ORIGINS OF CHRISTIANITY, vOL. II TIlE APOSTLES. NEW WORKS, B ERNEST RENAM. Uniform with this volume, price $1 5.e I.-THE LIFE OF JESUS. II.-THE APOSTLES. III.-SAINT PAUL.'Fe works of Ernest Renan are of great power and learnln& earnestly and honestly written, beautiful in style, admirable in treatment, and filled with reverence, tenderness, and warmth of heart. *,@ SJngle copies sent by snail, free, on receipt of price, b CARLETON, PUBLISHER, New York. APOSTLES. BY ERNEST RENAN, MEIBRE DE L'INSTITUT. AUTIIO OF'"TIhE LIFE OF JESUS," EC, ET,, TRANSLATED FROM TIlE ORIGINAL FRENCIH NEW Y ORK: Carle/on, Publis7er, ilalison Spuare. PARIS: MIGCHEL LEVY FRERES. M DCCC LXXV. Entered, according to Act of Congiress, in the year 166, by Gi.O0. W. CARLETON, In the C(lef's Office of the Dllstrict (Co,llIrt',f the United States for Ghe Southern District of New York. JOHN F. TROW & SON, PRINTERS,.205-213 EAST 12TH ST., NEW YORIK. TABLE OF CONTENTS. PAO N INTR OD UCTIOQ.-CCritical Exarminzation of Original Documnel ts..7 C(ITAIPTER I. —Formaftzn of BIliefs relative to the Resurrection of Jes,!s. —The Apparitions at Jerusalem.. 54 HA PTER I.-Departure of the Discplers from Jerusalem. -Second Galilean life of Jesus.,.. 71 CIIAPI ER III.-Return of the Apostles to Jerusalem.-End of the period of Apparitions... 83 CHA PTER IV.-Descent of the HIoly Spirit; Ecstatial a nd Prophetic Phenomena. 91 CHAPTER V. —First Church at Jerusalemz; its Character Cenobitical. 104 CHAPTER VI. —The Conversion of thle tIellenistic Jews and Prose7ytes.... 122 CItHAPTER VI — The Church considered a. an Association of poor People.-In-stit tio of the Diaconate.-Deaconesses and Widows.. 130 C(HAPTER VIZI.-First Persecution.-Death of Stephen.Destruction of t]he first Church of Jerusalem. 144 CHAPTER IX.-First Missio/,s.-Philip the Deacon.. 154 Vi CONTENTS. PAGE CHAPTER X.-Conversion of St. Paul... 162 CHAPTER XI.-Peace and Interior -Developments of the Church of Judea.. 179 CHTAPTER XII. —Establishment of the Church of Antioch. 196 CIA PITER XIII. — The idea of an Aposlolate to the Gentiles. -Saint Bar, abas. 206 CHAPTER XIT —P-rseculion of Ilerod A'grippa I.... 214 CH;iAPTE XV —Movernmets Para! 7l to, aud Im7titative of Christianity.-Simon of Gitto..... 226 CIIAPERI XVI. — General progr(ss of the Christian Miissions 236 CHtAPTER XVII.-Stale of the World in the First Cent ry 252 CIIAPTER XTVIII-Religious Le/is7ation oJ the period. 278 CUIAPTER XLXL.-The Future of.Missions. 290 NOTES. 305 THE APOSTLES. INTRODUCTION CLRITICAL EXAMINATION OF ORIGINAL DOCUMENITS. THE first book of ou01r Hi.story of the Origins qf UCristianity brought us down to thle death and burial of Jesus; and we rmust now resulme the subjet at the point whllere we left it-that is to say, on Saturday, the fourth of April, in the year 33. The work will be for somle tilme yet a sort of continuationl of thle life of Jesus. Next to tile glad months, diuring wlich the great Founder laid the bases of a new order of thlinlgS foir hlumnanity, tlhese few succeeding years were tlhe mi0ost decisive in the history of tile world. It is still Jesus, who, by the holy fire kindled in the hearts of a few friellds from the spark IHe hilnself has placed there, creates institutions of the highest originality, stirs and transfobrns souls, and impresses on everythling IIis divine seal. It shall be ours to show how, ulnder tllis influence, alwvays active and victorious over death, tle doctrines of faith in the resnrrection, in the influence of the IHoly Spirit, in tle gift of tongues,, and in the power of the Church, becaine firmlly established. We shall describe the organizationI of the Church of Jerusalemn, its first trials, and its 8 THE APOSTLES. first triumphs, and tile earliest mnissions to which it gave birth. We shall follow Cllristianity ill its rapid progress through1 Syria as far as Antioch, where it establislled a second capital in some respects more important than Jerusalem, and destined, even, to supplant the latter. In thlis new centre, where converted heathen were in the nmjority, we sllal see Christianity separate itself defilitively froln Judaisln, and receive a name of its own; and we shlall note, ab)ove all, the birth of the grand idea of distant Inissions destined to carry the naamne of Jesus througllout the Gentile world. We slhall pause at the solemn moment when Paul, Barnabas, and Mark depart to carry this great design into execution; and then, interrupting for a while our narrative, we shall cast a glance at the world whlich these brave missionaries sotluglt to convert. We shall endeavor to give an account of the intellectual, political, moral, religiols, and social condition of the Roman Empire at about thle year 45, the probable date of thle departure of' St. Paul onI his first mission. Such is tllhe scope of this second book which we have called The Apostles, because it is devoted to that period of common action, during which the little athlily created by Jesus acted in concert and was grouped morally around a single point —Jerusalem. Our next anrd tlhird book, will lead us out of this company, and will have for almost its only character the man who, mnore than any other, represents conquering and spreading Christianity-St. Paul. Although friom a certain epochl he may be called an apostle, Paul, nevertheless, was not so by the same title as the Twelve;1 lie was, in fact, a laborer of tlme second hour, and almost an intruder. THE APOSTLES. 9 IHistor'ical documents, as they have reached uits, arle apt to cause some misappretlhnsion onl this point. As.q vc know infinitely more of thle lffatirs (f' Paul tllt tl o,' tlhose of' the Twelve, as we possess his authentic wri'iings and original memoirs relating with minute pFreuision certain epoclis of lhis life3, we are apt to award lliti an importance of the first order, alnmost superior even to that of Jesus. This is an error. Paul \was a velry great man, and played a considerable part in thle founndation of Chlristianity; but he slloulld neithler be colnpared to Jesus, nor even to his iminmeliatedisciples. Paul never saw Jesus, nor did lihe ever taste tle amlbrosia of the Galilean's preaching; alld tle mnost mnediocre maiti who had partaken of tlhat heavenlly Inanna, was throuigh that very privilege, superiior to himn who ha(l, as it were, only ain after-taste. Notlhiing is more false thali an opinion whicli has become fitashionable in these days, and which would all!ost imnply that Paul was the true founder of Clhristianity. Jesus alone is its true founder; anid tile next places to HIim slouldl be reser,.ved for His glandcl et obscure colpan iollns-fr affectionlate and faithful firields who believed inl I —imn in tlle face of death. Paul was to thle first centulry a kind of isolated phenomenon. Instead of an organlized school, he left vigorous adversaries, who, after his death, wished to banish llin fi'oin the Cu111rch, to place him on the same footingc with Simon the Magicianl,2 land would even have denied hiln the credit of tlhat which we consider his special work —tlhe conversion of the Gentiles.3 The churcll of Corintll, which he alone had founded,4 piofessed to owe its origin to himn and to St. Peter.5 Iu the second centuriy Papias. and St. Justin do not men 1* 10 THE APOSTLES. ti)on his name; and it was not till later, when oral tradition was lost ald Scripture took its place, tlhat 1aul1 assumned a leading position in Christian tlieology. Paul, indeed, had a theology. Peter arid AMary MI,dalene had none. Paul has left elaborate wvorks, and none of the writings of the other apostles can dispute the palin with his ill either imlportance or authenticity. At the first glance, the documents relating to tile period elnbraced ill thiis vollumne would seemn scanty and quite instufficient. Direct testimony is contfined to the earlier clhapters of tlhe Acts of thle Apostles, the historical value of wllicll is openl to grave objectirns. Ties lillt tllhrl,'wn uponl tllis obscure interval by the last chllpters of thle G(spels, and Iabove all by the Ejistles (,f St. Pallll, loweveve, sollewllat lissipates the shadows. Aln ancient writer serves to mlake us, acquainted not olily with thie exact eloclh wllell lie wrote, but with} tlhe eplcl whlicll preceded it. Every written work suggests, ill tfact, retirospective indluctions uponl tlhe state of society whence it prioceetdel. Thougn t written f;,r thle in,ist part bletweenll tlhe vears 53 and 62, the Epistles of St. Panl 1 ae replete witlh i folrmnation) aboul t tile first vyears o(f Cthristianlitv. Whlile spe'akilg hlere of great evenlts witlloult precise dates, the essential poilt is to slhow tile co(llitions in whllicl tthey oiitgilated; and wlhile on tlis slllbject, I sllonld statte, once ifo a1ll, tla.t tile runuing dates given at tlhe'lhead] of each page (of the Frencth edition) are only pl,lroximative. Thle clllmronlogy of tlhose early years }hias but very few fixed(] p mim s. Nevertlheless, thanks to the came wl Micl the clmpilher of tlme Acts lhas taken not to interrupt tlte serlies of' facts; tllanks to the Epistle to the Galatians. THE AIP(STLES. 11 where there are several numerical indications of lnarked valuie; and thanks to Josephus, whlo furnislles us witlh tlle dates oft'events in pootanllle history allied to undoaubted facts concerningl thie apotlea-it is possible to arralge a -)robaLble chro'nolo(gy wllere tlle cllances of erro1r are cnfinred witlhinl t(tlerably restricted limnits. I x\ ill repeat lere at tlhe begiuluni1g of this book what I said at tile beginllin, of mlyv Life of JesIus. IIy1)otllesis is i(lidispensalle ill histo, ies of tills cllaracter, whlere oilly tile genlera effect is certain, and where almost all tlme (letails are lorle,i' less dllbiuls, ill coInsequclic of' thle legelllary taL uree of' tlie an;tlimrities. Thlere is no hyl)othlesis at all to be malde ill regarrd to epoclhs of whichl wev know nothlimng. T', attemp)t to) reproduce a group of antique statutary whliclh has certainly existed, bat of which ve lhave iiot even a frmtgmenlent, and about which we po>ssess no written inlf)lrlltion, is a purely arbitrary work; bullt what can be mlore legitimnate tllan to try to re-arranlfe tile frieze (of thle Parthlenon fitoun tile portions \whicl reI'lllalil (l(1 wit tile aid of anlcienlt dlescriptionis of drawinlgs madl ill thle seventeeth contury, and all othler possilile meanls of' infirmatin- in a word, to i)ecomlne inslpiredl withl the style of these inimitable sculptures, Ill(l to endeavor to grasp tlheir sll all(i spirit? It neecdl not ibe said after tile eff)rt that tile work (,f tlle ancienlt sculptor has been repro(luced; but that everytlhing p,)ssible has been dlolne to approach it. Such a pr,ce(lire is nmuch ore legitiall'te ill history, because the doul)tf'ul fcrmns of' langage 1)erl' it tlhat whicrl tle Itarblle does not. Nothing preveints ns friom prol)osinmi to tlle reader a choice b)eiween differellt supp,)siLi(Uos. Tlhe conscience of the writer 12 THIE APOSTLES. need not trouble hini as long as lihe presents as certain, tlhat whliich is certain; as probable, that wvlich is prolailie; as possible, that whlich is possible. Whetcl llistory and legelld glide togetlier, it is only the general effect wllitch need be followed out. Our thlird book, for wltich we shall htave documents absolutely historical, and in which it will be ourn function to depict clharacters clearly defined, and to relate facts distinctly set forth, will thus present a firmer narrative. It will I)e seen, however, that the physiognomy of that period is, upon the whole, not knowii witll certainty. Accomlnplishled facts speak louder than biograpllical details. We lkllow very little ablout thle iricollarablle artists to whcoln we are indelted for thle mlasterpieces of Greek art; yet these masterpieces really tell tus znore of thle inr(ivi(luality of tlheir autlhors, and of tlhe pylnlic tlat a)ppreciated tlhem, tlhan could the most circumstantial narrations or tlhe Irst aulthentic text. Tlhe documnents to which we must look for informnatio;n colicerning what was donle ilmilediately after tile death-l of Jesus, are tile last chapters of t'ie Gospels, containin(i the accouint of thle apparitiions of the risen Christ. I (10o Iiot attend to repeat lhere rmy estinmate of the value of these documents given in tile " Life of Jesus."' We have, happily, in this question, features wanting too often in that w-ork: I would refeml to a )prominent passage in St. Paul (I. Corintilians xv. 5-8), whichl establishles-first, the reality of the appariticis or appearances of Cl'rist; second, the duration of these ppairitions, differing from the accounts in the synoptic Gospels; third, the variety of localities where these apparitions were nanit'est, contrarly to IMark anid to Luke. TIE APOSTLIES. 13 The study of thle fundametl tal text, inl a(dition to niany other reasols, confirll us ill the views we have already expl essed up)on the reciprocal relation of the synoptictal Glspels and the fourth G(osl)el. As regards the resurrection and subsequent app)earances of Clhrist, the ftoulrth Gospel maintains the sarne superiority wilicl it show-xvs throughout its entire hlistory of Jesus. It is to tils Gospel ithat we must look for a connected and logical narrative, slugoestive of that whichl reeainis!hidden behind it. I would touch upon the most difficult of questions relating to the origins of Christianity, in asking, " Wl-xt is the historical valile of the ftibutt Gospel? " INMy views on this point ill iy "Life of Jests" have elicited thle strongest olbjections brougtit against the woirk by intelligent critics. Almost all tile sc}lolars wllo apply the rational liethiod to tlIe hlistory of thleoIoy reject the fourthl G}osptel as ill 111 respects apocryplha l; but tllough I hlave reflected lmuch of late on this probleml, I cannot m;-)di (y to any mlatel'ial degree lmy previous opt)ilioll, tlhougil, out of' respectt to tlhe gellneral sentiment on this point, I deem it mny duty to set f;irth in detail the reasons fbr my persistence; and I Nwill devowte to these reasons an Appendix to a revisedl and corrected edition of the " Life of Jesus" wilicIl is shortly to appear. For tile Iiistory we are about to dwell il)o1n, thle Acts of the Apostles form tite most iimporltant doelinelltary reference and an explanation of tIme clharactel' of this work, of its historical value, and of infterpretations I put upon it, is here desirable. There can be no doubt that the Acts of thle Apostles were written by the autlhor of the thlird Gospel, and 14 THIE A'OSTLES. form a conltinuation of that work. It is not necessary to stop and prove this pro(position, wLicl has nevNer been seriously contested.7 Tlle preftace wlich is at thle beginningl of each work, the dedication of both to Theoplhilts, and thle perfect resemblanlce of style ancld ideas, are abundant demolnstration ot' the fact. A second p)roposition, not as certain, but wlhich may nevertheless b1e regarded very probable, is that tlhe autlhor of the Acts was a, disciple of Paul, who accolnpanied hlimn in most of his travels. At first gltmlce this proposition ap1)pea'rs inldubitable. In several places, after tlhe 10th verse of Chapter xvi., the autllor of' the Acts uses in thle narrative the l)pioIolin " we," thlus indicatin, tlhat thle writer themnceforlth folr ned one of the apIostolic banlld wllich surrounded Paul. This would seemi to demnonlstrate the miatter; and the only issue wlhicl appeIars to lessen the force of ihe arigumentt is thle tllery tllat thle passages where tile l'roilOtill " we " is fomund, htead been copied by tlIe last comupiler of tlhe ACtS in a previouts manl script, in tloe origilIal mIleoirs of aI discille of Paul, and thlat tlhis colnpiler or editor hl:ad inllalvertenly foirgottenl to substitute fr'' ve we" the naie of' tlhe narrator. Tltis expla-nation is, however, ]hardly adlnissiblle. Such an error mighlt nat-urally exist in a nlore careless compilation; but thle thlird Gospel arld the Acts forin a work well pr1epared, comrposed with reflectionl, aRId even Iwitlh art; written by thle samte hand, arid on a conllnectecl plan.u Thre two books, taken together, are perfectly tlhe samne in s'yle, present. the samne tfaviorite p]hrases, and exhlibit the samne mtntlner of (luotinlg Scripture. So gross a faiult in the editingr would be itnexplic(able; and TIIE APOSr'TLES. 15 we are forced to the concltision that the person wlio wrote tile close of tie work, wrote the begilnllill ot it, and that thle narrator of the whole is the salle whlo usecl tlle word " we " in tlle passages alludled to. Tllis will appear still Ilmore probable on renlelllbering under what circuimstances the narrator thlus reft'rs to his association withl Paul. TPle use of tle word " we" begins wlien Paul for the first time enters MfLacedonia (XVi. 10), and closes wllen lie leaves Phlilippi. It occurs again when Paul, visiting Mtacedo(ltia for tlle last time, goes Olice more to Phlilippi (xx. 5, 6); and tlhencefo)rw ard to tlhe close, tile lnarrator reainals witlh Paul. Onl f'lltller relnarkillg tllhat tlle chapters whlere thle narrator accomptalnies tlle aplostle are particular and precise in tlheir cli'acli.er, tlhere will hLe little reason to douilt that tie formier was a MaLce(doliain, or more prob>ably, pel'lal;l)s, ait Philiplpiarl wvho caile to Paul at Troas (luring tile second nlission, reinaited at Plhilippi after thie delpartltre of the apostle, and on1 hlis last visit to that city (thie thlirid lnission) joiiied liin, to leave lim no more (lurimig hlis wanderigiis. Is it,'rol)able that a compiler', w\iting at a distance, would allow hlimself to be ilflulenced to such a degree by the remiliniscenices of anlothler? Thlese reniilisences woIIIld not harmonize with tle general style. The narrator who used tile " we " would have hlis own style and niethiod,0~ and would be nmore like Paul. than the general editor of the work; bunt the fiact is, tihat the wlholo work is perfectly lhomlogelneous. It seems surprisiing tlhat any one shoulld be tound to contradict a lpro)osition apparently so evident. -lBait tile critics of the New Testament bring forward plenty 16 THE APOSTLES. of commentaries which are found on examinlati )l to be fulll of unlcertainty. As regards style, ideas, anld doctrines, tle Acts are by no means what one would expect of a disciple of Paul. In no respect do they resemble the Epistles, nor can there be found therein a trace of those bold doctrines which showed the originality of the Apostle to the Gentiles. The temperament of St. Paul is that of a rigid Protestant; the author of the Acts produces the effect of a good and docile Catholic, with a tendency to optimnism; calling each priest "a holy priest," each bishop "a great bishop," and ready to adopt every fiction rather than to acknowledge that these holy priests and these great bishops quarrelled, and somnetimes most bitterly, aniono, themselves. Thoughl always professing the greatest admiration for Paul, the author of the Acts avoids giving him the title of apostle,'1 and is disposed to award to Peter the credit of the initiative in the conversion of the Gentiles. One would deem himn a disciple of Peter rather thlan cf Paul. We slhall soon()show tlhat in two or thlree instances his prinrciples of conciliation led hlilm to glave errors in his biograplly of Paitl. 1Ie was inexact,2 anld above all, guilty of omissions truily strange in one who was a disciple of tlhat apostle.13 Ile does not at all allude to the Epistles; lie oinits important facts.l4 Even in tle portions,relating to the period whlen he was supposed to be a constant coimpanion of Paul's, he is dry, ill-informned, and far from entertaining;15 and on the whole, the vagueness of cereain po'tions of the narrative would irlply that the -vwriter had no direct or even indirect relation with the sapostles, but wrote about the year 100 or 120. THE APOSTLES. 17 Is it necessary to pause here to discuss these objections? I tliink not; ald I persist in believing that tile last writer or editor of tile Acts is really that disciple of Paul wllo used the " we " in tile concluding chapters. All the discrepancies, however inseparable they may appear, should be at least held in suspense, if not wholly done away witl, by the argumenet resulting froin the use of this word "we." It may be added, that in attributing the Acts to a companion of Paul, two peculiarities are explainled-the disproportion of the parts of tle work, thlree-fifths of whlich are devoted to Paul; and the disproportion which may be observed in tile biography of Paul, whose first mission is very briefly spoken of, while certain parts of the second and tlilrd mnissions, especially the concluding travels, are related withl mlinute details. A man wholly uinfamiliar with the apostolic hlistory would not have practised tlhese inequalities. Thle general design of thle work would llave been better conceived. It is this very disproportion that distingutrishes hlistory written from dociumlelnts, froIm tliat wholly or in part original. The listoriian of tlhe closet takes for recital events themselves, but tlhe writer of memoirs avails himself of recollectimos or p)ersonal relations. An ecclesiastical hlistorian, a sort of Eusebius, writing about thle year 12O, would lave left us a book qulite differenily arraliged, after the thlirteenth chapter. The eccentric manner in whiclh tlhe Acts at that period leave thle orbit in which they lhad until then revolved, cannot, in my opinion, be explalined inl any other way than by tle particular situation of tlhe author, ald his relations with Paul. This view will be nlaturally confirlmed if we find atmlong the 18 THE APOSTLES. co-workers known to Pautl, the name of the autl oi to whom t-radition attributes the book of Acts. And this is really what llas taken place. Both manuscript and tradition give tir the author of thle third Gospel, a certain Lucan us16 or Lucas. F'tom what has been said, it is evident tlhat if Lucas is really tlie tltllor of the tlhird Gospel, lie is also the author of the Acts. Now, that very name of Lucas we also find mentioIned as that of a companion of Paul, in thle Epistle to the Colossians, IV. 14; in the Epistle to Phlilemnotn, 24; alld in thie Second Epistle to Timotlhy, Iv. 11. Tlhis last Epistle is of Imiore than doubtfiul authenticity. Thie Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, on the otlier ltanc, altthoulgh very probably authentic, are not tlhe IIost indubitable of thle Epistles of St. Paul; but neverthieless, in any event, they date from the first cenlturly, and that is sufficieit to positively establislh the fact that among thle disciples of Paul there existed a Lucas. Trite fabricator of the Epistles to Timotlhy is certainly not the saRne one who fabricated those to the Colossians and Philemon (conceding, contrary to our olillion, that these last are apocryphal). To admit that writers of fiction had att'ibuted to Paul an intaginary coimpanion, would hardly appear probable; but certainly the different false writers would hardly have fallen on the same name for this imaginary personage. Two observations will give a special force to this reasoning. The first is, that the name of Lucas or l.Lucanus is an unusual one anmong the early Christians; and the second, that thle Lucas of the Epistles is not known elsewhere. The placing of a celebrated name at the head of a work, as was done with the Second THE APOSTLES. 19 Epistle of Peter, and very probably with the Epistles of Paul to Titus and Timothy, was in no Inaiier repugnant to the custolm of the times; but no one would have tlhought of using in this way a name otherwise unknown. If it were the intention of the writer to invest his book with the autlhority of Paul, wVliy did lie not take tile name of Paul himself, or at least the naines of Timothy and Titus, well known disciples of the apostle of the Gentiles? Luke had no place either in tradition, legend, or history. Thle three passages inr the Epistles previously alluded to were not enough to give hlim the reputation of an admitted authority. The Epistles to Timothy were probably written after the Acts; anld the miention of Luke in the Epistles to the Colossians anid to Philemlon are really equal to only one allusion, these two works being by one hand. We believe, then, that the authlor of the third Gospel was really Luke, thle disciple of Paul. This very name of Luke or Lucanus, and tile medical profession practised by thle so-called disciple of Paul,'7 fullly accord with the indications whlichl the two books furnisll in regard to their autllor. We have already stated that the authors of the third Gospel and the Acts was probably froim Philippi,'s a Iotinan colony, where the Latin tongue was in use.l9 Besides tlhis, the author of the third Gospel and thle Acts was but indifferently acquainted with Judaism23 and the affails of Pallestine21 lie knew but little of IHebrew; 22 hle was familiar with the ideas of the heathen world,23 and lie wrote Greek in a tolerably correct maimner. The work was composed filr fitol Judea, for a people unfamiliar with geography, and who had respect24 neithei for a marked Rtabbillical 20 THE APOSTLES. science nor for tIebrew nanes.2 Tlle dominant idea of the author is, tlhat if the people had been free t) fillow their inclination, they would have elnbraced the faithl of Jesus, and that the Jewish aristocracy prevented tlhem fron so doing.6 Ie always imparts to tlhe word Jew a malevolent signification, as if it were synlonymlous with an enemy of the Ch1ristians;27 and on the other lhand lie is decidedly favorable towards the lheretic Samlrltitall.2 To what epoch can. we refer the composition of this imrportant work?? Luke appears for the first timhe in the company of Paul, after the first journey of the apostle to Maceldonia, atl)out thle year 52. Allowing thatt lie was tlhen twenty-five years old, it would have been nothing mnore tlan natural thad le lived until the year 100. The narrative of' the Acts closes at the year 63,29 but the compiling of the work was eviden!tly done after that of thle third Gospel; and tlhe date of the editing of this third Gospel being evidently referable to the years imlnediately following thle fall of Jerusalem (year 70),3~ it is not possible the book of Acts was written earlier thanl the year 71 or- 72. If it were quite certain tlat tthe Acts were written immrfediately after tlhe Gospel, we mligllt stop there. But some doubt exists. Severai facts lead us to the belief that quite an interval elapsed between the compositions of the two works; and tlhere is, indeed, a singular contradiction between tlhe last chapter of the Gospel and thle first chapter of the Acts. In the former, the Ascension seetls to be recorded as taking place on the same day as the Resurrection;31 in the latter,32 the Ascension only occurred after a lapse of forty days. It is clear TIHE APOSTLES. 2.1 that this second version presents us withl a mnore advanced forin of the leellnd, adopted when it was found necessary to make roomr for the different apparitions of Christ, and to give to thle post-resurrection life of Jesus a complete and logical fotmn. It may be 1)1oslimed, thlerefore, that this new method of arrallging the history only occurred to tle author's minid dui-inti the interval between the conmposition of thle two works. In any event, it is somewhat remparkable that the auntlor should feel hilmself obliged, a few lines further on, to develop his narrative by the recital of additional statemelnts. It' his first book was yet in his hands, would lhe have mrade additions wlhiche, viewed separately, are so awkwairdly devised? Yet this even is not decisive, and an important circlnumtance gives occasion for the belief that Lule conceived the plain of both works at the samne title. Thllis circutstance is foulld il the preface to thle G,ospil, which appears cotn!nuln to the two works.33 Thle contradiction to which we have alluded can probably be explained by the little care. taken to account for every moment of timne. Indeed, all the recitals of the post-resurrection life of Jes~us are thorougllly contradictory in regard to tlle duration. of that existence. So little effort was made to be trlily historical, that the saime narrator did not shrink from propositlg succesisivel two) ilrrecollilable systeimsi. The three (lescri)tions of thle Conversion of St. Paul ini tlhe Act&'3 also slhow little differences, wllich only prove that the author was not at all anlxious about precision itl details. It w~ould appear, then, that we are very near tle truth in supp)osing that the Acts were written about thle year 22 TIHE APOSTLES. 80. The tone of the book accords witll: the timhes of tile first Flavian emperors. The author seemed to -avoid everything that could annoy the Romanns. IHe loves to show how the Roman functionaries were favorable to th!e new sect; how they even embraced its doctrines; 35 how, at least, they defended its adherents froln tile Jews, and how equitable and superior to the partisan passions of the local authlorities was the imperial justice of Romre.a6 -Ie lays special stress on t-lle advantages inuring to Paul as a Roinan citizell.37 He abrlptly cuts short his narrative at the momnent when Paul arrives at Rome, probably to 1)e relieved firom recording the cruelties practised by Nero towards the Clhristians.38 Striking, indeed, is the contrast between this narrative and the Apocalyl)se, written in the year 68, replete with memories of the inflillies of Nero, and breatlhing throughout a terrible lhatred for Rome. In the fiorier case we recognise a qlliet, amiable man, living in a tintie of peaceful call n. Fr-,ol about the yeal 70 unltil thle close of the first centtlry, thle Christians had little to complain of. Menlblrs of the Flavian family had adopted Clhristianity. It is even possible that Luke knew Flavius Clemnlenis, perhaps was one of his household, and maiy have written the work for this powerful personalge. TheIre are several indications which lead us to believe that the work was written in Rome, and it might be said that the author was intfluenced by tlhe Romnan Church, which, from tilhe earliest centturies, possessed the political antd hierarchlical cllaracter that has ever since distinguished it. Lulko could well enter into this feeling, for his views upon ecclesiastical authority were far advanced, and even THE APOSTLES. 23 contained tile germ of the Episcopate. Ile wrote llistory in the apologetic tone characteristic of the officials of the Court of Roine. He acted as an ultranmontane historian of Clement XIV. might have done, p'laisislg at the same time the Pope and the Jesuits, and trying to persuade us that both parties in tlleir debate obseirved the rules of charity. Two hundred years %hence it will be maintained that Cardinal Antonelli alld A. (do Merode loved each otlier like two brothers. Tl1e autlhor of the Acts was the first of these comnplacelnt narrators, piously convinced that everything in thle Church must happen in a thorouglhly evangelical nmanner. He was, too, the most artless of theml all. Too loyal to condemn Paul, too orthodox to place llirnself outside the pale of prevalenlt opilionl, lhe passed over real differences of doctrine, aitnirng to slhow otlly the comtnon end whlichl all tliese great founders were pursuiig, tloughli by lnetlhods so opposite, and in face of sucll e':ergetic rivalries. It will readily h)e unllerstood that a man whlo possesses such a disposition is, of all others, the least capable of representing thligs as they really are. Historic fidelity is to hlimn a inatter of indifference; lie is only anxious to edify the reader. Luke scarcely concealed this tendelcy; lie writes " tllat Tlie(,pliilus slhould unldelstand tlle trutlh of thlat whlicl tlhe catecilists had tauglht llin."39 Ile tllus had already a settled ecclesifastical systein wlelich lie taugllt officially, and tlhe litnit of wtLicel, as well as that of evangelical ltistoyi'" itself; was probably fixed. Til domirnalt cttaraetelistics of the Acts, lile thllat of tile tllir(l Gospel,4 are a tellder piety, a lively symplllthy f;r the Gvltiles_,2 a conciliatory 24 THE APOSTLES. spirit, a marked tendency towardls the supcrnatllural, a love for the humble and lowly, a large democratic seintiment, or rather a persuasion that the people were naturally Christian, and that the upper class prevented thein fiom following out their good instincts,3 an exalted idea of the power of the Church and of its leaders, and a remarkable leaning.towards social coni nunism.44 The methods of composition are the same in the two works; and indeed in regard to the history of tie apostles, are about as we would be in relation to evangelical hlistory, if our only idea of the latter were derivred fiom the Gospel according to St. Luke. The disadvantages of such a situation are appalelt. Tlle life of Jesus, told olnly by the writer of tlhe thlird Gospel, would be extremely defective and incoimplete. WVe know so, because ini this case, comiiparison is possible. Besides Luke, we possess (witliout speaking of tlle fourth Gospel) Matthew apd MTlark, who, relatively to Luke, are at least partially origilnal. We cal1 place our finger on the places where Luke dislocates o(r mnixes up anecdotes, and can perceive the manner in wlhich lie colors facts according to his personal views, and adds pious legellds to the most authllelltic traditions. Could we make a similar comparison as regards tile Acts, would we not perceive analogous faults? The elarliest chapters of the Acts appear to us even ifelrior to the third Gospel; for these chapters were probably comrposed from the fewer and less universally docunentarvly referenlces. A findamenltal distinction is here necessary. In a historic point of view the book of Acts is divided into two parts —one comprising the first twelve chapters, anid THE APOSTLES. 25 recounting the principal events in the history of tIle primitive Church; and thle other containing the seven remaining chapters, all devoted to the missions of St. Paul. This second part, in itself, includes two kinds of nairative: one portion related by the narrator fiom hlis ocular testimony, and the other consisting only of what lhe has hleard. It is clear that even in tthis last case his autllority is very important. The conversation of St. Patul Ihimself is oftenl diawn upon for inforination. Particularly t, *ards its close, thle narrative is characterized by remnarkablle precision; and the last pages of the Acts form indeed the only completely historical record thlat we have of the origins of Christianity. Tlhe first cllapters, on thle contrary, are thle most open to attack of all in the New Testament. In regard to tlhese early years, particularlly, the author betrays discrepalcies still more remarkable than those existing in llis Gospel. His theory of fort:y days; his account of the Ascensionll closing by a sort, of final abduction and theatrical solelnlity; the fantastic life of Jesus; his manner of describiong the descent of the H-oly Ghost, and of Iniraculous preachiing; this rnethod of understanding the gift of tongues —all are different fiorl St. Paul:45 all betray the influence of an epoch relatively inferior, and of a period whllen legendary lore finds wide credence. Sllpernatural effects and startling accessories are chlaracteristic of this autlolr, who we should rernember writes half a cetnitry after tle occurreunces he describes; in a country far friom the scene of action; upon events which 2 26 THE APOSTLES. neitlher he lior his master, Paul, has witnessed; and ftil. lowing traditions partly fabulous, or at least modified b)y time and repetition. Luke not only belonged to a different generation from the founders of Christianity,!bnt lie was also of a different- race; he was a Greek, with very little of the Jew in! him, anid almnost a strangler to Jerusalem and to the secIets of Jewish life; lhe had never milngled withl the primnitive Chrlistians, and indeed scarcely knew thleir later representatives. The miracles he relates, give the imnpression of ilnvetions a prioar ratllel thllan of exaggerated tfcts; the lniacles (of Peter and Paul fbrm two series, which responlld to each other,4 and in which the personages llave a family resemblance Peter differs'q nothing friolm Paul, nor Paul firomr Peter. Thle words which lhe puts in the month of his heroes, altlhoug aclapted to varying circumstances, are all in the samne style, and characteristic of the author hinmself rather tllan tlhose to whom he attributes themn. His text even contains impossibilities.47 Tire Acts, in a word, forn a dogmatic history so arranged as to support t.he ortlhodox doctrines of the timie or inculcate the ideas whllich most fully accorded with the pious views of thle author. Nor could it be otherwise. The origin of each religion was only known through the statements of its adherents. It is only the sceptic who writes history ad narrandum. These are not simply the suspicions and conjectures of a carping and defiant criticism. They are well b(uinded inductions; every time that we have reviewed the Acts we have found the book systematically faulty. The control which we can demand of the synoptical THE APOSTLES. 27 texts, we can demand also of St. Paul, and particn tarly OT the Elistle to the Galatians. It is clear, tlhen, where the Acts and the Epistles do not accord, preference should always be given to thle latter, wlhich arIe older, possess absolute authenticity, thorough sin. cerity, and freedom from legendiary corruption. Thle lmost important. doctrines for history are those which possess in the least degree tle historic form. The authority of chlronicles must give place to mledals, maps, or authentic letters. Viewed in tlliH light, thle epistles of undoubted authors and well-authenticated dates form the basis of' all the history of Christian origins. Without them, doubts would weaken and de. stroy all faith even in the life of Jesus. Now, in two very important instances, tlle Epistles display inl broad light the peculiar tendenies of thle author of the Acts, and his desire to efface every trace of the dissensions whiclh had existed between Paul anld tle apostles at Jterusalem.48 And firstly, the author of tlle Acts makes out that Paul, after the accident at Damascus (x. 19, and following verses; xxI. 17, and fiollowinlg verses), caine to Jerusalem at an epoch whlen 1his conversion was hardly known; tilat he had been presented to the apostles; that he had lived with thenl and the faitthfll brethren on thle most cordial terms; that lie liad disputed publieSly with1 the HIellenistic Jews, and tlhat a conspiracy on their part and a celestial revelation led to his departure from Jerusalem. Now Paul informs us that the matter was quite different. To prove that lie owes to Jesus:Iimself and not to the Twelve his Qoctrine and mission, lie says (Gal. I. 11, and following verses) that 28 THE APOSTLES. after hlis conversion he avoided taking counsel wit-hl.any one,49 or goin(g to Jerusalem to constult with those who had been apostles before himself; but that of llis own accord lie wenllt to preach and to carry out his personal mlission in IIauran; tlhat three days later, it is true, lie journeyed to Jelrusalerm, but only to make tle acqtlaintaInce of Cephlas; that lie r eained fifteen clays, but saw no other apostle, excepting, perhalps, Jamnes, thle brother of the Lord; so tlhat, really, his countenance was quite unknown to the cllurchlles of Judea. The effort to soften tile asperities of thle severe apostle alid present himn as a co worker of thle Twelve, laborilg in concert with thlem at Jerusalem, lhence seems withiout evidence. It has been given to a ppear: that Jertusalem was his capital and point of departure; thlat his doctrine was so identical with that of thle apostles that lie was able, to a great degree, to take tlleir place as preachers; that his first apostolate was confined to the synagogues of Damascus; that he had been a disciple and listener-, which was not the fact;50 that the time between lhis conversion and this first journey to Jerusalemn was very slolrt; that hlis sojolurn in that city was quite protractecd; that hiis preaching was received witlh general satisfaction; thlat he lived on intimate terms witli all thle apostles, though he assures us that lie had seen but two of thenm; and that the faithful of Jerusaleml took care of him, thougll Paul declares that they were unknown to llim. The samle disposition to prove that Paul was a fiequent visitor to Jerusaleml, which had induced our author to prololng the apostle's stay in Jerusalemn, seemns also to have induced himi to credlit the apostle with TIlE APOSTLES. 29 one journey too many. Ile says that Pa lI c.:.ne to Jerusalem with Batrnabas, bearing the offerillngs of' tll faithful aftel the year 44 (Acts xI. 30; xII. 25). Now, Paul expressly declares that between the jourlney made tlhree years after his conversion and tllat made in relation to the sublject of circumcision, he did iiot go to Jerusalem at all (Gal. I. and ii.); in other words, between Acts Ix. 26, and xv. 2, Patll lnakes no mention of any travel. One could wrongly delny tthe identity of' tie journey described in the second chiapter of Galatians with that mentioned in the fifteentlh clhapter of Acts, and yet not be subject to contradictiolln. "' Three years after my conilversion," says St. Paul, " I went to Jerusalem to mnake the acquaintance of Cepllas, and fourteenl years afterwards I went acain to Jeirsalem." Thiere has been sonie doulbt whethelr tlhis p)eri,d of fourteen years dates tfroln the con versionI, o01 firom tlhe journlney three years subseqiuent to tlhat evenit. We will assume the fi'rst hypotlesii as tbei in)ost favorable to tllose wllo det'fend the account -as given ill Acts. There would tllen, according to St. PaLil, have been at least eleven years betweell lhis fi'rst anI(l seeol(i jollrney to Jerusalem; now surely there are not eleven years betmween that w\ihich is related in Acts ix. 23; and the following verses, and the account wlhichl we find in Acts xI. 30, etc. By maintaining it against all slhow of truth, o0ne would fall into anotther impossibility. The truth is, that whiclh is related in Acts xI. 30 is contentpomiianeols with thle deatll of Jamnes, tle son of Zebe(lee,51 whlich l1having just preceded tlhe deat, in the year 44, of HIerod Agrilpa I., furnishes us with the only fixed date in tllhe Acts of the Apostles.52 The 30 THE APOSTLES. second journey took place at least fourteen years afr(,r his conversion; and if lie had really inade that joutrney in the year 44-the coIversion n-ust lhave occurred in the year 30-a theory which is manifestly absurd. It is then impossible to allow any credence to the statemerits in Acts xi. 30 and xii. 35. All of these journeyings to and fio appear to be reported by our author inl a very inexact manner; and in conlparing Acts xvII. 14-16, antld xvIII. 5, with 1 Thessalonians II. 1-2, another discrepancy will )be found. As this last, llowever, has nothiIng to do with doctrinal matters, we shall not discutss it here. An imnportant fiatuure of thle stblject now before us, and one which throws mrucl lighlt on this difficult question of the historical value of the Acts, is a comnparison of the passages relative to thle discussion concerning circumcision in the fifteenth chalter of Acts and the second chapter of the Epistle to tile Galatians. Accordingl to the Acts, certain of thle brethren of Jcudea coning to Antioch and miaintaining the necessity of the rite of circumtcision fir converted heathen, Palnl, Barnabas, and several otllers were app, ointed as a (leputation to go friom Antiochl to Jerusaleln to consult the apostles and elders onl tlhis question. They were warmly received by their bretlhren at the Holy City, and a great convention was lleld. T-le senitihnents of reciprocal charity whlich prevailed, and tile great satisfaction experienced by thlese co-religionists at thus meeting aggain. together, dispelled all feeling of dissension. Peter gave utterance to the opinion which had been anlticipated frotm the mouth of Paul, viz. that the coilverted heathen were not subject to the law of Moses. THE APOSTLES. ~ Jalnes modified this only by a very light restriction.53 Paul did not speak, and indeed had no reason to do so, because his views were fully expressed by Petel; and the theory of the Judean brethren funlld nlo supporters. According to the advice of Jamnes, a solemni decree was made and communicated by deputies expressly chosen to the various churches. Let us now examine the account given by Paul in the Epistle to the Galatians. It was his desire tlhat thlis journey to Jerusalem should have thle effect of a spontaneous movenient, or even be deemed thle result of a revelationl. On his arrival at Jerusalern lie cornmnunicated 1his gospel to whlotn it concerned, and had )private iltelrviews with many important personlages. No one criticised hlis actions nor troubled llim witl commnnicatiols, but only begcred lilll to remlelmlber tile poor of Jerusaleml. Titus, wllo accolnpanied hinm, consented to be circnumcised, but only through thle representations of "two ttlse intruding brethren." Paul permitted this incidelltal concession, )but lie would not submit to themi. As to the mnore prominent men (and Paul never speaks of themn exceptinlg with a sllhade of bitterness and irony), tlhey learn notliing new fr'om him. Ile even disputed with Ceplias " because lie was wrong." At first, indeed, Cephlas Illingled withl every one without distinction. Elnissaries arrived from1 Jalnes; anld Peter hid hllrnselt; avoiding the Ilcicircuiiicised. Patil publicly ap)ostrop)lized Cc:pllas, bitterily reproaching hliln f)r llis conlduct, " seeing tlat lie did not. keep in thle nlarrow path ot gospel trutll." Ob)serve the difference. On thle one side holy conicord; on the other, extreme snsceptibility anld halt: 32 THlE APOSTLES. restrained anger. On one side a harmonious counclil; and on the other, nothing resenbling it. Onz the one side a folrmal decree elanating from a recognised authority; on the other, antagonistic opinions reciprocally conceding notlling excepting for formn's sake. It is needless to say which versioi tnerits our prefere-nceo The account given in tle Acts is scarcely truthiful, because thle dispute in which the Council was engaged is not allunded to after the Council was reunited. The two orators here make use of expressions contradictory to what they had elsewhere said. The decree which thle Council is reported to hlave made, is assuredly a fiction. If tlhis decree, emananlting firoi tile pen of Jalmes, had lreally been promulgated, whIy shlould the good anid tiilid Peter have been aftraidl (f thle mllessenclers sent hly Jaines V Wlly shlould lie hide hlillseltf? Ie, as well as tlle Christians of Antiochl, was acting in entire confrrmlity Awith this decree, tlle ternls otf hich ll ad been dictated by Janmes,hiniself. TIce discussion relatintr to circumicision took place about 51; yet severlal years after, alount the year 56, tlle quarrel wrlichl this decree sllould have terminated, was Inore lively thani ever. Tile Clhullch of Galatia was troubled by new eimissaries senlt l)y tlhe Jewish party of Jerusalenl.55 Patul answers to this new attack of his enemnies by lhis terrible Epistle. If thle decree reported in the fifteenth chlaptei of the Acts had existed, Paul, by refelring to it, would lhave had a muchl simpler method of bringinog the debate to a close. Now, everythilg thlat he says, intimates time non-existence of this decree; arnd in 57, Paul writing to the Corilthians, not only ignores it, but eveln violates its directions. The decree commands abstinence fronm THE APOSI'LES. fleesll (offered to idols; but Paul, on tlhe contralSy, thlifnks it no wrong, to eat of this flcsih as long as n, onte is scanrdalizeld lby te act, tlhoiiugh lie advises abstinence slhould it give offence to anly one.56 In 58, at last, after thle last journey of Paul to Jerusalemn, Jamjes was more obstinate than ever.57' One of the ctharacteristic traits of tile book of Acts, clearly proving that the author is less anxious to present historic truth or even to satisfy logical reasoning thlan to edify pious leaders, is tlis fact, that the question of the admission of the uncircumcnised, is always on the point of being resolved without ever attainiiig tlhat consulmmation. Tlhe Ibaltisin of tHle eunnch,f Cindia, t he baptism of thie centurion CorneliuIs, both miraculously ordered; tile fund(l.ation of tlte Cllnrclt at Antiocel (xr. 19; and( followin, verses); the pretended Council at Jerusalemn —ail. leave the question yet in suspense. In truth, it always remsrained in tllat state. Tle two f'ractions of' bllddillg Cllristilllity never canle togetller; and tlhat one wh]ich inaintained tlle practices of Jtudaismn proved unfrut:'itful, and so(ri vanisled iln obscurity. So far from findintgo general acee(')tationi, Paul after hlis deatll was calumlniated. anld even anathemnatized, by no inconsiderable portion of Cltristiani ty.58 In our third book we slihall dwell at lengtlh on the subject to whlich these singular incidents refterk. Our oblject at present is only to give a few exaniples of tlhe manner in which ihe autthor of the Acts interprets history, and to show how he reconciles it witlh his pieconceived ideas. Must we tllerefore agree with certain celebrat-ed critics that the first clh.:pters of thle Acts are witlhout authlenticity, and that hiis leading chlaracters, 2* 34 THEE APOSTLES. sucll as thle ennuch, the centnrilon Cornelius, anlld even tlhe deaconl Stephen, and tile pious Tabitlia, are, mlere creatio,ns of fiction? By no means. It is not probable tlhat the author of tle Acts invented hlis personages;59 but he is a skilful lawyer who writes to prove, and who, firom facts of WhCI1 l he has hleard, tries to deduce argumy enlts in favor of hlis cllerished theories, whicll are tile legitimiacy of tile calling of the Gentiles and the divine inlstitution of thle hierarchly. Tllough such a documrent should be used with great care, its entire rejection woiuld show as little critical acumlen as its blind acceptation. Several paralgraphs even ill the first part possess a value nniversally recognised as relpresenting authentic melnoii's quoted friom tlhe last comlpiler. Thle twelfth clhapter, in particular, is without alloy, and seems to einanate firom St. Mairk. It would indeed be unsatisftactory ift fir this 1history wve had as our documen-ts of reft'ereice only tl!is legendtar Iook. HaIlpily there are others which, thouogh tihey relate directly to the period to whichl ollr tilird )bo(ok will be devoted, yet thro)w nunchl lighlt upon t!iis epoch. Such are tile Epistles of St. Paul; tlhe Epistle to tile Galatians, above all, is treally a treasure: tlhe basis of all the chronology of thaet period, the key wlhich unilocks all, the testimony wlich assures thle Iist. sceptical of tile reality of thiings whlicl cannot. be doubted. I wish that the serious readers who may feel tetmpted to regard me as too bold or too credulous, would re-lperuse thle first two chapters of thlis singular Epistle; thiese chapters are certaiily the two ilost itmportant pages in thle history of budding Cliristianity. Tlhe Epistles of St. Paul inideed possess in their absolute TIHE APOSTL1ES. 3 authenticity an unequalled a(vatagte ill tlis history Not the sliglhtest doublt has been raised by seri(us criticismn against thle authenticity of tile Epistle to thle Galatianls, thle two Epistles to tlle Corinthians, or tlhe Epistle to tlle Romans; wllile the argulments oil whlichl are founded thle attaclks on the two Epistles to thle Tlhessalonians ad(l that to the Plhilippians are witholut valule. At the beginning of our thlird book we shall discuss the more specious tthough equally indecisive objections which have been raised against thle Epistle to the Colossians and the little note to Pllilemonl; the parlticular problem-, presented by thle Epistle to the Ephlesians; and at last tile proof,, whlichl lhave led us to _reject the two Epistles to Timotlhy and that to Titus. The Epistles wlhicll shall serve our need ill thle present volumie are all (f ildu bitable autlhority, wlhile the deductions we shallal draw fronl the otlelrs are quite independent of thle question wlhether they were or were not dictated by St. Piaul. It is -not necessary to revert here to the rules of criticismn whichl htave beetI i;llowed in the comr)osition of this work, and which hlas already been done in thle introdLuction to the Life of Jessus. Thle twelve first cthapters of thle Acts forlll a document analogous to thle synoptical Gospels and to be treated in th]e sanie mannler. Tliis species of doctument, half historical and lhalf legenldary, canl be accepted neithler as legend nor as history; while inl detail nearly everythling is fitlse. we can nevertlheless exhumne therefrom _r ecious trutlls. A pure and literal translation of thlese narratives, whllicll are often contradicted by better authenticated texts, is rnot history. Oic'ie1 in catses \wlhere we lhave but one text there is 86 THE APOSTLES, feiar that if others existed it would be contradicted. As regards thle life of Jesus, the narrative of Luke is always controlled and corrected by the two otlier synoptical Gospels and by thle fourth. Is it not prolable, I repeat, that if we had a work bearing the samle relation to the Acts that the synoptical Gospels do to the fourth Gospel, the book of Acts would be defective in many points on whicli we now receive it as testimony? Entirely different rules will guide us in our third book, whlere we shall be in the fill ligllt of positive hIistory, and shall possess origiiial and sometimes autographical information. When St. Paul himself relates some episode of his lifte, egarding which his interest demlanded no special interpretation, of course we need only insert his identical words in our work, as Tillemont does. 3But, when we halve to do with a narrator identified with a certain system, writing in support of certain ideas, preparing his work in the vague blunt style and with the hlighly wrouglht colors peculiar to legendary lore, thle duty of the critic,is to fiee himself frotm the tllralcldln of the text and to penetrate thronug} it'o the truths whlich it conceals, without, hlowever, being too conlfident tllhat lie thas discovered tllat truth. To debar criticism fronm siltilar interpretations would be as unreasonable as to limit tlhe astronomer to thle visible state of the heavens. ])oes not astronomy, on the contrary, involve an allowance for the parallax caused by the position of the observer, and construe firom apparent deceptive appear. allces the real conditionl of the starry skies? -Why, then, should a literal interpretation of documents containing irreconcilable discrepancies be urged? THE APOSTLES. 37 Tile first twelve cllaplers of tlhe Acts are a tisslue of mlilrcles. It is an absolute rule of criticism to deny a place in history to narratives of miraculous circimunstmaces; nor is tlhis owingl to a metapllisical systeml, lfor it is simply the dictatiotn of observation. Such ftacts hlave never been rea lly proved. All the pretended miracles near enouglh to ble examLined are referable to illusion or imposture. If a single miri'acle lhad ever been proved, we could not reject in a lmass all those of ancient history; fobr, admitting that very many of these last were false, we mnight still believe that soine of them were true. But it is nlot so. Discussion and examination are fatal to mir,'acles. Are we not then authorized in believing tllat tl:ose miracles wlhichl date many centl-uries back, and regarding which there are no means of foirmillg a conltradictory debate, are also Nwithout reality? In othner words, miracles only exist when people believe in them. The supernatural is but another word fbr faithl. Catholicism, inl,maintainting that it yet possesses miraculolis power, subjects itself to the influence of this law. The mi'racles of which it boasts never occur where they woulld be nmost effective; why sliould not shell a convincinll proof be b1ron1,lt more proininently forward? A lliracle at Paris, for instance, before experienced savanits, would put an end to all doulbts! B13ut, alas! such a thing never h1appens. A miracle never takes place before an incredulou.s and sceptical public, the most in need of suhel a convincing f)roof. Credulity on part of the witness is the essential colldition of a miracle. Thlere is not a solitary exception to the rule that miracles are never produced before those who are able or permitted to discuss and criticise 38 THE APOSTLES. theIn. Cicero, with ]his usual good sense and penlera. tion, asks: "Since when has this secret force Jisapipearle(d; has it not been since men have becomne less credulolls " 60O " But," it may be urged, " if it is ilnpossible to provo that there ever was any instance of supernatural powter, it is equally impossible to prove that tlhere was not. Tlhe positive savant who denies the supernatural, argues as gratuitously as tlle credlllons one wlo a(dlrits it!".NT iat at all. It is tlle duty of him who affilrms a proposition to prove it, wIlile lhe to wlhon thle afirnlation is made lats only to liste l to tlhe proof and to dec'de wlhethler it is satisfactory. If any one hlad asked Buffon to give a place in lis Natlural history to sirens and celntaurs, he would lhave answered: " Show mea specil1Ce11 (f llhese being(s and I will adlnit thleln; nuntil thlen, I (1to Iot adimit their existence.'' I But can you prove tllhat they do )not exist? " tile otlier llay stay, and I3uifon woult relply: It is your province to prove that they (lo exist." In scienlce tlme burdell of proof rests onl tllose lNiho advance allege(] facts. Wlhy, although i nnulheral)le liistoric writings, clailmm tlheir existence, do peotle no longer believe in angels anid dellons? Simnply because tlhe existence of an angel or a delnon las niever yet I)eeIl proved. In support of tile reality of' miriculous agency, appeal is imade to plen)lenala olltside of tile' course of natlral ]aw\s, snell, for inistance, as tile creati)on of man. This creation, it ]has been said, could (oly alnve been coinpassed by thte direct intervention,tf tile Divinity, atnd wlhy was lot this intervention lnanifested:It othler decii Ve crises of thle develollnent of the universe? I shall TIME APOSTLES. 39 not dwell upon the strange plilosoplhy an(d sordid appreciation o)f the Divinity manifested in sucll a systen (),f reasolling. History should lhave its mietlihod, inldependent of all pllilosoplly. Without at all ellter ing upon tlle dlain of tlleology, it is easy to sholw 11)Z- Zomi of theolao'v how defective is this argnlmlent. It is equivralent to maintaninin tlhat everythillng wllich does not lhappei in tile ordlinlary cond.litions of the worl(l, everythlingc tihat cannot 1)e expl)ained by tlhe present rules of sciencee, is nliractulss. Bllt acc(,ding to this, tile sunl is a mlliracle, becallse science has lnever explaine(l the sun; the concepti, of Illllkillid is a IlniraclCre, l)ecaase plhysiology is silent on that poinlt; colsciellce is a Imiracle, because it is an absolulte mystery; iand every anitial is a miracle, l)ecanse tile origin of life3 is a problemn of wlhich we know niext to notlliing. The reply tlhat every lif'e, every soul, is of an order snpcrior to nature, is simply a play upon words. So we understland it, and yet thle word miracle reinailns to be explained. t[,How is tllat a mniracle whlichl lapl)pens ever d1 y a1 nd llour? The mniracilous is not simlplS y tble irlexplicable, it is a foIrnlal deIo'(gation fi'olln recgised laws in the Iname of a particular desire. Whlat we tdenli to tlhe miracle is the exceptionll state or thle results of p:u'ticular interventilon, as in tle case of a cla)ckmlaker who lmay have maide a clock very lhanllsmnle to loo(k at, but relquirinlg at intervals the hIand (,f its mlakcr to supply a deficiency in its mechanism. We ackno\wledge heartily that Goal may be permnanently in everythling,: p.:rticularly in everythlilln that lives; and we only matintain there has never beetn convincing I)roof of any paIrticular interventiont of su)ernatural torce. We deny the reality of supernatural 40 TE AP'OSTL',ES. agency until we are made cognizantllt of a demonstrated fact,rf tllis nature. To searcll for thlis demonstratioi an. terior to the creation of man; to go outside of hIistory for historical milacles, datilg back to epochs when all proof is ilmpossible —all this is to seek refuge behind a cloud, to prove one doubtful proposition by another equally obscure, to bring against a l'ecognised law an alleged fact of wrlhich we know nothin-g. If miracles, which only too(k place so long, ago tlhart no witnless of tlheml now exists, are invoked, it is silnply because none can be cited for which competent witnlesses can be claimed. In far distant epoclls, beyo,:od doubt, tlhere (ccourred phellomena wllich, on the salme scale at least, ar1e not repeated in tile world of to-(l;ay. Bit tliere was at tlhe time they happened a,clause fir tllese plllell)lnlemta. In geological formnations nmay be met a gleeat nubtller of minillcl11s and precio)us stonies wliichl nature seems no longe'r to plroduce; and yet, imost of tlleil have been aritificiatlly reco)iposed by M[essieurs Mitsclierl ich, El)el11alnIL, De S6ilartmont, and Dtlubree. If life canllot be artificially produced, it is lecaiise thle reproductioon of tlhe conditions in whlicli life comnlllelced (if it ever (lid cominence) will probably be always beyond humlan grasp. How can the planet that disappeared tlousands of years ago be broughlt back? fHow tbrm an experience, which has lasted for centuries. Thle diversity of thiou-sands of ages of slow evolution is what one forgets in denoininating as miracles thle phenomena wlhich occurred in other times, but which occur. no more. Far bhack in the vast range of theaveildy bodies, are now perhaps taking place movements which, nearer us, have ceased since a period infinitely distant. The formation TIHE APOSTLES. 41 of humanity, if we think of it us a suldden inst:lntalleous thling, is certainly of all thiiigs in the world the 1most shocking and absurd; but it maintainIs its place in general analogies (without losing its mystery) if it is viewed as the result of a long-continned progress, lastinlg during incalculable ages. The laws of matured life are not applicable to eilbryotic life. The embryo develops all its organs one after another. It creates no more, because it is no longer at thle creative age; just as language is no longer invented, because there is no more to invent. But why longer follow iup) adversaries who beg the question? We ask for a pryoven miracle, and are told that it took place anterior to history. Certaitnly, if any proof were wanting of tlhe necessity of supernatural beliei's to certain states of' tlle soul. it would be found in the fact thlat n{any mnindls gifted in all other points with due penetratiol, lhave reposed tleir entire- flitil in an algumelnelt as (iesperate as tlhis. Tlhere are some persons who yield up tlle idea of pllysical miracles, but still maintail thlle existence of a sort o)f moral miracle, witthout mhilch, ill thleir (,pinIiotl, certain great events caniiot t)e explained. Assuredly the formation of Chr'istianity is the graiidest fact iti tile religious history of tthe world; but for all tflat, it is by no meais a niiracle. Bnd(lllisma ad Bahisti have counte(l as mnany excitedl and resigned nmartyrs as even Clhristianlity. Tlhe miracles of tile founding of Islalnisln are of an elltirelv different clharacter, and I confess have very little effect (,mi me. It mnay, hlowever, be remarked that. thle IMussullinan doctors deduce from the renlarkable establislihment of tlheir religion, fiom its marvellously rapid diffusioll, fromi0 its rapid conqIuests, 42 THE APOSTLES. and fromn the force whicll gives it so absolute a govern. ing -,)ower, precisely thle same argunenlts which Clhris tian apologists bring forward in relation to the estal)lishtlnent of Christianity, and wlhich, they claim, show c.early tle hland of God. Let us allow that the fou)lndation of C1hristianity is so-mething utterly peculiar. Another equally peculiar thing, is Hellenism; understanding 1)y that word the ideal of perfection realized by grace in literature, art, and philosophy. Greekl art su1)asses all other arts, as the Christian reliiolon surpasses all other religions; an)d the Acropolis at Athens a collection of masterpieces beside which all other attenIpts are only like gropinigs in the dark, or, at tlle best, imitations mlore or less successful, is perl'i)S that whichl, above cverytlhinlg else, defies comparison. tlellenisln, in other words, is as Imuncht a prodigy of beauty as Cllhristianity is a prodigy of sanctity. A ullique action or development is not necessarily mir.acullous. God exists iin various degrees in all that is beautiful, good, and true; but lie is never so exclusively in any one of His manifestationls, that thle presence of His vitaliziing breath in a religious or philosopllical movement should be deemed a piivilege or an exception. I am nlot without hope that the interval of two years and a hlalf that has elapsed since tlme pulblicationl of tlle Life of Jesus, has led mlany readlers to consider thlcse problenms with calmlness. Withlout knowilng or wislhilng it, religious conltroversy is always a dish(ncesty. It is not always its province to discuss with independence and to examine witli anxiety; but it must detfed a determined doctrine, and prove that he who dissents THE IPOSTLES. 43 from it is either ignorant or dishonest. Caluminies, misconstrll tions, falsifications of ideas or words, boasting argumnents on points not raised by the opponent, shouts of victory over errors which lie has not cornInitted -none of these seem to be considered unworthy weapons by those who believe they are called upon to nmaintain the interests of an absolute truth. I would be ignorant indeed of history, if I had not known all this. I ain indifferent enonllg, however, not to feel it very deeply; and I have enough respect for thle faith, to kindly appreciate whlatever was touching or genuine ii the sentiments which actuated my antagonists. Often, after observing tlhe artlessness, the pious assurance, the firank anger, so fieely expressed by so many good people, I have said as John Iluss did at the sighlt of an old woman perspiring under the weight of a faggot she was feebly dragging to his stake: " O santa sirnplicitas " I have only regretted at tiines the waste of sentitment. According to the beautiful expression of Scripture: "God is not in the fire." If all this annoyance proved instrumental in aiding the cause of truth, thlere would be soitiething of' consolation in it. But it is not always so; Truth is not for thle angry and passionate mnan. She reserves herself for those who, freed fiorn partisan feeling, from persistent affection, and enduring hate, seek her with entire liberty, and with no imental reservation retferring to human affairs. These probleins forrm only one of the innumerable questions with which the world is crowded, and wthich tlle curious are fond of studying. No one is offiended by the announcelnent of a mere theoretical opinion. Those who would guard their 44 THE APOSTLES. faitll as a treasure can defend it very easily by i-lnor imog all works written in atn opposing spirit. The timid would do better by dispensing with reading.'lThere are persons of a very practical turnll of mind, whlo, on hearing of any new scientific work, ask whlat politicil party the author aims to please. and whlo tlhink that every poei should contain a moral lesson. These people tllink that propagan(iismn is the only1 o)ject that a writer has in view. Thle idea of an art or science aspiring only after the true and beautifuil, without regard either to policy or politics, is somlethling quite strange to thenl. Between such persons and onrselves misapprehensions arie ilnevitable. " There are people," said a Greek phlilosopher,' lwho take with their lef't hand what is offered to th.em with thleir rigllt." A number of letters, dictated by al really hlonest sentirment, wrlhich hlave been sent 1me, may be summllled lp in the question,'" What is the matter with you? What endl are you aiming at " lWhy, I write foir plecisely tle salne reason that all hlistorical Niwriters do. It I could hlave several lives, I would devote onle to writin go a life of Alexander, ianother to a thistory of Atllens, and a third to either a history of thle French Revolution or tile monkish order of St. Francis. In Writimlg these works I would be actuated by a desire to fined tlhe truth, and would endeavor to Inake the mighty events of thle past known with thle greatest possible exactiness, alid related in a manner woltlyT of tilhem. Far from ne be thle thought of shocking the religious faith of any person! Such works should be preparedl witl as niicch s upreme indlifftelence as if thley were wri tten in another planet. Every concession to the scruples of THE APOST I.ES. 45 aln inferior order, is a derogation firom thie digrlity and culture of art and truth. It can at once be seen that tile absence of proselytism is the leading feature of works colnposed in such a spirit. The first principle of the critical school is thle allowance in matters of fa.ith of all that is needed, and the adaptation of beliefs to individual wants. Wlihy should we be foolish enough to concern ourselves about things over wlhich no one has any control? If any person adopts our principles it is because he has the mental tendency and the education adapted to themn; and all our efforts will not be able to imnpart this tendency and this education to thlose whlo do not naturally possess them. Phlilosoplhy differs from f'aith ill this, that faith is believed to operate by itself independently of the intelligence acquired fioon dogmas. We, on the contrary, hold that truth only possesses value when it comes of itsell; and when the order of its ideas is comprehended. We do lnot consider ourselves obliged to maintain silence in regaard to those opinions whlich may not be in accord withi the belief of some of oiur fellow-creatures; we will imake no sacrifice to the exigencies of differing orthodoxies, but neither have we aly idea of attacking them; we shall only act as if they did not exist. For nmyself, it would be really painful to me for any one to convict nce of anl effort to attract to my side of thinking a solitary adherent who would not come voluntarily. I would conclude that my mniid was perturbed in its serene liberty, or that something weighed heavily upon it, if Iwere no longer able to content myself with the simple and joyous coni templation of the universe. 46 THE APOSTLES. It will readily be supposed that if my ol)ject was to make war upon established religions, I slloulld ad(pt different tactics, and should confitne inyself to exposinlg tlhe impossibilities anrd the contradictions in texts and dog,nas that are viewed as sacred. This work has been often and ably donle. In 1S6561 I wrote as fdllows:'I protest once for all agaianst the talse interpretation wlhich has been given to my writings, in accepting as polenlical works tile variollS essays anld religiouis and historical mnatters whlich I hlave pull)lislled, or Inay hereafter p)ublih-h. Viewed as polenlical works, these essays, I amn well aware, are very unskilful. Polemnics derrnand a strategy to whdich I am a stranger; it re quires the writer to cho(ose the weak point of hlis adversaries, to hold on to it, to avoid uncertain questions, to boeware of all conlcession, and practically relnounce even the essence of scientific spirit. Such is not nmy method. Revelation and the sumpernatural-tilose fl ndamental questions around wllichl must revolve all religious discussion-I do not toncuh upon; not because I,may not aniswer these questions witll tloroughl certainty, but because such a discussion is not scientific, or, rather, because independent scienice presupposes that such questions are already answered. For Irn to pursue any polemical or prloselyting end, would be to brinlg forward among the m-ost difficult and delicate problenls, a question which can be more satisfactorily treated in the more practical phlraseology in which controversialists and apologists uis ually discuss it. Far friom regretting the advantages wlhich I thus deprive myself of, I would- be well pleased thereat, if I could thus convince theolo^gians that my writings are of a THE APOSTLES. 47 different order to theirs, that tlley are only i Ite.lded as selidtarlly researclhes, open to attack as sucl, wlieii tiley soitietimes attemnpt to alp)lly to tlle Chlristian and Jewishl religions thle same principles of criticism wlhliclh are at1dopted towards other brancles of history anid phlilology. Questions of a purely theological nature I ani no more called upon to discuss, tltan aire Burlnouf, Creuzer, Gunizniant, and: other critical histoirians of ancient religions, to defentd tile creeds wlhich they lhave mlade their study. Thle llistory of humaln~nity seemns to me to be a vast groupinlg wllere everythllitg, thollogh ulnequal and diverse, is of the same general order, arises from the same causes, and is sublject to the samne laws. These laws I seek withlout any othier intention than to understand thleln exactly as they arle. Nothling will ever induce inme to leave a sphiere, humble it mrlay be, but valuable to science, for the paths of' the contrloversialist, who is always certain of the countenance of those iInterested in opposing war to war. For the poletnic systemli, the necessity of whicll I do not deny, tlhouglh it is neitther adapted to my tastes nor to my capal)ilities, Voltaire was enough. One cannot be, at the same time, a good controversialist and a good thistor;ian. Vo)ltaire, so weak in mere erndition; Voltaire who, to us initiated into a better method, seems so poorly to comprehend the spirit of antiquity, is twenty tizmes victorions over adversaries yet more destitute of true criticism than himself. A new edition of the works of this great man would furnish a reply that is now much needed to the usurpations of theology-a reply poor in itself; but well suited to that which it would combat; a weak, old-fashioned reply 48 THE APOSTLES. to a Aweak, old-fashlioned science. Let us, whio possess a love of the triue and a inqlliring spirit, do better. ]Let us leave t]lese discussions to those who care for them; let us work for tile limited class wlho follow the true path of the himnan mind. Popularity, I know, is more easily gained by those writers who, instead of plulrsli'sg tlle mIost elevated formn of truthl, devote their energies to colmbating tlhe opinions of tlheir age e; yet by a just compensation, thley are of lno value after the theories thev combat are abandoned. Tlhose who, in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, refuted magic and astrology, rendered an immense service to right and truth; and yet their writings are to-day unknown, and thleir velry victory has cornsigned them to oblivion. I slhall always hold( to this rule of conduct as the only one suitable to the dignity of the s8avaet. I know tlhat researches into religious history alvways bring one face to face with vital questionis whiich seem to demand a solution. Persons untfamiliar withi free speculation do not at all comiprelhend thie calnl deliberation of thought; practical ninds grow impatient of a science whicil does not responld to their desires. Let us guard aogainst this vain ardorl; let us remain in our respective Churches, profiting by their seculai teachings and thleir traditions of virtue, p)articipating in their chmltritable works, and enjoying thle poetry of their past. Let us only reject their intolerance. Let us even pardon this intolerance, for like egotism it is one of the necessities of lhullnan nature. The fomnation of new religions families or beliefs, or any imnportant change in the proportions of those existing to-day, is contrary to present indications. Cathlolicism will soon be scarred and seamed by TIHE APOSTL.ES. 49 great sclhisms; the days of Avignon, of the anti-popes, of the Clemnentists and the Urbanists, are about to return. The Catholic ChOurch will see another sixteenth centulry; and yet, notwithstanding its divisiOns, it will remain the Catholic Clhurch. It is not Drobable tllhat for a hundied years to come the relative proportions of Protestants, Catholics, and Jews, will be materiallv varied. But a great claunge will be accolnplisled, or, at least, people will become sensible of it. Every one of these religious families will lhave two classes of adhlerents; the one belie'ving sinrply and absolutely after the manner of tlle middle ages, tle otlher sacrificing the letter of the law and maintaining its spirit. In every commulnion thlis latter gIreat class will increase; and as the spirit dralws togethler quite as mnuch as the letter separates, the spiritually-mninded of' each faithll will be brought nearer. Fanaticism will l)e lost in a geeneral tolerance. The theory of tile dogma will becomle merely a irysteriolls vault whlich no one will ever care to open; and if the vault be einpty, of wa-lt importance is it? Only one ieliguionlIslailnisln alolle, I fear- will resist this mollifying yOprocess. Amonlog certain Mahommedans of the oldt Scll,,l, several eminent men. in Constantinople,'and ablove all amnong the Persians, there are tile germs of a tolerant and coinciliatory spirit. If these germs of good be crushed by tlle fitanaticisln of tlle Ulemas, Islamlism will perish; fi' two tlhings are evident —that nmodern civilization does not wish to see the old teligions entirely die out; and that, on the otller hand, it will not be impeded in its work by semile ieligious institutions; these latter Inust either lbelll or break. And why slhould purte religion, whichl cannot be 50 THE APOSTLES. deemed thle exclusive attribute of any one sect or c1hurc,'1, encunlber itself with the inconveniences ol a position thle advantages of which are denied it? W ly should it array standard against standard, all thle tilne I.nowing that safety and peace are in the reachl of all, according to the merits of each. Protestantismr, wh licll ploceeded fromn a very absolute faitlh, led in thle sixteellth century to an open rupture. So far fiom showirl aly reduction of (logmatism, tle refolrm was msiarked by a re-vival of the most rigid Christian spirit. The movement of the n ineteenth century, on tile othler hand, arIises froml a sentiment whlich is thle inverse proposition of doogmatisml. It will not do away with ally sect or chlurc,ll but will lead to a general concentration of all lthe cllllrellches. Divisions and schlisms increase tile fanaticism and provoke reaction. The Lunlhers and Calvinrs lmlade the Cariaffas, the Gllislieri, Loyolas, and Phlilip I[. If our churlch repels us, do inot let us reelinlinate; let us the better appreciate tile mildness of modern Imanners which has made this hlatred itmpotent; let uts console onirselves by reflecting on tla.t invisible church Wlhich includes excomn inunicated saints, and the noblest souils of every age. The banished of thle church are always its best blood; thley are in advance of their times; the heresy of the present is the orthodoxy of the future. And whiat, after all, is the excommunication of men? The leavenly Father only excommuicates the narrow-minded alld selfish. If the priest refuses to admit us to the cemetery, let us prothibit our families fiom beseeching hlint to alter hlis decision. God is the Judge; and the Earth is a kind and impartial motler. The body of the good THE APOSTLES. 51 man, placed in ground not consecrated, carries tlhere a co(nsecration witih it. There are, without doubt, positions welen tile application of these princil)les is (lifficult. The spirit of liberty, like tile wind, bloweth wherever it listeth. There are ofteni people lilke clergyien, riveted, as it were, to an absolute faitll; but even anonlg thein, a ioble mlind rises to the full extent otf the issue. A wo'rthy country priest, throughl lis solitary studies and the simple purity of his life, comlles to a knowledge of the iinpossil)ilities of literal dogmatism; anld tmust lie therefore sadden those whomn lie formerly consoled, and explain to the simple folk those miental processes which they canrnot conprehend? HIeaven forl)id! Tlere are no two men in the wrld whlose pathlls of duty are exactly alike. The excellenlt Bishlop Cdlellso showed an lihonesty which the Cllnrch siilce lher originl has not seen surpassed, in writing out his doubts as they occurred to hiiim. But the humrnble Catholic priest, surroundlled by timid and narrow-minlded souls, must be qlliet. 01h! how many close-mroutled tonmbs aboult our village churches, hide silnilar poetic reticence and anlgelic sile-nce! Do those who speak when daty dictates, equal, after all, in llerit, tlhose wl11o ill secret cherish and restrain the doulbts known only to God? Theory is not practice. The ideal sllould remain the ideal, for it mnay become soiled and colntaminlated by coiitact with reality. Sentinlents applropriate enoughti to those who are preserved by tlheir innate nobleness fioni all lnoral danger, are not as suitable to those who are of a lower grade. It is only from ideas strictly limited that great actions are evolved; and this is 52 THE APOSTLES. becaluse humiinan capacity is limited. A man Nwhlolly without prejuldice would be powverless and uninflte-i. tial. Let us elijoy thle liberty of the soils of God; but let 11 also beware tlhat we are not accomlplices in dimiin. islIing the sum-total of virtue in thle world-a result wlhicli would necessarily arise, were Clhristianity to be weatikened(. What, indeed, would we be withlout it?'Wliat would replace the noble institutions to which it gave birtlh, sucll as the association of t]he Sisters >of Cllarity? IIow cold-hearted, mean, alltl petty mankind would beconme! Our disagreemlent with tlhose 1w\ho believe in positive religions, is, after all, purely scientific; we are witlh thlem at heart; and we combat bnt one einemny, whliclt is theirs as well as ours —and this enenly is vn-lgar lnaterialism. IPeace, then, in the name of God! Let thle different orders of menl live side by side, and pass tlleir cldays, not in doing injlustice to their own proper spirit by mlakillng concessions which would only deteriorate tlhem, but in mutually sepporting eacli ohther. Notlinig here below should'rule to the exclusion of its opposite; no onei force slould have the power to suppress othlier fo-rces. The trule harmlony of llhumanity results fi'ro thle fiee use of discordant'notes. We kniow too well wlhat follows when orthodoxy succeeds in overpowering science. The Mussulrnan elemnent in Spaill was extir])ated because it clung too fondly to its ortlhodox views. The experience of the French Revolution shows us what we may expect when Rationalism attempts to govern people without reference to their religions needs. The instinct of art, carried to a high pitch of refinement, but without honesty, made of Italy a den TtIE APOSTLES. 53 of thieves and cut-tlllroats. StupiditS and mnedi(clrity are the bane of certaini Pro:lestant countries, where, ulder tile pretext of common sense alld Christiall spirit, art (and science are both tabsolutely deglraded. Lllcretia of Roime and Saint Thlleresa, Aristollhalles and Socrates, Yoltaile and Francis of Assisi, Rlpllael and St. Vinrcent de Paul, a.ll e.ioyed, to an equal degree, the right of existen:e, and humanlity would lhave been lesened, had a single one of these individual elements been wanting. CHAPTER I. FORMfATION OF BELIEFS RELATIVE TO THE RESURRtEC'-TION OF JESUS. —THE APPARITIONS AT JERUSALEIIM. JEsus, altlhough constantly speaking of resulrrection and of a new life, thad not decleared very plainly that he should rise againl in thle fleshl. The disciples, during tlIe first hlonrs which elapsed after his death, had, in tlis reslect, no fixed hope. The sentiments wlhicth they so artlessly confide to us show that they believed all to be over. Tthey bewail and buiry their friend, if' not as onle of the common o herd wTho ha I died, at least as a personl \wlose loss was irrepuarable;2 thley were sorrowf\ul alld Cast down; tile expectation whichl tlley had iinidulged of seeiiig himll realize tlhe salvation of Israel, is 1)oved to have been vanity; we should speak of tlhemn as of 1men who have lost a grand and beloved illtsio(11. But entlhusiasm and love do nollt recognise situations unfiruitful of results. Tlecy allluse themselves with what is impossilble, anld, ratller tllall rellounce all hope, they do violellce to every reality. Maiiy worids of their Master whichl they remlembered-those, ablove all, ill whtichl he had predicted his future advent-inight be interpreted to mean that he would rise friom the to(lllb.3 Such a belief was, otherwise, so natural, that the ftaith of tlme disciples would have been sufficient to hlave invented it in all its parts. The great prophets Enoch THE APOSTLES. 555 and Elijah had not tasted deatli. Tlley began to iiiiagine that the patriarchs and the chief fitlielr of tlhe old law were lnot really dead, and that tlieir bodlies were sepulchred at Hebron, alive and animnated. To Jesus hlad happened the same fortune whiclh is tlhe lot of all nTern who llave riveted the attention of tlheir fello(w-mell. The world, accustomed to attribute to tlienm superh'liuman virtues, could not admit that they lhad submliited to tlhe n111jUst, revolting, iniquitous law of the death Common1011 to all. At the moment at which Mahomnet expired, Omar rushed fiomn the tent, sword in hand, and declared tlhat he would hiew down thle lhead of any one viwho should dare to say that the propllet was no Ilore.5 Deatli is so absurd a tl-ing wlhen it smiites tlle man of genius or tlme man of' large heart, tlhat people will not believe in tlle possibility of siiuc all error oil t-he part of nature. Heroes do not die. Wliat is true existence but the recollection of us whliclI survives in tlhe blearts of those wlio love us? For somie years tllis adored Master hlad filled the little world by wlhich IIe was surroiunded with joy and hope; coild tiley censent to allow H-Iim to tile decay of tile tomb? No; I-e had too entirely lived in those who surrounded Himi, that tlhey coulld but affirm thlat after I-Iis death lie would live fOr ever.6 The day whlieli followed the bllrial of Jesus (Saturday, 1lie 15tl of the mno-ntlh Nisani), was octipied withl sllch tltouiglhts ias thiese. All rianual labior was foi-,liddell on account of tlme Salbbatll. But never wa'vs repcse In,,re fiunitfil. The C}lristian c,n scienlce ]ad, on tlhat day, only one olbject; thie Master laid low in thle tombnl. The women, eslecially, overwhlelmlled hi in spirit witl tile 56 THE APO.jTLES. most tender caresses. Tlleir thloughts leave not foir an instant thiis sweet fiiend, lying in His myrrh, whoim tile wicked had slain! All! doubtless, the angels are surrounding HIim, and veiling their faces with His sllroud, iWell did He say that lie should die, that His death would be the salvation of the sinner, and that He should lixve again in the kingdom of His father. Yes! Ieo slhall live again; God will not leave His Son a prey to hell; Ile will not suffer Htis elect to see corruption.? What is this tombstone wlich weighlls upon I-Iim I- e will raise it up; I-e will reascend to the riglt hand ot Hlis Fatller, whlence He descended. And we shall see IIirn again; we shall hear His charmilig voice; we shall enjoy afrlesh HTis conversations, and th]ey will hlave slaill Hiln in vain. The belief in the immortality of the soul, which tlhrolgh the influence of the Grecian philsoplhy hlas become a dogma of Christianity, is easily perinitted( to take the part of death; becanse the dissolmttioll of tle body, by this hypothesis, is nothing else tllhan a dleliverance of the soul, hereafter fieed firom the troublesomne bonds without whllic it is al)le to exist. But thlis theory of man, considered as a beig, c(,omposed of two substances, was by no means clear to thle Jews. Tlhe reign of. God and thle reign of thle spirit consisted, in their ideas, in a complete transforimation of the wor'ld and in the annihilation of death.s To acknowledge tlhat death could ~have tile victory over Jesus, over himln wh]o came to abollish the power of deathl, tlHis was the lheight of absurdity. The very idea that lie could stiffer had previously been revolting to his disciples.8 They had ino choice, theni, between clespair or heroic THI-E APOSTLES. t7 affirniation. A. man of penetration nlit li'tvc a-n. nf I I -. Ln I.l lOfil)ced dll'il)g thle Satulrday tihat Jesus wouldl arise. Thle little Clilristianl society, on tlit cSa, worked tile veritable miracle; thiey resuscitatecl Jesuis in their hearts by thle intense love which they lborle towards hiln. They decided tlhat Jesus bad Iiot died. The love of tlhese passionately fond souls was, truly, stronger tlhan deatlhl;10 and as the charlacteristic of a passionate love is to be colnmmunicated, to ligllt up like a torch a sentiment which resembles it and is straightw ay indefinitely plropagated; so Jesus, in one sense, at thle timne of wh;cl we are speakinlg, is already resuscitatted. Only let a materlial tact, insignificant of itself, allow thle persuasion that his body is no longer herIe below, and thle dogmna of the reslurrection will be establlisllel fol ever. This was exctlty what hlap)p)ened illn the circumnstaices which, being partly olm)scrire on (aSccolunt of the incolherence of thteir traditiollns, and llabove all on accorunt of the conltradictions \wrlicli they l)!esent, ltave nevertleless been seized poll with a sufficient debgr\le of p robability.1 On thle Sunllday morning, at a very early hou(-r, thle women of Galilee whIo on Friday evening ha;t(d lhastily emibalmed the body, repaired t(o thle cave llhere thley had provisionally) deposited it. These were, MAlry of Mlagdal:a, IvIarTy Cleopllas, Salome, Joanna, w ife, of Klhonza, ancl otllers.l2 Thiey camte, pobatbly, each fron her own bbod e; for if it is difficult to catll ill question tlio tradition of thle three synoptical Gospels, according to whichil Inmany women caine to thie tolb,l3 it is certain, on the other lhand, that in thle two inost autllentic accounts'4 whlich We possess of thle resurrection, Mary 58 THE APOSTLES. of Magcrdl;tat plays hler part alone. Ill any case, slhe hlad at tllis solemn lmoment a part to play altogetllel out of the common order of events. It is ther that we must follow step 1by step; for she bore on that day durillg one hour all thle burden of the Christian conscience; her witness decided the faithl of the future. We Inust rleyernlbelr tlhat the cave, whlerein the body of Jesus was inclosed, had been recently hewn out of the rock, and that it was situated in a garden hlard by the place of executioln.15 For this latter reasonl only had it been selected, seeing that it was late in the day, and that tlle were unwlilling to violate the Sabbatlh.]6 The first Gospel alone adds one circumstance, viz. tllat tlle cave was tlhe property of Josephl of Arimlathea. But, inl general, thle anecdotical circumstances added by thle first Gospel to the comlnon fund of tradition are without value, above all wh-eni it treats of the last days of thle life of Jesus.7 TIhe sante Gospel mentions aim,iler d(letail whticlh, colsidelrinrg the silenlce of the otllhers, is destitute of prolal)ility; viz. tlic fact of tlhe seals anld of a gnard detailed to thle totib."8 We lmust also recollect that tlhe mortuary vlaults were low clhainbers hewrn in thle side of a slo,pig,clik, on whlichl was contrived a vertical cutting. TIhe dlom,,, usually downwards, was closed b)y a very heavy stonle, whichl fitted into a rabblet.'" Tthese challllers had no locks seclured with] keys; the weigltt of the stone was tlhe sole safeglard thley possessed against robbters and profatlers of tolllls; tltus were tley arranged in s8uch a manner that eithler mrechlalical power or the lllitetd effort of several persons was necessary to remove tile stone. All the traditions are agreed on thlis point, that the TIHE APOSTLES. t} stone hlad beenl placed at the orifice of tle vault on tlhe Friday evenilir. But whlen MAlry Macrgdala arrived on the Sunday norning, thle stone was not in its place. Tile vaullt wa-ls open,. The b(-ody was 1no longer there. Tthe idea of tlhe resurrection was witlt!ler, as yet. but little developefl. That whichl occupied her soul was a tender regret, and tile desire to pay funeral lhonors to thle corpse of 1her divine friiend. Her first feelings then were those of su'prise and grief. Tlle disappearance of tllis cllherished colrpse hlad taken away fromn ller thle last joy ol which slhe hlad depended. Slle clould never to(ucll lhiin again withl her hands. Anlld wlat was lie l)ecoellle Tr'lle idea of a profanllation presented itself to hIelr, and she revolted at it. Perhlaps, at tile satlne titne, a ray of llpe l)eamted across her rnlill. Witllhout loSillnr a lomlent, sle ruins to tile ]house wllere Peter and Jo.,hn were rernited.20 "' Tley have taken,,iway tlme body of our Master," shle said, and we kmow not whlele they have laid(l lin." TIme two cdiscil)les arise lhastily and ruln with all tlheir igt. John the arrivelrston, e, fist. lie t()oops (ldowin to look into thle inlterior'. Mttry was rig'iit. TlIe tombn was empty. TIle limell clbtlhs wlhich ladcl servel as hlis slhroud were lyi,(, alparlt ini tile vanIlt. In Ihis turn I'eter arrives. The two enter, examine tle linlen clotls, iIo doubt spotted withl blood, and remarlrlk, it particala1r' tlhe napkin whlliChl lbd i envloptI'(l lhis head rolled by itself iii one cornler of tile cave.2m Peter and JIhn 1re tlnrnedl to tlleir llonres overwhelmned witlh crief. If they did not tlhen pmo:mounce the decisive wvords, " IIe is iisell w' e Inay alir.tml'll tlalt such a con)seqelnce was 60 THE APOSTLE S. their irrevocal)le corclusiolln, and thllat thle creative do(,lna of Clhristiaiity was already propounded. Peter and John having departed from the garden, aInry remained alone at thle edge of the cauve. Sthe wept copiously; one sole tlhougiht preoccupied h]er nind: Whlere had they put the body. -Ier woman's hleart went no further from her desire to clasp again in herf arms the beloved corpse. Snddellly she hears a lighIt rustling behind her. There is a man standing. At first she believes it to be the gardener. " Oh! " she says,' if thlou hast bo rne hIim hlence, tell me w}lere thou hast laid him, that I may take him a:way." For the only answer, she thtinks that she hears herself called by hler nlne, " Mary! " It was the voice that had so often thriilled her before. It was the accent of Jesus.' Oh, lny lmaster! " sle cries. She is about to touch him. A sort of instinctive movement throws her at his feet to kiss tlhelt.22 The lighlt vision gives way and says to hler, "' Touch me liot." Little by little tile slladow dlisappl)ei.rs.2 But the miracle of love is accomplished. Th!at wlichll Cephlas coutld ilot do, Mary lhas donle; shle lhas beeii able to draw life, sweet and penetrating words fi'orn tlme empty tomnb. There is now ll, moref talk of inferences to be deduced, or of conjectures to be fiamed. Mary has seen and lheard. The resurrection has its first direct witness. Frantic with love, intoxicated with joy, Mata.y returned to the city; and to the first disciples whomn she inet, shlle says, "I have seen Itimn, Ie lhas spoken to me." u HIer goreatly agitated mind, lher broken and disconnected accents of speech, caused hler to be taken by some per. THE APOSrLES. 6 t sons'ort one demonetedl.6 Peter' and TJolln, ill tlhir tll'll, relate what they had seenl; otlher disciples go to tlhe tomb and see likewise.27 The fixed conlvictioll of all tlhis fil'st party was that Jesus had risen agail. Many dc7lobts still existed; but thle assnrance of Mi:ary, of Peter, and of John, illlposed upon tlle others. At a later date, this was called " thle visiotn of Peter."'28 Paul, in particular, does not spetlk of tlle vision of nMary, and attributes all the honore of thle first applarition to Peter. ]But thlis expression is very indefinite. Peter only saw the empty cave, andT-l thle linen clotll and the napkin. Only Mary loved enlougll to pass the bounds of nature and revive the sliade of thle perfect master. In these kinds of marvellolls crises, to see after the others is nothinlg; all the Inerit is in seeing for the first timle, forl tile others afterwards Imodel their visions on the received t)ype. It is the p)eculiarity of fine orgatiizationts to conlceive the imnage pronlptly, jnstly, and( with a sort of intiiutate sense of tflte ecnd. Te glory of the resurrection belollgs, then, to AMary of Magdala.l After Jesus, it is KMar'y who has done most for the foiundationl of Chliistianity. The shadow created l)y tlhe delicate sensibility of Magdalene wanders still on thle earth. Queen and patroness of idealists, Magdalene knew better than atly ote how to assert her dreani, and itnpose on0 every one tlle vision of herl passionIate soul. tler great womanlly affirmation' He has risen," has been. the basis of the faith. of humanity. Away, impotent rezason! Apply no cold analysis to this cAefdcl'avre of idealistl and of love. If wisdom refu.ses to console, this poor humrnan race, betrayed by -fate, let folly attemnpt thle enterprise. Where is the sage who has 62 THE APOSTLES. given to thle world as mulch joy as the possessed Mar3 of MTagdala? Tlhe otelier women, mleanwlhile, whlo ld been to the tolllb, spiread abroad different rieports.29 Tley l]ia1d not seen Jesus;3 but they told of a mall clotlied in wllite, wholin they b]ad seen in tlle cavej and wlho llad said to tllheml " Te is no longer here, return into Galilee: lie will go before you, there shlall ye see Him."i' 3" Perhllaps it was tile white linen clotlies wlhichl had:given rise to tlis lalleination. Perhaps, again, thley saiw notiling att ll, alll r loly beganl to speakl of their vision whllell M41ar1y o(f AMl,dala hald related hers. Acco(rdiig to one of' tlme a,ost autlientic texts,32 iiideed, tlley nainltailled silence f;i)' somne timhe, and tlleir sileince was subtlsequently attrilbutedt to telrror. H-oweverl tlat miiay be, these stories continued lhonrly to icr:'ease, as well as to undergo stranlge trtansfllrlations. Tlle rran ill white becamie an altgel of God; it was told hlow tlihat his clothing was glistenilng like tlte sinow, anld his fiiire like lilIhtning. O.loers spoke of two angels, of whonl, one appeared at tile hlead and thle otler at the f;,>ot of thle to(l,.'~ In tile evening, it is plossible that Immany )personllS believed alreadt y t!hat the womneml had seen thle atgel desceend fi'omi heleaven, take awlray tlme stone, and Jesus tlhen shoot fotlhl withl.I crash1.3 Thley tlhemselves, no dolubt,.varied ill tleir' nlarratives; > sufftelill, t'lolrl t.lle effect of tile imtlngintation of othlelr, as amlways hlapp)ens to people,f tile l),wer ordels, tlhey scipleld l)not to introduce all sors of emlbellhilllents, allld wer0 e thllus parlticipa)tors ill tile crealtiol (,f t]le legeId whliclh took its rise alnolngst themi. and cocerlning, tlhel. The day was storlny and decisive. Tlhe little coitn THIE APOST LES. 63 pany was sadly dispersed. Somre of them hlad alr'eady departed fo)r Galilee, otllers llid themselves fro'l ftear.36 Thie depllralble scene of thle Friday, the lleart-renldilng specta(cle w llich tlhey had before their eyes whllen thley saw Hli-i of wlolm they had lhoped such glreat tllilg's expire upon the gibbet, withlout His Fttlier lavin;lg come to deliver hliln, llad, moreover, shlocked tile faith of mnany. Tlie lnews spread by tle women ald by Peter llad bleen received Ily many of tlle with scarce dissembilel illcredulityS.3 Tile different. stories contradicted one anotler; tlhe w\()11en vent hlitler andl thitlier withl stralle ald c)llfliCiicllt str)l'ites eaeCl Sl'rp)assing tlle otlher. Tlhe mnost opp),,site itleas were p)ropoucnded. S()Ine of tlhemn still deplotred( tile stad event of the previous evetling; othlers were already rejoicinr: all were disposed to collect thle lost extlra, dinary tatles. Meleanwhlile tIe mistl'rust wllicli thle excitetment of i~)Mary of Lagdala calrsedtl,a tile want of autlhority on thle part of thel women, t ogetller with thle ilcolherence of tlleir several stories, pr),ilcedl great, donbllts. Tlhey were on tilhe watch for neI w visions, \vlmicll could not fail to apl)ear. The state of tlme sect was enltirely favorable to the propagattion of stranrge rumn1 ors. If the entire little ClIml1eli had blcen assehlled, tile legeildary creation would lh.:ve b)eejl imnpossible; those wlho knlew the secret of the dislappearance of tme body would probably lIave protesteit against tihe error. B lt ir, the confusion, wlhiclIh pr:evailed I amomll)gst thlel, an ol))ortnnitvy was afforded f)or the most f'ni tfail misn udelstalillrgs. It is tlie characteristic of tlose states of mnimind in wlTichl ecstasy ald appr)l) tions are co(lnlon ly.generated, to be cotltagious.39 Tie Ilistory of all the great relirgi 64 TEI E APOSTfLES. Oss crises proves tlhat these kinds of visions are catch illg; in an assembly of persons entertaining thie sltlne lelicfs. it is enoutli fi)r onle inlerlber of the society to afirin that lie sees or hears- somethlingt supernatural, and thle othlers will also see nld hear it. Aleong'st the persecuted Protestants, a repiort was spread that angels llad beeni heard chanting psalns in tile lruins ot a recently destroyed te:nple; the whlole comptan.y went to the place and heard thle same psalmn. Ill eases of this kinld, the most, excited are those who inake thle law and whlo regulate the conlnon atllltospleric ieat. Ttle exaltation of itidividuals is tranlstllitted to all tlle elmelilbers; no one will be lelind o1r c' c)nfss tllhat lie is less favored tllan the others. Tliose who see notlhiig are carried laway by excitement, and coilna to imnaginei. eithier that they are not so clearl siolited as otllels, or that they do not give a just accountt of thleir feelinrgs; in evelry case thley are careful not to ubtless send to his friends. Sinletiliies thley fatnciedl thalit Jesus, displaying hiimself sud(ltiinl1 in thie midst (,f Ilis isselmlbled dlisci)les, 1ad(1 breatled iup)oll them fromn iis ownl Loutlh a ciurrent of vivifyiig air.'7 On otlher occasions, the disappearance of Jeslus xvzls regarded as the con(lition of the coming of the Spirit.'8 Tiley tlhoughlit tihat ill these apparitions he had liromnised the descent of this Spirit.'9 MAan y set ui}. an intimate connexion betweeng this descent andt the restoration of the kingldoml of [Isr1-ac'-r A11 the activity of ililagination whicll the sect had dis. 88 q-THE APOSTILES. played in the creation of the legend of Jesus resuseitatec, it now began to aipply to the creation of a similar pious belief respecting the descent of the Spirit and His 1imarvellouls gifts. It seCems, meanwhile, that a grand apparition of Jesus had again taken place at Bethany, or on the Mount of Olives.'1 Certain traditions referred to that vision the final recommendations, the reiterated pro miise of the sending of the HI-oly Spirit, and the act by which I-le invested His disciples with power to renmit sins.22 The characteristic features of these app:iritioiis became more and rmore vague; one was cnrfounci(cd with anllothe'r, and the result was, that tlheyv cMeatscd to thlilnk irlmtch about theirm.2 It wtls a. r,'cei V, (I fte that Jesus \was atliVC7 that he had manift;sted hilmnself by a1 ltulnber of a.pparlitions sufficient to prove lis existence, and thlathe would conltinue still to mlanifest HIiinself in partial visions, u,!til the gralnd fitlal reveltatioll when everytlhing would be consuined."2 Tllus St. Paul rclpreseilts the vision which hie saw o11 tlhe route froln DaalscuLs as bi)eing of the same order as tlhose which ll ve bet'c rl.Itcd.2' At any rate, it was admllittted that in ranl i(leal sense the Master was with his disciples and would be with tlem even t'o the end.26 In the early clays, thle apparitions were very fiequent; Jesus was imagined as dwelling upon the earth constantly, and more or less fulfillingr the functions of an earthly life. When the visions bc came rare, they inclined to another conception, representing Jesus as having entered into IIis glory and seated at the right lh.nd of His Fatller. " He is ascendled into heaven," they said. This saying, though depending for the most part upon THE APOSTLES. 89 the state of vagnue idea in which they id indulged, or on a process of induction,27 was by many co(l vert-d i to a rnaterial scene. It was desirable that at the close of the last vision which was common to all the apostles, and wheln he delivered to them His last commands, Jesus should be taken up into heaven.23 Afterwards, the scene was developed, and became a complete legend. They related that ene of heavenly appearance, surrounded by the most appalling brilliancy,"2 appeared at the moment when a cloud surrounded Him, and consoled His disciples by the assurance of IIis return in the clouds precisely similar to the scene wlhich tllhey had just witnessed. The death of Moses lad been invested by the popular ideas with circumstances of the same sort."7 Perhaps also) tlhey betl-lought them of the ascension of Elijalh.: A trtclition32.placed thie locaLlity of this scelne near Bethany, on the sumimit of tile Mi[ount of' Olives, a neiglhb lrho )d always velry dear to the dlisciples, doubtless because Jesuts hlad dwelt there. Trle legend relates that the disci,les, aftcr tllis marvellons scene, returned to JerUtlsclein " withi joy.' 3 For oul owl part, it is with sorrow that we say a lalst fillerewell to Jesls. To find thir argain still livingr his shadlw()v life, has beena to us a (rreat consollation. Th'llis seconl( life of Jesus, a pale image of the first, is yet full of charms f)r us. Now all trace of Ilirn is lost. Exalted on TTis cloud at tlle right l.atnl of His Father, lie leaves us with inen; and, Iheavens 1 h1,o great is the fall! The reign of poetry is l)ast; Marly of Macgrlala retired to lher hamllet-home, lIas thlere buried her recollections of him. In consequence of this ncver-en-dilgt injustice which permits man to appropriate to himself alone thle work in which woman 90) THE APOSTLES. has t~aken an equal share, Cephas eclipses her and senIds her to oblivion. No more sermons on the Mount; no more of the possessed ones curedl; no more courtezans convinced of sin; no more of those wond(er,!ul fellow-laborers in the work of Redemption, whom Jesus had not repulsed. God truly has disappeared. The history of the Church will henceforth be oftener the history of treacheries than subservient to the idea of Jesus. But, such as it is, this history is still a hymn to his glory. Tlhe words and the image of the illustrious Nazarene will stand out in the midst of iifiiiite miseries, as a sublime ideal —we shall the better understand lhow gr (intl I e was, when we shall see how paltry were IHis disciples. CHAPTER IV. DESCENT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT; ECSTATICAL AND PROPHETIOCAL PHENOMENA. MEAN, narrow, ignorant, inexperienced they were, as nmuch as was possible for them to be. Their simplicity of mlind was extrele; their credulity lhad no bounds. B]ut they had one quality; they loved their Mlaster to madness. Thle rememlnlrance of Jesus, the only moving power of their life, had possessed tllem constantly and entirely; aiid it was clear that they existed only on account of Him whlo, during, two or three years, hlad so conmpl)etely attached and seduced them to Himself. Thle safety of minlds of a secondary class, who are unable to love God directly-that is, to discover the truth, create tlhe beautifull, anld do wvhat is righlt of themselves-is tlhe loving of some one ill whom there sllines forth a reflection of the true, thle beatiftl, and the good. The majority of mankinld require a graduated worslhip. The multitude of worsl'hippers pant for a mediator between themnselves anid God. Wlhen an individual has succeeded in gathering around his person, by a highlly elevated moral tie, a Inumnber of other individuals, and then dies, it invariably happeniis that the survivors, who were perhaps up to that time often divided amnomigst theinselves by rivtalries and differences of opinlio)n, becomle bound together1 by a mutual and fast fiiendshlip. A thousand cherishled ilmages of the past, whichll they regret, form a comnlllon 92 THE APOSTLES. treasure to them. One way of loving a dead person is to love those Iwitllt whomn we have known hlimn to associ-ate. We court their society that we may recall to our minlds the tirmes whichll are no more. A profunrld saying of Jesus' is thenl discovered to be true to the letter: " The dead one is presentt in the mnidst of those who are unlited -again by hlls nlemlory." The affection whlicl the disciples entertained for each other during tile lifotille'of Jesus, Nwas tlls increased tenfold after his deathl. Tlhey formnled a little society, very retired, and they lived exclusively wittlin thetlnselves. The number of thein at Jerusa!eIn was onle lunindred and twenty.2 Tleir piety was active, a1nd as yet, completely restrained )by the forms of Jewish religionismn. The tenple was thlleir chief place of worslhli.3 No doubt, they labo-red for their living; but inannal lablor occupied bnt a small place in the Jewislh economy. Every JSew had a trade, and this trade implied no lack of leairning or of gentle breeding. With us ill our day, our nmaterial Ieelds are so difticult to satisfy, that a. iman who lives by manual labor is oblige(d to work twelve or fifteen lhours a (lay; the man of leislure ailone can apply hilnself to inltellectual pursuits; tlhe acquisition of learning is a rare and expensvie matter. But in thlese old societies, of which thle East of our ownv day fturnishles some idea; in those climlates wltl're nature is so) lavish for man's wants, and exacts so little in retur'n-the life of a la'borer left plenty of leisurte. A sort of netlhod of coImmon instrultion icleredtl every lan well tup in the prevailing ideas. Food and railnlemt sufficed; a few hours1 of mo-derate labor were enoughll to provide them. The remaining portion of THE APOSTLES. 93 the time was devoted to day-dlreamingi and to the indulgence of passionate love. The latter had, in the minds of these people, attained to a degree altogethex inconceivable by us. Thlle Jews of that period5 appeal to ius as if possessed, each one obeying lile a blind nlacline the idea whlliCI had taken possession of him. Thie prevailing idea in the Cllristian coinmunnnity a.t tile time of whichl we are treating, and wlhen the apparitions h}ad ceased, was the colning of the Holy Spirit. They expected to receive Himn under the form of a mysterious breatllh whichl passed over the assembly. Many pretended thlat this was tlle breath of Jesus Himself: Every inrward corsolation, every courageous movement, every outburst of enthusiasm, every feeling of lively and pleasant gaiety, which they experiellced without knowing its origin, was the work of the Spirit. These worthy consciences referred, as ever, to an outward cause tile exquisite feelings which were springing up in them. It was especially in ttheir assemblies that tlhese varied phenomena of illumination were produced. Whlen they were all assembled together and were awaiting in silence the hleavenly inspiration, whatever murmur or noise arose was thought to be the comingi, of the Spirit. Inl thie early times, it was thle apparitions of Jesus which were thuilt produced. Now, there was a change in the course of' their ideas. It was thle Divine breath whlich was breathed over the little churllch and filled it with heavenly emranations. These beliefs were strengthened by notions drawn fiom the Old Testament. The Spirit of prophecy is represented in the Hebrew books as a breathing which penetrates and lifts up the sublject of it. Iin the 94 THE APOSTLES. beautiful vision of Elijal,7 God passes bIy under the form of a lirglt wind, whllich pioduces a genltle rustling soutld. This ancient iIlaceryvt had llanllded doll to later epochs systems of belief vxery sitmilar to those of tlhe spiritualists of our ownl titne. In the Ascension of Isaiahl8 the cominlg of the Spirit is accomplished by a c-rtain crashliumg at the doors 9 L'ater on, tlhey always r1e'lclded this Colmniino ill tile lig'lht of' anotheller baptismn — tllat is to sayzt te " baptislll of tile Sph it," farl sulp)erior to that of Johln.10 Thle hlalllcilnatio{lns of lodily touch beilg very freqllent amonlrgst person so nervous anlld so excited as thley were, thle least current of air, accoiipan ied by a shudderiig in the Inidlst of' the silelce, was cotnsidered as tlle p;assage,f the Spirit. One tlliolght tllhat he felt it; very soon all perceivedl it;l1 and tthe entlhusiasln wras communicated firomn neiglhbor to neigllbor. Tlie correspondllclete of tlhese pllellornlen with tlhose wlhich are found *to exist amnongst the visionaries of every age is easily demonstrated. Timey are produced daily, partly lllde1 tlhe illflence of the reading thle book of tlte Acts of thle Apostles, in thle English aild American sects of Quakers, Jutnlers, Slhakers, Irvingites,12 amnonggst thle Morllons,13 and in tile camp nmeetings and revivals of Almerica;14 we lave seenl them reproduced amongst ourselves in tile sect called the Siritualists. But an immnenlse difference should be observed between aberirationes, wit- out capacity or future reslllts, and the illusions whlicli lave accompanied the establishmnent of a new code of religion for the huiiman race. Amongst all tlhese " descents of the Spirit,' wllich appear to have been by no mneans infrequent, there. was TITE APOSTLES. 9t on'e wlichl left a deep imnlpression on tile nlaseelt Churcll.'5 One day when they were assemllle;d t,('ctlier a thllnder-stormi arose. A violent wind burst tlie mvildows open-the sky seemed on fire. Tlhinlderstormls in those countries are accomnpanied by wo(nderfiil illluminations; tile atmospliere is furrowed, as it wer(e, ol1 every side witlh garbes of flame. Wletlher tile electric fluid ihail penetrated into the very chamber itself, or wlletlher a (lazzlillt flashl of lightnirg had studdenly illumninatced all their faces, tley were convilced that the Spirit Iad enltered, and that lie was poured out upon the hlead of each one of them unller tile form of tongues of fire.'6 It was a prevalenlt opinioUn in tlle thenurgic schools of Syria that the communication of the Spirit was produced by a divine fire, and ulder tlle foirm of a mysterious glinrneling.7 It was believed to lhave been Ilresenrt at tile display of all the wollders of Mount Sinail,' at a mnanifestation analogons to thlose of fonrner timles. Tile baptismn of the Spirit hence becaImet also a b:ptisin of fire. TIhe baptismn of thle Spilit and of fire was opposed to and greatly preferred to that of water, tlhe only formtn with wliich John had been acquatinted.'9 The blaptism of fire was only produlced on rare occasions; only thie apostles and the disciples of tile first guest-chamber were supposed to have received it. But the idea thiat tle Spirit Nwas ploured fortlh upon thewm under the foirm of strokes of flamne resenibling bulrning tongues originated a series of singurlar ideas, whichl took firml hold of the imaginations of tile period. Tihe tongue of an inspired man was snpposed to h}ave. received a sort of sacrament. It was pretended tlat many Iprophets before their imission had been stamnler 96 THE APOSTLES. ers;20 that tile angel of God hlad passe d a coal ove tlleir lips, which purified themn and conferred on them the gift of eloquencet.2 In his proplietic utterances the ntan was snpposed not to speak at all about hinself.i2 His tongue was looked upon merely as the organ of the Iivinity Wlio inspired it. Thlese tongules of fire ap. peared a very striking symbol. The disciples were convinced that God desired to make it knllown that on the apostles also lie llad co.lnferred his mn{ost precious gifts of eloquence and inspiration. But they did not stop there; Jerusaleml was, like Inost of the great cities of the East, a city whlere many languages wer'e spoken. The diversity of tongues was one of the difficulties wllilch they tllele discovered in the way of the propagation of a universal frmn of faith. Besides,'one of the thingis which most alarmed the apostles at their very entry on a mniistry destined to embrace tile world, was the nulul)er of languages wliclh were spoken ill it; they werie constantly inquiriiig how tlley could learn so Imany dialects. "Tlhe gift of tonlgues " becane tlhenceiforthl a marvellous privilege. They believed that the preachillg of the gospel would relieve thein fiomn the obstacle which the difference of idiomns had raised. They pretended tlhat, under certain soleInn circumstances, those present had heard, eacll in his own language, the gospel preached by the apostles; in other words, that the apostolic promise was delivered to each one of tlhe hearers. At othler times, this conception was entertained in a somewhat diff'erent shape. They ascribed to thie apostles the gift, of acqniring, by divine illumination, every language spoken, and of speaking those latnguages at wVill. THIE APOSTLES. 97 There was in this a liberal conception; they wislled it should lhave no langiuage peculiar to itself, that it should be capablle of translation ilto every language, and that the translation should be of the satne standard value as the original. Sucli was not the opinion of orthodox Jldaismn. Tthe Htebrew was "tlle holy language" to tile Jew of Jeruisalem, and no version could be compared to it. Tiranslations of the Bible were in little esteem; s, lonIo as tile Hebrew text was scrinpuloasly glarded in the translationls, chlanges and mlodifications of expression weire tolerated. Thte Jews of Egypt and Hlellenists of Palestinle, indeed, practised a more tolerant system, and hablitually perused the Greek translations of the Bible. But thie first plan of the Clhristians was even broader; according to thleir idea, tile word of God has no langoiuage peculiar to it; it is fiee, nuifettered by anly idiomnatic pecnliaiity; it is delivered to all spontaneously and without interpretatio>n. Tlle facility with wlhiclh Chlistianity l)ecame detaclled fi'rom lie Semitic (lialect wlicl Jesus hlad spoken, the liberty whiichl it at tirst accorded to every nation of forminig its own litulrgy, and its ownt versionis of the Bible in tlhe vernlacllar, favorecl tlis sort of etnancipation of languages. It was generally adclitted that the Messiah would gatlher into one, all languages as well as all peoples.26 Common usaoge and thle plromlisculousness of the languages was tile first grand step towards this giand era of univeirsal pacification. Moreover, tile gift of languages very soon undelwent a consideralble variation, anld resulted in very extra{ordinary effects. Ecstasy and prophleey were tlhe fruits of neutlal exciteniient. At these mlolments of ecstasy, the 98 THE APOSTLES. faithfill, possessed by tile Spirit, uttered inarticulate and incoherent sounds, which were mistaken for the woxrds of a foreign language, and which they innocently attempted to interpret.27 At other times they supposed tllat thle ecstatically possessed was giving utterance to new and hitherto unknown languages,28 which were n(lot even tile languages of the angels.29 These extravagant scenes, whlich were thle fruitful cause of abuse, only becamne habitual at a later period;'0 but it is probable tlhat thley were produced fioni tile earliest years of Chlristianity. The visionls of tlle ancient proplhets had often been accompanied by plhenomena of nlervous excitement.31 Thle ditlhyrambici state amongst tlhe Greeks abounded in occurrences of the salme killnd; tile Pytllia seemted to give a preferenc-e to tile use of fOrt'eign or obsolete words, which were called, as also in. tile apostolic phenourena, glosses. 2 Many of tile pass-wordls of' primitive Christianity, which are precisely 1hi-linguistic, or forned by anllagranms, such as Ab1ba. Iatel:r, and Anathema Aifaranatita,3 to(,k their origini perWimps fromil thlese t'antastic paroxysmns, interniillgled with sighs'4 fromi stifled gradus, fiom ejaculations, prayers, and sudden transp-lrts wlhich were interpreted as prophlecies. It was like some vague liarmnony of the soul, thrilling in indistinct sounds, and wvlich the hearers of it desired to transform into dcetermnined shapes and words,3 or rather like spiritual prayers addressed to God in a language understood by God alone, and which. God knows how to interpret.38 The individual in a state of ecstasy understood, in fact, nothin g of what lie uttered, and had no cocnizance of it whatever.:7 IHis eager listeners ascribed THE APOSTLES. 99 to his incollerent syllables tlle tllhonllts 1lwhich occ1rred to theln at the timle. Eaeh one referred to hlis oxvn dialect, and artlessly strove to explain tlle tinintelli~gible sounds by what little knowledge of' langtuages lhe possessed. They were always more or less successtfnl, because tlhe auditor illterpolated within thlese broken accents tile thotlglhts of his own breast. Tlie hlistory of fiInatical sects is richl in thcts of this description. Tlle preachers of C6venrles displayed many instances of' c glossology,"3S lbut thle nmost relnarkable fiact is that of tile "' 1readers" of Sweden,39 about thle years 1St11843. Involuntary enurlciations, devoid of sense in tlhe minids of those whlo uttered thein, and accompanied l)y convulsions and faillting-tits, were fo)r a long timne datily practiised by tile mnenmblers of tllis little sect. Tlhis phlenomenron beca1me quite cotatgionis, atl(l a considerable popuIlar ilovement b)ecame bleillel vithl it. Amo1ngst the IIrvingites, the plenoiomenion of tonllges is produlced with featn res which reproduce, in tIle mnost remlarkable mnalner, thle most striking of the stories of the " Acts " and of St. Paul.]~ Ort' owln age has witnessed fantastic scenes of the same mnature, which need nlot to he recounted here; for it is alwrays inlj ilst to coImpare the credulity of a grand religions mIovement witht the credulity which is caused only by dtllness of intellect. Now and then these strange plhenomena were produced outside. Tlie extatics, at the very moment when under the influence of their extravaglant fantasies, had the hardihood to go out and display themselves to the crowdl Th!ey were taken for persons who were intoxicated.4? However sober minnlded in point of mnysticism. Jesus had 100 THE APOSTLES. more than once presented in his own person the ordiilla ry phenorrena of the extatie state.42 The disciples, dur. ing three or four years, were possessed with these ideas. The prophesyillgs were fiequent, and were regarfded ias a gift analogous to that of tongues.43 Prayer, minglecc witlh convulsions, with harmonized modulations, with mys. tie sighs, with lyrical enthusiasm, with songs of tlllansgivinlg,44 wtas a daiily exercise amrnonll them. A rich vein of " cenl ticles," of' Psl ms," and of- " Hrymns," co pied fiom those of the Old Testament was tlhus discovered to be op)en to them.45 Sometimes the lips and the heart were in mntual accord; so)metimes the spirit sang alolne, accompanie'd by grace in the ininer man.46 Any lanru:(re, T wllichl did nlot afford the new sensations whlich were being protluced, they suffered to becomne an indistinct stammering, at olce sublime and puerile; or that which they could denominate "'lhe Christian language" was wafted aloud in an embryo state. Christianity, not fincling in thle ancient tongues a weapon appropriate to its nIeeds, hais destroyed thern. But whilst t}he new religion was fiormling, fi)r itself an idioln of its own, ages of obscure effo)l'ts, a1nd so to speak, of squalling, illtervened. What is the chlaracteristic of the style of St. Paul and, in general, that of the writers of the New Testament, but the stifled, panting, misshapen improvisation of the "Glossology?" Language fiilled tliem. Like the propllhets, they began with the a, a, C of thlinthnt.47 They knew no(t how to speak. The Greek and the Seimitic tongutes equ'ally betrayed them. Thus larose that frightJul violence whiclh the new Christianity inflicted upon language. They would call it a stammering of the mouthl, by which the sounds are stifled and confused, THE APOSTLIES. 101 and wind tup with a pantomime confused illndced, but nevertheless wonderfully expressive. All this was very thr froim the intention of Jesus; but to those whose mninds were imbued with a belief inl the supernatural, these phenomena- were of the utinost importance. The gift of tongues, in paraticular, was considered as an essential sign of the new religionI, and, as it were, a proof of its verity.48 In every case it resulted in great fruits of edification. Many pagans were in this manner convert-edl.49 Up to the third century, the " Glossology " manifested itself in ta mnnner analogous to that which St. Paul describes, and was considered in the lighlt of a: permanent miraele.'t~ So)me of the sublirnest words of Christiality have originated il these incollerent sigltilios. Tlhe getnlcral effect was touching anrl peletlrating. Thiis fisliion of joining together thleir insi)irations and dclvjlyeri gr thelm over to tlie comurllity f;r interp9retaitilon Wwas enllugh to establish amongst the fiitlthful a profiund Io)nd I)f co(nfraternlity. Like all imystic's, the Ilew sGectaries led{l lives of fitsting nlld austerity. Like tile m-ljority of Orient! s, they ate little, whllicll fact c(,ltributed to maintaitni tleir excitced state. Tile sobri-ety of the Syrinl, ea1used( by physical weakn{ess, kept lill in a coinstant state of fever anid nervous susceptibility. Such great =and protracted intellectual efforts as ours are impossible under such a regOineiln; but this cerebral and muscullr debility is productive, witlh)ut apparent catuse, of lively alterlati,)ns of sadness tind joy, whEich brill tlle soul into co,ntiliuatl comrnanuniol witlh God. T'ius tlat whllich they cal!led " godly sorrowv:2 passed for a le:tvcnlyr gift. All the teachings of tlhe Ftltlcrs respecting the spirituald 102 THIE APOSTL ES. life, such as John Chinaticus, s sBasil, as Nilus, as Arsenius-all the secrets of tle grand art of the inwaird lifb, one of the most glorious creations of Cllristianity —wcr e germinating in that strange state of nrlidl which possessed, in their months of extatic watchfulness, those il lustirious ancestors of all "the men of ]ongings." Their' moral state was strange; they lived in the supernatulral. They acted only on the authority of visions; dreams and the most insignificant circumstances appeared to them to be admonitions from IIeaven."3 Uiider the name of gifts of the Holy Spirit were concealed also the rarest and most exquisite emanations of the soul-love, piety, respectful fear, oljectl'ess si-hinls, sldden languor, alnd spontaneous tenderness. All the go),d that is engendered in man, without min having aInyS patrt in it, wats attributed to a breathinfg from on hi.gh. Tears were often taken for a celestial f;vor. Trhis charming gift, the privilege otnly of very good (lndl pure souls, was repeated with an ilfinity of sweetn-ss. We know what influe-ince delicate natures-a-tbl)ove dll, women —exe cise in the ability to shed copl.ious terais, It is their style of praying, and assuredly it is the nost loly of prayers. WNe rrust come down qllite to thle Middle Ages, to that piety watered with tears of St. Bruno, St. Bernardl, and St. Frarncis of Assisi, in order to discover again the clhaste melancholy of those early days, when they verily sowed in tears that thev migh:t relap with joy. To weep became an act of piety; those wlio could not preacl-l, who were ignorant of langunages, and unable to wvok miracles, wept. Praying, preaching, admonisitinu Ihey wept;54 it was the advent of the kingdom of tears. One might have said that their souls were dissolved, and THE APOSTLES. 103 that they desired, in the absence of a language wlhicb could interpret their sentimnents, to display themselves te the world by a lively and brief expression of their entire inner being. CHAPTERT V. EIRST ChURCtI OF JERUTSALEM; ITS CHARACTERI CENOBITtCAL. THE custom of living in a community professing one identical faith, and indulging in ore and the same expIectation, necessarily produced many habits coIrn mnon to all tlhe society. Very soon Irules were enactced. ancd establish4ed a certain aInalogy between this lritnitive clurehl and the cenobitical establishlments wiib wlhichl Christianity became acquainted at a later peroiod. ManIy of thle precepts of Jesius conduced to this; thle tiue ideal of tl)e gospel life is a moznastery-uot a inoastery closedl in withll iron gratinllgs, a prisonl of thle type of thle 7Middle Agcres, witlh tlhe separaltil otf thle two sexes, but aim asylumn ill thle mti,!st of the w('Ymrld, a pltace set apart for the spiiritull life, a free associaltio)ll or' litile co(lli'raternity, tracing around it. a rainpart whtic l tltay serlve to dispel cares t~hat ar'e hlurtfiul to) the kinlgdom of God. All, tlhen, lived in commonin, lhaving only ione heart and(1 oine miind.' No one possessed aughtl whlichl in(lividually belo)gted to him. On b)ecomning disciples of Jesus, they sold their go,d)ts and presented to thle society the price of tlhe:n. The cliefs of the society thlen distribuled thle conmmon possessionis accor:din, to tlhe tneeds of eacll nemnber. They dwelt in one neighl-. boihlood only.2 They took tlheir meals togetheri, and continued to attach to themn the mnystic sense wliche Jesus had ordered.3 Many hours of the day tlhey spent TH-I APro3'T,ES. I J5 in prayer. T!lese praye'rs were Solnutiles'1 illrvisel inl a loud voiee,; oftener thley were silent mleditations. Tlheir states of ecstasy \were fi'eqten.lt, anld eacli oIne believed himiselt to be ineessantl'y -favored with thel Divilne inspiration. Their hiamruono ly was perfect; no quarrellingo about dogmlas, no dispute respecting precedelnce. Tthe tender recollection of Jesus prevented all dissensions. A lively and (leeply rooted joy pervaded their liearts.4 ThLeir morals were austere, but maraked by a sweet and tender syimpathy. They assenmbled inl ionses to pr-ay and abandon themnselves to ecstatic exercises.5. Thle rememnlbrance of those two or tlhree years irested lpaon thllen like tllhat of a terrestriatl paradise, which Christianity wonld lhencefoLrthl purs'ue in all its cireams, andl1 to hllichl it Mwould ellndcav~or to returnl ill vain. Whlo, ieinded, doe-s nlot see that stcll an organiz.ation couldl only be applical)le to a very little chllrchll? Bit later on, tile monastic life will resrume on its own accoinnt tiis primitive ideal, wlhichl tlhe clirclih niiversal will lIaardly d(reIamn o(f re'alizirig. Tliat the autIhor of the " Acts," t whom we owe the picture of this first Cihristianity at Jerusalem, has somewhat ovrceo!orcld it, and in particular has ex:tog(er.,ted the comnunitit of g'oo(ds wiich pr tllereabolluts, tley did not leave thle holy city, excep)t oil telni)orary mnissions. And in thlis way is exl)lainie( tlhe obl)sclrity in whichil tlhe greater part of th]e C:tl'ltrl c,')'m!Cil ir:ll-ined; very iew of tleilu ilad any palrticilar duty to performln. Ttohey formlled a sort {f' oa sacred college or a seniate,3 unequlivocally dlestiIled to represent tradhitvim andi a conseirvative spirit. In thle endil they werde (liszl'ilrged frioii all active duty, because tley lad only to) preach and to'ty;34.1s yet the brilliant feats of preaching hlad not TIJE APOSTLES. 1 L 1 fallenl to their lot. Scarcely were tlheir names known\ out of Jersalelm; anid aboult the year 7() or 80 tlie catalogues hllichl were publislled of tllese twelve primary elect ones only agreed in the prinlcipal iallles.35 The "brothers of tle Lord" appear to lhave b)een often with the " apostles," althoughllr they were distiliguisled fromtl tleml1.36 Tleir' lautllority w1as at least equal to that of tlhe apostles. These two grolups constituted, ill thle lascellt Clhuurchl, a so{rt oft aristocracy, based entirely ull)ol thle greater lor less intilmacy wlich thley ]lt(l had ha wili tl e Miaster. Ir was tllese men whlloSt. Palul called "lpillla-s" otf tlhe Clilurcm of Jerusaletn.7 We see, iorcover, thlat Ino distillctions 0o ecclesiastical hierarcll y wNvere vet ill existence. Tthe title was notiling; tile personal authority was everyihling. Thle primnciple of ecclesiastical celibacy \was alreadltly well establislhed;38 but it relquired tiihe to con:dl ct all these germs to their futll develpl)I2't'. Petem, an(l Piii!ip were mIarr'ied, and were the fttlel's,,f' f s,:is and daltmlg liter's.39 The term 1by w lichi tlne ass blelly of tIle tih tflfitl was distilnlguislhel!, \vws tIle EI-lt1,ne wi,r l r, hAc/, wlichl was rendered bty thle esse8 tiat l (letllocratic xword w x~-i'~, lEcclesiac, wh!ichl nieans tilhe cn,:vocatiol of the,eol)le ill thie ancient Greciain cities, tl' suimino, us to asselillle at the Pnyx or the Agora. C,,nnmiet!ciumg about tile second or third cuIlltaur belf'or Jesus Christ, Atllellian dellnocracy blecamne a sort of conlrll)l law wlherever thle HIellenic language was sploken; Ilany of these terlmns,40 on aecount of thleir beinrl used in thle Greek cnfr'aternities, were introdulced into thle lang'rlaoe of Cltristianity. It was ill reality thie popultlar life, for centuries 1 [2 TEll AI()ST',F:S. kept ulnder restra ilt. wlhichi reasserted its power under eiitirely different fobrns. The prinitive Cilurch is, in its own wayS a little democroac. Thle election bvy )allot, hiowever-that mode so chlerisheld by the ancient republics-is only rarely reproduced.41 Far less lla rsh and suspiciouns than thle ancient cities, the cllhurc readily delegate(d its anthority; like every theocratic society, it had a tendency to abdicate its functions into the hlands of the clergy, and it was easy to foresee that one or two centuries wO)uld scarcely elapse lefoire all this democracy would resolve into 1an1 oligarlchy. The powers wllilch they ascribed to alt asseiriled C}Iurchl and to its chliefs was elorrt, us. All mission;was c,llferred by tle C rcli, wich was entirely gutided ill its choice ly sig!ns,ivenl byy tll spirit.i - ITts authority extended as ftar as tile (lde1ath penalty. They related ]how, at the voice of Peter, g(ilty pe>rsons fell ba1ekw~ards and expired inlmlediately.43 St. Paul, at a later p)eri{od, was not afraid, wheni excommunicatillg an incestuous per'son, " to deliver himn to Satan fin. the destruc tionl of thle flesli, tllat thle spirit mlnay be saved in the day of thle Lordl Jesuss." Excolnmunelation was considered equivalelt to a sentence of death. They doubted not that an individual wlhon thle apostles or chiefs of tlhe Clurch el 1lad cut off fromn the body of thle saints and delivered over to thle power of the Evil One, was lost.45 Satan was considered to be the aunthor of the diseases; to deliver to hlimn the infected Ineinber was to hanld Iimn over to tthe natulral executioller. A prelatlure death vwas ordlinarily considered as tIle result of' one of those secret judgmlents, whlich, accordingr to the expressive IIebrew term, " cut TIHE APOSTLES. 11 3 off a soull firom Israel."4 Thle apostles 1)elieeed thlielselves to be invested withl supernatural powers; wlhile pronlounlCilng such condemlnations, tlhey Ibelieved that their anathemnas could not fail to be effectual. The terrible ilnpression which these excommunications made, and the hatred of all the brethren towards the members thlls cut off, were powerful enough ill fact to produce death in many cases, or at least to compel the guilty person to expatriate himself. The samne frigtltfdl, anliguity was found in the old law. "Extirpation " implied, at once decease, expulsion from thle coinnmunity, exile, and a solitary and lmystelios death.47 To kill tlme apostate, or blacspleiner, to beat his bl>,dly in order to save hlis soul, would seetn qlite lawfutl. It must be renemembered that we are treatilg of tlie times of zealots, who considered it a virtiuous act to assassiinate any one who failed in o!elienlce to tlle IlsTw;3 l' mniist we fori'et tlhat somie of tile Clllristialls Were, Or had been), zeal-)ts.4" Stories like tlhat of the death of A.tanias and Sapllhiira5 raised no scrttlles. Tlie idea of thle civil poxwer was so sstranlge to all thlis w\m(ld situat-ed outside of thie Roltan ltaw, tlhey were s,) persuaded tlhat tile Churlmch was ar cocOnplel:e sOciety sutiiicient for all its own neel dls, t lat nl)boly reIlardted tthe death or -nntiliationl of an iii(lividtual as an outrage pllnisllable by the civil law. EntlllsiasmY d acdl burniniio faitllh covered all, yea, exciused all. But thle frightfull danger wliichl tllese tllheoc'ratic Imaximns entailed on thle future was easily perceived. Thel Clirclh is armIed wtil a sworl; (cxeomi rllicatioln will )be a sentence of deatlh. Tliere is }lenceforthl in the world a power above thllt of the State wlhich disposes of the lives of citizens. 114 THIE APOSTI,ES. Assuredly if tile Roman power hlad limited itself to thle relpression among the Jews and the Chlristians of such abomlinal)le priinciples, it would hlave been a thousand times in tlle rigllt. Only ill its brutality it confounded the most legitimate of liberties, that of worshlipping accorldinig to one's own conviction, with abuses wlhichl no society has ever been al3le to endure with impunity Peter had a certain primacy amrongst the apostles lie result of his dairing zeal and activity.5' In these early tites hle is scarcely ever separated from John, tlhe son of Zeibedee. Tlley went together almost alxvays,52 lid tlieir pertect coiicord was doubtless the con'er4tone of thle new faithl. James, brother of tle Lord, was nearly their equal in authority, at least ill onie seeiion of thle COiurcbi. In respect to certaini intinmate I iends of Jesuls, like the women of Galilee iandl thle f.-lnily of Betllhany, we have already obtserveld tlhat we lhave no more to do with them. Less antxiotls to oirganize and tomlcld a society, the fiitlfifll colnpanlionls of Jesuls were satisfied to love ill death Him wlhoin tlhey had loved whlein alive. Totally occupied with their waitig, tlhese noble womnen, wlio have established tlhe fait]h of thle world, were almost unknown to t1he important inen of Jerusalemn. Whlen thley died, the lmost iInpoitrant traits ill thle history of nascent Cllristiality were brlied in the tomb witll thlemll. Tile active clmaracters alone blecamne remowed; tlhose whlo are conitelnt to love secretly remainl in obscurity, but assuredtly tlhey hlave thle better part. It is superfluous to remark that tlhis little grotlp had no speculative theology. Jesus kept himmiself far removed fromn everything metaphysical. IIe hlad only onle THE APOSTILES. 115 d,,nma, I-is own divine Sonship alld tlle diviine autlt ority of His mission. Every syInbol of tlle-prilitive ClinIcl: rnigrlt be contained in one lille: " Jesus is the M[essial, tlhe Son of God." This belief rested upon a peremp. tory aigulment, the fact of the resurrection, of wlhich the disciples clailned to be witnesses. Inl reality, no one (not even tle Galileaii womell) declared that thley had seen the resurrection.53 But the absence of the body and the apparitionls which had fiollowed appeared to be equivalent to tle fact itself. To attest the resurrection of Jesus was the task whicll all coilsidered as beiing specially imposed upon them.54 TIley quickly entertained the idea tlhat thle Master had predicted tlhis event. They recollected different sayings of His, which they fancied that tllev hlad never tlioroughly understood, andin wllich thiley saw too late an antnoun celnent of the resurrection.55 Belief in the next glorious manifestation of Jesus was universal.56 The secret word whicll the associated l)rethren used among themselves for pl)lrptoses of' nlltllal recognition and confirmation was I}LaKranat/ia, " The Lord will come."57 Tley fancied that tlecy retembered a declaration of Jesus, according to wllich tlheir preachling would not lhave time to reaclh to all the towns of Israel before the Son of Aan appeared in Iis mnajesty.58 In the meanwlhile, Jesus risen is seated at tlhe right lland of His Fatlier. Tlhere Ile remains until the solenmn dayv on which I-e shall come, seated on the clouds, to judge tile qlick alid the dead.59 The idea whiclh they had of Jesus was the very samle lclich Jesus had given thlem of Himself.. Jesus had been a imiglity prophet in word and il deed,"~ a mllali 116 THE APOSTLES. elect of God, having received a special mission ill be half of manrkind,6 a mnission thle truth of wlhich he lhad proved by His miradles, and, above all, by Ili's resnrrec tion. God anointed Ilim withl thle Ioly Spirit and eni dued ilnm with power; 1-fe went about doino good and heaulir r those who were under the power of thle devil;62 for God was witll Himi 63 I-ie i tlhe Son o' God, that is, a Jman entirely seilt of God, a represenltative of G~,d on earth; Ile is the IMessiah, thle Saviour of Israel announced by the prophets.64 Tile p)erusal of tie books of the Old Testament, above all of the Psalllns and thle prophets, was a constant habit of tlle sect. In thlese readings one fixed idea ever miccomlpanllied tllemn, and tlhat was to discoveir, above all othelr conlsiderations, the type of Jesus. Thley were persuaded thlat thle ancient Htebrew books were full of Him, and, f'roll thle very iirst, Iae was moulded into a collectionl of texts drawn frotnl tle proplihets anld the Psalmns and certaili of the apcryplall books, wherein tlhey were convinced that tlle life of' Jesus was ftretold and described in advance.65 This arbitr-ary inode of interpretation was, at tlhat tiime, tilat of all the Jewisil schlools, Tlie Mfessianic all lsions were a description of Nwitty trifling, analogolus to thle us whichll thle ancient preachers made of passages of time Bille, diverted frolll their natural mleanull,, alld received as si nple orlamen ts of sacred rhetoric. Jesus, withl Hlis exquisite tact in relioions matters, hAd. instituted no new ritual Iovemnent. The newv sect hadl not, as yet, ayl special ckreeromiesA6 alits of piety were JeRwis1h hab1its.'Thle assemblies hlad ltlil I)mg p,;ci.ly litmurgic about thlein; tlhey were tile sessioIs of clomfraternities, in wllich they devoted themselves to p1ray'r, THE APOSTLES. 117 to glossological or proplletic6 exercises, and to the read ing:t of correspondence. Tlhere was notlhing yet of sacerdot.alism. There was no priest (cohen, o:i e,); the lpresbyter is the " elder " of tile co01tnuiL1ity, -0othling more. lThe only priest is Jesus;67 in another sense, all the faithfnl are priests.68 Fasting was considered a very mIeritorious usage.69 Baptism was the sign of entrance into the sect.'0 The rite was the same in form as thle baptism of' John, but it was administered in the name (of Jesis.7 IBaptislm was always colnsidered an instufficient initiation into the society. It should be followed by a conferring of the gifts of the IIoly Spirit,72 which was produced by means of a prayer pronounced over the head of the nleoplhyte with the imposition of lhands. This imposition of hands, already so familiar to Jesus,'3 was the crowning sacramental act.74 It conferred inspiration, inward illumlination, the po(wei of working wonders, of prophesying and of speaklling languages. This was what they called the baptisnm of the Spirit. They believed that they recollected.a sa.ying of Jesus: "John baptized you witlh water: but as for you, you shall be baptized with the Spirit."75 Little by little these ideas becatrme colfused, and baptism was conferred "in the namne of the Falther, and of the Son, and of the Holy Glhost."'7 But it is not probtble that this forlnula, at the early period which we are describing, was as yet, employed. The simplicity of this pri nitive Christian worship is evident. Neither Jesus nor the apostles had invented it. Certain Jewish sects had adopted, before thlern, grave and solemn ceremonies, which appear to have come partly fiom Chald;ea, where they are still 118 THE APOSTLES. practised with special liturg'ies, by the Sabeans anld Mten. diiites.77 The Persian religioii contained, likewise, rmany rites of the same description.78 The belies ill popular mledicine, which had accompanlied thle strength of Jesus, coltinued to be held by his dis(illes. The power of hlealillg was one of the marvellous graces conferred by the Spirit.79 The. first Clhristians, like ll the Jews of the age, regarded diseases as the l)lunishment due to a fault,80 or the work of a malicious demon l, Th 1 apostles, as well as Jesus, p[)ssed for plowerful exorcists.sa Trley irnagiied thlat anointill,'s witl (,il, adilinistered by them, with impositiomn of hands and invocation of the namlne of Jesus, were all-l:,owerful to wash away the sins wlhich were the causes of the disease, and to cure the sick.83 O.il h}as always been in the East the clhiefest of med(icines.84 Of itself, mrnore )ver', the imposition of hatnds by tile apostles was slipposed to have the slme effect.85 This inpositi(n was conferred by imlnediate contact with the person; an(d it is not iinpossible that, in certa:in cases, the warmth of tlhe bland(s, being sensibly coi municated to the hlead, produced some little relief to the sick man. The sect beingr younag and few in nulLmber, the question of the deald was onlly subsequently brought under their notice. The eff,-ct caused by tile first deaths whiclh took place in the ranLks of the brotherhoo(d was stranl'e.8 Thley disquieted themselves about the condition of the departed; they inquired if they would be less fivored tha:n thiose who were reserved to see with their eyes the secon(l advent of the Son of Man. They generally came to the conclusion that the interval between de~ath and the resurrection was a sort of blank in the recollection of the defunct.87 The idea, TILE APOSTLES. 119 evpiresse(l in the.'Ph2:elon tllat the soul exists befi)r'e anld after death; that death is a beinefit; tlhat it, is'ev,: thle staLte above all others fatvorable to phil(osolphy, bectuse tlhe soul is then altogether free an(l dliseng;ged -this i lea, I say, was in no respect entertained by the first Christianls. They appear genllerally to lhave believed that man 1Ians no existence apart from his bod y. TIlis persu:asion lasted a longr time, and only gave.way when the doctrine of the immortality of the soul,.in the sense of the Greek phil,)sophy, had been receivedl into the Church, and bec",ome associated, for good or fi)r evil, with the Christilnl doglna of the resurrection an! universal restoration. At the time of wlhich we speak, a belief in the resurrection prevailed almost alone.88 The funeral rites were doubtless.Jewish. No importance was attached to them; n no inscription pointed out the name of the departed. Tlhe great resurrection was at h}antd; the body of the fthithful had only to sojourn for a very short time in the rocl. Ther too)k but little pains to c(ome to an agreement upon the question whletller the resurrection would be universal-tlhat is to say, wlhether it wo)uld einbrace both good and wicked, or would al})l.v to the elect only.89 Onie of tile most rem:trk:tble pleleomenL of the new religion was the reappeariance of prophecy. For a long time previous, pirophlets in Israel were scarcely mentione(l. This peculiair kind of inspiration appeared to revive in the little sect. The primitive Church bad many prophets (anll prophetesses,'9 answering to those of the Old Testament. Ps:dmists reappeared also. The model of the Christial Ps lmno ly is, 10o doubt, to be found in the Canticles, which Luke loves to scatter about the pages of Ilis Gospel,91 and which are 120 THIE APOSTL ES. imit-ated from the Ca nticltes of the Old Tst:e.ment. These Psalms and prophecies are, in point of fo-rn, destitute of originality; but an admirable spirit of tenderness and piety animates and pervades thern. It is like an attentuated echo of the later productions of the sacred lyre of Israel. The book of Psalms was, in some sort, the calyx of the flower from whl-ich the Christian bee stole its first j uice. Tihel Pntateuell, on the c,,lntr.ary, was, as1. it a )pears, but little re-Ladl andi less ponderedl; allegories were substituted in the form of Jewish',midrasc/kuim, in which all the historical meaning of the books was suppressed. The chanting witll which they accollpanied tile new lymnns92 was probably that species of groanling without distinct notes, whicth is still tlle cliant of the Greek Clhnrchll, of the M/aronites, and of the Eastern Chlristians in general.93 It is not so Inuclh a musical mnodulation as a manner of forcing the voice, anld of einittirng thlrougll tlle nose a sort of grolning,' in whlichl all thle inflexions fllow eacll otller with rapidity. Tlley perforned tlhis extraordlinary mnelopeia stanlding,, with fixed eye, knit firehleadL, and contracted eyebrows, usig.,, an appearance of effort. Tile word amzen, above all, was uttered in a trenmulous voice with bodily shlaking. Tlis word was- of great ilportance in tlle liturgy. After tlhe manner of the Jews,94 thle new faitllful employed it to mark the assent of tile people to the word spoklen by thle prophet or precentor. 5 They perhaps already attributed to it concealed virtues, and it was only prononnced with a certain ernphasis. We know not wliethe the prilllitive ecclesiastical chant was acconmpanied with instruments.96 As'to the inward cllant, wlhicl tle THE APOSTLES. 121 faithful " sang in their hearts," 17 and which was nothing else than the overflowing of those tender slpirits, ardent and dreamy as they wree, they performed it no doubt like the slow chants. of the Lollards of the Middle Ages, in a sort of whisper.9s In general, joyousness manifested itself in these lhymns. One of the maxims of the sages of the sect was, "Ilf thou art sad, pray; if tllol art mnerry, sing."TM Mioreover, this first Christian literature, designed as it was entirely for the edification of the assembled brethren, was not committed to writing. It entered into the mind of none to compose books. Jesus had spoken; they rememlbered his words. Had he not promised that that generation of his hearers should not pass away before he re-appeared among themla C CHAPTER VI. THE CONVERSION OF TIlE HELLENISTIC JEWS AND PROSELYTES. UP to thle present time the Church of Jerusalem has practically been only a little Galilean colony. The friends of Jesus in Jerusalemn and its vicinity, such as Lazarus, MIarttla and Ml'ry of Bethany, Joseph of Arimathea and Nicod(eiimus, had disappeared froin the scene. ()Only tile Galilean grolp gathered around tile twelve apostles remained, compact and active; and meanwh!ile tllese zealous apostles were itidefatig'able ill the worlk of preaciling. Stutsequently, after the fall of Jerusalern, and in places distant froin Judea, it was reported that thle serilons of the apostles thad been delivered inl pullblic places anld befbre large assemnblages.' Tihe authorities who had pnt Jesus to deathl would not permit tile revival of such stories. The proselytism of the faithful was cliefly carried on by means of pointed con versations, during wlli cll their hearty earnestness was gradulally communl-iicated to others.2 They preaclhed under the portico of Solomon to audiences limited in number, but on whom they produced a most mnarked effect; their sermons consisted chiefly in sulch quotations fiomn the Old Testament as would support their theory that Christ was the MIessiah.3 Their reasoling, thlough subtle, was weak; but thle entire exegesis of the Jews at that tine was of the same character, THE APOSTLES. 123 and the deductions drawn fi'oin the Bible by the doctors of the AMischnla are no more conviilcing. Still more feeblle was the proof dei ived from pretended prodigies, whlic they brought forward in support of theit arguments. It is impossible to doubt that the apostles believed that they possessed tlhe power of performing miracles, which were aclknowledged as thle tokens of every Divine mission.4 St. Patll, by fhir the aLblest mind of the priitnitive Cliristian schlool, believed in miracles.5 It wvas deemed certain tlhat Jesus had perforlnmed tlleln, atld it was hlut natural to suppose that tlle series of' Divirne manifestations was to continue. Indeed thaumaturlgy was a privilege of the apostles until the end of the filst century.6 Thle miniracles of the apostles were of the same nature as those of Jesus; alid conlsisted principally, thtough inot exclusively, in the healinrl of tlhe sick and the exorcising of demons.7 It was maintained tlhat even their shadow sufficed to bring about these marvellous cures.8 Thiese wonders were deemed direct gifts of the Hioly Glhost, and held the same rank as the gifts of learning, of preaching, and of prophecr.y In the third century the Church believed herself plossessed of the satne privileges, and claimed as a permanellt right the power of healing the sick, of dri ving out devils, and of predicting the future.'l The ignoiance of thle people encouraged these pretensions. Do we not see in our day persons honest enough, but lacking in scientific intelligence, similarly deceived by the chimera of maglnetism and other ill usions?1 It is not by these naive errors, nor by the meagre discourses fo;und in the Acts, that we must form our opinion of thle means of conversion emnployed by the 1 24 THE APOSTLES. fouinders of Christianity. T]he private conversations of these good and earnest men, tlle reflection of thoe words of Jesus in their discourses, and above all, thleir piety and gentleness, formed the real power of their preaching. Tlheir communistic life also had its attractions. Their house was like a hospice. where all the po)or and forsaken found a refuge and an asylllrn. Among the first who attached himnself to the young society was a Cypriote called Joseph flallevi, or the Levite, who, like rlany others, sold his land and laid the imoney at the feet of the disciples. Ile was an intelligent and devoted mnan, and a facile speaker. The apostles soon attaclled himn to tlleir bauld, and called him Bar-nabct, wllich mneans the " son of pirophlecy," or " of preachlling."'2 IHe was numbered among tlle prophets, th}at is to say, inspired preachers;13 and later we shall see him playing an important part. After St. Painl, he was the Inost active missionary of the first century. A certain Minason was converted ai-out the same time.14 Cyprus was marked by many Jewish cllaracteristics."l Barnalbas and Mnason were undoubtedly of the Jewish race;16 and tle intimate and prolonged relations of Barnabas withl the Cllurch of Jerusalem give us reason to believe that lie was familiar with thle Syro-Chaldaic tongue. A conversion almost equally as important as that of Barnabas, was that of a certain John, who bore the Roman surname of Marcus. He was cousin to Barnabas, and was a circumcised Jew.17 Iis mother, Mary, a woman in easy circumstances, was also converted, and her residence was frequently visited by the apostles.'8 These two conversions appear to have been the work of Peter,'9 who was very intimate with both mother and THE APOSTLES. 125 son, and considered himself at home in their blouse.2" Admitting the hypothesis tllhat John-Mark was not identical with the true or supposed author of the second Gospel,21 he yet played. a prominent part, accompanrlyingo at a later period Paul and Barnabas, and probably Peter himself, on their apostolic journeSs. The fire thus kindled spread rapidly. The most celebrated men of the apostolic age were gained to the cause in two or three years almost simultaneously. It was a second Christian generation, parallel to that whiclh had been formed five or six years previously on the shores of Lake Tiberias. This secon(l generation, not lhaving seen Jesus. could not equal the first in authority, but surpassed it in activity and in thle ardor for distant missions. One of the best kn{own of' tlhese new adepts was Stephanus or Stephen, who before hlis conversion was probally only a simple proselyte.22 Ie: was a marn full of fervor land passion, his faith was very strollngl, Ind he was believed to be endowed with a.ll the gifts of tle Spirit.23 Philip, who, like Stephn, was a z.:tlous cldeacon and evaiigelist, joine(l the community at about thle same time,2 and w(as oftenl confoiundled witll the apostle of the samne name.2 Finallly, at this et))cl, And(llonicus and Junia:23 were converted. They were probably husband and wife, who, like Aquila and Priscilla at a ltater date, were the very mnodel of an apostolic couple, thoroughly devoted to the missionary cLuse. T'l'ey were of Israelitish blood, and elljoyed the warm fiiendship of the apostles.27 Although the new converts were all Jews by religion, whern touched by grace, they belonged to two very differe-at classes of Jews. Some were "'Hebrews," or Jews 12-8 THIE APOSTLES. Of Palestine, speakHing Hebrew, or rather Aramaic, and reading the Bible in the EIebrew text. The otheirs were 1' Ilellenists," or Jews spebaking Greek, and readling the Bible in that tongue. These Tast were further subdivided into two classes-the one beino of Jewishl4 blood; the other proselytes, or people of non-Tsraelitisll origin, affiliated in different degrees to Judllism. The Hellenists, who almost all camne from Syria., Asia Minor, Egyrpt, or Cyrene,29 inhabited a sep:trate quarter of Jerusalem, where fley had their distinctive synrcgogues, thus forming little communities by themselves. There were a large number of these private synagogues30 in Jerusalem, and in them the word of Jesus found a soil pre pared for its reception. The primitive nucleus of the Church was exclusively composed of "'Hebrews; " rend the Aramnaic dialect, which was the langu'age of Jesus, was thle only one in use: but during the second or third year;aftel the death of Jesus, Greek was introduced into the little community, and soon becaine the dominaint toatgue. Throughtl their daily cornmnunication withl thlese new brethren, Peter, John, Jamnes, Jude, and the Galilean disciples in general, learned Greek very easily, especially as they probably knew somethingo of it befolrehald. An incident soon to be mentioned shows that tlhis diversity of language created at first some division in the community, and tllat the two fractions could'not always readily agree.31 After the ruin of Jerusalem, we shall see the "lIebrews" retire beyond tlle Jordin, to the heights of Lcllae Tiberias, and fo)rm a sepalrate Church, which had its individual history. B3ut in'the meantimne it does not appear that the diversity of latguage serious THE APOSTLES. 127 ly affected the Church. The Orientals learn new languages very easily, and in the towns every one sie:lak two or three dialects. It is probablo that thle leadinll Galilean apostles acquired the use of the Greek so falr that they used it in preference to the S.yro-Clialdltiec whenever the majority of their listeners undlerstood it. It was evident that the dialect of Palestine mnust be abllldoned hy those who dreamed of a wide-spread prtol)pagnll~da. A provincial pcatois which was written with diffilnlty33 and only in use in Syria, was palpably insufficient for such an undertalking. Greek, on the contrlrv, was almost a necessity to Christianitv. It was the uniiversal ]:nguage of the age, at least around the eastern basin of the Mediterranean; and it was especially the languagfe of the Jews dispersed throughout the Roman empire. Tnlen, as now, the Jews adopted with facility the idioms of the coultties thley inhabited. They were by no means purists, and this explains whlly the Greek used by the prirnitive Christians was so corriupt. Even thle best educated Jews pronounced the classic laangualoe badly.34 Their phraseology was always fiounded onil tle Syrialc. They never freed themselves from the effTect of the corrupt dialects, which dated firoo the Macedonian conq, ests.35 Tlhe col versions to Christialnity soon l)ecalne inucl more numer.ous among the " Iellemmists " tllan among thle " Hebrews." Tle old Jews of Jerusalelm found little attraction in a provincial sect but porly versed in thle only scieice appreciated by a Pllharisee-thle science of the law. Tlhe r'elations of tile little Churchll towards Judaism, like Jesnus hleimself, were ratllel equivocal..Bat every reliiols or political party has an itlnate force which rules it, and, despite of itself, corn 128 THE APOSTLES. pels it to travel in its orbit. Tlhe first Christians, low. ever great their apparent respect for Juidaism, were, in reality, only Jews by their birth or by their outward customs. Tile true spirit of the sect had disappeared. The Talmud germinated in official Judaism, and Christianity had no aflinity witlh the Talnmud school. This is why Christianity found special favor amonlg those nominal adherents of Judaism who were tlle least Jew ish. Rigid ortlodoxy did not incline towards the Chris tian sect; and it was the new-corners, people scarcel) catechized, who had not been to the great schools, and were ignorant of the holy language, who lent a willill, ear to the apostles and their disciples. Viewed rather contemptuously by the aristocracy of Jerusalemln, these parvenus of Judaism were not without tlleir revenge. Young and newly forlwed parties always hlave less respect for tradition than older melllbers of cormmlnities, aind are imore susceptible to the clarms of novelty. These classes, little subjected to the doctors of thle law, were also it seems tle most credulous. Credulity is nlot a characteristic of the Talnmudic Jew. Thle crediulous Jew, tnlld of tle marvellous, was not the Jew ot Jeirusalemn, but tlhe liellenist Jew; who was at the same tiime very religious and very ignorant, and cojnsequently very superstitious. Neither the half incredulous Sadducee, nor the rigorous Pharisee, would be nmucll affected by the theories popular in the apostolic circle. But the Judm-Ilus Apella, of whlomn thle epicurean IHorace wrote,37 was ready to give in his adhesion. Social questions, besides, particularly interested those wllho received no benefit fron the opulence enjoyed by Jerusalem as the locality of TILE APOST,LES. 129 the temple and other central inlstitutiols of thi nationl; and it was by a rleCognition of the needs to whliclh in tlis day mlodern socialism seeks to respond, that the new sect laid the solid foundation of its migllty future. 6* OCHAPTER VII. THE CHURCHI CONSIDERE}D AS AN ASSOCIATION OF POOR PEO(PLE. —INSTITUTION OF THE DIAC()NATE.-DEACONESS IS AND WIDOW'S. A COMiPAFISON of thie hlistory of religion shows, as a general truth, that all thlose religions not. contelmporary with. the origin of la]nguage itself; owe their establislhmeInt to social rather tlhan tlheological causes. This was assuredly the ease with Buddhlism, the prodigions success of whicll may be traced to its social elemnent, rather than to thle nitilistic prinlciple on which it was based. It, was in proclaiming thle abolition of castes, and1 estab)lisiing, in lhis words,'" a law of gracce t'ior all," that Sakya-Milni anld llis disciples gained tile adllerellce, first oii' India, and tlhen of thle largest portionll of Asia.l Like Ch ristian1ity, BllnddhisIl{ was a 1mo)veilent o(f the lwTVer classes. Its great attraction was the facility it afforded thle p >or to elevate tlhetiselves by the protession of a religion wllich imnlproved their cond ition and offered thlean inexhaustible assistance and sympathly. Tite poor were a nlunerous class in Judea drl'ing t1he first century. Tile coltlry was naltulrlly seantily providledl witih lIxuries. In these countries whlere indnstry is allmo-st ilnknownl, almost every iortulle owes its origin either to riichly elndowed religios isti nutions or governmeient plat'onage. Tlhe richeds of thle-temple were for a THE APOSTL-ES. 131 long time tle exclusive app'anage of' a limited nu:nber,f nobles. Thle Asinmo lteans gathered around thei l- dyinasty a circle of richl ftalnilies; alid the Ileroils c,.lsiderably illcreaseda tihe welfare and luxlury of a certai i class of society. But twhe real theocratic Jew, turnlil iMs back ulo)l lRoman civilization, only becamne poorec..ie bel(,nged to a class of' h,,!o lllen, finaltically pious, rigi(ly observalt of the law, and miserably and abjectly poor. Fromil this class, t1le sects of entihusi;asts so8 nuinerous at this period, received tlheir recruits. Thle universal dream of thlese peOlle slhdlowNed forth thlo triuilpIl of the poor Jew who remainetcd fai ithlful, alld the. ]inmliai1ttion of the rich, whlo were considered as renega,nen occupied a proiniineit t place in thle Clhurch, atndt thtlir louses sesrved as places of meeting;18 whlile tlhose wllo( 11h-d no houses were ftbrnlld into a species of feniiiiele presl-,yteral body, Comprisiing probably tthe virgini, who did imlIortallt duty in chlaritable works. Thiose institutions, regarded as thie firuit of a later Chr-istilanity, suchll as conglregations of womrnoei, nnns, andf sisters of cillarity, were really onie of its first creia;ions, the 1)bgriiniig of its inlflilence, ancd thle mnr,st perfect expl:,ressio) of its spirit. The adm!ira:ble idea of consecratiing by a sort of religiouls character andl subl)ijeCeir to re uilar discipline those women who we.e lnot in tlhe bonds of l'marriage, is pecmliilnlyv andl ettirely Clhristian. Thle wo{>rd C" widow" becanie a syno,:ylile f rm a perlsol (levoted to religious works, consecrated to God, and, consequently,: " deaconess.""2 In those ciountries, where the witihe at 1her twenty-fourth year already began to fadcle, and where there was no middle state between the clhild and the old woman, it wa.l pirae.ically a inew life whiCh was 10ih THE APOSTLES. thlus opened for that portion of the hulman race tlite most capatble of devotion. Tile times of the Selencidle bhad been a terr. 1)le epoch for female depravity. Never beftre were klc wn so zmany dolllestic dramas, and suchll a series of poisonings and adulteries. Tlhe wise men of that day considered wotan as a scourge to lllllumanity; as the first cause of baseness and shame; as an evil genius whose only part in life was to ilpair wthatever there "was of good in the opposite sex. Christianity changed all this. At that age wlhich, to our view, is yet youttl, but at wthich the existence of the Oriental woman is so gloonmy, so fatally proine to evil suggestions, tile widow colld, by covering her ltead witll a black shlawl,21 becomlle a resplectable person wortlily emplo)yed, aud, as a d(eacouess, the equal of the most esteetned mnen ir the comnmunity. Tlie difficult and dubious position of the childless widow, Christianity elervated even to sanctity.n The widow became almlost tIle equal of tle mnaiden,. She was xmAoypmt, l)beatltiftll old a(ce, "23 venerated and usefill, and receivincg the respect usually awarded to a mother. Tlhese womeul, constantly going to and fro, were tle irlost useful nissiollaries of thle new religion. Protestants are in error in viewiig these facts througlh the liight of the systemn of modern individuality. Socialism and cenobitismt are primitive features of Chlristianity. The bishop and priest of later days did not yet exist; but tlhat intimate familiarity of souls not bound by ties of blood, known as the pastoral milistry, was already founded. Thlis was always the special gift of Jesus; and, as it were, a heritage froln Hii. Jesus alid often said THE APOSTLES. 137 that He was more than father a.d mother, and that thlose who followed Him must forsake those beloved beings. Clhlistianity placed some things above the family. It created a fi-aternity and spiritual marriages. The alncient syste-mi of marriages, which without restriction placed the wife in the power of the husband, was mere slavery. The moral liberty of womanl behgan when the Church gave her in Jesus a friend and a guide, who advised and consoled her, always listened to her grievances, and sometimes advised resistance. Womeen need a governinc power, and are only hlappy wllen governed; but it is necessary that they slihuld love the one wlho wields that power. This is what neither ancielnt society, Judaismn, nor Islamism, were able to do. Woman never had a religious conscience, a lmoral individuality, or an opinion of her own, previous to Christianity. Thanks to the Bishops and to mo:,J:astic life, Ra.dego,)nda fiund means forl escapingr frot' the arlms of a harbai:ous husband. The life of the soul beilng all that is really of illlportalce, it is just and reasonllable that the pastor who would mllake the (livine chords of tlle heart vibrate, tlle secret counsellor wllho holds the key of th!e conscience, should be nlore than a father, Inore than a husband. In one sense Chrlistianity was a reaction againlst the too narrow dotlestic systemn otf the Aratnaic race. The old Aranmaic societies oildy adnlitted marl.t'ied menl and were singnlarly strict ill tleiir views of the mnarriatge relation. All this was somnething analogouns to tlhe Elgi}slh fanmily —a nar'row, closed up, conltracted cicle — an egotism of several, as withering to the sotul as the ego(tisin of an inldividual. Christianity, with its divine 138 TILE APOST1'LES. idea of the liberty of God, corrected these exaggeratic ns. And first it allotted to every one the duties common to mankind. It saw that the familv relation was not of sole importance in life, or at least that the duty of reprod ncizng the human race did not devolve on every one; and tllat there should be persons fireed from these duties, whllih are undoubtedly sacred, but not intended for every one. The same exceptions made in favor of the itdtairce like Aspasia by Greek society, and of the cortiyiana like Ilnperia, in recognition of the necessities of polished society, Christianity made for the priest and the deaconess for thle public- welfare. It admlitted different classes in society. Tlhere are people who find it more delightful to be loved by a hundred people tllhan by five or six; and for these the family in its ordinary conditions seemns insufiicielt, cold, and wearisomne. Why, tlher, slhould we extend to all, tlhe exigencies of our dull and mediocre social system. His temporal fitnily is not sufficient for mnal; lie feels thle.need of brotlhers and sisters besides those of tlle flesh. By its hierarchy of diffrent social functions, the priniitive Clurc!h seemed to conciliate for the time these opposing exigencies. We sh-ill never understanld, never comnprelelcl, how halnppy these people were unler these holy regurllatiols whlich sust:in(ed liberty without restraining it, and perlmitted at the same timne the advant:rges of communistic aind privaite lite. It was fatr (lifflreiit from thl. confusion of onur artificial societies, in whichll tile sensitive soul so often filds it cruelly isolated. In these little refufges which tlhey call churches, the social atnlosphere was sweet and inviting; the member lived there in the same faith and actuated by the same hopes. But THE A POSiLES. 139 it is clear that these conditions coul(i not apply to a very large society. When entire countries became Christianized, the system of the first church-s became a Utopian idea only partially realized in monasteries, and the moe nastic life in this sense was the continuation of the primitive churches.26 The convent is the necessary consequence of the Christian spirit; there is no perfect Christianity without the convent, because it is only there that the evangelical idea can be realized. A large share of the credit, certainly, of these great creations should be given to Judaism. Each one of the Jewislh comllmunities scattered along the shores of the lMediterranean was already a sort of church, with its charitable treasury. Almsgiving, always reconlmenlded by the eld(ers,27 was a recognised precept; it was practised in the temple and in the synacgogu.es,28 ancd it was deemed the first duty of the plosel1yte.29 In every age Judaisin was noted for its careful attention to the poor, and the fraternal charity which it inspired. Tt would be highly unljust to 1ioldl up Christianity as a reprolach to JudaLism, since to the l1ltter primitive Christianity owe3 almost everythinrg. It is when we look upon the Roman world that we are the most astonished at the miracles of charity perf)trined by the Church. Never did a profane society, recognising only right for its basis, produce such admirable effects. ThlIe law of every pro. fane, or, if I may say so, every philosophic system of society, is liberty, sometimes equality, but never frateraity. To charity, viewed as a rig(ht, it acknowledges no obligationma, it only pays attenti n to individuals; it finds charity often inconvenient, ald neglects it. Every attempt to apply the public funds to the aid of the poor 140 THE APOSTLES. savors of communism. TWhen a man dies of huinger, when entire classes languish in misery, the policy of the profane social system limits itself to acknowledging that the fact is unfortunate. It can easily show that there is no civil order without liberty; now, as a consequence of liberty, lhe who las notlling, and can get nothing, perishes from hunger. That is indeed logical; but there is no guard against the abuse of logic. The necessities of the most numerous class always result in dispensing with it. Institutions purely political and civil are not enough; social and religious aspirations clainm a religious satisfaction. The glory of the Jewish )tpeople is, that they boldly proclaimed this prinrciple. The Jewish law is social, and not political; the prophets, the authors of the Apocalypses, were the promoters oft social and political revolutions. In the first h:lf of the first century, in the presence of profilne civilization, the absorbing, idea of the Jews was to repel the benetfits of the Roman system, with its philosophy, democracy, alld equality, and to proclaimrn the excellence of tlheir theocratic l]aw. " The law is happiness," Awas the idlea of such Jewish thinkers as Philon and Josephus. The laws of other peo(-ple were inteuded( to secure justice, and:ad nothing to do with the goodness and happiless of iman; while on the other handl, the Jewishl law (lescellled to the details of morall education. Clhristizanity is only the developlnent of this idea. Each church is a mlnamstery where all possess righlts over all thle others; where there shoul(d be neither poor nor wicked; and where, consequently, every ialdividual is careful to guard and restrain himself. Prilnitive Christianity may be defined as a vast association of poor people; as a heroic struggle against egotism, TIE APOSTLES. 141 founded upon the idea that no one has a right to more than is absolutely necessary for him, and that all the superfluity belongs to those who possess nothing. It will at once be seen that with such a spirit and the Roman spirit war to the death must ensue; and that Christianity, on its part, can never dominate the world without inmportant modifications of its native tendencies and its original proZgramme. But the needs wlhich it represents will always last. The communistic life during the second half of the Middle Ages, serving for the abuses of an intolerant Church, the monastery llaving become a mere feudal fief, or the barracks for a dangerous and fanatic military modern feeling, became bitterly opposed to the cenobitic system. We have forgotten that it was in the communistic life that the soul of man experienced its fullest joy. The song, " Oh, how good and joyful a thing it is for brethren to dwell together in unity,'T30 has ceased to be our refrain. But when modern individualism shall have boine its latest fi'uits, wlen humanity, shrunken and saddened, shall also have become weak and impotent, it will return to these great institutions and stern disciplines; whenl our material society-I should say our world of pigmies-shall have been scourged with whips by the lheroic and the idealistic, then the coinmunistic systemn will regain all its force. Many great things, such as science, will be organized under a monastic form. Egotism1, the essential law of civil law, of civil society, will be insufficient for great minds; all coming, from wlha:tever point of vie w, will be opposed to vulgarity. The words of Jesus and tlhe ideas of the AMiddle Ages in regard to poverty will again 142 THE APOSTLES. be appreciated. It will be understood tlat thle possession of anything implies an inferiinity, and tllat tlle founders of the mystic life disputed for cenlturies as to wlhether Jesus owned even. thlat whllich le ulsed f:,r hlis daily wants. The Fralnciscan subtleties will becotme again great social prol)lemis. Thle splendid ideal devised by the author of tile Acts will be inscrined as a prophetic revelatiorn at the gates of the pnaradise of humnaity' "And the niultituide of tlictn tlhat believed were of one hleart nilld one soul; neitler said of theni that aught of the thiings whlicll lie possessed was his own, but they had all things in commnnon, neither was any among thiem that lacked: for as many as were possessors of land or houses sold thlem, and brought the price of tle things that weie sold, and laid them down att tle apostles' feet, and distribution was mlade nito every man, according as lie had need. Alid thley continuing with one accord ill the temple and breaking bread froim house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart.'31 Let us not anticipate events. It is now about the year 36. Tiberius at Caprea could have no more doubt that a formidable enemy to the crpire was growing up. In two or three years the new sect had made surprising progress; now counted several thotusands of adherents.32 It was easy to foresee that its conquests would be chiefly among the Hellenists and proselytes. The Galilean group, which had Ileard the Master, though preserving its precedence, seemed almost lost in the current of newcorlers who spoke Greek. At the time of whlich we speak, no heathen, that is to say, no man who had not held previous relations with Judaism, had entered into THE APOSTLES. 1 t3 tile ChurIel; bult proselivtes performled imppertlnt functions in it. The jurisdiction of the dcisciples hl-Il alo.largely extelnded, and was no longer simply a little collerge of Palestineans, but included people of Cyprus, Antioch, and( Cyrene, and of almost all the points on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean where Jewish colonies lhad been estatblished. Egypt alone knew nothing (!f tile prirnitive Church, nA~d for a long time rerained ignolrant. The Jews of that country were almost in a state of schism with those of Judea. They had customs of thleir own, superior in many points to those of Palestine, and were almost entirely unaffected by the great religious movement at Jerusalem. CHAPTER VIII. FIRST PERSECUTION. —DEATHI OF STEPHEN.-DESTRIC'I TON OF TH E FIRST CHURCH- OF JERUSALEM. IT was inevitable that the preachings of the new sect, even while they were disseminated with much reserve, should revive the animosities which had accumulated against its Founcler, and had ultimately resulted in His death. The Sadducee family of Hanan, which had caused the death of Jesus, was still reigning. Joseph Caiaphas occupied, up to the year 36, the sovereign Pontificate, the effective power of which he left to his father-in-law IHanan, and to his relations, John and Alexander.1 These arrogant and pitiless personages saw with impatience a troop of good holy men, without any official position, gaining the favor of thie crowd.2 Once or twice Peter, John, and the principal members of the apostolical college, were thrust into prison and condemned to be beaten. Thtis was the punishment inflicted on heretics.3 The authorization of the Romans was not necessary for its infliction. As may well be supposed, these brutalities did but excite the ardor of the apostles. They came fortll fromn the Sanhedrim, where they had just undergone flagellation, fill of joy at having been deemed worthy to undergo contumely for Him whom they loved.4 Eternal puerility of penal repressions, applied to things of the soul! They passed, no doubt, for men of order, for models of prudence and wisdom, these THE APOSTIES. 145 blun(lerers, who seriously believed in the year 36 they could put down Christianity with a few whippings! These outrages were perpetrated principally by the Sadducees,5 that is to say by the upper clergy, who surrounded the temple, and derived thence immense prolits.6 It does not seem that the Pharisees displayed towards the sect the animosity they showed to Jesus. Thle new believers were people pious and r.rict in their manner of life, not a little likle the Pharisees themselves. The r, ge which the latter felt against the Founder sprang from the superiority of Jesus-a superiority which He took no pains to disguise. His delicate sarcasms, 1His intellect, the charm there was about Him, His hatred to hypocrites, had enkindled a savage ire. The apostles, on the contrary, were destitute of wit; they never employed irony. The Pharisees were at certain moments favorable to them; nimany Pharisees even became Christians.7 The terrible anathemas of Jesus against lPharisaism had not yet been written, and tradition of the words of the Master was neither general nor uniform.s These first Christians were, moreover, people so inoffellsive, that many persons of the Jewish aristocracy, without exactly forling part of the sect, were well dispossed towards them. Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimnathea, who had known Jesus, remained, no doubt, linkled in bonds of brotherhood- with the Church. The most celebrated Jewish Doctor of the times, Rabbi (}amaliel the Elder, grandson of Hillel, a man of' broad and very tolerant ideas, gave his opinion, it is said, in the Sanhedrim in favor of the freedom of Gospel preaching.9 The autlor of 1Te Acts puts into his mouth some excellent reasoning, which ouglht to be the rule of con7 146 THE APOSTLES. duet for Governments whenever they find themnsclves confronted with' novelties in the intellectual or moral order. "If this work is frivolous, leave it alone, it will fall of itself; if it is serious, how dare you resist the work of God? In any case you will' not succeed ill stopping it." Gamaliel was but little heeded. Iiberal rmlinds in the midst of opposing fanaticisms have no chance of success. A terrible excitement was provoked by the Deacon Stephen.'0 ITis preaching had, as it seems, great success. The crowd flocked around him, and these gatherlings iesuited in some lively disputes. It was mostly Itellcnists, or proselytes, attendants at the synagogue of the Libertihi,ll as it was called-people of Cyrene, of Alexacndria,,f Cilicia, of EIphesuls, who were active in these disputes. Stlephen passionately maintained that Jesus was the Messiahl; tlat the priests had, co(mmnittel a crime in putting 1-im- to death:; that the Jews were rebels, sons of rebels, peop)l:e that denied evidence. The authorities resolved to destroy this audacious preacher; witnesses were suborled to watchl for some word in his discourses against Mloses. Naturally they found what they sought for. Stephen was arrested and taken before the Sanhedrirn. The word with which he was reproached was nearly the same as that which led to the condemnation of Jesus.12 He was accused of saying that Jesus of Na-zareth would destroy the temple, and change the traditions attributed to Moses. It is very possible, in fact, that Stephen had used such language. A Christian of this epoch would not have had any idea of speaking directly a-gainst the law, since all still observed it; but as to traditions, Stephen mnight combat them as Jesus-himself TITE APOSTLES. 147 had clone. Now these traditions were foolishly ascribedto Moses by the orthodox, and an equal value was attributed to tlheml as to the written law.13 Stephen defended hinmself by expounding the Christian thesis, with copious citations frorn the law, fiom the Psalmns, from the prophets, and terminated by reproaching the members of the Sanhedrinrl withl the homicide of Jesus. "O bloekheads! and uncircumcised in heart," said he to tlhem,'you will then ever resist the I~Holy Ghost, as your fathers also have done. Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? They have slain those who announced the coming of the Just One, whom you have betrayed, and of whom you have been the murderers. ThIis law that vou had received. from the m)outh of angels'4 you have not kept." At. thise words a cry of rage interrupted him. Steph'ern, b.co!nnming more and tm:ore exalted, fell into one of tlhose patloxysims of enthusiasm that are called the inspiration, of the HI-oly Ghost. Hi-is eyes were fixed on high; he saw the glory of God and Jesus beside his Father, and cried out:' Behold, I sne the heavens opened, and the Son of MAan sitting on the right hand of God." All tile listeners stopped their ears and threw themselves upon himn, gnashiing their teeth. They dragged him outside the city and stoned him. The witnesses who, accordinog to the law,'5 had to cast the first stones, took off thll r g.lrments and laid them at the feet of a young fanatic nalmed Saul, or Paul, who was thinking with secret joy of the mierits which he was acquiring in. participating in the death of a blasphemer.'6 In all this there was a literal observance of the prescri)tions of Deuteronomy, Chap. 13. But looked at 148 THE APOSTLES. from the point of view of the civil law, this tumultuous execution, accorplished without the concurrence of the Romans, was not regular.'7 In the case of Jesus, we have seen that the ratification of the Procurator was needed. Perhaps his ratification was obtained in Stephens' case, and his execution may not have followed quite so closely upon his sentence as the narrator of the Acts would have it. Possibly, however, tile Roman authority was then somewhat relaxed in Judea. Pilate had just been suspended friom his fullctions, or was on the point of being so. The cause of this disgrace was simply the too great firmness he had shown in his administration. Jewish fanaticismr had rendered life unbearable to him. Very likely he was tired of refusing these mnadmen the violence they demanded of him, and the proud family of HI;nan hald come to halve no lucnger any need of permission in order to pronounce sentence of death. Lucius Vitellius (the father of him who was emperor) was then imperial legate of Syria. IIe sought to win the good graces of the population; and he had the pontifical vestments which, since the time of IHerod the Great,, had been deposited in the town of Antonia, returned to the Jews.19 Far from sustainingo Pilate in his acts of rigor, he gave ear to the complaints of the native citizens, and sent Pilate back to Rorne to reply to the accusations of his subordinates (beginning of the year 36). The principal grievance of the latter was that the Procurator would not lend him. self with sufficient complaisance to their desires —intolerant desires.20 Vitellius replaced him provisionally by his friend iMarcellus, who was no doubt more careful not to displease the Jews, and consequently more ready to indulge them with religious murders. The death of Ti. THE APOSTLES. 1 1. berius (16th March in the year 87) only encourargel Vitellius in his policy. The two first years of the rciygl of Caligtla were an epoch of general enfeeblement of thle Roman authority in Syria. The policy of this prince, before he lost his wife, was to restore to the people of the East their auitonomy and native chiefs. Thus lie es. tablished the kiringdoms or [principa'ities of Antiochus, of Comagene, of Herod Agrippa, of Soheym, of Cotys, of Polernon IT., and allowed that of Hareth to agglrandize itself.2' When Pilate arrived at Ro'me, hle found the new reign a.lready begun. It is probable that Calligulla decide(d aoainst him, since he confided the goverllmn!nt of Jerusaleln to a new fulAntiollary, fMarcellus, who appears not to have excited on the part of the Jews the violent recriminations which overwhelmed the un nf)rtlinat.e Pilate with embarralssmenrt and filled hirn with chagrrin. At anv rate the impnortant remlark is tllis: that at the epoch of whichl we Ire treating the perseclltors of Christianity were not Ro'n:ans; they were ortliodorx Jews. The Romans preserved, ill the midst of tlhis fmtnaticis n, a principle of tole-ran e-n — nd,of reason. I f there is an, V thliig for which the imperial authllority is to be reproaclhed, it is for havilng been too weak. nand not having( cit short at the outset the civil consequences of a sanguinlacry law pronoutncing the pain of detlth for religious off':nces. But the Ronanl dorminiation haid not vet become a comp[lete power, as it was at a later day; it was a sort of protecto,r(lte or suzeraint!v. Its complais:lnce vwas carried even to the extent of withholding the effigy of the Emperor friom tile coins struck und(ler the prcurators, in order not to slhck Jewish ideas.23 Rome did not yet seek, at least not in the East, to ilnpose on collquered peoples her 150 THE APOSTLES. laws, her gods, her mnanners; she left thllem in their local practices outside the Roman law. Their semi-i ndepend. ence was but another sign of their inferiority. The In-n perial power in the East at this epocll pretty closely resembled the Turkish authority, and the government of the native populations that of the Rajalls. l'he idea of equal rights and equal guarantees for all did not exist. Ealch provincial group had its own jurisdiction, as at this day the variou,.s Christian churches and the Jews in the Ottom'an Empirle. A few years ago, in Turkey, the patriarchs of the various comn u nities of RMj alls, provided they were on good terms with thle Porte, were sovereign in regard to their sut)ordinates, and could pronounce against them the most cruel punishments. As the period of the deatthl of Stephen may fluctuate between the years 36, 37, and 3S, we do not know whether Caipllas ought to h)ear the responsibility of it. Caiphas was deposed by Lucius Vitellius in the year 36, shortly aRftr Pilate;24 but the chnige was sliglit. He was succeeded by hlis brotllher-ili-law, Jonathanl, son of I-Inarn. The latter in his turn was succeeded by his brother Theophilus, son of ftanan,25 who kept the Pontificate in the house of' Tltanan till the year 42. 1.Hanan was still llive, and possessr of the real power maintaiined in his familly-thee principles of pride, of severity, of hnatred to innovators, which were in a manner hereditary in it. Tlhe death of Stephen produced a great impression. Thlle converts solemnized his funeral in the mridst of tears and groans.26 The separation between the new sectaries and Judaisml was not yet absolute. Thie proselytes and the Hellenists, less strict in the mattex THE APOSTLES. 1] i of orthlodoxy than the pure Jews, felt tllhat they llought to render public homage to a manl wslo had been an honor to their body, and whose peculiar opinions had not shut him out from the pale of thle law. Thus dawned tile era of Christian martyrs.:Martyrdom was not a thing entirely new. To say notlwing ot John Balptist and of Jesus, Judaism, at the ep)ochl (,f Antiochus Epiphanus, had had its witnesses fiaitlb'in unto the death. But the series of brave victimns whiClh opens with St. Stephen has exercised a peculiar inifluence upon the history of the hualnl mind. It iitrc)dnced into the western world an element wlhich was wanting to it, absolute and exclusive Faithi-this idea, thiat there is but one good aild true religion. In thlis sense, tlme inartyrts began tile era of intolerance. It m-ay be said, withl great probablility, that any one who gives his life for h!is fiitil would be inltolerant if lhe welre iaste-. Christianity, after it had passed througll three cetluries of persecutions and bIecattme inl its tunl doCioinant, was more persecnutilg than anIV lreligion had ever been. Whllen we have -poured out our own blood for a cause, we are but too strongly led to shed the blood of others for the conservation of the treasure we lhave wvon. Thle nmurder of Stephen was not, moreover, an isolatted fact. Taking advantage of tlhe weakness of tlle ICRoman functionaries, tl e Jews broughit a real persecultioll7 to bear dwI u11pon the Chlturch. It, seems tlat tlie vexations pressed lti-ar(lest upon tlme Flelleiis-s aild t!ie proselytes wl1ose free ted(1enlcies ellragred the ortilodox. The Cltrchll of Jeruisalem, already so st-o:lgly oiganized, was obliged to dlispelre. The apostles, ac 1.52 THE APOSTLES. cording to a principle wliclh seems to lhave taken stli olg hold of their minds,28 did not leave tile city. It was probably so with all the purely Jewish group, with thlose who were called the "Ieibrews. "29 But the great community, with its meals in common, its diaconal services, its varied exercises, ceased thenceforth, and was never again reconstructed upon its first model. It hbad lasted three or four years. It was for nascent Christianity an unequalled good fortune that its first attempts at association, essentially communist, were so so(on broken up. Attempts of tils kind engender abuses so shocking, that communist establishlnents are condemned to crumble away in a very short tine,30 or very soonr to ignore t le principle on which thley a'e created.3l Thanlks to the persecution of tile year 87, tile cenobitic Church of Jerusalemli vas saved fromn thle test of time. It fell in its flower. i,etore interior difflculties had undermined it. It reimai.ned like a sl)leiidid dream, the memory of wlhichl tnitrated itn tlleir life oF trial all those whllo had f, ormed part of' it, like at1n ileal to mhicll Christianity will incessanlItly aspire to retnill, witllout ever succeeding.32 Tihose w}1ho knlow wllat an illestimllalble treasulre f;r thte nmemnbers still existilmg of tIle St. Simonllian Clturchl is tlle nlle:lory of M6,Milmnontant, what fiiendship it creates between them, w-llat joy gleams from their eyes as they speak of it, will comprehlend thle powerful link established between the new brethren by thle fact of having loved and thetn suffered together. Great lives have nearly always to remember a few montls du(riiig which thley felt God — months which, thoullgl existing only in memory, delight all the after years of their lives. TH E AP'OSTrLES. lt3 Thle leaditg, part, in tile perseculltion we hllve jist recourited, was played by tllat youngr Satl wllollt we have already f,n nd con tril)ltiiig, as fat as in hIiiibi lay, to the mlurder of Stephlle. Tlis firio{uis inanl, frntlished with a permission fiorn the priests, entered into houses suspected of concealing Christians, took violent hold of men and women, and dragged thlem into prison or before the tribunals.33 Saul prided Iliinself on there being n,-, one of his generation so zealous as himself for the traditions.34 Often, it is true, the mildness, the resignlationl of his victimns astonislted him; lie experienced a sort of relnorse; lie imagrined hearing tliese piouis women, hloping for the Kinrg lom of God, whoin lie hafd tihrown intto perison, say to him during thle nigilt, witlh a geiltle voice: " Whyv persecutest tllou us?" Tle blood of SteI:)llen, by whlicll he was al:nl,st literally st ained, solimetimnes distulribed hlis vision. Ma;lnly tliiigs lie lhald ller(rd said of Jesus went to his heart. This slupelrlhulall beiiig, inl is etllereal life, whence lie somnetitoes issued to revea'l lilmnself in sllort apparitioils, hauited Iiilm like a spectre. But Saul repulsed sucll tllotugllts witlh llornor; lie confirmlei m Iiiinself with a sort of frienzy in thie faithi oft his traditions, and lie was dreamino,' of new crulelties against tltose who attaclked thlenl. Ilis naine hlad become thle terror; of the fa.itlhfuil; tile fiercest ontrages, thle most sanguinary perfidies, wer-e dreaded at his hlands.3 CHAPTER IX.'1:E'rkT mISSIONS. —PLHILIP TilE DEACON. Thle persEcutin of the year 37 had for its result, as allways hnvappeny, toe expa.nsion of thle doctrine it was wished to arrest. Until tlhen the Christian prleaching had scarcely extended heyoiidc Jerlusalem; n(, mission had been undertaken; inclosecl within its lofty but narrow colmlunlion thle n.otlher Cllhurch had not radliate(l aroullld itself' rlor tbrornt a'ny l)rimneClhes. Tle dispersion of the little supper-tabe scattere(l the good seed to the fojr.t wrnds. The rnev.xlers of the Church of Jerusalemr, di.i4ntly driven friom their quarters, spread theanselves thiLcnliout J udea andll Salari.i;,' and preached ev hVwl:lere the k'i:icldom of' God. T'hlf de(acons in particulnr, (liseag;C,1( ft,>):n thlCilr dlnalliisrative functionlS by thle ruin ci, the otn.limnity, becamre ecxtlelent evangelists. Tlley were l-,e active yo(ung elktAeIlTt of the sect, ill opposition to t1he s!rne-lwhat Iheavy elmlent coiistitutcdd by the apostles a.lrd tCie " Iebtlews." (One sin)gle cirlcui-lstmance, that of lan'u.nqe! w,)ulidl have sviYiced to create in these latter an infeiorir ty,n rspil ect to p,"eaclhing. They. spoke, at least a, theail labllbitU.Ll tonog'ul, a dil,,-lt which the Je7ws thernse!'As li: i )ot use at a few lealtues (listance from Jerusalenm-. Tt was to tlhe Icllen ists that fell all the honor of tlhe gi,ad conquest, t}he recital of1 which is henceforth to be our (,rinei')\l (',jece. Trle theatre of the first of theser m;sLioIns, which wta THE APOS 1LES. 11.5 destined soon to embrace all thil bAsin of thoe MIediterraniean, was tlhe region roulnd about Jerusalemn, witlini a0 circle of two or thlree days' jo)urlley. Philip tlle Dean 2 w:s tlle llelo of this first holy expedition. lie evangelizeil Sai.naria with great success. The.li S nm;:rittai s were l-lismaitics; but the young s:et, after tlile examj)la of their MA:ster, was less susceptible than thle rigorous Jews upon questions of orthodoxy. Jesus, it was said, liid showil Hirnself on different occasions not altog(ether unfltvorable to tlhe Sainaritans.a Plilip appears to lhave beenl one of the apostolical maen most pre6ucllpiedl witil tlhealrgy.4 The accn)unts wlhiclh relate to hinll carry us into a: str nllge and fnrltastic world. It is by plr)oliuies thlt are e.x)lilled tlle conversions which he m -e d3dtin);l4' tl S:n:.tritans anL1 inll p:)rticulhar at Seb:iste, their tCapitail. Thlis coutlitry w:is itself filled with sui ~istitiu. uis'i.boiut intgic. In the yearl 3(, tlhat is to sait two or tliree years before tlVe arrival of the Cairistiatl r relchers, a ltnlltie i a1d excited q:lite a serious emotio)n amol,1g tihe Satmaritans by ),eacl:hing tlhe necessity of returuing to pirimitiv, Mfosaism, (,f whiich le pretendel-d to) l:ave t;)f:ltnd the sticr d utelsils.5 A cevrtain Simn, of tlhe villtag of' xi't;s, o)r Gitto,)l, whI) aifterwartis rose to a great repitt:ttioii, b g in about t!i;it titie to make himself klnovwvn by his woniderful operatioins.* It is painful to s e the G'ospcel1 fidlingl a prep.tratin andl a su.ppor't in such cliimeras. Qiite a large iiiultitude were baptize-dl in the nImi:n of Jesus. Philip hlad tliom power of baptizin,r bait not thnat of conferring, thle loly Gh'os:.t. This plrivilege was reserved to ihe =apostles. When the tidings caiane to Jarul.a-tlerm of the formation of a groulp of believers at SebA.ste, it was re 156 THE APOSTLES. solved to send( Peter and John to comnplete their initia. tion. The two apostles came, laid their hands upon the new converts, prayed over their heads; the latter were immediately endowed with nmarvellous powers attalched to the conferring of the Holy Ghost. Miracles, prophecy, all the phenomena of illuminism, were produced, and the Church of Sebaste had nothing on this score to envy that of Jerusalem.8 If we are to believe tradition about it, Simon of Gitton was thenceforth in relations with the Christians. Converted according to tlleir repo(rts by the preallching and the miracles of Philip, he was baptized and attaclhed himself to this evangelist. Then, when the apostles Peter and Johln had coine, and he saw the supernatural powers procured by the laying on of hands, he came, it is said, to offer them money in order that they should give him also the faculty of conferring the HEoly Ghost. Peter then Imade him this admirable reply: " Tihy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that tae gift of God mnay be bougllt Thou lhast neither plt.rt nor lot in this matter, for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.' 9 Whlether these words were pronounced or not, they seein to trace exactly the sitluat ion of'.imon in regard to the nascent sect. We shall see, in fact, tIhat accordilng to all appearances, Simonl of Gitton was the chief oft a religious imovement parallel to that of Christianity, one wlhich may be regarded as a sort of Samaritan counterfeit of the work of Jesus. Had Simon already l)egiin to dogmatize and to work wonders whenl Philip arrived at Sebaste? Did lie thenceforward enter into relations with the Clhristiaii Church? Is there any TEi A POSTLES. 157 reality in tile anecdote wlhich makes of lirm tile filtiler of all " sirlony? " Must we admit that the world onei day s-aw face to face two thaumaturlgists, one a charl'atan and the otlher the "corner-stonle," which became tlhe foundation of the fiaitl of hntnanity? Was a conjuror able to balance hiimself agLitnst the destinies of Chl'istianity 9 We kinowV not, for want of dlocniellts; for tile account of the Acts is here of feeble autlhority; and fromi the first century Simon becamne for tile Chlristian Church a snubject of legends. In hlistory thle gerleral idea alone is pure. It would be unjust to dwvell on anything we may see to be shocked at in tllhis sad prge of the,origin of Christianity. For vulgar hlearers tlie mniracle proves the dloctrine; fr us the doctrine causes the miracle to be forgotten. When a belief hias consoled and aineliorated llumanity, it is excusal)le for having employed proofs proportioned to the weakness of the public whoim it addressed. But when one ll:-ts proved error b1y error, what excuse is tlhere to allege,? Thlis is not a conderin-,nation we liere l)ronounce against Simon of Gitton. We shall have to expyl:in fntrtlher on tlis doctrine, and the part lie had to play, whiclh only mtade itself clear under the reign of Clandius.~1 It is necessary crnly to relnark here, that an imnportant pri'ciple seems to hlave been introduced through him into the Christian theurgry. Obliged to admit that iinpostors also worked iniracies, orthodox theology attributed tlhese iniracles to the devil. Int order to retain somne demonstrative valte in prodigies, rules had to be imagined for distin.gtuishing true from false mliracles. Orthodoxy descended bor thlis purpose to anl order of ideas exceedingly puerile. Peter and Jolhn, after hlaving colnfirmned the Church 1o8 THE APOSTLES. of Sebaste, set unt again for Jerusalem, on their retl in evangelizinic thle villages of the counltry of tile Sainari. talls.'2 Philip the Deacon continued llis evangelizingI travels, bending his steps towards the southl, towalrds the ancient country of the Plhilistines."': This counlltry, since tile advent of the Maccabees, had received a strong illfusion of the Jewish elemlent;4 althoughl Judaism was still by no means dominlant there. DIurilIg this journey Pllilip accommplislled a conversion whlich lacde some noise, and whllichll was mi-uch talked about on account of a parIticular Ci'clrtc lstance. One day as hle wTas goill aglong the roadt filoml Jerusalem to Gaiza, (illite a cdeserted r,adl,l hie mlet a ricl traveller, evideiltly a ilrei ller, tfo lie was ridliig inl clariot, a mode of locolnti(on wllich was at a11l tilies almnost unlknown to tlhe inllllabitants of Syria alnd Palestine. IHe was returlliig t'flo Jelrusalel, and griavely seated, lie was reading tle Bil)lte aloud, accorldinr to a culstomt thlen quite ccolllnlln. Phililp, wlho thlouhl:lt tlhat ill everlythillg, his aC: iolns were guided by anr inspiral'tionl firo on ilihil, felt liself dlrawni towxlar(ds his c}lariot. lie placed Iimulself alolgridle (tf' it, alm(l quietly entered inito (e,,versation with tihe opulent personage, offerinl, to explain to hllim tlme paiss'tages wliich l1e did not nn(dersl;land. Tiis was a fine occasion f)or tlme evan.gelist to develop the Clhristiiln tlhesis uponln thle figures o)f the Old Testaielnt. HIe lpovedl tlhalt ill tlhe prol lhetie books everythlling rela-te d to Jesus; tliat Jesus Nwas thle solultion of tlhe grie-at e.ligtma; tlhat it was of Itiml in plarticular' tlhat tlle All. Steeiilg had slol)(ken int this fine passage "He was led{.as a se1ep to-tle slaughl ter; as a lai}) tllat is (1111111) bef're iLs shea' ers, lie opened not his mo10nth."' The TItE APOSTLES. 15S traveller believed Ilinl, and at thle first water that tll y met, " Behold, here is -water," said he,' why could I not be baptized?" Thle clariot was stopped; Philip and thle traveller descended iito tile water, anlld tle latter was baptized. Now the traveller was a powerful personage. IIe was a eunucll of tile Candace of Etliioia, her Minlister of Fiallalce,: and glul,dianll f hler treasures, wlho lhad cllne to worshlip at Jerusalell, anld was now returnin'll to Napalt:l8! y way o t Eg'rypt. (Ctnz(lJace, o(r UCltaoce, was thle title of f'etll'ilille royalty ill Ei liiopia} towards tlle period in wvhichl vwe j(o,,w are."' Jtdl-isiil lha,1d colsequenlIy peiletrated illo Nul)ia anL d Ath's-sini.2) Iny natives were converte i, or at l:la c,untcd a no ir tlts 6 pf',selytes who, withlout being, cilrcumlcised, a;loied tlhe one only God(.2' The eunuchl was perhtIalps of this iatter class, t siiynple, piols pagan, like thle celnturion Corneli us, who will shortly figure'in tlis history. It is imlps1)sil0le ill any casoe to suppose tlhat lie was coinlle tely initiated ilto Jndaisn.m2 After tllis iwe hlear notllilln nogre said cal)out thle elllnchl. Bat Phlili relaled the incident. and fulrther on 1lnucell importallce was attaclled to it. Wle'en the question of the ad nissionl of ptg'yans into thle lChristian ChIurch becamne thle leatlig, buii siess, thlere was founnt here a -)rece(elit of' great w iglg}t. P hilip was deemed to have acted in all tlis affair b)y Divine iiisliration.23 Tllis l)aptism, given by order of thle IUoly Ghlost, to a ian scarcely a Jew, notoriously uncirclnmcised, wlho had believed in Ch1ristianity only for a few h]ours, had an eminent dogmaitic valuie. It was an argLinent for tlhose wlho tllho llt that tlHe doors of the new Chulrcll ouglht to be open to all.24 160 THE APOSTLFS. Ph)lilip after thlis adventure. rmcide his a:ppearalce at Ashitod, or Azote. Sue]h was the state of artless enitlhsiasul in whllich these nissionaries lived, tlhat at each step they believed they heard voices from ITeaven aind received directions from tthe Spilit.25 Each of tlheir steps seemed to thenl regulated by a superior force; and whlen they went from one city to another-, tlhey thounglht they were obeying a snpelrnatural irispiration. Somnetimes they imagined they inlade atirial voyages. Philip was in this respect one of thle mnost exalted. It was on the indicatioi of an angel, as he believed, that lie camne fro'()m Saillaria to thle p)lace where lie met the einucl l; after tlhe bal)tisl of tlhe latter, lie was pelrsuadi(ed tlhat thie Spirit lifted him -up and carried him (lilect to Azote.26 Azote and the Gaza roadnl were tlhe limit of thle first Gospel preaching towards-l te southl. Beyond were thle desert and tlle ulolnladic life uponl which Clhristianity lhas ever taken but very slighlt h]old. Froln Azote, Plhilip thle Deacorn hurrtt'ied towards tlhe nortli, and evaiigelized all tlhe coast as ftir as Cesfarea. Peihaps tile Clhurclhes of Joppt anid of Lydda, whllicll we slhall soon finid flourishling,27 were founded lby llin. At Cesarea lhe settled and founded an implortant chlrch.28 We slhall meet himn theree again twenty years later.29 Cesarea wras a new city, and thle miost -onsiderablle in Judea.3~ It had been built on tile site >f a Sidonian fo)rtress called " Abdastarte's ori Strato's Tower," by HIerod the Great, who gave to it, in honor of Augustus, the name whichl its ruins bear even to tlhis day,. Cesarea was by much thle best port ii all Palestine, and tended fiom dcay to clay to become its THE APOSTLES. 161 (.apital. Tired of livitng at Jerusale1m, thle Procurators of Judea were soon going to lnake it thleir habitual residence.31 It was peopled chlliefly by pigans;s3 tlle Jews, Ilowever, were quite n umerous there, and severe disputes ofren took place between the two classes of the popu lation?.3 The Greek language was alone spoken there, and the Jews themselves had come to recite certain parts of their liturgy in Greek.34 The austere Rabbis of Jerlnsalem looked upon Cesarea as a profane and dangelrous abode, in which one became very nearly a pagan.35 From all the reasons'whicli hcave just been cited, this city will be of mincll imnportance in thle sequel of our history. It was in a mnanrner the po)rt of Christianity, tlhe point by whlich t!he Clhurch of Jerusalem corlnlunicatexl- with all the lediterralleanl. Manry other mnissions, tile history of wllictl is unknown to us, wore conducted sidle by sidle wit}l tlhat of Philip.36 The ver'y rapidity with wllicll this fir.st preaclillg was accolmplislled was tlhe caullse of i ts succes;. Itn the year 38, five yearts after the deathl (ft Jesuis, and oile pe1'llaps after thle death of Ste>phleln, all Palestinle on the hi-tlier side of Jordan ha11(l leard the lad i tidings fr'or the mouth of mnissiontaries sent out fi',rn Jerusalem. G<-lilee, on its side, kelpt tile ]holy seed aid probably spread it around,, altlholl(h we know Ilotlitig of any missions issuin, tfron tlis country. Perlhaps tlle city of Daalnseus, wlticli, froiln tlhe epoclh at wlhiclL we lhave arrived, also had its Cliristians,37 received the fatith from Galilean preachers. CHAPTER X. CON VERSION OF ST. PAUL. BUT the year 38 is marked in the history of the nascent Chlurcl by a new andl important conquest. It was during that year' that we nmay safely place the conversion of that saint whom we saw a participant in the stoning of Stepllen, and a principal agent in tlhe persecntioll {Of 37, and who now, by a mysterio(ls act of grace, becomlles the most:tr(dent of' the disciples of Jesus. Saul was born at Talrss, ill Ciliaia,2 in the ye'ar 10 or 12 of our era.3 Accordingo to thle mlallnr of Ihat; mat yv, lhis namet was Latiniz-dC illto that of Ptul;4 yet e cliel di )t regularly ad(lopt this lhist nltmne until hl b.cane thle apo,)tle of tlhe Gentiles.5 Paul was of the purest Jewih ll <-,l(.6 BHis fimily, probably orilginally from the town of G-ise hal, in Ga;lilee,7 professed to belong to the tribe of Benjalni 8;s and his ftither enjoyed the title of IRonaan citizen,") no doubt inheiited firrn ancestors who had obtained t}lat honor eitiher through purchase or through services rendered to the state. Perlhlaps hlis grlandlfther had obtmittcd it for alid giveil to Po.ml)ey duriiig the Ro(rlan conlqi la st ((63 B c.). Ilis family, like most of tie ()ld aiid s,,inl Jewish houses, belonged to the sect of Pharisees.l~ 1) Pt1l was reared according to the strictest principles -)fm t}lis sect,"1 and though he subsequently repudiated its narrmow dogmas, he always retained its asperity, its exaltation, and its ardent faith. THE APOSTLES. 163 During the epocll of Augustus, Tarsus was a very flourishing city. The population, tllough chiefly of tlhe Greek and Aramaic races, included, as wals commonl ill ill the commercial towns, 12 a large number of Jews. The taste for letters and the sciences was a marked clllracteristic of the place; and no city in the world, not eveli excepting Athens and Alexandria, was so rich in scientific institutions and schools.'3 The number of learned men which'Tarsus produced, or who pursued their studies there, was truly extraordinary;14 but it should not therefore be imagined that Paul received a careful Greek edilcation. Trllhe Jews rarely freqluented the institutions of s~ecular instrllction.l5 The most celebrated seillools of Tarsus were those of rhetoric,16 where the Greek classics received the first attention. It is hardly probable that a man wllo had taken even elementary lessons in grammar and rhetoric would lhave written in tlhe incorrect nonIIellenistic style of the Epistles of St. Paul. HIe talked blabitually and fluently in Greek, 17 and he wrote or rather dictatel'8 in that lantguaie; but hlis Greek was that of the Hellenistic Jews, a Greek replete with Hebraisms and Syrilcisms, scarcely intelligible to a lettered man of that period, and which can only. be (accounted for by his Syriac turn of mind. He himself recorgnised the common and defective character of his st:yle.'9 Whenever it was possible he spoke Hebrew-that is to say, the Syro-Chaldaic of his time.20 It was in this language that he thoug lt, and it was in this language that he was adldressed by the mysterious voice on the road to Danmascus.2l Nor did his doctrine show any direct adaptation rnade from Greek philosoplly. Tile verse quoted fromm the Thais of Menander, that occurs in his writings,22 is (,ne 164 THE APOISTLES. of those versiafed proverbs which were famililr to tlle public, and could easily have been quoted by one who hbd not read the original. Two other quotations — one from Epimenides, thle other froirn Aratus-wwhich appear under his name,23 althoughl it is not certain that. lie ustd them, may also be explailned as having been borrowed at second-hand.21 Tle literary training of Paul was almost exclusively Jewish,25 and it is in the Talmud rather than in the Greek classics that thle analogies of his ideas must be sought. A few general. ideas of wide-spread philosophy, which one could lea:rn without opening a single book of the philosoplhers, 2 alone reached him. His manner of reasoningl was very curious. iTe certainly knew notllinf o[f the peripatetic logic. IIis syllogism was not at all that of Aristotle; but on the contrary his dialectics greatly resembled( those of the Tallmud. Paul, as a general thing, was influenced by words rather thranl by ideas. When a word took possession of his rnind it suggested a trtin of thoa(lglit singularly irrelevant to the sulbject in question. Ilis transiti(ns were sudden, his developmeits interrupted, l)is conclusions frequently suspen(led. Never was a writer more unequal. One mnaly seek in vain throug-hout the realm of literature for a phenomeno(n as bizacrre as that of a sublime passage lilke the thirteenth chapter of the First Epistle to the Corintlhians by the si(le of feeble arguments, laborious repetitions, and fastidlious subtletie s. TIis falther early intended that he should be a TRlbl)i but, accordingo to the general custom27 gave ilirt a. tradetl. Palul was an upholsterer, 28 or rather a man nu fcturer of thle heavy cloths of Cilicia, wlhich were called G'licitm At various times he worked at this trade,29 for he h1ad no THE APOSTLES. 165 patrimonial fortune. It seems quite certain that he had a sister whose son lived at Jerusalem.30 In regard to a brother'1 and other relatives,32 who it is said had embraced Christianity, the indications are very vague and uncertain. Refinement of manners being, according to some modern ideas, in direct relation to personal wealth, it might be imagined from what has just been said, that P'aul was a man of the people, badly educated and without dignity. This opinion would, however, be thoroughly erroneous. His politeness was often extreme, and his manners were exquisite. Notwithstanding the defects in his style, his letters show that he was a man of rare intelligence,33 who formed for his lofty sentiments expressions of rare felicity; and no correspondence exhibits more carefilul attentions, finer shades of meaning, and more amiable hesitancies and timidity. One or two of his pleasantries shock us.34 But what animation! What a wealth of charming sayings! What simplicity! It is easy to see that his character, at the times when his passions do not make him irascible and fierce, is that of a polite, earnest, and affectionate man, sometimes susceptible, and a little jealous. Inferior as such men are before the general public,35 they possess within small sects immense advantages, through the attachments they inspire, tlhrough their practical aptitude, and through their skill in arranc-ino difficullt matters. Paul was small in size, and his personal appearance did not correspond with the greatness of hlis soul. Ite was ugly, stout, short, and stooping, and his broad shonlders awkwardly sustained a little bald head. His sallow countenance was half hidden in a thick beard; his nose was aquiline, his eyes piercing, and his eye. 166 TH E APOSTLES. bro'ws hleavy~6 and joined acrioss his forehleadn. NoT -was there anything iimposing in his speech,37 fi, r his timid and embarrassed air gave but a pool idea of hlis eloqunence.Y3 lie shrewdly, lowever, adm:nitted hlis exterior defects, and even drew advantage thercfroml.39 The JeNwivsh race possesses the peculiarity of at the same time presenting types of the greatest beauty, and the most tlhorough ugliness; but this Jevwi}h1 ngrliness is s(nletliinl quite apart by itself. Sotle of' the stranre visag.es which at first excite Ca smile, assumne, when ligllted up by einotion, a sort of deep brilliancy and gran (eur. The temperament of Paul was not less singular thall his exterior. His constitution was not healthy, though at thle same time its endurance was Iproved by the way in whllicll lie supporl:ed an existence full of fatigues alnd sufferings. He makes incessant allusions to his bodily weakness. Ile speaks of himself as a man sick amid b-ruised, timid, without prestire, withlout any of tho~se personal advantages calculated; to make an effect, ald altogether so uninvitilng that it was s 6utrprising tlat he did not repel people.? Besides this, lie hints witl rnystery at a secret trial, " a thorn in tlhe flesh," which lie compares to a messenger of Satan sent to buffet him,'" lest hle should: be exalted above mueasullle.M4 Thrice he besought thle Lord to deliver hin, and thrice the Lord replied, " AMy grace is sufficient for thlee." This was apparently some bodily infirmity; for it is not possible to suppose that lie reflrs to thle attractions of carnal deliglhts, since lie hlimself informs us elsewhere that he was insensible to tbhemn. It appears that lie was never umarried:?3 the entire coldness of his temperament, the THE APOST1LES. 1 67 cl meseq3uence of tlle unequalled ardor of his brain, solwed' itself througt(out his life, a11d he boasts of it wii-i an assurance savoring, perhaps, of affec.tat. i),n, and which, certainly, selale to us rather unlpile-asa.s!lt..4 Ie came to Jerusalem,45 it is said, at an early age, and entered the school of Gamalliel the Elher.4 This Ganialiel was the most enlightenled lnan in Jerusalem. As the name of Pharisee was applied to every prominent Jew who was not of' a priestly fulmily, Gtmrnaliel passed for a member of that sect. Yet he had nlone of its narrowl')W land exclusive spirit, andl was a liberal, intelligent 1ma1t, toleranit of the heathen, and acquainted with Greek. Perhaps, indeed, the large ideas professed by Paul after he received Christianity, were a reminiscence of the teaclhings of his first master; it must, however, be admlitted that at first he did not learn much moderation fromn liaii. An extreme fanaticism was then prevalent in Jerusalem. Paul was the leader of a yonng' alnd rigorous Pharisee party, most w arily i attached to the national traditions of the pIast.47 TIe did not know Jesus,48 nor was he present at the bloody scene of Golg'otha; but we have seen him take an active part in the mu:rder of' Stephen, and among th e fi)rei-imost of the persecutors of the Church. Hle breathed only threateninags and slaugliht(er, and1 furiously passed throu gh Jerusalem blearing a mandate which authorized and legnalized all his bruttllities. IIe went from synagogue to synagogue, forcing the more timid to deny the name of Jesus, and subje-ctinc others to scourging or imprisonmient.49 When the Chunrch of Jerusatlem was disperlsed; his persecutions extended to the neighboririg: cities;"5:tild exasperated by the progress of the new fhith, and hl.ving learned that there was a group of the faithful 168 THE APOSTLES. at Damascus, he obtained from the high-1 ricst Theophilus, son of Hanan,5 letters to the synaogogue of that city, which conferred on him the power of arresting all evilthinking persons, and of bringing them bound in cords to J erusalem.52 Tile disarrangement of Roman authority in Judea explains tliese arbitrary vexations. The half mad Caligula was in p)ower, and the administrative service -was everywhere disturl)e(1. Fanaticism had gained all that the civil power had lost. After the dismissal of Pilate, and the concessirons made to the natives by Lucius Vitellius, the country was allowed to govern itself according to its own laws. A thousand local tyrannies profited by the weakness of the decaying power. Damascus had just passed into the hands of Hartat, or Hareth, whose capital was at Petra.53 This bold and powerful prince. after having beaten Herod Antipas, and withstood the Roman folrces comlnmnanded by the irrperial legate Lucius Vitellius, hlad been marvellously aided by fortune. The news of thie death of Tiberius had suddenly arrested the marchi of Vitellius.54 Hareth seized Darnascus, and established there an ethnarch or governor.55 The Jews at that time were a numerous p)arty at Danmascus, where they carried on an extensive system of proselytizing, especially among the females.6 It was deemed advisable to make them contented; the best method of doing so was to allow concessions to their autonomvy, and every concession was simply a permission to commit further religious violences.57 To punish and even kill those who did not think as they did, was their idea of independence and liberty. Paul, in leaving Jerusalem, followed without doubt the usual road, and THE APOSTLES. 169 crossed the Jordan at the " Bridge of the Daughters of Jacob." His mental excitement was at its greatest height, and he was alternately troubled and depressed. Passion is not a rule of faith. Tile passionate man flies from one extreme creed to another, but always retains the same inmpetuosity. Now, like all strong minds, Paul quickly learned to love that which he had hated. Was he sunre, after all, tlhat lie was not thwarting the design of'God? Perhaps he remembered the calm, just views of his master Garnaliel.58 Often these ardent souls experience terrible revulsions. HIe felt the charms of those whom he had tortured,59 and the better be knew these excellent sectarians the better he liked thern; and than their persecutor none had greater opportunities of knowing them well. At times he saw the sweet face of the M/iaster who had inspired lHis disciples with so much patience, regardinlg hiln with an air of pity and tender reproach. Ie was also much impressed by the accounts of the apparitions of Jesus, dcscribing him as an aerifal being; for at the epochs and in the countries when and where there is a tendency to the marvellous, miraculous recitals influence equally each opposing party. The Mahommedans, for instance, were afraid of the miracles of Elias; and like the Christialns, invoked supernatural cures in the names of St. George andl St. Anthony. Having crossed Ithuria, and while in the great plain of Damasculs, Paul, with several companions, all journeying on foot,"0 approached the city, and had probably already reached the beautiful gardens which surround it. The time was mid-day.61 The road fi'om Jerusalem to Damascus has in nowise cllhanged. It is tllat one wlhich, leaving Damascus in a 8 170 THE APOSTLES. south-easterly direction, crosses the beautiful plain watered by the strealns flowing into the Abana and Ph1.arpar, and upon whlich are now mlarshalled the villagres of Dareya, Kankab, and Sasa. The exact locality of wlhicl we speak, and whi}ch was the scene of one of the lmoat i:llportant facts in the hlistory of huinaiiity, could lnot llave been bevyond Kankab (four hours from Dainasclis).62 It is even probable that the point in question warls much nearer the city, at about Dareya (an hour and a h1alf fi'roln Damascus), or between Dareya and Meidan.~ The great city lay before Paul, and the outliines of several of its edifices could be dimly traced beyond the tlhick foliage; belilnd hinm towered the miajestic done of tiertion, witll its furrows of snow, mlakingc it resemble thle bald hlead of an old man; upon }his rliglit were the Flanran, the two little parallel elhainls whllich inclose the lower course,f the Phllapar," and the tuinuli of the region of tile lakes; and upon -his leftt were the outer spurs of the Anti-Libanus stretcllinlg out to join Mt. IIerlnon. The iml)ression produced by these richly cultivated fields, by these beatiflll orlelards, separated the one fiom the other by trenclhes and laden with the most delicious fiuits, is that of peace and happiness. Let one imagine to himself a sliady road passing thrllough the rich soil crossed at intervals by canals for irrigation, bordered by declivities and winding through forests of olives, walnuts, apricots, and prunes, these trees draped by gracefnl festoons of vines, and there will be presented to the mind the image of the scene of that remnarkable event whlich has exerted so wide an influence upon the faith of the woirld. THE APOSTLES. 171 In these envilons of Damascus65 you could scarcely believe yourself in the East; and above all, after leaving the larid and burning regions of the Gaulonitide and of Ithuria, it is joy indeed to meet once more the works of lnan and the blessings of Heaven. From the most remote antiquity until the present day there has been but one na!ne tir this zon)le, which surrounlds Damnascus withl freslhness and health, and that namne is the Paradise of God." If' Paul thlere met with terrible visions, it was because lie carried tllen in his heart. Every step in his journey towards Damlascus awaked inl him afflicting perplexities. The odious part of executioner, which lie was ablout to performi, became insupportable. Tlhe houses wlich he just saw ti)roughl tllhe trees, were perhaps those of his victims. Thlis tlhourught beset hini and delayed his steps; he did not wisht to advance; he seemed to be resisting a mlysterions influence wlich pressed himtl back.66 The fatigue of tile journey,67 joined to this preoccupation of tlic miind, overwhelmled himl. He had, it would seern, illflalned eyes,68 probably the beginning of ophthlalrmia. In these prolonged journeys, tlhe last hours are the most danlgerouls. All the debilitating causes of tile days just past accumulate, the nerves relax their power, and reaction sets in. Perhaps, also, the sudden passage fiomn the sun-smitten llain to the cool shades of the gardens hleiglhtened his suffering conditions6 and seriously excited tile fanatical traveller. Dangerous fevers, accompanied by deliriinm, are always sudden in tllese latitudes, and in a few minutes the victim is prostrated as by a thunder-stroke. When the crisis is over, the sufferer retains only the 172 THE APOSTLES. impression of a period of profound darkness, crossedi at intervals bly dashes of liglht or of imiares outlinled against a dark background.70 It is quite certain thalt a terrible stir oke instantly deprived Paul of' his remaining consciousness, and threw him senseless oni the ground. It is impossible, with the accounts whlich \ve lhave had of this singular event,7' to say whethler any exterior fact led to the crisis to which Christianity owes its nmost ardent apostle. In such cases, mnreover, the exterior fact is of but little importance. It was the state of St. Paul's miind, it w;as his remorse on his approach to the city where lie was to commnit the mIost signal of his mis. deeds, whlich were the true causes of lhis conversion.?2 I much prefer, for nly part, the hypothesis of anl affair personal to Paul, and experienced by him alone.73 Tlie incident, nevertheless, was not wholly unlike a sudden stormn. The flanks of AMt. IHer mon are the point of fornation for thullder-showers unequalled in violenlce.74 Thle most unimpressible people cadnnot observe without enlotion these terrible shlowers of fire. It should be remembered that in anciernt titmes accidents from lightning strokes were considered divine relations; that with the ideas regarding providential interference then prevalellt, t: was fortuitous; and that every man was acelistomled tov iew the natural phlenomena aroulnd him as bearing a direct relation to himself individually. The Jews in particular always considered that thunder was the voice of God, and that liglhtning was the fire of God. Paul at this moment was in a state of lively excitement, and it was but natural that lie should inter. pret as tlme voice of the storm tlhe thoughts really pass. THIUE APOSTLES. 1 3 ing inl his mind. Thatt a delirious fever, resnltirl ftroln a sun-stroke or an attack of ophtllalnia, Itld suddellly seized him; that a flash of ligitning blinded him for a time; that a peal of tllunder had produced a cerebral commlotilll temporarily dep)riviing ohim of sigllt —nothing of this occurred to his zmind. The recollections of the apostle on this poillt appeatred to be considera..bly confused; lhe was persuaded that the incident was supernatural, anld this conviction would not permllit himn to entertain ainy clear consciousness of material circumstances. Stchll cerebral coin notions produce soietimnes a sort: of retroactive effect, and greatly perturb the recollection8s of the monlerlts ilnmediately precedinlig thle crisis.75 Paul, moreover, elsewllere ilftorms us hi inself that lie was subject to visiOns; 76 and tlhis cire ilnstalnce insignificant as it may be to othlles, is suflicieint to show tllat for tlle time betilng lie was delnented. Anld what did he see, vwlat did lie hear, while a prey to these hlallutcilations? Ite saw tie cou;tenrlalce which had haunted hitll fior several days; lie saw thle plhantom of wlichll so lnuch had been said. Ie saw Jesus Himself, who sp(oke to him in IIebrew, sayinllr, "Saul, Saul, why pel'seClltest thlou me? I it 11)etulis natures pass inmmedi-ately firom one extreome to thle otlher.77 For them tlere exist solemn mrniieits and crulcial instants whtich cclange tlhe course of a lifetime. anid whiclh colder natures nevetr experience. Reflective men do tnot change, but are transfiltornel; wlile ard(elmt lnmen, on the con.trary, cltange and are iiot tralnsformed. DI)o,gnatism is a shirt of Nessus which they cannot tear off. Tliey lunst lhave a pretext for loving aind lhating. Onlly our western races have been a1le to, produce 174 TIIE APOSTLES. tlhose Ininds-large yet delicate, stro)ng yet flexibiewhich no empty affirmationl canl iislead, and nlo,,,o. mentary illusion can carry away..The East has never had men of this description. Instantly, the Inost thrilling thoughts rushed upon. tle soul of Paul. Alive to the enormity of his conduct, he saw himself stainled with the blood of Stephen, and this rlartyr appeared to him as his father, his initiator into thle new faith. Touched to the quick, his seltimen-lts experienced a revulsion as thoronogh as it was sudden; and yet all thlis was hut a new order of fanaticismn. His sincerity and lis need of an absolute faitlh prevented any rniddle course; and it was already clear tlhat lie would one dlay exhibit in the canse of Jesus the salne fiery zeal lie ]lad shown in persecuting Hiun. With the assistance of his companions, who led him by the hand,l7 Paul entered DaLmascus. IHis friends took him to the house of a certain Jud-as, who0 lived in tIhe street called Straight, a grand colonna(ledl avenue over' a mile long and a hundred feet broad, whicll crossed the city from east to west, and the line of wllichl yet forms, with a few deviations, the principal artery of Damaiscus.79 The transport and excitelment of his brlil8S had not yet subsided. For three da3ys Pa;ul, a prey to fever, neither ate nor drank. It is e.iasy to imalgine what passed dLturing this crisis in that brai-l maddened by violent disease. Mekntion was made in hlis hearingr of the Christians of Damrascus, but especially of a certain Anani as wlio appeared to be the chief of the conlmmunity.8 Paul 1h-iad ofien heaird of the miraculous powers of new believers over lnaladies, and he became seized by the idea that the imposition of hands would cure hinm of his disease. His THE APOSTLES. 1 io eyes all this time were highly inflamed, and ill his (delirious imaginationsa he thought he saw Ainanias (clltr lthe room and make a sign familiar to Christians. Fnom tlhat moment he was convinced that he shoultI owe his recovery to Ananias. The latter, informnedl of this, visitedl tl-e sick man, spoke kindly, addressed himll as Ilis " brother," and laid his hands upon his head; and froi!.l that hour peace returnel to tile soul of Paul. IHe believed himself cured; and as hlls ailment had been p)urely nervous, he was so. Little crusts or scales, it is saild, fell from his eyes;83 he again partool of fbod and recovered his strencth. Almost immediately after thlis he was baptizecd.& Tlle doctrines of the Church were so simple that he had nothing, new to learn, but wais at once a Christian and a perfect one. And from whom else did lie needl inlstruction? Jesus EIi ns-elf had appea red to hi m. IIe too, li ke Janlles and Peter, had had this vision of the risen Jesus. IIe had learned everythling by direct revelation. lere tIle fierce and unconllquerabll nature of Paul was male manifest. Smitten (own on tile public road, he was willing to submit, but ollly to Jesus, to that Jesus who had left the riglht hand of the Father to convert and illstruct him. Such was the foundation of his faith; andl such will be the starting-point of his claims. Ile will maintain that it was by design that he cid lnot go to Jcrutsalern immediately after his conlversion, and place limnself in rclatiols with those who had been Ipl)ostles beforel irn; he will Inaintlai tla:lt 1ie 1las receivedl speciial "revlclatioa,, fr which he is inllebted to no lutnmtl acncy,; thlat, like, the twelve, lie is an apostle by divine institution and by direct c-ommtnission fronn Jesus; that hlis doctrine is the 176 THE APOSTLFS. true one, althlough an angel from rleaven sllould say te the contrary.5 An iminense danger finds entrance through this proud man into the little society of poor ill spirit who until now had constituted Christianity. It will be a-real miracle if his violence and his inflexible personality does not burst forth. But at the same time his boldness, his initiative force, his prompt decision, will be precious elements beside the narrow, timid, and inde cisive spirit of the saints of Jerusalem! Certainly, if Christianity had remained confined to these good people, shut up in a conventicle of elect, leading a communistic life, it would, like Essenism, have faded away, leavillng scarcely a trace. It is this ungovernable Paul who will secure its success, and who at the risk of every peril will lift on high its holy banner. By the side of the o(bedient faithful, accepting his creed without questioning his superior, there will be a Christian disenllgaged fiom all authority who will believe only from pers(onal conviction. Protestantism thus existed five years after the deathl of Jesus, and St. Paul was its illustrious founder. Jesus had no doubt anticipated such disciples; and it was such as these who would most largely contribute to the vitality of His work and insure its eternity. Violent natures inclined to proselytism, only change the object of their passion. As ardent for the new faith as he had been for the old, St. Paul, like Orrmar, in one day droppedl his part of persecutor for that of apostle. Ile (lid not return to Jerusalem,86 where his position towards the twelve would have been peculiar and delicate. Ile tarried at Damascus and in the Hauran87 for three years (38-41), preaching that Jesus was the Son of God.?' Ierod Agrippa I. held the sovereignty of the Ianurahn and the TII1E APOSTLE'I,S. 1;7 neighboring countries; but his power was fat s',veral points supersedeld by that of a Nabatian kIing, II lratll. IThlle decay of the Rhm'.an power in Syria had delivered to the rambitious Arab the grealt "and rich city of Damascls, besides a part of the countries beyond Jordan and Hlermon, then just opening to civilization.89 Another ernir, most probably Soheyrn,9' a relative or lieutenant of Hlrrath, had received from Caligula the command of Ithuria. It was in the midst of this great awakening of the Arab nation,91 upon a foreign soil where an energetic race manifested its fiery activity, that Paul first showed( tlhe brilliancy of his a(postolic soul.Y~ Perhllaps the material yet dazzlinr movement which revolutionized tlle country w:ts prejudicial to a theoryr andtl preachingr wholly idealistic, and founded on a belief of a speedy end of tlhe worlld. Ind-(eed, there exists no trace of an A;rabl)i.n church founded by St. Paul. If thle rogi,)n of the Ilanlran becane, toward(l thc vye ar 70, one of tlhe in )t imPp),'tant centres of Christiallity, it was owing to the emligration of Christians fromn Ptllestinle; andl it wAs really the Ebionites, the enemies of St. Paul, who had in this r egioll their principal estatblishmenat. At Dnamascus, where there were many Jews,"3 the teachings of Pa1ul received more attention. In the synagogues of that city he entered into vigorous ar.g1.lmnts to prove that Jesus wais the Christ. Gireat ilideed was the' astonishment of thle faithful on beholdinig himn who had persecuted their brethren at Jer.ustlem, andwho had come to Damascus " to bring themselves bound unto the chief-priests," now appearirng as their leading d(-fender.~9 tlis audacity anld personal ch:lracteristies almost alarmed them. Tie was alone; he sougrht no 8* 178 THE APOSTLES. co.sllsl;"l he est:blishecd lio school; and the enmotionsq he excited welre those of curiosity rathler tllan of symr)tlhvy. r'he fulithfiul felt that he was a brotlher, but a brotler marked by sing1ular peculilarities. TTleyy believed hlimn irncapable of trelachery; but amiable anld mediocre natures alw.ays experience sentiments of mistrust and n alarmi when broughlt in contact with powerful and originall minds, whom tley acknowledge as their superiors, and who they know must surpass them. CIHAPTER XI. PEACE AND INTERIOR DEVELOPM~ENTS OF THE CIHURC1I OF JUDEA.:FROmR the year 38 to the yeoar 44- no persecution seems to lhave weighed upon tile Chrllllch.1 The faithful, no doubt, were far niore pridlenlt tihan before the deatlh of Stephllen and avoided speakinc in pulblie. Perhlaps, also, tlle tronl)les of the Jews who, dullrilng all thle second paIt of thle reignll of Ctlialga, were at variance witli tthat prince, colltributed to favor thle ilascent sect. The Jews, in ftact, were active persecutors in prl(plortiol to tile g I, d u~(lerstandieig tlhey mnainitaineid withl the Roltlans. To bluy o(r to recompellse tlheir traln(1nillity, tile latter were led to auglileit thleir privileges, and ili particular tihat on.e to whlicl thley clullg linost closely —tle righlt of killHi g persons whlomi tIhey regarded as unfaitliflul to their law.2 Now thle period att wiichll w e lhave arrived was o(ne of thle mIost storirly of all in tle turbulent history of this sinlgnlar people. Tlhe antipathy wlichl the Jews, by their moral superior'ity, tlheir o(ld customs, and also by tlheir severiiy excited i1n thle.populationis anino,,g Iwhcomn mley lived, was aIt its theighit, especially at Alexandria.3 Tlis aceuimulated hlatred to,k advanlta'e, foi its own satisftctioni of the comiing to the imperial tllrone of one of tlhe most dallgcleros nia.cldmen that ever wore a CroWIL. 180 THIE APOSTLES. Caligula, at least after the mnalady whllicl consuinnmated-l hlis mental derangeiment (October 37), presented thle frighltful spectacle of a naniac governing the world with the most enormous powers ever put into tlie liands of any man. The disastrous law of C~esarism rendered such horrors possible, and left therm without remedy. This lasted thlree years and thlree montllhs. One cannot without slarnle narrate in a serious history that which is now to follow. Before entering upon the recital of these saturnalia we cannot but exclaitn with Suetoniuis: Reliqua ut de monstro nar'ranrda sunt. Thlle most inoffensive pastime of this madman was the care of his own divinity.4 In this lie used a sort of bitter irony, a mixture of the serious and the comic (for tlle monster was not wanting in wit), a sort of profound derision of the human race. The enemies of tile Jews were not slow to perceive the advantage tlley inight derive finom this mania. The religious abaseinent of the world was such that not a protest was hleard against the sacrilege of tlle CTesar; every worsllip hastened to bestow upon hliml tlhe titles and tile lhonors wlhich it had reserved for its gods. It is to the eternal glory of thle Jews that, in tlHe midst of thlis ignobllo idolatry, tlhey uttered the cry of outraged conscience. T},e principle of intolerance which was in them, and wlhich led them to so,iany cruel acts, showed here its briiglit side. Alone affirming their religion to be the absolute religion, they would not bend to tile odious caprice of the tyrant. This was tile source of untold troubles for them. It needed only that thlere should be in any city some man discontented witl tile synagogue, spiteful, or simply mischievous, to bring about fiight. THE APOSTLES. 181 ft]l consequences. At one time the people wonlld itlsist on erecting all altar to Caliglla in tlhe very place whlere tlhe Jews could least of all suffer it.5 At anotlher, a troupe of ragamulufflins woVuld collect, hootinlg and crying out against the Jews'for alone refusiing to place tlte statue of the emperor in their houses of prayer; thlen the people would run to the synagogues and the oratories; they would install thePe the bust of Caligula;6 and the unfbrtunate Jews were placed in tlhe alternative of either renounciin thleir religion, or commnitting treason. Thence followed fr'iglittfll vexatiTons. Such pleasantries had been several times repeated, when a still more diabolical idea was sugrested to the emperor. This was to place:a colossal golden staltue of hl-imself in the sanctuary of the temple at Jerusalem, and to have the temple itself dedicated to his own divinity.7 This odious inltrig'ue had very nearly hastened by thirty years the revolt and the ruin of the Jewish nation. The moderation of tlhe imperitl legate, Publius Petronius, and the intervelition of Kilng Herod Agrippa, favorite of Caligula, prlrevnted the catastrophe. But until the momenilt il wlich the sword ofv Chllnerea delivered the earth firom the most execrable tyralnt it h:ld as yet endured, the Jews lived everywllere in terror. Philo has preserved f(or us the unheardof scene wl-ich occurred when the deputatio(n of wlhich he was the chief was ad(mitted to see the emperor.8 Caligullla received thern durinlg a visit he was paying to the villas of Mmecenls and of Lamia, near the sea, in the environs of Pozzuoli. Tle was on that day ill a vein of gaiety. Ielicon, his fatvorite joker, had been relating to him all sorts of buff)ooneries about the Jews. "Ah, then, it is you," said he to them with. a bit. 182 TIHE AlUSTJLES. ter smile and showing his tcoth, " who alone will not recognlise me for a god, and',refer to adore oleC whlose n:ame yvou cannot even utter! " Ile accompanied tlhese words with a frightful blasphemny. The Jews trembled; tlheir Alexandrian enemies were the first to take up the wordl: " You would still more, O Sire, detest these people and all their nation, if you knew the aversion thley have for you; for they alone have refused to offer sacrificees for your health wllcn all other people did so! " At thtse words, the Jews cried out that it was a calumny, and thallt tiley ha:l three tilnes offlred for the prospcrity of tile el-lperor tlc most solemn! siacrifices known to tileir reliioll.'; Yes," said Caligula i, ith a very c)mi(cal seriousness, "yyou have saclifice( d, andl so lTr, we(1; li:lt then it was not to me thllit you sacrificed. \Vllit adlvalltale do tderive fro;l it?" Thereupon, tirninij his aick upon tl'hem, lie str)ode throu-h the apalrtrcnnts giviln orders rOr relmirs, ilneiss:tl tVl gcoing up and d:oiwnl stairs. Tlle unlfortulli:te dcleputies, l1,( amo1ng themir Pl'ilo, eightV vearas of al,,, the most venerable mnan of tlht tilm(l, perllip)s-Jesus beil, nolollgerliving —fllowed hilm up )and d(oi vll out of' bcreatll tremblimg, the object of derision to the assic mtled c, m! iany. Caligula turlling sdcldlenll, said to tlet:' 13y' the 1b5 whlyv will y;on not el:t pomlpened, aind a clotih tied at the four corners conma dlown thlLnc. Ilolooingc insidet the cloth he saw there all sorts of' animals, and thouught hlie llesard a voice saying to linl:'' Kill andl elt." And on his objecting tha.t ma:ny of tlese animals were impure, he was answered' " Call not that unclea'n which God has cleansed." This, as it appears, was repe'ated three tilles. Peter was persuaded thalt tlIese animals represented the mass of tile Gentiles, whlilch God IIirnself had just rend,,recld fit fo)r the holy cvon.nllunion of the kilgdor(on of God.22 An occasion was soon presented for applying the:Lse principles. -From Joppa, Peter repaired to Cesarea. There he came into relations with a centurion named Cornlelius.23 The garrison of Cesarea was formed, at THE APOSTLES. l7 least in part., of one of those cohorts composed of Itatlia;n1 volunteers which were called ft(licce.2A The complete nla.m re for wlhich this stood may have been cohors priIna Aug/ts. tus lalicz civiurn Romcanortum.25 Cornelius was a cenltlurion of this cohort, consequently an Italian and a Romn:ni citizen. I-e was a man of probity, who had long ftilt drawn toxwards the aconotheistic worship of the Jews. He prayed, gAlve alms; practised, in a word, those precepts of natural religion which are taken for granted by Judaism; but he was not circumcised; he was not a proselyte in any degree whatever; he was a pious pagan, an Israelite in heart, nothing more.2? All his household and some soldiers of his command were, it is said, in the salme state of mind.27 Cornelius applied for ad-mission into tle new Church. Peter, whose nature was open and benevolent, granted it to hirn, and the centurion was baptized."8 Perhaps Peter saw at first no difficulty29 in this; but onl his return to Jeruisalenl lie was severely reproached for it. I-e had openly violated the law, he had gone in aniong the unciruenicised and had eaten with them. Thle question was an importanlt one; it was no other than whlether the law were abolished, whether it was perinissible to violate it in proselytism, whether Gentiles could be received on an equal footing into tle Church. Peter, to defend himnself, related thle vision he had at Joppa. Subsequently the fact of the centurion served as an argumnent in the great question of the baptism of the uncircumcised. To give it more force it iwas supposed that eaclh plase of this iimportant business had been mlarked by a revelation from Heaven. It was related that after long prayers Cornelius had seen an 188 THE APOSTLES. angel whllo ordered himri to go and inquire for Peter at Joppa; that the symbolical vision of Peter took place at the very hour of the arrival of the messengers flrln Cornelius; that, moreover, God hlad taken it upon TIimlsclf to legitimize all that had been done, seeing tlhat tlhe Holy Ghost 11(ad descended upon Cornelius and upon hlis househlold, tlle latter lhaving spoken strange tonlgues and sung psallns aft-er the faslhion of the other believers. Was it natlural to refilse baptism to personls who had received the IHoly Gliost The Cliurch of Jerusaleln was still exclusively composed of Jews and of proselytes. Tlle Holy Glhost being shed upon the uncircumrcised before b)aptisml, appeared an extraordinary fact. It is probable thlat tlere existed thencefoirth a party op)posed in principle to tlhe admnission of Gentiles, and tlhat every onre (lid not accept the explanations of Peter. Tile author of thle Acts~ wolld hatve it thlat tle approbation was unani-:o)uns. But in a few years we slhall see thle question revived with miuch g eater illtensity.3' The facit of thle good centurion was, perllaps, like tlhat of the Etlli. opian eunuch, accepted as an exceptional one, justified by a revelation and an express order fiom God Tlie matter was far firoml beinlg settled. This was tlie first controversy in tile bosolm of the Clurch l; the paradise of ilterior peace had hlsted six or seven years. About thie year 40, tile great question on whlich lungt all the future of Cllristianlity appears thus to have been propounded. Peter and Pllilip tookl a very just view of the true solution, and baptized pagans. It is difficult, no doubt, in thle two accounlts given us by the author of the Acts on this sulbject, and which are THE APOSTLES. 189 partly sketched one from the other, not to recognise a systemn. Thle author of tile Acts belongs to a party ot conciliation, favorable to the introduction of p-agans into the Clturch, and who is not willing to confess thle violence of thle divisions to which the affair gave rise. One feels strongly that inl writing the episodes of the eunuch, of the centurion, and even of the conversion of the Sinamaitans, this author means not only to narrate facts, bnt seeks especially precedents for an opinion. On the othler hand, we cannot admnit that lihe invents the facts which he narrates. The conversions of the eunucli of Candace, and of tlle centturion Cormelius, are probably real facts, presented and transformed according to the needs of thle tlhesis in view of which tile book of the Acts was c.nmposed. Paul, who was destined, somne ten or eleven years later, to give to this discnssion so decisive a bearing, had not yet meddled with it. HIe was in the 1ianhran, or at Damascus, preaching, refuting the Jews, placing at the service of the new faitll as much ardor as lie hiad shqwn in fighting against it. The fanaticism, of which lie had been the instruinent, was not loig in pursuing him in his turn. The Jews resolved to destroy him. They obtained from the ethnarch, wllo governed Damascus in the name of IIdrath, an order to arrest him. Paul hid hiriself.: It was knowit that lie had to leave the city; the etlinarch, who wanted to please the Jews, placed detachmients at the gates to seize his person; but thle brethren enabled him to escape by light, letting limn down in a basket fiom the window of a house which overhung the raimparts.? 1 90 TIHE APOSTLES. Having escaped tllis danger, Paul turned his eyes towards Jertusalemn. Ie hlad been a Cllristian tfr three years,33 and had not yet seen thle apostles. Isis rigid, tllyieldirig character, prone to isolation, had made him at first turn his back as it were npou the great ftamilly into which he hlad just entered ill spite of hilselt; and )refer fir his first apostolate a new country, in which lie would find no colleague. There was awakened in him, lioxweverl a desire to see Peter.34 le recoginised his authority, and designated him, as every one (lid, by tiLe lalale oft Ceph/as, "the sto)lle." IIe repaired then to Jerusaleln, takinr thle same road, but in an opposite direction to tlhat he ]had traversed three years before in a state of mind so different. Hiis position at Jerusalem was extremely false and enmbarrassing. It had been understood there, no doubt, tIhat the persecutor lhad becoine thle mnost zealous of evangelists, and. thle first defender of tlme fiithl whlich lie had formerily souglt to destlroy.3 13But there remainled grIeat prejudices against hlim. Many feared somle hlorrible plot oil his part. They had seen hlilll so elraged, so cruel, so zealous in entering houses and rending,open family secrets in order to find victims, that he was believed capable of playinog an odious farce in order to destroy those whomn he lated.36 lie stayed, as it seeins, in the house of Peter.a37 Many disciples remained deaf to his advances, and slhrank frioln ltim1.38 A man of ceurlage and will, Barnabas, played at this momenit a decisive part. As a Cyprian and a new convert, hie understood better tthan thle Galilean disciples the position of Paul. IIe came to meet him, took hlilm in a mann1er by the hald, introduced hinm to the most suspicious, THE APOSTLES. 19 andT becamne his surety.39 By this act of wisdlin atnd pel etlratiill, Bairn 1iatbas wonL at tle anlds of tle CiistlliLanl wvor'ld thle highlest degree of merit. It wtas lte wNlh appreciated Paul; it was to himn that thle Clulrcll owes tllhe nost extraordilnary of her founllders. The fruitfLul fitieldsllip of these two apostolic menl, a frielndship thlat 1io cloud ever tarllislled, nlotwithstandig mllany differeiices ill ol)inion, afterwards led to their association in tlhe work of missions to tile Gentiles. rliis grand association dates, in onle sense, f'ro0m1 Paul's first sojournl at Jerusalem. Among the causes of tile faith of tlie world we mulst count the generous movemnenat of Barnabas, stretclling out his ihand to the suspected and forsaken Pauln; the profound illtuition whilch led him to discover tile soul of an apostle unlder tiiat h]umiliated air; the frankness with whiceh he broke thle ice aiid levelled the obstacles raised between the convert and his new brethren I)y thle unfortunate antecedents of tlhe former, and penrlaps, also, by certain traits of his chlaracter. Paul, ineanitinie, systematically as it were, avoided seeingc the apostles. It is lie hiimself says so, and lie takes thle trobl)le to ffirmn it with an oath; lie saw only Peter, amnd Jamies thle brother of tile Lord.4~ His sojourn lasted only two weeks.4i Assuredly it is possible that at tile epoch in whicl lie wrote the Epistle to the Galatians (towards 56), Paul Imay hlave found himself led, by the needs of the nmorneit, to give some little colorilng to his relations with thle apostles; to represent them as morle lharsl', more imperious, tlhan they were in reality. Towards 56 the essential point for limn to prove was that lie hlad received notlling from Jerusalemtn-tat he was in no wise tile mandatory of the Council of 192 TH E APOSTLES. T\welve establislhed in tthis city. His attitude at Jerusalem would lhave been t1he proud and lofty bearing of a mnaster who avoids relations with other masters in order not to have the air of subordinating hilmnself to tlhem, and not the humble and repentant mien of a sinner ashlamed of the past, as the author of the Acts represents. We cannot believe that from the year 44 Paul was alimalllted by this jealous: care to preserve hlis own oricginality, wlhicl lie slhowed at a later day. The rarity of hlis interviews with the apostles, and the brevity of hlis sojourn at Jerusalem, arose probably from his embarrassment in the presetnce of people of quite another nJature tlian his own, and full of prej udices against him, rather than from a refilled polity, which would hlave revealed to hliln fifteenl years in advance tlhe disadvantages there might be in his fiequenting their society. In reality, that which must have erected a sort of wall between tlle apostles and Paul, was chlliefly tlle differeelce of their clharacter and of their education. The apostles were all Galileans; they had not been at the great Jewisll schIools; they had seen Jesus; they remelnbered his words; they wvere good and pious folk, at times a little solemn and simnple-learted. Paul was a man of action, full of fire, onlly moderately mystical, enrolled, as by a superior force, in a sect whllich was not that of his first adoption. Revolt, protestation, were his hlabitual sentiments.42 His Jewishl edu. cation was inuchl superior to that of all his,new )bretlhren. But not havilg heard Jesus, not having been appointed by him, he llad, according to Clhristian ideas, a great inferiority. Now Paul was not made to accept any TH-E APOSTLES. 193 secondary place. His haughty individuality demnanded a position for himself. It is probably towards this tinle that there sprang up in his mind the proud idea that after all he had nothing to envy those who had known Jesus and had been chosen by him, since he also had seen Jesus and had received fiom Jesus a direct revelation and the commlission of Iis apostleship. Even those who hlad been honored by the personal appearance to them of t'he risen Chrlrist, had no more than lie had. Altlloughl the last, h]is vision had been no less remarkable. It had taken place under circumstances which gave it a p)eciliarl n mark of importance and of,distinction.43 Signal error.! The ecllo of the voice of Jesus was found in the discouurses of the humblest of His disciples. With all his Jewislh science, Paul could not make up for the immeinse disadvantage under which he was placed by his tardy initiation. The Christ whom he had seen onl the road to Damascus was not, whatever lie might say, the Clhrist of Galilee; it was the Christ of his inmagination, of his own senses. Although he may ihve been most attentive to gather the words of thle Master,44 it is clear that he was only a disciple at secondh1fand. If Paul had met Jesus durling his life, it may be (lou)bltfuil whether he would have attachled himself to Itiln. Iis doctrile will be his own, not that of Jes-us; tihe revelations of which lie is so proud are the firuit of his own brain. Thlese ideas, which he dared not as yet communicate, rendered his stay at Jerusalem very disagreeable. At the end of a fortnight. he took leave of Peter and went away. I-le had seen so few people that he ventured to say that no one in the clhurces of Judea knew him by 9 1 94 THIE APOSTLES. sight, or knew augllt of himn, save by hearsay.45 At a subsequent period lie attributed this sudden departu ire to a revelation. I-Ie related that being one day in the temple prayinlg, he was in an extasy, and saw Jesus in person, and received fromn Huim the order to quit Jerusalem immnediately, "because they were not inclined to receive his testimony." In exchange for these hard hearts, Jesus had promnised hin the apostolate of distant nations, and an auditory nlore docile to his voice.4" Tbose who would fain hide the traces of the many ruptures caused by the coming of this insubordinate disciple ijlto tile Clhulrch, pretended tliat PaLul passed quite a long timne at, Jernsalemn, livingo with the bretlhren onl a footinig of thle most conmplete liberty; but that, lhaving undertakllen to preach to the Hellenist Jews, he was ver'y nearly killed by them, so that the brethren had to watcll over hlim and protect hlin, and finally to(ok liin to Cesarea.47 It is proltable, in fact, tllat fiom Jertsalem lie did repair to Cesarea. Butt lie stayed there only a short tilme, anid thlen set out to traverse Syria, and afterwards Cilicia.48 I-e was, no doubt, already preachling, but on his own accounlt, and without any understanding with anybody. Tarsus, his native place, was ]his hlabitual sojourn during this period of his apostolical life, whlich we may reckon as having lasted about two yeals.49 It is possible tlmat the churches of Cilicia owed their origin to him.50 Still, the life of Paul was not at this epochl that which we see it to have been subsequently. lie did not assume the title of an apostle, which. was then strictly reserved to the Twelve.5' It was only firom thle time of his association witli Barnabas (year 45) that lie THE APOSTLES. L95 entered upon that career of sacred peregrinations and preachings which made of him the type of the travelling missionary. CH A PTER XII. ESTABLISIAIE1NT OF TH-IE CaIURCI OF ANTI(OCH THIE 1new flithl was propag"ated froin one neighll)orhllod to anotller witlh astoiilisillilg rl)idclity. Tile meMr bers of the Cliturcth of Jer.lsalen wlto) lhad been lisiersed illimedi ately after the death Of Stephen, pushing, thleir colnqlests alonr( tile coast of Pihenlicia, reaciled Cyprns and A ntioch. They were as yet guided by an unlvar1ying prillciple of' refusing to preach the gospel to thle Jews.1 Antioch, " the metropolis of tile East," the third city of the world,2 was the centre of this Christendomn of northern Syria. It was a city with a population of more than 500,000 souls, almost as large as Paris before its recent extensions,3 and the residence of tile Imperial Legate of Syria. Suddenly advanced to a high degree of splendor by thle Seleucidae, it lad onl'y to profit by the iRoman occupation of it. In general, tile Seleuycid,'e had surpassed the Ronmains in the taste for theatrical decorations as applied to great cities. Temples, aqueducts, baths, basilicas, nothing was wanting at Antioch in what constituted a grand Syrian city of that period. The streets flanked by colonnades, witlh thleir crossroads decorated with statues, had there more of symmletry and regularity than anywhere else.4 A Corso, ornamented with four ranges of columns, forming two covered galleries with a wide avenue in the midst, crossed the city from one TI-E APOSTLES. (9 side to the other,5 the length of wlic was tllll't-six stadia (more than a leagnu-e).6 But Antioch not only possessed immense edifices of public utitlity,7 slle hl:;d that also which few of the Syr3ian cities possessed —tihe noblest specimens of Grecian art, wvon.derfully beautiful statues,8 classical works of a delicacy of dettil whllih. the age was no longer capable of imitatinlg. Altiocll, fiomn its foun(lation, had been altogether a Grecian. city. Tile Macedonians of Antigone and Seleucus had imported into that country of the lower Orrntes their most lively recollectiols, their worshlip, and the natnes:of their country.9 The Grecianll ythllogy was there adopted as it were in a second home; they pretended to exhibit in the country a crowd of "l Illy places" form,ning part of tlhis mythology. The city was full of the worslip of Apollo and of the nyimphs. Daphne, an enclhanting pltace two short hlours distanlt froln the city, reminded the conquerors of the pleasantest fictions. It was a sort of plagiarism, a coulnterfeit of thie mn yths of the motler cou1ittry, allal,,gous to these adventurous transportations whicli tile l)rilnitive tribes carried witl tllem in their travels; their mytliical geography, their Berecejnttha, their Arnandla, tlleir Ida, and their Olymnpns. These Greek fables constituted for them a very old religion, and one scarlcely more serious than the metamlorphoses of Ovid. Thle ancient religions of the coulltry, particularly that of MouIt Cassius,10 contributed sonme little gravity to it. But Syrian levity, Babylonian charlatanisml, and all tlhe impostures of Asia, mingled at tlhis limnit of the two worlds, had made Antioch tile capital of lies aInd the sink of every description. of infamlly. 198 THE APOSTLES. B3esides the Greek population, indeed, wliich ill lno part of the East (with the exception of Alexandrita) was as numerous as here, Antioch numbered amnongst its popullation a considerable numbler of iative Syrianus, speaking Syriac.1 These natives comlposed a low class, inhabiting the suburbs of the great city and the populous villages which formed a vast suburbl2 all around it, Charandama, Ghisira, Gaudigura, and Apate (chiefly Syrian names)." Marriages between the Syrians and the Greeks were commlnon. Seleucus h-aving formerly rmade naturalization a leoal obligation bindinrg on every stranlger establishing himself in thle city, Antioch, at the end of three centurlies and a half of its existence, became one of the places in the world where race was inost interm-ingled with race. The degradation of the people there was terrible. The peculiarity of these focuses of moral putrefaction is, to reduce all ttle races of mankind to tile same level. Thle degradation of certain Levantine cities, dominated Iby tile spirit of intrigue, delivered up enti rely to low cunlllning, can scarce give us a conception of the degree of colruptlion reached by the human race at Antioclh. It was an inconceivable medley of' merry-alldrews, quacks, buffoons,14 magicians, lniracle-mrongers, sorcerers, priests, impostors; a city of races, gamnes, dances, processions. f6tes, debauneles, of unbridled luxury, of all the fiollies of the East, of the mnost unhealthy superstitions, and of tile farnaticism of the orgy.l6 By turns servile and unlgratefll, cowardly and insolent, the people of Antiocli were the perfect model of those crowds devoted to Caesarisln, without country, without nationality, with THE APOSTLES. 199 out family honor, without a name to keep. The great Corso which traversed the city wras like a theatre, where rolled, day after day, the waves of a trifling, light-headed, changeable, insurrection-lovilng7 popl - lace-a populace so-iretihnes spi-ituel,'8 occupied withll songs, parodies, squils, impertinence of all sorts.l9 The city was very literary,20 but literary only in the literature of rhetoricians. Thle sights were strange; thlecre were some gaines in which bands of naked yotull, girls took part in all the exercises, with a mere fillet around them;12 at thle celebrated festival of N/Tiourna, troulpes of courtezans swarmned in public in basils2' filled with liinpid water.24 Tlhis f&te was like an intoxication, like a dream of Sarcdanapalns, wllere all thle pleaslures, all the debaulcheries, not excluding sonice of a more delicate kind, were unrolled pell-mrell. Tllis river of dirt, wllichl, making its exit hy tile miOllth of tlie Oroiotes, was about to invade Romne,25 had here its principal sources. Two hundred decurions were emnployed in regnlating tlhe reliogious ceremonies and celebrations.26 Tile nmunicipality possessed great purblic domnains, tile rents of whliell the decemnvirs divided )etween the poor citizens.27 Like all cities of pleatslure, Antioch had a lowest section of the people, liviung on the public or on sordid gains. The beauty of works of art andtllhe infinite cllarm of nature28 prevented tlhis noral degradation firomn degenerating enltir ely into.Ugliness and vulga-rity. The site of Antioc!h is one o'e t.lie nlost picturesque in thle world. Tile city occupied ttle interval between tile 0onites and( thle slopes of Mount Silpius, one otf thle sp)rIs of M)tllnt.tsiLus. Nothing could equal the abundance and beauty of the 200 THE APOSTLES. waters.29 The fortified space, cliinbing up perpelndlicu - lar rocks, by a real nmaster-work of military architecture,30 inclosed the summit of the mountains, and formed with the rocks at a tremlendous height an indented crown of m-arvellous effect. This disposition of their ramparts, uniting the advantage of the ancienit acropoles with those of the great walled cities, was in general preferred by the Generals of Alexander, as one sees in the Pierian Seleucia, in Ephesus, in Smyrna, in Thessalonica. The result was various astonishing perspectives. Antioch had within its walls mountains seven hundred feet in height, perpendicular rocks. torrents, precipices, deep ravines, cascades, inaccessible caves; in the midst of all these, delicious gardens.3' A thick wood of myrtles, of flowering box, of laurels, of planlts always green-and of tile nmost tender green -roclks carpeted with pinks, with hyaci:lth, and cycl:aMners, give to these wild heights the aspect of gatlde3ii hung in the air. The variety of the flowers, tlhe frieshness of the tulf, composed of an. incredible nuilmber of Ininnte grasses, the beauty of the plane trees wltich border the Orontes, inspire the gaiety, the tinge of sweet scent with which the beautiful getnius of C1ltrysostoin, Libanus, and Julian is, as it were, iltoxicated. On the right bank of thle river stretches a vast plain bordered on one side by the Ainanus, and thle oddly truncated mountains of Pieria; on the other side by tle plateaus of Chyrrestica,a2 behind which is hlicldden tihe dalng-,rous neighlbrllood of tlhe Arab and the desert. The valley of the Orontes, which opens to the west, brings this interior basin into coinmlunication with the sea, or rather with the vast world THIE APOS I'LIES. 231 in the b sJol of wlhich tlhe Medi-terranean hllas constitlatcd froml all time a sort of neutral higrhway and federal bolId. Amoncgst the different colonies wllich the liberal ordinances of the Seleucidm had attractecl to the capital of Syria, that of the Jews was one of the most numerous; it dated from the timle of Seleucus Nicator, and was governed by the same laws as the Greeks.34 Althouglh the Jews lhad an ethnarch of their own, their relations with the pagalns were very frequent. Here, as at Alexandria, these relations often degenerated into quarrels and aggressio1s.35 On the other hand, they afforded a field for ian active relilgious pr(opagandism. The polytheism of the officials becomling, more and more insufficient to meet tlhe wants of serious persons, the Grecian and Jewish philos (,spaies attracted( all tlhose wlholn t!e vaiin pomps of' pafganism could not satisfy. The lnumber of proselytes was considerable. Fro)m the first days of Cllristianity, Antioch had filrlished to the Church of Jerutsalem oiie of its most illfluential Ineinbers, viz. Nicolas, one of the deacons.3 There existed there promising germns, which only waited for a ray of grace to burst forth irto bhl)oom and bear the most excellent fruits wllich had hitherto been produce d. The church of Antioch owed its foulndation to some origilnal believers from CNyprus and Cyrene, who had. already been zea;louls in preachill.37 Up to this ti!ne they had only addressed themselves to the Jews. But il a city whlere pure Jews —Jews who were proselytes, "people fearing God" —or hal'f-Jews, half-pagans and pure palgans, lived together,39 confined p)rachlligs, restricted to a group of houses, became impossible. That feeling of 9* 202 THE APOSTLE3. religiols aristocracy on whicli the Jews of Jerusaleml so mlucll prided thelnselves, htad no existence in tlhese lurge cities, where civilization was altogetller of the I)rof;lne sort, where the atnmosphere was more exp;ltlided, and where prejudices were less firmly rooted. Thle (Cypriot and Cyrenian missionaries were then constrained to depart from their rule. They preached to the Jews and to the Greeks indlifferently. The reciprocal dispositions of the Jewish and of the pagan population appeared at this time to have been very unsa~tisfilctory.40 But circumrnst of another kind prol)ably subserved the new ideas. The earthqulake, which h;id done serious dailnagc to the city on 28d March, of the year 37, still occafped their minds. The wlole'city was talking about an inmpostor named Debborius, who pretended to prevent thle recurrence of such accidents by ridiculous talismans.4 This sufficed to direct preoccuplied mrinds towards supernatural matter s. Itowever that rilay halve beenl, great was the success of the Christilan preaching. A young, innovatingr, and ardelnt Church, full of the flture, because it was col nl)sed of the most d]iverse elertl ts, wis qui(ckly founleded. All the gifts of' the IIoly Spirit were there poulred out, and it was thlen easy to pc'rceive that this new Church, emancipated frorn the strict AIosaism which traced arn irrefragable circle aroundl Jerusalem, would become the second cradle of Christianity. Assuredlyr, Jerusalem will remain for ever thle elaplital of the Chris tian world; nevertheless, the point of departure of tile church of the Gentiles, the prirmal focus of Christian missions, was, in trutl-, Antioch. It is there, for the first tinme, that a Christian church wias established, divorced TITE AI'USTLES. 203 from the bonIds of Judtism; it is there that tlle great propaganda of the Apostolic aoge was established; it was there that St. Paul assumned a (definite character. Antioch marks thel-l secon halting-place of the progress of Christiality, and in respect of Chl-ristian nobility, tneitlher Rome, nor Alexandria, nor Co>nstantinople can be at all compared with it. Thle topography of ancient Antioch is so effaced tlhat we sllould searcll in vain over its site, nearly destitute as it is of anriy vestiges of thle antique, for tile point to wllicl to attacll such granlld recollectiois. Heree as everywllere, Cllristianity was, doubltless, established in tle poor quarters of the city atid amo)ng tile petty tlradestolk. Tile Iasilica, whlicll is called " tlle old" and " apostolic" to tile fourteentlh century, was situated in tlle street called Sinllon, near tile Palltheon? 43 Bnt no one knows whlere this Pantlleonl was. T-radition and certaill vagule anal,,gi es induced us to searell the primlitive Chlris' ian (luarter alongside tihe galte, which even to-davy is stil'l called Paull's g.t(te, B-1-bolos,44:lid'at the foot of tlhe mIountain,, namined by Prcopisus ct avrin., wliicli overlooks 1lte soutli-west coast tromil tl,e ramparts of Antiocl1.45 It Vwas oe Oft thle quarters of tIe town whlich least abounnded in p)aganl monlnents. Tiere we saw the remnains of ancienlt sanctuaries dedicated to St. Peter, S:. Paul, and St. John. There appeared to have bteen tle qularter wilere Cliristianmity was longest maintainled after tle- Molammlledan conquest. Tlhere too, as it appeared, was the quarter of " tlme saints," in opposition to the general prof-iAiity of Antioch. Thle rock is loneyctombed like a beehive. with grottoes formnerly used by thle Anclorites. Whelln 204 THE APOSTLES. one walks on these steeply cut declivities, where, ab)olut the fourth cenltury, the good Stylites, disciples at onice of India and of Galilee, of Jesus and of Cakya-IMiouni, disdainfully contemplated the voluptuous city fromn the summnit of their pillar or from tlleir flower-adorned cavern,46 it is probable that one is not far from the very spots where Peter and Paul dwelt. The Church of Antioch is the one whose llistory is most authentic and least encumbered with fables. Christian tradition, in a city where Christianity was perpetuated with so much vigor, ought to possess sonie value. The pt'evailing language of the Church of Antioch was the Greek. It is, however, quite probable that the suburbs where Syriac was spoken furnished a numnber of converts to the sect. In consequence, Antioch already contained the germ of two rival and, at a later period, hostile Churches, the one speaking Greek, and now represented by the Syrian Greeks, whether orthodox or Cathlolics; the other, whose actual representatives are the Maronites, having previously spoken Syriac and guarding it still as if it were a sacred tongue. The Maronites, who under their entirely modern Catholicism conceal a high antiquity, are probably the last descendants of those Syrians anterior to Seleucus, of those suburbans or pagyani of Ghisra, Charandama, etc.,7 who firom the first ages became aseparate Church, -were persecuted by the orthodox emperors as heretics, and escaped into the Libanus,4s or, from hatred of the Grecian Church and in consequence of deeper sympathies, allied themselves with the Latins. As to the converted Jews at Antiocli, they were also very numnerous.49 But we must believe that they ac THE APOSTLES. 20) cepted from tile very first a fi'raternal alliance withl tile Gentiles.50 It was then on tile shores of tile Oronltes that the religious fusion of races, dreained of by Jesus, or to speak more fully, by six centuries of prophets, became a reality. CHAPTER XIII. TIlE IDEA OF AN APOSTOLATE TO THE GENTILES.-SAINI BARNABAS. GRErAT was the excitement at Jerusaleml on hearing whlat had passed at Anltioch. Notwithstanding the killdly wishles of a few ot tlle principal Inlembers of tlihe Clin1reli of Jerusalem, Peter iii particllar, the Apostolic Cllegre eoltilluned to be ilifiluenced by mtean and ilwortlhy ideas. 0mO every occasion when they hleard tl!at tile g6(odl news hlad t,eei anno(unced to thle heatlheli, tlhese veteran CI}ristians lnalmitbstedl signs of disap]piltmdmelmt. Thle lnalt wI1() tllis time triumplled over this miserable jealousy, a1l(d who prevented thle narrow exclulsivenless of tlle'' lebrlews "' fro'l rulilling thle ftiturle of ClhristiallitV was Barlltl)as. H[e was tlie most e1ii1g-lteed e1 mnol), 1 of t le Cl'Celh }uchat Jerusalem. Ile was thle chief (f' the libertal and1 progressive party, and \wished tlhe C}lrlcl to l)e open to all. Already lie hlad powerfuilly conti'i b) ted to riemiove tlIe nlistrust with whichl Paul was regarded; and thlis time, also, lie excited a inmrked ifiluence. Sent as a (dletgate of the aposto.. licil body to Anti-cli, he examnimi-d and approved of all tlhat hlad bleen done, and declared that the new Clhurchl lhad oinl to coltinue in tlme course upon whihel it hal entered. Cll velsioIns w(ere effected in hgreat nimibel(Rs. TIme vital aiid creative fb)rce ot' Chr'istianity alppeared to be coticentrated at Antiocli. Barnlabas, TI-IE APOl'LIS. 207 whose zeal always inclined to action, resided there. Antioch tliencefortlt is hiis Church, and it is thlence that lie exercised(l is mlost influential, and implortant mninistry. Cthristianity has always done inIjustice to thiis manC in not placing him in the first rank of Iher founders. Barnllal)as was the patron of all good,alld liberal ideas. Htis itltelligelnt boldness oftenl served to neutralize tlle oblstinacy of the narrow-mlindled JewS \who ftrllmed thle collservative party,f Jerusalem. A llagilific(llt idlea gernlillated. in thlis noble hleart at Antiochl.. Pautll twas at Ta'rsls ill a fo;,rced repose, whlhichl to -ant active man. like lii n, was a perfect torltlre. lHis false )siionll, llis illltghlltilleSS, anil hlis exaro'eraelted pretensiols, hIad neutralized imtSy of hlis otlier and better qualities. IIe was uselessly wearintr Ilis life away; BIarabas knew how to apply to its trine wolrk tlhat force whlich was corrodingi Paul in ]lis unhleailtly and danllgerous solitud.le. For the secolid timle, Barnahbas took the hIand of Paul, al led tlhis savage cliaracter inlto thle society of tllhose 1i'etllhre whomlt lie avocided. Iie wenlt limnself to TarsIs, sllought hiil oullt, ald I)rouglilt hlim to Antiochl.2 lie dlid that wvhlich! thlose obstinate old b)retlirenl of Jerusalem were never ab)le to do. To win over thlis grteat, reticeint, and sisceptible soul; to accommnrodate oneselt' to tle caprices anlld whims of a man1 tfull of fiery excit-eiient, but very person:al; to take a secoldary part u(iider hi, and tfgetftul of oneself, to prepare thle field] of operations for tile mnost favorable display of hlis abilities-all tlhis is certainlly the very climax of' virtue; and tlhis is wtlat Barnabas did for Paul. Most of the glory wlIichl 11as ac1crued to the latter is really due to the modest man 208 T'HE APOSTLIS. who led liim folrward, brougllt Iiis merits to liglt, pre. vented more tllan once his faults fi'ro resultingr deplorably to Iiimnself and his cause, and the illiberal vi\ews of othlers from exciting him to lrevolt; and also prevented his insignificant and unworthy personalities from interferilig with the work of God. Durillg an entire year Barnabas and Paul cooperated actively.3 This was without doubt a most brillianlt and happy year in the life of' Patul. Tlhe prolific originality of these two great men raised the Clhurch of Anitioch to a degree of grandeur to whicll no Clhristian Chlurch had previonJly attailled. Few places il thle world hlad experiencedl mllOre intellectlltll activity tlhan the cal)ital of Syria. Dullring t1he rnanll el)ocl, as in our tine, s)cial andt religionls questions \vere brought to thle surfice principally at tile centres of population. A sort of reactioll againlst tlhe general immorality whl-ich later Imade Antioch tlme special ab( de of stylites and hermits4 was alread!y felt; and the ti tue doctrimle tlins found in tllis city Mlore favoruable Con litions for success titan it hltad yet itnet. An imnpo)rtant circullmstmace ll'oves besides, that it was at Antioch that tile sect fr thle first time, had fill consciousness of its existence; for it was in tllis city that it received a distinct narme. Hitherto its adhmerents had called themselves " believers," "the faithlful," " saillts,'" brothers," or disciples; but the sect hIad no public and official name. It was at Antiochl tllhat the title of Czstianus was as evised. Thie termilation of tle word is Latin, not Greek, which would indicate titat it was selected by the Romnan authority as an appellation of the police6 like hl[,odiatzi, omnpecianzi, THE APOSTLES. 209 Ccasariani.7 In any event it is certain that such a namne wiAts formed by the heathen popitlation. It inliluded a misapprehension, for it ilmplied that 0C/'isttus, a translation of the Hebrew Mascthiah (the Messiah), was a proper name.8 Not a few of those who were unfmiriliar with Jewish or Christian ideas, by this lalne were led to believe that Chr~istus or CO/restus was a sectarian leader yet living.9 The vul:gar pronunciation of the name indeed was Chvrestiani.10 The Jews did not adopt in a regul:.ar manner, at least,1 the nanme given by the Rornans to their schismatic coreligionists. They contillned to call the new converts'Nazarenes " or " NazoIeiles,12 unidoubtedly becausUe they were accustomed to call Jesus Han-nasri or Hatinosri, "thle Nazarene;" and even nnto the 1)resent day tlis namne is still applied to thenl throughout the entire East.3 Tthis was a Inost important moment. Soleinl indeed waS the hour when thle new creatiorn received its nalle, for that name is the- direct symbol of its existence. It is by its name that an individual or a co tinlrunity really becolnes itself as distinct firon otherlis. Thle formation of the word " Christian " also mllarks ti]e precise date of the separation fri'om Judaislli of the Church of' Jesus. For a long tiime to cor1me thle two'religions will be coTfoullded; but t}his confusion will only take place in tlhose countries where tlle spread of Cllhristianity is slow and backward. The sect quickly accepted the appellation whllich was applied to it, and viewed it as a title of hon.or.14 It is really astonishling to reflect that ten years after thle death of Jesus Hiis religiol h1.ad already in the capital of Syria, a name in the Gicrk 210 THE APOSTLES. alnd Latin tongues. Christianity is now comnletely weane(l fiomn its mnother's breast; tlhe true sentimrnelts of Jesus lhave trillmplhed over thle indecision of its first discil>les; the Church of Jeirusaletm is left behind; thle Aranlaic language, in whlichl Jesus spoke, is unknor wa to a portion of His followers; Christianity speaks Greek; and the new sect is finally launched into that great vortex of the Greek and Roman world, wlence it. will never issue. The feverish activity of ideas manifested by this young Church was truly extraordinary. Great spiritual manifestations were fi'(_qaent.l5 All believed themselves to be ilnspired ill diffetrenlt ways. Somne were " pro)phets," others " te.laclers."' Balrnabas, as his namne indicatCs,1 was undoubtedlly among the prolphets. Paul had no special title. Among tthe leaders of tlIe church at Antioch mLay also be melltionled Silneon, surnalncltl riger, Lucius of Cirene, lnd Menahem, wllo had beenl thle Itster-brother of Ilerod Antipas, and vwas natulallly quite ol d.l8 All thlese personag(es were Jews. Amnong the conyverte(l heathen was. perliaps, already tlhat Evlvhde, wl,,, at a certainl period, seerns to have occupied a leading place in the Chulrch of Antioch.'9 Undoubtedly the heathen who heard the first preaching were slightly inferior, and did nlot shine in the. public exercises of usilng unknown tongues, of preaclilng, andl pro,-hecy. In tlle midst of the congenlial s&.ciety of Antioch, PtPul quicklly adalted hiimself to the order oft things. Later, lie inalifested opp,)osition t.) thle use of tongues, and it is )robable that he* never practised it; but he had manly visions and immediate revelations.2l It was apparently at Ailtiocll that occurred that ecstatic trance which lie describes THE APOSTLES. 211 in these terms: "I knew a man ill Chlrist above fouLteC(i. years ago (whether in the body I cannot tell; or whol tlher out of the body, I cannot tell-God knowettl). Such an one was caught up to the third heaveni.2 Andl I knew such a man (whether in the body or out of tlhe body I cannot tell —God knowetlh), how that he sxas caught up into paradise24 and heard unspeakable words which it is not lawful for a man to utter."25 Paul, though in general sober and practical, shared the prevalent ideas of the day in regard to the supernatural. Like so many others, he believed that he possessed the power of workinlg mlir:tcles; 6 it was impossib)le that the gift of the Holy Spirit, which was ackllowledged to be the common right of the Cllurch,27 should be denied to him. But men permeated with so lively a faith cannot content themselves with merely exuberant piety, but pant for action. The idea of great missions, destined to convert the heathen, and beginning in Asia Mlinor, seized hold of the public Inind. Hatd such an idea been formed at Jerusalem, it could not have been realized, because the Church there was without pecuniary resources. An extensive establishment of propagandism requires a solid capital to work -on. Now, the comrnron treasury at Jerusalem was devoted to the support of the poor, and was frequently insufficient for that purpose; and to save these noble mendicants from dying with hunger, it was necessary to obtain help from all quarters.28 Cornmu nism had created at Jerusalem an irremediable poverty al-d a thorough incapacity for great enterprises. The Churchll at Antioch was exempt from such a calamity. The Jews in the profiane cities-had attained to affluence, atnd in some cases had acclmulated vast fortunes.29 ThI 212 THE APOSTLES. faithful were wealthy when they entered the C1 lurlch. Antioch furnished the pecuniary capital for the foundllin of Christianity, and it is easy to imagine tlle total difference in manner and spirit which this ciLrculmstance 1alone wouldc create between the two- churches. Jerusalem remainrl,: 1 tihe city of the poor of God, of the ebionin of tlhose simple Galilean dreamers, intoxiccated, as it were, with the expectation of the kinlgdom of Ieaven.30 Antioch, almost a stranlger to the words of Jesus, wllich it had never heard, was the church of action and of progress. Antioch was the city of Paul; Jerusalem, the seat of the old apostolic college, wrapped up in its dreamy fantasies, and unequal to the new problems which were openirig, but dazzled by its incomplmrable privileges, and rich in its unsurpasse(l recollections. A certain eirc-umstance soon brollghlt all these traits into bold relief. So great was the lack of for ethlought in this half-starved Church (of Jerusalem, that tlhe least accident tlhrew the commnunnity into distress. [Now in a country, destitute of economnic organization, where cormmerce is almnost without development, and whlere the sources of welfare are limited, famines are ilevitable. A terrible one occurred in the reign of Claudius, in tile year 44."3 When its threatening symptolrs appeared, thle veterans at Jerusalem decided to seek succor fl'oin the niemnberts of' the richer chiniches of Syria. An embassy of prophets was sen.t from Jernsalenm to Anti(chl.T2 One of theyui, nalmed Atgabl, wlvl was in ltighl reputation for' his propl)lletic powers, WaS sluddenly inspired, and announced tha-t the famine wlas now at hland. TIhe faithfull were deeply moved at the evils wlicll lmenaced thle inother Church1, to vwhlich THE APOSTLES. 213 they still deemed themselves tribuitary. A collection was made, at whicll every one gave according to his means, and Barnabas was selected to carry the funds obtainled to the brethren in Judea.33 Jerusalem for a long timne relmainied the capital of Christianity. There were centred the oljects peculiar to tile taith, and there only were the apostles.34 But a great forward step had been taken. For several years there had been only one completely organized Church, tlhat of Jerusalelmn-the absolute centre of the ti'ith, the heart froin which all life proceeded and through which it circulated; but it no longer maintained this monopoly. The chnrch at Antioch was now a perfect church. It possessed all tie hiertarclhy of thle gifts of the HIoly GhIost. It was the starting-point of the missions,35 and their head-quarters.36 It was a second capital, or rather a second heart, which lhad its own proper action, exercising its force and influence in every direction. It is easy to foresee that the second capital must soon eclipse the first. The decay of the church at Jerusalem w-as, indeed, rapid. It is natural that institutions founded on communism should enjoy at the beginning a period of brilliancy, for communism involves high mental exaltation; and it is equally natural that such institutions should very quickly degenerate, because comImu1nism is contrary to the instincts of human nature. Durling a -mnoment of great religious excitement, a man readily believes that he can entirely sacrifice his selfish individuality and his peculiar interests; but egotism hlas its revenge, in proving that absolute disinterestedness engenders evils more serious than by the suppression of individual rights in property it had hoped to avoid. CHAPTERl XIV. PERSECUTION OF HEROD AGRIPPA TIlE FIRST. B.RNABAS fobnd tile Church of Jerusalein in great troluble. The year 44 was perilotis to it. Besides the fatiniie, thle fires of persecution whlichl hlad been Sinothered since tile deathi of Stephen were rekindled. Herod Agrilppa, grandson of Herod tile Great, hlad succeeded, since the year 41, in reconstituting the kingdoni of his g,-adllfatelhr.. Thanks to tle favor of Caligula, lhe hiad reunited under 1his domllination Batania, Traclhonites, a part of the IIauran, Cibilene, Galilee, and tlle Persea.1 The ignoble part which lie plyted in tile tragicomedy wilich raised Claunlius to tile empire,2 conmpleted hlis fortune. This vile Oriental, in return for the lessons of basen'ess and perfidy he had given to Romone, obtained for himnself Saunaria and Jndea, aild for his lbrother Herod the kingdom of Cllalcis.3 HIe l1ad left at RIome the worst niemories, and tile cruelties of Caligula were attributed in part to his counsels.4 The army and tile pagan cities of Sebaste and Cesaren, wlhich he sacrificed to Jerusalem, were averse to binIi.6 But the Jews found him to be generous, munificent, and synmpathetic. He sought to renlder himself pofliar with them, and affected a polity quite different from that of I-erod thle Great. The latter was nmuch more regardftul of the Greek and 1Roman world tlhan of the Jewisll. I1erod Agrippa, on the contrary, loved Jerusalem, THE APOSTLES. 215 riglronusly observed tile Jewisli religion,.affected seripuLnlousne.s, and never let a day pass wvithoult atteldilgr to his devotions.6 IIe w\ent so fr' as to receive wi.l i mtildlness tile advice of thle rigorists, and took thle tronlule to j usitif himself from theilr reproaclhes.7 Ie returlned to thie lierosolyniites t1he tribute wlhich each 1house owed tc himi8 Tile ortlodox, ill a word, had in him a kinlg according to thleir own heart. It was inevitable that a prince of this character shoilld persecute the Chlristiains. Sinlcere or not, Ierod Aolripl)pa was, in thle most tllorloglh selnse of the word, a Jewisl Sovereign.9 The house of' Herod, as it became weaker, took to devotion. It was no longer thlatbroad profane idea of thle foblder of the dynasty, seekinr, to make the most diverse relig'ions live together undler thle cornriiol empire otf civilization. Wlhen erod Agriplpa, for thle first time after lie lhad become king, set foot iin Alexand.ria, it was as a King of thle Jews that lie was received; it was this title which irritated the population and gave rise to enldless bluff;ooneries.lO Now whlat coutld a Kinro of tfie Jews ble, if not tlhe guardian of the laws anld tlhe traditions, a sovereignr theocrat and persecutor? Froan the time of flerodd t-he Great, under whom fanaticismn was entirely relpressed, until the breaking out of the war whiclh led to the rlmlin of Jerusalem, there was thus a constantly agllenlting progress of religions ardor. The death of Caligula (24th Jan., 41) had produced a reaction fiavorable to the Jews. Claudius was generally benevolent towards theni, as a result of the favorable ear he lent to HIerod Agrippa and Ilerod King of CIhalcis. Not only did he decide in favor of the Jews of Alexandria in their quarrels with the inlhiabi 216 TIE APOSTLES. tanits and allow them tile riglt of clhoosing an ethlnarch. but he publislhed, it is said, an edict by which he granted to the Jews thronghouat the whole empire that which lie llad granted to those of Alexandria; tlhat is to say, the fieedom to live according to their own laws, on the sole condition of not outraging other worships. Some atternpts at vexations analogous to those whiclh were inflicted under Caligul a were repressed.'2 Jerulsalemr was greatly enlarged; the quarter of Bezetha was added to the city.'3 Tlie Romian authority scarcely mlade itself felt, al:though Vibius Marasus, a prudent man, of wide public experience, and of a very cultivated mind,14 wlho had succeeded Publius Petronius in tlle fulnction of imperial legate of Syria, drew the attention of the authorities at Romen fr'om time to time to the danger of these semri-independent Eas tern.Kingdoms.15 Thle species of feudality whllic, since the death of Tiberius, tended to establish itself in Syria and the neiglhborinlg co(untries,'6 was in fact an inlte-rruption, in tlle imnperial-polity, and had almrost unifornly iljlurious results. Thle " Kings " coining to IRore were personages, and -exercised thlere a detestable influence. Thle corruption.and abasement of the people, especially under Caligula, proceeded iti great part friom tlle spectacl-e furnislled'by these wretches, who were seenl successively dragging their purple at the tlleatre, at the palace of the Coesar, and in the prisons.'7 So far as concerns tile. Jews, we have seel that autonomy meant intolerance. The Sovereign Pontificate quitted fir a moment the family of Hanan, only to enter that of Boetlhls, no less haughty and cruel. A Sovelreign anxious to please, the Jews could not fatil to grant them THE APOSTLES. 217 what they loved best; that is to say, severities against everytling( wlhich diverged from rigorous orthodoxy.1' Herod Agrilppa, in fact, became towards the end of his reign a violent persecutor.20 Some time before Easter of the year 44, lie cut off the head of one of the p)rincipal members of the apostolical college, James son of Zebedee, brother of Jolhn. The matter was not presented as a religious one; thlere was no inquisitorial process beftre the Sanlledrimn; tlhe sentence, as in the case of Jolhn tthe Baptist,2' was pronounced by virtue of the arbitrary power of the sovereign. Encouraged by tile good effect which this execution produced upon the Jews,22 HIerod Aglrippa was not willing to stop upon so easy a road to popularity. It was thle first days of the feast of Passover, ordinarily marked by a redoubled fanaticism. Agrippa ordered the imlprisonment of Peter in the tower of Antonia, and soulght to hlave him judged and put to death with great poimp before ttie mass of people t hen assemlbled. A circumstance witll wllichl we are unacquainted, anld whlicl was regarded as miraculous, opened Peter9s prisonl. Onle evenitig, as many of the disciples were a.ssemblled in tile house of lMary, mother of JohnAMark, where Peter habitually dwelt, there was suddeily hleard a knock at the door. The servant, named Rlhoda, went to listen. She recognised Peter's voice. Transported with joy, instead of opening the door she ran back to announce that Peter was thlere.. Tlhey regarled her as mad. She swore she spoke the truth. "'It is this angel," said somne of them. The knockincg was heard repeatedly; it was indeed himnself. Their deligllt was infinite. Peter ilnmediately announced 10 218 TTIE APOSTLES. his deliverance to Janmes, brother of tl.e L-rd, and to the other disciples. It was believed that the angel of God lhad entered into the prison of thle apostle and made the chains fall fiom his hands and thle bolts fly open. Peter related, in fact, all tlhat had passed while he was in a sort of ecstasy; that after llhavilg passed the first and second guard, and overleaped tilhe iron g-te which! led into the city, tile angel accon)panied hlin still the distance of a street, then quitted hiln; that then he carme'o himlnself again and recognised the hand of God, who had sent a celestial lnessenger to deliver hlimln2 Aglippa survived these violences but a short time.24 In the course of thle year 44, lie went to Cesarea to celebrate galnes in honor of Clauldius. The concourse of( peopl3e was extraordinary; ald many foinom Tyre and Sidon, who llad difficulties with li iln, came thitlher to ask pardoil. These festivals were very displeasing to the Jews, 1)oth because they took place in tile iinpure city of Cesarea, and because they were hleld in the tlheatre. Already, on one occasion, the king having quitted Jerusalem mulnder similar cilcumrstances, a certain Ral)bi Simneon had proposed to declare hlim an alien to Jlldaism, and to exclude him froim the temple. HIerod Agrippa had carried his condescension so far as to place the Rabbi beside him in the theatre, in order to prove to him that notling passed there contrary to the law,25 and thinking he had thus satisfied tleo most austere, he allowed himself to indulge his taste folr profane pomps. Tile second day of the festival lie entered the theatre very early in tile morlling, clothed in a tunic of silver fabric, Nith a marvellous TIHE APOSTLES. 219 brilliancy. Tile effect of tlis tuntic, glittering in thle rays of tile risitg suI'n, was extraordinary. The Phcnicilans who sunrrounded the king lavished uponi him adulations borrowed fromn paganism. "It is a god," they cried, "1 and not a man." The king did not testiIy lis indignation, and did not blamne this expression. lie died five days afterwards; and Jews and Christians b)elieved that he was struck dead for not having repelled with horror a bllasplelnonls flattery. Christian tradition represents that lhe died of a veirnicular malady,s61 the punllislhrent reserved for the eneinies of God. The symptoms related by Josepllls would lead rather to the belief that he was poisoned; and what is said ill the Acts of thle equivocal conduct of the Phcenicians, alld of the care thley took to gain over Blastns, valet of the king, would strengtlhel tlis hypothesis. The death of HIerod Agrippa I. led to the end of all indlependence foir Jerusalem. Tlhe adininistration by Priocurators was resumed, and thlis r6g'inme lasted until the great revolt. This was fortunate for Christianity; for it is very remarkable that this religion, wlhich inwas destined to sustain subsequently so terrible a strlgogle against the Romian elnpire, grew up in the shadow of tthe Roman principality, under its protection. It was Rome, as we have already several tiles remarked, wlhich hindered Judaism from giving itself up fully to its intolerant instincts, and stifling the free instincts which were stirred within its bosom. Every diminution of Jewish authority was a benefit for the nascent sect. Cuspius Fadus, the first of this new series of Procurators, was another Pilate, fulll of firmless, or at least of good-will. But Claudius con 220 TiHE APOSTLES. tinned to s]low himself favorable to Jewish pretensionls chiefly at thle illstigation of the young HIerod Agrippa, son of' Terod Agrippa I., whom he kept near to his person, and w'llhol he greatly loved." After the shlort administration of Cuspius Fadus, we fird tlhe functions of Procurator confided to a Jew, to that Tiberiins Alexander, nephew of Phlilo, and son of the ctlabtrgque of the Alexandrian Jews who attailled to nighl functions and played a great part in thle political affairs of the century. It is true that thle Jews did not like h}irn; and regarded him, and witll reason, as an apostate.2s To cut shlort these incessantly renewed disputes, recourse was had to anr expedient in conforlmity with sound principles. A sort of separation was made l)etween the spiritual and temporal. The political power remained with the procnrators; but Herlod, king of Clialcis, brother of Agrippa I., was named prefect of the temple, guardian of the pontifical habits, treasurer of the sacred fiund, and invested witll the riglht of noninating the higll-priests.29 At is death (year 48), lierod Agrippa II., son of Hterod Agrippa I., succeeded his ujncle in his offices, which lie retained until the great war. Clauldius, in all this, manifested the greatest kiiidness. Thle high IRoman flanctionaries in Syria, although not so strongly disposed as the emperor to concessions, acted with great moderation. The procurator, Ventidius Cutnanus, carried condescension so far as to have a soldier beheaded in the midst of thle Jews, drawn up in line, for having torn a copy: of the Penltateuch.30 It was all useless, however; Josephuls, withl good reason, dates fronm the adininistra. TIHE APOSTLES. 221 tion of Cnmanus the disorders which ended onlly wiill the destruction of Jerlusalem.. Christianity played no plart in these trouibles.3 Blt these troubles, like Cllristianity itself, were one of thle syinptoins of the extraordinary fever which devoured the Jewish peol'le, and tlle Divine travail whllicl was accomplislhing in its midst. Never had tihe Jewish faith made such progress.32 Tile temple of Jerusalem was one of the sanctuaries of the world, tile repuitation of which was mlost widely extended, and wllere the offoringls were most liberal.33 Judlaism hadl become tlle dotlinanllt religion of various portiols of Syrlia. Tihe Aslllonean princes lhad violently co)nverted entire populatills to it ([dulneans, It treaus, etc.).34 Tiere were Illallny examples of cirlcillcisionl laviiig beenl ilnposed by force;35 the ardor ftir makinlg proselytes was very gcreat?.3 Thle lhose of IHerod itself powerfully served the Jewislh propaganda. In order to marr'y princesses of this faiily, whose wealth was imnunense, the pritices of the little dynasties of Emnese, of I'onttus, and of Cilicia, vassals of the IROtllmanl, becatne JewsS.37 Arabia and Ethiopia counted also a grleatt numlber of coll verts. Thle royal.falilies of Mesene and of Adiabene, tributaries of the Partlliais, were gained over, especially by thleir womnen.38 It was generally granlted that lhappinless was ftiund ill thle knLowledge and practice of the la139 Even wlheit ci'rcualcision, wvas not practised, religion was mllore or less Ill,)dified in the Jewishl directionr; a sort of lonothleisin becamte tlhe general spirit of religion in Syria. At Damascels, a city which wvas in nowise of Israelitish origin, nearly all the womlen hlad adopted the Jewish 222 THE APOSTLES. religion.?0 Behind tile Pharisaical Judaisml tflerc was thus formed a sort of f'ree Judaism, of inferior quality not knowing all the secrets of the sect;41 blringing only its good-will and its good heart, but having a greater future. The situation was, in all respects, that of the Catholicism of our days, in which we see, on one llandl, narrow and proud theologians, who alone would gain no more souls for Catholicistn than tle Pharisees gainied for Judaism; on the other, pious laymen, very often heretics without knowing it, but full of a touncinog zeal, rich in good works aind in poetical sentilrents, altogether occupied in dissiunlatincg or repairing by complaisant explanations thle tnults of thleir doctors. One of the most extraordinary examples of this tendency of religious souls towards Judaism was that given by the royal family of Adiabene, upon the Tiger.2 This house, of Persian origin and manners,43 already partly initiated into Greek culture, 414 )ec:irme entirely Jewish, and even premininently devout; for, as we have already said, these proselytes were often Inore pious than the Jews by birth. Izate, chief' f the family, embraced Judaism through the preacllitlg of a Jewish merchlant named Ananias, who, enteringr tile seraglio of Abermerig, king of MIesene, for the purposes of his petty traffic, had converted all the wonien, and constituted himself their spiritual preceptor. The women brou ght Izate into communication witlh him. Towardls the same time tL(len, his mother, received inlstruction in the true religivon from another Jew. Izate, with the zeal of a new convert, wished to be circumcised. But lhis mother a1nd Allmnias vehemently dissuaded hlim froml it. Analnias proved to him that the observation of God's commiand THE APOSTLES. 223 ments was of more ilnportance than circunmcisionl, andl that he might be a very good Jew without this eeMrln,,)0y Such a tolerance was the privilege of a sm-all number of enlightened minds. Some time after, a Jew of Galilco, named Eleazar, finding the king occupied ini readting thle Pentateuch, showed him by texts that he could not observe the law without being circumcised. Izate W;lS convinced, and submitted intmmediately to the operatio)nl.45 The conversion of Izate was followed by that of hlis brother, MiTonobaze, and of all the family. Towards the year 44, HIelen came and established herself at Jerusalem, lwhere she had built for the royal house of Adiabene a pa;lace and fatmily mausoleum, which still exist.4' She rendered herself dear to the Jews by her affability lnd her alrns. It was very edifying, to see her, like a pious Jcwess, frequenting the temple, colsulting the doetors, ren;ding the law, teaching it to her soils. Durilg, thle ltague of the year 44, this holy personage was tlhe provi(dence of the city. She had a large quarntity of wheat bought in Egypt, and of dried figs in Cyprus. Izate, on his palrt, sealt considieracblie sums to) be distributed amongr the poor. rilhe wealth of Adiabcne was in part expended at Jerusalern. The sons of Izate came thither to learnt the custotms and the language of the Jews. All this family was thus tlhe resource of this population of lbggars. It acql1i red thlere a sort of citizenship; several of its members were fiound there at the tille, of the siege of Titus;47 others figire in the Telmniudic writings, presente(l as models of piety andl (lvotedll ss.48 It is thus that the royal ftlnily of Ad(iabene belongs to thl history of Christianity. Without being Clhristian, ill fact, as certain traditions have represenlted,4 this 224 THE APOSTLES. family represented under various aspects the first flrluits of the Gentiles. In embracing Judaism, it obeyed a sentiment which was destined to bring, over the entire pagan world to Christianity. The true Israelites accordillg to God, were much rather these foreigners animated by so profoundly sincere a religious sentiment than the arrogant and spiteful Pharisee, for whom religion was but a pretext for hatred and disdain. These good proselytes, although they were truly saints, were in nowise fallnatics. They admitted that true religion might be practised under the empire of the most widely differing civil codes. They completely separated religion from politics. The distinction between the seditious sectaries, who must presently defend Jerusalem with rage, and the devoutly pious who, at the first rumor of war, were going to flee to the mountains,5~ made itself more and more manifest. We may see at least that tlhe qntestion as to proselytes was propounded in a very similar manlier at once ill Judaism and in Christianity. On both hands alike tihe void was felt for enlarging the door of entrance. For those who were placed at tlhis point of view, circunmcision was a useless or noxious custoin; the Mosaic observances were simply a mask of a race having no value but for the sons of Abralhaln. Before becomning the universal religion, Judaisnl was obliged to reduce itself to a sort of deisin, imposing only the duties of natural religion. That was a sublimne mission to fulfil, and to it a )portion of Judaism, in the first half' of the first century, lent itself in a very intelligenlt anlller. On one side, Judaism was one of tlhose innllumlerable national worsllips5' of which the world is ftll, and the TEIE APrOSTLES. 223 sanctity of wliicll sprinigs so!ely froi,:l tlle fatct that tle ancestors Ilad adtored in the satne way; on anotller sidle, Judaismn was the absolute religion, nmade for all, destined to be adopted by all. Tlhe terrible flood of fanaticism whicll spread over Jnudea, alld which led toa the war of extermination, cut short this future. It was Chlristianity wlich took upon its owIn account the task whichl tle synagogue lhad been unable to accomplisll. Layilng aside ritual questions, Christianity con tinued tle monotheistic propaganda of Judaism. That whicli had caused tile success of Judaismn with the women of D lamascus in tlle seraglio of Abetlvelig, with Itelen, with so many pions proselytes, became the force of Clhristianity tllronglhout an entire world. In this sense the glory of Christianity is truly conlfonded withl that of Jirdalisln. A generation of fitnatics deprived this h]itterl of' its recoml}pense, anid hindered its gathering the harvest it hlad prepared. 10* CHAPTER XV. lOVFEMENTS PARALLEL TO AND IMITA'l'TIVE OF CHRIS rI lNITYSIMON OF GITTO. WE ]lhave now arrived at a perioed when Christianity mnay be said to lhave becolne establislhed. In the hllstory of religions it is only thle earliest years during wlich their existence is precarious. It a creed can triulphantly pass through tlhe severe ordeals wvlich await every new systemt, its future is assured. With sounder judgment talllln other cotelllporary sects, such} as thle Esseees, tlhe Baptists, and the followers of Judas tlhe Gaulonite, who clung to and perislhed withl tile Jewish institutions, th}e foullders of Christiallity displayed rare prevision ill gitlg forth at an early 1period to dissellinate and -oot tlleir )ew,op)illionls over tlhe broad expanse of' the (Geltile world; Thie mIlenareless of' the alluisiols to Chllristiatlity wvllihl arle foulnd in J(,osellhis, iil tlhe Tlllllud, and in the Greek and Latin wriiers, need niot surprise us. Josephus is transmlitte(d to us b)y Cthristiani copyists, wh1o have ornitted everythling unco tmplitmietntary to their fidtlh. It is possible that hle wr(otte Ilmore at length concerningi Jesus wid thle Christitans tl8han is preserved in the edition wllich ]has been lhanl(edtll (t()w to us. Thi TaClhuid in like imanler, durimg tlhe Middle Age, amd after its first lttlmlicaltioli, uiderwenlt mulch abridgmietel and alteration.' T}his resulted fi'lron the severe criticisms of tlme text by Chlriitiaui writers, a;l d fronllt lh burning TIHE A POST',1S. 227 of a. nlumber of unluck.y Jews who were found in pts sessi]on of a work containin( r wlhatt welre considetred blasphemous passacgs. As to thle Greek and Latil writers, it is niot surprising that tlhey paid little attentio,' t(o a movement whlichl tlhey could not comprehlend, anitd whlich was goilng on within a narrow space foreignll tc tlemn. Christiantity was lost to tlheir vision upon. thle dark backglound of Jlldaismn. It was only a fiamily qlar"rel amongst the subjects of a degraded nation; wh!y trouble themselves about it? Tlhe two or three passages in which Tacitus and Suetonins mention the Christia.ns show that tlhe new sect, even if' generally beyond the visual circle of full publllicity, was, notwithlstanding, a prominent fact, since we are enabled at iltervals to catchl a glimpse. of it defining itself with considerable clearness of outline throg:,hrli the mist of publlic inattention. The relief of Cllristitanity above the general level of Jewish history in thle first century lhas also beenl sone-what diminished, 1by the fact tllat it was not thle only mitovemnent of the kidcl. At the epoch we Ihave arrived aF, Philo had finished his career, sO wIhoIlly coInsecrated to tlme love of virtue. T'1' sect of Ju(das tile Gau(lolite still existed. This agitaltor had left tile perpetuationi tf his ideas to his SOims, James, Sinlmo, and Menalieni. rihe two formner were crucified by ccInmiand of tIhe reneg;r(ie procurator Tiberiius Alexander.2 Menalhem remainedl, and is destinlled to play an important part in lie, final catastrophe of the lnation.3 In the year 44, atn entlusiast )y, tlhe nanme of Theudas ariose, anllnounei tlhe speedy deliverance of the Jews, calling on tlhe'Feolpte to follow him to the desert, and promising like 228 THE APOSTLES. a second Josllhua to cause them to pass dry-sh(i d across tlhe Jordan.4 This passage was, accordcling to hin, tlle true baptism which should adlnit every believer into the kingdom of God. More than four hundred persons followed him. The procurator CJuspius Fadus sent out against himn a troop of horse, which dispersed his disci. ples and slew himL.5 A few years before this Samaria had been stirred by the voice of a fanatic, who pretended to lhave had a revelation of the spot on MlIount Gerizim where Moses had concealed the sacred instruinents of worship. Pilate suppressed this mnovement with great severity.6 In Jerusalem, tranquillity was at an end. From the arrival of the procurator Ventidius Cumanus (A. D. 48), disturbances were incessant. The excitement reached such a point that it beca'me almost impossible to live there; the most trifling occurrences brouglht about explosions.7. People everywhere felt a stra.nge ferlnenta.tion, a kind of mysterious foreboding. Imnposto)rs sprang up on every side.8 That fearful scourge, tile society of zealots or sicarii, began to appear. Wretches arimed with daggers mingled in the crowds, gave the ftal thrust to their victims, and( were the first to cry murder. HI-ardlIy a lday passed that some assassination of this kind was not told of. An extraordinary terror spread around. J(osephu; speaks of the crimes of the zealots as pure wiclkedness;6 but it cannot be doubted that they sprang in part from fanaticism.1~ It was to defend the law and the testimony that these wretches drew the poniard. Whoever was wanting in their view in one ot the requirements of the law, was judged and at once executed. They believed that in so doing they were T{E APOSTLES. 2'29 rendering a service most meritorious fand pleasillg to God. Dreams like those of Theudas occurred everywhere. MIen calling themnselves inspired, drlew tle people aftter tlhem into the desert, under the pretext of showing theln by manifest sirgns that God was about to deliver them. Thle Rolnal autlorities extermninated tihe dupes of these agitators in crlowds.'l An Egyptian Jew who caine to Jerusalem about thle year 56, succeeded by his devices in drawitng after hii thlirty thousand persons, atmong whoin were ftolr tllousand zealots. From the desert lie was,ointg to lead tliemn to the Mount of Olives, thlatt they mlighlt thence behold the walls of Jerusalem crultnble at his coinmand. Felix, who was at that timne procurator, marched against hiln, and dispersed his band. Tile Egyptian escaped anid was seen nlo more.12 But, as we see in a diseased body one malady succeed allother, soon afterwards there appeared hlere' and there troops of magicians antd robbers, wlho openly excited thle people to revolt, and thllreatenled with death those w}ho should continue to obey thle Rolnn auttlorities. Under tllis pretext they lnurderled and pillaged the rich, burtned villages, and filled all Judea with the Inarks of thleir outrages.?3 A terrible war seemed iimpendinr. A spirit of madness reigned everywhere, and the imngination of the people was kept in a state bordering on lunacy. It is not it-npossible tlhat Theudas may have had an idea of imitating the acts of Jesus and Jolln the Baptist. At any rate such an inmitation is evident in the accounts of Sinon of Gitto, if we may credit the Chris. 233 TtLo APOSTL St. tian tralitions.TM We ]lave already lencoultered hlli ill colllnU illicationl with the apostles on the first jlissioii of Phlilip) to Samaria. I-e attained his celeblrity lduring tlhe reign of the Emperor Claudius.'5 His miracles werc lnllquestioned, and all Samaria regarded him as a supernatural being.'6 [Miracles were not, however, the only basis of hlis renown. He taught a doctrine, it seems, of wlhich it is difficult. for us to acquire a definite knowledge, in a treatise entitled " The Great Exposition," which is ascrieid to hliun, alld a few extracts frioo whiclh haave coml0e down to lus, being probably oinly a modified exr'essioi of his idieas.17 Duirinlg hlis sojourn at Alexandria, wlhere lie studied the Grecian philosopllhy, he l)l)eallr to ]have iranecld a system of syncretic tlleoilogy ancld allegorical exegesis, in many l respects analogous to thlt:t of Pliilo.ls His systeim is iot withollut sulllillity. Souletiuc.s it re iids (l s ofs the Jewisl Kabala, SOlmletimeis of tile panitheistic tlheories of Illdiall,)1ilos(phiy; niml in otlher respects it resebllles that of tlle Bud(ldlhists and 1 lime Parsees."9 Thle i)rilial bleig is, " 11 whIo is, hIas been, and sliall I)e,"'21 i.e. thle J6th-vejh,(f tlIe Samlaiitaius, ultiderstodl accoIdi lg to tile etyltIolo(gical firce of tlie nalne, as tile eterla;l a(d oly Beillg, selt'-legottell, selt'-'L.gIugIIelIt ing, self-seekinti and selt-ffidit ig- he faltlher, motlher, sister, sponlse, atlll s> sl of hilnselt'.a In th!is il.filite lbeimig, all thlings exist potentially to ail eternity; a:nd )pass ilnto action a(l reality tlhroughl ]huan conscie1e, reason, lanltnI:ge, and science.2? Tile llliverse' is explhailled either 1ll,),1 tie. lbasis of a'ierareihty of abstract priilliples like thle E II:s (ft' Gnosticismn and the Sepilirotic tree of thie Kabhala, (or upon that TH-IE APJ)STL ES. 23 1 of at]n order of alngels apparently borlrowed from tle Petrsian doctrinle. Soeretimes these abstiracti)ons are presented as IepresentatiJons of physical andl plhysiological ficts. Elsewllere, tle " divie powers, collnsidered as distillernct sbstances, are realized in succussive inlcarnations, eitller in the Imale or female fortn, whIlose eild is tlle etmanllcipatioll of those beintgs wh1ich are enslave(l in tlhe bollls of nmaterial existence. Tlle 1i,1iesUt oft' these " Powers"\ is called' tlle Great," wllCI is thle uln!iver'sal Pri()videlnce, thle illtelli gent soill of this wo(-)ll.s: It i3s insclile.. Sill(on passed for an incarination of tl]is slpirit. II c(}onnxion withl it is its feminiinie colnlterpart,'tlhe Great Tlhibughit." Accustoled to clol]ie hls tlheories in a strange syimbolism,n, and to devise allegorical interpretatiins fl;,l' thie ancient writinlgs both sacred and pr,'anle, Simi,), or whloever was tlhe authlio of " The Great ExposiIionl," ascribed to tliis Divinle existence tlhe naulte of'; IHelenai thereby sigi.ityinog tlhat slhe wts thre ol, ject of unliversal pulrslit, tlhe eternal cause of dispule anteing m1t1, and t1lattsle aveng'ed iherself oin her enemies by dle)rivigng tilhem of sigilt ultil tlh mol ellnt thley consented to recant;"2-a strange tlheory, and (one w lich, imnperf ectly nuiderstood or designedly travestied, gave rise amnong thle early Fathers of' the Ch11rch1 to thle most puerile legendlls.2 T!he acquaintanle ltCe witlh Greek lite:'atire plossessed by tlhe author of " Tlhe Great Exl)psitiol "' is at all events very remarkable. Ie conte-(led'that, riglhtly nlderstood, the heathlen writings s.ffic(ed for t{ie know-ledge of all things.2 I-is broad eclecticism embraced all revelations, alll sought to comnbine lthem into one sole and u1niversal systemi of accepted trutlhs. 232 THE APOSTLES. IIis planr was essentially quite similiar to tllat ot Valemtinus, and to the doctrines ill regarl( to tile l)ivi1ne Peirsons wliich are found in tile fOurth Gospel, inl Plilo, and inl the Targunms.27 Tlle " Metatronos," 23 which.the Jews placed at tle side of the Deity, and almost in hlis bosom, strongly resemnl)les "The GOreat Power." In Samlalitan tileology we find a Great Angel, Nwho presides over other angels, and we finl also a variety of rlanifest tations or " Divine Virtues," analomrous to those of thle Kabala.29 It appears certain, thenl, tlhat Sinmon of Gitto was a tlieosopllist of tile t)ype of Plhilo andl thle Kabalists. Perh!aps lte nay have come near to Clhristiallity, but certainly lie did not attach himlself to it ill any defined way. Whletiler lie actually bI,)owe(l amnytlhing firomn tlhe disciples of Jesus, is difficult to decide. If " Tlhe Gireat Exposition " is tlle exprlessioll of llis ideas in any degiree, it nmust be admlitted that ulpon several points lie is in advance of the Clhristian ideas, and tlhat ulpon othlers he a(dopts tlhemr with nucll fullless.30 IHe seems to have attemnpted al eclecticism similarl to tlhat which Mahomet afterwards adopted, and to hiave blsed lhis religious action upon thle prellimitnary hlelief in thle divine mtission of John and of Jesus.3' He ])rotissed to thear a imystic relation to them. He asserted, it is said, tlhat it was lie himself wllo appeared to the Samnaritalis as the Father, to the Jews by the visible crucifixion of tile Son, and to the Gentiles by thle insl)iratioll of the Holy Gho-st. IIte also, it would seemn, prepared the way for the doctrine of the "' Docete." Ie claimned to have suffered ill Judea in the person of Jesus, but that hiis suffering was only apparent.33 Thlese pretensions to Divinity and claims of adoration have probably been exagge THE APOSTLES. 233 ltrted by the Christians, who llave in every way s(,ougl t to cover him witli odinium. The doctrine of "the Great Exposition" is that of nearly all the Gnostic writings; and if Simon really professed that doctrine, it is with good reason that the Fathers ch)arged him with being. the founder of Gnosticism.'4 It is our belief that the " Exposition " has only a relative authenticity; that it is to the doctrine of Simon very nearly what the fourth Gospel is to the ideas of Jesus; and that it dt'tes from the earlier years of the, second century, the epoch when the theosopllic notions of thle Logos acquired a definite ascendency. These notions, of which we shall find the germ in the Christian Chu rch, about the year 60,5 may, however, lhave been known to Simon, wliose career was probably prolonged until the close of thle century. The notion then that we obtain of this enign.altic personage is, tllhat he was a kind of plagilarist of Chtristialnity. Imlitation seems to have been a constant hIabit of tlhe Samaritans.36 In tle s:ime manner as they lhad aflways been inlitators of tlle Jewish ceremonies of Jerusalem, so these sectaries had -also their copy of Cllristianitv, their Gnosis, th}eir theosopllic spieculaltions, an-d their Kabala. But we shall prob-ably remain for ever igilorant whether Simlon wais a respectable imitator, who just feN short of success, or onlly an immoral -and insincere jug1gler, w ho was workilg fir hlis own profit and celebrity a dloctrine stitched togrether out of the rags of other systems.37 IeI tlius assumes in history a nlost difficult pJsitioon; he walks on a tight-rope, where no hesitation is permitted; in such a ease there is no midway paith between ridiculous failure and triumphallt success. 2t84 THE APOSTLES. We have vet to examine whether the legends rela.tive to Sirnon's sojourn at Rome comprise any truth. It is at least certain that the Simonian sect continued as far down as the third century;33 that it possessed churches as far as Antioch-perhafps even at Rome; and that Menander of Capharetes and Cleobius39 sustained the same, doctrine, or at least imitated Simon's performance as theurgist with more or less recurrence in type to the acts of Jesus and tlhe apostles. Simon and his followers were in great esteem among their co-religionists. Sects of the sinme kind, parallel Nwith Christitnity,40 and more or less tillctured with Gn)osticism, continued to spring up among tile Stm:aritatls, until their almost t(otl destruetion h)y Justillia-n. It wa(s thie lot of this little religi(us commull-ity to receive an imlpression from evcrvtlbin~, that hapiype ned in its vicinity, without producing anlythi-ngc altogether origillal. As to Clristians, tle mnemory of Si mon was amnongst t thlemn an abol.minationl. Tllose illusions of his whlict so closelyy reselnl)led their o)wn, were irritating to them. To. hlave competed witlh thle success of thle apostles was the inost ulnparldonable of crimes. Tlhey pretended tllat tlhe wolnders per'orfned by Simnon and his ctisciples were works of thle devil, and they l)randed thle Samaritan tlleosopliist witll thei title of "' Sorcerer,'l41 wlich Lis believers took iin ltighl dudgeon. Tlhe entire Cihristian naccountr of SiloIn i)ealrs tlie inpi'illt of comUcelltr'ated haltred. Thle maxills (,f quietismn were.ascriled to hlimn, witil tlhe excesses whichl are generally suppl)sed t{o be thleir consequence. He was considered thle fiathler of all error, the primitive heresiareh.. Tlhey delighllted in recounting lhio ludicrous adventures, and his defeats by THE APOSTLES. 235 the apostle Peter,43 and attributed to tile vilest imotives his apparent tendncy towards Cllristianity. Tlioe were so preoccupied with his nalne that they read it at randoin upon columnrs where it did not exist."4 Tlhe symblolism in which lie had clothed his ideas w&as initerpreted ill tile most grotesque way. The'"H elena," whom lie identified with " The First Inltelligence,"' became a girl of the town purchased by himn in the streets of Tyre.45 His very name, hated nearly as IImuch as that of Judas, and used as a synonyml of Anti-apostie,46 became tile grossest word of abuse and a proverbial expression to designl ate a professional impostor or adversary of truthl whtom it was desired to refer to under a disguise.47 IIe was the first eeiney of Christianity, or rather the first personage whom Christianity treated as such. It is sufficient to say that neither pious friauds nor caltunlly wvere spared in defaming hint.4 COriticism in sutch a case need not attempt a rehllabilitation; it has no documnents on the other side. All it can do is to show the physiognonmy of the traditions and the set purpose of abuse which they display. At least it should prevenlt the loading of the memory of the Samaritan theurgist with a resemblance which may be only accidental. In a story related by Josephus, a Jewish sorcerer namede Stmnon, a naLtive of Cyprus, plays for the procurator Felix the part of a Pandalrus.4? The circurnstances of this story (lo not accord well eonugh with what is known of Simon of Gitto, to mnlke him responsible for the acts of a person who maty have had1] nothing in cormmon with him but a namne borne by thousands, and a pretension to supernatural powers, which was unfortunately shared by a crowd of his cotemporaries. CHAPTER XVI. GEINERAI, PROGRESS OF THE CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. WE have seen Barnabas leavinc Antioch in order to carry to the faithful a(t Jerusalem the conltlibutions of their brethren in Syria, and arriving at Jerusalem in time to be present at several of the excitements occasioned there by the, persecution ot IIero(e Agrippa.' Let us now follow him again to Antioch, where, at this period, all the creative energy of the sect seems to have been concentrated. Bamnabas took baclk a zealous assistant, his cousin Joln-Mark, the disciple of Peter,2 and( the son of that Mlary at whose house the chief apostle loved to stay. Doubtless in calling tlis new co-worker to his aid, he hacd already in view the great enterprise in which they were to embark. Perhaps he f)oresa: w the disputes it would occ.asion, and was well pleased to engage in it )one who was understood to be the right hand of Peterl whose influence i l general matters was predominant. Tlhe enterprise itself was no less than a series of great missions startilg from Antioch and seekinrg the conversioli of' the world. Like all the great resolves of the eatrly Cllu:ch, this idea was ascribed to a direct inspiration of the H{oly Ghost. A special call, a sutperllutural election, wais balievedc to have been vouchlsafed to the Church of Antioch while engaged in fastilln andl prayer. Perhaps one of the prophets of the Cllulrch, Menaihemn, THE APOSTLES. 237 or Lucius, uttered un(der the power of the gift of tongues the words intimnating that Paul and Barnabas were predestined to this mission).3 Paul was convinced that God had chosen him from his mother's womb for this task, to which thenceforth he exclusively devoted himself.4 Thle two apostles took with them, as an assistant in thle details of their enterprise, thle John-Mark whom Barnabas had brought firoln Jerusalem.5 When the preparlatiosls were completed, after fasting and prayer, and laying on of hands as a sign o(f the authority confer. red by the Churchi itself on the apostles,6 they were conmnmernded to the grace of God, and set out.7 Whither thley should journey, and what races they should evangelize, is what we are now to learn. The early missions were all directed westward, or in other words adopted the IRoman empire for their scene of operations. Excepting soine small provinces between tlhe Tigris and the Eunphrates under thle rule of the Arsacides, the Parthian countries received no Christian missions during the first century.8 Until the ieigns of tile Sassanides, Christianity (did not pass eastward beyond the Tigris. This important fact was due to two causes, the MvTediteiranean sea, and the Roman empire. For a thousand years the Mediterranean had been the great pathway of ideas and civilizations. The IRomans, in extirpating its pirates, had rendered it an unequalled method of intercourse. A numerous coasting-marine made it very easy to pass from point to point on the borders of this immnense lake. The comparative safety of the imperial highways, the protection afforded by the civil authoritv, the diffusion of the Jews around the Mediterranean coasts, the spreading of the Gieek 238 THE APOSTLES. language over tlheir eastern portion, and thle unity of civilization, wlhict first thle Greeks, and th en the Ronlans, had extended over those coluntries, all joined to make tlhe imap of tle empire a map of thle regions set apart fir Ch1ristian missions, and destined to be Chlristismized. The Roman world became the Christian world, and in lltis sense the founders of the eimpire may be called the founders of the Clhristian monarel y. Everl province coiiqnered bly the empire was a coll(tuest ir Chrllistianity. Had the apostles been placed in presenlce of an independent Asia }Minor; of a Greece or an Italy divided into a ihundred little republics; of a Gaul, Spain, Africa; of Egy:pt witlt lher ancient ilnstituttiomns-we cannot conceive of their succeeding, or even imagine that such a project could lhave been seriously firmned. The unity of the empire was the prelinimiary condition of all great religioUs conlversions whliclh sulculd trarnsceild linles of nationality. This thle er:pire saw clearly in thle fourth century; it became Christian. It pe]rceived that it hlad established Clhristianlity without knowing it; a reliion colntermilnous with thle Roalnn territory, identified wi ih tlhe empire, and capable of inspirigllit witI new life. Thle Chlurch, on thle othier hland becatne entirely Potnlan, and has remained down to our own day as a fiagment of the emnpire. Had any one told Paul that Claudius was his chief co6perator, or Claudius tlhat tlle Jew just setting out from Antiochl was about to found the most enduring part of the imperial structure, botll would hlave been ma mclih astonished. Nevertheless both sayings would have been true. Syria was the first country out of Judea in which Christianlity becaime naturally established. This was THE APOSTLES. 2 39 an evident result of tlhe vicilnity of Palestine anll (,o tlhe great nllitln ber ot Jews livinrg in Syria.'~ Thie al,,,stlos visited Cyprus, Asia AMinor, Macedoni.a, Greece, all( Italy next. in order, and only a few years after. Soutllerll G(;l, Spain, and the coast of Afiica, althllogh inade acquainlted with the Gospel at an early period, nlay be cllsidered as of a Inore iecent epoch in the buildillg up of tile new faith. It was the samne With Egypt. Egypt plays hardly any part in the apostolic hlistory, and the missionar'ies seem to have systenlatically passed it by. Although after thle thlird century it was tile scene of suchl Innornntons events in religious Iiistory, it was at first very backward in Christian progress. Apollos was the only teacher of Clhristianlity whlo ane firomn the Alexalidrian schlool, and he learned it during his travels." The cause of this reimararkable fact will be found in the ineagreness of the inltercourse between the Egyptian anld tihe Palestinian Jews; anld above all in the circumnstance tllhat Jewish E(-ypt llad a separate religious dlevel)pmnett in the teachilgs of Philo and thle Therapeutte, whlich were its special Clhristianity, and whlich indisposed it to lend an attentive ear to any other.'l As to heathen Egypt, hler religious institutions were much more tenacious than those of Greco-Romanl paganism.13 The Egyptian idolatry was yet in full vigor. It was almost thle epochl when the enormous temples of Esneh and Ombos were constructed, and when the hope of finding a last Ptolemny, a national lessiahl in the little Cesarion, inspired the building of Dendera and IIermonthis, which will compare withl thle finest works of the Pharaohs. C1 hristianity plan ted itself every where 240 THE APOSTLES. -upon the ruins of national feeling and local wsorships Thle degradation of mlind ill Egypt also made very rare tlhose religious aspirations which opened so easy a road to Christianity in other regions. A flash of light fiom Syria, illumnining almost at once thle three great peninsulas of Asia Minor, Greece, and Italy, and soon followed by a second, wlhich extended over nearly the wlhole Mlediterranean seaboard — sucht was the first apptarition of Christianity. The course of the apostolic vessels was always much the same. The Chlristian preaclling seems to have followed a road already laid out, and wlhichl is no other than that of the Jewish emigration. Like a contagion which, having its point of departlure at the head of the Mediterranean, appears all at once at a number of separ'ate points on tle shore by a secret commnunication, Christianity hlad its points in a lanner marked in advance. They were nlearly all places where there existed colonies of Jews. The synag0ogue generally preceded thle churcli. It was like a traiin of powder, or morte correctly, an electric cord, along which tle new idea ran witlh almnost instantaneous rapidity. DurIing a century and a half Judaism, which had previously been confined to the East and to Egypt, had been spreading westward. Cyrene, Cyprus, Asia M[inor, and certaill cities of 3Macedonia, Greece, and Italy, contained larige Jewish colonies.14 The Jews first exemplified that species of patriotisln which the Parsees, the Armenians, and in some degree the modern (Alreeks, have shown in later ages; —a patriotisln of great wartllltho tllugll not attaclled to any particular locality; a patriotism of a nation of Inierchants wan THE APOSTLES. 241 dering everywhere, and everywhere recognising each other as brothers; a patriotism which results in formning no great compact states, but small autonomic coinmunnities within other states. Closely associated among themselves, the dispersed Jews formed quasi-independent congruegations within the cities, having their own inagist rates and their own councils, some of whom were ilnvested witlI powers approaching sovereignty itself. They dwelt in quarters by themselves, outside of the ordinary jurisdictio1n, despised by the other citizens, and happy enough at home. They were rather poor than rich. Th1e epoch of the great Jewish fortunes had not yet arrived; they began in Spain under the Visigoths.l5 Tile monopoly of finance by the Jews resulted from the lack of administrative capacity in the barbarians, anl fiomn the hatred manifested by the Clilrch against monetary science and her superficial notions albout usury. INothing of the kiInd occurred in the Roman emlpire. But when a Jew is not richl, he is poor; boiuueois comfort is not his forte. lie is capable of endlllrilg poverty; and lie is still more capable of comibinling the fiercest religions energy withI thle rarest commercial skill. Tlleological eccentric(ities are not at all inconsistent with good sense in conducting business. In England, America, and Rlissia, the strangest sectaries, Irvingites, Latter-Day Saints, Raskolnliks, are able business-mnen. It has always been characteristic of unadulterated Jewish life to produce much gaiety and cordiality. In that little world of theirs they loved each other, they revered their common history, and their religious ceremlonies mingled pleasantly xwith their daily existence. It 1.1 24,2O THE APOSTLES. was analocous to the separate coemmu-nit.es -;vwhic;ll still exist in Turkish cities, such as the Greek, the Armnenian, and the Hlebrew quarters at Smyrna, where they are all acquainted, and live alld inltrigue together. In these little republics, religious affairs always control politics, or rather supply the want of the latter. Amongst tllem a heresy is an affair of state, and a schism always arlises out of somne personal difficulty. The Romans, with rare exceptions, never penetrated these seclud(ed quarters. The synagogues published decrees, awarded hnllors, and acted like real municipalities.l6 Their influence was extreme. In Alexandria, it is predominant in all thle internal history of the city.17 At Romne the Jews were numerous andl colstituted a body, the support of whicllh was by no means to be despised. Cicero clailns the credit of courage for having resisted some of their dernlads.' Csesar protected them, and found them fi ithlftlu.2' Tiberius was obliged, in order to control them, to resort to the severest measures.2' Caligula, whose reigtl was most calamnitous to therm in the East, allowed them fieedom of association at Romle.22 Claudius, who favored them in Judea, found it necessary to expel tllhem fronm the city.23 They were encountered everywhere,24 and it was even said of them as of the Greeks, that when themselves subdued, they had succeeded in imposing laws on their conquerors.25 The feelings of the native population towards these foreigners were very diverse. On the one hand thLat strong sentiment of repulsion and antipathy which the Jews have invariably inspired where sufficiently numerous and organized, by their jealous love of isolation, their revengefill nature, and their exclusive habits, mali TIHE APOSTLES. 213 fested itself with great force.2" Vlen they weie free they were in ftct a privileged class, for they en1joved the advantages of society, without sustaininl, its b)urdens.27 Charlatans took advantage of the curiosity inspired by their religious rites, and under preterlce of exposing their secrets, acted all sorts of impostures.28 Violent and semiburlesque pamphlets, like that of Apion, nourished the pngran enmity, and were too often the sources whence tile profane historians derived their itlfo)rration.29 The Jews seem to have been generally sullen and full of complaints. They were looked upon as a secret society, malevolent towards others, the mermbers of which were pledged to push forward their own interests at any cost, regalrdless of injury to their fellow-men.?O Their silng(ular customs, their aversion to certain. kinds of food, tleir filth and unpleasant odor,al thleir religiorus scruples, their minute observances on.tie Sabbath, all appeared absurd and ridiculous.32 Placed under a social ban, it was a natural consequence that they should care nothinlg about refilled appearances. They were Inet every where travelling with garments sshiny with dirt, with an awkward air, a weary mien, a cadaverous skin, and large, sunken eyes,3n: assuming a hypocritical' and obsequimns mnunner, and herding apart with their women and children, and their bundles and hamper, which composed their whole movable possessions.a In the towns they exercised the meanest trades; they were beggars,35 rag- pickers, match-venders,a6 and sm all peddlers. Their history and their law were alike unj ustly reviled. Sometimes they were called cruel and suyerstitious;37 38 sometimes atheists and despisers of the gods.3 Their hatred of images appeared purely impious. Above all, circumcision afforded a theme for endless raillery.40 244 THE APOSTLES. But such superficial estimates were not concurred it by every one. Tlhe Jews had as lanly friends as de. tractors. Their gravity and good morals, alnd the sitlplicity.of thleir religion, were attractive to many personls, who recognlised in themn something superior. A vast mnonotheistic ar.d Mosaic propaganda was organized,41 as it were a powerful vortex around this singular race. The poor Jew peddler of the Transtevelrile, 4 setting out in tlhe morning with his basket of smnall wares, oft-en:retulned at eveningr elnriclictl withI allns from somne pious hand.43 Wonrien in particutlar were attracted towards thlese ragged inissi)onaries.44 Juuvenal enumnerates thleir leaning, towards the Jewish religion as one of thle vices of thle ladies of his tilne.45 Thlose who were converted, gloried in the treaslure they had iundcl and the hlappiness they enjoyed.46 Tlhe old Greek and Roinan nit(ld resisted stoutly; contempt and latred of Jews were tle sure etmotions of cultivated inltellects, such as Cicero, Horace, Seneca, Juvenal, Tacitus, Quintilian anlld Suetonits.47 On the otlher side, the enlornous mass of' llingled populations wlhich lhad becolie sublject to the emnpire and to whomn tile old Romnan intellect and Greek learn ing wlere foreign or indifferent, gladly and spontaneously welcomed a community wlere thley olserved sucht touching examples of concord, charity, and mutual aid,48 of content, industry,49 anld proud poverty. The institution of' mendicity, which afterwards became entirely Christian, was at that timre Jewish. The mendicant by profession, "' fbrmed to it by his mnother," presented himself to the minds of tlhe poets of the day as a Jew.5? Exemption fr-om some civil burdens, especially mlili TIHE APOSTLES. 215 tary duty, may also hlave contributed to cause thle 1,,t of the Jews to be regarded as.desirable.5' Thle Stlate at that period demanded niany sacrifices, and afforded hw~v moral advantages or pleasures. It created an icy coltdness as in a uniforrm andcl shelterless plain. I-In an lite, which was so imelancholy under the rule of pcagatisl, regained its charln and its vralue in thle niild atmnospheres of the synagogue and the Church. There was little enough liberty there, it is tine. The bretlhren.watched each otlher and tormented each other unceasingly. B3nt althlough tile internal life of these coIamunities was anythling but tranquil., it was very einj)yable, and people did not abandon it; it h1ad no apcstates. The poor enjoyed conltent witthin its circle; and dwelling in the quiet of an untroublel- conscience, regarded richles without envy.52 The truly deinocratic idea of thle folly of worldly tlings, anld thle.'-anity of riches anld prof'ane holnors, was there colmpletely enibodied. They were )bat little acqlualntel witll tlhe pagan world, and judged it with inteniperate severity. Iomnian civilization al)pea.red to them a mass of lhateful vices and( iniquities,53 jlust as an lhonest ouvritr of' oir day, imn-bued withl socialistic declamration, pictures thle " aristocrat" to hlilnself in the blackest colors. But there was abundancee of life, gaiety, ail I interest amongst these people, and is to this momen t ill thle poorest synago,gues of Poland and Galicia. Their lack of refinement and elegance in llabits was coinpelsated for by a warmn family attachlnellt and 1patriarchlal hospitality. In higlh circles, oim tIle contrary, egotisllc and self-seekilg lhad arrived at thleir fullest growth. The words of' Zachlaria were beiIg verifiedl thai 216 TIIE APOSTLES. men of all nations sllould " take ]hold of tile skirt,-,f hila that is a Jew" and cry, bring us to Jerusalemlll!5 There was not a large city where were not ol)served t}le Sabbath, the fast, and the other ceremonies of the HIebrew faith.55 Josephus ventured to challenge all wlho doubted this to look around in their own neighlborhood or even their own houses, and see if they would not find his assertion confirmed.56 The residence at Ronme and access to the empleror permitted to several members of the family of lierod, wlho perf'ormed their own rites openly, contributed much to the impunity enjoyed by their religion.57 Besides, thle Sabbath prevailed as it were of necessity in localities wlhere Jews resided. Their persistence in keeping their shops closed on tlhat day, forced maiy of tlheir neighbors to modify their own llabits accordingly. Thus at Salonlica it may be said that the Stabbath is observed to this day, the Jewish population being rich and a lnmelrou s enouglh to make the law, and b1,) tle cessation of their own business to prescribe a day of repose. Almost as much as thle Jew, anlld often in company with him, was the Syrialll an acive instrument in the conquest of thle West by tile East.? Tlhey were sometimes confounded together, and Cicero, tllouglht lie had discovored their common trait when lie called themi " iations born to be slaves."3 It was thlat wrlich insured to thenm the control of the ftuture, for the future tlhen belonged to thle slaves of tile earth. Not less characteristic of thle Sylian, was lhis readiness, quickness, and tlme superficial clearness of his thounght. The Syrian natture is like thle passing imagery of the clouds. We see every moment ceitain outlines of giaceful form, but they never be. THE APOSTLES. 24-7 come united into a complete design. In the dtirk.,ess, by the flickering light of a lanmp, tlle Syrian womanlll with her veil, her wistful eyes, and lher infinite languor, caulses a brief illusion. Afterwards, when we woulldl analyse her beauty, it disappears; it cann(ot endure examination, and it lasts oinly three or four years. Wlhat is most charlning in the Syrian race is thle chil(-l o five or six years old, contrary to Greece, where thle cllilil was nothing, the youth inferior to the man, and thle man to the ancielt.60 Syrian intelligence attracts us at first -with its air of promptness and vivacity, bult it lacks fixedness and solidity, something like that "golden wine " of Lilhanus whlichl causes an agreeable excitement, but soon palls on the taste. TIhe true gifts of God Ilave sometlhing atlout them-n at once finle and strong, excitinog and elldnring. Greece is more appreciated to-day than ever before, and will be mnore and mnore conrtinually. MIany of the Syrian emigrants who were attracted westward in the pursuit of Ifortlle were more or less attached to Jundaisml. Otllers remained faithful to tlhe worshlip of their own village,61 tlhat is, to the menmory of some temple dedicated to a local " Jplp)i!er'62 wlio was ordinarily the Snpreene Deity desigblated by some special title;6 anld they tlhus carried withl thlein a kind of monotheismn under the disgullise of tleir strange divinities. At, least in colnparison witlh tlie perfectly distinct divine pelsonfnlities of t}le Greek and Romanll polytlleism, tlle SSriall gods leillg Io)stly synolnynes of tile sun, were alnmost thle bro)tlhers of tlie one IDeity." Like tleir,log a)nd enervatinlg chli:its, thlese Syrian rites appeared less dry tllan te La.tin and less 248 THE APOSTLES. empty than the Greek. The women acquired from them a mixture of ecstasy and voluptuousness. Those Syrian women were always strange creatures, disputed for by God and Satan, and oscillatinog between tlie saint and the demnon. The saint of serious virtues, of heroic self-denial, of accomplished vows, belongs to other races and clilnes. The saint of vivid imnaginings, of absolute entrancements, and of sudden devotion, is the saint of Syria. The demoniac of our Middle Age became the slave of Satan through baseness or crime; that of Syria was distracted by the ideal —thle woman of wounded affections, who avenges herself by Inadness or refuisal to speak, and who needs only a gentle word and kind look to resto'e hler. Transported to the western world, tile Syrian womien acquired influence, sometimes by evil feminine arts, but oftener by real capacity and Inoral superiority. This happened in a special degree ablout a ulndrli-ed anld fifty years later, when the mnost imlportant personages of Rome married Syrian wives, whlo at once acquired a great ascendency over affa'irs. The Mussllnman woman of the present timne, a noisy scold and foolish fanatic, existing for scarce anytlhing lbult evil. and almost incapal)le of virtue, oughlt not to Imake us forget such as Julia Domnia, Julia Mtesa, Julia Mam-lea, and Julia Sce-lia, who introduced into Rotie a slpirit of toleration and a mystical feelintg ii religion which were till tl-en unknown. Wliat is also well worthy of reinark is, that the Syrian dynasty thus established was friendly to Christianity, and tlhat M[amaea, and afterwards the Emnperor Philip the Arabian,e0 passed for Chrlistians. In the third and fourth centuries THE APOSTLES. 2 1-1 9 Christiallity was tile predlominani.it religion of Syri, anlld next to I'alestine, Syria played the greatest part itn its establisllllen t. It was especially at Rome tlat thle Syrian in the first century exercised his penetratintg activity. Intrusted with almost every kind of ordinary duty, guide, Inessenger, and letter-bearer, thle Syrus67 was admitted everylwhere, bringing with hilll tlle language and manmers of h}is own lant(.68 He possessed neither the pride nior the philosophic loftiness of Europeans, mulch. less tlleir bodily vigor. Of' weak frame, pale and often feverislh, and Inot knowingr how to eat or sleep at stated hours, after thle fashlion of oul slower races; conlSllmilgt little Ineat, and subsisting on onions anTd pmnnplkins; sleeping little and illeasilyv-the Syrianll was llabitually ailin,(r andcl died (yong..69 Whaltt did belonlg to him was hIluility, mlnilclness, aff'tbility, ali(l good-nature; no solidity of mind, but muchl that was agreal),le; little sound sense, unless in driviiga bar l ain; but an astonishlinng warltll cand zeal, lind a tlrul felllililille sedulctiveness. IIavinii'lever exer'cisedI aly political fntctoti ims. he was specially apt for religious mlovemtents. Tlhe poor> lfarlonite, effernina.te, lhmnble, and destitute, lils bro,'ughlt about the greatest of revolutions. Ilis ancestor, the Syrus. of Rome, was thle most zealous, iessenlee,ger of tlle good news to all afflicted souls. Every year coloIies of Syrians arrived in Greece, Ittaly, and Glaul, impl lled by thei' natural taste for trade adtl small ellpll).yments.70 They could b1e recognised on board of tile vessels by tlheir nnlnerous fanilies, by tile troops of pretty children imearly alike in age, and tle inotlher withl tile clhildish air of a girl of foui1rteenl keeping close to lier 11* 2 50 T1HE APOSTLES. hullsbanld's side, subllissive aiit( snlililSg, alnd scalrcc.ly sill)erior to ller oldest offsprinllg.71 Tile leads tf this peacefiul group are not very stroiigly llarketd. There is no Archlilledes tlhere, no Plato:or Phtidias.' But ttlis Syrian traderl, now arrived at Roellme, will be a killd anll mercitul inan, charitab)le to his countrymen, and a t'friend to the poor. He will talk withl thle slaves, and reveal to tlieni aIn asvlnil whiere tlhose miserallle bei-s, condeinnled by Romallll severity to a inost dreary solitude, may find soine solace. Tie GGreek and Latin races, mnade to be mnasters and to accolllplisll great actionls, klnew not liow to make anv advantage of an hllldfel positionI.72 Tlhe slave of thlose rac~s passed his life in revolt arnd iri plotting evil. Tlle ideal slave of antiquity hlas every fault; lie is gluttonous, mendacious, inisclhievous, and thle natnral enlemny of his mnaster.rs3 le thuls, as it were, proved 1his nobility of race; lie was a constant lprotest against an1 unnlatural position. The e;la, good-natured Syrian did not trouble hlilmself to protest; lie acceplted his degrTadation and sought to do tle lest lie coull(l \itlh it. I-e coiciliated the kind feelilgs of his mnaster, veiitured to coniverse with himn, andl stu(lied how to please lhis listress. This great agelt of delnocralty was thllus gnawing apart, lleshl by llesh, the net of the ancient civilization. Thle old institutioims based uponl i)ride, inequality of races, llnd military valor, were lost. Weakniess and Iminble! condition were about to become advanltaeous, anld hlelps to virtue.7 Tlhe Rtonian nol)ility, the Greek wisdom, will struggle tfor tllhree centuries 1lore. Tacittus \vill approve tlhe deportation of some tlhousancds f tlhese wretchcs-"' slall loss if the;y, had perisllhd!" 71 Thlle R)loL1an aristocracy will THE APOSTLES. 2i5) friet, will be it,!ovTokcd that tllis canaille should llave i.s gods anld institutions. But the victory is writtenl in advance. Tile Slyrialn, the p1.(oor lla who lOVeS hlis fillows, who slhares with thlein and associates with tlhetul, will cairr y tlhe day. TLte Ronman aristocracy niust perish, atid pcIishl withlout pity. To explain the revolution which is about to take place, we ~must take note of the political, social, moral, iitecllectual, and religious condition of the countries thlcrough which Jewish pyroselytism hlas tihus opened fulrrows fori thle Chr1iistian penc-lhling to sow the seed. Such Can examination will show convincingly, I hope, that tile con versionl of tlie world to the Jewish and Chr istian ideas was inevitable, arid will leave us astonished at only one thing —namely, that tlhat conversion proceeded so slowly and commnenced so late. CHIAPTER XVII. STATE OF THE WORLD IN TIHE FIRST CENTURY. TIrE political condition of the world was most melan. choly. All power was concentrated at Rome and in the legions. The most shalnefunl and degradilg scenes were daily enacted. The Rolnan aristocracy, which had conlquered the world, and which alone of all the people had any voice in public business under the Coesars, had abandoned itself to a Saturnalia of tho most outragreous wickedness the hunman race ever witnessed. Coestla arld Augustus, in establishing tlhe imperial powerI, saw perfectly tlHe necessities of tlle age. Tihe world was so low ill its political relations, that no otlier form of government was p)Ossible. Now that Ro)Ce had conquered nuliberless pr1ovinces, tihe ancient constitution, which was based upon tile existence of a privileged patrician class, a kind of oblstinlate anld malevolent Torie8, could not continue.1 B-ut AnLg:-stus had signally nieglected every suggestioni of true policy, by leaving tlie future to cllance. Destitute of any canon of hereditary succession, of any settled rules concerning adoption, and of any law regulatingc electionl, Cmesarisin was like an enormous load on tile deck of a vessel without ballast. The nmost terrible sllocks were ilevitable. Three timnes in a century, under Caligula, Nero, and Domitian, tlme greatest power tlhat was ever united in one person fell into the hands of most ex THITi AI'OSTLES. 253 travagant and execrable men. Horrors were en;tcte(t wh-lilch have hardly been surptissed by tile monsters of tlhe Monlgol dyllasties. In tllhat fatal list of Inronarells, one is reduced to apolo~cizing for a Tiberiuls, whb only attained thorouglc detestal)lenless- towards the close of his life; and for a Clantllis, who was only eccentric, bllundering, and badly advised. Rome became a scthool of vice and cruelty. It should le adlled that the vice came, in a great degreo, from the East, fi'om tllose parasites' of low rank and those infatnous len whtoin Egypt and Syria sent to Rolne,2 and who, profiting bly thle oppression of tile trlle Roinans, succeeded in attainling great influence over thle wretcthes who governed. The most disnusting ignominies of thle enmpire, such as the apotheosis of the emtperors and tlleir deification during life, camle froln the East, and particularly fr'om Egypt, whichl was at that period one of the most corrupt countries on the face of t}he earth.3 IIowever, thle veritable Rioman nature still survived, and nobility of soul was far fi'lom extillct. Tlle lofty traditions of pride and virltue, whli(ch were preserved inr a few families, attained the imperial tlhrone with Nerva, and gave its splendor to the age of the Anltonilnes, of wlhich Tacitus is the eleygant hlistorian. An acre in. which such true anid noble natures as those of Quintilian, Tacitus, and Pliny thle Younger were produced, need not be wholly dcespai:red of. The corruption of the surface did not extend to tile great mass of seriousrness and thonor which existed in the better Roman society, and many examples are yet preserved of devotion to order, duty, peace, and solid integrity. There were in the noble houses admirable wives and sisters.4 Was 254 THE APOSTLES. tlhere everl a more touching fate thall tIlat of tle yoilng and chlaste Octavia, tile dangilter of Claudills, and(t wife of Nero, remainingi pure in the midst of iiitiay, andC t slalin at twenlty two years of age, without havillg kl(,own a single joy? The epithets " castissimce, LL.ivirc," are not at all rare in tile inscriptions.5 Somne wives accompamnied tlheir husbands into exile,6 and others silared their iiol.ie deaths.7 The ancient Romnan simplicity was not lost. Thle children were soberly and carlefnlly I1brought ip. Thle most noble ladies worked with thleil own htands at woollen fitlrics,8 and tlme excesses of the toilet wvere talmeost nlknlown ill thle hlighler families.9 The excellent statesmenl wllo, so to speak, sprang from thle eartllh uder Trazijan, were not improvised. h'liehy had1 served in preeedinug rleigos; but they lhad enjoyed but little ilfluence, anid had been cast into the slade lby thle freedmnen ald favoiite slaves of the lEmperor. Tlhus we find mnen of tIle first ability oeunpyiig }highl posts under Nero. Tihe firanework was gold. Tihe accession of l)bd emperors, disastrous as it wRs1, Ceould not clhange at onceC thle gelleralt telit(ency of alffairs, and thle priicipes of tlhe goverinmelt. Thie eIpire, ftar firom being in its decay, was in tlhe full strengtil of viglorous yonthl. Dce:ey will come, but two centuries laterl; a1(1, st ralge to say, ider ml nclh ]lore wortlhy min(archis. In its,iliticil lihise, thle situation waT,.s a1alo)ous to tlhat of Ft ance, w\hich, deprived },y thle Revolution of any established rule foi the successionlhas yet passed tlhrgh so many perilus chlanges without g,'e:atly iiijmiring its internal ol r,1izatio n r its natiomnl!h streitgtl. Ii its ioral aspect, thel period under co:sidelration mctay be compiared to thle eiglmceiitll Celln THIE APOSTLI.AiS. 253 tury., ain eplocll eltirely coirllpt, if Fwe formn ou'r judnellelt 1iro1n the lilelnoirs, inailusll'ipts, literature, and ailccl tI,-es of the time, b-lt ill wllicll, nevertheless, somle falllilies maintained;the greatest austerity of Ilmorals."0 Phlilosophl y joined hands with tlle better families of Romllle, and resistedl nobly. Thle Stoic sclhol piodtuued tlhe lof)ty cllcaracters of Crellutitus Coirds, Thraseas, Al lia, Hel vilills Prisclls, Anlllus COrinmitu.s, and Mlusomllius'Rufus, ad(t i able miiasters of aristoclratic -virtlie. Thie ri,'di(lilty -.d exau,.'eraLtion of tllis sclhool arose fr'o1 t(he t hle o 1ril)l cruelty of' tlle Cxesars. le coiitinil-il thoulight of a groo( inan wxvs how to iIInure l himself to suffering, an (1 p'replaro Iliself';r death.'l Lucan, i bac(l taste, an(d Persilus witlh superior talent, both gave uttelatlce to tile 1ftiiest seitillnients ()f a great soiul. Seneca thle phlilosoplhie, Pliny tlhe Elder, and lap'ilrius Fal)ianus, kept up a highl stail(lard of' science anld pl ilos,),l1r. Everiy one did ilot yield; tlere ae, e;t few wise ITIen left. Too often, ]however, tihey hadl nlo resolulcee but death. Thle ig(noble portions of lumlaniity at timles got tihe lpper allnd. Tllhen litadness and cr'nelty rtlecd the ]loull, aid made of',)ate a veritable hlel!.'a Tile governilent, altltogigli so fearfully unstable at iorle, was muclh better in the prlovirnces. At a distanlce the shocks whicll agitated tile cal-ital were hltardly telr. In spite of its defects, thle R,imaiml adltinistmlationl was tfar superior to tlre ki ngdolns and comlnnrlnweal rlts it hlad supplanted. Thle time fior sovereigil nmulicipalities hlad long gone by. Those little States lhad destroyed thletiselves by their ecgotism, tlheir jealousies, and thleir irlnoiance or neglect of' individual fireedonl. TIle anciet liti,f GrCece, all struggle,1, all1 extelrial, no lotnger satisfied 25(6 TIIE APOSTLE.S. any ole. It llhad been glorious in its day, but tliat bril liant demlocratic Olymnpus of delmi-gods llad lost its fi'eslllless, and becomln dry, cold, unmllleanillg,T viii superlficial, and lacking in beotl ]lead and Ileart. IIenco tlhe success of the Macedonian rule, and afterwards of the Roman. The emnpire had not yet fallen into the error of excessive centralization. Until tlle timne of J)io(cletian, the provillces and cities enljoyed mchll liberty. Ki-igclomrs aliiiost indepeindelit existedl ill Palestine, Syria, Asia Millnor, Lesser Alrmenia, anld Tlrace, nilder thie rotection of Romie. These kiii gdrls beecaIno factious after Caligunla, oril. b)ecaulse tlre profouridl po(licy of Alullstls concernling tllem was diverged fi'om in sulcceedlill reignls.13 The nullme-lrous flree cities were goverlned accordilng to tlheir own laws, andl 1lad tle le(rieslative power and nmagistracy of alltollOIniC States. Until tlIe third century their inrnicipcl dlecrees comlnmenced witt tihe fiOrmula,'Tlle Senate and Pe~)ople of ~".' The tlleatres vwere not simtply places for scenic anmussemelrt, but were fici (,f piion ad disclussionl. MIost of tihe towns were, in diffei'ret wvavs, little cmlnlnrwealt.ls. The im unicipal spirit was very stroll.g. 1 Thiey hlad lost only the power to declare wall, a fatal power wllich made tile world a field of carnage. " Tile hben efits conferred by Rome upon mankind," were the tlhemne of adulatory addresses everywhere, to whlich, however, it would be Lnjust to deny somee sincerity.16 The doctrine of " tile Peace of' Rone," 17 thle idea of a vast denmocracy organized under Rloman protection, lay at the bottom of all 1political speculationls.'8 A Greek rhletorician displays vast erudition in proving that Roman glory should be clailmed by all tile branclhes of tile -Iellenic Iade tas a THE APOSTLES. 257 commlonn patrimony.l9 In regard to Syria, Asia:Minllor, and Egypt, we may say thlat thle Rolmnall coniquest did not destroy any of thleir liberties. Those nations ha}d either been already long dead to political life, or had never enjoyed it. Finally, in spite of the extortions of governors and of the violence which is inseparable firomn despotic sway, the world had in many respects never been so well off. Anl administration coming from a remote centre was so great an advantage, that even tile rapacions Proetors of the latter days of thle Republic hiad failedcl to render it nnpopular. Tile Julianr law llad also narrowed down the scope of abuses and peectlations. Thle follies or cruelties of the emperor, except unlder Nero, reached only the Rolman aristocracy and the immlllediate;)il(o)wers of tile prince. Never hlad men whlo did not care to busy themselves aboutit llitics beeii able to live more at ease. Tle anctlient r'epublics, in w\iclh every one was comlpelled to take part in tile facti,)lls, were very Iu comt)if', rtal)le places of esidence.20 Tliere was continually going Ol Some disorganizattion or prtoscriptionl. But ullnder the emlpi re the timle seemned made expressly fir greart proselytislns wlhich should overrulle botl tlle quarrels of neighlibrhoods and the rivalry of' dynasties. Attacks on liberty were rnuell ri,)re i're(f1u1tltlly owing to tlhe relnnants of tl}o provincial or comlnumial auto,,tority tlhan to the Roman administration."2 Ot' tlhis trultll wNe have had aind shall have many occcasionss to take note. For thlose of time conquered conuItries wlhere political privileges had been unklnown for agres, and whlich lost nothing but the riglht of destroying, themselves,y con 2 V58 THE APOS'rTES. tillnal wars, thle emlpire was such an era of prosperity and well-beinlg as they hlad never before experienced; and we inay add, withllnt being paradoxical, that it Ras also for tlemn an era of liberlty.2 On the one ]land, a fieedolnm of commerce and inclust'ry, of which the Gre. cian States had no conception, became possible. On thle other hand, the new rgyimze could not but be favorable to freedom of tlhonglrt. This fieedom is always greater ulnder a monarcll y thlan nnder thle rule of jealous and narrow-linded citizens, and it was unknown in the( ancient repullics. Tlle Greelcs accomlplishled great tllings witllollt it, thlanks to the incomnpatrable force of tlheir genius; )but we mnust not forget that Athens hlad a complete inquisition.23 The Chief Inquisitor was represented by thle aclillon, and the Itoly Office by tlhe royal portico whlelnce isstued the accusations of " iml)iety." These were nnnuieleonUs, and it is inl thlis kind of causes tlhat we findl tlhe Attic orators mllost frequelltly eirgaged. iNot only phlilosophlic heresies, slch as the deenial of a God or;of Providelce, but the sliglltest infa'lctiolls of thle rules of municipal worship, the preachlinlg of foreign religions, and the most ptuerile dlep)llrtures fromn the albsurdly strict legislation concerning thle Irlsteries, were crimes punishable I)y death. Tile gods at wtoln Aristoplhanes sc),ffe&d on the stage, could somnetimes slav. They slew Socrates, alld Cal inst Alcibiades; and tlley perseeted Anaxaig,mLs, Prl. ()1,g)ras, Tlheodorns, Diag^,iras o,f Melos, Prod(licls of Ceos, Stillpo, Alristotle, Theophrlllasts. Aspasia, and EDlr'I)ides.24 Liberty of thiought was, in fact, tile fruit (of' the kingdoms which airose out of tthe Macedlomiiaan co!. quests. An Attatls and a Ptolemy first allowed thi THE APOSTLES. 2593 tlhinker those lil)erties wlhich none of the old republics had permnitted. Tlle Romlan empire continued the same policy. There was, indeed, under the einpire more than one arbitrary decree against the pliilosophers, but it was always called forth by their entering into political scliernes.25 We may search in vain the Roman law before Constantine for a single passage against freedomn of thought; and the history of the imperial government furnishes no instance of a prosecution for entertainingr an abstract doctrine. No scientific man was lnolested. AMen like Galen, Lucan, and Plotinuis, who would lav e gone to the stake in the AMiddle Age, lived tranquilly under the protection of the. law. Thle emipire inaugurated liberty in this respect; it extinguished the despotic sovereignty of the family, the town, and the tribe, alid replaced or tempered it by that of the State. But despotic power is the more vexatious the narrower its sphere of action. The old republics and the Feul;dal systein oppressed individuals imuch mnore than did the state. The elmpire at tiines persecuted Cll'ristianity most severely, but at least it did not arrest its progr'ess.26 Republics, however, would have overcome the lew faitll. Even Judaism would have smothered it, but for the pressure of Roman authority. The Roman magistrates were all that bindeied the Pharisees from destroying Christianity at tle outset.27 Expanded ideas of universal brotherhood and a sympathy with humanity at large, derived for the mnmst part fromn the Stoic philosophy,28 were thle resilts of tlhe broader system of autllority and the less confined education which had now assumed contreol.2? len 260 THE APOSTLES. dreamned of a new era and of new worlds.30 The public wealth was great, and notwithstandiig the imi)er. feet economic doctrines of thle day, was considerablly diffused. Morals were not whllat is often ilmao-ined. At Roine, it is true, every kind of vice paraded itself witlh e rv(lting cynicism,3l and tle public slhows ill par. ticular hlad introduced a frighitftul degree of corruption. Some counitries, Egypt for example, had soundced the lowest depthls of infamny. But in most of the provinces there was a middle class in which good-nature, conjugal fidelity, probity, and tlle doneestic virtues, were generally practised.32 Is thliere anywhere an ideal of doilestic life anong the hlonest citizelns of slwall towns more charming than thlat presented to lis by Plutarch? Whlat kindness, what gentle naiinners, wlhat cihaste auld amiable silmplicity!33 Clleronea was evidemltly not thie only place where life was so pure and inl ocent. The popular tendencies were yet somewllat cruel even outside of Roume; perhaps as the remnant of antiqule manners, whicl were everywhere sanguinary, perhals (as the special effet of Roman severity. But a marked irnprovemrnent in this respect was t:tking place. What pure or gentle sentirient, what impression of melancholy tendlerness had not received its finest expressionl fromn tile pens of Virgil and Tibullus? The world was losing its ancient rigidity and acquiiring so)ftness an(d sensibility. Maxims of common humanlity becamnne current,34 all(l tile Stoics earnestly taught the abstract notions of eqdt;plity and the rights of man. WoVormn, ulndltr the dotal system. of Ronman ltw, wIas becomilng more and more her owsn,nistress. Thle treatment of slaves was improving;a3 TIIE APOSTLES. 261 Seneca admitted his to his own table.3 The slave was no longer that grotesque and imalignant creature which Latin comedy introduced to excite laugllter, and which Cato recormmlended to be treated as a beast of burden.*3 The times had changed. The slave was now morally equal to his master, and was admitted to be capable of virtue, fidelity, and devotion, of which he had given abundanlt proofs.e9 Prejudices of birth were becoming effaced.40 Manly just and humane laws were enacted, even under the worst emperors.41 Tiberius was a skilfill financier, and established upon an excellent basis a system of public credit.' Nero introduced into the taxation, which had previously been unequal and barbarous some improvements which throw discredit even on our own timnes.43 The progress of the theory of legislation was also considerable, althoucgh the deathpenalty was still absurdly general. Chlarity to the poor, and sympathy for all, became virtues.44 The theatre was a most insupportable scandal to decent citizens, and one of the chief (causes which excited the antipathy of Jews and Judaized people of every kind against the profane civilization of the age. To their eyes, those vast inclosures were gigantic clacce in which all the vices were collected. While the lower benches applauded, in the upper were often displayed disgust and horror. The gladiatorial spectacles establislhed themselves with difficulty in the provinces. At least the IHellenic provinces repelled them, and generally adhlered to the ancient Grecian games.45 Bloody sports always retained in the East distinct marks of Roman origiin.4 The Athenians having one dav debated the introduction of these barbarous sports in imitation of Corinth,IC 262 THE APOSTLES. a philosopher arose and. mnoved( that they should first raze to the ground the altar of Pity.48 Thus it happened that one of the most profound sentiments of the primitive Christians, and one, too, whlich prociduced the most extended results, was detestation of the theatre, the st~adium, the gymnasiu m; that is to say, of all the public resorts which gave its distinctive chlardacter to a Grecian or Roman city. Ancient civilization, was a public civiliz;.tion. Its affairs were transacted in thle- open Cair in presence of the assembled citizens. It was the inversion of our svstem, in whiell life is private, and is inclosed withlin the walls of our dwellingls. The theatre was the offspring of the agora anlld tlle forum. Tl'le anathema atgainIst the theatre rebounded acgainst society in general. A bitter rivalry grew up between the Clhurch and the public gaines. The slave, driven away from the latter, betook himself to tile former. I have never seated inyself in those melancholy arenans, whlich are always the best-preserved relics of an ancient city, witlhout seeing in imag-ination the struggle of the two systems. Here, the honlest and humble citizenl already half a C(hristian, sitting in the first row, covering his face and going away ashamed; there, the philosopher, risinlg suddenly and openly reproaching the assemblage with its haseness.4? These examples were rare in the first century, but the protest was beginning to make itself heard,"o and the theatre was receiving more and more reprobation.5' Tlhe laws and adminiistrative regulations of the em-;ir'e were as yet a veriitable chaos. Central despotisim, inunicipal and provincial firanchises, administrative caprice and the self-will of commonalties, jostled each other in the strangest manner. But religious liberty TIlE APOSTLES. 263 was a gainer by thlese conflicts. Tlle conpl)lete Itnity of' adtninistration, whichl was established at abo),,it tlie timlie of Trajan, proved much more fatal to tioe rising faitlh thian thle irregular, careless, and poorly-policed systemn of tile Csesars. Institutions of' public chalrity, founded on tile doctrine tlhat tile State owes pa.Lternal duties to its subjects, were,not muichl developed until after the reigns of INerva and Tr'ajaln.15 A few traces of them, llowever, are foundll in the first century.53 There were alreadly charities fi)r clildrell,54 distributions of food to tile poor, fixed rates fnor thle sale of bread witli indeminity pr(ovided for the tradesmen, precautions in regard to sulpply of provisions, assurlance against pirates, andl orders enabling persons to lbuy grain at re(luced pjrices.55 All the enlI)erors, without exception, mnanif'sted the greatest solicitude onr these topics, which may indeed be called subordinate, but which at certain times rule everytlilng else, In reinlote antiquity there was not miuclh need of public cllarity. Thle world was youn,g anlld strong, and required iio lhospital. The good and sillple HoInlelric m(orality, according to whlich the guest and tle beggar are sent y) Jove, is the morality of strong and clieerf'ul youth?.5 Greece, inr her classic age, enounced the most touchl'ing maximis of pity and benevolence, without connectilgng witli theni1 any conception of sadness or social lisfortunie.57 Mian was yet at that epoch healthly and lappy; how could lihe look forward and provide against evil days! But in respect to institutions for mutual assistance, the Greeks were far in advance of the Roians.?s Not a solitary liberal or benevolent arrangement was ever 2~64~ TIIE APOSTLES. devised by that cruel aristocracy wllich, as long as the republic endured, wielded such an oppressive authority. At tle epoch we are now considering, the colossal fortunes and luxurvy of the nobility, the vast agglolnerationIs of people at certain points, and above all the pecu liar and ilmplacable hard-heartedness of the Romans, had caused the rise of pauperism.59 Tlle indulgence of soine of tlle elnlperors to the Roman mob had aggravated this evil. Tile public distributions of corn encourageci idleness and vice, and provided no remedy for misery. In this, as ill many other things, tile Oiieltal woilcld was superio-r. The Jnews possessed real institutions of ctharity. The Egyptian temples seem to hlave sometimes had a fund for the poorl.G The male and fernale colleges of tile Serapeunn at Memphis were also to somne extent charitable cstablislInents.6 Tlhe terrible crisis thfrough which hlumanity was passiJng in tlhe capital was scarcely perceived in distanlt provinces whlere tlle mlode of life remainled sinmple. The reproacll of lhaving poisoned the wlhole earth, thle likenilig of Romne to a lharlot who had mnade the earthll drunk witlh the wine of her fornication, was in many respects just.62 Tlle provinces were better than Rome; or moroe properly, the imnpure elements which gathlered togetller fiom all quarters into the metropolis, made her a sink of iniquity, in which the old Roman virtues were smnothered, and the good seed brought firom elsewlhere grew with difficulty. The intellectual condition of the different parts of the emnpire was quite unsatisfactory. In this respect there had been a real decline. High mental culture is not as independent of political circumIstances as is pri. THEI APOSTrLES. 265 vate mnorality. Besides, the progress of high mentall culture and that of morality are not exactly parallel. MJarcus Aurelius was certainly a better man than all the old Greek philosophers. Yet his positive notions in regard to the realities of the universe were inferior to those of Aristotle and Epicurus; for le believed at times in dreams and omens, and in the gods as complete and distinct personalities. The world was then nndergoing a moral improvement and an intellectual decline. Fromn Tilberius to Nerva thlis declinle is very perceptil~le. The Gireek genius, with a force, originality, and co{piousness which have never beezn equalled, had in the course of several centuries created the rational encyclopedia, the normal discipline of the mind. This wonderftil movement commenced with Thales, and the earliest Ionian schools (600 years before Clhrist), and was stopped abo(lt B.C. 120. Thle last survivors of these five centuries of intellectual progress, Apollonis of Perga, Eratosthenes, Aristarchus, IHero, Arclhimecdes, Hipparchlls, Chlrysippus, Carneades, and Panietils, had deparlted, leaving no successors. Only Posidollills and a few astronomners kept up the ancient repl)tation of AlexaTldria, Rllodes, and Pergarmus. Greece, hlowever fertile in creative genius, lhad not extracted from lier science andll plilosolphy any system of popular instr'lltiol or renetv against superstition. Pissessing admirable scientific institutes, Egypt, Asia Minor, and Greece herself were at tlle saine time given (cvetr to the most senseless credility. But if science does not succeed in getting the upper hand over superstitioll, superstitio.n will exting'uish science. Between these two oppositng forces, thle colnbat is to thle death. 12 266 THE APOSTLES. Italy, while adopting Greek science, had for a timne inspired it with a new sentirnent. Lucretius had furnished the model of the great philosophic poern, at once a hymnu and a blaQplhemy, by turns imparting serenity and( despair, and imbued with that profound view of human destiny which was always wanting in the Greeks, who, childlike as they were, took life so gaily that they. never dreamed of cursing the Gods, or of accusing nature of injustice and treachery towards man. Graver thoughts occurred to the Latin philosophers. But Rome as well as Greece failed to make science the basis of popular education. While Cicero, with exquisite taste, was transferring into a polished form the ideas he borrowed from the Greeks; while Lucretius was composing his wonderful poem; while Horace: was avowing his frank infidelity in the ear of Augustus, who expressed no surprise; while Ovid, one of the most pleasiing poets of the time, was trealting venerable traditions after the manner of an elegant free-thinker; and while the great Stoics were developing th.e practical results of Greek philosophy, the silliest chirneras met with full credence, and the belief in the marvellous was unbounded. Never were people more ready for prophecies and prodigies.63 The eclectic deism of Cicero,61 perfected by Seneca,65 remained the creed of a few cultivated minds, but exercised no influence on the age. Down to Vespasian, the empire had nothing which can be called public instruction.66 What it afterwards possessed was confined to a few dry grammatical exercises, and the general decline became rather accelerated than retarded. The last days of the republic and the reign of Augustus, witnessed one of the most brilliant TI:E APOSTLES. 267 literary epochs that has ever occurred. But after the death of the great emperor, the declille may as properly be called sudden as rapid. The intelligent and cultivated society in which had'.l moved Cicero, Atticus, C.esar, Mllnecenas, Agrilppa, and Pollio, had vanished like a dream. Doubtless enlightened men remained; mrne famriliar with the learning of their day, and occupying high positions, such as Luciliuq, Pliny, Gallio, and the Senecas, with the literary circle which gathered around them. Tite body of Roman law, which is codified philosophy, which is Greek rationalism reduced to practice, continued its majestic growth. The noble Roman families had preserved a basis of purer religion and a horror of what they called "superstition.."67 The geographers, Strabo and Pomnponius Mela; the physician and encyclopredist, Celsus; the botanist, Dioscorides; the jurist, Sempronius Proculus-were able and liberal xaen. But these were exceptions; leaving out a few thousandl el-lightened persols, the world was immersed in profoundl ignorance oP the laws of nature.68 Credulity was a universal mralady.69 Literary culture was dwindling into a mere rhetorical shell, which contained no kernel. The essentially moral and practical turn which philosophy had taken, banished profound speculation. Human knowledge, if we except geography, made no advances. The schooled and lettered amalteur replaced the creative and original student. Here was felt the fatal influence of the great defect in Roman character. rhat race, so mighty to command, was secondary in genius. The most cultivated Romans, Lucretius, Vitruvius, Celsus, Pliny, Seneca, were, so far as regards positive knowledge, the pupils of the Greeks. Too often, indeed, it was second rate Greek 268 THE APOSTLES. learning whicll tlhey reproduced in a second-rate style." Rome never possessed a great scientific school. Charlatanism reigned there almost supreme. Finally the Latin literature, whichl certainly displayed some admirable quali' ties, flourished during only a brief period, and never made its way beyond the occidental worl-d.71 Greece fortunately continued faithful to her genius. The prodigious splendor of Roman power had dazzled and stunned, but not annihilated it. In fifty years more we shall find her reconquering the world, giving again her laws to thought, and sharing the throne of the Antollrines. But at this period Greece herself was passing throtgh one of her intervalls of lassitude. Genius was scarce, and original science inferior to what it lad been in preceding ages, and to what it would be in the following. Txhe Alexandrian school, which had been declining for nearly two centuries, but still at COesar's era could furnish a Sosigenes, was now duim-b. The space from the death of Augustus to the accession of Trajan must, then, be classed as a period of temporary degradation fior the human intellect. The ancient world had by no means uttered its last word, but the l)itter trials through which it was passing took from it both voice and courage. When brighter days return, and genius shall be delivered frorm the terrible sway of the Ctesars, she will take heart again. Epictetus, Plutarch, Dionysius the golden-mouthed, Quintilian, Tacitus, Pliny the Younger, Juvenal, IRufus of Ephesus,.Aret'eus, Gallen, Ptolemy, Hypsicles, Theon, and Lucan, will renew the palmy days of Greece; not that inimitable Greece which existed but once for the simultaneous delight and despair of all who love the beautiful, but a TILE APOSTLES. 26~ Greece still fruitfuil and abounding, which will mingle her own gifts with the Rolman genius, and produlllce works of novelty and originality yet able to charmn the world. The general taste was bad. Great Greelk writers were wanting; and the Latin writers extant, except the satirist Persius, are of an ordinary type. Excessive declalrn:tion spoiled everything. The rule by which thle public judged intellectual productions was nearly the, sanme as it is now. Only brilliancy was looked for. Langutage ceased to be the simple vestment of thought, derivingo all its elegance from its perfect adaptation to the idleasought to be e-xpressed. Language began to be cultivated for its own sake. The aim of an author in his writings was to display his own talent. The excellence of a rccitation or public readilng was measured Ivy the number of passages which excitedl.lpplaiuse. The cardillil p~rincipile that in art everything shouldl serve as ornament, but that anything inserted expressly as ornament is b:1d, was entirely forgotten. It was a very literary period,, as they say. Hardly anything was talked of but eloqluence arnd style; and after all, nearly everybody wrote illcorrectly, and there was not a solitary orator. The true orator )Mllill more and ntiore regcarded as tile essence of religion. On every side, in fact, an energetic tendency was manifested towards a monotlheistic religion, which should provide divine cornmand as a foundation of morality. There occurs in this manner a crisis when the naturalistic religions hlave become reduced to mere childisllness and the grimaces of jugglers, and call no longer answer the wants of society. Then Ihunmamity requires a moral and philosophical religion. Buddtlismn and Zoroasterisin responded to this requirenennt in India aid Persia. Orplhism and the My.steries hlad attemnpted the satrne thing in the Grecian world witilout achieving a lasting success. At the perio;l we are considerillg, the problem l resenlted itself to tile entire worl(l with solemn universality and inlps:)s.ingr grandeur. Greece, it is true, fortned an exceptioii in this respect. fIellenisml was mtuchl less worn out tllan thle other religonlls of the einpire. Pilttarch, in Ihis little Bmotian town, lived in tlle practice of Hellenisiltranquil, happy, anl(1 conteinted as a child, and witlh a religious conscience entirel v iundisturbedl. In liin we see no trace of a crisis; of distraction, iuneasiness, or fear' of impendinli revolutionl. But it was only the Gieek lnind whlich was capable of sucll childlike serenity. Always p)leased with herself, proud of her prtst (tand of thalt briliiant mnythology, all of whose sacredl places lay witlin hler borders, Greece did not participate in thle internal disquiet of the world. Shie alone did not invite Cltristinity; she alone would have preferred to do witlh(-oat it, and she alone made plretensio:ns of doing better.8' 12* ' 74I THIE APOSTLES. Tlis was tile result of the everl;stilIng youtilfuilness, patriotic tholing, and u cllnqCter el)le giliety which always marked the geilnuile son o(f -Iellas, and whlich to thlis day rellder thie Greek a s8tralger to tile protoullnd anxieties whichl prey uponl us. T-Iell1lismn was thlus in a condition to attemplt a wreuzac.isa;ee, whichll no other religion existinig at tie titne coultd hope for. In tile second, third, and foutlr th celntitries of onr era, Tlellenistl 1a(i fo)rlned itself into anl organized system of reli,ioln, by nmeans of a weldillg, as it were, of the old Inythlolo(gy arid the Grecian plhiloisopliy; and what withi its mniracle-workinog sages its )ol( wliters elevated to the ranks of prophlet`s,' allnd its legelllds about P.ythlagoras and Apollonius, set up a competitioni with Clllrisiamity, which, thoughl it ultilmately failed, was yet one of the mnotst dtancerous obstacles that the religion of Jesus fiondcl in its way. This attempt had not yet been madfle in the time of the C-es vs. The first philosophers wh)o endeatvored to bring about the allian;tce betweetn plniloso)phy and patganism, were Euphrates of Tyre, A pol)lonrius of Ty tn a, and( Plutalrch, at the close of the cenitulry. Euphrates of Tyre is but little knownl to us. Lgtelnd has so, coln — pletely disguised the plot of tie real iife of Apollonius, that it is impossible to say whetther bie should be considerred the foundlllr of (a reliionll, a sage, or a charlattin. As to Plutarch, he was not so much arn originil thinker a'nd innovator as a mnoideratt e reformlrer, who wished to bring the worldl to one ilind by rendering p:lilosoplly a little tin id atnl r1eli rion at leatst one-lalf rationall. 1-Te has nothlirig of the character of Porphllyry or Julian. The atternpts of the Stoics at allegorical exegesis were TH E APOSTLES. 27: very feeble.82 Mysteries like those of Bacchus, in whlich the ilylmortaIlity of the soul was taught throulgh graceful sy mvbls,83 were colline(d to certain localities and had lo extended influence. Disbelief in the official religioi was gelneral i:n the enliglltened class 4 Those pt)ub'.i men who mtade the greatest pretension of upholdting it, expendlecl tllheir wit uponr it fireel in mlloments of leistre.83 The immoral doctrine was openly propoundled, that tlhe rtligious fables were only of use in governilg the people, and oughllt to be maintained for that purpose.8a The precaution was useless, for the falitll of the people themselves was shaken to to te foulndatiol.87 After the accession of Tiberius, a reliionus reacti-on was perceptible. It "would seem that society was s!hocked at the Iaveowed infidelity of the Augustan age. Ther way was prepared for the unlucky attempt of Julian, and a11 the superstitious' were rcillstated for reasons of statepolic.sa8 Valerius Maximus affbrcds the first exa1mple of a writer of low ran.k comning to the relief of cornred tl-leologians; of a dirty, velal pen put to the service of religion. BIut the foreign rites profitedl the most by tlhis reaction. Tlhe serious mzovement in fitvor of the rehalbilitation of the Greco-Rolman w-orshlip did not develop itself utltil thle second century. At first, tlle elasses troubled by religio(us misgivings were attracted towards the Oriental folrlms.8s Isis- and Serapis were more in favor than ever.9 Impostors of all sorts thaumaturgists and magicians, profited by the, popular mood, and, as ordinarily takes place when the st:.te-religion is enf eebled, swarmlned on every side.1 xW, e ileed only ref'er to the real or fictitious systems r' Apollonius of Tyana, Alexa.nder of Abono 276 THE APOSTLES. ticus, Periurrius, and Simon of Gitto.'2 Event these errors and chirnera were the cry of a world in labolr; were the fruitless essays of human society in search ot the truth, and sometimes in its convulsive efforts unearthing monstrous deformities destined to speedy oblivion. On the whole, the middle of the first century was one of tlhe worst epochs of ancient history. Grecian and Roman society had declined fiom its former condition, and was far behind the ages which were to follow. The greatness of the crisis revealed a strange and secret process going on. Life seemed to have lost its nmotives; suicide became common.93 Never had an age presented so dire a struggle between good and evil. The powers of evil were a terrible despotistn which delivered the world to the hands of monsters and inadnien, corruption of lorals arisinlg firon tlie importation of Oriental vices, and the want of a pure religion and decent public instruction. Tile powers ot good were on tile one side, phlilosopl)y fighlting with bared breast against tyranny, (left'yiig tlme lnonstetrs ot oppression, and three or four times pr'oscril)ed in half a century (under Nero, Vespasian, anzd Domiitiral);94 on the other side, the struggles of popular virttue, the legitilnate longings for a better religion, thle tendency towards confiraternities and monotlheistic creeds, and tle recognition of the lower classes which occnurred chiefly under cover of Judaism and Christianity. These two great protests were far from being accordant. The philosophic party and the C~hristian party were not acquainted with each other, and had so little perception of their common interest that when the philo THIE APOSTLES. 277 sopllhrs calme into power by thle accessin of Norva\. they were far from being fivorable to lChristianity. In trutlh. the aim of the Christialls was mnuch mnore, radical. The Stoics, when they becaime masters of tlhe empire, reformned it, and presided over a hundred of tlhe happiest years in the history of man. The Christians, when thley becalme, masters of' thle empire, ended by destroying it. The hleroism of the latter ought not to make us unmindful of that of the former. Christianity was always unjust towards pagan virtues, and made it her business to decry the very men who had fou,ht against the same comrnmol enemy. There was as much grandeur in the struggle of philosophy in the first century as in that of Christianity; but how unequal has been the recompense. The martyr who overtlurned idols writh his foot lives in pious legend. Why are not the statues of Annreus Cornutus, who declared in presence of Nero that the emperor's writings would never be worth those of Chrysippus" - of' lelvidius Priscus, who told Vespasianl to hil. face, "It is thine to mnurder- it is mine to dlie! "- of Demretrius the Cynic, who answer.d an enraged Nero, "You may mnenace me with death; but nature threatens you "'97placed amongst those of th-e world's heroes whom all love and to whom every oie pays homage? Is humanity so strongl in her battle with vice and depravity, that any school of virtue can repel the aid of others, and maintain that itself alone has the right to be brave, lofty, and resigned? CHAPTER XVIII. RELIGIOUS LEGISLATION OF THE PERIOD. DuIRInG the first century of the Clhristian era, the emXpire, whlile mnanifesting more or less hostility to the'religious innovations which were imported from tlhe East, did inot declare open war against theml. The doctrinle of a state-religionl was not clearly defined or virl.olrously ulllield. At (litlercnt epoclt s uilder t}le repult)lic, fo;reignl rites hl-d lbeen proscribed, especially those of Sabaziis, I-:is, anltl Serpis.l Blt tllose ImnVS terions systeims presentedi sCuch irresistible attractions to thle common people, tlhat the proscrip)tion proved Whell (A. u. c. 535) the demolition of thle temiple of Isis anl( Serlplis was decreed, not a workmanl could be f;,uind to commellnce it, and ttie consul Iiiniself hlad to set thle exal,1ple by breakin,g diowi, tile (1o(,1s8 witli nll axe.3 It is evildeInt tlhat tlhe Latinl creed wvas no longer s:atist'yin,, to lhe,1nl-:ses; and we ay i sIj))oseO -w\itil good recasoil tlhat it was fori, lie puIlrpose of g'ratit img hlie p!opullar isirnc.ts tflhit tlhe rites of Isis and Se(p'lis were r'eistal)lislied 1by Ca.slar.4 Tlat great. ml1an,, xvitlh thie )profi-ound and liberal inutni tion1 wllieli cliaracterized Iiimn, l-ad slown1 lhiimself ftlvorable to entire fieedclm of CO1nscie ce).5 Augustus wvas moellttically " pOOr)1' it was tlleir righlittful title.5 Even if a C1hristi,;n possessed r ichles in tlhe seem1mi and third centuriesl, lie was poorl in spirit, and classed lilllself alnolll thle poor', and was saved; firo'() peisect tion by clainiing ti e privilege of the law onclerling the " colgeSgia tes:tio;ln7." 6 It is true thlat all the ChrlistiCans 294 TiTE APOSTLES. were not slaves or persons of low ranlk; but the sociatl equivalent of a Chlristian was a slave, anld the samne terms were applied to both; while tle cardinal virtules of the servile condition-gentleness, humility, and resigo nation-were aimed at by both alike. The heatlhen, writers are unanimous on this point. All of tiheln without exception recognise in tle Clhristian the traits of servile character, such as indifference to public affairs, a subdued and melancholy air, a severe estimate of the vices of the age, and a settled aversion to the theatres, batlhs, glymnlasia, and public gaines.7 In a word, thle theatlIen were the world; tie Chlristians were not of the world. Thley were a little flck apart, hated of the world. reproving its iniquities,8 seeking to keep thlemnselves'" unspotted fro)! the world."' Thlle ideal of the Clristian was wholly opposed to that of the worldling.'0 The sincere Cliristian loved to be ]humble, and cultivated the virttues of tile poor and simple and self-abasicng. He, halt also) tIle defects wliich accompany these virtues. I-Ic colnsidlered as vain and frivolous many things whichl are,no)t so. He belittled the universe, looking on beaiuty andl art with a hostile or contemptuous eye. A systemn und'er which the Venus of Milo is only a stone idol is erroneous, or at the least partial; for beauty is alnmost thle equivalent of goodness and of truth. Whlen such ideas prevailed, the decay of art was ilevitable. The Clhristian set no store by arclhitecture, sculpture, or palititlng; he was too much of an idealist. He cared little for thle advalcelnent of science. for it was to hiin nothing but idle curiosity. Contfoundin the highler enjoyments of the soul, by whllich we touch upon the infinite, wvith THE APOSTLES. 295 vulgar pleasnres, he denied himself all amuselenet. He pushed his virtues to excess. Another law demands our attention at this PCfiol, which will not iail to have its influence upon the: liiato y we are to recount. The establishment of' Cllristiaitv corresponds in time with the suppression of pol!iticl li1ft in the Mlediterranean world. The subjects of tlhe imlp)rial sway had ceased to have a country. If any one.sietine-it was wholly wanting in the founders of the Churell, it was patriotism. They were not even cosmopolites, citizens of the world; for the plalnet was to them only a place of exile, and they were idealists in tile nlost absolute sense. The country is a composite object; it has body and soul. The soul is its recollections, castoms, legends, misfortun, hopes, s and common regrets; the boly its soil, race, language, mountains, rivers, characteristic )roductions. But never were any people so regardless of all this as the primitive Christians. Judea could not retain their affection. A few years passed, and they 11had folrgotten the walks of Gllilee. The glories of Greece and Rome were f)olishness to them. Thle regions in which Christianity first rooted itself-S ria, Cyprus, and Asia Minor —could not recall thle period when tlley had been free. Greece alid Romle still possessed mucl:l national pride. But at Romne the patriotism wlfas llardly felt outside of the army and a few f-tmilies; wlile in Greece, Chllristianity flourished only at Corillth, a city which, after its destruction by Muinmius and its rebuilding by Ctesar, was a mixture of men firomn every land. Tlhe true Greek tribes were the in:as aiow, very exclusive in their notions, absorb)ed in the menmory of their past; and paid little heed to thle new doctrine. They 296 THE APOSTLES. proved but hal-way Christians. On the other hald, the gay, luxurious, and pleasure-loving inhabitants of Asia and Syria, accustomed to a life of enjoyment, of easy manners, and used to accept the customs and laws of every neew conqueror, had nothing in the shape of national pride or cherished traditions to lose. The early centres of Christianity-Antioch, Ephesus, Thessalonica, Corinth, and Rome-were, if I may so express it, public cities; cities like modern Alexandria. whither all.races gather, and where that union and tie of affection between the citizen and the soil which constitutes a nation, were entirelvy unknown. The interest of the public in social questions is always in inverse ratio to its preoccupation with politics. Socialism advances when patriotism becomes wea.k. Chris. tianity was an explosion of social and reliigious ideas wlich could not hlave had f-ree scope until Augustus had suppressed political contests. It was cldestined, like Islalnlisnm, to become in essence an enemy of the tendency to sep)arate nationality. Many ages and many scllisns wo0ldl be necessiary before national est;iblished churches coul{d be derived out of a religion which started with the negation of the idea of any earthly home or country; which arose at an epoch when the distinctive city and citizen of early Greece and Italy had ceased to exist; and when the stern and vigorous republican spirit of a former period had been carefully sifted out as deadly poison to the state. Here then is one of the causes of the grandeur of the new religion. Humanity is diverse and changeable in feeling, and constantly agitated by contradictory desires. Great is the love of country and sacred are the THE AP OSTLITS. 2J7 Leroes of i'ralt!o,1 Thlermopy'el, Va"limy, and Flv-us. One's cou0fltry, h.eIver, is l)ot eve'S tlbi:ug hlere eclwv -Mlan is a lu' alndt a1 childl of G)d Iefh-ore lie is a Frencth m:lfan. or a Germlan. The klingdolm of Gid, tliat eternal vision wh]ichl caclnot be torn out of thle ilealrt of lman, is tlhe protest of his nature agatinst the exclusiveiness of patriotism. The idea of a great and universal organizationl of thle iace to bring a)bout its greatest welft: ul and its moral imprll ovenle.nt, is both legitimat.e anld Christian. Thle state knows and can know only ol!e tlhincg the organliztation of self-interest. This is sotnetlhillb fo' self ilnterelst is the strongest anld;nest eo,,c'ossilng of hlluln'll mnltives. But it is not en!oughl. Goveirnmenits fIunded o(n, tile theory t!tlt lmlan is comlposeed (of seTfishl wanlts alfd desires aloe, h1ave,tov(l gr eatly uinista1,keni. Devoot:imim is lasti:al: as e,tismn to the race, an1d reli;iotn is or. 1 jized( devo io:l. L-t e0e eXlosct, tl1en, to do witnli(ut reliio(iln or religi ois assoctiati,1ns. Every foirward sle-) of nmodern society will render the needl of reli(ioiill tore imnperius. We caIC now see 1ow tlhese recitals of strang'e, events nmay prrove illustrative and instructive. WVe leed Ilnot rtject the lesson because of certain tlraits wh]ic! tlhe difference of times and Ilanners lhas invested withl an odd or unusual aspect. In regard to popullar con vietins, tllere' is al w1ys att i nense l d isr ",,)rti)nl bet wee thle gireatless of t1-le ideal Tained at by time system of belieft ad thle trifllng nature of thle actutal fttets whllich have given rise to it. Htence thle plarticularity with wthichl religious hlistory mingles commtnon details and actions approfaclliigcr folly \vitil its m1ost stublitle evyelts and do;trines. Thle inonk wl,) con'ltrived tile " l oly vil'l l Q3. 298 THE APOSTLES. was onlc of the founders of thle Frenchll Inoarcliv. W1ho would n(ot willingly efface flrol tlle life of Jesus tlhe story of tie dernmoniacs of Gadalra? Allat tnai of col blo(od and com nmcn sense would hlave acted like Fralncis of Assisi, Joan of Arc, Peter tlhe IHermit, or Ignatius ILoyola. Terms attributixng folly or fanaticism to tlhe actions of past agces milist of necessity be deemed nlerely relative. If our ideas are to tbe taken as the standard, there was never a l)rolphet, apostle, or saint, who oughlt not to hIave been co,>nfined as a lunatic. Conscience is very unstable ill peri(ods wlen reflection is niot matnure, antd thllel gooCd ancdlnes evil, and evil good, by insensil)le stages. Uless we admlit thlis, it is imlpossible to fitrm a just estimnate of the past. Tlhe same divine breath vitalizes all history and gives to it wondllerfltl unity, but }mllllan faculties lhave prl)duced an infinite variety of cotmibinations. The apostles diffired less in chtiaracter fiCrom us tihani did the foilunders of 0 iBuddhisInl altli,,lgh1 the latter were allied ol1re iear'ly to us in language and plrobably inl race. Our own age lhas witnessed religious inovemeiints quite as extraordinmary as tlhose of formler tilies; i)ovemnenlts attended with as muchl entlusiasIll, whichl hlave alrea(ly hlad in pr-oportion more martyrs,,, and tlhe future of Whlich is still undetermined. I (lo not refer to the Aormnons, a sect in some respects so degraded and ahsurd tlhat,one lhesitates to seriously consider it. Thlere is lnue.h1 to sugmrgest reflection, however, in seeimig tllousands of illen of our own race livilg ill the mlli'raculolus ill thle mi(ldle of the iinetee'1th ceintury, and blindly believi;g ini tile wonders wlhichl they profess to have seen and touched. A literature TII APO3OT1LES. 29!t ]la- aliready arisen pretendiig to reconiciloe Mo1rnl Ollnibi alld science. Blit, wlhat is of more imiportance, tlhis religion, tfuonded uiponlsilly ilnlpostures, has iispi'red )rodigies of patienlce and selftdenlial. Five lIlln retll year's ihence, learned pirofessors will seek to prove its divine oriigin by tile imiracle of its estallismneit..Bab-isv in Persia was a phlenolmellon imucl more astonishling.11 A mnild and niassuining man, in llhatracter alld opinion a sort (of pioullS and lmodest Spinoza, was suddenly a.nd allmost ill spite of ilnmself raised to tile rank of a wor-ker of Miracles and a divine incarlationl; aiid became the lletl of a nmliznerous, ardent, and ftalItic:;1 sect, wh]ichl came near ace,mnplisllilg a revo]Iution like tihat of Mllaholet. TIhousatlnds of Inatrty'rs rushed to death foir tlil witll jioyflll alacrity. Thie great btutchery of hlis tbllowers at Tellerali was a scene l)erITps unparalleled ill history.' Tat day in thle streets and bazaars of Teheran, " says an eye-witlless, " thle residenlts will neverl fi;rget.2 To thlis llllent whlen it is talked of; tlme minrgled wontder and hlorror which tile citizeiis then experienced a)ppears lal)alted,by tile llpse of years. Thley saw l om, en Wl anllld chlildrenl wallking forward between tIheir exeeutioners> wit Ireat eat sles all over their bodies tand burninig matchles thrust into thle wounds. The victims were dragged along 1)y ropes, and hlurried on by strokes of' tle wlip. Childrien and women went singing a verse to this effect,'Verily we came firom God, and to him shall we return I' Their shrill voices rose loud and clear in the p1rofonnd silence of thle multitude. If one of these poor wretches fell down, and the guards ftr-ced him:n up again with blows or bayonet-thrusts, as he staggered 30() THE APOSTLES. on with lthe blood trickling down every limb, he -would spend his rernairing energy in dancing and cr'ying iil an access of zeal,'Verily we are God's, and to hllii we return!' Some of the children expired on the way. The executioners threw their corpses in fiont of' their fathers and their sisters, who yet ima'lchecl proudly on, giving hardly a secolld glance. At the place of execution life was offered them if they wvould abjure, but to no purpose. One of the condemned was informed that unless he recanted, the throats of his two sons should be cut upon his own bosom. Thle eldest of these little boys was fourteen years old, and tlhey stood red with their own blood and with their flesh bu-rned and blistered, calmly listening to the dialogue. The fkather, stretching hlimnself upon the earth, answered tl.at lie was ready; and the oldest boy, eagerly claiiining his birthllight, asked to be murdered first.l3 At length all was over; niglht closed in llpon leiaps of mangled carcasses; the ]leads were suspended in buniceles on the scaffold, and tile dogs of thle faCabo6rgs gathered in troops fiom every side as darkness veiled thle awful scene." This happened in 1852. In tlhe reign of Chosroes NTouschirvan, the sect of Masdak was smothered in blood in the same way. Absolute devotion is to sinmple natures the ]most exquisite of enjoyments, and, in fict, a necessity. In the Bab persecution, people who had hardly joined the sect came and denounced tllemselves, that they might suffer with the rest. It is so sweet to mankind to suffer for something, that the allurement of martyrdom is itself often enough to inspire faith. A disciple who shared the tortures of Bab, hanging by TIIE APOSTLES. 30i1 his sid]e on the ramparts of Tabriz and awasitin.g a lini. gering death, had only one word to say-"i MPaster, hlave I dolne well " Those who regard as eithler Iniaculous or chii neiecal everythilltg in history witich transllends the ordinary calculations of cominonil sense, will find such facts as thlese inexplicalle. Tlte fnildalnental condition of criticism is to be able to comprelhend the diverse states of the human soul. Absolute faithl is a tllilg entirely foreign to us. Beyond the positive sciences w!hicil possess a material certainty, all (,piion is in oiur view only an approxilmation to the trutlh, and necessarily implies, some elrro. Tlle anllount of error may be as small as you please, but is lnever zero in regard to moral subjects. Suchl is not the metllod of narrow aid bigoted mllids, like tle Orienttl for examzple. The mental vision of those races is not like ours; theirs is dull and fixed like the enamelled eyes of figures in mnosaic. Tlley see only one tlhilg, at a time, nlld tlhat takes entire possessioml of tlhemn. They are not their own masters whetlher to believe or not. There is 110 rooin for an afrer-thlonght with tlhen. People who emnliraee an opinlion after thlis fiashion. will die for it. The martyr is in religion iwhat thle partisan is ill politics. There lhave not been many very intelligent umartyrs. The Cihristians who confessed their faiith u1nder Diocletian, would have been, after peace was gained for thle Church, rather unpleasant and impracticable personages. One is nevel very tolerant when he believes hilmself entirely in the right, anld his opponents entirely in the wronog. Great religions movements, being thus the results of 302 TNI E APOSTLES. a confilled Inetllod of viewing nloral suljects, are eligiBmas to anl age like tlie present, in wlliel thle strelg II of coiiviction is enfeebled. Among us, tile maln (t' sinlcerity is continually Inodifyiillg his opillinions, becaus both the world alround hiin and his own naturll'e are cllanging. We believe in many things at once. We love justice and the truth, and would expose our lives in their cause; but we do not adlllit that justice and truth can be tile peculiar property of any sect or par'ty. We are good Frencillllell, but we confess that the Ger-manls anld te Englishll excel us il nIany respects. Not so ill ep)clhs anld counotries where every mlan belongs with hlis wlhlle nlatlure to his own conmmnunity, race,,r schlool oft' politics. tHence all tile great relis: ru(le converts, tlhose pirate chllrch-builders, rule us still. AVe'are Christialls b)eeause it pleased them to be so(. As in p(1itlcs, it is onIly systeis folunlded bly b:a.rl)arizans wlhicll have erndllred; so il religion it is only the spontaneous, i:t1, if I i-nty so exprii(ss it, faiiitical movements, whiclh are o>nt;ii()>US. TL'I'lcir suess de:'pclds n2ot on the illore omr less satisfiatorv l 0,r,)f t l v f'urn ishl of their divine orig'il, but is trolo(>,'tiloed to wlhat tiley have to say to the hie;arts of the pe(lle. Are we tlhcn to co 1ehlimdc that religio(n is destined gratduailly to die away like tllc lpoplul;r fdllacIis conCern-1 inc mnmo.ic, sorcery, and ghosts? 1By no mealnns. RtcilimDO1 is not a popular fillacy; it is a great imttiitive truth, felt and exitressed by thle peopl(l. All tlle svinb-)lIs wlhich serve to, give shape to the reliuious sentinellt are irnperbect, ar) their fite is to 1)c o)le aflter aln)tlhcr retjefcted. But nlthing is morie remorte firon1 tile trut[l tlanl the dream of those wlio setek to illlagime a perfected hunaliiy without religionll. T'lie coitrary idcea is tlIe truth. The Chlinese, a very illflerio r thralih- o' Ihunaitlit, haive lChardly any religious sclntinIemlt.. But if we supose a platnet inlhllbited by a race wlhose intellcct ual, moral, all physical force were the dlouble of our own, thlat race would be at least twice as rcligiolus as we. I say " at least," for it is likely that the religio0us seritilnent woul(I ilcreltlse more rapidly tlhan- thle intellectual capacity, ail not in merely direct p)roportion. Let us suppose Ca hlu 30-i TTEE AIPOSTLES. malritvr ten timJ-es as powerful as we are; it would bi ilnfinitely mrore relioious. It is even probable that at tlhis degree of sublime elevation, WIing freed fi-om mlIaterial cares and egotism, endlowed with perfect jlludgmenlt alnd appreciation, and perceiving cleA:rly the baseness and niothingness of all that is not true, good, or beautiful, ma.nl would be wholly a re.ligious being, and( woul(d spend lhis ldays in ceaseless adloratioln, passing friom ecstasy to ecst.asy of religious rapture, and livillg anl( (lyingr in the loftiest delight of the soul. Egotisn-m is the measure of inferiority, and dec:reases as we rece(de from the animal nature. A perfeetetd being woulid 1lo ] longer be s,,llisll, but purely religious. The prngress of humanity, tlhen, cannlot dlestroy or weakenc religion, but will develop and increase it. Blut it is time that we return to the thfree missionaries, Patul, Blarnabas, and Mfarlk, whllom we left as they sallied forth from Antioch by the Sileucilan gate. Tn.my third book I sllall attemlipt to tracle t oe fiotsteps of tlhese messengels of good ir,,polrt, byN 7land1 and sea, in calmn alld storm, througoh goo(l adlll e vil days. I lon(g to recount that unequall le d epic; to depict tlhose tossing waves so often traversed, and those endless journeyings in Asia and Europe, during which the Gospel-seed was sown. rIThe ogreat Christian Oldyssey begills. Alreadly the apos. tolic bark has spread its sails, an(l the feslheningr breeze rejoices to bear upon its wings the words of Jesus. FINIS. NOTES. NOTES TO THE INTRODUCTION. 1. The author of the Acts does not directly give to St. Paul the title of apostle. This title is, in general, reserved by him for the membora of the central college, at Jerusalem. 2. Iom. Pseudo-Clem., xvii. 13-19. 3. Justil, Apol. i. 39. In the Ncts also is seen the idea that Peter was the Apostle of the Gentiles. See especially Chap. x., comp. Petri i. 1. 4. I Cor. iii 6, 10; iv. 14, 15; ix. 1, 2. IT. Cor, xi. 2, etc, 5. Letter of Denys of Corinth in Euseb. ffist. Eccl. ii. 25. 6. French rea ders, for ample details upon the discussion and compalrison of the four narratives, may see Strauss, Vie de Jsaus, 3d sect., chapters iv. and v. (traduction Littri): Noluvelle Vi.e 1ci,~:sas, 1. i., ~ 46, &c.; 1, ii. ~ 97, &c. (translation Nefftzer and Doeltaus). 7. The Church early admitted this. See the callon of M{uratori (Anetiq. Lal. iii. 854), (Neutestamentliche Studien, Gotha, 183G), lines 33, &c. 8. Luke i. 1-4; Acts i. 1. 9. See especially Acts, xvi. 12. 10. The paucity of langiuage in the New Testament writers is so great that each one has his own dictionary; so tlht thoe writers of.even very short manuasoripits can be easily roci3'nisod. 11. The use of this word, lcts xiv. 4, 14, is very indirect. 12. Comp. for example, Acts xvii. 14-16; xviii. 5, with 1. Thess. iii. 1-2. 13. I. Cor. xv. 32; TI. Cor. i. 8; xi. 23, &c.; Roe. xv. 19; xvi. 3, &c. 14. Acts xvi 6; xviii. 22-23, compared withl the IEpistle to the Galatiaus. 15. For instance, the sojourn at Cesaroa is left in obscurity. 16. Mabillon, Aclfsetom Iralicul, i. 1 pars, p. 109. 17. Col. iv. 14. 18. See above, p. xii. 19. Alnost all the ilscri)tions are Latin, as at Naples (Cavala), the port of Philippi. See TIoJzey, Alission de JifaxcCdoine, p. 1I, &c. The remarkable famriliarity with nautical subjects of the author of the THE APOSTIES. Acts (ace especially chapters xxvii-xxviii), would give rise to the belief that lie was a Neapolitan. 20. For example, Acfs x. 28. 21. Acts v. 36-37. 22. The Ilebraisms of his style may arise from careful reading of Greek translations of the Old Testament, and above all, from reading the manuscripts of his co-religionists of Palestine, whom he often copied word for word. His quotations from the Old Testament are made without any acquaintance with the original text (for example, xv. 16, &c.). 23. Acts xvii. 22, &c. 24. Luke i. 26; iv. 31; xxiv. 13. 25. Luke i. 31, compared with Matthew i. 21. The name of Jeanne, known only to Luke, is dubious. See, however, Talil. de Bab. Sota, 22 a. 26. Acts ii. 47; iv. 33; v. 13, 26. 27. Acts ix. 22, 23; xii. 3, 11; xiii. 45, 50, and many other passages. It is the same with the fourth gospel also compiled out of Syria. 28. Luke x. 33, &c.; xvii. 16; Acts viii. 5, &c. The same in the fourth gospel: John iv. 5, &c. 29. Acts xxviii. 30. 30. See Vie de Jesus. 31. Lulke xxiv. 50. Mark xvi. 19, shows a similar arrangement. 32. Acts i. 3, 9. 33. See especially Luke i. 1, the expression 7rcv 7r7erXpropoop7tl,'&wV v p E aw mrotypti r,),. 34. Ch. x. xxii. xxvi. 35. The centurion Cornelius, the proconsul Sergius Paulus. 36. Acts xiii. 7, &c.; xviii. 12, &c.; xix. 35, &c.' xxi-v. 7, 17; xxv. 9, 16, 25; xxvii 2; xxviii. 1.7-18. 37. Ibid. xvi. 37, &ec.; xxii. 26, &c. 38. Similar precautions were by no means rare. In the Apocalypse and the Epistle of Peter, Rome is alluded to in disguised language. 39. Luke i. 4. 40. Acts i. 22. 41. See Vie de J;'ss, p. xxxix. &c. 42 This is obvious, especially in the history of the centurion Gorne. lius. 43. Acts ii. 47; iv. 33; v. 13, 26. Of. Luke, xxiv. 19-20. 44. Acts ii. 44-45; iv. 34, &c.; v. 1, &c. 45. I. Cor. xii-xiv. Comp. Mark xvi. 17, and Acts ii. 4-13; x. 46 xi. 15; xix. 6. 46. Comp. Acts iii. 2, &c., to xiv. 8, &c.; ix. 36, ic., to xx. 9, &c; v. THEE APOSTLES. 307 1, &c., with xiii. 9, &c; v. 15-16, to xix. 12; xii. 7, &c., with xvi. 26, &c.; x. 44, with xix. 6. 47. In a speech attributed by the author to Gamaliel, about the year 36, Theudas is spoken of as anterior to Judas of Galilee (Acts v. 36 —37) Now tho revolt of Theudas was in the year 44 (Jos. Ant. xx. v. 1), and certainly after that of the Galilean (Jos. Acnt., xviii. i. 1; B. J., II., viii. 1. 48. Those who cannot refer to the Gerrfian works of Baur, Schneckenburger, Wette, Schwegler, Zeller, where critical questions relative to the Acts are brought to almost a definite solution, may consult Etudes fistoriques et Critiqules sur les Origines d COhristianisme, by A. Stap (Paris, Lacroix, 1864), p. 116, &c.; Michel Nicolas Etudes Critiques sur la Bible; Nrouveau6 Testamnent (Paris, Levy, 1864), p. 223, &c.); Ralss, Ilistoire de la Ti' oogqie Chretienneau6 sitcle Apostolique I. vi. ch. v.; other works of MAI. Kayser, Scherer, Reuss, in the PRevue de Thiologie of Strasburg, 1st series, vol. ii. and iii.; 2d series, vol. ii. and iii. 49 For the exact meaning of A 7rpoove.9,nv atpot Kcl a'ia-txr:, comp. MIatt. xvi. 17. 60. Ile declares it on oath. See chapters i. and ii. of the Epistle to the Galatians. 51. Acts xii. 1. 52. Jos. Ant. XIX. viii. 2; B. J. II. xii. 6. 53. The quotation from Amos (xv. 16-17), made by James according to the Greek version, and in non-accordance with the Hebrew, also shows that this speech is a fiction of the author. 54. We shall show later that this is the true sense. Any way, the question of the circumcision of Titus is of no importance here. 55. Coinp. Act.s xv. 1; Gal. i. 7; ii. 12. 56. I. (cor. viii. 4, 9; x. 25, 29. 57. J cts, xxi. 20, &c. 58. Above all, the Ebionites. See the Homilies Pseudo-Clem. Ireneeus. Adv. haer. 1. xxvi. 2; Epiphanius, Adv. her., hier. xxx; St. Jerome. In Matt. xii. 59. I would nevertheless willingly lose Ananias and Sapphira. 60. De Divinatione, ii. 57. 61. Preface to the Etudes d'Hfistoire Religieuse. CHAPTER I. 1. Mark xvi. 11; Luke xviii. 34; xxiv. 44; John xx. 9, 24, and follow. ing verses. The contrary opinion in Matt. xii. 40; xxi. 4, 24; xvii. 9, 23; xx. 19; xxxi. 32; Mark viii. 34; ix. 9, 10-31; x. 3.4; Luke ix. 22; xi. 29, 30; xviii. 31 et seq.; xxiv. 6-8. Justin, Pial. cuei 308 THE APOSTLFS. Tll/I/t. 106, proceeds from a source on which, begpinnling frorn a certain epoch, considerable reliance may be placed as to the- an. nouncemnents which Jesus had m1ade in reference to his resurrec. tion. The synoptieals acknowledge, mlorover, that if Jesus spake of it at all, his disciples understood nothing of it (Mark ix. 10, 32; Luke xviii. 34: compare Luke xxiv. 8, and John ii. 21, 22). 2 Malk xiii. 10; Luke xxiv. 17, 21. 3 Preceding passages, especially Luke xvii. 24, 25; xviii. 31-34. 4. Taltiud of Babvloii, Pcdba, eliaet-a, 58, a, and the Arabic extract gi eln by the Abbe Barges, in the Balltit dee 7'CU vre des Pclrintages en terre Sactrte, February 1863. 5. Ibn. Hischam, Sginot E.rrtasoul, ddit. Wiisdenfeld, 1012, and following pages. 6. Ps. xvi. 10. The sense of the original is a little different. IBut the received versions thus translate the passage. 7. I. Thess. iv. 12, et seq.; I. Cor. xv., entire; Revelation xx.-xxii. 8. Matt. xvi. 21, et seq.; Mark viii. 31, et seq. 9. Josephus, Ant. XVIII., iii. 3. 10. Carefully reperuse the four stories of the Gospels, and the passage I. Cor. xv. 4, 8. 11. Matt. xxviii. I; Mark xvi. 1; Luke xxiv. 1; John xx. 1. 12. John xx. 2, seems to suppose even that Mary was not alSays alone. 13. John xx. 1, et seq.; and Mark xvi. 9, et seq. It must be observed that the Giospel of' Mark has, in our printed versions of the New Testament, tw-o conclusions: Mark xvi. 1-8; Mlark xvi. 9-20, to sav nothing of two other conclusions. one of which has been hanlded down to us in the manuscript L. of Paris, alnd the margin of the Philoxenian version (ArNov.'cst., edit. CGriesbach, Schultz, 1, page 291 note); the other by St. Jerome, Adz. Pelatg. 1. ii. (vol. iv., 2d part, col. 250, edit. M~arLtiaiay.) The conclusion in the sixteenth chapter, 9thl and following' verses, are wantinr in the Codex'eiamt6icus and ia thei most important Greek mnanuscripts. But, in any case, it is of great antiquity, and its harmony with the fourth Gospel is a striking coincidence. 14. 2Matt. xxvii. 60; Mark xv. 46; Luke xxiii. 53. 15. John xix. 41. 42. 16. See "' Life of Jesus." p. 38. 17. Thte Gospel of the Hebrews contained, perhaps, some analogous cir. cumstance (vide St. Jerome, de Viris Iltestlribus, 2). 13. R. de Vogue, The Chuec7hes of the HIoly Lacndl, pp. 125, i2(i. The verb...,,.... (Matt. xxviii. 2; Mark xvi. 3, 4; Luke xxvi. 2) clearly proves that such was the situation of the toml) of Jesus. 19. In all this, the recital of the fourthll Gospel is vastly superior. It is our principal guide. in Llike xxiv. 12, Peter alone goes to the tonmb. In the conclusion of Mi.lrk glven ini manuscript L, and in tlhe margin of the Philoxenian version (Griesbach, loc. citai.) occur Tr!, TIHE APOSTLES. 309.7r.t;:'v:..)'.) St. Paul (1. Cor. xv. 5) simnilarly introduces Peter only in this first; vision. Further, Luke (xxiv. 24) supposes that many disciples went to the tomb, which observation probably applies to successive visits. It is possible that John has here yielded to the aft;i-thoulnht which betrays him more than once in his Gospel, of showing that he had, in the history of Jesus, a first-rate role, equal even to that of Peter. Perhaps, also, the repeated declarations of John, that he was an eye-witness of the fundamental facts of the Christian faith (Gospel i. 14; xxi. 24; I. John i. 1-3; iv. 14), should be applied to this visit. 20, Jo.ul xx. 1, 10; compare Luke xxiv. 12, 34; I. Cor. xv. 5, and the conclusion of Mark in the manuscript L. 21. Matt. xxviii. 9; in observing that Matt. xxviii. 9, 10, replies to John xx. 16. 17. 22. John xx. 11-17, in harmony with!Mark xvi. 9, 10; compare the parallel, but far less satisfactory account of Matt. xxviii. 1-10; Luke xxiv. 1, 10. 23. John xx. 18. 24. Compare Mark xvi. 9; Luke viii. 2. 25. Luke xxiv. 11. 26. Ibid. xxiv. 24. 27. Ibic. xxiv. 34; I. Cor. xv. 5; the conclusion of M{ark in the manuscript L. The fragment of the Gospel of the Hebrews in St. Ignatius, Epist. ad SXngyrn., and in St. Jerome, de Viris Ill., 16, seem to place " the vision of Peter" in the evening, and to confound it with that of the assembled Apostles. But St. Paul expressly distinguishes between the two visions. 28. Luke xxiv. 23, 24. It results from these passages that the tidings were separately proclaimed. 29. Mark xvi. 1-8; Matthew xxviii. 9, 10, contradict this. But this is at variance with the synoptical system, where the women only see an angel. It seems that the first Gospel was intended to reconcile the synoptical system with that of the fourth, wherein one woman only saw Jesus. 30. Matt. xxxviii. 2, et seq.; Mark xvi. 5, et seq.; Luke xxiv. 4, et seq., 23. This apparition of angels is even introduced into the story of the fourth Gospel (xx. 12, 13), which it completely deranges, being applied to 1Mary of Magdala. The author was unwilling to abandon this traditionary feature. 31. Mark xvi. 8. I2. Luke xxiv. 4, 7; John xx. 12, 13. 33. Matt. xviii. 1, et seq. The story of Matthew is that in which the circumstances have suffered the greatest exaggeration. The earthquake and the feature of the guards are probably late additions. 34. The six or seven accounts which we have of this scene on Sunday morning (Mark having two or three, and Paul having also his own, 810 THIE APOSTLES. to say nothing of the Gospel of the Hebrews), are in complete dis. agreement with each other. 35. Matt. xxvi. 31; Mark xiv. 27; John xvi. 32; Justin, Apol. i. 50; -Dial cume Tryph., 53, 106. The theory of Justin is that immediately on the death of Jesus, there was a complete apostasy on the part of His disciples. 56 Matt. xxviii. 17; Mark xvi. 11; Luke xxiv. 11. 37. Mark xvi. 9; Luke viii. 2. 38. Consult, for example, Calmeil, De la Folie au Point de Vue Pathologiqu4e Hlistorique et Judiciaire. Paris, 1845. 2 vols. in 8vo. 39. See the Pastoral Letters of Jurieut, 1st year, 7th letter; Misson, The Sacred Thleatre of Cevenres (London, 170), pp. 28, 34, 38, 102, 103, 104, 107; Memoirs of Court in Sayons, flis,/ory of [Feacch Literaturee seventeenthl century, i. p. 303. Bulletin of the ireaich Prote, s tant Elisto. ical Society, 1862, p. 174. 40. Miatt. xiv 26; 5Mark vi. 49; Luke xxiv. 37; John iv. 19. 41. Mdark xvi. 12-13; Luke xxiv. 13-33. 42. Compare Josephus, B. J., vii. vi. 6. Luke places this village at 60 stadia, and Josephus at 30 stadlia from Jerusalem. F11,,(v T:. which is found in certain manuscripts and editions of Josephus, is & correction made by some Christian. Consult the edition of G. Pindorf. The most probable locality of Emmaus is KullouwIv, a beautiful place at the bottom of a valley, on the road from Jerusalem to Jaffa. Consult Sepp. Jerusalem and the tlly Lanad (1863), I. p. 56; Bourque.noud in the Studies of Religious istoiry agd Litelatsl're, by the Priests of the Society of Jesus, 1S63, No. 9; and for the exact dis. tances, H. Zscholike. The Emm2aus of the ATew Testassment (Schaffouse, 1865). 43. Mark xvi. 14; Luke xxiv. 33, et seq.: John xx. 19, et seq.: Gospel of the Hebrews in St. Ignatius, EL2plt. ad Siyrz., 3, and in St. Jerome, De Viris Ill.. 16; I. Cor. xv. 5; Justin,.Dial. curn Tryph. 106. 44. Luke xxiv. 34 45. In an island opposite Rotterdam, where the people have remained attached to the most austere Calvinism, the peasants are persuaded that Jesus conies to their death-beds to assure the elect of' their justification; many, in fact, see Hiim a6. In order to conceive the possibility of similar illusions, it is sufficient to remember the scenes of our own days, when a number of persons assembled together unanimously acknowledred that they heard unreal voices, and that in perfectly good faith. The expectation, the effort of the imagination, the desire to believe, sometimes compliances accorded with perfect innocence, explain such of the phenomena as are not produced by direct fraud. These compliances proceed, in general, from persons who are convinced, and who, actuated by a kindly feeling, are unwilling that the party should break up unpleasantly, and are desirous of relieving the masters of the house from mnbarrassment. When a person believes in a miiracle, he always TIIE APOSTLES. 811 unwillingly assists in its propagation. Doubt and denm,l are im7pos sible in this sort of assemblage. You would only cause pain te those who do believe, and to those whom you have invited. And thus it is that these experiences which succeed so well before snall committees, are usually failures before a paying public, and always so when handled by scientific commissions. 47. John xx. 22, 23, echoed by Luke xxiv. 4, 9. 48. Matt. xxviii. 17; Mark xvi. 14; Luke xxiv. 39, 40. 49. John xx. 24, 29; compare Mark xvi. 14; and the conclusion of Mark preserved by St. Jerome, Ado. Pelat. ii. (v. above at page). 50. John xx. 29. 51. It is very remarkable indeed that John, under whose name the above dictum has been transmitted, had no particular vision for himself alone. Cf. I. Cor. xv. 5, 8. 52. John xx. 26. The passage xxi. 14 supposes it is true that there were only two apparitions at Jerusalem before the assembled disciples. But the passages xx. 30, and xxi. 25, give us far more latitude. Cowmpare Acts 1, 3. 53. Luke xxiv. 41, 43; Gospel of the Hebrews, in St. Jerome, De Viris llustribus, 2; conclusion of Mark, in St. Jerome, Ado. Pelag., ii. CHAPTER II. 1. Matt. xxviii. 7; Mark xvi. 7. 2. Matt. xxviii. 10. 3. Ibid. xxvi. 32. 4. Matt. xxviii. 16; John xxi.; Luke xxiv. 49. 50, 52, and the Acts i. 3, 4, are here in flagrant contradiction to Mark xvi.!-8, and Matthaw. The. second conclusion of Mark (xvi. 9, et seq.), and even of the two others which are not a part of the received text, ap) ir- 1 t) b3 inllll iii tila systemn of Luke. But this cannot avail in opposition to the harmony of a portion of the synoptical tradition with the fourth Gospel, and even indirectly with Paul (I. Cor. xv. 5-8), on this point. 5. Matt. xxviii. 16. 6. Ibid. xxviii. 7; Mark xvi. 7. 7. Conclusion of Mark, in St. Jerome, Adv. Pelcg. ii. 8. Matt. xxviii. 16. 9. John xxi. 2, et seq. 10. The author of the Acts i. 14, makes them remain at Jerusalem until the Ascension. But this agrees with his systematic detern-il: ation (Luke xxiv. 49; Acts i. 4), not to allow of a journey into Galilee after the resurrection (a theory contradicted by Matthew and by John). To be consistent in this theory he is compelled to place the 1.[2 lTHE APOSTLES. Ascensiol at Bethany, in which he is contradicted by all the other traditions. 11. 1. Cor. xv. 5, et seq. 12. Johnsxxx. 1, et seq. This chapter has been added to tile already completed Gospel, as a postscript. But it is from the same pen as the rest. 13. John xxi. 9-14; compare Luke xxiv. 41-43. John combines in one the two scenes of the fishing and the meal. But Luke arranges the matter differently. At all events, if we consider with attention the verses of John xxi. 14, 15, we shall come to the conclusion that these harmonies of John are sornewhat artificial. Hallucinations, at the moment of their conception, are always isolated. It is later that consistent anecdotes are formed out of them. This habit of coupling together as consecutive events facts which are separated by months and weeks, is seen, in a very striking manner, by comparing together two passa-es of the same writer, Luke, Gospel, xxiv. end, and A ctas i. at the beginning. Accordiang to the former passage, Jesus should have ascended into heaven on the same dayas the resurrection; whilst, according to the latter, there was an interval of forty days. Again, if we rigorously interpret Mark xvi. 9-20, the Ascension must have taken place on the evening of the resurrection. Nothing more fully proves thml the contradiction of Luke in these two passages, how little the editors of the evangelical writings observed consistency in their stories. 14. John xxi. 15, et seq. 15. Ibid. xxi. 18, et seq. 16. I. Cor. xv. 6. 17. The Transfiouration. 18. Matt. xxviii. 16-20; I. Cor. xv. 6. Compare Mlark xvi. 15, et seq.Luke xxiv. 44, et seq. 19. I. Cor. xv. 6. 20. John affixes no limit to the resuscitated life of Jesus. He appears to suppose it somewhat protracted. According to Matthew, it could only have lasted during the time which was necessary to complete the journey to Galilee and to rendezvous at the mountain pointed out by Jesus. According to the first incomplete conclusion of Mark (xvi. 1-8), the incidents would seem to have transpired as found in Matthew. According to the second conclusion (xvi. 9, 20), according to others; and, according to the Gospel of Luke, the disentombed life would appear to have lasted only one day. Paul (L. Cor.'xv. 5-8), agreeing with the fourth Gospel, prolongs it for two years, since he gives his vision, which occurred five or six years at least after the death of Jesus, as the last of the apparitions. The circumstance of "five hundred brethren" conduces to the same conclusion; for it does not appear that on the morning after the death of Jesus, the group of his friends was compact enough to furnish such a gathering (ActIs i. 15). Many of the Gnostic sects, especially the Valentinians and the Sethians, esti THE APOSTLES. 313 mated the continuance of the apparitions at eighteen months, and even founded mystic theories on that notion (Irenseus Adv. hcer., i. iii. 2; xxx. 14). The author of the Acts alone (i. 3) fixes the duration of the disentombed life of Jesus at forty days. But this is very poor authority; above all, if we remark that it is connected with an erroneous system (Luke xxiv. 49, 50, 52; Acts i. 4, 12), according to which the whole disentombed life of Jesus would have been passed at Jerusalem or in its vicinity. The number forty is symbolic (the people spend forty years in the desert; Moses, forty days on Mount Sinai; Elijah and Jesus fast forty days, &c.). As to the formula of the narrative adopted by the author of the last twelve verses of the second GCospel, and by the author of the third Gospel. a formula according to which the events are confined to one day, the authority of Paul, the most ancient and the strongest of all, corroborating that of the fourth Gospel, which affords the most connected and authentic record of this portion of the evangelic history, appears to us to furnish a conclusive argument. 21. Luke xxiv. 34. 22. John xx. 19, 26. 23. Matt. xxviii. 9; Luke xxiv. 37, et seq.; John xx. 27, et seq.; Gospel of the Hebrews, in St. Ignatius, the Epistle to the Smyrniotes 3, and in St. Jerome, De Viris Illustribus, 16. 24. John vi. 64. 25. Matt. xxviii. 11-15; Justin, Dial. czum Tryph. 17, 108. 26. Matt xxvii. 62-66; xxviii. 4, 11-15. 27. Ibid. xxviii. 9, et seq. 28. The Jews are enraged; Matt. xxvii. 63, when they hear that Jesus had predicted his resurrection. But even the disciples of Jesus had no precise ideas in this respect. 29. A vague idea of this sort may be found in Matthew xxvi. 32; xxviii. 7, 10; Mark xiv. 28; xvi. 7. 30. This is plainly seen in the miracles of Salette and Sourdes. One of the most usual ways in which a miraculous legend is invented is the following. A person of holy life pretends to heal diseases. A sick person is brought to him or her, and in consequence of the excitement finds himself relieved. Next day it is bruited abroad in a circle of ten miles that there has been a miracle. The sick person dies five or six days afterwards; no one mentions the fact; so that at the hour of the burial of' the deceased, people at a distance of forty miles are relating with admiration his wondrous cure. The word loaned to the Grecian philosophy before the ex votes of Samothrace (Diog. Liert. VI. ii. 59,) is also perfectly appropriate. A phenomenon of this kind, and one of the most striking, takes place annually at Jerusalem. The orthodox Greeks pretend that the fire which is spontaneously lighted at the holy sepulchre on the Saturday of the holy week preceding their Easter, takes away the sins of those whose faces it touches without burning them. Millions of pilgrims 14 314 TEHE APOSTLES. have tried it and know full well that this fire does burn (the eol tor. tions which they make, joined to the smell, are a sufficient proof). Nevertheless, ino one has ever been found to contradict the belief of the orthodox Church. This would be to avow that they were defi. cient in faith, that they were unworthy of the miracle, and to acknowledge, oh, heavens I that the Latins were the true Church; for this miracle is considered by the Greeks as the most convincing proof that theirs is the only good church. 32. The affair of Salette before the civil tribunal of Grenoble (decree of 2d May. 1855), and before the court of Grenoble (decree of 6th May, 1S57), pleadings of MMA. Jules Favre and Bethmont, &c., collected by J. Sabbatier (Grenoble Vellot. 1857.) 33. John xx. 15. Could it include a glimmering of this? 34. See above. 35. John expressly says so, xix. 41, 42. 36. John xx. 6, 7. 37. One cannot help thinking of Mary of Bethany, who in fact is not represented as taking any part in the event of the Sunday morning. See "Life of Jesus' p. 341, et seq.; 359, et seq. 38. Celsus has already delivered some excellent critical observations OL this subjecct (in Origcen). Coltra Celsum, ii. 55. 39. Mark xvi. 9; Luke viii. 2. CHAPTER III. 1. Luke xxiv. 47. 2. Respccting the name of " Galileans" given to the Christians, see be. low. 3. Matthew is exclusively Galilean; Luke and the second Mlark, xvi. 9-22, are exclusively Jerusalemitish. John anites the two traditions. Paul (i.. Cor. xv. 5-8) also admits the occurrence of visions at widely separated places. It is possible that the vision of " the five hundred brethren" of Paul, which we have conjecturally identified with that " of the mountain of Galilee" of Matthew, was a Jerusalemite vision. 4. I. Cor. xv 7. One cannot explain the silence of the four canonical Evangelists respecting this vision in any other way than by referring it to an epoch placed on this side of the scheme of their recital. The chronological order of the visions, on which St. Paul insists with so much precision, leads to the same result. 5. Gospel of the HIebrews, cited by St. Jerome De Viris Illustribus, 2. Compare Luke xxiv. 41-43. 6. Gospel of the Hebrews, cited above. i. JTohn vii. 5. THE APOSTLES. 315 8. Could there be an allusion to this abrupt change in Gal. ii. 6? 9. Acts i. 14, weak authority indeed. One already perceives in Luke a tendency to magnify the part of iMary. Luke, chap. i. and ii. 10. John xix. 25, 27. 11. The tradition respecting his sojourn at Ephesus -is modern and valueless. See Epiphanius. Adv. heret. lxxviii. 11. 12. See Life of Jesus. 13. Gospel of the Hebrews, passage cited above. 14. Acts viii. 1; Galat. i 17-19; ii. 1, et seq. 15. Luke xxiv. 49. Acts i. 4. 16. This idea indeed is not developed until we come to the fourth Gospel (chap. xiv., xv., xvi.). But it is indicated in Matt. iii. 11. Mlark i. 8; Luke iii. 16; xii. 11, 12, xxiv. 49. 17. John xx. 22-23. 18. Ibid. xvi. 7. 19. Luke xxiv. 49; Acts i. 4, et seq. 20. Acts i 5-8. 21. I. Cor xv. 7; Luke xxiv. 50, et seq. Acts i. 2, et seq. Certainly it might with propriety be admitted that the vision of Bethany related by Luke was parallel to the vision of the mountain in Matthew xxviii. 16, et seq. transposing the place where -it occurred. And yet this vision of Matthew is not followed by the Ascension. In the second conclusion of Mark, the vision with the final instructions, followed by the Ascension, takes place at Jerusalem. Lastly Paul relates the vision " to all the Apostles," as distinct from that seen by " the five hundred brethren." 22. Other traditions referred the conferring of this power to anterior visions. (John xx. 23.) 23. Luke xxiv. 23; Acts xxv. 19. 24. Acts i. 11. 25. 1 Cor. xv. 8. 26. Matt. xxviii. 20. 27. John iii. 13; vi. 62: xvi. 7; xx. 77; Ephos. iv. 10; I. Peter iii. 22. Neither Matthew nor John gives the recital of the Ascension. Paul (1 Cor. xv. 7-8) excludes even the very idea. 28. Mark xvi. 19; Luke xxiv. 50-52. Acts 2-12. Apol. i. 50. Ascen. sion of Isaiah, Ethiopic version, xi. 22; Latin version (Venice, 1522), sub fin. 29. Compare the account of the Transfiguration. 30. Jos Antiq. iv., viii. 58. 31. II. Kings, ii. 11, et seq. 32. Luke, last chapter of the Gospel, and the first chapter of the Acto. 33. Luke xxiii. 52. 316 THE APOSTLES. CHAPTER IV. 1. Matt. xviii. 20. 2. Acts i. 15. The greater part of these "five hundred brethren' doubtless remained in Galilee. That which is told in Acts ii. 41, is surely an exaggeration, or at least an anticipation. 3. Luke xxiv. 53; Acts ii. 46; compare Luke ii. 37; Hegesippus in Eusebius, Hist. Eccles. ii. 23. 4. Deuteron. x. 18; I. Tim. vi. 8. 5. Reaid the Wars of the Jews of Josephus. 6. John xx. 22. 7. I. Kings xix. 11-12. 8. This work appears to have been written at thle commencement of the second century of our era. 9. The Ascension of Isaiah, vi. 6, et seq. (Ethiopic version.) 10. Matt. iii. 11; Mark i. 8; Luke iii. 16; Acts i. 5; xi. 16; xix. 14; I. John 6, et seq. 11. Compare Misson, The Sacred Theatre of Cevennes (London, 1707), p. 103. 12. Revue des Deux Y1ondes, Sept. 1853, p. 96, et seq. 13. Jules Remy, Jourlney to the Mormon Territory (Paris, 1860), Books II. and III.; for example, Vol. I., p. 259-260; Vol. IL. 470, et seq. 14. Astie, The Religious Revival of the United States (Lausanne, 1859). 15. Acts ii. 1-3; Justin Apol. i. 50. 16. The expression " tongue of fire " means in Hebrew, simply, a flame (Isaiah v. 74). Compare Virgil's l2Eieid II. 682, 84. 17. Jamblicus (De Myst., sec. iii. cap. 6) exposes all this theory of the luminous descents of the Spirit. 18. Compare Talmud of Babylon. Chagiga, 14 b.; Midraschim, Schir hasschirin Rabba; fol. 40 b.; Ruth Rabba, fol. 42 a.; Kohelete7 Rabba, 87 a. 19. Matt. iii. 11; Luke iii. 16. 20. Exodus iv. 10; compare Jeremiah i. 6. 21. Isaiah vi. 5, et seq. Compare Jeremiah i. 9. 22. Luke xi. 12; John xiv. 26. 23. Acts ii. 5, et seq. This is the most probable sense of the narrative, although it may mean that each of the dialects was spoken separately by each of the preachers. 24. Acts ii. 4. Compare I. Cor. xii. 10, 28; xiv. 21, 22. For analogous imaginations, see Calmeil, De la Folie, i. p. 9, 262; ii. p. 357, et seq, 25. Talnud of Jerusalem, Sota, 21 b. 26. Testimony of the Twelve Patriarchs, Judah, 25. 27. Acts ii. 4; x. 34, et seq.; vi. 15; xix. 6; I. Cor. xii., xiv. THE APOSTLES 317 28 Mark xvi. 17. It must be remembered that in the ancient Hebrew, as in all the other ancient languages (see my Origin of Lalgutagae, p. 177, et seq.), the words meaning "stranger," "strangt e language," were derived from the words which signified "to stammer," "to sob," all unknown dialect always appearing to a simple people, as it were, an indistinct stammering. See Isaiah xxviii. 11; xxxiii. 19; I. Cor. xiv. 21. 29 I. Cor. viii. 1, remembering what precedes. 30. I. Cor. xii. 28, 30; xiv. 2, et seq. 31. I. Sam. xix. 23, et seq. 32. Plutarch, Of the Pythian Oracies, 24. Compare the prediction of Cas. sandra in the Agamemnon of 2Eschylus. 33. I. Cor. xii. 3; xvi. 22; Rom. viii. 15. 34. Rom viii. 23, 26, 27. 35. I. Cor. vii. 1; xiv. 7, et seq. 36. Rom. viii. 26, 27. 37. I. Cor. xiv. 13, 14, 27, et seq. 38 Jurien, Pastoral Letters, 3d year, 3d letter; Hilsson, The Sacried Theatre of Cevennes, p. 10, 14, 15, 18, 19, 22, 31, 32, 36, 37, 65, 66, 68, 70, 94, 104, 109, 126, 140; Bruey's I:istory of Fazaticisin (Monltpelier, 1709). I., pages 145, et seq.; Flechier, Select Letters (Lyoll, 1734), I., p. 353, et seq. 39. Karl Hase, Hlistory qf the Churchl, ~~ 439 and 458, 5: the Protestant Joulrnal, I-ope, 1st April, 1847. 40. M. Iohl, Bzruhstucke aus dea Leben und den Schr ften; Edward Irvino's (Saint-Gall, 2839), p. 145, 149, et seq.; Karl Ilase, IHistory of the C(hurch, ~ 458. 4. For the Mormons, see Rermiy. Voyage I., p. 176-177, note; 259, 260; II., p. 55, et seq. For the Convulsiollaries of St. Medard, see, above all, Carre de Montg'eron, The Truth about Ai'acles, &c. (Paris, 1737, 1744), II., p. 18, 19, 49, 54, 55, 63, 64, 80, &c. 41. Acts ii. 13, 15. 42. Mark iii. 21, et seq.; John x. 20, et seq.; xii. 27, et seq. 43. Acts xix. 6; 1. Cor. xiv. 3, et seq. 44. Acts x. 46; I. Cor. xiv. 15, 16, 26. 45. Col. iii. 16; Eph. v. 49 (.it\1,6t sive,,. Jai 7rvE,1,iartK-,,). See the former chapters of the Gospel of Luke. Compare in particular, Luke i. 46, with Acts x. 46. 46. I. Cor. xiv. 15; Col. iii. 16; Eph. v. 19. 47. Jeremiah i. 6. 48. Mark xvi. 17. 49. 1. Cor. xiv. 22. IHe/,,p in the Epistles of S. Paul, often approaches the sense of Jvip,lts. The spiritual phenomena are regarded as d,,,,i/,e, that is to say, miracles. 50. ireneeus, Adv. hAeret. V., vi. 1; Tertullian, Adv. Miar'ciom, v. 8. Con. stit. Aepost. viii. 1. 831 THIE A1'OSTLES. 51. Luke ii. 37; II. Cor. vi. 5; xi. 27. 52. II. Cor. vii. 10. 53. Acts viii. 26, et seq.; x. entire; xvi. 6, 7, 9, et seq. Compare Luke ii 27, &c. 54 Acts xx. 19, 31. Rom. viii. 23, 26. CHAPTER V. 1. Acts ii. 42-47; iv. 32, 37; v. 1, 11; vi. 1, et seq. 2. Ibid. ii. 44, 46, 47. 3. Ibid. ii. 46. 4. No literary production has ever so often repeated the word "joy' as the New Testament. See I. Thess. i. 6; v. 16; Rom. xiv. 17; xv. 13; Galat. v. 22; Philip i. 25; iii. 1; iv. 4; I. John i. 4, &c. 5. Acts xii. 12. 6. See Life of Jesus, p. xxxix., et seq. 7. Ebionim means " poor folk." See Life of Jesus, p. 182, 183. 8. To recall the year 1000. All instruments in writing commencing with: The evening of the world being at hand or similar expressions, are in donations to the monasteries. 9. Hodgson, in the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, vol. V., p. 33, et seq.; Eugene Burnouf, Introductioin to the History of Indian Buddhism, i. p. 278, et seq. 10. Lucian, Death of Peregrinus, 13. 11. Papyrus at Turin, London, and Paris, collected by Brunet de Presle, Merz. respecting the Scrapeurn of.iMe7phis (Paris, 1852); Eggee, Mere. of Ancient History and Philology, p. 151, et seq., and in the Notices and Extracts. vol. xviii., 2d part, p. 264-359. Observe that the Christian-hermit life was first commenced in Egypt. 12. Acts xi. 29, 30; xxiv. 17; GTalat. ii. 10; Rom. xv. 26, et seq.; I. Cor. xvi. 1-4; II. Cor. viii. and ix. 13. Acts v. 1-11. 14. Ibid. ii. 46; v. 12. 15. Ibid. iii. 1. 16. James, for'nstance, was all his life a pure Jew. 17. Acts ii. 47; iv. 33; v. 13, 26. 18. Acts ii. 46. 19. I. Cor. x. 16; Justin, Apol. i. 65-67. 20. Ev,,itr., Joseph, Antiq. XIV. x. 8, 12. 21. Luke xxii. 19; I. Cor. xi. 24, et seq.; Justin, passage already cited. 22. In the year 57, the institution called the Eucharist already abounded with abuses (I. Cor. xi. 17, et seq.), and was, in consequence, ancient THE APOSTIES. 319 23. Acts xr. 7; Pliny, Epist. x. 97. Justin, Apol. i. 67. 24. Acts xx. 7, 11. 25. Pliny, Epist. x. 97. 26. John xx. 26, does not satisfactorily prove the contrary. The Ebion ites always observed the Sabbath. St. Jerome, in Matt. xii., coin mencement. 27. Acts i. 15-26. 28. See Life of Jesus. p. 437, et seq. 29 Compare Eusobius, Hist. Eccl. iii. 39 (according to Papias). 30. Justin, Apol. i. 39, 50. 31. Pseudo-Abdias, etc. 32. Compare 1. Cor. xv. 10, with Romans xv. 19. 33. Gal. i. 17, 19. 34. Acts vi. 4. 35. Compare Matt. x. 2-4; Mark iii. 16-19; Luke vi. 14-16; Acts i. 13, 36. Acts i. 14; Gal. i. 19; I. Cor. ix. 5. 37. Gal. ii. 9. 38. See Lify of Jesus, p. 307. 39. See Life of Jesus, p. 150. Compare Papias in Eusebius, Ilist. Eccl., iii. 39; Polycrates, Ibid. v. 24; Clement of Alexandria, Strom. iii. 6; vii. 11. 40. For instance. perhaps K;p J,. See Wescher, in the Archceological Review, April, 1866. 41. Acts i. 26. See below, p. 42. Acts xiii. 1, et seq.; Clement of Alexandria, in Eusebius, H7ist. Eccl., iii. 23. 43. Acts v. 1-11. 44. I. Cor. v. 1, et seq. 45. I. Tim. i. 20. 46. Genesis xvii. 14, and numerous other passages in the Mosaic code; Mischna, Kerithoadth, i. 1; Talmud of Babylon, Mbed Katou, 28, a. Compare Tertullian, De Animd, 571. 47. Consult the Hebrew and Rabbinical dictionaries, at the word And. Compare the word to exterminate. 48. AMischna, Sanhedrim ix. 6; John xvi. 2; Joseph. B. J., vii, viii., 1; III. AMaccab. (apocr.), vii. 8, 12-13. 49. Luke vi. 15; Acts i. 13. Compare Matt. x. 4; Mark iii. 18. 50. Acts v. 1-11. Compare Acts xiii. 9-11. 51. Acts i. 15; ii. 14, 37; v. 3, 29; Gal. i. 18; ii. 8. 52. Acts iii. 1, et seq.; viii. 14; Gal ii. 9. Compare John xx 2, et seq.; xxi. 20, et seq. 53. According to AMatthew xxviii. l, et seq., the keepers would have been 320 TiHE APOSTLES. witnesses to the descent of the angel who removed the stone. Tlis very embarrassed account would also lead us to conclude that the women were witnesses of the same act, but it does not expressly say so. Anyhow, whatever the keepers and the women should have seen, according to the same narrative, would not be Jesus resuscitated. but the angel. Such a story, isolated and inconsistent as it is, is evidently the most modern of all. 54. Luke xxiv. 48; Acts i. 22; ii. 32' iii. 15; iv. 33; v. 32; x. 41; xiii. 30, 31. 55 See above p. 1, note I. 56. See "Life of Jesus," p. 275, et seq. 57. I. Cor. xvi. 22. These two words are Syro-Chaldaic. 58. Matt. x, 23. 59. Acts ii. 33, et seq.: x. 42. 60. Luke xxiv. 19. 61. Acts ii. 22. 62. The diseases were generally considered to be the work of the devil. 63. Acts x. 38. 64. Acts ii. 36; viii. 37; ix. 22; xvii. 31, &c. 65. Acts ii. 44, et seq.; iv. 8, et seq.; 25, et seq.; vii. 14, et seq.; v. 43 and the Epistle attributed to St. Barnabas, entire. 66. James i. 26-27. 67. Later it was called'evTrovpycl', Acts xiii. 2. 68. Ileb. v. 6; vi. 20; viii. 4; x. 11. 69. Revel. i. 6; v. 10; xx. 6. 70. Acts xiii. 2; Luke ii. 37. 71. Rom. vi. 4, et seq. 72. Acts viii. 12, 16; x. 48. 73. Acts viii. 16; x. 47. 74. Matt. ix. 18; xix. 13, 15; Mark v. 23; vi. 5; vii. 32; viii. 23-25, x.. 16; Luke iv. 40; viii. 13. 75. Acts vi. 6; viii. 17, 19; ix. 12, 17; xiii. 3; xiv. 6; xxviii. 8; 1 Tim. iv. 14; v. 22; ii. Tim. i. 6; Heb. vi. 2; James v. 13. 7 6. Matt. iii. 11; Mark i. 8; Luke iii. 16; John i. 26; Acts i. 5; xi. 16; xix. 4. 77. Matt. xxviii. 19. 78. See the Cholaste, Sabeau manuscripts of the Imperial Bible, Nos. 8, 10, 11 13. 79. Vendidad-Sadl viii. 296, et seq.; ix. 1-145; xvi. 18, 19. Spiegel, Avesta, ii. p. 83, et seq. 80. I. Cor. xii. 9, 28, 30. 81. Matt. ix. 2: Mark ii. 5; John v. 14; ix. 2; James v. 15; Mischna rSYchabbath, ii. 6; Talnm. of Bab. Nedarirn, fol. 41 a. TIIE A'OSTLES. " ~ 1 82. Matt. ix. 33; xii. 22; Mark ix. 16, 21; Luke xi. 14; Acls xix. 12; Tertullian Aplot. xxii.; adv. Mark iv. 8. 83. Acts v. 16; xix. 12-16. 84. James v. 14-15. Mark vi. 13. 85. Luke x. 34. 86. Mark xvi. 18; Acts xxviii. 8. 87. 1. Thess. iv. 13, et seq.; I. Cor. xv. 12, et seq. 88. Phil. i. 33, seems to be a shade different. But compare I. Thess. iv. 14-17. See, above all, Revel. xx. 4-6. 89. Paul, in previously cited passages, and Phil. iii. 11; Revel. xx. entire; Papias, in Eusebius, Jist. Eccl. iii. 39. Sometimes one sees a difebrent belief springing up, above all in Luke (Gospel xvi. 22, et seq.; xxiii. 43, 46). But this is a weak authority on a point of Jewish theology.'The Essonians had already adopted the Greek dogma of the immortality of the soul. 90. Compare Acts xxiv. 15 with I. Thess. iv. 13, et seq.; Phil. iii. 11. CoLmpare Revel. xx. 5. See Leblant, Christitazn ],scripthons in Gaul ii. p. 81, et seq. 91. Acts xi. 27, et seq.; xiii. 1; xv. 32: xxi. 9, 10, et seq.; I. Cor. xii. 28, et seq.; xiv. 29-37; lph. iii. 5; iv. 11; Revel. i. 3; xvi. 6; xviii. 20, 24; xxii. 9. 92. Luke i. 46, et seq.; 68, et seq.; ii. 29, et seq. 93. Acts xvi. 25; 1. Cor. xiv. 15; Col. iii. 16; Eph. v. 19; James v. 13. 94. The identity of this chant in religious communities which have been separated fromn the earliest ages proves that it is of great antiquity. 95. Num. v. 2; Dent. xxvii. 15, et seq.; Ps. 106, 48; I. Chron. xvi. 36; Nehem. v. 13, viii. 6. 96. I. Cor. xiv. 16: Justin. Apol. i. 65, 67. 97. I. Cor. xiv. 7, 8, does not prove it. The use of the verb zbi.x,l, does not any more prove it. This verb originally implied the use of an instrument with strings. but in time it became synonymous with "to chant the Psalms." 98. Col. iii. 16; Eph. v. 19. 99. See Du Cange, at the word Lollardi (edit. Didot). Compare the Cantilenes of the Covenols. Pr'ophetic warnings of Elijaall Marion (London, 1707), p. 10, 12, 14, &c. 100. James v. 12. 101. Matt. xvi. 28; xxiv. 34; Mark viii. 39; xiii. 30; Luke ix. 27 xxi. 32. 14* 322 THE APOSTLES. CHAPTER VI. 1. Acts, first 2hapters. 2. Acts v. 42. 3. See for example, Acts ii. 34, &c., and in general all the first chapters 4. I. Cor. i. 22; ii. 4-5; It. Cor. xii. 12; 1. Thess. i. 5; II. Tl'hess. ii. 9 Gal. iii. 5; Rom. xv. 18-19. 5. Reom. xv. 19; II. Cor. xii. 12; I. Thess. i. 5. 6 Acts v. 12-16. The Acts are full of miracles. That of Eutychus (Acts xx. 7-12) is surely related by ocular testimony. The same of Acts xxviii. Comp. Papias in Euseb. II. E. iii. 39. 7. Jewish and Christian exorcism were regarded as the most efficacious even for the heathen. Damascius, Vie d'Isidore, 56. 8. Acts v. 15. 9. I. Cor. xii. 9, &c., 28, &c.; Constit. apost. viii. 1. 10. Irenius. Adv. heer. ii. xxxii. 4; v. vi. 1; Tertull. Apol. 23-43; Ad Scapulta,n, 2; De Coronza, 11; De Spectaculis, 24; DeAninta, 57; Conslit. Apost. chapter noted, which appeared drawn from the work of St. Hippolytus upon the Chrislnata. 11. Miracles are of daily occurrence anmong the Mormons. Jules Remy, A Visit to the Mormons, I. p. 140, 192, 259-260; II. 53, &c. 12. Acts iv. 36-37. Cf. ibid. xv. 32. 13. Ibid. xiii. 1. 14. Ibid. xxi. 16. 15. Jos. Ant. XIII. x. 4; XVII. xii. 1, 2; Philo, Leg. ad Caium,, ~ 36. 16. Iqlence for Barnabas his name of Ilallevi and of Col. iv. 10-11. Milason appears to be the translation of some Hebrew name from the root zacar, as Zacharius. 17 Col. iv. 10-11. 18. Acts xii. 12. 19. I. Petri, v. 13. Acts xii, 12; Papias in Euseb. H. E. iii 39. 20. Acts xii 12-14. All this chapter, where the affairs of Peter are so minutely related, appears edited by John-MLark. 21. As the name of Iiatrcis was not co:nmou at that time among the Jews, there is no reason for referring to different individuals the passaes relating to a personage of that name. 22. Comp. Acts viii. 2, with Acts ii. 5. 23. Acts. vi. 5. 24. Ibid. 25. Comp. Acts xxi. 8-9 with Papias in Euseb. Iist. Eccl. iii. 39. 26. Rom. xvi. 7. It is doubtful whether';..ix or'[,,i vi. Juniazzs. 27. Paul calls them his,,lyynETsE;.but it is difficult to say whether that signifies that these were Jews, of the tribe of Benjamin or of Tarsus, or really relations of Paul. The first sense is the most probable, TIlE APOSTI,ES. 323 Comp. Rom. ix. 3; xi. 14. In anlly event, this word implies that they were Jewrs. 28. Acts vi. 1-5; II. Cor, xi. 22; Phil. iii. 5. 29. Acts ii. 9-11; vi. 9. 30. The Talmud of Jerusa.lem, Magilla, fol. 73 d, mentions four hundrer and twenty-five synagogues. Comp. Midrasch Ekl., 52 b, 70 d. Such a number would appear by no means improbable to those who have seen the little fallily mosques which are found in every Mahommedan village. But the Talmudic information about Jerusa, lern is of mediocre authority. 31. Acts vi. 1. 32. The Epistle of St. James was written in moderately pure Greek. -It is true that the authenticity of thlis Epistle is not certain. 33. The savants wrote in ancient Hebrew, somewhat altered. 34. Jos. Ant. last paragraph. 35. This proves the transcriptions of Greek into Syriac. I have developed here in my EclaircisselmnetS sir: s des Lang-ees s&iitiques siur quelque points de la Prononciatian Grecqeze. (Paris, 1849.) The langua-ge of the Greek inscriptions of Syria is very bad. 36 Jos. Ant. loc. cit. 37. Sat. 1. v. 105. CHI-IAPTER VII. 1. See the accounts collected and translated by Eugene Burnouf. Introclction to the Iistosry of Indiarn Buddhism, i. p. 137, and following pages, and particularly pp. 198, 199. 2 See Life of Jesus. 3. Acts ii. 45; iv. 34, 37; v. 1. 4. Acts v. 1, and following verses. 5. Ibid. ii. 45; iv. 35. 6. Ibid. vi. 1, &c. 7. See chapter vi. 8. Acts xxi. 8. 9. Phil. i. 1; I. Timothy iii. 8, and following. 10. Romans xvi. 1, 12; I. Tim. iii. 11; v. 9, and following. Pliny Epist x. 97. The Epistles to Timnothy are most probably not from the pen of Saint Paul; but are in any event of very ancient date. 11. Rom. xvi. 1; I. Cor. ix. 5. Philemon 2. 12. I. Tim. v. 9, and following. 31. Constit. Apost. vi. 17. 324 THFn APOSTLES. 14. Sap. i. 10; Eccl. xxxvii. 17; Matthew xxiii. 14; Mark xii 40; Luke xx. 47; -James 27. 15. Mischna, Sot., iii. 4. 16. Talmud of Babylon, Sota 22 a; Comp. I. Tim. v. 13. 17. Acts vi. 1. 18. Ibid. xii, 12. 1 9. I. Tim. v. 9, and following. Compare Acts ix. 39, 41. 20. I. Tim. v. 3, and following. 21. Ecclesiastes vii. 27; Ecelesiasticus vii. 26, and following;' ix. 1, and following; xxv. 22, and following; xxvi. 1, and following; xlii. 9, and following. 22. For the costume of the widows of the Eastern Church, see the Greek manuscript No. 64 in the Bibliothequ.e lizeriale (old building), fol. 11. The costume to this day is very nearly the same the type, the religious female of the East, being the widow, as that of the Latin nun is the virgin. 23. Compare the " Shepherd " of Hermas, vis. ii. ch. 4. 24. K,hoyoil, the name of the religious females or nuns of the Eastern Church. KaXsi combines the significance of both "beautiful" and " good." 25. See Note 16. 26. I. Cor. xii. entire. 27. The Pietist congregations of America, who are to the Protestants what convents are to the Catholics, resemble in many points the primitive churches. Bridel, Recits Americains. (Lausanne, 1861.) 28. Prov. iii. 27, and following; x. 2; xi. 4; xxii. 9; xxviii. 27; EccL iii. 23, and following; vii. 36; xii. 1, and following; xviii. 14; xx. 13, and following; xxxi. 11; Tobit, ii. 15, 22: iv. 11; xii. 9; xlv. 11; Daniel iv. 24; Talmud of Jerusalem; Peah. 15, b. 29. MBatthew vi. 2; Mischna, Schekalim, v. 6; Talmud of Jeru,.alem, Demai, fol. 23, b. 30. Acts x. 2, 4, 31. 31. Ps. cxxxiii. 32. Acts ii. 44-47; iv. 32-35. 33. Ibid. ii. 41. 34. See chapter vi. 35. Acts vi. 5; xi. 20. CHAPTER VIII. 1. Acts iv. 6. See Life cf Jesus. 2. Acts iv. 1-31; v. 47-41. 3. See Life of Jesus. TEFE APOSTLES. 325 4. Acts v. 41. 5. Ib. iv. 5-6 v. 17. Comp. James ii. 6. 6. roPvog apXie, arX),, in Acts i.; apXteXEe, in Josephus Ant. xx. xiii. & 7. Acts xv. 5; xxi. 20. 8. Let us add that the reciprocal antipathy of Jesus and the Pharisees seems to have been exaggerated by the synoptical Evangelists, perhaps on account of the events which, at the time of the great war, led to the flight of the Christians beyond the Jordan. It cannot bte denied that James, brother of the Lord, was pretty nearly a Pharisee. 9. Acts v. 34, and following. See Life of Jes s. 10. Acts vi. 8; vii. 59. 11. Probably descendants of Jews who had been taken to Rome as slaves, and then freed. Philo, Leg. ad C'aiaaum, 4 23; Tacitus, Aean. ii. 85. 12. See Life of Jesus. 13. Mattt. xv. 2, and following; Mark vii. 3; Gal. i. 14. 14. Compare Gal. iii. 19; Heb. ii. 2; Jos. Ant. XV. v. 3. It was supposed that God Himself had not revealed Himself in the theophanies of the ancient law, but that he had substituted in his place a sort of intermediary, the mnaleak Jehovah. See the Hebrew dictionaries on the word j,~7:* 15. Deunt. xvii. 7. 16. Acts vii. 59; xxii. 20; xxvi. 10. 17. John xviii. 31. 18. Josephus, Ant. XVIII. iv. 2. 19. Ihb., Ib., XV. xi. 4; XVIII. iv. 2. Compare XX; i. 1, 2. 20. The whole trial of Jesus proves this. Compare Acts xxiv. 27; xvv. 9. 21. Suetonius, Caius, 6; Dion Cassius lix. 8, 12; Josephus Ant. XVII, v. 3; vi. 10; 2 Cor. xi. 32. 22. Ventidius Cumanus experienced quite similar adventures. It is true that Josephus exaggerales the misfortunes of all those who are opposed to his nation. 23. Madden, I-istory of Jewish Coinage, p. 134, and following. 24. Jos. Ant. XVIII. iv. 3. 25. Ib., XVIII. v. 3. 26 Acts viii. 2. The words,idvp cEXaAilS designate a proselyte, not a pure Jew. See Acts ii. 5. 27. Acts viii. 1, and following; xi. 19; Acts xxvi. 10, would even lead to the belief that there were other deaths than that of Stephen. But we must not misconstrue words in our versions of a style so loose. Compare Acts ix. 1-2 with xxii. 5 and xxvi. 12. 28. Compare Acts i. 4; viii. 1, 14; Gal. i. 17, and following. 396 TIHE APOSTLES. 29 Acts ki. 26-30 prove, in fact, that in the mind of the autlhor the expressions of' viii. 1 had not a meaning so absolute as might b)e supposed. [Except that after the first panic was over some of tle disciples, at first wholly scattered, may have returned by the time of Saul's arrival.-Tr.] 30. This hiappened in the case of the Essenians. 31. This happened to the Franciscans. 32. I. Thess. ii, 14. 33. Acts viii. 3; ix. 13, 14, 21, 26; xxii. 4, 19; xxvi. 9, and following Gal. i. 13, 23; I. Cor. xv. 9; Phil. iii. 6; I. Tim. i. 13. 34. Gal. i. 14; Acts xxvi. 5; Phil. iii. 5. 35. Acts ix. 13, 21, 26. CIHAPTER IX. 1. Acts viii. 1, 4; xi. 19. 2. Acts viii. 5, and following. That it was not the apostle is evident fromn a colmparison of the ptsseages, Acts viii. 1, 5, 12, 14, 40; xxi. 8. It is true that the verse, Act.s xxi. 9, compared wvith what is said by Papias (in Eusebius Ilis. Ecc. iii. 39), Polycrates (ilb. v. 24), Clement of Alexandria (Strom. iii. 6), would icentify the Apostle Philip, of whom these three ecclesiastical writers are speaking with the Philip who plays so important a part in the Acts. But it is more natural to admit that the statement in thle verse in question is a mistalke, and that the verse wias only interpolated to contradict the tradition of the cllhurches of Asia and even of Hierlcpolis. whlllither the Philip who 1had dauL'hters prophetesses retired'The particular data possessed by the author of the 4th Gospel (written, as it scems, in Asia AMinor), inl regard to the Apostle Philip are thus explained. 3. See Life of Jesus, ch. xiv. It may be, however, that the habitual tendency of the -author of the Acts shows itself here again. See Introd., and supra. 4. Act' viii. 5-40. 5. Jos. Ant. XVIII. iv. 1, 2. 6. At this (lday Jit, on the road from Nablous to Jaffa, an hour and a half fiorn Nablous and from Sabastiecl. Sae Robinson Bib. Res. ii. p. 308, note; iii. 134: (2d ed.), and his map. - The accounts relative -to this personage, given by the Christian writers, are so fabulous that doubts may be raised even as to the reality of his existeince. These doubts are all thle mora specious firom the fact that in tle Pseudo-Ce lcaltine literature ":Simon the Magrician " is oftfn a pseudlonyin for St. Paul. B3ut we cannot -admit tlhat the legend of S;mon rests uipon this foundatioa alone. How could thle author of the AcLta, so faIvorable to St. Paul, haye admitted THlE APOSSTLES. 327 a doctrine the hostile bearing of which could not have escaped him' The chronological series of the Simonian School, the writ. inos which remain to us of it, thfl precise facts of topography and chronolo;g' given by St. Justin, fellow-countryman of our thaumaturgist, are inexplicable, moreover, upon the hypothesis of Simnon's having been an imaginary person, (See especially Justin Apol. ii 15, and Dial. czoum Tryph. 120.) 8. Acts viii. 5, and following. 9. Ib. viii. 9, and followinag. 10. Justin, Apol. i. 26, 56. 11. IIhotil. Pseulo-Cieln. xvii. 15, 17; Quadratus, in Eusebius list. Eco iv. 3. 12. Acts viii. 25. 13. lb. viii. 26-40. 14. I. M,,acc. x. 8/1, 89; xi. 60, a'nd flloi.vrl. Jos. Aot. XIII., xiii. 3; XV. vii. 3; SVII[. xi. 5; B. J., 1. iv. 2..5. Robilson Bi'b. Res., II. p. 41 and 511, a15 (21 el). L6. Talm. of' Bib. Erebin 53 bi and 5-1 a; Soga, 46 b.:7. Isaiah liii. 7. 18. At this day i-drawi, near to Gebel-Barkal (Lepsius, Delzkmieler i. pI. 1 andl 2 bis.) Strabo XVIL, i. 54. 19. Strabo, XVII., i. 51; Pliny VI., xxxv. 8; Dion Cassius liv. 5; Elseabius l/ist. Ecc. ii. 1. 20. The descend;tants of these Jews still exist ulnder the namne of Fala. sy'B. The missionaries who c:ilvertel theln came firom hl'ypt. Their translation of the 13Bibbe wLs ma-lde from tle Greek version. The Falktsyln are not Israelites by blool. 21. John xii. 20; Acts x. 2. 22. See De.al. xxiii. 1. It is true thlat m,;,., h,,, h mihlt bo taklen by catachresis to deoigrnite a chlean)r!ai a s frunctina ry of' t l Oriental Court. But rs.lv,,r, was suflfcie it to render this idea; nvov,,Xo, ought then to be taken here in its proper sense. 23. Acts viii. 26, 29. 24. To conclude thence that al1 this history was invented by the author of the Acts seems to us rash. Thlli autllor of the Acts insists with satisfaction upon the facts which support his opinions; but we do not believe that he introduces irnto his nairative facts purely sym. bolical or deliberately invented. S ee Ianrod. 25. For the analogous st:te oi the first Mortmons, see Jules Remy Voyage a? pJays des Mliormois (Paris, 1860), i. p. 195; and following. 26. Acts viii. 39-40. Compare Lake iv. 14. 27. Acls ix 32, 38. 28. Ib. viii. 40; xi. 11. 29. lb. xxi. 8. 828 THE APOSTIES. 30. Jos. B.. [IT. ix. 1. 31. Acts xxii,. 23, ard following; xxv. 1, 5; Tacittus Eist. ii 79. 32. Jos. B. J. III. ix. 1. 33. Jos. Ant. XX. viii. 7; B. J. II. xiii. 5; xiv. 5; xviii. 1. 34. Palm. of Jerusalem, Solta, 21 b. 35. Jos. Ant. XIX. vii. 3-4; viii. 2. 36. Acts xi. 19. 37. Ib. ix. 2, 10, 19. CHAPTER X. 1. This date resulted from the comparison of chapters ix., xi., xii. of the Acts with Gal. i. 18; ii. 1, and from the synchronism presented by Chapter xii. of the Acts with profane history, a synchronism which fixes the date of the incidents detailed in this chapter at the year 44. 2. Acts ix. 11: xxi. 39; xxii. 3. 3. In the Epistle to Philemon, writtell about the year 61, he calls himself an " old man" (v. 9); Acts vii. 57, he calls himself a-young man. 4. In the same way that those named " Jesus" often called thleniselves "Jason;" the'Josephs," " Hegesippe;" the "Eliacim," " Alcime," etc. St. Jerome (De TViris Ill. 5) supposes Paul took his name from the proconsul Sergins Paulus (Acts xiii. 9). Such an explanation seems hardly admissible. If the Acts only give to Saul the name of " Paul," after his relations with that personage., that would argue that the supposed conversion of Sergius was the first important act of Paul as apostle of the. Gentiles. 5. Acts xiii. 9, and following. The closing phrases of all the Epistles; II. Peter iii. 15. 6. The Ebionite calumnies (Epiphan. Adv. hc. xxx. 16, 25) should not bhe seriously taken. 7. St. Jerome, loc. cit. Inadmissible as the present St. Jerome, though this tradition appears to have some foundation. 8 Rom. xi. 1; Phil. iii. 5. 9. Acts xxii. 28. 10. Acts xxiii. 6. 11. Phil. iii. 5; Acts xxvi. 5. 12. Acts vi. 9; Philo, Leg. ad Caium, ~ 36. 13. Strabo XIV. x. 13. 14. Ibid. XIV. x. 14, 15; Philostratus Vie d'Apoltonius, 1, 1. 15. Jos. Ant., last paragraph, Cf. Vire de Jesus. 16. Philostratus, loc. cit. THE APOSTLES. 329 17. Acts xvii. 22, e c.; xxi. 37. 18. Gal. vi. 11; Rom. xvi. 22. 19. I1. Cor. xi. 6. 20. Acts xxi. 40. I have elsewhere explained the sense of the word'E6zolr[i. i/st. des Langes,Sr6it. ii. 1, 5; iii. 1, 2. 21. Acts xxvi. 14. 22. I. Cor. xv. 33, Cf. Meinecke..Menandri fragmn. p. 75. 23. Tit. i. 12; Acts xvii. 28. The authenticity of the Epistle to Titus is very doubtful. As to the discourse in chapter xvii. of the Acts, it is the work of the author of the Acts rather than of St. Paul. 24. The verse quoted from Aratus (Phlnom. 5) is really found in Cle. anthes (I1yinn to Jupiter, 5). Both are doubtless taken from some anonymous religious hymn. 25. Gal. i. 14. 26. Acts xvi. 22, etc. Observe note 23. 27. See Vie de JAsu., p. 72. 28. Acts xviii. 3. 29. Ibid. xviii. 3; I. Cor. iv. 12; I. Thess. ii. 9; II. Thess. iii. 8. 30. Acts xxiii. 16. 31. II. Cor. viii. 18, 22; xii. 18. 32. RIom. xvi. 7, 11, 21. 33. See above all the Epistle to Philemon. 34. Gal. v. 12; Phil. iii. 2. 35. II. Cor. x. 10. 36. Acta Pauoli el Theclce 3, in Tischendorf, Acta Apost., apoer. (Leipzig, 1851), p. 41, and the notes (an ancient text perhaps, the original spoken of by Tertullian); the Philopatris, 12 (cou:nposed about 363); Malala Chronogr. p. 257, edit. BOwI!,; Nicephore, Ti.st. Eccl. ii. 37. All these passages, above all th'at of Philprtris, admnit that tlese were ancient portraits. 37. I. Cor. ii. 1. etc.; II. Cor. x. 1, 2, 10; xi. 6. 38. I. Cor. ii. 3; II. Cor. x. 10. 39. II. Cor. xi. 30; xii. 5, 9, 10. 40. I. Cor. ii. 3; II. Cor. i. 8, 9; x. 10; xi. 30; xii. 5, 9, 10; Gal. iv. 13, 14. 41. II. Cor. xii. 7-10. 42. 1 Cor. vii. 7, 8, and the context. 43. I. Cor. vii. 7, 8; ix. 5. This second passage is far from being de. monstrative. Phil. iv. 3, would imply the contrary. Comlp. Cieitlent of Alexant-dria, Strom. iii. 6, and Euseb. li.st. Fccl. iii. 30. The pas. sag'e I. Cor. vii. 7, 8 alone has any weight on this point. 44. I. Cor. vii. 7-9. 45. Actsxxii. 3; xxvi. 4 330 THE APOSTLES. 46. Ibid. xxii. 3. Paul does not speak of this matter in certain parts of hlris Epistles where he would naturally mention him (Phil. iii. 5). There is an absolute contradiction between the principles of Gamalel (Acts v. 34, etc.) and the conduct of Paul before his conversion 47. Gal. i. 13, 14; Acts xxii. 3; xxvi. 5. 48 II. Cor. v. 16, does not implicate him. The passages Acts xxii. 3, xxvi. 4, give reason to believe that Paul was at Jerusalem at the same time as Jesus. But it does not follow that he saw hinm. 49. Acts xxii. 4, 19; xxvi. 10, 11. 50. Ibid. xxvi. 11. 51. Iligh-Priest from 37 to 42; Jos. Ant. XVIII. v. 3; XIX. vi. 2. 52. Acts ix. 1, 2, 14; xxii. 5; xxvi. 12. 53. See Revue ~numismatique, new series. vol. iii. (1858), p. 296, etc.; 362, etc.; Revue Archeol., April, 1864, p. 284, etc. 54. Jos. B. J. II. xx. 2. 55. II. Cor. xi. 32. The Roman money at Damascus is wanting during the reigns of Caligula and Claud. Eckhel, Doctrina nuns. vet., part i, vol. iii. p. 330. Damascus money, stamped "Aretas'lhilhellenius" (ibid.), seems to be of our Hllreth (communication of M. Waddington). 56. Jos. Ant. XVII[. v. 1, 3. 57. Coilp. Acts xii. 3; xxiv. 27; xxv. 9. 58. Acts v. 34, etc. 59. See an analogous trait in the conversion of Omar. Ibn-Iliseham. Sirat errasoul, p. 226 (Wfistenfeld edition). 60. Acts ix. 3; xxii. 6; xxvi. 13. 61. Acts ix. 4, 8; xxii. 7, 11; xxvi. 14, 16. 62. It is here that the tradition of the middle ages locates the miracle. 63. This results from Acts ix. 3, 8; xxii. 6, 11. 64. Nahr el-Aroadj. 65. The plain is really more than seventeen hundred feet above the level of the sea. 66. Acts xxvi. 14. 67. From Jerusalem to Dama;scus is over eight days' journey. 68. Acts ix. 8, 9, 18; xxii. 11, 13. 69. II. Cor. xii. 1, etc. 70. I experienced a crisis of this kind at Byblos; and with other principles I would certainly have taken the hallucinations that I had then for visions. 71. We possess thirteen accounts of this important episode: Acts ix. l, etc.; xxii. 5, etc.; xxvi. 12. etc. The ditferences remarked between these passages prove that the apostle himself varied in the accounts he gave of his conversion. That in Acts ix. itself is not homnogene. ous, as we shall soon see. Comp. Gal. i. 15-17; I. Cor. ix. I; xv 8; Actsix. 27. THE APOSTLES..31 72. With the Mormons, and in the American trances, almost all the con. versions are also induced by nervous excitement, producing hallucinations. 73. The circumstance that the companions of Paul saw and heard as he did may be legendary, especially as the accounts are on this point, being in direct contradiction. Comp. Acts ix. 7; xxii. 9; xxvi. 13 ~The hypothesis of a fall from a horse is refuted by these accounts. T1he opinion which rejects entirely the narration in the Acts, founded on go E.,i of Gal. i. 16, is exa tgerlted,,' L in this passage, has the sense of " for me." Comnp. Gal. i. 24. Paul surely had at a fixed moment, a vision which resulted in his conversion. 74. Acts ix. 3, 7; xxii. 6, 9, 11; xxvi. 13. 75. This was my experience during my illness at Byblos. My recollections of the evening preceding the day of the trance are totally effaced.'6. II. Cor. xii. 1, etc. 77. Acts ix. 27; Gal. i. 16; I. Cor. ix. 1; xv. 8; Heom. Pseudo-Clem. xvii. 13-19. Comp. the experience of Omar, Sirat errasoul, p. 226, etc. 78. Acts ix. 8; xxii. 11. 79. Its ancient Arabic name was Tarik el Adhwa. It is now called Tarik el Mastekim, answering to'Plo G,1Oeta. The eastern gate (Bdb Sharki) and a few vestiges of the colonnades yet remain. See the Arabic texts given by Wustesflield in the Zeitschrift fitr vergleschende Erclakltde of Li'dde for the year 1812, p. 168; Porter, Syria and Palestine, p. 477; Wilson, The Lands of the Bible, II., 345, 355-52. 80. Acts xxii. 11. 81. The account given in Acts ix. appears to have been formed from two mingled narratives. One, the more original, comprises vv. 9, &c. The other more developed, containing more dialogue and legend, includes verses 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18. The 12th verse belongs neither to that which precedes nor to that which follows it. The account in chapter xxii. 12-16, is more conformed to the above. mentioned texts. 82. Acts ix. 12. It should read a 0'z1 tv io-itpxr according to manuscript B. of the Vatican. Comp. verse 10. 83. Acts ix. 18; comp. Tobit, ii. 9; vi. 10; xi. 13. 84. Acts ix. 18; xxii. 16. 85. Gal. i. 2, 8-9, 11, &c.; I. Cor. ix. 1; xi. 23; xv. 8, 9; Col. i. 25; Ephes. i. 19; iii. 3, 7, 8; Acts xx. 24; xxii. 14-15, 21; xxvi. 16; Homilihe Pseudo-Clem., xvii. 13-19. 86. Gal. i. 17. 87.'Ao, t6; is "the province of Arabia," principally composed of the Hauran. 88. Gal. i. 17, &c.; Acts ix. 19, &c.; xxvi. 20. The author of the Acts believes that this first sojourn at Damascus was short, and that 332 THE APOSTLES. Paul, shortly after his conversion, came to Jerusalem and preached there. (Comp. xxii. 17.) But the passage of the epistle to the Gala. tians is peremptory. 89. Insc. discovered by Waddington and De Vogiie (Revue Archeol.. April, 1864, p. 284, &c., Comsptes lendus de l'A-ad. des Inscr. et B. L., 1865, p. 106-108). 90. Dion Cass. lix. 12. 91. I halve discussed this in the Bulletin Archeologique of Langperier and Do Wette, September, 1856. 92. Gal. i. 16, with following verses, prove that Paul preached immedi. ately after his conversion. 93. Jos. B. J., I., ii. 25; II., xx. 2. 94. Acts ix. 20-22. 95. Gal. i. 16. It is the sense of oIv rpoavet0l9ip, CapKi Kai al1art. CHAPTER XI. 1. Acts ix. 31. 2. See the atrociously naive avowal of 3 Macc. vii. 12, 13. 3. Read the 3d Book (apocryphal) of Maccabees, entire, and compare it with that of Esther. 4. Suetonius, Cains, 22, 52; Dion Cassius, lix. 26, 28; Philo, Leg. ad Caion, ~ 25, &c.; Josephus, Ant. XVIII., viii.; XIX., i.'1-2; B. J., II. x. 5. Philo, Leg. ad Cainem, ~ 30. 6. Philo, In Flaccam, ~ 7; Leg. ad Cainzm, ~ 18, 20, 26, 43. 7. Philo, Leg. ad Caizun,, 29; Josephus, Ant. XVIII. viii.; B. J. TI. x. Tacitus, Ann. XII. 54; Hist. V. 9, completing'e first nassage by tLe second. 8. Philo, Leg. ad Cainrm,, 27, 30, 44, and folirk fing. 9. Acts ix. 31. 10. Gal. i. 18, 19; ii. 9. 11. Acts xi. 29, 30. 12. Acts ix. 32. 13. At this day, Ludd. 14. Acts ix. 32-35. 15. Jaffa. 16. Jos. Ant. XIV., x. 6. 17. Acts ix. 43; x. 6, 17, 32. 18. iscllhna, Ketaboth. vii. 10. 19. Compai'e Gruter, p. 891, 4; Rninesius, Tnscript., XIV. 61; Monmtsen, I1escr. regni eapa., 622, 2094, 3052, 4985; Pape, Wo't der Grieclh Eigenn., on this word Cf. Jos. B. J. IV., iii. 6. 20. Acts ix. 36, and following. THE APOSTLES. 333 21. Ibid. ix. 39. The Greek runs: o'oa -rolgs Pert airw3v ovrr'a. 23. Acts x. 9-16; xi. 5-10. 24. Ibid. x. 1; xi. 18. 25. There were at least thirty-two. (Orelli & HIeuzen, fiscr. Lat., Nos 90, 512, 6756.) 26. Compare Acts xxvii. 1. and Heuzen, No. 6709. 27. Compare Luke vii. 2, and following. Luke is priding himself, it is true, upon this idea of virtuous centurions, Jews in heart without circumcision (see Introduction). But the example of Izates (Jos. Ant., xx., ii. 5), proves that such situations were possible. Compare Jos. B. J., II., xxviii. 2; Orelli, Inscr., No. 2523. 28. Acts x. 2, 7. 29. This seems, it is true, in contradiction to Gal. ii. 7-9. But the con. duct of Peter in that which relates to the admission of the Gentiles was never very consistent. Gal. ii. 12. 30. Acts xi. 18. 3l. Ibid. xv. 1, and following. 32. II. Cor. ii. 32, 33; Acts ix. 23-25. 33. Gal. i. 18. 34. Ibid. i. 18. 35. Ibid. i. 23. 36. Acts ix. 26. 37. Gal. i. 18. 38. Acts ix. 26. 39. Acts ix. 27. All this portion of the Acts has too little historical value to enable us to affirm that this fine action of Barnabas took place during the fifteen days that Paul passed at Jerusalem. But there is no doubt, in the manner in which the Acts present the case, a true sentiment of the relations of Paul and Barnabas. 40. Gal. i. 19, 20. 41. Ibid. i. 18. Impossible, consequently, to admit as exact the 28th and 29th verses of Acts ix. The author of the Acts makes an abusive employment of these ambushes and murderous projects. The Acts vary from the Epistle to the Galatians in supposing the sojourn of St. Paul at Jerusalem too long, and too near to his conversion. Naturally the Epistle merits our preference, at least, as to its chronology and the material circumstances. 42. See especially the Epistle to the Galatians. 43. Epistle to the Galatians, i. 11, 12, and nearly throughout; I. Cor. ix. 1, and following; xv. 1, and following; II. Cor. xi. 21, and following. 44. TWe find this sentiment more or less directly; Rom. xii. 14; I. Cor xiii. 2; II. Cor. iii. 6; I. Thess. iv. 8; v. 2, 6. 45. Gal. i. 22, 23. 46. Acts xx. 17, 21. /334 TMHE APOSTLES. 47 Acts ix. 29, 30. 48 Gal. i. 21. 49. Acts ix. 30; xi. 25. The capital clhronological datum for this ep(ch of the life of' St. Paul is Gal. i. 18; ii. 1. 50. Cilicia had a church in the year 51. Acts xv. 23, 41. 51 It is in the Epistle to the Galatians (towards 56), that Paul places himself for the first time openly in the rank of the apostles (i. 1 and the following). According to Gal. ii. 7-10, he had received this title in 51. Still he did not assume it, even in the subscription of the two Epistles to the Thessalonians, which are of the year 53. I. Thess. ii. 6, does not imply an official title. The author of the Acts never gives Paul the name of " apostle." " The apostles," for the author of the Acts, are "the Twelve." Acts xiv. 4, 14, is an exception. CHAPTER XII. 1. Acts xi. 19. 2. Josephus, Wars of the Jews, ii. 4. Rome and Alexandria were the two chief ones; compare Strabo xvi. ii. 5. 3. Compare Otfried Mbller, Aatiochian Antiquities, Gttinlgen, 1839, p. 68. John 0Chrysostom, on Saint Ignatius, 4 (opp. t. ii. p. 597, edit. Montfaucon): On Jliatthewz, Homilies lxxxv. 4. (vol. viii. p.810). He estimates the population of Antioch at two hundred thousand souls, without counting slaves, infants, and the immense suburbs. The present city has apopulation of not more than seven thousand. 4. The corresponding streets of Palmyra, fGerasium, Gadara, and Sebaste, were probably iinitations of the grand Corso of Antioch. 5. Some traces of it are found in the direction of Bdb Bolos. 6. Dion Chrysostome, Orat. xlvii. (vol. ii. p. 229, edit. Reiske), Libanius, Antiochicus. p. 337, 340, 342, 356 (edit. Reiske), Malala, p. 232, et seq., 276, 280, et seq. (Bonn, edition,) The constructor of these great works was'Antiochus Epiphanes. 7. Libanius, Antioch. 342, 344. 8. Pausanias, vi. ii. 7; Malala, p. 201; Visconti Mus. Pio-clemen., vol. iii. 46. See especially the medals of Antioch. 9. Pierian, Bottian, Penean, Tempean, Castalian, Olympic games, Jopolis (which was referred to Io). The city pretended to be indebted for its celebrity to Inachus, to Orestes, to Daphne and to Triptolemus. 10. See Malalala, p. 199;. Spartian, Life of Adrian. p. 14; Julian, ilTisopogon, p. 361, 362; Ammian Marcellin., xxii. 14; Eckhel, Doct. nrusn vet, part i. 3, p. 326; Guigniaut, Religions de l"Ant. planches No. 268. 11. John Chrysostom, Ad pop. Antioch. homil. xix. 1; (vol. ii. p. 189.) De sanctis martyr. i. (vol. ii. p. 651.) 12. Libanius, Antioch., p. 348. THE APOSTLES. 335 13. Act. SS. Maii, v. p. 383, 409, 414, 415, 416; Assemani, Bib. or., ii. 323. 14. Juvenal Sat., iii. 62, et seq.; Stacc. Silves, i. vi. 72. 15 Tacitus Ann. ii. 69. 16. Ma-lala, p. 284, 287, et seq.; Libanius, De Angeriis, p. 555, et seq.; De carcere viectis, p. 445, et seq.; ad Tinocratein, p. 385; Antinoch, 323; Philost., 7it Apo1l. i. 16; Luciani DIe Saltationze, 76; Died. Sic. fragm. lib. xxxiv. No. 34 (p. 358, ed. Dinlorf); John Chrysos. leornil. vii. in Matt. 5 (vol. vii. p. 113), lxxiii. in Natt. 3 (ibid. p. 712); De consubst. contra Anon., 1 (vol. i., p. 501); De Anna, 1 (vol. iv. p. 730), De.David et Saglie iii. 1 (vol. iv. 768, 770); Julian Misopogon, p. 343, 350, edit. Spanheim; Actes de Sainte Thecle, attributed to Basil of Seleucia, published by P. Pantius (Auvers, 1608) p. 70, 17. Philostr. Apoll. iii. 58; Ausonius, Clar. Urb., 2; J. Capitolin Verqs, 7; Miarces Aurelius, 25; Herodian ii. 10; John of Antioch in the Excerpta Valesiana, p. 844; Suidas, at the word -,0,x:,:;. 18. Julian Aiisopogon, p. 344, 365, etc.; Eunap. Vie des Soph., p. 496, edit. Boissonade (Didlot); Ammien1l arcellin xxii. 14. 19. John Chrysos. De Lazaro, ii. 11 (vol. 1. p. 722, 723). 20. Cic. pro. Archii, 3, making allowance for the usual exaggeration of an - advocate. 21. Philostrat us Vie d'Apollonius, iii. 58. 22. Malala, p. 287, 289. 23. John Chrysos., Homil. vii. On M~att. 5, 6. (vol. vii. p. 113); See O. Mlfiller, Antiq. Antioch., p. 33 note. 24. Libanius, Antiochichzus, p. 355-366. 25. Juvenal, iii. 62 et seq. and Forcellini, in the word ambubaja, where he observes that the word ambalba is Syriac. 26. Libanius, Anticch p. 315; De carcere vinctis, p. 455; Julian Miso. pogon, p. 367, edit. Spanheim. 27. Libanius, Pro rhetoribus. p. 211. 28. Libanius, Antiochichtzs, p 363. 29. Libanius, Antiochichus, p 354 et seq. 30. The actual enclosure, which is of the time of Justinian, presents the same particulars. 31. Libanius, Antioch., p. 337, 338, 339. 32. The lake Alk )enir, which forms on this side the actual limit of the territory of Antakieh, had, as it appears, no existence in olden times. See Ritter, Erdiozlde, xvii. p 1149, 1613 et seq. 33. Josephus Ant., xii iii. 1; xiv. xii. 6; Wars of the Jews, ii. xviii. 5 vii iii. 2-4. 34. Josephus, against Apion, ii. 4; Wars of the Jewts, vii. iii. 2-4. 35. Malals, p. 244, 245; Jos., Wars of the Jews, vii. v. 2. 36. Acts vi 5. 37, Ibid. xi. 19, ct seq. 336 THE APOSTLES. 38 Compare Joscphus, WTars of the Jews, ii. xviii. 2. 39. Acts xv 20, 21. The proper reading is "EAXrlgcs'EDXslvVrTs comes from a false agreement with ix. 29. 40. Malalal, p. 245. The narrative of Malala cannot, indeed, be eract, Josephus says not a word respecting the invasion of which the chronographer makes mention. 41. Malala, p 243, 265-266. Compare "~ Memoirs of Academy of Inscrip. tions and Belles-Lettres," session of 17 August, 1865. 42. S Athanasius, Tomhus ad Antioch. (Opp. vol. i. p. 171, edit. Montfaucon); S. John Chrysostom, Adl pop. Antioch, Homil i. and ii beginning (vol. ii. p. i. and xx.); Ia Inscr. Act. ii. beginning (vol. iii. 60); Chtron. Pasch., p. 296 (Paris); Theodoret, Hist. Eccl., ii. 2X; iii. 2. 8. 9. The agreement of these passages does not permit of a,, T, (aX,.p.iVr/, ITIl,,,t, being rendered by'in that which was called the old town," as the editors have sometimes done. 43. Malala, p. 242. 44. Pooocke, Descript. of the East, vol. ii. part i. p. 192 (London 1745), Chesney,.Epedition for the Survey of the Rivers Euphrates and ligris, i. 425, et seq. 45. That is to say, opposite to that part of the old town which is still inhabited. 46. See below. 47. The type of the Maronites is reproduced in a striking manner in the country of Antakieh, Soneideieb, and Beylan. 48 F. Naironi, Anopliafidei Cathol. (Rome, 1694), p 58, et seq., and the work of S. Em. Paul Peter Masad, present patriarch of the Maronites, entitled Kitab ed. durr ed. manzoum (in Arabic, printed at the convent of Zamisch in the Kesronan, 1863). 439. Acts xi. 19, 20; xiii. 1. 60. Gal. ii. 11, et seq., presumes it to be so. CHAPTER XIII. 1. Acts xi. 22, &c. 2. Acts xi. 25. 3. Acts xi. 26. 4. Libanius. Pro templis, p. 164, &c.; 1)e carcerevinctis, p. 458.; Theodoret, IMst. Eiccl. iv. 28; Jean Chrysost.; Homil. lxxii. in Malt. 3 (vol. vii. p. 705). In Epist. ad Fphes. Hom. vi. 4 (vol. xi. p. 44); In i. Tim. Hem. xiv. 3 &c. (ibid. p. 628, &c.); Nicephore xii. 44; Glycas p. 257 (Paris edition). 5. Acts xi. 26. 6. The passages I. Petri iv. 16, and James ii. 7, compared with Suet Nero 16, and with Tac. Ann. xv. 44, confirm this idea. See also Acts xxvi. 28. TFFE" APOSTrLES. 337 7. It is true that we fin-d'A tavo (Acts xx. 4; Philo. Legatio, 36; Stiabo, etc.). But it seems to be a Latiniamn like AaXdavi, and the names of the sects;,,..., -,ai,, qota,,i, etc. The Greek derivative votrr: had been yp(-rt,,. It serves nothing to say that the termiination a:nus is a Doric form of the Greek,voas; this was not known at all durilngr the first contury. 8. Tac. (loc. cit.) sn interprets it. 9. Suet. Claud. 25. We shlall discuss this, passage in our next book. 10. Corpus Liscr. Gr. Nos. 2883 d., 3857 g., 3857 p., 3865 1. Tertul. Apol. 3; Lactance Divin. Inst. iv. 7. Comp. the French form chrestien. 11. James ii. 7, jonly implies an occasiotal usage. 12. Acts xxiv. 5; Tertul. AdO.: Mllrcionein iv. 8. 13. Nesdrdc. The names of mneschithoio in Syriac, mesihi in Arabic, are relatively modern, and outlined from y,,,rr,'6. The name of " Galileans " is much more recent. Julian: gave it an official signification. Jul. Epist. vii.; Gregory, Orat. iv. (Invect. i.), 76; S. Cyrille d'Alex. Coalre Julien ii. p. 39, Spanheim ed.); Phlilopatris, dialogue falsely attributed to Lucian, though really of the time of J ulien,, 12; Theodoret Hist. Eccl. iii. 4. I believe that in Epictetus (Arrien, Dissort. iv., vii., 6) and in Marcus Aurelius (Peezsies xi. 3), this name does not &dsign:it~ Chlristians, but rather':assassins" (Sicaires), fn atical disciplos of Judas the Galilean or thel Gaulonita, and of Jolihn of CGi;ehala. 14. I. Petri iV. 16; James ii. 7. 15. Acts xiii. 2. 16. Ibid xiii. 1. 17. See chapter vi. 1S. Acts xiii. 1. 19. Euseb. C'tron. at the year 43; Hist. Eccl. iii. 22. Ignatii Epist. ad Abtloch. (apocr.) 7. 20. I. Cor. xiv. entire. 21. 11. Cor. xii. 15. *22. It places this vision fourteen years before he wrote the second Epistle to the Corinthians, which dates about the year 57. It is not impossible, hlowever, that lie was still at Tarsus. 23 For Jewish ideas about the heavens, see Testami. des 12 jatr. Levi. 3; Asceensioez d'is'ae, vi. 13; viii. 8, and all the rest of the book; Talin. of Babyl., Chiagiga 12 b.; Midraschim 1Beireschilh rabba, sect xix. fol. 19 c.; Schemioth rabba, sect. xv. fol. 115 d.; Ba3irzniabar rabla, sect. xiii. fol. 218 a.; Debarin rabba, sect. ii. fol. 253 a.; Schir hasschirimrn rabba, fol. 24 d. 24. Comp. Talmud of Babylon, Chagiga, 14 b. 25. Coinp. Ascension d'Isaie, vi. 15; vii. 3, &c. 26. II. Cor. xii. 12; Ronm. xv. 19. 27. I. Cor. xii. entire. 338 THE APOSTLES. 28. Acts xi. 29; xxiv. 17; Gal ii. 10; Rom. xv. 26; I. Cor. xvi. 1; TI Cor. viii. 4, 14; ix. 1, 12. 29. Jos. Xnt. XVIII., vi., 3, 4; XX., v. 2. 30. James ii. 5, &c. 31. Acts xi. 28; Jos. Ant. XX., ii. 6; v 2; Euseb. Hist. Eccl. ii. 8, 12. Comp. Acts xii. 20; Tac. Ann. xii. 43; Suet. Claud. 18; Dion Cass. ix. 11. Aurelius Victor, Cas., 4; Euseb. Chron. year 43, &e. Tle reign of.Claudius was afflicted almost every year by partial famines. 32. Acts xi. 27, &c. 33. The book of Acts (xi. 30; xii. 25) includes Paul in this journey. But Paul declares that between his first sojourn of two w-eeks and his journey for ttle affair of the circumcision, he did not visit Jerusalem. (Gal. ii. 1.) See Introduction. 34. Gal. i., 17-19. 35. Acts xiii. 3; xv. 36; xviii. 23. 36. Ibid. xiv. 25; xviii. 22. CHAPTER XIV. 1. The inscriptions of these countries fully confirm the indications of Josephus. (Comptes Rendus de 1'Acad. des Inser. I. B. L., 1865. pp. 106, 109.) 2. Joscphus, Anzt. xix. iv. B. J. ii. xi. 3. Ib. xix. v. i.; vi. i.; B.,T, II. xi. 5; Dion Cassius, LX. 8. 4. Dion Cassius, LIX. 24. 5. Jos. Ant. xix. ix. 1. 6. Ibid. XIX. vi. 1, 3; ii. 3, 4; viii. 2; ix. 1. 7. Ibid. XlIX. vii. 4. S. Ibid. XIX. vi. 3. 9. Juvenal, Sat. vi. 158, 159; Persius, Sat. v. 180. 10. Phil). In _Flaccwum, ~ 5, and following. 11. Jos. Ant. XIX. v. 2, and sequel; xx. vi. 3.; B. J, II. xii. 7. The restrictive measures which he took against the Jews of Rome (Actt xviii. 2; Suetonius Claude, 25; Dion Cassius, LX. 6) were connectea with local circumstances. 12. Jos. Ant. xix. vi. 3. 13. Ibid. xix. vii. 2; B. J; ii. xi. 6; V. iv. 2. Tacitus, I-ist. v. 12. 14. Tacitus, Ann. vi. 47. 15. Jos. Ant. XIX. vii. 2; vii. 21, viii. 1 XX. i. 1. 16. Ibid. XIX. viii. 1. 17. Suetonius, Caius, 22, 26, 35; Dion Cassius, lix. 24; lx. 8. Tacitub. TI E APOSTLES. 339 Ann. xi. 8. As a type of the part these little Eastern Kings played. stu-iy thi c.ror of I,3roi- A-ripis, I. in Josephlus (Anl.t. xvii. anw xix.) Co nipre lHorae, Sc.g. I. vii. 18. Supra. 19. Acts xii. 3. 20. Ibid. xii. 1, and following. 21. James was in fact beheaded, and not stoned to death. 22. Acts xii. 3, and following. 23. Ibid. xii. 9, 1. The account in the Acts is so lively and just, that it is dil:icult to find any place in it for any prolonged legendary elaboration. 24. Jos. Ant. xix. viii. 2; Acts xii. 18, 23. 25. Ibid. xix. vii. 4. 26. Acts. xii. 23. Compare 2 Mace. ix. 9; Jos. B. J: I. xxxiii. 5; Talmud of Bab. Sola, 35 a. 27. Jos. Ant. XIX. vi. 1; XX. i. 1, 2. 28. Ibid. xx. v. 2; B. J. ii. xv. 1; xviii. 7, and following; IV. x. 6; V. i. 6; Tacitus. Ann., xv 28. -list. i. 11; ii. 79; Suetonius, Vesp. 6; Corpus I5scr. Gr(ec. No. 4.57. (cf. ibid. iii. p.:311.) 29. Jos. An.t. XX. i. 3. 30. Ibid. XX. v. 4, B. J. II. xii. 3 1. Josephus, who relates with so much care, the history of these agita tions in all its details, never mixes up the Ct;lristiaus with them. 32. Jos. Again.st Apion, ii. 39; Dion Cassius, lxvi. 4. 33. Jos., B. J., IV., iv. 3; V., xiii. 6; Suetonius, Avg., 93; Strabo, XVI., ii. 34, 37; Tacitus, Hts., v. 5. 34. Jos., Aint., XIII., ix. 1; xi. 3; xv. 4; XV., vil. 9. 35. Jos., B. J, II., xvii. 10; Tita, 23. 36. Matt. xxiii. 13. 37. Jos., Arlt., XX.. vii. 1, 3; Compare XVI., vii. 6. 38. Ibid. XX., ii. 4. 39. Ilbid. XX., ii. 5, 6; iv. 1. 40. Jos., B. J., II., xx. 2. 41. Seneca, fragment in St. Augustin. De civ. Dei, vi. 11. 42. Jos., Ant., XX., ii.-iv. 43. Tacitus, Ann., xii. 13, 14. The greater part of the names r,f this family are Persian. 44 The name of " Helen " proves this. Still, it is remarkable that the Greek does not figure upon the bi-lingual inscription (Syriac and Syro-Chaldaic) of the to.nb of a princess of the family, discu.vered and brought to Paris by MI. de Saulcy. See Journal Alsiatique, Dec, 1865. 45. C1' Bereschith rabba. xlvi. 51 d. 3410 THE APOSTLES. 46. It is accordinfg tD all appearances the monument mnown at this- lay under the name of " Tomb of the Kings." See Jourtcl Asiatiqulze, passage cited. 47. Jos.,. J ii., xix. 2; vi., vi. 4. 48. Talmud of Jerusalem, Peah, 15 b., where there are put into the mouth of one of the MonoDaze maxims that exactly recall the Gospel (MAatt. vi. 19 and following). Ta.mud of Bab., Baba Batlira, 11 a; Joma, 37 a; -Nazir, 19 b; Schabbath, 68 b; Sifra, 10 a; Bereschith& rcbba,:xlvi., fol. 51 d. 49. Moses of Khorene, ii. 35; Orose, vii. 6. 50. Luke, xxi. 21. 51. Ta TrtiroIt,'.n, an expression so familiar with Josephus, when he defends the position of the Jews in the pagan Nworld. CHAPTER XV. 1. It is well known that no MS. of the Talmud is extant to control the printed editions. 2. Jos., Ant., XX., v. 2. 3. Jos., B. J;, II., xvii. 8-10; Vita, 5. 4. The comparison of Christianity with the two movements of Judus and Theudas is made by the author of the A cts himself: (V. 36.) 5. Jos. Ant., XX., v. 1; Acts, u. s. Remark the anachronism in Acts. 6. Jos. Ant., XVIII., iv. 1, 2. 7. Jos. Ant.,. XX., v. 3, 4; B. J,. ii., xii. 1, 2; Tacit, Ann., xii. 54. 8. Jos. Ant., XX., viii. 5. 9. Jos. Ant., XX., viii. 5; B. J., II., xiii. 3. 10. Jos. B., J.,.VII. viii. 1; Mischna, Sanhi('drin, ix. 6. 11. Jos. Ant., XX., viii. 6, 10; B. J., II., xiii. 4. 12. Jos. Ait.7 XX, viii. 6; B. J., II., xiii. 5-: Acts xxi. 38. 13. Jos. Aat., XX., viii. 6; B. J, II., xiii. 6. 14. See ante, p. 153, note. 15. Justin, Apol., 1, 26, 56. It is singular that Josephus, so0 well in, formed on Samaritan affairs, does not mention him. 16. Acts viii. 9, etc. 17. It cannot be considered entirely apocryphal in view of the agreement between the system set forth in it, and what little we learn from the A:cs concerning the doctrine of Simon upon, miraculous powers. 18. Homil. Pseudo-C!lem., ii. 22, 24. 19. Justin, A`pol. 1, 26, 56; ii. 15. Dial. cum Tryphone, 120; Iren. Adz hoer. I. xxiii. 2-5; xxvii. 4: II. praf; III. prmf'; IHomiliae pseudo-clem. i. 15; ii. 22, 25, etc.; Recogn. i. 72; ii. 7, etc.; iii. 471; Philosophumena IV. vii.; VI. i.; X. iv.; Epiph. Adv. her. Lmer. xxi.; Ori ig. Cont THE APOSTLES. 341 Gel.s. v. 62; vi. 11; Tertull. De Anima, 34; Constit. capost. vi. N1; S. Jerot-ne, IA J1ltt. xxiv. 5; Tlheod. Ikeret. fab. i. 1. It is firon the quotations given in the P'ilonosop7hoeei: a, and not in the travesties of the Fathers, that an idea may be obtained of' "The Great Exposition." 20 Philosophum., IV. vii.; VI. i. 9, 12, 13, 17, 18. Compare Revel. i. 4, 8; iv. 8; xi. 17. 21. Philosophwlzm., VI. i. 17. 22. Ibid. VI. i. 16. 23. Act. viii. 10; Philosoph,bLm., VI. i. 18; -omil. Pseudo-Clera., ii. 22. 24. Allusion to the adventure of the poet Stesichorus. 25. Iron. Adv. haJ3r. I. xxiii. 2-4; Ieomil. Pseudo-Clein., ii. 23. 26. Philosophum. VI. i. 16. 27. See Vie de Jess, p. 247-249. 28. Ibid. p. 2.17, note 4. 29. Chreoe. Sca;narit. c. 10 (edit. Juynboll Leyden, 1848). Cf. Roland, De Sa'ze. ~ 7; Dissertat. ziscell. Part HI. Gesenius, Comzment -de Sacs. Theol. (IIalle, 1824), p. 24, etc. 30. In a quotation given in the Philosophumena, VI. i. 16, is a citation from tl;!e synoptical gospels wthlich see:lls to be given as from the text of the " Great Exposition." But this may be an error. 31. Homil. Pseudo-Clem. II. 23-24. 32. Iren. Adc. hcer. I. xxiii. 3. Phlilosophozm. VI. i. 19. 33. IIomil. Pseudo-Clerm. ii. 22. Recogn. II. 14. 34. Iren. Ad-v. hacr. II. praef. III. prsef. 35. Sec the Epistle (probably authentic) of Paul to the Colossians, i. 15, &c. 36. Epiph. Ada.. hear. L. xxx. 1. 37. An arumenout for the latter hypothesis is, that Simon's sect soon chaugned into a. school of fortune-tellers, and for the manufacture of philters and charams. Philosoph. VI. i. 20. Tertull. DJo Aninaa, 51. 38. Philosophumn. VI. i. 20. C:. Orig. Contra Cels. i. 57; vi. 11..39. HIoesip. in Euseb. Efist. Eccl. iv. 22; Clem. Alex. Strom. vii. 17; Costht. apost. vi. 8, 16; xviii. 1, &c. Jusltin, Apol. i. 26, 56; Iren. Ado. heer. I. xxiii. init. Theod. Her. fol. I. i. 2. Tertull, De Pre'scr. 47-; De Anima,:50. 40. The most celebrated is that of Dositheus. 41. Act. viii. 9; Iren. Adv. heer. xxiii. 1. 42. Philosophu7m. VI. i. 19-20. The author attributes these perverse doctrines only to Simeon'S disciples; but if the disciples entertained them, the master must have shared them in some cld:gree. 43. We shall hereafter see what these narrations signify. 44. The inscription SIN. I DEO SAtN-cTO, stated by Justin to exist in the island (Apol. I. 26) of the, Tiber, and mentioned also by other Fa thers, was a Latin inscription to the Sabine deity Seomo Sanacls, SEMONI-DEO-SANCO. There was in fact discovered under Gregolry XIII. in the island of St. Bartholomew, an inscription now ill tile Vatican bearing that dedication. V. Baronius, Annz. Eccl. 44; Orelli, Inser. Lat. No. 1860. There was at this spot on the island of the Tiber a college of bidentales in honor of Semo-Sncus, withlm any inscriptions of the same kind. Orelli, No. 1861. (Monimsen, lasecr. Lat. regni Neapol. No. 6770). Comp. Orelli, No. 1859. IlenLen, No. 6999; Mabillon, Mfuseum Ital. I. 1st part, p. 84. Orelli, No. 1862, is not to be relied on. (See Corp. Inser. Lat. I. No. 542.) 45. This gross blunder could not have been detected without the discovery of the Plhilosophumena, which alone contains extracts from the Apophasis magna (VI. i. 19). Tyre was celebrated for its courtezans. 46.'i \O,ii avOPnnMs, dVrIKEiPeoS. See Ilomil. Pseudo-Clem. hom. xvii. passim. 47. Thus in the Pseudo-Clementine literature, the name of Simon the Magician indicates sometimes the apostle Paul, against whom the writer had a spite. 48. It may be observed that in Acts, he is not treated as an enemy, but only reproached as of low sentiments, and room is left for repentance. (viii, 24).) Perhaps Simon was living when those lines were written, and his relations to Christianity had not yet become absolutely hostile. CHAPTER XVI. 1. Acts xii. 1, 25. Remark the context. 2. 1 Peter v. 13; Papias in Euseb. liust. Acc. iii. 39. 3. Acts xiii. 2. 4. Gal. i. 15, 16; Acts xvii. 15, 21; xxvi. 17-18; 1 Cor. i. 1; Rom. i, 1, 5; xv. 15, etc. 5. Acts xiii. 5. 6. The author of Acts, being a partisan of the hierarchy and of churchdomination, has perhaps inserted this circumstance. Paul knew nothing of any such ordination or consecration. He received his commission from Christ, and did not consider himself any more especially the envoy of the church of Aatioch thaiK of that of Jeru. salem. 7. Acts xiii. 3; xiv. 25. 8. In I. Peter v. 13, Babylon means Rome. 9. (Cic. Pro Archia, 10. 10. Jos., B. J., II. xx. 2; VIT. iii. 3. 11. Acts xviii. 24, &e. 12. See Philo. De Vita Coztea1sl. passim. THE APOSTLES. 343 13. Pseudo-Hermes. Asclepius, fol. 158, v. 159 r. (Florence Juntes, 15 12. 14. Cic. Pro Flacco, 28; Philo. In Flaccum, ~ 7; Leg. ad Caium, ~ 36: Acts ii. 5-11; vi. 9; Corp. Inscr. Gr. No. 5361. 15. Lox. Wisigoth; lib. xii., tit. ii. and iii. in Walter. Corp. jur. G(ermal Autiq. L. I. p. 630, &c. 16. See Vie de Jesus, p. 137. 17. Philo. In Flacc., ~ 5 and 6; Jos. Ant. XVIII. viii. 1; XIL. v. 2, B,. J. II. xviii. 7, etc.; VII. x. 1. Papyras printed in ~otices et Extrai/b XVIII., 2d part, p. 383, etc. 18. Dion Cass., XXXVII. 17; LX. 6. Philo. Leg. ad Gaium, ~ 23. Jos. Ant. XIV. x. 8; XVII. xi. 1; XVIII. iii. 5; Her. Sat. [. iv. 142143; v. 100; ix. 69, &c.; Pers. 5, 179-181; Suet. Lib. 36; Claeud 25; Domit. 12; Juv. iii. 14; vi. 542, &c. 19. Pro. Flac. 28. 20. Jos. Ant. XIV. x.; Suet. Jul. 84. 21. Suet. Lib. 36; Tac. Ann. ii. 85; Jos. Ant. XVIII. iii. 4, 5. 22. Dion Cass. LX. 6. 24. Jos. B. J., VII. iii. 3. 25. Seneca, fraigment in Aug. De Civ. Doi, vi. 11; Rutiliu;s Numatianus i. 395, &c.; Jos. Contr. Apion, ii. 39; Juv. Sat. vi. 544; xiv. 96, &c. 26. Philo. In Flacc. ~ 5; Tac. Hist. v. 4, 5, 8; Dion. Cass. xlix. 22; Juv. xiv. 103; Died. Sic. fra.rn. 1 of lib. xxxiv. and iii. of lib. xl.; Philostr. Vt. Apol. v. 33; 1. Thess. ii. 15.'.7. Jos. Ant. XIV. x.; XVI. vi.; XX. viii. 7; Philo. In Flacc. and Le. gatio ad CGiuZm. 28. Jos. Ant. XVIII. iii. 4, 3 Juv. vi. 543, &c. 29. Jos. Contr. Apioz, passim; passages above cited from Tacitus and Diodorus Siculus; Trog. Pomp. (Justin) xxxvi. 411; Ptolem. Elephestion or Chonnus, in Script. Poet. HIist. Grweci of Westermann, p. 194. Cf. Quintilian, III. vii. 2. 30. Cie. Pro Flacco, 28; Tac. Hist. v. 5; Juv. xiv. 103-104; Diodorus Siculus and Philostratus, u. s.; Rutilius Nunaltianus i. 383, &c. 31. Martial, iv. 4; Anmr. Marc. xxii. 5. 32. Suet. Aug. 76; IHorace Sat. i. ix. 69, &c.; Juv. iii. 13-16, 296; vi. 156-160, 542-517; xiv. 96-107; Martial. Epigr. iv. 4; vii. 29, 34, 54; xi. 95; xii. 57; Rutiliun Nuinat. l. c. Jos. Co:alra Apionl, ii. 13; Philo. Leg. ad Caium. ~ 26-28. 33. Martial, Epigr. xii. 57. 34. Juvenal, Sat. iii. 14; vi. 542. 35. Juvenal, Sat. iii. 296; vi. 513, &c.; lMartial, Epigr. i. 42; xii. 57. 36. Malrtial, Epigr. i. 42; xii. 57; Statius Silves, I. vi. 73-74, and Fore.llini on word sauphuratlm. 37. Horace, Sat. I. v. 100; Juvenal, Sat. vi. 544, &c., xiv. 96, &c; Apul. Florida, i. 6. 3-14 THE APOSTLES. 38. Dion Cass. ]xviii. 32. 39. Tac. Hist. v. 5, 9; Dion Cass. Lxvii. 14. 40. Her. Sat. I. ix. 70; Jadcet,s Apella, appears to be a joke of the same kind (see the scholiasts Acron and Porphyrion upo L iHor. Sat. I. v. 100); compare the passage from S. Anitus, Poenzata, v. 364, cited by Forcellini on the word Apella, but which I do not find either in the editions of this Father or in the ancient Latin manuscript, Bibl. Imp. No. 11320. as given by the learned lexicographer; Juv. Sat. xiv. 99, &c.; IMartial Epigr. vii. 29, 34, 54; xi. 95. 41. Jos. Contr. Apion ii. 39; Tac. Ann. ii. 85, Iist. v. 5; Hor. Sat. I. iv 142, 143; Juv. xiv. 96, &c; Dion Cass. xxxvii. 17; lxvii. 14. 42. Martial, Epigr. i. 42; xii. 57. 43. Juv. Sat. vi. 546, &c. 44. Jos. Ant. xviii. iii. 5; xx. 1, 4; B. J. II. xx. 2; Act xiii. 50; xvi. 14 45. Loc. cit. 46. Jos. Ant., xx. Il, 5; iv. 1. 47. Passages already cited. Strabo shows much greater justice and pene tration (xvi. 11, 34, &c.) Conp. Dion. Cass. xxxvii. 17, &c. 48. Tac. Hist. v. 5. 49. Jos. Contr. Apion ii. 39. 50. Martial, xii. 57. 51. Jos. Ant. xiv. X. 6, 11, 14. 52. Eccl. x. 25, 27. 53. Rom. i. 24, &c. 54. Zach. viii. 23. 55. Hor. Sat. I. ix. 69; Pers. v. 179, &c. Juv. Sat. vi. 159; xiv. 96, &c. 56. Contr. Apion ii. 39. 57. Pers. v. 179-184; Juv. vi. 157-160. The remarkable preoccupation about Judaism which may be observed in the Roman writers of the first century, especially the satirists, arises from this circumstance. 58. Juv. Sat. iii. 62, &c. 59. Cic. De Prov. consul, 5. 60. The children whose appearance had most pleased me on my first visit, I found four years later, ugly, vulgar. and stupid. 61. HIar7pi rC e r a very frequent formula in the inscriptions of the Syrians (Corp. Inscr. Gr:c. Nos. 4449: 4450, 4451, 4463, 447:9, 4480, 6015. 62. Corp. Inscr. Graec. Nos. 4474, 4475, 5936; MAission de P7eonicis, I. ii. c. ii. (in press), inscription of Abeda. Comp. Corpus, Nos. 227 1, 5853. 63. Zr,t,'....,,,;;ro,,r,,, Oeg aaropitr., Corns I], ser Gr. Nos. 4500, 4501, 4502, 4503, 6012; Lepsius, Denr'l-reler, t xii. l. 00. No. 590. Mission de Phenicie, p. 103, 104 64. I have developed this in the.Journa? Asiatique foi Febhrcary 1859, p 259, &c., and in Mission de Phenicze, 1. II. c. i. Ti-Hi E AP()STLE S. o-1T 65. Syrian code in Land, AnecdoLa Syriaca, i. p. 152, and different facts which I haive witnessed. 66. Born in Hlaran. 67 See l'Focellhni, word Syreus. This word designates Orientals generally. Lebla.nt, lscript. Chret. de la G-atle, i. p. 207, 328, 329. 68. Juvenal, iii. 62-63. 69. Such is at this day the temperament of the Syrian Christian. 70 Inscriptions in Miem. de la Soc. des Antiquaires de Fr. t. xxviii. 4, &c. Leblant, Inscript. Chret. de la Gaule, i. p. cxliv. 207, 324, &c. 353, &c. ii. 259, 459, &c. I1. The Maronites colonize still in nearly all the Levant like the Jews, Armenians, and Greeks, thongh on a smaller scale. 72. Cic.. De Offic. i. 42; Dion. Hal. ii. 28; ix. 28. 73. See the cliaracters of slaves in Plautus and Terence. 74. IT. Cot. xii. 9. 75. Tacit. Ann. ii 85,. CHAPTER XVII. 1. Tacit. Ann. i. 2; Florus, iv. 3; Pomponius in tlle Digest, 1; I. Tit. ii., f'. 2. 2. I-elicoll. Apelles, EIlceres, etc. Tule Oriental kings were considered by tle Rornans to sllrpass in tyrauny the worst of the emperors. Dion. Cassiius lix. 24. 3. See inscription of thie Parasite of Antony in the Compltes Reed,is le 4'Acad. de Jscer. et B. L., 1864, p. 166, etc. Cormp. Tacit. Ann. iv. 55, 56. 4. See for example the fulneral oration on Turia by her husband. Q. Lucretius Vespillo, of' which the complete epilrapliic text wva. fi st- pllblished by Mommlnsell in Jleinoires de I'Acadeenne de Be hiu. 1863 I, p. 455, &c. Compare funeral oration onl Mlu'dia (Orelli, llcser. Lat. No. 4860), and on Ma ilda by the eiemperor Adl ian (Jl,-,. d-.' l'Acad. de Berlin, u. s. 483, &c.). Wt are too ilmuch preoccuipied bhe passa:es of tle Lilin satirists ini wliich lihe vices of women a;-e si!illly exposed. It is as ii' we were to design a general tableau of tile rnaolls ol the seveilteenth century from 2Matlurin, Regnlier, anid B1oileu. 5. Orelli, Nos. 2647, &c., especiallyv 2677, 2742, 45530, 48t;0; IIcnzen, Nos. 738, -&c., especially No. 7406; Renier, Insei. do 1'Ahlgrim,'No. 1987. Tlley nmay have been false epithets, but tilejr prove at least the estimriation of virtue. 6. Plin. Ep)ist. vii. 19; ix. 13; Appian, Bell. Civ. iv. 36. Fanni.A twice followed to exile her husband, l1elvidius Priscus, and was biAst:Led a third time after his death. 7. The heroism of Arria is well known. 15* 38-16 TIIE AI'OSTLES. 8. Suet. Aug. 73; Fun. Orat. on Turia, i., line 30 9. Ib. 31. 10. Thle too severe opinion of Paul (Rom. i. 24, &c.) is explicable in the s:n-me way. Paul was not acquiainted switll tile hligler social lift of Rtome. Besides, tihese clerical iuvectives ate not to be takeli litera Illy. 11. Sen. Ep. xii., xxiv., xxvi., lviii., lxx.; De Ira. iii. 15. De Traulq. anim. Io. 12. Apoc. xvii.; Cf. Sen. Ep. xcv. 16, &c. 13. Suet. Aug. 48. 14. The inscriptinrs contain countless examples. 15. Plut. Grrec. Ger. Rtipubl xv. 3-4; An seni sit ger. resp., passim. 16. Jos. Ant. xiv., x. 22. 23; Comp. Tacit. Ann. iv. 55, 56. Rutilius Nuniatiranus Itin. i. 6:3, &c. 17. " Inmmensa roman pacis nmijestas."' Plin. Ifist. Nat. xxvii. 1. 18. Ai7lius Arist. ENlo/e de R'oime, passim; Plut. Fo7rtune des Remains; Plhilo. Leg. ad Cauum, ~ 21, 22, 39, 40. 19. D)ion. Hal. Antiq. Roein. i., comm. 20. I'lut. So00lon. 20. 21. See Athen. xii. 68; 2Alian, T7hr. I-Iist. ix. 12; Suidas, word iE7rtXovpos. 22. Tacit. Ann. i. 2. 23. Study tle chlaracter of EutlSyplhron in Plato. 24. I)iog. Laert. ii. 101., 116: v. 5, 6i, 37, 3;; ix. 52; Athen. xiii. 92; xv. 52; iElilan, VTr. fl/.s/. ii. 2:1; iii. 36t; Plut. Pericles, 32; De'l:ae. Piililos. I., vii. 2; Diod. Sic. XTii., vi 7; Aristoph. in Ayes, 1073. 25. Pairticularly under Vespasian, as in thle case of RTelvidlius Priscus. 26. AVe cshll sihow later thlt tltese pe.rsecutions, at least until that of lDecius, li nve been muhel~,.xagtcralted. 27. Tle etarly Clristians were in fict very rlspectful towarlds Roman autlihority. orn. xiii. i., &e.; r. Peter iv. 14, 16. As to St. Luke, see thle Introductioni to tllis woik. 28. Diog. Laert. vii. 1,.3', 33; JEuseb. Prepar. I\rvang. xv. 15, and in general thle De Legibus and De Oiff iis of Cicero. 29. Terelce, Ileautoi t. I. i. 77, Cic. Dc Filiobus Bill. et M3al., v. 23; Partit. Orat., 16, 24: Ovi(, Fasti, ii. 584; Luician vi. 54. &c.; Sell., Epist. xlviii, xcv 51, &c.; 1)e Ira, i. 5; iii. 4:; Arlian. Dissert. Epict. I. ix. 6; ii. v.'26; Pl1u. t1)rnlan. 2; Alexander, i. 8, 9. 30. V irg. Eclog. iv.; Sen. Medea, 375, &c. 31. Tac. Ann. ii. 85; Suet. Tib 35; Ovid. Fast ii. 497-514. 32. The inscriptions f[r womerne coitain the Inost toiclhinig expressions. "Mater oiiinium hiominurn, iesllis o)liulls sulbvelliems," il Renier, hIlser. de l'Algerie, No. 1987, Coump ibi(l. No. 2756;; Mlomnlsen, liscr. R. N, No. 14311. " l)uobuis virtUtis et castitatiis exemplis." Not. el TIlE APOSTLES. 3-17 Memn. dco la So,. dle (onstantize, 1865, p. 158 See i icription of Urbanilla in Guerin, Voy. Arclleol. in Tulis, i. 289, and a beaulltifitl onl-:, Orelli. No. 46t:8. Somile of tiese texts are subsequlelnt to thile lirst oentury: bl)t tlhe sentimeints they express were- not new whlen they were Nwritten. 33. Table-'Talk I., v. 1; Demosth. 2; the Dialogue on Love, 2; and Consol. ad Uxorern. 34. "Caritas generis humlani." Cic. De Finibus, v. 23. "TIomo sacra res hornini,' Sen. Epist. xev. 3:3. 35. Sen. Epist. xxxi., xlvii.; De Benef., iii. 18, &c. 36. Tac. Ann. xiv. 42. &c.; Suet. Clauld. 25; Dion Cass. 1x. 29; Plin Ep. viii. 16' [lsc!. L:tnuv. col. 2 lilnes, 1-4 (Mcn!nmsen De Coll el Sodul. Rom., ad calcern); Sen. Rhet. Controv. iii. 21; vii. 6; Sen. Plhil. Epit.t xlvii; De Benelt iii., 18, &c, Columella. De re rue ustica, i. 8; Pllit. the Elider, 5; De Ira, 11i 37 Epist. xlvii., 13. 38. Cito. De re r'estica, 58, 59, 1()1: Plut Cato, 4, 5. Compare the severe mai;tilms of Eicclesiasiticlls xx.iii. 25, &c. 39 Tac. Ann. xiv. 60; Dion Cass. xlvii 10: lx. l6; 1xii. 13; lxvi 14. Suet. Caius,.1; Appia, Bell. Civ. iv., firom ch. xvii. (especially ch. xxxvi. &c.), to ch. li Jiiv. vi. 476 &c., describes tile manners of the worst class. 40. IIor. Sat. i. vi. &c.; Cic. Epist. iii. 7; Sen. Rhet. CGatrov. i. 6. 41. Suet. Caius, 1a, it;' Claud 13, 23, 29-; Nero, 16; Dion Cass. lx. 25-29. 42. Tac. Annz vi 17; colmp iv. 6. 43.'Tac. Ann xiii. 5o, 51 1; tt Nero, 13. 44. Epitapll of the jeNreller. Pvliodiis (hominis boni, misericordis, amnatis patlperis). Corp Itcc L t. N~o. 10 7, arid itll.eription of tile age of Aulgu-tus (Ci' Egrel, eein. d'Hisoire et de Phil, p 35o1, Ac.); Perlot, Expl,'ralton, de lta Gc/lait, &c., p 118, 119, nrri)c-,o)s ft(ptAovr-t'; Funeral Oration of Matilda b[ Adria;n (lIenoz. de l'1cad de Berlien br 18i3, p 489); Mommsenne. ISCIn R'l N-api NOSn 143, 2,868, 4880; Sencrla Rhet., Coetrov I i. iiii 19; iv. 27, viii. 6; Sen Piiil. De Ele ii. 5, 6. De Belief. i 1; ii. I1; iv. 14; vii. 31. C;itnpaire Lebllnt Inscr. Chret. de la Gaule, ii. p. 23, &; Orelli, No. 4657, Fea' F,,,nm de Fresti Consol., p. 90.; R. Garrucci, Cillrit,e-a deyli ant. Ebrei, p. 44. 45. Corp. Inscr. Gr.ec, No. 27.a8 46. Ibid. Nos. 2191 b. 2511,-2759 b 47. It must be borne in mind that Corintlh in the Roman epoch was a colony of foreigners, fbrmied upon the site of the ancient city by Cn-sar anrd Augiustus. 48. Lucian, Demonax, 37. 49. Dion Cassius, lxvi. 15. 50. See 2Elius Aristides. Treatise against Comedy, 751, &c., ed. Dindorf..51. It is worthy of note that in several cities of Asia Minor tlhe remains 348 TI E APOSTLES. of the ancient theantes are at this day haunts of debauchery. Co iip Ov. Amor. i. 69, &c. 62. Orelli-lIenzen Nos. 1172, 3362, &c., 6669; Guerin, Voy. en Tlnisie, 11, p. 59; Borgllesi, (uvres Comglmetes, iv. p. 269, &c; E. Desjardins. De tabulis alinentariis ('Paris 1854); Aurelius Victor. Epitome, Nerva; Plin. Epist. i. 8; vii. 18. 53. Inscriptions in Desjardins, op. cit. pars ii. cap. 1. 54. Suet. Aug 41, 46; Dion Cass Ii. 21; lviii. 2. 55. Tac. Ann. ii. 87; vi. 13; xv. Suet. Au.g. 41, 42; Claud. 18. Comp. Dion Cass. lxii. 18' Orelli, No. 3358 &c.; Henzen, 6662, &c.; Forcellini, article Tesseera frumentariia. 56. Odyss. vi. 207. 57. Eurip. Suppl. v. 7"73, &c.; Aristotle Rhetor. II. v. iii. andNicomnchus viii. 1; IX. x. See Stobeus Florilegus xxxvii. cxiii. and in general the fragments of Menander, and the Greek comedians. 58. Aristotle Polit. VI. iii. 4. 5. 59. Cic. Tusce. iv. 7-8; Sen. De Clem. ii. 5. 6. 60. Papyrus at the Louvre, No. 37, col. 1. line 21. Notices et Extraits xviii 2d part, p. 298. 61. V. ante. 62. Apoc. xvii. &c. 63. Virg. Ec. iv. Georg. i. 463, &c.; Horace Od. L ii; Tao. Ann. vi. 12; Suet. Aug. 31. 64. See for examlple De Republ. iii. 22, cited and preserved by Lactantius Instit. div. vi. 8. 65. See the admirable letter, xxxi. to Lucilius. 66. Suet. Ve.p. 18; Dion Cass. t. vi. p. 558 (edit. Sturz); Euseb. Cliron. A I). -9. Plin. Epist. i. 8; Henzen, Sulppl to Orelli, p. 124, No. 1172. 67. Funeral Oration of Turia, i. lines 30-31. 68. See first book of Valeriils Maximus; Julius Obsequens on Prodigies; anld Discours Sacres of _Elius Aristides. 69. Augustus (Suet. Aulg. 90-92) and even C esar, it is said, (but I doubt,) (Plin. Hist Nat. xxviii. iv. 7) did not escape it. 70. Manilius, HIygin. translations from Aratus. 71. Cic Pro Archia, 10. 7 2. Suet. Claud. 25. 73. Jos. Ant. XIX. v. 3 74. Bereschith rabba ch. lxv. fol. 65b; Du Cange, word matricularius. 75. Cic. De Legibus, ii. 8; Vopiscus. Aurelian, 19. q6 Religio sine superstitione, Orat. fun. Turia i. lines 30-31. See Plu. de superstit. 77. See AMelito, Ilepi;XOuEicz, in Spicilegium Syr;acum of Cureto, p. 43, or Sicil. Sole.mense of' dom Pitra, t. ii. p. xli., to get a good idea of The impression mnade by it upon the Jesws and Christians. TIIE.APOSTLES. 3 9 8 Suet. Aug..52; Dion Cass Ii 20; Tac Ann. i. 10; &urlel. Victor Ceas, i. Appian. Bell. Civ. v. 132; Jos. B. J., I. xxi. 2, 3, 4, 7. Nolis, Cenotaphia Pim.xcata, dissert. i. cap. 4; Kllendvaricez Caelnum, in Corpus Insc:. Lat. i. p. 310; Eckllel. Doctrilna NuLn. Vet. pars 2d. vol. vi. p. 100 12-, &c. 9 Tac. Aann. iv. 55-56. Comp. Valer. Maxim-. prol. 80 Ante, p. 193, &c. 81 Corinth. the only Grecian town which was considerably Christianized during the lirst ceintury, was no longer at this period a Hellenic city. 82. lIeracl. Corn. Colnp. Cic. I)e Nat. Deorulm, iii. 23, 25, 60, 62, 64. 83. Plut. Consol ad ux. 10; De serta,uinieis vinldicla, 22; TI-euzey. Jlissionde Jacedolne, p 18 Rvue Areooique Apiil. 1864, p. 8 e ie. Ail 86, p. 282. 84. Lucret, i. 63, &c.; Sallust. Catil. 52; Cic. De Nat. Deorurn. ii 24, 28. De Diwvnat. ii. 33 35. 57; De Ditzupicoruzz R esJ)onesis, passin; Tuscul. i. 16; Juvenal, St. ii. 149, 152; Se. En pist. xxiv. li. 85. Sua cuique civitati religio est, nostra nobis. Cic. Pro Flacco, 28. 86. Cic. De itl. Deocrum, i. 30. 42; De Divinat. ii.. 12, 33,:.5, 72. De Hl:arusp. Resp. 6. etc.; Liv. i. 19, Q~uilit Cult. iv. 10. Pllt De )lnc. phil. I. vii. 2; Diod. Sic. I. ii. 2. V ao. in Aur. De civil. Dci, iv. 31. 32; vi. 6. Dion Halic. ii. 20. viii. 5 Valer. Maxim. I. ii. 87 Cic. De Divinat. ii. 15; Juvenal, ii. 149, &c. 88. Tac. Ann xi. 15. Plin. Epist. x. 97. sub fin. Serapin in Plut. De Pythice Oracui;s. Comp. )e EI aped Delphos, init. See also Valer. Maxin I., paesim. 89. Juv. Sat. vi. 489, 527, &c. Tac. Ann. xi. 15. Comp. Lucian Cunv. Deorun; Tertull. Apoeog. 6. 90. Jos. Ant. xviii iii. 4; Tac. Ann. ii. 85; Le Bas, Inscr. part v. No. 395. 91. Plut. De Pythl orac. 25. 92. See Lucian, Ailecarder seu pseudoma2tis and De meorte Peregrini. 93. Sen. Epist. xii. xxiv. 1xv. Iiiscr. Lanuv. 2d col. lines 5-6; Orelli, 4404. 94. I)ion Cass. lxvi. 13; lxvii. 13; Suet Domnit. 10. Tac. Agricola. 2.45; Pllin Epiist. II1. ii; Philostr. Vit. Apollon. I. vii. passim. Euseb. C/hron. A.D. 90. 95. I:ion Cass lxii. 29. 96. Arrian,.Dissert. de Epictet. I. ii. 21. 97. Ibid. I. xxv. 22. CEHAPTER XVIII. i. Val. Max., I. iii; Liv. XXXIX. 8-18; Cic., De Leqibus, II. 8; Dion Italic., II. 20; Dion Cass., XL. 47; XLIi. 216; Tertull., Apol. 6; Adu. nationes, I. 10 350 THE APOSTLES. 2. Propert., IV. u. 17; Lucian. VIII. 831; Dion Cass., XLVII. 15 Arnob ii. 78. 3. Val. Maxim. I. iii. 3. 4. Dion Cuass. XLVII. 15 5. Jos., XL.V. x. Comp. Cic., Pro Flacco, 28. 6. Suet., Aug., 31, 93; Dion Cass., lii. 36. 7. Suet., Azug., 93. 8. Dion Cass., LVI. 6. 9. Jos. Ant. XVI. vi. 10. Ibid. XVI. vi. 2. 11. Dion Cass., LII. 36. 12. Jos., B. J., V. xiii. 6. Comnp. Suet, Aug, 93. 13. Suet. Tib., 36; Tac., Ann., ii, 8.5; Jos., Ant. XVII, iii, 4, 5; Philo., In Flatccuir, 4; Le(, al CGlin!m, ~ 24; Sen. Epist. cviii. 22. The asseri ()ll of Tcl tllli:an (Ap,,. 5), repeated by other ecclesiastical wvit'lrs, lhat Tiberius Irltd Itrt'red tile inltention of placing Jesus Christ on tlhe list of g(rods, is lnot worth discussioln. 14. Dion Cass., Ix. 6. 15. Tacit. Altn., xi. 15. t16. Dion Cass., Ix. 6; Suet., Claud. 25; Acts xviii. 2. 17. Dioti Cass., ix. 6. 18. Jos. Atit., XIX. v. 2; XX. vi. 3; B. J. II. xii. 7. 19. Suet. Nero 56;. 2). Tac. A il. xv. 4i; Siuet. Nero. 16. This will be developed hlereafter..21. Tac. Atnn. xiii. 3 2. 22 Conp Dion Cass. Domit. sub fitn; Suet. Domit. 15 This listinction is frrnl:tl]y J llade in the digest, I. xlvii., tit. xxii., de Coll. et Corp. i. 3. 23. Cic. Pro( Flacco, 28. 2:t This distiictionr is indicated in tile Act. xvi 20, 21; Cf. xviii. 13. 25. Cic. Pro Fitcco, 28; Juv. xiv.,00 &c; Tac. Hist. v, 4, 5: Plin. Epist. x, 97; Dion Cas.s. L. ii. 36. 26. Jos. B. J. VlI. v. 2. 27. AEliuis Arist. Pro Ser.pirde, 53. Jul. Orat iv., p. 136, of Spatldteim's Ed, and t}le scilptllres copied by Leblint in the Bull. de la Soce des A nt. (le Fr, 1859), pi. 19 -1I3. 28. Tac. Ann. ii. 85; Sulet. Tib. 37; Tos. Anlt. XVIII. iii. 4-5; letter of Adrilan in V(olisc. Vit. Saturn, 8. 29 Ditit Cass. xxxvii. 17. 30. See tlhe inscriptiots collected in the Rev. Arcldhol. Nov. 1864, 391, &c; Dee, 1SG 1, p. 4(60, &c; Jillle, 1865, t). 451-452', alid p. 497, &Q..; Sept, 185., p 214, &c.:; Apr., 1866;; Ross. Iscr. O nce. med. ulse.. ii.. N. _82. 2 9 1, 2t:)2; Halitilton, lResearclhes in Asia Mitior Vol. ii., \o. 301. Carp. Ilsert. Grtec. Nos. 120, 126, 2525 b. 2562; TEI A1'OST'LES., 351 Rllnla-t le, Antiq -!i lern No 811. IIenzen, No (6082; Yirg. Eel v., 30). Cimp lIl' i.iciitioll Laex..art.otT7rO. Fiestlls art. Tliiitstas. Diogest XLVII, xxii., de Coll. et Corp. 4; Plin. Epist. x, 3, 93, 94. 31. Aristot. Mot. Niconm-. VIII., ix., 5. Plut. Quest. GCrei. 4-1. 32 Wescllher, Archives des niissions scientif. 2d series, v., i, p. 4:)2, and Rev. Arch., Sept., 1865, p. 221, 222. Cf: Alistot. (Ecolnom. ii. 3. Strab. ix., i., 15. Corp. inser. gr, No. 2271, lines 13-14. 33. Xrlporoi. 34. K,;oa,. The eccles.iastical etymology of AXo s is different, and implies an allusioii to lie positioil of the tribe of Levi in Isnr;el. B it it is not illlpossil)le tlat tile wlord was priiiiari!yv dciived frorn tile Greek co,nlfraterlltiies (et' Act i. 25, 6G; I. Petri, v. 3. Clemli Alex. in Eu.ieb It. E. iii. 23). Ai. Wescier iilds among the digitii'aries of tllese s,)cieti,.s:n;i-r,, (Revie Arch., April, 1-;66. See aiite, p. 86;. Tle;issemllly wasi also ca;lled vl,,g-,,I (Rlevllte Archl, Se)t., 1865, p. 21t;;'oillox 1V. viii, i4:. 35. Corp. inscr.Gr. No. 126. Conp. Rev. A.rclh. Sept. 1865, p. 216. 36. Wescher in Revue Archlcol. D 1364, p. 4S60, &c. 37. See anteo, p. 338, note 2. 38. The Greek confraternities were not entirely exempt. Inscr. in Re. vue Arclleol., Dec. 1861-, p. 462, &e. 39. Di,,est XLVII. xxii. de Coll. et Corp. 4. 40. Liv. XXIX. 10, &c. Orell. and Heuzen, Ilscr. Lat. c. v. ~ 21. 41. Dion. Cass. lii. 36; Ix. 6. 42. Liv. XXXIX. 8-18. Comp. decree in Corp. Inscer. Lat. I. p. 43-44. Cf. Cic. Do Legibus ii. 8. 43. CiO. Pro Sext. 25; In Pis. 4; Aseonius, in Cornelianam 75 (edit. Orelli); IJ. Pison. p. 7-8;'Dio:. Cass. XXXVi[I. 13, 14; Digest. III. iv. Quod cujusc. 1; XLVII. xxii. do Coil. et. Corp. passim. 44. Suet. DoIuit. 1; Dion. Cass. XLVIT. 15; LX. 6, LXVL. 24; passages of Tertullian and Arnobius bhobre cited. 45. Suet. Cass. 42; Aug. 32; Jos. Ant. XV. Tx. 8; Dion. Cass. II. 36. 46. "Kaput ex. S. C. P. K. Qiuibun co'.r, coluvenirt, collegiulnmqn habare liceat. Qili stipemn menstruam confofrre volet in funlera, ii. ill collegium cooant, neque sub specie ejIs co!lieinisi seoel in mense vocanlt conforendi c.:sa ilnde cldftUeti sci olialntur." llnser. Lanuuv. 1st col. lines 10-13 ill Monllmseen, De collegiis et sodlalitiis Roeianorum (Kilim, 184:3), p. 81-82 aon:t ad cle om. Cf. Digest. XLVII. xxii. de Coll. et. Corp. i; Tert.ll. Apol. 39. 47. Inscr. Lanuv. 2d col. lines 3, 7; Digest. XLVII. xxii. de Coll. et Corp. 3. 48. Dig'est. XLVII. xi. de Extr. crim. 2. 49. Ibid. XLVII. xxii. de Coell. et. Corp. I and 3. 50. lleiuzey, Mission de Macedoinm, p. 71, &c.; Orelli, Inscr. No. 4093 51. Oreiii, 2409; IIelchior et P. Visconti, Sillocge d'iscrizioni antiche, p. 6. 52. See article relative to colleges of Esculapius and I-ygiens, of Jupiter 3.52 THEl APOSTLE,. Corrlinus, and of Dian and Antinous, in MIommsen, op. -,it. p. 93 &c. Comp. Orelli, Inscr. Lat. Nos. 1710, &c., 2394, 2395, 2413, 4075, 1079, 4107, 4207, 4938, 5044; Mornnmsen, op. cit. p. 96, 113, 114; de Rossi, Bulletin di Archeol. Cristiana, 2d year, No. 8. 53. Inscr. Lanuv., 1.st col., lines 6-7; Orelli. 2270; de Rossi, Bullett. di archeol. crist. 2d year, No. 8. 54. Inscr. Lanuv., 2d col., lines 11-13; Orelli, 4420, 65. Inser. Lanuv., 1st col. lines 3, 9, 21; 2d col. lines 7-17; MAommsen, Inlscr. regni Neap. 2559; Marini. Atti. p. 598; MBuratori, 491, 7; Mommsen. De coil. et sod. p. 109, &c. 113, Comy. I. Cor. xi, 20, &c. The president of the Christian Churches was called by the pagans OtuLrlipqrcs. Lucien, Peregrinus, II. 56. Inser. Lanuv. 2d col. line 7. 57. Inser. Lanuv. 2d col. lines 24-25. 58. Ibid. 2d col. lines 26-29. Cf. Corpus Inscr. Gr. No. 126. 59. Orelli, Inscr. Lat Nos. 2399, 2400, 24:05, 4093, 4103. Mlommsen, De Cell. et Sod; Rom. p. 97; IIeuzey u. s. Compare at this day the little cemeteries of the societies at Rome. 60. IIor. Sat. I. viii. 8. 61. Funeraticium. 62. Inscr. Lanuv. 1st col., lines 24, 25, 32. 63. lb. 2d col. lines 3, 5. 64. Cie. De Offic. 1, 17. Schol. Bibb. ad Cic. Pro Archia, x. 1. Comp. Plut. De frat. amore. 7; Digest XLVII. xxii. de Coll. et Corp. 4. In a Roman inscription the founder of a sepulchre provides that only those of his own faith shall be buried there, ad religionemn per. tiletes mea zm (do Rossi, Bull. di Archcol. Crist. 53d year No. 7, p. 64. 65. Tertull. Ad Scap. 3; de Rossi, op. ctt. 3d year, No. 12. 6G. St. Justin, A:pol. 1, 67; TeIrtil. Alpollog. 39. 67. Ulpi. Frarm. xxii. 6. Di-est III iv. Quod cujuse. 1; XLVI. 1, de Fid; et Maod 22. XLVII. ii. de 4Ftltis,:41' XLV1I. xxii. de Coll. et Corp. 1, 3; Gruter. 322,:, 4; 424. 12' O'elli. 4080: Mlariti, Atti. p. 95. Muratori, 516, 1; Miere. de la Soc. des Antiq. de Fr. XX. p. 78. 68. Dig. XLVII. xxii. de Coll. et ('orp. passim Inser. Lanuv. 1st col. lines 10-13; Marini. Atti. p. 552; -M aratoni 520, 3; Orelli 407.5, 4115, 1567. 2797. 8140, 3913; Hleuzen 6633, 6745; Molnomsen op. cit p. 80, etc. 69. Digest XLVI[. xi de Extr. crim. 2. 79. Ibid. XLVII. xxii. de Coll. et Corp. 2; XLVIIl. iv,. ad Leg. Jul. ma. jest. 1. 71. Dion Cass. LX. 6. Comp. Suet. Nero 16. 72. See administrative correspondence of Pliny and Trajan. Plin. Epist. X. 43, 93, 94, 97, 98. 73. "Permittitur tenuioribus stipem menstriam conferre, dum tamen semnel in rnense coceott, ne sub prtetextu la.ujatsmodi illicitum collegiumr TTHE APOSTLr:S. 353 cocant (Di,. XLVII. xxii. de Coll. et Corp). 1)." " Servos quoque licet in collegio tenuiorum recipi volerntibus dominis (ibid. 3)." Cf. Plin. Ppist. X. 94; Tertull. Apol. 39.'4. Digest I. xii. de Off prlf., urbi, 1. ~ 14 (Cf. AMormmsen op. cit p. 1'27); II.i v. Quod cujusc. I; XLVIL. xx. de Coll. et Corp 3. The excellent Marcus Aurelius extended as ftar as possible the right cf associa tion. Dig. XXXIV. v. de Rebus dubiis, 2'; XL. iii. de Manumis. sionibus, 1; XLVII. xxii. de Coll. et Corp. 1. CHAPTER XIX. 1. See de Rossi. Bolil. di Arch. Crist 3d~ year, Nos 3, 5, 6, 12, Eg. Pomponia -riecina (Tac. Ann. xiii. 32) urlder Nero as already clmuracteristic; but it is not certain that sl-e was a Clhristiall. 2. See de Rossi, RPum Soiteranea I. p. 809; and pl. xxi. No. 1 2 and thle epigrapllic collaltions of Leon Renier, Coilptes Renld. doe l'Acad des Ilu ser. et B. L 1865, p. 289, etc., and of Crenly, Rev. Arcl. Janl. 1bG6, p. 63-64. Comnp. de Rossi, Blull. 3d year, No. 10, p. 77-79. 3. I. Cor. i. 26. etc.; Jac. ii. 5, etc. 4. Aoe r!',S 0 i c. See relation of martyrdom of Polycarp. Q 3, 9, 12. Ruinart. Acta sincera, p.'31, etc. 5. Ebionimn. See Vie de Jesus. Jac. ii. 5, etc. Comp. r-%Xoi r7 rteo art, lMattlh. v. 3. 6. See ante. 7. Tuac. Ann. XV. 44, Plin. Epist. X. 97; Suet. Nero 16; Donmit. 15a Plhilopatris, passiin. Rutil. Numat. 1. 389, etc.; 440t, etc. 8. Jollti xv. 17, etc.; xvi. 8, etc., 33; xvli. 1.5, etc. 9. James i. 27. 10. I allude to tile essenrtial and primitive teiidencies of Chrllistinity, not to the transtbform Clristiallity now preatcled, especially that of tlhe Jesuits. 11. See history of tlhe origin of Babism by M. de Gobineau. Les Relig. et les Philos. dans l'Asie Ceetrole (Paris, 1;65)), p. 141, etc.; alld by Mirza Kazeil-heg ill tie Jourrdl A.siatzfqe (in press) I myself have received illforiInati(ni fioin two iifiivid(alls at Clsvtatlutiaople, whlo were personally mnixed in thle affrairs of Babism, whicil conlirms thle narration of t!lese two sevilts. 12. M. de Gobineau. p. 301, etc. 13. Another &dtail wlhichl I llnve fiom oriegilal sources is as foillows: Several of' tlhe sectar:ies. to compel tliemn to retrIact, were tied to thle moiitlls of calmon, witll a liaolgtel slow-ml-atcll attacliled. 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I 50 DEAFNESS.-Dr. E. 13. Lighthill... x oo00 WICKEDEST WOMAN in New York..25 cts A 00OOK ABOUT LAWERS.......... 2 00 SANDWICHES.-By Artemus Ward.25 cts A BOOK ABOUT DOCTORS......... 200 REGINA.-Poems by Eliza Cruger.. I 50 SQUIBOB PAPERS.-John Phoenix.. 1 50 WVIDOW S'PRIGGINS.-Widow Bedott x 75 Mlviscellaneous Novels. A CHARMING WIDOW.-AMacquoid..$I 75 ROBERT GREATHOUSE. —J. F. Swift $2 00 TRUE TO HIJM EVER.-By F.. W. R. 50 FAUSTINA. —Fromr the German.... I 50 T'}E I;ORGIVING KISS.-By M. Loth. I 75 MAURICE.-From the French.... I 50 LOYAL UNTO DEATH.........;.... I 75 GUSTAV ADOLF. —lFrom the Swedish I 5c BESSIR WILMERTON.-Westcott.... I 75 ADRIFT WITH A VENGEANCE....... I 5e PURPLE AND FINE LINEN.-Fawcett. I 75 I'll BROADWAY.-By Eleanor Kirk. I 50 EDMUND DAWN.-By Ravenswood. I 50 MONTALBAN..................... I 75 CACHET.-MArs. M. J. R. Hamilton, I 75 LIFE AND DEATH................. I 50 MARK GILDERSLE VE:.-J. S.Satlzade I 75 CLAUDE GUEUX.-By Victor HIltgo. 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(paper covers).. x oo \ = __ CHARLES DICKENS' WORKS. A New Edition. Among the numeraus editions of the works of this greatest of Fng. lish Novelists, there has not been until now one that entirely satisfies the public denmand.... Without exception, they each have some strong distinctive objection,... either the shape and dimensions of the volumes are unhandy-or, the type is smrll and indistinct- or, the paper is thin and poor-or, the illustrations [if they have any] are unsatisfactory-or, the binding is bad-or, the price is too high. A new edition is now, however, Pnblished by G. W. Carleton & Co. of New Vork, which, it is believed, will, in every respect, completely satisfy the popular demand.... It is known as "Carleton's Newv Illustrated Edition.' The size and form is most convenient for holding,.. the type is entirely new, and of a clear and open character that has received the approval of the reading community in other popular works. The illustrations are by the original artists chosen by Charles Dickens himself... and the paper, printing, and binding are of the most attractive and substantial character. The publication of this beautiful new edition was commenced in April, x873, and will be completed in 20 volumes-one novel each month-at the extremely reasonable price of $I.5O per volume, as follows: I-THE PICKWICK PAPERS. I I-MARTIN CHUZZLEWIT. 2-OLIVER TWIST. 12 —OUR MUTUAL FRIEND. 3-DAVID COPPERFIELD. I3-TALE OF TWO CITIES. 4-GREAT EXPECTATIONS. I4-CHRISTMAS BOOKS. 5-DOMBEY AND SON. I5-SKETCHES BY "BOZ." 6-BARNABY RUDGE. I6-IARI)'rlMES, ETC. 7-NICHOLAS NICKLEBY I7 —PICTURES OF ITALY, ETC. 8-OLD CURIOSITY SHOP. I1 —UNCOMVIMERCIAL TRAVELLER, 9-BLEAK HOUSE. I9-ED)WI[ DROOD, ETC. IO —LITTLE DORRIT. 20-ENGLAND and CATALOGUE. Being issued, month by month, at so reasonable a price, those who begin by subscribing for this work, will imperceptibly soon find them. selves fortunate )wners of an entire set of this best edition if Dickens' Works, almost ithout having paid for it. A Prospectus.furnishing specimen of type, sized-page, and illustra. Lions, will be sent to any onefree on application-and specimen copies of the bound books will be forwarded by mail, postage frtee, on receipt Of price, $1.50, by G. W. CARLETON & CO., Publishers, Madison Square, New York. THREE VALUAaLE BOOKS, All Beauifull!v Printed and Elegantly Bound. 1.L-The Art of Conversation, With Directins for Self-Culture. An admirably conceived and entertariwng work-sensible, instriuctive,: and full of suggestions valuable to every one who desires to be either a good talker or listener, or who wihe's to appear to advantage in good society. Every young and even old person should read it, study it over and over again, and follow those hints in' it which lead them to break up bad habits and cultivate good ones. *** Price $1.50. Among the contents will be found cha pters upon — ATTENTiON IN CONVERStATION.-SAT - FI8HsNE.-AuRGMENT.-SACRIFICE IRE. PUNS.-SARcASM. — TEASING.- -SILENT PEOPLE. —DINNER CaNC ENSURE. - FAULT-FiNDING.- EGOT- VERSA&TION.-TIMIDITY.-IT8 CURE.ISM.-I'OLITENESS.-C(OMPLIMENTS.- MODESTY.-CORRECT LANGUAGE.SToniEs: -ANECDOTES.-Q UESTIONING. SELF- I NSTRUTION. —MISCELNEOU -] iIBERTIES. —-IMPUDENOE. -- STARING. KNOWLEDGE.-LANGUAGE6. -DISAGREEABLE SUBJECTS. - SELIL.-The Hlabits of Good Society.A Handbook for Ladies and Gentlemen. With thoughts, hints, and anecdotes concerning social observiances, nice, points of taste and good hnanneis, and the ait of makiitg oneself agreeable. The whole interspersed w itl humorous illiis tratiomn of social predicaments, remarks on fashion, etc. *$*Price $1.75. Among the contents will be found chapters upon — GENT;LEMEN'S PREFACE. LADIES AT DINNER. LADIES' PREFACE.-FASHIONS. DINNER HABITS.-CARVING. THOUGHTS ON SOCIETY. MANNERS AT SUPPER.-BALLS GOOD SOCIETY.-BAD SOCIETY. MORINING PARTIES.-PICNICS. THE DRESSING-ROOfm.. EVENING PARTIES.-DANCES. THE LADIES' TOILET. —DnESs. PRIVATE THEATRICALS. FEMININE ACCOMPLISHMENTS. REOEPTIONS.-ENGAGEMENTS. MANNERS AND HABITS. MARRIAGE CEREMONIES; PUBLIC AND PRIVATE ETIQUETTE. INVITATIONS.-DR)ESSES. MARRIED AND UNMARRIED LADIES. BRIDESMAIDS. -PRESENTS. D)O DO GENTLEMEN. TRAVELLING ETIQUETTE. C(ALLING ETiQUETTE. -CARDS. PUBLIC PROMENADE. VISITING ETIQUETTE.-DINRERS.: COUNTRY VISIT8.-CITY VISITS. DINNER PARTIES. il.-Arts' of Writing, Reading, and Speaking. An exceedingly fascinating work for teaching not only the beginner, but for perfecting every one in these three most desirable accomplishments. For youth this boo:-'s both interesting and valuable; and for adults, whether professionally or socially. it is a book that they cannot dispense with. *** Price $1.50. Am.ng the content;; will be found chapters uponREADING & THINKING.-LANGUAGE.- SAY.-WHAT NOT TO SAY.-HOW TO WORDS~, SEN-E.NCES, & CONSTRUCTION. BEGIN.- CAUTIONS.-DELIVERY. -WRIT WVHAT TO AVCID.-LETTER WRITING.- ING A SPEECH.-FIRST LESSONS. —FUB PRONU1NCIATION.-EXPREESSION. —TONE LIC SPE:AKING.-DELIVERY.- ACTION. RE.LIGIOUS READINGS.-THE BIBLE.- ORATORY OF THE PULPIT. —COMPOSI PRAYERS.-DRAMATIC READINGS.-THE TION.-THIE BAR.-READING OF VW1T & ACTOR & READ)ER.-FOUNDATIONS FOR HUMOR.-THE PLATFORHM.-(CONSTERUCGRATOR'K ANI SPEAKING.-WHAT TO TION OF A SPEECH.''hese works xre thet most perfect of their kintd ever published. fresh, ser.sibld pood-;ttzmorea enteltanittig, aitd reabdable.. Every person of taste saould po&use then; aind caniiot be otherwise than delighted with them. g' A beautiful new minature edition of these very popular books has just bes:n ublished, entitled "THE DIAMCND EDITION," three little volumies, elegantly printed on tinted paper, and handsomely bound in a box. Price $3.00. *T*'These books are all sent by mail, postcagefree, on receipt of price, by G. W. QARLETON - CO., Fiublishers, Madison Square, ew York.