of  the 
second  century.  These  sects  led  many 
persons  away  from  the  simple  truth  as 
taught  in  the  Scriptures.  This  was  a 
great  cause  of  grief  and  sorrow  to  the 
honest-hearted,  truth-loving  Christians. 
But  no  one  felt  this  more  than  Irenaeus 
did,  and  he  resolved  to  do  all  in  his  power 
to  correct  this  evil. 

The  chief  of  these  erroneous  sects  was 
called  the  Gnostics.  They  took  this  name 
from  the  Greek  word  signifying  knowledge, 
because  they  claimed  that  they  knew  more 


86  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

than  any  other  people  about  what  was 
really  worth  knowing.  But  they  were 
mistaken  in  this.  Not  satisfied  with  the 
simple  teachings  of  the  Bible,  they  went 
off  into  all  sorts  of  wild  speculations 
about  the  origin  of  evil,  the  eternity  of 
matter,  and  similar  subjects.  These  dis- 
cussions led  them  into  endless  errors. 
Irenaeus  made  up  his  mind  to  see  what  he 
could  do  to  counteract  these  errors,  and 
he  spent  six  or  seven  years  of  his  life  in 
seeking  to  accomplish  this  object.  He 
gave  himself  up  to  the  careful  study  of 
the  teachings  of  these  different  sects ;  and 
then.  In  the  light  both  of  reason  and  of 
Scripture,  he  tried  to  show  the  errors  con- 
tained In  them  and  the  sad  results  to 
which  those  errors  must  lead.  He  wrote 
a  number  of  volumes  on  this  subject. 
Various  titles  were  given  to  them,  but  the 
short,  simple  name  by  which  they  are  best 
known  Is  ''Against  the  Heretics."  Only 
a  portion  of  what  he  wrote  has  come  down 
to  us  ;  but  enough  of  his  writings  remain 
to  fill  two  lar^e  octavo  volumes  of  between 
four    hundred    and   five   hundred   pages 


IrencEUS  of  Lyons.  87 

each.  A  very  nice  edition  of  this  work 
was  pubHshed  in  Edinburgh  a  few  years 
ago.  It  is  called  ''  Irenaeus  against  Here- 
sies." When  I  took  up  one  of  these 
volumes  and  examined  it,  I  could  not  help 
having  a  feeling  of  awe  and  reverence  for 
it.  I  said  to  myself,  "  Here  is  a  work  that 
was  written  seventeen  hundred  years  ago. 
How  many  minds  have  been  influenced  by 
it!  How  many  wanderers  in  the  paths  of 
error  have  been  brought  back  again  to  the 
simple  truth  of  God  through  the  teaching 
of  these  books  !  What  an  untold  amount 
of  good  must  have  been  done  by  these 
writings  of  Irenaeus  !  And  how  glorious 
the  harvest  he  will  reap  in  heaven  from 
the  seed  sown,  in  the  earnest  work  which 
he  did  for  God  in  connection  with  the 
Church  at  Lyons  !  " 

Irenaeus  lived  till  the  early  part  of  the 
third  century.  He  died  some  time  be- 
tween the  years  202  and  208.  Whether 
he  died  a  natural  death  or  ended  his 
course  by  martyrdom  is  not  certainly 
known.  But  he  was  a  real  "  hero  of  the 
early  Church  ;  "  and  it  will  do  us    good    if 


88 


Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 


we  try  to  follow  his  example  when  we 
think  of  him  as  a  true  missionary,  a  real 
peacemaker ^  and  an  earnest  worker. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

CLEMENT    OF    ALEXANDRIA. 

BORN   A.  D.    IGO    (?);      DIED   A.  D.    220    (?). 

Clement,  of  whom  we  are  to  speak  next 
in  our  list  of  famous  men,  is  said  to  have 
been  born  in  the  year  i6o  of  the  Christian 
era,  and  to  have  died  in  the  year  220.  He 
is  sometimes  spoken  of  as  an  Athenian 
and  sometimes  as  an  Alexandrian.  The 
explanation  of  this  is  that  Athens  was  the 
place  of  his  birth  and  Alexandria  the  place 
where  his  principal  life  work  was  carried 
on.  Thus  his  name  is  naturally  connected 
with  two  of  the  most  famous  cities  of  the 
world.  We  may  say  a  few  words  about 
these  cities  before  going  on  to  consider 
the  history  of  Clement. 

Athens,  the  place  of  Clement's  birth,  is 
the  principal  city  of  Greece.  It  is  said  to 
have   been    founded   by    Cecrops,    fifteen 


92  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

hundred  years  before  Christ.  This  was 
about  the  time  when  Moses  was  keeping 
the  flock  of  Jethro,  his  father-in-law,  in  the 
land  of  Midian.  What  a  far-off  period 
that  seems  to  be !  It  would  require  a 
large  volume  to  give  the  history  of  Athens 
in  detail.  The  city  is  beautifully  situated 
around  the  base  of  the  celebrated  hill 
called  the  Acropolis.  This  is  about  three 
hundred  feet  above  the  city  and  six 
hundred  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea. 
Athens  is  distant  between  four  and  five 
miles  from  the  sea,  and  used  to  be  con- 
nected with  the  well-known  harbor  of  the 
Piraeus  by  a  wide  avenue  protected  on 
either  side  by  high  solid  walls.  There  is 
probably  no  other  city  in  the  world  which 
has  been  connected  with  so  many  famous 
men  in  every  department  of  life,  as  war- 
riors, philosophers,  historians,  musicians, 
poets,  artists,  and  in  all  the  pursuits  that 
have  occupied  the  thoughts  and  called 
forth  the  energies  of  man  as  has  Athens. 
The  statues  and  temples  of  Athens  have 
had  no  equals  in  the  world.  The  most 
famous  of  these  is  the  temple    called    the 


Cleme7it  of  Alexaiidria.  93 

Parthenon.  It  was  built  by  Pericles  more 
than  four  hundred  years  before  Christ,  and 
was  considered  the  finest  temple  in  the 
world.  The  ruins  of  the  Parthenon  are 
still  standing,  and  no  one  who  enjoys  the 
privilege  of  looking  at  them  will  ever  for- 
get that  sight.  There  used  to  be  in  this 
temple  a  gigantic  statue  of  the  female 
divinity  Athena,  after  whom  this  city  is 
named.  It  was  nearly  fifty  feet  high,  was 
all  made  of  gold  and  ivory,  and  cost  half 
a  million  of  dollars.  But  the  most  in- 
teresting thing  about  this  city  to 
Christians,  is  the  thought  that  here  Paul, 
the  great  apostle  of  the  Gentiles,  stood  on 
the  top  of  Mars'  Hill  and  preached  Christ 
to  the  philosophers  and  wise  men  of 
Athens.  In  this  famous  city  Clement,  the 
subject  of  our  present  study,  was  born. 

And  as  he  was  connected  with  Athens 
by  his  birth,  so  he  was  connected  with 
Alexandria  by  the  great  work  of  his 
life.  This  was  another  famous  eastern 
city.  It  was  founded  by  Alexander  the 
Great,  and  named  in  honor  of  himself,  be- 
tween three   hundred   and    four   hundred 


94  Heroes  of  tke  Early  Church. 

years  before  Christ.  It  Is  situated  on  the 
southeastern  shore  of  the  Mediterranean 
Sea,  and  near  the  mouth  of  the  Nile.  It 
used  to  be  the  great  centre  of  trade  and 
commerce  between  the  eastern  and  west- 
ern portions  of  the  world.  This  made  it 
very  prosperous.  At  one  time  its  popula- 
tion amounted  to  six  hundred  thousand, 
though  now  it  does  not  exceed  two 
hundred  thousand.  It  was  for  centuries 
the  royal  abode  of  the  rulers  of  Egypt.  In 
this  city  was  said  to  have  been  collected 
the  largest  library  the  world  had  then 
known.  When  the  Turks  took  possession 
of  this  city,  in  the  early  part  of  the  seventh 
century,  the  caliph  Omar  is  said  to  have 
ordered  this  library  to  be  destroyed.  His 
reason  for  giving  this  order  was  thus  ex- 
pressed :  "  If  these  books  contain  only 
what  we  find  in  the  Koran,  they  are  not 
needed.  If  they  teach  anything  different 
from  what  the  Koran  teaches,  then  they 
are  injurious,  and  had  better  be  destroy- 
ed." 

Two  famous  obelisks  used  to  stand  out- 
side the  limits  of  this  city,  near   the    Nile. 


Clement  of  Alexandria.  95 

One  of  them  was  called  "  Pompey's 
Pillar,"  and  the  other  "  Cleopatra's 
Needle."  These  used  to  be  objects  of 
great  interest  to  travellers.  I  remember 
the  pleasure  with  which  I  gazed  upon  them 
when  there  some  years  ago.  But  those 
obelisks  are  no  lonorer  to    be    seen    there. 

o 

One  of  them  has  been  presented  to 
England,  and  has  been  set  up  on  the  bank 
of  the  river  Thames.  The  other  has  been 
presented  to  our  country,  and  now  stands 
in  Central  Park,  New  York. 

But  now  for  Clement.  We  have  not  as 
many  incidents  connected  with  his  life  as 
we  have  had  in  connection  with  the  other 
heroes  we  have  considered.  But  from  the 
little  that  w^e  do  know  of  him  we  may 
learn  three  good  practical  lessons. 

I.  The  first  lesson  taught  us  by  the  life 
of  this  good  man  is  about  how  to  find  the 
truth.  He  was  an  early  and  an  earnest 
seeker  of  the  truth.  He  was  born  in  a 
heathen  family,  and  had  no  home  in- 
fluences about  him  to  lead  him  in  the  right 
way.  He  was  blest  with  excellent  natural 
abilities,  and  as  soon  as  he  was  old  enough 


96  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

to  act  for  himself  he  determined  to  begin 
at  once,  and  never  rest  till  he  had  found 
out  what  the  truth  is  about  God,  about  the 
soul  and  eternity. 

Athens,  the  city  of  his  birth,  was  always 
famous  for  its  learning.  The  different 
sects  of  Philosophy  had  their  schools 
there.  Clement  applied  to  them,  and 
listened  attentively  to  all  they  had  to 
teach.  But  this  did  not  satisfy  him.  Then 
he  resolved  to  leave  home  and  seek  else- 
where for  further  light.  He  visited  all  the 
places  in  the  eastern  world  which  were 
most  celebrated  for  their  learning,  inquir- 
ing eagerly  for  the  truth.  It  was  a  long 
and  trymg  experience  through  which  he 
passed.  He  gained  a  little  in  one  place 
and  a  little  in  another;  but  he  never 
arrived  at  any  clear  and  satisfactory  un- 
derstanding of  what  the  truth  is  till  he  re- 
turned to  Egypt  and  took  up  his  abode 
in  the  city  of  Alexandria.  Here  he  found 
that  there  was  a  large  and  prosperous 
school,  taught  by  a  Christian  minister 
whose  name  was  Pantaenus.  Clement 
joined  this  school,  and  listened  attentively 


Clement  of  Alexmid^da, 


97 


to  all  the  teacher  had  to  say.  There  the 
gospel  of  Jesus,  In  its  simplicity  and  full- 
ness, was  made  known  to  him.  This  met 
his  wants  and  satisfied  his  longings.  It 
was  to  him  like  cold  water  to  a  thirsty 
soul.      Clement  was    an    early    and    an 


98  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

earnest  seeker  of  the  truth,  and  he  found 
it.  And  those  who  thus  seek  it  will  be 
sure  to  find  it.  There  are  two  of  God's 
precious  promises  which  make  this  cer- 
tain. In  one  of  these  God  says,  "Those 
that  seek  me  early  shall  find  me  "  (Prov. 
8  :  17).  In  another  he  says,  *'Ye  shall 
seek  me,  and  find  me,  when  ye  shall  search 
for  me  with  all  your  heart"  (Jer.  29  :  13). 
To  seek  and  find  the  truth  in  Jesus  is  the 
most  important  thing  for  us  all  to  do. 
We  never  can  be  happy,  we  never  can  be 
truly  useful,  till  we  know  this  truth.  And 
so  the  first  and  most  important  thing  for 
us  all  to  do  is  to  seek  this  truth,  and  never 
to  rest  till  we  find  it.  Let  me  entreat  all 
my  readers  to  follow  the  example  set  by 
Clement  of  Alexandria,  and  be  early  and 
earnest  seekers  for  the  truth. 

2.  The  second  lesson  we  may  learn  from 
this  good  man  is  how  to  use  the  t^^uthfor  our 
own  good  when  we  have  fou7id  it.  When 
the  way  to  heaven  was  pointed  out  to 
Clement,  he  did  not  say,  "  Now  I  know  the 
way.  That  is  enough.  I  can  walk  in  it 
at  any  time."     No  ;  but  when    he    under- 


Clement  of  Alexaridria,  99 

stood  what  that  way  was,  he  began  to 
walk  in  it  at  once.  When  he  learned  that 
Jesus  was  the  great  Physician,  whose 
"  balm  of  Gilead  "  was  the  only  medicine 
to  cure  sin-sick  souls,  he  did  not  put  off 
the  takingf  of  that  medicine  till  some 
future  time.  No  ;  but  he  took  it  at  once, 
and  was  made  whole  by  it.  When  he 
made  up  his  mind  to  be  a  Christian,  he 
did  not  trouble  himself  to  find  out  what 
other  Christians  thought  and  felt  and  said 
and  did.  He  took  the  word  of  God  as 
*'  the  man  of  his  counsel "  and  his  guide, 
and  resolved  to  follow  its  teachings  in  all 
things.  Like  the  apostle  Paul,  his  prayer 
in  reference  to  every  point  of  duty  was, 
"  Lord,  what  wilt  thou  have  me  to  do  ?  " 
The  knowledge  of  the  truth  which  Clem- 
ent had  gained  made  him  a  consistent 
Christian  ;  and  this  is  what  it  will  do  for 
us  if  we  make  a  right  use  of  it.  Just  see 
how  useful,  consistent  Christians  may  be ! 
When  Lord  Peterborough  lodged  for 
several  days  with  Fenelon,  the  archbishop 
of  Cambray,  he  was  so  delighted  with  his 
humble,   earnest   piety   that   he    said,    on 


lOO         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

leaving,  '*  If  I  stay  here  any  longer,  I  shall 
become  a  Christian  in  spite  of  myself." 

A  young  minister,  when  about  to  be  or- 
dained, said  to  a  friend,  "At  one  time  in 
my  life  I  was  very  near  becoming  an  in- 
fidel ;  but  there  was  one  argument  in 
favor  of  Christianity  which  I  never  could 
get  over,  and  that  was  the  beautiful  and 
consistent  example  of  my  father." 

Clement  of  Alexandria  had  never  seen 
the  sweet  lines  which  Charles  Wesley 
wrote  to  show  how  the  knowledge  of  the 
truth  he  had  gained  led  him  to  consecrate 
his  life  to  God's  service,  but  he  acted  in 
the  very  spirit  of  those  lines.  Wesley 
says  : 

"  Lord  in  the  strength  of  grace, 

With  a  glad  heart  and  free, 
Myself,  my  residue  of  days, 

I  consecrate  to  thee. 

"  Thy  ransomed  servant,  I 

Restore  to  thee  thine  own  ; 
And  from  this  moment  live  or  die 
To  serve  my  God  alone." 


Clement  of  Alexandria.  loi 

Let  us  all  do  this,  and  then,  like  Clement, 
we  shall  be  using  the  truth  for  our  own 
good. 

3.  In  the  third  place,  Clement  used  the 
truth,  when  he  had  found  it,  ior  the  good  of 
others  as  well  as  for  his  own  good.  One 
way  in  which  he  did  this  was  by  his  ex- 
ample. When  he  had  found  out  what  the 
truth  in  Jesus  was,  he  carried  out  its 
teachings  faithfully  in  his  daily  life.  And 
there  is  no  telling  the  amount  of  good  we 
may  do  to  others  in  this  way.  Here  is  an 
illustration.  We  may  call  it  one  act  of  a 
boy  and  what  good  it  did. 

Some  time  ago  a  little  boy  went  home 
from  a  ragged  school  in  London,  with  his 
dirty  face  washed  clean.  When  his 
mother  saw  him  she  hardly  knew  him,  but 
she  liked  the  change.  It  pleased  her  so 
much  that  she  washed  her  face.  When 
her  husband  returned  from  his  daily  work, 
he  was  so  surprised  at  the  change  which 
he  saw  in  his  wife  and  son  that  he  went  to 
work  and  washed  away  the  grime  and  dust 
from  his  hard  and  dirty  hands.  So  it 
spread    through    the    family.      Then    the 


I02         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

neighbors  saw  and  admired  the  change, 
and  very  soon  that  dark  and  dismal  alley, 
so  long  the  abode  of  dirt  and  filth,  became 
noted  for  its  cleanliness.  And  all  this  re- 
sulted from  one  good  act  of  that  little 
boy. 

Again,  Clement's  use  of  the  truth  en- 
abled him  to  do  good  by  his  teaching  as 
well  as  by  his  own  example.  When 
Pantaenus,  the  teacher  of  the  famous  school 
at  Alexandria,  died,  Clement  was  ordained 
to  the  ministry,  and  appointed  In  his  place 
as  the  head  of  that  school.  He  occupied 
this  position  for  all  the  remaining  years  of 
his  life.  Here  he  had  a  large  number  of 
pupils  under  his  instructions  ;  and  those 
pupils,  when  they  had  finished  their 
studies,  went  out  to  occupy  positions  of 
great  influence  and  usefulness  in  different 
parts  of  the  Church.  And  all  the  good 
accomplished  by  those  good  men  may  be 
traced  to  the  teaching  of  Clement. 

And  then  by  his  pen  or  by  ^n]\2X  he  wrote 
as  well  as  by  what  he  did  and  said,  Clem- 
ent made  use  of  the  truth  for  the  good  of 
others.     He  wrote  a  number   of  volumes. 


Clement  of  Alexandria.  103 

but  only  three  of  them  have  come  down 
to  us.  The  first  of  these  is  called  **  Ex- 
hortations to  the  Gentiles."  His  aim  in 
this  work  was  to  point  out  the  errors 
taught  by  the  different  systems  of  religion 
in  the  heathen  world,  and  then  to  show  in 
contrast  with  them  what  the  teachincrs  of 
the  Scriptures  were.  This  was  useful  in 
bringing  many  souls  to  Christ.  The  sec- 
ond of  his  works  was  called  "  The  Peda- 
gogue," or  "  The  Instructor."  In  this  work 
he  brincrs  out  the  character  of   Christ   as 

o 

the  great  Teacher,  and  shows  clearly  the 
principles  which  he  appoints  for  regulating 
the  thoughts  and  feelings,  the  words  and 
actions,  of  his  people.  This  was  especial- 
ly intended  to  be  a  help  and  guide  to  those 
who  had  renounced  heathenism  and  be- 
come Christians.  They  found  this  work 
very  useful  to  them  in  trying  to  become 
earnest  and  consistent  followers  of  Jesus. 
The  third  and  last  work  of  this  good  man 
had  for  its  name  the  Greek  word 
"Stromata,"  which  means,  literally,  a  col- 
lection of  pieces.  It  was  made  up  of 
selections  from  different  portions  of  Scrip- 


I04         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

ture,  which  he  had  found  profitable  \o 
himself,  and  which,  by  adding  plain,  prac- 
tical remarks  to  them,  he  tried  to  make 
useful  to  others.  And  so,  when  we  think 
of  the  earnest  efforts  which  Clement  made 
to  find  the  truth,  and  how,  when  found,  he 
used  it  for  his  own  good  and  for  the  good 
of  others,  he  comes  before  us  as  an  ex- 
ample which  we  shall  all  find  it  useful  and 
profitable  to  follow. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

TERTULLIAN    OF    CARTHAGE. 

« 

EORN  A.  D.  150  TO  IGO  (?);   DIED  A.  b.  220  TO  240  (?). 

Tertulllan,  who  is  the  subject  of  our 
present  chapter,  was  a  friend  of  Origen. 

In  the  life  of  this  distinguished  man 
we  have  brought  before  us  the  most  ancient 
of  the  Latin  fathers  of  the  Church.  His 
works,  many  of  which  have  come  down  to 
us,  have  won  for  him  a  position  of  great 
prominence  in  the  early  Church.  He  was 
born  about  A.  d.  i6o,  and  died  in  his 
seventieth  year,  about  the  year  230.  The 
place  of  his  birth  was  the  celebrated  city 
of  Carthage. 

This  city  is  said  to  have  been  founded 
by  the  famous  queen  Dido,  of  whom  Vir- 
gil, the  Roman  poet,  has  so  much  to  say  in 
his  work  called  the  /EnGid.  The  origin 
of  Carthage  dates  back  as  far  as  the  ninth 

(105) 


io6         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

century  before  Christ.  Its  first  Inhabitants 
came  chiefly  from  the  city  of  Tyre,  In 
Phoenicia.  It  was  situated  on  a  bay  of  the 
Mediterranean  Sea,  not  far  from  the  pres- 
ent city  of  Tunis.  Carthage  was  founded 
many  years  before  Rome,  and  In  Its  earher 
history  was  a  ,  flourishing  and  Important 
city.  It  is  said  to  have  had  at  one  period 
a  population  of  seven  hundred  thousand 
inhabitants.  For  a  lonp-  time  It  was  the 
great  rival  of  the  city  of  Rome.  The 
Carthaginians  and  the  Romans  were  en- 
gaged in  frequent  wars  together.  The 
chief  contests  between  them  were  those 
so  well  known  In  history  as  the  first,  sec- 
ond, and  third  Punic  wars.  In  carrying  on 
these  wars  Scipio  was  the  most  famous  of 
the  Roman  generals,  and  Hannibal  of  the 
Carthaginians.  The  Romans  finally  con- 
quered the  Carthaginians  and  destroyed 
their  celebrated  city,  in  the  year  140  B.  c. 
It  remained  in  ruins  for  more  than  a 
hundred  years.  In  the  first  century  of  the 
Christian  era,  the  emperor  Augustus  re- 
built the  city  and  gave  it  Its  old  name,  and 
it  had    a    flourishing    history    again    for 


Tertullian  of  Carthage,  107 

several  hundred  years  ;  but  it  was  finally- 
destroyed  by  the  Saracens  about  the 
middle  of  the  seventh  century,  and  now 
nothing  remains  of  its  ancient  grandeur 
except  a  few  broken  arches,  the  ruins  of  a 
great  aqueduct  that  was  fifty  miles  in 
length.  What  an  illustration  the  history 
of  this  once  famous  city  affords  us  of  the 
vanity  of  earthly  greatness  ! 

In  that  famous  city,  Tertullian,  the  sub- 
ject of  our  present  study,  was  born.  His 
father  was  a  Roman  centurion  in  the 
service  of  the  proconsul  of  Africa.  The 
natural  abilities  of  Tertullian  were  very 
great.  He  was  educated  for  the  civil 
service  of  the  empire,  and  was  specially 
designed  by  his  father  to  be  a  Roman  law- 
yer. We  know  comparatively  little  of  the 
details  of  Tertullian's  life ;  but  from  what 
we  do  know  of  his  history,  we  can  draw 
illustrations  of  three  important  lessons. 

I.  Tertullian  comes  before  us  an  ex- 
ample of  decision.  He  was  over  thirty 
years  of  age  when  he  first  became  ac- 
quainted with  the  Christian  relielon.  He 
had  entered   fully   into    the    business    for 


io8         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

which  his  father  had  trained  him,  which 
was  the  practice  of  a  Roman  lawyer.  He 
was  getting  on  very  successfully  with  that 
business,  and  had  the  prospect  of  attain- 
ing great  distinction  in  his  profession. 
Just  then  he  was  brought  to  a  knowledge 
of  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus,  and  felt  dis- 
posed to  become  a  Christian.  But  if  he 
took  this  stand,  and  professed  himself  a 
follower  of  Christ,  he  knew  very  well  that 
it  would  be  a  disadvantage  to  him  in  his 
business  prospects,  and  would  occasion 
him  great  pecuniary  loss.  The  question 
for  him  to  settle  was,  "Shall  I  continue  to 
worship  the  gods  of  my  fathers,  or  shall  I 
give  them  up  and  take  Jesus  as  my  God 
and  Saviour?  "  This  was  a  very  import- 
ant question  for  him  to  decide.  He  was 
then  just  in  the  position  which  Paul  occu- 
pied when  Jesus  appeared  to  him  on  his 
way  to  Damascus  to  persecute  the  Chris- 
tians. Paul  had  been  brought  up  at  the 
feet  of  Gamaliel,  the  most  famous  Jewish 
teacher  of  that  day.  He  had  the  prospect 
of  great  success  before  him  as  a  Jewish 
lawyer;  but  he  knew  very  well  that  if  he 


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Tertullian  of  Cai^thage,  1 1 1 

became  a  Christian,  it  would  ruin  all  his 
prospects  of  worldly  success.  And  yet 
he  made  up  his  mind  to  take  this  course. 
He  saw  and  felt  that  the  loss  of  all  earthly 
things  would  be  a  gain  if  he  could  only 
win  Christ  and  become  a  partaker  of  the 
untold  blessings  which  were  to  be  found 
in  him.  And  Tertullian  had  just  the  same 
experience  here.  Like  Paul,  the  great 
apostle,  he  began  his  Christian  life  with  a 
noble  act  of  decision.  And  this  is  the 
way  in  which  every  Christian  life  should 
be  begun  and  continued.  We  cannot  be 
true  Christians  in  any  other  way;  and  the 
practice  of  such  decision  always  does  good 
to  ourselves  and  enables  us  to  do  good  to 
others.  How  many  examples  of  this  we 
have ! 

When  Alexander  was  asked  how  he 
had  conquered  the  world,  his  answer  was, 
"■  By  being  decided." 

Here  is  an  example  of  the  effect  of  de- 
cision. A  little  crirl  was  awakened  at  a 
meeting  where  the  story  of  the  leper 
whom  Jesus  healed  was  read  and  talked 
about.      The    leper    came    to   Jesus    and 


112         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

worshipped  him,  saying,  "  Lord,  if  thou 
wilt,  thou  canst  make  me  clean.  And 
Jesus  put  forth  his  hand,  and  touched  him, 
saying,  I  will ;  be  thou  clean.  And  Im- 
mediately his  leprosy  departed  from  him." 
In  speaking  about  this  afterwards  to  a 
friend,  that  little  girl  said,  *'  When  I  got 
home  after  the  meeting,  I  went  to  my  own 
room  to  think  about  what  I  had  heard.  I 
said  to  myself,  *  I  noticed  that  there  was 
an  if  in  what  that  man  said  to  Jesus ;  but 
there  was  no  if  in  what  Jesus  said  to  him.* 
Then  I  knelt  down  and  said,  '  Lord  Jesus, 
thou  canst,  thou  wilt,  make  me  clean. 
Now  I  give  myself  to  thee.'  "  That  little 
girl's  decision  made  her  a  Christian  at 
once.  This  brought  great  good  to  her, 
and  made  her  the  means  of  doing  great 
good  to  others. 

2.  We  have  in  Tertullian  a7i  example  of 
consistency  as  well  as  of  decision.  Not 
long  after  he  became  a  Christian,  he  had 
occasion  to  visit  the  city  of  Rome  and  to 
spend  some  time  there.  During  his  stay 
in  Rome  he  was  very  much  grieved  to  find 
how   differently    most   of   the    professing 


Tertullian  of  Carthage.  113 

Christians  there  lived  from  the  way  in 
which  he  Hved  himself,  and  in  which  he  felt 
sure  that  all  true  Christians  should  live. 
They  engaged  in  worldly  amusements, 
and  practised  selfish  indulgences  of 
various  kinds,  very  much  as  people  were 
accustomed  to  do  who  did  not  profess  to 
be  Christians.  This  was  somethingr  which 
Tertullian  could  not  understand.  He  felt 
sure  that  Jesus  expected  his  people  to 
"  Come  out  from  the  world,  and  be  sepa- 
rate." He  felt  sure  that  John  was  right 
when  he  said,  "•  If  any  man  love  the  world, 
the  love  of  the  Father  is  not  in  him."  For 
himself,  he  was  satisfied  that  he  did  love 
the  Father,  and  therefore  that  he  could 
not  and  ought  not  to  love  the  world  too. 
He  made  up  his  mind  that  If  he  was  to  be 
a  Christian  at  all,  he  would  be  a  true, 
honest  and  faithful  Christian ;  that  he 
would  have  "  the  same  mind  which  was  in 
Christ,"  and  would  "  tread  in  the  blessed 
steps  of  his  most  holy  life."  But  when  he 
saw  the  mass  of  professing  Christians  a- 
bout  him  living  so  differently,  he  was  at  a 
loss  to  know  what  to  do. 


1 1 4         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

While  in  this  state  of  perplexity,  he  be- 
came acquainted  with  some  members  of  a 
sect  in  the  Christian  Church  called  the 
Montanists,  after  the  name  of  their  foun- 
der, Montanus.  He  made  careful  inquiries 
about  the  principles  and  practices  of  this 
sect.  He  found  that  they  held  all  the 
fundamental  doctrines  of  the  Scriptures, 
only  that  they  claimed  to  have  the  gift  of 
prophecy  still  in  exercise  among  them. 
But  the  thing  which  chiefly  interested 
Tertullian  in  this  sect  was  the  faithfulness 
of  their  practice  as  Christians.  They 
gave  up  all  worldly  pleasures  and  amuse- 
ments, and  faithfully  carried  out  the 
Scripture  principle  of  self-denial  in  refer- 
ence to  everything  which  the  Scriptures 
taught  them  to  be  contrary  to  the  will  of 
God.  This  agreed  entirely  with  his  own 
views  of  what  Christians  ought  to  do  and 
be,  and  so  he  joined  this  sect.  He  felt 
sure  that  he  could  not  be  a  consistent 
Christian  without  acting  in  regard  to 
worldly  things  just  as  the  members  of  that 
sect  acted ;  and  in  doing  this  he  was  only 
carrying  out  the  principles  of  true   consis- 


Tertullian  of  Ca^^thage.  1 1 5 

tency.  When  a  person  desires  to  become  a 
member  of  the  Episcopal  Church,  one  of 
the  questions  asked  is  this  :  "  Dost  thou 
renounce  the  devil  and  all  his  works,  the 
pomps  and  vanities  of  this  wicked  world, 
and  all  the  sinful  lusts  of  the  flesh,  so  that 
thou  wilt  not  follow  nor  be  led  by  them  ?" 
And  the  person  usually  answers  :  **  I  re- 
nounce them  all,  and  by  God's  help  will 
endeavor  not  to  follow  nor  be  led  by 
them."  Though  Tertullian  did  not  use 
these  words  yet  he  made  his  profession  in 
the  very  spirit  which  these  words  set  forth, 
and  he  carried  out  that  spirit  through  all 
the  course  of  his  Christian  life;  and  In 
doing  this  he  was  only  setting  an  example 
of  true  consistency.  And  If  all  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Church  of  Christ  would  make 
some  such  vow  as  we  have  just  referred 
to,  and  would  carry  It  out  as  consistently 
as  Tertullian  did,  what  a  blessing  it  would 
be  to  the  Church  and  to  the  world!  Con- 
sistency Is  an  honor  to  the  cause  of 
Christ. 

Alexander  the  Great  had    a    soldier    In 
his  army  who  bore  his   name,    but    was    a 


/^^^^^ 


1 1 6         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

great  coward.  Provoked  at  the  Inconsis- 
tency between  the  man's  name  and  his 
conduct,  the  emperor  said  to  him  one  day, 
"Either  change  your  name  or  act  consis- 
tently with  it,"  And  this  may  be  said  to 
every  Christian. 

We  may  close  this  part  of  our  subject 
with  the  following  lines  of  Charles  Wes- 
ley : 

"That  wisdom,  Lord,  on  us  bestow. 

From  every  evil  to  depart. 
To  stop  the  mouth  of  every  foe ; 

While  upright  both  in  life  and  heart, 
The  proofs  of  godly  fear  we  give 
In  showing  how  true  Christians  live." 

3.  We  have  in  Tertullian  an  example  of 
2iseftdness.  He  was  ordained  to  the  min- 
istry when  about  forty  years  of  age,  and 
in  the  faithful  discharge  of  the  duties  of 
that  high  office  he  proved  eminently  use- 
ful both  with  his  voice  and  with  his  pen. 
In  the  exercise  of  his  ministry  he  was  not 
confined  to  any  particular  charge,  but,  like 
the  apostle  Paul,  he  went  everywhere, 
preaching  the  glorious  gospel.      And  like 


Tertullian  of  Carthage,  117 

Paul  he  had  but  one    unchanorine   theme, 

<_>  O  ' 

which  was  "Jesus  Christ,  and  him  cruci- 
fied." He  was  a  very  eloquent  preacher, 
and  wherever  he  went  multitudes  listened 
delightedly  to  the  words  of  life  which  fell 
from  his  lips.  We  have  no  particular  re- 
port of  the  direct  results  of  his  preaching; 
but  in  the  Judgment  of  the  great  day, 
when  the  results  of  human  actions  are 
made  manifest,  in  the  number  of  souls 
brought  to  Christ  by  his  preaching  we  will 
see  how  useful  he  was  with  his  voice. 

But  then  with  his  pen  he  was  even  more 
useful  than  with  his  voice.  Truth  spoken 
soon  dies  away,  and  Its  usefulness  ceases; 
but  truth  written  remains  a  living  power 
for  generations.  The  writings  of  Ter- 
tullian were  not  so  numerous  as  those  of 
Origen,  whose  history  we  will  soon  con- 
sider, but  they  were  of  the  same  charac- 
ter. He  wrote  controversial  works.  These 
were  designed  to  meet  and  counteract  the 
various  forms  of  error  which  prevailed 
in  those  days.  Then  he  wrote  many 
practical  works  to  explain  and  enforce 
different   parts    of    Christian    duty.       He 


1 1 8  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

wrote  on  repentance,  on  faith,  on  baptism, 
on  prayer,  on  patience,  on  the  resurrec- 
tion, on  Christian  faithfulness  and  on  many 
other  subjects ;  and  if  we  could  only 
follow  out  the  influence  of  his  writines  on 
different  members  of  the  Christian  Church, 
not  only  In  that  age  but  in  the  ages  which 
followed,  we  should  be  able  to  form  a  cor- 
rect Idea  of  the  extent  of  the  usefulness 
of  this  good  man.  And  if  God  shall  give 
us  grace  to  follow  the  example  of  Tertull- 
lan  In  the  decision  and  In  the  coiisistency 
which  marked  his  course,  then,  like  him, 
we  shall  find  our  lives  made  useful  to  all 
about  us. 

Sydney  Smith  used  to  say,  *'  Try  to 
make  at  least  one  person  happy  every 
day.  Try  this  for  ten  years,  and  then  you 
will  have  made  three  thousand  six  hundred 
and  fifty  persons  happy."  Work  like  this 
Is  worth  living  for ;  and  If  we  are  thus 
useful  while  we  live,  our  usefulness  will 
continue  when  we  are  dead.  "Luther  is 
dead,  but  the  Reformation  still  lives.  Cal- 
vin is  dead,  but  his  vindication  of  God's 
free    sovereign    grace    will     never     die. 


Tertullian  of  Ca7^thage.  119 

Knox  and  Melville  and  Henderson  are 
dead,  but  Scodand  still  retains  a  Sabbath 
and  a  Christian  peasantry,  a  Bible  in  every 
home  and  a  school  in  every  parish.  Bun- 
yan  is  dead,  but  his  bright  spirit  still  walks 
the  earth  in  his  '  Pllorrim's  Proeress.' 
Baxter  is  dead,  but  souls  are  still  quick- 
ened by  his  *  Saint's  Rest.'  Henry  Mar- 
tyn  is  dead,  but  who  can  count  the  quick- 
ened spirits  that  have  been  started  into 
life  by  his  example  and  his  memory? 
Robert  Raikes  is  dead,  but  the  Sabbath- 
schools  which  he  started  are  living  still 
and  carrying  blessings  round  the  world." 
Let  us  be  as  useful  as  we  can  while  we 
live,  and  then  our  usefulness  will  continue 
when  we  die. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

ORIGEN    OF    ALEXANDRIA. 

BORN   A.  D.    185    (?);      DIED   A.  D.    254    (?). 

Origen  Is  the  next  in  the  catalogue  of 
these  great  and  good  men.  He  might 
well  stand  at  the  head  of  the  list.  There 
was  none  among  them  more  gifted  with 
natural  abilities,  more  eloquent  as  a 
preacher,  more  eminent  in  piety,  more 
diligent  in  study,  more  advanced  In  every 
branch  of  learning,  and  more  extensively 
useful  than  he  was. 

Origen  was  born  in  the  city  of  Alex- 
andria in  the  year  185  of  the  Christian 
era.  His  father,  Leonldas,  was  a  man  of 
learning  and  a  devoted  Christian.  This 
faithful  father  took  charge  of  his  son's 
early  education.  He  instructed  him  in  all 
the  different  branches  of  human  learning 
that  were  then  known,  and  was  particular- 

(120) 


Origen  of  Alexandria.  121 

ly  careful  to  make  him  fully  acquainted 
with  the  principles  of  the  Christian  relig- 
ion, so  that,  like  another  Timothy,  from 
a  child  he  knew  the  holy  Scriptures,  which 
were  able  to  make  him  wise  unto  salva- 
tion. In  these  he  was  well  instructed 
and  thoroughly  exercised.  And  he  dili- 
gently improved  the  privilege  thus  granted 
him.  .  Part  of  his  daily  task  was  to  learn 
and  repeat  to  his  father  some  passage  of 
Scripture.  He  took  great  delight  in  do- 
ing this,  and  often,  after  reciting  those 
passages  of  Scripture,  would  ask  his  father 
about  them  which  he  found  it  very  difficult 
to  answer. 

In  the  year  202,  when  Origen  was 
seventeen  years  old,  during  the  persecu- 
tion that  raged  under  the  emperor  Severus, 
Leonldas  was  put  in  prison,  tortured  and 
suffered  martyrdom.  While  his  father 
was  In  prison,  Origen,  young  as  he  was, 
had  a  great  desire  to  be  a  martyr,  and 
would  gladly  have  gone  with  his  father  to 
prison  and  to  death.  He  wrote  letters  to 
his  father,  beseeching  him  not  to  change 
his  mind  or  give    up    his    faith    in    Jesus. 


1 2  2         Heroes  of  the  Early  Cktirch. 

His  mother  had  great  difficulty  in  keeping 
him  from  joining  his  father  in  prison  ;  and 
she  actually  had  to  hide  his  clothes  to  keep 
him  from  going  out  and  exposing  himself 
to  danger. 

In  the  early  years  of  his  life,  Origen 
was  a  pupil  in  the  celebrated  school  at 
Alexandria,  and  received  there  the  in- 
struction of  Clement,  who  was  then  the 
head  of  that  school  and  whose  life  work 
we  studied  in  a  previous  chapter.  On  the 
death  of  Clement,  Origen  was  appointed 
to  take  his  place  as  the  head  of  that 
school.  His  life  was  one  of  abounding 
usefulness.  He  shared  In  the  persecu- 
tions which  prevailed  in  those  days,  and 
was  imprisoned  and  tortured  on  several 
occasions.  But  he  always  bore  these 
sufferings  as  became  a  real  hero,  which  he 
was.  And  at  last  he  died  at  the  city  of 
Tyre  In  Palestine,  in  the  year  254.  And 
so,  as  Dr.  Philip  Schaff  has  well  said,  ''he 
belongs  among  the  confessors,  If  not  among 
the  martyrs^  of  the  early  Church.  His 
tomb,  near  the  high  altar  of  the  cathedral 
of  Tyre,  was  shown  for  many  years,  until 


Origen  of  Alexandria,  123 

it  was  finally  destroyed  during  the  wars 
of  the  Crusaders. 

It  would  require  a  larger  space  than  we 
can  give,  to  take  in  all  the  details  of  the 
history  of  this  great  man's  life ;  but  we 
can  draw  out  from  it  illustrations  of  four 
important  practical  lessons,  which  it  will 
be  well  for  our  readers  to  remember  and 
to  follow. 

I .    We  find  in  the  early   life   of    Origen 

AN    EXAMPLE    OF    FILIAL    DEVOTION. 

On  the  death  of  his  father  the  gover- 
ment  seized  and  confiscated  all  the 
property  which  belonged  to  him.  This 
left  the  mother  and  six  children,  of  whom 
Origen  was  the  oldest,  in  utter  poverty 
and  want.  What  was  to  be  done?  With 
the  charge  of  such  a  family  on  her  hands, 
it  was  impossible  for  the  mother  to  earn 
anything  for  their  support.  But  young 
Origen  stepped  nobly  forth  for  the  help 
and  comfort  of  his  mother.  He  was  then 
only  seventeen  years  old,  yet  he  gave  up 
his  position  as  a  pupil  in  the  famous  school 
of  Alexandria  and  opened  a  school  of  his 
own.     God  smiled  upon    his    efforts    and 


124         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

made  them  successful.  Thus  he  was  able 
to  provide  for  the  support  of  his  mother 
and  her  family.  But  Origen  never  would 
have  risen  to  the  position  of  honor  and 
usefulness  which  he  afterwards  occupied 
if  it  had  not  been  for  the  loving  devotion 
to  his  mother  which  he  practiced.  God's 
blessing  always  follows  such  devotion. 
Here  is  a  striking-  illustration  of  this  from 
modern  history.  We  may  call  it  Filial 
Affection. 

Gustavus  III.,  the  king  of  Sweden,  while 
passing  on  horseback  one  day  through  a 
village  near  his  capital,  observed  a  peasant 
girl,  of  pleasing  appearance,  drawing 
water  from  a  fountain  by  the  wayside.  He 
went  up  to  her  and  asked  for  a  drink.  In 
a  moment  she  lifted  her  pitcher  and  very 
respectfully  put  it  to  the  lips  of  the  mon- 
arch. Having  satisfied  his  thirst,  he  kindly 
thanked  his  benefactress,  and  said : 

"  My  young  friend,  if  you  will  go  with 
me  to  Stockholm,  I  can  give  you  a  more 
agreeable  occupation  than  that  you  now 
have." 

"Ah,    sir,"     she    replied,     "I'm     much 


Origen  of  Alexandria.  125 

obliged  to  you,  but  I  cannot  accept  your 
offer.  I  am  quite  satisfied  to  remain  in 
the  position  where  God  has  placed  me. 
But,  even  if  it  were  not  so,  I  could  not,  on 
any  account,  change  my  present  situa- 
tion." 

"Why  not?"  asked  the  king  with  some 
surprise. 

'*  Because,"  said  the  girl,  blushing,  ''  my 
mother  is  poor  and  sickly,  and  has  no  one 
but  me  to  help  and  comfort  her  in  her 
trials  ;  and  no  offer  which  any  one  might 
make  could  tempt  me  to  leave  her,  or 
neglect  the  duties  which  affection  requires 
of  me." 

"Where  is  your    mother?"    asked   the 

king. 

"  In  yonder  little  cabin,"  pointing  to  a 
wretched-looking  hovel  near  by. 

The  king,  who  was  very  much  interest- 
ed in  the  girl,  went  with  her  into  her 
humble  home.  There,  stretched  on  a  bed 
of  straw,  lay  an  aged  female,  pressed 
down  with  age,  sickness  and  infirmities. 
Moved  by  what  he  saw,  he  said  to  the 
aged  sufferer,  "I  am  very  sorry,  my  friend, 


1 26         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

to    find     you     in     such    a    sad    state." 

"Ah,  sir,"  said  the  poor  woman,  I 
should  deserve  to  be  pitied  indeed,  were 
it  not  for  that  darhng  daughter.  She 
labors  for  my  support,  and  leaves  nothing 
undone  that  she  thinks  will  be  a  help  and 
comfort  to  me.  May  a  gracious  God  re- 
member it  to  her  for  good  !"  she  said  as 
she  wiped  away  her  tears. 

Gustavus  never  felt  so  happy  as  he  did 
then,  to  think  that  he  had  it  in  his  power 
to  afford  help  where  it  was  so  much  need- 
ed. He  slipped  a  purse  of  money  into 
the  hand  of  that  faithful  daughter,  and 
said,  ''  Continue  to  take  care  of  your 
mother.  I  will  soon  help  you  to  do  it 
more  effectually.     Good-by,  my  friend." 

On  his  return  to  Stockholm,  he   settled 
a  pension    for   life    on    that  mother ;   and 
this    when    she  died    was    to    go    to    her 
daughter.     And  God  blessed  Origen    for 
his  filial  devotion  in  much  the  same  way. 

2.    We  find  in  Origen  a  good  example 

OF    SELF-DENIAL. 

In  trying  to  help  his  mother  and  to  show 
the  reality  of  his  religion,    he    determined 


Origen  of  Alexandria.  129 

to  carry  out  faithfully  our  Saviour's  words 
when  he  said,  ''  If  any  man  will  be  my  dis- 
ciple, let  him  deny  himself."  He  made 
it  a  matter  of  principle  to  give  up  every- 
thing that  was  not  indispensably  neces- 
sary. He  refused  to  receive  the  gifts  of 
his  pupils.  He  had  but  one  coat,  and 
took  no  thought  for  the  morrow.  He 
seldom  ate  any  flesh ;  he  never  drank 
wine  or  intoxicating  liquor.  He  devoted 
the  greater  part  of  the  night  to  prayer 
and  to  the  study  of  the  Scriptures,  and 
slept  on  the  bare  floor.  And  this  earnest 
self-denial  on  his  part  added  very  much  to 
his  influence  and  to  the  power  of  his 
teaching.  It  secured  for  him  the  respect 
and  the  confidence  both  of  the  learned 
and  the  unlearned  among  his  pupils,  in  an 
age  and  country  where  such  a  mode  of 
life  was  held  in  the  highest  esteem  both  by 
Christians  and  heathen.  This  was  one  of 
the  things  which  led  his  friends  to  call  him 
Origen  the  Adamantme.  The  adamant  is 
one  of  the  hardest  and  most  unchano-ino- 
of  minerals.  And  they  thought  he  was  a 
sort   of    living   adamant.      And    thus,  in 


1 30         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

connection  with  his  pubHc  and  private  in- 
structions, he  was  the  means  of  making 
many  converts  from  pagans  of  all  ranks. 
By  the  good  example  of  self-denial  which 
he  set  forth,  Origen  was  simply  making 
all  about  him  know  and  feel  that  there 
was  a  reality  in  the  religion  which  he  pro- 
fessed. And  this  is  the  way  in  which  a 
good  example  will  always  make  itself  felt. 
We  may  do  good  by  our  words,  but  we 
can  do  much  greater  good  by  our  actions. 
Here  is  an  illustration  of  this  point.  We 
may  call  it  the  power  of  example. 

In  the  fourth  century  the  emperor  Con- 
stantine  had  one  of  his  armies  commanded 
by  a  brave  and  noble  general.  In  march- 
ing through  a  distant  part  of  the  empire, 
this  army  on  one  occasion  was  nearly 
starved  for  want  of  food.  Approaching  a 
town  inhabited  by  Christians,  the  general 
sent  one  of  his  officers  to  ask  provisions 
for  his  army.  The  Christian  people  of 
that  town  immediately  supplied  their 
wants.  Wondering  at  their  free  and 
noble  charity,  the  general  inquired  what 
kind  of  people  they  were,  to  be  so  gener- 


Origen  of  Alexandria,  131 

ous.  He  was  told  that  they  were  Chris- 
tians, and  that  their  religion  taught  them  to 
hurt  no  one,  but  to  try  to  do  good  to  all. 
This  had  such  an  effect  on  P^ehmius  that 
he  never  rested  till  he  became  a  Christian. 
Then  he  resigned  his  position  in  the  army 
and  became  a  minister  in  the  Church  of 
Christ,  and  spent  the  rest  of  his  days  in 
preaching  peace  instead  of  making  war. 

3.  We  have  in  the  life  of  this  good  man 
an  example  of  faithfulness  to  the  truth. 

We  see  this  in  the  great  efforts  he  made 
to  preserve  the  truth  in  its  purity,  and  to 
spread  it  abroad  on  every  hand.  He  was 
known  to  be  such  an  eloquent  preacher, 
and  so  successful  in  his  efforts  to  correct 
false  doctrines  and  teach  those  that  were 
true,  that  bishops  and  leading  men  in  all 
parts  of  the  Church,  when  they  found 
those  about  them  who  were  teaching  false 
doctrines,  would  send  for  Orip-en  to  come 
and  correct  their  errors,  and  proclaim 
among  their  people  the  simple  '*  truth  as 
it  is  in  Jesus."  And  he  was  always  ready 
to  answer  these  calls,  and  was  eminently 
successful  in  the  efforts  thus  put  forth.    He 


132  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

would  supply  his  place  in  the  school  of 
which  he  had  charge,  and  then  would  go 
forth  cheerfully  wherever  he  was  called,  to 
correct  the  progress  of  error  and  uphold 
the  cause  of  truth  when  it  was  in  daneer. 

And  in  thus  showing  his  faithfulness  to 
the  truth,  Origen  was  treading  in  the  foot- 
steps of  the  great  apostle  Paul.  When 
Paul  saw  in  his  night  vision  a  man  beck- 
oning to  him  and  saying,  ''Come  over  into 
Macedonia  and  help  us,"  he  obeyed  the 
the  call  without  any  regard  to  the  toil  or 
danger  to  which  it  might  expose  him.  The 
principle  on  which  he  acted  is  thus  set 
forth  by  the  apostle  :  *'  Neither  count  I  my 
life  dear  unto  myself,  so  that  I  may  finish 
my  course  with  joy,  and  the  ministry  which 
I  have  received  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  to  tes- 
tify the  gospel  of  the  grace  of  God." 
This  was  the  way  in  which  Paul  showed 
his  faithfulness  to  the  truth;  and  this  was 
what  Origen  did,  and  what  God  expects 
us  all  to  do. 

4.  Origen  comes  before  us  a-s  an  example 
of  ti7itiring  industry  in  his  effoi^ts  to  spread 
the  truth. 


Origen  of  Alexandria.  133 

When  he  had  accomplished  the  different 
missions  of  which  we  have  just  spoken,  he 
hastened  back  to  his  home  at  Alexandria, 
and  labored  patiendy  in  the  arduous  work 
of  his  school  there.  By  diligent  study  he 
had  mastered  all  the  different  systems  of 
philosophy  which  were  taught  in  those 
days.  He  drew  out  from  them  whatever 
truths  were  found  there  that  haromized 
with  the  teaching  of  the  Scriptures,  and 
blended  them  together.  This  made  his 
school  remarkably  popular.  Pupils  came 
to  it  from  all  parts  of  the  world,  and  great 
numbers  of  them  became  Christians  and 
went  home  to  spread  the  influence  of  the 
gospel  around  them  in  the  circles  through 
which  they  moved. 

But  it  was  in  his  writings,  more  than  in 
anything  else,  that  Origen's  industry  was 
seen.  The  works  that  he  wrote  were 
more  numerous,  more  learned  and  more 
useful  than  those  of  any  other  author  in 
the  early  Church.  The  number  of  his 
works  is  said  by  some  to  have  amounted 
to  six  thousand.  This  is  no  doubt  beyond 
the  mark,  but  it  shows  us  how  very   num- 


134         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

erous  his  works  must  have  been  to  be 
thus  spoken  of.  The  most  important  of 
them  were  those  which  he  pubhshed  on 
the  Scriptures.  He  spent  twenty-eight 
years  of  his  Hfe  in  this  work.  Not  only 
his  days  but  large  portions  of  his  nights 
were  thus  occupied.  He  used  to  have 
seven  secretaries  and  seven  copyists 
laboring  with  him  continually.  He  wrote 
fifty  volumes  on  the  Scriptures.  These 
were  of  three  kinds :  the  first  contained 
short  explanatory  notes  on  difficult  pas- 
sages of  Scripture,  designed  especially  for 
young  Christians;  the  second  contained 
full  expositions  of  whole  books  of  Script- 
ure, for  the  instruction  of  more  advanced 
students;  and  the  third  was  made  up  of 
exhortations  or  practical  applications  of 
Scripture  for  the  benefit  of  the  common 
people.  Then  he  published  many  doctri- 
nal works  on  the  subjects  of  controversy 
which  prevailed  in  the  Church  in  those 
days.  He  also  wrote  a  number  of  works 
on  the  practical  duties  of  religion.  There 
were  many  different  versions  of  the 
Scriptures  in  those   days.      These    varied 


Origen  of  Alexandria.  135 

from  each  other  very  much,  and  good  peo- 
ple were  often  at  a  loss  to  know  which 
was  the  true  version  on  which  they  might 
depend  and  by  which  they  might  be  guid- 
ed. Orio-en  devoted  a  c^reat  deal  of  his 
time  to  this  department  of  study.  He  ex- 
amined the  Hebrew  and  Greek  and  other 
versions  of  the  Bible  with  untirine  indus- 
try,  and  published  the  result  of  his  study 
in  such  a  form  that  all  earnest  Christians 
might  know  satisfactorily  just  what  the 
true  word  of  God  was,  which  they  could 
take  as  "  the  man  of  their  counsel  and 
their  guide."  Very  few  of  these  numer- 
ous works  of  Origen  have  come  down  to 
us,  but  none  can  tell  the  amount  of  good 
accomplished  by  them  among  the  members 
of  the  early  Church. 

Now  when  we  think  of  Origen  let  us 
remember  the  example  he  has  set  us  of 
filial  devotion,  of  self-denial,  of  faithfulness 
to  the  truth  and  of  untiring  industry  in 
spreading  it.  Let  us  pray  for  grace  to 
follow  his  example,  and  then  we  shall  bear 
blessings  wherever  we  may  go. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

CYPRIAN    OF    CARTHAGE. 

BORN   A.  D.    200    (?);      DIED   A.  D.    258    (?). 

The  interesting  characters  we  are  now 
considering  take  us  over  a  large  period  of 
the  history  of  the  Christian  Church  from 
the  time  of  the  apostles  nearly  to  the 
dawn  of  the  Reformation.  In  this  great 
field  of  study  we  find  characters  and  in- 
cidents that  have  an  air  of  freshness  about 
them,  and  that  prove,  both  instructive  and 
profitable. 

Among  the  heroes  of  this  early  period 
to  which  we  would  next  call  attention  is 
Cyprian^  the  bishop  of  Carthage, 

This  city  was,  in  its  day,  one  of  the 
most  famous  cities  of  the  world.  It  was 
situated  in  the  northern  part  of  Africa, 
near  where  the  city  of  Tunis,  in  Algiers, 
now  stands. 

(136) 


Cyprian  of  Carthage.  139 

Carthage  is  the  city  which  is  said  to 
have  been  founded  about  850  years  before 
Christ,  or  a  hundred  years  before  the 
foundation  of  the  great  city  of  Rome,  as 
we  found  when  studying  about  TertulHan 
in  a  previous  chapter. 

There  are  four  good  points  in  the  char- 
acter of  Cyprian  to  which  we  may  refer. 

I.  We  may  speak  of  him  as  an  exam- 
ple of  diligence. 

Cyprian  is  believed  to  have  been  born 
in  the  year  201,  or  the  first  year  of  the 
third  century  of  our  era.  His  family  was 
highly  respectable,  and  his  father  was  one 
of  the  senators  of  the  city  of  Carthage. 
Of  course  he  was  brought  up  in  the 
heathen  religion  which  prevailed  in  his 
country.  He  was  first  a  student,  and  then 
a  teacher  of  the  laws  of  Carthage ;  and 
he  had  pursued  his  studies  with  such  un- 
usual dilio^ence  that  he  was  considered  the 
ablest  teacher  of  the  law  in  Carthage. 

He  remained  an  idolater  till  he  was 
over  forty  years  of  age ;  then  he  became 
a  Christian.  But  whether  we  look  at  him 
as  a  private    Christian,  as  a  minister    or 


1 40         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

bishop,  we  find  the  same  diligence  mark- 
inof  his  life  and  character.  This  made  him 
successful  in  everything  he  undertook; 
and  it  will  have  the  same  effect  on  all  of 
us  if  we  learn  and  practice  the  same  im- 
portant lesson  of  diligence.  The  words 
of  Solomon  were  true  of  Cyprian  in  the 
far-off  times  in  which  he  lived,  and  they 
are  just  as  true  of  us  who  are  living  now, 
"  Seest  thou  a  man  diligent  in  his  busi- 
ness ?  he  shall  stand  before  kir.gs"  (Prov. 
22  :  29).  This  simply  means  that  dili- 
gence will  lead  to  success. 

2.  Cyprian  was  an  example  of  decision 
as  well  as  of  diligence. 

He  became  acquainted  with  a  good 
Christian  minister  named  Caecilius,  who 
told  him  about  Jesus  and  the  truths  of  his 
religion.  Cyprian  soon  saw  how  much 
better  this  religion  was  than  that  in  which 
he  had  been  brought  up.  He  became 
satisfied  that  this  was  the  true  religion  ; 
and  though  his  family  and  relatives  were 
all  idolaters,  and  were  very  much  opposed 
to  the  change  he  talked  of  making,  and 
tried  all  they  could  to    prevent   him    from 


Cyprian  of  Carthage.  143 

making  it,  yet  he  resolved  to  do  so.  He 
was  baptized  in  the  forty- sixth  year  of  his 
age.  Before  this  his  name  had  been 
Thascius  Cyprian  ;  but  at  his  baptism  he 
added  to  this  the  name  of  his  o^ood  friend 
who  had  brought  him  to  Jesus,  so  that  as 
a  Christian  he  was  known  as  Thascius 
Caecihus  Cyprian.  Afterwards  through 
all  his  Christian  life  he  pursued  the  same 
decided  course.  His  mind  was  quickly 
made  up  on  all  the  important  questions  of 
the  day.  He  was  as  diligent  in  following 
out  the  right  course  as  he  was  decided  in 
choosing  it.  And  here  is  a  good  example 
for  all  our  young  friends  to  follow.  The 
sailor  who  wants  to  make  a  successful 
voyage  must  make  up  his  mind  as  soon 
as  he  gets  to  sea  what  course  he  ought 
to  steer,  and  then  he  must  keep  on  steer- 
ing in  the  right  course  till  his  voyage  Is 
ended. 

3.  We  find  in  Cyprian  an  example  of 
liberal  piety. 

He  lived  honestly  and  freely  up  to  the 
meaning  of  our  Saviour's  words  when  he 
said  to  all  his  disciples,   '*  Freely   ye   have 


144         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

received,  freely  give."  When  he  became 
a  Christian  he  was  very  rich.  Among  his 
possessions  was  a  fine  large  house  which 
he  used  as  his  home.  It  had  a  beautiful 
garden  connected  with  it  which  he  enjoyed 
very  much;  but  he  sold  that  valuable  prop- 
erty, and  set  apart  the  money  received 
from  the  sale  of  it  for  the  relief  of  the 
poor.     That  was  very  noble  in  him. 

In  the  course  of  his  ministry  his  friends, 
who  were  very  much  attached  to  him, 
showed  their  love  to  him  by  buying  this 
property  and  giving  it  to  him  again.  But 
while  he  was  busy  in  his  life  work  as 
bishop  of  Carthage,  a  very  severe  famine 
prevailed  in  that  part  of  Africa.  Thou- 
sands of  the  inhabitants  of  Carthage  died 
during  that  terrible  visitation.  The  suf- 
ferings of  the  sick  and  poor  at  that  time 
were  dreadful.  And  then  Cyprian  showed 
his  liberality  by  selling  that  property  the 
second  time  and  using  the  money  it 
brought  him  for  the  relief  of  the  sick  and 
starving  poor.  And  what  a  beautiful 
illustration  we  have  in  this  singular  ex- 
perience of  Cyprian,  of  the  truth  of  Solo- 


Cyprian  of  Carthage,  145 

mon*s  words,  when  he  says,  **  He  that  hath 
pity  upon  the  poor  lendeth  unto  the  Lord; 
and  that  which  he  hath  given  will  he  pay 
him  again"  (Prov.  19  :  17).  We  may  be 
very  sure  that  when  we  give  anything  to 
the  Lord's  poor  he  will  pay  us  back  in 
some  way ;  but  in  Cyprian's  case  this 
promise  was  literally  fulfilled,  and  the  very 
property  which  he  lent  to  the  Lord  by 
giving  to  the  poor,  the  Lord  gave  back  to 
him.  Let  us  remember  this  lesson  of 
Cyprian's  liberal  piety  and  try  to  follow 
his  example. 

4.  We  find  in  Cyprian  a  splendid  exam- 
ple of  courage. 

While  he  was  engaged  in  his  work  as 
bishop,  that  dreadful  disease  known  as  the 
plague  broke  out  in  the  city  of  Carthage. 
Multitudes  of  people  who  could  afford  to 
do  so  left  the  city  while  this  pestilence  was 
raging  ;  and  those  who  could  not  get  away 
were  afraid  to  enter  the  houses  in  which 
the  disease  was  known  to  prevail.  There 
were  large  portions  of  the  city  in  which 
thousands  and  tens  of  thousands  were 
sick  and  dying  with  no    one    to    nurse    or 


1 46         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

wait  upon  them.  And  here  the  courage 
of  Cyprian  shone  forth.  He  not  only,  as 
we  have  seen,  spent  his  money  for  the  re- 
Hef  of  the  sick,  suffering  and  neglected 
ones,  but  he  devoted  his  time  in  personal 
attention  to  them,  and,  aided  by  some  of 
his  clergy,  went  from  house  to  house  min- 
istering to  their  wants.  This  was  courage 
of  the  highest  character.  The  worship- 
pers of  idols  were  amazed  at  it,  and  many 
were  thus  led  to  become  Christians. 

And  then  we  have  a  still  more  striking 
example  of  the  courage  of  Cyprian  in  the 
way  in  which  he  met  his  death.  Valerian, 
the  emperor  of  Rome,  had  issued  a  decree 
which  required  that  all  Christians  should 
be  put  to  death  who  would  not  give  up 
their  religion,  and  sacrifice  to  the  idols  of 
Rome.  Galerius  Maximus,  the  proconsul 
of  Carthage,  In  obedience  to  this  decree 
summoned  Cyprian  to  appear  before  him. 
When  he  was  brought  into  his  presence 
Maximus  said  to  him,  **  Art  thou  Thascius 
Caecilius  Cyprian?" 

''  I  am,"  was  the  answer. 

"  Art  thou  he,"  asked    Maximus,    ''  who 


Cyprian  of  Carthage,  147 

hath  borne  the  highest  offices  of  their  re- 
hglon  among  the  Christians?" 

**  Yes,"  said  Cyprian. 

"  The  emperor  commands  that  you  offer 
sacrifice  to  the  gods  of  Rome,"  said  the 
proconsul. 

'*I  will  not  offer  sacrifice,"  replied  Cyp- 
rian. 

''  Be  persuaded^'  said  the  proconsul,  ''for 
your  own  sake!' 

Cyprian's  reply  was,  ''  Do  as  thou  art  or- 
dered;  nothing  ca7i  move  me  froin  the  stand 
I  have  taken!' 

Then  the  sentence  was  pronounced:  "Let 
Thascius  C^cilius  Cyprian  be  behead- 
ed!" 

"  Thanks  be  to  God P'  said  Cyprian. 

"  Let  us  die  with  him  !"  exclaimed  the 
Christians  around  him. 

Then  the  brave  martyr  was  led  away  to 
an  open  field  outside  the  city,  followed  by 
a  crowd  of  Christian  friends.  He  put  off 
his  outer  garments,  and  stood  calmly 
waiting  the  end,  clad  in  a  long  white  robe. 
Then  he  kneeled  down  and  commended 
his  soul  to  God  in  earnest  prayer.      After 


1 48         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

this  he  tied  the  bandage  over  his  eyes  with 
his  own  hands.  Then  one  of  his  friends 
fastened  his  hands  behind  his  back.  He 
ordered  a  sum  of  money  in  gold,  equal  to 
twenty-five  dollars  with  us,  to  be  given  to 
the  executioner,  in  order  to  show  that  he 
had  no  unkind  feelinor  toward  him.     Then 

o 

he  bowed  himself  to  the  earth  and  was 
beheaded  by  a  single  stroke  of  the  sword. 
So  ended  the  earthly  life  of  this  good  and 
holy  man. 

Let  us  remember  his  example,  from  the 
four  different  points  of  view  from  which 
we  have  now  looked  at  it,  and  let  us  ask 
God  for  grace  to  follow  him  in  the  dilige7icey 
the  decision,  the  liberal  piety,  and  the  cour- 
age which  we  find  illustrated  in  the  life  of 
Cyprian,  the  martyr  bishop  of  Carthage. 


CHAPTER  X. 

EUSEBIUS    OF    C^SAREA. 
BORN  A.  D.  260  TO  270  (?);    died  a.  d.  338  (?). 

Euseblus  was  a  native  of  Palestine.  He 
was  born  about  the  year  264  of  the  Chris- 
tian era,  and  died  about  the  year  340. 
The  place  of  his  birth  is  somewhat  un- 
certain ;  but  it  is  generally  believed  that 
he  was  born  at  Csesarea,  which  was  the 
principal  scene  of  his  life's  labors.  He 
held  the  office  of  bishop,  or  the  head  of 
the  Church  there,  for  more  than  a  quarter 
of  a  century.  Of  his  family  and  early  life 
we  have  no  knowledge;  but  he  was  a 
diligent  student  in  his  youth,  and  devoted 
himself  to  the  thorough  examination  of 
both  the  Christian  and  heathen  antiquities. 
And  the  result  of  these  earnest  studies  is 
to  be  seen  in  the  character  which  he  won 
for  himself.     Next  to  Origen,  he  was    the 

(149) 


1 50         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

most  learned  of  the  ancient  fathers  of  the 
Church,  and  from  his  writings  he  has  al- 
ways been  spoken  of  as  *'  the  father  of 
ecclesiastical  history." 

Before  going  on  to  speak  of  some  of 
the  lessons  which  his  history  furnishes,  we 
may  say  a  few  words  about  Caesarea,  the 
place  of  his  birth  and  labors,  and  also  of 
two  very  important  events  which  took 
place  during  the  years  of  his  life. 


RUINS    OF    C^SAREA. 
(From  t)r.  Schaff's  Bible  Dictionary,  by  permission.) 

Caesarea  was  a  flourishine  town  in  Pal- 
estine  on  the  Mediterranean  coast.  It 
was  situated  about  half  way  between  Jop- 
pa  and  Carmel,  and  was  built  by  Herod 
the  Great,  who  gave  it  the  name  it  bore  in 


Eusebius  of  CcBsarea.  1 5 1 

honor  of  Caesar  the  Roman  emperor. 
The  towns  in  Palestine,  on  the  Mediter- 
ranean coast,  have  no  natural  harbors  to 
protect  them  from  the  swell  of  that  vast 
sea,  whose  waves  break  along  the  shore 
continually  with  great  violence.  To  afford 
protection  to  vessels  that  might  come  to 
Caesarea,  Herod  built  a  great  sea-wall  or 
breakwater  in  front  of  the  town.  This 
was  built  in  a  circular  form,  so  as  to  make  a 
safe  harbor  for  the  vessels  that  might  come 
to  trade  there.  It  swept  around  from  the 
south  and  west  of  the  town,  with  an  en- 
trance into  it  from  the  north.  There  was 
room  enough  in  that  harbor  for  the  largest 
fleets  that  mio^ht  have  occasion  to  anchor 

o 

there.  This  breakwater  was  built  of  im- 
mense blocks  of  stone,  brought  from  a 
great  distance  and  sunk  to  the  depth  of 
twenty  fathoms,  or  sixty  feet,  in  the  sea. 
Herod  w^as  occupied  in  this  work  about 
twelve  years,  and  the  amount  of  money 
expended  upon  it  was  immense.  Broad 
landine-wharves  surrounded  the  harbor. 
A  beautiful  temple  was  built  in  the  town 
and  dedicated  to  the   emperor,    and    in    it 


1 5  2  Heroes  of  the  Early  Chtirch. 

there  was  placed  a  colossal  statue  of  him. 
Other  splendid  buildings  were  also  erected 
in  the  town,  and  when  they  were  finished 
Herod  fixed  his  abode  there  and  made  it 
the  civil  and  military  capital  of  Judsea. 

Caesarea  was  the  scene  of  several  in- 
terestinof  circumstances  mentioned  in  the 
New  Testament.  The  conversion  of 
Cornelius,  the  first  fruits  of  the  Gentiles, 
took  place  here.  This  was  the  residence  of 
Philip  the  evangelist.  Here  Paul  resided 
for  some  time  on  returning  from  his  third 
missionary  journey.  Here  he  was  im- 
prisoned for  two  years,  and  made  his  fam- 
ous speech  before  Festus  and  King 
Agrippa.  And  it  was  here  also,  in  the 
amphitheatre  built  by  his  father,  that 
Herod  Agrippa  was  smitten  of  God  and 
died,  as  we  read  in  Acts  12  :  21-23.  It 
was  here  that  Eusebius  was  born  and 
served  God  as  bishop  of  the  Church  for  so 
many  years.  But  now  all  the  glory  of 
this  place  has  passed  away.  The  ruins  of 
its  former  splendor  are  all  that  remain  of 
it.  Travellers  through  Palestine  seldom 
think  of  visiting  Caesarea,  and    the    only 


Eusebius  of  Cess  area.  153 

tenants  of  its  ruins  are  snakes  and  scor- 
pions, lizards,  wild  boars  and  jackals. 

And  now  we  will  consider  two  impor- 
tant events  which  took  place  during  the 
lifetime  of  Eusebius.  One  of  these  was 
the  change  in  the  goverment  of  the  Ro- 
man empire.  During  the  lifetime  of  the 
other  "heroes  of  the  early  Church"  of 
whom  we  have  already  spoken,  all  the 
emperors  of  Rome  were  heathen  men ; 
and  they  were  all  engaged,  more  or  less, 
in  persecuting  the  Christians  in  different 
parts  of  their  empire.  And  this  work  of 
persecution  still  continued  in  the  early 
part  of  the  history  of  Eusebius.  But 
during  his  lifetime  a  great  change  took 
place  and  persecution  ceased. 

The  Roman  empire  was  then  divided 
into  two  parts,  the  eastern  and  the  west- 
ern empire.  Constantius  was  ruling  over 
the  western  empire  and  Galerius  over  the 
eastern.  Constantius  died  in  the  year 
306,  and  appointed  his  son  Constantine, 
afterwards  called  "  tlie  Great,"  to  succeed 
him.  The  Roman  soldiers  proclaimed  him 
emperor,  and  he   took   posession    of   the 


154         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

countries  of  Gaul,  Spain  and  Britian,  over 
which  his  father  had  reigned.  Then  he 
engaged  in  war  with  Maxentius,  who  had 
usurped  the  goverments  of  Italy  and 
Africa.  Constantine  conquered  Maxen- 
tius in  three  battles.  The  last  of  these 
was  at  the  Milvian  bridge  under  the  walls 
of  Rome.  It  was  during  this  campaign 
that  the  wonderful  event  took  place,  in 
connection  with  Constantine,  which  led  to 
the  change  in  the  goverment  of  the  Roman 
empire,  above  referred  to.  Eusebius 
gives  us  the  account  of  this  strange  event. 
He  tells  us  that  while  Constantine  was  en- 
gaged in  this  warfare  with  Maxentius,  he 
saw  a  vision  in  the  heavens  in  which  a 
flaming  cross  appeared  to  him,  bearing 
this  inscription  in  Latin  : 

"  IN    HOC    SIGNO    VINCES." 

Translated  into  English  the  meaning  of 
these  words  is,  "  By  this  sign  thou  shalt 
conquer."  Eusebius  also  informs  us  that 
Christ  appeared  to  the  emperor  in  a 
dream  the  following  night,  and  directed 
him  to  take  for  the  standard  of  his  army 
an  imitation  of  the   fiery    cross  which  he 


Eusebius  of  Ccssarea.  155 

had  seen.  Constantlne  caused  a  stand- 
ard to  be  made  in  this  form,  which  was 
called  "Labarum."  This  was  carried  in 
advance  of  all  other  standards,  was  looked 
upon  with  adoration  by  the  Christian  sol- 
diers in  the  army,  and  was  surrounded  by 
a  guard  of  fifty  picked  men. 

Lactantius,  a  well-known  Christian 
writer  of  this  period,  confirms  the  above 
statement  about  Constantine.  He  also 
tells  us  that  from  this  time  the  emperor 
confessed  himself  a  Christian,  and  gave 
orders  that  the  sign  of  the  cross,  with  the 
name  of  Christ  connected  with  it,  should 
be  put  upon  the  shields  of  all  his  soldiers, 
and  that  they  were  thus  to  go  forth  a- 
eainst  their  enemies.  After  this,  in  the 
year  313,  Constantine  published  his  mem- 
orable edict  of  toleration  in  favor  of 
Christianity,  and  ordered  that  all  the  prop- 
erty which  had  been  taken  from  the 
Christians  during  the  times  of  persecution 
should  be  restored  to  them.  They  were 
also  made  eligible  to  any  public  offices, 
which  had  not  been  the  case  before.  This 
striking    event    marked    the    triumph  of 


156         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

Christianity  and  the  downfall  of  paganism 
as  the  ruling  power  in  the  empire  of 
Rome.  From  this  time  persecution 
ceased  throughout  the  empire,  and  peace 
and  prosperity  attended  the  gospel  in  its 
progress. 

The  other  great  event  which  took  place 
durlno^  the  lifetime  of  Eusebius  was  the 
holdinor  of  the  famous  Council  of  Nice. 
This  was  the  first  of  the  p'reat  councils  of 
the  Christian  Church  which  have  been 
held  from  time  to  time.  It  took  place  in 
the  year  325.  Nice  or  Nicaea,  where  this 
council  was  held,  was  a  large  and  flourish- 
ing town  in  Bithynia  of  Asia  Minor.  The 
council  held  there  was  the  most  important 
of  any  of  the  general  councils  of  the 
Church.  It  was  called  together  by  the 
emperor  Constantine  for  the  purpose  of 
considering  the  great  doctrine  of  the 
divinity  of  our  blessed  Saviour,  and  of 
statinof  the  views  of  the  Church  on  that 
important  subject. 

A  new  sect  had  arisen  in  the  Church 
under  the  leading  of  a  minister  whose 
name  was  Arius.     He   taught   that   Jesus 


Eusebius  of  Ccesarea,  157 

Christ  was  not  a  divine  being,  but  only  a 
creature.  This,  of  course,  took  away  the 
doctrine  of  the  atonement.  For,  if  Christ 
had  not  been  a  partaker  of  the  divine 
nature,  he  never  could  have  made  an 
atonement  for  the  sins  of  the  human  race. 
Such  teaching  led  to  the  most  serious  con- 
troversies in  the  Church.  And  we  cannot 
wonder  at  this ;  for  when  the  divinity  of 
Christ  is  denied,  the  foundation  on  which 
all  the  most  precious  and  important  truths 
of  our  holy  religion  rest  is  taken  away. 
There  seemed  to  be  no  other  way  of  set- 
tling this  great  matter  than  by  calling  a 
council  of  the  whole  Church  to  consider 
this  subject,  and  to  state  clearly  what  the 
real  truth  was  in  reference  to  it. 

It  was  this  view  of  the  matter  which  led 
Constantine  to  call  the  council  of  the 
Church  to  meet  together  in  the  city  of 
Nice.  Three  hundred  and  eighteen  bish- 
ops were  present  at  this  council  repre- 
senting every  portion  of  the  Christian 
Church.  In  connection  with  the  divinity 
of  Christ,  they  had  many  other  of  the  im- 
portant doctrines  of  the  Bible  to  consider. 


158         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

Their  sessions  were  continued  for  two 
whole  months.  And,  as  a  result  of  their 
deliberations,  they  declared  the  truth  as 
held  by  them,  not  only  on  the  subject  of 
the  divinity  of  Christ,  but  on  all  the  other 
leading  doctrines  of  the  gospel.  The 
statement  of  truth  which  they  set  forth  is 
called  ''The  Nicene  Creed."  This  creed  is 
held  and  used  by  the  Church  of  England 
and  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in 
this  country  to  the  present  day.  In  refer- 
ence to  our  Lord  Jesus  -Christ,  this  creed 
declares  that  he  is  "  the  only-begotten  Son 
of  God,  begotten  of  the  Father  before  all 
worlds ;  God  of  God,  Light  of  light,  very 
God  of  very  God,  begotten,  not  made,  be- 
ing of  one  substance  with  the  Father ;  by 
whom  all  thino^s  were  made."  No  more 
important  statement  of  truth  was  ever 
made  by  man  than  that  which  is  embodied 
in  this  creed.  And  we  may  well  thank 
God  that  the  Council  of  Nice  was  led  to 
prepare  and  publish  it  for  us.  And  when 
we  think  of  Eusebius,  it  is  pleasant  to 
connect  his  name  with  a  work  which  had 
?o  much  to  do  with  preserving  through  all 


Eusebius  of  CcEsarea,  159 

ages  ''the  truth  as  It  Is  in  Jesus." 
And  now  we  come  to  consider  the  his- 
tory of  Eusebius*  own  life.  In  this  there 
are  two  points  of  view  from  which  we  may 
think  of  him,  and  each  of  them  teaches  us 
an  important  lesson. 

I.  From  the  facts  of  his  history,  we  see 
him  acting  as  a  faithful  and  an  U7failino' 
friend.  He  had  a  friend  named  Pamphilus, 
to  whom  he  was  very  much  attached. 
Pamphilus  was  a  minister  of  the  Church 
at  Caesarea.  He  was  a  very  learned  man 
and  a  most  earnest  and  devoted  Christian. 
He  wrote  a  number  of  useful  works,  and 
spent  a  great  part  of  his  time  in  copying 
portions  of  the  Bible  and  giving  them 
away  to  those  who  desired  to  know  the 
way  of  salvation. 

What  we  are  to  tell  you  happened  dur- 
ing the  reign  of  the  emperor  Maximianus, 
who  was  a  great  persecutor  of  the  Chris- 
tians. He  once  came  to  Caesarea  to  cele- 
brate his  birthday.  This  was  done  with 
great  parade  and  show.  To  make  the  ex- 
hibitions more  Impressive,  a  number  of 
Christians  were  brought  out  to  be  tortured 


1 60         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

and    put    to    death.       Among   these    was 
Pamphilus,  the  friend  of  Euseblus. 

In  the  presence  of  the  emperor  he  was 
called  upon  to  renounce  Christianity  and 
sacrifice  to  the  gods  of  Rome.  He  re- 
fused to  do  this,  and  neither  threats  nor 
promises  could  Lead  him  to  change  his 
mind.  Then  the  emperor  was  very  angry, 
and  ordered  him  to  be  delivered  to  the 
tormentors.  They  racked  his  sides  and 
tore  off  the  flesh  with  red-hot  pincers.  But 
he  stood  as  firm  as  a  rock  and  bore  his 
torture  calmly.  Finding  that  no  impres- 
sion could  be  made  upon  him,  he  was  sent 
back  to  prison  and  was  kept  there  for  two 
years.  And  it  is  just  here  that  the  faith- 
fulness of  his  friend  Eusebius  comes  into 
view.  Not  all  the  disgrace  and  torture 
inflicted  on  Pamphilus  could  keep  Eu- 
sebius away  from  him.  He  was  a  con- 
stant visitor  to  him  in  prison.  He  soothed 
his  sorrows,  alleviated  his  sufferings  and 
was  constantly  striving,  in  every  possible 
way,  to  cheer  and  comfort  him.  They 
read  and  studied  together,  and  wrote  such 
articles  as  were  called  for  by  the  neces- 


Eusebius  of  Ccesarea.  i6i 

sides  of  the  times,  to  comfort  those  who 
were  suffering  from  persecution,  and  to 
strenp-then  the  faith  of  all  In  the  teachings 
of  Scripture.  And  It  was  because  of  this 
strong  attachment  of  Eusebius  to  his 
friend,  and  his  unfailing  faithfulness  to  him 
in  the  time  of  trouble,  that  their  names 
were  blended  together  and  he  was  called 
Eusebius  Pamphlli.  And  the  example 
here  set  us,  of  faithfulness  In  friendship, 
is  one  that  we  should  all  try  to  follow. 
Many  of  the  friends  we  meet  with  in  this 
life  are  only  friends  in  prosperity.  When 
trouble  comes  they  turn  away  and  leave 
us.  But  It  was  not  so  with  Eusebius,  and 
it  should  not  be  so  with  us.  The  old  prov- 
erb says,  "A  friend  in  need  is  a  friend 
indeed."  And  the  opposite  statement  is 
equally  true ;  for  one  who  is  not  a  friend 
in  need  is  not-a  friend  indeed. 

2.  Furthermore,  In  studying  the  history 
of  Eusebius  we  find  that  he  sets  us  an  ex- 
ample of  doing  good.  He  did  good  In  two 
opposite  ways.  One  was  by  zu/iat  he 
gathered,  and  the  other  by  what  he  scat- 
tered.    It  was  by  what  he    gathered   that 


1 62  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

Euseblus  was  able  to  write  his  ecclesiasti- 
cal history.  This  was  the  great  life-work 
with  which  his  name  is  particularly  con- 
nected. This  history  consists  of  ten 
books.  These  books  tell  us  about  all  the 
chief  events  which  took  place  during  the 
first  three  centuries  of  the  Christian 
Church.  No  one  else  had  ever  written 
carefully  on  this  subject.  And  if  it  were 
not  for  what  Eusebius  has  written,  we 
should  all  be  in  the  dark  about  what  took 
place  during  those  centuries.  In  writing 
this  history  he  had  to  make  a  path  for 
himself,  where  there  had  never  been  a 
path  made  before.  And  the  history  which 
Eusebius  wrote  was  not  made  up  of  his 
own  thoughts  and  fancies,  but  of  the  act- 
ual  facts  which  took  place  as  the  years  of 
those  centuries  rolled  on.  And  how  did 
he  get  the  knowledge  of  those  facts  ?  It 
was  just  the  diligent  gathering  of  which 
we  are  now  speaking.  He  had  to  go  here 
and  there  and  everywhere,  gathering  in- 
formation about  the  men  who  had  been 
active  in  the  Church's  work,  and  what 
their  activity  led  them   to    do.     This    was 


Eusebius  of  Ccesarea.  163 

the  material  out  of  which  the  history  of 
the  Church  in  those  centuries  was  made 
up.  It  was  a  possible  thing  to  gather  that 
material  together  at  the  time  when  Eu- 
sebius lived.  But,  if  he  had  not  gathered 
it  then,  it  would  have  been  too  late  for  any 
to  gather  it  after  he  had  passed  away. 
And  so  we  see  how  all  the  good  which  has 
been  done  by  the  ecclesiastical  history 
which  Eusebius  wrote  is  to  be  traced  up 
to  his  diligence  in  gathering.  He  followed 
out,  literally,  our  Saviour's  command  to 
his  disciples,  after  feeding  the  hungry 
thousands  with  five  barley  loaves,  when  he 
said,  ''  Gather  up  the  fragments  that  re- 
main, that  nothing  be  lost."  Eusebius  did 
good  by  what  he  gathered,  and  we  may 
do  the  same. 

But  then  Eusebius  did  good  by  what 
he  scattered\^  well  as  by  what  he  gathered, 
and  we  may  follow  his  example  here  also. 
A  letter  has  been  preserved  which  was 
written  to  Eusebius  by  the  emperor  Con- 
stantine  about  the  year  330.  His  name 
had  been  recently  given  to  the  great  city 
which  has  ever  since  been  called  Constan- 


1 64         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

tinople,  and  he  had  transferred  to  it  the 
seat  of  his  empire.  In  the  letter  referred 
to,  the  emperor  speaks  of  his  great  inter- 
est in  this  city,  and  his  desire  for  its  spirit- 
ual improvement.  He  gave  Eusebius 
authority  to  have  several  churches  built 
there  at  his  expense.  And  he  especially 
expresses  the  great  desire  he  felt  to  have 
the  Holy  Scriptures  circulated  through 
that  city.  There  was  no  Bible-house  in 
Constantinople  then,  as  there  is  now, 
where  printed  copies  of  the  Scriptures 
could  be  had.  And  so  the  emperor 
authorized  Eusebius  to  have  copies  of  the 
Bible  written  on  sheets  of  parchment  and 
properly  bound,  and  then  to  be  given  to 
the  people.  This  was  to  be  done  at  the 
emperor's  expense.  And  this  was  one  of 
the  principal  works  that  Eusebius  was  en- 
gaged in  during  the  latter  years  of  his 
life.  Eusebius  did  good  by  what  he  gather- 
ed 2l\\A  by  what  he  scattered,  and  in  both  these 
ways  he  sets  us  an  example  which  it  would 
be  well  for  us  all  to  follow. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

ATHANASIUS    THE    GREAT. 

BORN   A.  D.    296    (?);      DIED   A.  D.   373    (?). 

Here  we  have  the  name  of  one  of  the 
noblest  heroes  and  grrandest  characters  in 
that  period  of  the  Church's  history  which 
we  are  now  considerinor. 

o 

Athanasius  was  born  in  the  city  of  Alex- 
andria in  Egypt,  in  the  year  296  a.d.,  just 
at  the  close  of  the  third  century.  His  life- 
work  ran  through  the  greater  part  of  the 
fourth  century.  For  forty-six  years  he 
was  the  bishop  of  Alexandria.  This  was 
one  of  the  most  famous  cities  of  the  East. 
In  was  situated  on  the  northern  coast  of 
Africa,  near  the  mouth  of  the  river  Nile. 
It  was  founded  in  the  year  332  B.C.  by  that 
celebrated  conqueror,  Alexander  the  Great, 
This  city  was  three  miles  long  and  seven 
miles  broad.     The   streets    crossed   each 

(165) 


1 66         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

other  at  right  angles,  as  Is  the  case  with 
the  city  of  Philadelphia.  In  the  height  of 
its  prosperity  Alexandria  is  said  to  have 
had  a  population  of  600,000  inhabitants. 
In  its  size  and  g-randeur  it  ranked  next  to 
Rome,  then  the  great  capital  of  the 
world.  In  Its  day  It  was  one  of  the  chief 
centres  of  learnlnof  In  the  world.  It  has 
passed  through  many  changes  since  then, 
but  still  continues  a  flourishing  city,  with 
a  population  of  about  60,000. 

I  had  the  pleasure  of  visiting  Alex- 
andria some  years  ago,  when  on  my  way 
to  the  Holy  Land.  The  steamer  which 
brought  us  from  the  south  of  Europe 
landed  us  at  this  famous  city,  as  we  wished 
to  see  the  Pyramids  and  the  Nile  before 
enterlnor  Palestine.  Some  distance  from 
the  city  were  several  famous  obelisks,  or 
large  square  columns,  each  made  of  a 
single  block  of  stone  sixty  or  seventy  feet 
long  and  tapering  to  the  end  like  a  pyra- 
mid. One  of  them  was  called  Pompey's 
Pillar,  and  two  are  known  as  Cleopatra's 
Needles.  These  are  very  ancient,  and 
strangers  feel  a  great  interest  in   visiting 


Athanasius  the  Great.  167 

them.  One  of  Cleopatra's  Needles  has 
been  given  to  the  English  goverment,  and 
now  stands  on  the  banks  of  the  river 
Thames  ;  another  was  given  to  our  coun- 
try, and  may  be  seen  in  the  great  Central 
Park  of  the  city  of  New  York. 

In  this  city  of  Alexandria  was  the  scene 
of  the  life  and  labors  of  Athanasius,  one 
of  the  noblest  heroes  of  the  early  Church, 
whose  history  we  are  now  considering. 

He  is  the  only  one  of  their  number,  ex- 
cept Basil,  to  whom  the  term  gi-eat  has 
been  generally  applied.  He  was  justly 
entitled  to  it.  He  was  not  called  upon,  as 
many  of  those  brave  men  were,  to  lay 
down  his  life  as  a  martyr  in  defence  of  the 
truth  of  the  Bible;  but  he  had  the  privi- 
lege of  spending  all  his  days  in  support- 
ing that  truth  in  its  purity,  and  of  spread- 
ing it  abroad  in  its  power. 

The  parents  of  Athanasius  were  intelli- 
gent Christians,  and  he  had,  from  his 
earliest  years,  the  advantage  of  the  best 
possible  training  and  instruction.  Cave, 
the  well-known  English  writer,  to  whom 
we  are  indebted  for  the  best  history  of  the 


1 68         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

lives  of  the  apostolic  fathers,  gives  an  in- 
teresting incident  that  took  place  in  con- 
nection with  Athanasius  when  he  was  a 
boy.  On  one  occasion  a  company  of 
eight  or  ten  boys,  from  seven  or  eight  to 
twelve  or  thirteen  years  old,  were  playing 
on  the  shore  of  the  Mediterranean  Sea. 
Athanasius  was  among  them,  and  he  was 
the  oldest  of  the  company.  Alexander, 
the  bishop  of  the  church  in  that  town,  and 
whose  house  stood  upon  the  shore  near 
where  the  boys  were,  was  waiting  for  some 
of  his  clergy  who  had  been  invited  to  dine 
with  him.  While  waiting  thus  he  was  in- 
terested  in  watching  the  boys  on  the 
shore.  He  found  to  his  surprise  that  they 
were  playing  church.  Athanasius  had 
been  appointed  their  bishop.  Two  of  the 
next-older  boys  were  acting  as  ministers. 
Three  of  the  younger  boys,  who  had  never 
been  baptized,  were  brought  forward  as 
candidates  for  baptism.  The  service  was 
gone  through  with  as  orderly  and  sol- 
emnly as  though  they  had  really  been  in 
church.  At  the  close  of  the  service  the 
verse  of  a  hymn  was  sung,  and  the  bene- 


AtJianasius  the  Great.  169 

diction  pronounced  by  the  boy-bishop  and 
the  congregation  went  home. 

After  Alexander  the  bishop  had  enter- 
tained his  clerical  friends  at  dinner,  he 
sent  for  Athanaslus  and  had  a  talk  with 
him ;  and  finding  that  he  had  not  done 
this  for  mere  sport,  but  because  of  the 
great  interest  he  felt  in  religion  and  of  his 
earnest  desire  to  become  a  minister,  Alex- 
ander sent  for  the  father  of  Athanaslus 
and  urged  him  to  have  his  son  educated 
for  the  ministry.  He  was  accordingly  put 
through  the  most  complete  and  thorough 
education  to  fit  him  for  that  high  office. 
He  was  only  twenty-three  years  of  age 
when  he  was  ordained  to  the  ministry  and 
entered  on  its  sacred  duties.  We  do  not 
know  how  loner  he  was  enoraored  in  the 
Studies  which  were  to  prepare  him  for  the 
ministry.  In  my  own  case  it  took  ten 
years;  and  If  Athanaslus  was  anything 
like  as  long  as  that  in  his  preparation,  then 
he  must  have  been  very  young  when  he 
began  his  Christian  life.  And  in  every 
age  of  the  Church's  history  the  most  ac- 
tive and    useful   men    have   always   been 


1 70         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

those  who  began  to  serve  God  when  they 
were  young.  We  see  this  in  the  case  of 
the  orood  men  of  whom  we  read  in  the 
Bible.  There  were  Joseph,  and  Moses, 
and  Samuel,  and  David,  and  Josiah,  and 
Jeremiah,  and  Daniel,  and  John  the  Bap- 
tist, and  Timothy.  These  were  among  the 
most  useful  and  honored  servants  of  God 
that  the  Church  has  ever  known  ;  and  they 
all  began  to  serve  God  early.  Athanasius 
did  the  same ;  and  he  made  careful  and 
earnest  preparation  for  his  life-work,  by 
much  study  of  the  Scriptures.  When  this 
was  finished  the  bishop  took  him  into  his 
own  family  as  his  private  secretary ;  and 
when  Athanasius  had  reached  his  twenty- 
third  year,  he  ordained  him  to  the  ministry, 
and  had  him  engaged  as  his  assistant  in 
the  work  of  the  church  of  which  he  had 
charge. 

Here  we  have  the  introduction  of 
Athanasius  to  that  important  life-work  in 
which  he  was  occupied  for  more  than  half 
a  century ;  and  in  studying  his  history 
through  all  those  years,  we  shall  see  how 
well  he  deserved  to  be  called  Athanasius 


AtJianasiiis  the  Great.  171 

the  Great.  There  are  four  points  of  view 
from  which  we  may  contemplate  this 
greatness. 

He  was  great  in  his  defence  of  the  truth. 
Only  six  years  after  he  had  been  ordained 
to  the  ministry,  the  Council  of  Nice  was 
summoned  by  the  emperor  Constantine. 
It  was  to  take  action  in  reg-ard  to  the 
erroneous  teaching  of  Arius,  who  had  de- 
nied the  divinity  of  Christ,  and  was  teach- 
ing that  fatal  error  wherever  he  went. 

A  great  many  members  of  the  church, 
as  well  as  ministers  and  bishops,  were  led 
away  by  these  wrong  views  about  the 
nature  and  character  of  our  Saviour,  Jesus 
Christ.  They  admitted  that  he  was  a 
good  man,  but  they  did  not  believe  that 
he  was  God.  This  was  fearful.  If  Jesus 
is  not  a  divine  belno^ — if  he  is  not  the  onlv 
begotten  Son  of  God,  equal  to  the  Father 
in  all  things — then  his  death  never  could 
have  atoned  for  our  sins  ;  he  never  could 
have  made  us  righteous  before  God  by 
anything  that  he  has  done  for  us ;  and 
then  the  gospel  would  lose  all  its  power 
and  preciousness. 


172         Heroes  of  the  Ea^dy  Church. 

But  Athanaslus  was  not  led  away  by 
these  errors.  He  studied  the  Scriptures 
dihgently,  with  earnest  prayer  that  God 
would  help  him  to  understand  the  truth. 
God  heard  his  prayer  and  helped  him;  and 
the  result  was  that  in  an  age  of  abounding 
error  he  had  a  clear  and  intelligent  under- 
standing of  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus. 
He  had  so  much  to  say  about  the  doctrine 
of  the  Trinity,  and  said  it  so  clearly  and 
so  boldly,  that  he  has  always  been  regard- 
ed as  the  great  champion  of  this  impor- 
tant doctrine.  His  name  has  been  con- 
nected with  one  of  the  creeds  used  by  the 
church  of  England,  which  is  called  the 
"  Athanasian  Creed  ;  "  not  because  he  was 
the  author  of  it,  but  because  he  was  so 
brave  a  defender  of  the  doctrines  which  it 
contains. 

Three  hundred  and  eighteen  bishops 
were  present  at  the  Council  of  Nice. 
Alexander,  bishop  of  Alexandria,  was 
among  those  who  attended.  He  took 
Athanasius  with  him,  because  he  was  clear 
and  decided  in  his  views  of  the  doctrine 
in    question,    and   because    he    knew    he 


Athanasius  the  Great.  173 

would  be  very  useful  In  setting  forth  and 
upholding  the  teachings  of  Scripture  on 
this  Important  subject. 

There  were  three  parties  present  at  that 
council.  One  was  made  up  of  those  who 
held  the  orthodox  trinltarian  view  respect- 
ing Christ.  They  believed  that  he  was 
not  only  the  Son  of  God,  but  was  a  par- 
taker of  the  same  nature  with  the  Father. 
The  second  party  was  composed  of  the 
Arlans,  who  denied  the  doctrine  alto- 
gether. The  third  party  was  made  up  of 
those  whose  views  were  not  clear  on  this 
subject,  and  who  wished  to  form  a  creed 
which  should  be  so  expressed  that  both 
the  other  parties,  the  Orthodox  and  the 
Arians,  would  be  wllllnof  to  sicrn  it.  The 
great  controversy  in  that  council  had 
reference  to  this  point.  But  the  Ortho- 
dox party  were  not  willing  to  do  this. 
They  felt  perfectly  satisfied  that  the  doc- 
trine in  question  was  a  matter  of  too 
great  importance  to  be  expressed  in  a 
doubtful  or  uncertain  way.  While  this 
controversy  was  going  on,  there  was  no 
one  present  in  the  council  who  had  clearer 


1 74         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

views  on  this  subject,  or  who  expressed 
them  more  strongly,  than  Athanasius.  He 
never  would  listen  for  a  moment  to  any 
other  statement  of  this  doctrine  than  that 
which  was  set  forth  in  the  Nicene  Creed. 
This  declares  that  Christ  is  not  only  a 
divine  being-,  but  that  he  is  a  partaker  of 
the  same  nature  with  the  Father.  And  so 
the  important  matter  was  settled  in  this 
very  way.  Then  the  views  of  Arius  on 
this  subject  were  condemned  by  the  coun- 
cil, while  Arius  himself  was  deposed  from 
the  ministry  and  sent  into  banishment. 

The  stand  which  Athanasius  took  on 
this  subject  at  the  council,  he  maintained 
unflinchingly  through  all  the  days  of  his 
life.  Many  of  those  who  signed  the  creed 
then  adopted  afterwards  changed  their 
views  and  signed  a  creed  more  favorable 
to  the  Arians ;  but  Athanasius  never 
would  do  this. 

Not  long  after  the  Council  of  Nice, 
Alexander  the  bishop  of  the  church  in 
Alexandria  died,  and  Athanasius  was 
elected  to  be  his  successor.  This  was  an 
occasion  of  great  joy  to  his  friends  in  that 


Athanasius  the  Great.  175 

city.  They  felt  sure  that  he  was  just  the 
man  for  the  position,  and  that  as  he  had 
done  so  much  to  secure  the  adoption  of 
the  Nicene  Creed,  he  would  be  most  faith- 
ful in  helping  to  maintain  and  defend  the 
views  expressed  in  it.  And  this  is  just 
what  he  did. 

A  few  years  after  the  Council  of  Nice, 
the  emperor  Constantine  was  persuaded 
by  the  friends  of  Arius  to  issue  a  decree- 
for  his  release  from  banishment,  his  return 
to  Alexandria  his  former  place  of  abode, 
and  for  his  entrance  again  upon  the  work 
of  the  ministry  there.  Then  the  emperor 
wrote  to  Athanasius  ordering  him  to  re- 
ceive  Arius  again  into  the  communion  of 
the  Church.  In  answer  to  this  letter 
Athanasius  told  the  emperor  that  under 
no  circumstances  whatever  would  he  re- 
ceive into  the  Church  one  who  had  been 
condemned  by  the  Council  of  Nice  for 
denying  the  divinity  of  the  blessed 
Saviour.  And  when  the  emperor  said 
that  he  must  either  receive  Arius  acrain 
into  the  Church  or  resio^n  his  office  of 
bishop  and  go  into  banishment,  Athanasius 


176         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

showed  his  greatness  in  the  defence  of  the 
truth  by  giving  up  his  high  office  and  go- 
ing into  banishment. 

2.  Athanasius  was  great  in  tJie  trials 
through  which  he  passed  \n  support  of  the 
truth.  He  was  thirty  years  old  when  he 
was  chosen  to  be  bishop  of  the  Church  in 
Alexandria.  He  retained  that  office  for 
forty-two  years.  During  that  time  he  was 
on  ^M^  different  occasions  driven  into 
banishment.  These  banishments  took  up 
altogether  twenty  years  of  that  part  of  his 
life  in  which  the  office  of  head  of  the 
church  of  Alexandria  of  right  belonged  to 
him.  The  cause  of  all  these  changes  and 
the  trouble  resulting  from  them  was  found 
in  the  Arian  controversy.  Nothing  could 
lead  him  for  a  moment  to  think  of  chang- 
ing his  views,  or  of  giving  up  what  he 
knew  to  be  the  truth  about  these  things. 
No  matter  how  many  persons  held  differ- 
ent views  from  himself  on  this  great  sub- 
ject, neither  their  number  nor  their  power 
made  any  difference  to  him.  He  was 
earnest  in  holding  on  to  the  truth.  In  one 
of  the  controversies  held   on   this    subject 


Obelisks  as  they  were   at  Alexandria. 


Athanasius  the  Great.  179 

his  adversaries  told  him  that  the  world 
was  against  him.  "Very  well,"  said  he; 
''then  let  it  be  known  that  Athanasius  is 
against  the  world."  There  was  something 
noble  in  this.  Athanasius'  love  for  the 
truth  connected  with  the  character  and 
work  of  Christ  as  taught  in  the  Scriptures, 
his  unfaltering  defence  of  that  truth  and 
his  unwillingness  to  show  any  sympathy 
with  those  who  denied  it,  led  the  members 
of  the  Arian  party  to  be  untiring  in  their 
persecution  of  him.  Every  time  that  he 
returned  from  banishment,  his  friends  in 
Alexandria  would  rejoice  and  be  exceed- 
ing glad  over  the  event.  But  his  enemies 
the  Arians  would  begin  again  to  plot  for 
his  removal  once  more.  They  would 
make  all  sorts  of  false  accusations  against 
him  to  the  emperor,  charging  him  with 
fraud  and  dishonesty  and  immorality,  and 
even  murder.  And  they  would  never  rest 
from  these  efforts  till  he  was  once  more 
under  sentence  of  banishment  or  threat- 
ened with  death.  At  one  time  he  would 
be  sent  to  a  strange  city,  now  in  one 
direction  and  then  in  another ;  at  another 


1 80         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

time  he  would  be  sent  Into  the  desert;  and 
the  last  time  he  was  driven  from  home,  in 
his  old  age,  he  had  to  hide  himself  in  his 
father's  tomb,  outside  of  the  city,  and  there 
he  lived  alone  for  months.  Out  of  the 
forty-six  years  in  which  he  was  bishop, 
twenty  were  spent  in  exile  from  his  home 
and  friends,  living  in  the  desert  or  other 
strange  places.  And  yet  notwithstanding 
all  the  suffering  thus  brought  upon  him, 
the  thought  of  giving  up  the  truth  he  had 
been  taught  never  entered  his  mind.  He 
went  steadily  on  in  the  midst  of  all  these 
trials  and  persecutions, — a  splendid  ex- 
ample of  persevering  piety.  He  never 
allowed  anything  to  interfere  with  the 
work  he  had  to  do  for  God  and  for  his 
fellow  men ;  and  it  is  those  who  learn  to 
persevere  who  meet  with  the  most  success 
in  life.  How  trying  such  an  experience 
of  life  must  have  been !  and  how  nobly 
the  greatness  of  his  character  comes  out 
to  view  when  we  remember  that  all  these 
long  years  of  trouble  came  upon  him 
simply  as  the  result  of  his  unfaltering 
faithfulness  in  standing  up  for  *'  the    truth 


Athanasius  the  Great  i8i 

as  It  is  In  Jesus"!  In  this  view  of  his 
character  how  well  he  deserves  to  be 
called  Athanasius  the  Great ! 

3.  We  see  his  greatness  in  the  way  in 
which  he  bore  his  trials.  He  never  gave 
way  to  repining  or  fault-finding  in  the  ex- 
perience of  them.  When  obliged  again 
and  again  to  leave  his  home  and  the 
church  he  so  much  loved,  and  go  among 
strangers  or  to  the  solitary  desert,  he 
always  resolved  it  Into  the  will  of  God, 
and  went  on  his  way  sustained  and  cheered 
by  an  unfaltering  trust  that  God  never 
makes  a  mistake,  but  orders  all  things 
wisely  and  well  for  his  people.  He  had 
learned  when  trouble  came  to  look  up 
with  confidence  to  his  Father  In  heaven 
and  say,  *' Thy  will  be  done."  And  then 
he  waited  patlendy  for  the  Lord's  time  to 
come,  when  the  way  would  open  for  him 
to  return  to  his  home  and  friends  and 
church  again.  If  his  place  of  banishment 
was  a  foreign  city,  he  would  strive  In 
various  ways  to  make  himself  useful  to 
those  about  him  there.  If  he  was  sent  to 
the  desert,  he  would  seek  out  some    cave 


1 8  2  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

or  sheltered  corner  as  his  place  of  abode, 
and  then  would  occupy  himself  in  writing 
on  the  subjects  of  controversy  which  en- 
gaged the  thoughts  of  Christian  people 
in  those  days.  Here  are  two  incidents 
which  illustrate  the  spirit  in  which  he  met 
the  perils  that  surrounded  him. 

On  one  occasion  the  Arians,  with  a 
company  of  soldiers,  surrounded  the 
church  in  which  Athanasius  had  met  his 
congregation  for  the  purpose  of  celebra- 
ting the  Lord's  Supper  with  them.  Leav- 
ing part  of  their  force  outside  of  the 
church,  the  soldiers  entered  with  drawn 
swords  and  began  to  slaughter  the  people 
on  the  rieht  hand  and  on  the  left.  Shrieks 
and  screams  filled  the  church.  Athanasius 
was  sitting  calmly  in  his  chair  near  the 
pulpit.  Perfectly  unmoved  by  the  terri- 
ble sight,  he  called  on  one  of  the  deacons 
to  sing  the  one-hundred-and-thirty-six 
psalm.  The  deacon  sang  the  first  part  of 
the  verse,  "O  give  thanks  unto  the  Lord," 
and  Athanasius  and  those  about  him 
joined  in  the  chorus — '*  for  his  mercy  en- 
dureth    forever."       After    singing   a    few 


Athanasms  the  Great.  183 

verses,  as  the  soldiers  were  coming  for- 
ward, the  clergy  and  friends  about  him 
urged  him  to  leave  the  church.  Rising 
from  his  chair,  he  said  he  would  not  stir  a 
step  till  they  went  out.  Then  they  formed 
a  circle  around  him  and  managed  to  get 
him  safely  out  from  the  end  of  the  church 
which  they  occupied. 

On  another  occasion  the  emperor  Julian 
— who  had  once  been  a  professing  Chris- 
tian, but  had  apostatized  and  gone  back  to 
the  worship  of  the  heathen  gods — sent  an 
order  to  the  governor  of  Egypt  to  have 
Athanasius  driven  from  Alexandria  and 
from  Egypt.  When  this  was  known  his 
friends  gathered  around  him  and  began 
to  lament  with  loud  cries  and  tears.  But 
Athanasius  said,  *'  Be  of  good  ckeer,  my 
friends.  Let  us  give  Vv^ay  a  little.  This  is 
but  a  small  cloud,  and  will  soon  blow 
over."  After  this  he  took  a  boat  and  be- 
gan to  sail  up  the  Nile  towards  the  des- 
ert. He  had  no  sooner  gone  than  an 
officer  with  some  soldiers  went  in  pursuit, 
to  take  him  prisoner.  When  they  learn- 
ed which  way  he  had  gone,  they  went  after 


184         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

him.  His  friends  at  home  sent  him  word 
of  this.  On  receiving  this  message,  the 
friends  in  the  boat  with  him  tried  to  per- 
suade him  to  go  ashore  and  get  out  of 
their  way.  "No,"  he  rephed ;  "let  us 
rather  go  and  meet  our  executioner,  that 
he  may  know  that  greater  is  he  that  is 
with  us  than  he  that  is  against  us."  Then 
he  ordered  the  steersman  to  turn  the  boat 
and  go  back  towards  Alexandria.  Soon 
after  the  officer  and  his  soldiers  came  up 
to  them.  He  did  not  know  Athanasius, 
and  never  imao-ined  that  he  would  be  eo- 
ing  back  to  Alexandria.  He  only  in- 
quired if  they  had  seen  Athanasius.  They 
said  "  Yes,  he  was  not  far  off."  Thus  they 
got  safe  back  to  Alexandria,  and  then 
Athanasius  concealed  himself  till  this 
storm  passed  over,  which  it  did  in  a  little 
while.  Many  other  instances  might  be 
given  showing  how  Athanasius  escaped 
perils. 

4.  We  see  his  greatness  in  the  amount 
of  good  he  did.  He  did  great  good  with 
his  writings.  These  were  very  numerous. 
A  list  of  between  fifty    and    sixty    of   his 


Athanasius  the  Great.  185 

works  has  come  down  to  us.  I  do  not 
mean  that  he  wrote  this  number  of  vol- 
umes. He  did  write  some  volumes:  He 
wrote  a  volume  containing  a  commentary 
on  the  Psalms  and  one  on  the  Incarnation, 
and  several  others.  But  the  rest  of  his 
writings  were  letters  or  sermons  on  differ- 
ent matters  of  doctrine  and  practice  which 
bore  on  the  controversies  of  that  ao^e. 
These  were  just  what  the  Church  then 
needed,  and  were  eminently  useful.  His 
writings  were  all  clear,  strong,  eloquent 
and  persuasive.  He  was  not  satisfied 
with  any  amount  of  mere  argument  in 
handling  a  subject  that  was  before  him ; 
but  his  constant  aim  was  to  settle  every 
point  on  the  clear  testimony  of  Scripture. 
And  this  was  one  thing  that  helped  to 
make  his  writings  so  useful.  A  leading 
clergyman  of  his  time,  in  writing  to  a 
young  man  who  was  studying  for  the 
ministry,  said,  "  If  you  ever  meet  with  any- 
thing that  Athanasius  has  written,  take  a 
copy  of  it  at  once ;  and  if  you  have  no  paper 
on  which  to  transcribe  it,  write  the  chief 
points  of  it  on  some  part  of  your  dress.'* 


1 86         Helloes  of  the  .Early  Church, 

And  then  not  by  his  writings  only,  but 
by  his  words  and  actions,  Athanasius  made 
himself  useful  to  all  about  him.  One  of 
the  leading  writers  of  his  age  thus  speaks 
of  him  : — "  He  was  humble  in  his  mind,  as 
he  was  sublime  in  his  life.  He  was  a 
man  of  the  noblest  virtue,  and  yet  so  kind 
and  gentle  that  any  one  might  speak  free- 
ly to  him.  He  had  so  governed  himself, 
that  his  life  was  a  continuous  sermon;  and. 
his  sermons  never  needed  any  correc- 
tions. All  ranks  and  conditions  of  men 
could  find  something  in  him  to  admire  and 
imitate.  He  was  a  comfort  to  the  sorrov/- 
ing,  a  staff  to  the  aged,  a  guide  to  the 
young  and  a  benefactor  to  the  poor.  He 
was  a  friend  to  the  widow,  a  father  to  the 
fatherless,  a  shelter  to  the  stranger,  a 
physician  to  the  sick ;  and,  as  the  apostle 
said,  'he  became  all  things  to  all  men, that 
he  might  gain  the  more.'  He  was  con- 
sidered by  those  who  knew  him  as  the 
m.odel  of  what  a  minister  of  Christ  should 
be.  He  was  a  light  to  all  about  him,  a 
pillar  of  faith,  a  second  John  the  Baptist'' 
That  was  what  the  men  of  his  generation 


Athanasius  the  Great  187 

thought  of  him.  He  stood  amidst  the 
floods  of  strife  and  contention  then  pre- 
vaihng,  as  unmoved  as  the  sohd  rock 
stands  while  the  waves  of  the  sea  are 
dashing  upon  it.  And  when  we  think  of 
Athanasius  in  defence  of  the  truth,  in  the 
peculiar  trials  he  had  to  bear,  in  the  spirit 
In  which  he  met  these  trials,  and  in  his 
wonderful  usefulness,  we  see  how  he  may- 
well  be  called  Athanasius  the  Great. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

JULIAN    THE    APOSTATE. 

The  well-known  person  of  whom  we  are 
now  to  speak  was  not  one  of  the  heroes 
of  the  Church.  He  might  have  become 
a  hero ;  Instead  he  was  an  enemy  of  the 
Church,  and  tried  hard  to  effect  its  over- 
throw. He  lived  at  the  same  time  with 
Athanaslus,  of  whom  we  wrote  In  the 
former  chapter.  It  Is  because  he  was  once 
a  professor  of  the  Christian  religion  and 
then  became  one  of  the  most  bitter  and 
wicked  opposers  of  the  truth,  which  the 
heroes  were  spreading,  that  we  speak  of 
him  here.  His  course  was  a  very  singular 
one,  and  the  lessons  we  may  learn  from 
his  history  are  striking  and  profitable. 

Let  us  glance  briefly  at  the  leading  facts 
of  Julian's  life,  and  then  consider  three  sug- 
gestive lessons  taught  us  by  those  facts. 

(188) 


'  Hf  ifcii 


MODERN    ATHENE 
On  the  left  and  right,  in  the  foreground,  are  seen  parts  of  the  modern 
city.  lu  the  centre  is  the  temple  of  Theseus.  On  the  hill  is  the  Parthenon. 


ACROPOLIS  AT  ATHENS,  AS  IT  WAS. 


Julian  the  Apostate.  191 

.  Julian  Is  called  "  the  Apostate  "  because, 
although  he  was  brought  up  in  the  Chris- 
tian religion,  and  made  a  profession  of  his 
faith  in  it  while  young,  yet  when  he  was 
made  emperor  he  renounced  Christianity 
and  became  a  worshipper  of  the  old 
heathen  gods,  and  tried  to  destroy  the  re- 
ligion of  Christ. 

Julian  was  born  in  the  year  331,  and 
died,  from,  a  wound  received  In  a  batde 
with  the  Persians,  In  the  year  363.  He 
w^as  a  nephew  of  that  distinguished  man 
Constantine  the  Great,  who  was  the  first 
Christian  emperor  that  Rome  ever  had. 
He  spent  his  early  years  in  the  earnest 
and  diligent  study  of  poetry  and  philos- 
ophy, and  other  branches  of  education,  in 
several  of  the  most  famous  seats  of  learn- 
ing, and  especially  at  the  University  of 
Athens.  He  was  a  man  of  pleasing 
manners  and  of  excellent  morality. 

He  was  proclaimed  emperor  of  Rome 
in  361,  when  he  was  just  thirty  years  of 
age.  He  set  himself  at  once  earnesdy  to 
the  work  of  reopening  the  old  heathen 
temples    and    restoring    the    worship    of 


192         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

Jupiter  and  other  idols.  His  purpose  was 
to  overturn  the  Christian  reHgion ;  and 
how  far  he  might  have  succeeded  in  carry- 
ing out  this  object  had  his  Hfe  been  pro- 
longed no  one  can  tell ;  but  before  he  had 
reigned  two  years  he  met  his  death  as  we 
have  already  described.  And  now  let  us 
look  at  the  lessons  taught  us  by  his  life. 

I.  We  see  illustrated  in  the  history  of 
Julian  the  Apostate,  the  loss  a  child  sustains 
who  does  uot  have  a  pious^  loving  mother  to 
mould  his  character. 

This  is  something  which  Julian  never 
had.  His  mother  died  when  he  was  but  a 
few  months  old.  A  mother's  love  and  a 
mother's  care  were  blessings  he  did  not 
know.  If  he  had  only  been  blessed  with 
a  mother's  voice  to  instruct  him  and  a 
mother's  hand  to  direct  his  steps,  how 
different  the  history  of  his  life  might  have 
been  ! 

"  It  is  a  well-known  fact,"  says  one,  "  that 
the  most  distinguished  men  who  have 
adorned  the  Church  by  their  virtues,  or 
who  have  served  their  country  by  their 
noble  actions,  have  been  men  who  had  en- 


Julian  the  Apostate.  193 

joyed  the  privilege  of  receiving  from  pious 
mothers  the  high-toned  principles  of 
morality  and  duty  by  which  they  were  in- 
fluenced." 

The    mother    of    our   great    and   good 
Washington    was    a    shining    example    of 
piety  and  purity,  and  we  see  those  virtues 
reproduced  in  her  Illustrious   son.       John 
Ouincy  Adams'  mother  was   distinguished 
for  her  intelligence  and  piety,  and  her  son 
said,  *'  I  owe  all  I  am  to  my  mother."     The 
mother  of  John  Wesley  was    remarkable 
for    her    Intelligence,    piety    and     active 
ability;     and    she    Is    jusdy    called    ''the 
mother  of  Methodism."     Benjamin  West, 
that  distinguished  artist,  ascribed   his   re- 
nown to  his  mother's  kiss.      When    quite 
young  he  drew  a  sketch  of  his  litde  baby 
sister  asleep  in  her  cradle.     In  that  rough 
oudlne  his  mother  saw    the    evidence    of 
genius,    and    in    her    maternal    pride    she 
kissed  her  son.     In  after  life  West  used  to 
say,  ''That  kiss  made  me  an  ardst."      Let 
me  say  to  the  readers  of  these  pages,  "My 
young  friends.  If  you  are  blessed    with    a 
pious  mother,  thank  God  for  it.     Listen  to 

13 


1 94         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

her  words;  obey  and  honor  her."  If  JuHan 
had  been  blessed  with  such  a  mother,  and 
had  minded  her,  he  never  w^ould  have  been 
known  as  the  Apostate. 

2.  We  see  illustrated  in  the  history  of 
Julian  the  importance  of  having  a  good 
foundation  on  which  to  build  our  religious 
character. 

Julian  did  not  have  such  a  foundation. 
He  never  really  learned  to  know  and  love 
the  Saviour.  His  heart  was  never  chang- 
ed, and  he  knew  not  what  it  was  to  be 
made  a  new  creature  in  Christ  Jesus.  And 
so  he  was  just  like  the  man  of  whom  our 
Saviour  speaks  in  the  parable  (Matt.  7: 
26,  27),  who  built  his  house  on  the  sand, 
without  a  foundation.  When  the  rains 
descended,  and  the  winds  blew,  and  the 
floods  came  and  beat  upon  that  house,  it 
fell,  and  great  was  the  fall  of  it.  And  it 
was  just  so  with  Julian.  He  built  the 
house  of  his  Christian  profession  on  the 
sand.  He  had  no  proper  foundation  for 
it  to  stand  on  ;  and  when  Satan  tempted 
him  to  give  up  his  religion,  he  did  so,  and 
then  indeed  the    ruin   of   his    house   was 


yulian  the  Apostate,  195 

great.  It  caused  the  failure  of  his  plans 
for  life.  In  addition  to  this,  he  lost  his 
soul  by  It,  and  this  was  to  lose  every- 
thing. 

In  building  up   the  house  of  our  relig- 
ious character  let  us   be  sure  that  we   o-et 
down  to  the  solid  rock  and   find  a  good 
foundation  there.     I  mean  by  this  that  we 
should  learn  truly  to  know  and  love  Jesus 
and  have  our  hearts  changed  by  him.    This 
is  the  true  foundation  on  which   to   build. 
If  we  build  here  we  are  safe.     No   matter 
how  the  rain  descends  or  the   winds   blow 
or  the  floods  come,  our  house   will   never 
fall,  because  It  is   built  on    the    ''Rock   of 
ages."     No  matter  how  much   Satan  may 
tempt  us,  we  shall  never  turn  our  back  on 
Jesus    and  become  apostates  like   Julian. 
Jesus  said  to  his  disciples,  ''  My  sheep 
shall  never   perish,  neither  shall  any  man 
pluck  them  out  of  my  hand"   (John   10: 
27,  28).     Let  us  be  sure  that    we    really 
know  and  love  Jesus,  for  thus  we  become 
his  sheep,  and  then  we  are   safe   forever, 
in  spite  of  all  that  Satan   or  any  of  our 
enemies  can  do. 


196         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

3.  We  find  illustrated  in  Julian's  history 
the  folly  of  setting  ourselves  against  the 
plans  and  puj^poses  of  God. 

When  Julian  renounced  the  religion  of 
Christ,  and  made  up  his  mind  to  establish 
the  old  heathen  religion  in  the  place  of  it, 
he  was  setting  himself  deliberately  and 
decidedly  against  the  purpose  of  God. 
And  what  was  the  result?  It  is  just  what 
might  have  been  expected.  Job  asks  the 
question,  "  Who  hath  hardened  Jiimself 
against  him,  and  hath  prospered?"  (Job 
9:4.) 

Two  events  in  the  life  of  Julian  may  be 
referred  to  as  illustrating  the  truth  of  Job's 
words.  One  of  these  was  what  he  under- 
took to  do  at  Jerusalem.  He  knew  that 
the  purpose  of  God  was  to  have  that  city 
and  its  temple  remain  in  ruins;  but  he 
made  up  his  mind  to  upset  that  purpose, 
and  have  Jerusalem  rebuilt.  In  trying  to 
do  this  he  caused  great  quantities  of 
materials  of  various  kinds  to  be  collected 
together,  and  committed  the  carrying  out 
of  this  plan  to  an  agent  of  his.  The  Jews 
of   course  heartily  supported  this  work. 


yulian  the  Apostate. 


197 


Even  their  women  took  part  in  it,  carrying 
off  the  earth  which  covered  the.  temple  in 
the  laps  of  their  garments.  But  the  work, 
we  are  told,  was  suddenly  stopped  in  a 
marvellous  way  by  means  of  a  fire,  a  v/hirl- 


wind  and  an  earthquake.  The  buildings 
in  process  of  erection  were  thrown  down ; 
many  persons  perished  in  this  way,  and 
the  undertaking  was  abandoned.  We 
have  a  suggestive  view  of  this  strange 
event  in  the  picture. 


1 98         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

The  other  event  which  illustrates  the 
point  of  the  subject  now  before  us  is  seen 
in  the  way  in  which  the  life  of  Julian  was 
brought  to  an  end.  We  are  told  that 
when  he  started  on  his  last  expedition  Into 
Persia,  he  said  to  some  of  his  friends,  "  I 
will  go  and  put  an  end  to  this  war  in  Per- 
sia, and  then  I  will  return  and  overturn 
the  religion  of  Christ." 

He  went  on  that  journey ;  but  in  one  of 
the  first  battles  with  the  Persians  an  arrow 
pierced  his  side.  It  soon  became  manifest 
that  this  wound  would  cause  his  death ; 
and  as  he  lay  bleeding  there,  we  are  told 
that  he  took  a  bowl  in  his  hand,  let  the 
blood  from  his  wound  flow  into  it,  and 
then,  throwing  the  contents  of  the  bowl 
towards  heaven,  exclaimed,  "Thou  hast 
conquered,  O  thou  Galilean  !"  Thus  Ju- 
lian died,  in  the  thirty-second  year  of  his 
age.  Disappointment  and  death  were  the 
result  which  came  to  Julian  from  setting 
himself  against  the  plans  and  purposes  of 
God ;  and  a  similar  experience  Is  all  that 
can  be  expected  by  any  who  follow  his  ex- 
ample.    We  cannot  prosper  when  we  try 


Julian  the  Apostate.  199 

to  do  what  is  contrary  to  the  will  of  God. 
Unhapplness,  disappointment  and  ruin 
must  be  the  result  in  every  such  case. 
Then  let  us  resolve  never  to  tread  in  Ju- 
lian's footsteps  in  this  respect.  The  only 
safe  and  wise  thing  for  each  of  us  to  do  is 
to  obey  the  voice  which  comes  to  us  from 
God's  word  saying,  ''  Acquaint  now  thy- 
self with  him,  and  be  at  peace :  thereby 
good  shall  come  unto  thee"  (Job  22  :  21). 


CHAPTER   XIII. 

BASIL   THE    GREAT. 

BORN   A.  D.    329    (?);      DIED   A.  D.   379    (?). 

Basil  is  the  next  "  hero  "  that  comes  be- 
fore us  in  the  catalogue  of  the  good  men 
whose  history  we  are  studying.  Basil  was 
born  at  Caesarea,  in  Palestine,  in  the  year 
329,  and  died  there  in  379,  when  he  was 
only  about  fifty  years  old.  He  never  was 
very  strong  in  health,  and  the  earnestness 
with  which  he  entered  upon  and  prosecu- 
ted the  important  duties  that  devolved  up- 
on him  in  connection  with  the  Church  had 
much  to  do  with  the  shortening  of  his 
days.  He  was  connected,  on  the  side  both 
of  his  father  and  mother,  with  ancient  and 
very  honorable  families.  His  father  had 
occupied  very  distinguished  positions  both 
in  the  army  and  goverment  of  his  country. 
He  was  also  a  man   of  great   piety,    and 

(200) 


Basil  the   Great.  201 

had  done  much,  both  by  his  labors  and  his 
sufferings,  to  build  up  and  defend  the 
cause  of  Christianity.  Basil's  parents  had 
ten  children,  of  whom  he  was  the  oldest. 
His  father,  after  whom  he  was  named,  his 
mother  Emmelia,  and  his  grandmother 
Macerina,  who  were  all  earnest  Christians, 
united  together  in  giving  him,  from  his 
earliest  childhood,  the  most  careful  Christ- 
ian education.  They  sowed  the  seed  of 
scriptural  truth  in  his  mind  and  heart;  and 
the  seed  thus  sown  took  root,  sprang  up, 
and  bore  abundant  fruit,  to  their  joy,  to 
the  good  of  others,  and  to  the  glory  of 
God. 

Basil  acted  a  very  important  part  in  the 
history  of  the  Church  in  the  latter  part 
of  the  fourth  century,  of  our  era.  The 
title  of  "Great"  was  o-iven  to  him.  He 
is  always  spoken  of  as  Basil  the  Great. 
And  he  well  deserved  this  title.  We  may 
speak  of  four  things  in  connection  with 
him  which  show  him  to  have  been  really 
great. 

I .  He  was  great  in  his  learning.  Caesa- 
rea  was  famous  for  its  schools  and  institu- 


202         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

tions  of  learning-.  Basil  went  through  all 
of  them,  one  after  another.  Then  he  went 
to  Constantinople.  This  had  been  made 
the  Imperial  city  of  the  eastern  empire. 
Some  of  the  most  distinguished  professors 
of  philosophy  that  were  in  the  world  were 
to  be  found  there.  Basil  availed  himself 
of  those  rare  advantages.  He  learned  all 
that  those  p-reat  men  could  teach  in  their 
several  departments.  Then  he  went  to 
Athens.  This  had  long  been  known  as 
the  most  celebrated  seat  of  learning  to  be 
found  in  the  world.  Here  he  had  the  best 
opportunity  of  finding  out  all  that  could 
be  known  about  grammar,  rhetoric,  philos- 
ophy, arithmetic,  geometry,  mathematics, 
astronomy,  history,  languages,  and  every 
branch  of  human  learning.  xA.nd  when  his 
mind  was  enriched  by  all  these  boundless 
stores  of  human  knowledge,  he  devoted 
himself  to  the  careful  and  diligent  study  of 
the  Scriptures.  When  we  think  of  him, 
on  the  one  hand,  as  taught  by  God's  bless- 
ed Spirit,  and  then,  on  the  other  hand,  as 
havinor  all  these  boundless  stores  of  know- 

<z> 

ledge  from  which  to  draw  his  illustrations 


Basil  the   Great,  203 

of  the  ereat  truths  of  the  Bible,  we  can 
easily  understand  what  a  blessed  influence 
for  good  he  must  have  exerted  as  a  teach- 
er and  defender  of  the  word  of  God. 
Amonof  all  the  ministers  of  the  Church  in 
his  day  there  was  none  to  be  compared 
to  him.  He  made  use  of  his  great  learn- 
ing by  engaging  in  earnest  controversy 
with  the  Arians  and  all  the  other  teachers 
of  heresy.  He  was  able  so  clearly  to 
point  out  the  errors  which  they  taught,  that 
they  were  afraid  to  meet  him  in  argument. 
They  could  not  answer  the  clear,  strong 
statements  which  he  made  in  pointing  out 
their  erroneous  teachinors.  And  when  he 
stood  boldly  forth  in  defence  of  the  great 
truths  of  the  Bible,  the  false  teachers  of 
those  days  would  flee  before  him,  just  as 
the  Philistines  fled  after  David  had  van- 
quished Goliath,  the  great  Philistine  giant, 
who  stood  forth  and  defied  any  in  Israel 
to  meet  him  in  battle.  And  when  we 
think  of  this  ''  hero  of  the  early  Church," 
standing,  as  he  did,  head  and  shoulders 
above  all  the  men  of  his  generation  in 
this  respect,  we  do  not  wonder  when    we 


204         He7'oes  of  tke  Early  Church. 

hear  him  spoken  of  as  Basil  the  Great.    He 
was  great  in  his  learning. 

2.  ^2iS>\\  W2is  great  i7t  his  piety.  We  see 
his  great  piety  in  the  simplicity  and  self- 
denial  of  his  life.  His  manner  of  living 
was  of  the  very  plainest  possible  charac- 
ter. He  seemed  always  to  remember 
what  Jesus  said  of  himself:  ''The  foxes 
have  holes,  and  the  birds  of  the  air  have 
nests,  but  the  Son  of  man  hath  not  where 
to  lay  his  head."  And  though  our  Saviour 
did  not  leave  any  command  to  his  disci- 
ples to  live  in  the  same  way,  yet  Basil 
seemed  to  think  that  it  was  right  for  the 
disciple  not  to  be  above  his  master,  nor 
the  servant  above  his  lord.  He  wanted 
to  have  the  same  mind  that  was  in  Christ 
Jesus,  to  tread  in  the  blessed  steps  of 
his  most  holy  life,  and  as  far  as  possible 
to  live  and  act  just  as  he  lived  and  acted. 
The  house  that  Basil  lived  in  was  one  of 
the  very  plainest  kind.  He  never  allowed 
himself  to  have  but  one  coat  at  a  time, 
and  that  he  wore  without  any  ornament. 
He  did  not  feel  that  there  was  any  merit  in 
doing  this ;  it  was   simply  the    feeling    of 


Basil  the   Great.  205 

piety  ruling  in  his  heart  which  led  him 
thus  to  live.  As  he  called  himself  a  dis- 
ciple or  follower  of  Jesus,  he  wished  to  be 
as  nearly  like  him  In  his  manner  of  living 
as  It  was  possible  for  him  to  be.  He  knew 
that  Jesus  had  said,  '*  If  any  man  will  be 
my  disciple,  let  him  deny  himself,  and  take 
up  his  cross  daily,  and  follow  me."  And 
this  was  what  he  aimed  to  do ;  and  so  we 
see  the  great  piety  of  Basil  in  the  simplic- 
ity and  self-denial  of  his  daily  life. 

3.  We  see  his  great  piety  again  In  Jiis 
practical  chainty.  His  father  was  a  rich 
man.  Before  his  death  he  divided  his 
property  among  his  ten  children.  There 
was  enough  to  make  each  of  them  well 
off.  When  Basil  entered  upon  his  re- 
ligious life,  he  set  apart  a  large  portion  of 
his  inheritance  for  the  relief  of  the  suffer- 
ing poor;  and  In  the  year  359,  when  a 
great  famine  was  prevailing,  he  sold  all 
the  rest  of  his  property  and  used  the 
money  which  It  brought  him  in  the  same 
way.  And  when  he  had  given  away  all 
that  belonged  to  himself,  and  the  wants 
of  the  poor  were  unsupplled,  he  appealed 


2o6         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

to  the  rich  members  of  the  church  under 
his  charge,  and  continued  his  efforts  till  he 
had  first  opened  their  hearts  and  then  their 
purses,  and  all  the  money  needed  for  the 
relief  of  the  poor  was  freely  furnished. 
Then  he  gathered  together  the  famishing 
poor  of  both  sexes  and  all  ages,  and  dis- 
tributed freely  to  them  the  food  which 
they  needed.  After  this,  by  the  help  of 
his  friends  he  had  a  large  hospital  built 
outside  of  the  city.  Into  this  he  gathered 
the  sick,  the  lame,  the  blind,  the  aged,  who 
were  unable  to  take  care  of  themselves. 
There  they  were  carefully  nursed  and  all 
their  wants  were  provided  for.  He  cheer- 
fully assisted  in  this  work  himself,  and  was 
ever  ready  to  perform  the  humblest  offices 
for  the  poor  sufferers  found  there.  Surely 
this  was  a  satisfactory  proof  of  his  great 
piety. 

And  then  we  have  another  proof  of 
piety  in  the  faithful  way  in  which  he  gave 
up  the  pursuits  and  pleasures  of  the  world 
when  he  became  a  follower  of  Christ.  He 
renounced  the  pomps  and  vanities  of  the 
world  when  he  joined   the   Church.       He 


Basil  the   Great,  207 

felt  sure  that  the  world  and  the  Church 
cannot  be  joined  together.  They  consti- 
tute two  masters,  and  no  man  can  serve 
them  both.  In  takino^  Christ  as  his  Mas- 
ter  he  determined  that  the  world  should 
no  longer  lead  or  control  him.  He  be- 
lieved the  truth  of  the  apostle's  words 
when  he  said,  *'  If  any  man  love  the  world, 
the  love  of  the  Father  is  not  in  him." 
When  we  make  a  profession  of  religion, 
we  solemnly  promise  ''  to  renounce  the 
devil  and  all  his  works,  the  pomps  and 
vanities  of  this  wicked  world,  and  that  we 
will  not  follow  nor  be  led  by  them."  How 
Christians  who  go  to  balls  and  theatres, 
and  engage  freely  in  worldly  amusements, 
can  reconcile  their  conduct  with  the  apos- 
tle's words  above  quoted  I  never  can  un- 
derstand. Basil  had  no  sympathy  with 
such  Christians.  One  way  in  which  he 
showed  his  great  piety  was  by  heartily  re- 
nouncing all  worldly  pursuits  and  pleas- 
ures. 

4.  He  was  great  in  his  usefulness.  After 
he  had  gone  through  with  his  studies  in 
the    different   places    of    which    we    have 


2o8         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

spoken,  he  returned  to  Csesarea,  his  native 
place,  and  was  occupied  for  several  years 
as  a  lawyer.  In  this  he  was  eminently 
successful.  But  he  soon  grew  tired  of 
such  employment.  It  did  not  suit  his 
earnest  Christian  character.  Then  he  re- 
tired to  a  mountainous  part  of  the  country 
and  established  a  monastery.  There  he 
devoted  himself  to  prayer  and  fasting  and 
diligent  study.  He  had  a  number  of 
young  men  who  joined  him  there,  and 
whom  he  prepared  for  the  work  of  the 
ministry.  After  several  years  spent  in 
this  way  he  returned  to  Caesarea.  Then 
he  was  ordained  to  the  ministry,  and  en- 
gaged earnestly  in  every  kind  of  Christian 
work  till  the  year  369,  when  Eusebius,  the 
bishop  of  the  church  of  Caesarea,  died,  and 
Basil  was  chosen  to  be  his  successor.  And 
in  occupying  these  different  positions,  we 
can  see  how  useful  he  was  in  three  ways. 

I.  He  was  useful  in  what  he  said. 
Whether  he  was  visiting  the  sick  and  poor 
from  house  to  house,  or  preaching  from 
the  pulpit  or  by  the  wayside,  he  had  but 
one  subject  about  which  to  speak,  and  that 


Basil  the   Great.  209 

was,  "Jesus  Christ,  and  him  crucified." 
And  this  great  theme  he  handled  with 
wonderful  power.  He  was  the  most  elo- 
quent preacher  of  the  age  in  which  he 
lived.  The  emperor  Constans  was  so 
charmed  with  the  eloquence  of  his  preach- 
ing that  he  had  a  life-size  statue  of  brass 
erected  to  his  honor,  in  Rome,  on  the  base 
of  which  was  this  inscription  : 

Rome,  the  Queen  of  Cities,  to  Basil, 

THE  King  of  Eloquence. 

A  well-known  writer  of  that  day  in 
speaking  of  him  says :  "  In  his  own  pe- 
culiar way  he  so  adapted  himself  to  popu- 
lar audiences  that  he  never  spoke  any- 
thing but  what  the  most  ignorant  among 
them  could  understand,  and  yet  the  most 
learned  would  admire."  "The  truth  is," 
continues  the  same  writer,  "  that  if  in  any- 
thing he  excelled  all  other  speakers,  it 
was  in  his  eloquence."  And  when  we 
think  of  him  as  going  about  teaching  and 
preaching  in  such  a  way,  who  can  tell  how 
useful  he  was  in  what  he  said  ? 

2.  He  was  tcseful  also  in  what  he   did. 
11 


2 1  o         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

What  he  taught  with  his  eloquent  voice  he 
illustrated  in  his  holy  life.  His  preaching 
and  his  practicing  were  in  beautiful  har- 
mony. It  might  well  have  been  said  of 
him  that  the  same  mind  was  in  him  ''  that 
was  also  in  Christ  Jesus."  Humility  and 
patience  and  gentleness  and  love  were  the 
chief  features  that  marked  his  character. 
He  won  the  respect  and  confidence  of  all 
who  knew  him.  And  he  was  untiring  in 
his  efforts  to  promote  the  growth  and 
prosperity  of  the  Church.  When  he  was 
chosen  to  the  hicrh  office  which  he  held  as 

o 

head  of  the  church  at  Caesarea  and  the 
surrounding  country,  he  went  everywhere, 
visiting  the  different  churches,  giving  wise 
counsel  and  advice  to  the  ministers,  and 
seekinor  to  correct  whatever  was  wrone  in 
the  habits  and  practices  of  the  people;  and 
in  this  way,  like  his  blessed  Master,  he 
"went  about  doing  good." 

And  then  he  stood  bravely  and  nobly 
up  in  defence  of  the  truth.  When  the 
emperor  and  the  principal  officers  of  the 
government  had  joined  the  Arian  party, 
and  tried  to  secure  his  influence   in    sup- 


Basil  the   Great,  211 

port  of  their  erroneous  views,  he  never 
would  yield  to  their  wishes  in  any  way,  but 
stood  firm  as  a  rock  in  support  and  defence 
of  the  great  truth  respecting  the  divinity  of 
Christ,  and  the  atonement  he  had  offered 
for  the  sins  of  the  world.  And  so  by 
defending  the  truths  of  the  Bible  and  in 
helping  to  spread  tiiem  abroad  on  the  right 
hand  and  on  the  left,  he  was  eminently  use- 
ful in  what  he  did. 

Finally,  Jie  was  also  useful  iii  what  he 
wrote.  He  wrote  commentaries  on  dif- 
ferent portions  of  Scripture,  sermons  on 
various  Christian  duties,  essays  against  the 
errors  of  the  Arians  and  other  leadingr 
heretics,  and  letters  on  many  of  the  most 
Important  subjects  which  engaged  the  at- 
tention of  the  members  of  the  Church  in 
those  days  ;  and  the  writings  of  his  pen 
seemed  to  have  the  same  charm  and  power 
that  marked  the  utterances  of  his  voice. 
One  of  the  leading  ministers  of  the  Church 
in  the  time  of  Basil  speaks  thus  of  his 
writings  :  "  When  I  read  his  expositions  of 
Scripture,  I  seem  to  be  conversing  with  my 
great  Creator,  and  feel  a  greater  reverence 


212  Heroes  of  the  Eaidy  Church, 

and  admiration  for  him  than  ever  I  did  be- 
fore. When  I  read  his  work  on  the  Holy 
Spirit,  I  feel  myself  in  the  presence  of  the 
true  God,  and,  embracing  the  views  there 
given,  I  feel  better  prepared  to  preach  and 
declare  the  truth  of  God  than  ever  I  was 
before.  And  when  I  read  his  sermons  for 
the  poor  and  the  ignorant,  I  find  myself 
transported  beyond  the  mere  letter  of  the 
words,  and  carried  up  from  one  degree  of 
light  to  another,  and  feel  changed  into  an- 
other being." 

And  when  we  think  of  this  good  man 
with  reference  to  what  he  said  and  what  he 
did  and  what  he  wrote,  we  do  not  wonder 
to  find  how  very  useful  he  was.  May  God 
give  us  all  grace  to  follow  him  as  he  fol- 
lowed Christ ! 


CHAPTER   XIV. 

AMBROSE    OF    MILAN. 
BORN  340   (?)  ;  AND  DIED  397   (?). 

Ambrose  comes  next  on  our  list  of 
Christian  heroes  ;  and  he  is  most  worthy 
of  the  place  he  occupies  among  them.  In 
going  on  to  consider  the  character  of  Am- 
brose, there  are  three  things  of  which  to 
speak.  These  are,  the  leading  i7tcidents  of 
his  history,  the  scene  of  his  labors,  and  the 
lessons  of  truth  illustrated  in  his  life. 

I.  The  leading  incidents  of  his  history. — 
He  was  born  in  the  town  of  Aries,  in 
France,  in  the  year  340  of  our  era,  and 
died  at  Milan  in  the  year  397,  when  he  was 
in  the  fifty-seventh  year  of  his  age.  His 
father  was  a  distinguished  man,  and  gov- 
ernor of  one  of  the  western  provinces  of 
the  Roman  empire.  Aries  was  his  resi- 
dence while  exercising  the  office  of  pre- 
fect,   or   governor,     of    that   part   of    the 

(213) 


214         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

empire  ;  and  It  was  while  he  resided  here 
that  Ambrose  was  born.  He  was  nursed 
and  brought  up  in  the  palace  which  be- 
longed to  the  governor.  One  day,  as  he 
lay  asleep  In  his  cradle  In  the  open  court, 
It  is  said  that  a  swarm  of  bees  settled  on 
his  face,  gently  creeping  In  and  out  of  his 
open  mouth  without  hurting  him.  His 
father,  who  was  passing  by,  saw  it.  He 
told  the  nurse  not  to  drive  them  away,  for 
it  was  a  slo^n  that  the  child  would  become-a 
great  man  and  an  eloquent  speaker.  His 
father  did  not  live  long  after  this  ;  then  his 
mother  removed  with  her  family  to  Rome, 
where  Ambrose  was  brought  up.  His 
mother  was  an  earnest  Christian,  and  from 
her  he  received  a  thoroughly  religious 
education. 

Ambrose  made  up  his  mind  to  be  a  law- 
yer, and  was  trained  for  that  profession  by 
passing  through  the  best  schools  existing 
in  Rome.  He  was  very  successful  as  a 
lawyer,  and  gained  the  confidence  and 
respect  of  all  who  knew  him.  After  prac- 
ticing law  for  several  years,  he  was 
appointed   by   the    representative   of    the 


Ambrose  of  Milan.  2 1 5 

emperor  to  the  office  of  proconsul  or  gov- 
ernor of  the  northern  part  of  Italy.  In 
taking  leave  of  him,  his  friend  who  had 
procured  this  honorable  position  for  him 
said,  ''  Now  go  thy  way,  and  govern  more 
like  a  bishop  than  a  judge." 

After  this  Ambrose  made  Milan  his  resi- 
dence ;  and  here  he  was  so  faithful  in  the 
discharge  of  his  duties,  and  so  kind  and 
pleasing  in  his  manners,  that  he  became 
very  popular  among  the  people  of  that  city. 
After  he  had  been  there  about  five  years, 
Auxentius,  the  bishop  of  the  church  in 
Milan,  died.  Soon  after  this  a  council  of 
the  church  was  called  for  the  purpose  of 
electing  a  successor  to  Auxentius.  He 
had  been  an  Arian,  and  his  friends  desired 
to  elect  some  one  of  the  same  views  ;  but  to 
this  the  orthodox  portion  of  the  council 
would  not  consent.  This  led  to  a  fierce 
and  angry  controversy.  The  longer  they 
argued  the  matter,  the  less  prospect  there 
was  of  their  coming  to  any  agreement. 
When  Ambrose  heard  how  things  were 
going  in  the  council,  he  went  there  and 
asked     permission    to    say   a    few   words. 


2 1 6  Helloes  of  the  Early  Church. 

This  was  granted  him.  Then  he  made  an 
earnest  and  eloquent  speech,  exhorting 
them  to  lay  aside  their  contentions,  and,  in 
the  peaceful  spirit  which  their  religion 
taught,  to  unite  in  making  choice  of  a 
proper  person  to  fill  the  important  office 
that  was  vacant.  His  speech  made  a  pro- 
found impression  on  the  council.  For  a 
time  there  was  perfect  silence  ;  then  some 
one  rose  and  moved  that  Ambrose  should 
be  chosen  bishop.  The  motion  was  taken 
up  at  once  and  carried  unanimously.  How 
strange  this  was  !  Ambrose  was  not  then 
a  minister  ;  he  had  not  even  joined  the 
church  ;  but  he  was  an  earnest  Christian 
man,  and  was  then  preparing  to  be  bap- 
tized. This  is  probably  the  only  case  in 
the  history  of  the  Church  when  one  not  a 
minister,  but  a  layman  and  a  lawyer,  was 
chosen  to  be  a  bishop. 

Ambrose  was  unwilling  to  accept  this 
high  and  holy  office.  He  withdrew  from 
the  city,  and  got  a  friend  who  lived  some 
miles  away  to  let  him  stay  in  retirement  in 
his  dwelling.  But  the  emperor  issued  a 
proclamation    requiring   any   person    who 


Ambrose  of  Milait.  2 1 7 

knew  where  he  was  to  make  it  known,  and 
threatening  a  severe  penalty  for  detaining 
or  hiding  him.  Then  he  returned  to 
Milan,  and  was  made  bishop  of  the  church 
there.  These  are  the  incidents  in  the  his- 
tory of  Ambrose  of  which  we  wished  to 
speak. 

2.  The  scene  of  his  labors. — The  famous 
city  of  Milan  was  the  place  In  which  he 
exercised  his  ministry  for  twenty-two  years, 
and  faithfully  discharged  his  duties  as  the 
head  of  the  church  there.  Milan  was  the 
capital  of  Lombardy  and  the  principal  city 
of  northern  Italy.  It  stands  within  easy 
reach  of  the  beautiful  lakes  of  Maeeiore 
and  Como  and  the  river  Po.  It  has  a 
population  of  nearly  two  hundred  thou- 
sand inhabitants,  and  is  justly  regarded  as 
one  of  the  pleasantest  cities  of  Europe. 
It  has  many  famous  palaces  and  public 
buildings  ;  but  these  are  all  cast  in  the 
shade  by  its  magnificent  cathedral.  Next 
to  St.  Peter's,  at  Rome,  this  Is  the  largest 
and  most  beautiful  cathedral  in  Italy.  It 
stands  In  the  centre  of  the  city  ;  It  is  built  of 
white    marble,  and    has    a   very   Imposing' 


2 1 8      Heroes  of  the  Early   Church. 

appearance.  I  never  shall  forget  the  In- 
tense pleasure  I  felt  while  standing  and 
gazing  at  it.  The  erection  of  this  building 
was  begun  in  1386 — over  five  hundred 
years  ago — and  it  is  not  finished  yet.  The 
workmen  have  little  huts  on  the  marble 
roof  of  the  cathedral,  and  spend  their  days 
there.  There  are  nearly  five  thousand  life- 
size  marble  statues  of  distinguished  men 
In  the  niches  and  corners  of  this  vast 
building  ;  and  yet  its  size  Is  such  that  this 
great  crowd  can  hardly  be  seen.  And  it  was 
the  city  which  has  since  been  adorned  with 
this  splendid  cathedral  that  was  the  field  In 

which  Ambrose  labored. 

3.    The  lessons  of  tcsefulness  with  which 

we  are  furnished  in  the  life  of  Ambrose. 

We  may  look  at  his  usefulness  from 
three  points  of  view  :  i.  We  see  It  in  what 
he  did  to  increase  interest  in  the  public  wor- 
ship of  God.  Ambrose  had  a  great  talent 
for  music  and  an  unusual  ability  for  teach- 
ing others  in  it.  He  was  a  great  blessing 
to  the  Church  In  the  hymns  which  he  wrote 
and  in  the  music  which  he  introduced  into 
the  public   worship  of    God.     Music    had 


Ambrose  of  Milan.  219 

been  used  in  the  sanctuary  before  his  time  ; 
but  there  was  no  proper  form  or  order  in 
the  use  of  it.  Ambrose  made  a  great 
improvement  in  this  part  of  the  service  of 
the  sanctuary.  He  arranged  the  hymns 
and  chants,  with  the  music  with  which  they 
were  sung,  in  such  a  way  as  added  greatly 
to  the  interest  and  profit  of  the  wor- 
shippers. A  distinguished  writer  of  that 
day,  after  attending  services  in  the  cathe- 
dral of  Milan,  speaks  of  its  effect  upon 
him  in  these  words  :  "The  voices  flowed 
into  my  ears,  the  truth  sung  thrilled  my 
heart,  and  tears  of  joy  filled  my  soul,  as  I 
listened  to  the  sweet  strains  that  sounded 
through  the  sanctuary."  Ambrose  lived 
in  the  fourth  century  of  the  Christian  era  ; 
we  are  living  in  the  nineteenth  century  ; 
and  here  the  interesting-  fact  comes  out 
that  for  fifteen  hundred  years  this  good 
man  has  been  a  blessing-  to  the  Church,  in 
the  efforts  which  he  made  to  improve  the 
musical  part  of  the  worship  of  the  sanc- 
tuary. Some  of  the  hymns  which  he 
wrote  are  still  used  in  the  Milan  cathedral, 
with  the  music  to  which  he  set  them.     Here 


2  20      Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

is  one   of  them  as  it  has  been  translated 
into  EnofHsh  : 

AN  ANCIENT  HYMN  OF  ST.  AMBKOSE. 

Thou  image  of  the  Father  bright  ! 
Eflflilgent  glory,  Light  of  light, 
Radiance  divine,  that  shines  for  aye. 
Thy  dawn  is  that  of  endless  day. 

True  Sun  !  illume  our  inner  sight ; 
Pour  down  thy  Spirit's  living  light ; 
Through  all  our  senses,  o'er  our  head, 
Unsetting  Sun,  thy  brightness  shed. 

Father  of  lights  !  on  thee  we  call ; 
Father  of  glory  :  all  in  all, 
Father  of  grace  and  power,  we  pray. 
Put  all  our  sin  and  guilt  away. 

Jesus  !  be  thou  our  bread  from  heaven  ; 
Let  faith  athirst  for  thee  be  given  ; 
Then  let  us  drink  with  joy,  until 
Our  hearts  and  fouls  thy  Spirit  fill. 

Then  glad  the  day  we  shall  begin. 
Blush  with  the  morning  for  our  sin, 
Our  faith  grow  like  the  midday  bright, 
But  know  no  twilight  and  no  night. 

As  dawn  ascends  to  noon  of  day, 

Be  thou  our  rising  Sun  for  aye  ; 

Thee  let  us  in  thy  Father  see. 

And  find  the  Father  all  in  thee.     Amen. 


There  is  one  chant  which  has  been  used 
for   ages    in  the    morning  service   of    the 


Ambrose  of  Milan.  221 

Church  of  England  and  of  the   Protestant 
Episcopal  Church  In  this   country,  which  Is 
called  the  Ambroslan  chant,  or  the  chant  of 
Ambrose.       Its    tide   is   the   "  Te  Deum," 
from  the  first  two  words  In  the  Ladn  ver- 
sion of  It.     Ambrose   Is  said   by   some  to 
have  been  the  author  of  this  chant,  or  the 
one    who    first    brought    It   into  use.     By 
others  it  Is  affirmed  that  this  chant  was  not 
used   in  the    Church  till   several   centuries 
after  the  death  of  Ambrose  ;  so   the  ques- 
tion remains  an   unsettled  one.     But  the 
name  and  memory  of  Ambrose    are  con- 
nected with  it,  and  this  makes  it  interesdng. 
The   first   two  verses   of   this   chant   read 
thus  :     "  We     praise    thee,    O    God  ;    we 
acknowledge  thee  to  be  the  Lord.     All  the 
earth  doth  worship   thee,  the  Father  ever- 
lasting" ;  and  those  who  use  this  chant  In 
the    worship    of    the  sanctuary  must  feel 
something  inspiring  in   It  when  they  think 
of  the  multitudes  now  In  heaven  who  for 
century   after   century    have   repeated    its 
solemn  words  through  all  the  days  of  their 
pilgrimage.      And  here  we  see  how  useful 
Ambrose  was  in  what  he  did  to  add  to  the 


222      Heroes  of  the  Early   Church. 

interest  and   profitableness   of  the    public 
worship  of  God. 

I.  We  see  the  usefulness  of  Ambrose  in 
his  faithful  defe7tce  of  the  truth.  The  con- 
troversy with  the  Arians  was  still  kept  up 
with  great  warmth.  They  had  no  church 
in  Milan,  and  were  very  anxious  to  have 
one.  Justina,  the  wife  of  the  emperor, 
was  an  Arian.  At  the  request  of  the 
leading  men  of  that  party  she  made  appli- 
cation to  Ambrose  to  allow  them  the  use 
of  one  of  the  churches  in  the  city.  But 
Ambrose  refused  to  do  this.  He  said  that 
the  office  entrusted  to  him  as  the  head  of 
the  Church  required  him  to  be  faithful  in 
upholding  and  defending  the  truth 
which  God  had  revealed  in  his  holy  word, 
and  therefore  he  could  not  allow  any  of 
the  churches  under  his  care  to  be  used  by 
those  who  denied  the  divinity  of  his 
blessed  Master  and  the  reality  of  the 
atonement  which  he  had  made.  Then 
Justina  persuaded  her  husband,  the 
emperor,  to  issue  a  decree  commanding 
that  one  of  the  churches  of  the  city  should 
be  given  to  the  Arians  for  their  use,  and 


Anibi^ose  of  Milan,  223 

threatening  with  imprisonment  and  death 
any  persons  who  should  interfere  with  the 
carrying-  out  of  this  decree.  Then  a 
company  of  soldiers  was  sent  to  take  pos- 
session of  the  church  which  the  Arians 
desired  to  have.  Ambrose  was  in  that 
church,  standing  near  the  pulpit,  when  the 
soldiers  entered.  The  officer  of  the  com- 
pany came  up  to  him  and  said  that  he  had 
been  commanded  by  the  emperor  to  take 
possession  of  the  church  for  the  use  of  the 
Arians.  ''  Go  back  to  the  emperor,"  said 
Ambrose,  "  and  tell  him  that  if  he  wishes 
any  money  or  property  belonging  tome,  he 
is  welcome  to  it.  If  he  wishes  to  take  my 
life,  I  will  yield  it  to  him  cheerfully.  But 
this  church  belongs  to  God.  It  has  been 
committed  to  my  care,  and  while  I  live  I 
never  can  allow  it  to  be  used  by  those  who 
deny  the  truth  respecting  the  character 
and  work  of  Christ  as  God  has  revealed 
it  to  us  in  his  word."  These  words  of 
Ambrose  had  such  an  effect  upon  the 
emperor  that  he  would  not  pursue  the 
matter  any  further ;  and  so  the  Arians  failed 
to  secure  the  church  which  they  wished. 


224       Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

There  are  other  incidents  in  the  life  of 
this  good  man  which  illustrate  equally  well 
his  faithfulness  in  defending  the  truth. 
Let  us  all  try  to  understand  the  saving 
truth  of  the  gospel  as  Ambrose  under- 
stood it,  and  let  us  stand  up  faithfully  in 
its  defence,  as  he  did,  and  then,  in  our 
measure,  we  shall  be  useful  as  he  was. 

3.  Ambrose  was  useful  in  the  practical 
illustratio7is  of  the  truth  which  are  fur- 
nished in  his  life.  He  was  the  model  of  a 
good  Christian,  a  good  minister  and  a  good 
bishop.  He  was  so  much  beloved  and 
reverenced  by  all  who  knew  him  that  we 
do  not  wonder  to  find  him  generally 
spoken  of  as  Saint  Ambrose. 

We  have  illustrated  in  his  life  the  lesson 
of  humility.  We  see  this  in  the  w^ay  in 
which  he  shrank  from  taking  upon  himself 
the  office  of  the  head  of  the  church  to 
which  he  had  been  unanimously  chosen  by 
the  Council  of  Milan.  He  felt  unwilling 
to  assume  the  duties  and  responsibilities 
of  so  important  a  position.  And  it  was 
the  honest  feeling  of  his  heart — his  real 
humility — which  made  him  so  unwilling  to 


Ambrose  of  Milan.  225 

accept  that  office.  Ambrose  had  learned 
the  lesson  which  Jesus  came  down  from 
heaven  to  teach  us.  When  he  had  washed 
his  disciples'  feet,  to  illustrate  this  lesson, 
he  said  to  them,  ''  If  I  then,  j^/<?2^r  Lord  and 
Master,  have  washed  your  feet ;  ye  ought 
also  to  wash  one  another's  feet."  Let  us 
all  try  to  learn  humility. 

Again,  we  see  the  lesson  of  selfdejiial 
well  illustrated  in  the  life  of  Ambrose. 
When  he  was  ordained  to  the  ministry  and 
made  a  bishop  in  the  Church,  he  gave  up 
all  the  property  belonging  to  him,  for  the 
support  of  the  Church  and  the  relief  of 
the  poor.  And  what  he  thus  did  at  the 
beginning  of  his  ministerial  life  he  kept 
on  doing  to  the  end  of  it.  He  lived  in 
the  plainest,  simplest  way,  and  used  all  the 
money  he  could  save  for  the  purpose  of 
doing  good.  We  cannot  be  true  Chris- 
tians unless  we  learn  and  practice  self- 
denial.  Jesus  made  this  point  very  clear 
when  he  said  so  solemnly,  "•  If  any  man 
will  come  after  me,  let  him  deny  himself, 
and  take  up  his  cross  daily,  and  follow 
me."     Ambrose  learned  this  lesson  well, 


2  26      History  of  the  Early  Church. 

and  his  whole  Hfe  was  a  practical   illustra- 
tion of  it. 

And  then   again,    in   the  lesson  of  home 
piety  which  his  life  illustrated  we  see  how 
useful  Ambrose  was.     He  loved  the  public 
service  of  the  sanctuary.      It  was  his  de- 
light to  join  in  the  praises  of  God  as  they 
were  sung  there.      But  when  he  returned 
from  the  sanctuary  he   did  not  leave  his 
religion    behind    him  ;  he   carried   it  with 
him  wherever  he  went,  and  it  entered  into 
everything  he  did.      And  this  is  just  as  it 
should  be.    .That  wise   English  minister, 
the    Rev.  Rowland    Hill,  used  to  say,  ''I 
would  not  give  a    straw    for   any    man's 
religion   unless  his   cat  and    dog  are  the 
better  for  it."     He  meant  to  say  by  this 
that  when  our  religion  is  true  and  genuine 
it  will  make  us   faithful  in  every  duty,  and 
kind  and  gentle  to  all  about  us,  even  to  the 
dumb    creatures    of    God.     Jesus    "went 
about  doing  good"  ;  and  he  expects  all  his 
people    to    follow    his     example    in    this 
respect.     This    was    what    Ambrose    did. 
His  practice  conformed  to  his  preaching. 
He  loved  to  visit  the  homes  of  the  poor, 


Ambrose  of  Milan.  227 

to  comfort  those  who  were  in  trouble,  and 
to  pray  by  the  bedside  of  the  sick  and 
dying.  And  thus  we  see  how  useful  he 
was  in  the  practical  illustrations  of  the 
truth  which  were  found  in  his  daily  life. 
Let  us  all  try  to  follow  his  example  in 
these  respects,  and  then  we  shall  be  use- 
ful wherever  we  go  ;  and  it  will  be  true  of 
us  that  we  shall  be  "  treading  in  the 
blessed  steps  of  our  Saviour's  most  holy 
life." 


CHAPTER  XV. 

JOHN    CHRYSOSTOM. 
[born  a.  d.  347  ;   died  a.  d.  407.] 

Among  all  the  great  and  good  men  of 
that  part  of  the  Church's  history  we  are 
now  considering,  there  was  none  pos- 
sessed of  nobler  qualities,  or  who  exer- 
cised a  greater  influence  for  good,  than 
the  famous  man  whose  life  and  character 
we  are  now  to  consider.  He  was  born  at 
Antioch  in  Syria  in  a.  d.  347,  and  died  in 
407,  when  in  the  sixtieth  year  of  his  age. 
His  name  was  John  Chrysostom  ;  but  the 
different  titles  of  Doctor,  Bishop,  Arch- 
bishop and  Saint  were  given  him  by  turns. 
The  name  of  Chrysostom  did  not  belong 
to  his  family  ;  it  comes  from  a  Greek 
word  which  signifies  ''golden-mouthed," 
and  was  applied  to  him  in  order  to  express 

(228) 


yohi  Chrysostom.  229 

the  remarkable  eloquence  that  belonged 
to  him  as  a  public  speaker. 

Antioch,  the  place  of  Chrysostom's 
birth,  was  a  very  distinguished  city.  It 
was  named  after  Antiochus  Epiphanes — 
by  whom  it  was  founded — and  was  con- 
sidered the  capital  of  Syria,  being  the 
residence  of  the  Syrian  kings.  As  we 
said  in  a  former  chapter,  it  was  beautifully 
situated  on  the  river  Orontes,  and  in  full 
view  of  the  Lebanon  range  of  mountains. 
It  ranked  high  among  the  most  famous 
cities  of  that  day.  Rome  was  the  first, 
Alexandria  the  second  and  Antioch  the 
third.  It  was  a  very  populous  city.  In 
the  days  of  Chrysostom  it  had  a  popula- 
tion of  two  hundred  thousand  inhabitants. 
He  states  that  the  church  with  which  he 
was  connected  had  under  its  care  three 
thousand  poor  people,  and  provided  for 
all  their  wants. 

The  father  of  Chrysostom  was  a  dis- 
tinguished officer  in  the  army  of  his 
country  ;  but  he  died  very  soon  after  the 
birth  of  his  son.  This  left  the  care  and 
education  of  him  entirely  in  the  hands  of 


230      History  of  the  Eaidy  Church. 

his  mother.  Her  name  was  Arethusa. 
She  was  an  earnest  Christian  woman. 
When  her  husband  died  she  was  left  quite 
a  young  widow.  She  resolved,  however, 
never  to  marry  again,  but  to  devote  her 
life  to  the  careful  education  of  her  dear 
child.  By  her  example,  her  prayers  and 
her  daily  teaching  he  was  early  brought  to 
a  knowledge  of  the  truth  and  an  experience 
of  the  grace  and  love  of  God.  She  secured 
for  him  the  best  teachers  that  were  to  be 
found  in  Antioch,  which  was  then  quite 
celebrated  for  its  institutions  of  learning. 
There  was  then  a  very  famous  teacher  of 
elocution  in  Antioch,  whose  name  was 
Libanius  ;  and  though  he  was  still  a  wor- 
shipper of  idols,  the  mother  of  Chrysostom 
resolved  that  her  son  should  have  the 
benefit  of  his  Instruction.  Then  Chrysos- 
tom entered  on  this  course  of  study  with 
great  interest,  and  there  can  be  no  doubt 
that  this  had  much  to  do  in  helping  to 
develop  in  him  that  unusual  power  of  elo- 
quence which  in  after  life  distinguished 
him  as  a  public  speaker. 

When    his  preparatory   education    was 


yohri  Chrysostom.  231 

finished,  he  first  engaged  for  some  time  in 
the  practice  of  a  lawyer.  But  he  soon 
became  dissatisfied  with  this,  and  wished 
to  retire  to  a  monastery  and  devote  some 
years  of  his  Hfe  to  the  quiet  and  careful 
study  of  the  Scriptures.  His  mother  did 
not  approve  of  this.  She  had  a  long  and 
earnest  conversation  with  him  on  the  sub- 
ject, and  entreated  him  to  give  up  this 
plan  and  to  remain  with  her  during  the 
rest  of  her  life,  as  she  very  much  desired  his 
help  and  presence.  He  yielded  cheer- 
fully to  her  request,  and  devoted  himself 
lovingly  to  her  comfort  as  long  as  she 
lived. 

But  after  his  mother's  death  Chrysos- 
tom retired  into  private  life,  and  lived  in 
great  simplicity  and  self-denial  as  a  hermit. 
He  devoted  his  time  mainly  to  prayer  and 
the  diligent  study  of  the  Scriptures.  After 
five  or  six  years  thus  spent  he  returned 
to  Antioch  and  was  ordained  to  the  minis- 
try, and  devoted  himself  untiringly  to  the 
duties  of  that  holy  office.  In  a.d.  397  he 
was  elected  bishop  of  the  church  in  Con- 
stantinople.     He  only  occupied  that  posi- 


232       Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

tion  for  about  ten  years.  Those  were 
years  of  great  trials  and  difficulties  to  him. 
His  faithfulness  in  defending  the  true  doc- 
trines of  the  gospel  made  him  many 
enemies  among  the  Arians  and  other  false 
teachers.  They  made  false  charges 
against  him,  and  had  him  twice  banished 
from  his  church  at  Constantinople.  Dur- 
ing the  second  of  these  banishments,  while 
travelling  to  the  distant  place  to  which  he 
had  been  sent,  overcome  by  the  fatigue  of 
the  journey,  he  was  taken  sick  and  died. 
These  are  the  leading  facts  in  the  history 
of  this  good  and  great  man. 

And  now,  having  made  this  statement, 
we  may  glance  very  briefly  at  some  of  the 
important  lessons  that  we  find  illustrated 
in  the  life  of  Chrysostom. 

I.  We  see  his  earnest  piety  illustrated  in 
the  zealous  labors  which  he  performed.  As 
soon  as  he  entered  on  the  great  work 
assigned  him  as  the  head  of  the  church,  he 
set  himself  vigorously  to  attend  to  it.  He 
found  that  through  the  neglect  of  his  pre- 
decessor in  the  high  office  of  bishop,  things 
had  been  allowed  to  get  in  a  very  bad  way. 


yohn  Chrysostom,  233 

Both  the  clergy  and  the  lay  members  of 
the  church  had  adopted  practices  and  ways 
of  livine  that  were  not  at  all  in  accordance 
with  the  teachings  of  Scripture.  These 
Chrysostom  set  himself  at  once  to  correct, 
both  by  precept  and  by  example.  His  own 
style  of  living  was  of  the  plainest  and  most 
self-denying  character. 

Chrysostom  inherited  a  large  amount  of 
property  from  his  father.  This  he  conse- 
crated to  the  Lord  and  employed  in  doing 
good  among  the  poor.  The  church  under 
his  charge  had  a  very  large  income.  Out 
of  this  he  took  for  himself  only  just 
enough  to  meet  the  expenses  of  the  very 
simple  way  in  which  he  lived.  All  the  rest 
was  employed  in  carrying  on  the  good 
work  in  which  the  church  was  engaged. 

Not  long  after  entering  on  the  impor- 
tant duties  of  his  high  office,  he  found,  to 
his  surprise,  that  there  was  a  province  not 
far  from  Constantinople  where  idolatry 
was  still  prevailing,  with  all  its  attendant 
darkness  and  misery.  He  went  to  work 
at  once  and  had  what  we  should  call  a  mis- 
sionary society  formed  for  the  purpose  of 


234         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

evangelizing  that  portion  of  the  country. 
He  had  money  raised  and  missionaries 
sent  out,  and  never  ceased  his  efforts  till 
idolatry  was  given  up  there  and  the  gospel 
of  Jesus,  with  all  its  blessed  influences, 
was  spread  abroad  throughout  that  district, 
2.  Then,  in  Mx"^  patient  suffering,  as  well 
as  in  his  zealous  labors,  we  see  his  earnest 
piety  illustrated.  The  empress  Eudoxia, 
the  wife  of  the  emperor  then  reigning,  was 
an  Arian.  She  was  very  much  offended 
at  Chrysostom  for  his  faithfulness  in  de- 
fending the  teachings  of  Scripture  as  held 
by  the  Trinitarians.  She  would  not  rest 
till  the  emperor  was  persuaded  to  issue  a 
decree  for  the  banishment  of  Chrysostom 
from  his  church  and  country.  This  occa- 
sioned great  distress  and  sorrow  among 
the  friends  of  the  persecuted  man.  But 
he  himself  made  no  complaint  about  it  and 
offered  no  resistance  to  it.  The  patient 
spirit  with  which  he  submitted  to  all  the 
suffering  involved  in  his  banishment  is 
seen  in  what  he  said  about  it  when  the 
decree  was  first  made  known  to  him. 
These  are   the  words  which  he   used  on 


yoh7i  Chry  SOS  torn.  235 

that  occasion:  **Well,  the  empress  wishes 
to  banish  me.  Let  her  do  it ;  yet  the  earth 
is  the  Lord's,  and  the  fulness  thereof.  If 
she  command  that  I  be  cut  to  pieces,  let 
me  be  sawn  asunder ;  the  prophet  Isaiah 
was  so  served  before  me.  Will  she  throw 
me  into  the  sea  ?  I  remember  that  was 
the  fate  of  Jonah.  Will  she  cast  me  into 
the  fiery  furnace  ?  Then  I  shall  have  the 
three  children  for  my  fellow  sufferers.  If 
she  cast  me  to  the  wild  beasts,  I  know 
how  Daniel  went  the  same  way  to  the 
lions.  If  she  command  that  I  be  stoned, 
let  it  be  so  ;  I  shall  then  have  Stephen,  the 
proto-martyr,  on  my  side.  Will  she  have 
my  head  ?  Let  her  take  it  ;  John  the  Bap- 
tist lost  his.  Has  she  a  mind  for  my 
estate  ?  Let  her  have  it  ;  '  naked  came  I 
out  of  my  mother's  womb,  and  naked 
shall  I  return  thither.'  "  And  when  death 
approached  him,  during  his  second  banish- 
ment, after  taking  leave  of  his  friends  and 
engaging  in  his  last  act  of  worship  he 
clasped  his  hands  on  his  breast  and  said, 
*'  Glory  to  God  for  all  things  that  happen  ! 
Amen."     And  so  he  passed  away.     Surely 


236      Hei'oes  of  the  Early  Church. 

such  a  patient  spirit  as  this,  in  view  of  the 
great  sufferings  through  which  he  was 
called  to  pass,  was  a  good  illustration  of 
his  earnest  piety. 

3.  We  see  his  courage  and  fait hfuhtess 
illustrated  in  the  trying  scenes  of  his  busy 
life.  It  was  his  courage  and  faithfulness  in 
opposing  error  and  defending  the  truth 
which  led  the  empress  to  procure  his  banish- 
ment, as  we  have  already  seen. 

But  there  was  another  occasion  In  which 
these  noble  points  of  his  character  were 
brought  fully  into  play.  This  was  in  con- 
nection with  a  famous  general  in  the  army, 
whose  name  was  Gainas.  He  and  his  sol- 
diers were  all  Arians.  He  asked  the 
emperor  to  have  one  of  the  churches 
in  Constantinople  set  apart  for  the 
Arians  to  worship  in.  The  emperor 
made  this  request  known  to  Chrysostom, 
and  asked  him  to  do  what  Gainas  wanted. 
But  he  declined  to  do  so.  He  said  that  he 
had  been  appointed  the  head  of  the  church 
In  order  that  he  might  watch  over  and  pro- 
tect the  interests  of  the  truth  as  It  was 
revealed  In  the  Scriptures  ;   and  that  for 


yohn  Chrysostom.  237 

him  to  set  apart  a  church  for  the  use  of 
those  who  denied  the  divinity  of  the  blessed 
Saviour  would  be  failing  in  the  solemn 
trust  committed  to  him,  and  that  he  would 
rather  lay  down  his  life  than  neglect  to  dis- 
charge his  duty  in  a  matter  of  such  great 
importance.  This  was  really  noble  in  him  ; 
and  the  courage  and  faithfulness  which  he 
thus  displayed  set  him  before  us  as  an  ex- 
ample which  it  would  be  well  for  us  all  to 
imitate. 

And  then,  in  connection  with  the  history 
of  this  noble  hero  of  the  early  Church,  we 
are  furnished  with  a  -striking  illustration  of 
the  way  in  which  God! s  providence  works. 

In  one  place  in  the  Bible,  when  God 
wishes  to  show  what  an  interest  he  feels 
in  the  treatment  which  his  people  receive 
from  those  about  them,  he  says,  "he  that 
toucheth  you  toucheth  the  apple  of  his 
eye"  (Zech.  2:8).  And  if  we  allow  our- 
selves to  injure  or  ill  treat  any  of  God's 
servants,  we  may  be  sure  that  he  will 
punish  us  for  it.  This  was  never  more 
strikingly  illustrated  than  in  what  happened 
to    those    who  had    been    the  enemies   of 


238       History  of  the  Early  Church. 

Chrysostom.       The  chief  of  these  was  the 
empress   Eudoxla.     It  was    she  who  pro- 
cured his  banishment.    About  three  months 
after  his  death  she  was    suddenly  seized 
with  some  internal  complaint.       This  occa- 
sioned her  terrible  suffering,  and  soon  put 
an   end  to  her  life.     And  within    two    or 
three  years  after  the  death  of  Chrysostom, 
nearly  all  of  those  who  had  joined  in  the 
false  charges  brought  against  him  and  had 
helped  to  secure  his  banishment  were  over- 
taken by  some  strange  calamity.     One  of 
them  fell  from  his  horse,  broke  his  leg,  and 
died  from  the  effect  of  the   fall.      Another 
lost  his   speech,    and  was  confined    in  his 
bed  till  he   died.     Some  died  of  dropsy, 
and    some    of    gout   which    tortured    the 
fingers  that  had  signed  his  condemnation. 
These    providential    visitations    were    so 
remarkable  that  the  friends  of  Chrysostom 
could  not  help  wondering  over  them,  and 
quoting,  as    they  did    so,   the    passage    of 
Scripture  which  says,  "  verily  he  is  a  God 
that  judgeth  in  the  earth."    (Ps.  58  :  11). 

And  when  we   think  of  the  many  utter- 
ances  of    God's  truth   by    this    ''  golden- 


yohn  Chrysostom.  239 

mouthed"  preacher,  and  of  his  writings 
which  have  come  down  to  us  in  thirteen 
large  volumes,  we  may  form  some  idea  of 
the  great  amount  of  good  which  he  accom- 
plished. The  Greek  Church  still  uses  a 
liturgy  which  is  said  to  have  been  written 
by  Chrysostom,  though  some  affirm  that  it 
was  not  known  till  a  century  or  more  after 
his  death.  But  in  the  service  of  the 
Church  of  England,  and  in  the  Episcopal 
Church  in  this  country,  there  is  a  short 
prayer,  beautiful  and  comprehensive, 
which  Is  always  used  at  the  close  of  the 
morning  and  evening  service,  and  which 
is  called  ''  A  Prayer  of  St.  Chrysostom." 
it  reads  thus  :  "  Almighty  God,  who  hast 
given  us  grace  at  this  time  to  make  our 
common  supplications  unto  thee  ;  and  dost 
promise  that  where  two  or  three  are  gath- 
ered together  in  thy  name  thou  will  grant 
their  requests  ;  fulfill  now,  O  Lord,  the 
desires  and  petitions  of  thy  servants  as 
may  be  most  expedient  for  them  ;  grant- 
ing us  in  this  world  knowledge  of  thy 
truth,  and  in  the  world  to  come  life  ever- 
lasting.    Amen.' 


240         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

May  God  so  give  his  grace  to  all  the 
readers  of  this  volume  that  they  may  have 
the  same  spirit  which  animated  this  noble 
hero  of  the  early  Church,  and  be  able  to 
tread  in  the  steps  of  his  most  useful  life. 


Constantinople  and  the  Bospborous. 


p.  240. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

JEROME. 
[born  a.  d.  340  (?) ;   died  a.  d.  430  (?).] 

The  history  of  this  learned  man  comes 
before  us  now  as  the  next  subject  that 
claims  our  attention  in  considering  '*  the 
Heroes  of  the  early  Church."  He  well 
deserves  a  place  among  these  Heroes,  for 
he  was  one  of  the  most  learned  and  able 
of  the  fathers  of  the  Latin  Church.  In 
considering  the  life  of  this  famous  man,  we 
shall  briefly  state  the  leading  facts  of  his 
history,  and  then  refer  to  three  important 
practical  matters  we  find  illustrated  therein. 

Jerome  was  born  in  the  year  340  of  the 
Christian  era,  at  a  town  called  Stridon,  in 
Dalmatia.  This  town  was  entirely  de- 
stroyed by  the  Goths  towards  the  close  of 
the  fourth  century,  and  no  trace  was  left 
remaining  by  which  it  can  now  be  identi- 
16  (241) 


242  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

fied.  His  parents  were  earnest  Christians, 
and  his  early  education  was  attended  to  by 
his  father.  Then  he  went  to  Rome,  and 
studied  Greek  and  Latin  and  rhetoric  and 
philosophy  under  the  care  of  Donatus,  one 
of  the  most  famous  teachers  of  that  day. 
While  at  Rome  he  was  admitted  to  the 
Church  by  baptism,  and  decided  to  devote 
himself  to  the  service  of  his  God  and 
Saviour.  In  the  year  2^1?^  he  set  out  on  a 
journey  to  the  East  in  company  with  three 
of  his  most  intimate  friends,  and  settled 
for  a  time  at  Antioch  in  Syria.  While 
residing  there  he  and  two  of  his  friends 
were  taken  with  a  severe  attack  of  fever. 
His  friends  died  ;  but  he  recovered,  and 
became  from  that  time  more  earnest  and 
decided  in  his  Christian  life  than  ever  he  had 
been  before.  After  this  he  retired  to  the 
desert  of  Chalcis,  and  spent  four  years  in 
self-denying,  penitential  exercises  and  in 
the  diligent  study  of  the  Hebrew  language. 
Then  he  returned  to  active  life,  and  took 
an  earnest  part  in  the  religious  contro- 
versies of  the  day. 

In  the  year  379  he  was  ordained  to  the 


yerome,  243 

ministry  ;  but  he  never  took  charge  of  any 
particular  church,  as  he  preferred  the  Hfe 
of  a  travelling  preacher  and  a  diligent  stu- 
dent. He  was  one  of  the  most  eloquent 
speakers  of  that  day,  and  very  famous  for 
his  great  learning. 

The  great  mistake  of  his  life  was  in  sup- 
posing that  religion  was  designed  to 
separate  us  from  our  fellow  men  and  lead 
us  to  spend  our  days  in  acts  of  fasting  and 
self-denial,  as  monks  and  hermits  were 
accustomed  to  do. 

After  visiting  Constantinople  and  other 
prominent  places  he  returned  to  Rome, 
and  became  the  secretary  and  warm  friend 
of  Damasus,  the  bishop  of  the  Church  of 
Rome,  and  continued  with  him  till  the 
bishop's  death. 

Then  Jerome  undertook  the  instruction 
in  Christianity  of  a  large  class  of  dis- 
tinguished ladies  connected  with  the  first 
families  of  Rome.  Most  of  them  were 
brought  to  a  knowledge  of  the  truth 
through  his  teaching,  and  became  his  warm 
and  life-long  friends.  One  of  these,  a 
wealthy  widow  lady  named  Paula,  became 


244      Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

especially  interested  in  him.  He  had  been 
the  means  of  her  conversion,  and  she  used 
her  money  freely  in  helping  him  to  carry 
on  the  good  work  in  which  he  was  engaged. 
When,  in  the  year  386,  Jerome  concluded 


On  the  left  IS  the  Church  of  the  ^'^tlvlty  founded  dSO  A  D  by  the 
empress  Helena.  In  the  chapel  beneath  the  church  Jerome  is  said  to 
have  had  his  study  for  thirty  years. 


to  go  to  the  Holy  Land  and  spend  the  rest 
of  his  life  there,  Paula  and  her  daughter 
and  several  of  the  other  ladies  who  had 
been  under  his  instruction  in  Rome  made 
up  their  minds  to  go  with  him.      He  went 


yerome.  245 

to  Palestine,  and  chose  Bethlehem  as  the 
place  of  his  abode.  There  his  friend 
Paula  founded  four  convents  for  nuns,  and 
one  monastery  which  she  put  under  the 
charge  of  Jerome.  He  made  his  home 
there  for  the  remainder  of  his  days,  and 
there  he  began,  carried  on  ani  finished  the 
important  work  of  translating  and  issuing 
the  Latin  or,  as  it  is  called,  the  Vulgate 
version  of  the  Bible.  After  this  he  remained 
there  a  happy,  useful  man  till  the  year  420, 
when,  at  the  age  of  eighty,  he  ceased  from 
his  labors  and  entered  into  ''  the  rest  that 
remaineth  for  the  people  of  God." 

Such  are  the  leading  facts  in  the  history 
of  Jerome.  In  these  facts  we  see  illustra- 
tions of  three  interestlncr  truths. 

We  see  in  the  experience  of  this  good 
man  how  God  guides  his  people  by  his  provi- 
dence. 

Jerome  had  a  remarkable  guidance  in 
this  way.  In  his  early  life,  after  he  had 
joined  the  Church,  he  was  very  much  given 
to  the  study  of  the  writings  of  Cicero 
and  other  pagan  authors.  If  he  had  con- 
tinued to  be  absorbed  in  those   studies,  it 


246      Heroes  of  the  Early   Church. 

would  have  been  injurious  to  his  Christian 
character,  and  would  have  Interfered 
greatly  with  his  usefulness.  He  had  no 
earthly  friend  to  give  him  wise  counsel  on 
this  subject.  But  God,  his  heavenly 
friend,  did  it  for  him.  And  he  did  it  in 
this  way  :  Qne  night  Jerome  had  a  dream. 
In  this  dream  he  thought  that  he  died  and 
entered  the  lieavenly  world.  An  angel 
met  him  as  he  entered,  and  led  him  to  the 
throne  of  God  to  be  judged.  He  thought 
God  told  him  that  the  chief  fault  he  had  to 
find  with  him  was  that  he  had  studied  the 
writings  of  Cicero  and  other  pagan  authors 
more  than  he  had  studied  the  Bible,  and 
that  the  mistake  he  had  made  In  doing  this 
would  Interfere  greatly  with  his  happiness 
forever.  Then  he  awoke,  and  was  greatly 
distressed  at  the  thought  of  what  he  had 
been  taught  In  that  dream.  He  made  a 
vow,  at  once,  that  he  would  turn  over  a 
new  leaf,  would  give  up  the  study  of  those 
pagan  writers  and  devote  himself  to  the 
diligent  and  faithful  study  of  the  Scriptures. 
For  years  after  this  he  never  looked  at  one 
of    those    works  of  which  he  had  before 


yerome.  247 

been  so  fond.  If  Jerome  had  not  been  led 
to  make  this  change  In  his  studies,  he  would 
not  have  been  prepared  for  the  great 
work  he  had  to  do  of  makino-  a  new  trans- 
lation  of  the  Bible.  This  was  the  way  in 
which  God,  by  his  providence,  guided 
Jerome.  And  there  are  many  ways  in 
which  the  providence  of  God  works  for 
the  guidance  and  protection  and  blessing 
of  his  people.  Here  is  an  illustration  of 
this  : 

On  one  occasion  the  good  poet  Cowper 
was  unsettled  in  his  mind.  He  felt  so  un- 
happy that  he  resolved  to  go  to  the  river 
Thames  and  drown  himself.  He  ordered 
a  coachm.an,  who  was  well  acquainted  with 
London,  to  drive  him  to  Blackfriars' 
Bridge.  Strangely  enough,  the  man  drove 
all  over  London,  but  could  not  find  the 
bridge.  Then  Cowper's  mind  changed, 
and  he  told  the  driver  to  take  him  home. 
When  he  reached  his  room,  he  felt  sure 
that  God's  providence  had  been  working 
to  save  his  life.  And  then  he  sat  down 
and  wrote  that  beautiful  hymn  which  begins 
thus  : 


248      History  of  the  Early  Church. 

"  God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way 
His  wonders  to  perform." 

Here  is  another  incident  which  shows  us 
by  what  Httle  things  God's  providence 
sometimes  works.  A  missionary  in  Jamaica 
was  walking  one  dark  night  along  a  dan- 
gerous road  which  had  a  steep  precipice 
on  one  side  of  it  several  hundred  feet  deep. 
He  could  not  see,  as  he  went  on,  where  he 
was  treading.  A  single  mis-step  might 
plunge  him  down  the  precipice,  and  so  put 
an  end  to  his  work.  But  a  little  insect 
called  the  candle-fly  came  to  his  relief.  It 
flew  before  him  very  near  the  ground,  and 
the  feeble  light  which  it  shed  along  his 
path  was  enough  to  show  him  where  it  was 
safe  for  him  to  tread.  The  little  creature 
never  left  him  till  the  danger  was  all  past. 
Here  we  see  how  true  it  is  that  God  can 
make  all  thmgs  work  together  for  good 
to  those  who  love  him. 

The  second  interesting  truth  we  find 
illustrated  in  Jerome's  history  is  how  God 
provides  help  for  his  servants  i7i  the  work 
they  have  to  do  for  him. 

We   see   this   in  what    Jerome's    friend 


yerome.  249 

Paula  did  for  him.  She  belonged  to  one 
of  the  most  distinguished  families  in  Rome, 
being  descended  from  the  famous  Scipios 
and  Gracchi.  She  was  very  wealthy  and 
lived  in  one  of  the  finest  houses  in  that 
great  city.  But  when  she  became  a  Chris- 
tian she  gave  up  the  world  with  its  vanities 
and  pleasures,  and  devoted  herself  and 
her  large  means  to  doing  good  in  various 
ways.  She  became  the  life-long  friend  of 
Jerome,  because  he  was  the  instrument 
which  God  made  use  of  to  brinof  her  to  a 
knowledge  of  the  Saviour.  During  the 
years  in  which  Jerome  lived  in  Rome, 
she  insisted  on  his  makinp-  her  house  his 
home,  which  he  did.  And  we  have  seen 
how  she  provided  for  him  in  Bethlehem. 
The  closing  years  of  his  life,  spent  there, 
were  years  of  great  usefulness.  But  the 
good  which  he  did  then  would  never  have 
been  accomplished  if  it  had  not  been  for 
the  help  afforded  him  by  his  friend  Paula. 

God's  promise  to  each  of  his  servants  Is, 
"I  willhelp  thee"  (Isa.  41  :  10).  Hehelps 
his  people  himself,  by  the  grace  and 
strength  which  he  gives   them.      And  he 


250       Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

helps  them  In  many  other  ways.  The 
prophet  EHjah  had  a  singular  experience 
of  this.  On  one  occasion  he  had  to  live 
for  months  all  alone  In  a  desert  place,  be- 
cause the  king  of  Israel  had  determined  to 
kill  him  if  he  could  find  him.  There  was 
water  for  Elijah  to  drink  there,  but  there 
was  no  food  for  him  to  eat.  And  so  God 
helped  this  prophet  by  causing  the  ravens 
to  bring  him  bread  and  meat,  every  morn- 
ing and  every  evening,  during  all  the  many 
months  he  had  to  stay  there.  Now  the 
God  who  is  able  to  work  out  his  plans  in 
such  a  way  as  this  can  never  be  at  a  loss 
to  provide  help  for  his  servants  in  all  their 
times  of  need. 

The  only  other  point  we  would  refer  to, 
as  illustrated  in  the  life  of  Jerome,  is  the 
importance  of  finding  out  what  our  life-woi^k 
is  to  be,  and  the^i  of  faithfully  attendi7ig  to 
it. 

This  is  what  Jerome  did.  The  great 
work  which  he  was  raised  up  to  accom- 
plish, and  with  which  his  name  is  particu- 
larly associated,  was  the  translating  and 
issuing  of  the  Latin  version   of  the  Bible, 


yerome.  251 

which  IS  called  the  Vulgate.     The  version 
of  the  Scriptures  which  had  been  used  be- 
fore his  time  was  called  "the  Septuagint." 
This  is   one  of  the   oldest  versions  of  the 
Bible  in  existence.     It  is  said  to  have  been 
prepared  in  the  third  century  before  Christ. 
The    word    septuagint     means     seventy. 
This  name  was  given  to  it  because  seventy 
learned    men     are     said     to     have    been 
appointed  by  the  authorities  of  the  Jewish 
Church  for  the   purpose   of  preparing  this 
copy    of   the    Old    Testament   Scriptures. 
It  had  for  centuries  been  of  great  service 
to  the   Church  in  all  countries  where   the 
Greek  lano-uao e  was  used.     But  in  the  time 
of  Jerome  the  Latin  tongue  generally  pre- 
vailed   in  western    Europe.       The    Greek 
language  was  very  little  used  in  that  part 
of  the  world.      The   people  had  only  the 
Old  Latin  version,  called  the  Itala,  in  which 
to  read   in  their  own  language   the   won- 
derful works  of  God.       A  better  version 
of    the     Bible,    therefore,    in  the   common 
language  of  the  people,  was  very  greatly 
needed.     And  when    Jerome  brought  out 
his  Vulgate,  or  Latin  version  of  the  Script- 


252  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

ures,  In  the  language  then  generally  used, 
he  was  conferring  the  greatest  amount  of 
good  on  uncounted  myriads  of  people,  for 
many  generations.  That  was  his  great  life- 
work.  He  had  attempted,  from  time  to 
time,  to  prepare  translations  of  different 
portions  of  God's  word  ;  and  the  efforts 
which  he  thus  made  all  helped  to  impress 
upon  his  mind  the  idea  of  the  necessity 
which  existed  for  a  new  translation  of  the 
whole  Bible.  And  so,  when  he  found 
himself  comfortably  settled  in  his  quiet 
home  at  Bethlehem,  he  determined  to  take 
up  this  work.  He  went  patiently  and  per- 
severingly  on  with  it,  year  after  year,  till 
the  work  was  done,  and  the  Latin  edition 
of  the  Bible,  the  Vulgate,  was  given  to  the 
Church  and  the  world,  as  the  great  life- 
work  of  this  good  man. 

God  generally  has  something  special 
for  his  people  to  do,  which  may  be  called 
their  life-work.  We  see  illustrations  of 
this  both  in  the  Bible  and  out  of  it. 
When  we  look  in  the  Bible  we  see  that 
Noah's  life-work  was  to  build  the  ark. 
Joseph's  was  to  make  preparation   for  the 


yerome.  253 

wants  of  the  people  in  Egypt,  the  sur- 
rounding- nations  and  his  own  kindred 
during  those  years  of  famine.  The  life- 
work  of  Moses  was  to  deliver  the  nation 
of  Israel  from  the  bondage  of  Egypt  and  to 
give  to  them  the  divine  law  and  lead  them 
through  the  wilderness  to  Canaan.  So  we 
might  range  through  the  Bible  and  point 
out  the  special  life-work  of  each  of  God's 
servants  whose  history  is  there  given. 

And  we  find  the  same  outside  of  the 
Bible.  There  was  Martin  Luther ;  his 
life-work  was  to  bring  about  the  great 
Protestant  Reformation.  Robert  Raikes' 
life-work  was  to  put  the  Sunday-school 
machinery  in  operation.  John  Williams' 
work  was  to  introduce  the  gospel  among 
group  after  group  of  beautiful  islands  in 
the  South  Pacific  ocean.  Robert  Moffat's 
was  to  do  the  same  in  southern  Africa. 
And  if  we  become  the  faithful  servants  of 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  offer,  each  of 
us  for  himself  or  herself,  the  same  prayer 
which  the  apostle  Paul  offered  after  his 
conversion,  "  Lord,  what  wilt  thou  have 
me  to    do  ?"  he  who  led  Paul    then  and 


2  54         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

Jerome  afterwards  to  find  out  what  their 
life-work  was  to  be,  and  to  do  it,  will 
answer  our  prayer  in  the  same  way. 


CHAPTER   XVII. 

BORN  354  (?);and  died  430  (?). 
AUGUSTINE    OF    NUMIDIA. 

Augustine  is  the  last  of  the  noble  men 
of  the  early  Church  in  the  East,  that  we 
propose  to  consider  at  present.  But 
among  all  the  famous  heroes  of  whom  we 
have  spoken,  there  was  no  one  who  pos- 
sessed a  nobler  character  or  exercised  a 
greater  Influence  for  good  than  Augustine. 

A  popular  writer  of  our  own  day  says 
of  him,  "  He  was  the  most  intellectual  of 
all  the  fathers  of  the  early  Church.  He 
was  the  great  oracle  of  the  Latin  Church, 
and  has  exercised  a  leading  control  over 
the  thoughts  of  the  Christian  w^orld  for  a 
thousand  years.  He  is  referred  to  with 
equal  authority  by  both  Catholics  and 
Protestants.  His  penetrating  genius, 
his  comprehensive  views  of  truth  and  his 

(255) 


256      History  of  the  Early  Church. 

marvellous  power  as  a  teacher  of  It,  place 
him  amonof  the  Immortal  benefactors  of 
mankind  ;  while  his  humanity,  his  charity 
and  his  piety  have  endeared  him  to  the 
hearts  of  the  Christian  world." 

Augustine  was  born  in  the  town  of 
Tap-aste,  in  Numidia,  one  of  the  northern 
provinces  of  Africa.  The  name  of  the 
town  has  since  been  changed,  and  it  Is  now 
known  as  Bona  ;  a  fortified  town  sur- 
rounded by  strong  walls  forty  feet  high 
and  about  two  miles  In  circumference. 
His  family  were  In  moderate  circumstances. 
His  father  was  an  idolater,  but  his  mother, 
well  known  by  her  name  as  Monica,  was 
one  of  the  most  earnest  and  devoted 
Christians  that  ever  adorned  and  blessed 
the  Church.  His  father  determined  to 
secure  for  him  the  best  education  that 
could  be  had  ;  and  after  going  through  the 
first-class  schools  In  his  native  town,  he 
was  sent  to  Carthage  and  then  to  Rome  to 
finish  his  education.  Aup-ustlne  did  not 
follow  the  instructions  of  his  pious  mother, 
but,  led  astray  by  erroneous  teachers,  he 
fell  Into  worldly,  gay  and  sinful   habits  of 


Augustine  of  Numidia.  257 

life,  to  the  great  grief  of  his  affectionate 
and  pious  mother  and  to  his  own  serious 
injury.  He  never  got  back  from  these 
evil  ways  till  he  v^as  over  thirty  years  of 
age.  While  professor  of  rhetoric  at  Milan, 
he  became  a  Platonist,  studied  the  Bible, 
and  then  he  became  a  Christian  and  was 
baptized  and  ordained  to  the  ministry,  and 
was  soon  known  as  the  most  eloquent  and 
successful  preacher  of  that  day.  Not  long 
after  this  he  was  chosen  as  the  bishop  of 
the  church  in  Hippo,  a  town  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  his  native  place.  He  occupied 
that  important  position  fortherestof  his  life. 

These  are  the  leading  facts  in  the  life  of 
Augustine  ;  and  when  we  come  to  look 
more  closely  into  them,  we  find  therein 
striking  illustrations  of  a  practical  and  in- 
structive character. 

I.  We  see  illustrated  in  Augustine's  his- 
tory the  importance  of  early  piety.  There  is 
no  greater  blessing  that  any  of  us  can  have 
in  this  life  than  to  be  brought  to  know  and 
love  the  Saviour  while  we  are  young.  It 
is  true,  as  Watts  says  in  one  of  his  beaudful 
hymns,  that 

17 


258         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

"  'T  will  save  us  from  a  thousand  snares 
To  mind  religion  young ; 
Grace  will  preserve  our  following  years, 
And  make  our  virtues  strong." 

We  could  not  have  a  better  illustration  of 
this  than  we  find  in  the  case  of  Augus- 
tine. If  he  had  only  followed  his  mother's 
teachings,  and  had  sought  to  know  and 
love  the  Saviour  while  he  was  a  boy  at 
home,  the  early  years  of  his  life,  like 
those  of  his  later  experience,  would  have 
been  happy  and  useful  years.  But  in- 
stead of  this,  when  he  left  home  to  go  on 
with  his  education,  he  was  like  a  ship  that 
goes  to  sea  without  chart  or  rudder,  and 
the  captain  of  which  does  not  know  what 
port  to  sail  for.  In  refusing  to  come  to 
Jesus  in  his  youth,  Augustine  was  turning 
his  back  on  the  only  true  light  ever  given 
to  us  in  regard  to  God  and  the  soul  and 
eternity.  Then  he  went  wandering  on 
along  dark  and  dangerous  paths.  He 
was  led  into  sinful  and  sorrowful  habits  of 
life,  which  became  a  burden  of  sorrow  to 
him  through  all  the  rest  of  his  life,  and 
almost  broke  his   mother's  heart.     What 


Augjistine  of  Numidia.  259 

bitter  tears  she  must  have  shed  over  her 
wayward,  unhappy,  sinful  boy  !  But  she 
never  ceased  to  pray  for  him,  and  never 
gave  up  the  hope  that  he  would  be  brought 
back  from  his  erring  ways  at  last.  Augus- 
tine disobeyed  the  command  *'  Remember 
now  thy  Creator  in  the  days  of  thy  youth  ;" 
and  the  result  was  that  he  had  to  pass 
through  years  of  sin  and  sorrow  before  he 
became  a  Christian.  And  so  it  will  always 
be.  The  good  Mr.  Jay  says,  "Youth  is 
the  spring-time  of  life  ;  and  this  must  de- 
termine what  the  glory  of  summer,  the 
abundance  of  autumn  and  the  provision 
for  winter  shall  be.  Youth  is  the  seed- 
time ;  and  '  whatsoever  a  man  soweth,  that 
shall  he  also  reap.'  Everything  of  im- 
portance in  after  life  is  affected  by  early 
piety." 

2.  We  see  strikingly  illustrated  in  the 
history  of  Augustine  the  blessed  influence 
of  a  pious  mother.  Earnest,  intelligent 
piety  was  the  most  prominent  feature  in 
the  character  of  Monica,  the  mother  of 
Augustine.  Like  Hannah,  the  mother  of 
Samuel,  she  consecrated  her  infant  son  to 


26o      History  of  the  Early  Church. 

the  Lord,  and  then  devoted  herself  to  his 
religious  education.  She  was  instrumental 
in  the  conversion  of  her  husband,  a  year 
before  his  death  ;  and  then  her  heart  went 
out  in  earnest  and  unceasing  lonorinofs  for 
the  salvation  of  her  son.  His  youth,  as 
we  have  said,  was  given  up  to  dissipation. 
He  had  embraced  the  errors  of  a  sect 
called  Manicheans,  which  she  feared  would 
be  the  ruin  of  his  soul.  For  thirty  years 
she  was  engaged  in  unceasing  prayers  and 
efforts  for  his  conversion.  Her  heart  sank 
within  her  when  it  seemed  at  times  as  if 
her  prayers  were  not  to  be  answered.  But 
at  last,  when  her  son  was  over  thirty  years 
of  age,  she  heard  that  he  had  renounced 
his  erroneous  views  and  had  given  up  his 
sinful  ways  and  was  earnestly  seeking  the 
Saviour.  He  was  then  at  Milan,  in  Italy. 
Thither  his  mother  hastened  to  him.  He 
told  her  all  about  the  long  struggle 
through  which  he  had  passed,  and  the 
resolution  he  had  now  made  to  devote  the 
rest  of  his  life  to  the  service  of  his  God 
and  Saviour.  We  can  imagine  something 
of  the  overflowing  gladness  of  his  mother's 


Augustine  of  Numidia,  261 

heart  on  finding  that  her  life-long  prayers 
had  been  answered  at  last.  She  was 
present  at  his  baptism  and  at  his  ordina- 
tion. Who  can  tell  the  joy  that  must 
have  thrilled  her  bosom  then  ?  Not  long 
after  this,  when  Augustine  was  about  to 
return  to  Africa,  his  native  land,  his  mother 
was  taken  sick,  and  after  a  short  illness 
passed  away  from  earth,  repeating,  as  she 
died,  the  words  of  good  old  Simeon  when 
he  held  the  infant  Saviour  in  his  arms  and 
said,  "  Lord,  now  lettest  thou  thy  servant 
depart  in  peace  ;  for  mine  eyes  have  seen 
thy  salvation." 

No  woman  has  ever  been  dearer  to  the 
Christian  Church  than  Monica,  the  saintly 
mother  of  Augustine  ;  and  no  mother  ever 
conferred  a  greater  blessing  on  the  Church 
than  she  did  in  her  untiring  efforts  and 
prayers  for  her  son's  conversion.  We 
shall  see  this  presently,  when  we  come  to 
speak  of  the  wonderful  amount  of  good 
which  he  did,  not  only  in  his  own  genera- 
tion but  also  in  the  generations  that  have 
followed  him.  Pious  mothers  have  always 
been  the  greatest  blessing  to  the  Church 


262      Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

The  extent  to  which  their  Influence  has 
reached  none  can  tell.  John  and  Charles 
Wesley,  the  famous  founders  of  the 
Methodist  Church,  owed  all  their  useful- 
ness to  the  Influence  of  their  mother's 
piety.  So  It  was  with  Philip  Doddridge 
and  John  Newton  ;  and  so  It  has  been  all 
through  the  history  of  the  Church  and  the 
world.  We  cannot  thank  God  too  much 
for  pious  mothers. 

"  The  mother,  in  her  office,  holds  the  key 

Of  the  soul ;  and  she  it  is  who  stamjjs  the  coin 

Of  character,  and  makes  the  being  who  would  be  a  savage 

Eut  for  her  gentle  care,  a  Christian  man." 

3.  We  see  Illustrated  in  the  history  of 
Augustine  that  we  never  can  begin  our  real 
life-work  until  we  beco7ne  true  Christians, 
Look  at  the  course  which  Augustine  pur- 
sued. He  was  going  from  one  place  to 
another,  and  engaging  first  in  this  employ- 
ment and  then  In  that ;  but  he  had  no 
definite  end  In  view  till  he  found  the 
Saviour  and  gave  himself  to  him.  Then 
he  had  a  clear  view  of  what  his  life-work 
was  to  be,  and  he  gave  himself  up  to  It 
at  once.     This  Is  generally  the  case.     We 


Augustine  of  Numidia,  263 

see  how  plainly  it  was  so  in  the  experience 
of  the  apostle  Paul.  He  had  been  sitting 
at  the  feet  of  Gamaliel  to  learn  all  about 
the  Jewish  laws.  He  was  one  of  the 
strictest  of  the  sect  of  the  Pharisees,  and 
a  faithful  attendant  on  all  the  outward 
duties  of  religion.  But  this  was  not  what 
he  was  sent  into  the  world  for.  What 
this  was  he  never  found  out  till  Jesus 
appeared  to  him  on  his  way  to  Damascus. 
Then  his  eyes  were  opened  and  his  heart 
was  changed,  and  he  offered  the  earnest 
prayer,  "Lord,  what  wilt  thou  have  me 
to  do  ?"  In  answer  to  this  prayer  it  was 
revealed  unto  him  that  he  was  chosen 
of  God  his  Saviour  "  to  bear  his  name 
before  Gentiles  and  kings,  and  the  children 
of  Israel."  The  commission  given  by 
Christ  to  the  twelve  apostles  was  repeated 
to  him.  He  was  told  to  ''  ^o  into  all  the 
world,  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every 
creature."  That  was  his  life-work  ;  but 
he  never  understood  it  till  he  bowed  in 
penitence  at  the  foot  of  the  cross  and  gave 
himself  to  Jesus.  Now  what  was  true  of 
the  great  apostle  and  of  the  saintly  Angus- 


264       Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

tine  is  equally  true  of  us  all.  We  never 
can  find  out  what  our  life-work  is  to  be  till 
we  become  true  Christians.  This  is  what 
Charles  Wesley  was  realizing  when  he 
wrote  these  sweet  lines  : 

"  Lord,  in  the  strength  of  grace, 
With  a  glad  heart  and  free, 
Myself,  my  residue  of  days, 
I  consecrate  to  thee. 

"  Thy  ransomed  servant,  I 
Kestore  to  thee  thine  own, 
And  from  this  moment  live  and  die 
To  serve  my  God  alone." 

Augustine  never  found  out  what  his  life- 
work  was  to  be  till  he  became  a  true 
Christian  ;  and  it  is  just  the  same  with  us 
all. 

5.  We  see  illustrated  in  the  life  of 
Augustine  that  when  we  begin  in  earnest 
to  seek  God,  he  is  always  ready  in  helping 
us  to  find  him.  When  Augustine  left 
his  mother's  home  and  gave  up  the  study 
of  the  Bible,  he  spent  years  in  trying  to 
find  out  the  truth  about  God  and  the  soul, 
among  the  different  schools  of  philosophy. 
But  his  efforts  were  all    unavailing.     He 


Augustine  of  Numidia.  265 

found  no  comfort  or  satisfaction  anywhere. 
There  was  no  ground  on  which  he  could 
rest.  Nothing  could  give  peace  to  his 
troubled  conscience,  or  Inspire  him  with 
hope  for  the  future.  This  state  of  things 
continued  till  he  left  Rome  and  went  to 
Milan  to  occupy  a  position  which  had  been 
offered  him  as  lecturer  on  rhetoric.  Here 
he  became  acquainted  with  the  famous 
Ambrose,  who  was  bishop  of  the  church 
there.  After  hearing  him  preach  In  public, 
and  having  conversations  with  him  In  pri- 
vate, for  the  first  time  In  his  life  the  lieht 
of  truth  began  to  shine  feebly  on  his  path. 
But  with  a  troubled  conscience  and  a 
mind  oppressed  with  doubts  and  fears,  he 
was  In  great  distress  and  knew  not  what 
to  do.  In  this  troubled  state  he  retired 
one  day  to  a  lonely  spot  In  his  garden. 
There  he  threw  himself  on  the  ground  and 
earnestly  asked  God  to  help  him.  Then 
he  seemed  to  hear  a  voice  saying  unto 
him,  ''  Take  and  read  ;  take  and  read." 
Having  a  copy  of  the  New  Testament 
with  him,  he  opened  it  at  one  of  the 
epistles  of  St.  Paul  and  read  these  words: 


266      Heroes  of  the  Eaidy  Church. 

''  Put  ye  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and 
make  not  provision  for  the  flesh,  to  fulfil 
the  lusts  thej^eof  (Romans  13  :  14).  Then 
he  bowed  in  penitence  and  faith  before 
Christ,  asking  that  his  sins  might  be  par- 
doned, his  heart  renewed,  and  that  grace 
might  be  given  him  to  be  God's  faithful 
servant.  At  once  the  light  shone  in  upon 
his  darkness  ;  his  burden  was  removed, 
and  peace  and  joy  in  believing  filled  his 
soul.  And  here  we  see  how  ready  God 
was  to  help  Augustine  as  soon  as  he  began 
In  earnest  to  seek  him.  And  what  God 
did  for  him.  In  this  respect,  he  Is  ready  to 
do  for  all  who  are  really  trying  to  find 
him.  His  precious  promise  is,  ''  Ye  shall 
seek  me,  and  find  me,  when  ye  shall  search 
for  me  with  all  your  heart"  (Jer.  29  :  13). 
It  Is  a  blessed  thing  to  find  a  truth  like 
this  so  strikingly  Illustrated  In  the  life  of 
this  noble  hero  of  the  early  Church. 

5.  The  only  other  point  to  which  I 
would  refer  as  illustrated  In  the  history  of 
Augustine  Is  that  when  we  ejtgage  heartily 
in  God's  service,  there  is  7io  tellijio-  how  much 
good  we  may  be  able  to  do.     The  turning- 


Augustme  of  Numidia.  267 

point  In  the  life  of  Augustine  began  when 
he  became  a  Christian  and  was  baptized 
and  joined  the  Church,  in  the  thirty-fourth 
year  of  his  age.  Soon  after  this  he  went 
back  to  Africa,  his  native  country.  There, 
after  he  had  been  some  time  actively  and 
successfully  engaged  in  the  duties  of  the 
ministry,  he  was  chosen  bishop  of  the 
church  in  Hippo,  a  town  not  far  from  the 
place  of  his  birth.  This  he  held  for  thirty- 
five  years,  and  with  it  his  life  of  special 
usefulness  be^an. 

A  popular  writer  of  our  own  day  speaks 
of  Augustine  thus  : — ''  As  a  bishop  he  won 
universal  admiration.  Councils  could  do 
nothing  without  his  presence.  Emperors 
condescended  to  sue  for  his  advice.  He 
wrote  letters  to  all  parts  of  Christendom. 
He  was  alike  saint,  oracle,  prelate  and 
preacher.  He  labored  day  and  night,  liv- 
ing simply  but  without  monkish  austerity. 
At  table,  reading  and  literary  conferences 
were  preferred  to  secular  conversation. 
His  person  was  accessible.  He  interested 
himself  In  everybody's  troubles,  and  visited 
the  forlorn  and  miserable.      He  was  Inde- 


268      Heroes  of  the  Early   Church, 

fatigable  in  reclaiming  those  who  had  gone 
astray.  He  won  every  heart  by  his  kind- 
ness and  charity,  and  captivated  every 
mind  by  his  eloquence  ;  so  that  Hippo,  a 
little  African  town,  was  no  longer  '  least 
among  the  cities  of  Judah,'  for  her  bishop 
was  consulted  from  the  very  ends  of  the 
earth,  and  his  influence  went  forth  through 
the  world  to  heal  divisions  and  establish 
the  faith  of  the  waverincr.  He  was  indeed 
a  father  of  the  universal  Church." 

And  then  Augustine  did  great  good  by 
the  noble  way  in  which  he  opposed  the 
prevailing  errors  of  that  age.  The  Mani- 
cheans,  the  Donatists  and  the  Palagians 
were  the  principal  sects  then  teaching 
erroneous  doctrines.  We  have  not  time 
to  enter  into  the  details  of  their  teaching. 
But  Augustine  pointed  out  their  errors, 
and  set  forth  the  real  truth  of  the  Script- 
ures on  the  points  at  issue,  in  the  clearest, 
strongest  and  most  successful  way.  And 
in  the  work  thus  accomplished  he  was  an 
untold  blessinor  to  the  Church  in  those 
days. 

And  then  by  his  writings  he  has  been  a 


Augustine  of  Numidia.  269 

blessing  to  the  Church  through  all  the 
many  centuries  that  have  passed  away 
from  his  own  time  to  the  present.  His 
letters,  his  work  on  the  Psalms,  on  the 
Trinity,  his  "  Confessions,"  and  his  "  City 
of  God,"  have  been  a  fountain  of  unfaiHng 
blessinor  to  the  Church. 

o 

Moreover,  he  lived  the  doctrines  which 
he  preached  and  of  which  he  wrote.  He 
completely  triumphed  over  the  temptations 
which  once  overcome  him.  No  one  could 
ever  remember  an  idle  word  from  his  lips 
after  his  conversion.  He  died  in  the  year 
430,  in  the  seventy-sixth  year  of  his  age, 
full  of  visions  of  the  unspeakable  beauty 
of  that  blessed  state  to  which  for  more 
than  forty  years  his  soul  had  been  con- 
stantly soaring. 

"  Thus  ceased  to  flow,"  said  a  writer  of 
his  own  age,  "  that  river  of  eloquence 
which  had  watered  the  thirsty  fields  of  the 
Church  ;  thus  passed  away  the  glory  of 
preachers,  the  master  of  doctors  and  the 
light  of  scholars  ;  thus  fell  the  courageous 
combatant,  who  with  the  sword  of  truth 
had  given  heresy  a  mortal  blow  ;  thus  set 


270       History  of  the  Early  Church. 

this  glorious  sun  of  Christian  doctrine, 
leavinor  the  world  in  darkness  and  in 
tears." 


CHAPTER   XVIII. 

PATRICK,    THE    APOSTLE    OF    IRELAND. 
BORN  372  or  373  (?) ;  and  died  493  (?). 

There  are  two  other  heroes  of  the  early 
Church  which  may  well  be  considered  in 
our  list,  for  they  were  used  to  give  a 
knowledge  of  the  gospel  of  Jesus  to  a 
portion  of  the  people  in  the  British  Islands, 
by  whom  our  own  country  was  afterward 
settled. 

In  the  fifth  century  of  the  Christian  era 
there  flourished  one  of  the  most  interest- 
ing characters  in  the  history  of  the  Church 
in  Western  Europe.  He  was  called  Saint 
Patrick,  "  the  apostle  of  Ireland."  A  great 
many  fancies  and  fables  have  been  con- 
nected with  his  name.  These  we  shall 
avoid  as  far  as  possible,  and  after  glancing 
at  the  well-known  facts  of  his  history,  shall 
speak  very  briefly  of  several  things  con- 

(271) 


272  Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

nected  with  him,  which  had  much  to  do 
widi  die  great  usefulness  that  marked  his 
Hfe. 

This  faithful  servant  of  God  is  said  to 
have  been  born  on  the  5th  of  April,  in  the 
year  ^ilZ-  He  belonged  to  a  very  good 
family.  His  father  and  grandfather  were 
both  ministers  of  the  gospel.  The  place 
of  his  birth  is  supposed  to  have  been 
Kirkpatrick,  near  Dunbarton,  in  Scotland. 
A  band  of  robbers  prowling  about  that 
part  of  the  country  took  him  prisoner  and 
carried  him  over  to  Ireland  when  he  was 
about  fifteen  years  of  age.  There  they 
sold  him  to  an  Irish  farmer,  who  made  him 
keeper  of  his  flocks  by  day  and  by  night. 
During  those  years  of  his  early  sojourn  in 
Ireland  he  learned  well  the  language  of 
the  country,  and  became  greatly  interested 
in  its  welfare  ;  and  thus  the  way  was  pre- 
pared for  the  great  work  which  he  was 
afterwards  the  instrument  in  accomplishing 
for  the  good  of  Ireland. 

After  six  years  of  hard  life  in  the  service 
of  the  man  to  whom  he  had  been  sold,  he 
managed  to  escape  and  return  to  his  own 


Patrick,  the  Apostle  of  Ireland,     273 

land,  and  to  his  father's  house.  Here, 
some  two  years  after  this,  he  formed  the 
design  of  devoting  his  hfe  to  the  work  of 
converting  Ireland  to  the  religion  of  the 
gospel.  Then  we  are  told  by  some  that 
he  went  over  to  the  continent,  and  pursued 
his  studies  under  the  care  of  his  mother's 
uncle,  St.  Martin,  the  bishop  of  Tours,  and 
that  by  him  he  was  ordained  to  the  minis- 
try. By  others  It  Is  said  that  he  went  to 
Rome,  and  was  commissioned  by  Pope 
Celestine  to  the  work  of  evangelizing  Ire- 
land. It  Is  hard  to  get  at  the  exact  truth 
in  recrard  to  some  of  these  thinofs  ;  but  we 
know  certainly  that  he  did  go  to  Ireland 
and  began  his  missionary  work  there  about 

432   A.D. 

He  preached  and  labored  there  with  such 
remarkable  success  that  before  his  death 
the  whole  country  was  brought  under  the 
influence  of  the  gospel.  He  baptized  the 
kings  or  chiefs  of  Dublin  and  Munsterand 
the  seven  sons  of  the  chief  of  Connaucrht. 
His  custom  was  always  to  strive  to  bring 
the  chiefs  of  a  particular  district  to  a 
knowledge  of  the  truth  first,  and  then  with 

18 


2  74       H 67^06 s  of  the  Early  Church. 

their  help  to  try  to  reach  the  people.  The 
story  about  his  driving  the  frogs  and 
venomous  reptiles  from  the  island  by  the 
waving  of  his  staff  or  crozier  must  be  put 
down  among  the  many  fables  that  have 
been  written  concernino^  him.  About  his 
age  at  the  time  of  his  death,  different 
accounts  have  been  given.  Some  of  these 
represent  him  as  dying  when  he  was  be- 
tween seventy  and  eighty,  while  others 
state  that  he  was  over  a  hundred  years  old 
when  he  died.  But  all  agree  in  stating 
that  whatever  the  year  was,  the  day  of  his 
death  was  the  1 7th  of  March.  When  this 
is  spoken  of  as  "  St.  Patrick's  day,"  it 
means  not  the  day  of  his  birth,  but  the  day 
of  his  death.  Such  are  the  chief  facts  in 
the  life  of  this  famous  man. 

And  now,  let  us  look  at  some  things 
connected  with  ''  the  apostle  of  Ireland" 
which  had  much  to  do  with  makino-  him  so 
successful  in  the  great  work  of  his  life. 

I.  The  first  of  these  was  his  early  piety. 

He  beofan  to  serve  God  when  he  was 
quite  young.  He  had  learned  to  know 
and  love  the  Saviour  before  he  was  stolen 


Patrick,  the  Apostle  of  Ireland,     275 

away  from  his  father's  home  and  sold  as  a 
servant  or  captive,  in  his  fifteenth  year  ; 
and  when  that  great  trouble  came  upon 
him,  he  was  ready  for  it.  He  knew  what 
to  do,  and  where  to  turn  for  help  and  com- 
fort. If  a  vessel  is  driven  suddenly  out  to 
sea,  without  a  chart  or  compass  on  board, 
then  those  who  are  in  that  vessel  must 
have  a  trying-  time.  They  will  not  know 
which  way  to  go,  or  how  to  steer  their 
vessel.  But  how  different  their  condition 
will  be  if  they  only  have  a  chart  and  com- 
pass with  them  !  The  chart  will  show 
them  which  way  to  go,  and  the  compass 
will  help  them  to  steer  their  vessel  in  that 
way.  But  when  we  learn  to  know  and 
love  Jesus,  he  will  be  our  chart  and  com- 
pass in  the  voyage  of  life  before  us.  His 
presence  and  blessing  are  the  things  most 
essential  to  our  success.  It  is  true,  as  the 
hymn  says,  that 

"  'T  will  save  us  from  a  thousand  snares, 

To  mind  religion  young  ; 
Grace  will  ensure  our  following  years, 

And  make  our  virtues  strong," 

Patrick,   ''  the   aposde  ot  Ireland,"    had 


276         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

the  great  blessing  of  early  piety,  and  this 
had  much  to  do  with  the  remarkable  suc- 
cess which  attended  his  work. 

2.  The  second  thing  which  led  to  this 
success  was  the  spirit  of  prayer  which  Jie 
exercised. 

When  he  was  a  youthful  captive  in  Ire- 
land, he  speaks  of  himself  thus  :  ''  I  was 
employed  every  day  in  tending  sheep  ;  I 
used  to  stay  in  the  woods  and  on  the 
mountain.  I  prayed  frequently.  The  love 
and  fear  of  God,  and  faith  in  him,  increased 
so  much,  and  the  spirit  of  prayer  grew  so 
strong  in  me,  that  I  often  prayed  more 
than  twenty  times  in  the  day,  and  almost 
as  often  in  the  night.  I  frequently  rose  to 
prayer  in  the  woods  before  daylight,  in 
rain  and  frost  and  snow.  I  feared  no  evil, 
nor  was  there  any  sloth  in  me.  I  felt  that 
God  was  with  me." 

We  have  another  illustration  of  how  he 
was  helped  by  prayer,  in  the  account  he 
gives  of  the  way  in  which  he  escaped  from 
his  captivity  in  Ireland.  ''  I  made  up  my 
mind,"  he  says,  "  to  leave  the  man  with 
whom  I  had   lived  for  six  years.      I  went 


Patrick,  the  Apostle  of  Ireland,     277 

In  the  power  of  the  Lord  to  look  for  the 
vessel  that  would  take  me  away.  I  found 
the  vessel  and  asked  for  a  passage  The 
captain  was  angry  and  said  I  could  not  go. 
As  I  turned  away  my  heart  was  lifted  up 
In  prayer  to  God.  I  had  not  gone  far 
when  one  of  the  sailors  came  after  me. 
He  called  to  me  and  said,  '  Come  back,  for 
we  want  you  to  go  with  us.'  I  went,  and 
was  kindly  received,  and  so  the  way  was 
opened  for  me  to  return  to  my  home  In 
Scotland." 

And  when  we  think  of  this  good  man  as 
going  on  with  his  work  In  Ireland,  In  the 
exercise  of  such  a  spirit  of  prayer  as  this, 
we  need  not  wonder  at  his  success.  Eliot, 
the  missionary  to  the  Indians,  said,  "  Prayer 
and  pains  can  do  anything."  It  Is  true,  as 
one  has  said,  ''  Prayer  has  divided  seas, 
rolled  up  flowing  rivers,  made  flinty  rocks 
gush  Into  fountains,  quenched  flames  of 
fires,  muzzled  the  mouths  of  lions,  stopped 
the  moon  and  the  sun  In  their  courses, 
burst  open  Iron  gates  and  brought  legions 
of  angels  down  from  heaven.  Prayer 
brought  one  man  from  the  bottom   of  the 


278      Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

sea,  and  carried  another  in  a  chariot  of 
fire  to  heaven.  What  is  there  that  prayer 
cannot  do  ?"  It  is  true,  as  the  hymn  says, 
that 

"  Prayer  makes  the  darkened  cloud  withdraw, 
Prayer  climbs  the  ladder  Jacob  saw, 
Gives  exercise  to  faith  and  love, 
Brings  every  blessing  from  above." 

And  when  we  think  of  Patrick  as  going  on 
with  his  work  under  the  influence  of  such 
a  spirit  of  prayer  as  he  exercised,  we  need 
not  wonder  at  the  success  which  crowned 
his  labors. 

3.  The  only  other  thing  of  which  we  have 
now  room  to  speak,  as  leading  to  the  suc- 
cess which  attended  his  labors,  was,  the 
use  he  made  of  the  word  of  God. 

In  the  few  writings  of  his  that  remain, 
we  find  nothing  that  agrees  with  the  teach- 
ing of  the  Romish  Church.  There  is  no 
mention  made  of  the  Pope  of  Rome.  Not 
a  word  is  said  about  the  doctrine  of  pur- 
gatory, or  confession  to  the  priests,  as 
necessary  to  salvation.  Nothing  about 
what  Romanists  call  transubstantiation,  or 


Patrick,  the  Apostle  of  Ireland,     279 

the  belief  that  in  the  sacrament  of  the 
Lord's  Supper  the  bread  and  wine  are 
changed  into  the  actual  body  and  blood  of 
Christ,  and  nothing  about  the  worship  of 
the  Virgin  Mary  can  be  found  in  his  books. 
Instead  of  making  any  reference  to  these 
Romish  errors,  his  writings  abound  in  the 
simplest  statements  of  gospel  truth.  The 
Scriptures  are  treated  by  him  with  the  pro- 
foundest  reverence.  He  speaks  of  them 
as  intended  by  God  for  the  free  use  of  all 
his  people.  In  support  of  his  teachings  he 
never  appealed  to  any  other  authority  than 
that  of  the  written  word.  No  matter 
what  popes  or  councils  or  the  fathers  said, 
the  simple  declaration  of  Scripture,  "  Thus 
saith  the  Lord,''  was  sufhcient  for  him. 
This  settled  everything.  In  the  few  chap- 
ters of  his  confession  alone,  there  are  no 
less  than  thirty-five  quotations  from  the 
Holy  Scriptures.  And  it  was  because  he 
made  such  a  free  use  of  ''the  sword  of 
the  Spirit"  that  he  was  so  successful  in  his 
contest  with  the  erroneous  opinions  and 
practices  of  heathenism. 

To  illustrate  this  part  of    our  subject, 


28o      History  of  the  Early  Church, 

and  show  how  clear  the  views  of  Patrick 
were  of  "  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus,"  I 
will  quote  here  a  few  lines  from  a  hymn 
said  to  have  been  written  by  him. 

"Christ  with  me,  Christ  before  me, 
Christ  behind  me,  Christ  within  me, 
Christ  beneath  me,  Christ  above  me, 
Christ  at  my  right,  Christ  at  my  left. 
Christ  in  the  heart  of  every  man 

Who  thinks  of  me  ; 
Christ  in  the  mouth  of  every  man 

Who  speaks  to  me  ; 
Christ  in  every  eye  that  sees  me, 
Christ  in  every  ear  that  hears  me." 

And  a  man  who  was  so  full  of  Christ, 
and  had  so  much  to  say  of  him,  could  not 
fail  of  being  successful  in  bringing  others 
to  him. 

And  when  we  think  of  the  early  piety 
of  this  faithful  servant  of  God,  of  the 
spirit  of  prayer  which  he  exercised,  and 
of  the  use  he  made  of  the  word  of  God, 
we  see  three  of  the  elements  of  success 
which  attended  his  missionary  labors  in 
Ireland. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

COLUMBA,    THE    APOSTLE    OF    SCOTLAND. 
[born  a.  d.  521  (?) ;   and  died  597  (?).] 

In  the  sixth  century  after  Christ,  God 
raised  up  another  famous  Christian  hero 
in  the  British  Islands.  The  most  interest- 
ing and  prominent  character  belonging  to 
this  period  of  the  Church's  history  is 
Columba,  or,  as  he  is  generally  called, 
Saint  Columba.  This  title  was  given  him, 
not  after  his  death,  as  is  often  done  in  the 
Romish  church,  but  during  his  life -time,  for 
the  eminent  piety  which  marked  his  char- 
acter. It  is  remarkable  that  Patrick,  whose 
character  we  considered  in  the  last  chap- 
ter, was  born  in  Scotland,  yet  devoted  his 
life  to  the  work  of  Christianizing  Ireland  ; 
while  Columba  was  born  In  Ireland,  but 
spent  his  days  in  the  work  of  Christianiz- 
ing  Scotland,     We    may    consider    very 

(281) 


282    Columba^  the  Apostle  of  Scotland, 

briefly  the  leading  facts  In  the  life  of  this 
good  man,  and  then  notice  some  of  the 
lessons  we  may  gather  from  it. 

Columba  was  born  in  Donegal  in  Ireland 
in  the  year  521.  He  was  connected  with 
a  princely  or  royal  family  in  that  part  of 
Ireland.  His  mother  was  connected  with 
a  princely  family  in  Argyleshire,  Scotland, 
and  it  was  no  doubt  the  thought  of  his 
mother's  connection  with  that  country 
which  p-ave  rise  to  his  Interest  in  it,  and  led 
him  to  devote  his  life  to  Its  welfare.  When 
he  was  quite  young  Columba  was  put 
under  the  care  of  a  faithful  minister  of  the 
gospel  to  receive  his  education.  Then  he 
was  led  to  know  and  love  the  Saviour,  and 
to  give  his  heart  and  life  to  him.  He 
entered  the  ministry  as  soon  as  he  was  of 
age,  and  the  first  years  of  his  ministerial 
life  were  occupied  In  the  work  of  preach- 
ing the  gospel  in  Ireland.  He  went 
through  the  districts  of  Leinster,  Con- 
naught,  Meath  and  other  parts,  making 
known  the  truth  as  It  Is  In  Jesus,  and 
calling  on  the  people  to  repent  and  believe 
in  Christ.     He  was  very  successful  in  this 


Columba,  the  Apostle  of  Scotland.   283 

work.  Like  Patrick,  his  custom  was  when 
he  formed  a  church  in  any  neighborhood 
to  have  a  school  estabHshed  in  connection 
with  it.  And  before  he  went  to  Scotland, 
he  had  been  the  means  of  oreanizine  one 
hundred  churches  and  schools  in  different 
parts  of  Ireland,  which  were  so  many  foun- 
tains of  blessing  to  the  neighborhoods  in 
which  they  were  established. 

In  the  year  563,  when  he  was  more  than 
forty  years  of  age,  Columba  with  a  com- 
pany of  twelve  friends,  chosen  to  help  him 
in  his  work,  left  Ireland  and  went  over  to 
Scotland,  to  begin  his  great  life-work 
there.  He  made  his  headquarters  on  the 
celebrated  island  of  lona.  This  belongs 
to  the  well-known  group  of  the  Hebrides, 
off  the  western  shore  of  Scotland.  lona 
is  a  little  island,  only  about  three  miles 
long  and  a  mile  and  a  half  broad.  It  was 
given  to  Columba  by  the  king  who  reigned 
over  the  Picts  in  the  northern  part  of  Scot- 
land. It  has  now  a  population  of  about 
five  hundred  people„  Here  Columba 
found  a  church  and  built  what  was  called 
a  monastery.      This  was  a  sort  of  school 


284      Histoiy  of  the  Early  Church, 

or  college,  which  became  one  of  the  most 
famous  seats  of  learning  in  all  that  part  of 
Europe.  It  was  kept  up  for  several  hun- 
dred years  after  his  death  with  great 
success,  and  was  the  means  of  doing  a 
wonderful  amount  of  good.  The  earnest 
piety  and  the  useful  learning  which  were 
spread  by  these  institutions,  and  the  many 
ruins  of  churches  and  schools  once  exist- 
ing here,  have  made  this  island  of  lona  a 
sort  of  classic  ground,  a  place  of  great 
interest  to  travellers,  who  love  to  visit  it. 
From  lona  as  his  headquarters  Columba 
spent  the  rest  of  his  busy  life  in  making 
missionary  journeys  through  the  surround- 
ing islands  and  other  parts  of  Scotland. 
He  preached  the  gospel  and  was  the 
means  of  establishing  churches  and  open- 
ing schools  wherever  he  went.  He  kept 
up  these  labors  perseveringly  till  his  death, 
which  took  place  in  the  seventy-eighth 
year  of  his  age. 

Such  were  the  leading  facts  in  the  life 
of  this  good  man.  We  may  set  him  before 
us  as  an  example  worthy  of  our  imitation 
in  three  important  respects. 


Columba,  the  Apostle  of  Scotland.  285 

I.    We  fi7id  in   Columba  an  example  of 
untiring  industry. 

This  marked  his  whole  course.     He  be- 
gan, continued  and  ended  his   life   in  the 
exercise  of  this  spirit.     In  all  his  plans  of 
usefulness,  and   in  his   carrying   on  of  his 
missionary  labors,  this  industry  was  ever 
to  be  seen.     Whatever  he  began  to  do  he 
persevered  in   doing    till    it    was    accom- 
plished.      When    at    home,    between    his 
missionary  journeys,  he  employed  himself 
diligently  in  study.       The  art  of  printing 
was  not  then  known,  and  the  pen  had  to 
take  the  place  of  the  press  in  multiplying 
such    books  as    were   needed.      Columba 
used  his  pen  so   industriously  that  in  the 
course  of  his  busy  life  he  had  with  his  own 
hand  written  out  no  less  than    three  hun- 
dred volumes.     And  so  earnest  was  he  in 
trying  to  further  the  interests  of  religion 
and  learning  in  this  way  that  he  continued 
to  employ  himself  thus   to  the  end  of  his 
life.     Only  a  few  days  before  his  death  he 
was  busily  engaged  in  writing  out  a  copy 
of  the  Psalms  of  David,  to  be  used  in  one 
of  his  schools.     And  this  love  of  knowb 


286      Heroes  of  the  Early  Church, 

edge  he  tried  to  get  others  about  him  to 
cherish  also.  His  seminary  at  lona  was  a 
fountain  from  which  streams  of  learning 
and  religion  flowed  forth  on  every  hand. 
Students  came  to  lona  from  all  parts  of 
Scotland  and  England,  and  even  from 
the  continent  of  Europe  ;  and  when 
their  studies  were  finished,  they  went 
forth  to  spread  abroad  on  the  right  hand 
and  on  the  left,  the  blessings  of  knowl- 
edge and  religion  which  they  had  received 
there. 

And  Columba  taught  to  all  about  him 
the  same  industry  which  he  practiced  him- 
self Hence  with  this  untiring  industry 
in  himself  and  in  those  about  him,  we  need 
not  wonder  that  he  was  successful  in  all 
that  he  did.  On  the  walls  of  the  cele- 
brated temple  of  Delphos  in  Greece  there 
used  to  be  inscribed  this  motto  :  ''  Nothing 
is  impossible  to  industry!' 

2.    We  have  in   Columba  an  example  of 
UNFAILING  KINDNESS.    ThIs  idea  is  wrapped 
up  in   his  very   name.       Columba  is   the 
Latin  name  for  a  dove  ;  and  the  dove  has 
always    been    considered  as  the   type    or 


Columba,  the  Apostle  of  Scotland.  287 

emblem  of  kindness  or  gentleness.  Hence 
we  read  that  when  our  Saviour  was  bap- 
tized in  the  river  Jordan,  the  heavens  were 
opened  above  him,  and  the  Holy  Ghost 
descended  in  a  bodily  shape  like  a  dove, 
and  abode  upon  him.  "  The  gentleness 
of  Christ"  was  a  chief  element  of  his  char- 
acter. And  it  will  be  so  with  all  who  are 
his  true  servants.  It  was  so  with  Col- 
umba.  The  name  first  given  him  as  a 
child  had  only  two  syllables  in  it.  He  was 
called  Colum.  But  as  he  was  growing  up 
he  showed  so  much  kindness  and  gentle- 
ness that  his  parents  concluded  to  add  an- 
other syllable  to  his  name  and  called  him 
Columba — the  dove.  And  he  well  deserved 
this  name.  The  spirit  that  dwelt  in  him 
was  a  gentle  and  loving  spirit.  This  gave 
a  sweet  expression  to  his  countenance,  and 
made  his  voice  and  manner  always  pleas- 
ing. His  disciples  and  servants  he  always 
spoke  of  as  his  ''children"  or  ''brethren." 
Everything  connected  with  them  became 
an  object  of  interest  to  him.  If  he  knew 
that  they  were  in  trouble  or  danger,  he 
would  engage  in  earnest  prayer  for  them. 


288       Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

When  they  were  laboring  in  the  field,  he 
would  go  out  and  cheer  and  encourage 
them  in  their  work.  He  always  had  a  kind 
word  for  every  one.  He  was  often  called 
upon  to  settle  disputes  which  were  likely 
to  end  in  trouble  and  bloodshed.  And  he 
was  always  successful  in  these  efforts.  A 
short  time  before  his  death  a  little  incident 
occurred  which  strikingly  illustrates  the 
effect  of  his  kindness.  When  going  home 
from  church  one  day  he  was  so  feeble  that 
he  was  obliged  to  stop  and  rest  by  the 
way.  As  he  was  sitting  under  the  shadow 
of  a  tree  an  old  horse  that  had  long  been 
accustomed  to  carry  milk  to  the  monas- 
tery, and  had  experienced  Columba's 
kindness,  came  up  to  him  and  laid  his  head 
upon  his  breast  as  if  he  wanted  to  say, 
"  Good-by,  old  master  ;  I'm  sorry  you  are 
going  to  leave  us."  His  servant  was 
going  to  drive  the  animal  away ;  but 
Columba  said,  ''  No  ;  let  him  alone.  He 
only  wants  to  show  that  he  is  sorry  to 
lose  me."  And  then  he  patted  him 
gently  on  the  head  and  said,  ''Good-by." 
How  true  it  is,  as  the  good  Henry  Martyn 


Colmnba,  the  Apostle  of  Scotla^id.  289 

said,    that    the   power    of    gentleness    Is 
Irresistible  !" 


"  Speak  gently — it  is  better  far 
To  rule  by  love  than  fear  ; 
Speak  gently — let  no  harsh  words  mar 
The  good  we  might  do  here." 


3.  Columba  co^nes  before  us  also  as  an 
example  of  earnest  piety. 

We  see  this  In  the  early  part  of  his 
Christian  life.  We  have  spoken  of  him 
as  belonging  to  the  royal  family  of  the 
tribe  among  whom  he  was  born.  As  the 
oldest  son  In  that  family  he  was  the  heir 
of  the  crown.  He  had  become  a  Chris- 
tian before  his  father  died  ;  but  In  the  state 
of  feeling  then  existing  among  his  people 
they  were  unwilling  to  have  a  Christian 
for  their  king.  He  found  that  either 
Christ  or  the  crown  must  be  given  up. 
And  like  the  apostle  Paul  he  "  conferred 
not  with  flesh  and  blood."  He  clung  to 
Christ  and  let  the  crown  go.  Here  he 
showed  his  earnest  piety.  This  was  the 
foundation  on  which  the  character  of  this 
good  man  was  built ;  and  there  Is  no  better 

19 


290         Heroes  of  the  Early  Church. 

foundation  on  which  a  good  character  can 
be  built. 

The  piety  of  Columba  was  not  confined 
to  Sabbath  or  the  sanctuary.  He  sought 
to  sanctify  everything  by  the  word  of  God 
and  prayer.  If  he  mounted  his  cart  for  a 
journey,  he  first  asked  God's  blessing  on 
his  journey.  When  he  entered  the  barn 
and  saw  the  heaps  of  grain  there,  he 
lifted  up  his  heart  to  God  and  thanked 
him  for  it.  He  began  no  work  and 
engaged  in  no  business  without  asking 
God's  blessing  upon  it.  If  he  adminis- 
tered medicine  to  the  sick,  it  was  always 
accompanied  with  a  prayer  to  God  who 
healeth.  His  preaching  was  always  pre- 
ceded and  followed  by  prayer.  And 
when  we  think  of  his  untiring  industry, 
his  unfailing  kindness  and  his  earliest 
piety,  we  need  not  wonder  at  the  success 
which  crowned  his   labors. 


INDEX. 


Abraham,  59. 

"Against  the  Heretics,"  by  Iren- 

seus,  86. 
Alexander,  bishop  of  Alexandria, 

168,  174. 
Alexandria,  89,  97,  120,  165. 
Ambrose,  213-227,  265. 
Anecdotes,  99,  101,  116,  118,  122,124, 

130,  148,  168,  182,  187,  193, 198,  209, 

214,  223,  235,  247,  248,  276,  288. 
Antioch,  27,  228,  242. 
Ariau  heresy,  150,  171,  210,  215,  222, 

232. 
Aristotle,  62. 
Aries,  213. 
Arius,  156,  171. 
Athanasian  creed,  172. 
Athanasius  the  Great,  165-189. 
Athens,  89,  96,  191,  202. 
Augustine  of  Numidia,  255-270. 
Augustus,  106. 
Authentic  History,  16. 
Auxentius,  215. 
Barnabas,  13. 
Basil,  167,  200-212. 
Believers,  how  strengthened,  29. 
Bethlehem,  244. 
Bible,   copied   and  circulated,   164, 

245,  250,  285. 
"  Bishop,"  how  used,  16. 
Blessings,  how  we  may  be,  70. 
Callisto,  45. 
Carthage,  105,  136. 
Cave'sHistory  of  Apostolic  Fathers, 

167. 
Csecelius,  140. 
Csesarea,  150,  200. 
Cecrops,  89. 

Charity,  example  of,  141,  205. 
Christians,  first  so  called,  28. 
Chrysostom,  John,  228-240. 
Clement  of  Alexandria,  89-104  122 
Clement  of  Rome,  11-22. 
Columba,  281-290. 
Consecration,  100,  206,  210,  233,  244, 

266. 
Consistency,  example  of,  112. 
Constans,  209. 

Constantine,  130,  153,  163,  191. 
Constantinople,  163,  202,  231,  240. 
Conversions,  13,  19,  20,  45,  68,  75,  77, 

97,  108,  112,  130,  139,  152,  242,  243. 


Corinth,  church  at,  17. 

Council  of  Milan,  224. 
of  Nice,  156,  171,  172. 

Courage,  example  ol,  18, 132, 145, 236. 

Cow  per,  247. 

Cyprian,  136-148. 

Damasus,  243. 

Decision,  example  of,  107,  140. 

Defence,  or  apology  by  J  ust,iu  Mar- 
tyr, 72. 

Devotion,  example  of  filial,  123. 

Diligence,  untiring,  les.on  of,  35, 
132,  135. 

Dream  of  Jerome,  246. 

Easter,  83. 

Edict  of  Toleration  by  Constantine, 
155. 

Eleutherus,  82. 

Eloquence,  209,  216. 

Endurance,  lesson  of  patient,  32. 

Epistle  by  Clement,  17. 
Ignatius,  37. 
Polycarp,  50. 

Eudoxia,  234. 

Eusebius,  149,  164,  208. 

Example,  power  of,  101. 

"  Exhortations  to  tlie Gentiles,"  103. 

Faith,  triumph  of,  37. 

False  teaching,  how  met,  28,  50,  82, 
87,103,  117,131,279. 

Fenelon,  99. 

Folly  of  resisting  God,  196. 

Galerius,  153. 

Gnostics,  85. 

Good,  example  of  doing,  17,  161. 

Good  foundation  for  character,  194. 

Grace,  power  of,  53. 

Graded  Helps  for  study  of  Scrij)- 
tures,  by  Origen,  134. 

Great  questions,  12 

Gustavus  III.,  124. 

Hill,  Rev.  Rowland,  226. 

History  of  the  Church,by  Eusebius, 
162. 

Hospital  built  by  Basil,  206. 

Humility,  example  of,  16,  224. 

Hymn  by  Ambrose,  220. 

Ignatius,  23-39. 

Industry,  example  of,  285. 

Infallibility  of  pope,  83. 

lona,  283. 

Ireland,  273. 

291 


292 


Index, 


Irenpeus,  74-88, 

"Ireneeus  against  Heresies,"  87. 

Jerome,  24:1-254. 

Jerusalem,  attempt  to  rebuild,  196. 

John,26,  43,  45,  113. 

Julian  the  Apostate,  183,  190-199, 

Justina,  222. 

Justin  Martyr,  59-73. 

Kindness,  example  of,  286. 

Lactantius,  155, 

Layman,  a,  chosen  bishop,  216. 

Learning,  great  in,  201. 

Leonidas,  120. 

Letter  of  Justin  Martyr,  69, 

Libanius,  230. 

Lyons,  74. 

Marcus  Antouius,  44,  53,  72. 

Aurelius,  72. 
:Martin  of  Tours,  273. 
Maityrdom,  19,  21,  38,  44,  55,  73,  80, 

121,  147. 
iSIaxentius,  154. 
Maximianus,  159. 
Memorizing  Scripture,  121. 
Milan,  213,  217,  257. 
Missionary  work,  75,   76,  116,   234, 

273,  282. 
INIonica,  256,  260. 
Montanists,  82,  114. 
Mother's  influence,  192, 193,  201,214, 

230,  256,  259. 
Music  introduced  by  Ambrose,  48. 
Nabliis  or  Shechera,  59. 
Nice,  council  of,  156,  171,  172. 
"Nicene  Creed,  The,"  158,  174, 
Obelisks  of  Alexandria,  94. 
Omar,  caliph,  94. 
Origen,  11,  120-1,35. 
Pamphilus,  159. 
Panttenus,  96,  102. 
Parthenon,  the,  93. 
Patrick  of  Ireland,  271-280, 

his  hymn,  280. 
Paul,  11,  26,  34,  93,  99,  108,  132. 
Paula,  243. 
Piehmius,  131, 
Peacemaking,  81. 
"  Pedagogue,  The,"  10.9 
Pericles,  93. 
Persecutions,  19,  22,  32,  44,  53,  72,  80, 

121,  160,  179,  182,  234. 
Peter,  11,  13,  16,  26. 
Peterborough,  Lord,  99. 
Piety,  example  of,  141,  204,  222,  226, 
232,  257,  289. 
importance  of  early,  257,  274. 
Philosophy,  schools  of '  ancient,  62, 

96. 
Plague,  145. 


Plato,  65. 

Polycarp,  37,  40-56,  75, 

Pothinus,  79, 

Prayer,  by  Chrysptom,  239, 

importance  of,  276. 
Providence  of   God,  examples  of, 

44,  46,  237,  245,  252. 
Pythagoras,  65. 
Rome,  16,  82,  112,  218. 
Sayings  of  "  Heroes,"  34,  39,  55, 147, 

177,  183,  198,  223,  235. 
Scotland,  272,  281. 
Scouiging  Roman,  22. 
Self-denial,  example  of,  126,  225. 
"Septuagint,"  the,  251. 
Servants  of  God,  how  honored,  51, 

how  cared  for,  248,  250, 
Severus,  121. 
Shechem,  59. 
Smyrna,  40,  75,  77. 
Stridon  in  Dalmatia,  241, 
"Stromata,"  103. 
Sydney  Smith,  118. 
Tiigaste  of  Numidia,  256, 
"Te  Deum,"  221, 

Text  Book,  by  Clement  of  Alex- 
andria, 103. 
Tertullian,  105-119. 
Theodora,  19. 

Traditions,  13,  16,  19,  21,  26,  66,  274. 
Trajan,  32. 

Trials,  great  in,  176, 181. 
Truth,  defender  of,  71,  171,  210,  222. 

diligence  in  communicating,  35, 
46,  98,  132,  208,  232,  285. 

fidelity  to,  example  of,  131, 

follower  of,  68,  176,  206. 

lives  and  acts,  118. 

seeking  and  finding  the,  12,  46, 
61,  95,  264. 
Tryphon,  71, 
Usefulness,   example    of,   116,  207, 

218. 
Valerian,  146. 
Victor,  83. 

Vulgate  Bible,  245,  251, 
Wesley,  Charles,  100,  116,  264. 
Wisdom,  lesson  of  practical,  28. 
Worker,  earnest,  example  of,  85, 2.")1. 
Worship,  increase  of  interest  in,  219. 
Writings  of  Athanasius,  186. 

of  Basil,  211. 

of  Origen,  133. 

of  Patrick,  278. 

of  Tertullian,  117. 
Young  Christians,  Origen's  notes 

for,  134. 
Zeal  of  Chrysostom,  232, 
Zeno,  62, 


1    1012  01237   9360     m 


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fc  .5 


DATE  DUE 


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PN)NTEO  IMU.S    A 


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