Page images
PDF
EPUB

An

count of their own fuperior difcernment. Such men, of all others, feem moft to fall under the censure of the wife man, He that trusteth his own heart is a fool. They take for granted the fincerity, humanity, and benevolence of their own hearts, with as much pofitiveness as they do the obliquity and hypocrify of other men's. tiquity had one Lucian; and it must be confeffed the abfurdities of paganism afforded him a large field of fatire, which eventually was not unferviceable to the progress of chriftianity. Our times have had many of this ftamp; and it is one of the most striking characteristics of the depravity of modern tafte, that they are fo much read and esteemed.

Peregrinus is no uncommon character. In a lower fcene I have feen fuch men of extreme wickedness, whose early life seems to have been devoted to nothing but evil, then fomething of the garb and mode of real chriftians was affumed. It is not every one who has the abilities of Peregrinus to wear it with confummate addrefs, and to impofe on genuine chriftians of undoubted difcernment. The favage heart of Lucian feems to rejoice in the impofitions of Peregrinus, and particularly that he was able to impofe on chriftians fo long and fo completely. A philanthropic mind would rather have been tempted to mourn over the depravity of human nature, that it should be capable of fuch wickedness. Providence often fets a difmal mark upon fuch men in this life. He lived long enough to appear a complete impoftor, and be rendered intolerable to christians; he acted the philofopher afterwards, it feems, a long time; for what is called philofophy is confiftent enough with hypocrify, and his dreadful end should be awfully inftructive to mankind.

Yet

Yet what is there in all this account of the christians, difcoloured as it is by the malignant author, which does not tell to their honour? While Peregrinus made a creditible profeffion, they received and rejoiced in him; they did not pretend to infallibility. His fuperior parts and artifice enabled him a long time to deceive. It is probable that he avoided as much as poffible the fociety of the most fagacious and penetrating among chriftians. The followers of Jefus had learnt to spare their neighbours' motes and to feel their own beams. They were moft folicitoufly guarded against that species of deception which is the most fatal, the delufion of a man's own heart. If many of them were hence too much exposed to the fnares of defigning men, the thing tells furely to their honour, rather than to their difgrace. As for the reft, their liberality, their zeal, their compaffion, their brotherly love, their fortitude, their heavenly-mindedness, are confeffed in all this narrative to have been exceeding great. I rejoice to hear from the mouth of an enemy fuch a teftimony to the character of christians; it is one of the best which I can meet with in the fecond century. Amidst fuch a dearth of materials it was not to be omitted. Chriftians must then, at least, have been in morals much fuperior to the reft of mankind, and it is only to be lamented, that he who could relate this, had not the wisdom to make a profitable use of it for himself.

CHAP.

CHA P. VIII.

COME ACCOUNT OF CHRISTIAN AUTHORS WHO FLOURISHED IN THIS CENTURY.

IT

T may throw fome additional light on the hiftory of chriftian doctrine and manners in this century, to give a brief view of these. Yet fome of the most renowned have been already spoken to, and a few more of great refpectability fhall be deferred to the next century, because they outlived this.

Dionyfius, bishop of Corinth, lived under the reign of Marcus Antoninus and his fon Commodus. He wrote many epiftles to various churches, which demonftrate his care and vigilance in fupport of chriftianity; a pleafing proof that Corinth was fingularly favoured by being poffeffed of a zealous and charitable paftor, though of his labours there, and of the ftate of the numerous fociety of chriftians under his ministry, we have no account. He wrote to the Lacedæmonians an inftruction concerning the doctrine of the gospel and an exhortation to peace and unity. He wrote to the Athenians alfo, and by his teftimony he confirms the account before given of their declenfion after the martyrdom of Publius, and their revival under the care of Quadratus, and here he informs us that Dionyfius the Areopagite was the first bishop of Athens. In his letter to the Chriftians in Crete he highly commends Philip the Bishop, and guards them against herefies. In his epiftle to the churches of Pontus, he directs that all penitents fhould be re

ceived who return to the church, whatever their past crimes have been, even herefy itself. One may infer from hence, that difcipline was as yet administered with much strictness in the churches, and that purity of doctrine, as well as of life and manners, were looked on as of high importance, infomuch that fome were inclined to a degree of rigour incompatible with the gofpel, which promifes full and free forgiveness through Chrift to every returning finner, without limitations or exceptions. Such inferences concerning the manners and spirit of the chriftians at that time feem obvious and natural; the prefent ftate of church-difcipline among all denominations of chriftians in England would undoubtedly require very different forts of directions. He writes alfo to Pinytus, Bishop of the Gnoffians in Crete, advising him not to impofe on the chriftians the heavy burden of the obligation to preferve their virginity, but to have respect to the weakness incident to most of them. It feemed worth while to mention this also as a proof that monaftic aufterities were beginning to appear in the church, and that the beft men, after the example of the Apoftles, laboured to controul them. Pinytus in his reply extols Dionyfius, and exhorts him to afford his people more folid nourishment, and fend frequent letters to him which might fill his congregation, left, being always fed with milk, they should remain in a state of infancy. This anfwer fpeaks fomething of the depth of thought and knowledge in godlinefs, with which Pinytus was endowed.

In his letter to the Romans, directed to Soter their Bishop, he recommends to them to continue a charitable cuftom, which, from their first plantation, they had always practifed, which was to fend relief to divers churches throughout the world, S

and

[ocr errors]

and to affift particularly those who were condemned to the mines; a ftrong proof both that the Roman church continued opulent and numerous, and also that they ftill partook much of the fpirit of Chrift.*

Theophilus of Antioch is a perfon of whom it were to be wished that we had a larger account. He was brought up a Gentile, educated in all the knowledge which was then reputable in the world, and was doubtlefs a man of confiderable parts and learning. His converfion to chriftianity feems to have been the moft reasonable in the world. The Holy Spirit in his operations ever appears to adapt himself much to the different tempers of the subjects of them. Theophilus was a reasoner, and the grace of God, while it convinced him of his inability to work himself out of his doubts, effectually inftructed his understanding. The belief of a refurrection feems to have been a mighty impediment to his reception of the gofpel. What is called philofophy varies in different ages. Such an objection to chriftianity would fcarce now be made; but philofophy ever fails not, in fome form or other, to withstand the religion of Jefus.

Of his labours in his bifhopric of Antioch we have no account. He carried on a correfpondence with a learned man Autolycus, with what fuccefs in the end we are not told. He appears also to have been very vigilant against fashionable herefies. He fat 13 years in his bifhopric, and died in peace about the fecond or third year of Commodus. t

Melito, Bishop of Sardis, from the very little of his remains that are extant, may be conceived to be one whom God might make ufe of for the revival of godliness in that drooping church. The very

*Eufeb. B. 4. C. 23.
Eufeb. B. 4. C. 23. and Cave's Life of Theophilus.

« PreviousContinue »