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into ridicule; which he effects by giving the reins to his own imagination, distorting the narrative of the Evangelists, or drawing false conclusions from what they relate. Thus he speaks with much indecency and profaneness of the birth of our Lord; represents him as having learned the art of magic in Egypt, and as taking to himself ten or eleven men,-vile publicans and sailors,-going about with them, and getting his subsistence in a vile, base, and shameful manner. A sin gle example may suffice of the manner in which he misrepresents the principles of the Christians.

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I say nothing more severe than truth obliges me to say, is manifest hence-when others invite to the mysteries, they invite men after this manner, Whoever has clean hands and a good understanding; or whosoever is pure from vice, whose soul is conscious of no evil, and lives according to the law of righteousness; let him come hither." Now, let us see whom they invite. Whoever,' they say, 'is a sinner, whoever is ignorant, whoever is silly, and, in a word, whoever is miserable, these the kingdom of God receives.' Whom do you mean by 'sinners ?' Do you not thereby intend thieves and robbers, prisoners, sacrilegious, and the like? And what else would men say who aim to form a society of the worst of men?" The reply of Origen is as follows:-"It is one thing to invite sick souls to come to be healed, and another thing to call such as are cured to partake of higher mysteries. We who know the difference of these two things, first invite men to come and be healed, and we exhort sinners to attend to those who teach men not to sin; and the ignorant and unwise we exhort to hearken to those who will teach them wisdom, the weak we exhort to aim at manly wisdom, and the miserable we invite to accept of happiness, or, to speak more properly, blessedness. And when they whom we have admonished have made some progress, and have learned to live well, then they are initiated by us."

*Orig. c. Cels., l. iii., p.

As a writer, Celsus does not appear to have been either acute or profound; his opinions upon the subjects of philosophy and religion seem to have been unsettled, and are often contradictory; and his objections to Christianity are such as would present themselves to almost any mind that takes up the Bible with a determination to explain it in a way inconsistent with the idea of its divine origin. Accordingly, we find that many of his arguments have been repeated by infidels, age after age; and after being a thousand times refuted, they are still advanced with apparently undiminished confidence in their force and originality.

About a hundred years after Celsus flourished Porphyry,† the bitterest and perhaps the most formidable of all the early enemies of Christianity. The same remark, however, may be extended to his works that we applied to that of Celsus; namely, that they only contain speculative reasonings and bitter raillery, instead of an examination of the facts which support the Gospel, or an attempt to invalidate their evidence. Porphyry was a Syrian by birth, his name was Melek, which Longinus changed into Porphyry.§ He was a man of great learning and eloquence. Neander finely characterizes him as having recast an oriental spirit in a Grecian mould. Among his voluminous works there were fifteen books against the Christians, of which nothing now remain but fragments. Answers were written to this work soon after it appeared by Eusebius of Cæsarea, Methodius, and, at a later period, by Apollonarius. But these replies have also perished. Modern infidels have complained that the Christians suppressed what they could not answer; and an edict of Constantine,

+ Socrates speaks of Porphyry as having been a Christian, H. E., iii., 23, but apparently without grounds.

Melek signifies "a King" in the Syriac; hence he is called Baσiλeus, sometimes Malchus, with the Latin termination. He is called Bataneotes by Jerome and Chrysostom.

§ He studied under Longinus, who changed his name into a word signifying "purple,"-worn by Kings. (Eunap. Porph., p. 16.)

commanding the books of Porphyry to be burnt, has been represented as illustrative of the means which the Christians were ready to employ in support of their cause. Such an edict is inserted in the histories by Socrates and Sozomen; but there is not wanting reason to suppose that they were imposed upon by a forgery; the heathen enemies of Constantine, Julian, Zosimus, and others, have not charged him with this instance of false zeal, and there is no allusion to the subject in any contemporary Christian writer. But though there had been such an edict, we cannot ascribe to it the loss of the books by Porphyry, copies of which were in existence after the time of Constantine. The truth seems to be, that Porphyry's attack upon Christianity and the answers to it fell gradually into oblivion.

From the fragments which still remain of the works by Porphyry, it appears that he argued against the truth of the Gospel history, from the contradictions which it seemed to involve, and from the improbable nature of much that is recorded; that he endeavoured to show that our Saviour was often actuated by weakness and caprice; and that from the differences between Peter and Paul, he sought to show that they could not be men commissioned to teach a revelation from heaven; he also brought forward many objections against the Old-Testament Scriptures, and he devoted a whole book (the 12th) to show that, from the plainness of many of the prophecies of Daniel as to the Kings of Syria and Egypt, they were written after the events.

*

There is another work ascribed to Porphyry, entitled, "The Philosophy of Oracles;"+ which professed to be a system of theology deduced from the pretended oracles of anti

Neander mentions his finding fault with the allegorizing in an arbitrary manner, which a certain theological school indulged, and that this objection comes with an ill grace from a Platonist; but Porphyry mentions that the method was borrowed from the followers of Plato. (See Euseb., H. E., vi. 19.)

Η Περί της εκ Λογίων Φιλοσοφίας.

quity. Such a work might have been expected from a man who seems to have wished to unite a philosophic theism with a popular polytheism. The great proportion of the learned, accordingly, have considered it as genuine. On the other hand, Lardner endeavours to show, from internal evidence, that the production was the forgery of some Christian writer who assumed the character of a Heathen, that he might with better effect introduce some oracles calculated to recommend the Christian religion. The "Philosophy of Oracles' is quoted by Eusebius to show that an argument in favour of the truth of Christianity may be found in the Oracles of Apollo. In that work it is stated, that some of the Heathens consulted the oracle whether Christ might be ranked among the gods: the oracle replied, "The wise man knows that the soul is immortal, but the soul of that man is most eminent for its piety."Į They further asked, why Christ had suffered death: the answer "To be subject to moderate torments is the fate of the body; but the souls of the pious go and take their station in the heavenly mansions." We can scarcely suppose that Eusebius would ascribe to Porphyry a treatise not written by him. And it is to be observed, that Porphyry only quotes these oracles,|| and the use that he might have made of them remains uncertain. He might have been deceived concerning them; and whether the responses were forged or actually delivered, may be doubtful. It is certain that the oracles were consulted respect

was,

+ Οττι μεν αθανατη ψυχη μετα σωμα προβαίνει

Γιγνώσκει σοφιῇ τετιημενος, αλλαγε ψυχή

Ανερος ευσεβίῃ προφερέστατη εστιν

εκείνου.

(Euseb. Dem. Evang., lib. íii., p. 134.) § Σωμα μεν αδρανεσιν βασάνοις αιει προβεβληται

Ψυχη δ' ευσεβέων εις ουρανιον πεδον
ιζει.
(Idem, lib. iii.)

This is the view taken by Fontenelle; who is strangely referred to by Fabricius (Bib. Gr., t. iv., p. 191) and Lardner, (vol. vii, p. 444,)as being of opinion that the work is not genuine, (See his Hist. des Oracles, chap. iv.)

ing Christ, and it is not improbable that the responses might vary according to the opinions of the Priests. On the other hand, the responses favourable to Christ might be forged by some Christian or by some Heathen. Neander is of opinion, that the responses in the "Philosophy of Oracles" were actually delivered, for that no Christian would have had the prudence to speak with so little decision; and that the example of these heathen oracles induced Christians to compose others which are known to be forgeries.

Hierocles, Governor of Bithynia, a cruel persecutor of the Christians, was the author of a work against their religion, entitled, "A Truthloving Discourse addressed to the Christians."+

In this treatise,

which was published about the beginning of the fourth century, many of the arguments of Celsus and Porphyry are repeated. But Hierocles does not rest his cause chiefly upon these arguments; and the great design of his book is to compare Apollonius Tyanæus with Jesus Christ, and to show that Apollonius was the superior character. "You regard," says he, "Christ as a god, because he restored a few blind men to sight, and did a few things of a similar kind; while Apollonius, who performed so many miracles, is not on that account held by the Greeks as a god, but only as a man especially beloved by the gods." And taking for granted the truth of all that is recorded of Apollonius, he runs a parallel between his life and that of Christ, to the disadvantage of the latter. From the time of Hierocles, Apollonius was considered as the hero of the old religion; and even among Christian writers, there are many who have attached more importance to the life and character of this vain impostor than they deserve. Fleury has introduced a full account of his history, and seems to consider that his won

* Neander, K. G., vol. i., p. 270.

+ Λογοι φιλαληθείς προς τους Χριστια

νους.

Euseb. Contr. Hier., p. 511.

derful works were performed by the assistance of Satan.§ Tillemont has treated him with too much honour, when he says, that he was one of the most dangerous enemies || that the Christians had in the beginning, and that Satan seems to have sent him into the world about the same time with Jesus Christ, either to balance his authority in the minds of those who should take his cheats for true miracles, or to induce those who looked upon him as a deceiver, to doubt also of the miracles of Christ.

Cudworth entertained a similar opinion.¶ Neander takes a different view, and speaks of him as possessed of extraordinary gifts, and even perhaps under the influence of the Spirit; though destroying the talent intrusted to him.

In regard to the character and actions of Apollonius, as set forth by his biographer, admitting them to be in any degree comparable to those of our Saviour, as described in the New Testament, there is to be observed a decided difference in the evidence which we possess of their reality. The books of the New Testament were written soon after the death of our Lord, by those who had been witnesses of what he had said and done, and when there

§ Hist. Eccles., tom. i., pp. 20, 213, 237, &c. Hist. Eccles., tom. i., p. 264.

"It is a thing highly probable, if not unquestionable, that Apollonius Tyanæus, shortly after the publication of the Gospel to the world, was a person made choice of by the policy, and assisted by the powers, of the kingdom of darkness, for the doing some things extraordinary, merely out of design to derogate from the miracles of our Saviour Jesus Christ, and to enable Paganism the better to bear up against the assaults of Christianity. For amongst the many writers of this philosopher's life, some, and particularly Philostratus, seem to have had no other aim in this, their whole undertaking, than only to dress up Apollonius in such a garb and manner as might make him best seem to be a fit corrival with our Saviour. Eunapius, therefore, telling us that he mis-titled his book, and that instead of 'Απολλωνίου Βιος, 'The

Life of Apollonius,' he should have called it, Θεού εις Ανθρωπους Επιδημίαν, * The Com ing down and Converse of God with Men;'' for asmuch as this Apollonius,' saith he, was not a bare philosopher or man, αλλα τι θεων και ανθρωπου μεσον, but a certain middle thing betwixt the gods and men.'" (Intellectual System, p. 265.)

were thousands alive who might detect any attempt to deceive; while our chief knowledge of the life of Apollonius is from memoirs written upwards of a hundred years after his death. Philostratus, the author of this piece of biography, undertook the work at the request of the Empress Julia, wife of Septimius Severus, who put into his hands an account of the sayings and divinations of Apollonius, by Damis, who had been his constant companion. He had also the benefit of an account of Apollonius by one Maximus, and the last will and testament of the philosopher. Such is the account given by Philostratus himself of his materials; and it is obvious that nothing can be more unsatisfactory. We have, in the first place, no information as to the accuracy of the memoirs by Damis; nor do we know if Philostratus made a faithful use of them. In this way his narrative is without the evidence necessary to give us confidence in its truth.

On the other hand, conceding the history to be true, Apollonius is very far from being a perfect character; and most of the marvellous things ascribed to him may easily be accounted for, without the intervention either of miraculous or magical agency. He was a native of Tyana

*Philostr., lib. i., cap. 3.

in Cappadocia, of an ancient family, possessed of excellent talents, had an imposing appearance, and was not without some virtues. He attached himself to the sect of Pythagoras, practised great absti nence, observed the law of silence for five years; and by some instances of great disinterestedness, by the severe tenor of his life, (though not without the suspicion of concealed vicious indulgences,) and by his pretences to inspiration, and perhaps partly by his singularities of walking barefooted and dressing himself in flax, he gained much notoriety, and was followed by many admirers. He was a great traveller, like those of his sect; and wherever he went he recounted the wonders he had witnessed and performed. Many miracles are ascribed to Apollonius; but they are either obviously fabulous, or they can be explained by natural causes. For example: it is related that he restored a young woman to life; but, according to the showing of his biographer himself, there were symptoms that life had not left her.t The time of his death is not known; but it is supposed to have been about the year 97. Statues were erected to his honour, and divine worship in some places was paid to him.

+ Idem, lib. iv., cap. 45. See also Euseb. Contr. Hier., p. 530, &c.

ROME AND THE REFORMATION.*

I Now return to Avignon, and to the thoughts which occupied me, while gazing upon its ancient walls. I had just descended the river, the same which John XXII. also descended, when, succeeding to Clement V., he came to Avignon, continuing to find there the seat of the Popedom. The election had been a stormy one. It began at Carpentras. The Cardinals from

* Rome and the Reformation: or, a Tour in the South of France. A Letter to the Rev. Richard Burgess, Honorary Secretary of the Foreign Aid Society. By J. H. Merle D'Aubignè, D.D. London. Seeleys.

Gascony, and the Italian Cardinals, had long and violently disputed together. At length the Gascon Cardinals set fire to the palace. The greater part of the town was reduced, and the conclave dispersed.* Under the intervention of the French Government the election recommenced at Lyons. The Italians obstinately insisted that the new Pope should fix his residence at Rome. “I swear," exclaimed John XXII., "that I will never mount horse or

* Joannes Canonicus in Vila Joannis XXII Baluz. I., p. 113.

VOL. XXIII. Third Series. JULY, 1844.

2 S

mule, except to go to Rome." He was, in consequence, elected; and he kept his oath, continues the historian; for he went from Lyons to Avignon by water. Upon arriving in that city, he proceeded on foot to the palace, which he never left but to go to the principal church, which closely adjoins to that residence.* This is the way in which the Popes keep their oaths.

dungeons, the dark abodes, a haughty Minos, a devouring Minotaur, or the shameful retirement of an abandoned Venus, that are wanting there; but that which is wanting is charity, is faith, is a thread to guide one out of those tortuous and complicated ways, an Ariadne, and a Daedalus. There is no hope of safety there but in gold. It is with gold that Kings are appeased, it is with gold that monsters are overcome; it is with gold that rocks are cleft, it is with gold that gaolers are mollified.... What shall I say?

The Papacy continued to be fixed at Avignon, from the year 1309 to the year 1377. This seventy years' captivity, as it was called, stripped the sovereign Pontiff of the glory....It is at the price of gold that which had so long surrounded him. The Popes from henceforth were forced to bow to the least wishes of the Court of France, and it was only in secret that they dared to act with anything like independence.

And yet never was the Pope exalted to so high a pitch as during his residence at Avignon. "Can

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we appeal from the Pope to God? asks a Doctor. "No," he answers, "for an appeal can only be made from a lesser Judge to his superior; and none is greater than himself: the judgment of the Pope and the judgment of God are the same thing." And another Doctor asserts, "To believe that our Lord God the Pope had not power to decree what he did decree, is heresy."

I could scarcely turn my eyes from those walls, where the Pontiffs, who assumed the name of God himself, verifying this scripture, "Showing himself that he is God," (2 Thess. ii. 4,) gave themselves up, at the same time, to the most dissolute course of life. Petrarch, who lived long at the pontifical court of Avignon, has left us the most frightful picture of the corruption that reigned there. He calls it "the third Babylon, and the fifth labyrinth. It is not the horrible

*Baluz. I., p. 178.

↑ Augustini Triumphi Summa, quest. vi., 1585, 1601, 1612. In the later editions this word is omitted.

Zenzelius in his comment on the Extravagance of John XXII., tit. xiv., cap. 4, at the end. The word "God" is in the Lyons editions of 1506, 1606, and in those of Paris.

Christ himself is sold !.... Here all that is good is lost, and the first good, liberty, with the rest. Here truth is folly, sobriety is grossness, modesty is ignominy, licentiousness magnanimity. The more polluted a life is, the more illustrious; the more criminal, the more glorious. I will not speak of that heresy which makes a traffic of the gifts of the Spirit, or of that covetousness which, the Apostle says, is idolatry....Old men, forgetting their age and their weakness, are inflamed with concupiscence, and are sunk in shame, place all their glory, not in the cross of Christ, but in drunkenness and revelling, in chambering and wantonness. And when they have reached the extreme of old age, they consider it a gain and a glory to do what even young men would not dare to do. I pass over in silence the seductions that take place, the rapes, the incests, the adulteries, which are the amusements of pontifical licentiousness; women carried off from their husbands, while these latter are driven from their homes, their country, and at length constrained to take back their dishonoured wives."§

Thus spoke Petrarch of the Pope and of his court, where he himself resided.

I cannot express the disgust I felt, as my eyes rested on the apostolic palace, as it is called, the thea

§ Et violatas conjuges, externo semine gravidas, rursus accipere.

Petrarcha Epistolarum sine Titulo Lib. (Ep. x., 14, 15, 18.) Compare Nicholas de Clemangis, De Ruind Ecclesiæ.

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