clude all with the joyful Acclamation of Amen: Then the confecrated Elements are diftributed to, and partaken of by, all that are prefent, and fent to the Abfent by the Hands of the Deacons.

LXXXVIII. But the Wealthy and the Willing, for every one is at Liberty, contribute as they think fitting; and this Collection is depofited with the Bishop, and out of this he relieves the Orphan and the Widow, and fuch as are reduc'd to want, by Sickness or any other

fore now, when the World is profelyted, and the Gift of Power and Miracles is over, ev'ry private Minifter is enabled to pray by the fame Spirit. But then, Thirdly, I think it must fignifie otherwife in this very Place, for oan duas here plainly anfwers to cur yws, Sect. 85, where all the Congregation is faid to joyn in Common Prayers for the new-baptized Perfon, c. cutives with all Intention of Mind and Affections; and by Common Prayers we can hard ly understand any thing elfe than fet Forms of Prayer, in Oppofition to ex tempore Effufions. Befides, 'tis obfervable that this Phrafe does not follow (cuxa's) Prayers, but (cuxaesías) Thanksgi vings; fo that it is chiefly to be reftrain'd to the Hymns in the Eacharift, which were known Forms; and yet, fays Justin, they were offer'd up, con Luauis. And Section the 16th. where we have this Phrafe ἐφ ̓ οἷς προσφερόμεθα πᾶσιν, ὅση διαμις αἰνόνες, in all our Oblations praifing God to the best of our Power, he deals ve ty difingenuously by leaving out the Comma between way and on. Now this praifing on dwiauis cannot be apply'd to the Bifhop only, but to all the Congregation who joyn'd in the publick Hymns, with all poffible Fervency and Devction. But of all the Quotations this Author has brought to wreft this Phrafe to his pur pofe of ex tempore Prayer, that out of Gregory Nazianzen is the most unhappy one, Φέρε ὅση διαμις· τὸ ἐπινίκεον ἅδωμού εκείνων

lw, &c. Come, let us with all Intention of Spirit chant that trium phant Ode which fometime the Ifraelites fang upon the overthrow of the Egyptians in the red Sea. Nazianzen here fets down the Words which he would have them fing upon Julian's being cut off, and on duiauis being precifely limited to exeive that Song in Exodus the 15th; this, I fay, utterly fhuts out all arbitrary Concep tions, and determines the Signification of this Phrafe, as I think, beyond Exception. Cause

Cause, and such as are in Bonds, and Strangers that come from far; and in a Word, he is the Guardian and Almoner to all the Indigent.

LXXXIX. Upon Sunday we all affemble, that being the first Day in which God fet himself to work upon the dark Void, in order to make the World, and in which Jefus Chrift our Saviour rofe again from the Dead; for the Day before1 Saturdy He was crucify'd, and the Day after, which is Sunday, He appear❜d to His Apostles and Disciples, and taught 'em what I have now propos'd to your Confide

ration.

XC. And fo far as these things fhall appear agreeable to Truth and Reason, so far we defire you wou'd refpect 'em accordingly, but if they feem trifling, defpife 'em as Trifies; however, don't proceed against the Profeffors of 'em, who are People of the most inoffenfive Lives, as feverely as against your profess'd Enemies; for, tell you I must, that if you perfist in this Course of Iniquity, you shall not ef cape the Vengeance of God in the other World. But be this as it will, you fhall hear us contentedly cry out, God's Will be done. And altho we might produce the Refcript of your Father, the great and illuftrious Emperor Adrian, to plead in our behalf for the moderating your

h The Day before Saturday.] Juftin ufes this Circumlocution inftead of Die Veneris, because he abhorred the very Name of Ve nus, and the Fathers were fo chaft in Word as well as Thought, that they would not take the Name of Venus within their Lips, but in order to refute the Heathen Idolatry. See Dr. Grabe's Notes upon this Place.

Proceedings

1

Proceedings according to that Rule of Equity we our felves have propos'd, yet we shall not infist so much upon the Authority of Adrian as the Justice of our Demands, which was the Reason of compofing this Apology and Expofition of the Christian Faith: However, we have fubjoyn'd a Copy of Adrian's Epistle, to let you fee the Truth and Juftice of our Caufe; and the Copy is This:

a

The RESCRIPT of ADRIAN for the Chriftians to MINUTIUS FUNDANUS.

I

Receiv'd a Letter from the illuftrious Serenus Granianus, your Predeceffor: 'Tis an b Affair well worthy your Confideration, to put a stop to vexatious Suits, and to give no

handle

The Apologies of Ariftides, but efpecially that of Quadratus, had fo good an Effect upon the Emperor Adrian, that they pro cur'd this Refcript in Favour of the Chriftians; for Serenus Granianus wrote to Adrian, as Pliny before had done to Trajan concerning the intolerable and unjuft Perfecutions of the Chriftian Sect, and being either dead juft after, or out of his Office, (which was but Annual) Adrian directs this Answer to Minutius Fundanus, his Succeffor into the Proconfulfhip of Afia. This Refcript was annex'd by Justin to this Apology in the Latin Tongue, and tranflated by Eufebius into Greek, as he himself tells us, lib. 4. c. 8. Hift. Ecclef. And by the way, if St. Justin may be allow'd Latin enough to understand this Epiftle, methinks 'tis hard not to allow him enough to understand the Inscription upon the Statue of Simon Magus. The Latin Text preferv'd by that Martyr is loft; however, 'tis famous, and much talk'd of by the Ancients; 'tis cited by St. Melito, Eufeb. lib. 4. cap. 26. by Sulpicius Severus, lib. 2. c. 45. and by Orofius, lib. 7. c. 12.

The Subject of Granianus's Letter feems evidently omitted in this Place, and the Emperor's Order only mention'd. And if Lam

pridius

Handle to Informers to carry on the Trade of Malice. If then the People under your Government have any thing to fay against Chri tians, and will prove it in Publick, so that Chriftians may answer for themselves in open Court, 'tis your Duty to hear 'em in a judicial way only, and not to be over-born by the Petitions and tumultuary Clamours of the People; for 'tis your Place, and not the Mob's, to judge of the Merits of the Caufe:. If therefore, the Informer fhall make it appear, that Chriftians have done any thing contrary to Law, punish 'em according to the Quality of the Crime; fo verily on the other Hand, if you find it to be a malicious Charge only, take Care to condemn and punish, as the Malice defervés.

:

The © LETTER of ANTONINUS to the States of ASIA.

THE

HE Emperor Cafar Titus Elius Adrianus Antoninus Auguftus Pius, Chief Pontiff, the fifteenth time Tribune, thrice Conful, Fa

ther

pridius may be credited, as I fee no Reafon, why he may no, for any thing Cafaubon has urg'd to the contrary, Adrian had a Defign, as Tiberius. had before him, to fet up the Worship of Christ, and built up therefore feveral Temples without any Image, and without confecrating them to any God of the Heathen, which therefore went by the Name of Adrian's Temples. Lamprid. Alex. v. p. 129. Vid. Memoires, &c. par le Sieur D. Tillemont, tom. 2. p. 123.

We are told by an ancient Ecclefiaftick Writer, that this A-, pology of our Martyr very much fweeten'd the Spirit of Antoninus. Orof. lib. 7. cap. 14. And being alfo feconded by Addreffes, and hi

K

deous

ther of the Country, to the common Affembly of Afia, Greeting. I am of Opinion that the Gods will be fufficiently careful not to let this fort of Men escape, for 'tis much more their

deous Complaints from the Faithful in Afia, produc'd this Letter from the Emperor to the States of Afia; and to thofe of Lariffa, Theffalonica, Athens, and all Greece. He fent Letters alfo in behalf of the Chriftians, tho' this alone to the States of Afia is yet extant. Vid. Eufeb. lib. 4. c. 26. It is an Answer to what the States had fent concerning the Profecution of Chriftians upon the Account of Earthquakes, which had then happen'd and were charg'd upon the Chriftians, as all Misfortunes were. I am not ignorant that Scaliger, Valefius, and others would have this Imperial Edict to be the Decree of Marcus Aurelius the Son of Antoninus; the Infcription indeed as it ftands in Eufebius, lib. 4. c. 26. has Marcus Aurelius Antoninus; but then this is moft undeniably corrupted; for just be fore in the Conclufion of the 25th Chapter, he afcribes it to Antoninus Pius; and in the original Infcription annex'd to the Apology (and from whence Eufebius tranfcrib'd his) it is Titus Alius Antoninus Pius. Befides, the Tenor of the Epiftle it felf seems plainly to give it to Antoninus; and Melito Bishop of Sardis, who prefented an Apology to his Son and Succeffor, tells him of the Letters which his Father at the time he was his Partner in the Empire wrote to the Cities, that they should not raise any new Troubles against the Chriftians. Vid. Dr. Cave's Life of Justin in English, p. 147. The Objections against this Opinion you may find in Dr. Grabe's Notes, and in the Notes at the end of his Edition.

This Letter was fent, fays Monfieur Tillemont, in the 15th Year of Antoninus, that is, in the Year of our Lord 152. Vid. Mem. Tom. 2. P. 390. fays Dr. Cave in the Year 140; and if it be objected that this feems not confiftent with the Year of his being Tribune, faid here to be the 15th; he anfwers, that the Tribunician Power did not always commence with the beginning of their Reign, but was given fometimes to Perfons in a private Capacity, and especially to fuch as were Candidates for the Empire. Vid. Life of Fuftin, p. 146. Valefius fixes the Date of the Refcript in the first Year of Marcus Aurelius, for which he is animadverted upon by Bishop Pearson, who refers it to the 15th of Aurelius. Vind. Ig. Epif. p. 2. n. 404. See Dr. Grabe's Notes. In this State of Uncertainty I fhall leave this Refcript, with this Obfervation only, That we ought not to conclude against the Being of a thing, because learned Men difpute the time of its Being, but juft the contrary, viz. That fuch a thing really was, because there is fo much Difpute about it.

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